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September 2, 2016 + Directing, Editorial, fantasy, Fiction, Movie, Opinion, Uncategorized

WTF… Tim Burton…

So now it’s been announced that there will be a Beetlejuice 2, and thus there is now even more evidence, that Hollywood has lost it’s touch. I don’t know about this… I’ll wait and see on this one. However, I’ve had some time to reflect on many movies recently and I have reached one inescapable conclusion…

I CAN’T STAND Tim Burton!

Honestly, to me, he is one of the most overrated directors in Hollywood. His films are extremely linear and seem to only cater to the hipster/hot topic crowd. It’s always the same dark, dismal, atmosphere that only someone who was puffing a peace pipe would come up with. He always seem to cast the same people in every freaken movie. It’s always Helena Bowman Carter and Johnny Depp, in heavy white makeup, playing the same roles they’ve played over and over. I will give him credit, he did give Johnny Depp his start, but that’s really where the fairy tale ends.

You can only make so many sequels to Edward Scissor hands before it gets old… how many are there now?
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands 2: Headless in the Hollow
Edward Scissorhands 3: Edward and the Chocolate Factory
Edward Scissorhands 4: Edward Becomes Barber (again)
Edward Scissorhands 5: Edward Takes on Wonderland
Edward Scissorhands 6: The Vampire Strikes Back

Also, I know people love the whole Nightmare Before Christmas movie. Yes it has a big following… but you… you really don’t know any better people, you don’t. Just because a movie pioneers a new type of animation and takes on a much more adult tone, DOESN’T MAKE IT GOOD BY DEFAULT! It’s not about who did it first, it’s about who did it best. The story is stupid, the sets dreary and the characters are just unpleasant to look at, very often disgusting, and next to impossible to empathize with.
The main problem I have with this is that it’s Tim Burton’s staple for animation.

Finally… HOW MANY MOVIE ADAPTATIONS HAS THIS MAN RUINED? Sleepy Hollow was boring and pointless, and the story wasn’t even close to the classic tale.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory… okay I will acknowledge that it was closer to the source material, but Johnny Depp’s Michael Jackson/Marilyn Manson hybrid Wonka is the stuff of nightmares.

The Planet of the Apes remake was a bad movie based on a bad movie, and was dead on arrival. I can’t really fault Burton too much on this one, but it is what it is.

James and the Giant Peach… I loved the book and read it before seeing the movie, and while Tim Burton may not have directed it, his fingerprints as a producer are all over it. The movie was grotesque and downright offensive to the eyes to the point where I can’t even read the book anymore! They might as well have called it The Nightmare Before Christmas 2!

Many before me have said that what he did to Alice and Wonderland is both completely inexcusable and unforgivable.

But what about classics like Batman, Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, and Big Fish!?

Yes okay… he did have a few good movies… but I’d like to make a few points here. The ONLY real standout that Burton can claim credit for is Beetlejuice, and by the looks of things, he’s about to ruin that.

Batman back in the 1980s was a massive hit, no denying that.. but can we give Burton credit for that? I think not. Burton considered the film to be a really rough experience with almost obtrusive interference from the studio and producers. Meaning that he was kept on a tight leash when he made this movie. In fact the only way they could get him back for a sequel was by offering him complete creative control over the movie. This resulted in a mean-spirited and dark film that really had fans and critics going back and forth on whether or not it was any good. In fact, it was considered so bad that it lost it’s McDonald’s Happy Meal deal in the process.

As for Edward Scissorhands and Big Fish… Edward Scissorhands was stupid and boring. I know I’m in the minority on this one, but seriously, re-watch it if you haven’t in a while. As for Big Fish… I’ll be honest, I haven’t watched it. Thanks, but I’ve spent enough money on Burton’s movies. If it shows up on Netflix or TV, I’ll give it a whirl, but I’m not giving him any more $$.

So readers, what do you think? Do you agree? Am I dead on or way off? Let me know!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 31, 2016 + Book, fantasy, literature, Reading, Uncategorized, Urban Fantasy, Writing

Character Profiles: The Vengeance Doctrine

by Jim

Mary Kelly:

Age: (Exact Age Unknown) Apprx. 153 Years
Place of Birth: Ireland
Power(s): Stealth, Inhuman Speed, Night vision
Weapon: Any blade, though usually utilizes a Japanese Kodachi.
History/Profile: Not much is known about Mary other than she had a fairly tough life. She doesn’t discuss her origins with anyone on the team. Only Mike knows the truth about her past. She is a vicious and deadly accurate assassin. Though on good terms with everyone on the team, she is extremely abrasive and often isolates herself from the others. She has been known to take on assignments alone.

Corban McConnell

Age: 22
Place of Birth: Boston, Massachusetts
Power(s): Currently unknown.
Weapon: Smith & Wesson M&P .45 carried in case of emergency, otherwise no weapons used.
History/Profile: Corban is currently undergoing treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital, following a failed exorcism. Though it is believed that he suffers a form of psychosis, there have been several unexplained paranormal events surrounding his treatment. His current status is critical. Before his breakdown, he was a well-liked young man living in Weston, Massachusetts.

Lihua Lin
Age: 56
Place of Birth: Hong Kong, China
Power(s): Persuasion and Teleportation
Weapon: Anything that can be used as one.
History/Profile: Lihua is strong and resourceful. She was born in China and was the victim of a terrible tragedy surrounding the man she was set to marry. Not a day goes by where she doesn’t yearn for revenge against the man. Anyone who knows her would say that she seems almost robotic due to her stoic and analytical nature.

Johnny Tremane
Age: 36
Place of Birth: Unknown
Power(s): Life energy drain
Weapon: Small caliber pistol
History/Profile: Johnny is 36 years old. He drinks like a sailor, talks like one, and loves cigars. However his physical appearance is that of an 8 year old boy. He was the victim of child neglect and abuse. He tends to spend most of his time with Vlad, whom accompanies him to a… gentleman’s club known as the Glass Slipper.

Vladimir Pietrov
Age: 90
Place of Birth: Moscow, Russia
Power(s): projectile manipulation. telescopic vision
Weapon: 91/30 Mosin Nagant
History/Profile: Born in Soviet Russia, Vlad joined the Red Army and fought during the battle of Stalingrad in World War 2. Following the war, he was assigned to guard a top secret facility and was eventually assassinated by his own superiors to keep the information he had from ever getting out. To this day, he swears that he was not a security risk.
Vlad is also a cook, known for making ethnic Russian dishes… though most of his team would tell you that his cooking is a good way to put yourself on a diet.

Michael
Age: Unknown
Place of Birth: Unknown
Power(s): Unknown
Weapon: Unknown
History/Profile: Michael is a benevolent spirit. Speculation is that he is actually the Angel St. Michael. He often appears as a grandfatherly old man with a black cane. Not much else is known.

Readers,

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 30, 2016 + Disney, fantasy, Fiction, literature, Politics, Uncategorized, Writing

Why do we cater to Political Correctness in our Writing?

by Jim

This is something I’ve seen, not only in writing, but also movie-making, and comic books. It’s something I can say that I’m guilty of as well.

What do I mean when I say we cater to the PC (Politically Correct) crowd? Well… honestly, we spend a lot of time concerned with the ethnicity of our characters, who get’s killed off and/or who gets center stage… not based on who is the strongest character, but rather which character isn’t going to make us look in any way bigoted.

Example: (SPOILER ALERT) I killed off a female character of Asian decent in one of my stories. In my next novel, I plan on replacing her with another female character because it suits my narrative, but she’s not Asian or any sort of minority. She’s a very perky country artist that’s going to be more of a nuisance than anything. This, I admit gave me pause… and maybe it’s just me… maybe I’ve been affected by the mass-media because of incidents like what happened with James Rolfe, but even knowing that, it’s hard to get passed. In the end, I decided that it’s my story and I’ll write it however I want. DAMN THE TORPEDOES, FULL SPEED AHEAD!!!

Now I know what a lot of people are thinking… what, you have a problem with diversity? We should be adding more minority characters into stories! We don’t want to alienate people!!

That’s very true. People of all backgrounds should have someone like themselves to look up to. However, forcing/pressuring someone to write a character a certain way for the sake of diversity can have a damaging effect…

Consider this… you’re writing based on your experiences. You’re using fantasy to make your story a lot more interesting and decide that you want to represent more people. As a result, you write in a character of an ethnicity, who’s culture and background you may not have enough information on. The result is a stereotypical character that some would consider something to the affect of a ‘black-face’ character and guess what? You’ve now offended the very audience that you’re trying to include.

So why not immerse yourself more in the culture! Take the time to learn more about people.

Very true. That’s good advice that I was actually going to allude to later on, but that’s not always an option. Put it this way, a writer living in Greenwich CT, who has spent their life there, is not going to be able to properly represent a person from… let’s say New Orleans. Even if they visit it for a little while. Immersion into another culture isn’t always possible unless you have the time and money to do it… which I can honestly say most authors starting out don’t have.

My point is that you should write what you know, do your best to learn, but don’t feel pressured by societal norms into writing characters certain ways. If you want to write in a character of another ethnicity or religion, just make sure you represent them correctly. Otherwise, you’re going to turn people off to your work.

Seriously dude, how can diversity in writing honestly be THAT damaging?

Well let’s take a look:

Most recently, Ghostbusters 2016. This movie was absolutely blatant in its girl power message… blatant to the point of being offensive to all 5 senses. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with a strong female as one of the leading roles in a story. (See Damnation and Soul Siphon). The problem was that Sony was obnoxious about it. Instead of making the women in the story equal with everyone else, they pushed something closer to a social justice warrior narrative where they promoted the women in a rather derogatory way. Instead of having them work with male characters side by side, they created a ‘Separate but equal (kinda)’ team of all-women, and from what I saw from the reviews, the male characters were weak, evil, or grossly incompetent.
This is where Star Wars and Fury Road worked where Ghostbusters failed. They made the female/minority characters work alongside their male/non-minority companions. They didn’t try to force any diversity message down anyone’s throats, they just wrote a great story with great characters.
As I stated in a previous review, a female Ghostbusters cast could have worked. If they had a Rey or a Furiosa on the team and maybe had them working alongside two male Ghostbusters (not even the majority) it would have been great, but that’s not what they did. They brought in a director that’s known for his ‘girl-power’ feminism agenda, which he then proceeded to force down everyone’s throats.
What’s worse, Sony and Feig double-downed on this and went so far as to paint the main fan-base of Ghostbusters as misogynistic and ‘assholes.’ Yeah… not the way to get butts in the seats. The result was a consistent controversy, critics of the film getting needlessly attacked for their opinions, key spokespeople having to do damage control, and the movie chalking in a multi-million dollar loss internationally.
Now the big money question: Have I seen the new Ghostbusters?
No, and I have no plans to. Sorry, but I was greatly offended by what Paul Feig said about geek culture and the damage Sony did to it, that I’m pretty much sworn off any of Feig’s work, past, present, or future. Geek culture and it’s progress over the last 20 years is something very near and dear to my heart, and I don’t appreciate us being painted with a wide, hypocritical brush as ‘assholes’ and misogynists. Sorry, but they’re not getting a dime of my money and I sincerely hope Sony studios gets flushed down the drain they’re already circling. (Hostile, I know, but oh well. I’m human.)

Second Example:
Marvel Comics… I’ve already gotten into this in a previous post, so I’ll just give a brief quote on it:
“I still enjoy Captain America with someone else holding the shield and Thor being a woman, because it’s explained well. It works and it all comes together. However when you make one character gay with no explanation (Colossus), or randomly change a character’s race (Nick Fury, Psylocke, and Spider-man), and do so with little explanation simply using the ‘Alternate Universe’ defense for poor storytelling, that’s where problems arise. It’s at this point that the pandering and blatant tokenism becomes obvious. For me, it was when they took arguably the most diverse team in comic book history, a team that has literally had members from almost everywhere on the planet and actually dealt with bigotry and hatred, and made that team all women. Essentially, they took the X-Men, THE most diverse team and made it less diverse in the name of diversity. How does that even make sense?”

This may be why Marvel Comic sales are going down. Honestly, that X-Men series didn’t last long, thankfully.

Next up…Disney’s The Frog Princess. This movie had controversy around it from day 1. Disney worked on the film over and over, altering characters, roles, even the jobs that these characters had, making it even less historically accurate in the name of not offending anyone.
Probably with little surprise… this movie didn’t do very well, which is a shame as the visuals and the villain are absolutely spectacular!

Fire Emblem has also come under fire for removing anything Nintendo thinks an American Audience might view as offensive and potentially misogynistic in some cases. It has drawn a lot of criticism and anger from the gaming community… which is sad because I absolutely love the series.

Another good example is the Character Percy from Pokemon. Percy was created because the show’s creators thought a western audience might find Brock racially insensitive… 4Kids, was also known for carefully censoring certain parts of the Japanese dialogue and editing it for… what they viewed as a more sensitive, American audience. Again, geeks and kids are far more intelligent than people like this give them credit. The backlash was pretty bad.

There are plenty of other examples, but I think I’ve made my point.

So… why did each of these projects fail? Was it the result of racism/misogyny/bigotry/sexism? Maybe in part, as certainly those can play a role in why select audiences might not waste their time with something… however I don’t think that’s the main reason. We currently live in a country that is extremely politically divided on almost every issue, and people are getting tired of it.
Political correctness was originally a term that, in modern usage, was used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended not to offend or disadvantage any particular group of people in society. On the surface, there’s nothing wrong with that… however, over time, the term has been used as a crutch by people who are either WAY too sensitive, or are essentially looking for a reason to create a divisive issue… Sony’s response to the Ghostbusters criticism is a good example of this. PC now comes with a negative connotation as it has become the war cry of the now euphemistically-named Social Justice Warriors, AKA the type of people who quote Martin Luther King Jr. or Susan B. Anthony without a firm grasp of the meaning behind what they were saying or what their main goals were. It’s become a tool of these groups used to stifle creativity and Freedom of Speech and thought under the guise of empowering it. Their actions continuously become less and less righteous, and more like they’re seeking either handouts, self promotion, or superiority of their select ‘under-privileged class’ instead of seeking equality. They are extremely hypocritical in their arguments and usually impossible to engage in a critical debate. (Look up the feminist argument of Barbie vs. HeMan and their response) They insert racial issues into controversy where they have no place, and create other controversies when they have nothing to complain about. Basically, many of the more extreme of these regressive people would rather us go back to the 50s-60s or earlier, as long as they and their group is the one on top.

The problem is… these are the people that our media is now catering to. The result is politics being inserted into movies, books, etc. where they have no place and it is turning people off. I liken it to a comedian I saw recently who stopped in the middle of his act to get on a soapbox give his opinion on various political issues without cracking a single joke. The result was boo’s, heckling, people telling him to ‘Shut up and tell a joke!’ and people walking out demanding their money back… myself included. That’s the real problem here. People are tired of politics and regressive views, they are tired of political correctness and the hypocritical views that come with it.
When we go to see movies, listen to music, see a comedian, read a comic or a book, there are political options out there. You can easily find media that is political in natures. However, unless these people specifically want politics forcing it on them in a movie, book, or other medium, will make you loose the majority of your audience. People are tired of this level of BS and it is starting to show in the backlash that comes as a result.

In closing, if you want to right about another culture or person of another walk of life, go for it, just make sure you get it right. Do your homework and make sure you’re accurately portraying that person’s background. If however you don’t want to or don’t think you can properly portray that group, don’t. You are under no obligation to. Don’t let anything or anyone intimidate you or pressure you into changing who you are or how you create.These people are not the biggest threat to your Freedom of Speech… your fear of them is.This type of nonsense only has power if you let it.

Anyway… I know I said that I’d do my best to keep politics off of my page, and I apologize for going back on that, but this is something that I had to get off of my chest.

Readers,

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 29, 2016 + bad guy, Disney, evil, fantasy, Fiction, Movie, Uncategorized

Why Davey Jones is actually one of the best villains in modern cinema…

by Jim

This is going to contrast my normal formula of “Good Villain = Good Story.” It simply doesn’t add up here! I know a lot of people hate this character, but I think that has more to do with the story he’s apart of instead of the character himself.
So let’s talk about Davy Jones. I know, as bad as the movie that introduced him was, Davy Jones wasn’t really a bad character, not at all…

Maybe it’s just me and my personal bias of being drawn to the tragic villains. Part of the reason this movie didn’t do so well (aside from Jack and Barbosa being more side characters than stars) was the shallowness of each character. The heroes and lovers were exactly the heroes and lovers you’d expect from a Disney princess flick. The East India baddies were profit drive, no real dimension there… and the rest were just present for their stereotypical antics. It was a bland movie with no real surprises, and the plot suffered for it. No surprises… save one…

Davy Jones, despite the hate, is one of the most well-done tortured soul villains I’ve ever seen. Had this movie been better, Davy Jones might have been as legendary a villain as Darth Vader himself, but such was not to be. You first meet Davy Jones when he arrives to recruit a group of shipwrecked sailors to his cause and then tries to collect his debt from Jack Sparrow. Though it is never really mentioned in the movie, it does appear that Davy Jones was made out to be some sort of combination of the Grim Reaper and the Devil himself. Both roles, he plays well. He was easily hate-able and we all did so.

But then the movie takes a surprise twist. The first scene we see him on his own ship, in private, we hear his dark organ playing, and see Jones in anguish to the point of physical pain. It’s as though playing the song from his music box is the only way to relieve it, even though doing so breaks him down. That’s when you realize the true madness behind this character. The movie does an incredible job of really making you feel his pain and see what he’s going through without uttering a single word. I remember when I saw this movie in theaters, my throat got tight and my eyes began to water at this scene. At this point you already know his tragic story about how he was scorned by a cruel lover, but you really don’t understand the extent of the damage done until you see him here:

Even his theme music is shockingly painful. Listen to it play on the organ. The song sounds painful, but at the same time there is an almost comforting element to it. It is almost as though his former love wrote it to drive him to further insanity, but then calm him down and mellow him at the same time to keep him going and prolong his torture. I like to think that she wrote this for him because it’s just further proof of how cruel she was.

This certainly isn’t the first time Disney has done something like this. They did the same exact thing in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Seriously, watch the organ scene, you can see the demented evil, but at the same time, you can see that under the stoic, angry, and harsh exterior, a shred of his former humanity still exists. Ironically it is this one last shred of his former self that pushes him even further into madness. It is a scene that is done extremely well both times Disney employs it.

Perhaps the biggest bit of irony throughout the entire Pirates series that he is a part of, he is perhaps the only true innocent. I know, I know, he sank ships, murdered people, and was incredibly cruel to anyone he came across… but look at how he got there. Throughout his entire story, he was used and abused. First tasked to ferry souls for 10 years… 10 years he worked just to spend one day with the one he loved, only for her not to show up. As if that wasn’t bad enough, now you have the rest of the cast looking to either kill him, or use him as a puppet to carry out their whims. He is given no peace, no chance at redemption, and is forever locked in as a slave to his surroundings. Truly, there can be no more tragic a character. He even says to Jack Sparrow ‘My Freedom was forfeit long ago!’

My only criticism of this character is that they made him a little too awkward, which takes on a comical view that you see in the third movie, which makes him hard to take seriously. Ironically as he became a less dynamic character, the other characters became less stale and At World’s End turned out to be an improvement. I only wonder at what cost.
But I’m not really talking about his evolution in the third movie, I am more referring to his character from the second one, he was, and continues to be the only reason I still give Dead Man’s Chest decent markings and rate it as at least watchable.

Readers,

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 18, 2016 + Book, fantasy, Fiction, literature, thriller, Uncategorized, Urban Fantasy

Soul Siphon Sales/Reviews!

by Jim

Hello all!

So it looks like Soul Siphon has become fairly popular! This is excellent news and I’m thrilled that it is selling so well! However, I have noticed that there has been a lack of reviews for the book. This is very important to me as I like to know how my readers enjoyed it! So if you have a moment, once you’ve purchased/read the book, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, leave a review on Amazon. It would really help me out a lot!

Thanks so much and enjoy!

-Jim

Readers,

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 10, 2016 + advice, Author, Book, Fiction, literature, Nonfiction, Reading, writer's block, Writing

Beating the Writer’s Block

by Jim

Hi Jim,

I saw your posts inviting people to ask for advice, so I thought I’d ask… How do you deal with writer’s block? Right now, I’m having issues with it. I had a great idea, I’ve gotten about half way into writing my story, but now I’ve just run out of steam. I can’t even get myself behind the keyboard to type because I’m dreading it. I don’t want to type page after page of filler, but I don’t know how else to deal with this. Please help! I have a deadline coming up that I need to reach.

Thanks,
Jeff!

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for the email! Writer’s block is a nuisance that has plagued us all at one point or another, and, like the hiccups, we all have different ways of getting rid of it. Realistically, there is no right or wrong way. It’s all about what works for you. I hate to say this, but writers block in some cases has been known to last people years. It’s an unfortunate fact.

Since you mentioned that you’re on a deadline, I’ll give you a few tips…

Rediscover what gave you your initial inspiration. Go play a game, read a book, see a movie, whatever it was, go back down that original path again.
Star over. No, I’m not kidding. If you’ve hit a roadblock, start over and try taking it from a different direction. Keep the original in case you want to go back to it, but start over and try taking your characters down another path. It’s better than sitting there staring blankly at the screen.
Take a break… Don’t think about writing, put it out of your head for a few days and give yourself time to reflect.

If all else fails, I’d say that your best bet is to talk to your publisher/agent and see if the due date can be renegotiated. I’ve found there to be some wiggle room in the past.

Hope this helps,

I’ll open it up to my readers as well, maybe they’ll have some insight here. What does everyone think? Do you have any tips for Jeff to break his writers block?

Readers,

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

August 4, 2016 + fantasy, Fire Emblem, Nintendo, Uncategorized, video games

Fire Emblem Fates and My Thoughts…

by Jim

Allow me to preface this by saying that I absolutely LOVE the Fire Emblem series. I’ve been grabbing each game since The Sacred Stones and I’ve loved each of them. They are maddeningly difficult, insanely addictive, and incredibly fun. The whole premise of a game that is almost an expansion of chess, where your moves and decisions have to be 2 steps ahead if you hope to keep your characters alive!

Then Fire Emblem Awakening came out… and OH MY GOD WAS IT AWESOME!!! The story was awesome, the characters were lovable and memorable, the cameos were respectful and appropriate, and the character interactions were terrific, even the newly added marriage feature works well and allows you to do some customizing to a second generation of characters. Though honestly, the only characters worth marrying in my opinion (for the main character anyway) are Lucina and Tiki. I mean the others really did seem forced.

Anyway… then the announcement comes out that a new Fire Emblem is in the works, but no… not one, THREE! Conquest, Revelation, and Birthright, three separate story lines all surrounding the same characters… meaning that I was going to be gaming for a while. Seriously, each Fire Emblem has ridiculous replay value, so this was going to be a while.

Well… I just finished all three and how did I feel about them? Honestly… I thought they were good as far as Fire Emblem goes. Were they a smash follow-up to an otherwise perfect game that set the bar through the roof? Honestly… not really. Don’t get me wrong, they’re good, I’m glad I played them, and I’ll definitely replay them at some point, but it’s not like Awakening, which was one game that kept me plugged in for months on end and has me at the point where I want to replay it again even now.

So what were it’s good and bad points overall? Let’s take a look. The gameplay is pretty much the same as before. Each game starts off in the same place, you’re a prince that has never left his castle. However, eventually he’s called upon to make a choice between his supposed birth family (Birthright), the family that raised him (Conquest), and the high road (Revelations).

My main problem with this setup is it’s kind of a nature vs. nurture story where you’re faced with the ethical quandary about where your loyalties should lie; with the people who raised you or the people who are truly related to you. The problem is that… this is not the case. SPOILER ALERT!!! You’re actually related to neither side. I get that this was done so that your marriage options would be equal on both Birthright and Conquest, but doing it this way makes the decision a lot less of an ethical quandary. I honestly found myself saying… ‘Well wait, if I’m not related to you, why did I side with Hoshido in the first place!?’

Minus points for the plot flaw…

Other than that, I just really didn’t feel this story as much. You really didn’t know what was going on until late in the game, at which point they dump a large amount of exposition on you regarding the game’s primary villain. It really doesn’t hold up as well as I would have liked.

Honestly, of the three, I liked Conquest the best. This story arc was the standout from the other two. It gives the hero constant ethical quandaries between being loyal to your family and doing what is right. It was also the most challenging of the games, bringing us back to the lack of leveling roots.

The character interactions are okay, though I don’t really feel anything for them… unless you decided to marry one of the main characters, at which point things became uncomfortable and incestuous. (I mean seriously did anyone really NOT marry Camilla?)

Yeah, I don’t believe you!
I mean I know that you’re not related to any of them and as such you’re not breaking any laws of nature… supposedly, but come on, the taboo is still there. Even if the person isn’t blood, you’ve still been raised with them, there is still a familial relation, so even if you’re technically not related… well… Honestly, I have a hard time believing that if someone would be okay with marrying their sister, whom they recently found out wasn’t their sister, they’d then have a hard time with an actual familial taboo. It’s… awkward to say the least.

(Marry Scarlet, the story actually takes an unexpected turn.)

Now onto what I did like. The castle. Oh yes, I LOVED customizing my castle and battling people via streetpass. The added challenge of putting up impenetrable defenses really pushed this game back into ‘great’ territory. Allowing you to run through the castle, to have every armament you need at your fingertips, and having additional character interactions pushed this movie into the ‘win’ territory.

Finale:

Do I like this game? Yes.
Do I recommend this game? Yes.
Was it a stand out: Ehh… not really.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good game. The problem is that if you played Awakening, you have to curb your expectations a little. It gets points for bringing a lot of new material to the table: Divergent storylines, a home base, and interactive decision-making, are all a plus for this game, however the overall story itself is somewhat weak. If you’re looking for the standout in this series, go with Awakening. That said, I wouldn’t recommend skipping this one. Like I said, it brings a lot to the table, it just needed a bit more fleshing out.

Anyway that’s my thoughts. Am I spot on, or way off? Let me know below.

Readers,

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

June 17, 2016 + Author, Book, fantasy, Fiction, literature, review, Star Wars, Uncategorized

Star Wars Dark Disciple Review

by Jim

I don’t usually do book reviews. I don’t like criticizing fellow authors’ work… usually I’m not one to talk, but this is one book that I cannot keep quiet about. Why you may ask? Because it is amazing!

With the fall of the expanded universe into ‘Legend,’ several new books have risen out of what is being euphemistically called ‘New Canon.’ Which basically means it’s canon and universe-correct… until the next movie comes out and messes it all up. (Don’t think it could happen? Heh, look into the controversey surrounding Lucas and Karen Traviss. That got nasty real quick.)
How are these books? Ehh… depends on which ones you’re reading. Lost Stars was great, albeit a little rushed and many of the others are getting mixed reviews.

Before I continue on with my review, I want to explain what I consider to be cano and what is not… since these days it’s far more subjective than it has EVER been.

Here goes…

KOTOR and many of the other Old Republic stories. Yes, I’d say they survived the TFA purge, simply because nothing really came out in these movies that would discredit them. Malachor has been confirmed to exist by Rebels, (K)Morriban has been confirmed to exist, so we still have those worlds, and a number of others have gotten honorable mention. So it’s logical to assume that anything from prior to Episode 1 could still withstand the canon test.
The movies. This goes without saying, but still the movies have the official seal and no matter how much we may love or hate a few of them, THEY ARE THE PRIMARY SOURCE. So that means that all 9 current Star Wars movies are canon:
1. Phantom Menace
2. Attack of the Clones
3. Revenge of the Sith
4. A New Hope
5. Empire Strikes Back
6. Return of the Jedi
7. Sigh… The Ewok Adventure
8. The Battle for Endor (God help me now)
Both Clone Wars cartoons. I’ll admit to not being a huge fan of the originals. Their animation and style just wasn’t my thing, but they are more of a summary of events that take place in the actual TV show.
The old Droids and Ewoks cartoons… I didn’t want the Ewoks one, but it’s Lucasfilm… and so it counts. Droids was pretty good though.
Even though I’m sure to get lynched for this… the Wookie Holiday Special.
Yes, THIS Holiday Special:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX0x-I06Fpc
(If you click the link, it’s your own fault!)
Star Wars Rebels
Anything that came out DURING the movies. This includes Clone Wars novels, Shadows of the Empire, etc.
Anything that came out after the movies and has both Lucasfilm and Diseny’s stamp of approval.

So that brings us to Dark Disciple. It is a Clone Wars novel and based on unproduced episodes of the TV series. Given that, it more than qualifies as canon.

I’m going to warn everyone now that there are spoilers in this review!

Book info from Amazon:

Series: Star Wars
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Del Rey; Reissue edition (March 1, 2016)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1101884959
ISBN-13: 978-1101884959
Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 7.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (362 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #109 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure > Women’s Adventure
- #114 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > TV, Movie, Video Game Adaptations
- #324 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > Space Opera

Plot:
Based on unproduced episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, this new novel features Asajj Ventress, former Sith apprentice turned bounty hunter and one of the great antiheroes in the Star Wars galaxy.

The only way to bring down the Sith’s most dangerous warrior may be to join forces with the dark side.

In the war for control of the galaxy between the armies of the dark side and the Republic, former Jedi Master turned ruthless Sith Lord Count Dooku has grown ever more brutal in his tactics. Despite the powers of the Jedi and the military prowess of their clone army, the sheer number of fatalities is taking a terrible toll. And when Dooku orders the massacre of a flotilla of helpless refugees, the Jedi Council feels it has no choice but to take drastic action: targeting the man responsible for so many war atrocities, Count Dooku himself.

But the ever-elusive Dooku is dangerous prey for even the most skilled hunter. So the Council makes the bold decision to bring both sides of the Force’s power to bear—pairing brash Jedi Knight Quinlan Vos with infamous one-time Sith acolyte Asajj Ventress. Though Jedi distrust for the cunning killer who once served at Dooku’s side still runs deep, Ventress’s hatred for her former master runs deeper. She’s more than willing to lend her copious talents as a bounty hunter—and assassin—to Vos’s quest.

Together, Ventress and Vos are the best hope for eliminating Dooku—as long as the emerging feelings between them don’t compromise their mission. But Ventress is determined to have her retribution and at last let go of her dark Sith past. Balancing the complicated emotions she feels for Vos with the fury of her warrior’s spirit, she resolves to claim victory on all fronts—a vow that will be mercilessly tested by her deadly enemy . . . and her own doubt.

My Review:

What can I say? The book was amazing and has been enshrined on my shelf as one of my favorite novels of all time. Christie Golden hit it out of the park on this one. The novel features the adventures of two very well-known characters in the Star Wars Universe… 1. Quinlan Vos 2. Asajj Ventress. So already, you have the hurdle of accurately portraying these characters who both have very distinct personalities.

I admit that I went into this novel being skeptical. Ventress was one of my favorite characters in the Clone Wars series even from the time of the original Clone Wars short. I had secretly hoped that she would appear in Revenge of the Sith… but Lucas disappointed me, yet again!

Anyway, I’m happy to say that the character is not only well-portrayed, she’s been improved upon. Christie does an incredible job of showing Ventress as a former sith apprentice (I won’t say reformed as I’m not sure that’s the correct word) turned bounty hunter. She’s dedicated to her work, fair and surprisingly honest, though she’s focused on the job more than anything and isn’t one to expect mercy from… at first. There is also a great deal of backstory on her in this book so technically you can read it without watching the show (though I really do not recommend this.)

Vos is the other main character and definitely strikes me as a vagabond who doesn’t really fit into the Jedi role so well, even though he is technically a master. I feel… and the novel really confirms this, that he was a war time promotion who was granted the title of master more out of necessity than anything else.

So an out-of-place Jedi is tasked with the mission of assassinating Count Dooku… a black op if ever there was one and not something we’d typically see the Jedi do, as this is not there way. It’s a task that has many objections, but as the Jedi watch helplessly as Dooku massacres more and more people, they believe that they have no other choice.

Vos is tasked with getting Ventress to assist him as she’d have intimate knowledge of how to get close to Dooku… and if anyone in the galaxy wants him dead…

Anyway, they meet up and start working together. Their partnership is anything but smooth. It’s later revealed that Ventress figured out pretty quickly who he really was, at which point, she is informed of his true mission. She takes to it pretty easily, but does not believe that Vos can take Dooku on in his present state. This takes them to her Homeworld of Dathomir where she begins to train him in the dark side of the force.

One key aspect of the book that I liked comes up here. It’s at this point that we see how Ventress became the person that she currently is. She tries to teach Vos how to wield the dark side and use it to make himself stronger, without being consumed by it. This is a teaching that is apparently very common on Dathomir, but something that Jedi typically avoid and Sith… well they speak for themselves.

At this point we come to what I believe to be the weakest part of the novel… yes even one that I thoroughly loved can have its weak points. If it’s not plainly obvious from the cover, this book is a Romance under Fire story. Yes, Vos and Ventress become lovers. Both reluctant, but it happens. My only issue with it is that the whole thing feels rushed. There isn’t much exposition about their emotion, or how their feelings really develop. You could argue that this is done to keep the novel’s pace going and I guess that’s a legitimate point, however there is no rule that a face-paced novel can’t slow down at certain points. Still it does touch on everything it needs to and really it’s more of a minor gripe from someone who’s a sucker for action romance, so I’ll move on.

Eventually they go to confront Dooku. The fact that they fail is obviously no spoiler as he appears in Revenge of the Sith. However, what happens next is a shocker. Vos is captures and Ventress is forced to retreat.

She makes an attempt to rescue him, only to find that Dooku used what Ventress had taught him, and pushed him the rest of the way by revealing to him that Ventress was the one who killed his old master. Again, she is forced to retreat.

Leaving him haunts Ventress to the point where she does something she never thought she’d do; she contacts Obi-Wan Kenobi, goes before the council, telling them everything she knows and accepting the Jedi offer of clemency in exchange for her help.

They do eventually succeed in rescuing Vos. They find him beaten and near death. However, despite the Jedi’s belief that he has not totally fallen to the dark side, Ventress senses something far more nefarious within and refuses to believe Vos.

Vos attempts to convince her over and over, and eventually she takes him at his word. The mission to assassinate Dooku is resumed and this time, Ventress and Vos have the help of the other Jedi.

I’m going to stop here and just say that the ending is extremely sad… EXTREMELY sad. However it is a fitting end to the story and despite what happens, Ventress is successful in saving Vos from the dark side and showing the Jedi Council the error of their ways. In the end, she is honored by them as nothing short of a hero.

So there you go… what is my overall assessment of the book? AMAZING!

The action scenes were amazing, the book was fast-paced and hard to put down. In many other Star Wars story that I’ve read, I found myself skipping over paragraphs with lengthy descriptions and exposition without losing anything. In DD, I couldn’t imagine skipping anything. The book successfully keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire read. Yes the pace of the story means cutting down on a bit of the detail that I thought the book could have benefited from, but that’s not really enough to detract from the story in my opinion.

So with that in mind, what is my overall rating?
For a book this good? Four and a Half out of Five stars! I can’t wait to check out some of Ms. Golden’s other work!

Readers,

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

June 17, 2016 + Book, fantasy, Fiction, literature, Reading, Romance, superheroes, Urban Fantasy

Soul Siphon Chapter 1

by Jim

James Harringtons Creative Work

Hi All,

Just wanted to give everyone a sample of my newest book:

“Nurse, what happened?”

“I don’t know, Doctor. He just started convulsing. We were monitoring him after his skin became discolored, and then he flat-lined.”

Corban McConnell felt his body slipping away and was powerless to stop it. He tried to scream, but Adramelech would not allow him enough control over his own muscles to do it. He was trapped in a cage in his own mind, one that he could not escape from. All he could do was sit and watch helplessly as the demon destroyed his world.

Corban could feel a burning sensation in his chest where the crucifix that his mother gave him used to reside. It had been removed when he had been committed, but the scar from where it had been remained. When Adramelech possessed him, it felt as though someone had…

View original post 3,160 more words

June 15, 2016 + Uncategorized

Review: Star Wars: Han Solo #1 — Graphic Policy

by Jim

Perfectly builds through the entire issue.

via Review: Star Wars: Han Solo #1 — Graphic Policy

June 10, 2016 + fantasy, Jedi, Movie, Science Fiction, Star Wars, Theory

Star Wars: The Search for Snoke

by Jim

Okay, we all know my theory as to who Rey is, so I’m not going to rehash that one… instead i’m going into my other theory. One other character in Star Wars is a mystery to us: Who is Supreme Leader Snoke?

Admittedly there isn’t much information on him out there and this leads to a whole new set of questions:
Where was he during the time of the Empire?
Did he have anything to do with the Emperor?
Most Importantly… WHO THE HELL IS HE???

Well… most people I’ve told this to so far DO NOT like my answer, but here goes…
Supreme Leader Snoke is…

That’s right, Supreme Leader Snoke is none other than Ezra Bridger!

Why do I think this? Let’s look at the evidence:
1. Star Wars Rebels doesn’t seem to deal with any main characters… why is that exactly? What significance does the show have then? The birth of the Rebellion? Sorry but, no. The birth of the rebellion happened in a cut scene from Episode 3. In fact, the loyalist committee during the Clone Wars became the Rebel Alliance early on. There is going to be a movie tie-in with Rebels at some point. I think that this will be the connection.

2. Age-wise, Bridger is about 14 and about the same age as Luke and Leia. Given the extreme amount of scarring Snoke has, it’s hard to tell how old he is, but Ezra would be within the correct age range.

3. Kylo Ren’s crossguard lightsaber. This… I admit is one of the weaker theories. Yes, Ezra is likely one of the few, if not only force user with knowledge of the crossguard lightsaber, so he would be the most likely person to show Ren how to build it… However, Ren’s lightsaber was built that way out of necessity more than anything else. Yes it was based on the old design so again, Ezra would be the logical person to show him how to do it, but the crossguard in this case was implemented to vent the extra energy that the cracked kyber crystal couldn’t handle. The crude design of the saber was meant to reflect the instability of it’s master, which I thought was a nice touch. So it’s not the best piece of evidence, but even weak evidence is still something.

4. Yoda tells Luke that he’s the last of the Jedi. From the most recent season of Rebels, it appears that he knew about Ezra and possible Kanan. Which means that either both Kanan and Ezra are dead, no longer Jedi, or… something more nefarious.

5. There is a rumor, though I couldn’t find the source, that the first Order was built with the remains of the Empire based at least in part on Sith teachings from Malachor… and who is currently in possession of, AND can open a Sith Holocron from Malachor?
Interesting…

6. We’ve already seen hints that Ezra has started down the dark path. The dark side called to him, he’s used sith abilities, and Maul seems fixated on making Ezra his new apprentice. With Kanan now blind, his Jedi training may not be as easy to carry out as it could have been… if even possible. Kanan will have a much harder time keeping his pledge to protect and teach Ezra from the call of the dark side.

7. Appearance… again slightly weaker given the animation style, but still enough to turn heads:

Again, not solid, but interesting.

That’s pretty much all of the evidence that has me convinced, now let’s take a look at the arguments against:

1. He can’t be! Snoke isn’t human, Ezra is!

-Really? Show me where in Star Wars lore they mention that Snoke isn’t human? His humanoid and badly scared, but there is nothing saying that he is any other species.

2. Why can’t Kanan be Snoke? He’d be older at that point and Ezra isn’t old enough!

-Ehh… again, how do we know that? Snoke’s scars make it nearly impossible for us to figure out his race, let alone his age. We know his very knowledgable of the force and has had run-ins with the Skywalker family, this suggests that he’s at least around their age. Also… I have a funny feeling that we see Kanan in The Force Awakens without knowing it… Lor San Tekka. Yup, another theory that happens to fit the facts. I’ll explore that one another time.

3. Snoke said he saw the Rise and Fall of the Empire! Ezra isn’t old enough.

-The rise of the Empire didn’t take place overnight. Just because the Emperor announced it and the Clones wiped out the Jedi, doesn’t suddenly turn the Republic into the Empire. There were systems that needed to be brought in line, a stronger star fleet that needed to be built, etc. etc. So in essence, Ezra would have seen the rise and fall of the Empire as Rebels takes place 14 years after Episode 3… Meaning that Ezra would have been born around the time Order 66 went out.

4. Where was Ezra during the Galactic Civil War then?

-Maybe he was behind the scenes? Maybe he was off in the unknown regions where Revan and the Exile went to find the Sith? Who knows, but even if Snoke isn’t Ezra, Snoke’s whereabouts during the GCW is something that needs to be addressed. So that’s not exactly a good argument against.

5. But for that to happen, all the other ghosts would have to die! No one wants to see that!

Um, says who? Though that would be in line with the type of things that go on in the Star Wars Universe, it doesn’t HAVE TO happen. In fact, there is another standing theory out there that Rey is Ezra and Sabine’s daughter and Lor San Tekka aka Kanan was watching over her as a sort of Obi Wan. It’s far-fetched… but it makes for good story. I agree that by the end, Kanan or Ezra would most likely need to die, if not both, but I don’t think that this is the case.

Anyway, that’s my two cents. I am as of now, 100% convinced that this is Snoke’s true identity. Please let me know your thoughts and any arguments that I missed out on, I’d be happy to address them!

Readers,

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

June 9, 2016 + advice, Belief, Book, Uncategorized

The Right Time To Write — Mia Holt

by Jim

When I was younger, I would constantly be writing. I’d sit on my bed with my laptop and write post after post about what I thought about child models, why I hated the fact Kate McCann had brought a book out and about how Audrey Hepburn captured my heart. I’d sit and write and publish […]

via The Right Time To Write — Mia Holt