Wizard World is the Devil!!!!

http://www.wizardworld.com/

Wizard World is a company that funds Comic Con conventions in cities all over the country.  Note:  do not confuse these comic cons with Comic Con International in San Diego and New York...you'll be sorely disappointed....

But anyway, I went to my first Wizard World Comic Con in Boston this past weekend.  I've been to my fair share of cons, between Otakon in Baltimore, Anime Boston, Providence Anime Convention and PAX East 2010.  But, I must say, this was the WORST convention I've ever been to.  Even PAC that had about 5 people attending was more enjoyable than this one....

I don't know if they were just unorganized because it was the first year the con was in Boston, but I have never had such a shitty con experience.  Maybe I just don't like the way Wizard World runs things.  Unlike all the other cons I've attended, Wizard World cons offer "VIP Passes" to people willing to shell out a minimum of $150/person (they ranged all the way up to about $500).  I, for one, think this is an unfair way of running a con.  Here was me with my measly $45 3-day pass wristband (didn't even get a badge....not cool), waiting in line for over an hour for each panel I wanted to attend, but that didn't matter for shit.  Because with the VIP pass, you could show up at the panel's start time and cut all 200 people in line before you.  Not to mention, the panel room only held about 150 people and once it was full, all those "poor" people who couldn't afford the $150 pass got shut out of the panel they had waited all those hours in line to attend.  I mean, if this is how you're going to run your con, at least shell out the money to rent a bigger fucking panel room. ><

In addition to my gripes about the line, if you wanted to attend back-to-back panels, you were shit out of luck unless you were VIP.  If you didn't have the pass, you had to leave the room and get at the end of the line, but what's the fucking point?  there's already 200 people in line and only about 50 of them are even gonna get into the room ><

Autographs were over-priced ($60 for Lee majors?  how many pple don't even know who he is? lol),

you weren't allowed to get a picture with the famous person of your choice without being a VIP (unless they were only semi-famous, like the actress who played Kat in Battlestar Galactica....i broke down and got her autograph even though i hated her character lol),

and Adam West is apparently a complete douchebag (he wouldn't talk directly to fans...he asked the guard their name and wrote an impersonal autograph and they were shooed on their merry way)!  The only thing reasonably priced were the comics sold by the individual vendors ><

In all the negatives, there was a few positives.  The whole reason I even wanted to go was because some actors from Buffy the Vampire Slayer were making an appearance.  It's my favorite show, how could I pass it up?  It was amazing to see them and go to a few of the panels, but not being able to even get a photo or autograph was a bit sad.  Hopefully I'll get a chance some other day....

In conclusion, here's my take on Wizard World:  They don't care about you.  They don't care at all....unless you give them $500.  Give them $500 and they'll practically wipe your ass for you... >< This was their premiere Boston con.  This was where you want to make a good impression on a city of fans so that they come next year.  Based on my impression this year, you couldn't pay ME to go to another Wizard World Con.  Some may think my opinion is harsh, but I know I'm not alone in these opinions.  I talked to people at the con and I've seen the comments on facebook and the general consensus is if you didn't have a VIP pass, you did not have a good time.  Not to mention, if you weren't a Buffy fan, there was literally NO panels or programming for you to enjoy.  The entire con revolved around BuffyFest, which was fantastic for those fans, but really shitty for everyone else.

Big Fail, Wizard World........   

Pie is tasty.

Over the past year, i've done a bit of contemplating as to what determines who are your "good friends", who are your "best friends", and who are just "friends"...the following is what i've deduced:

Friends - occaisional text messages/emails to one another, particularly on birthdays; get together for dinner or what have you approx. once a month; always invited to birthday and/or holiday parties; most definitely invited to weddings; comfortable around them, but not entirely comfortable enough to be completely yourself.

Good Friends - hang out at least once a week; occaisonally chat via FB, AIM or gchat; text messages almost daily; don't need to knock when entering each others' homes; comfortable enough to talk about how itchy your boobs are today.

Best Friends - hang out 3-5 nights a week; have a ridicuous number of inside jokes, therefore there is always something to laugh about; when you say "I'm gonna go the bathroom upstairs so I don't stink up your kitchen", their response is "Ok, I'll stink up the kitchen instead"; there's a "spot" on their couch that's yours and yours alone; you don't have to worry about being yourself around them...........ever.


Fin.

P.S. Best friends also don't judge you for stealing pumpkins and dropping them off at your other friends' porches.

Double Fin.

Writer's block............

......So I'll write about something random...

I don't understand the stigma that goes along with tattoos.  Granted, there are some really bad ones out there, but most are quite extraordinary!  The one thing I DON'T get is people who get tattoos just for the sake of having a tattoo.  I personally know someone who literally walked into a tattoo parlor, looked through a book, picked one at random and had it put on.  I mean, I cannot understand having something permanently embedded in your skin and not having it have some form of meaning!

For those who don't have any tattoos, I'll admit it's quite addicting.  I never thought I'd be someone to ever get a tattoo, but then I kinda went through an existential crisis and was pretty depressed after my grandfather died and I realized life's too short to not take risks occasionally.  Since I had ZERO interest in ever skydiving, getting a tattoo seemed like a big enough risk for me at the time. lol

My first tattoo I got was a quote from the Twilight movie, which I'll admit sucked royally (the books are so much better).  The movie came out a couple months after my grandfather passed, and when I heard the quote "..death is peaceful, easy; life is harder" i kind of felt a reassurance that my grandfather's death was for the best and he was no longer in pain.  Death is the easiest part of life...all you have to do is muck through all the shit until you just have to let go.  What's beyond that, who knows...but it can't be harder than this, right??  That quote is a constant reminder to myself that death is hardest on the living and those we lose to it are the ones who benefit...and i find that very reassuring :)

After that, I was hooked.  I literally have a list in my head of at least 4 more tattoos I want! it's so addicting! gaaaaaaaaah!  I got my second one this past May after thinking it over for about 2 months.  I read the book Between the Bridge and the River by my beloved Craig Ferguson and, once again, was very taken by a quote: "...when the word of God is infected by the hand of man..it is tainted".  Anyone who knows me knows i am a card-carrying, Massachusetts liberal.  I was raised in a Catholic family, but over the years the ideals of the church have greatly clashed with my beliefs.  I felt this quote pretty much summed up my philosophy on organized religion to a T and i loved it.  A few of my more-religious family members may have scoffed at it when they first saw it, but I didn't exactly get it for them, did I?  I'm sure they still love me anyway...... xP

To do list: 

1.  I have been in love with Final Fantasy VII almost since it came out....recently my friends and I decided I NEED a tattoo of Cloud Strife....i really do lol.  I'm thinking maybe on the back of my right calf.  I will need to do some consulting to determine how big it needs to be in order to get all the detailing in.

2.  The Venture brothers is one of my favorite shows and The Monarch is one of my favorite characters.  I really wanna get the Monarch symbol in fushcia with black shading around it...location on body TBD.

3.  I miss Lost....and I'm one of the chosen few who actually LIKED how it ended.  As soon as my sister gives birth, I might accompany her when she gets her Dharma tattoo and get one of my own.......I probably won't get this exact one, but maybe one from a specific Dharma station.

4.  My Favorite show of ALL TIME.  My friend and I might get matching Buffy tattoos that look something like this.....i hope we actually follow through with this plan lol  xD

Man.....I'm gonna give some lucky tattoo parlor a LOT of business in the coming years. lol  (P.S. if you're getting a tattoo in the Boston area, DO NOT go to Chameleon in Harvard Square.  They're very good and very clean, but they are SOOOOO overpriced.  I recommend Regeneration Tattoo in Allston.  My second tattoo was like 3 times bigger than my first one, but I paid $50 less for it...and they're just as awesome and clean as Chameleon. )

Ya know what really grinds my gears??

...religious intolerance.  i won't go on too much of a tirade right now about it, but with the 9/11 anniversary coming up and the impending "Quran Burning" that's been in the news, it just disgusts me.  People need to get their heads out of their asses and listen up:

NOT ALL MUSLIMS ARE IN AL QAEDA.

Morons....

What happened to religious freedom in this country?  Religious freedom only works if you're white?  Sometimes the actions of the few make me ashamed of this country....because it's the asinine actions of those few that make world news and its those actions that represent Americans as a whole to the rest of the world.  If i was on the outside looking in, I'd probably hate us too.....

So stop generalizing and stop hating!!  There's over a billion Muslims in this world!  Members of Al Qaeda only measure in the thousands....it doesn't take a genius to do the math and figure out "Oh my god....that means they're not all bad!!".  Having a rally and burning their holy book is offensive and just plain unnecessary.  How would you feel if they had a Bible burning right across the street?  Legally, it could happen....but as far as I know, they don't plan to.  And ya know why?  Because then they would just be sinking to your level.....

end tirade....

Shit

So apparently this mother is riding up the eastern seaboard to attack us.  Great.  Hopefully this will fulfill our "one hurricane every 20 years" quota.

And can we talk about how Hurricane Bob was already 19 years ago?  It still seems so fresh in my mind...I'm getting old ><

And to this day I still think one of the coolest things ever was how calm and sunny the eye of a hurricane is.  When they say "the calm before the storm", they ain't kidding.

Alright I'm bored with talking about hurricanes.......

*drumroll!!!!!*

Today's the day, Ladies &...well...actually, I'm just followed by ladies right now, so Ladies!!!!  After 2 long, arduous weeks of the rerun fairy, tonight marks the return of tv's self-proclaimed "King of Late Night" and, if I'm not mistaken, the start of Season 7 of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson!!  *cue fireworks and confetti*

If you're as psyched as I am, then we can still be friends....In honor of this momentous day, here's a mish-mash off some of my favorite Craig moments.  Enjoy! :o)





That Jenn from Braintree" just happens to be me ;o)







ok that's enough for now :)  (Thanks to Malinky2Stoatir for the videos...all but 1 are from her YT channel)

.........

My thoughts on this whole Tiger Woods "scandal" can be summed up in four words.......

Who.... the fuck..... CARES?!??!?!?!

RIP Blockbuster

(not the actual storefront of my BB.../\ CBS cares)

It's official.....the Blockbuster up the street from my parents' house is closing.  I feel like I'm losing a childhood friend that entertained me during those lonely, high school nights....  I saw this coming, but I'm astounded it took THIS long for it to happen.... *sigh*

Even though I've been a strict Netflix user since college circa 2004 (It's really hard to find a good DVD rental place when you're living across the street from Boston Common), I feel the closure of this store is the end of an era.  I remember the store being built, for god's sake (jeez I'm old).  But seriously....how can you compete with DVDs delivered to your friggin door AND free streaming video online for as little as $8.99 a month?? (<--shameless plug)  Whereas, Blockbuster lets you rent one movie for like 3 days for $5.00..........even Blockbuster's version of Netflix is more expensive than Netflix!!  (per my aunt, what costs $14.99/month at Netflix costs $20.99/month at BB Online, plus tax)

So, if you're like me and are a self-titled movie buff/collector of DVDs....

(only part of the collection...)

...and you're also experiencing a Blockbuster closing near you, I highly recommend checking out Netflix.  You won't regret it.  It's tailored towards the every-day American (lazy and sits on their ass in front of a TV all day lol).  I <3 Netflix

To Blockbuster, I salute you.  You had a good run and I can't wait to stop by your DVD clearance sale later tonight and add to my collection...although, i may need to invest in another bookcase.

Dear Craig Kilborn: Give Up.

Kilby, Kilby, Kilby......why do you even try anymore?  With two failed talk shows under your belt, did you really think your sabbatical from television was self-inflicted?  Did you ever think that maybe the majority of Americans don't like you and find you completely arrogant and unlikeable?  Maybe the failure of your THIRD talk show will convince you to go away.  Not that I *need* to reference IMDB ratings to demonstrate how awful you are, but i'm gonna do it anyway....

FAIL

....a measly 3.5/10 stars.  Wow.....not even Pirahna 3D did that bad actually, i'm suprised how well this movie did lol

Although, I must toast you, Kilborn.  Though I can only think of two good things to ever result from your failures, they are indeed two VERY good things......

Au revoir, you talentless douche.  Don't let the door to Fox Studios hit you in the ass on the way out....

Scott Pilgrim vs. Crappy Movies that came out at the same time

I loved Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. It was original, it was hilarious and it was awesome.  Granted, i have *not* as of yet read the graphic novels (but i plan to as soon as Amazon delivers the bastards), so many might not think it was as awesome as *I* thought it was.  All I know is I laughed harder than i have at the movies in a loooooong time.  And yet, no one in America is seeing this movie. It depresses me.





This movie got beat at the box office by The Expendables, a mindless, testosterone-driven action flick, which Craig Ferguson accurately stated should just be entitled Balls, and....


 
 
 
 



Eat Pray Love, starring the actress with the most dramatic range ever (that was dripping sarcasm, btw), Julia Roberts!  I will always be the first to say this:  I believe Julia Roberts is one of, if not THE, most over-rated actress ever.  The only good movie I've ever seen her in was Steel Magnolias (try not crying during that movie..I dare you).  She plays the same damn character in every friggin movie she's in...why and how does that make her "good"?  Someone please explain to me...
 
 
 
 
One of the reasons it pisses me off so much that THESE movies beat it is this:  I know several people who would LOVE Scott Pilgrim, but they're turned off from it because of Michael Cera, aka George Michael Bluth from Arrested Development (which is pretty much the same character he has played in every movie so far), so they refuse to see this movie.  The reason they're turned off is, as I just mentioned, he plays the same character in every movie.  Please see above......when do Sylvester Stallone or Julia Roberts NOT play the same character in every movie they're ever in??  Seriously...it's called type-casting and Michael Cera is not, by far, the only actor to ever fall prey to it.  And it's especially disappointing because Michael Cera was actually pretty awesome in this friggin movie!!! gaaah...... #FrustratedJenn
 
So please, get over your Anti-Michael-Cera stubbornness for 2 hours and go see this movie!!!  You'll regret it if you don't!  This movie is not for everyone, obviously...if you don't like video games or awesomeness, you'll probably hate it.  But if you don't like video games and awesomeness, you probably won't bother reading my blog, so that works out well.

Rant: Nickelback and Daughtry

These two groups are interchangeable as far as I'm concerned.  Why?  Because they both sound exactly alike and all their songs are identical.  Seriously..I cannot differentiate between any of them!  Yet, they have fans who tell them they're awesome and encourage their behavior.  Shame!

Ex. A - Generic "rock group" Nickelback.  Notice how serious they are about music and the one hand in the front pocket look makes them seem "edgy", when, in reality, their songs are crap and were probably written by a chimp.

Ex. B - Other, generic rock group, Daughtry.  I guess they were instructed to cross their arms in front of their chest in order to get the similar "edgy" look as above.  Instead, to me, they look like douchebags










Good lord, give me David Bowie any day of the week over these guys!

Even in glam make-up and platform boots, this man could kick their asses, both musically and literally....and he'd look fabulous doing it!  Even after 40 years, he's still popular and awesome.  Name one pop/rock band that's hit the music scene in the past two decades that will have that kind of staying power.  The only one that comes to my mind that came around in the early 90's and is STILL touring is Dave Matthews Band.  If someone can think of anyone else, please inform my uneducated mind.

So in conclusion, today's music kinda sucks but thank god David Bowie is still around to set things right.

oh yah...he's still got it.....

WARNING: Final Fantasy VII nerd post about to commence.....

..aaand commencing.

One of the pivotal components of my high school experience was my love for the video game Final Fantasy VII. First of all, it is, in my opinion, the best of the FF series (if you say FF8 is better, i might have to slap a bitch..) and second of all, i believe it to be the best RPG ever made.  This is *MY* opinion and i stand by it.  Not only was I (still am) obsessed with this game, but my entire group of friends was (still are) obsessed with this game.  So much so, that myself, my sister and one of our friends from hs decided to play it through again for the first time in probably 10 or so years.  Our Mission:  get Cloud to go on a date with Barrett.

Let me explain for the lay-man:  there's a point in the game, about 2/3 of the way through the first disc (there are 3 discs of gameplay) where the main character, Cloud....

..goes on a "date" with one of the other characters (i.e. Aeris, Tifa are the most popular).  Depending on how you've treated the characters up until that point in the game will determine who knocks on your door on the date night.  Well, several years ago it was discovered by me that, if certain actions were taken, Cloud could end up on a date with Barrett....picture Mr. T with a gun grafted into his arm.

Needless to say, we were determined to accomplished this task.  And lo and behold we did...

Slightly disappointed they turned it into more of a "lets hang out" than a "date", but hey...it was made in 1997.

***While on the subject of FFVII, i feel the need to insert a plug.  Playing the game again reminded me of this fanfic one of my friends in hs found online waaaaaaay back in 1999-2000 ish.  It was the most amazing Final Fantasy fanfic I'd ever read, but at the time i initially read it, it was not completed.  I googled it recently and discovered it is now complete!!!  I've been re-reading it and i stand by my initial opinion:  it's an amazing story and i recommend it to any FFVII fan!!  Full review to follow once I've finished it.

I Know What's Beneath the Snow Fields by Zahra

Wellp....

Let's see how long I stick with this.  If my life continues to be uninteresting, chances are...not very long.