Here We Go Again

The amusement industry has yet been rocked again by another accident–and this one NOT minor. I’m just a bit horrified and frustrated at what happened at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom yesterday. A thirteen-year-old girl lost both of her feet. Actually, her legs were severed just above the ankles. What happened?

Well, according to evidence and eyewitnesses, a cable (one of the ones used to hall the gondolas up) on the Superman Tower of Power snapped and looped around her feet, yanking them off. Now, keep in mind, these are industrial-strength elevator cables. When the ride was about halfway up the cable broke and the ride fell. It wasn’t the initial whipping of the cable that caused the girl’s serious injuries; it was the looping of the cable around her legs combined with the falling of the gondola. Apparently, there was no emergency stop available to the ride operator. The operator had to release the gondola to get everybody on the ground so they could see what happened.

The girl was rushed to a nearby hospital and taken immediately into surgery. Authorities haven’t released the girl’s condition, but it is assumed her feet are gone. This is simply a terrible accident. This is 100% the worst amusement accident that has happened this year in the United States. Sure. There’s been minor ones throughout the season, but this is the worst yet. Let’s hope nothing else happens this major.

The scary thing is, I’ve been on one of these drop towers. The ride’s manufacturer, Intamin, has agreed to investigate the incident on Superman Tower of Power, and aid local authorities and agencies in their own investigations. They’ve recommended that all parks that have a similiar installed ride close them down until physical inspections can be made. Cedar Fair shut all of it’s Intamin-made drop towers down before Intamin’s recommendation was released.

It seems to me that this season has been particularly rife with accidents, whether minor or major. Of course, the news is having fun dramatizing even the slightest incident. However, I do agree, something is obviously wrong. Accidents should be rare–yet, we all know they can happen, but if they do happen they should be rare. Naturally, now we’re going to have people come out of the woodwork who say that all amusement rides are dangerous–no matter if they’re mechanically sound or not.

All I have to say is, I feel for the girl and her family and hope that something positive can come of this.

Robin Hood

Once again, Robin Hood and his merry men live! Well, actually, to be more precise, that’d be Robin Hood, his merry men plus the boy who’s actually a woman. Yes. The BBC has taken Robin Hood into the 21st century with its latest incarnation of the Robin Hood tale. And, I’m actually fairly impressed by it. How do you make Robin Hood, well, hip?

Forget about the tights, Robin and his men wear stylish, manly clothes. Most of the old cliches have been erased in this version. For example: Robin is not simply hanging out in the woods, waiting for fat merchants to come rolling by–well, he does do that but not to the extent you’d expect. He’s more of a man of action. After all, he’s only just returned from the crusades. In fact, he doesn’t even get to rest before he’s already back in battle (a battle of a different sort).

He is on his way home, to Locksley, when he notices something isn’t right. There’s just a feeling, about changes. People who once knew Robin treat him with suspicion and even loathing. Then, while traveling through the forest, he and Much, his faithful manservant, come across a group of guardsmen harassing an unarmed man. The man had been poaching to feed is family, and had killed one of the king’s stags. The guardsmen’s captain tells the man he’s got two options: go to trial and possibly lose a hand as punishment or confess to his crime without a trial and lose a finger right there.

The man chooses the latter, of course, knowing that a trial would most certainly result in him losing his hand, which he can’t afford to do since he needs his hand in order to work, to support his family with what little income he can. The captain doesn’t want to hear it and tells him he’s nothing more than a thief. The guardsmen dismount, preparing to cut off the man’s finger when Robin interferes. He’s tells the guardsmen to go on their way, and to leave the man be.

Disgruntled, the guardsmen leave, and Robin learns from the would-be poacher that there’s a new sheriff in town and he’s not as…fair as his predecessor. Robin promises that, now that he’s back, he’ll clean things up. When he does eventually make it to Locksley, he finds his estate and lands have been taken over by a certain Sir Guy of Gisborne who claims to have been watching over them in Robin’s absence. Upon arrival, Robin witnesses Gisborne’s mistreatment of his subjects. Naturally, Robin tells Gisborne, now that he’s home, he no longer needs his help.

Gisborne leaves Locksley in a huff; he heads straight for Nottingham. Once there, Gisborne tells the Sheriff that Robin has returned from the holy land, and has kicked him off the estate. The Sheriff laughs–laughs at Gisborne for being too soft–then says not to worry–he’ll make things right. Speaking of the Sheriff…he’s wickedly likable, meaning that you love to hate him.

Usually, in most renditions of Robin Hood up to this point, the Sheriff has been a wooden character; cruel, yes, but hardly anything more than that. This Sheriff, on the other hand, has several sides to him. We see he can be decidedly cruel, of course, but also can be intimidated, and also has a very sadistic but dry sense of humor. He’s extremely believable and is one of the best villians, in my opinion, to hit the small screen in quite a while. Whenever there’s a hanging, for example, well, you can bet the Sheriff will have on his finest black silk shirt and come out of the castle proclaiming what a wonderful day it is since there’s a hanging about to happen and that Robin is souly responsible for it.

So, getting back to the plot, the Sheriff ends up branding Robin as an outlaw, which sends Robin and Much on the run. Robin’s lands are seized and Guy takes them back. Before this happens, though, Robin decides to find the old sheriff and have a few words with him over the situation–see if he won’t help. He and Much arrive at the old sheriff’s house and are greeted at the door by his daughter, Marian, who doesn’t seem to be happy to see them. In fact, she’s got a bow drawn, an arrow nocked and ready. She tells Robin and Much to leave before she shoots one of them. Eventually conceding to her wishes, Robin and Much do leave, if a bit reluctant.

Ah, yes, Marian, she’s not the typical…well, Maid Marian. She’s fiesty and determined and willful in every sense of the word. She knows how to use a bow, can handle herself in a fight, and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. All of which, to me, makes her hotter than any incarnation of Marian before her. Looks wise, she’s precisely what you’d imagine Marian might look like if she were a real person; long dark hair, blue eyes, and a fairly curvaceous yet supple figure. Anyway. I like how Marian is portrayed. She’s no longer wooden, either. That is to say: she’s more than just a pretty face.

Later on, Robin learns that Marian didn’t want her father to be seen conversing with him because, if one of the Sheriff’s men saw such, he might have her father arrested for aiding an outlaw. There isn’t much Robin can do but head into the forest and consider his options for what to do next. While in Sherwood forest, a group of outlaws hold Robin and Much up. This is when Robin gets it into his head to help the poor–his people–any way he can. So. He convinces the outlaws, led by a man named John Little, a bull of a man, to join his cause. Though, that is easier said than done.

By the end of the first episode, Robin and the Sheriff are, of course, at odds with one another. The Sheriff hatches several devious and–what else?–cruel plans to flush Robin out of his hidey-hole and into the open where he can silence him. However, things go awry and Robin instead humiliates the Sheriff, which only strengthens the Sheriff’s resolve. Each episode, basically, pits the Sheriff’s deviousness against Robin’s cunning.

Several times Robin outwits the Sheriff at his own game, but sometimes, the Sheriff does win. The show’s writers often work humor into the stories as well, no matter how bad things seem to get. One such moment that I recall from the very first couple of episodes is when Robin confronts the Sheriff in the castle and, skillfully, rings the Sheriff’s head with several well-shot arrows.

Another thing that the writers managed to work into the new Robin Hood is the element of diversity. For example: the bow that Robin brings home with him from the crusades is recurved–a Saracen design. Much’s hat is something you’d see a Saracen wear, same thing with his scarves. Later on, in fact, a Saracen woman, masquerading as a boy at first, is added to Robin’s followers, which I think is awesome. The woman knows medicine, too, which makes her useful. So. As you can see, this isn’t your typical Robin Hood. It’s updated with a modern twist, but still pays homage to history and myth.

Also, the writer’s aren’t afraid to kill characters off, and they aren’t squeamish about going in an unexpected direction. Such as one of the episodes where a visiting Saracen prince wishes to meet with Prince John to discuss peace. However, some in his government aren’t happy with his decision and send an all-female deathsquad to kill him Yikes! Those ladies were tough, scary and deadly.

All in all, the new Robin Hood is a pretty darn, cool show. It’s worth watching, and it’s extremely enjoyable.

Letter to Mummy

I’m not sure if some of these items are common to pick up in Titan Quest, but a friend of mine found them and I have yet to. The first is a lengthy letter titled Letter to Mummy; the other is a brief message titled Form W-900. If I’m not mistaken I think these Easter Eggs can only be found with Immortal Thrones installed, but I’m not sure since I understand the first one was found in Egypt, so that might not be the case. Anyway. Here’s what Letter to Mummy says:

Camp has been great. I’ve earned lots of merit badges, and Mr. Smithicus told me I was better at Bandaging and First Aid than anyone he’s ever seen! We also get to see a guest speaker every Wednesday. You should come–then everybody can see that I’m related to a famous wrapper!

The food is awful, though. They don’t know how to cook a decent meal for us undead folk. I wish someone would make the chefs urn their keep. Really, it’s a pretty grave situation altogether. In fact, yesterday something on my plate MOVED! I was really crypt out!

Anyway, enough about me. How are you doing down there in the land of sunshine and monoliths? Still making money off that pyramid scheme? Keep it up, and you’ll be Set for life!

Adbedju Farewell,

Puniti the Unshriven, Jr.

I laughed for a good bit after reading this. Obviously, it’s poking a little fun at the game’s massive undead population. The next, below, is on a similar thing. It reads:

Grievances and Tribulations. Underworld division. Please remove bottom copy for your records.

Please describe the nature of your complaint: Sword in belly.

Please describe what we can do to help: Remove sword from belly.

Additional comments/concerns: Ouch.

Amusement Industry Troubles

Well, this weekend seemed to be bad for the amusement industry–depending how you look at. What made it bad? Well, some things happened that might make people a little wary about going back to an amusmentment park, or waterpark for that matter. Like I said before, I’m all about safety. However, I do understand that…shit happens. Yes, it’s a universal fact: shit happens.

All of it began with a girl falling from a waterslide at a waterpark, Big Splash, in Oklahoma. Actually, scary enough, what happened was a section she was going over on the park’s Master Blaster slide collasped beneath her. Both her and the section, luckily, fell about two feet, landing in a safety net below the attraction. A brief investigation by authorities revealed that the section hadn’t cracked, but the bolts holding it up had simply broke. Gees. That sounds a bit scary. Perhaps, again, another case of maintenance neglect.

Next, not really an accident but an unfortunate circumstance, the X coaster at Magic Springs in Arkansas left riders stranded at the top of its vertical lift tower after a power failure. It took firefighters 30 minutes to get passengers off the ride. Apparently, the coaster’s computer had engaged the safety brakes, and had to reset. Nobody was seriously injured, thank God, but one man was taken to a local hospital after complaining about neck pain and having a headache. The worst part was that these people weren’t just stuck, they were stuck upside down! Yikes. I know what being upside down just for a few minutes is like–all the blood rushes to your head and your brain starts to hurt. Not to mention that these people were right out in the blazing Arkansas sun. Ouch.

Then, to top all that off, a man and woman were taken at gunpoint in one of the Walt Disney World resort parking lots down in Orlando. Apparently, a Volkswagon Jetta pulled up and a man in the car asked the couple a question. When the couple headed to the car, the man inside pulled a gun, telling them to get in. They were taken to an ATM machine where they were forced to withdraw money. Then, the crooks dropped them off at the local landfill and proceeded to beat them until one of the crook’s guns went off and they got scared and left the couple.

Oh, and one more–this one is the best, too. A trio of twelve-year-old girls at a park in England started beating on a fourteen-year-old girl when the girl allegedly line-jumped. The three girls were given a two-week suspension from school. LOL Yeah. Three girls did this.

What I Bought On DVD

In an earlier post I mentioned that I treated myself for my birthday. Since I only received clothes (a few shirts and some pants) as my only gifts, I felt compelled to buy some movies and what not that I’d been wanting. I think I must be stuck in a time warp, too, since all of the movies I ended up getting were released during the 1980s. Though, the two TV series I bought are from today.

What I went shopping for:

The Complete Indiana Jones Trilogy
Red Sonja
Robin Hood (2006 BBC TV series)

What I added to my order:

The Beastmaster
Romancing the Stone/Jewel of the Nile
Hex (2006 BBC TV series)

Ghost Hunters Returns, the Bionic Woman Gets a Remake

This summer and fall, of course, many new shows will premiere on TV, along with the new seasons of fan favorites. With LOST a long way off I’ll probably be checking out some of the new shows. Though, last night, finally, the Ghost Hunters returned with an all new episode on the Sci-Fi Channel. And, just as I had hoped, they stayed in Ireland for another investigation as well as travelled to jolly ol’ England for look into happenings at the Viaduct Tavern in London, which I think Most Haunted had visited before, but, obviously, the Ghost Hunters did a much more…scientific investigation. So, I, definitely, look forward to seeing the rest of the new Ghost Hunter episodes. Now, how about something new?

Well, I was watching America’s Got Talent the other night on NBC, not a bad show, I’d watched it last season, and I saw a preview for the Bionic Woman! I didn’t even realize they were doing a remake of it. The little snippet shown on NBC didn’t do much, really, but pique my curiosity. So, I went online and discovered NBC had a full web page up and everything with multiple trailers. That made me happy.

I took a sneak peak at the show and found that it very much reminds me of the Incredible Hulk, except with a woman, obviously. The story also reminded me a little of Jessica Alba’s character from Dark Angel. With that said, there did seem to be a different feel about the show. Now, obviously, the Bionic Woman in itself isn’t new, but the remake takes everything to a totally different level. In fact, I’m really excited about this show–I think it might, possibly, have the chance of breaking out big.

The intensity factor, you’ll see what I mean if you check out the trailers on nbc.com, is up several notches. One of the scenes you can see online shows the Bionic Woman, Jamie Sommers, played by Michelle Ryan, push her boyfriend, who happens to be her doctor, with incredible force, sending him into a glass window, knocking him out cold. Of course, the scene shows that she didn’t realize her own strength. Awesome. Then, we learn, much like in Dark Angel or the Incredible Hulk, that the technology her boyfriend used to save her is actually part of some top-secret military project. The military, naturally, claims Jamie as their own, forcing her into service. However, she escapes and so begins her life on the run.

She ends up meeting the original Bionic Woman, which happens to be out to, hmm, maybe retrieve her? Or, maybe not. Looks to me the original has something to prove. The two of them–the new and old–get into I guess what would amount to a cat fight. Albeit one of superhuman strength

All in all, I’m fairly excited about the new Bionic Woman series. I noticed on the IMDB that, according to them, fourteen episodes (including the pilot) have been ordered by NBC. If this is any indication, the execs seem to think the show will go over–and I hope it does, because it looks good. The previews are definitely enough to impress, though we’ll see if it delivers.

Death Machines

I’m a big fan of rollercoasters and the amusement industry. I love being accelerated to high speeds, flipped, turned, and otherwise just having fun. However, with that said, it’s sad to see when things go horribly wrong and a good time goes from good to bad in just one fraction of a second. And what is even worse is when it happens due to negligence. I mean, operator and passenger error probably account for most of the accidents that have happened in recent years–and in the past. But, when something mechanical fails, well, usually it involves negligence. Either somebody didn’t do their job right, or the owners/operators wouldn’t let that person do their job. That’s when things sicken me. Accidents shouldn’t have to happen on an amusement ride. They should be rare (and usually are), but never should an investigation after an accident reveal negligence on the park’s or their employee’s part. Never.

There have been several accidents that stand out in my mind, no pun intended for below, that were due to outright, blatant negligence. One of those was of a beautiful, young blonde girl who died while riding a carnival ride in California when the rusted bolts on her lapbar came loose and she was launched out of her seat and hit one of the ride’s sidewalls. That was terrible. It killed her instantly. That was negligence because the owners/operators should have replaced the bolts before ever operating the ride! Idiots. Then, another one that I remember hearing about happened at the Edmondton Mall in Canada at the indoor Galaxyland park where a train derailed on the Mindbender rollercoaster and sent several cars hurling into a concrete support, killing several people. Investigators found that, against the manufacturers instructions, the ride had not received proper routine maintenance. The park blamed the manufacturer for not providing them with an English manual, since the manufacturer was German. I’m not sure what happened there, but it sounded like they used this ridiculous story to cover their butts.

Again, this leads me into where I’m going with this. Those two accidents, like I said, really stand out in my mind. Well, back on May 7th of this very year, a coaster in Japan, known as Fujin Raijin II, a Togo stand-up (now you can understand why I said no pun intended earlier), broke an axle and the second car derailed, tipping over onto the emergency walkway, killing one person and injuring nineteen others. Of course, investigators ended up discovering that none of the parts on the ride had ever been replaced. However, as of yet, blame hasn’t been placed anyone yet. And all other Togo stand-ups, the remaining four in operation, have not reported any problems. So, it’s hard to say in this case whether it’s negligence or not, though I suspect, well, hate to say it, that it might be.

Above is an actual picture of the aftermath. Scary, huh? Yeah. That’s what a derailment looks like on a rollercoaster. You can see how the person probably died, too. He/she was probably crushed to death. There really, in my mind, was no excuse for this accident to have occured. Now, you think the Japanese would be more safety-conscious, but apparently many park owner/operators are (or have been) lax when it comes to maintenance and safety. However, when something does go wrong, the Japanese public demand answers and get very supersticious. Chances are we’ll see the Fujin Raijin II torn down and scrapped. That’s generally how the Japanese deal with such things, because the ride has had bad fortune, I doubt anybody would ever ride it again even if it was deemed fit to reopen.

You’d think though this would raise awareness. This accident, and all others like it from the past, should tell us all that safety is paramount for a good time. Amusement rides are built for fun, not to kill. They’re meant to be enjoyed. They’re not meant to be the site of disaster and death–leave that for war. So, let us remember, they’re fun machines, not death machines.

Getting Older…

I kind of forgot to mention this, but last Friday was my birthday. Yah! I guess…

On my birthday, I somehow managed to get the day off and ended up sitting around not doing much of anything, which was good in one way, bad in another. My mom invited me over for spaghetti dinner, which I accepted, of course–free food, I’m there. The cake was a little strange, though. Why? Well, it wasn’t really a cake. She had some watermelon cut up. Thankfully, she didn’t put any candles on top of it; I doubt melted wax and watermelon would taste very good. The healthy approach was OK with me since I like watermelon and had already had a huge slice of some damn good cake at work the day before.

From my parents I received clothes (several shirts and pants) for my gifts. My brother got me a $30 gift card from Books-A-Million, which I’m sure I’ll put to good use, though I think I would rather of just had the money Oh, and I received several cards from various people–some of whom I’m surprised even remembered it was my birthday, or that I’m even alive.

Well, I’m inching closer to thirty. Dammit. I hate getting older. Soon, I’ll be the senile ogre. I won’t be able to see the bones on the floor any more. Ugh! And I feel fat, too. LOL Too much red meat Seriously, I need to go on a diet or get a new job–yes, a new job would probably work.

Since I didn’t get but clothes for my birthday, I treated myself. I ended up going online to Amazon.com and bought a few things. I was in the DVD section and decided to get the new Robin Hood BBC series, which just came out today, and HEX, another BBC show (sort of like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but without the vampires). Then, I got a wild hair and decided to get the Indiana Jones trilogy, Red Sonja (an early Arnold film that I’ve heard is good, and came right after the two Conan films), The Beastmaster (because I always wanted it on DVD), and the two Romancing the Stone movies, because I’d never really seen them but heard they were decent.

Unfortunately, it looks like it’ll be awhile before I buy anything else except for food and gas (damn gas, I hate buying it). My finances are getting a little out of hand. Things will be better though once I pay that TV I bought paid off. Good thing I didn’t opt for the 50″ model, because I might not have been able to make all the payments on it before my 12 months of no interest is up. I might be cutting it close now just as it is.