Supplement Review: Pre Workout + Weight Loss | Six Star Pre-Workout Explosion: Peach Mango

 

This is a good pre-workout that works well to give me an energy boost in the morning before I work out but does not make me too jittery or make my heart race. The peach-mango flavor is okay. Not as good as some of the peach-mango flavored drink mixes, but not something that you have to chug because it tastes awful either. I definitely recommend it.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 14

Day 14 was the back and biceps workout from p90x. Most of the weights I used remained the same from last week, but I was able to max out at 10 reps on a few of the exercises this time. So, next week I will be increasing the weight on those. I was also able to do a couple more pull-up moves for almost all the variations except corn cobs, which are very tough using 110 lbs of resistance bands. Tomorrow morning is back to Max 30.  

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 13

Day 13 was the Recharge workout from CE. I was not feeling very well yesterday but did want to get some kind of workout in, so I switched my Sat and Sun routine, hoping I would feel better tonight. Which, thankfully, I did. Even though I was not feeling great, I did find that I was more flexible during the workout than I had been the last couple of times I did the routine. So, that was something positive.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Jurassic World

 

Jurassic World is the 2015 reboot of the Jurrasic Park franchise starring Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins, Katie McGrath, Irrfan Khan, Judy Greer, and BD Wong (reprising his role from the original movie).  In an era of reboots for both movies and TV shows, it was really only a matter of time before it happened to Jurassic Park. In this movie, the site of the original park on the island of Isla Nubar is rebuilt and opened as Jurassic World. Apparently, nobody learned at InGen a lesson from the events of the first three movies and are hell-bent on creating a dinosaur zoo, which goes about as well as you expect it to. The only legacy character that appears in the movie is BD Wong's Henry Wu, who is still making new breeds of dinosaurs, which again, goes about as well as you would expect. 

The crux of the story is that Park Operations Manager Claire (played by Bryce Dallas Howard) needs to "reinvigorate the public's interest" in the park. Her nephews Gray (Ty Simpkins) and Zach (Nick Robinson), fly over to visit her and get a tour of the park, but she is too busy and passes them off to her assistant (played by Supergirl and Merlin's Katie McGrath) and, of course, they get in mortal danger when things hit the fan. Chris Pratt plays the male lead, Owen, who is a velociraptor trainer, who butts heads with everyone in charge at the park, including Claire. None of the other legacy characters like Alan Grant, Ian Malcolm, or Ellie Sattler appear, although one of Ian's books is on display in one of the early scenes. The movie does have some nice tie-ins that pay homage to the original movie, some that are very obvious, and others you have to be kind of sharp-eyed to spot.

For those who get the blu-ray set, the movie looks and sounds great, as you would expect. The A/V quality is wonderful. The extras include deleted scenes, a featurette titled "Chris and Colin Take on the World" is an in-studio conversation with actor Chris Pratt and director Colin Trevorrow, a featurette titled "Dinosaurs Roam Once Again" about the updated special effects used here, a thirty-minute making-of documentary titled "Welcome to Jurassic World" that includes interviews with executive producer Steven Spielberg and producer Frank Marshall, a featurette titled "Jurassic World All-Access Pass" takes a closer look at the design of the park itself, Chris Pratt gives a brief tour of the park's visitors' center, and finally a featurette titled "Jurassic's Closest Shaves" that include attack scenes from all of the movies in the franchise.

Overall, the movie is good. It is not as good as the original 1994 movie, but I think it is somewhere between Jurassic Park II and the original movie in terms of quality. The characters make a lot of bad decisions, as they always seem to do, and there is the really goofy scene of Bryce Dallas Howard running from a dinosaur in heels. Even though you have to give her credit for being able to sprint in heels, it is pretty cheesy. And, of course, the movie continues to play into the myth that a T-Rex (yes, the T-Rex makes an appearance) cannot see you if you stand perfectly still. But there are a lot of good action scenes, Howard and Pratt have really good chemistry, and if you do not nitpick it to death and just enjoy it, it is well worth watching.

Book Review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens

 

Obviously, people have wildly different opinions on The Force Awakens, which was the movie that brought the Star Wars franchise back to theaters. This is a pretty standard novelization of the movie, although it is not a word-for-word reprint of the movie. Some of the dialogue gets changed slightly, and there is some material that was deleted from the movie (one particular scene involving Chewbacca and Unkar Plutt) that appears in the book. It fleshes out the story a bit and adds some context, but it does not give away anything that was not revealed in the movie (e.g., Rey's backstory).

So, ultimately, how you feel about the book is likely going to mirror how you feel about the movie. Personally, I liked the movie, although I strongly disagreed with having three different writers for each movie in the trilogy who could pretty much do what they wanted with the story. Although the different writers were more of an issue with the next installment, The Last Jedi. I think The Force Awaken developed the new characters well, incorporated the legacy characters fairly well (with one exception), and set up the new trilogy well. So, if you liked the movie, this is definitely worth reading.

DVD/TV Series Review: Castle: Season 7

 

+++Warning, this contains minor spoilers from season six, but no major spoilers from season seven+++

The seventh season of Castle opens with Beckett and the team discovering the Castle had been abducted in the aftermath of the car accident that ended season six. Then it jumps ahead a couple of months when Castle resurfaces, found abandoned at sea with no memory of what happened to him or where he has been. That pretty much sets up the serial storyline of the season in which the team tries to figure out what happened to Castle, and it gets mixed in with the procedural case-of-the-week stories. The stand-alone episodes usually involve some murder mystery, but there is one in which Castle imagines that he is transported to an alternate universe in which he and Beckett never fell in love that was kind of an It's a Wonderful Life spoof. There are also a couple of episodes that call back to an earlier season storyline. So, while the show is a procedural crime drama, it is best to watch it from the beginning as opposed to jumping right into it at some random point.

For those who get the DVD set, the extras include commentary tracks on two episodes, the season premiere that includes director Rob Bowman, actors Jon Huertas and Seamus Dever, and writer David Amann, and on the 15th episode which includes actors Nathan Fillion and Michael Mosley, director Rob Bowman, and writer Andrew Marlowe. Then there are deleted scenes, a gag reel, and a commercial for Castle's book.

Overall, the season is good, but it seems that the alleged tension between Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic does start to bleed through into the show. They definitely act professional on screen, but it does seem like they are starting to have fewer scenes together as the season went on. The show does have a good blend of drama and comedy and the acting is always great. So, if you are a fan of police procedurals and like shows that fall more into the dramedy category than a straight-up drama, this is definitely still worth watching.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 12

Day 12 was the second time doing Friday Fight Round 1 in Max 30. It is still hard, but I was able to get farther into it than I did last week.  Last week I made it to 11:19 and this week I made it to 13:20. By next week I would like to make it to about 16-minutes, give or take. Basically, getting to the 15-minute mark where the break is and then in the first move or two after the break to max out. We will see how that goes.

Book Review: Midnight Sun

 

Chances are, most people are aware of the story told in the Twilight series, either through reading the books, seeing the movies, or both. This is basically a remastered version of the original novel, told from the perspective of Edward instead of Bella. It tells the same overall story but gives insights into things that were not shown or told in the original book because everything was told from Bella's point of view and what she was experiencing. So, we get much more interaction between Edward and the other members of the Cullen family and see how he was trying to deal with his feelings for her, and hers for him.

Certainly, some of the issues with the original books still remain. This is largely a young adult love story and so can get sappy and schlocky in parts. The author's writing does get panned quite a bit, which is mostly unfair. No, she is not Shakespeare, but she does not try to be or even pretend to be. She is telling a contemporary (at least as of the early 2000s) teenage love story set in a world of vampires. Yes, some of the choices she makes, like the vampires sparkling in direct sunlight as opposed to being burned to a crisp and dying are kind of silly, but I think that was because she was trying to do something unique.

Overall, whether you loved, hated, or were lukewarm to the original novel you will probably feel the same way about this. It is not likely to change your mind either way. The novel is basically to set up the larger story and develop the characters (although it does tell its own self-contained storyline as well). It will be interesting to see if she does the same thing with the other novels, but overall I think this allowed for more of the story to be fleshed out and was able to focus on different characters than the original novel did.

Product Review: Midland XTC260VP3 High Definition 720p Wearable Action Camera

 

This came out at a time when not every phone had a camera capable of taking video or was as sturdy as they are now. So, for those who wanted to take short video clips of things and not have to invest in a full-sized camcorder, this was a very good option. It can be mounted on a tripod and has a waterproof case, which is still a benefit over many of today's phones. You need a memory card to insert into it to save videos, and regardless of the size of the card you use with it, it automatically shuts off after 30 minutes of recording. So, you have to restart it every thirty minutes if you want longer videos. But, for taking short video clips, it works.

DVD/TV Series Review: Hawaii Five-0 (2010): Season 5

 

+++Warning, this contains minor spoilers from the prior season, but no major season five giveawyas+++

The 25-episode fifth season of Hawaii Five-0 aired during the 2014/2015 TV season. It continues the serial story arcs that have run throughout the previous seasons and adds in the procedural case/story of the week that has worked for the show up to this point. This season still has reverberations of Doris' actions and subsequent disappearance in the prior season. Her (and Steve's) connection to Wo-Fat is finally revealed this season. The season includes a multi-episode story arc that involves Danny's brother Matt, which requires Danny to risk his career to save his brother. There is also the beginning of a story arc that involves Lou and his best friend from Chicago (played by (Mykelti Williamson). The season ends with a suspenseful episode that involves a nuclear threat. The season sees a lot of recognizable guest stars, including Melina Kanakaredes, Michael Imperioli, Jaleel White, Frankie Valli, Robert Knepper, Lilli Simmons, and Carol Burnett (to name a few). Terry O'Quinn makes a couple of appearances as Joe White, and Michelle Borth returns for an episode as Catherine after leaving the show as a series regular last season.

The DVD set is a six-disc set. The extras are similar to what was included in the releases for the prior years, with the exception of no commentary tracks. There are a couple of making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes, a feature on the 100th episode (which occurs about halfway through the season), a feature on the music, a feature about the episode Daniel Dae Kim directed, deleted scenes, and a gag reel. So, if you like watching the bonus material this still has quite a bit to go through.

Overall, the series continues to be strong. It has a good blend of action, drama, and humor, and it manages to be a serious show that does not take itself too seriously. The 100th episode acts both as a present-day story and a flashback episode, bringing back characters from prior seasons. The show does a good job juggling the large ensemble cast, which is made even larger with Jorge Garcia being promoted to a series regular this season, with almost every character getting one episode central to that character. There is a great Jerry and Max-centric episode in which they attend a convention of Elvis impersonators and an episode that is a total spoof of the movie The Hangover. So, if you have been a fan of the prior seasons, this one is definitely worth watching.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 11

Day 11 is the last day of the Tabata Power workout. I was able to make it to the 24-minute mark, again maxing out during the tricep dip sequence. The workout went well, but I would have liked to have been able to push to the 26-minute mark. But, that workout has so much tricep work because every push-up in the push-up sequence is some variation of tricep push-ups, my arms were basically jelly by the time the triceps sequence hit. 

Book Review: Star Wars: The Old Republic - Revan

 

Revan is a character that was introduced in the Knights of the Old Republic video game. He was a Jedi that turned to the dark side and joined the Sith (back before the Rule of Two was instituted, so he was one of many Sith) and then eventually turned back to the light and redeemed himself. The novel is written by Drew Karpyshyn who also wrote the wonderful Darth Bane trilogy of novels. The novel really tells the story of Revan after he has turned back to the light but before coming back to the Jedi order. When the book opens he is married to Jedi Master Bastila Shan and is experiencing insomnia due to a recurring nightmare he believes is part of his forgotten past as the Sith Lord Darth Revan. He believes that there is some threat to the galaxy that he cannot pinpoint and seeks help to regain his memory.

The novel has ties to the Mandalorian Wars and has a parallel plot that involves the Sith Council and a plot against Emperor Tenebrae, who is known to the Old Sith Empire as Darth Vitiate. The book has a lot of action and suspense and has very good pacing, so, it is a pretty quick read. Of course, the novel is not canon even though the character of Revan is because of references made to him in the Clone Wars series and subsequent canon novels. However, his backstory has not been told in canon. And, there are definitely elements of this novel that have been retconned, such as the mask of Mandalore being replaced by the Darksaber as the artifact that bestows leadership of the Mandalorians. And, the fact that Jedi were allowed to marry. Even though it is not canon, it is still a very good novel and worth reading if you are one who picks and chooses which Star Wars novels to read.

Product Review: Reebok Men's CrossFit Nano 3.0 Tactical Training Shoe

 

I tend to prefer high-top shoes for when I am doing high-intensity cardio workouts, especially plyometric workouts that have a lot of jumping because my ankles tend to roll pretty easily. So, when my old cross-training shoes got too old, I replaced them with these. Unfortunately, these do not have a lot of support at all. They are extremely lightweight which may be good for some things, but definitely not for others. And, they are pretty narrow which may or may not be an issue for you. So, I have almost never used them for cardio workouts but do use them from time to time if I am just lifting. But, if you like lightweight shoes, then this is a pretty good option.

Book Review: Star Wars: Into the Void: (Dawn of the Jedi)

 

Into the Void is a novel that is set thousands (about 25,000) years before the events of A New Hope, about the founding of the ancient Je'daii Order (which was the precursor to the Jedi. The story is basically about a brother and sister named Lanoree and Dalien. She is a powerful Je'daii ranger, and he has no force power and hates the Je'daii order. There is a larger plot that involves a cosmic gateway called the hypergate, the opening of which would risk destroying the galaxy.

Overall, the story is good, but given that the book was written before Disney took over Lucasfilm, it is relegated to Legends status. Given where it appears in the timeline, parts of the story may or may not ever be folded into the canon, but it really does not cross into any of the "official" eras, like The High Republic, that are in the canon material. The Je'daii has some similarities with the Jedi order, but as you would expect, there are some differences too. For example, the Je'daii used swords that were imbued with the force, but they were not lightsabers like the Jedi used. So they were more like very strong Samurai swords. The story has a good mix of action, drama, and suspense. It definitely set up the possibilities of more stories from that era being told, but of course, with Disney taking over, that will probably never materialize. It is still a good story that is worth reading, however.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Kingsman: The Secret Service

 

Kingsman: The Secret Service is a 2014 movie starring Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, and Sofia Boutella. It is an action-spy movie with some comedy (mostly dark humor) mixed in. The storyline revolves around Gary "Eggsy" Unwin's (played by Taron Egerton) recruitment by Harry Hart (code name Galahad, played by Colin Firth ) and training in a secret spy organization. His first mission is to bring down an eco-terrorist, Richmond Valentine, who is played wonderfully by Samuel L. Jackson. Valentine wants to reverse climate change by wiping out almost all humans on Earth. There is a strong supporting cast including Sofia Boutella, who plays Valentine's assistant Gazelle and is a double amputee with sharp blades for feet, Mark Strong as Hamish Mycroft / Merlin, Sophie Cookson as Roxanne "Roxy" Morton / Lancelot, Michael Caine as Chester King / Arthur, and even has Mark Hamill in an extended cameo role.

For those who get the blu-ray, the movie looks and sounds great in HD. There are only a handful of extras, the most extensive of which is a six-part behind-the-scene feature titled Kingsman: The Secret Service Revealed. Then, there are image galleries, the theatrical trailer, and previews for other movies. So, while there are not a ton of extras, the making-of documentary is very well done.

Overall, the movie is a very good, over-the-top blend of action and comedy. The action sequences are very violent and gory but in a tongue-in-cheek way (similar to those in Kill Bill) as opposed to the gore in movies like Saw. The acting is wonderful all around. Jackson Hams it up constantly, Firth is great as a buttoned-down English gentleman, and Taron Egerton does a great job as the lead. There is not much in the way of sexual content (aside from innuendo) or nudity until the very end, which is basically a joke that closes out the movie. That said, it is definitely not something that is appropriate for young kids, if nothing else, because of the violence. So, if you are looking for a fun action movie that you put on to kill a couple of hours without having to watch every second of it to be able to follow what is going on, this is a good one.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 10

Day 10 was Max 30's Sweat Interval workout. I did not sleep well at all last night so I did not have high hopes going into this one, but I actually managed to make it just under 25 minutes before having to stop. This is a workout in which only the modifier, who is Shaun T's husband and in very good shape, does not max out, so it is a tough workout, even if you are modifying it. I was pretty gassed during the last five minutes and could only do a few of the burpee squat combinations, but aside from those, everything went well.

Product Review: Marilyn Monroe Wall Calendar (2016)

 

I am one who gets a Marilyn Monroe calendar every year. There are always a few different wall calendars that get released each year. This one has a good selection of pictures. There is one of the iconic subway grate shots from the Seven-Year Itch promotional photos, but most of the pictures are pictures that have not been as widely publicized or released before. Definitely a good pickup if you collect her wall calendars.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Mad Max: Fury Road

 

Mad Max: Fury Road is a 2015 reboot of the Mad Max/Road Warrior franchise. The movie was written and directed by George Miller and stars Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Hugh Keays-Byrne, and Zoe Kravitz. Of course, the role of Max launched Mel Gibson's career, but after a string of controversies in his personal life and failed attempts to get another movie made, George Miller decided to reboot the series with Tom Hardy (from Inception and Dark Knight Rises) in the role of Max. The basic story is that Max is captured by a group known as the "War Boys" and is taken to warlord Immortan Joe's Citadel, imprisoned, and used as a "blood bag" for a sick War Boy called Nux. Meanwhile, Imperator Furiosa (played by Charlize Theron), one of Joe's lieutenants, is sent in her armored "War Rig" to trade produce for gasoline and ammunition with two of Joe's warlord allies. She leaves and secretly takes Joe's wives, played by Zoe Kravitz, Rose Huntington Whitely, Riley Keough, Abbey Lee, and Courtney Eaton, with her to help them escape. The War Boys are sent to chase Furiosa and the wives down, and Max tries to use the opportunity to escape.

Ultimately, the movie is much more about Furiosa than it is about Max. It is basically a big chase movie with a lot of action scenes spaced throughout. Max was much more of an ancillary character, with Furiosa calling the shots. And Theron, once again, shows off her very mighty acting chops, really devoting herself to a very gritty role. Obviously, she has supermodel looks, but this was definitely not a role to show off how pretty she is. Furiosa was a very complex and hard-edged character, and Theron played her very well.

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is off-the-charts good, especially if you have a big-screen TV and a great sound system. The extras include several making-of featurettes, including Maximum Fury: Filming Fury Road, which runs just under half an hour and contains behind-the-scenes footage and interviews on set in Africa. Then there is a feature that is titled Mad Max: Fury on Four Wheels about the design of the various vehicles as an extension of wardrobe. An eleven-minute feature on the characters Max and Furiosa and the transition from Mel to Tom. Then there is a featurette titled Tools of the Wasteland, which is a fourteen-minute feature on the props, an eleven-minute feature on the wives, including interviews with each of the actresses, and a four-minute combination of pre-production tests and raw footage. Then, there are a few deleted scenes.

Overall, the movie is very good. The movie is a bit weird but very much in the same vein as the prior movies from the 1980s. Realistically, the Mad Max films had always been a bit weird, set in a dystopian future with almost nothing in the way of law, order, or security. While Charlize Theron really dominates and takes over the movie, all of the actors, regardless of how large or small the role they play, do a great job. So, if you are looking for a good action movie and you like the dystopian nightmare kinds of storylines, this is definitely worth watching.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Game of Thrones: Season 5

 

+++Warning, this contains spoilers from the prior season, but no major season five spiolers+++

The fifth season of GoT was adapted from parts of three different novels in the Song of Ice and Fire series, namely, A Feast for Crows, A Dance with Dragons, and a Storm of Swords. Of course, the show started catching up with the books (as George R.R. Martin is a notoriously slow writer) and the producers and writers of the show were doing their best to get as much material from the books before they would have to essentially make the rest of the story up with just a rough outline from Martin. This season sees a shift in many of the story arcs of the various characters. After the deaths of Joffrey and Tywin (finally) Varys and Tyrion flee Westeros to Meereen to meet Daenerys, whom Varys believes may be worthy of the Iron Throne. Jon is torn between an offer from Stannis and his duty to the Night's Watch, with the ever-increasing threat of the White Walkers looming, and Sansa goes from one bad situation to another. Cersei is basically ruling as a transition from Joffrey to Tommen, who is now set to marry Margaery Tyrell, which does not exactly thrill Cersei. Jaime and Bronn travel to Dorne to bring Myrcella back to King's Landing and have to deal with a revenge-seeking Ellaria. Arya sails to Braavos to attempt to cash in on her mystical coin to learn from Jaqen H'ghar. The season ends on numerous cliffhangers that leave the fate of nearly every single main character in some kind of doubt and/or jeopardy.

For those who get the blu-ray set, the A/V quality is again top-notch. As far as extras go, as has been the case with the prior seasons, each episode has an in-episode guide that can be played, a recap at the beginning of the episodes, and a preview at the end. There are twelve different commentary tracks. Every episode except episode seven gets at least one commentary track with various members of the cast along with the director and/or writer of the episode. Episodes eight and nine each have multiple commentary tracks (three, and two respectively). Then there are a series of behind-the-scenes and making-of featurettes that range in length from just under eight minutes to just under thirty minutes. There are also some animated shorts that feature voice work by the actors in character, then there is an animated Dance With Dragons animated feature that outlines the Targaryen civil war, and finally about eight minutes of deleted scenes. So, there are again a ton of extras if you like going through them, but like in the prior season releases, to go through everything you will have to watch each episode multiple times, so it may be helpful to pick and choose what you watch.

Overall, the season is very good. The storyline advances well, and like in prior seasons no character is safe from the possibility of being killed off, which makes for a lot of edge-of-your-seat suspense. It is very violent and has a lot of sex and nudity in it, so it is most definitely not a family-friendly show (or something that someone that is easily offended would go for). That said, it is very well acted and mostly well-written. Of course, because it is an adaptation of extremely long books, there are some storylines in the books (and many characters) that never appear in the series. This season, I would say the standouts among the cast are Iwan Rheon who plays Ramsay Bolton, Sophie Turner whose character arc is greatly expanded this season, and Maisie Williams. That said, the entire cast nails all of their characters and do an extremely good job. So, if you have been a fan of the first four seasons, you will very likely enjoy the fifth season. If you have not yet seen the series, you definitely have to start at episode one and watch all the way through, otherwise, almost nothing will make sense if you jump into the series over halfway through.

Product Review: Norpro Bread Slicer with Crumb Catcher

 

If you like to bake your own bread and/or buy freshly baked bread (as opposed to the processed stuff), this is good to help you get even slices. The one drawback, however, is that the plastic part is a bit flimsy and can break unless you use it very gingerly. That is what knocks it down a couple of stars for me. But, as far as the evenness of the slices, it is great, and the crumb catcher is very handy making it easy to dump the crumbs out.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 9

Day 9 was the Tabata Power workout again. I was able to make it much farther into the workout, past the 20-minute mark this time. I had to max out about midway through the tricep dip sequence of exercises, but make it through the push-ups (which also work the triceps as much as they do the chest) without having to stop. So, progress is being made even though I have a long way to go.

Study Aid Review: Hands-On Introduction to LabVIEW for Scientists and Engineers

 

LabView is a programming "language" that uses icons as opposed to writing out computer code. While you would think that would be easier than typing out lines of code, it can get very tricky and involved, especially when you are trying to do something fairly advanced. When I was working on my Electrical Engineering degree, I had a couple of classes that used LabView; one was an "introduction to LabView" class, and the other was computer-aided measures and controls, which covered LabView, C++, and MatLab. The same professor taught both courses, and he was notorious for showing very simple examples during class and then assigning homework and having test problems that were much harder than anything he showed us how to do. So, I used this to get through the LabView material and come up with ideas for projects, etc.

It is not a traditional textbook (although it can be used as one), so it has a lot of examples and enough explanation to understand what is going on. It is mainly for beginners to intermediate users, which is perfect for most people who are taking a college course. And, if you get an older version of the book it is much less expensive than some of the other books out there. So, if you are looking for help in using LabView, this is a good resource.

Product Review: PBfit All-Natural Peanut Butter Powder, Powdered Peanut Spread From Real Roasted Pressed Peanuts

 

I get this to mix with chocolate protein powder to get a peanut butter-chocolate taste, without having to use regular peanut butter which can be a pain to clean out of a blender and which never totally mixes with the protein powder because some will get stuck to the sides. The one drawback to this versus regular peanut butter, however, is that it does not have as strong a taste, so you have to use a couple of tablespoons or more if you really want a flavor kick. That said, I do think it is a good deal.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Fifty Shades of Grey

 

Fifty Shades of Grey is an erotic drama from 2015 starring Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan. The movie is, of course, an adaptation of the very popular but widely panned series of books by E.L. James. I have never read the books, so I cannot speak directly to the quality, but they do get pretty bad reviews, and in a recent Vanity Fair article, Dakota Johnson (who plays Anastasia Steel) said they were pretty horrible. For those who don't know, the storyline is basically about a relationship between Ana, a quiet college student, and billionaire businessman Christian Grey (by Jamie Dornan). Their relationship becomes complicated as he becomes more controlling and introduces her to the world of BDSM.

The movie is definitely not for the pearl-clutching crowd. There is a lot of sex and nudity in it, which should be obvious going in, and the sex gets amped up as the movie goes along. The problem with the movie, aside from the shlocky screenplay with some really bad dialogue, is that Johnson and Dornan do not really have the right chemistry to pull off the relationship. Johnson can play quiet and mousy fine, and Dornan can play intense (as evidenced by his role in the wonderful series The Fall), but it was hard to buy that they would be in a BDSM relationship with each other. Johnson does seem like she has a lot of personality in real life, but she either wasn't allowed to or chose not to display that in the movie, basically playing Ana very bland and monotone all the way through the movie, except during the contract negotiation scene, which was really the best non-sex scene in the movie.

For those who get the blu-ray, the movie looks and sounds great in HD. The extras include an unrated version with mostly tacks on a few minutes to the ending of the movie after the elevator closes. It does not add much to the theatrical version at all, which is also included. Then there is a teaser for the second movie, Fifty Shades Darker, and a handful of featurettes titled The World of Fifty Shades of Grey, Behind the Shades, E.L. James & Fifty Shades, Fifty Shades: The Pleasure of Pain, Christian's Apartment: 360* Set Tour, and Behind the Scenes of "Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey). Then there are some music videos. So, if you like watching the extras, there is a good amount there.

Overall, the movie is okay but not great. As I said above, the dialogue can be really cheesy in spots, and as a result, the acting is not as good as it could have been. Johnson has gone on record saying the production of the movie was kind of a mess, which definitely bleeds through into the final product. If you get this because you think Johnson and/or Dornan is hot and do not expect to watch an Academy Award-winning drama, then you probably will not be disappointed. If you expect the movie to be something it is not, then you definitely will.

Supplement Review: Muscle Pharm Assault Pre-Workout System, Grape Blast

 

This is a fairly good-tasting pre-workout mix. Some are definitely better than others, and I would put this on the better end of the spectrum. It mixes fairly well even just putting it in a water bottle and shaking it up. It does leave a bit of residue, but not too bad. It never made me jittery or anything like that, but did provide sustained energy throughout hard workouts. And, the price is very reasonable.