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Last, but by no means least, it’s Jasmine. June 14th was a very special day, David and Katie’s little girl, my niece, Jasmine Eve Stewart was born.  The Queen, surveying her Castle  Me 'n' My Jazzamari  Want fooooooood, Uncle Iain!!! She’s got the most beautiful big blue eyes, and gorgeous chubby cheeks, it’s always a treat when I get to see my favourite small person.
2009 was the year I properly started to read books. Apart from all seven Harry Potter books a few years back, I’ve never really been into the whole reading thing. It’s clearly one of Jane’s bad habits rubbing off on me, she’s very rarely without her nose in a book. The first time I went into a bookshop with the intention of buying a book for me to read was a little overwhelming, to say the least. All I’d read up to that point was His Dark Materials and Harry Potter… So I guess Fantasy was a pretty obvious selection, I luckily stumbled across one or two authors whose work I quite liked, and the Currently Reading thread on the forum has also provided some inspiration. I really must get around to joining the local library, there’s only so many chances I’m willing to take on buying new books all the time! Take me posting this as some kind of New Years resolution or something.
An amazing, absolutely amazing weekend.  It sat there, in the garden, unloved, for over six hours You know, when I started all this Random Fury! stuff I had no idea it’d go so far as to gathering people from all corners of this little island (and some from over the other side of the water) to Coventry on a lovely Summer weekend for drinks and a BBQ. Massive thanks go to anyone who’s ever played under the Fury banner, anyone who’s ever played against us, anyone who’s signed up to the forum (not just the regulars, but everyone who’s had a go at cracking the shell to get inside the most awesome clique ever), anyone who’s ever read the forum or this blog for keeping the viewing figures high, jees, anyone who’s ever seen anything to do with Random Fury and not thought it was shit, you have my thanks. But most of all, the most thanks go to Karl and Hannah, for without them and their generosity, without them willingly giving up their personal space for those three weekends, without them being the most super awesome dudes in the Universe, Random Fury would be nothing but a memory by now.
Season 5 of Lost was amazing. It went from a drama series that subconsciously flirted with science fiction, all the way over to true Sci-Fi. The Island and it’s inhabitants moved through time and space, some people who had got off the Island “had to go back”, and did, and lots of people died. I don’t think many of the characters will still be alive at the end of it all, you know. There were more questions raised, of course, but also tonnes of answers were given out. Jacob finally became real, Rousseau’s madness is explained, Charlotte confesses that she was brought up on the Island (then dies), a group of “Good guys” turn up on the Island, Locke dies but comes back to life (or does he?), Widmore turns out to be Faraday’s Father and it turned out that “The Incident” which caused the demise of the Dharma Initiative was actually caused by the Islanders from the future. I truly believe the final series of Lost could go either way. It could be more amazing than anything else that has ever been on television, or be so absolutely baffling and ridiculous to the point that it ruins all the good the previous series’ have done. I know which outcome I’m hoping for.
Twice in one year no less! While not exactly a highlight, I feel it is significant enough to warrant a mention in the Top 10. The preparation for the move started way back in 2008 with me getting rid of pretty much everything I owned. I got rid of loads of clothes, 90% of my videogames and consoles (leaving me with only some 360 and PSP games), Edge (get over it already), and loads of assorted nick-nack type things. Thinking back now, it was probably for the best – I mean what’s the point of keeping stuff you don’t use? So then, in February we moved from my Mum’s in with Jane’s Mum, Dad and Brother. My enduring memory of this time will be piss on the toilet seat. Incidentally, when Paul stayed over at Christmas, the phenomenon started up again. Co-incidence? I think not. Then, in late November, after a long period of what I can only describe as “limbo”, we finally moved in to The Big House with Claire, Matt, Lewis and Ethan. And here we are now. Hopefully we never have to move again, it’s rubbish.
3D graphics on a 2D plane – why did no-one else do this? Well, other people did, but not as good as Capcom. The visuals are amazing – the characters are so full of… well… character, I’m glad Capcom waited until the technology was there before they committed the main series to 3D visuals. Remember Street Fighter EX? Blocky and characterless. SFIV is sublime. The whole thing is so stream-lined and thoughtful. LK and LP together makes your character throw, something that some fighters used to have on MP, HP, MK or HK, and sometimes annoyed the hell out of me as I’d throw instead of hit. MK and MP perform the Focus Attack, something I didn’t like the sound of at first, but have now really got into it. It’s a simple idea, but masterful in execution. I love how everyone has every notable move they have ever had in any Street Fighter game before, for example, Ryu may not have his Super Hurricane Kick as a Super or Ultra move, but it’s near as dammit to his EX Hurricane Kick, it’s perfect. It feels more like the Alpha series than the original games or SFIII, which I consider a good thing. It’s by no means balanced, some characters are stronger than others, and some are more popular because they are easy to play as, but it’s just so fun. Playing online and getting my ass kicked was never this much fun before. While I had a great time playing as Dan, 2010 brings Super Street Fighter IV. And Adon. JAGWAR KICK !!!
Batman: Arkham Asylum. Incredible game. Incredible story, incredible atmosphere, incredible fighting system, it had it all. It’s rare for a game to actually convey the feeling of being powerful – Batman has such meaty punches, the slow motion final hits of combo attacks sound and look so painful. It also has the best stealth mechanics of any game I’ve ever played. It’s so easy to stay hidden and strike at the right moment. I’m so happy David and Katie got me this game for my Birthday. But this Top 10 entry is not just about the game. In 2009 I watched Batman: The Dark Knight. The film was amazing. So amazing I watched it twice. The Joker character was very gritty and modern, not so much about setting elaborate joke themed traps for Bats, but fucking with his (and everyone else’s) head. I liked it. I also like how they actually set up Dent as Two Face, building him up then knocking him down, it was really tragic. The special effects deserve a mention too – explosive and in your face, but grounded in reality. Well worth £5 from Asda.
The gist: PSU gets rubbish and I don’t feel like playing it any more. Why is this a highlight of the year? Surely it is some kind of mistake? Nope, it means I can play other games instead! The full explanation: There were a number of factors actually, it didn’t just “get rubbish”. First, because the level cap was so high and the level of monsters so low in comparison, a team of four could rush through any mission in minutes. It’s like Easy mode – and from what I’ve read about the Japanese servers (who are about a year ahead of us), it only gets easier. Talking about the Japanese servers and how they’re so far ahead – it never used to be that way. At one point we were mere months behind, but whoever it is that decides what our servers got and when, obviously decided it’d be better if we didn’t get much. There was a massive hole where our content should have been this year, and playing the same levels over and over can only hold someone’s attention for so long. I personally felt that I’d finally gotten my characters to the “End Game”, all at the level cap, all relevant jobs capped, all relevant Photon Arts capped, proper high end gear… Then the realisation came… There was no “End Game”. Another massive reason I stopped playing is because the Gacha Rinsing Co. stopped playing too. Without Donk, Siri, Mood and Marc it was just lifeless. I’ll get the last Achievement when it finally becomes available, then cancel my and Jane’s subscriptions, and trade in our copies of Phantasy Star Universe. It’ll be a sad day, sure, but we’ll finally be free. Free to play other games like…
My Gran and her sister Margaret came and stayed with my Mum for a couple of weeks at the end of September/start of October. First, some explanation – it seems nothing is ever straightforward! My Gran, Jean, is actually my Dad’s adopted mother, and her sister Margaret is my Dad’s biological mother. Because Margaret wasn’t married when she had my Dad (shameful in those days) and Jean was (I think), it made sense at the time for Jean to adopt and raise him. I went over to Mum’s in September to see her, David, Katie and Jasmine came along too. It was lovely seeing Gran and Jasmine together, she got to see her little Great Granddaughter. It was wonderful to see her again, it had been such a long time.  Are you telling me a story? Then a week later my Mum, Gran, Margaret, Katie and Jasmine got the train over and we did the highlights of Gunwharf Quays. We had a meal, looked in some shops and Mum, Margaret and myself went up the Spinnaker Tower, it was quite impressive.  Mum and I, up the Tower Then it was the final visit, Jane came along too, in October. She told wonderous stories and we delved into her past a little, and we shed a tear when it came to saying goodbye, as she’s getting on a bit and we both knew this was most probably the last time we’d ever see each other.  Three magnificent women Love you Gran.
The long awaited new album from The Prodigy came out early in 2009, on the same day as Jane and I moved in with her Mum and Dad. This meant I didn’t get it on release day, but a few days after once everything had settled down a bit. It helped a lot, diverting attention away from all these strange and new things that could potentially have overwhelmed me, and it will forever remind me of this period of transition. The Prodigy start things off with Invaders Must Die – a roaring introduction to their updated sound. They do this every album, come back with something fresh and different, not wanting to ride on the coat-tails of their previous successes. Omen could, quite possibly, be the best tune they’ve ever done. Harking back to their early days with the synth melodies, but nodding to the present with the vicious vocals and heavy beats. Another highlight is Take Me To The Hospital, an epic horror story of a tune. Broken melodies, cranky vocals, heavy, heavy beats. What could follow that? How about Warrior’s Dance – The skeleton of a real old-skool rave track covered in lovely modern meaty beats. I always wondered why Omen: Reprise wasn’t the track before Omen, it’d make quite a neat build up – maybe I’ll meet Liam Howlett one day and I’ll ask him. World’s On Fire reminds me of Poison, but faster, with a manic, spiralling melody coiled around it. And that piano solo! Proper old-skool. Ladyhawke came close to pinching this music related spot in the Top 10, but come on, it’s The Fucking Prodigy!
Welcome to my 2009 Top 10. Although I did struggle at first to think of ten things that were super awesome in 2009, Jane helped me along a bit and reminded me of all the fucking obvious things I’d missed… So, here we go then, one item a day for the next ten days, in no particular order, my 2009 Top 10. |
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