Plot summary (courtesy of IMDB)

“Bruce Greenwood stars as documentary photographer Thomas Veil who, in the course of one evening, seemingly has his whole existence erased, in the compelling one-hour drama Nowhere Man. It appears as if some mysterious and powerful entity has coerced Veil’s family and friends into cooperating in a clandestine plan to annul every trace of him. Veil is all alone with no option but to begin a desperate, dangerous quest to find out how and why this has happened and most importantly, who is behind this torturous scheme.”

Why was it so great?

I’m not quite sure this show could have been written any better. The premise was just great. Every episode your heart was 100% behind the guy, hoping that he’d finally find that one piece of the puzzle that would save him from the misery the conspirators put him into. Sadly, since the show only ran one season, we’ll never truly know.

2) Batman Beyond

Plot summary (courtesy of IMDB)

“At least 40 years after the ‘current’ adventures of Batman and 20 years after Bruce Wayne retired from the role, his secret is discovered by troubled teen Terry McGinnis. After McGinnis’ father is murdered by the man who took over Bruce Wayne’s company, McGinnis dons a high-tech Bat suit that Wayne last used, creating a new hero for a future Gotham.”

Why was it so great?

I admittedly was very scared to see this show debut. As a big Batman fan, I wanted there to only be one Batman, that being Bruce Wayne. The way this show succeeded was not by creating a rip-off of a young Bruce or even borrowing the personality of Robin, but by creating an entirely original character in the Batman universe to wear an entirely new Bat-suit. In its three years on TV, Batman Beyond creating an acceptable and very enjoyable “Elseworld” extension of the Batman universe. Unfortunately it was cut short only because the creative team wanted to move onto something new…Justice League.

3) Jack & Bobby

Plot summary (courtesy of Wikipedia)

“The show followed the lives of teenaged Jack and Bobby (Robert) McCallister as they went to high school and generally matured. Much conflict was generated between the boys and their mother, Grace, who was at once both domineering and unreliable.

The main storyline was paralleled by a series of interviews with figures associated with the McCallister presidency, who spoke of events from Robert McCallister’s later life. Typically, there was a thematic link between the main plot, set during Bobby’s childhood/adolescence, and the reminiscences of his adult life and political career.”

Why was it so great?

Great writing, great characters, great performances. This show had everything going for it. I’m still in disbelief that shows like this go unnoticed while American Idol continues to be renewed year after year. Clearly the cancellation of Jack & Bobby after only one season shows the true collective intelligence of our country in terms of entertainment. This was a smart, funny, and yet incredibly touching show that dared to be fantastic while mediocrity was the norm.

For those interested, the series can be watched in its entirety at TheWB.com.

4) Sports Night

Plot summary (courtesy of Wikipedia)

“Sports Night is an American television series about a fictional sports news show (also called Sports Night) and the people who work there. It focuses on the friendships, pitfalls, and ethical issues they face while trying to produce a good show under constant network pressure.”

Why was it so great?

To know how truly great this show is, all you need to know is how big of a sports fan I am NOT. This show was not so much about the sports, but the behind-the-scenes of a television show. I like my tongue-in-cheek, witty banter (just like Gilmore Girls) and this show has plenty of it.

5) Dark Angel

Plot summary (courtesy of IMDB)

“In a future of political, economic and moral collapse, a genetically enhanced superhuman prototype named Max escapes from military confines and dwells amidst the decadent underground street life of *Seattle* to avoid government agents who want to bring her back into the fold. Searching for others of her kind who were scattered in the aftermath of her escape, Max encounters Logan, an idealistic cyber-journalist battling repression and corruption in post-apocalypse America. Eventually, Logan calls her to the highest part of her being and Max becomes his samurai as the pair takes on the ruthless power-brokers of the new millennium. Max and Logan’s odyssey leads them closer to the secret of her past, deepening and complicating their relationship in the process.”

Why was it so great?

Jessica Alba’s hottest moments…but seriously, it was a good show regardless. It wasn’t necessarily the most thought-provoking show, but the entertainment value was still there. This show had a good mix of sci-fi, action, humor, drama…just about something for everyone.

#10 – Missy Peregrym – “Reaper”

#9 – Eliza Dushku – “Dollhouse”

#8 – Erica Durance – “Smallville”

#7 – Barbie Blank aka Kelly Kelly – “WWE RAW”

#6 – Ali Larter – “Heroes”

#5 – Danneel Harris – “One Tree Hill”

#4 – Bridget Regan – “Legend of the Seeker”

#3 – Katherine Heigl – “Grey’s Anatomy”

#2 – Sophia Bush – “One Tree Hill”

#1 – Emmanuelle Vaugier – “CSI:NY”

1. I’ve split my chin open in 3 places on 3 different occasions.
1) Running on my Pepere’s concrete walkway in dress shoes.
2) Sliding head-first down a frozen hill while camping on a Boy Scout trip.
3) Lifting and breaking the handle off a rolling flatbed while working at Harvard Apparatus.

2. I like even numbers…especially the number 4. Whenever I eat a bag of candy, I tend to count out 4 pieces at a time. If the last piece comes out odd it tends to be unsettling for a second or two. I also don’t like when a volume dial is left on an odd number.

3. I’m a big chocoholic. I’d probably be in better shape if it wasn’t for that one little problem.

4. In elementary school, I decided to play soccer during recess while eating a Handi-Snack’s cheese and crackers. Someone bumped into me and the corner of it slashed my face. I still have a faint scar.

5. The day I was born doctors and nurses referred to me as Robert Louis Stevenson, the author, probably because they couldn’t pronounce my last name.

6. I wasn’t allowed to watch wrestling when I was growing up, thought it was stupid in high school, started watching freshman year of college, and now have been a professional wrestler myself for over 4 years. Guess my parents should have just let me watch.

7. My only concussion was dealt to me not during wrestling, but from a girl during an intense round of Soul Calibur II…seriously.

8. I’m obsessed with Batman….did anyone really not know that though?

9. I’ve been to Florida twice to go to Disney and Universal when I was much younger. On those trips, my sister and I re-enacted a movie scene on the ACTUAL bee from Honey I Shrunk the Kids in front of an audience AND my family was asked to be on Family Double Dare…but my mother turned it down.

10. I’ve been a certified lifeguard for 12 years.

11. I was almost an Eagle Scout, but decided not to do the final project because I felt I didn’t want it for the right reasons.

12. I will see Our Lady Peace every time they tour in the U.S. because they’re the greatest band ever.

13. I’ve played numerous sports, wrestled for years, been a bit of a daredevil from time to time, and yet have never broken a bone.

14. Sophomore year of high school my English teacher sent a note home because after doing a poetry project on “fear”, she thought I was disturbed.

15. I get bored with jobs/careers pretty easily because I constantly want to learn something new. This is my 4th year at my current job and it’s the longest I’ve stayed anywhere. I still want to do personal training and get certified as a clinical hypnotherapist.

16. If Mountain Dew wasn’t so bad for me it might be the only thing I’d ever drink.

17. I took one semester of guitar in college. I had a hard time holding cords because my left middle finger doesn’t curl in all the way due to getting slammed in a car door.

18. I’ve sung one song with a live band, a life goal I accomplished thanks to some friends. I was terrible, but they were nice about it.

19. I’m not a big crier, but a good movie or TV show can do me in fairly easily.

20. I’m in the middle of a nearly year-long self-improvement period in which I like to think I’ve become a better version of myself. I want to continue this kind of evolution the rest of my life.

21. Besides teaching and wrestling, I also have my own online store where I sell t-shirts and other items. Check it out: Xtremezone Online Store (cheap plug)

22. I’m a moon child, born on the edge of Aquarius.

23. I’m a whiz in the kitchen, especially when it comes to baking. Thanks Mom.

24. I sing in my car constantly. There are very few people I’m comfortable singing at full blast in front of.

25. I’ve listened to every second of every show that Howard Stern has done since moving to satellite radio…and I don’t own one.

Somehow I manage to come out of lots of situations like these unscathed. I played lots of sports in high school and was always very active as a kid. Now I’m grown up and professional wrestling has taken the place of everyday sports. I’ve taken some pretty bad bumps, landed on my head a couple times, and tweaked my neck in every odd direction imaginable. Through it all I have yet to break a bone or suffer any major injury. My “Achilles’ heel” would have to be my chin, which during the course of my life I’ve managed to split open 3 times in 3 places. That’s the only spot that seems to take any significant damage.

Aside from that, I’ve suffered a concussion from a flying elbow (great story, NOT wrestling-related either) and sprained an ankle playing soccer in high school. For being alive nearly 28 years so far, that’s not too bad.

…however…

…did we really need EVERYTHING about it to be old school Capcom? I understand not putting in the dash and mega-buster charging, but my controller has a lot of buttons. In newer Mega Man games, special weapons could be cycled through using the shoulder buttons ON THE FLY. Not in this one. It just had to be 100% old school. So as a result…I’m getting kinda tired of pausing the game, changing my weapon, unpausing the game, killing two guys, pausing the game, changing my weapon, unpausing the game, solving a puzzle, etc. etc.

I’m also sick of the Wily levels already. I still haven’t finished the whole game cause it’s such a time commitment. There’s about 4 different Wily levels with bosses of their own. They’re all fun levels too. The problem…I haven’t been able to beat the 4th Wily level yet, BUT, just like older Mega Man games, if you don’t beat one Wily level, you need to start all the way back at the first one EVERY TIME. This makes even attempting the last level an easy 30 – 45 min commitment each time. It’s just too much.

All that said though, I’m loving that I’m able to relive the experience of the original Mega Man gameplay. I’m pretty sure it’s wildly popular across the consoles as well, so maybe Capcom and other companies will take a hint that it’s gameplay that makes a game good, not needless graphics. My next hope for the franchise…let’s see Mega Man X back in action!

Dr. Marty Klein hits it on the head; the penis head. This guy, well.. he’s more than a guy, he’s a genius. I finished listening to a great podcast he hosted that covered everything I’m gonna bitch and rant about below, this is not to my credit, only his, I am just agreeing with it 100%.

Can you remember as a kid seeing someone naked and it scarring you or messing you up for life? Honestly, was there ever a point? Did peeking at some scene in a movie with a naked man/woman make you have nightmares? No? How about the scene with the machine guns? Yeah, I bet that did. So why is it OK in our society to have gruesome gore in even PG-13 movies, but we all flip out when there’s a half second of a nipple during a super bowl half time show? (which was the number 1 most downloaded piece of media on record.. yes, it was terrible).

People in general state that our country is full of sex. Yes sex, sex, and more sex everywhere we go!! Is it really? Did you know in every European country that has a coastline there’s at least 1 nude public beach? How many Europeans are messed up from that? K, how many are comfortable with that? Yeah, almost all of them.

See I think we as Americans aren’t comfortable with sexuality. We pretend we are, but we aren’t. Almost all my female friends are afraid of letting a guy think she is a so called “slut”. Because of what? She carries around birth control pills? I have guy friends who would need to be paid a billion dollars to kiss another man… as if he was being asked; “would you jump in this space ship, zip around the planet Mercury and spit on the sun without dying?”. Pfft, why a billion? Cuz they’re afraid people will think they’re gay, a billion will ensure he is not, or rather it will ensure his sexual security.

Our country is the Catholic Church when it comes to sex. We’re ignorant, we’re uneducated, and at the same time we all somehow want it. A biological urge we deny as a mainstream culture, all because we think we are doing something moral. Yes, priests who denied sex were very moral raping little boys right after they were done talking about banning condoms.

See, our society places sex in the negative category of public attention and concern. Where as it should be in the positive. The FDA did not approve a morning after contraceptive that was proven to be 100% effective in preventing pregnancy after unprotected sex the night before because; “We feel it will make people have more sex” BRILLIANT! Sex = bad, nipple sightings cause cancer, case closed.

Meanwhile STDs are on the rise, divorce rates going up, abortions happening like dental appointments, and we somehow think lack of sex education and placing the subject and image of sex on the positive end of culture and society is not related…

Could rant on and on, but you get my point. I play them and I have friends who play them too; video games where you blow people’s heads off, kill innocent people, watch movies with the same shit. But if I have a poster up with a girl wearing kinky clothing somehow then I’m a sick bastard.

I’m not saying download porn, I believe porn kills sex/love life, get rid of it the moment you aren’t single. What I am saying is; sex is a pleasure in life, it’s an art, a delicacy, we’re living longer, and we better get use to loving longer and sex is a part of that. Maybe if our culture educated people, encouraged people to be with a partner, to be secure and fine with their bodies, their sexuality, hmm maybe we’d have less; pedophiles, rapists, STDs, etc.

Great example to wrap it up: When I was in Reykjavik they didn’t have a dirty porn store, they had an “erotic enhancement and education” store. A well lit place, it looked like a mac store, I almost was going to walk in to buy a laptop (til I saw what was on the screen..) very positive atmosphere and the lady inside was wearing a suit! Simple example, now think about the trash porn stores we have here… all negative. Hmm, embracing sex vs. dubbing it a sin.

K back to blowing up heads on PS3…