Day: June 5, 2011

game of thrones boardgame + jaykie’s party

Jaykie broached the idea of playing the Game of Thrones boardgame with him and the guys one weekend. Jaykie looked at the game rules on Friday and kept laughing, because even the set-up was complicated. I was scared. I didn’t think I’d be able to follow. But yesterday, the guys came after lunch, and Phil and Derps explained the objectives and the basic rules, and I actually was able to play. I learn better while playing than by reading the entire guidebook, it appears.

I got the Lannisters, who start at Lannisport and Stoney Sept. The object of the game is to gain as many territories as possible. You can also make a deal with other players so they won’t take your territories (in this game, the Lannisters agreed to a truce with the Greyjoys), or make a deal and break it later (like what the Lannisters did with the Baratheons after taking Cracklaw Point, sorry Jaykie!) I wasn’t able to expand too much. The Greyjoys (Phil) had all the seas and eventually also got Riverrun and won. I was one city behind!

That was fun, though.

Later that night, pizza, pasta and booze with Jaykie and friends. I turned in earlier than the others because I have work the following day. I woke up to empty pizza boxes, steaming cup noodles, mattresses on the floor, and stories of ghosts. Oh no.

Happy birthday, you.

x-men: first class

I was ready to give up on the X-Men movie franchise because the third film was bad (they killed practically everyone) and the first outing of X-Men: Origins (Wolverine) was horrible. But I don’t think I have ever seen a young Magneto and a young Professor X on the big screen, and friends are raving about this new film, so I gave it a try. I’m glad I did. It’s not flawless, but James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender give engrossing performances. They’re really good. The supporting cast is meh. I don’t get that tornado guy at all. Kevin Bacon is more jokey than villainy, and January Jones looks lovely but is bland, bland, bland! I’m not too familiar with Emma Frost, but isn’t she supposed to be seductive and powerful? January looks more angry than alluring. She doesn’t suck you in. It’s like they just turned Betty Draper into a diamond statue.

We we so excited.

It also saddens me that the only characters of color in the film either end up dead or with the bad guys.

Is she really called Angel? Isn't there another X-Men named Angel? With angel wings?
"I knew I shouldn't have gone with these two white guys."

Now the question is: will they now continue with this new set of characters, or go back to the Origins series? So many origin stories! So many characters! This can be confusing.