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Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 14 Dec 2016, 14:37
by Ataxia
watka wrote:Nice reviews mate! Must admit I kind of viewed A Moon Shaped Pool as just a more grandiose King of Limbs and cast it aside despite the popular acclaim. Mind you, I didn't enjoy OK Computer until about the 10th listen so maybe I just need to chew the gristle.


It's an album you definitely have to lie down and listen to. When Burn the Witch was released, I listened to it about 10 times in a row, I thought it was that good.

Coops, nothing wrong with New Order or Ashcroft. I liked both albums.

Also wanna drop in and recommend Childish Gambino's "Awaken, My Love!".

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 17 Dec 2016, 19:19
by watka
Coops clearly pining for the good old Britpop era.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 18 Dec 2016, 09:33
by CoopsII
watka wrote:Coops clearly pining for the good old Britpop era.

Brit-pop? Wasn't that a bunch of posh kids pretending they were working class? With the exception of Pulp (who pre-dated that scene by about ten years) not really my cup of tea.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 18 Dec 2016, 10:12
by Ataxia
CoopsII wrote:
watka wrote:Coops clearly pining for the good old Britpop era.

Brit-pop? Wasn't that a bunch of posh kids pretending they were working class? With the exception of Pulp (who pre-dated that scene by about ten years) not really my cup of tea.


I think you're getting confused between Britpop and New Labour ;)

See, I can do satirical comedy as well...

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 19 Dec 2016, 07:25
by CoopsII
Ataxia wrote:See, I can do satirical comedy as well...

Sadly, New Labour was just the warm-up act. The real comedy is happening now.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 23 Dec 2016, 11:26
by WaffleCat
Well….time for another one of these top ten lists for music. Because why not.

WaffleCat's other Top 10 Songs from other artists

10 -- Deformative -- Black Eyes

Let me be clear. I do not even like the Black Eyes. The rest of their songs on their two albums are just messy, too much going on, and assaults your ears by ramming a Jeep into them. I detest their music. Except for this one, strange song. It's the simplest of their songs, and somehow way too catchy. The two vocalists contrast yet compliment each other so well, and limiting instrumentation to the bass and two (TWO?!) drummers for most of the song help this sound so….catchy.

9 -- The Rake's Song -- The Decemberists

Most of you might know The Decemberists for The Mariner's Revenge, which is a brilliant 'storytelling' song. This one, though, I feel is slightly better, with an absolutely disgusting, intriguing and shocking story within its lyrics that is laid over a guitar almost too upbeat and gleeful for this. And that's how this song works. It gives the narrator of the story, the 'writer' of the song a personality that you can draw from this song. Just…just don't play when your gf/wife asks for a baby. You'd be kicked out of the house.

8 -- Blackbird -- The Beatles

The White Album is an absolute masterpiece. This is the finest song from that masterpiece. It's so simple, so beautiful, the way that song drops after "Blackbird fly" and picks up again into the perfect song if you want to chill. Kinda makes me smile listening to it.

7 -- Repetition -- The Willowz

From a song that makes you chill to a song that makes you dance. There are so many 'four-on-the-floor' kinda songs that make you want to dance, yet this one works the best. The riff works best with the beat, the voice is perfect for the beat, and there's even a bit where you think it's a bit….repetitive. In a song called Repetition. The moment you notice it, though, it immediately cuts to the next verse. Unintentional or not, that is genius.

6 -- Jesus For The Jugular -- The Veils

This song takes a simple riff and makes it so complex. The little details here and there, a piano addition somewhere there, strumming almost as if the guitarist is struggling…and again, the vocals of the lead singer. He seriously sounds like he's being tortured, almost the point of this song. And that crescendo from 2:52 on, that absolute buildup, the silent beat, the moment you start to move with this song, it's one of the best bits of music I've heard.

5 -- Oh Be Joyful -- The Pack a.d.

A two-piece all female garage blues rock band not many have heard of. Yet they're so, so damn good. I've been binging this band for two weeks straight. Their first two albums, Tintype and Funeral Mixtape, had no right being good. But they're just incredible. And this is the highlight from Funeral Mixtape. It might just be a simple-ish blues number, but it just…tickles my tingle, if you know what I mean. Especially the outro.

4 -- Sun Sinking Low (The Lost Tapes) -- Mr. Airplane Man

A two-piece all female garage blues rock band not many have heard of. Sound familiar? Though I prefer The Pack a.d overall, Mr. Airplane Man has the better song in Sun Sinking Low. They did three versions of this song, but the one that sticks the most is The Lost Tapes version. The voice sounds so ghostly on it, the tambourine joining later adds flavour to the song, and that high note...you'll know it when you hear it. I knew it when I had to put a pillow on my lap…


3 -- The Nurse Who Loved Me -- Failure

I literally don't know how to describe what genre this song is in? Space rock? Grunge? Whatever it is, it's that four-note, four-note riff from 3:28 that last throughout the rest of the song while it sounds like the guitar's just taking off. I'm no music expert but that bit caught me onto the rest of the song.

2 -- 100 Dollars -- Manchester Orchestra

Another song that has that quiet-loud dynamic I love so much…but here it makes so much sense. The singer wrote it after his first fight with his wife, and you can feel the fight, feel the emotion the moment the song goes from quiet to loud. The singer practically talk-sings as if in an actual domestic dispute, and it becomes brilliant. At 1 minute 35 seconds, it may be short, but it's oh so sweet.

1 -- Paris 12 -- Linying

What. A. Song. I've already posted this here, but I feel the need to post it again. It's way, way, way, way way too good. Her voice is so beautiful, I literally stop what I'm doing whenever this song pops up on my playlist just to listen. That moment, at 2:40, where she just hums the melody, then lets her voice float in the pitch of the music…I just adore this song to bits.

And now for something completely different:

WaffleCat's Top 10 'Towns' in Singapore

10. Yew Tee
9. Sembawang
8. Bishan
7. Woodlands
6. Telok Blangah
5. Eunos
4. Tanjong Pagar
3. Bedok
2. Toa Payoh
1. Marine Parade

Thank you.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 30 Dec 2016, 17:31
by watka
I have done my own top 10 favourite albums of the year, but I've done it on Facebook and I'm too lazy to replicate it here, so here's the link.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 31 Dec 2016, 13:20
by dr-baker
10 of the best 2016 events for me

10. seeing the BTCC Subarus race at Brands Hatch before they were any good
9. my dad buying a Mercedes AMG and putting me on the insurance
8. getting a new job around Easter time, paying more per hour and getting more hours of work
7. being bought a new semi-detatched house to live in with my sister (to move into in the new year)
5= begun my third undergrad degree, my second at Kingston-upon-Thames
5= getting a bursary to do my degree in the last year that they are available
3= road trip to Disneyland Paris with sister
3= road trip to Calais with female friend from uni
1= trip to DisneyWorld, Florida
1= trip to the 100th Indy 500 with dad

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 06 Apr 2017, 14:24
by Rob Dylan
Rob Dylan's Top 10 albums to shave to (in alphabetical order):

- Creedence Clearwater Revival - Willy and the Poor Boys (reminds me of my days on the bayou. Especially good on mornings where you have absolutely no commitments)
- David Bowie - Low (grooovvy)
- The Doors - Morrison Hotel
- Elvis Costello - My Aim is True
- Gram Parsons - Grievous Angel
- Iggy Pop - The Idiot (particularly good before nights out. Really gets you in the mood)
- MC5 - Back in the USA
- Modern Lovers - Modern Lovers (probably my favourite "hype" album)
- Vangelis - The Blade Runner Soundtrack (I really hope I don't have to explain this choice)
- The Village People - The Best of (don't knock it until you've tried it)

Honourable mentions:
- Big Star - #1 Record
- Brian Eno - Another Green World (a similar idea to both "Low" and "The Idiot". Weird, funky, good to shave to)
- Def Leppard - Hysteria (see The Best of the Village People)
- The Stooges - Fun House

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 07 Apr 2017, 08:39
by CoopsII
Rob Dylan wrote:- Brian Eno - Another Green World

Try Apollo : Atmospheres and Soundtracks for that post-shave-comedown or indeed any other activity where you need space to think. Also the Music For Films albums or Music For Airports. Basically any Eno album from the seventies or eighties. Last years The Ship was pretty good too but I struggled liking anything from the nineties (except, perhaps, Passengers with U2)

I also have much love for the Blade Runner OST and Hysteria but I'll have to take your word on the Village People for now. I may try that in the summer with some Kid Creole & The Coconuts (I'm not taking the p1ss either)

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 08 Apr 2017, 20:10
by watka
Albums to shave to? How long does it take you?!?

Image

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 08 Apr 2017, 20:34
by Ataxia
watka wrote:Albums to shave to? How long does it take you?!?

Image


Ohhhhhhh, Dr Zaius!

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 08 Apr 2017, 22:09
by CoopsII
watka wrote:Albums to shave to? How long does it take you?!?

He never claimed it was just his face he was shaving...

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 13 Dec 2017, 19:19
by Londoner
After a couple of fallow years, I've finally listened and bought enough albums this year to do a runthrough on this thread. I've tried to give a bit of a description for each of my choices, though I openly admit my music review skills could do with a fair bit of improvement :P . There may be some controversy and arguments afterwards, but here we go.

Londoner's Top 10 Albums of 2017.

1. London Grammar – Truth is a Beautiful Thing

I somehow missed London Grammar during their debut album cycle, so when “Rooting For You” was released on New Years Day I was straight on it. And my word, what a special band this is. The trio have clearly evolved from “If You Wait”, and the songwriting on show here illustrates that greatly, through the likes of “Big Picture” or “Hell to the Liars” . This is the perfect soundtrack to the troubled times we live in. Hannah Reid's voice draws you in, soothing and cleansing your ears and soul. You can never get enough of it.

Best tracks – Rooting for You, Hell to the Liars, Truth is a Beautiful Thing

2. Wolf Alice – Visions of a Life

It's been a honour to watch this band evolve since early 2013, and their second long player illustrates the fruits of this. Once again, there's a huge variety of styles and genres. Opening track “Heavenward”'s shoegaze fuzz takes us directly into the anarchic post-punk of “Yuk Foo”, which then deposits us in the straight-up indie pop of “Beautifully Unconventional” - and that's only the first three tracks! “Don't Delete The Kisses” has a monologue that could easily fit in on a Pulp album, while “Formidable Cool”'s rhythm section could teach baggy bands a few new tricks. Vision of a Life perfects sets Wolf Alice on course for long-term success.

Best tracks – Yuk Foo, Formidable Cool, Sadboy

3. Kasabian – For Crying Out Loud

Tom and Serge promised us a party album, and they didn't disappoint. “Ill Ray (The King)” is the most immediate opening track they've laid down since Underdog, and the pace does not let down from here. “Comeback Kid” and “Wasted” see Kasabian add new elements to their gameplan, while the eight minute long “Are You Looking For Action” is their most ambitious song yet, melding together saxophones, disco beats and a filthy bassline. It's an album which gives the Leicester lads a new set of weapons in their live arsenal.

Best tracks – Ill Ray (The King), Twentyfourseven, Are You Looking For Action?

4. Maximo Park – Risk to Exist

Newcastle's finest return with probably their best album since 2007. Paul Smith's ever-engaging lyrics take on a political tone, dealing with the fallout from 2016. “Get High (No I Don't)” builds a filthy groove, while “What Equals Love?” is the most immediate thing they've recorded in years.

Best tracks – What Equals Love?, What Did We Do To You To Deserve This?

5. The Sundowners – Cut The Master

This five piece are related to fellow Merseysiders The Coral, as two of the band members are younger relatives of Coral frontman James Skelly, who also handles production duties on this, the band's second album. What we get is a fantastically woozy album, drawing on elements of late-60s and early-70s psychedelia, enhanced by the harmonies of Niamh Rowe and Fiona Skelly.

Best tracks – Ritual, Great Beauty

6. Shed Seven – Instant Pleasures

16 years after their last album, Britpop stalwarts Shed Seven have finally brought out a new collection of tracks, and it's been worth the wait. There's no reinventing the wheel here, just pure, classic Sheds. “Room In My House” is a rousing guitar anthem, while “It's Not Easy” and “Better Days” are younger relatives of the band's classic singles “Going For Gold” and “Chasing Rainbows”.

Best tracks – Room In My House, Nothing To Live Down

7. Queens of the Stone Age – Villains

Josh Homme's merry men took a risk by appointing Mark Ronson as producer, but it's a decision that's paid off. Villains is a nimble, uptempo record, perhaps not as good as ...Like Clockwork, but containing some great songwriting.

Best tracks – Feet Don't Fail Me, The Way You Used To Do

8. Amy Macdonald – Under Stars

It's been nearly half a decade since Glasgow's finest singer last dropped an album, and while thematically there's nothing new to write home about, Amy's melodic touch remains deft, giving her voice a good workout on the likes of “Dream On” and “Leap of Faith”.

Best tracks – Automatic, Leap of Faith

9. Paloma Faith – The Architect

There's a much more political tone to Paloma's fourth long player, and to her credit she largely pulls it off (if we ignore the spoken word piece by the Guardian cockwomble, sorry, columnist Owen Jones :P ), melding big pop-soul tunes with a conscience. “Guilty” could easily be the next Bond theme.

Best tracks – Crybaby, Til I'm Done

10. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds – Who Built the Moon?

The elder Gallagher brother hooked up with producer David Holmes, who's managed to conjure new sounds and themes out of Noel and co. “Holy Mountain” is a joyous riot of a single, “She Taught Me How To Fly” could easily be a lost New Order track, while “If Love Is The Law” deploys the inimitable Johnny Marr to great effect.

Best tracks – Holy Mountain, If Love Is The Law.


Honourable mentions

The Sherlocks – Live For The Moment

With a sound clearly influenced by early Arctic Monkeys and Courteeners, this Sheffield band have laid down the gauntlet with an excellent debut. A straight-up indie band getting radio play is a rare event these days, and one can hope they will be able to build a long career.

Best track – Will You Be There?

Stereophonics – Scream Above The Sounds

Kelly Jones' mob are like a good pub lunch – you know what you're getting. This is another solid selection of songs to add to their canon, including a heartbreaking tribute to the late Stuart Cable in the form of “Before Anyone Knew Our Name”. While the 'Phonics may never reach the heights of their first two albums again, they keep on motoring.

Best track – All In One Night

Reverend and the Makers – The Death of a King

The Reverend and company don't follow recording convention – this is their sixth long player in ten years. Following on from their quasi-concept album “Mirrors”, this album is awash with ideas and styles. The only criticism I'd give is that the album feels a bit too short, and that some of the ideas could easily be fleshed out into longer songs, but what we do get is a band that is creatively flourishing.

Best track – Auld Reekie Blues

The Charlatans – Different Days

While a step down from their 2015 masterpiece “Modern Nature”, the baggy veteran's latest features a strong set of songs and an laundry list of guest stars. Tim Burgess' late-career purple patch continues.

Best track – Plastic Machinery

Paul Draper – Spooky Action

Mansun were and still are one of the biggest cult bands of the 1990s, so their reclusive frontman releasing his debut solo album 14 years after the band imploded was always going to be a big event. Spooky Action illustrates that Draper's quirky songwriting knack remains intact. Be warned though, if you like your music to sound raw and primal, you won't particularly like this album – it's a production monster!

Best track – Friends Make The Worst Enemies


Not cutting the mustard

Liam Gallagher – As You Were

I'll admit it, I really liked “Wall of Glass” when it was first released. However, being exposed to it up to three times a day for an entire month on the radio in the office killed it stone dead. Having actually listened to the album, it made me long for the days of Beady Eye, which is perhaps not what Liam had in mind (although I am one of about four people in the world who loved Beady Eye). As You Were feels a bit too safe and calculated, which can be chalked up to the fact Gallagher collaborated with commercial songwriters. The best track on here, “Doesn't Have To Be That Way” is relegated to a mere extra on the deluxe version.

Imelda May – Life Love Flesh Blood

Having perhaps taken her rockabilly style to its logical limit on 2014's Tribal, it's understandable that Dublin's finest songwriter would want to change things up a bit on her next album. A dreary, cliched heartbreak album was not the way to go, and honestly it seems she's moved from one rut into another. Which is fairly impressive when you think about it, though dire for her career prospects.

Jake Bugg – Hearts That Strain

Nottingham's prodigal son can't be faulted for his work ethic – this is his fourth album since 2012. While on the whole this is a sturdy set of songs, there's a general lack of spark within as most of them are mid-paced plodders. The inclusion of a Lightning Bolt, or a Slumville Sunrise, or even a Gimme The Love would have elevated this album greatly. More worryingly, his once perky and barbed lyrics seem to be drifting into vague country-esque musings. Jake, you're from a council estate in Nottingham, not from the American Midwest, this sort of stuff always sounds inauthentic from a British voice. The one saving grace here is at least he isn't singing about pickup trucks yet.

Foo Fighters – Concrete and Gold

Dave Grohl's merry mob got everyone's pulse racing earlier this year with the release of “Run”, which was probably the best song Grohl's written since the 1990s. Sadly the release of second single “The Sky is a Neighbourhood” halted the hype train, a turgid mess of a song which more or less foreshadowed the rest of the material on here. Coming off the back of two decent albums, this was a real shame.

Royal Blood – How Did We Get So Dark?

Probably the biggest disappointment of the year. This album came across like the band were struggling to find their songwriting spark, and overcompensated by making things louder and heavier. “I Only Lie When I Love You” features the most obnoxious and lazily-written chorus in quite some time, while “Hook, Line and Sinker” sounds like a inferior relative of “Ten Tonne Skeleton” from their first album.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 13 Jun 2018, 06:20
by UncreativeUsername37
F1 "Starting Grid" Sequence Pictures, as of 2018 Canada
Who wants to look at some blatantly compressed stills of posing F1 drivers? I sure do!

20. Lance Stroll
Image
What's with the attitude? Here's a quote from Life to the Limit about doing sponsor stuff:
Jenson Button wrote:Either you suck it up, do your job and enjoy it, or you're Kimi Räikkönen.
That's how I feel about this picture.

19. Romain Grosjean
Image
Trying to do something cool and it fails so badly. This one hits me in the face every time.

18. Charles Leclerc
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"Wait, we're taking it now?"

17. Max Verstappen
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"Wait, we're taking it now?"

16. Carlos Sainz
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Comes closer to making the zipping thing look cool than the others, but still mostly looks like "Wait, we're taking it now?".

15. Stoffel Vandoorne
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Why's he looking at me like that? It's not his business what I cuddle when I'm watching F1.

14. Lewis Hamilton
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Really shows off his personality well with the pose. Unfortunately, the personality is Hamilton's.

13. Nico Hülkenberg
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His expression is a bit funny, but it's far better than the seven below him.

12. Sergio Pérez
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This one is okay, but it's just the slightest bit... derpy isn't the perfect word for it, but it's the best I've got.

11. Sebastian Vettel
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He isn't really trying to do anything. At least it looks better than trying and failing.

10. Pierre Gasly
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A decent job at doing a cool expression, but too generic to be too high in the ranking.

9. Kimi Räikkönen
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He clearly just wants this to be over with, but he's Kimi Räikkönen so that makes it cool.

8. Valtteri Bottas
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Like Gasly, it's pretty generic, but it's a bit more refined. He's confident, but not arrogant.

7. Fernando Alonso
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You can see the figurative depression that the years of Ferrari then the years of McLaren have done to him, but that also gives the look an "I will not give up" quality.

6. Sergey Sirotkin
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This is a cool expression. He's cool and he knows it, and he's like "what you want, huh?". It's kind of what Vandoorne tried to do.

5. Brendon Hartley
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Seems genuinely pleased to be in F1. Looks like he does the posing thing for a job.

4. Esteban Ocon
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So cool. Like a hero has just arrived or is about to leave and he's allowed himself a quick self-indulgent expression. Seems to understand something we don't and is disappointed, but knows that we'll someday learn.

3. Kevin Magnussen
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I don't know what gave him the "evil look" idea, but I love it.

2. Marcus Ericsson
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Ready for action. Knows he's cool. It's pretty generic, but he's done every little detail so well.

1. Daniel Ricciardo
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This is the face of someone who's going to win a Grand Prix in a couple hours. He puts just enough of a twist on it that it's archetypal like Gasly or Ericsson, but unique at the same time.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 13 Jun 2018, 11:23
by Rob Dylan
Those pictures always make me cringe when they come up on the graphics---I appreciate the solid review, well done :P

Half of them really do seem to be that the photographer had five minutes to photograph twenty drivers, and was just like "ok we'll take one picture for each of you, let's hope this goes well!"

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 03 Oct 2018, 12:30
by Turbogirl
TOTB Anime Openings

It’s been a while since anybody posted something here...

I have a rather long personal history with anime, and that’s going to be reflected through this list. I’m just stating this in case you should be expecting to see a lot of newer stuff on this list, because then you’re going to be severely disappointed.

This list also consists of a lot of weird choices, I admit that. For some bizarre reason, I tend to enjoy anime everyone else (or most other people, at least) seem to dislike...

TV series, OVA, movie – I don’t care as long as it’s anime and the song is in its original japanese version. ;)


Honorable Mentions:

14.) The Big O
Nope, not a hentai, even though the title would be quite fitting for one. It’s a giant mech anime with some rather bland run-of-the-mill human character designs and a title theme remarkably close to Queen’s Flash Gordon, probably the best movie theme of all time (for me, at least). And that is the only reason I like The Big O.

13.) Hai Step Jun
It’s been so long since I watched an episode of this. I can’t even remember what this show was all about. Can’t seem to find it online, so I don’t think I’ll be able to refresh my memory anytime soon. But I still remember that opening theme song!

12.) Agent Aika, 2nd Opening
This didn’t make the list because the first Agent Aika opening is already up there. Then again, for an OVA mostly focussing on panty shots and sexual humor, this is one catchy song and some rather beautifully drawn imagery to go with it! I know that, as a woman, I should not like this one bit..., but I guess it can’t be helped. Only complaint: This awesome transforming briefcase never makes a single appearance in the entire series!

11.) Maze of the Haze – Maze
Some say it’s cheesy, I say it’s awesome hard rock. The visuals are pleasing, too. The only problem is the anime itself. After an opening like this, you expect a fun, light-hearted fantasy adventure with the occasional nude lady for the otakus. Trust me: It’s not like that... at all! Check it out for yourself, if you’re curious, but I can tell you right here and now that it’s not worth it. The opening is the best part of the anime. It’s all downhill from here...


And now the TOTB list:

10.) Initial D – Break into the Night
Awesome song, fast-paced action right in the opening... So, why is it so low in this list? I’m old-fashioned, guys. The CG animation just looks hideous. It did back then, and it hasn’t aged too well, either. Those were the days when animators discovered CG animation for their work, and not too many products of that era can hide the fact that the gap between early CG and hand-drawn animation was as huge as the Grand Canyon.

9.) Sei Jushi Bismarck – Call me
Or „Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs“, if you prefer the godawful watered-down US version of this anime. Granted, as a kid, Saber Rider was amazing and one of my earliest contacts with anime in general. But just like today (Yu-Gi-Oh, Naruto, One Piece), the US censorship, re-cutting, and re-dubbing of the original source material to make it appeal to a much, much younger audience ruins pretty much the whole experience. Sei Jushi Bismarck was a run-of-the-mill mech series to begin with and flopped in Japan, but it’s still more enjoyable in its original version than the Saber Rider hackjob.

8.) Street Fighter 2 Victory – Kaze Fuiteru
The OVA is quite underwhelming, and fight scenes are pretty scarce. Yep, not a good sign for a series called Street Fighter! But so far, I haven’t really seen any movie or OVA adaptation done right. The closest we got to an enjoyable ride was the 1994 movie with Jean-Claude van Damme and Raul Julia – and that’s a really sad statement right there! I grew up with the Super Nintendo, and of course, my brother owned Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo. In case you’re curious: I love Cammy, but I fight best with Vega (or Balrog, if you’re from Japan).

7.) Busou Renkin – Makka na Chikai
We need more theme songs like this – not just in anime, but in all other shows as well! It’s hard rock, fast-paced, pretty visuals. What more can I say? Of all the newer anime I’ve seen in recent years, this is definitely one of the better ones.

6.) Ah! My Goddess – My Heart
Romantic Comedy (or RomCom) is a genre in anime as well, and this here is definitely one of the better ones. I was a fan of the original manga before I saw any of the OVA’s, and this earliest of OVA’s is still my favourite, even though the newer ones have better animation and could include more characters from the manga, simply because the manga had gotten more chapters ever since. Favourite character: Urd, no competition!

5.) Urusei Yatsura – Rock the Planet
This opening is as old as me! Ranma ½, Inuyasha, Tenshi Muyo – all took their blueprints from Urusei Yatsura, because it's the same creator, Rumiko Takahashi (except for Tenshi Muyo). The art style is enjoyably 80’s, yet the show has aged pretty well, if you ask me. I couldn’t say the same about Ranma, Inuyasha, or Tenshi Muyo...

4.) Agent Aika – Silent City
Again: As a woman, I should not like this OVA one bit. It’s sexual humor, has LOTS of panty shots, and takes its jokes way too far way too often. Yet, I gotta admit that I kinda like it. The opening and its hard rock theme song don’t make it any easier for me. I would call it a guilty pleasure, if I felt any guilt at all for liking this! It’s an overall fun ride, and unless your nose starts bleeding everytime you see a panty shot, you can enjoy the heck out of this one!

3.) Bubblegum Crisis – Born to Kill
The song is called Mad Machine, and it’s AWESOME! As a Shadowrun fan, Bubblegum Crisis is the perfect embodiment of that style and tone for me. It’s the unofficial Shadowrun anime, if you like. The less said about the remake, the better. And the spin-offs Bubblegum Crash and A.D. Police Files can also kiss my butt, honestly. The original Bubblegum Crisis is a testament to the 80’s – in all the good ways. It draws inspiration from Streets of Fire, Terminator, Blade Runner, Top Gun, and doesn’t care a single bit about mixing all this together in the best way possible! Go watch it, if you haven’t had the chance yet!

2.) Slayers – Get along
I love fantasy RPGs, in case you haven’t noticed yet. True, Record of Lodoss War might have captured the style of Dungeons & Dragons better, but Slayers has more comedy, and it has a far superior opening song. And while Record of Lodoss War takes itself far too serious most of the times, Slayers takes a good stab at every fantasy trope you’ll ever come across when roleplaying. And it doesn’t only come with an interesting world, but also quite interesting characters to get invested in. Slayers is also pretty high on my TOTB anime of all time list, if I may say so!

1.) Bubblegum Crisis – Revenge Road
The song’s original japanese title is Ikari o komete hashire, but a lot of fans (including me) refer to it as Burning Highway. I couldn’t find the original OVA opening for this one, but this official music video featuring scenes from the OVA and the full song is just as good, if not better! It’s Cyberpunk at it’s best. Give it a good look, and you’ll hopefully agree with me!

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 04 Oct 2018, 01:18
by Butterfox
wow, as an anime lover i have to say i only watched one from your list, lol. But yeah i generally tend to avoid things that are rated highly or are popular, and discover 'per accident'. I like it like that. I'm also that girl who just skips all openings (except for a few ones that can overcome my short attention span)

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 04 Oct 2018, 11:49
by Turbogirl
This wrote:wow, as an anime lover i have to say i only watched one from your list, lol. But yeah i generally tend to avoid things that are rated highly or are popular, and discover 'per accident'. I like it like that.
Me too, sometimes, but often times I just have to find out for myself what that hype is all about. That leads to a lot of disappointments - or rather: let-downs. But sometimes I like what I see and find myself agreeing with the hype, at least a little bit. ;)

Then again, this is only a TOTB list about anime openings. My TOTB list for anime in general would look completely different, as I would never put Agent Aika or Sei Jushi Bismarck on there. Unfortunately, most modern anime tend to have awesome visuals in their openings, but ruin it all with bland, underwhelming, and downright forgettable J-Pop.


This wrote:I'm also that girl who just skips all openings (except for a few ones that can overcome my short attention span)
That's a pity, tbh. You miss a lot of good stuff by skipping the opening. Sometimes it's the best thing about an anime. I'm looking at you, Maze! Well, maybe you like to click through my list whenever you feel like it. Perhaps you discover something interesting "per accident". :)

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 10 Oct 2018, 09:39
by Turbogirl
TOTB Cartoon Openings

I've already made one for anime, so why not for western cartoons as well? Ha! What was I thinking? Do you have any idea how many western cartoon intros just consist of some guy talking for a minute, explaining the plot and premise of the show you're about to watch?

Anyway, here is the result of my childhood memories (and some more recent ones as well). Contrary to my anime list, if there actually is a better sounding version of the intro song in a different language, I'll include that one instead, as long as it's still the original song!

"But, Turbogirl", I already hear you ask, "why are most of these intros from shows for boys? Aren't you a girl?" And to that I can only say: That happens when you have an older brother watching TV with you. :P

Okay, that's not the real reason. While the shows my brother watched had quite the lasting impact on me, mostly through their theme songs, I'll have to admit that the girls shows had some awful, awful songs. I mean THIS is the Rainbow Brite one. What am I supposed to say to that? It only got better when the great Shuki Levy decided to write THIS amazing song for Rainbow Brite. Unfortunately, it came during the end credits of the movie, so it doesn't count!

The other big girls show I loved was She-Ra. Good luck with that! It's one of those talkative intros, so you can't hear the song at all, no matter how good it might be. And then there's My Little Pony, a show I watched since its very first incarnation. Yeah..., I still hate the theme song, even in its modernized version. That's just how it is: Love the tiny horses, hate their music...

Another all-time favourites of mine, Avatar – The Last Airbender, also has a talkative intro, so that's out of the question as well.

I hope you enjoy nonetheless!


Some Honorable Mentions first:

13.) Denver the Last Dinosaur
"He's my friend, and a whole lot more"... Make of that line what you will, but if you ask me, it sounds a lot wronger today than 30 years ago. But when we were kids, we didn't care. We just loved the dinosaur that did awesome stuff. And being one of those few girls who were just as invested in dinos as I was invested in horses, this show was really enjoyable to watch. Haven't seen it in years, so I'm not sure if it still holds up. Check it out at your own risk.

12.) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)
This concept was too far out for me. I understand it's appeal, but it never did anything for me. The only female character in this, April O'Neill, was a damsel in distress. She got better with the newer incarnations of this franchise, but back then she was the worst for me. My brother was a huge fan, and I totally get why. I wish they'd followed the original Eastman and Laird comics a bit closer, though. Not only was there a female ninja named Karai, but a Lady Shredder as well. That would have been awesome for a young girl like me back then! Well, we got Karai in newer incarnations, at least.

11.) Dino Riders (German Intro)
Another quite out-there concept, yet my brother loved it, and he had ALL the toys. There was a token female character as well, called Serena, and I always got to play her when my brother played with me instead of any of his friends. I always wondered: Why were all the toys for boys so tiny and fragile? We girls had huge Barbie dolls while you boys had barely poseable 8,5 inch action figures. The Dino Riders ones were even smaller. I was quite surprised to see Mattel producing Action Man toys around the 2000's that were as big as a Barbie doll! Finally, after nearly three decades, the new Masters of the Universe are fully poseable now! I'm sure my brother would have loved to have those! I bought a She-Ra Classics figure, because I just had to!


Okay, now on to the TOTB list:

10.) Jem and the Holograms
You knew this was coming, didn't you? Too bad that the song is so dated and wasn't all that good to begin with. Then again, it was FAR superior to anything from that godawful movie a few years back. Who the hell thought that was a good idea? Is all they see nowadays dollar signs whenever they think of doing something with a product from the 80's? (This is a rhetorical question, don't answer it.)

9.) Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors
I admit this has a little bit of exposition, but most of the intro is song, so it counts. Did you know that more than 90% of the theme songs for 80's and probably 90's cartoons as well were written by Shuki Levy? Look him up, he's quite an amazing songwriter! And he'll show up with some more songs in this list. What to say about the cartoon itself? I have no idea. I was far too young to remember much of it. The exposition doesn't really serve my memory either. I can't remember a single episode...

8.) M.A.S.K.
Why have a narrator, if you could just as well sing all the exposition to us? I'm surprised so few cartoons realized that. This is another Shuki Levy song, definitely overselling the cartoon it's introducing. It's basically the guys from G.I. Joe riding Transformers. Plus, this show got completely ruined by the annoying kid character Scotty and his even more annoying robot sidekick T-Bob. I assume the creators didn't like kids very much. You can't create such characters by accident. So, was there anything good in this cartoon? Oh, yes! Vanessa Warfield, second in command to the evil Cobra Comman... erm, I mean Miles Mayhem. She was sassy, clever, and quite sarcastic. Far superior to the watered-down Ruth we got over at the Michelle Vaillant cartoon.

7.) Silverhawks
For some reason, I always get these mixed up with Galaxy Rangers. And while Galaxy Rangers had the superior theme song, they decided to ruin it with – you've guessed it! – exposition! The Silverhawks theme sounds a bit like something from the late 70's, and I like it for that very reason! Again, not many memories on the show itself...

6.) Sonic SatAM
No, not Satan. SatAM, as in Saturday At Morning! It was called that because there was another Sonic show on at the same time, called The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, and that show was GODAWFUL! This, however, was pretty good for an early 90's show about a blue Hedgehog, who fought an overweight evil guy called Robotnik. I guess you can give kids a good environmental message without becoming Captain Planet!

5.) Teen Titans
Proactive female characters, solid storytelling, a kinda sorta anime vibe to all of this, and all of that coming from DC Comics? Yeah, believe it or not – this was an awesome show back in the day, and it still holds up pretty well. I especially love that they went the extra mile to put some anime-style songs into this show, sung by a japanese pop duo, no less! Check out this chase scene, and you'll see (song starts at 40 seconds).

4.) Duck Tales (1987)
No idea how good the remake is, and I have absolutely no intention of finding out anytime soon. Duck Tales was awesome in 1987, and it's still awesome today. Why remake it? Better remake some turds that were so awful to begin with that a remake can only improve them! Like our Number 3 entry, for example...

3.) Michelle Vaillant (German Intro)
Also known as "Heroes on Hot Wheels". This is an interesting combination. Probably the worst cartoon series ever made got one of the most badass intro themes of all time. How do you do that? The german intro is even better than the english one. In short: This cartoon has almost nothing in common with the french comic of the same name, aside from some character names. Go read the comics for some original Michelle Vaillant action. Stay away from this show as far as possible. It's dumb, it's cliché, and the only decent thing about it is this awesome intro song partnered with some cool engine sounds!

2.) The Secret of the Sword (Italian Version)
Sometimes its a movie, sometimes the first 5 episodes of the She-Ra cartoon. Basically, it's the "special" that introduced She-Ra into the Masters of the Universe canon. While the english song "I have the Power" is already a great song, the Italian version is superior, because the female singer can actually sing. It was released as a movie in germany, and I loved it to death! I still own both the DVD and the original VHS tape of it! Oh, and it's another Shuki Levy song.

1.) Justice League Unlimited
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: DC Comics are so much better when handled by anybody but them. Here, we have proactive and awesome female superheroines like Wonder Woman, the Huntress, Black Canary, and Hawkgirl (amongst others), who're equal to the guys in all aspects. What more can I say? If you haven't seen this show, go watch it! It's definitely worth your time, if you're into this kind of stuff.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 10 Oct 2018, 10:43
by Rob Dylan
DuckTales
Ah woooooooooo

There, it's in your head for the rest of the day :D

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 10 Oct 2018, 17:24
by Aguvazk
Mask Crusaders!!!!!! Working overtime, fighting crime, fighting crime!!!
Does anybody thinks (beside me) that Miles Mayhem looks like a fat Nigel Mansell?

Regarding anime, i am a big fan of Saint Seiya, a really big fan. And i like a lot Rupan Sansei (Lupin the 3rd or Cliffhanger), Captain Tsubasa, Mazinger Z, Arbegas.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 10 Oct 2018, 19:31
by Turbogirl
Aguvazk wrote:Mask Crusaders!!!!!! Working overtime, fighting crime, fighting crime!!!
Does anybody thinks (beside me) that Miles Mayhem looks like a fat Nigel Mansell?

Regarding anime, i am a big fan of Saint Seiya, a really big fan. And i like a lot Rupan Sansei (Lupin the 3rd or Cliffhanger), Captain Tsubasa, Mazinger Z, Arbegas.

There is a slight resemblance, I give you that. Though not as close as Dick Dastardly comes to Graham Hill. ;)

I remember reading a few chapters of the Saint Seiya manga, finding it pretty interesting with the greek mythology and everything, but for some strange reason I neither finished the manga nor started watching the anime. I think I might give it a look in the not too distant future.

Captain Tsubasa just wasn't for me. I'm a girl and not too interested in soccer/football, but I understand the series' appeal to boys. For a little while I watched Tsubasa's female equivalent, Mila Superstar (in german) or Attakku No.1 (original japanese), but stopped, because that volleyball stuff also wasn't for me.

Never watched Mazinger Z, but heard good things about it. The closest I ever got to watching it was when my father rented a VHS tape called "Protectors of Universe", of which he thought was "Masters of the Universe". My brother and I weren't too thrilled. In case you don't know: Protectors of Universe, also known as "Super Express Mazinga 7 - Protectors of Universe", is a very cheap Mazinger Z knock-off by Joseph Lai from the early 80's. Surprisingly enough, I can actually recommend it! It's so bad and done so incompetently - you just have to check it out for yourself, or you'll never believe something like that actually exists. And its dub is just hilarious. The best thing about it is its soundtrack, which is outright stolen from several japanese sentai series. Mostly songs written by Tatsumi Yano, one of the best TV composers of the early 80's, imo. :D

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 27 Nov 2018, 22:31
by WeirdKerr
Cars Ive owned(actually only owned 10 so far, number 11 arrives friday)

10. 1998 Fiat Punto 75 SX

Best thing about it: It was Red and Italian
Worst things: Head gasket blew, electric windows were stiff and the sunroof handle would fall off

9. 2009 Kia Cee'd

Best thing about it: it was reasonably priced
Worst thing about it: I forget how it drove, Dull

8. 1981 Ford Fiesta 1.1 Popular Plus

Best thing: First car
Worst thing: Rusty


7. 1999 Renault Megane 1.6 16v Sport

Best thing: It was quick
Worst thing: Electrics.... nuff said

6. 1987 Renault 5 GTL

Best thing: Good on fuel, only weighed 750kg
Worst thing: seats were soft

5. 1993 Seat Ibiza(MK1) 1.2SLxi

Best thing: Had Porsche on the engine
Worst thing: Rusted, 70s Fiat underneath

=3 Skoda Fabia Estate(Kombi) 1.9TDi (Comfort(2004) Bohemia(2007))

Best thing: Cheap to run
Worst thing: A bit gruff

2 2013 Seat Leon 1.2Tsi SE

Best thing: Nice to drive, reasonably quick
Worst thing: just needed a bit more power

1 2016 Seat Leon SC 1.4EcoTsi FR tech

Best thing: quick and good handling yet does 50+ mpg
Worst thing: only a 3dr and its dirty at the moment....

Coming next......
2018 Honda Civic 1.5 Vtec Turbo Sport.... (pick it up on Friday) :dance:

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 28 Nov 2018, 05:20
by DOSBoot
Back from the dead.

Ten of the best James Bond Movies:

10: A View to a Kill:

9.License to Kill:

8. You Only Live Twice:

7. On Her Majesty's Secret Service:

6. Casino Royal:

5: Skyfall:

4: The Spy Who Loved Me:

3: Goldfinger: It may be the best Bond, but since it gets to much praise, I think I'll put it in 3rd.

2: From Russia With Love: Great suspense, and buildup to the

1. Goldeneye:

Honorable Mentions:

Moonraker

The Living Daylights

Tomorrow Never Dies

Daimonds Are Forever

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 29 Nov 2018, 00:34
by Rob Dylan
This sounds like a good opportunity to plug me and You-Gee-Eee-Day's Bond review series we've recently started! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVdsuhZAUUo). We've got the first two movies reviewed and commentary done, with more on the way! Anyhoo, at the time of recording, though it may change, my Top 10 would honestly be something like.

HM: Tomorrow Never Dies - It's got some great classic moments, though a little too cheesy and with a few pointless things dragging it down. The take on the media is still great and relevant though.

And of course Moonraker and Die Another Day deserve a mention for being those two batshit-insane ones which are unrateable in my opinion :P

10. Dr. No - a classic, though bettered by its successors. It's perfectly decent and respectful to the franchise and the character.
9. On Her Majesty's Secret Service - whilst Lazenby is a bit awkward at times, its still a classic Bond feel, and the plot is well written and paced. It probably has the best music, and is great in spite of its flaws. Really feels like the great old style of Bond.
8. A View to a Kill - The only Moore movie I truly love. I don't like his Bond character very much, it's way to different from the books or the other classic actors. But this one is bat-shit insane, and has a lot of care put into it. The fact that Christopher Walken kidnaps a woman by sneaking up on her and grabbing her from a moving blimp puts this on the top 10 alone.
7. You Only Live Twice - I bloody love this movie. It might just be my favourite. A few obvious flaws, though the last half-hour is maybe the best in Bond history.
6. Skyfall - this is way too high. But it's decent, memorable, and is loved by a lot of people for good reason.
5. From Russia with Love - the one that feels most like a spy movie. It's solid and doesn't follow the Goldfinger formula, so it gets lots of positive points for me.
4. Casino Royale - the most ballsy Bond movie by far. What a difference between this and Brosnan. You know they pissed off a lot of fans with the complete change in approach, but by God did they update Bond correctly.
3. The Living Daylights - if not YOLT, this would be my favourite. It's got the best romance between Bond and the girl, the plot feels engaging, interesting, has lots of twists and turns. It's well-paced and Dalton is a great moody Bond. The plot, like Tomorrow Never Dies, feels like it's still relevant in some ways to the present day.
2. GoldenEye - A classic! Do I need to say another word?
1. Goldfinger - It's the one almost every following movie bases itself off of. It's got most of the iconic scenes, and propped up the franchise for years to come. The Empire Strikes Back of James Bond.


And there's my counter list :D

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 29 Nov 2018, 16:28
by dinizintheoven
The other day there was a (repeated) episode of Pointless with a round about "Bond films with three or more words int he title". The lowest scoring film was For Your Eyes Only, which - so the hosts tell us - is the film that always scores that low any time there's a round about Bond films.

It didn't make your Top Ten. Is it somewhat substandard?

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 29 Nov 2018, 21:18
by Rob Dylan
dinizintheoven wrote:The other day there was a (repeated) episode of Pointless with a round about "Bond films with three or more words int he title". The lowest scoring film was For Your Eyes Only, which - so the hosts tell us - is the film that always scores that low any time there's a round about Bond films.

It didn't make your Top Ten. Is it somewhat substandard?
Oh it's a real stinker. It's one of the great trilogy of Moore stinkers in my opinion: Moonraker; For Your Eyes Only; and Octopussy :P that golden period where the producers were basically making comedy movies with some elements of spying and some minor influence from the James Bond franchise coming in. For Your Eyes Only is one of those movies who you can't remember the bad guy, you can't remember the plot, the theme song is an acquired taste to go easy on it :P but it does have one thing no other Bond movie does: an actress playing Margaret Thatcher phoning Bond to congratulate him on his mission. It's...maybe the most cringeworthy thing in Bond history, and that's saying something :lol:

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 30 Nov 2018, 04:44
by Bobby Doorknobs
Rob Dylan wrote:
dinizintheoven wrote:The other day there was a (repeated) episode of Pointless with a round about "Bond films with three or more words int he title". The lowest scoring film was For Your Eyes Only, which - so the hosts tell us - is the film that always scores that low any time there's a round about Bond films.

It didn't make your Top Ten. Is it somewhat substandard?
Oh it's a real stinker. It's one of the great trilogy of Moore stinkers in my opinion: Moonraker; For Your Eyes Only; and Octopussy :P that golden period where the producers were basically making comedy movies with some elements of spying and some minor influence from the James Bond franchise coming in. For Your Eyes Only is one of those movies who you can't remember the bad guy, you can't remember the plot, the theme song is an acquired taste to go easy on it :P but it does have one thing no other Bond movie does: an actress playing Margaret Thatcher phoning Bond to congratulate him on his mission. It's...maybe the most cringeworthy thing in Bond history, and that's saying something :lol:

Ah, it's a perfectly decent film, and one of the better Moore ones. It's just very by the numbers from a general filmmaking perspective for the most part: Everything's lit appropriately, the camera's focused where it needs to be focused, the script usually hits the right beats, but we've experienced those beats before, so we're not really getting anything new. It's a huge step away from the increasing absurdity of the previous Moore films, and yet somehow it all feels so safe.

To the film's credit it was a very welcome step away from the "supervillain with a gimmick" formula, and there were some properly great sequences (the 2CV car chase, the monastery climb... wasn't that into the ski chase but it has its appeal).

I suppose what I didn't like most were the "bookends". The opening with Blofeld the man in the wheelchair doesn't fit in tonally with the rest of the film as well as it could have, and the aforementioned ending was just... not needed. At all.

And yet, I kind of want to watch it again now...

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 01 Dec 2018, 11:36
by Rob Dylan
Simtek wrote:
Rob Dylan wrote:
dinizintheoven wrote:The other day there was a (repeated) episode of Pointless with a round about "Bond films with three or more words int he title". The lowest scoring film was For Your Eyes Only, which - so the hosts tell us - is the film that always scores that low any time there's a round about Bond films.

It didn't make your Top Ten. Is it somewhat substandard?
Oh it's a real stinker. It's one of the great trilogy of Moore stinkers in my opinion: Moonraker; For Your Eyes Only; and Octopussy :P that golden period where the producers were basically making comedy movies with some elements of spying and some minor influence from the James Bond franchise coming in. For Your Eyes Only is one of those movies who you can't remember the bad guy, you can't remember the plot, the theme song is an acquired taste to go easy on it :P but it does have one thing no other Bond movie does: an actress playing Margaret Thatcher phoning Bond to congratulate him on his mission. It's...maybe the most cringeworthy thing in Bond history, and that's saying something :lol:

Ah, it's a perfectly decent film, and one of the better Moore ones. It's just very by the numbers from a general filmmaking perspective for the most part: Everything's lit appropriately, the camera's focused where it needs to be focused, the script usually hits the right beats, but we've experienced those beats before, so we're not really getting anything new. It's a huge step away from the increasing absurdity of the previous Moore films, and yet somehow it all feels so safe.

To the film's credit it was a very welcome step away from the "supervillain with a gimmick" formula, and there were some properly great sequences (the 2CV car chase, the monastery climb... wasn't that into the ski chase but it has its appeal).

I suppose what I didn't like most were the "bookends". The opening with Blofeld the man in the wheelchair doesn't fit in tonally with the rest of the film as well as it could have, and the aforementioned ending was just... not needed. At all.

And yet, I kind of want to watch it again now...
Well you're in luck, because You-Gee-Eee-Day are going to be reviewing it again soon, and I can link you to it when it's published :D

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 11 Dec 2018, 07:46
by UncreativeUsername37
I was going to make the top ten single-post users, but there were so many spambots in there that I decided it would be best to make two lists, one for Turing test passers and one for whose who fail for me. I say that because a really excellent bot or really hopeless human is always a possibility....

Top 10 Single-Post GP Rejects Turing Test Passers
10. formulanone - Nice to see an account (as in report) like that, even if it's a bit dry of details
9. stagrlee - Tell me you're not curious
8. rogerrayenz - I think this is a human due to the lack of links associated with them, either way the post is amusing
7. unixgeek13 - Nice point to make, not sure whether I already knew it at that time
6. kostas22 - Cleared something up
5. TeamLH - Did a good job of starting a GP thread
4. Nicky Louder - Year-long bump for a one-character grammar correction, my kind of guy
3. FM1 - This post probably increased someone's reject knowledge, though the post itself doesn't have anything
2. TheChozeLa - Beat mario to the same point, though considering the times and lengths of the posts they could easily have started at the same time
1. jmolony3 - How's that for reject interest

Top 10 Single-Post GP Rejects Turing Test Failers
10. Gupiecrexubre - idk
9. sharonware - So inspiring
8. josh24 - Of all the names that could've been chosen... and nice link
7. rohanross5 - A bot responding to a bot
6. pbsysasd - ?????
5. Typeenusy - Amuses my simple brain
4. laskLorossy - The following post says it all
3. dreamand - Almost seems too much like a joke to be a bot... and there are no links...
2. katie - I love the character this creates in so few words
1. georgehandel - Eventually I stopped laughing

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 11 Dec 2018, 09:49
by FortiWinks
Seems like dr-baker did scare off katie in the end :lol:

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 11 Dec 2018, 11:32
by Rob Dylan
UncreativeUsername37 wrote:I was going to make the top ten single-post users, but there were so many spambots in there that I decided it would be best to make two lists, one for Turing test passers and one for whose who fail for me. I say that because a really excellent bot or really hopeless human is always a possibility....

Top 10 Single-Post GP Rejects Turing Test Passers
10. formulanone - Nice to see an account (as in report) like that, even if it's a bit dry of details
9. stagrlee - Tell me you're not curious
8. rogerrayenz - I think this is a human due to the lack of links associated with them, either way the post is amusing
7. unixgeek13 - Nice point to make, not sure whether I already knew it at that time
6. kostas22 - Cleared something up
5. TeamLH - Did a good job of starting a GP thread
4. Nicky Louder - Year-long bump for a one-character grammar correction, my kind of guy
3. FM1 - This post probably increased someone's reject knowledge, though the post itself doesn't have anything
2. TheChozeLa - Beat mario to the same point, though considering the times and lengths of the posts they could easily have started at the same time
1. jmolony3 - How's that for reject interest

Top 10 Single-Post GP Rejects Turing Test Failers
10. Gupiecrexubre - idk
9. sharonware - So inspiring
8. josh24 - Of all the names that could've been chosen... and nice link
7. rohanross5 - A bot responding to a bot
6. pbsysasd - ?????
5. Typeenusy - Amuses my simple brain
4. laskLorossy - The following post says it all
3. dreamand - Almost seems too much like a joke to be a bot... and there are no links...
2. katie - I love the character this creates in so few words
1. georgehandel - Eventually I stopped laughing
Post of the year, you've brightened up my day.

And God, I remember that spam thread, I'm so glad it's under control better these days!

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 11 Dec 2018, 12:06
by Bobby Doorknobs
Rob Dylan wrote:And God, I remember that spam thread, I'm so glad it's under control better these days!

I'm not. I think I've only seen like one really good spambot trying to pass inside these walls since being made a mod. :(

On the subject of Turing Tests and what have you, this remains one of my favourite threads in the history of the forum: https://www.gprejects.com/forum/viewtop ... 8&p=328838

Is it a bot? Is it a troll using Botnik to write word salad? Is it someone with anterograde amnesia pretty much writing a new sentence every three words? We may never know. All we know for sure is that this person(?) likes NASCAR.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 11 Dec 2018, 12:42
by dr-baker
FortiWinks wrote:Seems like dr-baker did scare off katie in the end :lol:

I really don't know whether to be proud or disappointed in myself for this!

But, in the words of sharonware, go on may god blase them all.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 28 Dec 2018, 16:41
by Miguel98
The 10 Best Album's I've heard in 2018:
#10 - Jorja Smith's Lost & Found (R&B)
Jorja Smith's vocals are the highlight in this album - they're beautifull all around. She has a great voice, and it's made the full focus on most of the album. Honestly, I was surprised at how much I liked this album - it doesn't really suit my style at all. From the trip hop induced Lost & Found, to the more sweets ballads like Tomorrow, it's a great record all around. The production on this thing is excellent - the instrumentals fit the atmosphere very well, and overall, it's a very melancholic album.

#9 - BROCKHAMPTON'S iridescence (Rap)
The 4th album from the "best boy-band since One Direction" - as proclaimed on their excellent SATURATION III opener "Boogie" last year is, for me, the band's best work yet. After the exit of perhaps their biggest star - Ameer Vann - amongst controversy and allegations, they shelved their album work with Ameer and started a new project, which will turn into a new trilogy entitled "The Best Years of Our Lives". Now, this album wasn't as well received as the previous SATURATION trilogy. I disagree. The album is a great listen - the beats are mostly incredible, there is true bangers on this album - J'OUVERT, BERLIN, HONEY - and some more melancholic slow tunes like SAN MARCOS (a personal favourite of mine from the album, with the instrumental being incredible throughout imo) and the closer FABRIC, which features one of the best album outro's I heard this year. I like the production as well - it's typical BROCKHAMPTON, and what we came to hear boys.

#8 - Kali Uchi's Isolation (R&B)
This album... Hot damn. The production, the vocals, the instrumentals. Holy shite, it's so good. Kali Uchi's voice suits perfectly the multiple styles in this album - from rap induced tracks that focus more on the beat, to smooth R&B and jazzy vibes, and psychadelic induced beats and guitars (i mean, Tomorrow was produced and features Tame Impala's Kevin Parker), and this even includes a Damon Albarn guest on one track too. It's a fine example of what contemprary R&B and pop can offer us. More like this please.

#7 Anderson .Paak's Cheers (Rap)
Anderson .Paak's new project is a great fusion of R&B, rap and funky music that works wonders. When I heard the singles from this, I knew this would be great. Tints with Kendrick was one of my favourite singles of the year, and I was really disappointed Bubblin' didn't make the list - it's a great song. But onto the album - the album is an improvent over .Paak's major label debut from 2016. Tints is a highlight, but the real highlight on this album is the song Cheers featuring Q-Tip. The saxophone solo that closes the song is great, the beat, the flow, it works beautifully. Paak's vocals throughout the album vary from R&B style, to massive rap flows. The features work beautifully as well. Rap album of the year for me, clearly.

#6 Daughters' You Won't Get What You Want (Industrial Rock)
If you want something brutal to hear, check this album out. Daughters' first album in 7 years is trully a beast in that. You can fell the pain in every beat, in every guitar riff, in every piece of vocal in this album. The production on this thing... It's awesome. It's probably the aspect that I like the most in it. It gives the sound of this album a trully haunting feel, complemented by great instrumentation - the guitar riffs are heavy, the bass tone is perfect, the drumming is something trully brutal, almost Slipknot level in the way the drum works in this album. Lirycally, this album is mostly about pain too. Like, listen to the album to understand. It's so powerfull in every way, and by the end, you'll be in awe and scared over what you just heard.

#5 Car Seat Headrest's Twin Fantasy (Indie Rock)
Will Toledo's rework of his 2011 masterpiece made it even more of a masterpiece for me. While the production on the original was awful - although it contributed to the album's fantasy and overall feeling of pain and disolation - this new production made everything more sleek. The album flow is pretty good, the instrumentals are pretty good, but its on a lirycal level where this album excels. But what did you expect from Will? The opener is a great introduction to the album, before you get hit with one of the best piece of music I heard this year, with the 13 minute epic Beach Life-In-Death. And that ain't even the longest track on the record! Bodys, Cute Thing, Sober to Death, Nervous Young Inhumans, High to Death.. This album is damn near perfect. I love it. And I'm going to see Car Seat Headrest live in 2019. Awesome.

#4 Rolo Tomassi's Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It (Mathcore)
If you think the Daughters album was brutal, wait till you hear this. The Daughters album is brutal lirycally speaking and on production - this one is brutal over some trully incredible and brutal riffs that plague the album, beautiful vocals (either the screamo or the clean vocals, and the blend, its beautiful done), and some of the hooks on this album works great. Seriously, the first time I heard this... I felt my entire body shiver over how heavy and brutal and beautifull this album is. If you're into screamo, weird metrics on songs, this album is for you. Because, I'll be damned, it's beautifull crafted.

#3 Soccer Mommy's Clean (Indie Rock)
This album is a lyrical introspection into the life of a young woman in love, and that her heart is broken. And damn, its beautifull. The hooks on this album will get stuck on your head, the riffs are beautifully written, and the vocals are beautifull. Your Dog is one of my favourite songs of the year, and you can understand why. The hook on it is beautiful, and it gets stuck on your mind easilly. Listen to this people.

#2 Ólafur Arnalds' re:member (Classical)
I'm not a big fan of classical music, but I heard this album over the recommendation of a good friend of mine who told me about it. And I was not just surprised at how much I liked the feel of the album - I was in love with it. I realized the sound of the piano was one of my favourite things in music right now, and it's done perfectly on this album throughout. It sounds beautifull, and the production on this it's just.. in another league. Perfect piece of music to study too, and enjoy when you're just chilling at home.

#1 - Let's Eat Grandma's I'm All Ears (Pop)
HELL YES, LISTEN TO THIS ALBUM, IT'S GREAT, EVERYTHING ABOUT IT IT'S GREAT

Playlists if you wanna check more things out:
Top 20 Albuns of 2018
Favourite 50 Songs of 2018

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 20 Feb 2019, 16:09
by CarloSpace
Okay, we've seen all 10 of the 2019 F1 cars on action so it's time to rank the liveries.

10. Haas
Sadly there was no effort put in by whoever designed this livery. It's a wannabe JPS-Lotus that is lacking enough gold to make it look good. In a way it's good because I wouldn't want Haas to look like a Lotus. In my opinion they should gave tried something else. Black and gold are a great combination and would have allowed a more creative livery for sure. And please, do something with that fugly white Haas logo.

9. Toro Rosso
Basically the same livery as last year? I for one can't find any difference between the two. Last year I remember writing that the livery looks like it was designed by a six year old and my opinion hasn't changed at all. Terrible effort all in all that has never looked good and never will. Just goes to show how awful Haas' livery is if this one isn't the worst.

8. Williams
I hoped Williams would look nice on track in natural lighting, but it didn't. You have two colors, sky blue and white, that are guaranteed to work together and you have all the great liveries of the past (1996 Tyrrell, 1998 Benetton, 1980 Ligier) to draw inspiration from and all you come up with is that sad gradient. To find something positive, the Rokit logos look very nice and the red looks aggressive. Perhaps they could've utilized it more?

7. Racing Point
First livery that I genuinely enjoy, albeit not much. It is a trainwreck of colors and logos, I agree, but somehow it still works in it's own twisted way. I don't really know what to say about the livery besides that. The halo look nice and it's pink. I like pink. That's pretty much it.

6. Red Bull
The launch livery was horrendously terrible so I'm glad they didn't go with it. The actual livery offers nothing particularly new or interesting but it's still a step backwards. I don't know why but the red stripe on the side looks awkward, as does the nose. The yellow circle is in my opinion too high, making the car look like a platypus. Okay livery but not great.

5. Ferrari
Is it more orange than the last couple of years? Not sure if it's due to lighting or what but I'm not a fan, I prefer my Ferraris more red. I quite like the increase of black on the livery, especially on front wing but the black "Mission Winnow" logo ruins it all. It really should be white, don't care if people would associate it with Marlboro. It should be white. Nevertheless, that change would not move Ferrari higher on this list so whatever.

4. McLaren
Along with Haas the only team to do something interesting with their livery. It's mostly the same nice looking orange as in 2018 but with more blue elements. The best part for sure are the blue triangles on the engine cover - nice touch! And the same triangle shapes are used for the numbers on the nose. If only they had used them even more, there's so much potential there!

3. Renault
Not many changes from last year and why change something that works? I've got a soft spot for yellow racing cars and this one's not an exception. If anything, it should be more yellow and perhaps it would be higher on this list. Overall it's a bit on the dull side but still a very nice livery.

2. Alfa Romeo
White liveries are usually pretty dull but this one is just classy. The big Alfa Romeo badge on that beautiful red engine cover makes the livery very elegant - just what you'd expect from Alfa Romeo. The black line running from nose to back also ties the livery together wonderfully.

1. Mercedes
The Stuttgart boys and girls have had time to refine the Petronas Silver arrow livery down the years and they've really nailed it this time. Especially the engine cover is looking very nice and fresh. Excellent job overall.

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 20 Feb 2019, 17:48
by dr-baker
CarloSpace wrote:Okay, we've seen all 10 of the 2019 F1 cars on action so it's time to rank the liveries.

Just sad that there are not enough teams for honourary mentions, or for some to have to be left off the list...

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 20 Feb 2019, 18:46
by CarloSpace
dr-baker wrote:
CarloSpace wrote:Okay, we've seen all 10 of the 2019 F1 cars on action so it's time to rank the liveries.

Just sad that there are not enough teams for honourary mentions, or for some to have to be left off the list...

My thoughts exactly. Where are all the glorious reject entries? :cry:

Re: TOTB (ten of the best)

Posted: 21 Feb 2019, 14:58
by dr-baker
CarloSpace wrote:
dr-baker wrote:
CarloSpace wrote:Okay, we've seen all 10 of the 2019 F1 cars on action so it's time to rank the liveries.

Just sad that there are not enough teams for honourary mentions, or for some to have to be left off the list...

My thoughts exactly. Where are all the glorious reject entries? :cry:

Sad times indeed. Bring back Minardi, Simtek, Pacific, Lola, Super Aguri, Andrea Moda,...