Iron Man 3, The Mandarin, False Advertising or Misdirection?

So, I caught Iron Man 3 this weekend. And it was everything you'd expect out of a summer blockbuster. Especially a Marvel summer blockbuster.

The third instalment in the superhero franchise had tons of action, humour and the right amount of Robert Downey Junior to make it a bonafide hit. And judging by the 195 million dollars it made overseas, it's going to make its money for sure. But I do have a single gripe with this Iron Man Outing. And that gripe is the Mandarin.

When it was first announced that Ben Kingsley had been cast as the Mandarin, I was a bit skeptical o begin because in the comics, and people may disagree here, the Mandarin is depicted as Asian. I didn't nit pick though. Because hey it was Sir Ben Kingsley, so at least the villain will be in good hands. Or so I thought, until I saw the movie that is.

Possible Spoilers ahead

The Mandarin is not at all what he was advertised as. Now I don't know if it was some clever misdirection on Shane Black's part but if it was, it was a little disappointing. You see, in the movie, the Mandarin isn't at all what he seems, I mean literally. And if you're waiting for something more, you'll be sorely disappointed. Granted, theres plenty of action and explosions and cool armour that flies remote controlled. But at the end of the day I have to say that the supposedly main villain of the movie disappoints. And fans of the comics may feel a little cheated when they see whats been done to the Mandarin, arguably one of Iron Man's most notorious villains.One more thing Guy Pierce is not doing an extended cameo, he's a proper player in this movie. He was great, don't get me wrong. But the part he plays may surprise you a little.

One of the highlights of the movie was the after credits easter egg, which finds tony on a therapist's couch, and guess who the doctor is.

All in all, the movie is great, and you should watch it. But don't expect it to follow comic book lore to the letter.

 

 
 

 

Batman: Arkham Origins Release date Announced

Batman: Arkham Origins the Prequel/ Sequel to Batman: Arkham City will hit stands on October 25th.
But heres some news that may not be so welcome. Rocksteady Studios will not be developing the game.

Heres a link to the original article at:

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/04/09/may-cover-revealed-batman-arkham-origins.aspx

Arkham City sequel to be called Arkham Origins?

Got the latest news from Cinemablend.com that the New Batman Arkham Game, tentatively titled Arkham Origins will be announced at E3 in June. And it looks like the Justice League will be a certainty.

The game is believed to be set in the Silver Age, but since the announcement may happen soon. There's no point in speculating. Just to be clear, this announcement at E3 at this point is just a rumour, so take it with a pinch of salt. 

Snippets of Fiction 2

She looked at him with forlorn eyes. He was nursing a cup of camamile tea as he spoke on the phone. She didn't know who was on the other end.In fact, she didn't want to know. Right now, he was an attractive man, seated opposite her at a cafe in Paris. What could be a more romantic setting? Now all that was left was their eyes to meet.

She had been willing him to look up from his tea for the past quarter of an hour. He was engrossed in the conversation. He was dressed casually in Jeans and an LL Bean Jacket, but he did have a very formal looking briefcase by his side. Who was he? She wondered. A corporate big shot,a journalist maybe or even a spy. Maybe he was getting instructions on his next assignment on the phone, maybe it was an assassination. She smiled. Her imagination did get away from her sometimes. She cointinued to stare at him discreetly. All he had to do was look up, and he would see her, maybe he would  walk up to her, maybe they would strike up a conversation, maybe they would begin dating, maybe he would be waiting by the altar. She smiled again.

As she looked at him again, she paused, he was looking right at her. He had caught her staring. She felt herself blush. He raised his cup and gave her a smile and a nod, acknowledging her.

She watched silently as he drained his cup, left change on the table and walked out the door and out of her life.Well, she shrugged, you win some, you lose some.

12 things to do while unemployed

In this economy, these tips will come more than handy

1. Look for a new Job (Pimp yourself out to everyone and anyone who’ll have you, dump your pride out the window)

2. Cry yourself to sleep in the wee hours of the morning when you don’t find a job

3. Sleep in everyday; don’t wake up before noon (No matter what anyone says)

4. Finish the ‘One hundred books to read before you die’ list (It’s a fabulous collection, a definite must read, 

and hey, now you have the time; use it.).

5. Watch re-runs of all the tv shows you missed when you were busy working (That is if you can still afford cable, if not, go for Netflix)

6. Watch all the Disney animated movies ever made from Silly Symphonies to Monsters University; you need to be a kid again

7. Eat like crazy, binge on crappy fast food that has zero nutritional value, you need to let yourself go (Your severance package and unemployment benefits aren’t going to last forever anyway)

8. Feel sorry for yourself

9. Blog about being unemployed

10. Follow your creative pursuits, finish that book of poetry that your professor in college said reminded him of Keats or get around to writing the Great American Novel (God knows, how we need more of those)

11. Stalk your successful friends on facebook and twitter while being overcome with self loathing

12. And last but not least; make piece with the fact that you may never be employed again and that you may die in poverty, utterly penniless (This should fit in perfectly with your creative pursuits, the struggling artist and all that)

American Sitcoms vs Indian soap operas

American television shows are vibrant and try to re-invent themselves at every possible turn, there is a variety to their themes and characters. If one sitcoms deals with a bunch of nerdy scientists and their hot neighbor, the other deals with a gay couple trying to adopt a baby through a surrogate while another still has a genius doctor diagnosing and curing rare diseases. Each and every series is unique. While in India, every channel you flip through, you have the same tired old saas bahu serial, albeit different permutations and combinations that ultimately boil down to the classic Cinderella story, a tyrannical Mother in law who abuses her timid yet vivacious daughter in law. Even the reality shows on Indian television are sub par and mediocre rehashes of their American counterparts, be it Dance India Dance, Indian Idol or Bigg Boss.  American series may run the tired old gag once in a while but it still manages to make you laugh. While Indian comedy serials run the same old slapstick humour that has been done to death by their American counterparts and make it intolerable. For instance, the show ‘Jeannie Aur Juju’ is a direct rip off of ‘I dream of Genie’, the classic Sydney Sheldon sitcom from the sixties. And if you pay close attention, you’ll get to see that many of the Indian soaps, drama and comedy alike bear striking resemblances to stories that have been told in American series over the years. Though to be fair, Indian serials do adapt it to incorporate the veil and the Saas Bahu dynamic, but the rest of the plot, if there is any, lacks any modicum of originality.  American series have followed the pilot and the season format for years, a pilot, is the first episode in an American series which decides whether the series will get an order on a network or cable TV, where once a series pilot is liked by the producers, it is given a series order for a maximum of twenty to twenty five episodes. These twenty episode seasons are tight and as such keep value in quality. American serials have to do their best with each episode that they put out because they have such a narrow window to entertain, and if they don’t entertain, they’re cancelled on the spot. Not to say that Indian serials are not cancelled, they are, but they have an unbearable long line up of episodes before that happens. Indian serials don’t work as seasons, except for the reality shows that have seen so much success. See, once they follow the American season format, even unwatchable shows become bearable, like Bigg Boss for instance. The Indian television experience is still stuck in the Saas Bahu rut. Granted, Ekta Kapoor had phenomenal success with the genre, but if Indian television has to truly entertain, it really needs to move on and re-invent itself, like its American counterparts. It is no secret that the youth in our country prefers watching American shows, ask a person if they watch ‘Hitler Didi’ or ‘The Big Bang Theory’, the answer more often than nought is ‘The Big Bang Theory’. And why is that you ask, here are the reasons:

American Sitcoms                                                                    Indian Soap Opera

Original Comedy                                                                   Rehashed slapstick comedy

Relevant topics and themes                                                    Saas Bahu relations

Engaging characters                                               One dimensional and wooden characters      

Stellar writing                                                                        Sub-par rip- offs

Coherent and engaging plot and narrative                               Long winding and incoherent plots

Unbelievable (fantastical) drama            Believable and relatable, yet boring and annoying drama

Focus on crisp and tight entertainment                                    Focus on Saas Bahu dynamic


The current television scene in America is quite spectacular with series like ‘Breaking Bad’ about a chemistry professor suffering from Cancer, cooking meth to support his family and ‘Modern Family’, that takes a funny and charming look at family dynamics whether they be straight or gay. Moreover, all of these series feature breakthrough performances in writing, acting and many other fields and they are at par with their big brother, the silver screen. Which Indian serial on TV can honestly say that it can compete with a two hour bollywood movie for viewers? The answer is none. There is always room for improvement and I think Indian soap operas should occupy that room.

How to become Batman

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