Economic Nerds

Comic Books: The New Batman And Robin Part 2

2009-10-20T18:39:00.001-07:00

Comic Books: The New Batman And Robin Part 2

In Batman's early career (according to the Year One storyline) he and the Gotham city police did not get along. Part of the reason was Batman is a vigilante, moving outside of the law in order to bring justice to criminals. A bigger reason was most of the Gotham city police were criminals themselves. Batman doesn't care if you have a badge or not. If you are breaking the law in his city, then he is going after you.

Since their rocky start, however, Batman and the GCPD have worked together. This is mostly thanks to Commissioner Gordon . Commissioner James Gordon (again according to the Year One story) began as a lieutenant in Gotham the same year Bruce began his career as Batman. Gordon was one of very few honest cops when he started at Gotham. With his stellar performance and unrelenting will to save Gotham, Gordon quickly rose through the ranks and cleaned up the police department. Over the years Batman and Gordon have gained each other's respect. Batman trusts few people, but Gordon is high on that list.

For the few weeks after Bruce's "death" violence erupted in Gotham. Bruce's identity was a closely guarded secret and news of his death wasn't widely known. Still, many people believed Batman was dead, or at least suspected something was wrong with the Dark Knight. The city nearly tore itself apart. People tried to claim the Batman cowl as their own, villains took their gang wars to the next level, and there was no Bruce to come and save the day.

When Dick became Batman many people in Gotham, both heroes and villains, weren't expecting the Dark Knight to be prowling the streets again. This included the GCPD. In Dick's first meeting with Gordon and some other officers, the reader can tell the officers are not sure that the real Batman is back. Robin does Dick no favors. Damian takes his interrogation too far with a criminal, giving her a concussion as Gordon and other officers try to stop him.

After this disastrous first meeting, Dick gained Gordon's respect by finding and shutting down a new drug dealer in Gotham. Gordon knows that this isn't the same Batman he has worked with for years, but recognizes that the person under the cowl is continuing Batman's mission. Gordon might even have a hunch that a former Robin is the new Batman. The irony is that if Dick could just tell Gordon who it is that is the new Batman then Gordon would know he can trust the new Batman.

When Dick took on Batman's mantel he knew that he couldn't let people know that it was a new person in the costume. This will help him keep the fear that Bruce put into Gotham's criminals. But for the few people who knew Bruce, even without knowing his real name, Dick will have to slowly earn their trust and respect or remind them why they feared Batman in the first place.

Video Game Movies Suck (For A Reason)

2009-10-19T22:46:00.000-07:00

It’s no secret. Doom, Hitman, Silent Hill, Max Payne, Street Fighter(both of them), Dead or Alive, the list goes on. There may be exceptions to the “game movies suck” rule, but the majority of gaming movies were in theaters for a painful few weeks, only to then be banished to the bargain bin. So why do amazing games turn into crap movies? Movies based on games have many roadblocks to overcome if they want to go from great game to good movie.

Lots of games have great plots. Bioshock’s story grabbed my full attention from the start and didn’t let go till the very end. Metal Gear Solid 4’s plot, though about as confusing as string theory, made me care about the characters and their world. Unfortunately, other game’s plots are simply a tool for the gameplay. No one playing Doom cared about why the people were killing the monsters, they just wanted to get in there and start blowing things away. When I pick Ryu in Street Fighter, it’s not because of his engaging back story or why he’s fighting, it’s because I like his fireball and dragon punch. Some games don’t need a great plot. I would say that the majority of games today do not have a brilliant story or plot. That’s OK because gameplay is the reigning king of quality for video games.

Now, take a game that relies on its great gameplay over plot, take away the gameplay, and what do you get? If you said a horrible movie then you are correct! Someone decided that since Street Fighter is so popular, they should make a movie out of it, completely forgetting that it’s popular because of its tight controls, deep gameplay, and diverse characters. It’s not popular because people want to know about Chun-Li’s early life. The problem is compounded because the big movie companies seemingly think that the name is enough to sell tickets and don’t bother to write a compelling story about the characters.

What’s worse is when a movie takes the name of a game and decides to throw away everything compelling about the game itself. Since they start with a sparse plot, they think they can do whatever they want with the story. If video game movies want to start being good, the people making them are going to have to find the fine line between staying true to the source material and making a story that’s worth watching. I am not saying it is an easy thing to do, but movie makers will hopefully find a way to do it successfully.

Video game movies also almost never have great, or even good, actors in them either. Many people in the main stream still view games as something only kids are into. That means proven actors are probably not going to be jumping to sign up for a video game movie. This fact is slowly changing though. Gaming is becoming more and more mainstream and more and more people are gamers. Hopefully one day it will even become cool to have a favorite Final Fantasy summon. This could and should make more actors less hesitant about getting onboard for upcoming video game movies.

Comic book movies have recently gone from complete crap to amazing money makers. Spider-Man proved that a comic book movie could please both hardcore fans and normal movie goers. Iron Man had the tremendous Robert Downey Jr. and was one of the best movies to come out that year. The Dark Knight broke records and had flocks of non-comic fans running to the theater to see Batman and Joker battle over Gotham. Video game movies will hopefully follow in comic book movie’s footsteps. Who knows, maybe the God of War movie or Resident Evil 17 will win Oscars (don’t hold your breath). Video game movies blow, but they don’t have to and wont always.

Via Platform Nation

Video Games: Recession Far From A Game Over For Gaming

2009-10-16T23:46:00.001-07:00

During the Great Depression people wanted an escape. They wanted to lose themselves in another world for a few hours so that they didn’t have to think about their own. The struggling people wanted the most bang for their buck; for those people the movies provided that escape. Today we are in a recession, and while it’s not as bad as the Great Depression, many families are being affected. There is no doubt that movies still provide many people entertainment, but there is also another place to find new and wonderful worlds: video games. Video games are giving today’s struggling people entertainment in a time when they need it. People can’t face their problems 24/7, or they will become overwhelming. Movies and video games give people a fantasy where they can leave real world problems behind. There is one reason why video games are a better escape than movies for people who are down on their luck: gamers are in control.

While playing, gamers are in charge of an entire universe. Everything in the game happens because of the player. They have the power to move forward, back, (or down-forward-punch for a sweet fireball) or turn the game off altogether. Gamers have a world that they can enjoy at their leisure. When people have gone through a situation where they have no control, like being laid off, being in charge can be a powerful feeling. In the movies, people can get lost in another person’s story. In a video game, players can get lost in their own story. They can be the greatest warrior in the universe, a gangster who always gets what he wants, or maybe just the apprentice of a cooking mama.

Video games, however, are not cheap. Gamers are showing that they want more content for their money by buying games with online multiplayer and longer single player hours. Gamestop’s used game market is booming because many people want the video game experience, but don’t want to spend sixty dollars a game to get it. MMO’s are extremely popular for this reason. Thousands of MMO fans only play their one MMO game and nothing else. Not only are they fun to play but as long as the fifteen dollars gets paid every month there can be years and years of playtime in their fantasy world.
Via Platform Nation

Movies: Zombieland

2009-10-14T18:03:00.001-07:00

Zombies are all the rage right now. Books, video games, comic books, and movies have an abundance of the undead. As a zombie lover I am happy that those decomposing, horrific, eating machines are getting their time in the spotlight. I do worry though that companies are simply injecting zombies into things because it will be popular. As more and more media companies jump on the zombie bandwagon, they run the risk of overplaying the walking dead.

Fortunately, Zombieland is a wonderful addition to the zombie genre. The basic plot is a group of people; Jesse Eisenburg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin, trying to make sense of a post zombie world. There are some goals the characters have in the movie, that I won't spoil, but for the most part you watch the characters try to find their way in the new world. Of course, it is a comedy so their journey to find what they want isn't as dreary as it sounds.

The movie never takes itself very seriously. You find out very early the cause of the zombie outbreak and I will just say no secret lab or scientists were involved. You will get to see zombie brides attack their soon to be zombie husbands, little girl zombies in princess dresses attacking a minivan, flaming zombies tackling firemen, and that is just the opening credits.

If zombie gags had been the only great thing about the movie then it would be good, but nothing special. Luckily, in Zombieland, the characters themselves make you laugh just as much as their undead co-stars. All of the character's personalities fit very well together and they form a great group to watch try to survive Zombieland. All of the actors are great in their roles and every character is believable.
The best part about Zombieland, something that separates it from most other zombie movies, besides the comedy, is that the characters' goal isn't simply to stay alive. They want something more than to just live through the zombie apocalypse. They want something from the world before zombies. The characters just want to believe that one day they won't have to constantly look over their shoulders to stay alive. This turns a great comedy/horror movie and turns it into just a great movie period.
We loved Zombieland and think everyone should get it out ASAP!

Comic Books: The New Batman and Robin Part 1

2009-10-13T18:45:00.001-07:00

Batman has always been one of my favorite super heroes, so when I heard that Bruce Wayne was going to be killed (of course, in comics death is not permanent) I wondered what that meant for Batman. After a fierce battle between many of Gotham's heroes and villains, Dick Grayson, the first Robin, has taken the Batman cowl and Bruce Wayne's assassin raised son, Damian Wayne, has taken on the Robin name. I was unsure how good this new Batman and Robin would be, but now, five issues in, I can say that it is amazing.

The reason the new Batman and Robin is so interesting is because it flips the classic Batman persona and relationships. Bruce Wayne was interesting because of his intense obsession with fighting crime. Bruce kept everyone and everything at arm's length so that nothing could get in the way of his lifelong mission. The Batman stories I love most are the ones that expose that Bruce Wayne is just as crazy as the villains he locks up, but he pushes himself to that extreme so that no one else has to suffer like he does.

Dick Grayson is not like Bruce Wayne. Grayson has a sense of humor. While he wants to fight crime, no one could devote their life so entirely to it as Bruce Wayne did. The new Batman may seem the same to villains, but Grayson is struggling to play the part of his mentor.

The classic Batman and Robin relationship is like a teacher and student. Robin is a child who needs to be taught how to fight against the crime that could easily swallow them up. Robin looks up to Batman as a person who can show them how to be something more than they are.

The new Robin was raised by murderers and villains. Damian does not respect Grayson and believes that he is ready to be the new Batman. Damian has been taught to fight since he was born and has shown that he has a brilliant mind for technology. The only things stopping Damian from actually being as great as he thinks he is, is his hair trigger attitude and the fact that he is 12 years old. The relationship between Dick and Damian seems like the exact opposite of the classic Batman and Robin relationship, but the fact that the new Robin still needs to be taught and the new Batman thinks he can save him is part of the relationship that is still alive.
Part 2 will focus on Batman's new relationship with the Gotham Police.

Nerdy Fun In A Grown Up World

2009-10-12T20:01:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, our names are Bobby and Kait. This blog is about two people who are trying to have fun while facing a grown up world. We are nerds who just graduated college and who are looking for jobs and living with our parents. We are 22 year olds who need to start living in a grown up world, but do not want to stop talking about who could win in a fight, Punisher or Moon Knight. We don't want to stop playing board games in the dining room or carving Kirby Jack O Lanterns.

On this blog you will see all of the things we refuse to give up as we grow up. We will give our opinions about comic books, board games, crafts, video games, gadgets, cartoons based on comic books, and everything else we love. With part time jobs and not much money, we wont have the newest gadgets or games, but we can promise you the most honest opinions about the things we love. Also, we will occasionally try to be funny, so please bare with us.

If you spent more time at keggers (that's a thing, right?) than playing Mario Tennis on an old Nintendo 64 in college, then this site might not be for you. If you use your limited funds to by DS games instead of new jeans, then welcome to Economic Nerds, a site where two semi-adults talk about the things that would get us stuffed in a locker 40 years ago!