#doom urban brawl

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Urban Brawl

Here I was, a stupid chubby bastard pretending to narrate like “Max Payne” in a world that looks like Frank Miller’s “Sin City”, sitting on my overpriced gamer chair, thinking if I need one or two playthroughs of “Urban Brawl” for my review...

...

That’s all of the narration you're gonna get.

G3: Action Doom 2: Urban Brawl

Main author(s): Stephen Browning (Scuba Steve)

Release date: September 8th, 2008 (original version/database upload)/September 8th, 2021 (Reloaded version)

Version(s) played: Remaster

Required port compatibility: (G)ZDoom

Levels: 10

Urban Brawl is a prequel to the 2004’s Action Doom, where instead of a first-person Contra homage, it’s a first-person Double Dragon homage. And if you read the intro... Yes... It’s going to be another one of those unorthodox reviews I made... without any screenshots.

scare chord

Changing the subject, let’s talk about this WAD.

The making of Urban Brawl began months after the release of its predecessor. However, instead of taking a route of Action Doom with promotional stuff, contest events, etc. it was created under the nose of the Doom community, and revealed the same day it was released. It can be downloaded like any other WAD (although this is more like a ZDoom-based game than a typical Doom WAD), but in the past, you could buy the special edition for 10 bucks until May 20th, 2010. Aside from having a CD case, the special edition also included the survival mode (with zombies FYI).

The plot of this game (mostly written by Darknation and voice acted by Mike Lightner in cutscenes) takes place a decade before the events of the original Action Doom. You are still playing as the same guy but as a drunk, single father ex-cop (who has PTSD due to an event that he describes as Saigon). One day you return to your home to find out that your child has been kidnapped. I don’t think I have to explain to you what happens next.

Now, before we start, let me tell you that I thought I would play the original version from 2008 since I downloaded the game from the archives thinking it was that version. Turns out it’s a remaster from 2021 which is more compatible with modern source ports and PCs, adds additional moves, and tweaks the visuals among other things.

So, fuck it; sticking with this version; I’m not interested in scouring the Internet for the original version of this game. And besides that, I can immediately scratch remaster from my bonus WADs list.

Now, without wasting any more time, let’s find out if this game is better than its predecessor.

Urban Brawl has a completely different style compared to Action Doom. Gone are the Doom sprites sprinkled with some Contra-looking stuff in between; now everything looks like a comic book. Not gonna lie, I kind of like the direction this game went to. It’s pretty colorful without counting the cutscenes (which are black and white), and most of the sprites look distinct for the lack of better words.

Music was also rather enjoyable to listen to. It was created by Ralph Vickers (Ralphis) who would later co-create Double Impact in 2011. My favorite track might be Pump’d from MAP04.

As I mentioned earlier, this game is more or less an homage to beat 'em-up games. You go around beating people up until you are allowed to go further. No switch hunting, no finding keys, no shitty hitscanners; you just ravage the leaving shit out of your neighborhood to find your kidnapped child. You don’t really need anything deeper than that.

...

Okay, there is some deepness to this game.

In the case of more noticeable additions to this game, there are multiple endings. It mostly comes down to what will you do after defeating the first boss, but there are other factors as well.

No-context spoiler for the good ending ==> wreck the car.

There is also a score system that feels pretty useless aside from the casino section in the main bad guy’s skyscraper where you can use the points on slot machines.

Now this might be a small problem, but I wish the subtitles in cutscenes could be synchronized better with spoken dialogue.

Now changing the subject, Urban Brawl can be kind of challenging on the normal skill level, especially at the beginning when you don’t exactly know what to do and how to utilize your attacks but after a while, you will be uppercutting fools who will go right unto your fist; but that ain’t mean the game will suddenly become easy, okay?

Your fighting skills include regular and strong punches, the aforementioned uppercut (dual pressing alt fire), grabbing and throwing the enemies, and ground pound that takes part of your health, along with being able to carry one melee, ranged, and special weapon.

When it comes to enemies, the roster includes a huge amount of baldies, black guys with shivs (yellow ones can throw it), fatasses, prostitute-looking twats, guards in suits (most of them have a gun), and, people’s favorites, Goth babes (chuckling).

And as for the weapon roster, when it comes to more unique stuff, there is a bottle of whiskey that functions as a liquid armor before using it or someone’s head, and we even have a taser that stunlocks probably almost every enemy that is mid-tier at most. Also, the melee weapons have limited durability, so try saving these for tougher bastards.

Fellas, I’m going to be honest with you – while Urban Brawl isn’t entirely my cup of tea because it’s kind of awkward to fight in it, I think it might be better than Action Doom, both as a standalone game and as a successor to it. I might give it another shot in the future. After all, it’s just a blind playthrough. I will probably find it better next time.

And as for the next WAD to check out, it’s Eternal Doom Fo-

...

E-Eternal Do-

...

Eternal...

Eternal...

Eternal...

The truth was a burning green crack through my brain. Memories of beautiful locations ruined by the switch-hunting puzzles only the biggest 90s adventure games nutjob would’ve come out with. Demons teleporting behind you after they spot you making you waste your precious ammunition. Questioning why many people enjoy this MegaWAD despite how terrible its cons are. I was about to play the sequel to “Eternal Doom” from 1997. Funny as hell, it was the most horrible thing I could think of.

[shinigami-striker]

Danny Phantom (video games) | Wednesday, 04.03.24

Got a favorite video game featuring Danny Phantom by any chance (excluding mobile and web browser games)?

2004

Nicktoons Basketball (PC)

Nicktoons Freeze Frame Frenzy (Game Boy Avance)

Nicktoons Movin' (PlayStation 2)

2005

Danny Phantom: The Ultimate Enemy (Game Boy Advance)

Nicktoons Unite! (Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo GameCube, PS2)

2006

Nicktoons Winners Cup Racing (PC)

Danny Phantom: Urban Jungle (Game Boy Advance/Nintendo DS)

Nicktoons: Battle For Volcano Island (Game Boy Advance, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS, PS2)

2007

Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots (Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, PS2, Wii)

2008

SpongeBob Squarepants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom (Nintendo DS, PS2, Wii)

2009

Nicktoons Nitro (Arcade)

2011

Nicktoons MLB (Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Wii, Xbox 360)

2020

Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix (Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One)

2021

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl (Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S)

2022

Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway (Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S)

2023

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 (Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S)

[doomguy]

so, if my 30th anniversary piece were to potentially feature protagonists from doom engine games both old and new, who would you want in it? you can assume characters like corvus & the strifeguy are no brainers, i'm looking more for everything from total conversions to officially released games. your urban brawls to your vomitoreums

[hellsite-yano]

As usual: The List of Completed Games 2023

Arrival (DOOM) Sunder (DOOM) Mibibli's Quest Action Doom (DOOM) Action Doom 2: Urban Brawl (DOOM) Assault on Tei Tenga (DOOM) Maptroid: Worlds Demons of Problematique (DOOM) Demons of Problematique 2 (DOOM) Newgothic Movement (DOOM) Newgothic Movement 2 (DOOM) Legacy of Heroes (DOOM) TNT Revilution (DOOM) /pol/ (DOOM) Equinox (DOOM) Thunderpeak (DOOM) Pizza Tower Automaton Lung SMBNext: Sunset Shores Heart of the Killer Elderand Kama Sutra (DOOM) Brotherhood of Ruin (DOOM) Brotherhood of Ruin: The Lost Temple (DOOM) Metroid Fusion: Special Edition No End in Sight (DOOM) Counterattack (DOOM) Consolation Prize (DOOM) Golden Souls 2 (DOOM) Super Metroid Redesign: Axeil Edition REKKR The Legend of Dark Witch Episode 2 Castlevania: Simon's Destiny (DOOM) The Legend of Dark Witch 3 Micro Slaughter Community Project (DOOM) Cave Story 3D Plutonia Revisited Community Project (DOOM) 200 Minutes of /vr/ (DOOM) Hell Ground (DOOM) Mutiny (DOOM) Diabolus Ex (DOOM) Rusted Moss Dread Templar The Machine (Knytt Stories) Ashes 2063 Enriched (DOOM) Carnage Oasis (DOOM) Ashes Afterglow (DOOM) MAYhem 2048 (DOOM) Doom 2 Redux (DOOM) Bungle in the Jungle (DOOM) Anomaly Report (DOOM) MyHouse (DOOM) Dementium Remastered HROT BACULUS (DOOM) Doom 2 Reloaded (DOOM) Vracks Botanicals (DOOM) Resurgence (DOOM) Invasion UAC (DOOM) SuperDoom (DOOM) 2048 Units of /vr/ (DOOM) Cydonia (DOOM) Happy (DOOM) Tetris Effect: Connected Moonblood (DOOM) Liminal Doom (DOOM) Tetanus (DOOM) Plutonia Revisited Community Project 2 (DOOM) Shadow of the Wool Ball (DOOM) Monuments of Guilt BABBDI NaissanceE Post Void I wish it was morning all the time HOLEHOLE MAZEMAZE Kowloon's Curse: Lost Report South Scrimshaw Part One Outcore: Desktop Adventure Nyaruru Fishy Fight Viewfinder Sludge Life 2 Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer Herald of Havoc Pseudoregalia Deadlink Lone Fungus Fox Flares Turbo Overkill Blasphemous 2 AMID EVIL - The Black Labyrinth Bomb Rush Cyberfunk Inscryption Neyasnoe Northern Journey Wonderputt Forever Super Junkoid (Super Metroid) Manifold Garden Contra 4 Metal Slug 7 Space Invaders Extreme Space Invaders Extreme 2 Outer Wilds Ion Fury: Aftershock Submachine 1: the Basement Submachine 2: the Lighthouse Submachine 3: the Loop Quake II - Enhanced Edition Escape Escape PRIPRI MELLOWOLLEM Submachine 4: the Lab Submachine 5: the Root Submachine 6: the Edge Submachine 7: the Core Venturous (DOOM) Devotion Good Morning Phobos (DOOM) Winter's Fury (DOOM) OBZEN (DOOM) Rush (DOOM) HAPPY WORLD SJ-19 Learns To Love! Graze Counter GM Hypnagogia 無限の夢 Boundless Dreams Beeny The Sun Will Rise Again

[capnsdraw]

Hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving day

[aion-rsa]

Marvel’s Loki Episode 5: MCU Easter Eggs and References

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article contains Loki episode 5 spoilers.

Marvel’s Loki episode 5 is a big one. Yes, we know…last week felt like that. And the one before it, too. But this one really IS, with the entire episode taking place (as DoG’s Kayti Burt put it) on top of a literal “trash pile of MCU and Marvel Comics Easter eggs.”

With that in mind, let’s have some fun with all the incredible Marvel references they managed to sneak into Loki episode 5.

Journey Into Mystery

You probably already know this, but Journey Into Mystery was the book that first introduced the Marvel Comics version of Thor, with Loki following shortly after. The title eventually was just renamed Thor since the Asgardians had become the primary focus of the book for years by that point. However, Journey Into Mystery was revived a few years back, with its primary focus being on the adventures of Kid Loki this time around.

Thanos Copter

The Lokis pass a helicopter with “THANOS” on the side. This is a reference to Spidey Super Stories #39 from 1979. The all-ages comic featured a story of Spider-Man and the Cat (Hellcat) taking on Thanos, who was on the hunt for the Cosmic Cube. He flew around New York City in his own helicopter with his name on the side. The reference comes up as a joke here and there, including an issue of Deadpool. Even Thanos’ giant two-sided blade weapon from Avengers: Endgame has been considered by many to be a sly reference to the Thanos Copter.

Ecto-Cooler

While the Lokis are all drinking wine, Kid Loki is shown drinking Hi-C Ecto Cooler. The Slimer-based citrus drink was a tie-in to The Real Ghostbusters cartoon of the 1980s and lasted into 2001 due to its popularity. Afterwards, it became a fondly-remembered relic to time. Ecto Cooler made a brief return in 2016 to coincide with the Ghostbusters reboot. Sadly, there’s no news of it coming back for the upcoming Ghostbusters: Afterlife movie.

Speaking of Kid Loki…

Kid Loki

Kid Loki seems to be wielding a flaming sword, which looks an awful lot like Laevateinn, the sword he wielded in the Loki: Agent of Asgard comics.

Polybius

In the background of the Lokis’ lair, we see a Polybius arcade machine. Polybius is a long-running urban legend. Supposedly, back in 1981, an arcade machine was set up in Portland, Oregon, watched over by various men in black. The game was so addicting that it caused fights to break out and horrible side-effects to its players. We wrote more about the decades-old mystery of Polybius right here.

Pretty sure there’s an old Williams Space Pinball machine in there, too but that’s not as wild as Polybius.

The Void

Fittingly, the realm where all the pruned victims end up is called the Void. In the comics, the Void is a dark, inexplicable, and possibly biblical entity that acts as the evil side to the Sentry. During the storyline Siege, the Void murdered Loki, which facilitated his rebirth as Kid Loki.

Alioth

Alioth first appeared in Avengers: The Terminatrix Objective #1, the same 1993 comic that also introduced Ravonna Renslayer to the world…and one that features Kang as its central villain. Hmmmm…

Oh, and Alioth was co-created by Mobius M. Mobius inspiration/model Mark Gruenwald, who gets another shout later in the episode.

Vote Loki

The “politician Loki” who we see leading (inasumuch as they can/want to be led) the loose coalition of Variant Lokis is modeled almost exactly on the version of Loki from Marvel’s Vote Loki story by Christopher Hastings, Langdon Foss, and Paul McCaffery. In it, Loki ends up running for President, with his ridiculous campaign built on the “honest” deception of openly lying to the American people inadvertently aided by a credulous news media. It’s a good read and you should check it out.

This episode also engages in the old MCU/Star Wars tradition of someone getting a hand cut off…in this case it’s our pal, “Vote Loki.”

Frog Thor

A frog resembling Thor is shown in a jar labeled “T365.” Wouldn’t you know it, Thor #365 is the issue where Loki transforms Thor into a frog. Yes, it was a whole thing. Walt Simonson’s run on the Thor comics is really spectacular.

“Frog Thor” also got a mention in Thor: Ragnarok, during the “play within the movie” seen as “Loki” apologized to “Thor” for turning him into a frog.

You know, there’s even an independent wrestler with a Thor Frog gimmick. Life is beautiful sometimes.

Classic Loki

So it appears that Classic Loki is basically what would have happened if “our” Loki survived the opening of Avengers: Infinity War, which he did by allowing Thanos to kill a duplicate while he disguised himself as some debris. Classic Loki went into hiding and developed a taste for brighter greens and yellows, and aged into Richard E. Grant, before he was pruned by the TVA and found himself here in the Void.

Classic Loki’s line about “the god of outcasts” comes from 2019’s Loki #5, by Daniel Kibblesmith and Andy McDonald:

“I am Loki. God of outcasts. They see themselves in me. And I in them. All of us, alone together. It’s why my stories always end with someone trying to put me in a box. And begin with my spectacular escape.”

Later in the episode, Classic Loki and Kid Loki literally “exit stage right,” in what feels like a very deliberately “stagey” moment that plays on the Shakespearean overtones of all of this.

The Living Tribunal

On the ground in the Void there’s a large severed head…and it’s that of The Living Tribunal, a cosmic entity created by Stan Lee and Marie Severin back in 1967. The presence of a Living Tribunal (even one who is dead at this present time), whose entire purpose for being is predicated on the existence of a multiverse, means that the TVA is trying very hard to cut all ties and any evidence of the fact that the multiverse is already out there.

U.S.S. Eldridge

The USS Eldridge was a real Cannon-class destroyer in the U.S. Navy in use from 1943 to 1992. It was supposedly sold for scrap after it was decommissioned but Loki posits that perhaps it was an unwanted Variant in the Sacred Timeline. Perhaps this is because the ship was rumored to be subjected to the “Philadelphia Experiment” that was supposed to render it invisible to the human eye. The story is sadly probably a hoax.

There’s a not exactly great 1984 movie called The Philadelphia Experiment which adds time travel to the equation, making this little callback even more Loki appropriate.

Is That Stan Lee?

At about 9:38 there’s a mural in the TVA headquarters. On the right there’s a guy in prescription shades, with a familiar moustache and salt-and-pepper hair. We’re not saying that’s Stan Lee, but…

The Castle

Yes, we know, that ominous castle sure looks like Doctor Doom’s  home of Doomstadt, but…it’s probably not (or is it?). More likely, this is Castle Limbo, home of Kang the Conqueror (or…is it?).

We unpacked these possibilities some more here.

The Music

The “heroic Loki” theme at the end sounds like it’s about to break into Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries.”

Speaking of, the regular Loki theme is very similar to the part of the Delfonics “Ready or Not Here I Come (Can’t Hide From Love)” that was sampled for Missy Elliott’s “Sock It To Me.” The original (also sampled for the Fugees’ “Ready or Not” and Dr. Dre’s “Still D.R.E.”) was about the inevitability of love, and Missy’s song was about sneaking into somebody’s house to get your back blown out, so basically the same thing. Could have some bearing on Loki and Sylvie’s story.

The music that plays during the “Loki brawl” is this show’s equivalent of Scooby-Doo chase music. That’s a good thing, by the way.

Pixar, is that you?

Was that the Pizza Planet truck? Mobius’s ride, a station wagon with a slice of pizza on top, immediately brought to mind the popular Pixar easter egg/elaborate timeline mcguffin that has appeared in every Pixar movie to date. Also, very nice touch having Lightning McQueen himself drive it.

An even nicer touch is the license plate on the car Mobius is driving: GRN W1D. As in “Gruenwald.” As in (say it with us, kids!) Mark Gruenwald, the Marvel writer and editor who Mobius is based on.

Ant-Man

At one point on the ground in the Void we can spot a gigantic Yellowjacket helmet. Yellowjacket is the codename for several size-shifting superheroes in the Marvel Comics, but is best known to MCU fans as Corey Stoll’s Darren Cross from the first Ant-Man flick. 

Guardians of the Galaxy

There’s lots of crashed spacecraft, one of which kind of looks like the Dark Aster (Ronan the Accuser’s ship in Guardians of the Galaxy), and there may be a Helicarrier hanging around. There’s also a flying saucer that vaguely resembles the ship from John Carpenter’s The Thing, and a pirate ship that if Doctor Doom were actually the villain of this show (he isn’t…or…is he?) would make us think of that character’s very first appearance in Fantastic Four comics, where he sent Ben Grimm back in time to become Blackbeard. No, really.

Miscellaneous Time Variants

The fate of the Lokis is reminiscent of What If? #12, otherwise known as What If the X-Men Had Stayed in Asgard? At the end of the story, after tasting defeat yet again, Loki begged Those Who Sit Above in Shadow to allow him to rule Asgard. They agreed by sending him far into the future at the end of time. As reality started to break down, Loki went out laughing in the face of oblivion.

The bus ad at the beginning is for Calum Ross, who is an editor on the show. 

The shot of all the Lokis walking as the camera swoops overhead is very much reminiscent of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies.

Loki and Sylvie are cold in The Void. But wait a minute, aren’t they both Frost Giants? Why then would Loki conjure a green blanket? Unless he wants a convenient excuse to cuddle up with his Variant…

Loki is drinking “RoxxiWine” pinot noir…out of a box…which is a nice touch.

Is that weird, very large plant in the bowling alley hideout supposed to be a Variant Yggdrasil? Or wait…what if that’s Plant Loki?!? He’s green, isn’t he?

Next to Alligator Loki’s kiddie pool there’s a copy of The Mystery and Lore of Monsters, a 1930 book by Charles J.S. Thompson.

The tower we all keep thinking is Avengers Tower is in fact Qeng Tower, the headquarters of Qeng Enterprises, the company that Tony Stark (mistakenly) sold the old Avengers tower to in the comics.

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Spot anything we missed? (Probably, right?) Let us know in the comments!

The post Marvel’s Loki Episode 5: MCU Easter Eggs and References appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[thecloserkin]

Doom (2005) fic roundup

I have now recommended this action/sci-fi/horror film based on a bestselling video game franchise to not one not two but three friends and I am happy to report they all concur, cinema Peaked in 2005, this is the best movie ever made. I watched it for the first time on @shipcestuous‘s recommendation: She has an extremely thorough breakdown here, and the pitch of her enthusiasm and the penetration of her analysis are without peer. Honestly I can’t think of a single reason not to watch this movie. Watch it for Rosamund Pike. Watch it for Karl Urban. Watch it to marvel at how much Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s acting chops have improved in the past 15 years. I have now seen this cinematic masterpiece three (3) times and I have zero (0) regrets. There is a sequel out, Doom: Annihilation (2019) but it’s not worth your time. Recently I went through the John Grimm/Samantha Grimm tag on ao3 and read every single fic, most of them for the second or third time, and I had a fucking blast. Friends, if any of you would like to experience this cinematic masterpiece for yourselves please please PLEASE message me and i’ll send you the link to dl it.

Doom (2005, dir. Andrzej Bartkowiak) is about a squad of Marines dispatched to contain a zombie outbreak in a secure scientific facility on Mars. There is no earthly reason for it to be set on Mars btw so I just chalk this decision up to video game continuity (same with the first-person-shooter sequence in the third act, which is five minutes long and it was the longest five minutes of my life). What’s impressive about this film is it somehow manages not to glorify (1) the military or (2) the scientific establishment. It’s a film stuffed to the gills with dudebros (outside of Rosamund Pike they’re all dudebros) yet to my eternal delight the humor actually landed, and I think the anarchist bent of the narrative is a big part of why (anarchist as in hella skeptical of authority). I don’t think it’s giving too much away to say this is another “we tried to cure cancer, accidentally unleashed the zombie apocalypse” setup. What’s surprising is that the protagonists are failed by science, as an institution. Our protagonists are one of the Marines (Karl Urban) and his estranged twin sister (Rosamund Pike), who is an archaeologist at the quarantined facility. The chemistry between these two is instantly and unmistakably through the fucking roof. The first time they appear in the same frame the other Marines mistake her for his ex, and it just gets better from there. Every time I watch it, the final frame of this film has me flailing and screeching. I still can’t believe we got a mainstream movie that was this good to us—horror movies in general have a track record of being good to us ‘cest shippers, but this is on another level.

cold hearts, thawing by merely (3k) They’re on the run and they get FAKE MARRIED!!! My god the amount of characterization smuggled into this—Jon and Sam getting hot for each other’s respective areas of competence is my entire kink. It’s not predominantly humorous in tone but the humor slaps in the best way. This is my forever favorite because it was written by one of the friends I got into the movie, so tailor-made for meeee ❤

Before, During, After by anr (1k) If you plotted the arc of their lives it would be a circle. Something about the spareness of the prose & the amount of stuff occurring in the interstices really stayed with me. I realized later it’s because I’d read another of the author’s fics from a diff fandom—it’s in the same mode, love to see it when authors just nail that one register.

DOOMED by chase_acow (1k) ”I thought you said your microbiology was rusty!" "You know I like it when you give me the bottom line.” Lmaooo. In case you haven’t noticed this fandom consists almost entirely of post-canon getting (back) together fic.

Normal by mneiai (<1k) Shut the front door did somebody say pre-canon getting-together fic??! Of course we all know 90% of the reason John enlisted was to flee his feelings for Sam right.

Glimpses of Clarity by izzyb (1.5k) John and Sam have rough sex and it’s completely consensual, but still scary. Part of working through trauma is recognizing that removing oneself from the traumatic situation does not, in itself, dispel the trauma. John has this inability to relinquish control, or abate his vigilance—except, apparently, when he’s fucking Sam hahaha.

Written in the Scars (of our hearts) by Mercury32 (21k, unfinished) I don’t read a lot of soulmark AUs so idk if this is common but it turns out John and Sam are not soulmates??? He gets his tattoo covered up because he’s only ever wanted Sam. They’re on the run because there’s a nationwide manhunt on and they take refuge in their grandpa’s cabin in the woods and along the way they meet Jon’s actual soulmate but he chooses Sam. He will always choose Sam until the day they put him in the ground. The conversation where they explained to their ex-CIA grandfather how they were going undercover as newlyweds is unadulterated gold.

No Heroics by amathela (3k) They go back to their jobs. They try to keep John’s newfound abilities under wraps so as not to turn him into a target or a military guinea pig. The stakes are high but it’s so …. whimsical? And domestic? It’s so good ahhhhh I love it when they’re trying to hide something other than the incest. “He never was able to win an argument against her.” “She rolls her eyes. ‘Not all of us are as pretty as you.’”

He a Tiger Will Be Who Drinks of Me by Brenda (3k) This story is packing some serious mythological and folkloric resonances. I was going to label it post-canon but half of it is pre-canon. When you frame their relationship as Ares and Aphrodite, Selene and Endymion, it does seem inevitable doesn’t it? All roads lead to you.

Need You Tonight by Mercury32 (2.5k) Hot damn it’s a pwp that’s kicked off by Sam having nightmares, and is all about how Sam trusts John implicitly. I still think about the way Rosamund Pike delivers that line in the movie, I know you, like, on a weekly basis. “You've ruined me for other men and I'll probably be walking uncomfortably tomorrow, but no, you didn't hurt me.”

And I Know What You’re Thinking by amathela (1k) Sam loses a lot of blood and John donates his. Course, now that John is a genetically modified superhuman this creates a psychic bond between them. Nobody does dialogue like amathela does, it’s like you can hear the words behind the words the characters are saying.

Homecoming by amathela (1k) Not as playful as her work usually is but still lovely and understated.

Ephelides by Rahmi (1k) Sam gives John anatomy lessons and it’s sexy as haaaaale. "Just because I'm about to give you a handjob doesn't mean I'm not still your sister.” "Your intelligence reflects on me. And you're my brother. Therefore, you're intelligent."

The Edge of DOOM by chase_acow (1.7k) I don’t know what’s going on but the apocalypse is here and Sam and John are shooting things.

If You Don’t Know Me by Now by Mercury32 (4k) Sam and John rifle through his unsent letters and it isn’t 100% full-blown epistolary but we still get a firm idea of what they were up to for those ten years apart. Ok but CONSIDER: what if they sent each other birthday postcards. Imagine!! This line in particular cracked me up: “Congratulations, you finally got your wish of being an only child.”

desert ghosts by river_soul (1k) They’re not “almost home” because they’re together therefore already home asdfkdjfkdjfd. Gorgeously wrought.

You Hit Me Once (kiss with a fist) by aohatsu (3k) I could read pre-canon John/Sam fics at a rate of 100k a day probs. God these kids are so lonely and nobody else understands. John getting into schoolyard brawls to defend Sam’s honor? Habitual bedsharing???!

I Wanna Kiss You (but i want it too much) by Mercury32 (<1k) It’s not a missing moment from canon, exactly—it’s a replay of the scene where the squad meets Sam, only the camera is firmly situated inside John’s head this time. “His fingers are twitching with the need to hold her, to see if the curve of her hip still fits into the palm of his hand, if her forehead still tucks perfectly into his neck. Like a jigsaw puzzle, she'd observed once, made to fit together.”

No Relation by aj2245 (<400 words) I mean the “surprise! they’re not related” reveal came outta nowhere but it was worth it just for this line: “Life on Mars is fragile. The three coffins waiting in the Ark anti-chamber speak to that. One little mistake and she's lost everything. She's lost John, it's just on time delay.”

In the Blood and the Bone by kyrene (10k) Pwp where John and Sam try to get pregnant. It wasn’t my thing but it’s the top-bookmarked fic in the tag, so other people must’ve liked it, and I always try to assume other people are acting rationally so there must be something this fic does well that I’m missing because I don’t care about that facet that much.

**This is not an exhaustive list of John/Sam fics, just a list of the ones I had anything coherent to say about. I do not think there is a single bad fic in the tag and they’re all bite-sized and bingeable!

[blackladisdestrcz]

ACTION DOOM 2: URBAN BRAWL - DOOM MOD MADNESS

[newyorktheater]

Chita Rivera and Fred Ebb

Chita Rivera and Liza Minnelli rehearse for the musical The Rink also with the musical’s songwriters John Kander and Fred Ebb.

Kander and Ebb

Joel Grey in Cabaret

Liza in “The Act”

Lauren Bacall in Woman of the Year

Robert Goulet in The Happy Time

Jerry Orbach in Chicago

Gwen Verdon as Roxie Hart & Chita Rivera as Velma Kelly in scene fr. the original Broadway production of the musical “Chicago.” (New York), 1975. Fosse directed, choreographed and wrote the book.

Anthony Quinn in Zorba

Cabaret

Brandon Victor Dixon in The Scottsboro Boys Off-Broadway by Kander and Ebb

The Visit, with a book by Terrence McNally, a score by Kander and Ebb

Frank Sinatra singing “New York, New York”

Joel Grey, Fred Ebb, Chita Rivera, Bebe Neuwirth

Fred Ebb

Although Fred Ebb is best known for partnering with composer John Kander on “Cabaret” and “Chicago,” Kander and Ebb together created some two dozen Broadway musicals and musical revues, from 1964 until Ebb’s death in 2004 – and beyond, since several of their collaborations debuted on stage posthumously.

Here is Ebb singing one of their most popular songs “All That Jazz” from “Chicago,” with Kander on the piano. Since Ebb was a lyricist, the lyrics will follow many of the videos below.

Come on, babe Why don’t we paint the town? And all that jazzI’m gonna rouge my knees And roll my stockings down And all that jazzStart the car I know a whoopee spot Where the gin is cold But the piano’s hot!It’s just a noisy hall Where there’s a nightly brawl And all that jazz And all that jazz

Slick your hair and wear your buckle shoes And all that jazzI hear that Father Dip Is gonna blow the blues And all that jazz,Hold on, hon’ We’re gonna bunny hug I bought some aspirin Down at United DrugIn case you shake apart And wanna brand new start To do that- jazz!Find a flask We’re playing fast and loose And all that jazz

Right up here Is where I store the juice And all that jazzCome on, babe We’re gonna brush the sky I betcha Lucky Lindy never flew so high’Cause in the stratosphere How could he lend an ear To all that jazz?

Oh, you’re gonna see your Sheba shimmy shake And all that jazz

Oh, she’s gonna shimmy Till her garters break And all that jazz

Show her where to park her girdle Oh, her mother’s blood’d curdle (If she’d hear her baby queer) For all that jazz

Come on, babe Why don’t we paint the town? And all that jazz (And all that jazz)

I’m gonna rouge my knees And roll my stockings down And all that jazz (And all that jazz)

Start the car I know a whoopee spot Where the gin is cold But the piano’s hot! It’s just a noisy hall Where there’s a nightly brawl And all that jazz

No, I’m no one’s wife But, oh, I love my life And all that jazz That jazz

Flora The Red Menace, 1965

Nineteen-year-old Liza Minnelli sings “Sing Happy”

Sing me a Happy song about Robins in spring Sing me a happy song with a happy ending. Some cheerful rondelet about catching the ring Sing Happy

Sing me a sonnett all about rolling in gold Some peppy melody about rainbows blending Nothing with phrases saying you’re out in the cold Sing Happy

Tell me tomorrow’s gonna be peaches and cream Assure me clouds are lined with a silver lining Say how you’ve realized an impossible dream Sing me a happy song

Play me a madrigal about trips to the moon Or some old ballad about two eyes shining It can’t be loud enough or a moment too soon Sing Happy

No need reminding me that it all fell apart I need no lyrics singing of stormy weather There’s quite enough around me that’s breaking my heart Sing Happy

Give me a hallelujah and get up and shout Tell me the sun is shining around the corner Whoever’s interested helping me out Please keep it happy.

I’m only in the market for long loud laughter I’ll let you serenade me till dawn comes along Just make it a happy Keep it a happy song.

Cabaret, 1966

“Cabaret” won the Tony Awards for best musical and best score — the first of three shows for which Kander and Ebb won Tonys. Twelve of their shows were nominated for best score.

Jill Haworth, the original Sally Bowles, sings the title song

What good is sitting alone in your room? Come hear the music play. Life is a Cabaret, old chum, Come to the Cabaret.

Put down the knitting, The book and the broom. Time for a holiday. Life is Cabaret, old chum, Come to the Cabaret.

Come taste the wine, Come hear the band. Come blow your horn, Start celebrating; Right this way, Your table’s waiting

No use permitting soem prophet of doom To wipe every smile away. Come hear the music play. Life is a Cabaret, old chum, Come to the Cabaret!

I used to have a girlfriend known as Elsie With whom I shared Four sordid rooms in Chelsea

She wasn’t what you’d call A blushing flower… As a matter of fact She rented by the hour.

The day she died the neighbors came to snicker: “Well, thats what comes from to much pills and liquor.”

But when I saw her laid out like a Queen She was the happiest… corpse… I’d ever seen.

I think of Elsie to this very day. I’d remember how’d she turn to me and say: “What good is sitting alone in your room? Come hear the music play. Life is a Cabaret, old chum, Come to the Cabaret.”

And as for me, I made up my mind back in Chelsea, When I go, I’m going like Elsie.

Start by admitting From cradle to tomb Isn’t that long a stay. Life is a Cabaret, old chum, Only a Cabaret, old chum, And I love a Cabaret!

The Happy Time, 1968

Robert Goulet sings the title song

Remember the Christmas morning long ago, The frosted glass, the dancing snow, The Happy Time Remember the painted horse, the carousel. The chocolate kiss, the caramel, The Happy Time. Remember the pale pink sky, Your first Easter Hat. And if you should ask me why The reason I ask you this is that I want to remember you remembering The Happy Time. 2. Remember the day you found the dollar bill, Or roller skating down the hill, The Happy Time. Remember the compliment you once received/ The lie you told they all believed. The Happy Time Remember your first school play, the sound of applause. Why do I go on this way?

70 girls 70, 1971

Mandy Pantinkin sings “Coffee in a Cardboard Cup” from the musical (he was not in the Broadway cast.)

The trouble with the world today it seems to me Is coffee in a cardboard cup The trouble with the affluent society Is coffee in a cardboard cup

No one’s ever casual and nonchalant No one wastes a minute in a restaurant No one wants a waitress passing pleasantries Like “Hiya miss” “Hiya sir” “May I take your order please”

The trouble with the world today is plain to see Is everything is hurry up It’s “rush it through” “Don’t be slow” “BLT on rye to go” And coffee I think she said ‘coffee’ I know she said ‘coffee In a cardboard cup’

The trouble with the helter skelter life we lead Is coffee in a cardboard cup The trouble the psychologists have all agreed Is coffee in a cardboard cup

Tell me what could possibly be drearier Than seaboard from the Belnord cafeteria Seems to me a gentleman would much prefer An “afternoon, how you been Would you like the special sir?”

The trouble with the world today is plain to se Is everything is hurry up There’s Reddi Whip Instant tea Minute rice and my oh me There’s coffee I think she said ‘coffee’ I know she said ‘coffee In a cardboard cup’

The trouble with the world today beyond a doubt Is coffee in a cardboard cup The trouble is the way we like to take things out Like coffee in a cardboard cup

No one knows the meaning of utopia Is dining at your coner cornucopia Seems to me we wouldn’t be such nervous wrecks With ‘hello there, be right back Would you care for separate checks’

The trouble with the world today is plain to see Is everything is hurry up It’s all become Looney Tunes With sugar packs and plastic spoons And coffee I think she said ‘coffee’ I know she said ‘coffee’ I’m sure she said ‘coffee In a cardboard cup’

(spoken): “Hurry up!”

Chicago, 1975

Jerry Orbach sings “Razzle Dazzle.” (The last minute or so is an interview with cast members)

Give ’em the old razzle dazzle Razzle Dazzle ’em Give ’em an act with lots of flash in it And the reaction will be passionate Give ’em the old hocus pocus Bead and feather ’em How can they see with sequins in their eyes? What if your hinges all are rusting? What if, in fact, you’re just disgusting? Razzle dazzle ’em And they;ll never catch wise! Give ’em the old Razzle Dazzle Razzle dazzle ’em Give ’em a show that’s so splendiferous Row after row will crow vociferous Give ’em the old flim flam flummox Fool and fracture ’em How can they hear the truth above the roar? Throw ’em a fake and a finagle They’ll never know you’re just a bagel, Razzle dazzle ’em And they’ll beg you for more! Give ’em the old double whammy Daze and dizzy ’em Back since the days of old…

Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon sing “Nowadays”

The Act, 1978

Liza Minnelli and company sing “City Lights” at the Tonys

The little old lady sat on the porch of the farm-house. The little old lady rocked back and forth and crocheted. “Oh, listen to the cricket, look at the rooster, smell the hay,” I told her. “And see the pretty little egg that the hen just laid.” The little old lady took off her glasses and squinted. And how she responded literally had me floored. She said: “I’m glad to meet someone who appreciates the beauty that nature initiates. It’s sweet to hear, but me, my dear, I’m truly bored. I miss those city lights, those sparkling city lights, those twinkling city lights blurring my eyes. I love those city lights, the color of city sights that shine under city lights tinting the skies. New mown hay gives me hay fever. There’s the rooster, where’s my cleaver? So laid back, my mind might crack, and when the thresher’s up my pressure’s up. City lights, oh, I long for those city lights, the bulbs of those beaming brights beckoning me there. Be there. Take the crickets and go shove ’em, urban crises, how I love ’em! Grime and grit and pretty city lights. Walking lanes to pick a daisy, that could drive a person crazy. Home-made bread lies here like lead, and Polly’s peach preserves– oh, please, my nerves! City lights, how I long for those city lights, the bulbs of those beaming brights beckoning me there. Be there. Sties and stables sure are smelly, let me sniff some Kosher deli, brightly lit by pretty city lights. Pluck your lillies of the valley, let me sally up some alley dimly lit by pretty city lights. Country air means zilch to me, I won’t breathe nothing I can’t see. So let me quit and hit those pretty city lights. Hit them city lights! Love them city lights! Fairs and socials ain’t no pluses, I saw more on cross-town buses brightly lit by pretty city lights. Hold that udder and churn that butter, me, I’d rather shoot some gutter dimly lit by pretty city lights. Slop those sows, go on and fill your pails, Honey, just let me plant my buns down in Bloomingdale’s. Yes, let me quit and hit those pretty city lights. Love them city lights!

Woman of the Year, 1981

The second show to result in a Tony Award for best score. Lauren Bacall sings “I Wrote The Book”

The kicker: So when it comes to losing a man, you’ll find it unsurprisingly true. That last week I wrote that book, too.

Zorba, 1983

Norm Lewis (not from the original cast) sings “Life Is” at the March 2010 Vineyard Theater gala honoring John Kander!

Life is a glass of rum! No! Life is a sip of sage! No! Life is the taste of raki flowing warmly from the cup!

Shut up!

Life is a walnut leaf! No! Life is an olive tree! No! Life is a scented melon-breasted woman when her lips are red and full… No! Life is a barbered, planted orchard and two lovers passing by it!

Life is my fist in your face if you don’t keep quiet! What did you say? I said, “Life is my fist in your face if you don’t keep quiet!” Oh? Oh? Oh! Oh!

Wait. Listen to me. I will tell you.

Life is what you do while you’re waiting to die, Life is how the time goes by! Life is where you wait while you’re waiting to leave, Life is where where you grin and grieve!

Having if lucky, wanting if not, Looking for the ruby underneath the rot, Hungry for the pilaf in someone else’s pot, But that’s the only choice you’ve got!

Life is where you stand just before you are flat! Life is only that, mister, Life is simply that, mister, That and nothing more than that!

Life is what you feel, ‘Til you can’t feel at all, Life is where you fly and fall!

Running for shelter, naked in the snow Learning that the tear drops any where you go Finding its the mud that makes the roses grow That’s the only choice you know!

Wait! Once again…

Life is what you do while you’re waiting to die… This is how the time goes by!

The Rink, 1984

Chita Rivera and Liza Minnelli sing “Don’t ‘Ah Ma” Me” This is not a high-quality video, but I choose it because the lyrics show off Ebb’s skill at a theatrical song (with aid, no doubt, by book writer Terrence McNally)

[ANGEL, spoken] Oh I’ve got a lot of things to tell you Ma

[ANNA, spoken] How long was it this time Angel? Seven years?

[ANGEL, spoken] Ah Ma!

[ANNA, spoken] Basta! Finito! We’re closed! I’m finished!

[ANGEL, spoken] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] If the earth had opened up If it swallowed me inside Would my baby darling girl even realise I’d died? You were sitting on hill With some yippee on your lap Talking love and life and art and that transcendental crap With the dope I’m sure you smoked And a healthy dose of coke up your nose

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Up your nose!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] And for all you ever knew I was hustling for the rent ‘Cause you only call collect maybe every other lent While I’m bleeding in the street from some maniacs attack You’re in some Ramada Inn seeking wisdom on your back Making kibble of your brain An emancipated pain in the ass

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] In the ass!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] And don’t ah Ma me! You said you had to find yourself so find yourself some other place And don’t ah Ma me! I don’t need you around to help me complicate my life

And if you really gave a damn You’d have never stayed away When you break a mother’s heart does it make a Guru’s day? But you’re nearly thirty now And you’r panicked and upset So you walk back in the door And expect me to forget Welcome home, my little pig! Boy you’ve really got a big set of balls

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Oh some balls!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] And don’t ah Ma me! You said you had to find yourself so find yourself some other place And don’t ah Ma me! I don’t need you around to help me complicate my life, capisce? And don’t ah Ma me! The sign on the apartment doesn’t say Salvation Army does it? Don’t ah Ma me! I’ve heard it all your life and I don’t need to hear it now

[ANGEL] Ah Ma! It’s like it was before I just walked through the door! And right away you start to fight and curse

[ANNA, spoken] That’s bullshit

[ANGEL] Ma! I thought there’d be some tears

[ANNA, spoken] Tears?!

[ANGEL] And after all these years You might have mellowed some But Jesus was I dumb

[ANNA] So you thought I might be calm? Maybe jolly you along? Well believe me I’m not calm And believe me you were wrong Should the sound of your hello Be like music to me years When I haven’t seen your face in, what is it, seven years? So you walk back in my life Should I really bless my luck? That’s an outfit you could wear on a sanitation truck “Have a daughter” I was told “They’re a blessing when you’re old” Ah Stugatz!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Stugatz!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Enough

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] That’s it

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Shut up. I quit

[ANGEL] Ah Maaaaaaaaaaa!

[ANNA] Now I’ve got a good thing going And I don’t need you to hex it Did you notice where you entered You can also make an exit? So go out and find a husband Don’t try to be a whore I am sick and tired of your ah Ma!

[ANGEL] Ah Ma!

[ANNA] Shush!

Cabaret, 1988 revival

Liza and Joel Grey sing “Money.” This is actually from the 1972 movie, but I had to fit in somewhere

Kiss of the Spider Woman, 1993

The show won Kander and Ebb a third Tony for best score. Chita Rivera sings the title song

Spider Woman: Sooner or later You’re certain to meet In the bedroom, the parlor or even the street There’s no place on earth You’re likely to miss Her kiss Sooner or later In sunlight or gloom When the red candles flicker She’ll walk in the room And the curtains will shake and the fire will hiss Here comes her kiss And the moon grows dimmer At the tide’s low ebb And her black beads shimmer And you’re aching to move But you’re caught in the web Of the Spider Woman In her velvet cape You can scream But you cannot escape Sooner or later your love will arrive And she touches your heart You’re alert and alive But there’s only one pin That can puncture such bliss Her kiss Sooner or later you bathe in success And your minions salute They say nothing but “YES” But your power is empty It fades like the mist Once you’ve been kissed And the moon grows dimmer At the tide’s low ebb And your breath comes faster And you’re aching to move But you’re caught in the web Of the Spider Woman In her velvet cape You can run You can scream You can hide But you cannot escape!

Charles Pistone sings The Day After That (he was not in the original cast)

Valentin: It was made out of mud And pieces of tin And boxes nailed together Cardboard boxes My castle

My home And we slept on the floor My sister and I With gunny sacks for our pillows Coughing, hungry, cosy My home And every Sunday on our knees We would thank the Lord For his bountiful blessings And our mother poured soup Into little cracked bowls As she spoke of something better Beef steak, maybe, someday My home And that lady had eyes That were empty and cold At the ripe old age of thirty Death came Welcome To my home And still that Sunday On our knees How we thanked the Lord For his bountiful blessings And my sister and I Swore the day that we left There’d be no more children like us In the filth there in the heat there. In the smell there And no more Sundays On our knees Would we thank the Lord For his bountiful blessings And we came to the city And begged for our food Then, one April day we heard it Thunder rumbling One man speaking Thousands singing .. Someday we’ll be free I promise you, we’ll be free If not tomorrow Then the day after that And the candles in our hands Will illuminate this land If not tomorrow Then the day after that And the world that gives us pain That fills our lives with fear On the day after that Will disappear And the war we’ve fought to win I promise you, we will win If not tomorrow Then the day after that Or the day after that

Valentin: and families of the disappeared Someday we’ll be free I promise you, we’ll be free If not tomorrow Then (Or) the day after that And the candles in our hands Will illuminate this land If not tomorrow Then the day after that And the world that gives us pain That fills our lives with fear On the day after that Will disappear Will disappear And the war we’ve fought to win I promise you, we will win If not tomorrow Then the day after that Or the day after that Or the day after that Or the day after that Or the day after that Or the day After that

Chicago, 1996 revival

This revival is closing in on its 25th anniversary, and is currently the second longest musical in Broadway history. I feel free to choose songs by singers anytime during its run. So here are Marcia Lewis singing “When You’re Good to Mama,” Brandy Norwood singing “Roxie,” and then Carol Womack singing “When You’re Good to Mama” again.

Steel Pier, 1997

Debra Monk sings “Everybody’s Girl,” a raunchy song that’s one of the few comic moments in a bleak scenario

Shelby A long time ago A lady whose name was Carmen Drove a man wild Until he was out of control

I truly believe That i am a modern day Carmen In spite of the fact I do not habla espa?ol

That girl was exactly like me We share this philosophy Ol?, I say

I’m not the type who’s ready For datin’ someone steady I’m everybody’s girl

On sunday night it’s Danny On monday maybe Manny I’m everybody’s girl

There’s a point to my behavior Which is: Smart girls always share their riches

So, if your heart succumbs Don’t let it You’re certain to regret it All others, come and get it I’m everybody’s girl.

I could never be a cowhand’s

La la la la la la

And you wanna know why?

All: Why?

Shelby: I just can’t keep my calves together.

I’m everybody’s girl Some old Greek called Aristotle Said it If you got it, why not spread it? So don’t go rattling any sabres Exerting any labors Just share me with the neighbors I’m everybody’s girl

In case your passion rages, I’m in the yellow pages I’m… Girl.

You won’t be disappointed I’m also double-jointed I’m everybody’s girl Though it leaves a lot of fellas Cursin’ I’m a person Needs disbursin’

And so to reaffirm my status It’s absolutely gratis To use my apparatus I’m everybody’s girl

Men and me are like pianos. When they Get upright, i feel grand!

Everybody’s girl!

Scottsboro Boys, 2010

Joshua Henry and company sing “Go Back Home,” as they await their unjust fate in prison.

Lyin’ all alone I’m thinkin’ Starin’ at the stars I wonder Since I been away I’m lonely When I’m gonna go back home

Walkin’ through the world Things happen Right before ya eyes Things happen Soon enough you’re lost And thinkin’ When I’m gonna go back home

Oh me oh my Time goes slow Where’s it gone to I don’t know

But maybe times’ll turn I pray so Maybe some day I’ll get lucky Someone’s gonna say Alright son Take the train and go back home Hop a freight and go back home

SPOKE: Hop a freight? I’d walk all the way back to Atlanta if I could. I wouldn’t stop til I got there. No more nightmares. Guards beatin’ me. Teasin’ me. And I’d be home for my birthday too! Now that would be some present.

SUNG: Oh me oh my Time goes slow Where’s it gone to I don’t know

But maybe times’ll turn I pray so Maybe some day I’ll get lucky Someone’s gonna say Alright son Take the train and go back home Hop a freight and go back home

The Visit, 2015

Chita Rivera sings “Love and Love Alone”

Claire When you’re young Feeling oh, so strong what can prove you wrong? Love and love alone When the sun seems forever bright what can dim its light Love and love alone So beware young love lost in a kiss there’s a truth, young love

Simple as this Every fond hello ends in goodbye what seems certain to live will die So enjoy all the time there is if you’re his, be his make each day your own when tomorrows come and your heart is stone what has made it numb? Love and love alone Da da da da da love and love alone

We Can’t Do That Anymore

Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly Ebb had written this song with Kander for the musical “Wait for Me, World,”” which was never produced. He cleverly repurposed it for the “comeback” TV special he wrote in 1973 for Frank Sinatra

New York, New York

Their most popular song was not written for a Broadway musical, but it would be impossible to omit it. It is written for Liza Minnelli as the title song for the 1977 Martin Scorsese film “New York,New York.” Frank Sinatra is one of its main interpreters

Start spreading the news I am leaving today I want to be a part of it New York, New York

These vagabond shoes Are longing to stray Right through the very heart of it New York, New York

I want to wake up in a city That doesn’t sleep And find I’m king of the hill Top of the heap

These little town blues Are melting away I’ll make a brand new start of it In old New York

If I can make it there I’ll make it anywhere It’s up to you New York, New York

New York, New York I want to wake up in a city That never sleeps And find I’m a number one Top of the list King of the hill A number one

These little town blues All melting away I am gonna make a brand new start of it In old New York

And If I can make it there I’m gonna make it anywhere It’s up to you New York, New York, New York

New York

  That’s the 11 o’clock number, no doubt. But I prefer to end with Liza, and a less iconic song from the same movie, “But The World Goes Round”

Sometimes you’re happy And sometimes you’re sad But the world goes round And sometimes you lose Every nickel you’ve had But the world goes round

Sometimes you’re dreams get broken in pieces But that doesn’t alter a thing Take it from me There’s still gonna be A summer, a winter, a fall, and a spring

And sometimes a friend Starts treating you bad But the world goes round And sometimes your heart breaks With a deafening sound Somebody loses, somebody wins One day it’s kicks Then it’s kicks in the shins But the planet spins And world goes round

But the world goes round But the world goes round

Sometimes your dreams get broken in pieces But that doesn’t matter at all Take it from me There’s still gonna be A summer, a winter, a spring, and a fall

And sometimes a friend Starts treating you bad But the world goes round And sometimes your heart breaks With a deafening sound Somebody loses, and somebody wins Then one day it’s kicks Then it’s kicks in the shins But the planet spins And the world goes round And round and round and round and round The world goes round And round And round And round

F is for Fred Ebb. Broadway Lyricist to the Stars Although Fred Ebb is best known for partnering with composer John Kander on “Cabaret” and “Chicago,” Kander and Ebb together created some two dozen Broadway musicals and musical revues, from 1964 until Ebb’s death in 2004 – and beyond, since several of their collaborations debuted on stage posthumously.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette: Revenant Awards 2008

You look out of the bunker. You see nobody.

Okay, I think they are gone now. I’m back on the surface.

THE IRON KUNG FU DOOM GUY – REVENANT AWARDS 2008 EDITION

Well, folks... We did it. 15 years of the best Doom WADs (according to Doomworld and not even all of them) reviewed. It is another big milestone, yes, but only one WAD will win one of the awards, and in this ceremony, we will be choosing four winners (not counting the ones by default).

Okay, enough of the pretentious rambling. Let’s start with the first category.

SOLE SURVIVOR – BEST ONE-MAP WAD OF THE YEAR

In this case, we have a surprise. The winner is the underdog – Escape from Castle Chezcrea. I do realize that XXXI CyberSky is a better map in almost every department, but unfortunately, that map is also a slaughter-type one, and I’m not really fond of these. At least Chezcrea is more accessible.

PUG-OF-PINK – BEST 2-7 MAPS LONG WAD OF THE YEAR

Here, though, Eternal and his WAD, Gravity, easily win. Thunderpeak has its moments, yes, and gameplay-wise is more interesting to play, but, like many other ZDoom before it, it tends to have annoying and unnecessary moments that feel questionable at best. Not to mention Gravity looking much more pleasant and original compared to the other WAD.

PLATINUM REVENANT – BEST 10-19 MAPS LONG WAD/MEGAWAD OF THE YEAR

Another category, another slam-dunk by Eternal, this time with Remain 3. It feels like a reverse situation with Sole Survivor, where one of the two WADs (in this case Deus Vult II) is better than the other one in many departments but I still prefer the other WAD because it’s not a slaughter map/WAD. In that category, Eternal’s WAD lost; in this, however, his WAD won. Even when most of the non-slaughter maps from DVII are better than in Remain 3, I would still rather play the latter.

OFF THE WALL – BEST PARTIAL/TOTAL CONVERSION OF THE YEAR

I thought it would be harder to choose the winner here, but it wasn’t that hard. Of course, I removed Eternal Doom IV and BGPA from the equation because these are just more of the stuff that I hate in their predecessors. Meanwhile, Community is Falling 3 and Cold as Hell: Special Edition might be technical marvels at the time they were originally released, but the former’s almost entirely juvenile humor and the gameplay becoming more and more annoying as you progress, and the latter’s questionable decisions with some new mechanics and changes in gameplay, soured my enthusiasm for these WADs (but at least I managed to finish Cold as Hell compared to Community 3).

And so were are now with two golden eggs – Urban Brawl and Chex Quest 3 (or Chex Quest Trilogy as I like to call the latter). One is the FPP Beat ’em Up that came out of nowhere and became an instant classic that I am appreciating more and more with each passing day; the other is basically Doom for children that even adults can enjoy.

But there is one thing in Chex Quest Trilogythat makes it better by an inch– expectations. Urban Brawl is the prequel to Action Doom, an already fun homage to Contra and similar games, so people thought they would get a fun game too after playing the previous one (and they got); Chex Quest’s concept sounds like a perfect recipe for disaster and people were expecting flop before ending up surprised that it was a high-tier quality product. That’s what makes CQ3 the winner in this category.

But you know what? There is still a part of me that badly wants to play Urban Brawl again. Even if it’s not a winner of this category, I’ll still play this when the Decade of DOOMstruction returns as an honorable mention. I seriously need to try it again to see if I’m not losing my marbles.

OTHER AWARDS

And now for the WADs that won by default. Starting with Golden Spider (best episode replacement) and its winner, Back to Basics...

sigh

This WAD is lucky there wasn’t any other episode replacement, let alone the vanilla one.

But let’s not forget about Diaz: Last Hours of Purity. I didn’t like it that much, but it still deserves an award for being a gameplay mod for Doom. And so, I’ve come up with an award for it (and the future gameplay mods as well) – Tei Tenga’s Arsenal award for the best Doom gameplay mod of the year.

cricket noises

What? I couldn’t think of a better name.

CONCLUSION

And that’s all for the 2008 roster of Doom WADs. At this point of writing, I have reached the half point in Doomworld’s yearly lists of the best WADs. And that’s in almost four years since I started reviewing these things, with shorter or longer breaks.

Speaking of breaks, I need to finally finish both the original Half-Life and its Source remake Black Mesa. It might take me less than a week; it might take more than that. It will depend on how many WADs from the next year will check out. Either way, after one day of finishing both of these, I’ll start properly looking at the 2009 WADs.

Thank you all for reading my life-coping slop. I’ll see you next time.

Bye.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 11.19

461 – Libius Severus is declared emperor of the Western Roman Empire. The real power is in the hands of the magister militum Ricimer. 636 – The Rashidun Caliphate defeated the Sasanian Empire at the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah in Iraq. 1095 – At the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II calls for a Crusade to the Holy Land. 1493 – Christopher Columbus goes ashore on an island called Borinquen he first saw the day before. He names it San Juan Bautista (later renamed again Puerto Rico). 1794 – The United States and the Kingdom of Great Britain sign Jay's Treaty, which attempts to resolve some of the lingering problems left over from the American Revolutionary War. 1802 – The Garinagu arrive at British Honduras (Present day Belize) 1816 – Warsaw University is established. 1847 – The second Canadian railway line, the Montreal and Lachine Railroad, is opened. 1863 – American Civil War: U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address at the dedication ceremony for the military cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. 1881 – A meteorite lands near the village of Grossliebenthal, southwest of Odessa, Ukraine. 1885 – Serbo-Bulgarian War: Bulgarian victory in the Battle of Slivnitsa solidifies the unification between the Principality of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia. 1911 – The Doom Bar in Cornwall claimed two ships, Island Maid and Angele, the latter killing the entire crew except the captain. 1912 – First Balkan War: The Serbian Army captures Bitola, ending the five-century-long Ottoman rule of Macedonia. 1916 – Samuel Goldwyn and Edgar Selwyn establish Goldwyn Pictures. 1941 – World War II: Battle between HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran. The two ships sink each other off the coast of Western Australia, with the loss of 645 Australians and about 77 German seamen. 1942 – World War II: Battle of Stalingrad: Soviet Union forces under General Georgy Zhukov launch the Operation Uranus counterattacks at Stalingrad, turning the tide of the battle in the USSR's favor. 1942 – Mutesa II is crowned the 35th and last Kabaka (king) of Buganda, prior to the restoration of the kingdom in 1993. 1943 – Holocaust: Nazis liquidate Janowska concentration camp in Lemberg (Lviv), western Ukraine, murdering at least 6,000 Jews after a failed uprising and mass escape attempt. 1944 – World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt announces the 6th War Loan Drive, aimed at selling US$14 billion in war bonds to help pay for the war effort. 1944 – World War II: Thirty members of the Luxembourgish resistance defend the town of Vianden against a larger Waffen-SS attack in the Battle of Vianden. 1946 – Afghanistan, Iceland and Sweden join the United Nations. 1950 – US General Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes Supreme Commander of NATO-Europe. 1952 – Greek Field Marshal Alexander Papagos becomes the 152nd Prime Minister of Greece. 1954 – Télé Monte Carlo, Europe's oldest private television channel, is launched by Prince Rainier III. 1955 – National Review publishes its first issue. 1959 – The Ford Motor Company announces the discontinuation of the unpopular Edsel. 1967 – The establishment of TVB, the first wireless commercial television station in Hong Kong. 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 12 astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean land at Oceanus Procellarum (the "Ocean of Storms") and become the third and fourth humans to walk on the Moon. 1969 – Association football player Pelé scores his 1,000th goal. 1977 – TAP Portugal Flight 425 crashes in the Madeira Islands, killing 131. 1979 – Iran hostage crisis: Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini orders the release of 13 female and black American hostages being held at the US Embassy in Tehran. 1984 – San Juanico disaster: A series of explosions at the Pemex petroleum storage facility at San Juan Ixhuatepec in Mexico City starts a major fire and kills about 500 people. 1985 – Cold War: In Geneva, U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Union General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev meet for the first time. 1985 – Pennzoil wins a US$10.53 billion judgment against Texaco, in the largest civil verdict in the history of the United States, stemming from Texaco executing a contract to buy Getty Oil after Pennzoil had entered into an unsigned, yet still binding, buyout contract with Getty. 1985 – Police in Baling, Malaysia, lay siege to houses occupied by an Islamic sect of about 400 people led by Ibrahim Mahmud. 1988 – Serbian communist representative and future Serbian and Yugoslav president Slobodan Milošević publicly declares that Serbia is under attack from Albanian separatists in Kosovo as well as internal treachery within Yugoslavia and a foreign conspiracy to destroy Serbia and Yugoslavia. 1994 – In the United Kingdom, the first National Lottery draw is held. A £1 ticket gave a one-in-14-million chance of correctly guessing the winning six out of 49 numbers. 1996 – Lt. Gen. Maurice Baril of Canada arrives in Africa to lead a multi-national policing force in Zaire. 1998 – Clinton–Lewinsky scandal: The United States House of Representatives Judiciary Committee begins impeachment hearings against U.S. President Bill Clinton. 1998 – Vincent van Gogh's Portrait of the Artist Without Beard sells at auction for US$71.5 million. 1999 – Shenzhou 1: The People's Republic of China launches its first Shenzhou spacecraft. 2002 – The Greek oil tanker Prestige splits in half and sinks off the coast of Galicia, releasing over 20 million US gallons (76,000 m³) of oil in the largest environmental disaster in Spanish and Portuguese history. 2004 – The Malice at the Palace: The worst brawl in NBA history, Ron Artest suspended 86 games (rest of season), Stephen Jackson suspended 30 games. 2006 – Nintendo's first video game console with motion control, the Wii, is released. 2010 – The first of four explosions takes place at the Pike River Mine in New Zealand; 29 people are killed in the nation's worst mining disaster since 1914. 2013 – A double suicide bombing at the Iranian embassy in Beirut kills 23 people and injures 160 others.

[freegamesutopia]

A free game a day, keeps the boredom away: Action DooM 2: Urban Brawl #free2play #freegames

http://dlvr.it/RHg3Lk

[ginnyzero]

The Anatomy of An Action Star

Action movies have turned into big business in Hollywood. Your summer movie “tent poles” nine times out of ten will have some sort of action element in them. They are spending upwards of 250 million a piece on production of these movies alone, not counting the 100 million that they are spending on marketing the same movies. Of course, if you want these movies to do well, that means you have to draw a lot of people to the box office. There are two ways to do this, have a concept everyone already knows and loves and fill that concept with super talented people and/or have a big name action star that people already know and love and hope the star will draw the people. Now, with so many big movies coming out at the same time, there is often only so much money to go around. So, that, at least now, if there is a critical financial ‘flop’ at the box office, there isn’t so much of a cushion to an actor or actresses career. A few financial ‘flops’ in a row turns what could be a rising star packing back where they came from.

It didn’t used to be this way. The action film genre was considered a solid “B” genre and got the low budgets to match its less then patrician origins. If a film ‘flopped’ in the “good old days” it was more than likely the actor (because female action stars were even rarer back then, hey Sigourney Weaver) would just shrug and move on to make another “B” movie. Some of the most ridiculous premises got two or three or more sequels. Whether it was the time or just pure luck, there was a pack, much like the Rat Pack, of action stars that people wanted to see more of over and over and over again, no matter what the premise was and others just, as they say, couldn’t “cut the mustard.”

No matter what era of Hollywood you’re in, there are just some actors and actresses that are put into an action movie that can carry it, while others just can’t.

There is more to an action role than the ability to throw a punch or shoot a gun (or in some cases drive really, really fast). And while some actors who may not be able to throw a punch or shoot a gun can still pull off the swashbuckling end of things and swing a sword. Say what you like about Nicholas Cage, he tends to not be very believable in an action role. It says something that the most believable he gets is when he’s CGIed into a skeleton with a flaming skull. Because at that point we’re not watching Nicholas Cage, we’re watching a skeleton with a flaming skull! And as much as people liked Chris Pine as the young and the restless alternative universe James T. Kirk, they weren’t quite so ready to watch him Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Kit Harrington has a good following for his role on Game of Thrones, but that didn’t bring any better numbers for Pompeii. Whereas Jason Statham four years after his acting debut managed to carry The Transporter. After a short role in 1998 in Saving Private Ryan, in 2000 Boiler Room and Pitch Black proved he could act and in 2001, Vin Diesel had The Fast and The Furious on his resume.

So what makes some actors successful in the genre and others not. What makes audiences believe in some actors over others? Because there has to be a certain amount of authenticity for the actor to be able to carry the role. Sometimes, this takes more than one movie for the actor to reach that stage. For instance, Karl Urban wasn’t at all believable as an action hero in DOOM. By the time he hit Dredd, he was more authentic and the audience was willing to believe. Something had changed between DOOM and Dredd within Karl Urban and his abilities in acting.

Well, first off, if one wants to be an action star, one needs to look the part. Male or female, they need to have some sort of muscle to make the audience believe that that guy/girl can throw a punch or shoot a gun or swing a sword or whatever is needed and it’s actually going to hurt. Whether they’re body builders (Arnold Schwarzenegger), wrestlers (Dwayne Johnson) or martial artists (Jean Claude Van Damme, Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan et al) or even bouncers (Vin Diesel), they need to have the bulk or we just don’t believe it (Nicholas Cage.) Women have it harder. Most women when they are chosen for an action role, start training for that role on set. Most of them don’t know anything about fighting before they start (Michelle Rodriguez, believe it or not). Gal Gadot is a rare case of a woman who actually served in the military (Israeli). She gets a lot of flak for it. There are a few actresses who are trying to make names for themselves coming out of the MMA circuit (Gina Carano, Ronda Rousey). These are exceptions and not the rule. Because there are fewer females in action roles, it feels that they have to work harder to be taken seriously in those roles.

Which leads to the next bit, training. Whether they’re street brawling or shooting a gun or swinging a sword, it needs to look to the average audience like they know what they’re doing. Even if the average audience is absolutely ignorant about what it is supposed to look like. (Fencing fanatics can be some of the most snobbish about this. Watching a modern fencing match is boring, I’ll stick to the movie version.) Different films go with different directions for this. Keanu Reeves had it easy in the Matrix. In the beginning, of course we didn’t believe that Neo was to be the one. But he got plugged into a computer and they downloaded kung fu into his brain, and there, on screen we saw the Neo character become a ‘trained’ fighter. Now, of course, we believe that he can kick ass and take names because he’s all out of bubblegum. Other movies start with ‘dump them into a training ground/fight’ approach, putting the character directly into the action within five minutes of the movie so that the audience can see for themselves that this actor has mad skills. In the Matrix, Trinity gets this treatment. Angelina Jolie does this in Tomb Raider. Daniel Craig gets to use this approach in Casino Royale. Other movies take the reputation approach, the fact that the actor has been in so many other movies and they had some sort of action sequence in them so of course they know how to fight or the actor has come from a background with martial arts in it, so this movie will have them displaying those skills. The reputation factor can be the biggest gamble, even with established action stars. Sometimes it’s just not enough to say “oh, he’s got so many belts, trophies or studies ju jitsu.” Because you can have these things and still not be believable in the role. This is where DOOM failed Karl Urban. He’d been in a few action movies before this, but they hadn’t been in fighting roles. He just wasn’t prepared to be alongside/up against the Rock. He didn’t have the training and that insecurity showed in the film.

A big part of it is ‘the stare.’ When an actor or actress looks their foe in the eye and says something witty or ominous and the audience gets the belief that this person actually means what they’re saying and that the foe better watch out because they’re about to get their buttocks beaten. When Liam Neeson looks you in the eye and says he’s coming for you, well, I for one am going to believe him. My favorite example of this is Nathan Fillion in Firefly, where he’s sitting in a wagon in a dress with a bonnet on and he looks the other guy in the eye and goes “I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.” This is mighty impressive, not only given he’s in a dress and bonnet, but at the time he’s sitting next to Adam Baldwin, the only guy on set who had enough action movie experience he never flinched when firing the guns. (Watch that sequence where they invade Niska’s base to rescue Mal. Adam Baldwin doesn’t flinch, ever. It’s uncanny.) There is a certain hardness to characters who are willing to mete out violence in the name of a just cause (and sometimes unjust cause.) Not every actor, like not every person, has the ability to look another person in the eyes without flinching or turning away. Not every person can convey that force with a look alone.

Now part of this is hugely charisma. Actors who end up in action roles that are successful often have a huge sense of presence about them. They have to in order to stand out from the rest of the cast. That’s just part of being a lead actor or actress. Charisma is what attracts people to others. Charm, glamour, whatever you want to call it, it is the stuff that makes certain people leaders and certain people followers. (And people like me who are ‘stay out of the wayers, thank you.’ Meaning, I’m not a leader. I’m not a follower. I’m over here doing my own thing. If you like it, good. If you don’t, oh well.) Part of the ability to be a leading actor or actress, beyond picking the right roles and luck, is this ability to attract an audience. It’s the ability to be likeable or at least pretend to be likeable. There are some actors and actresses that people will follow their movies no matter what type of drek they’re in, just because there is something about that actor that attracts them physically, mentally or emotionally.

Because connecting emotionally with the audience is a huge deal. If an actor or actress doesn’t have the ability to emote before the camera, they just aren’t doing their job. If I want to see a puppet on strings in a movie, I’ll just go see a puppet on strings. In fact, there are muppets who emote more than some actors and actresses. Even and actor or actress in the most stoic of roles, needs at some point make the audience laugh or “cry.” They need to elicit an emotional response of some sort so that the audience can connect to the character and sympathize with them. It doesn’t matter if they’re the good guy or the bad guy. They need to make us amused or angry or feel angst. When they stand there like an artist mannequin and say their lines by rote, they missed that part of the acting memo. Sylvester Stallone doesn’t always come off as all that smart, but he can make an audience feel something. John Travolta may be all over the map but he connects with the audience somewhere among the crazy shit. Nicholas Cage over emotes, but hey, at least he emotes.

Of course, there is a huge bunch of things that any actor or actress has absolutely no control over. There’s luck and timing. There are scripts that don’t suck and executives not screwing you over. Actors and Actresses don’t control release dates (authors got one up on them there) or marketing campaigns. And things out of their control can affect their careers as much as things in their control.

Physicality, fight training, and acting are all abilities that can be honed and perfected. ‘The stare’ and charisma are sometimes things that people are born with. In my opinion, being successful at all these things and the ability to bring them together at the right time and with the right project, are keys to the success of those who want to be an action movie star (or just a movie star.)

[capnsdraw]

For update of Scuba Steve's Action Doom 2: Urban Brawl!

[majornelson]

This Week’s Deals With Gold And Spotlight Sale Plus Franchise Sale

Here are this week’s games and add-on deals on the Xbox Games Store. Discounts are valid now through 25 February 2019.

These deals will expire at 11:00 am UTC on Tuesday February 26th 2019

     Xbox One Deals

Content Title Content Type Discount Notes Crossout – Frostburn Pack Add-On 50% Spotlight Age of Wonders: Planetfall Premium Edition (Pre-Order) Xbox One Game 10% Spotlight Red Dead Redemption 2 Xbox One X Enhanced 33% DWG Destiny 2: Forsaken Add-On 50% DWG The Surge – Augmented Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 75% DWG Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 Season Pass Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 67% DWG Oxenfree Xbox Game Pass 60% DWG Thimbleweed Park Xbox Play Anywhere 50% DWG Outcast – Second Contact Xbox One Game 60% DWG Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales Xbox One Game 25% DWG AER – Memories Of Old Xbox One Game 25% DWG Ben 10 Xbox One Game 70% DWG Chaos On Deponia Xbox One Game 50% DWG Crayola Scoot Xbox One X Enhanced 70% DWG Destiny 2: Forsaken + Annual Pass Xbox One X Enhanced 30% DWG Destiny 2: Forsaken – Complete Collection Xbox One X Enhanced 40% DWG Destiny 2: Forsaken – Digital Deluxe Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 35% DWG Destiny 2: Forsaken – Legendary Collection Xbox One X Enhanced 50% DWG Doodle God: Crime City Xbox One X Enhanced 35% DWG Doom And Destiny Xbox One Game 20% DWG Euro Fishing: Ultimate Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 30% DWG Dovetail Games Euro Fishing Xbox One X Enhanced 70% DWG Farming Simulator 17 Premium Edition Xbox One Game 70% DWG INDIE BUNDLE: Shiness And Seasons After Fall Xbox One Game 75% DWG Lords Of The Fallen Xbox One Game 85% DWG Lords Of The Fallen Digital Complete Edition Xbox One Game 85% DWG Nightmare Boy Xbox One Game 50% DWG Red Dead Redemption 2: Special Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 33% DWG Red Dead Redemption 2: Ultimate Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 33% DWG Shalnor Legends: Sacred Lands Xbox One Game 25% DWG State Of Anarchy: Master Of Mayhem Xbox One X Enhanced 30% DWG Stick It To The Man Xbox One Game 80% DWG Styx: Master of Shadows + Styx: Shards of Darkness Xbox One Game 75% DWG TT Isle Of Man Xbox One X Enhanced 40% DWG Warhammer Bundle: Mordheim And Blood Bowl 2 Xbox One Game 75% DWG Madden NFL 19 Xbox One X Enhanced 75% DWG Madden NFL 19 Hall Of Fame Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 75% DWG Euro Fishing: Bergsee Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Foundry Dock Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Hunters Lake Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Le Lac d’Or Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Lilies Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Manor Farm Lake Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Season Pass Add-On 50% Spotlight Euro Fishing: The Moat Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Waldsee Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Castle Edition Add-On 60% Spotlight Euro Fishing: Urban Edition Add-On 60% Spotlight Lords of the Fallen – Complete Edition Bundle Add-On 80% Spotlight Extinction Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Extinction: Deluxe Edition Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Beast Quest Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Dead Alliance Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Dead Alliance: Multiplayer Edition Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight The Golf Club 2 Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Infinite Air With Mark McMorris Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Alekhine’s Gun Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Lichdom: Battlemage Xbox One Game 70% Spotlight Override: Mech City Brawl – Season Pass Add-On 35% Spotlight Human Fall Flat Xbox Game Pass 60% Spotlight LEGO DC Super-Villains Xbox One X Enhanced 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Deluxe Edition Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale The LEGO Movie Videogame Xbox One Game 40% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Xbox One X Enhanced 50% Franchise Sale LEGO The Incredibles Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Bundle Xbox One X Enhanced 50% Franchise Sale The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game Xbox One Game 40% Franchise Sale LEGO Harry Potter Collection Xbox One X Enhanced 40% Franchise Sale LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO City Undercover Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 40% Franchise Sale LEGO Jurassic World Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Deluxe Edition Xbox One X Enhanced 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Deluxe Bundle Xbox One X Enhanced 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel’s Avengers Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel’s Avengers Deluxe Edition Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Movies Game Bundle Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO STAR WARS: The Force Awakens Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO STAR WARS: The Force Awakens Deluxe Edition Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale LEGO Worlds Xbox One Game 50% Franchise Sale

*These offers are only valid for Xbox Live Gold members. Please note: prices and availability are subject to change and may vary by region.

     Xbox 360 Deals

Content Title Content Type Discount Notes Grand Theft Auto V* Games On Demand 50% DWG L.A. Noire* Games On Demand 70% DWG Bully Scholarship Edition* Backward Compatible 60% DWG Max Payne 3* Games On Demand 50% DWG Sniper: Ghost Warrior* Games On Demand 85% DWG Alien Rage* Arcade 80% DWG Dogfight 1942* Arcade 75% DWG Dogfight 1942 Fire Over Africa* Add-On 50% DWG Dogfight 1942 Russia Under Siege* Add-On 50% DWG Enemy Front* Games On Demand 85% DWG Enemy Front Multiplater Expansion Pack* Add-On 60% DWG Rotastic* Arcade 80% DWG Sniper Ghost Warrior – Second Strike* Add-On 60% DWG Sniper Ghost Warrior 2* Games On Demand 85% DWG Sniper Ghost Warrior 2 – Gold* Add-On 70% DWG Sniper Ghost Warrior 2 – Siberian Strike* Add-On 70% DWG Sniper: Ghost Warrior – Map Pack* Add-On 70% DWG LEGO Batman Backward Compatible 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Harry Potter Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale The LEGO Movie Videogame Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes Backward Compatible 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale LEGO Jurassic World Games On Demand 70% Franchise Sale

*These offers are only valid for Xbox Live Gold members. Please note: prices and availability are subject to change and may vary by region.

via Xbox Live's Major Nelson http://bit.ly/2DS0eDl

[nerdsonearthblog]

Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is the newest adventure for D&D 5e. The back cover describes it as “a mad romp through the wards of Waterdeep” that will take players from from 1st through 5th level. I’ll provide a full chapter-by-chapter review below, but first, please indulge me as I take you on a quick romp around the block.

Anyone who has undertook a huge new endeavor knows it takes a couple of years to really hit your stride. My personal belief is that Chris Perkins is the greatest living D&D storyteller (respects to the King of the Nerds, Gary Gygax). Perkins, of course, was in no way solely responsible for the launch of D&D 5e (his colleagues include the talented Mike Mearls and Jeremy Crawford). Still, Perkins understandably had a lot on his plate story-wise when D&D 5e was first launched just a few years ago.

This resulted in the first few D&D 5e adventures being very good, yet sometimes just shy of great. To be clear, I enjoyed Hoard of the Dragon Queen just fine and I thought Princes of the Apocalypse and Out of the Abyss had many, many moments of greatness.

But years into the release of D&D 5e, I read Tomb of Annihilation and it was that specific adventure where I had the thought that Chris Perkins was fully at the top of his game, having solidified himself as the GOAT-not-named-Gygax.

Now, having just turned the final page of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, I felt like I read a Chris Perkins story so clever and brilliantly done that he has reached the point of confidence in his career that he could set the stage for adventure, then step back and invite a new generation of storytellers to their mark on the story.

But…what do I know? Maybe I have read the situation entirely wrong. But even a gross mis-understanding of the internal processes of WotC doesn’t change this simple truth: Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is an astonishingly excellent D&D adventure. There are several sections of the book that don’t feel like they were written as much as they feel like the design team collected everything fun and enjoyable together in order to stuff them into a confetti cannon that was fired over the pages of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and allowed to fall onto the pages like a glitter bomb of joy.

So, let’s take a deeper look, shall we?

Reviewing Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

In order to properly review Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, an overview is first in order. In the splendid city of Waterdeep, a gold coin is called a “dragon” and a half million of those dragons are hidden somewhere in the city. A magical item called the Stone of Golorr is imbued with the location of the treasure vault but the Stone of Golorr is comically being passed around a huge cast of NPCs like a hot potato.

Players are on the hunt, but their madcap chase is complicated by the fact that there are warring, jostling factions in Waterdeep. These factions might try to recruit the PCs just as quickly as they try to kill them, the end result being that their are four different villains the players can confront:

Xanathar, the megalomaniacal beholder crime lord who is based in Skullport, deep below Waterdeep,

The Cassalanters, Waterdavian nobles who are secretly devil worshippers that reside in an ostentatious villa with a secret lair beneath it,

Jarlaxle Baenre, a dashing drow swashbuckler best know for being a character in the Drizzt novels, and

Manshoon, a powerful Zhentarim wizard who has cloned himself like the glam Mr. Sinister.

Are you having fun yet? Because I had fun just reading the introductory chapter, which perfectly set the stage for adventure. But if it sounds like a huge cast of NPCs and different possibilities for villains might make Waterdeep: Dragon Heist difficult as an adventure for first time players or DMs, you’d be correct.

Perkins and his team clearly understand this, so included in the book are coherent overviews and well-done flowcharts to help track the adventure. Still, this isn’t a D&D adventure that I can recommend you use to get your feet wet. (The Starter Box adventure Lost Mines of Phandelver is best for beginners.) Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is best for players who like intrigue, bluffing, subterfuge, and other roleplaying heavy skills.

It begins with a bar brawl and a quest from none other than the famous Volothamp Geddarm (chapter 1). Even Volo’s introductory quest has twists and turns, ultimately resulting in a case of mistaken identity. But it introduces lots of NPCs and allows players to get a feel for the city setting of Waterdeep.

Plus, the quest concludes in the most wonderful way possible, which is Volo giving the PCs a deed to an old tavern in Waterdeep! (chapter 2) In addition to giving the players a “home base,” this always allows players to feel at home in the setting, while also introducing quests that deepen the major factions of Waterdeep.

Even though the quests are effectively simple “dungeon delves,” Chapter 2 is wonderfully and thoughtfully done. Besides, even though many have begun to use phrases like “it’s just a dungeon delve” as a pejorative, that completely overlooks that delves and crawls are the meat and potatoes of D&D.

Chapter 3 is where Waterdeep: Dragon Heist stumbled for me. A fireball is detonated just outside the players’ new HQ, rattling the windows. This leads to an elaborate ‘who done it?’ that has the PCs working parallel to Waterdeep’s City Watch to determine the who and why of the fireball attack, before finally determining the where of the Stone of Golorr.

To be clear, it’s a well-written and exciting plot that reads like a episode of True Detective. But it involves a slew of NPCs and an amount of skill checks that could frustrate even the most patient DMs or the most intrigue-loving players.

One of the chapter 3 headings was “What’s Happening Here?” At times, I couldn’t tell. My recommendation would be to allow the City Watch to solve that mystery and feed the information to the players so they can jump right into Chapter 4: Dragon Season.

I won’t beat around the bush: the 40 pages of chapter 4 are among to absolute best that I’ve ever read in any roleplaying game book, ever. What they outline (again, with the help of a handy flowchart) are ten different encounters that range from a classic old tower to a mausoleum to a wharf or a chase across rooftops.

Depending upon which of the four villains is chosen, the ten encounters are shuffed into a unique sequence. Then each encounter is re-jiggered according to the season, giving fresh elements to each of the 10 encounters for the spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. At the end of each encounter chain, players should now have the Stone of Golorr, attuning them to the location of the horde of dragons. It’s dope.

Huzzah! After one final tussle with the villains, the players exit the vault and return the treasure to the proper authorities, becoming celebrities as word of their deeds spread throughout Waterdeep!

The four villains (Xanathar, The Cassalanters, Jarlaxle, and Manshoon) are too powerful for the player characters to face directly, so Waterdeep: Dragon Heist does a bang up job of allowing them to face off indirectly,  hindering their criminal operations without an obvious TPK. Overall, Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is light, fast, and  filled with quirky characters.

But chapters 5-8 do excellently detail each villain’s lair should the player characters have delusions of grandeur. Otherwise, the now 5th level characters are invited back to the Yawning Portal in order explore Undermountain, the next book coming from Chris Perkins and the D&D team.

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Apologies for brushing past chapters 5-8, as the lairs are well done, but it’s chapter 9 that takes Waterdeep: Dragon Heist from a simple adventure book to something much more. The D&D team have cleverly attempted to have each adventure book double as a fine setting book for homebrewers. This is certainly true with Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.

Volo’s Waterdeep Enchiridion (chapter 9) beautifully paints a picture of life in Waterdeep. DMs will want to read it for the adventures of Dragon Heist of course, but home brewers will dig it, as it is a nice aid for further adventures in Waterdeep, or even a generic urban-based story that is thunk up. It’s not a full gazetteer, but the chapter has enough hooks to hang up all the mittens and coats from a long Minnesota winter, making it a nice value add for future adventures in the splendid city of Waterdeep.

Closing the book are the typical appendices that detail NPCs, new magic items, and player handouts. But I want to close by talking about maps. First, tucked into the back cover is a large removable map of Waterdeep. It has one side for players, while the other side is for GMs and includes marked locales. It’s fantastic. I don’t know what the economics are of getting a map like this tucked into every D&D book, but I hereby start a petition that it should 100% be the law of the land.

The interior Dyson Logos maps in the book aren’t to my taste. I fully admit the sparse black and white maps are very usable. (Quick to draw or easy to snap a picture, then print out) But I would have preferred them as free digital downloads, allowing the actual interior maps to have the added color and details. As Banky taught us in Chasing Amy, inkers and colorists aren’t simply tracers, they really add depth and definition to a drawing. I would have liked to see that depth and color in the book’s included maps. But, again, that’s just a personal preference.

What I love about Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is that it isn’t a hyped-up world-destroying cataclysmic event designed to have PCs face down villains to prevent total doom and destruction. Instead, it’s like Cannonball Run or the Amazing Race if all the contestants were, you know, wizards.

I close this review as I began it. Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is an astonishingly excellent D&D adventure. Kudos to Chris Perkins, the entire D&D team, and for the new designers to D&D, who certainly added freshness and creativity to the book.

It’s a great time to be a D&D player, a god reason being that we all get to enjoy a wonderful city-based adventure for the world’s greatest roleplaying game. So I highly recommend Waterdeep: Dragon Heist as your next D&D campaign. And if you aren’t considering running it? Well, Nerds on Earth’s jack-booted thugs will soon arriving at your doorstep to push a 20-sided die into your palm. Resistance is futile: Xanathar sent us.

You can get Dragon Heist here. Better yet, ask for it at your FLGS.

[Disclosure: Wizards of the Coast sent Nerds on Earth a copy of Dragon Heist in exchange for an honest review.]

The Newest D&D Adventure: A Review of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Waterdeep: Dragon Heist is the newest adventure for D&D 5e. The back cover describes it as "a mad romp through the wards of Waterdeep" that will take players from from 1st through 5th level.