(Credit:
Mark Brooks/Natali Del Conte)
Today we're graced by the presence of an actual superhero. Yes, Natali Del Conte has been transformed into the marginally intimidating geek hero "Motherboard." Neither a mother nor a board, Motherboard was sent to this planet to fight crime with her magic gadgets. Too bad she must recharge every night on her magnetic induction bed. Find out the etymology behind our new superfriend and her trusty sidekick Green Show Boy, aka Mark Licea, by listening in!
Also on the show, we discuss the fallout from the Horizon Realty escapade and why the Wii has stopped selling so well.
Finally, we talk about Peter Jackson's latest complaint: the fact that Hollywood has run out of original stories. OK Mr. Jackson, we'll give you District 9, but we're pretty sure both King Kong and The Lord of the Rings may have been other people's ideas.
EPISODE 393
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Many of us here at CNET harbor dreams of leading secret lives as masked superheroes, protecting the public from evildoers. A nagging feeling some would call "common sense" prevents us from living the dream. Luckily, we can all rest easy knowing that our streets are now protected by a motley crew of pseudo-heroes known as The Allegiance.
The team owes its Internet notoriety to a short profile that a Cincinnati local news station aired on one of its members, intimidatingly named Shadow Hare--check out his MySpace page. A 21-year-old man (I'll believe it when I see it) from Milford, Ohio, Shadow Hare claims his Allegiance of Heroes reaches all across the country, with masked vigilantes each protecting their respective cities. There's Aclyptico in Pennsylvania, Wall Creeper in Colorado, Master Legend in Florida, and Mr. Extreme in California.
Let's just pause for a second to marinate and comment on what's going on here. The first thing these guys need, judging from the video, is a super gym membership with a super personal trainer on the side. Plenty of comic book characters don't actually have super powers, Batman being the most popular, but the difference here is that he makes up for it with intense physical and psychological training and gadgets unobtainable by the public--therein lies the mystique, that not just anyone can be a superhero.
These guys, on the other hand, just look gross. Come on, guys! Your Spandex uniforms are loose in all the wrong places, you've reduced your handy gadgets down to Tasers and handcuffs, and dude, Shadow Hare: you don't even have a car? Good luck briskly strolling down the street, trying to look tough waiting for the bus.
And I heard that you got bopped in the shoulder while trying to stop a guy from beating up a woman? Something tells me the commissioner of the Cincinnati Police Department ain't rushing to Home Depot to build a Hare Signal. And what's with the name, guy? Out all of the menacing animals out there, you choose a cuddly bunny made famous for his arrogance in that fabled race...bummer that The Deadly Meerkat and The Flying Lemur were already taken by other heroes, huh?
Seriously, though, you have a lot of work to do before people take you seriously, Allegiance of Heroes. I respect your noble attempts at vigilant justice, but if you're gonna do it, do it right. Start by getting a police scanner, hit the free weights, and pound some steroids, then develop skills (nunchaku skills, bow-hunting skills, computer-hacking skills). Definitely fashion new outfits, and don't forget: extra padding is your best sidekick.
Until all of that happens, maybe just stick with being super funemployed.
Batman fans can find the superhero, along with other famous DC characters, in the new MMO DC Universe Online.
(Credit: Sony Online Entertainment)If hoards of Batman and Joker fans have their way, one booth may be getting some extra attention at Comic-Con, the annual comic book conference that kicks off in San Diego today.
Players will develop their own avatars to fight characters like Green Lantern.
(Credit: Sony Online Entertainment)Following the success of the newest Batman flick and Sony's E3 announcement of a new massively multiplayer online game (MMO), DC Universe Online, DC, Warner Brothers, and Sony Online Entertainment are treating some of their biggest fans to a sneak peek of the virtual world that will be offered on PlayStation 3 or online.
But for those who can't attend the everything-comic conference, DC Universe Online's MySpace page offers some select screenshots and artwork.
According to Reuters, the game features 150 characters from the DC comics, designed with the help of DC comic book artist and executive creative director Jim Lee, as well as other DC writers.
Players can become villains and meet up with Harley Quinn and the Joker.
(Credit: Sony Online Entertainment)However, the focus isn't solely on the famous comic book characters, who remain unplayable by users. The MMO will instead let users create their own superhero or villain when they join the universe. They can then engage with other characters, good and bad, to duke it out.
SOE has set no official release date, instead waiting for feedback on the current state of the virtual super-universe. The game will be featured in six kiosks on the floor of Comic-Con from July 24 to July 27.
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