Concordia University is a small small place...

Rob enters the Hall building elevator with a young couple.

Boy in elevator (to girl): So what are you doing on campus?

Girl in elevator: I'm taking an online course, Sociology 282.

Rob's ears perk up as he's a TA for that very same class.

Boy in elevator: Really how's that going?

Girl in elevator: It's a lot of writing. I haven't even done the readings that much but I'm getting by by looking stuff up on Wikipedia.

Boy in elevator: Awesome, you outsmarted them.

Robert tries as hard as humanly possible to hold in his laughter as they get off the elevator.


Now how bad would it be to enter the admin system and try to figure out who that girl is? Man, she is so lucky I hold myself a somewhat strict code of ethics. I am however, cross referencing every paper I mark now through Wikipedia. Foolish undergrads, thinking TAs have never cheated before. Just wait and see how hardass I am at the final exam dearie. I know all the tricks.

Robby on the Radio

Well the CBC roundtable I was a part of has been posted online. On the panel was me, Cedric and an artist named Amy Wong from Toronto.

The link is here. We're on the 2nd hour of the show, starting around the 22 minute mark or so.

Check it out!

Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe

Okay I'm not one to get hyped up over video games before they come out (mainly because I've been burned so many times in the past - 'Deus Ex 2' anyone?) but I'll make an exception when my favorite comic book universe strangely converges with one of my favorite fighting games. In all fairness when I heard about this game initially I thought it was a stupid idea. While granted Marvel and Capcom did a great game in the Marvel vs. Capcom series (which me and Paul still play to this day) there was at least a bit of precedence. Marvel had a string of fighting games that were put out by Capcom back in the day (which we rocked out hard at the local 7-11 by Deer Lake, does anyone even play arcade games at gas stations anymore?). Moreover, mix ups were pretty common for Capcom with games like 'Capcom vs. SNK.' Moreover, practically all of the games that had a DC logo attached to it sucked bad. So I think its kind of fair that on initial glance I thought the Mortal Kombat/DC thing was a bit far fetched. But then again, if there's going to be a book about being caught with your foot in your mouth, I'd be the author.

So as we come off the wake of the behemoth that is the San Diego ComicCon we get to find tons of videos like the one above that prepare us with geeky joy for the coming consumerfest that is quarter 4. I'll withhold from throwing up tons and tons of videos of cool shit I plan to be playing come this winter, but man, am I excited about this, I mean the Flash looks fucking crazy. And if anything else, we're getting yet another Mortal Kombat game which is always fun and entertaining for the Parungao boys. Moreover, I don't really see what the big deal is with peopel arguing that Superman would just wipe everyone out, I mean they had Thanos in MvsC2 didn't they? Yeesh, comic geeks are such nitpickers to sticking to lore. Oh and on the topic of nitpicking nerds, do Batman and Scorpion both have the same low throw? That's kind if lazy...

Anyway I don't like to judge anything based on a trailer so I'll leave off on a high note with this vid which details why me and Paul have played MK games since they came out (does anyone else remember that Bonsor Rec Centre had MK1 in the basement next to the gym?).

CD Review - Teenage Bottlerocket - Warning Device

Teenage Bottlerocket

I'm kinda tired of writing movie reviews, so I figured I'd detour a bit and start a second phase of what I hope to make this blog into (stay tuned to see what else I have planned!). Moreover, I'm so damn stoked for the upcoming Teenage Bottlerocket tour that I figure I ought to start with them. In fact, I'm actually planning my vacation to New York a day early just to catch them in Toronto.


If you approach this CD hoping to get straightforward pop-punk, you get exactly what you wished for. No musical experimenting or exploration here folks, just the same old formula we've seen so many times in the past (The Ramones, Screeching Weasel and Mr. T Experience come to mind off hand). Except this time its done expertly well, filled with 3-chord buzzsaw guitars, 'whoa-oh' filled choruses, and snotty and snarky lyrics. Without any worry of over hyping them, this band easily summarizes all things that pop-punk is, and should be. And that's just on my first listen through!

Anyway, right off the bat you can hear the influence from singer Kody Templeman's previous band and (in all honesty) the songs in which he sings could pass as singles off a 'The Lillingtons' CD. However, the shared vocal responsibilities between him and bassist Ray Carlisle give the listener a nice change in pace. Right off the bat we are exposed to their difference in style with the first two songs on the CD (Bottlerocket and In the Basement) showing us just what this band is made of. With hooks as catchy as the flu a lot of these songs will burn themselves into your head, and even without the CD on my iPod I found myself humming songs like 'Anna's Song' on the way to the office overtop of whatever it was I was listening to. Certainly we're not embarking on MENSA territory here in terms of lyrics. Songs like 'Totally Stupid' and 'In the Nuthouse' talk about boredom and wasting time. In fact, the song 'She's not the One' is able to repeat the exact same line for three-quarters of the song. Amazingly however, songs like these are a testament to their skill and what they lack in lyrical originality, as they make up with tight songwriting and raw head-bopping catchiness. Most band's aren't able to make songs even half as good as these guys, and heck, Bottlerocket can do it with just four words. And without question the chorus for 'Pacemaker' is possibly the best of the year (yes I'm already calling it).

The pacing of the CD flows well and I can easily listen to it top to bottom without skipping a track, but it clocks in a bit short. Often when I leave it on while I'm working I'll go grab a drink and come back to find it already finished, but overall its just what I needed for the summer - an uplifting, easy to digest CD that sucks you in and keeps you listening and smiling for weeks. And in all honesty, who comes to pop-punk CD looking for anything more than that?

And with that in mind, if you live on the east coast be sure to check them out on their upcoming tour. You won't be wasting your money.

Movie Reviews - Sparrow // Triangle

Triangle (Tie Saam Gok) and Sparrow (Man Jeuk)

I'm going to try something new and compare two movies I saw at Fantasia, Jonny To's 'Sparrow' and 'Triangle' directed by To, Tsui Hark and Ringo Lam. To summarize, 'Sparrow' follows a group of four pickpockets in Hong Kong while 'Triangle' is an 'exquisite corpse' where each of the three directors write and direct a section of the movie.

Off the bat, 'Triangle' was the superior movie. Arguably one could argue that this this is somewhat obvious, and that such comparisons are unfair because 'Triangle' has the weight and credit of 3 different well-known directors behind it. While I understand these criticisms, I believe that 'Triangle' is better primarily because 'Sparrow' was such a mediocre (at best) film.

To's 'Sparrow' was an experience of style over content. We are introduced to the four pickpockets as they meet at their usual meeting spot (a small restaurant) and quickly watch them 'accidentally' bump into pedestrians, taking their wallet, watches, and other valuables. Each in turn meets Kelly Lin's Chung Chun Lei, who woos each in turn. However, the four soon find out she has gang connections (in a humorous scene where they all show up to the restaurant with broken limbs) and (in true To fashion) decide to band together and aid her.

At its peak moments, 'Sparrow' is fun to watch as we see the tricks of the pickpocket's trade. Indeed, several of the scenes parallel the excitement of a heist movies, and in one scene, in a game of one-upmanship between the pickpockets, we watch as two of the main characters steal the handcuffs from a roaming police officer. Perhaps the best the movie has to offer though, its its final scene, a stylish blend of back-and-forth stealing as the two rival gangs cross one another at a busy intersection. While it is predictably (perhaps stereotypically) shot in slow motion and in the rain, it a fun scene nonetheless and nobody can accuse this movie of not knowing what its doing in terms of cinematography. Writing on the other hand is a different story.

Outside of several key gems, the film is painfully straightforward, emotionally unmoving, and suffers from mediocre dialogue that borders camp. Like the previously reviewed 'Pye Dog' the movie failed to stand on its own two feet and relies heavily on only several good scenes while the rest of the film is a total drag. Like a box of children's cereal, it may look amazing and even give you a few treats, but in the end 'Sparrow' gives you next to nothing in terms of nutritional content or gratification.

'Triangle' on the other hand was an interesting ride. To start off the film, the first director (Tsui) opens as many doors possible so that the later two directors can take the movie in their own direction, but also lays the groundwork for the 'core' storyline. In its second act, Lam grabs the story and runs with the previous themes established, but also throws in a few ideas of his own, and finally To has the not so simple job of tying it all together.

The problem with this interesting filmmaking experiment is the scattered nature of the plot and direction. While certainly I didn't expect it to flow perfectly together the viewer is ultimately exposed to both the best and worst that each director brings to the table and as each tries to puts his own spin on the storyline, the emotional range of the same character swings from incredibly dark to just plain wacky. Moreover, loose plotlines are picked up and dropped like a bad prom date.

That being said, watching the film is still an entertaining experience and the pros outweigh the cons and I find myself redeeming To for the blah-fest that was 'Sparrow' as he expertly crafts the ending of 'Triangle' working out just about all of the kinks his fellow directors threw into the plot, while tossing in a few of his own. The final scene was a well-directed, clever, and rewarding Mexican stand-off that made the entire experience worthwhile. That's not to say that the premise of the film wasn't interesting in its own right, but a good idea is just that, a good idea...not a good film and To's addition really helped make 'Triangle' into a pretty good film.

CBC Radio tomorrow

Tomorrow at 2:30 I'll be part of a panel discussion on 'Chinese Canadians who have gone back to China to explore their roots'. If you're in Montreal tune in. I'll try to see if I can get a recording to post.


EDIT: Turns out the show airs on Friday. My apologies to anyone who might have tried to tune in. I'm told that it will be podcasted, so I'll try to find a way to post it.

Movie Review - Second Skin

Second Skin

Here's a movie that touches on an issue I can claim to know about. Not only do I play MMORPGs pretty regularly (read: daily) but I've even done a bit of academic readings, researched, wrote and even presented papers on gamers. Heck, my honors thesis on race and games got quite an international media splash (search my name in Google and check out all the trash talk I got, don't you just love how 'brave' the Internet makes people?).

But I digress, in essence, 'Second Skin' is a documentary film that takes a close look at the lives of online gamers, centering specifically around 'World of Warcraft' players (but also a few other games too) and are introduced to a variety of gamers who deal with a wide spread of issues. We meet the Fort Wayne boys, a group of friends who live and play together for over 40 hours a week, following their lives as they prepare for the upcoming expansion pack of 'The Burning Crusade.' The undercurrent of their narrative though, is a coming of age story as they struggle to deal with their online responsibilities vis-a-vis emerging 'real life' issues, particularly marriage and ultimately parenthood.

We are introduced to Kevin, an 'Everquest' player who has already had several stormy online relationships and his love interest Heather who is about to meet him for the first time. We are encouraged to think about how online relationships are mediated not only through virtual space (in-game) but also in the material world as they try to establish a life together despite the fact that they live hundreds of kilometers away from each other.

Then there's Dan, a WoW player who's life was ruined as his addiction escalated out of control. He ends up checking himself into On-Line Gamers' Anonymous, who's founder and owner ends up having just as much baggage as he does. His story ultimately becomes one of self-control and his ability to champion his demons on his own accord.

All of these stories are heartfelt, well-documented and very thorough in exploring the nuances of MMO gameplay. Moreover, on top of these main 'players' in the film's storyline there are also some side themes that are explored. We meet the WoW guild 'The Syndicate' to explore issues of community, we meet Andy a man who is confined to his wheelchair and the sense of empowerment he feels from interacting with people online without prejudice, and we visit a 'Chinese gold farm' in Hainan to see the globalizing role video game economics are having across the globe.

With so much to cover in the confines of a feature length documentary, there is only so much time the director (Juan Carlos Puneiro Escoriaza) can commit to each and the film bounces from one person to the other at breakneck speeds and far too much emphasis is placed on dealing with love and personal relationships than anything else, and as a reuslt the film drags on quite a bit.

The causalities? Interesting and previously unexplored issues of video gameplay are tossed in as filler throughout the film. For example, the section of Chinese gold farmers was amazingly interesting and raised plenty of questions not only about the nature of global capitalism through virutal markets, but also in-game racism. The time spent on these issues? Roughly 2 minutes. And then we never see them again. As well, it would have been great to hear more from Andy, confined to a wheelchair and unable to talk, as he is able to transcend his disabilities through friendships and interactions in-game. Again, he has probably less than a minute of facetime in the entire film. In the end, the film explores a few issues in great detail and tosses tons of others in for flavor, but significantly less rigor.

This is not to say however that Escoriaza hasn't done his homework. The viewer is provided with plenty of statistics about the demographics of MMO players and even consults several experts in the field. The movie certainly works well as a documentary and will interest gamers and non-gamers alike. Moreover, it refrains from placing a moral standpoint on gaming, but instead explores it for what it is, both the good and the bad. Certainly it isn't the first documentary done on video game players, and at this moment its probably the best. However, there's still a lot that could have been done to improve it. The film spends a lot of time following the lives of several gamers, trying to get us to understand and relate to their lives, but end up unconvincing and bland. The exception to this is Dan who's ability to overcome his addiction was probably the most emotional part of the movie. Other than that, its a pretty run of the mill documentary that tries to tackle too much and harps too heavily on a far too easy storyline (that of love, relationships and growing up) on a much more complicated issue. While I'd suggest you see it if you get the chance, lets hope this isn't the final say on video game docs.