HardWare Wars

Hardware Wars (1977) was the first short film spoof of Star Wars. The thirteen-minute film, which premiered in theatres only seven months after Star Wars, consisted of little more than inside jokes and visual puns that heavily depended upon audience familiarity with the original. The theme song is Richard Wagner's famous "Ride of the Valkyries". The tagline was "You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll kiss three bucks goodbye." The film was by far one of my farvorits

Star Wars PocketModel TCG

My newest game is Star Wars PocketModel TCG. I had the opportunity to play it a couple of time now, once with my nephew and once with the guys in my gaming group. The 1st time I played it(with Charlie) I really didn’t get all the rules. So as a result I was not sure if I liked the game or not. The rule book is not very well put together, so I missed a few rules. The second time I played the game (with the guys) I had figured out all the rules and the game work out much better. And I really like the game. Play it in a group has much more dynamics to it then the just one on one.

The game has aspects of both miniatures and collectible and trading genres. It is similar to WizKids game Pirates of the Spanish Main, referring to the mechanics of creating game pieces from components that punch out of styrene cards. The game derives its content from all six Star Wars movies. Also there are the cards that give your miniatures bonuses or change the game play. You win the game in two ways; one you eliminate all of your opponents ships, or destroy all 3 of their objective cards. The coolest thing is when your ship takes damage you add little damage plumes to the ship.

All and all, I give the game 8 out of 10 stars. I will have to play it a few more times to really work out the ins and outs.

The best Star Wars parody ever

Geek time with Charlie

My nephew Charlie and niece Zoe are in Flint for two weeks. My brother was only here for a few days of their visit, he left today. I plan to spend as much time with them as possible. Maybe we will get up there a couple of times each week. My plans are to geek out with Charlie and to take Zoe to the Art museum.

Today before and after dinner I taught Charlie how to play dreamblade. He won one of the three games we played. We try to play my new game Star Wars PocketModel Trading Card Game, but only had a little bit of time. So we only when over the rules and looked over the ships. It looks like a fun game. (I'll do a write on the game later)

This next two weeks Amy is also off from work. I’m hopping to use this time to get some work done on the bathroom. My dad and I didn’t get much done last week. We both were very busy last week. We also wanted to spend time with Tom wile he was here.

My Daylilies are Starting to bloom!!

If you thought I was a Big Star Wars Geek...

this dad wins as the biggest Star Wars Geek. Note the tattoos and the mobile.

Star Wars 30th Anniversary

Today is the 30th anniversary of the opening of Star Wars. To celebrate this I went out and bought the boy’s (and my self) the new Star Wars stamps from the Post office. I also wrote a blog last year about me and Star Wars. Check it out here. One just has to look around and you will find the influence Star Wars has had on every thing in our life.

MARKETING B.S.W.: Hit movies had to attract all ages. A.S.W.: Films are made for
kids, especially teenage boys. Since this is also the fast-food target audience,
chains like McDonald's jump at tie-in campaigns.

THE FRANCHISE
B.S.W.: Movies were one-offs; there was no Gone With the Wind II. A.S.W.:
Studios swing for the fences to get a mega-hit action film that can win
name-brand recognition and be profitably cloned for years to
come.

SPFX B.S.W.: Special effects were mostly mechanical toys and
puppets. A.D.: Computers made movies "virtual."

TOYS B.S.W.: The
big tie-in was Mickey Mouse watches. A.S.W.: Every kid has to have Star Wars
action figures, lightsabers, key chains, books, etc. Lucas all but created the
market for collectibles.

VIDEO GAMES B.S.W.: Pong. A.S.W.: The
video-arcade biz booms with Star Wars games and rip-offs, and the huge
home-video market is full of space themes.

THEME-PARK RIDES B.S.W:
Most Disney-style rides were slow and staid. A.S.W.: Here comes Space Mountain
(a Star Wars race in the dark), Lucas' own Star Tours and Indiana Jones rides.
Many Universal and Disney attractions are film franchises at warp
speed.

SOUND B.S.W.: Movie houses were mainly monaural, far below
home audio quality. A.S.W..: Lucas' THX loudspeakers, paired with the Dolby
system in the projection booth, brought clear, supple stereo sound to movie
theaters. THX is now in some 2,700 theaters.

MUSICAL TRACKS B.S.W:
Musicals. A.S.W.: the sound track has become an important part of just
about every movie made in the past 30 years. Can you say John Williams.

POLITICS B.S.W.: The cold war not much in the public eye. A.S.W.:
Inspired the political rhetoric of the cold war, when President Reagan proposed
a missile shield to protect the US against an "Evil Empire", which he called the
Star Wars program

I sure there are more things that I have missed. But still may the force be with you

Darth Vader Hot Air Balloon

This is so cool I had to share