Theory of a Deadman's Savages - Quicky Album Review

It feels very odd to review an album after so many movies and games, so please forgive the flow of my piece. If you have any music you'd like me to review please let me know! Upon the release of the album, you can catch the whole album on their youtube channel (Click here for the playlist). Its not in any order so be wary that the flow of the album may be a little different

Over the last few months, Theory of a Deadman have been releasing a series of lyric videos for their upcoming album "Savages" titled after the song of the same name featuring Rock legend Alice Cooper. As singles, the songs are strong both vocally and musically. With a blend of heavy, catch riffs, lyrical wit and Connolly's iconic tone, these singles rank up as some of my favourite songs by the group. One issue that has plagued the band is that any songs that aren't singles don't hold the same gravitas and appeal factor. Can they turn it around with Savages? I don't quite know.

With 4 of the songs getting their own music videos, the other 9 tracks were left completely in the dark. As I've already mentioned, the 4 tracks are brilliant and upon listening to the rest of the album, this time around it appears that they have kept to a slightly heavy trend for the majority of the album rather than a small sample of track. There is a healthy variation between tracks with "The One" & "Livin' My Life Like a Country Song" featuring Joe Don Rooney of Rascal Flatts demonstrating a far slower, acoustic approach that's wonderfully contagious. Just prior to these tracks, I felt like I was listening to Rob Zombie rather the TOAD and its great to see the selection the band has chosen rather than lumping the same sort of things together that blend together into something that breezes by with no distinction.

My favourite part of this album is actually the lyrics of a fair few songs. The singles are obviously the strongest of the lot but "Blow" is probably one of their best written songs to date. I may even consider it one of the best I've heard in quite a while. Taking stabs at pop culture from reality TV too Kanye West and Chris Brown make it even better. Many of us will agree with all the points they say within the song and it shows that as a group, Theory of a Deadman really don't give a damn about what sort of flak they may get from the moronic state of individuals.

I'm no professional musician but listening to the album, the technique that goes into the pieces are great. Musically the album is solid. Its heavy, which can qualify itself for the Rock genre but its also catchy which make it extremely popular with a much wider audience and a great stepping stone for those interested in the genre. Canada appears to have released another group that can produce concrete music. Yes I'm talking about Nickleback and yes, I do like them. Alright, some tracks aren't up their with the greats and the singles but I feel that overall Savages deserves an 8/10. I'll end up having this album on repeat for a number of weeks and I doubt I will become sick of it!

Hercules (2014) - Can you smell what Hercules is cooking? - Review - SPOILERS

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is back, semi-naked and as big as ever. We all know Johnson isn't an actor that can play a role in the calibre of Dicaprio's Wolf of Wall Street or 12 Years a Slave's Chiwetel Ejiofor. Raised in the WWE(F), he was always going to be a showman, a man of the people if you will. Action was his forte and that is where he belongs. Tag him in for Expendables 4 and we're in for a treat. If Stallone would like to get him, that would be wonderful.

Moving on. Hercules isn't really the Hercules many of us have seen in the past. Obviously we have followed him take on the giant evils of the world from the Hydra to the Nemean Lion but now we have glossed over them. To avoid the typical remake, they showed Hercules after these events. A mere mercenary driven away from Athens due to the death of his family which was detailed as a murder by him. Obviously, this is not true. If you couldn't have guessed that from the off-set, you really need to start watching some decent TV. As a mercenary, Hercules and his entourage are called upon by the King of Thrace to defend the land from the a dark tyranny in the civil war but all doesn't really go to plan. Plot wise, the story is nothing extreme. Yeah, there's a few twists and turns but its nothing we haven't already seen.

Previously I spoke about The Rock's acting. Obviously it wasn't wondrous. Although I'm aware he passed out several times while filming the scene with the chains which he requested to be iron to make it feel real, it seems like an attempt to appear as a better actor than he really easy and wasn't a very extreme moment to watch. Often enough, I didn't feel that Johnson really had the vocal depth to really do Hercules justice, especially on a battlefield. To be completely frank, the general acting was actually pretty poor. Ian McShane was alright and fairly funny at points but in the reality of things, he couldn't carry as cast that look as if they are just there for some fun. With American Horror Stories Joseph Fiennes I expect a lot more from someone which such credible material behind them but with a character that walks like a moron whose arms have locked into the stupidest position imaginable and has a back-story of the characters from 50 Shades of Grey, I can't pin all the blame on him.

Because I may be worth it

The real reason Hercules is going to make money is because its an action movie. Although I have to give fair warning that in the 90 minute film, the last 30 minutes were where the action became truly enjoyable. With the attack on a settlement of bewitched corpses, I can't understand how repetitive and simple it all is. Considering Hercules tropes around with a damn club and completely ignores the enormous blade he has hanging around his cart, you would think that this club is something magical but its neigh on useless against a bloody horde. One instance, which somehow made it through into the cinema was one of the corpses running at the King. It appears that someone decided to max out the contrast button and then add a splash of faeces and PVA him onto the silver screen onto to be splatted away seconds later. At points the visuals were decent but the incredibly bad instance is something that haunts producers and directors and none of them actually picked up on it.

A half decent story, a cast of actors who don't really act, alright action and visual incidents resembling that of the inside of a lab monkey's cage all seem like really bad ideas to see this movie. Although Hercules stands as a movie that is so bad, it's good. The last 30 minutes were actually decent in general and Ian McShane's inevitable death was somewhat ruined in the trailer but if you really fancy something where you can watch Dwayne Johnson shout a lot, this is the movie for you. I may be being a little extreme on the whole thing but the movie seems like a 6/10 for me.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Quicky Review - SPOILERS

Planet of the Apes has been a formula that almost every child in the last 40-50 years has experienced through its multiple variations and TV appearances. The most recent version (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) was such a success, it warranted a sequel to detail the aftermath of the uprising and virus. With the release of the trailer, it was obvious that Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was going to be a fantastic movie. Removing James Franco from the picture just made it that much better.

If you missed out on the Rise of the Planet of the Apes, please educate yourself on the wonderful movie. Since the events of Rise, humanity has all but dwindled. Cities have become overgrown, shells of cars litter the road all because of the deadly disease created by those who tested on the very apes that rebelled and escaped. In this time, we begin by following the apes on a hunting expedition for food. Witnessing the brutal efficiency of the group as they leap from tree to tree and lead an assault on a herd of deer with wooden weaponry and pure strength and agility was amazing to see. Following their conversations, it appears that humans haven't been seen by the colony of apes in almost 5 years. Only days later do they find out this is not true with the arrival of a small team on their way to a dam to help power their encampment within the city. Without ruining much, the colonies must learn to stay away from each others territory but the humans need for power leads to an uneasy alliance which brews hatred from both sides that eventually boils over.

The story is strong, no doubt about it. What makes it better is the character development. With it not being reserved for just the main characters, other members get some great character development. The best is for the apes. You can find yourself connecting with them a lot more. Maurice is an amazing character that really is only an extra in many shots but he becomes a very loveable creature. With the reduced emotional display (compared to humans), the apes convey the emotions a lot better thus making them more appealing. The only problem I did have with this was that a fair few scenes were cut from the movie. Interactions that would have only strengthened the bonds and give a little more context to certain moments. For instance, the lead Malcolm (Jason Clarke) somehow finds out Caeser's name yet we missed quite a vital point of trust between these two characters.

I praised Transformers 4 on its excellent CGI work. However, it did feel like it was stuck onto the screen. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was stunning. At parts you couldn't even tell if the horses were real or not. Caeser can only be described as real. With Andy Serkis acting as him, the movement was fluid and lifelike. The acting in general was very good. Although my opinion of Gary Oldman has swayed in recent months, his acting was solid and with the rest of the main cast interacting with baby apes that are probably not there but with actors decked out in Lycra, with little bobbles is probably one hell of a funny sight to see.

Wrapping up, the movie is a masterpiece. Stepping away from the Sci-fi aspect, Dawn becomes more of a thriller and can be really tense, exhilarating and touching in a matter of minutes. Removing scenes was a shame but I hope the DVD will include a directors cut that will feature it and really prolong the life of this movie and give me more from a movie that I really love. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes deserves a 9/10. I would be back at the cinema watching it again if I could!

The Wolf Among Us - Finale and Season Review - NO SPOILERS

Over the next few days, The Wolf Among Us - Episode 5 is going live across a large selection of platforms. The highly anticipated finale to the series inspired and influenced by the Fable graphic novels is bitter sweet. As ever with something you invest a lot of time into, you can become attached to the series and it certainly is sad to see Bigby Wolf's current tale end. With the huge success, it's quite possible that we will see his return and that is calming to think about.

If you aren't aware of The Wolf Among Us, you must experience it. From the studio that brought you The Walking Dead, Telltale studios have brought the comic book world into an experience that can only be described as an interactive show where your choices and actions form the story around you. Starring the Big Bad Wolf, Bigby, you are Fabletown's protector; a detective of sorts. Over the 5 episodes you must solve the murder of a young Fable, but its never going to be that simple with Telltale. Without divulging the story, I can say that nothing really goes to plan for you. you're thrown from pillar to post trying to work out who the murderer is but also get stuck into the affairs of many of Fabletown's citizens who fate YOU decide.

Telltale's success is not simple down to its innovate gameplay or story telling, it's also down to the characters that it creates. Lee and Clementine from The Walking Dead series are the perfect
 examples of this. Their bond and partnership was endearing and you couldn't help but fall in love with them. The same can be said about Bibgy Wolf. Although he's not the loving sort of character, he is a reformed character with a troubled past. His big persona, strength and forwardness are great fun and he knows he's doing what needs to be done in a place where many fear his past. A man seeking redemption if you may. As a much more aggressive character, he's accustom to violence so many of his actions can be extreme. Personally for me, this makes him even cooler and has sold me onto buying the graphic novels.

As I've already mentioned, the gameplay and story are wonderful, mixed with the amazing art style that uses thick and heavy outlines with many saturated colours, the colours actually pop. With news that Telltale are creating a Borderlands series, the blend of styles will make it one of the best visually. The vast amounts of work that goes into creating the art and story do have it's drawbacks. Waiting patiently each month for a download means that many, like myself, have to suffer with a poor internet connection to download a substantial file and is a bit of a pain on days/times when internet traffic is high or your internet is down. The other problem is that the game can be a little fragmented with framerate issues. Dropping from time to time when loading and presenting itself as frozen does interrupt the flow of the story. Many of the Xbox users may also notice an achievement glitch which awards you the achievements but doesn't acknowledge them on the Xbox hub. Currently the situation has yet to be fixed and little news opens up why this is happening.

I've been very careful not to reveal any spoilers for this series due to the fact that it is just epic and everyone's experience can be different. The overall ending is set but why should I ruin that? Episode 5's release was heavily anticipated and you will not be disappointed with this instalment. I'm a little confused by the end scene myself but I hope we will see some answers in the near future.

Wolf Among Us as a whole series deserves a 9/10. Sure, it can be buggy at times, but everything else works in it's favour. It's not convoluted and it's not pre-school level. A very well written (with some very funny moments), voiced and styled first outing for Bigby and I can't wait to see him return...Please let him return!

Transformers: Age of Extinction - Giant Robot UFC - Review - SPOILERS

Everyone with half a brain knows that Transformers is bound to be a huge hit in cinemas. With Michael Bay at the helm, it makes it that much more special (Lets not talk about the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...). With Shia LeBeouf having his alcohol fuelled plagiarist mid-life crisis, Transformers return has had to make a change. Although its very unlikely that he was planned to feature in this instalment even before his impression of Lohan came too light, it feels empty not seeing the hero that we've followed for so many years. Now we have been lumbered with Mr Mark Wahlberg and it certainly isn't the same. With his new reality TV series and the emotional pallet of a dead skunk it has led me to slowly lose faith in a big player in the movie industry and made me wary of the quality of the film.

Since the Chicago war in which the Autobots annihilated the Decepticons, NEST was shut down, the alliance between Humans and Autobots has ceased with them being granted asylum and a new task force was created to deal with the Decepticon threat and those who are hidden away on Earth. Although, not all is well with this new task force. Harold Attinger (Kelsey Grammer), CIA and our lead villain has an alliance with a Transformer bounty hunter and Joshua Joyce (Stanley Tucci) in providing Optimus to the bounty hunter and with his help all the Transformers, including the Autobots too Joyce, dead. Attinger stands to inherit a bomb from the bounty hunter that creates the very material Transformers are built from and a large sum of money from Joyce who is using the mineral to create his version of Transformers but under his control, thus cornering huge markets. Walhberg, who plays Cade Yaeger is simply a bystander who bought a truck which turned out to be Optimus. Some stuff blows up and now him and his 'family' are on the run from this shadow organization with the Autobots.

Now that NEST has thoroughly been pushed out of the picture, it feels as if they just blew away all of the past characters that could still have played a role and really strengthen the cast and add some familiarity to the screen. Lumbered with a new frontman, we have to be able to connect with Wahlberg from the bat and it's just not possible. With the acting range of Steven Seagal's back catalogue, Wahlberg cannot express emotion to any other degree than a blank canvas that shouts a lot. mixed with two young actors whose blockbuster virginity has been popped but have the likeability of women with a tramp-stamp. Paired with the fact that Nicola Peltz plays Tessa Yaeger, the stereotypical American blond popular girl who dates Shane Dyson (Jack Reynor), a 'rally' driver

picked up by Red Bull who is a giant pussy when it comes to anything else. Then we have a few Youtube sensations appearing for small roles. Kassem G and TJ Millar (I know he does other stuff) were horrible. Annoying character, even when they didn't speak. Many of their scenes were useless and are worthless additions to try and make something funny. Another bone to pick is the plug advertisements. Of all things, Beats Pill got its grubby hands on Michael Bay and he bent right over. The scenes were so painfully forced, you could see the souls of the actors die a little inside.

Now apart from all of this, this film is a ton of fun. Lured in by the addition of giant Dinobots, I was sold on the idea from the first trailer release. Although they only appear in the last 30 minutes, the action is heavy enough with plenty of witty moments to lighten up the mood. The range of vehicles was astonishing and seeing the first Transformer with the ability to transform into 3 forms (A Samurai, Bugatti Veyron Vitess and an attack helicopter) was cool too. The huge range of vehicles and Transformers was amazing and their general quality was incredible. At parts it slips and looks like its pasted onto the scene with little shading and the new transform style isn't the nicest looking but the level of work, expertise and dedication that goes into making something on this scale shows the love and passion that everyone had working on this. I would like to put into question the prop designer on a gun used by Mark that is picked up from the armoury of the bounty hunter's ship. With the size of the crew, how is it only the size of a standard issue rifle and shaped like a sword but extremely blunt?

With a few plugs confirming the next Transformers movie, hopefully the cast can be sorted and we get a better group of people to face it. Hopefully Shia will have woken up from whatever moment he is having and will be considered to return as the forerunner to the next title as I don't think I can stand dealing with Mark Wahlberg in a movie that he doesn't fit. The passion and effort that went into making this warrants a lot of more score alongside the fact that the movie is just pure craziness from the get-go. Unadulterated fun with giant dinosaurs and clever little twists and loveable Transformers. What's not to love? 7/10

Sniper Elite 3 - Can it Hit the Broadside of a Barn? - Quicky Review!

Want a game for your next-gen console at £40 that isn't finished? Well this is you game! Rush to your local retailer and purchase this game with a story shorter than that thing you call a penis, next-gen graphics from 2002's Gamecube, a 16GB install, a frame rate that drops as often as an alcoholic in a vineyard and glitches enough to make EA's UFC proud. Having seen nothing about Sniper Elite III at EGX until a few months back, I was fairly excited. X-ray kill-cams and an intuitive mechanic for snipers sold me on V2 and returning with "Improved works" and some new extras just seemed like a much stronger game. It may simply stand that the Xbox One version of the game is supremely glitchy but that's no excuse for a game that cost £40 and just appeared out of nowhere one day without much warning.

If you're looking for a story that engages you in an action packed adventure with colourful lead character and a dark villain to boot, Don't play this. Both of these feel non-existent. Considering you only meet the villain in the final mission and kill him a little later, it feels really unjustified to pave the way for an insane Nazi, only to cut him down without any enforcement of what he is doing that is

Kaaaarl...That Kills People...

anything other than following orders. Our lead man whose name is never mentioned in game but is Karl Fairburne is practically faceless. With the emotional range of Ryan Reynold's Deadpool, the only difference is that Karl talks to himself like a madman...

The redeeming factor for Sniper Elite is the X-ray cameras. Trying to get good shots for the recording (Will be up on the Black Ribbon Youtube channel soon!) was great fun. A yelp of happiness spewed from my mouth once I finally managed to achieve a testie shot on some poor bugger. Playing on the 'normal' rating was fairly simply to do as long as you didn't go getting sighted and make a lot of noise. Bullet drop was the only gimmick that affected that particular setting of difficulty with several others ramming up the difficulty for those with the patience not to draw everyone out and play whack-a-mole with dozens of Nazi craniums.

As a pre-order bonus, I was 'rewarded' with DLC. The trend sweeping over the industry to stick DLC straight after the game is released has to be the worst idea in history. So you couldn't just place it in the game to warrant the money I've just spent on something that's only positive part is shooting AXIS forces in slow-mo, in the nuts and just general violence? I would continue to rave on about the game being screwed. So badly screwed that I had to replay a mission from the begin just so I could get a recording that didn't feature a tank locating me 12ft underground. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy shooting people and it's just a mind-numbing experience which anyone can enjoy while investing the same brainpower as a breastfeeding baby. 6/10 is where I have to place this. With no characters, a story which was already written in for them, just dumbed down and it's fuck-ups are infuriating to battle with. DO NOT WASTE £40 on it. Wait until it's cheaper! Then you may enjoy it.