A Nerd's Musings
Ok, so this was originally going to be a nerdy/long rant about how frustrated I am with the games/animation/music industries and how stagnant they seemed to me. What I realized though is that as a whole, even though they are stagnant, there have been/are some great examples of creativity and greatness peeking through lately. So, I won't spend as much time as I had anticipated bashing things as I will praising the good things...
Animation: For several years in my youth I thought I would grow up to be a cartoonist. That didn't quite work out, but my interest in the topic has definitely been sparked again lately, mostly by revisiting some of my favorites like the old, OLD, Bugs Bunny and Ren and Stimpy. I certainly have a respect/interest in CG animation. I think it's sweet! But, come on! After Toy Story it's just been non-stop, let's give it a rest for a little while, I'm sure we've still got some paper/pencils around here somewhere. Right? Turns out we do!!! And, of all the company's to give it another go... it's Disney!?
Sweet! I have no idea what it's about but I'm excited to see some form of creativity that doesn't go through a rendering farm for days on end before I see it. (Disclaimer: The field of hand-drawn Japanese animation has been fairly rich compared to the American scene, just will be nice to see it from this side of the Pacific again!)
Music: So the more and more I'm thinking about it, I really have nothing to complain about here. Radio music has always sucked and will continue to suck, but man alive there has been some great stuff coming out. And something for everyone too! The Bjork concert just blew me away. That lady is such a huge influence/inspiration to me. I just can't really put it into words. Her mixture of synthetic and natural sounds is just, mind-blowingly beautiful.
Games: I think for this category in particular I've been bitching about the industry for years on end, and finally, I feel like it's back on the right track. Sure, there are way more crappy games than good games, but the success Nintendo is having with the Wii and DS, and some of the upcoming games for Xbox 360, and even things like LittleBigPlanet for PS3, I think people are finally understanding that realistic graphics aren't the end-all be-all entertainment solution anymore. It's refreshing! Super Paper Mario is one of the more creative games I've played in a while. The gameplay, visual design, level design... everything about it wreaks of creativity, and more importantly, fun!
Thanks for reading!!!
Animation: For several years in my youth I thought I would grow up to be a cartoonist. That didn't quite work out, but my interest in the topic has definitely been sparked again lately, mostly by revisiting some of my favorites like the old, OLD, Bugs Bunny and Ren and Stimpy. I certainly have a respect/interest in CG animation. I think it's sweet! But, come on! After Toy Story it's just been non-stop, let's give it a rest for a little while, I'm sure we've still got some paper/pencils around here somewhere. Right? Turns out we do!!! And, of all the company's to give it another go... it's Disney!?
Sweet! I have no idea what it's about but I'm excited to see some form of creativity that doesn't go through a rendering farm for days on end before I see it. (Disclaimer: The field of hand-drawn Japanese animation has been fairly rich compared to the American scene, just will be nice to see it from this side of the Pacific again!)
Music: So the more and more I'm thinking about it, I really have nothing to complain about here. Radio music has always sucked and will continue to suck, but man alive there has been some great stuff coming out. And something for everyone too! The Bjork concert just blew me away. That lady is such a huge influence/inspiration to me. I just can't really put it into words. Her mixture of synthetic and natural sounds is just, mind-blowingly beautiful.
Games: I think for this category in particular I've been bitching about the industry for years on end, and finally, I feel like it's back on the right track. Sure, there are way more crappy games than good games, but the success Nintendo is having with the Wii and DS, and some of the upcoming games for Xbox 360, and even things like LittleBigPlanet for PS3, I think people are finally understanding that realistic graphics aren't the end-all be-all entertainment solution anymore. It's refreshing! Super Paper Mario is one of the more creative games I've played in a while. The gameplay, visual design, level design... everything about it wreaks of creativity, and more importantly, fun!
Thanks for reading!!!