July 2014 List Post

1. I haven’t played on my PS3 in a while since I finished Uncharted 2. I got roped in to watching an RPG Maker VX Ace video on YouTube. It got me all nostalgic about the RPG Maker 2000 game I was working on (on and off) that wen’t nowhere from 2002 to 2007. I dusted up all my files and managed to port most of the my project to RPG Maker 2003.

Ever the perfectionist, I spent 3 weeks and got hooked on Maplestory again. I haven’t spent a dime on this free-to-play game. This shows incredible restraint on my part. I already reached level 200 on my main character, but they’ve added 50 more levels, additional quests, game mechanic changes (GUI, character balancing, etc) and new characters. Not much leveling on my part… just overall character improvement.

2. I’ve had the first two season of The Wire in my harddrive. I got hooked on the first two episodes. I literally “marathoned” the entire series (five seasons) in less than two weeks. If I were to judge and make this show the standard to all shows I’m going to watch, I don’t have to watch any other show again. It’s that good. I thought Game of Thrones was complex. The Wire takes the cake. They have just as many key characters, if not more, as Game of Thrones and each of them have been exceedingly memorable. I thought the show couldn’t do any better after Season 3, but they proved me wrong. Season 4 has the best storyline out of any shows I’ve seen so far.

It’s really hard to describe this show. It’s not a police drama like Law and Order. Some have called it Urban Procedural. It has a rich sociology intertwined with the organizational structure of Baltimore’s police, politics, drug-trade, middle-class, school system and the media. It portrays a fictional Baltimore dealing with all facets of the organizations and how they affect each other.

Season 1 introduced two major groups of characters: The Baltimore police department and a drug dealing organization run by the Barksdale family. The season follows the investigation of the Barskdale family and the police’s wiretap on them (hence the title of the show) and the inner workings of the police department’s hierarchy.  They also introduced two mainstay characters:

Omar Little, a stick-up man who robs the drug dealers in Baltimore. He lived by a code to not involve citizens in “the game.” Reginald “Bubbles” Cousins, a recovering heroin addict who sidelines as criminal informant for the police.

Season 2 continued the ongoing examination of the drug problem and its effect on the urban poor, but also examines blue-collar urban working class as depicted by the stevedores (dock workers) in the city port. Some of them get caught up in the smuggling of drugs, other contraband and illegal immigrants for prostitution. The subplot in the season is the Barksdale organization continuing its drug trafficking despite their leader’s incarceration, with Stringer Bell (second in command) assuming greater power. This was foreshadowed in Season 1 during a “How to play chess” scene. D’Angelo Barksdale (the leader’s nephew) explains chess to Bodie and Wallace as a metaphor for drug deals.

Season 3 put the focus back on the Barskdale drug organization, rival Standfield drug organization, and local politicians. It introduced a city councilman wanting change for the city from a corrupt mayor.

Season 4 put the focus on a local school, the mayoral election, police department politics and action on the street corners.  Four middle school African-American boys are introduced to the story. The central drama is whether “the game” of drug dealing will have an affect on these kids and whether they will somehow beat the odds pointing them toward jail and violent death.

Season 5 continued to focus on the police department, the Stanfield drug organization and city hall while introducing a fictionalized version of the Baltimore Sun newsroom. It was an examination of the devaluing of human life and institutional dysfunction.

“The game” is often mentioned throughout the series as a metaphor for all the organizations. The rules change, but the game stays the same.

3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is one of the best movies to come out this year.

4. I added a TV stand on top of my wide drawer and a small organizer on top of my dresser in my room. I planned on getting an L-corner desk, but I have very little room to set it up. I probably don’t need it.

5. Going to eat this naked burrito from Qdoba.

I’m done.