Build-a-Villain

Every good adventurer knows that one thing they cannot go without is an adversary. Whether it be an arch-nemesis or bitter rival even urban adventurers need that outside stimulus to keep them on their toes. The problem however is that in the hustle and bustle society of today many of us lack the time or energy required to find a suitable rival for our everyday lives. The time it would take to find a good match on rogue-space or villainbook.com is something that urban adventurers working full or part time jobs simply cannot afford to spend on the net. If you are lacking a suitable opponent there are alternatives if your willing to take matters into your own hands.

Enter Munny. For many this is simply a make your own toy incapable of much more. But, with a little creativity anyone can use this medium to create their own little adversary. Not only will the nemesis be custom fir to your adventuring needs, you can also be assured that the little beast will be waiting for you at home while you are out living out the non-adventurous part of your life. These rivals are guaranteed to not attack you on your way to school or work and as an added bonus make great paper-weights in their spare time.

There are various options when starting your own rogues gallery. Most importantly is asking yourself what you oppose most. Be it zombies, pirates, ninjas or rogue piñatas the possibilities for your enemy here are endless. Secondly you must decide which tools to use to make your villain. I personally recommend acrylics as they dry rather quickly and do not require primer which allows for multiple coats to be added a day. However almost anything works although you will need to place a base coat of primer on the Munny before going at creating your vision. Watercolors, miniature paints and even sharpies work well over a primer coat, a word to the wise crayons do not.

There are of course alternatives to creating your own nemesis if you prefer enemies that live and breathe. I recommend looking up Team Shopping Cart. They are always looking for fresh adventurers of all varieties to test themselves against.

Also of note if you are interested in creating your own villain or hero the perfect opportunity is coming on April 19th. Kid robot is hosting a mini Munny mobile decorating party. If you happen to be in the area of any of those Kid Robot locations you have no excuse not to go. Outdoor adventure free toys and best of all the materials to decorate your Munny are all provided!

This has been a presentation of the spirited variety.
Munny is copyright Kidrobot.
Photos by spirit.
Kibby and Cosmummy belong to Spirit.

Tools of the Trade

Most urban adventurers have a few things they will not leave home without. A pair of comfortable walking shoes. A cellphone with a decent signal. Usually, a variety of keys, at least one of which has a use long forgotten. These are all things that are just a part of the lifestyle. What I want to do instead is direct adventurers to a new tool that is readily available in the urban jungle. What I'm talking about is twitter. While not tangible, this new bit of software is something no adventurer should be caught without.

Now, you might be thinking to yourself, “Spirit, what is this wondrous new invention called twitter?” The answer is quite simple really. Our good friend Wikipedia defines twitter as follows: “Twitter is a social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users' updates, tweets, which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length. Updates are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends (delivery to everyone being the default). Users can send and receive updates via the Twitter website, SMS, RSS (receive only), or through applications such as Tweetie, Twitterrific, Twitterfon and Feedalizr. The service is free to use over the web, but using SMS may incur phone services provider fees. “
Now, to the naked eye that just might look like twitter is another form of texting people and, for the most part that definition is correct. Twitter however, fits perfectly into an adventuring lifestyle.

Lets get an example on the board, shall we? Say you feel like seeing a movie or having dinner with some friends. Usually the process involved in getting either to happen will involve several phone calls, text messages and hunting down individuals on aim or facebook. This one little program makes it so that a single text message sent to “40404” is relayed to every one of your followers. So, if you talk all the people you want to see on a regular basis into following, then it really saves quite a bit of work and gives you more time to actually go watch a movie. Several problems do exist however. For one, if you have a limited texting plan chances are twitter is not for you as it can get overwhelming quickly.

There are of course some simple alternatives to using twitter. One answer would be to set up a shortcut on your phone to text all of your friends at once. Another slightly more expensive mobile toy available is chacha. By simply texting a question to 242242 you can get a quick if not snarky answer from one of their live workers! Be careful however, over-using their service may result in some fees that you may or may not want to deal with.

Let us end this post with three ways that twitter can make you a more dapper adventurer, because everyone loves lists.

3.- Time is Money- As mentioned previously twitter can work as a great time saver! Every minute spent not calling someone is a minute that could be spent having an adventure.

2. -All the Cool Kids are Doing it- At the end of the day life is a popularity contest. Twitter allows you to be popular in a wide variety of ways. For one, it gives you a list of the people following you. In this way you can see just how many people are trying their hardest to be involved in your every day life. Secondly it constantly fills your text message box. Whether you want to look like you have a thousand girlfriends hounding you at odd hours of the day or just want more excuses to leave conversations over the course of a day, twitter has you covered. For an added bonus, add a nerdy ringtone to your text alerts. I for one am very partial to the power rangers alert tone.

1.Learn to be a Better Adventurer Through Imitation. You can use twitter to follow a variety of noteworthy adventurers in today's times. The following is just a short list of adventurers I recommend following:

-Jhonen Vasquez- Creator of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac. Also Invader Zim, for those in the know.

-Neil Gaiman- I may have mentioned him a few times before. Go read The Sandman, you shall not be disappointed.

-Sohmer- He runs a few things in the webcomic community. I'll just link Looking For Group , you can do your own research from there on.

-Quotable Buffy- Something different. Not so much a person but a random assortment of quotes from a rather interesting show. It's such a shame that I've come to hate the show in my old age.

-Occultclassic - Honestly I follow 11 people so I rolled a D12. The result was 7 and he is the 7th person down my following list. He's an adventurer to the very end and also a talented artist and modeler, why not check him out?

As for my twitter, kibs1. But, really it's not all that interesting to non-adventurers.

I Watched the Watchmen

*Picture Courtesy piH9 of flickr.com under creative commons.

I have been keeping a secret for the last week. It has been burning me up inside, and kept me from my beloved blog-o-sphere. I saw Watchmen last week. Even more shameful, I saw it on Imax at a midnight showing thanks to Wondercon. I cannot hold this post in any longer, the film premiers in just a few short hours. Before then here are ten reasons you should be watching The Watchmen this weekend.

10.You're eighteen or older- Okay, not really a reason more of a bottleneck before raising your hopes about this film. It is rated R and let me tell you it deserves every ounce of that rating. There is tasteful nudity and not so tasteful nudity. There is also graphic violence the likes of which I'm not quite sure an Imax theater had experienced before this film. If you're old enough or have an adult that wants to see the film with you AND these reasons are not enough to deter you away, read on.

9.Comic book movies are hip- We can blame whoever we want for this phenomenon, but, facts are facts, superhero movies are doing great in the box-office. Franchises like X-men are on their fourth film while re-vamps like Batman break box office records. It stands to reason that even if this film is not amazing in itself if will provide a great conversation at the water cooler. Why? Well lets look at number eight shall we?

8. Watchmen has a following- First off lets look at some solid facts. Time magazine, a respectable company, called Watchmen one of the top 100 novels of all time. That is pretty damn impressive for a comic book, wouldn't you say? Wizard magazine named Watchmen the number one comic book of all time. This combination is nothing to scoff at. Together they make for a moment in history. What is the result of one of the greatest works of our time being made into a motion picture?

7.Product Placement- There is no real product placement within this film. It is downright amazing the level of detail they went into over the course of the picture. Every can of beans or seedy bar has a name or trademark entirely foreign to our world.

6. The best bang for your buck- Watchmen is two hours and thirty-four minutes long. Usually for the price of a movie ticket, you get an hour and thirty minutes of movie. Not here, you get an amazing, if not a bit long, film. The best part is that this film does not come off like The Dark Knight where you feel as if you just sat through two, hour long, films. It's one continuous story magnificently told.

5. The capes- alright my fancy attempt to say superheroes may have failed epically, but, I still feel they are a great reason to see this film. You get a varied cast of characters ranging from the gadget toting Nite Owl to The Atomic, and very blue, Dr. Manhattan. Interestingly in the original storyline only Dr. Manhattan possessed superhuman abilities of any sort. In the film all of the heroes seem to have forms of superhuman strength and stamina. It may shy away from the source material, but it sure does make the fight scenes play out in a more exciting manner.

4. Richard Nixon- The portrayal of this man is amazing in the movie. You will feel as if the real Richard Nixon is talking right to you throughout the film. It's quite interesting to see how Nixon would have potentially interacted with an atomic man.

3. The soundtrack- I'm going to try my best not to spoil this for anyone. But, let me tell you the soundtrack to this film had me constantly whispering to myself, “Damn, I want this soundtrack.” Eighties hits surround this film in a delicious layer of awesomeness. Trust me you're going to want the soundtrack too.

2. The adaptation- Alright, a few things were changed from book to movie. I think part of this must have been due to time constraints. It must be really hard to pack the greatest anything into an acceptable running time. Still, despite the changes this film is true as sunshine to the original and I'm sure even Alan Moore would say it wasn't a disgrace. That is if he weren't still bitter over his previous book adaptations. Though honestly, that bitterness is totally warranted.

1. Rorschach- Not every hero needs to be lovable, this guy is no exception. You ever wonder what would happen if your favorite hero was driven too far? If the vigilante went from being a caped crusader to becoming a heartless killer, working to save mankind from itself? Well, look no further. Rorschach is the man for you; cold, bitter and ruthless in his pursuit of justice. If the dark anti-hero type isn't for you, then there is still hope. His mask is awesome and a great distraction. Constantly moving and shifting shapes it's sure to keep you entertained.

All Our Heroes Are Dead

*Picture Courtesy marymactavish of flickr.com under creative commons.

Alright, I may be exaggerating a wee bit there are plenty of heroes left out there for the average person to believe in. But, the two trademark heroes for DC and Marvel Comics are now dead.

Captain America died in 2007. He was an American hero managing to uphold his own American ideals constantly despite the changing political landscape. In 2007 this changed and he not only became a fugitive hiding from the government of the country he so believed in, he was also hunted down like an animal by various masked villains hired by the same government to make sure he didn't start a true rebellion. For those who did not follow the story when it happened, this series of events began with an act passed by the government in the Marvel world, forcing all caped crusaders to give up their secret identities and to work for the government. The Captain of course was against this knowing that while supers should be responsible for their actions, their unanimity is the only thing keeping their families and loved ones safe from the rouge galleries that all of the heroes have gathered over the years.

The irony in the Captain's death is that the first event to take place leading up to it was a reality show going horribly wrong. Imagine if dog the bounty hunter had superpowers. Now set him and a team of teenagers in a situation where they bust into a super villain hideout. Add the obligatory epic chase scene occur and have it culminate with a mutant with the power to cause massive explosions being chased right next to an elementary school full of kids in the playground. In the end 612 civilians 60 of which were children died. What does it say about our culture when the hero representing our standards is killed by a series of events starting with a reality show?

A final note the Captain himself died in police captivity on his way to his court trial. He was killed by a sniper's bullet. Yeah, America was killed by a sniper.

I said earlier that Batman was also dead, and this is true in a way. He died earlier this year, but he didn't quite make it into the newspapers like the captain did. I find it funny that Spiderman unmasking himself made front page news. Captain America dying was on every news channel for days. I guess now that Batman was killed the world just does not have time for comic book news. We're going through too much of a failing economy to notice that the caped crusader is dead. This is not something I think should have gone the way it has, I mean Batman himself has been great for the economy, his newest film The Dark Knight becoming one of the highest grossing films of all time.

This leads to the question, "how did the caped crusader die?" This one is simple, during a world shattering event he was killed by a God that he coincidentally killed at the same time. Batman Killed Darkseid a villain who took center stage during the recent culmination of Final Crisis events in the DC universe. Going against his ideals and using a gun with a special God killing bullet Batman did the impossible. However at the instant of the bullet's impact he was hit with an Omega Sanction. Technically he is not “Dead” but cursed to have his consciousness constantly travel through parallel worlds each worse then the last for the rest of eternity. To finish cementing his death, a charred corpse was recovered by Superman. This neatly brings me to my final point.

Superman has been dead before. He was also a great hero and was killed in the past and eventually resurrected and has been doing the superhero thing excellently ever since. On the one hand this could be seen as a possible parallel to the currently dead heroes, in fact, a series paralleling the now Classic “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” is currently being released under the title “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?” One thing to remember however is that at the end of the day both Captain America and Batman were ordinary men doing extraordinary things while Superman himself is something entirely different. I guess that means its time to place bets, will the heroes come back or is this the end of the average man shining among super powered beings?

I promise that we will lay off the superheroes for a bit.

She's a friend of mine.

*Coraline button box Courtesy Andrew Huff of flickr.com under creative commons.

It is usually hard to find a children's movie that can appeal to an adult on the same level as the children in the audience. Usually we find films with either a target audience of children or multi-layered films such as Shrek that attempt to appeal to children while having a second layer for adults that most children cannot relate to. Luckily once every few years a film comes along that instead appeals to the human soul through shared experience. This year Coraline hit the big screen. It is a film in 3D based on the children's book. Frightening yet entertaining, lets take a look at the top 10 reasons to go see the film this weekend.

10.Neil Gaiman- He's an amazing writer with many works under his belt that every adventurer, urban or not, should read if they ever get the opportunity. These books include American Gods, Anansi Boys and Fragile things as well as Good Omens, a joint venture between him and Terry Pratchett. He took a personal interest in this film and made it the masterpiece that it is today.

9.Souvenirs- You get to keep the fancy 3D glasses that are provided to see the movie. They might cost a little extra but what is money compared to having a physical reminder of a great film. As an added bonus they can make the perfect costume prop for any Emo Halloween costume or outfit, score!

8.Going Out- To see the movie in its 3D glory you have to physically leave the house! It might seem like a given but going outside is a great benefit to any adventurer. Sure, you could stay home and rig up an elaborate pulley system to simulate a 3D movie experience, but why do that when the effort to provide the experience just for you has been put in by somebody else?

7.All Your Friends are Doing it! - Peer pressure can be a great thing in moderation, right? Go see the movie and then talk about it with all your friends and they will feel compelled to see it if they haven't already. With this simple technique you too can be the trendy jet setter you always pretend to be. As a substitute if you're late on the bandwagon you can go see it now, because everyone else in your circle of friends has seen it and you do not wish to be left out. How you handle the situation is really up to you.

6.Watchmen Isn't Out Yet.- We all know that the adventurer in all of us and the nerd in all of us are great friends and get along just splendidly. Because of this all you adventurer types have known for quite a while that Watchmen is on the horizon. Not only was it a piece of comic book gold, a classic really, it also was written by the master of masters Alan Moore. This man is one of the great inspirations of our time with Neil Gaiman following closely in his footsteps. Speaking of which the comic book series “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?” begins this month as a striking tribute to Alan Moore's series “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” Just a heads up.

5.Movies That Play Out Like Video Games- Watching this film really feels like an interactive experience. Not only do you get to experience the majority of what Coraline goes through in glorious 3D but in addition you get to go through her quest. Yes, there is a quest in the movie, no, I won't tell you what it is because it would spoil the surprise. Lets just say you're going to feel like you're in a good old fashioned plat-former. Kingdom Hearts anyone?

4.Faithful Adaptations- This movie quite faithfully adapted Neil Gaiman's original story. There were just enough changes between the original story within the book and the movie released in theaters to create a situation where, if you have in fact read the book you have not seen the story from the movie. Sure, it added a new character and changed the personalities of a few others. But, in the end this in one of few movies based on books where I can say that it really feels like it was filmed in the spirit of the book as opposed to the spirit of making cash monies.

3.Stop-Motion- This one gets me every time. At first I believed it would be a choppy movie and was hesitant to see it because the commercials on the tele looked very choppy. The characters appeared to be slow moving compared to the smoothness seen in other animated works such as The Nightmare Before Christmas. This is however all just a clever ploy to lure the viewer into a false sense of knowing something about the film before going into the theater. The film itself flows magnificently with many different textures seen on screen reacting to gravity and friction in realistic ways. Most importantly, all of these reactions happen in 3D!

2.Horror- Everything playing in theaters right now is either a romantic comedy or a horror story, and we have valentines day to blame for that. Still, as far as horror movies go Coraline is a smash in that it is scary enough to give the entire audience a few spooks while still being loving and playful at heart. A warning however as kids are prone to be afraid of the unknown, there is a chance that they could be very afraid of this film. However I know I was incredibly afraid of The Nightmare Before Christmas myself when I first saw it and now it is one of my favorite films. I say take your kids if you have any and hope they embrace the fear.

1.Coraline- The films main character. She makes the story come alive and is a great example of a modern day urban adventurer. She is young but lives every day as an adventure. While she has some help making sure that things stay interesting, thanks to outside forces that the majority of modern day adventurers will hopefully never have to face, but, what is life without adversity? She is charming, sweet and just a little bit of a bitch, a great mix if you ask me. Of course if she's not your thing you can always go to the film for Wybie, if you're into nerds with a fun hunchback stance and pet wild cats.

I hope this was a compelling list of reasons to see a great film.



























*Poster Courtesy joanneteh_32 of flickr.com under creative commons.



Cheers.

"Calling"

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There is a calling inside each and every one of us. It is that little voice that calls you out when you're lazy. That feeling that there is something more in you, just waiting to escape the struggles of the day to day world. Some would call this voice a conscience, others a guiding light or simply a higher presence in their lives. I think of it more as a spirit of adventure that resides in each and every person. Most choose to eventually move on, guiding the spirit as the spirit guides them, using it to keep them motivated in the humdrum of everyday. There are some of us however that simply cannot do that. We see an unexplored ally or an abandoned building and the spirit takes a hold of us. You know you're different but have lacked a social identity to cling to. Not quite a nerd and somewhere between Emo, Punk or Prep. Fear not there is a place in the world for you, for you are an urban adventurer.

“What is an urban adventurer?” you ask. Anyone who has ever wished they lived in a different time full of wonderment. Anyone who has ever driven out as far as they can just to see if the world has changed. Anyone who has ever played a game of dungeons and dragons and thought, “man that would be such a great idea if I ever actually ran into a dragon.” Even those that have seen a Disney movie and wished the world were capable of providing some of the lost Disney magic of long-gone years. The urban adventurers are all of the lovers, the dreamers and you. Now that I've run out of clichés its time to go out adventurers. Time to start a new age of exploring. Join me on a weekly basis as I discuss virtual worlds, modern day innovators and just the simple magic still present in the world, you will not be disappointed. The journey begins with a movie review Monday, are you prepared?