Author: Michael Beckwith

Five Favourite Rik Mayall Performances

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted June 13th 2014)

uktv-rik-mayall

Earlier this week, English comedian Rik Mayall sadly passed away at the age of 56. The man pioneered alternative comedy in the 1980’s, particularly with his role in British sitcom ‘The Young Ones’ (which I really need to watch); he was described as being to comedy what punk was to music. He was an inspiration to me and many of my friends and his passing has deeply affected a lot of people.

If you’re unfamiliar with him, you are sorely missing out. He brought so much energy to every role he was in, creating insane, uncontrollable characters. So, in honour of this utter legend, here’s a list of my favourite performances for you to check out and enjoy. Continue reading →

X-Men: Days of Future Past – The Ultimate Retcon

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted June 6th 2014)

x_men_days_of_future_past_banner-wide

I’ll be honest; I’m not a big ‘X-Men’ fan. So, when I agreed to see ‘Days of Future Past,’ I wasn’t entirely sure what I was getting into. I had hopes for a film that would be semi-decent and, surprisingly, it turned out to be more than that. Continue reading →

Batman vs Superman – Insert Yawn Sound Effect Here

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted May 30th 2014)

Batman-v-Superman-Dawn-of-Justice-Logo

So, how about that ‘Batman vs Superman’ movie, eh? Oh I’m sorry, ‘Batman v Superman.’ Apparently that extra ‘s’ wasn’t broody enough to be included. As a self-proclaimed geek, you’d think this film would have me foaming at the mouth with excitement, but you’d be wrong. I do love Batman and I do love Superman, but the idea of these two iconic superheroes duking it out, quite frankly, bores me. Continue reading →

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons – My New Favourite Downloadable Title

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted May 23rd 2014)

Brothers_A_Tale_of_Two_Sons_cover_art

When ‘Brothers’ was first announced, it quickly grabbed my attention. After all, I’m a sucker for narrative driven games and it seemed to be an interesting experience. Not to mention, download-only titles tend to not interest me all that much. It was released on the Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and Steam last year and I was ready to buy it… until I saw its price tag. £11.99 on the PSN. I decided to hold off until I had the money to spare, or it got a price drop. Fortunately, the latter happened quite recently and I snapped it up. Now, a part of me regrets being late to the party. Continue reading →

Eight Characters That Should Be in Mario Kart

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted May 16th 2014)

mario-kart-8-16098-16588-hd-wallpapers

We’re less than a month away from ‘Mario Kart 8’ hitting the shelves and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much hype for a new ‘Mario Kart’ before. Since its announcement at E3 last year, we’ve slowly but surely seen more of it and I have certainly become more and more excited. But if there’s one thing I have to take issue with, it’s Nintendo’s choice of characters.

Now, ‘Mario Kart’ isn’t exactly something you play for its playable characters, unlike a fighting game like ‘Super Smash Bros’ but as the cast has grown, certain characters have unexpectedly cropped up… and not in the good way. ‘MK8’ will star many fan favourites but the rest are a bit of a head scratcher. All seven of the Koopalings? Are they really that popular? Baby Rosalina? Do we really need another baby version of an existing character? Even Baby Daisy was pushing it. And Pink Gold Peach? You’re not even trying with that one.

It wouldn’t be so bad if there wasn’t a far richer selection of Mushroom Kingdom inhabitants to choose from. So, here’s my personal pick of new and old racers that should be allowed onto the racecourse.

Continue reading →

Frozen – Is It Really That Good?

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted May 9th 2014)

(WARNING: The following post contains spoilers for ‘Frozen’)

Disney-Frozen-Logo-Wallpaper-1280x1024

I can already see many of you pulling out all manner of weapons and typing my name into Google in the hopes of finding my address just by reading that title, so let me explain: I don’t hate ‘Frozen.’ I like ‘Frozen.’ It was a good movie. But when I found out how popular it was, I couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Was it really worthy of such praise? Did it truly deserve to be the highest grossing animated film ever? Well, having re-watched the film, I’m going to break down all the points I deem important; both positive and negative, and try and find out why people love it so much. Continue reading →

Attack on Titan – The One Anime Where Character Deaths Aren’t Spoilers

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted May 2nd 2014)

(WARNING: The following post contains spoilers for ‘Attack on Titan’)

attack-on-titan-thumb-630xauto-44793

Let’s face it. You’ve probably already watched ‘Attack on Titan.’ I don’t need to tell you why you should watch it. It’s quite possibly the biggest anime in recent years, rivalling the popularity of the likes of ‘Bleach’ and ‘One Piece.’ Everywhere you go online, you’re bound to find something ‘Attack on Titan’ related. So, rather than explain why one should watch it, I shall simply give my personal thoughts on the series thus far.

Continue reading →

Kill la Kill – Something More Than Fanservice

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted April 25th 2014)

tumblr_mmje5edfpD1rw9b6io1_1280

‘Kill la Kill’ is a fairly recent anime series, and one that was highly recommended to me. I didn’t really know what to expect. All I knew was that the protagonist was female, there was a lot of fanservice and it was as insane as another anime series called ‘Gurren Lagann,’ which I absolutely loved because it was so insane. After watching it, I realised that sometimes it’s good to not know what to expect, because what you’ll get will shock you to your core.

Continue reading →

How the Ending Can Ruin the Beginning

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted April 18th 2014)

(WARNING: The following post contains spoilers for the final episode of ‘How I Met Your Mother’ and ‘A Doll’s House’)

On March 31st 2014, the long running US sitcom ‘How I Met Your Mother’ ended after nine seasons. Usually when a series such as this comes to an end, there is much fanfare. The fans come together in unison to bid farewell to their beloved characters and, sometimes, tears are shed. But ‘HIMYM’ wound up doing something that took me by surprise. The final episode created a chasm that split the fanbase down the middle. I hesitate to use the word ‘controversial’ but opinions were definitely mixed.

how-i-met-your-mother

Continue reading →

GBA Games on Wii U Virtual Console – Why?

/ Michael Beckwith / Leave a comment

(originally posted April 11th 2014)

I’m just gonna say that the Virtual Console is possibly one of Nintendo’s best ideas. The ability to download classic games from the days when gaming was nothing more than a niche, little club is just genius. Not only does it allow gamers to relive some of their favourite titles from when they were growing up but it also introduces these classics to a new generation. The youth of today can now experience the kind of games their parents or other older relatives used to play. I myself would love to purchase more titles off the VC, having already got games like ‘Paper Mario’ and ‘Kirby 64.’

wiiu_virtual_console

Continue reading →