Weekly Recommendation - Week #012 - The Nostalgic Nineties

WEW WEW WEW! I'm a ghost!

Well that was fucking weird. So, the nineties. The decade I was born in. The decade in which a lot of my nostalgic interests come from, and possibly a lot of your's, dear viewer. But let's be honest. The nineties was overrated. We love it for nostalgic reasons, but in reality, it wasn't that good. What's even worse is how people use the reasoning that because they are a (oh god I'm going to vomit) "nineties kid" (UUUUUAAARGGGHHHH!) they are somehow immediately better than any other person. Shut the fuck up. Here are some actual good things from the nineties.

Starship Troopers - Paul Verhoeven (Film) - Author: Chris

I always felt I was a bit of a rule follower back then. I obeyed laws, I never stepped out of line, and I never watched something I was too young to view. So I actually only watched Starship Troopers about a year ago. Holy shit this film is insane. It's amusing and ultra-violent, and even quite blatantly pokes fun at the whole "military propaganda" thing, which I think is top notch. Would you like to know more? It's a silly film, about blowing up giant space bugs and, more often then not, humans getting eviscerated by said alien space bugs. It is a joy to watch, and I would recommend it to anybody who has a stomach for such violence, or isn't afraid of massive, man eating bugs. Even if you are afraid, this movie may cure that fear. I'm guessing not though.

Gorgeous George - Edwyn Collins (Music) - Author: Chris

Time for more honesty. The popular music of the nineties was atrocious. It was hard looking for something worth while, not because there wasn't much of it, but because my mind was clouded with shit. However, I eventually found something quite spectacular, something that I wouldn't call nostalgic (hey, I can do what I want, it's not like I called this... oh wait), but it is absolutely superb. I've always been a fan of Edwyn Collins, both of his solo stuff and his Orange Juice stuff (which is a fantastic band that I recommend that everyone checks out), but this album is one of his greatest, as it has a good combination of calm stuff and more upbeat stuff, some really clever lyrics, and contains one of my favourite songs, not just by Edwyn, but by anyone, "A Girl Like You." Holy shit that is an addictive song. Also, check out the documentary "Home Again." Edwyn has had some awful events happen in his life, and this thing is truly inspirational.

Castlevania: Symphony of The Night - Konami (Game) - Author: Darren

Castlevania: Symphony of The Night (SoTN) debuted on the PlayStation on 20th March 1997. However, since I was deeply entrenched in my mother's womb, I never had the chance to play it. That changed when it was re-released on XBLA and PSN almost ten years later. It's safe to assume that I've now played it (still not beaten it) and I found it enjoyable. It's tough as dicks. Steel dicks. Enjoyable as hell though.
The game sees you take on the role of Dracula's broody son, Alcuard (fuckin' clever shit). You take it upon yourself to storm Dracula's castle, usually a job for Belmont and Sons, Ltd. This plan goes a tad awry when Death comes and mugs you. Yep, he straight up mugs you, putting you in the classic situation of "get better weapons and shit, you faffy little cunt scrubber". Gameplay of this game is old, but good. Some things let it down just a bit. Things like Alucard's melodrama upon receiving the slightest damage and the fact that he always slashes just higher than you think. He has a sweet forward moonwalk going on though.
Visually and audibly, this game is fantastic. There's a huge variety in enemy types, sizes and palettes as well as some great effects when enemies die or take hits (shout out to Sean Poole). The soundtrack and even the effect noises are great. Most of the music in SoTN is a strange kind of eerie synth or as spine-chilling as Sub Zero.

BONUS CONTENT: A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin (Book) - Author: Darren

Some people forget that Dragon Tits, I mean Game of Thrones, is based off of a book. Fewer know that it was first published in 1996. What I know is that it's a great book that's well worth the read. The writing is good, I'm sure you know the story and characters are by now. It offers so much history and context, however, that the show can barely compete. For example, in the show, Robert just shows up as an old, fat bastard. In the book, before we even meet
him we hear how fierce a warrior he was and what a great leader he was. That's when we're introduced to him, the old, fat bastard and it's has so much more impact than the show could ever have.
If you haven't seen the show or even if you have, give it a go.

That's it. Piss off.