Heroes, begins on BBC2 and shows the UK how to excel in the buzz of scifi-drama. As the BBC puts it, it's; “Lost without the desert island”, and there's definitely something about interconnecting stories that really get people going these days. Of course, personally, I totally agree, it is great fun to see how almost every character on the screen has some very minute connection to the other. But that is not what makes Heroes so great.

Now I don't know much about the show, I've never really bothered to look into it, though do know enough to know that its adored, and millions of people love it and praise it, so, understandably (like Firefly) I never really watched it... because to tell the truth, I couldn't really be bothered.
It was just another American TV show that was getting mountain loads of hype... but there was never anyone behind it to draw me in; besides the fact that Bryan Fuller is a producer on the show, and Greg Grunberg voiced the amazing Ethan Thomas in one of the most frightening games ever made -Condemned: Criminal Origins- oh, that and it is basically a TV series based on one of my favourite conventions; the superhero.

Heroes really succeeds in itself by taking full advantage of this aspect; sure each character is relatively speaking, a superhero. But at the same time they are also very human, and it's this human side which draws most people to the best of comic book characters.

You can watch guys like Batman all you want; he's the millionaire that has it all, and on top of that, saves people on a daily basis fighting crime and for justice. But it's for reasons of humanity that characters like the X-men, Spiderman, Daredevil (a lot of Marvel characters!) are so popular. To see a heroic character, who has problems, and weaknesses, to have these seemingly normal people stand up for themselves and others, not to mention their usually strong values. (Though these are often challenged for interesting effect) Which is the exact reason why Heroes is such a hit; as much as Patrick Moore hates it; good drama does make a science fiction programme miles better; look at Battlestar, Buffy, Firefly, even Doctor Who; the list is ongoing.

Heroes is definitely flying in the right direction, and I know for sure that I will be hooked on it, needing more!

Yes! That's right folks the television series based off the cutely addictive management game; Viva Piñata has arrived on our (terrestrial freeview) screens! As of the beginning of this week the CITV channel has begun airing the show, and it really excels at showing how video games can work on TV
Of course, I could think a couple of minutes and come up with some atrocious TV show that they made from a video game. Regardless, Viva Piñata was the perfect outlet for a children's CGI show; not only is it the best looking computer animated show, but it's premise is cute and eccentric enough to work perfectly.
That and as far as I can tell, Rare-fans can't moan at all, because they made an exceedingly cute looking game, which was just asking for the treatment it was given.

The show is actually really good. It has a nice assortment of characters, the usual -very random- occurrences, and even has a few really funny lines every now and again, not to mention the amazing analogy that came up last episode of; "you are slower than dialup!"

Of course it has it's downside; each episode is a measly 10 minutes long, though you do get the added bonus of two episodes every... well episode. But otherwise, the show is complete genius; voice actors that work really well with their creatures and even the reminder ever-so-often that these little guys are piñatas, and they are full of candy.

A top class cartoon if I ever saw one!

Now onto a serious note. (serious for me anyway) Has anyone seen the new trailer for Resident Evil 5 that has gone up on the 360 marketplace?

*begin babble*

Well, I hope that does it some justice, it looks absolutely amazing! The new setting is such a drastic change from all previous games it looks amazing, not to mention breathtaking (I'm talking bout the goats!!).

Although it does look like they are using relatively the same battle system as Resident Evil 4 (which is admittently very good, as it had a rather effective system); which a few changes here and there, but I am so absolutely stunned, that it has me lost for words.

Now, I'm not the sort of person to do loads of research on a game prior to it's release, and so before watching the trailer, I never knew it was set in Africa, I had never heard of the game having a big deal on heat and sun exposure. But now I am so hyped up for it! The fast paced exciting action calls to me, and as you can probably tell from my writing, I cannot wait; now I've just got to wait until the end of Uni, or so I hear. (please come out sooner!)

Woo new Buffy came out early; and had the great sort of one shot 'other-than-Buffy' focus that I love to see!

So bring on next week please, I cannot wait for some cinema-going again! Not to mention my free tickets to go see Waitress the following week!!! (Finally at UK cinemas, might I add)

Just as Ransom advised me towards watching Doctor Who -which was a fairly good turn of events- I was also pointed towards Dexter; a forensic cop show with a difference. Shown last year on -American network- Showtime the series is based on the novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter; a fun read written by Jeff Lindsay

What I feel is the best part of Dexter would have to be the character himself, a self-proclaimed sociopath, who, on impulse needs to kill; though rather than go killing a bunch of innocent people, Dexter was brought up by a cop with strong morals; who taught him to only kill those that deserve it, that are not able to be brought to justice.

The first person perspective of the show was what first drew me to Dexter; rather reminiscent to American Psycho, –except with less torture and misogynist tendencies- allowing you to really get inside of the character. That and the inner-most thoughts of a slightly eccentric sociopath can be rather comical, and dark at times.

With a television full of Law and Order’s, CSI’s, Bones, Cold Case, the list keeps on going, it would seem that television viewers find crime scene forensics extremely gripping and interesting; of course these shows aren’t too different from their predecessors like Columbo and Diagnosis Murder. But Dexter is definitely different; it turns the interest from the collecting of forensic evidence and how they catch the murderer, to the life of a random blood splatter analyst and his rather unusual hobby.

I think it’s easy to say, that without the very charismatic Michael C. Hall the series would not be what it is, seeing him in Six Feet Under you wouldn’t imagine him ‘work’ as a vigilante serial killer, but he does it so amazingly, not to mention he’s got a killer voice, that works so well. Hall’s Dexter not only keeps the character and spirit of Dexter ‘alive’, but his interactions with each character is just amazing, from Doakes, to Rita and especially with ‘victims’ keeping him fairly uncaring of whatever they are doing, as opposed to turning him into some defender of the downtrodden.

As the series is made for Showtime (a subscription only channel) then it pretty much has free rein (similar to something you’d maybe get from HBO) Dexter can do pretty much anything it wants being a psychologically-complex show, of course it’s all a bit toned down from the novel. But easily comparing it to some television shows it gets away with murder (please mind the pun), which is great fun.

Now, I’m sure that this can’t be entirely exclusive to myself, but if there’s one thing that gets me with Dexter, it’s the title sequence; which makes my damn skin crawl. Now, don’t ask me, I’m not sure what it is, it could be the extremely close shots, and the repulsive tendencies of a fried egg being cut up, but regardless I can’t get past it.

I could easily turn this into a comparison, but I shouldn’t need to do that. As the television series has the precise vibe that the book was going for; even though the two are very different. I could very easy have a moan at how they handled the unveiling of the Ice Truck Killer, and how they chose to portray Deborah, (making her a rather stupid character) but I’ll keep my mouth shut.

Dexter; similar to a particular CSI show is set in Miami; though rather than show the glamorous side which David Caruso; his suit and sunglasses, with the shiny happy people get. Dexter is all full of sweat and crummy looking; extremely hot looking situations, not to mention the crazy shirts all the time; which are –granted- no where near as outrageous as they sound in the book. But it’s some pretty funny looking get-up, especially when everyone’s wearing it in a police station.

So for the moment, Dexter is one of the best television shows I have seen in a while; with a devilish black humour and top rate writing I am definitely not going to forget it anytime soon, and recommend anyone check it out.

Not to mention the surprise I got when I just found out that the first two episodes of the second season have been leaked on the net!

Yes, yes I know, death-defyingly late, please all shoot me now for being so lazy; in my defence I've been very busy, that and Saints Row was waay too addictive for me.

Zodiac was an interesting film, based upon the murders of the Zodiac killer that terrorised California in the 60's and 70s.

Being the sort of person fairly fascinated with serial killers, I must say the Zodiac was never one I had read too much about -possibly as he was never caught- and so, I didn't know the fate of the film; which was, to some extent, exciting!

The serial killer film can usually be divided into two different sects; the cop film, full of mystery trying to find the killer. or the mass murder killing spree; usually crappily made, and simply following the serial killer.

Of course with the goal of following a serial killer there will always be cheaply made glorified bloody films, full of controversial-ness, but every now and again, something fresh pops up. The silence of the lambs was a big thing with this, as was American Psycho, but the main problem most films don't do is they follow all the blood and give no story

Zodiac also follows the strange obsession faze that a small group of films appear to following; The Prestige, The Black Dahlia, The Number 23, and even to some extent The Fountain, and it is a trend that; if done right, can come out with a top class film. But there is something that worries me slightly about them, after all, they are showing us people at their lowest points, when only the worst comes out in them; not surprisingly they like to make these obsessed protagonists married, and very often with children; and so we gain entertainment from watching the misery that something as dangerous as an obsession creates. In their defence it's sure teaching everyone that obsessions are not the way to go if you wish to ruin your life.

Zodiac was a pretty good film, although with a slightly ambiguous end it was hard to not enjoy it; with a cast including the likes of Dr Green! Mark Ruffalo, Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr and even a bit of Brian Cox all make for a thoroughly gripping film, with a very nicely written script. Not to mention the strangeness of a 60s/70s cop mystery mainly due to Peter Falk's role... oh wait I'm sorry, did I say Peter Falk? I meant Mark Ruffalo. Sorry, but that really did have to be said.

Zodiac follows a story spanning around 20 years, and for this the film did drag slightly, though, as much like the case; there wasn't a great deal for the film to explore, and so, it doesn't really have much of a resolution. But personally, I loved it, they took the alternative root, rather than choose all the parts of the case with all the pizzazz they went down a different path, selecting -to a certain degree- and picking not only the real interesting bits, showing us leads that go nowhere, and never really giving a full answer.

From that cheery note I’ll conclude, Zodiac is a good serial killer movie, the obsession overtones and lack of resolution gives it a fresh angle on a fairly used genre.

So I give it a nice, safe Cptalbertwesker rating of 7/10

I'm hope that a few people have missed me these past few weeks.
I apologise for my absence and the lack of pretty pictures in this entry, but it was all inevitable due to my lack of internet.

No access to the internet means many number of things;
• not being able to talk to the few friends I have
• unable to check my emails
• reading up on the latest news
• aiding me in the search for recipes
• the inability to look up general information.

But having the excess time to ignore the disadvantages and look at the pluses to a world without internet, is; to myself, a little worrying.

Have a little read, and tell me what you think;

Without the internet I have a hell of a lot more time on my hands. Being a professional procrastinator I can go on the internet to look up something as innocent as the particular weight of ingredients in a recipe, but end up hanging around on the internet for upwards of half an hour learning about things such as prefixes on Wikipedia or something completely different (this usually always involves Wikipedia)

Without the internet I can get up in the morning with relative ease and comfort. This is undoubtedly because I am not up until around 1am on the internet doing god-knows what -which usually has me pinned to it for hours- therefore rendering me dead to the world until about 9am, when I will begin to look on the internet to check out my feeds only to find that it has passed 12 before I get downstairs.

Without the internet I am not currently playing any MMO's; need I explain this?

Without the internet; the only money I have spent in the last few weeks has been on shopping (of the food variety), bills and the shelving unit I had to buy. Simply said, the internet is bad for my bank, with alluring websites like; ebay, doublefine, telltale, hotukdeals, the list just keeps on going. Trust me, it’s easy enough to tell yourself not to spend any money when you look online; but when you know what sites to use, and are adept with shopping; then the internet becomes a major influence for buying anything and everything.

Without the internet; I have been much kinder to the house and everything surrounding it. This is my main benefit from having no internet. I have ultimately made more inventive food, the house is kept fairly tidy, I’ve had more than enough time on my hands to tidy the brunt of the back garden (a feat to not be laughed at) and to have begun on the front. Not to mention that I have managed to read a whole book, finally began work on a game in gamemaker, and have even found the time to play more games; not to mention completing Saints Row and Day of the Tentacle (finally!!)
Ok, so I say all of this with a lot of discretion, and I really do miss the internet and I cannot wait for it to be set up (19th July at the latest) but I think having written this, I will definitely try to take things slow when I get its use back. If not for my own free time; then for the money I cannot spend.

So what does everyone else think? Going without the internet is very strange incident for someone so used to having its access only a touch away; but is that bad for you?

After the overwhelming demanding for more of next-door's cat on catherine's recent post, I have no other option that to satisfy the needs of her adoring fans.

Without further or do, I give you; cat!

Tune in next week for next door's dog!