Flight Of The Navigator Vs. Sphere

* = Yes Spidey it IS that sort of week.  No one is here, no one seems to care, and with the cancellation I had this morning I'm just trying to hold on.  Oh well at least I get to drive three plus hours both ways tomorrow to teach a three hour class...





This one will be stream of consciousness today as I’m low on sleep, but high on spare time and energy. STEEL THYSELVES!

Let’s be honest with one another shall we, I need a haircut. I know I look decent with a bit of grass on the field, but it is insanely uncomfortable. I’m hoping this week or at least this weekend to rock the hawk for the rest of the summer. It would make my time outside doing activities like grilling, dealing with vines, or mowing much cooler. You know how I could look or feel much cooler? Riding mower. Just throwing it out there.

Friday night we had our first ever Friday Night SMACKDOWN. It was El Bobert-O, Diamond Dave, Mighty Mike, and a new comer to the fold Dave’s brother Jammin’ James. I have to say James is like the love child of Mick Foley & Zach Galifianakis, which is almost as high a compliment as I’m legally able to give anyone at any time without a Doctor’s prescription. The first thing we had to knock out was making our shows. James & Dave, the Wheeler Boyz, worked in tandem and took the Monday night slot with Heat, there was then a duel show on Tuesday, followed by Mike’s Wed. night RAW is WAR, Thursday is another duel show, Bob took Friday night with Unchained, and I had Saturday with 'Bōken no jikan', which is Japanese for ‘Adventure Time’.

We then drafted our rosters snake style. Oh before I go any further I have to thank Cassandra for just being cool and for bringing us frozen pizzas just because we looked hungry. My wife is the best. I will be the first to admit that drafting threw me WAY off, which is HI-larious since it was my idea. I ended up picking last, which wasn’t that big a deal considering the snake style. What was a big deal is that I held off drafting myself for SO long that I got drafted by ‘them damn Wheeler Boyz’. I’ll get to that a bit later.

The draft was strange, and highlighted our different loves of ‘Rasslin’. Mike went straight Old School, Attitude Era, and then cool comic book looking guys straight across the board. It was insane for him to have Hogan, Savage, Big Boss Man, and the Brothers Of Destruction, but then to take Frightmare & Hallowicked. And by insane I mean beautiful. Bob went a bit more mainstream current vibe with guys like The Rock, CM Punk, the entirety of DX, and Chris Jericho. Looking at his roster it is fantastic, and will have consistently entertaining show match-ups. In fact Bob & I played Jericho Vs. Punk and had a really fantastic match where at one point he escaped the Walls of Jericho, blocked a Codebreaker, AND then hit me with a G.T.S., and I somehow kicked out. The Wheeler Boyz drafted from a place I can empathize with one of pure Wrestling Love. Their roster is chock full of Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, and the Kings Of Wrestling! My jealousy for certain picks they made was palpable.

Finally we have my roster. I’m not even sure what I did.  Honestly I think I panicked a bit and have this strange eclectic roster that has weird highs and lows. I took Kenta Kobashi, Vader, The Great Muta, Sami Callihan, Ultra Mantis Black, El Generico, Michael Elgin, Kevin Steen, Bam Bam Bigelow, Jushin Thunder Liger, Sabu, Chuck Taylor, The Big Show, Brian Pillman, etc. See that roster makes like ZERO sense. I paired Bigelow & Vader (dubbed Devastation INC.) together, formed a version of The Gentlemen’s Club with Taylor, Big Show, & Drew McIntryre. Yeah you read that right I used one of my 20 roster slots and drafted Drew McIntyre. I had drafted the Rhodes Scholars team, because I am a HUGE fan of Damien Sandow. I put Elgin & Callihan together as a version of the Unbreakable Machines, re-teamed Generico & Steen into Steenerico, paired Sabu & Pillman into the Loose Cannons, and put all my Japanese stars into one basket as the ‘Asahi no kakutō’, which roughly translate to Grapplers Of The Rising Sun.

* = No Kool Aid was pumped in the making of any of the rosters, even mine which has a disturbing lack of Mark Henry.

It isn’t a bad roster per say, it’s just strange. Speaking of strange, Mike assembled his own N.W.O. Gold on RAW is WAR with Hogan, Sting, Savage, Bossman, & himself. It is a “Squee” inducing roster that already has some cracks as his first show had Sting & Mike’s guy going at it. As odd is that is, it is NOTHING compared to the treatment my character got from Dave & James. My character is teaming with the ‘Doctor Of Thuganomics’ version of John Cena to form, “The Doctors Of Porkinomics”. You see my guy’s finisher is “The Pork Fat Express”, so it makes perfect sense. Well perfect, maniacal sense to The Wheeler Boyz. They then put together an entrance where I drive Cena around in a jeep. It was painful. And hilarious.

Looking at the rosters though we all have AMAZING tag divisions, some odd and yet intriguing factions, and the potential for some really creative feuds. Having five chefs building a dish from different perspectives has left us with some incredible potential. If you couple that with the fact that the Free Agent pool is full of the likes of The Wyatt Family, Kofi Kingston, The Shield, R-Truth, The Briscoe Brothers, Eddie Kingston, Randy Orton, etc. and the shows could literally go anywhere.

Finally after drafting, forming teams, and getting our shows ready we played. The thing is I’ve played this game basically non-stop since buying it, I love it. Mike, Dave, and James had never played it. Bob had fooled around with it, but never spent a great deal of time with it. I was INSANELY impressed with how quickly they picked it up and became competitive. It went from button mashing to more controlled and well thought out strategies, which made the matches fun to watch. Oh that and the heckling, and the Harry Caray commentary, AND the amazing Dueling Jim Rosses. Actually it was just an insanely fun night. I haven’t laughed like that in some time. The best part was playing the game was fun. I didn’t mind losing just playing was so fun. Having a Hell in the Cell match take place where I as Mark Henry was DESTROYING Dave as Daniel Bryan only to have him steal the victory was flat out incredible. The Doctors Of Porkinomics stealing a victory with 8 punches and a quick pin made everyone mark out. Oh and having Christian come out and jump The Miz not once, BUT twice only to have Zack Ryder make the save has us all intrigued. Because our rosters make sense only to us, the computer’s insane booking is fantastic. We made it through a week of play and ended up at the Wheeler Boyz first pay per view.

We started at around 7pm and were done at about 12:30am. I felt like we only were hanging out for an hour or so, it went really fast. I can’t state enough how much fun I had with this group. It was a perfect mix with Mike being our non-Wrestling aficionado straight man, Bob & James clicking into comedy duo mode in some strange moment of serendipity, Dave is one of the smartest and funniest dudes I know, and I’m batting clean-up. It is a veritable ‘Murder’s Row’ of fun. It sounds like we’ll be playing again in a few weeks. I for one cannot wait.

Saturday we didn’t do a whole lot. We grilled with Zack Attack & Lady Christy. I thought I had shat the bed on the meat as the grill was WAY hotter than I thought and I wasn’t paying very close attention. However I was wrong the burgers turned out amazing, and I have plans for that steak now which may or may not include a tad bit of braising and then some Alfredo sauce and noodles. I also was introduced to bacon, cheddar Bratwurst burgers which officially changed my life and the health of my heart. DAMN they are tasty. THEN, then there was SPANIKOPITA, but we don’t talk about SPANIKOPITA. I will only say this, I should always do things with a tiny apron tied around my head like a strange open skull sheik like head wrap. I think it intimidates my enemies. Oh and I am not a dirty, filthy spy. I’ve proved that now so everyone can SUCK IT!

ANYWHO, it was another week so we got back to our regularly scheduled Skull & Shackles preview!

First up is the Elder Brykolakas, which is a Medium Common. Honestly I have ZERO idea about this beast; I do know it is some type of aquatic undead though. They would make damn fine Lacedons though which is one variation on the Ghoul we still haven’t seen. Lord knows I need a SLEW of those for 2nd Group. As for the miniature itself I like the looming pose and even enjoy the strange elongated limbs. It has a slightly large head, but I can’t tell if that’s just the angle of the photos. I also like the emaciated look, but the strange way the legs and hips fit to the torso is slightly off putting and not in a good way. The color is alright. The hue is sickly, and fits the tone of the monster. The shading is alright, but I wish we had a clearer look at the face. Overall I can’t say much as it’s an Undead and the colors usually are drab. This one is a MUST BUY for me as I could use about five of them.

Next up is Captain Barnabus Harrigan, an Uncommon Medium mini. He’s a nasty Captain in the Adventure Path and the miniature fits the bill. There is imperiousness about the way the miniature is standing; I think it’s the hand on the belt and that blade sort of just out there. The picture isn’t very clear so I can’t see all the details but it appears at first glance like there is a TON if it in the sculpt. If it’s the grimace face like I fear it is, than I’m not a huge fan. If it is some sort of menacing grin then I am far more interested. Again the picture really doesn’t do the paint job any favors as I can’t really see what’s going on. I really do think that this one will look better ‘in hand’ than it does in this particular photograph. It’s a nice pirate miniature, and an even better evil Captain. This one is also a MUST BUY!

They follow up that sort of drab photo with Tess Fairwind and this VERY clear photo. Tess is also a Medium Uncommon. Let’s be honest you can’t have too many female pirate types, especially not if you are running a Pirate themed game. This is an excellent miniature in my opinion. She looks like she is moving forward with purpose and possibly into combat. There isn’t a ton of movement, but there is enough to get your attention. The colors REALLY pop here. The whites with the burgundy and then that pop of bright red in the hair all flows together perfectly. There is some gold or bronze in there that helps shine on the miniature, but those main three colors really make this miniature. This one is to me the best of this week’s bunch and a MUST BUY!

Last but not least is the Canon Golem. It is a Large Rare miniature. Perhaps I need to see this one in hand, because as it sits here in the picture it looks like a metallic mess. I don’t really see a head, at all. I do see a canon with no ammunition for an arm, chains, a bunch of harsh angles in the sculpt, and the dreaded sword arm. This miniature just does absolutely nothing for me. This seems like the idea or concept has overreached and given us something that looks awkward and mish mashie in three dimensions. The more I stare at it the more another fact creeps into my mind; what the hell would I do with this thing? I just don’t think I have anywhere I could insert it into a campaign. I’m sure somewhere out there is a contingent of folks who are ecstatic about getting this bruiser I’m just not seeing it. For me this one is a definite PASS. There aren’t many previews left and I’m pretty sure August is the release date, luckily for me it looks like a lot of my wants are in the Common and Uncommon realm rather than the Rare value. I’m eager to see this one come out and to see what Paizo & Wizkids have up their sleeves next.

Hmmmm, I’m not sure what else I have to yakity yak about, so let’s wrap up with some…

RANDOM CRAP!

- Thank you to Karl & ‘Black Thunda’ the C-Fish for all their computer help the last week. We now have two functioning computers again. Without these two gentlemen we’d have none.

- I’m thinking that over the 4th Staycation we MUST bust out Fable III. It has been sitting there begging us to give it some run since we bought the X-Box 360. Now is the time.

- I miss CHIKARA.

- Josie hooked me up with a GIGANTIC slab of salmon. I’m going to smoke half of it, along with that halibut from our last smoking session with my Father-In-Law at some point. Beer will be involved. The other half I’m going to smoke with my friends. Perhaps the same day I cook THE HELL out of that goat leg. I’m thinking in September.

- I’m hoping we do some painting soon. Almost every weekend we plan it and then never get to it.

- We watched the first part of Under The Dome. Stephen King has a formula; I’ve only started to notice it in the last few years. The thing is I’m ok with that, because he takes his formula and then builds around it. Small town with secrets just under the polished veneer gets into a supernatural disaster and humanity shows its true colors. This one isn’t any different, but what makes all King’s tales different is where they go from the set-up, where and what the characters evolve into, and just who or what turns out to be more terrifying the big supernatural baddie or humanity itself.

- D&D 2nd Group is on Saturday. I have high hopes for HIGH ADVENTURE!

- As of this morning 388 orders have shipped from Reaper, but mine isn’t in them. We are down to 7,008 orders left to fill. I’m wondering just where I fall in there.

- Paying bill is a drag.

- Zack Attack has begun selling me on D&D Next. I have to admit to how one of his groups went through two major Role Playing encounters and two combat encounters in like three to four hours sounds pretty swanky. He has changed his Birthday Weekend adventure from a 4E Dwarven adventure into some mines to giving us some D&D Next version of at least one classic module. I’m VERY intrigued.

- Over the upcoming Staycation we are going to get through season 4 of Justified and season 2 of Falling Skies. This WILL happen.

- Tonight I might be watching RAW with ‘Them Damn Wheeler Boyz’. I’m hoping for yes.

- Last night I exposed Cassandra to Little Shop Of Horrors (**** out of 5).

I have always loved that flick and especially the Bill Murray and Steve Martin scene. I was elated that she enjoyed it. I think it is a damn fine mixture of musical and horror movie. Audrey II is friggin’ amazing and really holds up even today. It is just a great little flick.

I think that’s about all I got.




“You thought you'd conquered space
But now your reign is through
Dissect the human race
Until they conquer you

Fame is now mine
Even though it's illusion
Space and now time
Has just reached its conclusion

2000 years ago
My race created you
We turned you loose in space
Now a polluted zoo

Fate is no crime
I can face this illusion
Space and now time
Has just reached its conclusion

Light years are passing before me I'll soon begin
Carnivores roam the stars all in the place of men
Singular manifestation of time

And as your kingdom falls
I've taken after you
You may have wished this on me
And now you see it through

Your time is rolling over
My time is coming soon
I'll resurrect the ancient spores
Eclipse the Vargr moon

Matter warps space
So now time is illusion
How can I face this miraculous conclusion?

Light years are passing before me I'll soon begin
Right from the start I can see you're an alien
Singular manifestation of time

Your stories do amuse me
Although your eyes are vacant
I did not wish this on you
Your madness is quite blatant
Inside your mind I see the source of your hallucinations
Your body's wasted but your brain's on fire

The future still looks grim now
The human race is wasted
But soon you must turn over
The power you have tasted
In all your mercy I can see you are an ideal agent
To bring this curse upon the galaxy
Wait and see

Light years are passing before me I'll soon begin
Carnivores roam the stars all in the place of man
Infinite manifestation of time “

      * = Zack Attack I saw this and immediately thought of you...