Xenosaga
Xenosaga (ゼノサーガ, Zenosāga) is a series of science fiction video games developed by Monolith Soft and published by Bandai Namco. Xenosaga's main story is in the form of a trilogy of PlayStation 2 video games. There have been three spin-off games and an anime adaptation. The Xenosaga series serves as a spiritual successor to the game Xenogears, which was released in 1998 for the PlayStation by Square. The creator of both Xenogears and Xenosaga is Tetsuya Takahashi, who left Square in 1998 along with Hirohide Sugiura. Using funds from Namco, they started MonolithSoft and the Xenosaga project.
The first game in the trilogy, Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht was released in February 2002 in Japan, and in February 2003 in North America. Xenosaga Freaks, a lighthearted game with a playable demo for Episode II, was released in April 2004 in Japan, but was not released elsewhere. Episode II: Jenseits von Gut und Böse was released in June 2004 in Japan and February 2005 in North America. Xenosaga: The Animation, an anime based on Episode I, premiered on TV Asahi in Japan on January 5, 2005. Xenosaga Pied Piper, a three chapter-long cellphone-based game depicting the history of cyborg "Ziggurat 8" 100 years before the start of Episode I, was released in Japan in July 2004. Released on July 6, 2006, Episode III: Also sprach Zarathustra is the final title in the Xenosaga series; six episodes were originally projected, but by the time Episode III was released, Namco had already established that it would be the last entry, effectively halving the series. A retelling of the first two episodes titled Xenosaga I & II was released on the Nintendo DS in March 2006 in Japan.
MC Hammer
Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), known professionally as M.C. Hammer or "Ham Time" (and later, for a time, simply Hammer), is an American hip-hop recording artist, dancer, entrepreneur, spokesman and actor. He had his greatest commercial success and popularity from the late 1980s until the late 1990s. Remembered for his rapid rise to fame, Hammer is known for hit records (such as "U Can't Touch This" and "2 Legit 2 Quit"), flashy dance movements, choreography and eponymous Hammer pants. Hammer's superstar-status and entertaining showmanship made him a household name and hip hop icon. He has sold more than 50 million records worldwide.
A multi-award winner, M.C. Hammer is considered a "forefather/pioneer" and innovator of pop rap (incorporating elements of freestyle music), and is the first hip hop artist to achieve diamond status for an album. Hammer was later considered a sellout due in part to overexposure as an entertainer (having live instrumentation/bands, choreographed dance routines and an impact on popular culture being regularly referenced on television and in music) and as a result of being too "commercial" when rap was "hardcore" at one point, then his image later becoming increasingly "gritty" to once again adapt to the ever-changing landscape of rap. Regardless, BET ranked Hammer as the #7 "Best Dancer Of All Time".Vibe's "The Best Rapper Ever Tournament" declared him the 17th favorite of all-time during the first round.
Donkey Kong (video game)
Donkey Kong (Japanese: ドンキーコング, Hepburn: Donkī Kongu) is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Mario (originally named Mr. Video but then changed to "Jumpman") must rescue a damsel in distress named Pauline (originally named Lady), from a giant ape named Donkey Kong. The hero and ape later became two of Nintendo's most popular and recognizable characters. Donkey Kong is one of the most important titles from the Golden Age of Video Arcade Games, and is one of the most popular arcade games of all time.
The game was the latest in a series of efforts by Nintendo to break into the North American market. Hiroshi Yamauchi, Nintendo's president at the time, assigned the project to a first-time video game designer named Shigeru Miyamoto. Drawing from a wide range of inspirations, including Popeye, Beauty and the Beast and King Kong, Miyamoto developed the scenario and designed the game alongside Nintendo's chief engineer, Gunpei Yokoi. The two men broke new ground by using graphics as a means of characterization, including cutscenes to advance the game's plot, and integrating multiple stages into the gameplay.
Angels (Within Temptation song)
"Angels" is a song by Dutch band Within Temptation from their third studio album, The Silent Force. It was released as the third single from the album on 13 June 2005, also accompanying a music video. The video earned the band a Golden God Award on the following year.
Track listing
Music video
The video is shot in a desert in Spain. It tells the story of a group of vigilante angels who make it their mission to wipe out evil. Sharon den Adel is a woman who has been seemingly abandoned on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. She accepts a lift from a priest, who takes her back to his home. The priest is in fact a demonic serial killer, who adopts different disguises to get to his victims. All of these disguises are trustworthy people, like a doctor, a police officer, a clown, judge, or a priest. As Sharon stumbles upon a board full of newspaper clippings in the killers home, which are about his previous victims, he seemingly overpowers her with chloroform. He takes a tied up Sharon to the middle of the desert to bury her alive. However, Sharon immediately awakens as the other angels approach (the other band members) and is revealed to also be one of the angels, who was left at the side of the road as bait for the serial killer, during which time the rest of the vigilantes appear and the killer is confronted with the spirits of his victims, who destroy him. The vigilantes then move onto their next target.
Angels (Marvel Comics)
An angel is a fictional entity within the Marvel Comics universe, based on the angels of the Abrahamic faiths. Their first Marvel Comics appearance was Marvel Tales #133. In the religious text of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Zoroastriansim, angels are believed to be guardians of mankind and messengers of God; indeed, "angels" originates from the Greek word for messenger. In Hebrew they are mal'ach, (again messenger), Abbir (mighty) or Elohim (Godly beings).
Powers and abilities
The abilities and physical features of angels are widely varied and many seem able to alter their appearance at will, but most favor beautiful humanoid forms with large, birdlike wings growing from their backs. They are immortal and do not age. Most angels seem to have varying degrees of superhuman strength, and they often can fire bolts of heavenly fire from their hands or summon burning swords at will. They can make themselves invisible to humans, although rare sensitives may still see them. Many angels can generate illusions and compel humans to obey their will, and some can resurrect the dead by sharing their own divine essence with the deceased. When slain, the Grigori angels spontaneously combusted; whether other angels would likewise is uncertain.
Angels (2014 film)
Angels is a 2014 Indian Malayalam social thriller film and the directorial debut of Jean Markose. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of Indrajith, Asha Sarath, Joy Mathew, Prem Prakash, Parvathy Menon, Baiju and Dinesh Panicker. Story and screenplay were written by Jean Markose and Toni Tomy, dialogues were co-written by Shabu Kilithatil. It is a rip-off from the South Korean film Confession of Murder (2012). This film is a Moderated Success and Hit.
Production
Filming took place at Chitranjali Studios in Thiruvananthapuram. The film is Produced by Linu Issac, Hisham Basheer, Saju Azad, Maya Kartha under the banner of Cloud 4 Cinemas. Music is composed by Jakes Bejoy, with Sujith Sarang as cinematographer and Sreejith Sarang as editor. Principal filming completed on 5 June 2014. During filming, there was a shoot day when director Jean Markose was incapacitated due to a high fever, and Indrajith stepped in to temporarily direct a hospital scene featuring Tara Kalyan. Film producer Linu Issac stated "Indran (Indrajith) rocked it."
Wrath (Iris album)
Wrath is the third album by electropop group Iris, released in 2005. Taking the organic style of Awakening and adding guitars, they created this album with "more of a 'rock' feel" than a "'club' feel".
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Reagan Jones and Andrew Sega.
Personnel
Iris
Additional personnel
References
External links
Podcasts:
