It’s a good thing he’s one hell of a shot then.

Jayne is an awesome guy’s name, even if it sounds like Jane. I think we need more badasses with names like that. Though maybe Adam Baldwin just needs more roles. I’m going to miss him as Casey.

Oh Firefly, always good for a byte. Got one of your own? Share it!

It’s Friday and you know what that means. At times, being a trendy geek can be expensive, and so can being an expressive geek. The thing is it doesn’t have to be. There is plenty of geek swag that you can nab for under $10, and it will show off just how much of a geek you are. Short of actually making a geek flag and parading around, this might be your best bet.

Star Trek Insignia Pins

Remember all those times people have said “Beam me up Scotty” and you laughed because you knew that line was never actually uttered in the series? Yeah, good times I know. You kept silent all those times, but maybe it’s about time you show off just how much of a Trekkie you are. Available in four different flavors, Sciences, Engineering/Security, Command, and Medical, you’ll be able to fit in on the bridge of the Enterprise, or at least at the midnight premiere of the next Star Trek movie.

$9.99 @ [ThinkGeek]

Star Wars Imperial Logo Mug

Alliance this, Alliance that. All we get around here is news about what those damn Rebels are doing. Why don’t they realize that being in the Empire is so much better? Clean uniforms and armor. Big badass laser space guns on space stations the size of moons. And good coffee in the perfect complimentary mugs. Seriously, those Rebels need to learn about the good things in life.

$9.99 @ [ThinkGeek]

Gears of War COG Tags

Brothers to the end. That’s what the COGs are taught. Every single soldier of the Coalition of Ordered Governments is part of the war machine that protects Sera, and their name and ID are printed on the gear shaped tags they wear each and every day. Show the blood, sweat, and gears you are willing to give for the cause of taking care of the Locust Horde, defeating the Lambent, and reclaiming the planet. Plus, I hear if you collect enough of these you get an achievement or something.

$9.99 @ [ThinkGeek]

Doctor Who River Song’s TARDIS Journal

Spoilers! Being a time traveler is a lot of fun, but when you’re falling through time every week it can become a bit confusing. Especially when you’re dating/engaged/married to a Time Lord that doesn’t exactly travel in the same time circles as you. When did this happen? Has this happened yet? Have we done that? In order to keep track of it all, wouldn’t it be nice to have a little blue notebook? One to keep all of the dates in order, so as to not spoil anything for your time traveling companion? Seems like a good idea.

$9.99 @ [ThinkGeek]

Bonus: Panic Button Light Switch

Light switches are boring. Flick up, flick down. Lame right? Why not make your life and your homestead just a little bit more exciting by switching this up a bit? Replace your boring standard light switch with a big red panic button. Slam it to turn your lights on as if it was a matter of life and death. Don’t you think that would feel good? At least it would help you with your anger management. Though having something like this may just make you want to punch it a bit more than a boring switch, which could be a problem. Still, it’s so flashy and awesome. All you need is a “Break Glass in Case of Emergency” box over it and you’re all set. Though that would get expensive if you did it every time you needed to switch the lights on or off.

$24.99 @ [ThinkGeek]

There you have it. Some relatively inexpensive items that will help you show that you’re not just a regular “yeah I’ve seen that show” or “I know that movie” type of geek. Wave your geek flag proudly, whether it’s in the form of a pin, notebook, mug, or tags. Get Equipped.

“A fleet of ships is forced to do battle with an armada of unknown origins in order to discover and thwart their destructive goals.” – [IMDB]

The Review

Even with plot holes, this movie surprisingly doesn’t sink…entirely.

The Verdict

Rent it - this film has some decent entertainment, even though the concept seems a bit ridiculous, and the action is there.

The Overview

I’ll admit that I went into this movie pretty biased against it. Word had come out about it over two years ago, and I just couldn’t see it being a real thing. From the trailers it looked like Transformers 3.5, and from the plot it sounded just as bad, but I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with Battleship. Don’t get me wrong, it’s far from perfect (really far), and if you only have enough money to buy one movie ticket you’d be much better off with The Avengers, but still it wasn’t as bad as I expected.

My low expectations were met with some of the plot holes and lack of explanation (why were the aliens attacking?) and the fact that Liam Neeson was only in the film for about 10 minutes. And I worried about how they would manage to actually fit in the fact that this was meant to be a movie loosely (and I mean loosely) based on the classic board game, but they actually managed to pull that off in a decent way that did not feel like a terrible gimmick. Just so you know, no one says anything like “E4″. They say “Echo 4″.

Sure, there are corny one liners, a thrown in love story, problematic science, and a version of Space Cowboys at sea (which was actually kind of cool), but for some reason I just don’t have the heart to say that this film is terrible. I would definitely suggest it be added to your list of laughable scifi movies because it’s both enjoyable and kind of terrible at times. As the review says, the film “doesn’t sink…entirely.”

Not meant to replace “Allons-y”.

And it never could replace ”Allons-y”, not that it ever should. The 11th cannot replace the 10th, which cannot replace the 9th. I just want to put that out there. I think I’m going through Doctor Who withdrawal. Dammit BBC. Give us more now.

While we wait together, give us a byte.

If you’ve stuck with 1amgeek since the beginning, you might remember a little thing we did called [Inside Man], where Sir Skizzle Fresh, Schuyler Hall, went into Vegas and sent oh so many lessons to us. Well, this year he’s doing it again, and bringing some back up this time in the form of Chris “Slick” Willey (thank goodness). The two of them will be sending us lessons learned on the Strip, and I’ll be here to share them with you. Be sure to check back to this page often as it will be updated whenever one of their lessons comes in. And this year the time stamps are corrected for PDT (yay technology) and they are in military time. If you don’t know what that is, look it up.

If you missed out on Episode I of Inside Man, be sure to check it out [here].

[NOTE: Once again I would like to remind our readers that the views of Schuyler Hall and Chris Willey are their own, whether created in an inebriated state or otherwise, and are not necessarily shared by the rest of the staff at 1amgeek. Try to find the humor in this social experiment, otherwise you're just not going to have any fun.]

Lessons From Vegas: Part 2

Lesson 1 (Schuyler): Don’t take a bottle to the face before 10pm. (5.17.12 – 10:04 PDT)

Lesson 2 (Schuyler): Open bar? More like death trap. (5.17.12 – 15:10 PDT)

Lesson 3 (Chris): Open bar ends eventually, and drink prices are stupid high in Vegas. (5.17.12 – 15:22 PDT)

Lesson 4 (Schuyler): If a chick rides your back in the pool, go with it. (5.17.12 – 17:28 PDT)

Lesson 5 (Schuyler): If a random woman asks you for some cocaine…just don’t get involved. That’s clearly not gonna end well. (5.17.12 – 18:24 PDT)

Lesson 8 (Schuyler): Don’t pre-game too hard. Ain’t like your body can pace alcohol release. (5.17.12 – Sometime before 23:24 PDT)

Lesson 6 (Schuyler): Tip your first drink heavy, you’re set all nite with that bartender (5.18.12 – 0:51 PDT)

Lesson 7 (Schuyler): Hot girl stops and turns to you? No excuse to not engage. (5.18.12 – 0:52 PDT)

Lesson 9 (Schuyler): Don’t be the douchey asshat who just grabs women as they walk by. (5.18.12 – 1:30 PDT)

Lesson 10 (Chris): Don’t leave your drink on the ground, that shit WILL get taken. (5.18.12 – 1:44 PDT)

Lesson 25 (Schuyler): Don’t run around the back halls of a club, they hate that shit. (5.18.12 – 3:39 PDT)

Lesson 12 (Schuyler): Don’t forget her name. Contrary to how HIMYM makes it look funny when Barney does it, she’ll be less impressed in real life. (5.18.12 – 10:55 PDT)

There you have it, the boys are at it. I have no idea what will be coming next, so be sure to check back here often. Who knows what they could come up with in the City of Sin.

[UPDATED] There seem to be a lot of “don’ts” when it comes to Vegas.

We’ve heard the arguments all before, America can’t leave well alone. We love to adapt things from other cultures to our own, making it something that our people can recognize. But seriously, Britain’s culture isn’t lightyears away, so why do we feel we need to bloody take their ideas? Those are the sorts of things you might here in response to CBS’s new series Elementary, which features a female Watson and takes place in New York City. Before your judgement is completely passed on this, you might want to watch the preview for the series.

It certainly looks like it could be interesting, and I think we don’t need to compare it to Sherlock anymore because this is going to a beast of it’s own. Plus you don’t have to wait a whole year for three “episodes”.

So, what do you think? Tell us below. We know you have opinions you want to share.

If you haven’t guessed it yet, Microsoft and 343 Industries see Halo 4 as being kind of a big deal. As with big deal type games, people have been wondering if there would be any sort of special editions for the Chief’s next adventure, and just yesterday Microsoft announced what we will be getting. For starters, as per usual, there is the base game for $59.99. The next level, and only level up is the Limited Edition, which comes with the following goodies:

• War Games Map Pack Access - The matchmaking/multiplayer modes of Halo 4 have been redubbed as War Games, and included in the Limited Edition is access to three future map packs, coming to a total of nine additional maps.
• Specializations - The details on what exactly Specializations are is still a bit unclear, but you’ll get access to six of them early with the Limited Edition.
• UNSC Infinity Briefing Packet - Similar to collectable books with other special editions of games, the Briefing Packet includes schematics and other UNSC info about the Infinity, as well as some details as to the Spartan-IVs.
• Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn Special Edition - Remember that little announcement about the Halo 4 live-action [webseries]? The entire series comes packed in with the Limited Edition into an extended 90 moinute feature. Also included is a special featurette that details bringing Halo into the real world in the making of the series.
• Bonus digital content through Xbox Live - This ensemble of digital gear includes in-game skins for your Spartan and Assault Rifle, as well as an emblem, and Avatar prop and armor set.

The Limited Edition runs you $99.99 and comes with a cool box and metal case. Both versions are available for pre-order now, but you have some time to make your decision seeing as the game isn’t coming out until November. So, will you be grabbing the regular version, or the cooler Limited Edition?

Via [Halo Waypoint]

No joke this time, Cartoon Network is officially reviving the once and great Toonami, and not too long after Richie Branson started his [#BringToonamiBack] campaign. Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim recently asked its fans via Twitter if they wanted Toonami back. You can imagine the response: a resounding yes. Then, Adult Swim tweeted the following yesterday:

“Attention Toonami Faithful: We heard you. On 05.26.12 #ToonamisBackBitches http://ow.ly/i/D8Rj”

Warm up the engines of The Absolution, because Tom is coming back with Toonami’s Midnight Run on May 26. Your tweeted cries were heard ladies and gentlemen, and it looks like you’ll be getting your dose of awesome anime back again. Below is a rumored list of shows that will be appearing, as well as their possible time slots.

12:00 a.m. – Bleach
12:30 a.m. – Fullmetal Alchemist
1:00 a.m. – Durarara!!
1:30 a.m. – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
2:00 a.m. – FLCL
2:30 a.m. – Cowboy Bebop
3:00 a.m. – Bleach
3:30 a.m. – Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG
4:00 a.m. – Bleach
4:30 a.m. – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
5:00 a.m. – Durarara!!
5:30 a.m. – Cowboy Bebop

Just a reminder that none of the above are actually confirmed as of yet (and why the hell is Bleach on there three times?). Either way, your late night anime programming will be returning. However, there is one slight catch. May 26 is a Saturday, and Adult Swim already runs anime during their midnight block that night, so really they are just rebranding this time block with Toonami. Is this enough to make me upset about it? No, not really. It does just seem like a sneaky way to please fans while not really making any changes. Pretty sneaky Cartoon Network.

All I can say is “Oh my god we’re back again.”

Via [Population GO]

What’s DLC?

Okay, if you’re reading 1amgeek, you probably know what DLC is, so feel free to skip to the next section. Downloadable Content, or DLC, is basically the “expansion pack” for this generation of video games. It gets its name from the method by which you get it – you download it onto your console or computer from the internet. DLC can be a bunch of different things, from additional multiplayer maps to extra songs in your plastic-instrument-music-game of choice. Other games might provide new characters, or even a new campaign.

Why do game publishers keep making this stuff?

There is a lot of money in DLC. Last year alone, DLC revenues were expected to approach 900 million dollars. In fact, Call of Duty’s map packs have earned over $250 million. For the bigger titles of the past couple of years, DLC has added an average value of $7-$11 to each game.
Besides the strict monetary add, DLC also helps fight against the used game market. DLC is usually tied to a single console or install, and is non-transferable. This makes it harder to part with games that you’ve invested extra into, meaning that one less used disc is available to poach sales from good, hardworking new copies. If I’ve bought $50 worth of songs in Rock Band, there’s no way I’m selling that game back to a store. My DLC, which I can’t sell, is useless without the disc, so why bother letting someone else get a better deal? It’s very obvious that publishers have found a great revenue stream they can’t wait to keep exploiting.

Is this a good thing or a bad thing for us?

This completely depends on the type of DLC. DLC can increase the longevity of a game by years, when used right – Halo: Reach came out nearly a year and a half ago, but I still boot it up occasionally. Other games, such as Rock Band, update with the latest content, allowing it to stay relevant and fresh. This kind of DLC is arguably a good thing. You can extend your enjoyment of the game, but if you don’t want to, nothing is taken away from the experience.

The questionable side of DLC comes to light when the absence of the DLC takes away from the base game experience. For example, when Mass Effect 3 was released earlier this year, we found out that there was going to be Day 1 DLC in the form of an additional squad member who dramatically adds to the main storyline. Gamers were not very happy for two valid reasons: first, this character seemed to be so central to the main story, that it felt like it should have been included with the base game, and second, if it was available on the day of release, why couldn’t it have been included on disc? Not only did this seem to be a money grab, the game seemed incomplete without this content. DLC, when done right, should add to the experience, not fill holes for an extra fee.

There’s one last side of DLC that is somewhere in the middle: silly little aesthetic customizations. Some games, such as the fantastic Batman: Arkham Asylum, have released skin packs and other minor tweaks as DLC. These packs give you little or no advantage and usually don’t impact the game in any meaningful way. I don’t really have a problem with this – I wouldn’t buy it, but I’m not missing out by skipping it. And if someone desperately wants to have their Batman wear a different suit, who am I to judge?

Have there been any particularly bad examples of DLC?

On-disc DLC is possibly the worst form of DLC on the market today. Basically, when you buy a game disc, you expect that you have access to everything on it. It makes sense – this is the way it works with everything else you buy. On-disc DLC breaks that model by segregating some content behind another paywall. The code and animations and voice assets that give you another character, for example, are already on your game disc, but you need to pay a bit extra for them to be enabled. Capcom is notorious for doing this, most recently with Street Fighter X Tekken. I can see why publishers do things like this – it has become customary to plan your DLC along with the development of the full game, and if it’s done before the time of release, why not just throw the bulky files on disc and save your customers a long download! Unfortunately for them, consumers do not agree with this. The sentiment seems to be that if it’s done by release, it should come with the stock game. I can’t say I disagree with that.

What’s happening in the future with DLC?

Well, it depends on who you talk to. Some companies, such as EA, seem to have no problem squeezing every last penny out of their customers, and have indicated that they have no plan to stop. Others, such as Capcom, have at least made a token effort to listen to the massive outcry about their on-disc DLC, and are “re-evaluating” their DLC strategy. Of course, they haven’t made any firm commitments yet, so take that with a grain of salt. Unfortunately, since consumers have indicated that they are all too willing to buy DLC, regardless of how angry it makes them, expect to see much, much more of it in the future.

Yeah we get it, you’re a cool band, you’ve got good music, and you’ve got talent. So what? With Rock Band I can do all of those things, which essentially makes me just as cool as you. Sure, I don’t get paid the big bucks, but I also don’t have to be in front of a camera all the time. I think I’m getting off topic a bit. The point is you think you’re band is cool. Guess what, they aren’t as cool as these guys. You’ve heard of Ok Go no doubt if you’ve been around 1amgeek before. The did [this] cool little video a few months back. Well, for the Replay Classic we’re going back even further, three years to be exact, to one of their earlier, weird music videos.

Now you see why I think your band is not so cool. You don’t sing on treadmills.