Entertainment
Doddsy1992 couldn't be here to introduce the Entertainment section, so I (Mrcsupertrain) am here to do it for him. Here is what we have for all of you readers in this issue's Entertainment world. First, we have a baseball article by Numba1MetsFan, titled An Ace's Arrival - The Johan Santana Deal. Second, Mrcsupertrain (yes, that's me, and I am talking in third person) submitted some interesting photos of people modeling in balloons. This gallery is called Balloon Bonanza. Thirdly, Dawesbr tells us about one of the most popular Nintendo Wii video games: Super Mario Galaxy. Fourth, Say Topdog tells us about the Superbowl 42. Those four articles make up the Entertainment portion and I hope you enjoy them all.
- Mrcsupertrain
An Ace's Arrival - The Johan Santana Deal - By: Numba1MetsFan
Throughout the whole MLB 2007 Off-Season, many rumors were spread. The biggest of them, however, was that Johan Santana would be traded. Johan Santana is the best pitcher of this decade and arguably the best pitcher in baseball today. He is the main deal. He is able to eat over 200 innings and gets over 200 strikeouts as well. Along with being a power pitcher, he has 3 strikeout pitchers, other than the usual fastball. He can throw a 4 Seam Fastball, a Changeup, and a devasting Slider to fan hitters.
Coming after the historic collapse of 2007, the New York Mets wasted no time in trying to land an innings eating after the departure of future Hall of Famer Tom Glavine. Also in the race were the New York Yankees and the Boston RedSox. Both teams weren't as interested as the NY Mets, mainly for the reason that each team was trying to make sure the other team wasn't getting this great ace.
Now, you may be wondering, the best pitcher in baseball? Then why would the Minnesota Twins want to trade this ace? Well, first, Santana turned down a 5-Year Contract Extension. Second, he was to become a free agent after the 2008 season. The 3rd reason is that he demanded $20 Million! The Twins had decided that they were to get the best offer of prospects, young players with star potential, for trading away Johan Santana.
After almost the whole off-season, the biggest rumor had arised. And this time, it actually wasn't a rumor. The Mets had traded 4 prosects for Johan Santana. The prospects were: Carlos Gomez, Philip Humber, Deulis Gerra, and Kevin Mulvey. However, 3 things had to be done with finalize the trade:
1. All players involved in the trade must pass a physical
2. The Mets had to offer a contact extension to Santana for atleast $20 Million
3. Santana must waive his No-Trade Clause, meaning that he is the person to decide whether this deal is finalized
Now, as Spring Training has started, and the 2008 regular season extremely near, it is to see whether Johan Santana can erase the memories of the 2007 New York Mets Collapse...
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Balloon Bonanza - By: Mrcsupertrain
Hello readers! Mrcsupertrain is here with some interesting pictures. Recently, I received an email containing the following pictures that show how baloons can be used as outfits, models, and anything else by using your imagination! I hope that you find them interesting and appealing to your pleasure as you view each picture. These pictures were taken in late 2006 at some type of Balloon Fashion Show, and no, I did not take these pictures, nor am I one of the models. Enjoy!
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Super Mario Galaxy – By: dawesbr
Mario is a franchise that has spread around the globe, reaching millions of people in various countries. With Nintendo’s new Nintendo Wii now out on the shelves, it was obvious that a new Mario game was needed. Even if there were no details released, just the fact a new Super Mario game was being released would be enough to create a whirlwind of hype, but there were details released, and this game was greatly anticipated by thousands of people. But did the game live up to the hype?
In most aspects it did, with nearly everyone loving the game. Let’s start with the story. Princess Peach once again wants Mario to come to her castle in the Mushroom Kingdom, this time to celebrate the day that stars fall from the skies. Surprise, surprise, she gets kidnapped. Bowser arrives once again to whisk her away, but this time he has some style and uses his space ship to cut the ground away and lift the entire castle away with him.
Mario drops away off the bridge, and wakes up on another planet. A tiny planet, which Mario can run around in under a minute. Mario then meets Rosalina, a mysterious woman who grants him the power to…spin? What a great ability. It turns out, yes it is a great ability, allowing you to smash crystals, stun enemies, swim, fire yourself from launch and sling stars, and more! It is then revealed, after saving a big star from the grips of an evil-looking machine, that Rosalina lives at an observatory that needs special “Power Stars” to run, and, once again as no surprise, so begins your quest to collect the golden stars.
The gameplay consists of you flying to different galaxies and planets and retrieving all 120 Power Stars. The key factor at play is gravity. You can jump from planet to planet and even jump around an entire planet, be walking along when suddenly you flip upside-down onto what used to be the ceiling, or fall into the centre of a planet. The Wii remote’s motion sensing technology is normally only used for spin attacks, though you collect and fire special Star Bits with the pointer, and use the pointer to pull yourself along, and on certain galaxies you use the Wii remote to surf a ray, or ride on-top of a large rolling ball. Another key factor is the variety of mushrooms that you will find along your journeys. These change Mario’s state from normal to fire, ice, boo, bee, and more, each state having different properties. Fire Mario can throw fireballs, Ice Mario can walk on water, Boo Mario can float upwards and drift through caged walls, and so on.
The use of all these features together changes from planet to planet, and every single star needs a different combination of the features to reach. As well as the normal stars, there are hidden stars that you have to find yourself, and “Prankster Comets” that allow you to replay a star but with a special effect running throughout, such as a time limit or faster enemies. Your brother Luigi will also help you find certain stars, and Hungry Lumas turn into planets when you fill them up with Star Bits. The Lumas live with Rosalina, and love to eat the Star Bits you find on the galaxies, so when you find a hungry one, just feed it enough and it will “Burst with snacky happiness and transform.”
The graphics and music are both beautiful, and match each other perfectly. Special effects look brilliant as well in Super Mario Galaxy, and the sound effects work with them well too. The music always fits the mood, fast paced when you need to be in a hurry, calm and soothing when in a relaxed planet. The largest planets look great too, and the Battlerock galaxy, a huge asteroid turned into a base, looks wonderful when you are soaring around it.
As for replay value, when you have collected all 120 stars you unlock Luigi as a playable character, who is faster and jumps higher, but takes longer to stop, and causes some funny parts when you meet Luigi and when letters are sent to Mario. This mode is also considerably harder than normal, such as the comet where you race a space-version of yourself, where the space-Luigi runs fast and takes all the shortcuts. It is a shame that when playing as Mario many will find it too easy, perhaps because this game was aimed at a wider audience.
So you've unlocked Luigi. You've played through all of the galaxies and power stars with the taller brother, met the Topmen, the Lumas, the Bees. You achieved that final star, the big 120, and what do you do now? What could the Super Mario Brothers have in store next? Looks like the Mailtoad has a message for you...
Overall, this game is incredible, and lives up to its hype, even surpassing it in areas. The amazing innovation showed by the developers completes the game, and the gorgeous work done by the graphic team as well as the fantastic use of music in Super Mario Galaxy combine together with some classic Super Mario action to make a phenomenal game, and one that will probably stay the number one Wii game in many peoples heads for a long time.
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Superbowl 42– By: Say Topdog
Superbowl Sunday, one of the most exciting unofficial holidays in the United States took place on the 3rd of February, 2008. What is the Superbowl? One of the most exciting days in America -- And also one of the largest food consumption days in America. But it is truly a mere football championship -- a hunt for destiny and glory. And this year's Superbowl champion, the New York Giants surely found there destiny and glory, beating the favored New England Patriots 17 points to 14 points.
This year, the Superbowl hosted a match between the unbeaten New England Patriots who were looking to be undefeated for the entire season, and the underdog New York Giants led by the young Eli Manning. (Whose brother won the Superbowl in 2007). There were lots of festivities in store at this year's Superbowl, in which Tom Petty performed at live during the Halftime Show. At home, you could see commercials -- both regular and quite hilarious.
The New England Patriots, led by record-breaking Quarterback Tom Brady, lost to the Giants on the last drive of the final quarter. With 10 seconds remaining on the clock, the New England Patriots failed to work together and came short of the New York Giants by 3. The Patriots, who expected to win this year's Superbowl, walked away from the game in awe and embarrassment.
On the other hand, the New York Giants happened to win the biggest game of the year under intense pressure. Quarterback Eli Manning was throughly protected by his lineman and hung in there to win the game. The New York Giants got ahead of the Patriots in the final quarter of the game, as Eli Manning threw the winning touchdown to receiver Plaxico Burress.
Some notable features of the game include the massive rush of fans and players at the end of the game with only one second remaining on the clock; thus, the Superbowl Staff had to clear out the field of fans and players to finish off the game. As the Superbowl Staff cleared out the stadium, Patriots coach Bill Belichick storms off the field, disappointed by this Superbowl upset.
This year's Superbowl was a good one, and I am delighted by what was in store. I expect next year's Superbowl (Held in Tampa, Florida) to be an even greater festivity for myself and others. Congratulations to the teams participating in this year's Superbowl, the New York Giants and New England Patriots. Both teams played fairly well.
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