Velox
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Posts posted by Velox
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Thanks for the confirmation! Glad everything's fixed.
Answered, confirmed, & closed.
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Out of theaters I recently re-watched Speed; in theaters the last film I saw was Battle of the Five Armies (sigh).
But I read the book before seeing the movie, and it was exactly the same? Did I read the same book that Flynn wrote or am I just dumb? Anyone help me out here?
Yeah, I thought the exact same thing, as I didn't really notice many differences either (plenty of differences throughout the film, but the ending specifically didn't seem much different).
The only thing is, I'm pretty sure the way NPH's character was killed was different, but he was still killed, and if I remember right his throat was slit both times, so I don't consider that "pretty different" at all...
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(finally) Just finished reading Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline. Such a fun and amazing read. All I want to do is immediately re-read it.
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The Imitation Game. Good film. Cumberbatch is great as always.
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Thanks for the answers, guys (though let's keep discussion on answering the topic's question itself)--Dragon11603, does that answer everything for you? =]
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Thanks, Makuta Luroka--looks like this has been answered. =]
In addition, there's also more info in the Q&A Compendium:
10. Yearly Masks: For each year that a member has been a part of BZPower, he or she will receive a different spinning mask to the left of his or her Proto bar. Please do not use these images in your signature or elsewhere unless you have earned them. They are as follows:
1 year: Vahi
2 years: Avohkii
3 years: Great Huna
4 years: Rahaga Norik head
5 years: Olmak
6 years: Faxon
7 years: Ignika
8 years: Ackar head
9 years: Hau
10 years: Hapori Tohu's disembodied-and-gloriously-spinning head
11 years: It's Rocka time
12 years: Furno or something? Maybe?
13 years: Breez!
- Question answered; topic closed.
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And now, I've (finally) just begun The Eye of the World, after meaning to start this series for years.
Yessssss. I'm currently reading The Great Hunt (I would already be long done with it, but hash tag slow reader), and I can assure you, the series is great. Have you read New Spring?
No, not yet. I searched around a bit and it sounded like people suggested reading the books in publication order the most, since New Spring gives background information to things you don't see until up to book 10 or something like that. But who knows how long it will take me before I get that far in the series. =P I've got mountains of books on my to-read shelf, but TEotW was pretty good, so I'm looking forward to reading more eventually; I'll probably try to read one here and there, but I'm not in any particular rush so who knows. Still, definitely glad I finally read it . . . I've kept saying "I'll definitely read TEotW soon" for over two years now haha. And while it'll be a pain to get through, it is nice knowing that there's so many books in the series so that if I do keep liking it, I'll be satisfied for quite a while.
Anyway, currently reading The Princess Bride (again, like with TEotW: finally) for the first time. One of my all-time favorite films, it's about time I read the book. =P And my sister just bought me the new, beautifully illustrated hardcover edition a month ago for my birthday, so that was just all the more reason to finally read it now. Really great so far, as expected.
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Recently finished The Alchemist, by Michael Scott. It was . . . okay. Not as good as I was hoping, and I wasn’t really a fan of the writing style, but overall it had some enjoyable moments.
But just before that I read Jokers Wild, edited by George R.R. Martin, the third book in his Wild Cards anthology/mosaic novel/etc. series, and it's really quite awesome. Obviously with this series you have your highs and lows with all the different authors working on the Wild Cards series (my two favorite collaborators so far are by a long shot Martin himself and Robert Zelazny), but overall it's really well done. After reading A Song of Ice and Fire and Sandkings, I just had to read more from Martin, and with TOR slowly coming out with re-issues (the first was re-published in 2010, the second in 2011, and the third in 2014), it was a perfect chance to start picking them up. As with pretty much any Martin project it seems, one should expect a lot of adult content, but otherwise the series really is incredibly enjoyable, and I can't wait for the re-release of the fourth book in January.
I'm not sure if this is my favorite so far (there's definitely downsides to each one), but it's the first full mosaic novel, as the other two had been anthologies of individual short stories sort of loosely strung together, and this format definitely worked really well. The only downside in this novel compared to the others is that Zelazny didn't contribute to this one at all, except for a character that is mentioned only briefly. In the other two, he had his own stories, with one of the coolest and most interesting characters (not to mention, easily one of the best writing styles).
Definitely recommended to those who love Martin and superheroes. One shouldn't expect ASoIaF, but Martin's ingenuity and writing ability is still very obviously present.
And now, I've (finally) just begun The Eye of the World, after meaning to start this series for years.
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Saw Guardians of the Galaxy yesterday. Definitely really amazing, and one of the best MCU films.
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Noooo, HH.
Tyler's right this is like the saddest thing in forever. Thanks for being such an amazing staffer/boss/so patient/an awesome library queen for all these years. You've been such a great help and inspiration to me, and I can honestly never thank you enough for everything you've done. And Nate, bro, this is so awesome, and definitely very much deserved. I guess this makes me your minion now. : D
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To all Short Story writers: Unfortunately, as is obvious, this club hasn't been very active as of late, and due to inactivity and the lack of demand, it's time for this incarnation of the SSCC to be shut down. We've had a great run, and it's been my honor to be a part of several incarnations and even curate a couple. I'd like to thank all the critics and my co-curators for making this club possible, and to everyone who requested reviews, as it has been our pleasure to provide them. I also owe a great deal of thanks to Cederak, my partner in crime for many years, who has been absolutely invaluable to the SSCC and library as a whole.
If anyone is interested in seeing a new critics club or even running one themselves, please feel free to PM the library staff, as if there's enough interest I'm sure something can be worked out.
~ Velox
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SSCC ReviewFirst off, geh, really sorry for the delay on this. -.-As others have stated, definitely a very well-written and enjoyable story. Simply the writing style itself was something that I really liked. To be honest, there's not a whole lot of general things I have to critique, mostly just more specific nitpicky things:‘Time is money.’ ‘What goes around comes around.’ ‘For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.’
I found this weird, coming from a Makuta, since these are all very modern sayings. I might try to modify them a little more or something so they seem more Bionicle-idioms rather than present-time-Earth-idioms.
Oh, I knew all about Gladiator’s escape.[...]The arena had made another lapse in judgment, and I would see to it that they paid a price -- but first, I would settle the debts owed me by Gladiator.Personally I really liked everything before this. Yeah, it probably wasn't really necessary and may have been a little rant-y, but I dunno, I just really enjoyed reading it all, just because of the writing style/character it was written in. It was these three paragraphs, however (I just quoted the first sentence of the first and last sentence of the third), that I felt got a little long and unnecessary, as it's basically just a bunch of summarizing. Like I said, I really liked the stuff before this, and the reason is because it's more of just him--his thoughts/musings/etc., or telling what's going on but through his voice--whereas this is just general summary, and could be told from any narrator. And so I wanted more of his personality in telling it, I guess.
Gladiator paused, realizing he was ensnared.POV shift here. But also, the "realizing he was ensnared" isn't really necessary--his pausing/the dialogue/context shows that realization.
The deal was struck. “I’m listening,” said Gladiator.Basically same thing here--"deal was struck" is implied by context.
Not too long ago, my Rahi spies had reported some very interesting news: after a thousand years of absence, the Matoran of Metru Nui had returned to the island city, and were beginning to resume work. They had brought with them six Turaga, seven Toa… and one very important mask.This was another instance where things seemed to slow down a bit. There's a great scene of them two speaking/trying to strike a deal/etc., and then there's this exposition-y paragraph thrown into the middle. I think making it closer to him and more of his specific thoughts would help, so it's not just information, but his internal dialogue as he/Gladiator are speaking together.
“Where… is… Voporak?”I'd suggest just using periods here. The ellipses denote pauses, whereas periods would be more just emphasis, which I think fits better.
But none of them were quite so important, powerful, and majestic as Voporak.Yeah, like I said, some of this is really nitpicky, sorry. =P But I think "or" would fit better than "and".
He was a being entirely attuned to the flow of time in our universe, which afforded him a variety of terrifying powers… and made him integral to my plans.My initial reaction to reading this was "he has plans?" I mean, on one hand, of course he does, he's a Makuta. =P But on the other, it did feel like this came in a little suddenly, and that previously it was mostly just a "day in the life of" whereas actually everything with Gladiator was a part of the plan. Perhaps there could have been just a little hint of bigger plans earlier on, throughout his thinking/etc.--might fit in with some of the internal dialogue, not sure.
Only I saw the truth of this arrangement. Once ultimate power was his, Teridax would need the Brotherhood no longer, and we would pay the price: our lives in exchange for blind trust of our power-hungry leader. Unless, of course, one of us possessed power to rival his. Teridax would control the universe, but I would control time. Attack me, and he would risk the disruption of the time flow, throwing his reign into utter, illogical chaos. I would have earned my survival -- no, more than survival -- my position as Teridax’s equal in the rule of two Makuta.This was another time when I felt things were a little too explain-y. Actually, going along with my previous comment, perhaps just spreading this out a bit would have helped, so it's not just a sudden info dump, but rather, we learn that he has friction with Teridax, which then builds up to this where we learn about him wanting to control time, earning him the position of equal.
They were truly fascinating, but they were also wasting my Exo-Toa’s reserves of energy. My most skilled Panrahk made short work of them, and then we were on our way again.This was a little bit of a let-down based on the sentences right before it. For example, instead of having him say they were fascinating, perhaps show how he thinks that or something, so that this doesn't seem as much of an aside (and, plus, the rest of the paragraph is isn't really needed because of the last two sentences, unless it's expanded upon or something).
I had not seen the last of my interruptions. Not a few months later, a trader had the audacity to demand a personal audience with me. He claimed that his most prized boat had been stolen by a group of criminals, including Roodaka herself. The trader demanded that I send my officers to recapture the boat before it got too far south, but I couldn’t be bothered with the bizarre affairs of common merchants. Time is money, after all. It made no difference to me if one boat and a few miscreants wandered off to sea.I felt like this was unnecessary, or at the very least a little awkward. I think it could be removed completely, or have the story more in-line with the first sentence--"I had not seen the last of my interruptions" sounds like it's introducing another part of the story, but instead the paragraph goes no just to summarize an event that he just sort of shrugs off.
Miserix felt the Makuta’s spirit break, and crushed it instantly.I'd add in "begin to break" or something, or reverse the order so he crushes it and it breaks.
A small boat had docked in a forlorn corner of Onu-Metru, and a large figure was now emerging,"Small boat" and "large figure" seemed a little contradictory to me. Just because I was sort of imagining a Jaeger (from Pacific Rim) getting out of a tiny rowboat. =P (okay, so hyperbole there--but still. Perhaps "small ship"?)
And lastly, there were a few times when you used an action as a dialogue tag. A couple examples:“As a matter of fact, I do,” I grinned, and gestured to the tablet.“That’s fortunate,” I smiled, lowering my voice, “because the question I want answered doesn’t pertain to your escape at all.”“We share a common enemy,” I shrugged.Basically, you can't grin/smile/shrug something. But you can say something then shrug/etc. So either something like"...I do," I said, grinning; or"...I do." I grinned, and...Anyway, yeah, that's about it. This is a really strong story, and you really did a great job with the characterization of Makuta of Stelt. I would perhaps liked to have had more character of Miserix, however, and to have all that last scene itself expanded, though that's also probably due to the POV shift from first to third. It just seemed a little oddly placed and sudden when compared to the rest of the story, though I'm not entirely sure how to suggest fixing it, as you obviously can't have him die in first person. =P I think perhaps just expanding that last scene a little would help.Great job again. ^^ Sorry if anything's unclear or got too rambly, but hope this helps. =]-
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"An Even Exchange" -- Angel Bob
I forgot about this topic...but assigned to myself as I'm not sure who/if anyone is still active besides Nuile. I'll have your review for you within a week. =]
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Well, it's definitely about time.
Congrats, Ryan!! With everything you do for this site, it's great to see you in teal finally! -
Finally watched The Wolverine. Kinda have mixed feelings on it, but I wouldn't say it was bad--maybe not good either, though. =P But it was entertaining.
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Glad we could help! =]
Question answered; topic closed.
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Ah, yes, that's left over from the old New Member Policy (and since you joined before it was abolished, unfortunately the restrictions still apply to your account). If I remember correctly, you'll need to make 5 posts (you're currently at 4) before you can use your personal messenger.
There's also the option of emailing Black Six directly (andrew@bzpower.com). =]
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Happy birthday, man!
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Closed per request of topic starter.
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Closed per request of topic starter.
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"How Your Mother Met Me" episode of How I Met Your Mother. Really, really great episode. Every time we learn something new about The Mother, I'm starting to like her more and more.
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You are one insanely fast reader.
Only when I'm on break and don't have school. =P And I end up ignoring other things in lieu of reading haha. Otherwise, usually I try to read ~a book a week, but I'll have low times and high times. But on that note, since the last post I finished: Gods of Guilt, by Michael Connelly; The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman; Sharp Objects, by Gillian Flynn; Einstein's Dreams, by Alan Lightman; The Second Death, by Caleb Peiffer; and Time to Hunt, by Stephen Hunter.
The Graveyard Book is officially one of my favorite books I've ever read now. Gaiman truly is a brilliant writer, and I loved the way he portrayed a child. Plus, the accompanying drawings were great.
Einstein's Dreams is another incredibly brilliant book (short story? novella? the version I have is an actual book, but it's really short so I don't think it could be considered a novel). It makes you think, and was really interesting and fun to read.
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(unless I'm blind there is not yet a topic for this, which is a tragedy)
Today is the birthday of the incredibly awesome reporter ChocolateFrogs! Time to party! : D
Already told you this on FB, but hope you have a great one, Ben! ^^
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Since my last post, I read S. by JJ Abrams & Doug Dorst in the last few weeks of December. The whole book was incredibly fun to read, but it also took a while as I seemed to never have much time to read.
So far in January I've read:
- Survivor, by Chuck Palahniuk. First book I've read by Palahniuk, and it didn't disappoint. He has a really enjoyable writing style, and I look forward to reading more of his soon.
- More Than This, by Patrick Ness. Not nearly as good as A Monster Calls, but it was still amazing (I just love Ness's writing style), and I still look forward to reading his next book, as well as the Chaos Walking trilogy, which I have unfortunately not read yet.
- A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin. I basically did nothing else but read for ~5 days, but it was worth it, as this book was awesome. =P Cannot wait for Winds of Winter.
- Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon, by Matt Fraction. The first superhero graphic novel I've read, as per the recommendation of ChocolateFrogs--really an awesome book, and I can't wait to read vol.2 as well as more superhero GNs, and Sandman, which I need to get my hands on.
- Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card. Really enjoyable; very easy to see why so many people love it. And now I can finally see the film, too. I may just have to read more in this series, but if I do, it won't be for a while most likely, since I have so many things I need to read.
What is the deal for B/S/T?
in BZPower Q&A
Posted
Thanks for the answers, everyone!
Does that answer everything for you, Dragon?