Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 42

Day 43 of CE was the recharge workout and ab-burner. I am still in the process of getting over some kind of cold, so this was a much-needed rest/break while still getting a workout in. Nothing much to report from it aside from the fact that it gave me a nice rest. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Chuck Season Four

 

+++Warning, this contains minor spoilers from the prior season, but no major season four giveaways +++

The fourth season of Chuck continues to reinvent the show through the large story arc, this time involving Chuck's mom, while still managing to continue the things (mainly the humor and the romance between Chuck and Sarah) that have made the show work. Morgan, having learned of Chuck's secret becomes a manager at the Buy More, and has to keep things running, which includes keeping the other Buy More employees out of the loop and out of the CIA's way. There is also a running gag with a rotating Buy More employee named Greta who is played throughout the season by Olivia Munn, Isaiah Mustafa, Stacy Keibler, and Summer Glau.

The show continues much in the same vein as it has the first few seasons. It is partly a case-of-the-week procedural show with a larger serial arc that spans through the season. It has a great mix of action and comedy, with some drama mixed in as well. There are a ton of pop culture references, and many great Guest Stars including Lauren Cohan, Robin Givens, Linda Hamilton, Ray Wise, Nicole Richie, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Dave Bautista, Lou Ferrigno, Timothy Daulton, Dolph Lundgren, and Eric Roberts.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the A/V quality is great, as it has been with the prior releases. The extras include a video commentary track on the episode Chuck vs. The First Fight, a series of short webisodes featuring Lester and Jeff, an in-character interview with Joshua Gomez, and a feature on the episode that Zachary Levi directed during the season.

Overall, the show continues to be well written and very well acted. It was again on the brink of cancellation but still managed to get a full 24-episode season. If you have been a fan of the prior seasons then you will almost certainly like this one as it continues the formula that earned the show the cult following that it had without getting stale.

DVD/TV Series Review: Castle Seasons One and Two

 

Castle is a twist on the cop-buddy show in which one is a womanizing mystery writer named Richard Castle (played by Nathan Fillion) and the other is a homicide detective, Kate Beckett (played by Stana Katic) on whom Castle bases a new series of novels after he experiences writer's block and kills off his current main character. He is interviewed by police due to a copycat murder that matches a killing in one of his novels, and because of his fame and wealth, Castle is able to worm his way into what amounts to an extended ride-along with Beckett and her partners Ryan and Esposito (played by Seamus Dever and Jon Huertas), and Tamala Jones, the medical examiner, and help them solve murders. The rest of the cast is rounded out by Susan Sullivan, Castle's mother and aging theater actress whom he basically bankrolls, and Molly Quinn, who plays Castle's teenage daughter Alexis.

The first season is a short one (just ten episodes) and really is focused on character development and establishing the "will they, won't they" get together storyline for Castle and Beckett. It is mostly a crime-of-the-week procedural show but does have larger story arcs that play out throughout the season, the biggest one being the mystery around the death of Beckett's mother. Season two continues those themes and, of course, throws the usual roadblocks in the main character's relationship. It ends on somewhat of a cliffhanger with the partnership at a crossroads. In the second season, the show started getting more established guest stars including Alyssa Milano, and Dana Delaney.

For those who get the DVD sets, in both seasons, the extras include a gag reel, behind-the-scenes features, and deleted scenes. In the season one set, there are commentary tracks on selected episodes, and a feature with the producer Stephen J. Cannell, who was the creator of many 1980s TV series. So, a good amount for people who like watching the bonus content.

Overall, the show is very good. It is well written and acted, and even though it can be a bit predictable at times, and does have some of the canned themes that all romantic dramas have, it does not feel cookie cutter. The cast has great chemistry, which is interesting because, as some may know Katic and Fillion reportedly hated each other in real life by the end of the series run. If there was any animosity between them in the first couple of seasons you definitely could not tell. So, if you are looking for a show that has a good blend of drama, comedy, and mystery, this is a good option.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 41

Day 41 was the Burn it Off workout. Overall, the workout went well. I was a bit tired during it, but once I got into it and warmed up, it progressed fine. There are really not any moves in the workout I absolutely hate, aside from the burpees, but everything flows well and it is short enough that just by the time you get sick of it, it is over.

DVD Review: Burn Notice Season Four

 

+++ Warning, this contains spoilers for the prior season, but no major giveaways from the fourth season +++

Season four of Burn Notice picks up almost immediately after the events at the end of season three, with Michael still in prison, having been framed for the crimes committed by Simon Escher. He is given a deal, basically that he can be let out of jail if he starts working for the organization that burned him. He reluctantly agrees and is assigned a handler named Vaughn, played by Robert Wisdom. As you can imagine, the relationship does not stay on good terms, and by the end of the season Michael (and everyone around him) is in danger yet again. This season sees a new addition to the cast with Coby Bell being brought on as Jessee Porter, another counter-intelligence agent who is burned. The big story arc of the season involves a NOC list, naming members of the organization, and the team trying to get possession of the list. The season ends on yet another cliffhanger (not with the life of a character hanging in the balance) teasing yet another new direction. There are several recognizable guest stars this season including Richard Kind, Tim Mattheson, John Doman, and Dylan Baker.

For those who get the DVD set, the extras include a commentary track on the season premiere, deleted scenes, a gag reel, a feature on the stunts, and a feature in which the casts of Burn Notice and White Collar roast the other show, a feature on the stunts of the show, and a feature called Sam Axe's Guide to Ladies and Libations, which is basically a fun bit with Bruce Campbell.

Overall, the series continues to be well-written and acted. You still have to suspend your disbelief, but not so much that anything comes across as just plain stupid. It has a good mix of action, comedy, and drama, and the cast has very good chemistry. So, if you have liked the prior seasons of the show you will probably enjoy this one as well.

Blu Ray/Movie Review: Armageddon

 

Armageddon is pretty much the quintessential Michael Bay movie, a lot of action but totally unrealistic and even more non-sensical. The basic premise of the plot is that a killer asteroid is headed toward Earth. NASA determines that a team has to be sent to the asteroid to destroy it, by drilling a hole into it and planting a nuclear bomb to blow it apart. The government uses the design for a drill created by an oil driller named Harry Stamper (played by Bruce Willis). Instead of the logical thing, having Stamper's drill team train the astronauts how to use the drill, they decide to train the team of drillers, who are, to say the least, not even remotely qualified to be astronauts, to go up to the asteroid and drill the hole. Again, totally, stupid, but if you can suspend your disbelief, it works.

There is a strong cast including Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Michael Clarke Duncan, Steve Buscemi, Billy Bob Thornton, Owen Wilson, Will Patton, Jason Issacs, and William Fichtner. The members of the drilling team are pretty much lovable losers, and the astronauts are hard-nosed by the books types that don't want them there. Of course, the inevitable conflict between the team members as well as the threat of the asteroid intensifies throughout the movie.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the movie looks and sounds great in HD. The extras are sparse, however. The trailers and the video for Aerosmith's song "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing", which was probably as popular as the movie itself. The video quality is upgraded from the Criterion Collection release, but the extras are a big downgrade.

Overall, the movie is what you would expect from a Michael Bay summer blockbuster. Lots of action and heroics, but nothing that you would expect to have a deep conversation about. The acting in this is much better than some of the Transformers movies (especially the various sequels), which helps offset the completely stupid plot. The romance story between Affleck and Tyler's characters was not really needed but was okay in the grand scheme of things. So, if you are looking for an action movie that you can kind of just turn your brain off and enjoy, this is a good one.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 40

Day 40 of CE was the Push Circuit 3 workout. This one is mostly chest and back focused and then a few lower-body exercises. I definitely like all of the Push workouts more than I liked the Burn workouts, mainly because I can really appreciate my strength gains this month.  And, I love that the workouts are a lot shorter than the P90X workouts, although I like the variety of the P90X workouts more than the variety of these workouts.

Product Review: Roku Wireless Speakers (for Roku Streambars or Roku TV)

 

The big thing to note if you are considering getting these is that you need to have a Roku soundbar or a Roku TV. If you do not, these will not pair with a different soundbar or a smart TV. Basically, these will get you the surround sound experience without having to run a bunch of wires across the room. They pair to the soundbar via Bluetooth, so the only wires are the power cords. You get good sound (usually the background effects) through them, without it overpowering the sound coming out of the soundbar itself. They are easy to pair, you really just follow the steps in the Roku settings after you plug them in. You may have to move them closer to the soundbar to get them paired, but once they are paired you can move them farther away and you will get sound through them.

Supplement Review: CYTOSPORT SLEEPING GIANT

 

This is a protein supplement that is low carb (just 5g of carbs) and has casein protein so it is slower digesting and better to use in the evening. And, it has melatonin and tryptophan, both of which help with falling asleep. I have tried the vanilla caramel flavor and it blends well just with water and tastes good, unlike some protein powders. You definitely do not have to gag it down. Just be aware that the serving size is two scoops and there are only 18 servings (give or take) per container. At nearly $30 per container that is a bit pricey, but not as bad as some protein powders that charge $50 or more for 15 servings.

DVD/TV Series Review: Burn Notice Seasons 1-3

 

Burn Notice was a show that aired on the USA network from 2007-2014. The premise was that a CIA operative named Michael Weston, played by Jeffrey Donovan is outed and burned (disavowed by the government) during an operation in Nigeria. He is knocked out and wakes up in his hometown of Miami and put under surveillance. He is told if he stays in Miami he can do basically what he wants, but if he leaves he will be arrested and thrown in a hole. He decides to stay in Miami and take on jobs that really only an ex-spy can, sometimes skirting legality himself to take down a bad guy and/or help some innocent person in danger. He is joined by his ex-girlfriend (and former IRA operative) Fiona, played by Gabrielle Anwar, and Sam Axe, a retired covert operative (and current lady's man) played by the great Bruce Campbell). The main cast is rounded out by Sharon Gless, who plays Michael's mom Madeline who usually (especially in the early seasons) gets in Michael's way under the guise of helping.

The show was part procedural case/story of the week with the bigger serial arc(s) that would span throughout the series. The big one, of course, is Michael trying to find out who burned him, a brass ring that stays just out of reach for quite a while. The first season ends on a cliffhanger when Michael figures out who wrote his burn notice, but finds that a much heavier hand was behind it. Season two is focused on the larger organization and Michael trying to figure out who they are and take them down. Tricia Helfer (of Battlestar Galactica fame) has a recurring role during the season as Michael's handler who assigns him tasks that get more dangerous over the course of the season. The third season sees Michael facing the consequences of defying "Management", the organization from season two, and he is tracked by a police detective who is convinced he is dirty.

For those who get the DVDs, the extras include scene commentaries with creator Nix and various actors, there is also a short gag reel, audition footage, and then a couple of short and kind of dumb featurettes that are basically a collection of clips from the show. What was included was okay, but it could have been better. The first couple of seasons of the show were released on Blu-Ray, however, the A/V transfer was apparently very bad, so I just stuck with the DVDs.

Overall, the show is very good. It has a good mix of action, comedy (mostly from Campbell), and drama. Donovan does a great job as the series lead both in the action scenes and as basically the narrator (as he has a ton of voiceovers where Michael explains spycraft). All of the actors, the main cast, the recurring characters, and the guest stars, do a very good job in their roles. It is not a show that was a carbon copy of anything, and there really has not been anything exactly like it since it went off the air. So, if you are one who has not seen the show and are looking for something in the action-drama genre, this is definitely worth checking out.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Braveheart (Sapphire Series)

 

Braveheart is a fictionalized telling of the life and death of William Wallace (played by Mel Gibson) who was a freedom fighter/knight in Scottland, who fought for Scottish independence against England. The movie is part love story, part revenge story, and part period piece. The supporting cast includes Sophie Marceau as Princess Isabella of France, Angus Macfadyen as Robert the Bruce, Patrick McGoohan as King Edward "Longshanks", Catherine McCormack as Murron MacClannough, Brendan Gleeson as Hamish, and Brian Cox as Argyle Wallace. It is well written and very well acted, and regardless of what you may think of him in real life, Mel Gibson does a great job as a director, especially on the period pieces.

For those who get the Sapphire Series Blu-Ray, the movie looks and sounds fantastic. The visuals are off the charts with the great cinematography, and the picture quality is much greater than it was with the original DVD release. There are a ton of extras for those who like watching the bonus material. Those include a timeline for the production of the movie, the fictional plot, and the historical events the movie was based on, a feature on the battlefields in Scottland, an hour-long documentary on the movie, a feature on the town of Smithfield, a commentary track on the movie by Mel Gibson, a conversation with the writer of the screenplay, a feature on the real William Wallace, and the trailers for the movie.

Overall, the movie is wonderful. These days anything having to do with Mel Gibson is kind of a mixed bag. If you cannot separate his personal life from his professional one, and you can't stand what has come out about his personal life, then you will probably not want anything to do with this movie. If you are one who, even if you disagree with him or can't stand him, can still enjoy the movies he makes, and you like historical dramas, then this is definitely one that should not be missed.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 39

Day 39 of CE was burn intervals again. This was a hard one for me to get through today. I was tired and not feeling all that well. So, I definitely had to slow things down and modify some moves that I do not normally modify in the workout. But, I got it done and was able to push more as I got warmed up and farther into the workout.  

Supplement Review: Orgain Organic Protein + Superfoods Powder, Creamy Chocolate Fudge

 

This is a chocolate-flavored meal replacement. It has a moderate amount of protein and some carbs and fat, so it is really not something that you would really drink post-workout necessarily (you could) but it is something that is more along the lines of a healthy meal if you are eating small meals throughout the day. It tastes good, and it blends well with milk (almond milk or 1% milk work great). I used a Blendjet to blend it, and that works fine, it is not gritty or lumpy that way. I have not tried using it just with water and a shaker cup though. The serving size is two scoops, but I usually just use 1 scoop and about 10 ounces of milk, and that is enough for a small snack for me.

Blu-Ray Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic

 

This gives you an idea of where the storyline went after the live-action show ended. As most die-hard Buffy fans likely know, the creative team behind Buffy continued the story in a series of comic books. This tells the first part of the story in the comics (there are over 40 comic issues and this covers the first 19 issues), basically set sometime down the line from the events ending season seven. I would say the story is okay, but nowhere near as good as any of the seasons were in the live-action show and the fact that the characters were not voiced by the original cast members made it feel a bit lackluster. The animation was okay at best, but not even as good as what the best video games at the time this came out boasted.

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is good, but not spectacular. There are a handful of extras including a preview of the series played at Comic-Con, a test pilot, which is basically a very rough version of the first issue/episode, a trivia experience that pops up trivia questions as the episodes play, and a gallery of the comic book covers. Good for what is there, but nothing to write home about.

Overall, only die-hard fans of Buffy are only going to consider getting this, and even then not everyone who was a fan of the show will likely be interested in this. If you really liked the comic series, from what I can tell this tracks the issues pretty well, but it is not even close to complete, and given how much time has passed, there is not likely to be a DVD or Blu-Ray release with the rest of the story.

DVD/Study Aid Review: The Calculus 3 Tutor: Volume 2 - 11 Hour Course

 

This is the second volume of Jason's Calculus 3 tutor, and it basically covers the hard types of integrals you will be exposed to in class, triple integrals, line integrals, flux integrals, and the theorems that make them a bit easier like Green's Theorem and Stokes Theorem. This is definitely the hardest material in multivariable calculus, and if you are going into electrical engineering, a lot of this stuff will rear its ugly head again in a class called Electric and Magnetic Fields.

Jason breaks down all the topics in enough detail to understand the material and then does examples. He does at least a couple of examples per topic and goes step-by-step through the problems. It is a style of teaching the material that really works for me, and why, even though there are free sources out there, I don't mind paying for his material. But, you really do have to know what is conducive to your style of learning, especially since you cannot ask questions of, or otherwise interact with, a recorded video. But, if you are a visual learner and you can sit through a simulated college lecture with a guy in front of a whiteboard working on math problems, then this is a good option, especially if your teacher confuses you and you cannot make heads or tails of the book.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 38

 Day 38 of CE was Push Circuit 2 again. I really like the Push Circuit workouts because you are lifting very heavy, doing low reps, and I like that each move focuses on one body part and not combining a lower-body and upper-body move in the same exercise as was the case in the Burn Circuit videos. This has just shoulder exercises and then you do deadlifts and lunges for a couple of exercises mainly to give your shoulders a break. It is a very challenging workout as long as you pick heavy enough weight. I only got to the eight rep max on a couple of the nine total exercises. Otherwise, I was failing at six or seven reps. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Charmed Season One

 

Charmed was a series set in San Fransisco about three witches named Prue (played by Shannen Doherty), Phoebe (played by Alyssa Milano), and Piper (played by Holly Marie Combs), who learn they have powers after the death of their grandmother. The first season pretty much follows a monster-of-the-week format in which the sisters had to go up against some kind of demon and ultimately vanquish it. This, of course, put the sisters on the radar of the local police (and Prue's ex-boyfriend, played by TW King, a local detective), as they were always getting involved in strange cases. The series was on the air at the same time as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and has a very similar vibe to that as it set everyday problems (like dating, the sister's relationship with each other, etc.,) into the world of magic and demons. It also has some of the same character actors appear as guest stars that Buffy had, usually as a guest bad guy. It also guest-starred a very young and then-unknown Michael Weatherly, who would go on to be a series lead on Dark Angel, then make it big on NCIS and Bull, and David Carradine, who of course was well-known from the original Kung-Fu series and later the Kill Bill movies.

For those who get the Blu-Ray set, it is pretty much an MOD set. It does have captions, but there are no extras at all. The HD transfer was okay, but not that great, and at time really showed off the limitations of the CGI of the time. Of course, this is pre-Matrix changing everything about CGI, and it was done on a TV budget. Even so, the special effects could be laughably bad and nothing compared to what today's tv series put out. And, since it was shot on film and not digital, it definitely has the look (especially in the stock shots) of a 1990s TV series (and sometimes even looks like the series that were shot in the 1980s).

Overall, the show is very good. The writing can be a bit cheesy at times, but the acting was very good. All of the lead actresses had good chemistry with each other and played off each other well. As most fans of the show know, Milano and Doherty eventually came to hate each other and Doherty ended up leaving the show, but if they did not like each other from the start they were able to hide it pretty well. Of course, with Doherty playing the oldest sister and Milano playing the youngest one, some of that animosity could have helped their performances because they did convincingly bicker with each other. Even though the look of the show, at least in the first season) is a bit dated, the stories do hold up pretty well even 20-plus years later. Of course, having a ridiculously good-looking cast in their mid-twenties to early thirties does not hurt either. It is available to stream, but if you prefer physical discs to streaming it is worth the blu-ray pickup (unless you only get the physical discs when there are a lot of extras available).

DVD/Study Aid Review: The Calculus 3 Tutor: Volume 1 - 10 Hour Course

 

Calculus 3, or multivariable calculus, is almost universally considered to be the hardest class in the calculus sequence, and even people who do well in the first year of calculus often struggle with it. And, it is even worse if you are stuck with a teacher who is not great and/or cannot make heads or tails of the book. I found Jason's material when I was returning to school to get an Electrical Engineering degree for which you have to take all of the calculus classes. I used this a lot to supplement my book (which was useless) and my class lectures (which were sometimes good, sometimes bad).

Jason has two volumes of his calc 3 tutor. This volume covers about the first quarter to the first third of the material you will see in class. It starts out with vectors, then gets into partial derivatives and multivariable functions, directional derivatives, gradients, and then double integrals. In my class, the first exam covered everything on this volume through the gradient material. It should always be noted that this is a supplement to, not a replacement for, going to class. Calc 3 has a lot of material and even with two volumes, Jason does not cover it all. While he does hit the "main" topics that you see in class, there is a lot to choose from and you can only figure out what your professor will emphasize if you go to class. While Jason tends to pick example problems that range from easy to moderately difficult, you may get stuck with a teacher like mine who often picked the most difficult problems for homework and exam problems. So, while this gave me a good foundation for the material, there is no way I could have just relied on this and done well in my class. You also need to have a handle on what your learning style is. This pretty much mimics a college lecture, but with less emphasis on the explanatory material and more emphasis on working example problems. That is definitely not going to fit everyone's learning style. But, if you are visual learner and like seeing problems worked out, this will definitely help you.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 37

Day 37 of CE was recharge and abs. Both of those went better than when I did them on Sunday. Thankfully, my left knee is feeling better so I have more flexibility overall since I am not having to favor it or protect it and can bend deeper into the warrior stances or the sumo stances. As far as the ab workout goes, I definitely find it challenging and still have to modify some of the moves to do all of the reps. I did discover that the guy in the back row, Mike, who is also in the Burn Circuit workout did lie about how much weight he was using on the weighted crunches. He does claim to use 20lbs, but you can clearly see that he is using the same amount as Chalene is, and she is definitely using 10lbs. Anyone who actually has the SelectTech dumbells knows that when you use 20 lbs, there are two plates on the dumbbell, not just the single plate that is loaded when you set it to 10lbs.

Study Aid Review: Calculus III Essentials

 

The thing to know about this is that it does not cover all of the concepts from Calc III. It is basically an outline that will discuss the "big" concepts that you will need to know, give some definitions, etc. It is really a breakdown of the explanatory material that comes before the problem sets and presents that stuff in a compact, concise manner. So, I found that its best use was for using when I was either working on a practice exam that our teacher gave us or when I put together my own practice exam to work on. But if I needed more in-depth examples, then I had to go to other sources.

Product Review: POLAR FT60 Heart Rate Monitor

 

The first generation of the FT60 was a decent to good heart-rate monitor. It has a lot of functions that the less expensive polar monitors do not (at least at the time the first version of this came out), such as a Bluetooth connection, workout tracking capabilities, and the ability to track weight with the polar balance scale. It does require the use of the chest strap which, in the era of Fitbit, Apple Watch, and similar devices that have even more functionality than this, is definitely a drawback. Especially since it can sometimes be a pain to pair with the chest strap. There are a few big drawbacks to it, however.

First, the menus can be a pain to navigate and require pushing the buttons over and over to get to what you want.

Second, the watch strap is very flimsy. I went through three of them in a short period of time. Basically, the unit popped out of the watch strap (which you have to do to charge it). The strap was made of cheap silicon, and eventually at least one of the holes for the buttons would tear, and once one did the one next to it would soon follow, and then you had to replace the strap. Luckily you can find replacement straps for a reasonable price, but the quality control (again at least on the first version) was not great.

Third, the charger was totally proprietary. When you take the unit out of the watch strap, the bottom of it protrudes and that plugs into the charging cable. So, if you misplace the cable you are screwed as you cannot just plug a micro-USB cable into it. There were also times when it would not charge and you had to drain the battery all the way down until it shut itself off in order for it to start charging again.

Lastly, it was a total pain to pair with the Polar App on an Android phone. When I first had the watch I had an Andriod phone and this rarely ever paired with the phone through the app to get the workout information into the app on the first try. Once I switch to an iPhone it paired with the Polar App just fine, but for whatever reason, I constantly had to close the app, unpair the watch from my phone, re-pair the watch with my phone, then open the Polar App again to get it to work.

So, when everything worked the way it was supposed to, I really liked this. But, when things went off the rails, it was a pain. Hopefully, the newer models fixed some of the issues I experienced, but I would definitely avoid getting the first-generation model of this.

Study Guide Review: Advanced Calculus Demystified

 

This is a study aid/supplement for what is for many the hardest class in the calculus sequence, multivariable calculus (usually called Calc III). It is the class that takes all the concepts from the first year of calculus, adds an additional dimension, and makes the problems way more complex. If you end up with a teacher that is not great at explaining the concepts and/or get stuck with a crappy textbook (which was definitely the case for me), you will need to look to study aids to get through that class.

This is a pretty mixed bag as a study guide. It does cover all of the material that you will see in class, including topics that some of the other popular study aids out there do not, like parameterizations. The problem is that it uses a different notation for some of the concepts that make it very hard to follow what it is getting at, and there are mistakes that are not always easy to catch. One thing I do like about it is that I does not really give study tips or that kind of thing. The authors just pretty much assume if you are at the level of taking Calc III, you know how to study and get through class. It just jumps right into discussing multivariable functions and goes from there.

Overall, I would say that it is a book that you can use in conjunction with a textbook to flesh out the material in the book and get some additional example problems. You would not really be able to teach yourself the entirety of a multivariable calculus class, but it will give you a good base to start from. Just know that how the material is presented in the book may differ from how you see it in class.

DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad Volume 6

 

Because of the way the early DVD releases were set, Volume Six of American Dad actually contains the episodes from Season Five. The DVD has all 18 of the season five episodes, which continue the story (or stories) of the week format, while occasionally referring back to events from prior episodes. This is really the season where the focus of the show shifted from mainly being about Stan's CIA job to putting more of a focus on the other characters and having some of the apocalyptic episodes (like one involving the Rapture) that the show has featured in later seasons. The standout episodes from this season for me were "My Morning Straightjacket" in which Stan decides to follow a band across the country and Francine has to channel her inner groupie to get him back, "May the Best Stan Win" in which Stan has to battle a cyborg version of himself for Francine's affection, and "Great Space Roaster" in which the family roats Roger for his birthday, and he decides to kill them all for making fun of him.

For those who get the DVD set, there are commentary tracks on selected episodes that include the writers of the particular episode and usually the director. There are deleted scenes for most of the episodes, a making-of feature for the episode Rapture's Delight, and uncensored audio (although some audio does get bleeped out).

The show continues to be clever and funny. I do think the shift away from Stan's job being the focus of the show did hurt it a bit, but not so much that it was unwatchable. As most people are aware, even though it is animated, it is still very much an adult show and not suitable for young kids. The show makes fun of pretty much anything and everything, and there are a lot of off-color jokes. But, if you like the brand of humor, it is still worth watching.

Workout Update: Chalean Extreme Day 36

Day 36 of CE was Push Circuit 1 again. I am finding that I really like this workout. It is almost all arms, most of the exercises are bicep and tricep moves, although there are some squats in there too since CE does not have a dedicated leg workout. You kind of just do variations of squats and lunges in every resistance workout. I was able to max out (barely) on a few of the exercises, so the weight was definitely pretty accurate this week. Next week when I increase the weight on those moves I am pretty sure I will barely be able to hit 6 reps. I was pretty gassed by the last set of pushups so I had to do some of them on my knees. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Black Swan

 

Black Swan is a psychological thriller by Darren Aronofsky (who is pretty much known for weird, out-there movies), that is centered around the production of Swan Lake by the New York City Ballet. Natalie Portman plays Nina, a dancer in the New York City ballet. She auditions for and gets the lead role. In the process, she gets mentally unstable and slowly goes crazy. The audience really experiences the events from Nina's perspective and it is not really ever made clear what is real and what she was imagining, which makes the film work.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the movie looks and sounds great in HD. The extras include several short featurettes that include character profiles, production design, costume design, as well as the theatrical trailer. There is also an almost hour-long making-of feature titled Black Swan Metamorphosis, which is split into three parts that have a ton of behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with the cast and crew, and more.

Overall, the movie is wonderful. The writing and acting are both top-notch. Along with Portman, the main cast includes Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Wynona Ryder, and Barbara Hershey, who does a great job as Nina's mother who is overprotective and lives vicariously through her daughter. Portman and Kunis are definitely featured the most, and both do a great job in their roles. Portman is in nearly every scene, if not every scene, and has to play a wide range of emotions through her character. She had proven her acting chops well before this movie, but it really did cement her as being a great actress who can play damn near anything. It is a great movie that is definitely worth watching if you are in the mood for something that is a bit out there.