Top Hat Sasquatch

If you’re a fan of DK Publishing’s books (like the ones I’ve already reviewed) and you’re a gamer, then you’re going to love the Halo Encyclopedia.

I’m a big Halo fan, but I’ve never read any of the books or comics. I had no idea how fleshed out the Halo universe was until I read through this massive book. It’s around 350 pages, and it’s jam packed with information on characters, species, weapons, vehicles, and history.

The book starts with an introduction by Halo guru/Master Chief creator Frank O’Conner, as well as introductions to all the major aspects of the Halo universe. From there the book is broken up into sections, much like other DK books.

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Thanks to Payless shoes, you can now get a double dose of nostalgia on your feet with these new Airwalk Star Trek sneakers. Remember Airwalks? They were huge when I was in elementary school, and I’ll admit, I had a few pairs.

I never had any this geeky though. Available in three colors (including expendable red), the high-tops sport the Star Trek insignia on the laces. They’re available for a limited time, and they’re $50, so which color will you be buying?

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Some of my favorite classic Disney shorts are the few that feature Chip n’ Dale. Usually they pit the tiny critters against Donald Duck, who has always been my favorite Disney character. There is just something about those shorts that perfectly defines nostalgia for me, and Three for Breakfast is a great example.

You can read more about this short on DisneyShorts.org or you can find it on the Classic Cartoon Favorites: Vol. 4 – Starring Chip ‘n Dale DVD, which is a great set.

Well, here’s the full trailer for the upcoming Turtles Forever special. Luckily this video works, unlike the last one I posted.

As always, thanks to Ninja Pizza for the tip.

Well, I might be a year late, but I’ve finally watched the new Clone Wars TV series. Since we don’t have TV (we have a tv, but we just use it for movies, digital files, and games), I haven’t been able to watch more than a few minutes of this show until now. The complete first season was just released on Blu-ray by Warner Bros, and I got my hands on a copy.

The Blu-ray is a three disc box set that includes a pretty cool “art of” booklet inside the case. There are all kinds of conceptual sketches, photos of models, and notes. There’s a grand total of 22 episodes, and 7 of them are presented as director’s cuts. They don’t have the original cuts on the discs, so I don’t really know what they changed.

There is a behind the scenes featurette for each episode, and a ton of 3D and 2D art to scan through. Besides that there are a few promos, one for season two, another for the new Clone Wars game, and the last about StarWars.com (in case you’ve been living under a rock or in an Amish community for the last 12 years).

The Verdict

I like this show a heck of a lot more than I thought I was going to. I’m a huge fan of the original 2D Clone Wars series by Genndy Tartakovsky, so I didn’t know what I would think of this new Genndy-less series. Beyond the typical prequel-universe annoyances (droids, droids, Anakin, droids), the series has a strong grasp of the Star Wars Universe, and benefits from its short episodic stories.

I like how they took risks like centering whole episodes on Clone troopers or an obscure character. While not as over-the-top and stylized as the Genndy Tartakovsky series, The Clone Wars is a fun show.

The Season One set is also available on standard-def DVD. It’s available now.