Author Archives: Bizarre Brunette

Spider-Man: Miles Morales

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In 2018, I played Marvel’s Spider-Man on PS4, and it was amazing. Superhero games can be great or terrible, and I’m happy Marvel’s Spider-Man was the former. Once it was announced that Miles Morales would be featured in his own game, I knew I would play it as soon as it was released. My fiancé bought my copy for me as a Christmas present, and I installed it right away. This past weekend, I finished the story, 100% of all districts, and unlocked all the trophies I wanted to unlock. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales was a genuinely fun gaming experience, although I felt Miles didn’t get the same treatment as Peter Parker did.

Miles is on winter break, which gives him time to finish his homework and train under Peter. Peter has to leave town for a while, allowing Miles to be the main Spider-Man. Miles begins investigating Roxxon after a group called The Underground breaks into the main facility. Miles finds evidence that Roxxon’s energy invention, Nuform, could be making people sick. Miles, out of the goodness of his heart, wants to bring Roxxon to justice, while The Underground wants to exact revenge and make them pay for their mistake. Miles is torn as he finds a personal connection to The Underground. Relatively inexperienced, Miles struggles with right and wrong while hiding his identity from his family.

The gameplay in Spider-Man: Miles Morales is the same as the 2018 game. Why change a system that isn’t broken? One unique difference between Miles and Peter is Miles’ “Venom Blast,” which is a bioelectrical charge Miles can build up and blast enemies with. It’s useful in combat situations and can be used to heal Miles if needed. The Venom punch is what I used most often in combat situations and helps push back powerful enemies.

I loved completing the side quests! They felt personable to Miles and his story. One side quest, unlocked after completing the main story, is collecting postcards. Mile’s mom hides postcards around the city, and taped on the back of them were USB drives with messages from Mile’s dad. As a reminder, Miles’ dad was killed in the previous Spider-Man game. It allowed Miles to hear from his dad on his birthday. There’s another side quest where Miles has to locate a cat. After completing this side quest, Miles can unlock a suit with Spider-Cat! The orange tabby gets his mask and gets to hang out in Miles’ backpack as he glides throughout the city. Of course, this suit was my favorite to unlock.

Additionally, Spider-Man: Miles Morales has a great soundtrack. The songs on the album embody Miles’ experience growing up in Brooklyn and moving to Harlem. I have been listening to “I’m Ready” by Jaden and “This is My Time” by Lecrae on repeat.

Throughout playing Spider-Man: Miles Morales, I found myself comparing it to the 2018 game. The Miles Morales game is short, with the campaign taking 8 – 12 hours to finish. Marvel’s Spider–Man had a story lasting anywhere between 17 – 23 hours. Marvel’s Spider-Man was twice as long as the Miles Morales game. When playing through Miles Morales, I found myself thinking that this game didn’t take me as long to finish. Besides the length of the story, Miles Morales hasn’t been given any DLC, unlike the three DLC stories for the 2018 game. When comparing the games, it’s clear that the Miles Morales game wasn’t on the same level. It’s disappointing to say the least.

So what’s next for Miles? While writing my review, I looked to see if any DLC has been announced for the game, and I didn’t see anything. The next Spider-Man game should be released in 2022. It seems Miles is a placeholder for fans until the sequel is released for Peter. I wish Insomniac Games would work on DLC for Miles, as his story felt too short.

The Vision Complete Collection

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Image is a graphic novel cover for The Vision Collection by Tom King. It shows a circular map of sorts with all the relationships connecting. There is Vision and his wife and their two kids and dog connected. Scarlet Witch is also connected amongst other heroes.

Every Friday has been devoted to watching the latest episode of WandaVision. My fiancé and I have been hooked as each episode reveals a piece of the story leading to Wanda and Vision’s life in their sitcom. Since I’m loving the show, I wanted to find more comics that detail Vision and Wanda’s love story. I ended up purchasing The Vision Collection, written by Tom King, and the show is supposedly inspired by aspects of the graphic novel. The Vision Collection is an engaging, albeit dark, take on Vision’s life.

Vision is lonely. He was with Scarlet Witch, and they had a falling out. As a result, Vision created his wife, Virginia, and two kids, Vin and Viv. Vision’s family certainly resembles him, with pink skin, bright green hair, and a yellow stone on their forehead. The Vision family even adopted a robot dog! Vision was still an Avenger, and all was well, or was it?

The story was captivating! Tom King does such an amazing job painting Vision as someone with more depth. It’s easy to pass him off as being a robot; however, King can craft Vision as someone to empathize with, even though he’s not human. Vision has trouble relating to human emotions, yet he crafts this family because he wants this experience. He wants to be above what he was created for by Ultron, and while working with the Avengers satisfies this need, Vision wants more. This graphic novel felt like reading a version of WandaVision, except Vision is the star. I kept reading Vision’s dialogue with Paul Bettany’s voice in my head, which fits the character.

Image is a page from the graphic novel, The Vision Collection. It shows a typical suburban house with a white wrap around porch. Front and center of this image is a green mailbox that says The Visions in cursive.

The art is phenomenal. I like the greens and pinks of Vision’s colors mixed with the panels. The covers of each issue gave off this eerie foreboding of something amiss in the suburbs of DC. One cover features a floating mailbox saying “The Visions” in cursive. There’s something about the cover that gives me chills. Their house is in the background, and it’s slightly blurred. I think it says a lot about the art of a graphic novel if I’m sitting and staring at the cover, analyzing why this cover is drawn the way it is.

Before the introduction of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I didn’t think much of Vision. After watching WandaVision and reading The Vision Collection, I understand how complex Vision is. This is one of the best graphic novels I have ever read. I never considered Vision to be an interesting character; however, this novel made me think otherwise. I will say this novel doesn’t feature Scarlet Witch as much as I would have liked, since the focus is on Vision. I rated The Vision Collection by Tom King five stars on Goodreads.

Vampire: The Masquerade Shadows of New York

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Image is a screenshot from the game, Vampire: The Masquerade Shadows of New York. It shows two women. One is sitting cross legged. In one hand, she's holding a lit a cigarette. She's wearing a cross necklace. To her left, there's a woman with short white blonde hair in a bob. She's leaning in close to her. Her eyes are closed and her red lips are slightly open.
Vampire: The Masquerade. The screenshot was taken by me.

Last year, I invited a couple of friends down to my apartment to play Vampire: The Masquerade. Vampire: The Masquerade is a role-playing game created by White Wolf where players create their vampires and roam around a dark city. Vampire: The Masquerade is one of my favorite role-playing games, as I love the dark aesthetic of the game. I found on Steam a variety of different Vampire: The Masquerade video games and decided to play them. Overall, it’s a gritty gaming experience, although I was left wanting more.

Vampire: The Masquerade Shadows of New York tells the story of Julia, who’s a reporter in NYC. The story she’s writing falls through, and she’s swiftly fired from her job. On the subway home, she’s approached by a vampire whom she’s “embraced,” which is Vampire: the Masquerade terminology for being turned into a vampire. As Julia gets comfortable with vampire society, she’s sent to investigate the murder of an older, more senior member of their clan. As she interviews other vampires, she realizes the murder is only the beginning of a sinister plot set to unfold.

Image is a screenshot from the game. It shows a woman on the edge of a building looking down at Time Square in New York. There's a text box to the left and it says Julia and underneath it says, Wow. What a night.

I loved the art in Shadows of New York; it was easily the highlight of playing the game. Each scene Julia was in had darker tones mixed with a dark purple, which reminds me of the cover of the Vampire: The Masquerade rulebook. The above screenshot is when Julia was embraced. She looks down at New York with sudden darkness she never had access to before. Everything artistic about the game was aesthetically pleasing to look at.

Shadows of New York is described on Steam as a visual novel, which is fitting for the game. There wasn’t much interaction I had as the player; it was a lot of listening to the dialogue and choosing actions when prompted. The game prided itself on being able to sway the outcome of the story; however, there were only five major choices for Julia. I wish there were more. I don’t feel duped, as this was a visual novel, so it’s more about viewing the story versus participating in the game, but I wish I were able to choose more outcomes in the game.

Besides the interaction piece, the game felt too short. According to Steam, I only played this game for five hours. There isn’t anything I need to replay since I finished the game twice, and I have unlocked all the achievements. I think it was worth it to replay this game twice to see both endings. Five hours for two full playthroughs of the game means each time I played a full game, it was about two and a half hours apiece. The game itself is priced at $12.99, which I would say is fair for what I got. I wonder if DLC will get released for this because I would buy it in a heartbeat.

Vampire: The Masquerade Shadows of New York was an enjoyable game; however, I wish there were more to the game. I want a game released similar to Shadows of New York, but make it more investigative. Let me, as the player, examine crime scenes and pick which mortal I can feed on. Let me customize my vampire, pick my clan, and change the appearance of my vampire. Once that game is released, I will be a happy vampire camper.

Just Mercy (2019)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by
Image is a movie poster for the film, Just Mercy. It shows a man in a suit, he's dressed professionally. In yellow, there are other people behind him. It says "Just Mercy - Every Generation has its hero meet ours".

If I have extra time at work, I listen to TED talks. One TED talk I recently watched was by lawyer Bryan Stevenson, who talks about racial injustice within our legal system. Bryan Stevenson is the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, a nonprofit organization that provides legal assistance to those arrested illegally and those who are innocent of the crimes they have supposedly committed. The Equal Justice Initiative fights back against the use of capital punishment in certain states. He wrote a book about this injustice titled Just Mercy, which the movie was based on. I watched Just Mercy, and it left me feeling broken and infuriated.

Just Mercy follows Bryan (played by Michael B. Jordan) as he is beginning to establish the Equal Justice Initiative. While reviewing cases in Alabama, he’s introduced to Walter “Johnny D” McMillian (played by Jamie Foxx), who’s in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Walter has lost hope in his case due to several lawyers offering their assistance and then declining the case. It’s not until Bryan meets with Johnny’s family does Johnny realizes his intentions are pure. Bryan faces several roadblocks in the case, such as being physically intimidated by the police, the blatant refusal by the judge of a retrial, even though the evidence is shady, and the reluctant town, which is convinced Johnny is guilty. Bryan barrels through the obstacles, and ultimately, Johnny is released from prison.

The cast of this movie did a great job at replicating Bryan’s story. Michael B. Jordan has quickly become one of my favorite actors on screen. I wasn’t expecting to see Brie Larson in this. She plays Bryan’s partner. Jamie Foxx, of course, does a great job. The best performance in this film comes from Rob Morgan, who plays another death row inmate, Herbert Richardson. While Bryan does everything in his power to rescue him, Richardson is executed. Morgan’s emotional performance as he awaited being escorted to the electric chair was powerful. Where was his Oscar Nomination??

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, this movie infuriated me. After watching the film, I read more about Johnny D’s story, Richardson’s story, and another inmate featured in the film. The movie is accurate based on these real events. Our justice system is broken, and Bryan is one of the passionate fighters who is fighting a just cause. Racism is responsible for putting Black men in prison for crimes they didn’t commit. As a reminder, this story took place in Alabama in the 80s. This only occurred 30 years ago. I’m against the death penalty, and this movie reminded me of why I hold this stance.

Just Mercy was a heartwrenching story. It’s a film that’s uncomfortable to watch, although that’s part of the importance of the film. I have added Just Mercy to my TBR on Goodreads.

Becoming a Bodmer – Wedding Planning

Posted in Life Lately by
Image is a photo of me and my fiance. We are sitting on a rock and I am giving him a kiss on the cheek. Behind us, the trees are changing colors with a mixture of green, red, orange, and yellow leaves.

I haven’t written a personal post in a while, so here it goes. Wedding planning has taken up the majority of my time. This week, I was organizing my hair and makeup schedule for the bridal party, along with booking our hotel block. I’m trying not to get stressed with having to remember everything I need to book. Throughout this experience, I’m discovering I don’t like planning events. I’m going wedding dress shopping next weekend, and the actual dress shopping isn’t even the part I’m most looking forward to. I’m excited to gather my friends together and to get their honest opinion when I try on dresses. With this post, I wanted to share what I have learned from planning a wedding, along with documenting this experience.

Planning a wedding is a lot of work, so I find it’s crucial to be organized. My fiancé works in finance, so he created an Excel sheet with our vendors and what we owe. Additionally, we have been logging any down payments or payments made throughout the year. I have also been using my planner to log any checklist items I need to complete for that particular week. This helped me gather almost all the addresses I needed for save the dates. It helps make wedding planning more feasible versus forgetting what I’m supposed to be doing this week.

The fun part about wedding planning is having an opinion on how the wedding should be. I’m all for the Fall theme. We are planning to have white pumpkins on various shelves at the winery, which will feature pictures of loved ones who have passed. Our floral arrangement will be a mix of dark red, orange, and mustard yellow. I still haven’t picked out centerpieces for the tables, so that’s a work in progress.

While the wedding will be a fun day, I’m more excited to say I’m married to my partner. He is a lovely human who is respectful to anyone he meets. He has always lifted me when I’m down, and I love his knowledge about cars. He will fix things on my car and take my car to get the check engine light looked at. He is someone whom I want to grow with as we go through the various phases in our lives. After our wedding in October, we will be buying a house. There are a couple of trips I want to go on before I’m fully ready to have kids, but that’s something we both want eventually.

I realize this post was less of a “wedding planning” and more of a personal tone with the relationship I have with my fiancé. I plan on documenting some aspects of our wedding planning, as that’s been taking up a lot of my time. Time has been flying by, and before I know it, it will be time to walk down the aisle in the vineyard.

Rocketman (2019)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by

My mom was a teenager when Elton John released “Rocket Man”. I told my mom I watched the Rocketman biopic, and she reminisced about Elton John and how his music had shaped her younger years. When I spoke to my mom about Elton John, she mentioned his charity work for HIV/AIDS and how he was a personal friend of Princess Diana. This biopic focuses less on his charity work and more on his life story. I thought this was a fun, musical film. The soundtrack is also quite good, as I often find myself listening to it while I work.

The film opens up with Elton (played by Taron Egerton) in rehab, wearing an orange horned costume. The film shows Elton’s (his name at birth was Reginald Dwight) home life with his absent father, stern mother, and lovely grandmother. Elton is a brilliant piano player, leading him to study at the Royal Academy of Music. Eventually, Elton partners with Bernie Taupin (played by Jamie Bell), who writes the music Elton plays. Elton, like many musicians, is thrown into the rock and roll scene by his manager, John Reid (played by Richard Madden). Elton struggles with his sexuality, weight, and his home life, which leads him to go to rehab.

I thought Taron Egerton did a fabulous job portraying Elton. Taron did do all of his own singing, which was something Elton wanted for the actor who played him in the movie. Richard Madden is one of my favorite actors, and he was ruthless in this movie. If you haven’t watched Bodyguard on Netflix, you absolutely need to. Bernie and Elton’s friendship is so special, and it felt like Jamie and Taron had legitimate chemistry together.

This biopic does feel a bit more like a musical than other biopics I have watched. I found myself comparing this to Bohemian Rhapsody while watching the film. In Bohemian Rhapsody, it was less of a musical, more of a serious film with the music playing in the background. In Rocketman, there are choreographed musical routines, especially towards the beginning of the film. I’m a bit picky with musicals; they are usually not my favorite genre to watch. However, I think Rocketman feels like an Elton John movie, and it captures Elton’s flamboyant persona.

Towards the end of the film, words appear on screen detailing Elton’s life post-rehab. He has been sober for 28 years! He’s been sober longer than I have been alive. There is a brief description of Elton’s charity work with AIDS. The Elton John AIDS Foundation was established in 1992 to end the HIV epidemic. I remember watching an Oprah Winfrey interview with Elton as he talked about why he needed to change and why he’s passionate about HIV. He mentions the death of Ryan White, who was a teenager who died of the disease. Elton used his fame and fortune to help others, and I think that’s something I wish Rocketman would have touched on more.

Rocketman was a fun film with a decent soundtrack. Rocketman can be streamed on Hulu.

King In Black & Jinny Hex – Comic Single Issues

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Every week, I visit Hot Comics and Collectibles to collect my pulls. Before I pay for my comics, I tend to wander the comic shelves and pick up random issues to see if I would like the series. I picked up quite a bit throughout these weekly comic trips. While I still have a lot to read, I finished a couple of issues, and I’m loving what I picked up. Instead of doing a full review of every single issue, I’m going to describe the comic issue in one word. Additionally, I will share what I rated every single issue. I have been using Goodreads to track the single-issue comics I have been reading.

Black Cat #1 MacKay, Villa, and Reber

Image is a comic book cover for Black Cat King in Black #1. It shows a woman dressed in an all black leather zip up. She has white on her collar. She has white hair and she's wearing a black mask.

One Word: Sassy

This comic perfectly portrays Black Cat as she joins the King in Black Marvel crossover series. I loved this issue, and I have added this to my pull list for however long King In Black lasts. I rated this issue five stars.

Gwenom vs. Carnage #1 McGuire, Flaviano, and Renzi

Image is a comic called Gwenom Vs. Carnage. It shows a woman posed in a side lunge with an all black suit, but it looks inky. There's hints of red. Behind her are several pillars, almost like a wreckage of a building.

One Word: Unexpected

Gwen Stacy is swinging home from Empire State University when she’s attacked by Knull’s symbiote creatures. She ends up battling Carnage throughout the issue. I rated this issue four stars.

Jinny Hex Special Visaggio, Melnikov, Guerrero

Image is a comic called Jinny Hex. It shows a woman in the desert. She's sitting on a crate that's glowing. She has a rifle on the back of her shoulder. She looks happy or at least in good spirits. She's smiling, but her mouth is closed.

One Word: Dauntless

Jinny Hex is related to Jonah Hex. She is a mechanic at a local autobody shop when her father stops by. Her father steals a supernatural item from her mother, and Jinny won’t let that stand. Jinny and her friend, Lady Bird, go on an adventure to stop her ruthless father. This is a one-shot, which is unfortunate because I loved this issue. I rated this issue five stars.

Let me know what comics you’re reading in the comments below. I want to grow my pull list!

Reaching Out to Old Friends

Posted in Life Lately by

Last week, I reached out to a friend of mine. She lives in Minneapolis, and we have been friends since third grade. I reached out to her regarding wedding information; however, we ended up talking for much longer. The week after, she called me again, and we ended up talking for almost an hour. Whether our conversation was about wedding stuff, anime, or playing The Sims, it was refreshing to hear what was going on in her life. It’s sad because the thought that went through my head originally was “she’s probably busy, and she won’t answer”. My assumption was incorrect. This post serves as a reminder to check in on your friends.

I was watching the news with my fiancé this week, and I saw a news story that made me sad. Mental illness is skyrocketing in the pandemic. This is unsurprising. It’s a stressful time of trying to stay quarantined, not seeing older family members, and avoiding events or groups of people. I find myself longing to attend conventions again. I miss being around people and cosplay! I haven’t planned any cosplays in a while because I have no place to go. I’m an introvert to a certain degree, and even I find myself feeling lonely or missing old aspects of my life.

My friend and I are set to hang out sometime today, and I can’t wait. I’m hoping we will play Sims, watch anime, and play with her new puppy. This is my reminder to you to reach out to anyone you haven’t seen in a while. Send them a text, Facebook message, call, or DM them on Twitter. It doesn’t matter if it’s been six months since you last reached out. It feels good to receive a message from someone I haven’t spoken to in a while.

Image is a photo o fme and my friend. We are smiling at the camera. I'm wearing a Darth Vader shirt with sunglasses on my head.

Windpeaks – Summer Camp Themed Hidden Objects Game

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Image is a screenshot from the game Wind Peaks. The logo Wind Peaks is behind a wooden board. The I in Wind is a magnifying glass while the A in peaks is a triangle leaf. Below, it shows the menu options along with a group of people in a blue camper van. They are driving in the wilderness.
Wind Peaks.

Last year, I played Hidden Through Time, a hidden objects game available on Steam. Hidden Through Time was one of my favorite games I played in 2020. Steam recommended Wind Peaks, another hidden objects game centered around kids heading off to summer camp. The premise of Wind Peaks sounded promising, but I found myself comparing Wind Peaks to Hidden Through Time. When I compared the two, Wind Peaks was fun, but I loved Hidden Through Time more.

Wind Peaks included a story with cut scenes in between each map. The story can be quickly summarized as kids heading off to summer camp in search of buried treasure. The treasure is buried somewhere within the camp, and collecting these objects will aid in their search. I’m not sure why a story was introduced because I’m not sure if any of the kids were given names. I liked the overall aesthetic of Wind Peaks. The summer camp theme gave off a cozy, relaxing feel while playing.

Image is another screenshot from the game. There are three side by side images. The first is a blue camper van driving. The second is the blue van stopping and a door opens and the third is a boy walking to what appears to be an outhouse.

I wasn’t a fan of the hint system in Wind Peaks. To get a hint, you would click on the object. A countdown would begin, and if the object wasn’t found within that time, the object would be revealed on the map. That’s not a hint system. In Hidden Through Time, a hint is included above the object, so I could still find the object on my own without it being given away.

Additionally, I felt the maps in Wind Peaks were too big. I couldn’t zoom out to view the map as a whole, so it took a while to visually scan the map. I wished either the maps would have been smaller or the zoom function would have allowed me to view the whole map. I also can’t stand using WASD instead of the arrow keys. The arrow keys make sense; I’m not sure why I couldn’t have used them to move around the map.

Wind Peaks was an enjoyable, cozy, cabin hidden objects game. The gameplay, in my opinion, could have been better, but it didn’t take away from the experience. The way Wind Peaks ended left open the potential of new maps being added to the game. I would play through the new maps in Wind Peaks, although I hope the hint system is overhauled. Hidden object games are a nice distraction from the console games I’m currently playing through. I would rate Wind Peaks a 6.5 / 10.

WandaVision (2021)

Posted in Bizarre Brunette Big-Screen Watches by
Image is a poster for WandaVision. On the left, ti shows Wanda and she's partially in black and white. On the right, it shows Vision who is more in color, but some in black and white. They have a home together and their home is in black and white. There's static on the poster separating these two universes.

There’s a reason I have an annual subscription to Disney+. After watching The Mandalorian, I was looking for something new to watch. WandaVision caught my eye, and after work, I decided to watch the series. I’m intrigued as to how WandaVision will play out, as I’m not exactly sure what’s going on in the story.

Wanda Maximoff (played by Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (played by Paul Bettany) are a married couple living in suburbia. Each episode released so far has shown Wanda and Vision in a different time era. It’s not explicitly stated which time period each episode occurs in. The first episode is clearly the 50’s as Wanda stays home cooking and levitating dishes while she cleans them. In the second episode, Wanda is wearing pants, so it must be later on. There are certain occurrences between both episodes leading Wanda and Vision to be hesitant about the life they are living. WandaVision has been compared to classic sitcoms, although my first impression of the series reminded me of The Truman Show starring Jim Carrey.

I’m happy with the WandaVision series thus far! Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany have great chemistry together. They cover for each other when there’s the off chance someone might discover their powerful abilities. One fun scene to watch was in the second episode when Vision and Wanda were performing for a talent show. Vision would complete these magic tricks using his natural strengths. Wanda would summon an object to counteract Vision’s trick. It shows how they work together, even if it’s as simple as a neighborhood talent show.

There are so many unanswered questions! At the end of episode #2, there’s a beekeeper who appears out of a storm drain. I’m not sure who that’s supposed to be. Additionally, Wanda hears her name being called out on a radio. This moment in the second episode is why I was reminded of The Truman Show. WandaVision is supposed to tie into the Doctor Strange sequel, so I’m curious as to how this will be achieved. Are Wanda and Vision in an alternate reality? Were they kidnapped and forced to be in this show to entertain others? How is Vision back because he died in Avengers: Infinity War? There was an ad in one of the episodes of WandaVision listing Hydra as a sponsor. I thought that was a clever “blink and you miss it” Easter Egg.

If you have already watched WandaVision, please comment your theories in the comments below! The third episode of WandaVision will air on Friday, January 22nd, only on Disney+.