Well, at this point, you're kind of comparing apples to oranges, in some sense. And in another sense, you're also comparing an original to what is essentially an adaptation. The H.G. Wells War of the Worlds was a novel written in 1898. The War of the Worlds with Tom Cruise was a movie from well over 100 years after that fact. I never really enjoyed the film rendition with Tom Cruise though; I prefer the 1953 film adaptation above the one with Tom Cruise. I've never read the novel itself, but when it comes down to it, I'd have to say that I value the novel above the Tom Cruise movie. After all, the movie WAS based on the novel.
Your music is impressive. Normally I'm not much for things that fall into a noticably "pop" genre. But this really has a flavor all its own.
I'd say it's a start to something awesome. Assuming you haven't done any other work on it, there could definitely be a lot of freedom taken with the arrangement.
I just saw that it's your birthday (at least, it is where I am). Have a good one.
But seriously speaking, it was probably put there for the sake of effect, and to cut off a road in the city so that there wasn't just some random open path that couldn't be traveled (probably because they would have been compeled to actually put something that way). I think they should have done some sort of easter egg with it though.
That's pretty much my family right there (thanks a lot dad); excet twenty minutes late just changes to about two hours late. I particularly hate it when I've been ready to get out the door for like two hours (or longer) and then when it's finally time to get going, everyone else is up the wall about how I'm the one dragging my feat and how I could be moving faster. Then everyone's all frustrated because we didn't get out the door when we wanted to. That stuff gets old fast.
If you've been "on and off" with it, I wouldn't be so sure to call it depression. It seems to me that you could be making mountains out of mole hills, when it comes to your lows. The bottom line, as Saxima has said, is that everyone has their highs and their lows. And if your lows are as bad as you say they are, then it certainly does you no good to leave them festering inside all the time. Things like that tend to build up until you've done something crazy with/to yourself. And you should really tell the people you know in real life more often when you're feeling down. If they truly care about you, they wouldn't feel nearly as hurt to know when your down as the would if you DID do something crazy and never told them a thing. And to be certain, they can do a lot more for you than a bunch of (faceless) names on a forum (not to dis anyone around here).
It would appear the nutshell of this thread is that it depends on how you're going to look at it and measure a character's strength. Personally, I'd give very little store to "Sora beats so and so," and "Riku beats so and so," and therefore, they're the strongest. It's a bit ridiculous to justify a character's strength like that when the character is merely the mechanism by which the player does the actual buttwhooping. If I had to put things what would seem the most logical context, I'd have to say that Xemnas would be a clear cut for the "strongest." Can't exactly run an organization when there's someone under you that can easily overpower you and take your throne. And personally, I'd say that's where the intent was. Though I must admit that by way of boss battles, it's hard to call Xemnas "strong." It's just that you had to battle him forever before he actually keeled over and died already. Well, I guess considering how many times he had to be fought in order to snuff him out DOES give him the credibility of being the strongest.
If I might ask for recommendations from people, I've been caught up in a desire for more science fiction works, and most recently, drawn to the steampunk genre. Does anyone know anything good in that neighborhood?
There's almost certainly been a thread for this somewhere on the forums, but it seems it's not a topic that's been touched on too much recently. So for you fellow music fans/buffs, I figured I'd kindle up some soundtrack talk. Bear in mind when I say it that I mean soundracks as in musical scores originally comissioned for the purpose of accompanying a movie, TV show, video game, etc. Your favorite soundtracks? Favorite composer that's done soundtrack work? It's an open floor really. Just have at it. Allow me to break the ice by starting with mention to my overall favorite composer from the film industry: Hans Zimmer, probably most likely to be best recognized (these days) as the composer for such movies as Pirates of the Caribbean ((uncredited in the first movie)), Batman Begins & The Dark Knight ((with James Newton Howard)), to name some of his more recent, and probably better known works. Easily, he's one of (if not outright) the best film composers that I've known of.
Instrumentally, I'm enjoying it, but the vocals to me sound kind of strange. Maybe it's because I'm listening to at like zero valumn right now, or maybe it's just that vocals like that take a little while, if at all, to really dawn on me. It's certainly not every day sort of music, I can imagine that. The Baroque-esqu sound & feel is some nice flavor. I think this is something that I'd really enjoy after taking the time to just get used to it.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. In my opinion, that's the only stretch of the series that has any business ever having existed. Yeah, it wasn't exactly the most impressive peice of work (in retrospect), but it still beats the heck out of pretty much every other series that got pumped out after it. It's the old school, and old school rarely, if ever, gets outstripped by new, I think. I still remember how the Green Ranger (under evil persuassion) completely wasted the other ones without even a shred of help (if I recall correctly, he got into the Megazord through a backdoor that got me wondering why they didn't leave it locked). That was some ill stuff there. Ridiculous, but from the mindset of a kid growing up in the 90s, it was pure awesome.
Talk about punctuality. We're barely over the halfway mark for 2011.
Godly Glory Preface: The following is my first attempt in a pretty long while (about two years, actually) to break out a written piece that’s not based in the collaborative roleplaying environment. It’s been largely inspired by a conversation I had with a friend in regards to how one might define the personality of a “God.†I’m pretty sure it’s not nearly as good as it could have been. It’s meant to be a short account of the experience of attaining that “top of the mountain.†I hope that this will get plenty of constructive criticism, so that I can improve upon it as days go by, and perhaps, weave it into something with a greater plot basis, as opposed to the simple “reflection†idea I’ve got at the moment. Feel free to send me your criticism (again, keep it constructive). Rough/First Draft A solitary figure stood tall upon the top of a mountain. It wasn’t so strange a sight its own right, as there were many peaks to which a person could ascend. Yet this one was different from the others. Other mountains had that annoying tendency to come to a halt as soon as the sky impeded upon their processions. Yet this peak that this being had sought after and attained had been able to pierce through the sky as a knife might have pierced the skin. Even the highest flying clouds had grown jealous as this being passed them by, attaining a height that even they had pressed and failed to reach. And so the figure had come to that peak without even the smallest wisps for company scaling to the top with naught but their wile and determination, and claiming the right to be considered the enlightened being they were. This is as Olympus, they had thought upon reaching that desired throne. Looking down upon the world below, they came upon an incredible sensation: there was, as of that moment, nothing that stood out of bounds. Everything at the bottom mountain was in eyesight and earshot. They could smell and taste the woes and glories of the people so far down. And most incredibly, they came to feel that the answers to all of the woes were right at the tip of their tongue, itching to burst out from even the slightest space between lips. And in that same moment of rushing understanding and desire, their mouth had cracked open, and consequentially widened beyond that. Their voice escaped through their breath, calling out to that world so far below. A smile broke out across their face, dominating the previously wise and solemn expression. Surely their words could carry so far below and around. Perhaps they could speak out as far as they could see, hear, taste, smell, and feel, and give the answer to the problems felt from that glorious vantage point, or call upon others to ascend to such a place all their own. Yet there were no ears close enough to hear those words, and the clouds, so spiteful as they were of this newcomer’s presences beyond their reach, were quick to move and block the light in its path, casting it only dimly through their hollowed bodies. The lone being dropped their head in the frustration of it, and old emotions once thought purged by the climb took new seed, spreading as vines through their body. The realization was there at last; they were gone, far above the society they had effectively striven to transcend. It was just as they had wanted, to stand above the world they called their home, to see its splendors and shortcomings, and to then set forth in fixing the latter. Yet now they were distant from that world, beyond its reach, and more so beyond ever reaching back to it. The light they had found would surely be cut off en route by the clouds, and the veils of night that came and went, and muffled by the sheer distance between their mouth and the ears they sought to be heard by. Others might come to join them, but that was not a likely prospect, as they had been the only one in ages to even break the clouds, let alone reach the peak. By way of a look around, it was clear that to descend and speak with range of such ears would be more a risk than to stay atop, lest their knowledge by compromised by a harsh fall. Someone else had to experience what that lone individual now felt, to witness that sensation of understanding, to share in the knowledge that only ascending to such a high peak can bestow. Yet what were the odds of another going so far before falling, or turning around out of their own fears? The chances seemed only slim, and perhaps so low as none at all. The solitary figure at the top of the mountain bowed their head low. A tear or two broke from their eyes as their heart pumped a furious beat not unlike that of an unrequited love. They were gone, far above that society they had effectively striven to transcend. And now that they were gone, there was no way back.
Thanks for the invite. Nothing personal, but at this point in time, stocking my RP responsibilities would be somewhat of a bad decision, seeing as...
"I see," Diuccio remakred. His face bore hints of a grimace as he looked at the tiny closet in which his blades would be found. The nerve of them, to dispose of something so classic in such a crammed space, he thought. The blades, beyond their value as weapons for self-defense, were probably more valuable to him sentimentally than a Keyblade was to its bearer. "No respect," he muttered as be walked over the closet. He hoped, for one thing, that it was unlocked, and beyond that, for his trusted weapons to be well kept at the front of the closet, or at least on the top end of whatever mountain of personal effects had accumulated from the massive influx of patiants. He found his first hope to be one rightly held; with one quick pull on the handle, the door to the closet opened without much of a hassle. But his second hope came to be more of a fool-hardy one. As soon as the door opened, he looked with sharp eyes upon the items directly in front, praying he might see the rustic forms that were his greatest of assets. He they were not at the front, and they didn't even appear to be at the top of the pile either. "Figures," he mumbled, digging through the mound of annexed belongings, some of which migt not have even had owners anymore. He moved things gently, and eventually found a faded leather belt with two filled sheathes attached to the sides.* After giving it a brief inspection to see it was all in order. Di strapped the belt around his waist, snug enough for it to stay on, bit not so much that or would grow cumbersome and uncomfortable. He turned to the kid that had been kind enough to leave him be, and let him depart without a fight. "Well, if it's your job to watch me, then watch me. Or you can just say I shook you off my tail along the way, or something to that effect. Either way is good with me. I'm off to find out what the hell has been going on since I passed out."*** ((I almost definitely won't be finding a connection over the next day and a half (about))).
Diuccio knew a lost endeavor when he saw one, and trying to convince the armored kid to set him loose was as lost as any other. He heaved ou a sigh, half true, and half a feign in the hopes of stirring the boy into the action he wanted. Yet he waited for only second before deciding that he wasn't to get set free on someone else's accord; he would just have to get up and ditch the infirmary himself. "Well it's certainly a bummer that you can't help. But you know what they say about the show, right?"* Gently, he moved his hand towards the tube, stopping as soon as felt its smooth surface against his skin. It was mind of hot, due to the energy pulsing through its hollowed center, but Di ignored the burning sensation that came with making contact. Not that it mattered; as soon as his hand connected with the tube he gave it a swift yet gentle push, swinging I around in a semi circle away from his body. There was a fleeting pain that can with the process, but again, he ignored it and commenced to swing his legs off the bed and sit upright. Non a second later he was on his feet, redressing himself in his clothes, which had been left neatly folded on a chair in the corner.* He looked at the boy, and at he chair. There was one thing missing. "You know where they keep peoples' weapons when they come in? Like a security office or something. I won't get far these days without my short swords." ((I might not get a connection again until Sunday night, riku. I'll try to get on a bit tonight, I might only be good for a few posts again)).*
“Well I suppose that depends on a bit of things,” Diuccio said. His smile shifted into a semi-malevolent grin. He wanted to be out of that bed, and back in the field, if nothing else, to exact his vengeance on the Darkness that had taken The Academy in its storm. Of course, his real mission would be to figure out what was going on now that the Academy was gone, and whether or not Master Zaal had been able to escape in time to free himself of the Darkness. If the kid was his ticket out of the infirmary, and back onto the path he both wanted, and had to take, then he would coax him into getting him out, one way or another. “Let me ask you: do you even work at this hospital, or ANY hospital here or anywhere for that matter? By the looks of you, the armor and all, you probably don’t. “Now, assuming that I’ve got my understanding straight, and you aren’t an employee here, or a volunteer or anything, then that means that nurse has no real authority over you. What she said then, was not an order to watch me, but a request, something she ASKED of you, as opposed to TOLD you. And as I recall, you never exactly agreed to taking on that task now did you? You made no promises to her that you’d do anything. And assuming you ARE someone working here, then I suppose there’s always the option of letting me work myself up, toss around a few breakables in this little room here, and pass it off as me taking the escape into my own hands. Maybe you could even let me give you a quick knock to the gut, or something, just to make it look more believable.” After a brief pause, he spoke again, concluding his proposal. “And for the record, I do have things I’ve got to do around this city, the sooner, the better. So whether you agree to help me leave here or not, I’m going to be getting out, and figuring out what’s up with everything. That much, I can assure you of.”
“Glad that didn’t last too long,” Diuccio remarked as the nurse bolted out of the room. “Hopefully it wasn’t one of those students I came here with that’s gone critical though… nah. They were fine, much better shape than I was. Just shaken up was all. Those five should be alright, at least.” He looked to the young man that had entered, and effectively gotten the nurse off of his back. He looked familiar, though Di couldn’t quite put his finger on it right away. After taking a short time to think of it a little more carefully, he realized that he had seen the kid at the Academy, before it had been swallowed by the Darkness. What he was doing working in a hospital, Di couldn’t understand, considering there was so much more he probably could have been doing, like training for another attack. After the contemplation of the newcomer, he shook his head and dismissed it. They had gotten him out of a cussing, and that was enough for him at the moment. He smiled again, this time for real, and looked more directly at the comer. “I know it wasn’t any good news that got her out of here,” he said, “but… thanks for getting her out of here. I don’t think I could have stood another second of her ranting. Think they knew when a person’s ready to go, but I swear to Light and all in it that I’ve never felt more healthy and more right.” Aware at last that he was going on a rant of his own, he stopped, and thought. The young guy had gotten the nurse out of the room. Maybe he knew how to get that light tube off of its aim at his gut. “Hey man. You think maybe, you could, you know, get this think off and away from me?” he asked, waving his hand gentle at the tube. “I don’t even know what that thing is exactly. Must be something expensive, seeing as the Academy never had one that I knew of. All I know is that it’s not doing a damn thing for me.”
Damn. Di had been hoping the nurse wouldn’t notice him; if she hadn’t, she might have left, and he probably could have even gotten out of his bed and snuck around for a bit of fresh air before they realized he was gone. But seeing as she was wise to his open eyes, his chances were out the window. The nurses at The Academy never let anyone go about with injuries if they could help it, so surely a nurse in Janina’s infirmary, particularly at such a critical moment, would be several times ore strict. All Diuccio could do was put on an attempt at a smile, give nod, and say, “yeah. I’m awake. And I’ve… never felt better.” He cringed slightly, for oddly enough, he could feel that he really was better than he had ever felt before. He had never felt more alive and ready than he realized he did in that moment. Maybe they did drug me pretty well, he thought, managing a chuckle inside. I must be loopy. Who has ever felt BETTER after getting slashed and pierced by Darkness? He looked to the nurse, more seriously, and maybe a bit more demanding than was necessary. “I think I’d be well enough to go about on my own. I’ve got things I need to take care. I know I’ve got find someone high up and meet with them about all the Academy matters, and that’s not even to mention the fact that I’ve got five students without a master that need guidance.” He made to move, but under the stream of the light coming through the tube, he found himself stuck. “If you could please remove this… well, whatever the hell it is? I’d like to get a move on. A lot of catching up to do.”
