Eagle Eye

OK, let's start off the reintroduction of Believable Blie with a movie that rhymes with my name: Eagle Eye.

Eagle Eye is a great flick. Shia LeBeouf has arrived people! OK, we weren't quite sure of him in the new Indiana Jones flick and in the prior films (Transformers and before, except Disturbia, didn't see that one) he has always played a younger person, i.e. a kid or teenager. Now he is playing a set of twins and an adult set of twins. Now this wouldn't be a big deal if he was unable to pull off the characters, but LeBeouf does it. He acts a very good role in this movie. So don't count it out when it comes out on DVD and Blu-ray December 28 2008.

Now to get down to the Movie:

The movie can be taken as a failed attempt of the US's to make a "Big Brother¹" like system. In this movie there is a 36th floor to Pentagon where a A.I.C. (Artificial Intellegent Computer) has been built that can contact any computer or device in the world that is connected to a network. It can listen through any microphone that is any device that some sort of network connection behind it.

That is what starts off the plot and that is where Shia comes in. Now that I have ruined the movie's concept for you I won't ruin the story so go check it out if it is still in your local dollar theater. Or wait the next four days for it to come out on DVD and Blu-ray.

Over all this is a good fast pace never stops sort of movie. I really enjoyed sitting there watching it. Don't worry it does have some breaks in the action. It goes, goes, goes... or that's a break... goes, goes. The breaks are well spaced and still move the story along!

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

POSTER:


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¹For more information about this concept and the meaning of the phrase in relation to this movie pick up a opy of the book 1984 by George Orwell.

Max Payne

Well here is our next movie that is being reviewed and I have to say that this was a disappointment.

Max Payne was not at all the movie I thought it was going to be. The premise of the movie is cool (the video game Max Payne); the trailer for the movie is cool. The movie.... not so cool. About half way through this movie you start to get that feeling in your gut that you wish you had bought the tickets to "High School Musical 3" instead (no disrespect intended to HSM fans I just am not a fan of musicals in general).

The movie does not bring the game to life well. But that is what you get when you take an awesome game and turn it into a movie: A sucky movie. 99.9% of the time games do not cross the line well from interactive video GAME to sit on your ass and watch the MOVIE very well. This one didn't.

Believable Blie Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars

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Lost Falchion Review

OK, so I've been putting off reviewing this for a while. Ever since that PDF got dropped into my inbox. Just because it is not yet in print and I don't write reviews of books that are not in print.

But because to keep updating this as often as possible I am going to give you a review of Lost Falchion by Ray B. May IV.

This story is a good read if you can get your hands on it (right now I think RB is giving it away in PDF to anyone who e-mails him at rbsuniverse@gmail.com). It has it's rough edges at the moment because it is only the first draft. But if you can look past the grammar errors (which are being smoothed over as I write this) you will see a diamond in the rough as it were.

The stor moves a long at a faster paste than most, but then it has to being a short novel, or novella. You can oick it up and put it down in an afternoon and then pick it up again just for fun a week later. The writing style used works well with the fat that the novella is short.

This was the first novella ever to come out on the Imonoran Empire Cast and it did quite well or its run there. Now e-mail him and get your PDF.

Believable Blie Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

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You can look forward to a review of Zohan, Brisingr, The Sky People, In the Courts of the Crimson Kings, The Happening, and Ender's Game (For a classic).

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B. Blie

Don't Vote

OK People seriously now!

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Blie

Watchmen

Well you guys, totally sorry. I was moving hence the lackness of posting in that last month. So now I am posting and there will be several posts.

OK so I'm going to start with a review of the Graphic Novel Watchmen. This is a very good story! Let's start off with that phrase and move on to the story. It's a very original setting. It happens during a an '80s that had a Cold War which is more ferocious than our own. Such things happen through out the story such as Russia invading Afghanistan.

Now there was a Bill in congress that allowed vigilantes to be legal. This is what causes the Heroes to be legal at one time.

The story goes through it's phases and at the end it leaves you with a bitter sweet feeling. The story pulls itself along and makes a good move across the pages. Up until the end, then the read goes south a little.

It is however a good story and will hopefully transpose well into movie format.

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

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There will be another post coming up shortly.

B. Blie

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X

This book was a very fast read. I was amazed. It is a good concept for a story but it suffers some. It suffers from the language. A story like this should have a stronger language, at least that is my feeling. Reading this book was like reading Scott Sigler written by a pussy. It was written like this because it was supposed to be safe for everyone from age 10 to 110 well every reader over 16 would like to see a stronger vocabulary set.

Other than that the story is a very compelling read. I did enjoy it a little bit but it suffers from the lack of lead-in to the story. Since it was written in first person it has a little bit of commentary that goes with it. I'm not sure if I like the commentary or not.

I think that this would be a good read for people but it's hard to suggest it to an older audience because the vocabulary doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

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Believable Blie Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

B. Blie

7th Son

Well this is really going to be more than one review.

1. This is going to be a review of the entire 7th Son Trilogy, yes Entire.
2. This is going to be a review of what J.C. has done so far with Obsidian.

1
OK people let's start off with the Trilogy. I rather like this Podcast Novel Trilogy. It was right up my ally. Yes we all know that this is in fact impossible but isn't that what makes science fiction so fun. Making the Impossible Possible in scientific manner.

There were some parts I didn't agree with. Things like the government not really knowing what the Code Phantom is. That kinda irked me I can see the reason why and that is this: The elected officials that we elect into office may not be in office next term, and with some of them, the president for example, they can only have two terms. So this means that any and all elected officials would be a security risk to something like Code Phantom. It still irked me a little thinking about there being something controlling the government not the other way around. This is of course Kilroy 2.0 wet dream for sure.

Now the writing is very high caliber and the voice acting that follows it into the audio format of these novels is also very high caliber. I think that any sci-fi lover who doesn't at least try this trilogy out is missing out on something that they won't find anywhere else. It is a very, very well put together podcast.

Believable Blie Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars.

2
OK lets move on to the 2nd point on our agenda: What J.C. has done so far with Obsidian. This is something that is completely ground breaking in podcasting. J.C. Hutchins has had people write and record stories based in his universe so that he could podcast them. This is an awesome idea. Does it have its problems? Yes, like not all these stories can be considered canonical. Is this a major problem? No, not really it is a problem for the future of the stories but not for the project that I think that J.C. is trying to bring out.

Being a little bit of an author myself I wouldn't want that but J.C. is a very, very open guy and teh stuff that is coming out is top notch stuff, but it is stories like TD-0013 would be a nightmare to me. I enjoyed it and it is a fine parody but still that would be something that I would not want to deal with. This shows the open mindedness of J.C. He is a nice guy and I appreciate all he does for the Podo/Blogosphere.

Now to tell the truth all the stories from 7th Son Obsidian have to be taken as seperate entities. There is really no way to take them as one whole (meaning a continuous entity) except for the fact that they all happen during the Black Out.

And the Voices from the Darkness epsiodes are the filling of the cake! No not the icing of the cake, the filling. These are really what make up the experience for Obsidian. When you come out of your house in tears because your lights just came on and you are sitting down at you computer what would you be thinking of? Well for those who recorded these in the 7th Son Universe that would be "post somewhere as soon as possible." That somewhere would be anywhere from sending them to the Local TV and Radio Stations to posting them in personal podcasts or on blogs. So what would the news be full of for six months after the power came back on? These audio and video bits.

So J.C. I have one bit of advice for you: Don't tell people to listen to these in the dark but in the total light as if the power just came back on because that would be the only way you would be getting these. That would make the experience even worse!

Now a couple of the concerns I have presented above and some others, which do not need to be voiced, gives me the reason for docking one star from this podcast, but over all this is an awesome anthology and really needs to be listened to.

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Really though goto jchutchins.net and listen to these. Now!

7th Son Trilogy Pics:


Book 1


Book 2


Book 3


7th Son Obsidian Pic:


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B. Blie

Dr. Horribles Sing-Along Blog

OK I know that this isn't technically a podcast but it came out as one (technically).

This is a hilarious mini-series put out by the creator of Buffy: the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and (the Major Motion Picture) Serenity: Joss Whedon. He is a very talented writer and this doesn't change the forum much.

It is basically a "Superhero" show except it is about the villain, Dr. Horrible, instead of the Hero, Captain Hammer. The show goes about depicting Dr. Horrible's attempt to get into the "Evil League of Evil," which is lead by a villain know only as Bad Horse and the Thoroughbred of Sin. How he is stopped again and again by Captain Hammer and how he loses the girl of his dreams to him.

It was available online for free but is now only available through the iTunes Store but it is highly worth it!

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Banners:
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The Dark Knight

OK, now that I'm awake from seeing The Dark Knight opening night, on a Dark Night (sorry you guys), let me start off by saying two words: Kick Ass! This movie did it! It topped Iron Man. I was really worried that this movie was going to end up like all sequels; sad and unable to stand up to expectations. We've all seen it: The first one made us a boat load of money so let's go out and make a second just for the hell of it! Yeah well this one was very, very well done.

The only con I have for the movie is that the Joker didn't really seam like the Joker. What is the one word (besides the words crime, evil, and bad, notice I specified one word so "Batman" doesn't count either) that pops into your head when you think of the Joker? Did I hear you say laughter? That's right. When we think of the Joker we think of laughter and theatrics. I'm sorry but Heath Ledger did not come over as a very good Joker. It is believable enough but not quite there.

Over all this movie states what it is in the title: Dark. This is a dark movie with all the trimmings. One other feature that this movie has is a character named Harvey Dent (another reason for it to be dark) and that's all I'm going to say on that subject. I'm not going to spoil the fun for you. Some of you will know what Harvey Dent is in the Batman universe but that is up to you.

Over all I love this movie and I have to say again that it topped my expectations and Iron Man. I was completely blind sided by this. Now there is a new rise for Batman both with Batman Begins and The Dark Knight we have a great start to a very good series. I'm not sure if this matters to anyone but a lot of people said when Batman Begins came out that the movie topped Spider Man and therefore DC came out on top of Marvel (ah the comic book rivalries). Then when Iron Man came out everyone said that Marvel was back on top, who could blame them Iron Man was awesome. Now just for all of us geeks who care we need to state that DC (my personal favorite) is back on top!

SO to sum everything up The Dark Knight is an awesome movie go see it!

Believable Blie Rating: 6 out of 5 stars

Posters: (These two are my favorite)
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Believable Blie Experience

OK, you guys there is now an official site for Believable Blie. You can find that here. It is going to be the main hub for a lot of things to come. Your going to keep getting reviews and maybe I'll throw some news and interviews here as well.

I'm also working on a tentative schedule for posting new updates and you can see that in the Calendar.

I'm also working on some original work (poetry, fiction and non-fiction). I'm definitely going post that on the site and maybe some of it here or in another blog (more keyed to original work).

I'm also trying to get in touch with podcasters to help me with getting the word out. Thanks to any readers who are paying attention to what I'm writing.

Thanks a lot to RB for pumping so much on your blog and in your podcast and I hope to see the audio promo for Believable Blie coming soon (thanks again RB).

The Dragon's Nine Sons

The Dragon's Nine Sons is an amazingly, artistic novel has been put together very well. It is set in an alternate time line of our own. In this time line China has conquered the earth and many things that we know never happened (most significant Spain never landing in Mexico and the Aztec still in control of that domain as of 2052).

The book is based in the year 2052 of this alternate time line. When the Middle Kingdom (Chinese Empire) has started to terra-form Mars (known as Fire Star) and the Aztec (Mexica) have started their second war with the Middle Kingdom. This is quite a great setting for any novel but this one goes farther. The main characters of this novel are all fugitives. Who have only one shot to get their records cleared: Live through a suicide mission.

There mission is to go to the a Mexica stronhold with a captured Mexica ship and destroy it with massive bombs.

To find out more than that you'll have to read the book yourself. It is well worth it: It has a very well put together world and society, Every aspect is very thought out and outlined, The people are interesting and engaging, and the story is very well written and holds up a standard of science fiction that has not been seen for a while.

Believable Blie Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars.

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B. Blie

Heaven Seasons 1-4

Mur Lafferty spins a great tail about life after death. It takes a very different look at the afterlife than any that has yet been portrayed. It is pretty much an afterlife that paints all religions as true. If you are Buddhist you go to the Buddhist Heaven, if you are Muslim you go to the Muslim Heaven, even the Norse and Greek gods are there. It does it very well though and it did not offend me in the least (a born again Christian), in fact I can't see it offending anyone. BUT I would be careful at listening to this podcast if you cannot handle fantasimal portrayals of heaven, or are so out spoken against other religions that you can't even stand listening to a book saying it is OK for purposes only in this book.

The story suffers a little from the massive amount of heavens it is supposed to encompass but only coming up on part of the deal. Still though listen to it for the story. It is worth it.

The story starts out with the two main characters dieing (wow big shocker Heaven Series). It is a very good listen. Mur Lafferty is a briliant writer and anyone who is looking for a good podcast novella here they are.

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Covers:
Season 1


Season 2


Season 3


Season 4



B. Blie

Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a new movie that starts off quite well. I enjoyed the entire movie but it is true that it is not quite on par with the first three. The only movie of the original trilogy that I think it beats is the second (Temple of Doom).

Harrison Ford is, well, old and he looks it. It is quite evident that he is old. He doesn't act it during any of the movie. I think that anyone who enjoys the trilogy will enjoy this movie but it doesn't quite stand on the same level as Raiders and The Last Crusade. It is also a good rethinking of Indi and anyone who hasn't seen the trilogy yet should see this as well as the rest of the trilogy.

Believable Blie Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

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B Blie

Iron Man

The movie Iron Man is the absolute BEST superhero movie to come out so far! It completely beats out all the Spiderman movies, the Hulk movie, the the Dare Devil movie and both fantastic four movies. The only movie that I feel could five it some resistance is Batman Begins, and hopefully its upcoming sequel Dark Knight. This is a superhero movie finally worth going and seeing more than once.

Make sure you stay through the credits it is completely worth it! This again is the BEST superhero movie to come out so far! It might even be one of the greatest movies to come out so far. This is definitely worth going and seeing.

Believable Blie Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

IRON MAN:



Keep an eye out for my latest post,
B. Blie

Infected by Scott Sigler

"Infected is the debut novel of Scott Sigler." This is true if you don't count EarthCore and Ancestor (though these two never hit stores they are both great reads!). Scott has a talent for writing that is for sure. He weaves a story here that will simultaneously rock, scare and make you feel like you should have paid attention during those biology classes. All joking aside this is a very good book and it will draw you into its grip very easily once you've cracked it open.

The story has an amazing cross genre feel to it that isn't quite as risky as Mr. Lester's but still not it does not stick to the one genre. This for me kind of makes the book more appealing. With the science and techno-babble from a sort of twisted SF side to the pure thriller it is great. It is not a book that you need to think hard about while reading (the above statement about Bio class was just a joke!). It keeps the story vivid and to the point you don't ever find yourself looking at a page or a chapter and asking yourself, "Why is that even in the book?"

For the first in the trilogy has a strong start!

Caution: There is a lot of adult content, adult language and violence in this book. If this will offend you I would not pick it up for yourself. With that said to help our Future Dark Overlord pick up a copy for someone you know who won't be offended (come on we all have those friends that we don't agree with and you know you have a friend who will like this!).

Believable Blie Rating: 5 out of 5 stars.

You can find out more information on the book at scottsigler.com and infectednovel.com. it is also available as a free audio-book download at those two sites!

UPDATE: Pics!

COVER:


AUTHOR:


These are pics of the cover and the Future Dark Overlord himself! Make sure you look for that book in stores! We need to promote this type of publishing because it is well worth it for us!

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Look for my next post coming soon,
BB (Believable Blie)

Imonoran Empire Cast

The Imonoran Empire Cast is a podcast by Ray B. May IV. This is not the only thing he does though. He has an entire "company" called RB's Universe (soon to be incorporated) in which he does all his writing and does all his project work for.

The Imonoran Empire Cast is an extension of the entire thing. He reads stories in the Imonoran Empire (mostly, hence the name), a science fiction universe that the stories are set in and he is working on making available for other writers. He started this season, the IEC's first, with six short stories and then with the fifth episode started the first "IEC Exclusive Novel" (Listen to the Promo for it here), Lost Falchion, which is now in waiting for Chapter 7 to come out.

The Science Fiction stories are very good for content. The quality of the podcast could be much better but it is a work in progress. I enjoy most things that are put into the science fiction genre so don't take my word for it. Go check it out!

EDIT: I give this Podcast 3 out of 5 Stars

Look for it here: http://imonoranempire.mypodcast.com/

Look for my next post coming soon,
BB (Believable Blie)

Metamor City Review

Metamor City:
This is an exciting podcast that blends two of the largest genres together. That's Science Fiction and Fantasy as the idea of Metamor City takes a pure fantasy world (In this case Metamor Keep, but for an example think something like Lord Of the Rings) and brings it into the twenty-first century. I thought the idea was risky at best when I first heard about, but Chris Lester (series creator) has a large fan base that is growing steadily.

The stories are engaging and very impressive. Many of the characters have problems you can identify with, even though they are people you can't identify with. A Psionic Guy is have girl problems, OK I can identify with that, but add the extra layer that it's because he is part of a collective and his powers are "too weak to let him and her start a breeding cell." That just makes your brain spin haywire!

The Podcast started its run with Six short stories and then started running its first novel, Making the Cut, in its eighth episode (you can listen to the Making the Cut's promo here)

You should definitely look into listening to this it is a very, very good production and you will get a story that will keep you coming back for more.

EDIT: I give this Podcast 4 out of 5 Stars

Look for it here: http://www.metamorcity.com/

See you guys in a while,
BB (Believable Blie)

Welcome

Welcome to Believable Blie!

Well this is a blog to review Podcast, Video Games, Movies and books. You can check it out we will post stuff once a week.

We will try to have this in the next Post:

1. Review of Chris Lester's "Metamor City Podcast" and Ray B. May IV's "Imonoran Empire Cast"
   
2. Review of Scott Sigler's Novel Infected
3. Review of Iron Man
4. Possibly a review on Patapon

So it will not always be the case it will just most likely be stuff for y'all. I will try and post links to the episodes of the podcasts we are currently reviewing.

Thanks you y'all this is my first post. It will be growing fast.