Remember Trading Cards?

eBay Seller: comicbookreviewer

I do. I remember one of the greatest things was to get a pack of trading cards for a movie or TV show I loved. "The Lion King," "An American Tale," "Garfield," "Star Treck: The Next Generation," I had tons of them. Somewhere along the line though trading cards didn't matter all that much anymore, so I stopped buying them. Recently though (thanks in part to companies including autograph and prop cards in random packs) I've been getting into trading cards again. Yeah, you can't really do anything with the cards except put them in a binder and admire them, but they still look cool when made properly. My favorite trading cards to buy these days are (surprise, surprise) Harry Potter cards.

Of course, I must admit that Artbox's whole lineup is pretty impressive. They made trading cards look cool again, and so far (with lots of purcheses mind you) I've gotten two prop cards and one autograph card (from the guy who played Uncle Vernon). Oh course, the downside that trading cards have and game cards don't is the fact that should you get a duplicate, you can't really do anything with it but trade it with someone else. Well, who the heck can I trade these with, I'm the only person I know who is buying these things? So I decided to sell them (as well as several strategy guides) on eBay, through the link above. So yeah, this post is basically one huge ad for my eBay sale. I know, I'm pathetic (but hopefully I'll be a few bucks richer by being so).

Watch This Space

A rare "Calvin and Hobbes" comic drawn by Bill Waterson and rarely seen by the general public. Keep an eye on this space, as I have something even cooler I'm going to post this week: An actual picture of Mr. Bill himself. Oh yes, I actually have a picture of Bill Waterson. But when will I post it? Hmm...guess you'll just have to keep checking back this week to find out.

The Hills Are Alive!

Amazon.com: The Sound of Music (40th Anniversary Edition): DVD

So I'm in Costco today (yeah, even the day after Christmas I practically live there), and I notice that one of the all time classics, "The Sound of Music," has been released on a brand new two disk DVD released, fully restored and in widescreen. So naturally, I have to get this. It was one of my favorite movies growing up as a kid, and the chance to see it again in widescreen for the first time is too good of an opportunity to pass up. And the DVD is only $16, which is a steal. When I get home I decide to watch it right away. I don't plan to watch the whole thing though. I remember that there is an intermission in this three hour film, so I fully intend to only watch half of it today and half tomorrow. I end up watching the whole thing today.

What a fantastic movie this is. It has been some ten or more years since I really sat down and watched this movie, and I regret that now because I felt like I had forgotten how good it was and how much I enjoyed watching it. The characters are all very memorable. Especially Maria. I know this may sound silly, but I feel in love with her all over again. I remember seeing her as a great mother figure as a kid, and I see her as that and much more now. Some people may not like Maria much anymore because she is a housewife, and the ultimate goal for her ends up to be married and to be a mother for these kids...but you know what? There is nothing wrong with that. People act as if being a housewife is boring and degrading, but in this movie I actually have a lot of respect for a woman who loves these kids to death, and is fulfilled because she receives their love in return for hers.

I love about Maria. Very few things warm my heart then seeing a mother bonding with her kids (Especially when the kids in question aren't even her biological kids, but her adopted kids). I think I also have a better understanding of "The Captain" now then I did when I was a kid. When I was a kid I saw a jerk, pure and simple. Now I see a man who has sheltered his feelings for so long, that when he hears his kids singing for the first time, and I mean truly singing, his eyes are opened to what he's been missing all these years by shutting down his heart. Seeing as how I went through a time in my life when I shut other people out of my life, the talk he has with Maria where he thanks her for bringing music back into his house made me tear up a bit, because now I could relate to that speech and the meaning behind it.

I also have a new respect for the cinematography. Since some of the sequences in this movie have been spoofed many times in other movies these days (the opening hilltop scene for example), I was amazed at how much these scenes took my breath away. There is a reason so many movies spoof some of the scenes in this movie: The scenes are fondly remembered by film makers. And, of course, I have a new love for the music as well. This must seem like a stupid thing to say (seeing as how this movie is called the "The Sound of MUSIC"), but the music is really quite excellent. When I was a kid my favorite song from the movie was the fun "My Favorite Things," but now that I'm older I think the inspirational "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" is now my new favorite song from the movie, for it's beautiful melody and lyrics.

Oh, and I DID spell the name of that song correctly, so don't send me e-mails trying to correct my spelling on this one! Another thing I noticed is how great of a movie this was. "The Sound of Music" is a musical. I know it must sound like I'm stating the obvious, but it's important I point this out. Musicals from the old days aren't thought of very highly. It's not that there's anything wrong with them, but most kids consider them to be movies for old people. I think this would be the one exception to the rule. Even people who don't tend to like musicals would like this movie, in the same way that people who don't normally like horror movies would like "The Sixth Sense" and "JAWS" (yes, "JAWS" is a horror film, look it up). The movie is not forty years old. I know this because my DVD cover proudly proclaims to be the "40th Anniversary Edition."

Like "The Wizard of Oz," this film doesn't feel like it's aged a day. Oh sure there are a couple of noticeable graphic effects that don't hold up, but the overall package still feels fresh even to this day. I know the movie is so popular (and to lesser extent, old) that those who haven't seen it yet would possibly not want to watch it for a variety of reasons. Either it's too old, it's a musical, or it's rated G (since when did G rated movies start getting classified as "bad"), it's not an action film...I don't care, it's a good movie. Even if you think you've figured out whether you'll like this film or not I'm here to tell you that you have no idea. This is one of the greatest movies ever made. Oh, and did I mention the movie has Nazis in it? Any movie with Nazis in it has to get props for THAT much at least! Right?

Read My Previous Post First

Amazon.com: Change Your World: Music: Michael W. Smith

Just for the record, if anyone wants to now check out Michael W. Smith and want to know where a good place to start would be...well then shucks, I don't know. With all the great songs he's written, how do you choose his best? However I have (somehow) managed to narrow it down to "Change Your World," which won Smitty his Grammy and his fame. It's easily one of his best albums, and it would be an excellent place to start. Of course, you could also cheat and buy his two Greatest Hits CD's too. Just beware of the black sheep album "Freedom." While it is a good album, it's not a CD to get if you want to sample his songs, as there are no songs on that CD, only instrumental scores. Hope this helps the two people that e-mailed me today.

I'm SO There!

The Second Chance Movie - February 17, 2006

Forget "King Kong" and "Narnia," because (despite the fact that those to films are out and I've seen them) the movie I'M looking forward to the most is "The Second Chance" staring Michael W. Smith and Jeff Obafemi Carr. Now I have no idea who Jeff Carr is (and his iMDB resume shows that this is his first film), but I've been a HUGE Michael W. Smith fan for quite some time! For those of you who don't know him, he has been one of the biggest pop/rock stars for the past twenty three or so years. Not only has he won several Grammy's (including a couple for his big hits "Do You Dream of Me" and "I Will Be Here For You"), but he has won countless Dove awards and his concerts are almost always sold out.

He has worked with such artists as Amy Grant, Jim Brickman, Steven Curtis Chapman, and Sixpenth None The Richer. The guy is a Christian artist, but most of his songs are of such great quality, that most people (and radio stations) like his music even if they don't completely agree with it (kind of like how some protesters find Eminem to be quite catchy at times). Now I don't know whether Smitty will be able to act or not (by the way, Michael's fans call him Smitty for short), but this feeling of anticipation must be kind of like seeing a Beatles movie back in the 60's: Who really cares if The Beatles could act or not, you just wanted to see them in a movie. Yeah, I'm a fanboy. Sue me.

My biggest fear was that this movie was going to open in less then ten theaters and that I would never see it on the big screen. Well, putting in my zip code at the official movie site revealed that it would be in four theaters near me when it opens, so I guess it will get a decent sized release (although most likely less then 3,000 screens). The movie is rated PG-13, which means the story about the suburbs is most likely going to be just a little rough around the edge (kind of like how the "Left Behind" and "Apocalypse" movies were). Of course, since Smitty IS a singer first and foremost, the highlight of the trailer for me was one of the (hopefully) multiple new songs by Smitty himself.

The song in the trailer is called "All In The Serve," and it's just a great sounding tune. Chances are the Soundtrack sales are going to help sell a good portion of tickets for this movie. Anyway, I was browsing Rhapsody today, and hidden near the bottom of Smitty's artist page, I found "The Second Chance Soundtrack Preview" page, where I could listen to two of the songs from the movie in advance. One of them was "All In The Serve." These songs are making me even more excited about the movie then I am now, and I'm listening to their sweet melodies like they were candy. Luckily the movie is opening in February, so there shouldn't TOO much competition, and maybe the movie will actually make some money at the box office!

Still, if a movie like this gives Smitty another reason to make another CD then I'm all for Smitty making more movies. Oh, and seeing a movie where the Christian community in shown realistically (both the good and the bad parts) doesn't hurt either.

Sad, Isn't It?

Xbox 360: Japanese launch sales figures - Xbox 360 News at GameSpot

So XBox 360 isn't too hot in Japan right now. That's not too much of a surprise, seeing as how the Japanese would rather buy Japanese products over American products, but this just proves that maybe, just maybe, Microsoft would have been better off holding off on launching the system in Japan, and instead focus on getting more systems made in America and Europe. Great planning Microsoft, hope this all pays off in the long run (seeing as how any kid who wants a 360 most likely won't get one until next December).