Comic Review - Terror Titans 1-6

Title/Storyline
Terror Titans 1-6

Publish Date
2008
Creative Team
Ted McKeever & Joe Bennett
Publisher
DC

Story
This mini series takes place after the Final Crisis where the minions of Darkseid have all been covertly reincarnated on earth. The Final Crisis has left the Dark Side club (an underground super-human gladiator-style fight club) without its boss and Clock King* seizes the day.

*Who is Clock King? With a name like that, who’d take him seriously? But after this mini, he has gained some degree of respect from me as a villain.

The Ravager (Rose Wilson, Deathstroke’s daughter – Is she a villain? Or is she a hero?) & Clock King get the spotlight in this series. Of course the series would not be called Terror Titans if they were not in the spotlight as well. They are a group of second-rate legacy villains but Clock King made them face their personal demons so that he could turn them into real villains – not second stringers.
- Copperhead
- Disruptor
- Persuader
- Dreadbolt
The series is extremely confusing but it does not really matter in the end as the following objectives have been achieved by the series’ end
- bringing Static into the DCU
- Establishing the Terror Titans as formidable villains
- Upping the amp on Clock King’s villain-o-meter

Art
Bennett’s art is nothing amazing as he is inconsistent. There would be panels where he shines but in others, amateurish (as is evident from the covers alone). He would be a credible filler artist for creators that are in a pinch.
Additional Comments
I was quite taken aback by the level of violence in the series as there was quite a bit of visceral killing. I was quite shocked to see some members of the Titans die early on in the series.

This Mini Series is really hard to read as a stand-alone story as there is just too much back-ground info that is needed to really enjoy this series. For instance, readers won’t know the developments of Infinity Inc., how Ravager (Deathstroke’s daughter whom I thought was a Teen Titan) ended up with Clock King, and how Static (Yes, Static from the failed Milestone Universe) ended up having a history in the DC Universe?

Subsequently, I found out that it was actually a sequel to a story arc from the main Teen Titans series. Sigh…
Only for die-hard Titan fans I’m afraid but in the future, fans may want to pick up this mini to see how the 3 objectives I mentioned above went down - if Static, Clock King or the Terror Titans make an impact in the DCU.

Food Review - Cozy House Restaurant

NameCozy House Restaurant (Great Eastern Mall)
- not to be confused with Cozy Corner @ Ampang Park
FoodChinese (halal) & Western
LocationL3, Great Eastern Mall, Jalan Ampang

Getting there
Once you are in the mall, just head to the 3rd level. You can’t miss it because it’s a prominent feature on that level (see picture).
ParkingThere are lots of parking bays in the mall. Alternatively, you may also park at the small open air parking next to the mall.
ServiceI have been there a couple of times including peak and non-peak times. Service from the wait staff during peak periods (lunch) can be a little testy but during non-peak times, it’s slightly better as I find them to be not very attentive to customers.
Ambience It’s quite simple and nice enough as it is definitely better decorated and cleaner than a coffee shop. The dim lighting on the wooden furniture helps to improve the overall feel and ambience.
TasteFor a Halal restaurant, I’d say the food tastes pretty good. (I say this because for Non-Halal Chinese restaurants, they have the option to use Pork Lard and Broth in their cooking). I guess this is why this place is quite popular among those who are into Halal fare.
PresentationAltho’ they use plastic plates for the food, it is still pretty presentable when served.
VarietyThey serve so many items in their menu that it begs one to make repeat visits to try them all out. Items include dishes that go with rice (eg: Hot Plate Japanese tofu, Chinese Stir-Fried Vegetables, Egg Foo Yong, "Ku Low Yuk"or Fried Pork Cutlets in Sweet & Sour Sauce, etc), or individual meals such as Fried Rice or Noodles and Western dishes like Chicken Chops.
Value for MoneySurprisingly not too pricey, which partly explains its popularity and loyal following.
OverallAn Ideal place to bring your Muslim friends to try our some of the more popular Chinese Dishes such as Cantonese Fried Kuay Teow (flat rice noodles), Ku Low Yuk (Fried Pork Cutlets in Sweet & Sour Sauce) and Chinese Styled vegetables. Prices are pretty reasonable as well for a restaurant that’s located in a mall.

Stuff So Good...2

More of the good stuff.

Movie Review - Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Updated)

Movie Title
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (aka Transformers 2)

It's confirmed there will be a 3rd Transformers movie by Michael Bay out by 2012 (not 2011)!
Year
2009
Genre
Action, Sci-Fi

Megatron had a boss who wore a head-piece!

Story
Apparently, the Cybertronians had come to Earth way longer than we had been told in Movie 1. The Fallen (one of the few earliest Cybertronians, called Primes, tasked to find Energon - the “energy food” that keep Cybertronians alive – all across the universe. However, Energon is harvested by destroying the sun. So they had a strict creed that only worlds with no living beings were allowed to be harvested. As with any group, there is always a black sheep among them as the Fallen, a name he earned for wanting to harvest our sun, dear old Sol. This forced the other Primes to stop him. They did, however, the destructive sun harvesting machine is still intact on Earth. The only thing stopping the Fallen from finishing what he started so long ago is that the key to trigger the machine, the Matrix, is hidden.) was here thousands of years before Megatron crashed in the North Pole.

The movie is set 2 years after the last movie and the Autobots have joined forces with American Military in an outfit called NEST, tasked to hunt down any remaining Decepticons hiding on Earth. The Autobots have added a few new members to their team including Arcee, Sideswipe, Skids & Mudflap. Another Government official, while making a case to shut down NEST, had inadvertently revealed that the US government is still holding on to a shard of the Allspark cube, to an orbiting Soundwave who was tapping the ComSats (Communications Satellites) for intel just like this.

Meanwhile, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) was packing his things preparing to go to college when he accidentally discovered and activated a shard of the Allspark cube still lodged in his jacket. Somehow, this had planted the location of the Matrix into Sam’s mind in Cybertronian code. These 2 events trigger the Decepticon’s new campaign to find the shards and revive Megatron (and this time, he returns in the form of a Cybertronian tank.).
During this retrieve and revive Megatron phase, we see Ravage and the Constructicons (who would form the giant robot Devastator) deployed. Sam was in danger yet again as the Decepticons need to extract the location of the Matrix from his mind. In their effort to decipher what it is that Sam sees in his mind, they manage to find a Decepticon who had been hidden here on Earth for years – Jetfire. As Jetfire is an old Decepticon (What?! Weren’t the audience paying attention in the 1st movie? Transformers are all old as they had been at war for thousands of years already!) and he’s had it being a Decepticon and decides to switch allegiances.
Well, it all comes to together in the deserts of Egypt where we see lots of robots fighting, people running and explosions!

Acting
Well, Megan Fox had skimpy clothing on for most of the movie and was running around. That’s pretty darn good acting! Oh yeah, there were some other people and robots in there as well in many scenes with lots of explosions!

OK, I have to say John Turturro as Agent Simmons is brilliant. He, along with Leo (Ramon Rodriguez) - Sam’s college room-mate who is a fanatical conspiracy-theorist - and Sam’s parents provide much of the lighter moments to the movie.Overall
What was the Terminator Wannabe babe, Alice (Isabel Lucas), doing in the movie as Sam’s college mate? (Update: According to message boards at TFW2005, the character of Alice is a Pretender.) Seriously, for a moment, I thought I was watching bits of Terminator. Not cool – won’t go down well with fans!

I know the powers that be want to accommodate the younger audiences but the Skids and Mudflap twins – C’mon! And for those who have seen what Jetfire was supposed to look like in robot mode – the movie version is…let’s just say, they toy would probably not sell very well.

I am sure many fans and casual viewers would be disappointed by the non-existent air-time or character development given to new characters on both sides of the divide:
- Soundwave (my all time Transformer along with Shockwave)
- Sidewswipe

- Jolt
- Sideways
- Arcee
- Chromia

Despite its flaws, there were lots of good stuff to sink your teeth into. So, despite some of the bad-press it’s received thus far, I’d still recommend it as a must watch regardless if you are a fan or not.

Rating: 7/10

Order your copy here: http://astore.amazon.com/eareotbi-20/detail/B001KZIRM2

Stuff So Good...1

This is a new entry type (parked under other bits) that I just have to call “Stuff so good…” which provides the avenue to share with you the things that I had come across that’s so good, you just have to see them.

New entries will be posted as & when I come across other post-worthy stuff. Feel free to send interesting images to me as well via my email account.

ENJOY!

Food Review - Lemon Garden Shangri La

Shangri-La for Hedonism
NameLemon Garden Shangri-La
Food
International Buffet
LocationShangri La, KL
Getting thereLocated at the ground floor of the hotel and facing the lounge.
ParkingAmple parking in the hotel.
ServiceThe Shangri La is well-known for their top-notch service. It is no different here at the coffee house. Ambience The place looks great even after all these years. They have had the current brightly colored theme décor for a few years already and it’s been well maintained. TasteThere is so much variety here that there is bound to be a few items that will suit one’s palate no matter how discerning. Two of my favorite items were the steamed cod fillet & thin crust pizza.

One thing I must highlight is the deserts. They excel in preparing deserts. In fact, I believe this was the place that introduced the concept of the chocolate fountain years back – before it became a standard feature in many other hotels now and even in pasar malams (night markets).

The other thing is that the ice-creams here are all prepared in-house rather than bought.
PresentationFantastic presentation all round. You can see that they have taken pains and prepared the food with pride.
VarietyPlenty. There are islands of different types of cuisine incl:
- Malay
- Chinese
- Indian
- Japanese
- Italian
- Salad Bar Value for Money
You pay for what you get here and this place provides some of the best the KL hotels can offer.
OverallGood place to go for a treat or for entertaining guests, albeit for foreign friends, they have to be taken to try out the local food eateries.