Why Star Wars Episode VII will be Series Best

Return of the Plot 

George Lucas made Star Wars a long time ago in a very different movie landscape. When it was released, the opening sequence in which a Star Destroyer roars overhead was one of the most breathtaking scenes in modern film. People had never experienced such spectacular sound and visuals. And the movie had a decent plot! There's no need to expand on what Star Wars has become- an empire of toys, TV shows, video games, books, and of course, the 6-movie-long saga.
I am a huge Star Wars. I've read many novels, saw Revenge of the Sith about 5 times in theaters, and I can name the lightsaber style of Samuel L. Jackson's character Mace Windu. (it's Vapaad by the way) And despite being a die-hard fan, I'm willing to admit this little tidbit: the movies (mostly) suck. Let's talk about the series past and how different it's future will be in the hands of a new generation of filmmakers. Let's talk about a galaxy far far away, right after the jump!

How the iPad mini killed the iPad

Bigger is better- until Apple says otherwise

The iPad was released to a confused public. Steve Jobs gave one of his famous keynotes and revealed to the world something "magical." This thing was to become an enormously popular product and one that literally created a new type of device- the tablet. But, not before it was ridiculed by just about everyone that had access to the internet. Hell, I remember that Apple's stock plummeted when it was announced. I found this particularly interesting as many were asking for an iSlate or iTablet, yet once they got one, suddenly, it was unnecessary. Countless articles derided it as unnecessary.
Well, that's all in the past and the iPad has become an outrageously in-demand product. Old people love it, kids love it, business owners love it, doctors love it- it's truly a perfect example of Apple showing us what we wanted before we knew we wanted it.

But the iPad has a newer, lighter, sexier(?) sibling now. And it seems to have lost the limelight. What exactly does the mini have that makes it better? Let's discuss how they fit together, and what changes need to be made to the "big" iPad so it can hold a candle to the mini. Let's talk iPad after the jump.

News: 2013 Looks Promising for Wii U

Greatness Lies Ahead for Nintendo

Today, the gaming-related parts of the interwebs have shown enormous enthusiasm for Nintendo's recent Wii U announcements. They revealed many new games for Wii U and also laid out their plans for MiiVerse, the Wii U's social network. After mentioning that they're hard at work on that HD Zelda everyone's waiting for, they told us that "in the meantime" we're getting a nice treat- a remake of The WindWaker for Wii U. And this isn't just an upscaled port. The screenshots clearly show reworked textures and finer detail all coalescing into the most gorgeous-looking Zelda game ever. For myself, that was the biggest part of their conference, and what I'm excited about most. But there quite a few other things worthy of mention- including Smash Bros! Let's see what other info Nintendo let out after the jump.

The Hobbit HFR 3D and the Future of Cinema

An Unexpected Journey 

Peter Jackson's The Hobbit was unlike the Lord of the Rings trilogy. And that's okay. Those people that anticipated another Lord of the Rings and an epic war on Middle-Earth need only blame themselves for being disappointed by the whimsical adventure that was The Hobbit. I personally enjoyed it and admit it was probably marred by the fact that it's based on a third of a relatively short novel, but it was by no means a terrible movie. And I'm aware that extra content was added that wasn't in the novel, but that wasn't enough to keep the film from feeling a bit stretched. The movie certainly wasn't so awful as to deserve such negative reception as it's been receiving. On Rotten Tomatoes for example, apparently it's more rotten than Gremlins 2.

But I have no intention of debating whether it was a good movie. Enough people have done that. I'm much more interested in what the release of this film means for movies. The Hobbit was the first movie to be released in the controversial HFR 3D format. I saw it first in 3D and second in IMAX HFR 3D.  The second viewing was not only more enjoyable, but more immersive, and solidified my belief that the format, though merely in it's infancy, will become the standard for future movies.

Review: Nintendo Wii U

The HD Nintendo Revolution 

I should offer this disclaimer: I like Nintendo.

I've owned their systems since SNES and I love their exclusive franchises. In fact, it's these franchises that keep me, and presumably millions of others coming back for more with each new system they release. But when the Wii U was revealed, I found myself for the first time spectacularly uninterested. And I wasn't the only one. But, since using the device, I've been able to form a much different opinion. Not only of the system, but of what the future may hold for Nintendo as a company. Let's talk about Nintendo's HD Revolution.