Criticisms

What Comic Books to Read (DC)

2010-09-24T07:43:00.000-07:00

Here is the DC edition of my post regarding what comic books to read. To start off, some of the specific reasons to read DC:

First, DC is full of established characters. No, I'm not going to say that the characters in the other comic book company (Marvel) are not established but DC's characters are more established. Little has changed for Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman. If there has been any, it does not show. Fans from the past can easily relate to what's in our present now. What I'm driving at is there's not much catching up to do especially in the aspect of jumping in to the universe of the top characters in DC. For me, this is one reason why there are (still) a lot of DC Comics fans.

Second, DC uses fictional cities. While there's a wonder towards using real cities, there is also a creative strategy towards using fictional cities. For one, the reader doesn't have to get worried that such a city like Gotham really exists. The DC cities can be as violent or as peaceful as they want to be. It's up to the story writer.

Third, DC has this manner of explaining everything just because it needs to be explained. Hal Jordan's hair becoming gray? There's an explanation to that. How did the Justice League of America beat the crap out of a newly formed team of super-villains? There's a complete description of how it happened. This is not X-Files where you are left hanging. Somehow, the editors of DC must insist that explanations must be given regarding "trivial" matters. If this is your thing, DC will provide it for you.

Probably the last reason to put here is the Elseworlds universe of DC. I don't know if they're still using the Elseworlds wording but I do know that the universes being used in Elseworlds are in the 52 remaining parallel universes. DC explained (again with the explanation) it in the 52 series.

What to read in DC? I'm reading only a few right now. I want to get on started with Brightest Day, Vol. 1 but I still have to read up on Blackest Night. With that said, I start off with:

1. Green Lantern

If Marvel has Deadpool as a superhero with a cult following, DC has Green Lantern. Hal Jordan has just recently returned as Green Lantern. There are now 4 Earth humans wearing the Green Lantern ring. The best way to start reading on GL is to go with Green Lantern: Rebirth. After that, you can work your way to Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War, Vol. 1 and Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War, Vol. 2. Slowly but surely, there's Green Lantern: Rage of the Red Lanterns, Green Lantern Corps: Sins of the Star Sapphire, Green Lantern: Agent Orange, until you get into Blackest Night. You might have noticed that there's a certain pattern as to color and yes, there are other colored rings in the DC universe. It's fun to read and as I said previously, DC loves to explain things and it's all explained well. Credit goes to Geoff Johns for getting deep into GL lore.

2. Batman and Robin

No, it's not the movie with the same title. That Joel Schumacher disaster is way lamer than the comic book. In Batman and Robin, Vol. 1: Batman Reborn, the new Batman (Dick Grayson) teams up with Bruce Wayne's son, who dons the mantle of Robin (the 4th Robin, if you didn't know). They are not very good friends actually. Robin wants to kill Batman and Batman would be happy to just be rid of Robin. Their adventure is different from the usual Batman stories as Grayson tries to deal with the realization that he is now Batman.

I would want to read the other Batman titles but considering how I got lost over the numbering, I decided to just pick up on a new title. See the death of Batman in Final Crisis. Go over what's happening after his death with Batman R.I.P. and Batman: Battle for the Cowl. And if you're not over exhausted over his death, read the Return of Bruce Wayne. And yes, everything would be explained.

For the record, Batman is my second favorite character. And why not? Here is a character who shouldn't be considered a superhero because he's only human. He does have a great mind and it's because of his great mind that his limited series comic books are always a good read. More on that later.

3. Flash

I think I'm stuck to only 3 DC titles. Flash is the last. Just like Green Lantern, Flash has undergone sort of a rebirth as the original, Barry Allen, has returned to don the mantle. Speedsters are always fun to read and it's unfortunate that Marvel has never had a cool speedster aside from Quicksilver (Pietro Maximoff). Flash is currently just starting out so you can just easily pick it up.

Just like what I did with Marvel, I'll put in some titles that are good reads (just in case you don't want to get into the whole universe thing).

1. Batman books (limited series)

There are quite a lot. Where to start? Batman: The Long Halloween is a great work by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. Then, there's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller. Batman: Hush showcases art by Jim Lee. The list goes on and on.

2. Identity Crisis

I was blown away by the story of Identity Crisis (DC Comics). It's got one of the best stories that I've read from DC. And ever since I encountered the name Brad Meltzer, I've been keeping up with the novels that he's written.

I think these would be the books that I'd recommend out of recent memory. I'd like to include Watchmen and Kingdom Come but I think I'd include it in another post.

What comic books to read (Marvel)

2010-09-23T07:14:00.000-07:00

As an avid comic book reader, here is my take on the industry and my personal opinion on certain titles. This post is a focus on a newbie's quest to start reading. Here, I start off with Marvel Comics.

There are several reasons to read titles in Marvel Comics. One is continuity. Though all comic book characters eventually die in a major storyline move, they still end up alive in more ways than one. Heck, this is comics so it really doesn't matter if they die now (in the long run, they'll be alive sooner or later). But lately, some characters in the Marvel universe have ended up staying dead. Several examples would be Jean Grey of the X-Men (she's been through it a lot of times actually), Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat), and the minor characters who perished during the Civil War storyline. In comparison to DC Comics, Marvel does not go into reset mode as commonly as DC. The Marvel Comics reader would expect that what happens in a major storyline now is expected to have consequences in the future. Several examples: House of M which led to mutants number being decimated to 198 (and counting down). Another example would be Civil War, which led to Iron Man taking over SHIELD. While being the SHIELD leader, the Hulk declared war on all heroes in World War Hulk. The next big event came with Secret Invasion when the Skrulls secretly invaded Earth by portraying several heroes (also gave Marvel a good reason to reincarnate several dead heroes from the past). Secret Invasion made Norman Osborn the hero and he replaced Tony Stark/Iron Man as the head police and renamed SHIELD to HAMMER which led to Dark Reign (most of his (mis)adventures can be read in Dark Avengers, Vol. 1: Assemble). In Dark Avengers: Siege, we see the fall of Norman Osborn and the good guys are once more at the helm. All the storylines mentioned show the continuity of the stories in Marvel. From Civil War down to Siege, they are all somehow connected.

Another reason to read Marvel is the well organized structure of its universe. To wit, one can choose among the categories:

1. Mutants (any title dealing with the mutants)

2. Avengers

3. Space guys (Guardians of the Galaxy, etc.)

4. The other teams (Fantastic Four)

5. The other solo guys

6. Ultimates line

7. Max storyline

Team-up titles are almost non-existent now. Although there are team titles, there is nothing like DC's Superman/Batman nor Trinity (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman). Frankly, there should be a limit towards over-exposure in the comic book universe.

Third reason to read Marvel would be how they incorporate current issues and trends to their stories. Unlike in DC in which each hero's city is a fictional location, the Marvel characters use actual cities as their base of operations. Case in point, Spider-man, the X-Men, and X-Factor. Want to get a feel of New York City? Just read Spider-man as he swings around the skyscrapers. Need to get a little bit of sunny California? Check out the X-Men. As for X-Factor, they recently relocated to Detroit but are currently having a "vacation" in Las Vegas as of this writing.

Both companies are using the same trend of treating each comic book title as its own. (they seldom overlap the stories unless there's a big event). The good thing about Marvel is that they have streamlined their solo hero titles. Spider-man has gone back to the Amazing Spider-man title and Marvel has placed its focus on it. Wolverine is appearing on X-Men books as well as Avengers while he has 2 on-going titles as of the moment (Sidenote: Wolverine even made a comment that being present in both the X-Men and the Avengers is one of his powers). Deadpool is currently overexposed but since he does not appear in any team book, he can have any (mis)adventure wherever he wants to.

One thing of note with the Marvel universe is that its characters should not be confused with the characters in the movies. The movies should be treated separately as since the hardcore comic book fan will always disagree over what's happening in the movies. Chalk one up to Hollywood for always insisting on having a different script or storyline.

For those who want to dive into the Marvel universe, these are probably the titles that I would recommend:

1. Amazing Spider-man

Where to start? Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Vol. 1 (v. 1) is probably a good place to start and gradually work towards the current issues. Spider-man has never been more fun. Peter Parker is back to being a single guy. He's jobless. He's making ends meet trying to live in New York. He's back to what he was when he was in high school and down on his luck. Aunt May is back though but she just got married to J. Jonah Jameson's father (yup, JJJ and Parker are now stepbrothers). And probably one of the best kickers, JJ is the mayor of New York City and has devoted quite a lot to ridding the city of Spider-man.

After Civil War, Parker and Mary Jane Watson had to run for their lives since Spider-man's secret identity was revealed. Brand New Day erased all that and more.

By far, I can say that this is one comic book title that I'd say is fun to read.

2. Deadpool

This is a fun title to read. I call it a semi-team book because he speaks to at least two other voices in his head. This aspect of Deadpool makes it all the more funny.

Start off with Deadpool, Vol. 1: Secret Invasion (v. 1) then work towards the current issues. Guaranteed all fun and considerably light reading.

But I do suggest to not overdo on reading Deadpool. I've gone through Deadpool: Suicide Kings and Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth. They're all fun to read. I'm still reading Deadpool Team-up. When Deadpool Corps came out, I just had to say enough is enough.

3. Agents of Atlas

If there's a team that is not the usual superhero-oriented team like the Avengers, X-Men, or Fantastic Four, it's the Agent of Atlas. The team is composed of hard hitters like a gorilla man and Namora, and their aces in the sleeve are a sensually tempting diva named Venus and an old school robot named M-11. Oh, and they have a telepathic alien in Marvel Boy, who is from Uranus (yes, he gets to be a butt of the "your anus" jokes too). What makes Agents of Atlas fun is that they don't answer to any higher power, even to a powerful dragon. They're a semi-black ops team who can kick any other team's butts with their lineup.

Start with any of the Agents of Atlas storyline. The current on-going series is entitled simply as Atlas.

4. X-Factor

This is probably the most improbable X book to read. X-Factor is always underestimated as just a ragtag team of mutants (and non-mutants) but it is so well written by master scribe Peter David. X-Factor brings together Multiple Man (now usually referred to as just Madrox), Siryn, Monet St. Clair (of Generation X fame), Strong Guy Guido, the de-powered Rictor, the always evolving Darwin, the know-it-all Layla Miller, and recent inclusions to the team: the always lucky Longshot and the suddenly queer Shatterstar. X-Factor's current numbering is weird but just start somewhere. Peter David is so worth it.

5. Wolverine

The last ongoing book that I would recommend is my all-time favorite character from Marvel. This countdown wouldn't be complete without his inclusion. I've been reading his ongoing title since Wolverine #90 when he got the adamantium removed from his bones. I waited patiently as Larry Hama weaved the story around up to the #100 when some bad guys attempted to get the adamantium back into his body. Wolverine became more feral after that issue. I haven't known how he got his adamantium back but I caught up with him once more somewhere along the way. So, where to start with him? Of course, knowledge on Wolverine wouldn't be sufficient without reading Wolverine: Origin. Get a copy of the limited series. Then jump into Wolverine: Weapon X, Vol. 1: The Adamantium Men or Wolverine: Weapon X, Vol. 2: Insane in the Brain. The stories are all good from master storyteller Jason Aaron. Also, the ongoing series with the title Wolverine is getting a sort of a reboot as he journeys into hell in spirit (his body is still on Earth). It should be fun to see how they'll get him to battle demons in hell.

If you're looking to just read around the Marvel universe without getting into the ongoing titles, I suggest several good books that are sure to pique an interest in the geek in you.

First off, Dark Avengers, Vol. 1: Assemble. Brian Michael Bendis does a great job a la Thunderbolts with this bad guy version of the Avengers. The story: Norman Osborn has just taken over SHIELD and renamed it as HAMMER. He dons Tony Stark's Suits and becomes this Avengers' version of Iron Man. To round up the team, he calls on Bullseye to be Hawkeye, Venom to be Spider-man, Daken (Wolverine's son) to be Wolverine, etc. They are a dysfunctional group that tries to be functional. There is a very good reason why this has been one of Marvel's best books during its time but you just have to read it to believe it.

Still staying with the Avengers theme, make sure to grab The Ultimates Vol. 1: Super-Human and The Ultimates Vol. 2: Homeland Security plus The Ultimates 2, Vol. 1: Gods and Monsters and The Ultimates 2, Vol. 2: Grand Theft America (v. 2). These are all great reads from Mark Millar. Nick Fury is African-American and looks like Samuel L. Jackson. There's a bit in one of the issues where the heroes discuss who would play who in a movie. It's a very outrageous moment. Actually, I'd recommend any of the first Ultimate line books for light reading. They are all great. The writers are all given full leeway as to how to treat the characters in a different light. Art is spiffy too. Special props to Mark Bagley for Ultimate Spider-man.

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 1: Gifted is a great take by Joss Whedon on the X-Men. I might say that this was the first Marvel book that I had read for a very long time. I quickly got hooked to Whedon's dialogue. This will most probably be the only Mutant book that I'd recommend for light reading.

Also check out the following great books by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (their partnership, by the way, is just awsome): Daredevil: Yellow (Daredevil (Unnumbered)), Spider-Man: Blue, and Hulk: Gray (Incredible Hulk). There's supposed to be a Captain America: White but I think it's not yet done. If you've noticed, the Marvel books by Loeb and Sale has a color in its title.

I think, that should be enough for the Marvel side of things. Next post would be about DC Comics.

Wasted

2010-09-03T21:59:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not wasted. More to the point, this is sort of a review (and an appreciation) for the graphic novel by Gerry Alanguilan entitled Wasted.

At first glance, Wasted seems to be just a simple graphic novel. It's set in black and white. And the story/main topic is very common for everyone's imagination: one's angst towards the world. It starts out like most angry stories do, an unsuccessful love story that evolves into something more. As you read the graphic novel, you get to explore Eric, the main character, and his anger towards his father after an unsuccessful endeavor in law school, his hatred towards society's norms when his father is murdered by thugs, and other things that just oh so suddenly becomes unwanted.

Yet simple as it is, the graphic novel is a beautiful rendition of what the Philippines is today: it is full of annoying religious people seeking to sway as to their sect (or group), citizens who do not heed the health of other people, robbers, policemen who recklessly shoots innocent bystanders, elected officials who are criminals, and best of all, husbands-to-be who are perverts.

The first few pages made me cringe over the main character. How could he not handle the problems? But later on, I begin to feel an attachment towards the character. I would dare say that every guy who has been heartbroken might somehow ended up just like the main character. I would admittedly say so that I would have. Eric chose his own path. He might have been high on drugs or it might have been just the result of environmental pressure. I would not dare judge him for what he did because it could have been me. In full appreciation of the character, he's much stronger than most of us.

Bravo to Gerry Alanguilan for a beautiful portrayal of life no matter how simple it may look. It gave me a fresh perspective towards life.

M11 Possible reprints and omissions (green)

2010-06-04T23:23:00.000-07:00

My take on green. For the record, I've read Tom LaPille's column. This post is written with that article in mind.

Acidic Slime, Ant Queen - I'm a little bit more sure with Acidic Slime but not with Ant Queen. Considering Ant Queen was a little bit promoted as the Launch Party giveaway, I'd say it would be a slap to Wizards' face that they wouldn't bring back Ant Queen. Acidic Slime, meanwhile, showed a bit of promise with its utility ability. They'll both be back.

Awakener Druid - I'll go out on a limb with my claim that Awakener Druid won't be back. I consider the ability to be a little bit confusing. It's also too difficult to remember the said Forest without any other markers or counters. I'd expect Wizards to print something else that would give out the same ability but up to until the beginning of the end step only.

Birds of Paradise - already rumored to be the Buy-a-box giveaway.

Borderland Ranger, Bountiful Harvest - Borderland Ranger go a little use. Bountiful Harvest is not used. For Borderland Ranger, it's a functional reprint of an old card but is reverted back to a human. As for Bountiful Harvest, it's a nice introduction to green's limited ability to gain life. They'll both be back.

Bramble Creeper - a questionably designed card. An experienced player certainly wouldn't play this card. An advanced player might just ponder at the question on why play the card itself. In any case, this should not be back.

Centaur Courser - centaurs for green as to minotaurs for red. Since it's a new card, this should be back.

Craw Wurm - ah... Big and costly Craw Wurm. Some would say that there's a sentimentality to having the Craw Wurm back. As of the moment, I think it will be out.

Cudgel Troll - a new card to show another creature type available to green as well as to show the Regenerate ability. I think green will still have regeneration as an ability. This will be back.

Deadly Recluse, Elvish Archdruid - both should be back.

Elvish Piper - scrap this card already. It's not being used. I might say that a sorcery spell might be created to replace the Elvish Piper.

Elvish Visionary - the subtle Elvish Visionary shows how green is able to occasionally draw cards. I believe this will be back.

Emerald Onyx - I'll go out on a limb again to say that this card won't be back. I think the landwalk ability is too clunky.

Enormous Baloth - if Craw Wurm will be removed, it seems that Enormous Baloth could be too. This is in the uncommon slot though and it possesses better stats than the Craw Wurm. This will probably be back.

Entangling Vines - with a card like Plummet getting printed, this might remove Entangling Vines as the color's "creature kill".

Fog - an old favorite, it has returned since 7th Ed. It should be back for one more year.

Garruk Wildspeaker - only 2 green planeswalkers have been printed. Of the 2, Garruk is much simpler and unlike Nissa Revane, which requires one extra card to be printed (Nissa's Chosen), Garruk has the basic rules of a planeswalker. I expect Garruk to come back.

Giant Growth - the token power/toughness modifying spell for green. It should be back.

Giant Spider - I have doubts regarding Giant Spider. Wizards might want to print a new spider with reach just to give a fresh paint for the Core Set.

Great Sable Stag - great creature. At the rare slot, it does not provide too much confusion with its cannot be countered and protection text. It should be back.

Howl of the Night Pack - like red and black with their land interactions, green also has a few up its sleeve. I think this card will be back. It's quite over costed but with an ability like that, it's bound to be a bomb.

Kalonian Behemoth - the 7 to cast 9/9 is not that attractive to players. I expect another big fattie to be (re)printed here.

Llanowar Elves - I'll say that this card won't be back. Considering that there are 2 different other cards with (almost) the same ability, it would be too redundant. With that said, I expect though that the Llanowar Elves (or a functional reprint) would be printed in SOM.

Lurking Predators - a painful card. I wonder why they even printed it. It has its use in Limited. Other than that, nobody would bother. I say it won't be back.

Master of the Wild Hunt - a new card and at mythic slot. This should be back.

Might of Oaks - Wizards love 7. Here at the rare slot, the p/t modifier spell increases each stat by 7. Quite appropriate. This card should be back.

Mist Leopard - 4 to cast 3/2 Shroud. Pretty straightforward. Nothing else. It should be back.

Mold Adder - Wizards wanted this to complement the other hoser cards. Already declared as not coming back.

Naturalize - the Core Set will always need a basic enchantment and artifact removal spell. I expect this to be back.

Nature's Spiral - I'm amused at how Wizards always attempts to print cards that return something. In this case, Nature's Spiral has not yet shown any use but I think it will be back.

Oakenform - it should be back as an example of p/t modifier in an enchantment.

Overrun - after seeing one of the card names of the M11 Intro Packs, I will say that Overrun is on its way out.

Prized Unicorn - a unique card on its own. The ability makes it quite a bomb in Limited. It should be back.

Protean Hydra - Wizards love to do this sort of stuff. The card is able to portray how a hydra should be. But then, nobody uses the card. Just too bad. It won't be back.

Rampant Growth - a veteran card that should be back. It clearly shows how green is able to accelerate in terms of lands.

Regenerate, Runeclaw Bear, Stampeding Rhino - all are new cards which I expect to be back. Regarding Runeclaw Bear, this is now the new bear for green. Rather than sticking with Grizzly Bears which lacks any fantasy aspect, Runeclaw Bear adds something else to the name. Regenerate should be back as it is printed. It tries to illustrate the regenerate ability without being a useless clunky enchantment.

Windstorm - Hurricane, which was a better card, didn't get reprinted because of Windstorm. With the existence of Plummet, I'm betting that this card won't be back. Besides, it's not being used in Standard.

On my count: I reached 14 which is not bad. I'm bound to be mistaken in several of the cards.

M11 Possible reprints and omissions (Red)

2010-06-01T19:18:00.000-07:00

Time to do Red:

Act of Treason - Red always gets a pseudo-Control Magic type of spells. This is the new spell from M10. It's sure to be back.

Ball Lightning - before M10, Ball Lightning last appeared in 5th Ed. One more year!

Berserkers of Blood Ridge - I wonder why Wizards continue to print 5 casting cost cards at 4/4 plus with a drawback and no evasion. If they wanted to show that a Berserker is supposed to attack every turn then there should be a specific reason as to why a player would. In Limited, it's 4/4 (Beast) body is quite good enough but it's still a common filler. I would want to say that this card would be back considering it's first printing is in M10 but I will be bold to say that it will not.

Bogardan Hellkite - from rare slot in Time Spiral to mythic rare in M10. It didn't see much use in Constructed but would still illicit "Oohs" and "Aahs" (in my opinion). Won't hurt to be back.

Burning Inquiry, Burst of Speed - new cards showcasing red's abilities. Both should be back.

Canyon Minotaur - it seems that red will always be the color of unfair creatures. Canyon Minotaur is another example (4 casting cost with 3/3 body). This card should be back. Wizards loves minotaurs.

Capricious Efreet - the thing about red is that it is very random and unstable. Capricious Efreet is yet another example of that randomness. It is a wonderfully designed card so I would say that it will be back.

Chandra Nalaar - only 2 real red planeswalkers have been printed and they're both Chandras. The 2nd Chandra never found a place in Constructed although I would love to make a deck around it just for the heck of it. The original Chandra is much simpler and doesn't need a lot of shenanigans. I expect this version to be back.

Dragon Whelp - Wizards wanted to illustrate having a small dragon. I say this card is a candidate for not coming back.

Earthquake - returned after 7th Ed. Provides enough for the rare slot. I say it'll be back.

Fiery Hellhound - yet another clunky creature. Thank goodness there's an ability. As such, it wouldn't hurt for it to be back.

Fireball - with all the x damage spells that's available in Standard right now, Fireball would be a candidate to not return. But a Core Set would need to have its x damage spell. Earthquake is already there though. It would have been fun to see Banefire return since it's rotating out soon. I was quite surprised to see that M10 had Earthquake, Fireball, and even Pyroclasm. Wizards surely pushed for red to be fiery in M10.

Firebreathing - it's an essential Aura Enchantment for red. But it's one of the least used cards despite its ability. Wizards can survive not having it printed.

Goblin Artillery, Goblin Chieftain - updated cards from previous sets. Sure to be back.

Goblin Piker - red's bear is a 2/1. I'll say it won't be back. A better card can be printed instead.

Ignite Disorder - this card should be back like its brothers in the other colors.

Inferno Elemental, Jackal Familiar - new cards that should be back.

Kindled Fury - I'll say that this can be scrapped.

Lava Axe - always a staple in Core Sets. Not used in Constructed and a bit questionable in Limited. I'll say that it can be scrapped.

Lightning Bolt - ignited a lot of old players' excitement. It was last printed in 4th Ed. I say, Lightning Bolt will be here for years to come.

Lightning Elemental - Ball Lightning's smaller brother can be replaced easily. It won't be missed.

Magma Phoenix - if there's a new card that can be scrapped, this is it. Useless for being too costly yet it still has a use in Limited. It's still quite a bomb. This seems to be the requisite Phoenix in the Core Set. Okay, you can come back...

Manabarbs - a recent sideboard card. I think this can be a candidate for a non return.

Panic Attack - a common bomb. It has its uses in Limited and showcases red's evasion ability. It will be back.

Prodigal Pyromancer - the token "pinger" in the Core Set. I'll say it will be back.

Pyroclasm - each release seems to have its own version of Pyroclasm. I think Pyroclasm is a key card in the Core Set and should return.

Raging Goblin - should not be back. Here is an opportunity for Wizards to print a spiffy new Goblin for M11.

Seismic Strike - red's version of Tendrils of Corruption. It should be back since it's also a new card.

Shatter - red can only destroy artifacts and this is the token artifact destroyer in the Core Set. It should be back.

Shivan Dragon - I think nobody plays Shivan Dragon anymore. It has been printed so many times that nobody looks for it anymore. This overexposed Dragon should take a rest for at least a year and provide a rare slot for a new card - and most likely a new Dragon to boot.

Siege-Gang Commander - a nifty Goblin creature that is well-loved. I think it will be back for 1 more go.

Sparkmage Apprentice - reprinted after Ravnica, it's a candidate for a non return. I say so.

Stone Giant - Wizards must have a specific reason as to why they got this creature back from 5th Ed. It's actually a fun card to have despite its non-use in Constructed. I expect this card to be back for M11.

Trumpet Blast - red can increase the power of creatures. Unlike green, red cannot increase the toughness. Trumpet Blast should be here to stay as the token power modifier for red.

Viashino Spearhunter - new card in M10 will be back again. Curious that the Viashinos no longer die after they attack or at the end of turn.

Wall of Fire - red's wall is likely to return.

Warp World - a most confusing spell in M10. This won't be back. I expect a similar spell.

Yawning Fissure - back. Wizards do not want land destruction spells anymore. This card ensures that both players are slowed down rather than just one player.

On my count, I have it at 11 or 12. Again, I got the correct number.

Some red cards that could probably be worthy of a Core Set reprinting would be Banefire and Volcanic Fallout. I doubt that they'd reprint both.

M11 possible reprints and omissions (Black)

2010-05-31T01:22:00.000-07:00

Here's my take on Black:

Acolyte of Xathrid - Black is focused on the opponent losing life. Acolyte of Xathrid is a semi-usable card in Limited yet brings about what black is. This card should be back.

Assassinate - a needed spell in Black. Even though that it's a reprint from past sets, it can't be compared to any other recent card. This should also be back.

Black Knight - if I say that White Knight won't be back, then there's a chance that Black Knight wouln't be also. These 2 cards are brothers.

Bog Wraith - a usable utility creature that showcases the Swampwalk ability. It should be a candidate for a non-return. The landwalk ability seems to be clunky in my opinion. Besides, Wizards can always create a new card out of a reprint just like Bog Wraith.

Cemetery Reaper, Child of Night - Cemetery Reaper showcases the Zombies while Child of Night is a Vampire. Both are new cards. Cemetery Reaper, for one, is the new lord for the Zombies. Child of Night is a harmless new card that should also return.

Consume Spirit - if Wizards would want to get away from encouraging mono colored decks, then omitting Consume Spirit is the way to go. But then, reprinting this card wouldn't hurt much. It has seen some use in Black decks. This should be back.

Deathmark - just like Celestial Purge and Flashfreeze. I expect this card to be back.

Diabolic Tutor - I think it's high time for Wizards to introduce a new tutor spell for black. As much as I would want to say that this card should not be back considering that it's not that used, I still think that it is designed just right. So, I'll opt for saying good bye to Diabolic Tutor. Wizards, please give us a new tutor spell!

Disentomb, Doom Blade, Dread Warlock - 3 new cards that should be back. Specific explanation for each card: Disentomb showcases black's ability to return creatures from the graveyard. At the common slot, Disentomb returns the card to hand and not into the battlefield. Doom Blade is a functional reprint of Terror and seems to be the token creature removal spell at 1B. Dread Warlock showcases black's evasion ability. Of the 3, I would speculate that Dread Warlock would not return if Wizards will push with the Intidimated ability. Given that Intimidate appears only in Black and Red, it's not an ability that should be given a keyword.

Drudge Skeletons - won't be back. I'm cheating a bit here since I saw the previewed skeleton at the same casting cost.

Duress - a useful black card that should return without any problems.

Gravedigger - same as Diabolic Tutor. I'll go out on a limb to say that this card will not be reprinted.

Haunting Echoes - it got printed in a Core Set for the first time. It's got a great ability for a rare card. It shouldn't hurt for the card to be back.

Howling Banshee - same as Haunting Echoes. It should be back.

Hypnotic Specter - I remember how players reacted to its return in 9th Ed. But then, without Dark Ritual, it seems too overmatched by other cards for Black. I believe a new card is in order.

Kelinore Bat - should be back simply because it's a new card.

Liliana Vess - There are only 2 black planeswalkers ever printed. Vess is one while Sorin Markov appeared in Zendikar. This is an easy argument considering Markov will still be legal after M11 is released. Vess will be back.

Looming Shade - I would like to dare Wizards to print a new Shade-type creature that is worthwhile. Looming Shade is not that worthwhile anymore, in my opinion. Candidate for non return.

Megrim - Wizards needs to show an interaction between discarding cards and getting damage from it. Megrim will be back.

Mind Rot - yet another utility discard spell for black. This should be back.

Mind Shatter - ditto on Mind Shatter. With Mind Spring possibly coming back, Mind Shatter is the perfect complement.

Nightmare - never used in Constructed. Time to ditch this card.

Relentless Rats - after 10th Ed and M10, I still haven't collected as much Relentless Rats as I would have wanted. It used to intriguing but now I just find it plain annoying. Time to ditch this card.

Rise From the Grave - a better Zombify-type spell. Plus, it's got a really cool card name. I'd say it will be back.

Royal Assassin - never hurts for this card to be back although I'd say that it's not that used anymore. Still, it seems to be the requisite rare creature kill in a Core Set.

Sanguine Bond - a sort of a useless spell except that it got featured in the Open the Vaults combo deck. I find it annoying that it had to be in the rare slot. Still, if Wizards needs to put an annoying rare for each color, this is it for black.

Sign in Blood - new card, great design, nice ability. Ingredients for it to be back. See, black can draw cards (just like blue) but it has to have a drawback. This is it for black.

Soul Bleed - whoever designs this type of cards is an annoying person. I'd say that it's a candidate not to be back but since it's a new card, I'd count it in.

Tendrils of Corruption - I was surprised to see this card get reprinted considering Consume Spirit was also reprinted. In any case, this shows an interaction between having a lot of Swamps and killing creatures. I say it will be back.

Underworld Dreams - used to be a useful card but time has come for it to be replaced by a newer and possibly spiffier spell.

Unholy Strength - possibly one of the better Auras in the set. It's a utility spell so I say it's coming back.

Vampire Aristocrat - a functional reprint of an old card. I'll say that it will be back.

Vampire Nocturnus - still continuing with the Vampire theme in the Core Set. This should be back.

Wall of Bone - I will speculate that M11 will get rid of the clunky regenerate ability. Thus, a new wall will be printed for black. One that should have a cool ability.

Warpath Ghoul - boring new Zombie filler. It will be back.

Weakness - I'll speculate that Disfigure will be printed instead of Weakness. That's just me.

Xathrid Demon, Zombie Goliath - new cards that should be back.

On my count, 11 cards that are not coming back. Nice number once more.

I don't have any idea if certain cards for black will be reprinted from previous expansions.

M11 Possible Reprints and Omission (Blue)

2010-05-29T00:51:00.000-07:00

Continuing my speculation on M11 possible reprints and omissions. This time, it's Blue.

Air Elemental - this simple card is now a staple just like what Serra Angel is to white. I had the sudden realization that Serra Angel might get removed and if so, Air Elemental could also be on the way out. Considering how I maintain that Serra Angel will be back, I put my trust on Air Elemental to be there also.

Alluring Siren - the puzzling Alluring Siren has an ability unexpected of Blue. If I'm a new player, I would ask myself why I would let his creatures attack me. That kind of explanation is sometimes hard to do. I would say that this creature is going out.

Cancel - the casting cost for a counter spell without any drawbacks or added bonuses is now at 1UU. Deprive from ROE is UU but with a drawback. There are rumors that Mana Leak might get reprinted in M11. Frankly, I think Negate and/or Essence Scatter would suffer from a Mana Leak reprinting (same casting cost for almost the same effect). Cancel continues to be efficient and Wizards would love to illustrate countering of spells in a Core Set.

Clone - this is another beautifully designed card showcasing Blue's ability to copy creatures. Considering that this is a reprint and is not used much in Constructed, I'd say it's a candidate for not returning. I expect a better Clone-like card in M11.

Convincing Mirage - showed up in some decks attempting to solve the Jund puzzle. With Jund about to rotate out and this card being a new card in M10, I expect it to be back.

Coral Merfolk - Blue's version of the bear. It should be back.

Disorient - somehow, Wizards like 7. Here, we see a -7/-0 ability which is somewhat exclusive only to Blue. Once again, it clearly shows how Blue is the color that tries to temporarily remove the power of a creature while not killing it via the spell. This card should be back.

Divination - a functional reprint of Counsel of Soratami. Counsel of Soratami boasts text from Champions of Kamigawa which is utterly foreign. I will assume that Divination is here to stay for years (and sets) to come.

Djinn of Wishes - here is another beautifully designed card that one can't stop and be amused over its design. Typical of Wizards to print a card like this which is not expected to see play in Constructed. It's a bomb in Limited though which is good enough for it to come back.

Essence Scatter - from my argument with Cancel regarding Mana Leak, I'd expect Essence Scatter to follow Negate into the not reprinted zone. Mana Leak costs the same as both Essence Scatter and Negate. By reprinting Mana Leak (and thus removing both Essence Scatter and Negate), it gives Wizards 1 slot while saving up with what Mana Leak can do. Mana Leak is still an appropriate counter spell - low cost but with a drawback. With that, it should be bye-bye Essence Scatter.

Fabricate - with Scars of Mirrodin (and the expected artifact theme) coming, I expect more artifact-specific cards to come. Fabricate is the odd card out.

Flashfreeze - same reasoning as Celestial Purge in white, Flashfreeze should return as Blue's way of showing hate to enemy colors.

Hive Mind - does anybody even use Hive Mind? I don't think so, even in Limited. I'd say that this card will be out.

Horned Turtle - this card illustrates how Blue likes to have turtles - small powered creatures but with big butts (I mean, toughness). Horned Turtle stays.

Ice Cage - a new card in M10. It provides pseudo creature removal in M10 Limited. It should be back.

Illusionary Servant - another new card in M10. I'm not sure if it's a functional reprint but I know the ability has existed in other colors. It wouldn't hurt much if it would be back.

Jace Beleren - here's where the debate should start. I've already speculated that Ajani Goldmane will be back for white simply because it's the simpler planeswalker compared to Elspeth, Knight-Errant. There are only two other choices: Jace 1.0 and Tezzeret the Seeker. Tezzeret enters into the debate since I saw the preview for the Scars of Mirrodin novel. Tezzeret could be a candidate for M11 reprint. Or not since it could be printed in SOM. I just think that it is too much that there are 2 versions of Jace planeswalker in Standard (well, when Sarkhan the Mad was released, that entailed into 2 versions of Sarkhan also). In any case, I will lean on the original Jace Beleren to be reprinted because I've seen him in some of the card art. Another reason is that it's a cheap answer to Jace the Mind Sculptor (this last reason is totally baseless but I like it).

Jump - Jump got back after being missing since 4th Edition. I wish it wouldn't return but since it's a card that simple enough to explain and provides sufficient flavor to the color, I think this card will be back.

Levitation - another wonderful Limited bomb. It's a candidate to be omitted. It wouldn't hurt for the card to be back but something has got to be omitted.

Merfolk Looter - this card shows the ability of blue to draw cards while having the drawback of discarding one afterwards. There will always be Looter type creatures in a set. Merfolk Looter does the job quite well.

Merfolk Sovereign, Mind Control - new cards based from older versions. They should be back.

Mind Spring - intriguing card. Just recently reprinted from Morningtide. It has seen action with Blue-White decks. At the rare slot, it doesn't hurt to have it back considering it showcases what blue does also - drawing cards. I'll say it will be back.

Negate - read Essence Scatter.

Phantom Warrior - this card seems to survive. Again, it showcases blue's evasion ability aside from flying. I'll say that it will be back.

Polymorph - I'm a Polymorph fan. But sadly, I don't think I'll see this card back. Wizards would want the Eldrazi creatures to be played the way they should be played and not with a shortcut card like Polymorph. With that, it's time to lay Polymorph to rest (and effectively killing one particular deck in Standard).

Ponder - should be back. Sleight of Hand is the next best thing but Ponder is better.

Sage Owl - this should be a candidate of not coming back.

Serpent of the Endless Sea, Sleep - two new cards in M10. Serpent of the Endless Sea does not see much play but it's a nicely designed card along with Sleep. They should both be back.

Snapping Drake - there is one other drake in M10. This is a great utility card in Limited but considering that it's a reprint, I would assume that this card will be replaced by a new flying creature.

Sphinx Ambassador - this card is almost like Djinn of Wishes. It does wonderful things yet it remains unused in Standard. With a focus on Limited, I think this card will be back.

Telepathy - out with this card already!

Time Warp - quite a long time for Time Warp to be reprinted again. It's the mythic ability for blue and I don't see why it shouldn't be reprinted.

Tome Scour - newly made. It should be back. It will most probably be the only mill effect in the set.

Traumatize - I will speculate that it is time for Traumatize to go. Tome Scour is still much better in terms of rarity.

Twincast - a wonderful card for Blue. I think it will be back.

Unsummon - we will not see Boomerang anymore. As such, Unsummon becomes the token creature returner in the set. It should get reprinted.

Wall of Frost - the wall in the color. Pretty nicely designed. It should be back also.

Wind Drake - same discussion with the other drake, this would probably be removed in favor of another type of drake.

Zephyr Sprite - back.

One thing I've noticed with the blue cards is that some of the creatures are the usual creatures that Jace Beleren summons (the sphinx, the drake, and the sprite). I'm halfway to Agents of Artifice and if I haven't been reading the book, I wouldn't be able to get into a debate on whether certain cards (or creatures) get in or not. Anyway, I'm sure that Wizards can concoct a different story for Jace.

Around 11 cards from blue that I speculate wouldn't return. Not bad considering I almost have the same number from white.

Unfortunately, my mind is not that open towards what new cards would be reprinted for blue.

M11 possible reprints and omission (White)

2010-05-27T01:10:00.000-07:00

Introduction:

M11 edition is coming this July. It's never too early to start speculating on what card will get reprinted and will be removed from the Core Set. As such, it is expected that half of the cards will be reprints and half will be brand new cards. This post is an attempt to look at what is expected to be reprinted (from past sets and from M10) and what will be omitted from M10.

The evaluation will look at the card as to how it affects the metagame and also in limited. A useless card (bound to be undrafted in limited and useless in constructed) is expected to be replaced. There are other considerations to be looked upon. For one, if the card is a utility card, it is expected to be reprinted as no expected improvement will make it better. Also, changes towards creature type (the creature type fix) is expected to stay from hereon forward.

Each card will be evaluated as needed.

I start off with the white cards:

Ajani Goldmane - Ajani Goldmane is the simplest of all the white Planeswalkers ever printed. The two other (pure) white Planeswalkers are Elspeth, Knight Errant and Gideon Jura. In my opinion, the two other planeswalkers are too complicated for a beginner just learning how to use the Planeswalkers in a deck. And it is highly unlikely that Wizards would create a new Planeswalker for the Core Set. Thus, it is concrete that Ajani Goldmane is here to stay for M11.

Angel's Mercy - a new card in M10, it has a huge chance of coming back. From a design standpoint, Angel's Mercy embodies what the color white is supposed to be, gaining life (well, not necessarily at instant speed). This card has a chance of coming back simply because it's a new card. In limited, I wouldn't want to play it. I haven't seen it in Standard Constructed ever. So, the verdict is that this card is out.

Armored Ascension - this is a beautifully designed card. It looks at the number of Plains in play and gets better with more Plains in play. But it's not that played in Standard Constructed. Considering that it's a reprint from Shadowmoor, I'd say that this card is on its way out.

Baneslayer Angel - the boon of all non-white players in Standard. This mythic rare jumped to an exorbitant price. Few found the Protection from Dragons and Demons to be a joke. There are two arguments to look at regarding Baneslayer Angel: 1.) would Wizards be concerned regarding the distribution of this card and if so, would they care of its price? and 2.) would the inclusion of Baneslayer Angel in M11 make future Standard Constructed tournaments stagnant? I would think that Wizards wouldn't want their fans to go angry over the one year stay of the expensive Baneslayer Angel. Thus, it's here to stay for 1 more year.

Blinding Mage - this is an update from Master Decoy, who was probably a Human Soldier rather than a Human Wizard. A functional reprint, I expect this card to be back.

Captain of the Watch - this is another beautifully designed card. At the rare slot, it's meant to be with all the plus it brings to the table yet for Soldiers only. If Wizards would maintain the Soldiers theme for M11, I'd expect this card to be reprinted.

Celestial Purge - a card that was newly printed during Conflux, it was a surprise to see this reprinted for M10. It is a functionally efficient card and efficiently shows that White is not friendly with Black or Red. I expect this card to be reprinted. It does things just right.

Divine Verdict - a functional reprint of Neck Snap from Lorwyn. Neck Snap sounds too violent. Divine Verdict provides the right name for the right card. Should come back in M11.

Elite Vanguard - another functional reprint. This is supposed to be Savannah Lions. It encourages the Soldier theme from M10. It should be back without any problems.

Excommunicate - another surprise reprint from Shards of Alara. This could well be removed in favor of a more efficient creature removal spell (I'm referring to Path to Exile). Still, it wouldn't be too much to ask if this card gets reprinted. But having too many creature removal in a set would hurt its (over) performance in limited. Thus, either Excommunicate comes back or Path to Exile will be reprinted.

Glorious Charge - a not-so-boring card. It's another new card so I'd expect it to be back.

Griffin Sentinel, Guardian Seraph, Harm's Way - these are cards that wouldn't hurt to be reprinted.

Holy Strength - always a favorite. I expect it to be back.

Honor of the Pure - a more restricted Glorious Anthem. It is beautifully designed to affect only white creatures. I expect it to be back.

Indestructibility, Lifelink - these are typical new cards that got printed to help remove rules clutter. Indestructibility illustrates the indestructible ability (which, in my opinion, can easily be removed from the set). Lifelink does exactly the same thing. Again, I expect these two cards to return.

Lightweilder Paladin - a non-used card in Constructed. If there should be a candidate for not returning, I'd say that this is one of those cards.

Mesa Enchantress - a card that bodes plenty of interaction among enchantments. With the existence of (almost) the same card in ROE, I'd expect this card to not return.

Open the Vaults - a Timmy card. One that inspired a good combo deck. Time will tell whether this card would be as powerful once Scars of Mirrodin is released. Considering that SOM is assumed to be an artifact set, I'll say goodbye to Open the Vaults.

Pacifism - an efficient pseudo creature removal spell. Unless Oblivion Ring gets reprinted, I expect Pacifism to be back.

Palace Guard - it wouldn't hurt for this card to be back.

Planar Cleansing - here's where wonderful debate can be started. Wrath of God was removed in favor of printing this card. It has never seen the light of day in most Constructed decks. It's too costly at 6 converted mana cost. That said, I expect Day of Judgment to be reprinted in M11. You read it here first.

Razorfoot Griffin - reprinted from past sets = candidate to be not reprinted.

Rhox Pikemaster - a non-used card but it should enhance the Soldiers theme of M11. I expect it to be back.

Righteousness - it's been around. In limited, it's a fun card to have. It should be back.

Safe Passage - a new card. It's safe to say that it will be back as the token damage prevention spell in the set.

Serra Angel - will it or will it not return? I believe Serra Angel is the staple white creature. It will be back.

Siege Mastodon - token big toughness creature that embodies what white creatures should be. It should be back unless Wizards decides to print that 1/5 lifelink creature from Zendikar.

Silence - somewhat a useless rare. It would have been a good card at the uncommon slot. I haven't seen it in Constructed play. I expect it to be scrapped.

Silvercoat Lion - white's bear. It should be back.

Solemn Offering - it seems that Wizards is drifting away from allowing white to easily destroy artifacts and enchantments (that's green's job now). No other recent card does the same thing. I expect this card to be back.

Soul Warden - sigh... More life gain effects for white. This should be back.

Stormfront Pegasus - token flying creature at 2 mana. Back.

Tempest of Light - why attempt to destroy all enchantments when enchantments have never been dangerous. Candidate for non-reprint.

Undead Slayer - if Wizards wants to show that white hates Skeletons, Zombies, and Vampires, they'll reprint this card.

Veteran Armorsmith, Veteran Swordsmith - again with the Soldiers theme. They should be back.

Wall of Faith - the only wall in the set. It should be back despite that Rise of Eldrazi had the Defender subtheme.

White Knight - this card was reprinted to add expectations to the set. With its non use in Constructed decks, I expect it not to return.

I say, 10 cards that could be on its way out. Not a bad number considering that half of M11 will be new.

As for reprints, these are my speculations:

Path to Exile - it's not mere coincidence that that new wording for Removed from the Game is Exile. The word comes from Path to Exile. In the tradition of Swords to Plowshares and other white removal with drawback spells, Path to Exile is just right for white. If PtE is not going to be reprinted, I expect a more costly version but without the drawback.

Day of Judgment - as mentioned in the Planar Cleansing entry, Day of Judgment could be reprinted. I say so, simply because it's a functional reprint of Wrath of God. With the removal of the text, "They can't be regenerated," it helps explain the game better. Day of Judgment is a simple card. And considering that Wizards would want to sell the set, they'd do great in reprinting this card.

Image United

2009-12-05T22:10:00.001-08:00

Image United #1 just got released. A brief overview: it features a story by Robert Kirkman and layout art by Rob Liefeld. The comic book features all founding creators of Image contributing art chores on their created character/s.

As a comic book fan having my (comic book) consciousness awakened during the "hot days" of Image, I'm kind of surprised with Image United #1 and its lack of (or my lack of seeing any) fanfare.

Back then (say, 13 or 14 years ago), a "crossover" in this regard would have been considered a "super" event. The founding creators of Image back once more and in 1 (gigantic) comic book! With an exclamation mark, of course.

How hot was Image Comics back then? The creators (most notably Liefeld, Jim Lee, and Marc Silvestri) continuously churned up new characters and new monthly comic books out of the blue. Each new monthly would be described as hot, hot, hot! Image Comics practically owned the Top 10 comic book sales during those times. It seemed that nothing could go wrong with whatever they released. Fans would continue to gobble up new releases even if they were tardy (I had to admit that I was one of those fans). They were that godly.

Something noticeably obscure that happened back then were the cover wars. It seemed that every milestone event sported a cover that wanted to top the latest cover technology. There were foils, holograms, die-cut, holofoil, chromium, and probably all sorts of combinations that can be thought of. This was way back they introduced the variant craze.

Did anybody ever notice the stories that they turned out with all the new characters? A good chunk of the comic books didn't last long. Liefeld was notorious with coming up with one copycat character or team after another. A typical superhero team had any or all of the following: gun-toting, cigar-chomping leader that had a bad-ass attitude, a wild and feisty clawed character, the sexy female that every male wanted to go to bed with, and the usually dumb heavy muscled bouncer.

An event that I could compare the current Image United to would be the creator crossover that they did. The founding creators swapped assignments (probably drew lots to decide on who got who). Best of all, no fan knew what artist did what before the actual comic book got released. The surprise was part of the enticement to buy all 8 issues of the event. I even thought of buying an issue of Shadowhawk just for the heck of it. Fans were so excited then. The event didn't go too well and a little bit of quarreling happened regarding how a character was treated and the usual tardiness of Image releases also kicked in.

It's been a wild decade ever since. They've quarreled some more and have gone their separate ways. They've become like Kiss - touring around conventions and reuniting for signing sessions. They've continued to produce comics still. I still appreciate Jim Lee's creations with Wildstorm. Todd McFarlane has always stayed true to form. Erik Larsen does not boast great sales figures but he's still there. Jim Valentino did an AIDS story with his character and that was that.

Image has gone a long way from its former status as the next company that could topple or compete with the big 2 of comic books, Marvel and DC. I always thought a decade would change the way they came out with stories.

And so, with Image United, I expected a grand improvement. But still, it's the same old senseless "I'll punch you and you punch back" style dialog. I thought Robert Kirkman would do justice with a DC-like Crisis event bringing in all the characters but nah... It's pretty obvious that getting all the characters together in one mash-up story is difficult to do. I guess, all I wanted to say was that if it was difficult in the first place, it shouldn't have been done. It brings back all the senseless Image stories that I read a decade ago.

But hey, it's just one issue so far. I hope to be impressed in the next.

Planeswalking with Planechase

2009-09-06T05:27:00.000-07:00

I had fun playing Planechase. It's not much on the preconstructed decks that Wizards created but more on the Plane cards. The Plane cards are fun to play. It adds a new dimension to the game as well as in playing multiplayer games. There are additional things to do in every turn and anticipation is at a maximum in every planar die roll. It's like having an extra sorcery card in hand though sometimes it's a blank sorcery (blank die roll).

As of this post, there are 42 Plane cards. There are 10 cards in each Planar deck set for an initial total of 40. 2 different Plane cards have been give away so far (and there are rumors of 3 more Plane cards to be given away in future Prerelease events).

This post is a (delayed) evaluation of the original 40 cards. I have created my own categories to outline the best of the 40 Plane cards without any regard of what deck is being used:

This not a ranking. I don't have time to do an evaluation and a ranking:

I. Top planes that you want to planeswalk away from (Mostly because of nagging abilities):

Sea of Sand

Players reveal each card they draw.

Whenever a player draws a land card, that player gains 3 life.

Whenever a player draws a nonland card, that player loses 3 life.

C: Put target permanent on top of it's owner's library.

This plane hurts a lot considering that roughly around 2/3 of a normal deck consists of nonland cards. Since it has to be done every turn (and subsequent card draws), it's a 2/3 percent chance (and more) that a player would lose 3 life. There's no problem if the deck is a life gain deck. Considering also that there is no such life gain among the 4 preconstructed decks, it is imperative to planeswalk away from Sea of Sand simply because of its abilities.

Pools of Becoming

At the beginning of your end step, put the cards in your hand on the bottom of your library in any order, then draw that many cards.

C: Reveal the top three cards of your planar deck. Each of the revealed cards' C abilities trigger. Then you put the revealed cards on the bottom of your planar deck in any order.

Though I love the Chaos ability, there are times that I'd want to get away from this plane because I usually love to keep the current hand that I would have. Rolling a Chaos is just an added bonus in planeswalking away. It's a cool Chaos ability and I include it in the bottom category.

Lethe Lake
At the beginning of your upkeep, put the top ten cards of your library into your graveyard.
C: Target player puts the top ten cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard.

I've played Mill decks before and it's fun to win by decking out your opponent. It's no fun if it's the other way around. Lethe Lake turns each player into a Mill player and it's no fun to lose that way. 10 cards is roughly 17% of the total number of cards in the deck. If a player rolls a Chaos, that's an additional 10 cards placed into the graveyard.

The Zombie deck is the only happy preconstructed deck here with its Unearth cards that can hit from the graveyard.

Skybreen
Players play with the top card of their libraries revealed.
Spells that share a card type with the top card of a library can't be cast.
C: Target player loses life equal to the number of cards in his or her hand.

A control plane on a multiplayer game? That's got to be boring and frustrating. With 4 players playing, there's a huge chance that a player won't be able to cast a creature (the most important card to cast), a sorcery or an instant. Pretty huge odds of that happening considering decks are made up of those. All the more that a player would want to roll the planar die.

Naar Isle
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a flame counter on Naar Isle, then Naar Isle deals damage to you equal to the number of flame counters on it.
C: Naar Isle deals 3 damage to target player.

This is a fun plane to be in but also painful. If nobody planeswalks away from this plane, it'll be a good game by the time it makes one cycle. The first few damage doesn't hurt much but by the time the players realize that getting 5 damage during the upkeep is no big deal, it's already too late.

Sanctum of Serra
When you planeswalk away from Sanctum of Serra, destroy all nonland permanents.
C: You may have your life total become 20.

Sanctum of Serra is in the list simply because planeswalking away has one of the better abilities of all the planes in Planechase. It's like having your very own Wrath of God and Nev's Disk and whatever permanent-destroying spell there is in MTG.

The Eon Fog
Players skip their untap steps.
C: Untap all permanents you control.

I've always hated Stasis and this plane just spells Stasis all over. That's enough said.

The Maelstrom
When you planeswalk to The Maelstrom or at the beginning of your upkeep, you may reveal the top card of your library. If it's a permanent card, you may put it onto the battlefield. Otherwise, put that card on the bottom of your library.
C: Return target permanent card from your graveyard to the battlefield.

This is a fun plane to be. One game I played in had an opponent revealing Rorix Bladewing and it was during his first turn. Simply said, the player rolled the planar die and luckily planeswalked away. Good game.

I'll create a new post for a different category of evaluation. That way, this can already posted after such a delay.

A Rant on LBC

2009-09-05T04:28:00.000-07:00

The so-called "Hari ng Padala" (King of Couriers) just became a whole new joke(r) in my book.

A package was sent to Manila via LBC on a Tuesday. At the earliest, the package would have arrived the next day. By Thursday, the recipient began worrying where the package was. That night, the delivery guy supposedly came by the address at 9PM!

9PM! Wow! I remarked that the LBC there works for 24 hours. It wasn't funny. I wonder what they were thinking delivering a package at 9 at night. Yeah, I've seen the advertisements where they deliver at the middle of the night but seriously, is it really true?

By Friday, he called LBC asking about the package and he got another number which couldn't be contacted. Stupid courier just couldn't deliver during daytime. Sheesh.

It took some serious head knocks to get their brains going.

The package finally got delivered on a Saturday. One day delivery my ass!

Whoever gets to read this, please be wary about LBC. You might as well use JRS. At least they'd tell you that it would take two days (and that's the truth).

Musings on losing an icon

2009-08-01T00:29:00.000-07:00

Former President Corazon Aquino died today August 1, 2009. Philippines lost an icon while being mired in a political turmoil that has remained unresolved.

Having been born in 1979 and being 7 years old during the ascension of Cory to the presidency, I might have my own stories to tell. They are not much considering that I was just a lowly elementary school student in Mindanao in the 6 years that Cory was the President of the Philippines.

This is a personal view of how I look at Cory. My views are based on my personal observation as well as from books that I've read.

If there's one word to describe Cory, I might say that she is (or was) brave. Here was a woman without any political ambition and she experienced politics only because she was the wife of Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. but she was thrust into the spotlight after the assassination of her husband. She became the leader when no one else was brave enough to take it - Fidel Ramos and Juan Ponce Enrile were both asked if they would be willing to become leaders but instead they didn't give a straight answer. Cory did what she had to do. She was brave enough to put the whole country on her shoulders. With her effort, she thankfully didn't face the dictatorial regime of Ferdinand Marcos on her own. People looked to her for leadership.

One of her most important contributions to the world is being the leader of the peaceful revolution that has since been called as People Power. This has been copied by other countries and has been very much abused by our own country. We've seen People Power 2 and 3 and I'm not sure if there has ever been a 4 or a 5. These so-called other movements has disrespected what Cory achieved with the "original" People Power.

I never really experienced People Power. I was too young then. But I vaguely remember Cory in a parade around the city of Iligan. She wore her traditional yellow amidst bodyguards and supporters. That parade was the only time that I ever saw Cory personally.

After People Power, she set forth in spearheading the changing of the Constitution. The new Constitution made sure that another Marcos would not happen again. 6 years maximum as the President of the country (oh look, someone is sitting as the president for more than 6 years...). I think there were other changes pertaining to Martial Law and stuff but I never listened to my Political Science teacher.

I have to say that it was a presidency filled with turmoil. Cory had to face a coup here and there. The very people who helped put her to power was becoming dissatisfied with her. Well, in the first place, these guys should have taken the power for themselves during People Power and be done with it but they didn't.

It is understandable that Cory had a lot going against her. She was taking over from a dictator. She did well. She wouldn't garner an A+ grade but she did well to get the ball rolling for democracy again.

So, to recall my elementary school days. The best (or worst) memory pertaining to the country would have to be the power crisis. Should I blame her (especially now)? Well, I have to blame someone. Mindanao was trying to save power and we had days of having only 8 hours of electricity. Yes, it was that bad.

Oh, and she made sure that people wouldn't forget Ninoy Aquino by placing his face on the 500 peso bill which, unfortunately, has been joked as the reason for the country's misfortune. That's a feng shui story that I will not divulge here. What has happened since then? Fidel Ramos had a 1,000 peso bill and Gloria Arroyo had 200 pesos. What's next?

Not to put down the late Fernando Poe, Jr. but I think he thought he'd do a Cory by relying on the people to win the presidency. It is a far fetched theory but consider the variables. Here is a person without any prior experience in politics save for a deposed president as a best friend and he's running for the highest position in the country. The people looked to FPJ as the savior from a possible "dictator" but unfortunately it wasn't enough. All this just looks so familiar to how Cory got to the top position of the country. Not exactly the same but...

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In my personal musing after the death of Cory, I can't help but think that her legacy is further tarnished by the (mis)adventures of her youngest daughter, Kris. Ey, it has to be admitted that without Cory as the president, Kris would never have been "successful" in the show business. And I must say that Kris probably appears more on TV than her mother ever did. And I don't care that Cory looked monotonous in her yellow (and later black) attire. She is still better (and sane) looking than her daughter.

The more that people and the younger generation will see Kris, the more that they will fail to realize how important Cory had been. Kris is probably more famous than her mother now. I just wish that somehow the younger generation will not forget how vital Cory was to our country albeit the situation our country is in now.

I look forward to the next leader to immortalize Cory. I wonder what will be done. She is that important to our history. If not as important as Ninoy, maybe more important.

God bless her soul.

Rest in peace.

Batman and Robin

2009-06-06T02:55:00.000-07:00

It's just good.

Well, no spoilers here. Not much.

I read Batman: Battle for the Cowl and I did not expect much from it. But I got blown away with Batman and Robin.

Oh yeah. Not the Joel Schumacher movie with the crazy and cartoony dialogue that ruined the franchise.

It's Los Angeles Lakers versus Orlando Magic

2009-05-31T01:39:00.000-07:00

First off, there's no Kobe vs. LeBron. The NBA might have been saddened over this but they can't publish anything that resembles any resentment over the failed match up between the two high-flying superstars. So, they will have to settle for Kobe vs. Dwight (yeah, like they'll face off against each other). Dwight Howard (in his Adidas kicks) sure is laughing his way to the bank.

The Orlando Magic enter as underdogs. The Lakers are number 1 in the West though they did have difficulty in dispatching their opponents (Jazz in 7, Rockets in 7, then Nuggets in 6). A lot is going against Kobe in winning without Shaq but then again he has Pau Gasol with him in a supporting role. Gasol is "taking over" the role of Shaq. What? Andrew Bynum as a Shaq wannabe? Not this year. Not yet.

With that, I really, really love that the Orlando Magic win this one. It's been a long time coming after the sweep made by the Houston Rockets in their first Finals appearance. That was a pure meltdown right there. Shaq not being able to dominate against Hakeem Olajuwon? Sheesh. I hate the Houston Rockets back then (I think Rudy T. is one of the worst coaches) but that was just a pure meltdown. Nick Anderson never got rid of the missed free throws in that first game. And it's just wonderful to see a franchise win its first NBA Championship.

My gut says that the Lakers will win this in 6 games. The 2-3-2 format is dangerous to the team with homecourt advantage when they lose it but I don't expect the Magic to win in straight home games like they did against the Cavaliers.

Alara Reborn review

2009-05-26T20:21:00.000-07:00

It's been (more than) a month since the release of the all-gold set Alara Reborn. I have to admit that I was one of those who never realized the preview of Ardent Plea as a sign of things to come. The first ever all-multicolored set. Unlike previous "all-x" incarnations (Legions comes to mind with the all-creatures set), Alara Reborn delivers being the third set of the gold-themed Shards of Alara block. The cards were not expected to warp the metagame but it still affected the Regionals that I participated in. Cards like Anathemancer, Zealous Persecution, and Bloodbraid Elf were seen and the reprints (Meddling Mage and Terminate) showed up as well.

I wouldn't expect much out of Alara Reborn until Lorwyn-Shadowmoor rotates out. There are more multicolor goodies from the Shadowmoor block which weakens the impact of Alara Reborn. Shadowmoor-Eventide also promotes two-color goodness only and not the three-color shard division of Shards of Alara block.

In the meantime, here are 10 cards which I think will create a dent on the current Standard format. I've done this top 10 shindigs before but I forgot the mindset that I had. I think I totally missed out on Conflux out of sheer laziness.

10. Anathemancer

5-color Magic is not happy about Anathemancer, which punishes the player with the good (and expensive) nonbasic land. This ability also puts Anathemancer at 10th place because if an opponent is not playing any nonbasic land, this card will just turn out to be a useless 3 mana 2/2. Considering all those nonbasic lands at a player's disposal, this card is still a doozy and rightfully placed at number 10.

9. Lord of Extinction

This is all Tarmogoyf's fault. The 2 mana creature is now a staple even in Vintage decks due to its ability to be big in such a short time. And it's easy to splash into any deck because of the single green requirement. Fast forward to Alara Reborn and here is Lord of Extinction - a pseudo-Tarmogoyf but lacking the speed. It's compensated by its ability to count ALL the cards in all graveyards. Is it fast enough at 5 mana (and black and green)? It can be abused. But at 5 mana, there are just too many options to choose from.

8. Slave of Bolas

I've always considered taking control of opponent's creatures as a personal favorite. Slave of Bolas does just that at a higher casting cost than the most basic "Gain control of enchanted creature" spell in Control Magic (at 4 casting cost). What it provides though is the ability to kill the creature afterward which is somewhat something new.

7. Nemesis of Reason

That weird art notwithstanding, this card is a powerhouse on its own. In Limited, it's a possible game winner in less than four turns when it is played. It's longer in Constructed but considering that it only has to attack is a huge problem. What makes it more desirable than previous "incarnations" is that it possesses a huge value for toughness which makes it difficult to blast with. Thus only a limited number of cards is able to nullify it. I say, library destruction is back in business. To note, Alara Reborn also features Mind Funeral - a card which can not as low as 4 cards or an average of 12.

6. Dauntless Escort

I feel that it's inappropriate to put Dauntless Escort here. It could be lower, it could be higher. It's difficult to tell. By itself, Dauntless Escort is a sturdy 3/3 for 3 mana. There is a question on whether there are a lot of creatures that will benefit from the indestructible ability in the turn. Nevertheless, it is useful in the late game. Being indestructible is still a great ability to have. It can be a backbreaker.

5. Spellbreaker Behemoth

Now that's one big whopping creature. Red and green mages always hate the fact that blue mages can counter those big ones. This is just the answer. Wow! And there's more. 5/5 for 4 mana is not common in these parts.

4. Maelstrom Pulse

It's the return of Putrefy. Putrefy was a great card because it could deal with a creature or an artifact (that's something a black mage couldn't handle supposedly). Maelstrom Pulse takes a better step forward by taking care of all nonland permanents (yup, that's an answer to a planeswalker) while dealing with pesky tokens, which is the norm with the current standard.

3. Sphinx of the Steel Wind

Here's another incarnation of Akroma. It's still flying. It does not have haste. But those protection from "colors" are keywords since artifacts hate these colors. That essentially lessens the cards that can hurt it. Put it all together and that's a game winner. Yowza!

2. Thought Hemorrhage

I was a huge fan of Cranial Extraction and always thought that it was the best card in Champions of Kamigawa (in my standards). Fast forward to Alara Reborn and we get another Cranial Extraction like card. It is in the same converted mana cost but with the added red mana in the mix - which probably explains the dealing of 3 damage. Still worthy of being a top card, in my opinion. It might just end up in the sideboard. My rationale is that if Meddling Mage can be a card stopper, why not this card?

1. Sen Triplets

The wonders of Mindslaver bring special memories whenever I look at Sen Triplets. In itself, it's a beautiful card. Being able to play your opponent's cards every turn is even better than the absurdity of Mindslaver. Sen Triplets gives you more than just the cards that you have in your hand. The inability to play those spells isn't a problem. The lands are available from your opponent's hand. Not only do you cripple him because he can't do anything on your turn, you might just be able to get rid of his lands in his hand. Talk about abusing power.

A few honorable mentions include Bloodbraid Elf (cascade is too random but it is a cool creature in itself), Zealous Persecution (a novelty considering that it's mostly likely used only in BW Tokens), Necromancer's Covenant, and Knotvine Paladin.

Here's the worst of Alara Reborn. I have specific reasons before choosing the said cards. First of all, they have to be really bad at their rarity level. Some common cards are bad but they are common so they don't get mentioned much here (unless it's a really bad card that warrants a question as to its printing).

Without further ado, the list for the worst cards (in no particular order):

1. Soulquake
2. Demonspine Whip
3. Cloven Casting

Regionals 2009

2009-05-23T20:03:00.000-07:00

For the MTG Cebu Regionals 2009, I played BR Blightning Aggro:

4 Mogg Fanatic
4 Figure of Destiny
4 Hellspark Elemental
4 Boggart Ram-Gang
4 Demigod of Revenge
1 Anathemancer

3 Terminate
4 Flame Javelin
2 Banefire
3 Volcanic Fallout
4 Blightning

4 Graven Cairns
4 Sulfurous Springs
4 Reflecting Pool
1 Swamp
2 Ghitu Encampment
8 Mountain

SB:
2 Pithing Needle
4 Magma Spray
3 Infest
1 Anathemancer
2 Deathmark
1 Unwilling Recruit
3 Dragon's Claw

As what Mike Flores indicated, BW Tokens was the deck to beat. It did win the whole tournament and I faced the eventual winner in the 3rd round. I finished with a 3-3 record. Here is a summarized blow by blow of each round:

Round 1: vs. a blue-black (?) homebrew deck

Round 1 was like a bye. Here was a deck that I was so surprised to be matched up against. I was seeing the 4cc Haste Flying Drake, Architects of Will, Terramorphic Expanse, etc. I made sure I had good hands in both games to win.

1-0

Round 2: vs. Rod Osal (Faeries)

Rod was playing the only Faerie deck in the tournament. As always, Faeries are a scary match up and I wished that I had Guttural Response in the sideboard. The first game had him do a mini combo with a Mistbind Clique championing a Mistbind Clique to keep me in the ropes. Volcanic Fallout was my hero after continuous pounding with my creatures and after he ran out of gas with his Mistbind Clique mini combo.

2nd game was much better. He couldn't find a 3rd blue mana source and had 2 Mutavault in play. I made a 2 for 1 when he activated all his Mutavault and I played a Volcanic Fallout. That left him in trouble as I pounded with my creatures and he couldn't counter any of the threats. By the time I got another Volcanic Fallout, it was enough to win me the round.

2-0

Round 3: vs. Aga Suan (BW tokens)

I knew I would be having lots of trouble with BW tokens. Needless to say, I had no answer to a Glorious Anthem.

Game 2 was frustrating as I kept a 2 Sulfurous Springs hand. It took quite a while to get my 3rd land and the frustration continued as it was another Sulfurous Springs. I killed myself.

2-1

Round 4: vs. Lordan Suan (5-color Cascade)

I didn't know what to do against an aggressive 5-color Cascade deck. It was the first time that I was playing against it and game 1 was spent studying the deck. It seemed that he couldn't get his mojo going as there were no real threats encountered. My deck was too fast. I won both games convincingly.

3-1

Round 5: vs. Duane Villa (BW tokens)

Yet another BW token deck. I still faced the same problems with Glorious Anthem. A 2nd Glorious Anthem silenced me.

2nd game wasn't much as once again I had difficulty in getting my 3rd land out.

3-2

Round 6: vs. Irvin Tan (Naya Beats)

It was this round or never. I had a fast first game.

The next two games weren't that much better. I realized that the longer the game went, the bigger his creatures became. A Bull Cerodon won the 2nd game for him.

It seemed that the deck had numerous options. A Wall of Reverence saved him as it was paired with a Meglonoth. I made numerous mistakes but it was frustrating not getting to draw any of the Terminates or Deathmarks.

3-3

I won two packs for my effort.

Some observations:

For the deck, I could have main boarded the 4 Magma Spray (or on further thought, 4 Puncture Blast). BW Tokens has Kitchen Finks and Murderous Redcap. Having the Puncture Blast would have also given me insurance against the big creatures that the Magma Spray couldn't finish off.

A 4th Volcanic Fallout wouldn't have hurt. Even a 4th Terminate would have been a huge help. With that, this Blightning deck might turn out to be just a normal BR Aggro deck because the 4 Blightning is the main candidate to be removed. More Anathemancers would have helped also (but then again, I had difficulty in finding more than 2).

With the statement above, I would have space to put in Guttural Response. I was also in the crossroads thinking if Chaotic Backlash would have been great considering the number of tokens that's lurking around.

I had numerous mistakes. I was never able to put in the 2 Pithing Needle. Then it occurred to me that it would have been of great help against Ajani Goldmane.

Oh well. There's always next year. I had fun though.

Here comes Deadpool

2009-05-06T21:56:00.000-07:00

Deadpool movie is coming.

And Deadpool gets his own movie.

Absurd.

As a comic book fanboy, this is just so bad. I totally enjoyed Ryan Reynolds portrayal of the Merc with a Mouth in Wolverine Origins because of the 'tude that he showed in the movie. Now he's on tap to be a franchise. Deadpool a mutant? Please. Furthermore, the ability to absorb dead mutants' power? Oh my.

Movie makers better fix this right or else it's going to be a bomb big time.

Deadpool is a crazy hitman who just would not stop talking. He doesn't get his money's worth because that's just the way it has become with him. So many stories can be made out of this. There's no need to ruin the character.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

2009-05-04T02:20:00.000-07:00

This is sort of a review on the recently shown X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie. It will take quite a long time for me to get to it.

I've been a Wolverine fan ever since I read my first X-Men comic book. It was Uncanny X-Men and featured the first appearance of Kierok the Damned. In that issue, Wolverine clearly showed his adored attitude - just like a wolverine, so to speak. He was careless yet effective. Come to think of it, there has got to be something about those claws that just makes him stand out from the rest of the mutants. The claws itself has created a whole new group of Wolverine wannabes. Now (or maybe back then), a superhero team wouldn't be complete without the requisite character with the sharp (and sometimes indestructible) claws.

Aside from the (first) comic book, I got to see a Wolverine toy with "clip-on" claws. I told my Mom that she should have bought it. I don't know what came to me that I said such words. Needless to say, I got a nice reprimand from an uncle who overheard.

Anyway, I kept some close tabs on Wolverine and the rest of the X-Men despite the lack of Internet connection in my elementary school days and no regular comic books to read. A story arc that I remember is the X-Men adventure in Japan. Most of the story actually happened in Wolverine's own on-going series and I got to read that years after it was actually released in a trade paperback. As usual, once threatened, always relentless in the pursuit of taking down the enemy. Oh yeah, all those martial arts and black ops training that he's had is never bad.

Collectible cards somehow featured a lot of him. The X-Men card series always had a special portion dedicated to him. Wolverine even had his own set of cards released. Wolverine Comic Images featured spiffy and glossy color to already existing artwork.

There's a whole lot of Wolverine-related comic book products out. If he's not the most overexposed character in Marvel Comics, it would have to be Spider-man. Wizard Magazine even dedicated a special magazine release just for him. The 3 X-Men movies made sure to put a lot of emphasis on Wolverine and his dark past (which incidentally coincides with the new Wolverine movie). And as what Joe Quesada and his Marvel brain thrust claimed, they came out with Wolverine's "true" origin story before the movie came out so they'd be the first to tell it (rather than the movie messing it up).

This is where the review comes in. As one big fan who digested much of the Wolverine Origins, I am somewhat disappointed over how the movie came out. It's understandable that movies don't entirely follow the original stories but the Wolverine movie is a pure sell-out of sorts - trying to connect itself to the whole X-Men franchise when in fact Wolverine goes "older" than that. That Wolverine is supposed to be a killing machine because of his military (and other martial arts) training, it doesn't show in the movie. There is more to Wolverine that makes him the killing machine that he is and that is the whole essential thing. It's just too bad that the movie makers decided to resort to what they just did.

The movie makers probably figured out that they couldn't explain the memory erasing clearly so they opted for the adamantium bullets. To me, it's all crap shoot. How is possible to accurately predict that shooting Wolverine on the head would erase his memory? And then there's the theory of adamantium against adamantium. Even Wolverine's claws can't penetrate Captain America's shield which, as fanboys know, is made up of adamantium also.

Anyway, moviegoer review time. 4 out of 5 stars. The movie makers tried their best. Not good enough. The story was great. Some of the characters were illogically included. But that's Hollywood. Sometimes, it just doesn't have to make sense.

And hey, I like Deadpool also. Ryan Reynolds portrayal was great in my opinion. But Deadpool becoming that killing machine that they showed in the last part is just too much. He is not supposed to be like that!

And there are times of overdoing humor

2009-04-25T21:15:00.000-07:00

The focus is on the topmost panel. The previous panel (from the previous page which is not shown here) "shows" crunching sounds illustrating that someone is eating outside the window. The top panel on this page shows that it's Spider-man, eavesdropping on the Jamesons' argument.

Spider-man eating popcorn? How's he doing it while having his mask on? I'd believe he'd get the bottom half of his mask up (just like when he's doing his kisses - dang, of all the references to make). And does Spider-man really have the time to go get some popcorn before unexpectedly seeing the two Jamesons go at their argument?

The purpose of the humor is understandable. It is also unbelievable.

This is comic book world though.

Brownout!!! (or blackout, as it is properly termed)

2009-04-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

Last February when I was supposed to conduct a Conflux Launch Party, Dumaguete City got a rude awakening with the city-wide flooding. Almost 3 months after and with another Magic set in mind (and a supposed trip that got canceled because Customs wouldn't let the products through), I'm stuck here where there hasn't been any electricity for 21 hours and counting.

And I thought I've had worse in Iligan City during Aquino's power crisis. Back then, the number of hours that mattered was the hours that we would have electricity and not the number of hours of not having any.

It's dangerous to walk in the streets when there's no light. True, Dumaguete City is supposed to be a safe city but without street lights, I don't think so. Having no street lights is the perfect invitation for motorcycle-riding robbers to poke a gun-like metal object on the back of an unsuspecting streetwalker and ask for their precious wallet and cell phone.

Well, there are at least 2 things to be happy about (and I'm always looking at the bright side of things):

1. It's a further opportunity to save the Earth.
2. It's a preview of what would happen if "The Day After Tomorrow" comes.

The NBA playoffs are finally here!

2009-04-16T03:29:00.000-07:00

EASTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Cleveland vs. No. 8 Detroit

No. 2 Boston vs. No. 7 Chicago

No. 3 Orlando vs. No. 6 Philadelphia

No. 4 Atlanta vs. No. 5 Miami

WESTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 L.A. Lakers vs. No. 8 Utah

No. 2 Denver vs. No. 7 New Orleans

No. 3 San Antonio vs. No. 6 Dallas

No. 4 Portland vs. No. 5 Houston

Some quick comments:

Detroit at number 8. Wow! My favorite team and consistent playoff bound team ends up at number 8, barely making it to the postseason and holding off the Charlotte Bobcats (of all teams!). As how it's always said, "Oh, how the mighty have fallen." Detroit will visit the Cleveland Cavaliers. Back then, it used to be a second round match up, with both Detroit and Cleveland ending in the top 4 in the Eastern Conference standings.

If the Cleveland versus Detroit match up is not going to be as exciting as the previous years, then the East's match up to watch is the Miami at Atlanta game. Who would have thought that the Hawks would grab the 4th spot in the East? Who would have thought that the Heat would be back with a rookie coach handling the reins. Of course, Dwyane Wade has taken the mantle of Superman for Miami.

Utah finishes 8th and Dallas jumps to 6th in the Western Conference. And here I thought that the Dallas Mavericks were doing a Detroit Piston falling mightily. Poor Utah. They draw the mighty LA Lakers in the first round. I'm pretty sure they won't just roll over and lose easily.

New Orleans is the West's version of the Detroit Pistons. The former 2nd seed is at a lowly 7th this year but that doesn't mean that they're a bad team. But they do have the (un)fortunate situation of drawing the Denver Nuggets (also a surprise as the 2nd seed).

Portland is a surprise at number 4. Like the Miami Heat in the East, Portland returns to the postseason after a near appearance in 2008. They have the homecourt advantage against the Houston Rockets, who are looking for their first playoff series win. This should be fun to watch.

It's San Antonio versus Dallas in the first round. Like the Cavaliers versus Pistons, these two teams are old rivals. Now they meet in the first round.

Predictions:

Cleveland over Detroit in 5 (and prompting another change from Joe Dumars!).

Boston over Chicago in 4 (that's quite a bold prediction but it hinges on the health of KG).

Orlando over Philadelphia in 6.

Atlanta over Miami in 7 (this series could be all about Wade).

LA Lakers over Utah in 7 (Jerry Sloan won't back down on this one).

New Orleans over Denver in 6 (upset alert!).

Dallas over San Antonio in 7 (Manu Ginobili will be sorely missed).

Houston over Portland in 6 (Houston finally wins a playoff series).

It's looking clearer and clearer that we'll have a Cleveland versus LA Lakers NBA Finals. LeBron versus Kobe. Nike is going to be wearing a smile the whole series and so will David Stern.

A guess at From the Vault: Exiled

2009-04-03T00:14:00.000-07:00

Somehow, with just too much time before I go on a vacation and the persistence of trying to predict the list for Wizards' From the Vault: Exiled, I've come up with:

From the supposed spoiled pack from April 1's Draft Viewer:
Balance - $4
Sol Ring - max at $15 for the most recent version
Land Tax - $5
Mind Twist - $3 or $4
Skullclamp - $2.50

Since the essence of From the Vault: Exiled is that the cards are/have been restricted, Tarmogoyf, Umezawa's Jitte and the rest of the non-restricted cards from the said Draft Viewer have been removed.

Black Lotus and Ancestral Recall have been removed from the list also because they are currently in Wizards' Reserved List.

5 cards remain and they all have mellow prices.

Here's where the wild theory comes into play once more:
Mana Vault - $2.50 - $3
Voltaic Key - $4
Disciple of the Vault - $0.50
Vault of Whispers - $0.75

These are cards that are featured in the prank From the Vault: Vault announcement. Since I considered Disciple of the Vault as a possible inclusion in a post at a forum, why not some of the other "vault" cards being featured. It somehow makes sense. The three other cards have been on the Restricted List.

Further look at the Draft Viewer (where I got the list that had the Tarmogoyf, Black Lotus, Ancestral Recall, etc. list), there's:

Enlightened Tutor - $6

The Enlightened Tutor is a bit of a reach but for prediction's sake, it's in.

That's a total of 10 cards so far.

The breakdown is as follows:
White - 3
Black - 2
Land - 1
Artifacts (without counting the artifact land) - 4

Red, blue, and green has to be represented of course. Wizards probably would not want a product to be favoring (or not favoring) certain colors in the color pie. A quick look at what's possible reveals (note: anything above $5 has been removed):

Brainstorm $1
Channel $0.50
Crop Rotation $0.50
Fact or Fiction $3
Frantic Search $0.50
Gush $1
Hermit Druid $1.50
Kird Ape (varied prices)
Merchant Scroll $2
Mind's Desire $3.50
Orcish Oriflamme $0.25
Ponder $1
Rebirth $0.50
Recall $0.50
Regrowth $1
Rukh Egg $1
Squandered Resources $1.75
Tempest Efreet $0.50
Windfall $0.75
Worldgorger Dragon $4

Out of the blue (pardon the pun), I'd remove Kird Ape and Ponder. Both are recent reprints and would be too boring for fans.

I think Wizards will include Squandered Resources (the only gold card I see so far), Gush (for being such a storied card - in and out of the Restricted List), any of the ante cards (Tempest Efreet or Regrowth) because they are just that - ante cards, Merchant Scroll (one of the last remaining tutor spells left), and Channel (somehow I always hear, "Hey, I used to have that Channel-Fireball deck." The card is "famous" for just that.). If Channell is included, I would expect to see Tempest Efreet get included in the list (or maybe even Burning Wish but it's at $7 right now).

That's my wild guess list!

The new Chris Gatling

2009-02-20T04:52:00.000-08:00

For those who are not familiar with who Chris Gatling is, here's a Wiki entry of him. Just to mention the important parts for the reason of this entry:

1991 - 96 Golden State Warriors

1996 Miami Heat

1996 - 97 Dallas Mavericks

1997 - 99 New Jersey Nets

1999 Milwaukee Bucks

1999 - 2000 Orlando Magic

2000 Denver Nuggets

2000 - 01 Cleveland Cavaliers

2001 - 02 Miami Heat

For a player who had quite a reputation (one time field goal percentage leader and All-Star), he's well traveled. In one occasion when he was traded, he publicly announced that he was just renting a place rather than buying. He always knew that he would be traded (again) so renting was the feasible thing to do.

Of course, he's not the most well traveled player in the NBA. I'm sure that someone else has that distinction. Names like Chucky Brown, Tony Massenburg, and Jim Jackson pops up when you Google "most traveled NBA player." And then there's Joe Smith, a player who every team seems to want. That's just weird.

The player that I would christen as the new Chris Gatling is Drew Gooden. He just got traded to the West Coast to the Sacramento Kings. Previous stops include Memphis, Orlando, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Chicago.

Pause for a moment. So, what makes Chris Gatling and Drew Gooden special that they're mentioned not in the same sense as Brown, Massenburg, and Jackson (journeymen). For one, Gatling and Gooden are both highly touted big guys. And instead of being journeyman players who signs just about anywhere, Gatling and Gooden are always in the middle of trade transactions. Gatling always had that contract number that teams covet (aside from the talent). Somehow, Gooden has inherited that honor from Gatling.

I pity Drew Gooden. He will have to study closely the career of Chris Gatling. Don't buy a house. It's bound to be worthless. I'm betting that he'll be traded sooner than later by Sacramento. Maybe he'll finish the next season as a King. Then again, maybe not.

10 Random Things

2009-02-17T02:00:00.000-08:00

Inspired by Mark Rosewater's 25 Random Things, I thought about my own Random Things. It's a nice exercise. As I'm writing this, I really don't know how many I can compile. 30 is quite a big number and I'll probably just end up with 5.

These things are under the category of "Things people are least likely to know". Although I'm not a believer of exposing a lot of things (the more you know about me, the less interesting I become), I'll just enjoy the exercise.

I've set myself up to alternate the things I do and things I don't do (or positive things and negative things, however it will be said). Without further ado:

- Given a fair amount of time, I can probably name all 52 states of the USA. As a kid, I used to stay alone in the room. I love to read and one of the books from my mother's collection that I read from cover to cover was an Information Please Almanac (I think it was a 1984 Almanac). I got interested in the facts about all the states. This was also the time that I got interested in basketball. I was determined to understand how the NBA divided their team divisions so knowing where a particular team is located was very important. I eventually know a lot more than normal Filipinos know about the United States. The information I kept in my brain became useful in my senior year in college. My literature professor, who was an American, was quizzing about the United States and I was the only student who was able to point out where Florida, California, and some other states were in the map that he had drawn on the board.

- I don't like to dance. Most especially in a disco house. And I can even fall asleep inside a disco house (maybe if I'm too tired). Working a sweat or having fun while dancing just does not translate as enjoyable to me. The few moments that somebody else got me to dance was because I was forced to perform an intermission number. Anyway, I feel like a total jerk with such an ungraceful body whenever I attempt to dance. I think I have to be given the dance moves to follow. Which means that I'm not creative when it comes to dancing. Still, I feel like a total jerk with choreographed dancing.

- Comic books are a big part of my life. When I learned how to read, I took the opportunity of reading all the bound comic books that my brother had and started to really appreciate the joys of reading. Later, I was able to have my own collection of comic books. A family friend from the US would bring me a pile of cheap comic books. One summer vacation, I probably spent half of my pocket money in just one day for comic books. The best thing that I got from comic books was during my senior year in high school. My brother and I started an order-basis business selling comic books. He would purchase from Manila and I would sell it to my school mates in Iligan. We were able to profit around 9,000 pesos in 5 months of operation. With my share, I got to open my own ATM account. My father gave me specific instructions not to go into the comic book business while I was going to study in college. Right now, I still read but only through downloaded scanned comic books.

- I've banged my head on something hard more times that I can remember. There are 2 serious incidents though. One was when I was very young I banged my head while leaning back on a chair. The wound required several stitches. I still remember the ticklish sensation of getting knitted up. I was also required to swim in the sea to help heal the wound. The 2nd incident involved a ceiling fan. I was in my 3rd year in high school and our class was forced to transfer to a room in the first floor of a two-story building. The room had a ceiling fan that looked like it was going to drop if used continuously. Our teachers kept telling us to not use it but we didn't listen. After a classroom recess which involved the usual sweaty games, my friends turned on the ceiling fan and as I passed by, the ceiling fan dropped on my head. The first thing I did was recover my spectacles and then I took out my comb from my back pocket and combed my hair.

- I don't have a sense of smell. Or I believe that I don't have any. Halfway in my college education, I seem to have lost the use of my nose. I don't usually breathe through my nose. A medical check up found out that I had multiple polyps. Afraid to have a surgical operation, I still have the same nose and situation. It has its advantages and disadvantages. For one, I don't get to smell unbearable bad odors. The disadvantage is I don't get to smell someone who smells good. Purchasing a cologne is always an adventure as I need a companion to help me describe what a particular cologne smells like. Thankfully, there are such sites as perfumeemporium.com to help me figure out the nice colognes.

- My siblings like to describe me as the politician in the family. I seem to have that talent to try and please both sides of a conflict. When my mother died, I was the only person who was able to talk properly to a drunk uncle who blamed my father and my siblings for the death of my mother. I had to "convince" him that it was nobody's fault. I could say that I negotiated my way out of a tough situation. At present, I'm the only child left that is still close to my father and his wife. Both my siblings are now considered in the wrong side of things. I hate being right in the middle but considering that I need to respect them, I will have to do what I need to do for the good of all.

- In high school, I was able to represent my school in chess and swimming competitions. My best anecdote for chess is about a citywide competition involving private schools in the city. Instead of playing a round per week, the organizers asked if we were willing to play all the rounds in just one afternoon. Since most of the participants agreed, we played (I think) 6 rounds of chess in that afternoon. I went home in the evening feeling like a zombie - my brain all drained out. For swimming, I used to wake up early during Sundays just to swim. My swimming days ended when I almost contracted typhoid fever after an afternoon of intense swimming. Unfortunately in college, I never participated in any of these events because I was too shy to try out.

- I don't sing (much). Maybe I do on my own but I've found out that I don't have the best voice so I am rarely heard singing in public. I used to enjoy the old-school singing via Multiplex but I was discouraged early by my siblings. That said, I don't enjoy karaoke sessions. Maybe I'll sing if I get to drink a few bottles but unfortunately I'm on a quest to not drink for a year. I do enjoy music except for techno, disco, and novelty music.

- My favorite manga is One Piece. The first time I was exposed to One Piece was through a Shonen Jump issue which had the 50th chapter of the manga. I was captivated by the diverse characters and I started reading from Chapter 1. Now, I can't imagine that One Piece is on its 531st chapter and still going strong.

- I never watched Braveheart. Of all the movies that I never watched, Braveheart is probably the most "memorable" because it broke apart a friendship. During my high school (and my brother was in college/work), my brother came home and wouldn't stop talking about Braveheart. The whole time that he was home, he kept saying the infamous phrases from the movie. It felt like I had watched the movie also. In my first year in college, I had a discussion with roommate about not being able to watch Braveheart. His reaction (and like most of his reactions to what I did) was "What? If you haven't watched Braveheart, you've missed half of your life!" I reacted by saying that a movie (or any movie) can't be such a huge part of my life (much more to be half). That argument was probably the turning point between me and my roommate as we never talked again casually after that. And even until now, I still haven't watched Braveheart.

And that should be enough for Random Things. It has taken me a day to finish but then I can't just reveal everything in my life. 10 things for now is enough.

Favre retires AGAIN

2009-02-12T04:16:00.000-08:00

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/peter_king/02/11/favre/index.html?eref=T1

I've honestly lost count on how many times he has declared that he's retiring. Peter King says that this time it's for real. People have said the exact same words the very first time Favre retired. The worst was last year when he had the teary eyed press conference. Who knows, Favre might be looking towards getting his biceps injury healed and when it's healed, lo and behold, Favre will declare that he's back (AGAIN!).

So, I reiterate my call for Brett Favre to retire. It's time. If he had retired last year, he could have retired while being on top. So maybe he's just a step down from being on top but that's going to be an expected trend. As his body deteriorates, so will his game. Retire now and savor the moment. Rid yourself of the shame of another lackluster season. With all the records and awards, it should be enough to stay happy for the rest of your life. And surely, Hall of Fame is going to be a cinch.

Express Counter

2009-02-07T21:51:00.000-08:00

Express Counter?

It clearly says 10 items only. In the foreground, that's more than 5 items already and there are almost 5 through the bar code reader. A couple more of closer looks:

I should have taken an earlier picture of the basket.

Anyway, it just bugs me that people line up at the Express Lane and bring in more than 10 items. Those ladies at the counter should at least be able to spot them beforehand and tell them to transfer to a different counter. And customers should have the decency to line up in a different lane.

Oh well.

The Raphael Levy Bohol shirt

2009-02-02T03:33:00.000-08:00

Raphael Levy at GP Manila Day 2. August 2008. He acknowledges that he just had a 3-day vacation from Bohol.

Raphael Levy wears the same Bohol shirt for Day 2 of GP Paris.

Inspired by Hall of Famer Raphael Levy, Team Bohol dons the famed Raphael Levy Bohol shirt during the Conflux Prerelease in Neutral Grounds JY Mall, Cebu City.

Conflux Prerelease experience

2009-02-01T21:09:00.000-08:00

I played Conflux prerelease at Neutral Grounds Cebu JY Mall last February 1, 2009.

Knowing that the cards would be passed, I thought hard looking at an Ajani Vengeant and 2 Inkwell Leviathans (1 of which was a foil). The Inkwell Leviathans were an easy choice to make. My table mates all commented that Ajani Vengeant isn't that worth it considering it's readily available as a Prerelease foil. I passed the card pool knowing that the player using the deck will play red (possibly Naya to accomodate Ajani) because of the removal at that color's disposal.

I was happy to receive a Tezzeret the Seeker in my card pool. It was enough to make me smile. I passed an Ajani for a Tezzeret!

I initially opted to play Jund shard since I had 2 Scarland Thrinax, Sprouting Thrinax, Hissing Iguanar, Dragon Fodder, and all the other appropriate creature removals in that color (3 Bone Splinter, Vithian Stinger, etc.). I didn't remember any bombs in the shard I chose and I totally remember not having a flying creature at all.

While deciding over what shard to play, I had checked the number of artifacts that was available at my disposal. I had an appropriate number of artifacts to play with Tezzeret and at the last moment, changed my deck from Jund to Esper (I had already finished the whole deck). It was a late decision but I figured that it wasn't a lousy one either. I had plenty of flyers at my disposal (Tower Gargoyle, Tidehollow Strix, Parasitic Strix, Sphinx Summoner, Kathari Screecher - of this list, only the Screecher isn't an artifact). 2 Agony Warp and an Executioner's Capsule also helped me to decide to change shards. Other key cards included Tidehollow Sculler (another artifact), Court Homunculus (yet another artifact), Puppet Conjurer (yet another artifact!), Windwright Mage (yet another artifact!) and 2 counter magic: Hindering Light and Traumatic Visions.

Game play observations:

- I finally got to appreciate the power of Tidehollow Sculler. Initially, I would have just set it aside because of the "drawback" that the removed card would return when the Sculler dies. I got to remove an Oblivion Ring and a Volcanic Fallout in separate games. The Sculler helps to save the day.

- Playing control in an environment where guys are wanting to play fast is not for the feint-hearted. The two counter magic mentioned both saved me from apparent losses. I was able to counter a game winning Exploding Borders with Traumatic Visions and a game winning Absorb Vis with my Hindering Light in separate games. The Traumatic Visions helped fix my mana in another different game which helped turn my mono-blue land hand to blue-black.

- Puppet Conjurer is just unfair. I was explaining to an opponent that I didn't have to sacrifice the Conjurer if I didn't have a Homunculus to sacrifice. I even provided the addditional insight that without the sacrifice "drawback", this card would just be too nasty.

- I saw only one Path to Exile. In one game in which I was stuck to having only Islands and Swamps and couldn't play my gold cards that needed white mana, one of my creatures got removed by Path to Exile. It was a no-brainer. I searched for a Plains without hesitation. My Tower Gargoyle came during the next turn. Good game.

- Frontline Sage was a key card in my deck. I had an instance of having an initial draw of 5 Islands and 1 Frontline Sage. I kept the hand and proceeded to filter my deck for more needed cards.

- I was paired against another artifact heavy Esper deck in the third round. I was envious of the Ethersworn Canonist and Etherium Sculptor that he had. He probably felt the same seeing my Tezzeret, Tower Gargoyle and Sphinx Summoner. I also saw a player playing beside us with a Sharding Sphinx. I would definitely would have wanted that in my deck. Well, it just goes to say that you can never have everything in Magic.

- I didn't see much Planeswalkers in play. Aside from the Ajani Vengeant that I opened, I heard one player getting a Nicol Bolas. He did the right thing in dropping. A $20 card is worth it to drop especially if it's just a Prerelease.

- Speaking of Planeswalkers, having one in play is definitely gamebreaking. Tezzeret is probably the least of the Planeswalkers to play in Limited but I was thankful to have quite a number of artifacts available. I might have done a bad thing by not putting all the artifacts at my disposal into the deck. Every bit of extra artifact would have helped. I had 2 Kaleidostones (the card draw would have been a great bonus but I considered everything else of the card as useless), 2 Manaforce Mace (I thought that it was too costly), Obelisk of Naya (wrong colors although I always needed that one white mana all the time), and a Bone Saw! I wasn't able to activate Tezzeret's ultimate ability but I always was able to reach 5 loyalty counters easily. Just untap any of the artifacts in play and that's it.

- Best plays that involved Tezzeret:

a. With not much artifacts in play yet and my Tezzeret already at 6 loyalty counters (activating the ultimate ability would have netted me only two 5/5 artifacts), I opted to search the cheapest artifact in the deck: Executioner's Capsule. I had the option to kill one of my opponent's creatures (we were at a standstill with each having an equal number of creatures in play) and I could still use Tezzeret's ultimate ability the next turn.

b. I had Tezzeret at 5 loyalty counters but instead of activating the ultimate ability, I opted to search for a Sphinx Summoner (again, I didn't have enough artifacts in play). I figured I'd maximize the Tezzeret searching ability by getting the Sphinx Summoner into play. Sphinx Summoner comes into play ability then searched for a Tower Gargoyle and played it (and while holding on to precious two mana to be able to still play Hindering Light).

- My most expensive card in the deck was Kiss of the Amesha. 7 life and two cards is just painful for the opponent late in the game. The kiss helped me escape one situation where a big 5/5 was pounding at my life total. All that hard work and a Kiss of the Amesha to ruin it all.

I would have finished 3-1 but I gave away my third round. I finished 2-2 instead. It was still worth it. One of the packs I won yielded a Noble Hierarch.

But the most important thing of all was I had fun. It was nice to visit Cebu (first time for 2009) and see the Magic guys there once again.

Picking out my All-Star Reserves

2009-01-25T02:50:00.000-08:00

With the All-Star Starters already voted in, the debate now shifts to the Reserves. This is where things that the fans messed up are fixed. It is an ironic statement considering that after the All-Star Reserves are announced, even more debate rages out on who was left off the list and who is undeserving to be called an All-Star.

There are two ways that I'll go about on this. First, I'll pick out the players who I think I'd want to make it on MY team. Second, I'll pick out the players who I think are going to make it based on how the NBA and the coaches think.

Before moving on to my lists, I just want to air it out that Allen Iverson is the poorest choice for a starter but the fans can't be blamed. There is no other guard in the East with the same charisma as AI. Hopefully, fans will have heard who Devin Harris or Joe Johnson is after the All-Star game.

My list first:

East:
Paul Pierce
Chris Bosh
Devin Harris
Joe Johnson

The four guys above are the can't-miss players for the East. Four guys who would get in despite whatever the record of their teams. Thankfully, the record is good for both Pierce and Johnson. Harris has been outstanding this season. And Bosh makes it as the only true outstanding big man in the East (aside from Howard and KG, of course).

The East's other 3:
David Lee - this will probably come out as a surprise to whoever gets to read this blog. But I like David Lee. He always plays hard despite how the NY Knicks have become. 2008-09 has been rewarding with the arrival of a better coach and he's continued to work hard. He deserves a break and deserves to be an All-Star.

Danny Granger - another player who works hard. He's playing lights out right now and who would have expected it when the season started? I didn't and Granger has placed the Pacers on his shoulders and has carried them all season long. This should also serve as a reward.

Mo Williams - LeBron's partner gets my vote for the last remaining slot. His arrival has helped transform the Cleveland Cavaliers into a better team. He has always been a good player. Paired with an All-Star, he just becomes great.

West:
Dirk Nowitzki
Shaquille O'Neal
Chauncey Billups
Brandon Roy

The 3 players above jump right out to me. Never realized the moment when Shaq would jump right out as a reserve. Dirk gets in considering how clogged up the forward position is for the West (he'll thank Carmelo and Boozer for their injuries). Chauncey is the key player for Denver (and also thank you to Carmelo for that). Roy is now the required player for the Blazers if they continue to play well in every season.

The West's other 3:
Pau Gasol - he deserves this honor being Kobe's partner with the surging Lakers.

Kevin Martin - Martin continues to play well for a struggling Kings team. I'd say he does it all for Sacramento.

Paul Millsap - the Utah Jazz needs a representative to the All-Star and I say Millsap is the appropriate guy. He's a typical Jerry Sloan-type of a player. Plays hard but doesn't say much. And oh yeah, may I add that Boozer will not be a Jazz next season because of Millsap.

Probably Actual List:

East:
Pierce, Bosh, Harris, Johnson, Granger, Jameer Nelson, Ray Allen

Nelson is playing well as of late. Orlando's success and his major contribution at their most questionable position will highlight his success and All-Star vote. Meanwhile, Allen is sort of an obligatory pick here for the coaches. The big 3 can't be the big 3 without their sharpshooter.

West:
Nowitzki, O'Neal, Billups, Roy, Gasol, Tony Parker, Steve Nash

Parker is another obligatory pick who makes it after past years' success. But he's still a great player, of course. Nash meanwhile is a former MVP. I'm pretty sure he won't make it but then again, the coaches can always screw this up.

Diop gets traded again

2009-01-17T01:35:00.000-08:00

Diop is traded to Charlotte

And I quote from the Yahoo News:

"DeSagana is the type of player that has a natural athletic ability to block shots, rebound and defend," Charlotte general manager Rod Higgins said. "This is someone we feel will add size, depth and experience to our power positions."

Diop is one lucky player. He gets traded to the Nets for the Jason Kidd deal to help match salaries. He was a vital piece as he had an expiring contract. His contract expires and lo and behold the Mavericks sign him back. The deal is quite understandable considering Dallas lost a bit of their toughness after losing their leading shot-blocker. Then again, it's supposedly so easy to find a replacement. Who wouldn't want to play in Dallas?

Things have been pretty funny ever since I read the first news about Diop being on the trading block. Lo and behold, a team has actually traded for Diop! And of all the teams, it's the Charlotte Bobcats. Yes, the same Charlotte Bobcats that has Michael Jordan behind some of their mind-boggling transactions.

And why is it that the decision makers always has to sound funny whenever they defend the players that they traded for no matter how stupid it looks? Please.

Week 16 Power Rankings

2008-12-18T00:16:00.000-08:00

1. Pittsburgh (4)

2. Carolina (5)

3. Indianapolis (3) - having placed the Colts at number 3 for a couple of weeks now, I can't put them lower as since they've been playing well ever since when.

4. Tennessee (1)

5. NY Giants (2)

6. New England (7) - they've been in the top 10 before and I'd trust them better than the Falcons (which, incidentally, are not in the top 10).

7. Dallas (8)

8. Tampa Bay (6)

9. Philadelphia (10) - several straight wins at just the right moment and I already have them in the top 10. I'd trust McNabb with my team more than I'll trust Ryan.

10. Baltimore (9)

11. Atlanta (13)

12. Minnesota (15)

13. NY Jets (14)

14. Miami (16)

15. Arizona (11)

16. Washington (12)

17. Chicago (20)

18. San Diego (19)

19. Houston (21)

20. Denver (17)

21. New Orleans (18)

22. Jacksonville (26)

23. San Francisco (22)

24. Green Bay (23)

25. Buffalo (24)

26. Cleveland (25)

27. Cincinnati (29)

28. Oakland (27)

29. Kansas City (28)

30. Seattle (30)

31. St. Louis (31)

32. Detroit (32)

Week 15 Power Rankings

2008-12-11T00:17:00.000-08:00

1. Tennessee (2)

2. NY Giants (1)

3. Indianapolis (3) - no particular reason to drop the Colts when I already placed them at number 3. They're as competitive as the Steelers and I'd trust their offensive line better than the Steelers.

4. Pittsburgh (4)

5. Carolina (7)

6. Tampa Bay (5)

7. New England (8) - they still have it going on

8. Dallas (6) - not a huge drop yet. If they do lose to the Giants, that would warrant another drop. Things are looking bleak for the Cowboys after missing Barber.

9. Baltimore (11)

10. Philadelphia (14) - the Eagles are once again rising to the occasion with their winning ways.

11. Arizona (13) - this is the advantage of not dropping them too low, I wouldn't have a problem in putting them up. Once again closing in on the top 10.

12. Washington (9) - slowly getting down there

13. Atlanta (10) - with the teams above them going up, they don't have anywhere else to go but down.

14. NY Jets (12)- great pretenders continue to drop

15. Minnesota (15) - same as the Falcons, they have nowhere else to go. So they are where they were last week.

16. Miami (16) - Dolphins in the top 10? That's too much. This is not yet their year. They're in the range of where the Falcons are and deservingly so.

17. Denver (20) - not yet appropriate for the Broncos to jump ahead. Another win will vault them to the top though.

18. New Orleans (18)

19. San Diego (19) - I can't move the Chargers too much. Despite that they have a worse record than the Bears, they seem to be in good momentum right now.

20. Chicago (17)

21. Houston (21)

22. San Francisco (23)

23. Green Bay (22)

24. Buffalo (24)

25. Cleveland (25)

26. Jacksonville (26)

27. Oakland (26)

28. Kansas City (28)

29. Cincinnati (27)

30. Seattle (30)

31. St. Louis (31)

32. Detroit (32)

Reading Scud

2008-12-10T03:39:00.000-08:00

Scud: The Whole Shebang

Rob Schrab's Scud the Disposable Assassin is a surprisingly (yet late) read for me. I've heard of it from Wizard magazine but never bothered to look for one (with a publishing outfit like Fireman Press, it's not that easy). I never expected it to be THIS funny. It's probably been a month since I laughed while reading a comic book.

Scud (the protagonist) is unbelievably thinks practically like a human. This is how artificial intelligence will ultimately become: considers survival as an ultimate basic need. So, here's the dilemma with Scud since it dies when its primary objective is met. What will it do to survive?

Week 14 Power Rankings

2008-12-04T01:19:00.000-08:00

1. NY Giants (1)

2. Tennessee (2) - since I placed them at number 2 last week (and rightfully so), I don't have a problem with placing them here.

3. Indianapolis (3) - the Colts pull off another gutsy win and it just shows their heart. They're still my number 3 team at the moment and they're riding their streak at the right time.

4. Pittsburgh (5) - the Steelers win a good one against the Patriots. The Patriots drop a good deal but the Steelers might have turned away one of the scariest defenses out there (and they with their offensive line problems).

5. Tampa Bay (4)

6. Dallas (8) - the Cowboys creep closer to the top 5 with another great win. This week should show if they can maintain their hold to their spot.

7. Carolina (10)

8. New England (6)

9. Washington (7) - it's still too early to drop the Redskins. True, they've faced superior foes. If they keep on losing, they'll eventually be lower but not yet now.

10. Atlanta (12)

11. Baltimore (13)

12. NY Jets (9) - so without putting the Jets at such a lofty 2nd place, I don't have any problems of dropping them out of the top 10 after that disastrous loss to a lowly Denver Broncos team.

13. Arizona (11)

14. Philadelphia (17) - that was a great win against the Cardinals. All they need to do is to sustain their performance. The result has the Cardinals dropping and the Eagles rising.

15. Minnesota (19)

16. Miami (20)

17. Chicago (14)

18. New Orleans (15)

19. San Diego (16)

20. Denver (23)

21. Houston (22)

22. Green Bay (21)

23. San Francisco (29)

24. Buffalo (18)

25. Cleveland (24)

26. Jacksonville (26)

27. Oakland (26)

28. Kansas City (28)

29. Cincinnati (27)

30. Seattle (30)

31. St. Louis (31)

32. Detroit (32)

Week 13 Power Rankings

2008-11-27T01:15:00.000-08:00

I missed making Week 12 Power Rankings because of a sudden travel commitment. Thus, I'll make a quick rundown for my reference:

1. Ten
2. NYG
3. TB
4. Ind
5. Pit
6. Ari
7. Car
8. NE
9. Was
10. SD
11. Phi
12. Dal
13. NYJ
14. Atl
15. Bal
16. Chi
17. Min
18. NO
19. Mia
20. Den
21. GB
22. Buf
23. Cle
24. Jac
25. Hou
26. Cin
27. STL
28. SF
29. KC
30. Sea
31. Oak
32. Det

And here is how I'll rank them this week:

1. NY Giants (2)

2. Tennessee (1) - Jets at number 2 is not yet a sure thing. I've even ranked the Jets lower (very low indeed). The Titans should not be ranked lower (or the Jets higher) after their winning streak was broken. Somehow, they were just overwhelmed over the greatness of Favre. I wouldn't bet against the Titans if they meet the 2nd time around.

3. Indianapolis (4) - I've ranked the Colts higher after another week of pure guts. This is Peyton Manning playing at his finest.

4. Tampa Bay (3) - allowing the Lions to score as much does not bode well for the Bucs.

5. Pittsburgh (5)

6. New England (8)

7. Washington (9) - I might have missed something on why this team is ranked lower by most people. They're still right up there and they're sure to maintain their status as a good team. But Dallas and NY Jets (after this week maybe) should leapfrog soon enough.

8. Dallas (12) - nobody saw this coming? The Cowboys are good enough with Romo avoiding sacks and delivering better passes than Johnson. Here's hoping that the defense won't lose too much.

9. NY Jets (13) - I'm not riding the Favre bandwagon. At least not yet. Favre has been subdued and everybody is just waiting for the real Brett Favre (the QB who has those costly interceptions) to come out.

10. Carolina (7) - Delhomme playing badly is enough to drop them down in the rankings. It was already foreseen since last week.

11. Arizona (6) - Disastrous loss but how else to play against a great Giants team. With the rest of the teams above in winning mode, the Cardinals have to be dropped.

12. Atlanta (14)

13. Baltimore (15)

14. Chicago (16)

15. New Orleans (18) - the Saints just got back to their winning ways. And what a way to get back.

16. San Diego (10)

17. Philadelphia (11)

18. Buffalo (22)

19. Minnesota (17)

20. Miami (19)

21. Green Bay (21)

22. Houston (25) - they earned the jump. That's a gutsy win.

23. Denver (20) - losing to Oakland? Now that's just absurd. Denver continues to drop.

24. Cleveland (23)

25. Jacksonville (24)

26. Oakland (31) - a win is a win despite that it's against Denver.

27. Cincinnati (26)

28. Kansas City (29)

29. San Francisco (28)

30. Seattle (30)

31. St. Louis (27)

32. Detroit (32)

Kevin Garnett Taunting Jose Calderon II

2008-11-13T06:21:00.000-08:00

My office colleague showed me the video and my first (and probably only) reaction was pure disgust. I've gone to read at forums and most people are saying that KG is classless and should have been assessed a technical foul for taunting. I think it's pure sellout. The NBA is too chicken to deal with stars (I assume that they consider KG as one of the faces of the NBA).

Other people are saying that they miss the good old NBA where taunting and physicality was the norm. Taunting is fairly normal but it shouldn't be that obvious to the public. Players can go on to trash talk (though Gary Payton would also be assessed a technical foul for non-stop trash talking before) and not get T'd up. That's okay because that can still be considered as part of the game. Kevin Garnett was not doing a normal trash talking. Chasing a player from one end of the court to the other end? Clapping? Heck, I get a technical foul when I clap my hands while I'm on the court!

Fans who are posting in defense of KG are saying that Calderon might have said something while chasing after KG's shot. That to me is the correct way to trash talk and taunt. How KG reacted to it is pure disgusting.

And if the NBA does not wish to go back to the days of the Palace brawl and Ron Artest, they better think again and review how KG was taunting another player which would have warranted a brawl (if I were Calderon's teammate, I would have words with KG and who knows what would happen next).

In this regard, I am starting a "No to KG in the All-Star" campaign. Kevin Garnett does not deserve to be in the All-Star game. True, it might have been just once that he did such a thing but he should be a better player than that.

Kevin Garnet Taunting Jose Calderon

2008-11-13T04:09:00.000-08:00

Week 11 Power Rankings

2008-11-13T00:05:00.000-08:00

1. Tennessee Titans (1)

2. NY Giants (2)

3. Carolina Panthers (5) - a win is a win and they're showing that their defense is doing well. The running game is running and now if Delhomme can only be consistent, they can really hold on to this 3rd spot.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (3)

5. Washington Redskins (4) - I don't understand the huge drop when they had a bye week. Sure they lost to the Steelers. If they are not the team that deserves the number 5 spot, then week 11 should help us determine that.

6. Philadelphia Eagles (6)

7. Tampa Bay Bucs (7)

8. Indianapolis Colts (8)

9. NE Patriots (9)

10. Arizona Cardinals (10)

11. SD Chargers (13) - I'm probably the only person who's putting the Chargers higher than the usual.

12. Atlanta Falcons (17) - and not yet for the Falcons, not too high.

13. Baltimore Ravens (18)

14. Chicago Bears (11)

15. NO Saints (12)

16. Dallas Cowboys (14) - the Cowboys are dropped to 16th but not because they lost any ground from their bye week.

17. Minnesota Vikings (21)

18. NY Jets (20) - they beat a bad St. Louis Rams team. What's to be excited about? If Favre does play like he did in Week 10, they'll be a better team. The defense is doing great, by the way.

19. Miami Dolphins (19)

20. Buffalo Bills (15)

21. GB Packers (16)

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (22)

23. Denver Broncos (24)

24. Houston Texans (23)

25. St. Louis Rams (25)

26. Cleveland Browns (26)

27. Cincinnati Bengals (27)

28. KC Chiefs (28)

29. Seattle Seahawks (29)

30. SF 49ers (30)

31. Oakland Raiders (31)

32. Detroit Lions (32)

Week 10 Power Rankings

2008-11-06T04:42:00.000-08:00

1. Tennessee Titans (1)

2. NY Giants (2)

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (3)

4. Washington Redskins (4) - they faced an impressive Steelers defense. That match-up was merely a fight for 3rd place in the rankings.

5. Carolina Panthers (5) - bye week does nothing

6. Philadelphia Eagles (10) - no place else to go. 6th should be enough of a gain.

7. TB Bucs (9) - same as Eagles

8. Indianapolis Colts (19)

9. NE Patriots (6)

10. Arizona Cardinals (16) - they continue to impress

11. Chicago Bears (11)

12. New Orleans Saints (13)

13. San Diego Chargers (14) - can't have them going down for a bye week

14. Dallas Cowboys (7) - huge drop but a bye week and the return of Tony Romo should catapult them after Week 11.

15. Buffalo Bills (8)

16. GB Packers (12) - I dropped them too low but the two teams above them suffered the same fate which makes them equal

17. Atlanta Falcons (17)

18. Baltimore Ravens (18)

19. Miami Dolphins (20)

20. NY Jets (21) - Not that too convincing a win to catapult them to higher ranking

21. Minnesota Vikings (23)

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (15) - losers' area. The Jaguars stay on top of the rest of the other losers

23. Houston Texans (22) - only a slight drop after losing to the 21st ranked Vikings

24. Denver Broncos (24) - nowhere else lower to go.

25. St. Louis Rams (25)

26. Cleveland Browns (26) - I can't rank the Browns to be better than Rams. The Browns are just having a disastrous season. Let's see if Quinn gets them over that hump.

27. Cincinnati Bengals (31)

28. KC Chiefs (29) - the Chiefs were at least competitive

29. Seattle Seahawks (27)

30. SF 49ers (30)

31. Oakland Raiders (28)

32. Detroit Lions (32)

Week 9 Power rankings

2008-10-30T05:53:00.000-07:00

1. Tennessee Titans (1)

2. NY Giants (2)

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (3)

4. Washington Redskins (7) - fearless forecast: Redskins over Steelers. An offensive line like what the Steelers have will not hold up. Roethlisberger is an injury waiting to happen.

5. Carolina Panthers (6)

6. New England Patriots (8) - A win is a win and they are more offensively capable than the Cowboys below.

7. Dallas Cowboys (9)

8. Buffalo Bills (4) - A safe spot to put them. Below a team that won. Above a team that also lost.

9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5)

10. Philadelphia Eagles (10)

11. Chicago Bears (15)

12. Green Bay Packers (16)

13. New Orleans Saints (19) - the Bears and Packers didn't do anything to be lower than the Saints. This should be high enough for a jump for the Saints.

14. San Diego Chargers (11)

15. Jacksonville Jaguars (12)

16. Arizona Cardinals (13)

17. Atlanta Falcons (14)

18. Baltimore Ravens (20)

19. Indianapolis Colts (17) - the Colts are higher than how others are ranking them. Despite the loss, they will still be a competitive team.

20. Miami Dolphins (25)

21. NY Jets (21)

22. Houston Texans (24) - why no ranking jump? It would have been 4 wins already.

23. Minnesota Vikings (23) - because I ranked them here last week.

24. Denver Broncos (18) - huge step down. That's what happens if you don't play defense.

25. St. Louis Rams (22) - some weeks, a surprise team goes up, and some weeks, a surprising team goes down. This week it's the Rams going down.

26. Cleveland Browns (27) - they don't deserve a big jump.

27. Seattle Seahawks (29)

28. Oakland Raiders (26)

29. Kansas City Chiefs (30)

30. SF 49ers (28)

31. Cincinnati Bengals (31)

32. Detroit Lions (32)

Week 8 Power Rankings

2008-10-22T22:34:00.000-07:00

1. Tennessee Titans (1)

2. NY Giants (2) - Barring the Browns upset, the Giants have it going on. No way that the Steelers would be better than them right now. The Steelers might be a surprise considering that they have survived albeit all the injuries but that offensive line is still a killer. The Giants are sturdy.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (4) - With the other teams above it from last week having a bad week, the Steelers improve by default.

4. Buffalo Bills (11) - No love for the Bills? They get Trent Edwards back and they beat the Chargers. As long as Edwards is at the helm, the Bills' defense get a chance to rest a lot and be effective.

5. Tampa Bay Bucanneers (5)

6. Carolina Panthers (8)

7. Washington Redskins (6)

8. New England Patriots (10)

9. Dallas Cowboys (3)

10. Philadelphia Eagles (12)

11. San Diego Chargers (9)

12. Jacksonville Jaguars (13)

13. Arizona Cardinals (14)

14. Atlanta Falcons (18) - there's no way the Falcons are worse than the Bears

15. Chicago Bears (19)

16. Green Bay Packers (21)

17. Indianapolis Colts (7)

18. Denver Broncos (15)

19. New Orleans Saints (16)

20. Baltimore Ravens (23) - better defense than the Rams

21 New York Jets (17)

22. St. Louis Rams (28) - 2nd straight win but certainly not better than the Ravens or the Jets YET. Next week will be a good indicator.

23. Minnesota Vikings (20) - they lost in Week 7 and they might not make it to the playoffs. This certainly is a team that's not capable of doing so. In any case, they have Adrian Peterson with them which makes them a better team still.

24. Houston Texans (26) - they're on a roll after their 2nd straight win.

25. Miami Dolphins (22) - safely back to Earth.

26. Oakland Raiders (29)

27. Cleveland Browns (25)

28. San Francisco 49ers (24)

29. Seattle Seahawks (27)

30. Kansas City Chiefs (30) - there is no concrete reason to put them back at last place. They're a bad team but they got one win. Definitely better than the two winless teams below.

31. Cincinnati Bengals (31)

32. Detroit Lions (32)

Week 7 Power Rankings

2008-10-16T06:21:00.000-07:00

1. Tennessee Titans (3) - by default. And they've got a bulls-eye on their backs being the only undefeated team left.

2. NY Giants (1) - getting defeated by the Browns? Ugh. I wouldn't drop them too low. They're still a great team. And the Browns were supposedly an offensive juggernaut. Probably played against them at the right peak (or the wrong time) for the Browns.

3. Dallas Cowboys (2) - same as the Giants, the Cowboys got surprised by that blocked punt. But the bad news is, they're going down along with Romo.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (7) - no. 4 by default. Lucky for them that they'll recover. But once again, with a weak offensive line, they're bound to drop.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (14) - they got Garcia back as QB. What a jump.

6. Washington Redskins (4) - what a loss. And I back up my comments that I'm not convinced.

7. Indianapolis Colts (10) - I called it first. And Manning is back with his groove.

8. Carolina Panthers (6) - also a bad loss. I expected better.

9. San Diego Chargers (21) - what a jump. The Patriots are not that good though. But it was one heck of a game to play.

10. New England Patriots (5)

11. Buffalo Bills (11)

12. Philadelphia Eagles (12)

13. Jacksonville Jaguars (18)

14. Arizona Cardinals (17) - beating the Cowboys was great.

15. Denver Broncos (8) - another tough loss to a hard running team. Defense does trump offense.

16. New Orleans Saints (16)

17. New York Jets (13) - I wouldn't have minded if I ranked them at 13 still but the rest of the teams played better.

18. Atlanta Falcons (23)

19. Chicago Bears (9)

20. Minnesota Vikings (15)

21. Green Bay Packers (19)

22. Miami Dolphins (20)

23. Baltimore Ravens (22)

24. San Francisco 49ers (24)

25. Cleveland Browns (28)

26. Houston Texans (29)

27. Seattle Seahawks (25)

28. St. Louis Rams (32)

29. Oakland Raiders (26)

30. Kansas City Chiefs (27)

31. Cincinnati Bengals (30)

32. Detroit Lions (31)

My top 10 Shards of Alara cards

2008-10-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

I had a top 10 Shadowmoor cards when the said expansion was released. I wanted to do Eventide but I realized that after I ranked the cards, it didn't make any sense at all. I forgot what was my number 1 card but I know it wasn't worth it.

I'm changing my outlook on these rankings. Instead of just ranking them on how "powerful" they really are, I have to look whether the card would be applicable to have a deck that would make use of it. This different outlook will look towards how useful the card really is in the current metagame, and hopefully I have enough grasp of the metagame.

I'm ranking the cards from 10 going to 1. First, an honorable mention:

Mindlock Orb is bound to be a sideboard card. And it's just too bad that it's rare. I'm going to assume that players will cringe at opening packs that have this as the rare card because it's not that useful at the first glance. Seeing as it can affect quite a lot of powerful and useful cards: the Lorwyn tribal harbingers, Primal Command's search mode, Shards' panorama lands, etc., I've ranked it as an honorable mention. Not good enough to be in the top 10 but it should not be put aside also.

10. Ethersworn Canonist

It's a control player's card. It's not just for an Esper shard deck but placing this on a white-x control deck helps limit the spells that an opponent would play per turn. But there's just a catch. If the opponent is an Esper shard deck though, that's a situation. Overall, the advantages trump the single disadvantage. It's a circumcised Rule of Law on legs and it's a bear to boot!

9. Elvish Visionary

The new Sakura Tribe-Elder? Sure looks like it but it's not as fast. The card draw on legs is a great card for green and green has always been the color that needs card draws. Even late in the game, Elvish Visionary provides the body to block potential game killing creatures while providing that one extra card for a possible solution.

8. Wild Nacatl

The new Kird Ape is more at home in an extended deck with the Ravnica shock lands. I'd gamble in using Wild Nacatl even in a standard deck. 1 to cast for 3/3 is a good enough card.

7. Ranger of Eos

The art doesn't do him any justice but since this is not a top 10 for Magic art, disregard my last thought. First look I see Reveillark written all over it. Granted that there aren't many game changing 1 to cast creatures out there, it makes the card look a little bit tame. The first card to search that comes into mind is no other than Figure of Destiny. Figure of Destiny is one card that one wouldn't mind to get in the late game considering it can be transformed to its bigger incarnations. Another card option is Akrasan Squire. That one extra point (or 2 extra points) of damage from the Exalted ability might just provide the win for that turn.

6. Jund Charm

I placed Jund Charm here because of the instant Pyroclasm effect that it provides. The card instantly makes Pyroclasm useless for a red-x deck. Jund Charm's versatility is with the two other modes. Removing a player's graveyard is good against graveyard manipulation decks. Meanwhile, getting two +1/+1 counters isn't bad either. But the Pyroclasm effect is enough to convince me to put it at where it is.

5. Hell's Thunder

Hell's Thunder is currently looking like it's too high at where it's at. All I see in this card is a 3 to cast 4 damage similar to Flame Javelin. Or in another way putting it, it's an 8 to cast for 8 damage. Clearly it's not that as good as Flame Javelin because it can be killed before it can damage. At least, with its Unearth ability, it can provide a 2nd go-around. And that ability just makes one think twice before wasting a creature-kill on a creature that will just come back later on.

4. Goblin Assault

Following Morningtide's Bitterblossom, here is Shards with their own version but this time it is a red enchantment (quite unusual itself) that's 3 casting cost and produces the same 1/1 creature but with haste (and not flying). The lack of evasion puts this card down a little bit. But I've always associated red to producing creatures (right next to green) and the ability to churn out those pesky 1/1s every turn is good. And for those planning to just be rid of the creatures later on for Shards' Devour ability, go ahead.

3. Empyrial Archangel

It's costly at its casting cost but Empyrial Archangel can turn things around on its own. At 5/8 and shroud, it's got a huge butt and an unaffected butt at that. If it can get through, it's at most 4 turns of attack while the opponent has to figure out to dish out at least 8 points of damage to attempt to get rid of the angel. Altogether, it's a difficult situation to be in and the angel's game turning ability is a reason why I placed it at the 3rd spot.

2. Naya Charm

This is one charm that can turn out to be a game winner. The third mode says it all by tapping all the creatures that target player controls. It totally fits the Naya shard since it's a possible relentlessly attacking shard. The first mode is not bad itself considering that it's a creature removal mode.

1. 3-color tap lands

Ah. Lands. Beautiful lands. The 3-color tap lands will be a dominating presence in Standard constructed. Will they win games on their own? Not exactly. But they are sure to provide the mana that will win the games. And that is all that is required for these lands.

Week 6 Power Rankings

2008-10-09T03:29:00.000-07:00

Inspired by the weekly Power Rankings by Dr. Z, I've decided to post my own rankings. There are quite a few differences and maybe that's the point of this soon-to-be weekly posts.

1. New York Giants - undisputed number 1 this week after handling the Seahawks.

2. Dallas Cowboys - they are still my number 2 team. The loss to the Redskins will still be classified as a surprise.

3. Tennessee Titans - until they beat a top-tier team, they're still at #3. 5-0 is nothing. Check out the Broncos who were previously unbeaten but were unraveled by the Chiefs.

4. Washington Redskins - like the Titans, I'm not that convinced yet. But I expect them to go up soon if any of the teams above go down.

5. New England Patriots - meanwhile, I'm convinced that the Pats have worked their differences and Matt Cassel can be the QB that they need him to be. And their defense can be relied upon. The loss to the Dolphins can be classified as a surprise too.

6. Carolina Panthers

7. Pittsburgh Steelers - unlike the Dr. Z's rankings, I've ranked down the Steelers. Maybe because they're depleted. There's no way that Big Ben is going to survive the season like this. They've already lost rookie Rashard Mendenhall and Willie Parker is still questionable. And that offensive line is a killer.

8. Denver Broncos

9. Chicago Bears - just a notch higher than usual. Here's hoping Kyle Orton can keep this up.

10. Indianapolis Colts - the Colts are a lot higher than in the other rankings. I trust this team to win. They'll have just enough juice in their defense and maybe thanks to the offense being able to control the clock. They'll miss Bob Sanders but he's only one man. Peyton Manning under center is still a danger to lose against.

11. Buffalo Bills

12. Philadelphia Eagles

13. New York Jets - I rank them higher because Brett Favre makes them a different team.

14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - a team with quite a quarterback controversy. Not to be trusted. Well, unless they put Jeff Garcia back.

15. Minnesota Vikings

16. New Orleans Saints

17. Arizona Cardinals

18. Jacksonville Jaguars

19. Green Bay Packers - slightly higher because I think there's nothing else better

20. Miami Dolphins - uh yes, the team in the spotlight right now. Two straight wins with their surprising Wildcat formation. If they keep at it, teams will expect the formation. I'm sure some wisecrack defensive coordinator will know how to stop it.

21. San Diego Chargers - just because they lost to the Dolphins doesn't mean that they're that bad. They'll get it together and LT will return to his form.

22. Baltimore Ravens - the rookie QB Joe Flacco is not yet 100% great but he's getting there. Meanwhile, the defense is the same fearsome unit but it's not enough.

23. Atlanta Falcons - and if I'm not convinced of the Ravens with their wonderful defense then there's no way I'd be convinced with the Falcons. They do have a better rookie QB though but I'm not yet convinced that he's pure gold. Not yet.

24. San Francisco 49ers

25. Seattle Seahawks

26. Oakland Raiders

27. Kansas City Chiefs

28. Cleveland Browns

29. Houston Texans

30. Cincinnati Bengals

31. Detroit Lions

32. St. Louis Rams

Magic the Gathering fat pack

2008-10-08T04:47:00.000-07:00

Here's an attempt at chronicling the only Magic product that I've bought religiously.

I started buying fat packs during Champions of Kamigawa. I had recently returned to playing Magic (actually, returned during Fifth Dawn) and I was aching to get my hands on several cards in one sitting. One of the attractions was the novel and the Kamigawa block had a beautiful story going with it. Even the previews provided intriguing stories.

The local store had not even heard of a fat pack before. The contents were as follows: 6 booster packs, a novel, 20-sided die, 40 basic lands, a random foil card, and the player's guide (printed on letter-sized glossy magazine-like paper).

The Kamigawa block fat pack was packaged elaborately: wrapped in cheap plastic and with a prominent display-like appearance to attract buyers.

The fat pack stayed this way for the whole block.

Aside from the interest in the novel, I enjoyed the player's guide tremendously as it helped in deckbuilding. It was only one block but it helped a lot.

Things changed with the release of 9th Edition Core Set. Wizards maintained the 6 booster packs, 20-sided die, and the 40 basic lands. They improved the player's guide by printing it on a smaller sized but thicker paper. Since Core Set releases are not connected to any story, there was no novel. Changes included the 2 card boxes that featured new artwork and the card dividers. All these were wrapped around a packaging that featured artwork from the set.

The card boxes are uber-necessary. With no proper container for my cards, I was able to finally stock the cards that I needed and not place them in 4-sleeved albums.

The new expansion block Ravnica: City of Guilds continued to apply the changes from the Core Set. The novel continued. The 20-sided die got replaced with a different life counter (card-like with rotating numbers to keep track of the life). Well, there's not much to say about the novels because they've always been poorly written. The huge miss was the life counter. To this date, I've never used the Ravnica block life counters and they're just somewhere with the cards in the card boxes.

Right in the middle of Ravnica and the next expansion, Wizards released Coldsnap - said to be the long lost 3rd set of the Ice Age block. Thankfully, the 20-sided die returned. The novel that was included was just the story from Ice Age and I must say that I have never opened the book.

Time Spiral block ushered in the old school feel of Magic and the fat pack continued without any change. The 10th Edition Core Set lost the novel once more (as expected) but maintained everything else.

The fat packs of Lorwyn and Morningtide continued to have the same contents but a huge change came with Shadowmoor. To offset the loss of 1 card box, the fat pack now got "fatter" with 2 more booster packs. The fat pack also lost the card dividers. I might have to say that 1 card box has the same price as 2 booster packs then. The loss of the card box doesn't hurt much because there's still one left. Which now leads us to the most recent change of them all.

Shards of Alara fat pack loses the novel and replaces it with a preview "booklet" of the Planeswalker's Guide to Alara. Coupled with the 1 basic land per booster pack arrangement, it seems that Wizards is doing quite a lot to stay profitable and I'm not amused at all over their cost-cutting measures.

The fat pack has now become unworthy for its money. And oh yeah, suggested retail price even increased! The pain!

Just to add more pain: How about getting Ooze Garden in one of your packs? Or not getting a mythic rare at all. Sheesh.

Sorry I have to be grouchy.

NBA 08-09 season in just less than a month?

2008-10-03T22:31:00.000-07:00

Wow!

Didn't the Boston Celtics just won the 2008 NBA season like a month ago?

It seems like I never got to miss the NBA season. What would NBA players playing in that other season and winning it all. I'm talking about the 2008 Beijing Olympics were the NBA players were at win-or-go-home mode.

So, it's October and it's officially less than a month to go before the 82-game season kicks off. There has been a lot of offseason activity that's going to change the real season.

In the tradition of sports sites where they preview and rank the 30 NBA teams, here's my own version of ranking the teams. For ease of view, I'm ranking them by division.

The Boston Celtics division:
(note: I don't know each division's real name. Funnier to name it the way I'm naming it)
1. Boston Celtics - the defending champions showed that having 3 great players and 2 other mediocre players can win a championship. I doubt that everybody else is going to get surprised by this team. But they're still strong. They'll miss James Posey come playoff time and that's a story for another post.

2. Philadelphia 76ers - the Sixers get Elton Brand. They're getting back the rest of their core players. Brand has never been a selfish player that wants all the attention. He'll relinquish the scoring role to Andre Iguodala.

3. Toronto Raptors - the Raptors also beefed up in the offseason in getting Jermaine O'Neal. O'Neal has a lot going against him so it should help fuel his drive (and hopefully his body). The Raptors got rid of PG TJ Ford to get O'Neal. The trade is not disadvantageous for the Raptors because they have an excellent PG in Jose Calderon.

4. New Jersey Nets - the Nets are prime candidates to finish last in this division but who are we kidding from giving the last place to the Knicks. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if they'd suddenly win this division because Lawrence Frank has that notion to get his team going even if it's only just a season. They have the right blend of players to be surprising.

5. New York Knicks - eeyuck! There's no way that the Knicks will have a winning season this year. Not yet. They have to learn to play together.

Detroit division:
(I call this the Detroit division after how many seasons the Pistons have led this division)
1. Cleveland Cavaliers - will this be the season when the Cavs rule the division? Will this be the season that LeBron James wins it all? Won't he be too tired after the Olympics? Will he share the scoring responsibilities with Mo Williams? All these answers will lead to the Cavs winning the division finally. And maybe because the Pistons are in a turmoil.

2. Detroit Pistons - they just won't go away that easily. Maybe what will hinder them is the lack of experience of their new coach. Otherwise, everything else should be the same because everyone else is back for another season. And yeah, nobody got traded. Nice bluff, Joe Dumars!

3. Milwaukee Bucks - because no other team will come out of the cellar, I'll give the default 3rd place to the Bucks. Here's to Skiles and teaching this team to play defense. He's got the core group to get them over that defensive hump.

4. Indiana Pacers - they're not that organized yet. Larry Bird wants to get rid of the players he currently has in his team and that doesn't sound good to any coach.

5. Chicago Bulls - new coach. Let me restate that, new inexperienced coach. Good luck Vinny del Negro. You got to win over Ben Gordon, who is agreeing to only a one year contract. You got to win over Luol Deng who definitely wants to be recognized as the true team leader. You got to win over Joakim Noah who as a rookie already started getting in teammates' faces. Isn't that saying something about his future?

The other East division:
1. Orlando Magic - Dwight Howard rules this division! The man-child is primed for MVP consideration, finally. And with not much competition, it's a walk over.

2. Washington Wizards - after giving a huge contract extension to Gilbert Arenas, they find out that he'll miss the start of the season. They don't actually need him in the regular season. And they'll survive with what they currently have in Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler. Rest easy, Gilbert. The team needs you during the playoffs.

3. Miami Heat - I'd want to see the Miami Heat come back to win this division. But then again, if they do, I'd expect Pat Riley to suddenly take over just like the last time he took over for Stan van Gundy. Huh? Van Gundy didn't want to coach anymore? Nobody pushing him around to resign? So why the heck is he coaching exactly right now? Sheesh. 3rd place for Miami to temper down Pat Riley. Stay retired please.

4. Atlanta Hawks - just because we saw them make the playoffs this year doesn't mean they come back. They got in because this is the Eastern Conference where 8th place teams are one-hit wonders.

5. Charlotte Bobcats - what can Larry Brown do? Michael Jordan has to scout players properly otherwise Brown will end up with bad players. There's just so much a coach can do without getting the proper personnel in place. The Bobcats will compete. I'm sure Brown will make sure of that.

Texas division:
(ah, one of the most, if not the most, intriguing divisions in the NBA)
1. New Orleans Saints - they still have it. And James Posey will try to prove that he's got the championship touch a la Robert Horry.

2. Dallas Mavericks - I like Rick Carlisle. He did wonders for the Pistons. He might be a little bit controll-ish but he gets the job done. Dirk Nowitzki should be happy playing for him. And Jason Kidd will enjoy setting up all those plays.

3. San Antonio Spurs - Tim Duncan is still a dominant player. And there's no way that they will be ranked lower in the Texas Division. They'll miss Manu Ginobili but I can see them racking up the wins when he comes back. In the meantime, they'll bore you to death with their methodical game strategies.

4. Houston Rockets - where else would they be? It's a tough division. But considering how Tracy McGrady or Yao Ming have never finished the season together doesn't bode well for the Rockets. Hopefully Ron Artest can negate the possible loss from the two star players.

5. Memphis Grizzlies - I hope one day they'll do a Tampa Bay Rays impersonation and surprise everybod in the Texas division. They're young and inexperienced but hopefully they can run.

California division:
1. Los Angeles Lakers - the team with not much change in the offseason is sure to come back to lead this division once more. They will not surprise rivals anymore but they can still dominate. Now, if they can really get a decent point guard other than Derek Fisher...

2. Phoenix Suns - they're the lucky team to be 2nd place in the division. And that's because no other team is that good to keep up with the Lakers. The Suns have a new coach in Terry Porter and the same old bodies in Steve Nash and Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq isn't retiring yet and who knows what he went through in the offseason to be energized for the new season.

3. Los Angeles Clippers - I'll trust on Baron Davis to lead this team. Big men are the premium in this league and thankfully he still has Chris Kaman left. Losing Elton Brand isn't going to go well but Davis did just fine without a legit big man in Golden State.

4. Golden State Warriors - they lose Baron Davis but get Corey Maggette. And they still won't play defense this season. They didn't acquire a legit big man so they'll continue to run this season.

5. Sacramento Kings - the last place team by default. I'd expect them to be a competitive team just like the Charlotte Bobcats in their division. And I wouldn't be surprised if they'll pull of some sort of miracle a la Memphis Grizzlies wishing. Kevin Martin needs help. That's all.

The other Western division:
1. Utah Jazz - the Jazz win this division by default again. But they better be careful because the Portland Trail Blazers are up and coming. The Jazz still has to deal with AK47 Andrei Kirelenko. They can trade him now for serviceable parts.

2. Portland Trail Blazers - Greg Oden is still a rookie. The Blazers can surprise the Western Conference this year. They ran out of gas last year. They've added numerous weapons. Nate McMillan will be challenged to utilize everyone. Make them all happy coach!

3. Denver Nuggets - they lost Marcus Camby in a cost-cutting move. Camby was the only defender in the team. So, the Nuggets are back to becoming an offense-oriented team. Joy! My advice to the Denver organization, get rid of Allen Iverson now and buckle up for this season.

4. Minnesota Wolves - they get the benefit of the doubt here. They didn't lose a major player and instead added a serviceable Kevin Love. His impact is still questionable and hopefully Love doesn't spell out to BUST.

5. Oklahoma City Thunder - last place name gets last place position. Ugh. Why couldn't they find a different name. Sooners already taken? Kevin Durant is going to have a franchise-like season. He'll be considered as MVP if the Thunder end up out of last place.

And of course, meeting the guys of 8th Realm

2008-09-02T00:27:00.000-07:00

It was great to meet the 8th Realm regulars during my visit to Manila.

First, I got to shake the hand of fellow 8th Realm moderator JT Porter, former Philippine National Champion.

On Sunday, I met up with Chingpag to collect my souvenir for supporting the May 25 Mox Pearl tournament. On hand was Lauren de Jesus.

I hooked up with JB and he pointed to me the 8th Realm guys: Dawgie, Rainman (I'm not forgetting your name here this time), Naps, Morris Tan, etc.

And there was mistervader also, the celebrity magician.

It was nice meeting you all!

GP Manila 08

2008-09-01T03:28:00.000-07:00

It's too dark... But I hope the logo is prominent enough. I just got back from Manila (specifically Mandaluyong City) after a grueling 2-day (got to participate in the first day only) Grand Prix tournament that enticed the likes of MTG Pros Raphael Levy, Shuhei Nakamura, Tomoharu Saito, Terry Soh, and many others to join.

Getting to win would have been achievement but joining the said tournament was worth the travel. The experience and feel of a huge tournament that comes but once in every two years in the Philippines has inspired me to be a better player.

Anyway, as a sort of a summary, here is my GP experience report (never mind the actual tournament performance report because I sucked really bad):

I arrived 10AM Friday in Manila at NAIA 3. Thankfully the terminal wasn't that confusing as described by several articles in the Internet regarding the inefficiency of the operation in the terminal. But I did have to endure a long walk from the plane to the terminal exit.

The said Grand Prix was once again held at the Megatrade Hall A of SM Megamall. Upon arrival there, the place was already bustling with activity as players were vying for last chance byes. I instead joined a Super FNM Sealed Deck tournament. I didn't bother to ask how many rounds the tournament would be and upon learning that it would be 6 rounds, I quit after the 4th round (6 PM on my watch). I figured that playing for two more hours would be killer.

Saturday - I got to the venue by 10AM and proudly flashed my ID to the security people which allowed me to enter into the building ahead of everybody else (why does everybody want to get to the mall early?). To sum up my tournament performance: two wins, 5 losses and 1 draw. I thought I was doing good after the 4th round when I got my 2nd win. Some will say that it's just coincidence and some will say that it might be superstition. After the 2nd win in the 4th round, I went out to take a leak and then grab lunch (it was already 4PM and I was starving). Things spiralled downward after that.

For the tournament proper, I had my opponents sign a basic land for remembrance sake. I figured that I might face a foreign opponent and ask for his/her signature, I might as well do the same to my fellow Filipinos. One opponent remarked that I was doing something unique. Yeah. That was the idea.

Oh yeah, before the tournament started, I got to ask for Terry Soh's and Raphael Levy's signatures. I still used a basic land (unfortunately, if I did have their Pro Player cards, I couldn't find them among my binder).

I was suprised by the number of women who played. And to think that they were all pretty looking! Now, that's my type of a girl. But all of them couldn't beat the best judge in the tournament - the only lady judge among the roses, Nikki.

One thing that could have been improved was how players would know where to sit in the tournament. It was too much to crowd around a small short-sized bond paper. Well, I don't have an exact idea on how it can be improved but I sure hope the organizers will be able to solve that dilemma.

Sunday - since I wasn't qualified to get to the 2nd day (with that record? Ugh.), I relegated myself to being a spectator. I only got to witness Soh vs. Nakamura as a featured match and it was great seeing two great players go head to head. Meanwhile, I got to talk to Saito. While asking for his autograph, Nikki got in to the act also and I shamelessly asked for her autograph.

I got Nakamura's autograph after his game with Saito. I did get to use his Pro Player card. Another shameless act: I asked for Nikki's marker.

The best memory of the GP? My moment with artist Darrell Riche. I was going to ask for an original sketch. He showed me what he was currently working on and I told him I'd be getting the next one he would make. Around 5PM, Mr. Riche was asked to pack up for an interview and I got back to him. He told me that he'd sell the work he showed me earlier but I respectfully declined, telling him that I wouldn't want the guy who asked for it to get mad. True enough, the guy got back. Mr. Riche gave me a thumbs-up that he was already working on my request.

He probably thought that I was leaving the venue because he came after me and gave me the drawing he was working on. I got my hand into my pocket but he declined my payment, telling me that I saved him from being on the bad side of the guy who asked for the first drawing.

And there it was. Mr. Riche told me that I was a noble person, shook my hand and told me that he was happy to have met me.

As what they say, good things do come to good people.

Retire already...

2008-08-05T21:27:00.000-07:00

Brett Favre.

A classy athlete that I knew of the first time after watching There's Something About Mary (apparently, I hadn't discovered American football yet). After seeing the movie, his legacy began to grow on me. Here was a quarterback who was destined to break quarterback records. He has achieved what needs to be achieved as a quarterback in the NFL.

Fast forward to the late 2000s. Favre flip-flops from retiring to unretiring and does it in straight offseasons. The first time was tense. The second time was exhilarating. So anyway, how many years has this happened? I don't know because it has gotten to a point that I wouldn't care anymore. Flip-flopping just shows immaturity. It shows the lack of ability to make a decision. Why couldn't you decide? Is it that difficult to let go of the game? It just destroys your legacy. It's now considered untainted after the miraculous 2007 season (who would forget the scoop pass?).

And the demands. Who says that Favre could now demand for his role in the team? Wouldn't that just undermine the authority of the coach? How about the authority of the general manager?

And since the great Favre has no foresight towards his decisions, he has obviously skipped on the process of thinking through a season. As written above, 2007 was a miracle season. What happens now if 2008 would be disastrous with Green Bay starting Favre as the quarterback? Of course, another miracle season would be extremely miraculous but would that be more possible than a disastrous season after a miraculous one? The NFL is one of the most inconsistent sport leagues and Favre hasn't been a model of consistency, has he?

Avatar the Last Airbender

2008-07-22T03:47:00.000-07:00

(a bit) SPOILER ALERT

Whew! Finally. After how many months (honestly, I don't know if it reached a year but I'm pretty sure it has), the animation series has finally reached the end. And what a way to end it all. I didn't have to wait for another week after one episode. Thankfully, Nickelodeon thought of putting the last 4 episodes together. Frankly, I think each new episode would just cancel out the previous one thus minimizing its "Oomph!" factor.

Specifics:

It was great seeing Aang and Zoku as friends. Its reminiscent of Avatar Roku and Firelord Azulon. And the last part where everybody else got to gather together is a fitting ending for the group. It epitomizes the whole series where love and friendship has always been put into importance.

Could the series have been improved further? I think not. Like I said, everything was timed just right.

So, what's next? Will there be more stories? Will there be more conflicts up ahead?

Princess Azula could still be a factor. And despite that some of the Fire Nation agrees to the crowning of the Firelord Zoku, I'm sure there are personalities in the Fire Nation who would hesitate to reverting back to their peaceful selves (once a warmonger, always a warmonger).

And if there aren't any new episodes, I expect M. Night Shyamalan to do good with his live adaptation of the animated series. With his daughters as his strongest critics, he should try to live up to the hype. 2010 is the expected year. I'll hope that it's going to be a good movie despite the criticism Shyamalan has gotten from his last 2 films.

Batman

2008-07-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

The Dark Knight.

The World's Greatest Detective.

With the recent movie (hype) over The Dark Knight Returns, it occurred to me that Batman has always been one of my favorite characters ever since I started reading comic books. My brother was the Superman fan and I was "relegated" to the "lowly" Batman. Over role play, he was always Superman and I was Batman.

But what makes Batman such an attractive character (if not to you, it is to me)?

What has been left out from the movie is Batman the detective. Movie fans drool over his brooding personality, his "darkness" and the way he dispenses of criminals. In the DC comic books, Batman is one of the better thinkers of the DC Universe. Not exactly the wisest man, but intelligent and witty enough to solve even the toughest crime puzzles. He is known to be away from the other heroes as he works undercover (a third disguise, Malone, a gangster). At the end of the story, he pops out with the puzzle already solved a la Sherlock Holmes.

And then, it just dawns that he is only human. A bit superhuman because he has trained his body to be like an Olympic athlete but nevertheless just a normal human being with the cool gadgets and transportation. I might look at him as a dark James Bond in a cowl and cape. He lives the life as a millionaire playboy but goes into the night saving people.

And that I think is one of the reasons why the character is a favorite among comic book fans. His being human takes him closer to all of us. We are more likely to become Batman ourselves, one way or another.

As for the new movie, I haven't seen it yet but I plan to do so. Thankfully, the DC Comics company have transformed their movie characters into what they really are. No more cheesy comic book-like dialog that sucks too much (I'm talking to you, Joel Schumacher).

By the way, Batman comic books (especially the limited series) are always a good read. There are a rich set of characters that are involved in Gotham City, a city that doesn't seem to run out of criminals, especially the loony ones. And if you're a fan of psychology, you will notice that there are always psychological aspects to what happens in Gotham.

Guardians of the Galaxy

2008-06-21T06:41:00.000-07:00

Not much of a space book reader but I'm enjoying Guardians of the Galaxy.

Maybe because it's been a long time since I grabbed an out-of-this-world adventure comic book. I'm talking about all those Infinity series, Silver Surfer, Galactus vs. whoever stuff.

The story of Guardians is light. The characters seem to retrace their steps as the reader gets into the whole story. And speaking of the characters, they are one kooky bunch. Fortunately, they are well-developed. 4 of the characters seem familiar to whoever has read the old Infinity Watch (Adam Warlock, Gamora, and Drax). The fourth familiar character is Captain Marvel (who has been reborn).

The racoon is lovably cute. Unfortunately, it's the only adjective I have for him. And he's supposed to be the demolitions expert in the team. In the second issue, he goes on an annoying binge by continuing his thoughts about naming the team as Guardians of the Galaxy.

One note about the old Guardians of the Galaxy team, I've never been a fan of it before. Well, again maybe because it's somehow out of this world. Space is even more vast but I always thought that the adventures that can be had is just minimal. Maybe I just need to expand my mind further.

Well, pick up Guardians of the Galaxy. :)

Continuation of top 10 Shadowmoor cards

2008-06-15T02:48:00.000-07:00

One note: Unfortunately, I made a mistake regarding Inkfathom Witch. I thought it was the Turn to Mist like witch. Re-evaluating it, I realized it isn't that good. So, the top 10 cards are now down to just 9 cards. Hard to recall what I thought of as an honorable mention among the top 10 cards.

I finished with Demigod of Revenge the last time. I'm down to just 3 cards and they are:

Oona, Queen of the Fae

I must say that this is one wicked Legendary Creature - library depletion and creature production rolled into one. And it doesn't hurt either that it's a 5/5 flyer for just 6 mana.

Knollspine Invocation

In the tradition of Seismic Assault comes an enchantment that turns all the cards in the hand to direct damage spells. Granted that it's still costly to do so, still, a card worthy to turn around games.

Beseech the Queen

And finally, the best card that I can think of in Shadowmoor has to be one of the most versatile tutors I've ever seen. At the least, it could probably tutor a 2 or 3 casting cost card at the 2nd turn or 3rd turn. At the most (and costliest casting cost to play it), it could tutor a 6 casting cost card. And just like Flame Javelin, this card can be splashed anywhere. Now that has got to be something.

My Shadowmoor top 10 cards

2008-05-08T00:21:00.000-07:00

This is a top 10 list inspired by the now-canceled Inquest magazine.

I might disagree with how Inquest used to do their list (who would have thought that Mortify would be the best card from Guildpact) but there are times that I enjoy how they rate their cards. They might miss out on some but nevertheless it inspires one to do similar things.

My criteria for creating a list: said card should be able to deliver an impact on its own (or if needing a couple of cards to deliver maximum impact, it should be a commonly available card type and not a specific card). I am a believer of combos. I adore how other people can think up of great combos. But this is not a top 10 combo list. A card, by its own, can easily be rated as "powerful" even on its own lonesome. A perfect example: Wrath of God.

And so, my list:

10. Prison Term

Finally, a Pacifism that can easily be transferred. One of the unfortunate things in Magic when using Pacifism is the realization that a better creature gets played right at the next moment that Pacifism is played. Prison Term ensures that succeeding better creatures won't be able to attack or block thus rendering the need to draw another Prison Term moot.

9. Flame Javelin

A direct damage card. How unusual is that? This card is because it can be splashed into just about any deck. Of course, it's lamer to pay 6 mana for 4 damage but the thing is, it's useful in any deck and that's enough.

8. Counterbore

I can't seem to have a top 10 list without a permission spell. This one mixes Lobotomy to Counterspell. Despite the high casting cost, it seems to have become a trend (I did write a long time ago that a decent counter spell without any frills or additional benefits is costed at 2UU). This card might not actually see play in any Standard Constructed deck but it sure looks tempting to break. Its power level is just fit to be placed in the top 10.

7. Vexing Shusher

And... one of the reasons why I kill myself with putting Counterbore in the top 10 list is simply because of Vexing Shusher. It's just the card that red and green are looking for. The card completely hoses blue mages' counterspells. And at 2/2 for 2 casting cost, it entirely fits the mindset of a red or green aggressive deck.

6. Godhead of Awe

Barring the weird art, this UW version of the Spirit Avatar cycle of Shadowmoor creates numerous problems. How about 1/1 creature problems. The mass effect it brings to the table is enough to turn the game around. And, oh yeah, 4/4 flying for 5 casting cost is not bad too.

5. Demigod of Revenge

How about that for another blue hoser? Or, even a slap to discard decks. Another of the Shadowmoor's spirit avatars makes an appearance and it's right for its color at black and red. Oh, and it's flying and it has haste. Other copies in the graveyard? They come right back and pummel for more possible damage. That's gotta hurt.

To be continued...

Hoarding the Nation of Horde of Notions

2008-04-17T22:42:00.001-07:00

Is it possible to combine both collecting and competing in Magic? Collecting and competing are two aspects of Magic that I’ve always pondered on whenever I browse other players’ albums. It all started in Kamigawa block when the said expansion had a bunch of legends to jumpstart an idea of filling up several albums. In the Champions of Kamigawa prerelease, I opened up a Jugan, the Rising Star and a Konda, Lord of Eiganjo. Add to that the prerelease foil, Ryusei, the Falling Star, and I said to myself that I already had 3 of the numerous legends in Champions of Kamigawa. How many more to go…

True enough, I’ve been able to fill up my albums with Kamigawa block legends but at a financially crippling cost. To date, I can say that the Kamigawa block is the block where I bought a lot of packs just for the sake of searching for those legends. Useful cards from the block that were not legendary would be available for trade in exchange for any crappy legend. I often would say, “This is what I deserve for mixing collection with competition.”

Before Kamigawa, I already had a “respectable” Angel collection – an inspiration from an ex-girlfriend who liked angels a lot. But collecting the angels never compared to the eccentricity that I had burning in me with all the Kamigawa legends.

The trend has continued to Ravnica block (2 legends per guild), Coldsnap, Time Spiral block (the classic characters but I honestly lost count of what I have and have not), and recently in Lorwyn with a legend for each represented tribe.

Other recent themes added to the collection included lands, the Time Spiral 0 casting cost cycle of spells, Future Sight textless creatures, and X Edition tokens. Unfortunately I couldn’t keep up with the high cost of my purchases and had to give up the sparkling Time Spiral shocklands that I have been lucky to get in every fatpack.

Ebay

The reason for mentioning my collection troubles is because I recently went into an Ebay bidding binge and among the cards that I won was a set of Horde of Notions that ended at $0.99. Having already bought another item from the same seller, the shipping for the said set was discounted to $1.70. Then the other shoe dropped. I am actually spending more for the shipping than for the actual cards. Again, I have outdone myself, all for the sake of collecting legends.

I decided that I should try as much as I can to make use of the Horde of Notions in a deck. At least, this set of cards won’t end up just being collection album fodder. And how more convenient it is to turn this idea into an article. My inspiration for the deck is the preconstructed Elemental deck.
Deck construction it is

To start off, below is the decklist for the preconstructed Lorwyn Elemental deck. It’s a 5-color deck that’s primarily heavy on red cards.

# Name Cost
1 Wispmare
1 Dawnfluke
1 Mulldrifter
2 Æthersnipe
1 Shriekmaw
2 Mournwhelk
1 Flamekin Bladewhirl
2 Flamekin Brawler
2 Flamekin Harbinger
3 Smokebraider
3 Soulbright Flamekin
1 Incandescent Soulstoke
2 Inner-Flame Igniter
1 Inner-Flame Acolyte
2 Ceaseless Scarblades
2 Changeling Berserker
1 Faultgrinder
1 Briarhorn
1 Changeling Titan
1 Horde of Notions
3 Consuming Bonfire
2 Springleaf Drum
2 Wanderer's Twig
1 Plains
2 Island
2 Swamp
12 Mountain
1 Forest
2 Shimmering Grotto
1 Vivid Crag

The strategy of the preconstructed deck, as obtained from the magicthegathering.com site, is to use some of the creatures’ Evoke ability early. Later on when the game drags on, these creatures can be played at their full cost. Amusingly, Horde of Notions is a centerpiece due to its ability to play Elementals from the graveyard. The creatures that were played earlier with Evoke would be targets for Horde of Notions’ 5-color ability.
Preconstructed observations

2 automatic inclusions for my new deck are the Smokebraider and the Flamekin Harbinger. Smokebraider is a Signet for Elementals and helps speed up the deck. The Flamekin Harbinger is the cheapest of all the harbingers in Lorwyn and will search for the needed Elemental here. An Elemental deck would need a set of these two cards.

There’s only one Horde of Notions in the original build. That’s understandably so because it’s a preconstructed deck and there are always only 2 rare cards inserted. Talking about rare cards in the deck, the other rare is Incandescent Soulstoke. The Soulstoke pairs well with the Horde as its activated ability can bring an Elemental into play and bring the said Elemental into the graveyard at the end of turn. Horde of Notions, being a legendary creature, should have 3 copies. The Incandescent Soulstoke should have 4 copies.

There are only one each of Mulldrifter and Shriekmaw in the precon list. I’m curious why there’s only one Mulldrifter when it’s a common card. The Shriekmaw is also another Elemental worth considering because of its Terror-like ability (despite that it’s at Sorcery speed). It should be noted that the Mulldrifter flies while Shriekmaw has Fear.

Other Elementals with Evoke being considered from the preconstructed deck include Wispmare (enchantment removal), Aethersnipe (another creature removal), Briarhorn (instant creature pump), and Mournwhelk (discarder). I’ve set myself not to include Inner-Flame Acolyte (smaller creature-pump), Dawnfluke (damage preventer), and Faultgrinder (land destruction).

The rest of the deck is also disregarded, save for the Shimmering Grotto and the Vivid Crag.

So now the question surfaces on whether it is imperative that the deck should just stick to red cards only (and splash one other color) or continue the preconstructed theme of 5-colors. With the inclusion of the 5-color Horde of Notions, this would need to be a 5-color deck. The deck will still be red-based but will have a splash of the 4 other colors.

The rest of the deck

Of the 6 Elementals with Evoke that has been considered; only Mulldrifter and Shriekmaw are standouts to be included in the deck. 4 copies of each card will be placed in the deck. One other addition from the 6 is Wispmare for those unexpected pesky enchantments that might be encountered. I decided not to put in Aethersnipe because it can return only and not destroy. Mournwhelk has also been removed because I’m not that a fan of discard effects. Briarhorn has been thought of but its lack of evasion makes it a non-inclusion in this deck.

Time to add more Elementals with Evoke. Ingot Chewer is in as the Wispmare equivalent for artifacts. Also in is the huge 7/7 Cloudthresher – a safeguard for possible numerous fliers.

And here are other Elementals (the ones without Evoke) that will be added to the deck: Flamekin Spitfire, Nova Chaser and the lone non-Lorwyn card added to the mix: Timbermare. Only 1 Flamekin Spitfire is in the deck as a possible deadlock solution. There are 4 copies of Nova Chaser. It’s included for the possibility to tutor another Elemental by championing a Flamekin Harbinger and at the same time being able to swing for 10 damage. The lone Timbermare might just be a 4 casting cost spell dealing 5 damage or an opportunity to just tap out opponent’s creatures at the end of turn for the big swing by the next turn (suggested use with Incandescent Soulstoke).

Finally, the only non-creature spell that’s added is Fertile Ground. It’s scary to play a 5-color deck without the proper mana fixing thus the Fertile Ground is included to help out.

The Incarnations

The Incarnation cycle of Elementals in Lorwyn are bombs. Purity and Dread are tempting to include in the deck. I initially thought that I wouldn’t worry about casting the rest of the Incarnations with all the mana fixing that the deck already has. Or I could just find a way to get the Incarnations into the graveyard then use the Horde of Notions ability to play them from there. Then I remembered that no matter what, I just wouldn’t be able to play the Incarnations that way because they just get shuffled back to the library once they hit the graveyard. I scratch the idea of the Incarnations but I’m still putting a Vigor in my sideboard.

The deck
24 Lands:
2 Shimmering Grotto
2 Vivid Crag
2 Sulfurous Springs
2 Shivan Reef
4 Gemstone Mine
4 Karplusan Forest
1 Battlefield Forge
7 Mountain

32 Creatures:
4 Smokebraider
4 Flamekin Harbinger
4 Incandescent Soulstoke
3 Horde of Notions
1 Ingot Chewer
1 Wispmare
1 Flamekin Spitfire
4 Shriekmaw
4 Mulldrifter
4 Nova Chaser
1 Cloudthresher
1 Timbermare

4 Non-creature spells:
4 Fertile Ground

Sideboard:
1 Ingot Chewer
1 Wispmare
3 Eyeblight’s Ending
4 Eyes of the Wisent
1 Vigor
3 Krosan Grip

Voila!

Now, on to the prices of the rare cards and possible substitutions in case these cards are hard to find. Incandescent Soulstoke is currently priced at $4 by starcitygames.com which means it can probably be had for around P100. I absolutely do not have any idea for a replacement for Incandescent Soulstoke. The best suggestion would be to add more Elementals with Evoke.

Meanwhile, Nova Chaser is currently priced at $5 which would probably mean P125 to P150. If there are no Nova Chasers available, Changeling Berserker would have to do at half the damage (and at non-trample one) and at the same casting cost. Incidentally, the Changeling Berserker has the Champion ability also and can be tutored by the Flamekin Harbinger.

In case of a missing Timbermare or a Cloudthresher, I think Briarhorn would have to do at this point.

As for the lands, a list that might go like this would have to do in case of a lack of painlands:

4 Shimmering Grotto
2 Vivid Crag
2 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Plains
2 Swamp
2 Island
4 Forest
7 Mountain

The list of lands above looks scary (to me). I might think of increasing the number of forests to ensure a 2nd turn Fertile Ground. Or instead of using a set of Fertile Ground, I’ll place Wanderer’s Twig to make sure I get that needed land out to be able to play whatever is in my hand.

That’s it. That’s the deck idea for the meantime. Meanwhile, I’ll wait for my Horde of Notions to arrive.

Hoarding the Nation of Horde of Notions

2008-04-17T22:42:00.000-07:00

Is it possible to combine both collecting and competing in Magic? Collecting and competing are two aspects of Magic that I’ve always pondered on whenever I browse other players’ albums. It all started in Kamigawa block when the said expansion had a bunch of legends to jumpstart an idea of filling up several albums. In the Champions of Kamigawa prerelease, I opened up a Jugan, the Rising Star and a Konda, Lord of Eiganjo. Add to that the prerelease foil, Ryusei, the Falling Star, and I said to myself that I already had 3 of the numerous legends in Champions of Kamigawa. How many more to go…
True enough, I’ve been able to fill up my albums with Kamigawa block legends but at a financially crippling cost. To date, I can say that the Kamigawa block is the block where I bought a lot of packs just for the sake of searching for those legends. Useful cards from the block that were not legendary would be available for trade in exchange for any crappy legend. I often would say, “This is what I deserve for mixing collection with competition.”
Before Kamigawa, I already had a “respectable” Angel collection – an inspiration from an ex-girlfriend who liked angels a lot. But collecting the angels never compared to the eccentricity that I had burning in me with all the Kamigawa legends.
The trend has continued to Ravnica block (2 legends per guild), Coldsnap, Time Spiral block (the classic characters but I honestly lost count of what I have and have not), and recently in Lorwyn with a legend for each represented tribe.
Other recent themes added to the collection included lands, the Time Spiral 0 casting cost cycle of spells, Future Sight textless creatures, and X Edition tokens. Unfortunately I couldn’t keep up with the high cost of my purchases and had to give up the sparkling Time Spiral shocklands that I have been lucky to get in every fatpack.
Ebay
The reason for mentioning my collection troubles is because I recently went into an Ebay bidding binge and among the cards that I won was a set of Horde of Notions that ended at $0.99. Having already bought another item from the same seller, the shipping for the said set was discounted to $1.70. Then the other shoe dropped. I am actually spending more for the shipping than for the actual cards. Again, I have outdone myself, all for the sake of collecting legends.
I decided that I should try as much as I can to make use of the Horde of Notions in a deck. At least, this set of cards won’t end up just being collection album fodder. And how more convenient it is to turn this idea into an article. My inspiration for the deck is the preconstructed Elemental deck.
Deck construction it is
To start off, below is the decklist for the preconstructed Lorwyn Elemental deck. It’s a 5-color deck that’s primarily heavy on red cards.

# Name Cost
1 Wispmare

1 Dawnfluke

1 Mulldrifter

2 Æthersnipe

1 Shriekmaw

2 Mournwhelk

1 Flamekin Bladewhirl

2 Flamekin Brawler

2 Flamekin Harbinger

3 Smokebraider

3 Soulbright Flamekin

1 Incandescent Soulstoke

2 Inner-Flame Igniter

1 Inner-Flame Acolyte

2 Ceaseless Scarblades

2 Changeling Berserker

1 Faultgrinder

1 Briarhorn

1 Changeling Titan

1 Horde of Notions

3 Consuming Bonfire

2 Springleaf Drum

2 Wanderer's Twig

1 Plains

2 Island

2 Swamp

12 Mountain

1 Forest

2 Shimmering Grotto

1 Vivid Crag

The strategy of the preconstructed deck, as obtained from the magicthegathering.com site, is to use some of the creatures’ Evoke ability early. Later on when the game drags on, these creatures can be played at their full cost. Amusingly, Horde of Notions is a centerpiece due to its ability to play Elementals from the graveyard. The creatures that were played earlier with Evoke would be targets for Horde of Notions’ 5-color ability.
Preconstructed observations
2 automatic inclusions for my new deck are the Smokebraider and the Flamekin Harbinger. Smokebraider is a Signet for Elementals and helps speed up the deck. The Flamekin Harbinger is the cheapest of all the harbingers in Lorwyn and will search for the needed Elemental here. An Elemental deck would need a set of these two cards.
There’s only one Horde of Notions in the original build. That’s understandably so because it’s a preconstructed deck and there are always only 2 rare cards inserted. Talking about rare cards in the deck, the other rare is Incandescent Soulstoke. The Soulstoke pairs well with the Horde as its activated ability can bring an Elemental into play and bring the said Elemental into the graveyard at the end of turn. Horde of Notions, being a legendary creature, should have 3 copies. The Incandescent Soulstoke should have 4 copies.
There are only one each of Mulldrifter and Shriekmaw in the precon list. I’m curious why there’s only one Mulldrifter when it’s a common card. The Shriekmaw is also another Elemental worth considering because of its Terror-like ability (despite that it’s at Sorcery speed). It should be noted that the Mulldrifter flies while Shriekmaw has Fear.
Other Elementals with Evoke being considered from the preconstructed deck include Wispmare (enchantment removal), Aethersnipe (another creature removal), Briarhorn (instant creature pump), and Mournwhelk (discarder). I’ve set myself not to include Inner-Flame Acolyte (smaller creature-pump), Dawnfluke (damage preventer), and Faultgrinder (land destruction).
The rest of the deck is also disregarded, save for the Shimmering Grotto and the Vivid Crag.
So now the question surfaces on whether it is imperative that the deck should just stick to red cards only (and splash one other color) or continue the preconstructed theme of 5-colors. With the inclusion of the 5-color Horde of Notions, this would need to be a 5-color deck. The deck will still be red-based but will have a splash of the 4 other colors.
The rest of the deck
Of the 6 Elementals with Evoke that has been considered; only Mulldrifter and Shriekmaw are standouts to be included in the deck. 4 copies of each card will be placed in the deck. One other addition from the 6 is Wispmare for those unexpected pesky enchantments that might be encountered. I decided not to put in Aethersnipe because it can return only and not destroy. Mournwhelk has also been removed because I’m not that a fan of discard effects. Briarhorn has been thought of but its lack of evasion makes it a non-inclusion in this deck.
Time to add more Elementals with Evoke. Ingot Chewer is in as the Wispmare equivalent for artifacts. Also in is the huge 7/7 Cloudthresher – a safeguard for possible numerous fliers.
And here are other Elementals (the ones without Evoke) that will be added to the deck: Flamekin Spitfire, Nova Chaser and the lone non-Lorwyn card added to the mix: Timbermare. Only 1 Flamekin Spitfire is in the deck as a possible deadlock solution. There are 4 copies of Nova Chaser. It’s included for the possibility to tutor another Elemental by championing a Flamekin Harbinger and at the same time being able to swing for 10 damage. The lone Timbermare might just be a 4 casting cost spell dealing 5 damage or an opportunity to just tap out opponent’s creatures at the end of turn for the big swing by the next turn (suggested use with Incandescent Soulstoke).
Finally, the only non-creature spell that’s added is Fertile Ground. It’s scary to play a 5-color deck without the proper mana fixing thus the Fertile Ground is included to help out.

The Incarnations
The Incarnation cycle of Elementals in Lorwyn are bombs. Purity and Dread are tempting to include in the deck. I initially thought that I wouldn’t worry about casting the rest of the Incarnations with all the mana fixing that the deck already has. Or I could just find a way to get the Incarnations into the graveyard then use the Horde of Notions ability to play them from there. Then I remembered that no matter what, I just wouldn’t be able to play the Incarnations that way because they just get shuffled back to the library once they hit the graveyard. I scratch the idea of the Incarnations but I’m still putting a Vigor in my sideboard.
The deck
24 Lands:
2 Shimmering Grotto
2 Vivid Crag
2 Sulfurous Springs
2 Shivan Reef
4 Gemstone Mine
4 Karplusan Forest
1 Battlefield Forge
7 Mountain

32 Creatures:
4 Smokebraider
4 Flamekin Harbinger
4 Incandescent Soulstoke
3 Horde of Notions
1 Ingot Chewer
1 Wispmare
1 Flamekin Spitfire
4 Shriekmaw
4 Mulldrifter
4 Nova Chaser
1 Cloudthresher
1 Timbermare 4 Non-creature spells:
4 Fertile Ground Sideboard:
1 Ingot Chewer
1 Wispmare
3 Eyeblight’s Ending
4 Eyes of the Wisent
1 Vigor
3 Krosan Grip

Voila!
Now, on to the prices of the rare cards and possible substitutions in case these cards are hard to find. Incandescent Soulstoke is currently priced at $4 by starcitygames.com which means it can probably be had for around P100. I absolutely do not have any idea for a replacement for Incandescent Soulstoke. The best suggestion would be to add more Elementals with Evoke.
Meanwhile, Nova Chaser is currently priced at $5 which would probably mean P125 to P150. If there are no Nova Chasers available, Changeling Berserker would have to do at half the damage (and at non-trample one) and at the same casting cost. Incidentally, the Changeling Berserker has the Champion ability also and can be tutored by the Flamekin Harbinger.
In case of a missing Timbermare or a Cloudthresher, I think Briarhorn would have to do at this point.
As for the lands, a list that might go like this would have to do in case of a lack of painlands:
4 Shimmering Grotto
2 Vivid Crag
2 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Plains
2 Swamp
2 Island
4 Forest
7 Mountain

The list of lands above looks scary (to me). I might think of increasing the number of forests to ensure a 2nd turn Fertile Ground. Or instead of using a set of Fertile Ground, I’ll place Wanderer’s Twig to make sure I get that needed land out to be able to play whatever is in my hand.
That’s it. That’s the deck idea for the meantime. Meanwhile, I’ll wait for my Horde of Notions to arrive.

What I'm reading nowadays

2008-04-02T20:25:00.000-07:00

It's been quite a few months that I've posted on my blog. Although I know nobody is reading this but if somebody happens to accidentally access my blog, thanks for the audience. I've been meaning to write about all the current comic books I've been reading for quite some time now. This post is basically a summary of what I'm currently reading nowadays.

In no particular order:

1. Amazing Spider-man - Brand New Day started out nice. I like the idea tremendously. But the story has not progressed as well as I expected. A lot of issues have been left hanging, most notably about the first villain (I even forgot the name) that Spidey faced. Seeing how Peter Parker deals with his teenager-like problems again has been delightful to experience once more but it has become redundant. There has to be some sort of progress to his situation otherwise he's still comparable to being a married man. And it seems that as the creative team changes, the whole story changes. There are just a few continued acts but the comic book is jumping from one story to the next without even finishing the previous situations. X-files anyone?

2. Batman books - Batman and the Outsiders and Gotham Underground. The interest on Batman has been existing since I started reading comic books. Batman is an attractive character considering that he's only a human without any actual superpowers. That said, he oftentimes relies on his brains to solve a mystery. The Outsiders comic book is being read because I started with the first issue and seemed to have gotten stuck with the succeeding issues. It's nice to see Batman lead a time. He's intriguing because trust is something that's difficult to come by with the time. An added attraction is Metamorpho, also a long time favorite. He's the comedian in the team. As for Gotham Underground, it's classic Batman at his finest. Wheeling and dealing punches and just using cunning to get through against a horde of supervillains.

3. Flash - Having followed the Bart Allen version, I feel obligated to follow this new series which is awkwardly numbered at a high issue number already. Nevertheless, the original (and more unique, in my opinion) speedster of the comic book fantasy world, is just an ordinary superhero. Take away the speed and he's a normal human being. Wally West and his family brings a little bit of reality to his fantasy.

4. Groo - the current series is Groo: Hell on Earth. I'm a huge fan of funny comic books and Groo is one of my favorites. Credit goes to my big brother who introduced me to this outstandingly stupid character. Hell on Earth is just like An Inconvenient Truth. In a way, the setting can be applied to our current situation where we are careless of the environment. Nicely done by Aragones and as usual, Groo is funny.

5. Iron Fist - The character appeals to me. Here's a rich dude (a la Batman) who's a master of martial arts. I think I got to the tournament match part (the current storyline) and it appealed to me more. But then, the story has tailed off. I miss the matches. Pure action. Some side stories here and there.

6. Justice League/Justice Society - Still yet another comic book that I've been "obligated" to read because I started from the beginning. Both series feature stunning artwork. The bump on JSA is that they keep on adding members to the team. Both series are great because of the whole team concept. Another bump: it seems redundant that no matter how unbeatable they supposedly are, they still get some licks but of course they win out in the end.

7. The Boys - by far, a kick-ass book that I'm enjoying tremendously. The story is the best out of everything enumerated here. It's just perfect. Here's a group of anti-superheroes figuring to be the police of rowdy superheroes. If it's Garth Ennis, there's going to be plenty of surprises and I can always afford to be surprised. Keep it coming!

That's all for the moment. There's more hopefully.

Slam Dunk 2008

2008-02-18T04:27:00.000-08:00

I'm stuck to watching the clips/highlights. Thanks youtube!

This year's Slam Dunk contest has to best and most enjoyable I've seen in years. It's not about how high you can go but it should be how fun it's supposed to be. The NBA should put in participants like Dwight Howard, a player that has a lot of personality.

Way to go Dwight Howard!

ASM 546

2008-01-11T06:24:00.000-08:00

It's a Brand New Day.

And I love it!

Maybe I love the Brand New Day side of Spider-man because he just got out of his marriage and I just got out of my own shackling relationship.

But the whole idea presents a whole lot of directions to go to. It literally frees Peter Parker from one damn obligation in his life (his wife). Being a bachelor allows him to not be at home every night to be with the wifey. Being a bachelor allows him to flirt with all those cute babes in dashing and sexy uniforms. Being a bachelor wouldn't make Peter feel guilty about humping one with Black Cat.

Peter is now a bachelor. Just like Bruce Wayne. The difference between the two is that Peter is not rich and his "roommate" does not know that he's Spider-man.

More power to Marvel on this one! I hope it sticks!

Top 10 Lorwyn cards

2007-11-28T02:50:00.000-08:00

The cards I chose below are from my own point of view. How I think, I evaluate a card's usability and translate its power. It would have been much better if I didn't count them down (I might be mistaken with my judgment). So here it is. I added a few notes to my evaluation.

10. Shriekmaw

Among the first cards that got spoiled, it has relegated the usability of Terror. It's much more expensive than a Nekrataal but does the same job at 1 black mana lesser. And its Fear ability isn't so bad either. Late game beater.

9. Cryptic Command

The commands are interesting. 4 abilities to choose from in one card. It's always great to counter a spell so that's already one useful ability. Then there's tapping all your opponents creatures. And of course, the always important card advantage.

8. Vigor

It's quite big and adequate for its casting cost. Add to the ability of making the rest of your creatures seem like having a protection and making them grow bigger. Now that's something. And with Lorwyn being creature-based, there's sure to be a lot of creatures that can grow because of Vigor. Bravo to this Incarnation!

7. Mulldrifter

Ey, I shouldn't be missing out on card advantage. This elemental is as super (or even better) than Shriekmaw and it has evasion too. Card advantage is always good.

6. Mirror Entity

This one turn creature transformer can make those weenies be big and just end the game right there. Egads! The weenies have another weapon to rely on for massive creature damage.

5. Austere Command

Mass creature removal is always good. More so it's slightly selective mass removal. Another weapon for weenies who want to get rid of those pesky bigger creatures.

4. Garruk Wildspeaker

Probably the best of the new Planeswalkers. It can activate its big ability as fast as the next turn already. By itself, it can generate as many 3/3 Elephants as it wants. A powerhouse on its own.

3. Gaddock Teeg

More powerful stuff for weenies. This creature can just stop all those 4cc spells on its tracks. No more WoG, Damnation, or even those Blaze or Disintegrate.

2. Oblivion Ring

Observers are reminiscing Vindicate. Oblivion Ring is easier on the eyes with its single color casting cost and at the same speed and effect. Should be the removal spell of choice for white.

1. Profane Command

I couldn't believe that I'd be left with Profane Command as number one. Seems kind of risky to choose this card. But it's an excellent finisher with its Drain Life effect, or removal effect, or even its provision of fear to multiple number of creatures.

Criticizing my scholarship

2007-11-19T18:56:00.000-08:00

This one is a highly different blog. I'm writing this to put my mind at ease as since there are certain details that needs to be answered to. I might forget all of what I will write here now, consequences of being older.

First up is an introduction to the said scholarship. The CHED scholarship entails me to give a return service of 2 years. The detail that I forgot to read about is whether I am deeply required to finish the said graduate studies.

So, I'm from Iligan City. I chose Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology as the delivering institution. I chose MSU-IIT rather than University of the Philippines-Los Baños because during the summer term, I would be required to be on campus. Choosing Iligan City relieves me of the problem of having to search for a place to stay. My officemate agreed to study at the same school.

The graduate degree in MSU-IIT is non-thesis Master in Information Technology. 6 units per semester for 4 total semesters plus 9 units during the summer term for 2 summers which equates to 42 total units. THIS WAS THE POSTED TOTAL NUMBER OF UNITS AS SUBMITTED TO CHED and the same information given to all participating institutions.

Upon submitting the application to MSU-IIT, we were given the go ahead to enroll. Presumably, the school and their instructors know that we have to travel overnight just to reach Iligan City. The suggested mode of instruction was set to be distance education. Upon meeting the instructors for Computer Organization and Data Structures, I was confident that this would be similar, or if not better than, the University of the Philippines-Open University system. Already, we were given an assignment by the Comp Org instructor. The Data Struc instructor instructed us that he would be providing us with notes by email.

So the first semester is on its way. We returned to Silliman, assignments in hand and immediately got to work on it upon arrival. Upon finishing, we submitted our Comp Org assignment and immediately asked for the next thing to do. Now here comes the strange part: our instructors had trouble emailing us back. Successive email messages for almost over a month entailed nothing and it became a joke between my officemate and I on whether we'd get any communication or not at all. The Comp Org instructor later informed of the unfortunate incident regarding their connection and we were to get our next assignments once we would be done with our teaching assignments in Silliman. Which meant to say that we were to go immediately to Iligan for our classes and this would be only during the semestral break (roughly 2 weeks). So, okay, I guess we didn't have any choice. They were the delivering institution and we were the students. It'd be awkward for students to do the demanding in this situation.

And so to the semestral break where we were given roughly two weeks to work on what they asked us to work. A semester worth of discussion would be crammed up in just that short of span of time. We wondered how they would be able to do it. In Comp Org, we were asked to read about journals about nanotechnology and Red Star and Yellow Star. In Data Struc, we were asked to report about linked list operations (which was fine for me because I knew about the subject already). Oh yeah. No final exams of any sort. And another thing, since it was already the end of the semester, we were given an Incomplete grade (two of numerous INCs that we would garner for the rest of our graduate studies).

Now here comes the fun part. As I indicated that there would only be two total years of schooling, the coordinator explained that it wasn't so. There would be an extra semester that would be for the Special Project. We were surprised at this. Our scholarship was only for two years and here they were suddenly changing the curriculum. My officemate and I decided to continue with our studies. What's one more semester? Surely, with how cheap the IIT tuition was, we wouldn't have any problems financially come the time when the scholarship ran out.

So, for the 2nd semester, we took Computer Graphics and Operating Systems. Were things going to be better after the initial guffaw in the first semester? Hell no! It worsened. All semester long, we emailed and we emailed to the instructors and we got more excuses about the connection being lost. How about during December? Who's kidding who? IIT instructors disappear during Christmas break. We waited until the second semester ended so that we could face them once more. We thought that, at least, it wouldn't be two weeks of intensive reading.

It was still the same. The Computer Graphics instructor asked us to make a graphical program in two weeks. What? Why couldn't you have told us in the middle of the semester? At least we would have gotten more time to do it and at the luxury of our office computers compared to having to rent one from an internet cafe. And more readings about virtual clothing, virtual trees, virtual leaves, etc. As for Operating Systems subject, at least we got better handouts but then, handouts don't explain anything. The instructor did hold some classes and even promised a final exam for us a way of evaluation (aside from the research paper that he wanted). The result? No final exam (again).

At least the summer term was technically better. We were sort of juggling around 5 subjects (3 regular subjects for summer and the 2 from the 2nd semester). My officemate was complaining about Programming Languages because we were IT students and not ComSci students. Well, there was nothing that could be done because, as the coordinator said, every graduate student passes through the terrifying Prog Lang instructor. All in all, we breezed through IT Management and Project Management. Both subjects were taught together under one schedule. If somebody can tell me the difference, please feel free to holler at me. Damn teacher got a lot of money out of two subjects taught as one. And it was funny. You had to text the instructor whether there were going to be classes.

Anyway to sum it all up, we had another subject (Artificial Intelligence) where the assignments were placed online but we were never told about it so were given another incomplete grade again. One subject (Expert Systems) had an assignment where we were just told that she (the instructor) expected us to make a mistake (and we did) and we were never explained what to do next.

Things got worse as we were nearing the end of our second year.

For the 2nd summer, I insisted that I wouldn't take any subjects because I wanted to complete everything before I tackle the next ones. The coordinator insisted that we enroll in Data Communications and Research Seminar (a stupid 1 unit subject where we would propose our Research Project). So we did. As I completed all my requirements for Artificial Intelligence and Multimedia Systems during the summer, I was also doing my proposal which seemed to never end because the instructor kept on asking what project I wanted. She kept on asking for my ideas and then shoot them down saying that they were undergraduate type of projects. So, I surrender myself to her telling her that it would be much better if I tap her projects, at least it's a REAL project to her.

And so, another semester passes and then suddenly we're informed that we're to take a comprehensive exam. We were shocked. This was never mentioned ever before. There would be a 6-subject comprehensive exam. As the semester progressed and the correspondence kept on, it became 4 subjects (Data Structures, Computer Organization, Operating Systems, and Programming Languages). I wonder if you would be able to say, "How are YOU going to take the comprehensive exam when all YOU did was read about journals?" If you would, I would kiss you.

So we took a comprehensive exam that I knew that I would surely fail. Comp Org was hell because our teacher (who was the coordinator of the IT graduate studies program) just kept on smiling and joking about it. Data Struc was hell too. We were doing the report about linked list operations only.

Anyway, we finally finished that part and another funny thing just happened. We were just informed that we passed but we never got to see an official score or paper stating that we passed our comprehensive exam. Talk about luck?

The final straw was when we enrolled in Project Seminar for the 2nd time (we ended up failing the first time because we never got to complete our incomplete grade). The new teacher had doubts in letting us enroll. It was a regular semester and he wanted us to be present in Iligan City for the last 2 months of classes. Talk about distance education.

Oh yeah, when we got into our third year of our graduate studies, the new coordinator suddenly told me that there was a residency rule of 4 years in MSU-IIT. If you couldn't finish in 4 years, your subjects are toast except for some 9 units (of I don't know whose choice). Wow! When we started out, this was never mentioned. Now that I'm on my third year, I have to hurry up and finish.

So there. The sad story of studying in MSU-IIT.

My daemon

2007-11-19T18:35:00.000-08:00

Testing if this would work:

Apparently, my daemon is a female crow. Has to be a female because that's the way it is - opposite of my gender. The crow is understandable because I do like crows and I'd like to read more about them.

No comment about the movie though. Let's see if it would not be a box office bust.

Oh yeah, Nicole Kidman is as sexy and seductive as ever.

Reviewing (some) Tenth Edition art

2007-09-24T03:43:00.001-07:00

Before we get into all the tribal lore (and LOTR feel) of Lorwyn with all the cute and feisty Kithkins, wise and wet Merfolks, still rowdy Goblins, scary (Kamigawa spirit-like) Elementals, literally hot Flamekins, big and sturdy Treefolks, (sometimes black) killer Elves, and all the rest that I forgot, let's take a look back at the new art of some Tenth Edition cards.

The release of a Core Set means spanking new art of some reprinted (and sometimes even debuting Core Set) cards. These cards might be Core Set regulars that have been sporting updated artwork as they were reprinted in past Core Sets, Core Set regulars that has never had new artwork ever even as they got reprinted, or debuting Core Set cards (thus never having the chance for an updated artwork).

Being an art afficionado (though not exactly an artist), I always take time to appreciate the new artwork of (new) releases. Tenth Edition being a Core Set and Core Sets being what they are, it will be much easier to look and choose through all the new art because I don't need to look at ALL of the cards. Sorting them is another matter though and my most gracious thanks to Cebu Regionals Qualifier 2nd placer Ramon "JR" Alivio for providing the list of Tenth Edition cards having new artwork. Obviously, Ramon had plenty of time in his hands.

Before anything else, here are some "disclaimers" to my "judging" technique:

1. As I'm not an artist myself (ey, I draw a bit but only for my own appreciation), the opinions here are purely my own and are debatable (well, what topic isn't debatable?). And that's why there's a forum for the debate. Have something to say? Post it!

2. How do I look at the art? Firstly, the art has to do something. A good illustration has to show a clear interpretation of its ability rather than just being a studio pose. The art has to "move". No movement means no fun. Readers might notice that there isn't one legendary creature in my list. Obviously, all these legendary creatures look like they are just posing. Probably the closest legendary creature that can be mentioned is Squee but the funny thing is, he's not shown as a nabob.

3. Second way that I look at the art is probably my normal human perception on appreciating how the colors are mixed together to form the masterpiece, how realistic the illustration is, how detailed is the drawing, etc.

4. While going over each drawing, I went through the process of giving each piece a rating from 1 to 5. 5 is very nice, 4 is good, 3 is average, 2 is "could be better", and 1 is really sucky. Maybe I'm scared of myself giving a rating of 1 because I'm not an artist (I'm biased to myself) so not one new art got 1. But I did give some 2s.

5. Not to impend me further considering my lack of artistic experience, I chose ten "top" artworks from the criteria above. They are not in order of preference. It's too difficult and too much effort to rank each art.

Without further ado, here are my top ten number 5s (I placed my initial reaction as well as further observations upon better scrutiny):

Air Elemental by Kev Walker
"better than previous, a much more intimidating elemental"

Kev Walker has always been well-known for his cutting edge artwork and he delivers big time with this more intimidating Air Elemental. Air Elemental has long been a favorite of mine (5 to cast 4/4 is good for beginners). Though the art makes Air Elemental look like Cloud Elemental (which is also incidentally in Tenth Ed), Air Elemental gets the nod.

Diabolic Tutor
"awesome and very diabolic"

How else do you show the gaining of additional knowledge through searching for that (possibly) one card to win you the game? One needs the diabolic aid of a tutor, in this case, shown by the skeleton (a possible symbol of evil and diabolism). Of course this art could be mistaken for any other black tutor spell out there but I'm giving a nod to the diabolism of Diabolic Tutor here.

Earth Elemental
"Rock on!"

Another favorite from the first impression. Earth Elemental being red certainly helps to give us an idea that it's the color of violence and chaos and the art is chaotic enought and befitting Earth Elemental. I was surprised that Anthony S. Waters did this. But then again, I haven't been looking really close at his works. My bad.

Evacuation
"I love the showing of the hands, it's trying to show that the pieces are being summoned back"

Well obviously that's what Evacuation is supposed to do... I've seen the other artwork for Evacuation and so far this one really shows a real evacuation but not necessarily done by entities that needs to evacuate. The hands provide the appropriate communication to us. Incidentally, the game of Magic uses hands.

Firebreathing
"nice vibrant colors of a creature breathing fire"

Now that's what I call breathing fire. And the fiery feel to it add justice to the card. I'm a fan of Briclot art too and this one really gets to me. Seems like I could feel the heat whenever I play this card (though playing the card is seldom).

Holy Day
"the weapons going up is just what the card does"

At a closer look, you'll see the arrows going up (and floating?). The illustration shows a war in mid-action. It's moving, yet it's not. Go figure.

Incinerate
"3 words: Burn, baby, burn!"

This art was chosen by readers and players of magicthegathering.com. From the sketch alone, you could see that the creature (looks like a zombie or a normal soldier) is being burned bad. Thus my initial 3 words. By the way, I think the Boros & Szikszai tandem has a great future ahead of them. They constantly turn up really good artworks.

Might of Oaks
"Matt Cavotta lost out on the poll, this one's really much cooler with the big oak fists and all"

I remember the poll. As much as I like Matt's work, the Jeremy Jarvis version blew me away. Yup, big oak fists. Now that's mighty. Nice symbolism all in all.

Regeneration
"wicked! the representation of regeneration is just wicked"

Regeneration reminds me of that "skin" regeneration spell from Kamigawa that had the creature removing the excess skin the symbolize the regeneration. That was kind of gross in a way of describing it. Tenth Ed Regeneration removes the gross part with the symbolism of flowers. Okay, it's now flowery.

The Hive
"nice creature producer and nice art to it"

What a funny initial comment. Well, I couldn't find a better way of describing this creature generator. I like how golden (or yellow) the hive is. Is it because it's all shiny that I'm attracted to the art.

Here are the other cards in Tenth Ed that I gave a rating of 5:

Faerie Conclave
Forbidding Watchtower
Fountain of Youth
Ghitu Encampment
Giant Growth
Hill Giant
Holy Strength
Legacy Weapon
Nekrataal
Overgrowth
Puppeteer
Robe of Mirrors
Sea Monster
Serra's Embrace
Shivan Hellkite
Story Circle
Sudden Impact
Time Stretch
Uncontrollable Anger
Unholy Strength
Wall of Air

Unexpectedly, I've got all five colors (and an artifact) present in my top ten. Too bad that there's no land though I did consider Faerie Conclave, Forbidding Watchtower, and Ghitu Encampment to be right up there with the rest of the 10.

Incidentally, here are cards from Tenth Ed that I gave a score of 2:

Bog Wraith
Lord of the Pit
Suntail Hawk
Wild Griffin

My decision on Lord of the Pit must be biased because I didn't vote for it. Hehehe. Well, I really consider it to be non-demonic considering how the left arm is positioned. It reminds me of gayness (ey, no offense to gay people).

All card images are courtesy of magicthegathering.com.

Polls

2007-09-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

The link above is for Wizard Universe´s Captain America poll. There are 5 choices, namely: Hawkeye, Falcon, USAgent, Punisher, and Winter Soldier. Here are my takes on each choice and why I chose who I chose.

Hawkeye is an archer and he needs his bow and arrows. Although I think he´s as agile and athletic as Steve Rogers, Hawkeye is too hot tempered and too unpatriotic to don the mantle of Captain America.

Falcon definitely can´t be Captain America. The dude is too buffed up. I wonder if he´d be able to jump around the way Cap does.

Punisher is a hitman, a gunman and any other ¨man¨ as long as it´s associated with a gun. How ironic that Cap uses a shield (which can be described as the opposite of the gun because the shield deflects projectile objects like a gun). Punisher as Captain America would mean a gun-wielding Cap. And considering how sane (or insane) Frank Castle is, no villain would remain alive if the are captured by the Punisher-Captain America. And in closing on the discussion about the Punisher, he is too much of a vigilante to be Captain America.

Winter Soldier would be the next closest to the character I supposedly chose. Which leads me to the defining point on why I chose USAgent (despite probably some character issues with the Agent): the use of the shield. USAgent is probably the best suited person to wield a shield. He should be comfortable enough and he´s almost Captain America. But it´d be a gimme already if that´s the case right. So anyway, I wouldn´t be surprised if Marvel Comics would choose Winter Soldier to be the next Captain America.

The second link is for Wizard Universe´s poll for Spider-Man´s worst costumes. And again, a take on each choice.

The Ben Reilly version is probably the sleekest of the 5. It looks good and close to the Spidey original costume.

The Spider-man 2099 is probably a homage to the Black Spider-man costume and in a ¨dark¨ futuristic age, the black costume fits the bill. He just doesn´t look all that friendly being black.

I personally read the issue that featured the Silver Spider Armor prominently. I think the cover itself prompted me to ask my father to buy the comic book for me. It was the 100th issue of Web of Spider-man. I forgot the villain he was facing but Peter Parker had to do something about his costume (or had to think up of something) to not get killed easily so in a snap he made the armor. Of course he won against the villain!

The red and gold spider armor is courtesy of Tony Stark and featured prominently in Civil War. It´s actually a cool costume too and with all the arms coming out behind him.

And finally, the worst of the 5. Scarlet Spider costume with the grey (or blue) hooded jacket (or vest). I mean, where in Heaven´s name did he get such a jacket? And with the weird positioning of the spider symbol? Sheesh. No wonder Wizards voted this as the lamest character - off the charts!

2 concerts (6 rock bands) in a week

2007-08-30T21:14:00.000-07:00

August 27 at the SU Founder's Day Booth Area saw Chippy (or Jack 'N Jill) sponsoring a free concert featuring Pedicab, Callalilly, and 6 Cycle Mind. August 30 saw another 3 band concert at Macias Sports Complex. This time the concert featured Imago, Itchyworms, and Rocksteddy.

Here's my take on the separate concerts:

It's the first time that I've witnessed a free concert topbilled by known bands and held at the Founder's Day booth area. The stage was too small but it was enough to allow each band to frolick and jump around (and without destroying the stage!). Thank God that the audio system was working really well and the vocals could be heard clearly by the crowd.

Pedicab isn't that famous to me but their sound was like listening to Orgy (not the sexual act).

Callalilly is more famous and I was surprised that they sang the songs that I would hear most of the time on the radio stations. Chalk one up for the ignorant!

6 Cycle Mind played revivals mostly and I would have preferred that they had more original songs.

The one thing about these bands was that they didn't have a distinctive voice that would enable a listener to identify one from the other.

Oh yeah, I was watching all this (and part of 6 Cycle Mind's performance) despite the rain. If it was a continuous downpour, it would have been even more fun. I was confused whether I was wet with sweat or rain...

After the Founder's Day, some organizers had the balls to stage a non-free concert and on a work night. Go figure. I had a free VIP ticket so I happily watched the concert. The venue was too big for a concert like this and they probably would have enjoyed it much better if they were playing at an open field (like the booth area).

Imago should be successful if they continue to release a lot of original songs. The vocalist certainly has a great voice. Hopefully she won't think about going solo and leave the rest of her bandmates out on the rain.

Itchyworms started their part with lively music and kept on with it. The main vocalist even had to change guitars in the middle of their whole part as one the strings probably broke. I appreciate their effort to get everybody in the band to sing. They sounded (and looked) like Side A.

Rocksteddy certainly proved to be a great main event. I must say that they must have planned all their moves: diving into the crowds, jumping over each other, and the guitarist banging the cymbals.

With the type of occupation that I have, I had to behave. Certainly, I could headbang my way but no sound made me feel like doing so. Maybe next time...

All 3 rock bands did well and they played to the audiences' delight. Nice performance in all!

Faker (again)

2007-08-15T01:33:00.000-07:00

Here's one wake-up call for me one Wednesday afternoon. I'm reading Faker #2.

My review for Faker #1 is totally moot now. All this time I was thinking that the comic book would be a simple college setting story. But oh no. Now, it's kind of a supernatural suspense thriller mixed with emotions, suicide, relationships, etc. What's next Diggle? I'm raring to get on with the next issue.

Missing out on Astro City

2007-08-08T04:27:00.000-07:00

Astro City.

Here in the Philippines, Astro is a brand of a cigarette. Cheap cigarette. If you couldn't afford Marlboro because you ran out of coins, you'd be smoking Astro to get almost the same effect. I actually can't relate. A friend told me about this because I asked him why he was smoking Astro when I know that he liked Marlboro. I can't relate because I don't smoke. Honestly.

Anyway, this blog is not about Astro the Cigarette. It's about Astro City by Kurt Busiek. It's probably one of the best comic books I've ever read. I even got high marks from other people when I said that Astro City is one of the best books out there. They all agreed. Kurt Busiek's storytelling style is just so good. Sadly, I can't compare Astro City to any of his works because I haven't grabbed any of his other works.

Here's my history with Astro City: The first issue I got to read was the one with Crackerjack. I think it was issue #5. Surprisingly, the point of view was from a villain - an alien disguised as an ordinary man. In that issue, in one chance encounter with Crackerjack, the alien decides on an invasion depending on Crackerjack's hero-ness. Crackerjack being the egoistic hero that he is ultimately leads to an invasion which until now I haven't read about any other issues.

I got hooked after that. I read the mails from the other readers and I got to know a lot about the other issues simply by reading the mails. I instantly asked my brother to look for issue #1 and thank God it wasn't that well known yet. I was able to get issues #1 - 4. Issue #6 came later when I discovered Ebay.

The joy of reading the Astro City limited series is that you really get to feel from the point of view of whoever is telling the story. You're literally in his/her shoes. It's refreshing, it's honest, it's full of "real" life. Here's a superhero genre comic book that probably doesn't have to always involve fighting and violence. Humans could tell the story. And even the superheroes too.

Anyway, I never got to say what the comic book is about. It's about Astro City, a city full of superheroes. That's it. Hehehe. Anyway, grab one. I'm sure you will enjoy it.

A different kind of review this time around (Harry Potter)

2007-07-18T22:31:00.000-07:00

I just saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix last Saturday. Imagine the situation first:

I just came from 5 rounds of Extended Constructed in Magic the Gathering. I was bringing an untested deck which was frankly taxing on my brain and nerve wracking as hell as I wasn´t really that ready to go into battle with such a deck. I did finish well but I got the shock of my life. I finished with 3 wins, 1 loss, and 1 tie. The only loss was surrendered in favor of my teammate who had a better chance of finishing number one. Talk about taking one for the team.

So we (or more precisely, my sister) decided that we would watch Harry Potter instead of Transformers. Frankly, I would consider Transformers as a much more interesting movie because of the special effects. And who wouldn´t appreciate those cool funky robots! I´ve been speed reading Harry Potter in the last year or so. Once you get to read the book, you would lose all appreciation for the movie. It just went south starting with Prisoner of Azkaban and it worsened with Goblet of Fire. Order of the Phoenix the Movie would just become one more movie that would be unappreciated by yours truly.

We hurried up our dinner as we had to catch the last full show. Thankfully the movie house accepted credit cards!

So, on to the movie proper. Well, I´m quite amused that they managed to cram up so much information into just a few minutes. By the way, Order of the Phoenix seems to be the thickest of the books so far and it elaborately describes the actions and situations that lead to each decree that the antagonist Prof. Umbridge issues. In the movie, it was just a simple Daily Prophet headline. Come to think of it, this movie seems to be using a lot of Daily Prophet exposure.

I honestly can´t say whether the movie would be understandable or not. Since I already read the book, the characters were already familiar to me (and I knew even further than that). I already knew a certain event would happen and it was just a matter of how the director would go about in presenting it.

I love the fight scene where Black appeared out of nowhere to save Harry. Now, that one is impossible to imagine while reading. The sudden arrival of the ¨cavalry¨ through the swishing of mist (or cloud). It gave me a chance to say ¨Wow!¨ for the first time in the movie.

So there you go. Maybe because of the fight scenes I´d give a rating of 8 out of 10. But the movie overall, I´d give it a 5 out of 10. It wasn´t there for me...

Faker

2007-07-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

How do I begin?

This book got me hooked.

That good enough?

Anyway, I´ve been keeping a close lookout on new releases and I never knew anything about Faker so I figured out that I´d give it a try. I wasn´t disappointed over my decision to get this book. From the cover, I thought it´d be a book about supernatural powers (and I could still be mistaken after reading just the first issue). If the book stays as it is with it´s gritty look at college students, it´d still be a blast.

I´m surprised that Mike Carey still captures the essence of college life. Though I have a different college life than what the characters are having in the book, it´s the typical college life in America, I guess. I´m just amazed that Carey really got into it: the drugs, the parties, the puking, etc.

And a nice intro too with the seduction of the instructor. That girl can do it to me but of course I´m way much better than that instructor.

Well, all I can say for now is that these Vertigo books are doing really fine with their stories. I can´t wait to get my hands on the next issue.

Pugad Baboy

2007-07-08T01:16:00.000-07:00

A blog can never be complete without my all-time favorite Pugad Baboy (translation: Pig's Nest). Pugad Baboy is drawn by Pol Medina, Jr.

Pugad Baboy is published daily in the Philippine Daily Inquirer as a comic strip. Almost each year, a collected edition of the strips is published. I always make it a point to get one because they're quite hot specially for those who follow the strips religiously.

Just a brief background on how I came to know about Pugad Baboy. My cousin had a collection of the first collected editions. Everytime I'd get to visit their place, I always had a marathon reading of the books. When I was able to start buying my own books, I made it a point to start a collection on the Pugad Baboy collected editions.

I'm positive that my love for Pugad Baboy is appreciated only by my fellow Filipinos. To sum up the comic strip, it's a comic strip that discusses a wide range of topics: politics, current trends, movies, etc.

Here's a rundown of the main characters and how they represent the Filipino society:

Sungcal family:

Adagulfo Sungcal or Dagul (for short) represents the hardworking Filipino. He is the typical Filipino who is very loving and caring for his children (wakes up in the morning to prepare the children's food). Aside from that, Dagul is a procastinator. Who wouldn't be?

Dagul's wife is Debbie. She's the typical housewife who loves to shop whenever there's a sale going on. And also a typical woman who needs a lot of time to choose a particular item.

The eldest child is Hercules or Kules. He represents the typical Filipino who has to work abroad.

Tiny is the only daughter. She represents the collegiate Filipino.

Utoy is the youngest child. He (together with his boyhood friends) represents the young Filipinos. Techy and playful.

Of course, no Filipino household is complete without the housekeeper. Brosia is the Sungcal's housekeeper and a constant thorn to Dagul.

Sabaybunot family:

Tomas is the supposed head of the family. My take on his wife explains the reason for being just the supposed head. Tomas represents the Filipino soldier. He's a chauvinistic pig who spends a lot of time drinking and being with GROs.

Barbie is Tomas' feminist wife. The feminist group Gabriela always comes to mind whenever I read about Barbie. She is just that, pure feminist.

Paltik is the only child of the Sabaybunot family.

Lamoun family:

Bab is the head male as his father died at an early age. Bab is the typical no-job, lazy, and slightly addicted Filipino. All the bad Filipino traits are probably in Bab.

Meanwhile, Jolen is the opposite of Bab.

The rest of Pugad Baboy:

Ka Noli represents the Filipino rebel. He's a member of the New People's Army and unusually best friends with Tomas.

Mao represents the Chinese immigrants who opens up a business in the Philippines. Mao is thrifty and always wary of kidnappers. Though not exactly a Filipino, he is still part of the Filipino daily life. (Show me a place where there aren't any Chinese immigrant, and I'll stop blogging)

Pao is the son/daughter of Mao. Pao represents the homosexual Filipino.

Miss Nobatos is the kids' teacher. She represents the always sad plight of Filipino teachers in the country.

Senator Cabalfin is a Philippine Senator who resides in Pugad Baboy. He ultimately represents the politicians. How corrupt the Philippine government is, that's how corrupt Senator Cabalfin is too.

Patrolman Durugas represents an even more menacing problem hounding the Philippines: the unrepenting distrust towards the police. In the comic strip, policemen are more likely to commit the crime rather than stopping it. Of course, several crimefighters are loyal enough to their job to see to it that crime does not pay.

And have I forgotten a character? One of the most important characters in the strip is Polgas, the talking dog. Well, since talking dogs are definitely out of line in our society, Polgas represents the fantasy that Pol Medina wants to live in. Polgas is adventurous and is a secret agent for OCB (which stands for Organized Canine Bureau).

To sum everything up, Pugad Baboy is always enjoyable because it is truly Filipino. Highly impossible that a Filipino cannot relate to the comic strip without knowing about what's happening to his environment and society.

It's World War Hulk

2007-06-30T01:04:00.000-07:00

World War Hulk is on Marvel right now. After more than 6 months of Civil War, an even bigger issue hits the Marvel Universe that would make Civil War look like child's play. Civil War "involved" only the US. World War Hulk, as the name implies, should involve the whole world much like the 2 real World Wars that we've had. As what happened in the first issue of World War Hulk #1, Hulk beat Black Bolt to a pulp. And this happened in the moon.

After Civil War saw the pro-registration guys win the war and Iron Man appointed as SHIELD director, I was skeptical of the 50 States Initiative that Marvel put into place. The whole idea would be overexposure and might dry up the ideas of the House of Ideas. Well then, World War Hulk should return Marvel to normal. I just can't wait how everything would play out.

I'm also a non-fan of Incredible Hulk (although I did watch the movie). Here's a mean, green brainless (originally) monster who is probably the exact irony of a superhero. Bruce Banner has to get mad to be a "hero." Didn't we ever grow up knowing that we have to check our tempers? Hulk used to be a joy to watch if you're a kid because he's fond of destroying, just like we were when we were babies.

But I have to admit that World War Hulk has intrigued me. And I will be following up on the whole series. You should too.

still catching up

2007-06-09T04:47:00.000-07:00

After almost 2 months of no contact with any comic book, I'm still catching up. I've got new ones that are debuts but I haven't gone through them yet.

So far, it's been great reading X-Factor. Peter David still has it and the book brings back memories of the X-Factor team that Havok was leading. I'm glad that I started reading it when it was just starting and I've been hooked ever since. Highly recommended. One note: Layla Miller is the "X-Factor" (for lack of a better word) character of the book. She provides a lot of the funny stuff that occurs to the team.

I'm also following the Back in Black saga of Spider-man. Weird timing considering that he's all black in Spider-man 3. Well, I haven't figured out where he got back his costume - I'm sure it's not the alien one.

Of all the Civil War Initiative titles out there, I'm keeping tabs with Thunderbolts. I've heard of them a lot of times before and I heard more when they became a featured team in the VS system. Maybe I'm just too lazy to follow up on the rest of the Initiative titles but the Thunderbolts are one crazy team (or team-up). You've got reformed criminals who are "trying" to do good when it has never been good before. Go figure. Besides, anytime you've got a team that has Venom and Bullseye in it is good enough to read.

Speaking of Civil War Initiative, Joe Quesada is pinning a lot on this and I'm just waiting for the time when he'll have exhausted all resources regarding having superheroes on all the states in America. Well, I'm sure he hasn't featured Hawaii yet. Come to think of it, who's assigned in Hawaii?

And oh yeah, read Criminal. I can't wait for Ed Brubaker to sell his story and make it into a movie. Yo, Ed! Frank Miller's making a whole bunch of money with his Sin City and 300. Your stories can kick ass.

The dream of working for Wizard - The Guide to Comics

2007-05-28T01:56:00.000-07:00

So... This is blogging...

What an introduction.

In the weeks to come (and in my effort to be a freelance writer for Wizard the Guide to Comics), I'm going to critique comic books. I guess it will be any comic book out of the blue - anything that I can get my hands on. Let's just say that I'm inspired by Wizard's weekly review of the best comic books in that week. My range will be limited to what I can get. I'm willing to read anything and since I'm not working for any comic book company, I'm willing to get everything out of my chest.

First off, I'll have to "introduce" myself so that readers may know why I'm doing this critique and why I want to do this.

I've been a comic book reader since the day I could start turning the page of a book. Oh, I wouldn't be considered a reader yet. More of a picture viewer because I couldn't read yet. Somehow, the joy of knowing how to read became the greatest achievement of my life as I was given the ability to understand what the words in the balloon meant.

Back then, most comic books were reprinted for the Philippine market so they were virtually of no high value. I probably ended up damaging the comic books that were not collected and not bound into hardcover (my parents used to do this so as to prevent further damage). And my elder brother probably ended up getting angry at me for damaging his collection. This was the late 80s and early 90s when I hadn't discovered computers (or the Internet) yet. Most of the information that I got about the Marvel or DC universe came from comic book guides where there were synopses of several issues. I could already piece things out together from there.

More readings came from original comic books that were borrowed from classmates and a friend who kept getting comic books as gifts. Of course, I was more careful since these comic books were originals and not the reprinted ones. A weird thing too because the reprinted books were no longer available.

Later on, fake X-men Series 1 cards came out. The beauty of Jim Lee's art got to me and I continued to piece together the history of Marvel Universe (or more specifically the X-men Universe) from there. I almost completed the set yet realized later that they were really crappy fakes.

By this time ( I think I was in high school), original comic books were already sold at several stores which were located in bigger cities (Metro Manila, Cebu City, Cagayan de Oro City). If given the chance when I went to these cities, I would always visit the comic book shops. But, due to the meager allowance that I had, I was stuck to buying cards. To add, my father used to say that buying comic books was a waste of money so he hated the idea of buying them. Cards were so much better because they could be hidden in the pockets. A funny thing happened while I was in Manila though. My thrifty father and I went to this comic book shop and he told me to pick a comic book. I was stunned and couldn't speak and I couldn't select ONE. So he told me to pick two!!! And I did. I picked Spectacular Spider-man 275 (if I'm not mistaken with the issue number) and Web of Spider-man 100. Things went up from there...

A vacation in Cebu went horribly wrong financially as I spent more than half of my allowance on comic books in the first day alone. I already had a list of what to buy and being alone in the comic book shop was like being in heaven. During this time, Image Comics had just come out. Though I was late for the big first issues, I took the next best things and bought the ones I considered that had the best stories.

In my last years in high school, I went to buying and selling comic books in my school. My big brother who was in Manila provided the capital (which I returned to him promptly) and I did the selling part. I mostly sold them to classmates. We stopped the business when he transferred back to our place but I did rack up enough to open my own savings account. I did get the opportunity to write about comic books as I made it my research paper for my English subject. Wizard (shameless plug) was a great help as it became my main reference.

The existence of the Internet opened up more chances of reading about the Marvel, DC, and Image Universe. I kept feeding myself with information from the Net. This was college. I had transferred to a different city to study. Unfortunately, the city didn't have any comic book shops but I was satisfied with what I had. Comic books had become too expensive as the value of the dollar shot up.

When I finally got to work, I bought collected editions of comic books. I was now reading Astro City, Kingdom Come, and any other collected edition that was worth its price and had an astonishing review. I was able to buy from online stores and had it shipped to friends in the United States. They in turn would have somebody carry the comic books for a sure handling.

And I've continued to read ever since. So far, I've been following up with Wolverine: Origins, X-Factor, Justice League, Justice Society, Flash, and many more. I love cartoons and am enchanted with comic books with lots of humour mixed with it.

I should "officially" start by next week once I've acclimated back to my office environment.

Anybody who reads blogs can help criticize my work. And of course, it'd be a huge help if my blog would somehow end up at Wizard's office. For me, working at Wizard surrounded by comic books is one big heaven for me.

Keep posted.