Writer and Podcaster
April 23, 2019
Nostalgia Pilots, Podcast, Uncategorized Gundam Wing, hugh, Jason, Jurd, Nostalgia Pilots, Podcast, Spence Leave a comment
Welcome to Nostalgia Pilots! This week, Jason, Jurd, Hugh and Spence consider Gundam Wing episode 36: Sanc Kingdom’s Collapse.
Click HERE to listen online!
This episode: Heero just wants you to leave him alone, Duo is bad at subterfuge, and Trowa isn’t paid to wear a mask on his whole face.
Plus, Quatre gets a present, and Relena just made a whole bunch of people Stateless. For Peace.
Promo: The Melting Potcast
April 21, 2019
“Do you ever thing about pit traps?” He asked. I looked around and sighed.
“Not usually, no.”
“I think about them a lot. I just feel they were, like, overrepesneted?” He said.
“Really?”
“Like, you’d see them on cartoons or whatever, but never in real life. I was trained to prepare myself for the wrong things!”
“I think pits serve as a metaphor for the unexpected. They’re reminder to be present and aware in our daily lives.”
“Thanks, I never thought of that.”
“Glad to be of help,” I said. “Now, would you please throw down a rope or something?”
This story originally appeared in Everyday Drabbles, a daily free fiction project on Wattpad. Visit the link for more free stories. And if you enjoy my writing, support my work by buying me a coffee!
April 16, 2019
Hugh Likes Comics, Review, Uncategorized HLC, Hugh Likes Comics, Image Leave a comment
Fairlady #1
Written by Brian Schirmer
Drawn by Claudia Balboni
Colored by Marissa Louise
Lettered by David Bowman
Published by Image Comics
The Skinny: A post-war pulp genre mashup that goes off like a well executed heist spell.
In the Harshlands, a war has come to an end. With the standing army disbanded, many soldiers became private investigators called ‘Freemen.’ Jenner Faulds works as the Feld’s one and only Fairlady, taking the cases nobody else will. When she is hired to find a missing woman,
Fairlady #1 is the first issue in a new series that combines pulp genres in compelling and inventive ways. Schimer leans in to pulp fantasy and detective tropes by teasing hints of a conflict as equally devastating as the two World Wars, and giving us hard-boiled character in fantasy clothing. He’s also unafraid to embrace earlier pulp traditions of telling short stories. The first issue is one complete case, and this seems to be the format going forward. In an industry that has embraced the trade collection so fully, it’s a nice change of pace.
Schimer’s writing has a nice mix of stock pulp noir and fantasy tropes at work, and he does a good job telling a compact noir tale that leaves a good impression in the space it has. The story feels complete, but I’m still left wanting to know more about Jenner and the other characters.
Claudia Balboni’s art is outstanding. In particular, her inventive architecture brings something unique to the book right up front. From a city built in the remains of a half-buried giant golem to a village of shell-like spiraling seaside buildings, the designs are unique and evocative. Marissa Louise’s colors are a bit brighter than I’d expect for this kind of story, but they provide a good contrast.
Fairlady #1 is an intriguing introduction to a new series. You can pick it up in print at your local comics shop, or digitally through Comixology.
April 14, 2019
Free Fiction, Uncategorized Drabble, Everyday Drabbles, Free Fiction Leave a comment
“My password is very secure,” she bragged. “I use two-factor authentication.”
“Ha,” He said. “That’s nothing. I use a personally encrypted password manager. I can’t be hacked.”
I smiled. “Amateurs. My password is inscribed in blood on a parchment hidden in a duck egg inside of a rabbit in a locked chest buried beneath a haunted oak at the center of a fog-shrouded labyrinth on a desolate island in the North Sea.” They all looked duly impressed.
My phone buzzed, and my face fell as I checked the alert.
We noticed a new login to your account, Koschei!
This story originally appeared in Everyday Drabbles, a daily free fiction project on Wattpad. Visit the link for more free stories. And if you enjoyed this story, why not support my work by buying me a coffee?
April 8, 2019
Hugh Likes Comics, Review, Uncategorized Event Comics, HLC, Hugh Likes Comics, Marvel Comics, review, Thor Leave a comment
Written by Jason Aaron
Drawn by Russell Dauterman
Colored by Matthew Wilson
Lettered by VC’s Joe Sabino
Published by Marvel Comics
The Skinny: A mythological army takes Times Square in the kick-off to Marvel’s latest event.
I’ve been notably mixed on “event” comics in the past, but Marvel’s latest, “War of the Realms” is a the very least starting on its best foot. Spinning out of a long-running series of events in “Thor,” the story involves Malekith, king of the Dark Elves, and the titular war that he has been waging, a war that has finally reached the last holdout realm: Earth. And it wouldn’t be a Marvel comic if it didn’t start in the heart of Manhattan.
This opening issue does a good job of avoiding the pitfalls of most of these sorts of books. The situation is cleanly and precisely explained without too much of an exposition dump, the characters all feel correct and act appropriately, and the action moves along at a brisk pace, feeling like a complete issue even if it just lays out the characters and the stakes.
It helps that Dauterman’s art is drop-dead gorgeous, with rich, dark colors by Matt Wilson. Scenes are detailed without being too busy, and all of these giants and heroes have a lovely dynamism to them. But ti’s the little touches that make this comic for me. For example, an opening graphic shows the Norse mythological world tree, with the various realms and their denizens, with a sketch of Spider-Man hanging over a city representing Midgard. Also, Malekith is at his David Bowie-best here, riding into Times Square with a manic grin atop a giant winged tiger.
War of the Realms #1 kicks off a six-issue limited series, along with innumerable spin-offs. You can find it at your local comics shop, or buy it digitally on Comixology.
April 7, 2019
Free Fiction, Uncategorized Drabble, Everyday Drabbles, Fiction, Free Fiction, Niagara Falls Leave a comment
After the plant closed, he found himself unceremoniously retired, and depressed. With nothing else to do, he spent his mornings by the Falls, watching the water flow ceaselessly past, constantly eating away at the rock and making electricity for towns he’d never be able to afford to visit.
He watched the tourists come from all across the world to visit the place he lived and would someday die. He watched them fumble with their cameras, from chunky Kodaks to pocket-sized digicams to cell phones.
He learned to ask ‘Would you like me to take your picture?’ in thirty languages.
This story originally appeared in Everyday Drabbles, a daily free fiction project on Wattpad. Visit the link for more free stories. And if you enjoyed this story, why not support my work by buying me a coffee?
April 3, 2019
Hugh Likes Video Games, Review, Uncategorized Chucklefish, Gaming, HLV, Nintendo Switch, review, Strategy, Wargroove Leave a comment
Wargroove
Developed and Published by Chucklefish
Played on Nintendo Switch
https://wargroove.com
The Skinny: A turn-based strategy game with retro style and retro difficulty to match, but with some interesting innovations under the hood.
Wargroove is a strategy game with old school charm, and gameplay to match. On the surface, it takes most of its design and style from Nintendo’s ‘Wars’ series of games. These only came to the US as the Advance Wars titles, and have been absent for a decade, but they made a big impression on developer Chucklefish. If that name is familiar, they also published ConcernedApe’s well-loved Harvest Moon update, Stardew Valley.
Gameplay works like Advance Wars. Players take turns moving their units and capturing buildings to provide income, which lets them buy new units. The goal of each match is to either the enemy stronghold or defeat the enemy Commander, powerful units that each has a unique special ability, called a ‘groove.’ These each do something a bit different, from healing allies in a range, to creating new units, to attacks that do extra damage. They are a fun addition to the Wars formula, and are one of the ways the game really stands out. Also, one of the commanders is an adorable golden retriever, who is a very good boy.
The other way Wargroove differentiates itself is in its plethora of content and game modes. In addition to the standard single-player Campaign and multiplayer battles, the game offers an Arcade mode in which you can take each Commander through a series of five quick battles, a Puzzle mode, and even an impressive set of creation tools. The game lets players not just create maps, but also entire campaigns and cutscenes, and trade them freely through the game’s online modes. I haven’t been able to dive too deeply into it yet, but it is very cool and is supporting a new creative community.
Wargroove faithfully recreates the best of the turn-based strategy genre, but it also has the same flaws. Matches are long, and with two armies starting at opposite ends of a map and slowly building, they can take a while to get going. Also, this game is difficult. Updates have created more options for novice players, but you can still sink a lot of time into a map only to have to start all over again when the last wave of enemies gets a shot in on your Commander.
Wargroove is a charming and occasionally frustrating strategy game with old school feel and old school difficulty. If you’re up for the challenge, you can snag a copy from Steam or your choice of major console eshops.
