Random comments on FF7.

Yes, I realize the game's been out like ten years. I hadn't played it, and still haven't much. One of my friends loaned me it and his playstation 1 to play it, since we were doing an RPG set in an FF-like universe. Which seems to have died, but.

Blocky chibis!

The enemies in the beginning have the CRAPPIEST guns and missile launchers ever. "Machine gun! 4 damage!" "... Dude, that's not even a scratch."

Also, I find it amusing that there's a dating sim subplot to it.

Also also, there's a bunch of cursing. I didn't remember that from the brief bit I played before.

The Travails of Mad Science

"Why does everything with you have to end in fire, tears, and fleeing a mob of enraged peasants?"

"Ith Tradithonal. Ith how ith alwath gone."

"That's not how the world works any more! What's wrong with renting a little office space in the suburbs, and finding some startup cash?"

"Thath not how the Mathter would have done it."

"The 'Master' is dead."

Igor sniffed disdainfully.

"And when I bring an attractive woman back to the lab, if there's going to be any strapping her to a table, I'm going to do it! And not to perform hideous experiments on her!"

So, Cocoon

My sister got my mom Cocoon, so we watched it. It's a good movie. But I realized something as I was watching it. It's not a science-fiction movie. Oh, it has aliens, and the UFO at the end, but that's just window dressing.

They're not aliens. They're angels. I mean, look at it. They come from the sky, they're immortal, they can restore health, they glow, they fly, and strike people stupid when they're seen in their true forms. Same qualities as people ascribe to angels.

It's Sci-fi window dressing on a movie about angels coming down and healing old people, then lifting them up the heaven. Or them dying. Because, for practical purposes, they're dead. The ending sequence where the minister's talking is supposed to be reassuring, they're not really dead, they're off to live forever in space! Which is functionally different than being dead... how, exactly, since they're not around, and they can't come back to Earth ever? it doesn't matter if they're dead, abducted by aliens, or raptured up on wings of light, it all has the same effect. Which is one of the things that's been mentioned on Slacktivist's reviews of the atrocious Left Behind books.

The movie works because it focuses on the reactions and interactions of the humans, the aliens are just sorta there. Only two of them even speak. They're not the point of the story, they're just macguffins. The movie's not about them.

It struck me especially when all the people in the special features my parents were watching kept referring to it as a sci-fi movie. I wonder if they didn't really notice, or just figured it made people more comfortable and made it more accessible than a movie specifically about angels. Which is probably part of why there's so much about aliens in most new agey stuff, they can have all the same attributes as angels, but with the serial numbers filed off. None of the baggage of organized religion, but the same warm fuzzies. Which always makes me wonder what a angel's job description actually IS.

In Which I Geek about Magic

Today was the Ravnica release event at the local hobby store.

( Details inside, so as not to bore the non-Magic people )

And I went on IRC for Magic because I was geeking, and heard the best use for the Pro Tour Player cards. Nobody wanted them at the store, so I ended up with a bunch. Use them for tokens. I should snagged them all. "I attack with Kai, Dave, and Terry." Heh.