After sixty-five million years, the ancient world isn’t looking too bad. Ankylosaurus is still the walking epitome of a good defense. T-Rex still struts his stuff as the godfather to our culture’s dino fascination. Nature is lush and green and flourishing. Just throw in Michael Douglas and we’re good to go. In Dinosaurs Alive! The two-time Oscar winning actor provides the narration to a 40 minute adventure through the Triassic, the Jurassic, and the Cretaceous period – an adventure spanning from the Gobi Desert in East Asia, all the way west to Ghost Ranch amidst the buttes of New Mexico. Writing/directing duo Bayley Silleck and David Clark succeed with an enlightening discussion of these animals that is both fun and quite enthralling (and it always helps to have a voice like Douglas to relax the audience with a tinge of familiarity)....more

It may be foolhardy to do so, but there is plenty to dispute in Rocky – The Undisputed Collection, the new Blu-ray boxed set of all six Rocky movies.   That lovable, sometimes punchy, lug from Philadelphia; the Italian Stallion; Philadelphia's Favorite Son went through a heck of a lot over the course of the movies, but the movies, as with Rocky's life, are something of a bumpy road....more

Kenneth Taylor – well known as the author of The Living Bible, and founder of Tyndale House publishers – was a man dedicated to conveying the Christian message to children (he had 10 himself) in simple, understandable truths. Big Thoughts for Little People, a much-loved, best-selling picture book has now received fresh new illustrations while maintaining Taylor’s text from the original edition. Many readers my age may be familiar with the original version of this classic title, which was wildly popular during the ‘80s, and be looking forward with nostalgic fondness to sharing this new release with their own children. I however, missed out on the first edition as a child, so it was with fresh eyes that my daughters and I dug into it together....more

Where The Wild Things Are is a fairly straightforward movie tie-in game. Containing some basic art influences from the film, as well as some general story themes, you control Max as he explores the island of the Wild Things, completing tasks and solving adventures, in an attempt to earn their trust and become king, as well as to save their world which is rapidly being destroyed. The game is a fairly straightforward action-RPG (a la Baldur's Gate or the Marvel Alliance franchises - although don't expect that same level of quality), with a lot of hacking and slashing, and some puzzle elements thrown in....more

There are many possible reasons that the sport of soccer hasn't taken off in this country the way that it has in the rest of the world.  It's not as conducive to television viewing as other sports – there's no easy way to break for a commercial.  It can often be a low scoring affair and as a nation we tend to like to see points/goals/runs rack up.  Oh, every few years, people in this country get excited about the sport, but usually that's a momentary world cup thing.  Maybe if the game was as fast-paced in real-life as it is in FIFA Soccer 10 it would be more popular in this country....more

There are the ladies on the right: Laura Ingraham, Anne Coulter. There are the ladies on the left: Rachel Maddow, Laura Flanders. Amy Goodman, host of Pacifica Network's Democracy Now!, is just about as left as they come; she's the kind of liberal Rush Limbaugh loves to hate; she could be the model for his portrait of the lunatic left. Moreover, she would probably welcome his bloviating attack. There could be no better sign of a person's righteousness and basic humanity than to be the object of the Limbaugh ire....more

Douglas Hofstadter is a larger-than-life academic researcher who manages to combine a thirst for beautiful forms with the most penetrating theoretical insights, whether it is in mathematics, music, linguistics, philosophy, or the visual arts. He is a Professor of Cognitive Sciences but also has an involvement in Philosophy, Comparative Literature, and Psychology. No surprise then that he gravitates to the most fundamental overlapping problems, the notion of the self, the I, the problems of volition, perception, mind, and consciousness. These problems are notoriously difficult to understand because we are the object of our own study....more

I first fell in love with Lloyd Dobler, the main character in Say Anything…, when I was readying to graduate high school in 1989. His edict not to “sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career… sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought or processed” was music to my not-yet-determined-a-career-path-in-life ears....more

Originally a special produced as a part of Disney's House of Mouse in 2001, Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse is returning to DVD.  With tons of Disney characters making an appearance as well as classic Disney cartoons, the DVD is a can't miss success for fans of the Mouse... unless of course, they bought it the first time it was released. The basic premise of the House of Mouse series involved Mickey and friends running something of a supper club with a floor show.  Famous (and not-so-famous) Disney characters would show up, have a meal, and get to watch Mickey and company perform as well as getting to see old Disney cartoons.  There was also a story that involved the main characters behind the scenes....more

I went into the process of reviewing NBA Live 10 with an open mind. It had been ages since I sat down with a basketball game, but I picked up The Bigs 2 earlier this year and it reinvigorated my interest in baseball games, so if Live were to have the same effect, I’d consider it a success. Sadly, NBA Live 10 failed to do that as it’s a rather mundane experience that offers little innovation for fans of the series and will frustrate any newcomers looking for an accessible entry into the pumpkin pushing realm....more