I’ve been considering buying a LEGO kit for a long time now. I don’t really know why, probably just a desire to get back to my childhood. LEGO kits are very different now of course. When I was a kid, the LEGO train my dad bought me looked more like this: than this: Whatever the reason, I’ve been eyeing up various LEGO kits over the last few months. The old Star Destroyer would be perfect but it’s no longer available: The Simpsons house is very tempting but the characters faces are a bit weird. The Ghostbusters car was very high on my list for a long time (and I may get this as a “starter” kit anyway). Yesterday, I spotted the Batman Tumbler and there’s a good chance I’ll be getting that. But LEGO also announced this… THAT is the kit I want. Oh, and by the way, you play with LEGO or LEGO bricks, not LEGOs. Thanks. [LEGO SHIELD Helicarrier by Philip Harris first appeared on Solitary Mindset on 31st January 2015]
The Terrible Truth Behind Batman’s Greatest Villain
Via Dorkly. [The Terrible Truth Behind Batman’s Greatest Villain by Philip Harris first appeared on Solitary Mindset on 17th August 2014]
The Not So Amazing Spider-Man
I enjoyed the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man films (although I thought the last one lacked focus) but for some indistinct reason the reboot didn’t really appeal so we didn’t go to see it at the cinema. I was interested in it enough to record it from Movie Central though and it’s been sitting on our PVR for a while. We finally got around to watching it last night and it turns out my ill defined impressions were correct. It wasn’t a bad film but halfway through I stopped caring about anything that was going on. Thinking about it this morning, I came to the conclusion that the problem was it all felt too familiar. Apart from a different villain, it’s essentially the same story as the Tobey Maguire version. I get that it’s an origin story and so there’s a formula that needs to be followed but even the tone felt similar to the earlier films (or at least to my memory of the earlier films). Contrast it to the Batman reboot. Again, it was a familiar story but it felt different – fresher and more modern. The Dark Knight trilogy works because it keeps to the spirit of Batman while still bringing … Read More
Back From The Dead
Time flies when you’re living in a self-imposed creative wasteland. It’s been three months since my last real update and since then I’ve been to several plays including two musicals, seen a couple of fantastic musicians live listened to a lot of great new music, backed loads of kickstarter projects, watched some hockey but not as much as I would have liked, eaten in some nice restaurants, injured my foot, run a marathon and signed up for a second one, watched some really good films (and awesome videos), seen the batmobile, read some great books and a lot of short stories but written nothing. The Evil Dead Claim Another Victim* However, a couple of weeks ago we went away to Desolation Sound for a short break to recharge and I ended up writing the first drafts of a couple of new stories – This is Not the Apocalypse You’re Looking For and Artificial Wife. Desolation Sound That burst of creativity (and the amazing location) swept away the cobwebs and since then I’ve been masterminding a plan to get writing back into my regular schedule. The first step was to clear out all my almost finished stories so I’ve spent the last few days revising Origami Man, Rainshine and … Read More