Something Awesome #32 - Movie Reviews - Guardians of the Galaxy

As a fan of Marvel Comics, science fiction and fantasy, even I find it surprising that I actually know very little about the Guardians of the Galaxy. Yeah I have a peripheral knowledge of them, enough to know a bit about the various incarnations of the team, the power sets of the characters, and to love Rocket the Raccoon and Groot. Enough to know at the time of its announcement that this movie would have a tough release if the marketing weren't handled perfectly. Well, it was, selling the truly unusual concept of a man, a green girl, a giant covered in red tattoos, a raccoon, and a tree coming together and becoming super heroes on par with the Avengers to the general public. Thanks to its brilliant marketing campaign, the idea of this movie has hooked even the more down to earth Marvel movie fan and helped to expand what they will accept as film entertainment. It also taught me something. Well, two things actually: that Karen Gillan is hot even bald and with robot parts, and the Guardians of the Galaxy are even more awesome than I thought.

The Last Dragonborn - The Journal of Johan Abbot #10

---Last Seed, 29th, 4E 201---

  While retrieveing Odvar from Jorvaaskr, I decided to stop in and see what Farengar thought of the golden sword I found. He was unsure of its origin, remarking that it resembles the Daedric Artifact called Goldbrand, but that it cannot be, as Goldbrand has not been seen since the Great War. He thinks that it is perhaps a good replica. Its enchantment is stable, and it is sturdy, and of superior quality to my Skyforge Steel blade, so I have decided to carry it as my weapon of choice for the time being.

  On my way back down from the Cloud District I met a local girl named Lucia. She begs for food and coin in the city square, and sleeps on the floor of the Temple of Kynareth, as she has no parents. I spoke to Lydia, and she has agreed to arrange for my spare room to be outfitted as a child's room, and for Lucia to live in Breezehome under her care. Lucia is a sweet girl. Perhaps once I'm ready to settle down a bit, I'll adopt the girl properly. Odvar says that I'm quite the philanthopist, suited to the life of a Thane, but I think he's mocking me, and I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be if he weren't.

   Odvar and I rode the carriage through the night to Riften, sleeping on the way. It wasn't comfortable, but it did save time. Once here Riften became suspect immediately when the guards at the gate tried to shake us down for money, until I threatened to expose their scheme. Inside it became clear that Riften is little more than a slum with walls. It smells bad, is run behind the curtain by a preposterous group calling themselves the Thieves Guild, and the city's one wealthy family, the Black-Briars. I met a tough but beautiful Nord woman named Mjoll and her friend Aerin who agree. Mjoll is a former Adventurer who actively opposes the corruption in Riften. She and I are like-minded, and though she has yet to trust me enough to tell me why she stopped adventuring, she did agree to show me around the city, introducing me to the trustworthier citizens, and to accompany Odvar and I for a while.

  One of the places that Mjoll showed us was the local Temple of Mara, the only public building in the city that doesn't look like it's falling apart, and while there we were, as seasoned Adventurers, offerend a series of tasks by the priestess on Mara's behalf, to spread the cause of love throughout Skyrim. The tasks will not take us too far out of our way, and it is a worty cause. The first of the tasks is in nearby Ivarstead, the gateway town to the Graybeards' mountaintop. I sit here writing as the three of us prepare to set out for the town. We should be able to reach it by foot by tonight, giving me a chance to experience more of the Rift than this one depressing city. Once there I suppose that I'll have to decide once and for all what to do about the summons.

  I will also welcome Mjoll's help dispatching the Silver Hand nearby, though I must decide carefully how much to tell her of the true nature of my mission, and myself. Odvar could not be more accepting of my nature as a werebeast, but Mjoll might not be so forgiving.

  While arriving in town this morning, a dragon flew overhead. It remained just long enough to stir up the guards before it flew off toward the nearby peaks, but I'm sure, depite the morning fog, that it was not the black dragon from Helgen. That is three dragons now that I have seen in a week's time, and it concerns me. I also feel different since my transformation into a Werewolf. I enjoy the taste of raw or hardly-cooked animal meat, and I find that I am more eager to take up arms. Is my new nature doing something to my mind? If so I must strive harder to control it.



Mods Referenced in this Entry:

-Insanity's Goldbrand

The Last Dragonborn - The Journal of Johan Abbot #9

---Last Seed, 28th, 4E 201---

  On the 26th of Last Seed, only two days ago, Skjor and Aela made me a Werewolf so that I might help them wipe out a legion of the Silver Hand. Initially the transformation was rough, but I recovered my head. By the time I did, however, I'd run with Aela to the fort where the Silver Hand were holed up. While Aela stayed behind to make sure I didn't harm myself or anyone else, Skjor went ahead. He fell to the Silver Hand and their skilled and powerful leader, The Skinner, before we could reach him. I tore the man's followers apart in my new beast form. In that form I am an unstoppable force, and even in my Human form I am stronger than ever. I rarely tire, and Aela tells me that I will never again have to feel the ravages of disease. I no longer have trouble controlling myself in my transformed state, either. The Silver Hand are right to be wary of the mad Werewolves which even Aela admits exist, but why do they hate the Companions so? I don't care anymore. They killed a member of my pack. They will all die for it.

  Leaving the fortress, I realized that I was near Wildhelm, and I was reminded of my reason for coming to Skyrim in the first place. My father, a half-Nord half-Imperial Officer in the Legion, and my mother, a Nord ambassador to Cyrodiil from Skyrim, were killed in the sacking of the Imperial City during the great war when I was very young. I hate the Thalmor for this, but I am no fool. I was but a boy, but even I knew at the time how close we came to losing the war. The White-Gold Concordat must last, or my parents will have died for nothing. Ulfric wants to dissolve the Concordat and renew the fight with the Thalmor. When I heard that he had murdered the High King of Skyrim, I knew he was moving toward a full-scale rebelion, and I gave up my comfortable life of exploring ruins, gathering loot, and wooing maidens with stories of my heroism to come north and try to convince him to stop. Stupid, I know, but I felt I had to try something. So I journeyed to Windhelm, stopping by the nearby Talos statue which overlooks the city. There I found a golden Akaviri sword which seems to be enchanted. Maybe it was sacreligious to do so, but I took it. It feels good to carry a light, swift blade again.

  Five minutes in Windhelm it became clear that there would be no convincing Ulfric. The first thing I saw when I stepped through the gate was a pair of Nords harassing and threatening a Dunmer woman while the guards stood by and did nothing. One of the men threatened to come to her home that night and teach her a lesson. So I broke his nose. I stayed in the city for a night, and even helped Ulfric's stuard catch a murderer who was trying to construct a Flesh Golem from parts of local girls, and I built a rapport with some of the Dunmer, who are forced by Ulfric and his guards to live in an unkept slum. Despite this, however, I don't intend to ever return to Windhelm while Ulfric sits on the throne, if I can help it. Even now I camp just outside the city walls.

  Tomorrow I take the carriage to Whiterun to get Odvar, if Ria has not killed him to prevent his constant advances, and then to Riften. Aela found clues in the fortress that the Silver Hand have a stronghold in The Rift as well. I'll kill them all, for Skjor.

 

 



Mods Referenced in this Entry:

 -In this entry I mention a weapon mod, Insanity's Goldbrand, which adds a lore weapon to the game that would not otherwise be present. In the lore, this weapon was supposedly last wielded by a soldier in the Imperial army, so I thought that it would make sense if the Dragonborn found it near a Shrine of Talos. This is also a reference to an older Goldbrand mod which has since disappeared from Steam and the Nexus.

The Last Dragonborn - The Journal of Johan Abbot #8

---Last Seed, 25th, 4E 201---

  Nordic ruins may not be as rich in valuables as the ruins back home in Cyrodiil, but between the random gems and ores found so far during my journeys in Skyrim, the money I have earned from the Companions, and the money I recieved selling the Silver Hand's equipment, I have earned enough to afford the home available in Whiterun, and even furnish it modestly. It is a quaint little stead called Breezehome. I have turned over maintainance of the property to my housecarl Lydia.

  I was given another job by the other Companions today, one which I, as a Thane, was uniquely equipped to handle. Rorik, of nearby Rorikstead, was dragged away from the outskirts of the city earlier today by a pair of Falmer! That's right, the stories of the deformed decendants of the Snow Elves of old are actually true. I was the only Companion who could be spared, but as a Thane I had access to Lydia, and to a modest few town guards. And to Odvar, of course. The six of us were able to get Rorik back unharmed from the Falmer den in Shimmermist Cave north of Whiterun. There were far more than two Falmer in the cave, however. Enough to justify an order to organize the guard and clear out the cave while Odvar and I returned Rorik home.

  I sit here writing this in the local tavern in Rorikstead, the Frostfruit Inn. The town is nice. I might take some time to look around tomorrow before returning to Whiterun for my bounty.

 



Mods Mentioned in this Entry:

-UFO - Ultimate Follower Overhaul (for the mention of recruiting town guards)

A Little Something Awesome - Things That Dumbledore Did That'd Be Creepy If You Did Them

Love it or hate it, Harry Potter is littered with characters who often do things that would be questionable in real life situations. Yes, they had their reasons, but taken out of context, the actions of these characters could be considered a little...creepy. This video addresses this by looking at the actions of everyone's favorite whimsical, long-bearded headmaster, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, in a enjoyably humorous light.

 

 

If you liked the video let me know, check out the uploader over at Buzz Feed Video, and, either way, come back later for another Something Awesome.

Something Awesome #31 - Movie Reviews - Hercules

Been a while since I've been back here again, twenty-two days to be exact. Twenty-two average, boring days where there wasn't a whole lot of awesome really going on, except awesome of my own making, some of which will be posted here relatively soon. My life has been pretty un-awesome, and there haven't been any movie releases in the last few weeks which have caught my interest, until this evening with the release of Hercules, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as the titular hero. If you are new to the blog, then you may not know that I love Greek mythology. I'm no expert on it, but I enjoy it, and I have more than a modest knowledge of it. Of all Greek myths, the story of Hercules (or Heracles as he should be called in a Greek setting, as Hercules is the Roman counterpart) is the most popular, and the most-often butchered. Probably the best adaptation to date was the TV series in the nineties starring Kevin Sorbo, Hercules: the Legendary Journeys, and it was still wildly inaccurate because of its nature as an episodic series. Due to the story's horrible track record, I had low hopes for this film, even though it looked better than past attempts. I almost didn't go to see it tonight when it opened. Having seen it, however, I'm glad that I did.

A Little Something Awesome - Star Trek Calls Out Star Wars...In This Dance Video!

Part of an ongoing series by ScottDW on YouTube, this is one dance video that anyone can enjoy. It's epic, and funny, and well-made. Check it out below, and if you like it subscribe to Scott on YouTube, and come back later for another Something Awesome.