Joker (Azzarello/Bermejo)

The Joker has been released from Arkham Asylum.  During his time off the streets, others have moved in on his territory, and he ain't happy about that.  He uses henchman Jonny Frost to help him claim back 'his' city- and Jonny learns firsthand what it's like to serve one bent on chaos.

This graphic novel was released around the same time as The Dark Knight movie, and the portrayal of the Joker here is quite similar to Heath Ledger's version, both in appearance and temperament.  He's about chaos, destruction, and little else.  We're led through a variety of atrocities as he reclaims his turf, all stunningly illustrated by Lee Bermejo.  The tale is told by the down-on-his-luck henchman, Frost, as he both desires the respect Joker garners and abhors the Joker's tactics in obtaining it.  Frost eventually decides that indeed, Joker is a disease . . . and the only cure is the Batman.

The story makes you think, and the art is outstanding.  Be cautioned, though: there are disturbing acts subtly (or overtly) committed, and this is not appropriate for all audiences.  I'm debating whether  there's anything more to the story than the overall point that Joker is a disease.  Could a second point be that, as Frost ultimately decides, 'respect at all costs' isn't worth it?  I'm not sure- but read for yourself and decide.

Rating: A

Outstanding October

image from here

I'm sad October is leaving us so soon . . . it just got here.  It's my favorite month, for the following reasons:

1) the weather
Gone is the oppressive heat and humidity of summer.  By October, the weather (in the mid-Atlantic region) is perfect- temperatures in the 50s-60s, low humidity, and sunny days.  The crispness in the air is delightful to experience, perfect for outdoor activity.

2) the colors
The leaves turn brilliant oranges, yellows, and reds as they enter their twilight . . . breathtaking.

image from here

3) the (lack of) bugs
Finally those buggers are gone.  No more mosquito swarms or spider attacks.

4) football (and all sports)
October is that rare time of year when all of the 'big four' American sports (football, basketball, baseball, and hockey) are in season.  Football, perhaps my favorite, is in full swing.  Go Eagles . . . go Penn State!

image from here

5) pumpkin
Okay, this isn't all good.  Here in America, we take everything to the extreme . . . and this season features pumpkin spice everything.  But enjoyed in moderation, it's fun.

image from here

6) halloween & the macabre
For some reason, my children and I share a love of the gruesome.  October is that time to think on the scary things.  Curl up with your favorite Victorian gothic novel or ghost story . . . and enjoy the nightmares.

image from here

7) anniversary
Finally, October rocks because the month holds my anniversary.  And what could be better than celebrating the love of my life?  Awwww . . . .

image from here

Citadels

Today's game review is for the 2000 release, Citadels.  For 2-8 players, it can be played in 20-60 minutes.

Overview
In Citadels, your goal is to build your city by constructing 8 districts.  The game is played in rounds, and you can build (up to) one district per round.  Each district has:
- a cost to play (the gold coins on the left edge)
- type (color on the lower left), and
- [sometimes] a condition that benefits you.

examples of district cards- image source

 Each round, you'll assume the role of a character.  Each character has:
- a rank, 1-8, indicates the order in which they go in a round
- a special ability, which provides some type of bonus

each role, with their corresponding rank- image source

Once any player has 8 districts on the table, the current round progresses as normal until completion.  Then, points are tallied.  The winner is one with the most points (not necessarily the most districts). Points are granted to each player as follows:
He gets points equal to the combined gold cost on all district cards in his city,
+3 points if he has a district of each color in his city,
+4 points if he was the first to build 8 districts OR +2 points if he built 8 districts


Simplified Gameplay
Each player draws 4 cards from the district deck and receives 2 coins from the bank to begin the game.  Then, the rounds start.

The player with the crown (a wooden chess-like piece) begins a round [for the first round, that's the oldest player]  That player takes the character deck, secretly chooses one card from it, and passes the remainder to his left.  Each player chooses a character card in like fashion and keeps the choice secret.  [Note: some character cards are left out of a round depending on the number of players in the game.  Consult the rules (link below) for details.]

Once everyone has a character, the person with the crown calls out the characters one at a time, by rank (so the Assassin always goes first, the Thief always goes second, etc.).  When a character is called, the player with that character reveals the card and takes his turn.  On his turn, a player:

1) Takes an action
- takes 2 gold from the bank OR
- draws 2 district cards from the deck, chooses 1, and puts the other at the bottom of the deck

2) Builds one district card
- by paying the cost indicated on the card, putting the required amount of gold back in the bank

3) Uses his character's power
- this can be done at any time on his turn, unless otherwise indicated on the character card

Once all players have gone, the round is over.  Players turn in their character cards to the person with the crown [the player who had the King character immediately received the crown during the round].  The next round begins and play continues as described above.

a game in progress- image source

Review
This is a nice little game.  The ability to assume a different character each round, plus the secrecy until a character is called, is a nice twist.  It's a simple concept and the variables make for high 'replayability.'  On the downside, the games I've played can run longer than the advertised time- though I don't know if this is because most of the players I've played with were new to it.

Check out the rulebook (which also contains rules for the Dark City expansion) here, or the boardgamegeek site here, or watch a video with explanations here.  I've heard a new expanded version is to be released soon- see announcement here.

Rating: A-

Dracula (Bram Stoker)

Something is amiss in Transylvania.  Solicitor Jonathan Harker can't help but notice the spooked natives and odd occurrences as he travels through the countryside to meet a new business associate- Count Dracula.  Soon, Harker better understands the local fear as he finds himself a veritable prisoner of the mysterious Count, and subject to a number of horrifying incidents.  It's clear that Dracula is an ancient and supernatural power, full of evil, and making big plans in England.  When he departs without releasing the solicitor, Jonathan knows he must act.  As he plans his escape, the Count lands at Whitby and starts terrorizing the island, coming to the attention of Dr Seward and Professor Van Helsing (the latter of whom has knowledge of the supernatural and is the first to suspect that something horrible is afoot).  They, in turn, band with others to stop Dracula: can they do so, or is it all for naught?

A Victorian horror classic, Dracula introduces the world's most famous vampire.  It's told well through letters and journal entries from all the main characters- a format I tremendously enjoyed.  This book is a macabre cat-and-mouse game, eloquently delivered with non-stop suspense.  This was my second or third time reading this . . . needless to say, I love it.  What struck me most (perhaps oddly) is that the protagonists consistently demonstrate self-sacrificing love, truly caring for each other and putting the well-being of the group (indeed, all mankind) ahead of themselves.  Thus, this tale is both horrifying and edifying . . . an odd but good combination.  Overall, this is a must read.

Rating: A+

Hear the Word Audio Bible

The Hear the Word Audio Bible is a presentation of the complete Bible (English Standard Version (ESV) translation) read by David Cochran Heath.  He does a solid job.  He alters his voice slightly when reading different characters, but there's no further dramatization- no orchestral accompaniment or sound effects, which was perfect.  It's presented on 7 MP3 CDs (5 for the Old Testament, 2 for the New); you can purchase this here at Amazon.

The Bible is the most important book you'll ever read.  I've read it cover-to-cover a handful of times over the years, but I had never before listened to it (aside from short readings).  We pick up on different things when we listen- we process the information differently, I suppose- so in April I decided to listen to the Bible on my commute.  It took 6.5 months, but it was quite the worthwhile endeavor.  The ESV is the translation now regarded by many as the best available in our tongue, and it was nice to hear it read aloud.

There are several good reasons to listen to the Bible.  First, you can 'digest' more material in a sitting;  I routinely listened to 5-10 chapters per day.  That helps with the 'big picture' view- it's easier to spot themes and remember context.  Second, you pick up on different things when you listen, so it's a nice complement to reading.  Third, hearing the Word is how most people throughout history have digested the material- most of Scripture would have been read aloud in a community context, so it's closer to the original mechanism of delivery.  Fourth, listening helps 'de-versify' the Bible, getting it back to its original form, as Glenn Paauw mentions in Saving the Bible from Ourselves (review).  Overall, I highly recommend it.

Rating: A+

Collecting, Organizing, and Storing Collectible Games

ahhh, collecting . . . it's fun.  image from here

Collectible card games (CCGs) are near and dear to my heart (see reasons why here and here).  One endearing feature is the 'living' aspect of these games- new cards get released several times a year, delivering an ever-changing experience and ever-expanding options.  With this benefit, though, comes several challenges.  Collecting, organizing, and storing your cards can become a time-consuming endeavor; this post offers options for efficiently handling your collection.  As someone who has spent hundreds of hours sorting cards, you'd be wise to heed my advice.

Collecting
A CCG can produce so many cards it can be hard to know how to start collecting.  What's the best approach?  Well, it depends on your finances and level of interest.  Each choice requires differing amounts of money and storage, and gives differing levels of deck building options (what I call 'flexibility').  Here are the most common angles:

Collect everything
The goal here is to collect every card ever released.  It's the most expensive by far, takes the most storage, but gives the greatest amount of flexibility.  With this option, you can create any deck ever made.  This is recommended for only the die-hard fan with few other hobbies or financial obligations.

Collect only certain expansions
Perhaps you love a game but don't have the time or money to exhaustively collect it.  You may then want to focus on certain expansions that suit your fancy and ignore others.  I do this with Magic: The Gathering.  I'll buy an expansion if the theme or card mechanics interest me, and (maybe) buy a lot of it.  Then, I'll ignore the next few releases to save for the next expansion of interest.  The result is fairly flexible- I can make a wide variety of decks- but within the bounds of a given expansion.

Collect only certain quantities 
Some prefer to buy a certain quantity of each expansion and be content with what you get.  For example, buy one booster box of each Magic: The Gathering expansion and that's it.  It's a predictable expense, cheaper than the first two options, and fun to see what you can do with the limited collection.  The downside: you might not get the cards you really want, and your deck construction options might be more limited.

Collect only certain cards
If you care only about building a certain kind of deck, you can ignore the blind buy concept completely and purchase single cards.  Doing so is the most cost-efficient and least wasteful but gives you the least flexibility, too, if you ever want to 'change things up': even minor adjustments can require frequent purchases.

The options in summary: the more you collect, the more storage you'll require and money you'll spend, but the more flexibility you'll have when it comes to building a deck.  The above go from most (money/cards/storage/flexibility) to least.


Organizing
Once you have a collection, it behooves you to organize it.  If you don't, finding specific cards can be a nightmare (trust me).  There are different ways to organize your collection.  Using Magic as an example, you can sort by:
- color
- expansion
- card type (land, creature, etc.)
- and more
I'm starting to prefer organizing by expansion, but whatever you choose, be consistent.  It's the only way to facilitate relatively rapid card retrieval.

this method is ill-advised . . . image from here

Storing
Once cards are organized, you'll need to store them.  The primary storage methods are binders and card boxes.

binders or boxes . . . which to choose?  image from here

Binders:
I've used binders before because they're easy to flip through to view/locate cards.  Unfortunately, they take up lots of space, you'll need a lot of them for a sizable collection, and it takes a lot of time to put cards in (or retrieve cards from) the binders.

binders have their benefits but take up a lot of room. . . image from here

Card boxes:
I've gravitated toward card boxes over the years.  It's a much more compact storage solution, which matters (remember, collections can accumulate fast).  The downside: it can take a while to find the cards you like, and there's no fast way to flip through things.

a nicely-organized collection in boxes, sorted by expansion.  image from here

Conclusion
CCGs are a blast, but don't let your cards own you: stay in control through systematic approaches to collecting, organizing, and storing.  You'll spend less time managing and more time playing.

The Sword in the Stone

The Sword in the Stone is the 1963 film based on book one of T.H. White's The Once and Future King.  Here, "Wart" (above) is tutored by the wizard Merlin (below) while living in a castle with Sir Ector and his son, Kay.  Wart gets his education in a most unique way: he's turned into a series of animals (fish, squirrel, bird) to learn life lessons through different eyes.  When not learning, he leads a Cinderella-like life (being effectively a mistreated servant in the home), until one day destiny calls and he draws the sword from the stone, signifying that he, Arthur, is to be king of England.

I just finished the book (which was delightful); the movie fell far short.  The significant plot changes added nothing of interest and in fact diminished the tale considerably.  The characters disappointed as well.  Gone (or stripped of their interest) where characters like King Pellinore and the Questing Beast; in their place were the odd "Madam Mim" and love-struck squirrels.  Arthur, here, was slightly more humble and noble than as presented in the novel; Sir Ector, Kay, Merlin, and Archimedes (Merlin's talking owl) were meaner or angrier.  It was less amusing, less profound, and less interesting than the novel.  The short run time (80 minutes) was both too short and way too long.  This one can be skipped.  Read the book.

Rating: C+

Bring Out Your Dead

Collectible Card and Miniatures Games are called 'living' games because frequent new releases add cards (or miniatures) to the pool to keep the game fresh, expanding, and exciting.  When such a game ceases to be produced, the game is called 'dead.'  It's not that nobody plays it anymore- some dead games continue to have thriving communities- it just means that you can count on no more (official) releases.  Several hundred collectible games have been released (most in the mid-late '90s; see my post here for a brief history), and most are now dead.  So today's post honors my two favorite dead games: Star Wars CCG and Star Wars Miniatures.

The original Star Wars collectible game, Star Wars CCG was produced from 1995-2001 by Decipher (who also held licenses to Star Trek CCG and Lord of the Rings CCG at one time).  Each expansion was thematic to a location (examples: Hoth or Cloud City) found in the original trilogy (episodes IV-VI), and the cards themselves were, too.  It was a great game.

Check out the wikipedia page if you like, or see an image of the old official Decipher page. The game has been kept alive by the Star Wars CCG Player's Committee, and their site has a wealth of resources on it.  They've released a number of virtual expansions to keep things going.
The rules can be found here or here.
Card databases can be found here or here.
A searchable card database is here.
Deck lists are hard to come by; the mirror site mentioned above has some here, and they claim to have some here (but I can't get that site to work).
You can play online here.
Want to buy?  Your best bets are Noble Knight Games or Troll and Toad.

Star Wars Miniatures was produced from 2004-2010 by Wizards of the Coast- the company that won the star wars gaming license from Decipher in 2002.  Wizards initially produced another collectible card game- Star Wars TCG- but this trading card game never reached the popularity of Decipher's version and went out of production in 2005.  In 2004, Wizards release the Miniatures game, and got it right.  Sixteen expansions explored the depths of all six movies and the expanded universe.

Check out the wikipedia page if you like.  The game goes on, kept alive at SWMGamers.  They've released a number of virtual expansions to keep things going.
The rules can be found here on the official site, or here.
A miniatures list can be found here or here, the latter being searchable.  The best resource, though, is hard to find.  A gentlemen named Chuck Monarch made an excellent "SWMiniManager" program.  This allowed you to search for characters, inventory your collection, and create squads easily.  It was available on many sites in its time, but is hard to find now.
Squad lists can be found here (the site isn't always working).
You can play online here.
Want to buy?  Your best bets are Miniature Market or CoolStuffInc.

Conclusion
These games, and many others, may no longer be available, but don't put a fork in 'em yet; there are vibrant player communities keeping these great games going strong, and plenty of online resources to assist you.

Reading for the Common Good (C. Christopher Smith)

In Reading for the Common Good, C. Christopher Smith wants us to understand that "our life together is composed of two essential and interwoven threads: learning and action."  "Without learning, our action tends to be reaction and often is superficial- we act without comprehending the many factors that are at play in a situation.  Without action, our faith is irrelevant, and most likely- to borrow a thought from the apostle James- dead."  An important component of learning is reading.

Why should we read?
Reading helps us learn our collective identity ("who we are") and vocation ("what are we going to do?").  Reading educates, helps us remember and understand the past, "builds our capacity for empathy," and helps us overcome "the cultural biases and blind spots that all humans naturally develop over the course of generations."  These things are necessary as we seek to contribute to the flourishing of our communities.  How so?  Well, "our society is shaped by our experience of the world and our capacity to articulate and imagine new possibilities."  Reading can transform "the way we see and experience the world," therefore broadening our ability to imagine where we could be and helping us get there.  In Colossians 1 (and elsewhere in Scripture), we learn that Christ is reconciling the entire world to Himself, and reading helps us better understand how we contribute to that.  Therefore, "our aim in reading . . . is not mere accumulation of knowledge but rather the sort of understanding that allows us to be engaged in meaningful, redemptive ways in the transformation of [the world]."

How should we read?
Smith discussed the four components of "lectio divina"- "the monastic way of slowly reading, praying and reflecting on Scripture"- and through a deliberate process of reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation, we can drink in any text slowly, fighting a culture where speed is the default.

But it's not just about reading.  "Reading is most socially transformative when paired with the practice of conversation."  So we don't just read- we talk about our readings with others in a community.

What should we read?
For the Christian, "Scripture is our primary text.  If God is reconciling all things in Christ, however, our churches should be engaged in a  broad range of work that bears witness to the comprehensiveness of God's reconciliation."  There are obvious books that teach us about topics from the environment to politics to racial reconciliation, but it's not just about nonfiction.  "Literature that is done well, even popular fiction, often sheds at least as much light on ourselves and our world."  Smith includes a reading list on several topics at the conclusion of the book.

Review

Smith makes a lot of good points, and this was a valuable read.  We should all be active readers for the reasons mentioned above, and the Church should be active in equipping us to be so.  One ding against this work: it got repetitive.  Covering the "why" and "how" of reading needn't take long, and that felt strung out a bit.  Similarly, the "what" portion could have been condensed to reading lists.  Smith, for several topics, repeatedly discusses the value of reading, and that was unnecessary.  I didn't need to hear over and over that "reading helps us understand politics [or] history [or] social justice [or] ..."  But overall, this 150-page volume is worth your time.

Rating: B+

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Well before the 2005 live-action movie (reviewed here), a cartoon version of C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was produced in 1979.  It follows the book (reviewed here) very closely, with many lines of dialogue taken directly from it.  There are minor variations, of course- the kids receive their gifts from Aslan rather than Father Christmas, for example- but overall it remains true to the original.  The animation wasn't the best quality, the representation of characters seemed a touch cheesy, and everyone had American accents instead of British, but this isn't a bad way to spend 90 minutes.

Rating: B+