Nerding

Voltron: Season 3

Emily and I just finished the surprisingly short Season 3 of Voltron. It was about half the length of the last two seasons, which we didn’t know, so when we saw episode 7 was the season finale it caught us a little off guard. I thought I would jot down some quick thoughts while it’s still fresh in my mind. I’ll keep it as spoiler free as possible!

My biggest take away was that the story wasn’t quite as good as the last two seasons. It was interesting enough to keep my attention, but didn’t draw me in like before. While I found it really hard to stop watching before, this time it didn’t take much convincing. The story was a little slow the entire season, and felt a bit to predictable at times. It did have a couple good “didn’t see that coming” moments, and added some backstory though. I can also give it a slight pass based on the fact it feels like it was setting up for a much bigger story in Season 4 which is only a couple months away. Hopefully it pays off!

I mentioned it above, and one of my favorite things this season was the back story and the throw backs to previous seasons. They did a great job explaining some the history of Voltron and the first paladins, and tying it to the present. It was definitely one of the better episodes. There were also a few “I HAD COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN ABOUT THAT!” moments when recalling past events, which was a nice touch.

***This next paragraph gets into some spoiler-ish moments***

The part I was most disappointed with was the Shiro story line. It’s obvious from the beginning that he is not actually dead, and when they do finally bring him back, it happens way too fast in my opinion. He is reunited with the team in the same episode he appears in, and then goes back to being his old self in the next. They hint that there is a nefarious plan behind it all (and that’s why he was able to escape so easily), so much like the rest of the season, I’m betting this gets better in the next season.

It sure seems like I’ve been ragging on this season an awful lot, but overall, it still felt like the Voltron I have come to enjoy over the last two seasons. I just wish the story had been more exciting and other things had been flushed out better. I suppose that’s what happens when you only get seven episodes though. I’m still very much looking forward to Season 4 and watching Voltron and the paladins kick some more butt!

Another “Nothing Planned Saturday”

Sometimes you have those weekends where you have plans. Music festival, beer fest, comic cons… And then you have those weekends, where beside one or two smaller things, you have nothing planned. What do you do? Besides training runs, here’s how my weekend turned out:

Splatoon

Splatoon
Don’t know what it is about online multiplayer games and shooting things, but I love it. Even more so that I’m a squid that can swim through ink and hit people with paintballs and paint rollers like a ninja. I have been told I have an addiction with this game, and it didn’t help that this weekend was Splatoon’s Art vs Science Splatfest. Sorry Billy Nye, but I pick Art class over Science any day.

Spoiler alert: Art won.

Mistborn - Hero of Ages

The Hero of Ages (Mistborn)
After settling down from our move, I was finally able to make it to the library and picked up Hero of Ages, the final book in Vin’s story from Brandon Sanderson. So far I’ve made it to chapter three and have already read through some events that make me fall in love Sanderson’s writing even more. With it being the last book with Vin, I already know there will be plenty of feels to the end of this story.

How I Met Your Mother

How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother has been an on and off series for me. There are times where I sit down and watch four-five episodes, and then I can go several months without watching it again. Despite that, the characters in this show all have their own quirks and characteristics that make you feel an attachment toward each of them. There’s also some great life lessons included as well.

“If you’re not scared, you’re not taking a chance. If you’re not taking a chance, then what the hell are you doing?”

Phantom…of the hourglass!

After playing through Majora’s Mask on my 3DS, it got me thinking about the other Zelda games for the DS that I never beat, and I decided to give them another go. First up: The Phantom Hourglass.

The_Legend_of_Zelda_-_Phantom_Hourglass_(logo)

I can’t remember why I stopped playing this game. The only thing I can think of is that some other game came out, and my attention was pulled away. I didn’t get very far on my first play through, so this was basically a completely new game to me. Phantom Hourglass takes place directly after Wind Waker, and has the same art style to it. You are once again sailing around the ocean from island to island, but this time are chasing after the elusive ‘Ghost Ship’ that has taken Tetra. You end up running into a traveler named Linebeck and it’s his ship that you travel around on as you adventure onward.

Phantom_Hourglass_ShipOne major difference from Wind Waker? You can change out the parts of your ship! As you complete side quests and salvage buried treasure from the bottom of the ocean, you will come across new parts which you can equip. There are certain combinations that will give your ship more hearts, which is a little more motivation outside of making your ship look cool. I enjoyed this way more than I probably should have.

The only real problem I had with the game is how gimmicky it is. This game was clearly designed to show off all the features of the DS and they felt forced at times. For instance, there are several times where you have to shout into the microphone to get a person’s attention or cause a monster to be attack-able, and I found it rather annoying (especially when I was playing late at night). That goes double for having to use the stylus to attack all the time. JUST LET ME PUSH A BUTTON, DAMN IT!

I wouldn’t say the story is fantastic, as it’s the standard Zelda style adventure, but I’m also not complaining. You kill monsters, you find things, then you kill more monsters, and you find more things. All while trying to save Zelda and restore order to the world. I suppose the ‘If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it’ rule applies here. Again, no complaints.

Overall it was a good, but gimmicky, game. I’m sure had I played it 7 years ago when it came out, I wouldn’t have minded all the ‘features’ it was showing off, but it feels really dated now. If you’re a huge Zelda fan like myself, I’d definitely say give this game a play through, but if you’re not, I’d say skip it as it’s nothing to write home about.

Ode to Paper Mario 64

Like a leaf in the wind
Oh how you float through the air
Paper Mario

Paper Mario

After playing through part of the game on the N64 growing up (I had a pretty short attention span growing up), I was very excited to see that I could finish Paper Mario on the Wii U via eShop. Both the art and the RPG style hooked me in.

Paper Mario - Kooper

The storyline is pretty interesting as well. Its simplistic; end goal is to save Peach and the kingdom from Bowser. I enjoy playing as Mario as he travels through different lands with various partners he picks up on the way (my favorite so far has been Kooper) to find all of the Star Spirits to overpower Bowser and his godmoding star wand. It’s also cool how you switch from Mario to Peach throughout the story and play spy to help Mario figure out where he needs to go next.

Paper Mario - Bowser & PeachCreeper.

With the amount of fun I’ve been having playing this game, I am a bit surprised there’s not much merchandise out there to buy. Thank God for Etsy, where I can look at things I want (and cannot afford.)

Paper Mario - MerchandiseBag | Star Keychain | Mario Keychain

Once I have completed this game, my eyes will be peeled for the sequel Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Here’s to hoping that one is downloadable as well.

Mask wearing Link

I’m a huge Zelda fan, so when Nintendo announced they were releasing an updated version of Majora’s Mask for the 3DS, I immediately pre-ordered it. Turns out it was a good idea as the limited edition version (with a skull kid statue!) sold out with in a few hours. Nintendo did a great job with the statue and I’m really glad I was able to snag one.

Majora's Mask

In my opinion, that was the only Majora’s Mask themed item they got right. They made a Majora’s Mask 3DS, but it’s all gold with the mask in a black outline. All I can say is….what were they thinking? Majora’s mask has great vibrant colors, and they could have made a purple 3DS with the mask in full color, popping out on the lid. I only needed a passing glance at the actual design to decide to pass on it. They did almost the exact same thing for the Majora’s Mask messenger bag available to Club Nintendo members – all black and no color. I was once again super disappointed.

The other reason I was excited for this game is that Majora’s Mask is one of the Zelda games I haven’t played a bunch of times. While I’m still remembering quite a few things, there are times when I’m not a 100% sure what is coming next, and that’s a great feeling. It also helps that this game is slightly abnormal when compared to the other Zelda games. The three day mechanic and having masks that transform Link in various ways definitely make the game stand out. I’ve only completed one dungeon so far, but I’m enjoying it just as much as the first time I played it.

The only downside to the updated version? Nintendo once again added the hint stones that show you exactly what do, just like they did with Ocarina of TIme. I feel it really hurts the game if you use them as half the fun of these games is figuring out where to go next and solving the puzzles that come along. Plus, it’s fairly easy to figure things out already as Tatl (your companion fairy) gives you plenty of hints. My suggestion – Don’t use them. You’ll thank me later.

Overall, it’s still a great game and you should play it if you haven’t already. Updating this game so it can be enjoyed by both the generation that saw it released and the generations that it’s new to, was an awesome idea. Now here is a little poem I wrote during my 15 mile run on Saturday to end this post:

I finished my long run
And 15 miles wasn’t fun
But still I pushed through
with the help of Chews
Now it’s time sit on my ass
and play Majora’s Mask