Mastery

Mastery isn’t a destination.

Work while they sleep.

Study while they party.

Save while they spend.

Live like they dream.

It’s an every day journey, a way of living.

Avatar – the Same Villain?

There will be four Avatar sequels to Avatar. That’s exciting. But I can’t wrap my head around having the same villain in all four movies. Stephen Lang will be reprising his role as the tough sumbitch Colonel Miles Quaritch, that much is confirmed. But why?

I don’t see the appeal of having the same villain in four movies. Granted, Cameron is taking his cue from Peter Jackson in his aim for shooting all four movies with one overarching story a la Lord of the Rings style, but I think it’s a mistake. James Cameron, who can defeat his own blockbuster achievements, is the right man to pull something like that off. And he has enlisted four additional screenwriters to help him on Avatar II, III, and IV. There must be a good reason for this, I hope. But I’m skeptical.

Stephen Lang was a great villain in Avatar, but we know that Colonel Quaritch was killed in battle when he tried to snuff out Jake Sully. He took two in the chest from Neytiri’s bow, effectively ending his life. Will Cameron resort to the ol’ “unless you saw him die, he didn’t really die” tactic?

Cameron explained it this way:

“Steven was so memorable in the first film, we’re privileged to have him back. I’m not going to say exactly HOW we’re bringing him back, but it’s a science fiction story, after all. His character will evolve into really unexpected places across the arc of our new three-film saga. I really look forward to working with such a gifted actor, who’s also become a good friend.”

So, it’s science fiction you say, eh? Maybe it was a clone. The Colonel had survived Pandora long enough with beauty marks to show – three scars to the head – that he learned to have safeguards in place. I hope we don’t get cheated here. It feels cheap to have the same villain back, again and gain. Yes. All four movies, can you believe it?

I would rather a new villain appear. Let’s follow Jake Sully and Neytiri, and the whole Na’Vi as they encounter new challenges, either more humans arriving with new dangers or threats from indigenous warlords or beasts.

Become the Person You Want to Be

Think a lot on what you want to be or what you want. Act like this person, think like this person. Make decisions like this person. Consider how they approach problems, and find solutions, and teach or help. What kind of advice would they give? If you’re not armed with that kind of advice, learn the subject.

See yourself as this person. Like the things they like and eat the food they do. Make their friends, your friends. Introduce yourself like this person.

Walk like this person. Have this person’s posture. Wear this person’s clothes.

You can’t wait for this to happen, you must take action. Every day, make a deliberate effort to shape yourself into the kind of person you want to be.

Episode 004. Interview: Author Richard Phillips

June 17, 2017

Richard Phillips discusses sci-fi on the show and shares some of his writing process. The interview covers his Rho Agenda series and his new project in the fantasy genre.

  • Length 36m:00s
  • Phoenix Lights24m:25s Rick is asked about the Phoenix Lights incident from 03/13/1997
  • Kwinn & Shoff31m:21s Review of the interview

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Episode 003. Adam West, the Mummy, Word of Warcraft patch talk, and E3

June 13, 2017

Whiskey homage to Adam West, the disappointing Mummy movie that Shoff viewed along with a discussion about the Dark Universe. Then we hash out the latest patch in World of Warcraft before talking about new games and E3.

  • Length 1h:01m:53s
  • Tasting2m:49s Oola Distillery Whiskey Discourse Three Shores Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Scoring 7m:12s Obi Wan Kenobi and Yoda
  • Break 111m:17s Splinter in genitals
  • The Mummy11m:47s The Mummy and the Dark Universe; Tom Cruise and monsters
  • World of Warcraft31m:35s Love the WoW and hashing out the latest patch 7.2.5
  • Break 245m:58s Pubes caught in zipper
  • E347m:18s Electronic Entertainment Expo 2017. We discuss the trailers for Star Wars Battlefront II, Marvel’s Spider-Man PS4, Assassin’s Creed Origins, Shadow of the Colossus, and God of War PS4

Continue reading “Episode 003. Adam West, the Mummy, Word of Warcraft patch talk, and E3”

Episode 002. Wonder Woman and Women in Sci-Fi

June 6, 2017

Discussion centered on the Wonder Woman movie and an overview of women in sci-fi.

  • Length 1h:12m:05s
  • McKay – 1m:20s Recommendation from McKay, the show’s adopted whiskey enthusiast
  • Tasting3m:30s High West Whiskey – Campfire
  • Scoring10m:04s Medical Droid 2-1B and Lando
  • Break 117m:37s Shoff shaving his legs
  • Break 244m:30s Torpedos are slow
  • Ghostbusters1h:02m:15s Shoff talks about Ghostbusters and compares what it was to what it could have been

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Episode 001. Kwinn & Shoff at the Phoenix ComiCon 2017

May 30, 2017

Tasting a dram, applying our Star Wars rating system, and talking about our experience at the Phoenix ComiCon 2017

 

  • Length 39m:38s
  • Tasting0m50s. Glen Garioch 12 YO Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Highland
  • Scoring6m50s. Naboo Star Fighter and the Rebel Cruiser
  • Break 112m25s. Eating mold and a rat in your toilet
  • PhxCC201712m44s. Kwinn and Shoff at Phoenix ComiCon 2017
  • Willie Wat25m38s. Willie Watt from NiteOwlInk.com
  • Mischa Borgnaes30m46s. Mischa Borgnaes from Electric-Scroll.com

 

 

Shoff Screens “The Mummy”

(Warning: Spoilers Ahead)

This past weekend, I had the unfortunate displeasure of screening “The Mummy”. The film stars Tom Cruise as a soldier of fortune, however misfortune may be more appropriate as he accidentally unearths the tomb of an Ancient Egyptian princess named Ahmanet after ordering an air strike on a small town in Iraq. Yep, he orders an air strike on a small village in Iraq. Why, you ask? Oh, because he is being pursued by Iraqi soldiers for, I guess, just existing. The film doesn’t make this clear, just jumps the audience into the fray as the reasons for much of anything in the movie are seemingly insignificant. The gist is, Tommy Boy possesses a “treasure map” which he stole from a hot chick who he wined, dined, and boned (a sexual encounter the movie attempts to poke fun at with multiple jokes about his 15 seconds of, ahem, “internal” fame). The jokes don’t land, and it just gets awkward, kind of like Tom’s jacked up mid-line when he smiles. Ok, got his teeth out of the way, so now I can confidently move forward with this incoherent plot.

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