My Journey Into LEGO - Part 1

      It’s been a bit quiet here on the blog front recently in terms of original content – the reason being that I have been going a little crazy with a new hobby - collecting LEGO!

      I feel that there is a lot of interesting aspects to discuss here and to attempt to explain why I find it all so fascinating. But first, here's is a brief outline of how it all started:

Beginnings

        Like a lot of my generation, I played with LEGO when I was a youngster. I didn’t really own huge quantities, but I did enjoy a bit of Pirate themed LEGO (interestingly this was way before the Pirates of The Caribbeanfranchise made it all extremely popular again) and I still have two big sets sitting (still constructed and very dusty) on a shelf back at home.

        In fact, it was these two (see images below) - the Black Seas Barracuda (6285) and the Rock Island Refuge (6273). The release dates on the database at Bricksetsay 1989! Wow.

       Apart from that I didn't really do much with LEGO growing up. Having played a lot of Videogames in my teens and adult years it was inevitable that I would come across the increasingly popular crossover games such as LEGO Star Warsand LEGO Indiana Jones. I’ve always loved the original Star Wars films, especially the design and aesthetic of the Empire (particularly the Stormtroopers) and was aware of the existence of Star Wars Lego product tie-ins, especially after the release of the ‘prequel’ trilogy. But that was about it.

       That was until a few months ago when 2 things happened.

      Firstly, my lovely girlfriend bought me a Lego Stormtrooper keyring off of eBay. It was too nice to actually put on my set of keys and get ruined by general scuffing, so I pinned it up on my corkboard.

      The second inciting incident was the opening of the long awaited new shopping centre in the middle of Leeds: Trinity Walk; and within it a LEGO shop. Now there are only 12 of these in the UK (so far) so of course I had to check it out. They had a small section with key rings – the ones I was interested in (the Original Trilogy Star Wars and Marvel/DC characters) were there and so I picked up one or two every time I popped in. As my collection of key rings steadily grew, I eventually bought a small felt board to display them on. You can see a picture of it below:

So why LEGO?

        A brief diversion: why do I like LEGO?

        Firstly, it’s the look. For me, it totally has to do with the style and aesthetic – especially in regards to the minifigures (although this can also be seen in the construction kits). I just like how a lot of LEGO is standardised and most minifigures that are newly designed often has to find a way that fits within that style and aesthetic. This leads to interesting instances of the recycling of certain pieces/accessories. A tiny stud has many different uses – a rounded tail light on the back of a car, a piece of gold in a chest, Iron Man’s hand thrusters – they are all from the same basic piece, just used in different ways.

       The design of every little piece also adds a universal interchangeability between almost everything. Want to switch around everybody’s body parts, headgears or accessories just for a laugh? You can totally do that.

        Sometimes I like to see what pieces are used in constructing a particular model just to see what common parts they have used and marvel at the ingenuity of the design.

        There are three main ways that fans of LEGO operate. Firstly: the standard idea of buying a set and constructing the contents by following the instructions. The instructions are always detailed, clear and in a way that is easy to understand by any country in the world (it's all graphical - now words needed), and being able to build a complex model relatively quickly provides a satisfying experience.

        Secondly: the collection of minifigs. Some people just like to collect minifigs and are not too bothered about the construction aspect. LEGO have been very smart in making a lot of minifigs exclusive to certain sets (eg: you cant get a ‘Dark Knight Rises’ Bane minifig without buying the whole Bat Vs Bane Tumbler Chase (76001) set which, at the time of writing, will set you back £40. As a result, there is a massive market for buying and selling solo minifigures on eBay and some large sellers even going so far as to buy multiple sets, remove the exclusive minifigs from the box and then selling them all separately on eBay to cater for the demand.

        Similarly there are also the aforementioned ‘key ring attached’ minifigs and ‘magnet’ minifigs (as due to licensing reasons LEGO are not allowed to sell them without being attached to something) that has also led to some people (myself included) researching ways to cleanly detach them. More on all this later.

        The third draw of Lego. takes the form of MOCs (My Own Creation) whether they be custom constructed models or art pieces. These take many forms, including custom minifgs, sculptures, dioramas, pixel art… there are endless possibilities. The simplicity and universality of LEGO design mentioned earlier plays a big part in people using existing pieces to construct their own creations. Again, we will take a look at some examples later.

       I have taken a particular liking to collecting minifigs mostly, but I do also enjoy the construction of certain sets (especially vehicles) - it’s just that larger LEGO sets are expensive and take up a lot of room that I frankly don't have in my house. I have also planned a pixel art piece made from a specific selection of brick sizes and colours – but more on that later. So I guess you can say I enjoy all three categories. That's why I find LEGO so damn appealing!

        Okay this is getting pretty long so I’ll split into a few parts.

        So…

Click HERE to go straight to Part 2!

5th August 2013

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Double Dose of The Conjuring

      It's been a while since Ive watched a scary film in the cinema so we decided to go and watch The Conjuring. I really liked Dead Silence and Insidious so was looking forward to this one.

        The written review is now up on  Pillowmagazine.

       Check it out HERE.

       Also there is a (SPOILERFIC!) Episode 05 of The Padcast, which you can find below, where myself and the man like Paddy review the film in a bit more detail. This week's special guest: Tomi from FunkstylersTV!

       You can also download an .mp3 of the episode from HERE if you would rather listen to it that way.

If you’ve enjoyed it please show your support: LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE!

3rd August 2013

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Double Dose of The Wolverine

This week sees the return of Wolverine, in the film… er… The Wolverine!

Have a look here for my written review on Pillow Magazine.

Also we have recorded Episode 04 of The Padcast, which you can find below, in which Paddy and myself talk about what we thought of The Wolverine – this time with special guest Maxims (AKA Max of Steel)!

Mp3 download is available HERE.

If you’ve enjoyed it please show your support: LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE!

26th July 2013

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Double Dose of Pacific Rim

        On this edition of double dose, we have Guillermo Del Toro’s Mech vs Monsters epic Pacific Rim.

The written review is now up on Pillowmagazine.com, it's spoiler-free so have a read HERE:

If you have already seen the film and want a more in-depth look at the film (spoiler warning!), have a listen to Episode 03 of The Padcast, which you can find below, in which myself and Paddy talk (at some length) about the film.

       If you want to download the mp3 instead, you can do so HERE.

       If you’ve enjoyed it please show your support: LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE!

14th July 2013

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Stoker - The Piano Scene

        Park Chan-Wook’s Stoker is simply a marvel to behold. It's one of those films that manages to marry its technical presentation so perfectly with thematic contents of its story. Having watched it again recently (and, of course, with the benefit of hindsight), I’ve noticed so much more of this throughout and how rich the film actually is in this regard.

        The cinematography, music, sound design, photography – all feature recurring motifs, one example being that they often showing things from India’s point of view. She sees things and hears things that others can’t, often showing things in close details or amplifying sound effects to sickening disturbing levels. The cracking of egg shells, the wind blowing through the grass, sharpening a bloodied pencil. She sometimes gets fixated on tiny details – in the art class she draws the pattern inside the vase, rather than the vase itself or anything else on that table – that image eerily reminiscent of the blood sprayed flower at the beginning and end of the film. Watch out for that similar pattern in other parts of the film.

        The symbolism in the imagery also plays a large part Stoker, particularly with the themes of family and inheritance, the hunter/prey dynamic, sexual awakening and the loss of innocence.

        Let’s look at a few examples. The nature program that is on in the background when the Aunt is at the motel, the dung beetle mirrored by Charlie pushing the big boulders in the garden, the sunglasses that are ‘inherited’ from one character to another – as is the belt (which also carries sexually undertones when it's shown being undone). India’s shoes, marking her progression from young to old, eventually replaced by heels to signify her sexual awakening. The spider crawling up her leg…
        There are so much more and you will keep noticing additional details every time you watch the film.

        The best part of all this is that the symbolism is there to compliment and bolster the themes of the story and makes the whole experience richer without being entirely dependent on it.

        The best part of all of this for me is in the piano scene, occurring half way through the film – wordless, heavy with subtext, the music (by Phillip Glass no less) and how they sit – all defining their feelings and the shifting dynamics between the two characters.

 

        Here’s how the scene plays out:

 

        India is alone, sitting at he piano. She starts to play; the same few notes we see her practicing throughout the film. Charlie suddenly appears beside her, his fingers on the lower end of the scale complimenting what she is playing, and as he sits, their positioning mirrors an earlier scene where he flirts with the mother Evie with the pretence he has never played a piano before.

        Charlie then takes over, upping the tempo. Almost indignant, she moves onto something more complex, staring at him while she does so, a defiant look in her eyes. Unfazed, he matches her – the music becoming increasingly complex and exuberant. She tries once again to outdo him but to avail – Charlie is with her there, every step of the way.

        He then reaches over, his arm moving around the back of her, one hand on the high notes, one on the low, trapping her within his embrace. She is helpless but enthralled – she surrenders to the music, surrenders to him as the music soars beautifully. She closes her eyes and shivers, this feeling of pleasure so new and dangerous. Charlie relinquishes control once again- allowing her to take on the part he was playing.

        India has never felt this way before, her legs tense up as if in sexual arousal, her breathing heavy, the expression on her face says it all. They music builds and build until…

        Charlie stops. India’s notes trail off. He turns to her slowly and smiles. He knows she is just like him; her awakening to the role she was born to play has truly started. He leans in slowly toward her, seductively. She seems unable to move. She can’t even look at him. Eventually, managing to compose herself, India turns to look at Charlie - but he is gone. She is alone once again.

        This scene is so expertly done – the music, the editing, the way it is shot, the acting - all coming together so beautifully. It is a technical marvel in that it serves the story and the themes so well – all without a single word being spoken.

        I’m not sure how much of the richness of this film was in the Wentworth Miller’s script or whether most of it was Park’s input, but either way it's the kind of film I wish I had written. A strong contender for one of the best films I have seen this year.

You can read my full review of Stoker at PillowMagazine.com by clicking HERE.

10th July 2013

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3 Reasons Why You Have to Watch Luther

 

       Luther is back!

       The first episode of Series 3aired last night on BBC and offered the same irresistible mix of hardboiled cop drama, twisted serial killer shenanigans and of course, the man himself, Idris Elba.

       Sometimes it’s hard to convince people to watch this show. Although recent promo has given the launch of this latest series a decent amount of exposure, many people I’ve talked to about it previously have never even heard of it.

       So here are 3 great reasons why you should watch it:

1) It’s Short

       I’ll be honest with you – I can’t be bothered with watching long series. About 10 episodes is usually my maximum limit (yes, Game of Thrones!). That’s why I generally have a disdain for US TV shows which seem adamant on wringing out every possible minute they can from given material, usually resulting in plenty of filler and artificially lengthened story contrivances that just end up watering down the whole experience.

       Luther, on the other hand is short. First series: 6 episodes. Second and third: 4 episodes each.

       Although they are good shows, I struggled to watch all of LOST and Heroes ONCE let alone any repeat viewings. But you’ll probably want to watch all of Luther again at some point– it’s that awesome!

2) The Villains

       Good cop dramas need good villains and the killers contained here are all of the dark and twisted variety – often (but by no means always) grotesque serial killers with disturbing MOs or unusual ways of killing.

       Things are also usually not how they are first presented and although you often see the killers introduced early on and go about their work, there is usually always some kind of shock twist or reveal to keep you guessing.

       The city of London is nearly always shown here as being dark and grimy and acts as the perfect setting, although some may end up developing an irrational fear of going there after seeing some of the scary crooks and psychopaths portrayed as regularly lurking the streets there!

       It’s not just the killers that Luther is trying to catch either. He also has family problems, grief from his superiors, internal affairs constantly breathing down his neck and even his trusted partner DS Ripley (Warren Brown) occasionally has cause to doubt him and his methods.

       And lets not forget the delectable (yet greatly unhinged) Alice Morgan (Ruth Wilson), who plays a Moriarty like counterpoint to Luther’s Holmes… that is, if Moriarty was a woman and attracted to Holmes. Does she ultimately want to save him - or destroy him? I guess we’ll find out. Ruth Wilson is also set to have a role in the upcoming Lone Ranger film starring Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp, which is out later this year.

3) It's Idris Elba!

       He is the driving force of this whole thing, and arguably it simply would not work without him in the role. He’s got the smarts, he’s got the brawn (and isn’t afraid to use it) and most of all he is strong of character. Despite all the adversity thrown his way from all sides he just keeps going.

       Luther always gets the job done, and although his methods occasionally cross the line his heart is in the right place, which means we are always behind him every step of the way. He may be dogged, weary and perpetually grumpy but he somehow still remains charismatic, likeable and relatable. A difficult feat to pull off, which not only attests to the fantastic writing in the series, but also Idris’s performance.

       He’s no stranger to movies either, with notable roles in The Losers, Prometheus, Thor and 28 Weeks Later. Of course he has been in the occasional stinker such as Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (booooo!) but has a big role in the soon to be released Pacific Rim (yay!), which I am scheduled to review, so watch this space! Oh yeah, he was also Stringer Bell in The Wire.

       At one point, in the far reaches of the internet, it was rumoured that he was being considered to be the next Bond. And you know what? I’m totally fine with that. Alas, it probably wont be happening now as he is admittedly getting a bit old for the role now (…Not because he is black! It would have been a brilliant way to further shake up the franchise!)

       So basically, go and watch Luthernow! You may have to hunt down the earlier seasons elsewhere but HERE is a link to the first episode of Season 3 on BBC iPlayer. The moment I heard Massive Attack’s beautifully melancholy opening theme I was hooked and so will you be…

You can check out a brief trailer for Luther Series 3 below:

3rd July 2013

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