Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the
weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something
you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.
Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy
of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in
this, can we?
January 3, 2003
Book of the Week:
by Piers Paul Read. Okay, anybody familiar at all with strange conspiracies or odd crackpot theories knows
the Templars. Oh, yeah, and normal history buffs as well. Anyway, Read (the man who brought you Alive) creates a
nice historical framework and context for these mysterious figures, chock full of the details that any serious historical
type needs--but still accessible to those of who want the information without having to sweat through heavy-handed over-academic
writing.
Comic Book of Last Week:The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 2 #4 by
Alan Moore & Kevin O'Neill. Okay, there were some good comics this week, but none really set my canoe adrift like last week.
And since we took last week off, it's my duty to bring this to the fore to fill the void: Alan Moore is a god. This is not
news, but in his hands, the most literate comic book that ever existed is getting more and more insane. H.G. Wells'
Martians are wreaking havoc throughout England. Part of Mina Murray's secret is revealed, and it looks like they're set
on recruiting a new member--and I promise you, it's not a character from James Robinson's mind. Yes, you can breathe easy.
Graphic Novel of the Week:Judge
Anderson: Death's Dark Dimension by John Wagner, Alan Grant, Brett Ewins, Cliff Robinson & Robin Smith. There are
some truths when it comes to comics. One of them is that the long-running Brit mag 2000 AD is the best anthology
out there. Not only do you have writers who actually know how to write in six, seven page installments--but even a mediocre
2000 AD story is better than most of the best stuff you'll find stateside. Here you get the collected adventures of
Judge Anderson, most powerful psychic in Mega-City One, as she deal with, among other baddies, Judge Death. Yes, that's
right: a judge so evil, he was truly responsible for the Judge Dredd movie.
DVD Boxed Set of the Week:
. One word for the recent supernatural daytime soap, Passions: Bwha. I've actually seen an episode of
this atrocity (don't ask me how or where, it's just too traumatic to relate), and let me tell you something: Barnabas rocks
their pitiful world. This massive set starts off where Barnabas comes in and relates to you forty episodes, uncut, along
with bonus interviews and the whole nine. So if you want melodrama and fangs, don't shop anywhere else.
DVD of the Week:
. Say what you want about Vin Diesel--but this film stuck its boot right up the butt of James Bond. Take an
insane premise--extreme sports guy goes to work for the NSA--and just run with it, and you get this flick. Featuring
explosions, crazed stunts, one-liners and women--just like MGM used to make before their franchise ran aground. Good cheesy
movies like Mom used to make.
CD of the Week:
by The Dave Brubeck Quartet. Ahhhhh. Sometimes you just need to get back to basics. One of the three albums
I remember listening to from infancy onwards, when you need smooth jazz goodness, you can always turn to this disc. Go grab
a copy or listen to a sample online, of signature tune "Take Five" or "Blue Rondo A La Turk" and attempt not to need to
purchase this. I dare you.
Snack of the Week:Kinder Surprise. Thespia brought back some of these from her secret mission in Europe.
They're ostensibly egg-shaped hollow things of white and milk chocolate, within which you find a capsule. Inside this, you
find a toy of some sort. They even have "Maxi" Surprises, that are the same thing, but roughly the size of a decently
built grapefruit--and with a bigger capsule and bigger, more complicated toy. Ours came with a Santa train and car--that
really rolls. They are cool as hell, but--ah--not available stateside. You overseas whackos sometimes get all the luck.
Book of the Week:
by Piers Paul Read. Okay, anybody familiar at all with strange conspiracies or odd crackpot theories knows
the Templars. Oh, yeah, and normal history buffs as well. Anyway, Read (the man who brought you Alive) creates a
nice historical framework and context for these mysterious figures, chock full of the details that any serious historical
type needs--but still accessible to those of who want the information without having to sweat through heavy-handed over-academic
writing.
Comic Book of Last Week:
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 2 #4 by
Alan Moore & Kevin O'Neill. Okay, there were some good comics this week, but none really set my canoe adrift like last week.
And since we took last week off, it's my duty to bring this to the fore to fill the void: Alan Moore is a god. This is not
news, but in his hands, the most literate comic book that ever existed is getting more and more insane. H.G. Wells'
Martians are wreaking havoc throughout England. Part of Mina Murray's secret is revealed, and it looks like they're set
on recruiting a new member--and I promise you, it's not a character from James Robinson's mind. Yes, you can breathe easy.
Snack of the Week: Kinder Surprise. Thespia brought back some of these from her secret mission in Europe.
They're ostensibly egg-shaped hollow things of white and milk chocolate, within which you find a capsule. Inside this, you
find a toy of some sort. They even have "Maxi" Surprises, that are the same thing, but roughly the size of a decently
built grapefruit--and with a bigger capsule and bigger, more complicated toy. Ours came with a Santa train and car--that
really rolls. They are cool as hell, but--ah--not available stateside. You overseas whackos sometimes get all the luck.