Ulysses 31 Soundtrack Medley

The 80's were an amazing time for cartoons and one of the finest is Ulysses 31. It tells a story similar to Homer's The Odyssey. The series is quite dark and the story is amazing but the real standout for me was the dramatic music by Denny Crockett and Ike Egan.

Check out this phenomenal medley of Ulysses 31 tracks... it rocks!

Twin Peaks Coming Back in 2016!

I am pleased to announce that Twin Peaks will return in 2016. The announcement was made by Showtime over the weekend, following hints in tweets sent by David Lynch and Mark Frost, the creators of the show. I for one am excited as this series is my favourite television series of all time (after 'Mysterious Cities of Gold' that is)

To quote Showtime:

The groundbreaking television phenomenon, Golden Globe® and Peabody Award-winner TWIN PEAKS will return as a new limited series on SHOWTIME in 2016. Series creators and executive producers David Lynch and Mark Frost will write and produce all nine episodes of the limited series, and Lynch will direct every episode. Set in the present day, TWIN PEAKS will continue the lore of the original series, providing long-awaited answers and a satisfying conclusion for the series’ passionate fan base.

For viewers hoping to reminisce or for those discovering the series for the first time, SHOWTIME will re-air the first two seasons of TWIN PEAKS, in advance of the new episodes going on air in 2016.

Widely considered one of the most groundbreaking and influential broadcast series of all time, TWIN PEAKS followed the inhabitants of a quaint northwestern town who were stunned after their homecoming queen Laura Palmer is shockingly murdered. The town's sheriff welcomed the help of FBI agent Dale Cooper, who came to town to investigate the case. As Cooper conducted his search for Laura's killer, the town's secrets were gradually exposed. The mystery that ensued set off an eerie chain of events that plunged the inhabitants of Twin Peaks into a darker examination of their very existence. Twenty-five years later, the story continues...

Star Trek vs Marvel

I'm a big Lasertime fan and this is one of my favourite clips from their show. They look at the most unnecessarily verbose titles in the history of mankind from Star Trek and Marvel. Some of the titles sound like something Troy McClure would star in!

The Tintin Shop, London

The Adventures of Tintin is a series of comic albums created by Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi (1907–1983), who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular comics all time, in fact by the time of the centenary of Hergé's birth in 2007, Tintin had been published in more than 70 languages with sales of more than 200 million copies.

The Tintin Book Rocket stood in the middle of the children's section in my library and I loved it.

I have loved Tintin ever since I went to my local library and saw the books all stored in the rocket from Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon. I read and reread the books many times over, watched the cartoons series and seen the movie. As a young boy Tintin was someone who took me on adventures, there were mysteries to be solved and fun to be had. My favourite stories were the two parters, my favourite character was Captain Haddock and I loved appearances from Jolyon Wagg and Prince Abdullah.

The entire Tintin collection!

I was hoping to visit the Hergé Museum in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium but didn't get a chance over the Summer. So whilst searching on the internet for places in London to get my fix of Tintin I came across a website for the Tintin Shop in Covent Garden. That's what I like about London, I've lived near there for most of my life yet there are still amazing places I don't know about and discover. The shop was started in 1984 and contains books, models, t-shirts, ceramics and posters. I went there yesterday and was so excited to see the items on sale there. I bought myself a t-shirt and promised myself that once I got paid next week that I would go back to get more.

Mysterious Cities of Gold Season 2 Review

The original Mysterious Cities of Gold series was a French- Japanese co-produced animation by Dic Entertainment and Studio Pierrot. The series premiered in Japan on NHK on 29 June 1982 and ran weekly for 39 episodes.

I first caught the series on BBC 1 in the early 80s and was beguiled by the mythical adventure story of a young Spanish boy named Esteban who joins a voyage to the New World in search of the lost Cities of Gold and his father. The impressive looking background art, sharply drawn characters, and the beautiful soundtrack kept me entranced throughout the whole series, becoming my favourite programme of all time. It informed my formative years and introduced me to the wonders of the ancient world including the Incas, Aztecs, Atlantis and El Dorado. Even at the age of 33 I still regularly revisit the programme every year and I can attest to the fact that it still holds up as an impressive piece of work.

There has been talk of a second series for years and preliminary plans were laid however it never materialised. However with the re-release of the series on DVD in 2008 and increased interest in the new series were finally put into production. Debuting on the Kix Channel in December the second series finally landed. So how does it fare compared to the original?

At the end of the original series the children had only found one of the seven lost cities of gold, yet the conclusion was oddly satisfying in an open-ended way. Well the second series is a continuation rather than a reboot, so with the same character designs and story the series picks from the end of series one; The three children and Mendoza, Pedro and Sancho heading to China in search of the next lost city of gold and the truth about Esteban’s father.

On the whole I really did enjoy the new series but felt that it lacked the atmosphere and awe that was present in the original series. The voice actors were passable, however I did feel that Mendoza sounded angry or annoyed a lot of the time, a shift from his can-do attitude from the first series. Also the synth music from the discovery parts and key events made each new discovery super special. The music that dropped when the adventurers find the Solaris and Golden Condor still sends shivers down my spine. I felt that in this new series moments of emotive music and silence from the characters would have carried greater gravitas than the exposition from the characters.

China is well represented in the series with beautiful background artwork.

The team still go on awe inspiring adventures which draw you in.

The series does take a little while to get going, the first 10 or so episodes are very slow paced but the series does pick up and from episode 16 onwards I had those moment of awe and wonder, much like I felt nearly 25 years ago when I first saw the first series.

I'll leave you with one of my favourite youtube videos, this is St. Elmos Fire, the piece of music by Haim Saban and Shuki Levi. This music swells in the series when there are moments of discovery... the new series was missing these moments but does stand well as a continuation. Roll on series 3!

Futurecop! N.A.S.A. Set to Classic 80's movies.

There is a warm and fuzzy feeling that emanates from my heart that feels like unconditional love when I watch films from my childhood, it reminds me of the long summers hanging with my friends, playing amazing computer games and watching the phenomenal films. Hugothejuego has created a mashup of classic 80s films with the sounds of Futurecops! N.A.S.A, a wonderful slice of synth nostalgia. You have to see this video, it will leave a smile on your face and that warm feeling in your heart.

Edgecraft

Minecraft has inspired many people to recreate games that they like in the Minecraft style, and here we have one of the best. Michael Trikosko has recreated the world of Mirrors Edge, with its clean cut lines and flashes of red. I've linked to his video but the game is playable and there are many 'Lets Plays' of the game on YouTube.

Nicolas Cage Losing His Shizzle

Ah Nicolas Cage.... the man is a walking enigma. Sometimes amazing but often not, I mean have you seen his version of 'The Wicker Man?'

Well some enterprising fellow has made a compilation video of the man losing his shizzle! Set to Clint Mansell's Requiem for a Dream Theme this really is an astonishing montage.

Duck Tales with Real Ducks

Duck Tales was one of my cartoon highlights from the 80's. I have fond memories of waking up on Saturday morning and watching the show with my older brother. Well now someone has taken their love of Duck Tales to new extremes, recreating the entire opening of the show with REAL ducks... yup, REAL ducks. Enjoy!

Leigh Alexander and Gaming Journalism

Leigh Alexander is a games journalist who writes articles on gaming culture, her work has appeared in a variety of websites and publications including Edge, Gamasutra and Kotaku. She is a wonderful writer who shares her views, opinions, thoughts and feeling freely however her writing can be somewhat divisive. I follow her on Twitter and like her insights and interesting articles, but there is a large contingent in the gaming community who don't like the things she says or the way she expresses things. This has most recently come to light with GamerGate, where many gamers have tried to reclaim the label 'gamer' and tried to hold gaming journalism to account, however many have attacked Leigh and specific women with a disproportionate amount of abuse, which is disgraceful and unfair (for an excellent article on GamerGate I would recommend you read Tadhg Kelly's article linked below.)

It is a shame as I have read many of her articles and more recently her e-published books 'Breathing Machine: A Memoir of Computers' and 'Clipping Through.'

In 'Breathing Machine: A Memoir of Computers' she talks about her experiences of growing up alongside the emergence of the internet. For someone of my age or similar (33 just so you know) her experiences are similar enough to mine to stir up some nostalgia for a time when technology seemed so so powerful, so exciting and so complex. It's a wonderful journey through a childhood where meeting people on chat-rooms, receiving e-mails and searching online in long forgotten search engines will seem  familiar to anyone who grew up around the inception of the internet.

The authors other book, 'Clipping Through' is a a very personal read, giving first hand insights about the journalistic side of the gaming industry. Leigh provides a remarkably open and personal perspective of attending the week long GDC 2014 Conference. She discusses her thoughts and fears with us and describes the stress that comes with the job. The e-book is a simple read clocking in at under 90 pages. Of particular interest to me were the chapters that included the awkwardness of seeing Ken Levine, the developer and writer of Bioshock Infinite, a game she lambasted but in my opinion fairly so. She also talks about meeting her hero Koji Igarashi, creator of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and how she found it hard to create a bond. Leigh also shares her theory about Metal Gear Solid 4 and why the GDC Award ceremony is not that great for gaming.

Leigh Alexander is a refreshingly honest writer who offers interesting viewpoints and thoughts for discussion. I like her writing and I think in the often fanboy world of gaming, having someone like her who questions the status quo and offers a unique perspective is important. If you get a chance read her books and articles and support her in her work please do, you will not be disappointed.

LINK- Leigh Alexander Website

LINK- Leigh Alexanders article on Bioshock Infinite

LINK- Leigh Alexanders Lo-Fi Let's Plays

LINK- Gamergate Article by Tadhg Kelly

Bubble Dragon- A Bubble Bobble Tribute

One of my fondest memories as a child was playing Bubble Bobble with my brother on the Amstrad CPC 464. We only had a green monochrome screen so didn't have the colourful palette but the game blew me away, later in my life I'd come back to the game time and time again on more colourful consoles. Whilst falling down the YouTube rabbit hole I found this tribute to the game and felt waves of nostalgia overtake me. Have a look at this loving tribute to a truly awesome game.

Top 125 Nintendo Games for 125th Anniversary

Nintendo is 125 years old this year, it started off as a playing card manufacturer and branched off into toys (check out Before Mario for extensive details) before finding international success with the games consoles. IGN is celebrating this momentous occasion by playing through the top 125 Nintendo games on it's website, I'm loving watching the games come up and reflecting on my journey with Nintendo. Have a look yourself and see which games you have fond memories of.

30th Anniversary of the Amstrad CPC 464

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Amstrad CPC 464. The computer launched in the spring of 1984 by British manufacturer Amstrad. The "color personal computer" (CPC) was a success in Britain and across Europe, selling 3 million units. It sold far less than the Spectrum and Commodore 64 but these are impressive numbers for the third placed machine.

The CPC 464 operated using the BASIC language and was equipped with a cassette tape deck, a Zilog Z80A processor running at 4Mhz, and 64KB RAM. The first set of Amstrads came with monochromatic (green) monitors was many programmers first introduction to coding. An entire generation of gamers, now probably in their thirties and forties, grew up with the device and games such as "Gauntlet," "Barbarian," "Arkanoid" and "Rainbow Islands."

The CPC 464 was my first computer and I still have it. I have kept my favourite games but I have fond memories of "Target Renegade," "R-Type," "Robocop," "Chase HQ," "Continental Circus," "Ghost and Goblins," "Super Robin Hood," "Fantasy World Dizzy," "Head Over Heels," "Rainbow Islands," "New Zealand Story" and "Barbarian."