Geekumentary: Monster Camp

Monster Camp is a rare and fascinating glimpse into the world of live-action role playing or "LARPing," a real-life version of "World of Warcraft" where gamer stereotypes are simultaneously shattered and confirmed.

The most recent item unearthed in my geekumentary quest is Monster Camp, a LARP documentary released in 2007 chronicling the activities of the Seattle, Washington chapter of NERO, a well-established LARP association with chapters all over the country. Apparently, the NERO scene on the East Coast is livelier (not surprising, given it stands for New England Roleplaying Organization), and the relative lack of support staff to run these labor-intensive events is one of the factors that contributes to the story here.

My husband's played NERO when he was younger, and though he doesn't seem too keen on the possibility of going back now that we're all grown up, I love the stories he tells about zombies attacking taverns, and people venturing off into the woods to investigate the tales of an old witch's cottage.

Monster Camp is not the first LARPing documentary on the scene; Darkon was released a year earlier, and followed a group of Maryland LARPers (definitely check out the trailer), but the flavor of LARP is quite different between the two. Darkon's LARPers are involved in a more political, kingdom-based style of play, while Monster Camp depicts pretty much what I imagine when I think of LARPing; people dressing up in monster costumes and throwing seed-filled beanbags at each other while shouting "Lightning Bolt!"

Between the two, I have to say I preferred Monster Camp, partly because the political intrigue thing just isn't as interesting to me (plus I watched Darkon right after The King of Kong, so my expectations could have been unfairly high for a purely fact-based documentary). Monster Camp did a good job at keeping the story moving, with a good mix of funny and poignant situations. It provided priceless section intro titles like, "Paul's father Steve is a monster." and quotes like, "This is technically my 5th year as a high school senior..." I think this is what they were referring to when they said stereotypes were confirmed, but they ARE then shattered in the sense that you (or at least I) grow to see these guys as human beings with feelings, just participating in a social hobby they enjoy. Or maybe you'll just see them as a freakish curiosity, but if so, the most masterful documentary wouldn't be able to sway you, and you probably wouldn't be reading this. Since you're a cruel and cold-hearted jerk.

I recommend Monster Camp to anyone who's curious about the LARP scene. Darkon's a good movie too, but in the end I think Monster Camp is a more accessible addition to the geekumentary family. But heck, if you're as into geek docs as I am, see them both!

One thing I should warn you about, though, is that they do diss on pen and paper D&D a bit. From what I heard, that remark led to a massive geek gang battle, straight out of Weird Al's Eat It. It was pretty intense, D20s and beanbags flying everywhere, armor checks and critical parries...but that's a story for another time.

Read about other geekumentaries in my Top 10 Geekumentaries article.

You can never go back

I caught the first episode of the new Knight Rider this week, and while I still find it entertaining, I regret to say, it just doesn't have the magic of the original. It's more Transformers meets James Bond, and if you approach it as a Bond-style scenario, it's probably a lot more enjoyable than if you go into it with any sort of fond memories of The Hoff and his "KITT, I need ya, buddy!" Plus they seem to be laying on a thick layer of government conspiracy plot. Oh yay.

I'm sad now. :( I'll probably keep watching it to see if it evolves, but maybe the problem is just that; it DID evolve.

I still want to put that "KITT Happens" bumper sticker on my car though.

Rock Band action figures on the way

There's an announcement on the Rock Band forums about a big site update coming next week. Among many cool features is the one I've been eagerly awaiting (no, not the availability of Crowded House tracks, though now that you mention it...). I'm talking about those $75 action figure versions of your Rock Band character!

BANDMATE CREATOR

As if that weren’t enough, in addition to posters, shirts, and stickers, you can make customized 3D statues of your favorite Rock Band 2 characters, which we’ve dubbed “Bandmates”. These things are awesome. They’re about 6” tall, made using full-color 3D printing technology from Z Corporation. Just pick a character, an instrument, and a pose, and they’ll get shipped to your door for about 70 bucks. The Harmonix office is swarming with Bandmate prototypes. After we'd evaluated a test run, we’d give them away to employees, and there was always a mad scramble to grab them on giveaway day.

I may get a t-shirt too...I've been wondering when the online integration piece of this that was obviously required would fall into place. This sounds like it. Which I am pretty sure means that they're tying in the XBox live database and your account information to an account on rockband.com somehow, maybe your forum account even. Lots of possibilities there once they do.

They also mention picture functionality to take pictures of your band and make them available online, which is awesome news. I literally tried last night to take a picture of T-Cat to post here with a digital camera, but the batteries were low. It seems they knew what I was up to, and felt that T-Cat deserved better.

Dexter

There's no arguing that Battlestar is THE best show on tv, but Showtime's Dexter is right behind it, or, maybe, next to it...poised with a needle in a dark alley...

Dexter is a series about a blood spatter expert in the Miami police force who also happens to be a vigilante serial killer. But since he only kills the most wicked dregs of society (and does his homework to be sure), you totally root for him. Season 2 just came out on DVD, and Season 3's currently running on Showtime.

From the moment I put in the first DVD I knew I was hooked, just from the intro sequence, which takes elements of the mundane morning routine and makes them feel...murderific? The music's great too.



Dexter is a cleverly-written dark comedy with great characters and cast. I especially enjoy Erik King's portrayal of Sgt. Doakes, the short-fuzed officer who just KNOWS Dexter's up to something, stews and obsesses about it, but can't quite prove it. Michael C. Hall's inner monologue narrative is also well-delivered, clever and engaging, and he does a phenomenal job of pulling off the utterly split personality a serial killer in hiding would need to master.


Beyond the quality of the production, another reason I think Dexter appeals is the overlying subject matter, the way it plays with the themes of what lies beneath. It takes one's imperfect dark side and says, "Hey, I know exactly how you feel. Nobody understand the real you." I'm not a serial killer, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that sometimes has thoughts that don't fit with society at large. You know, like cheering for vigilante serial killers... Except in this case, I know I'm not the only one hoping Dexter gets away with it. :)

More and more, I'm noticing that I prefer these premium channel series' to prime time tv (with the exception of Fringe at the moment and of course Battlestar). They don't dumb the subject matter down the way most network tv shows do now. Big thanks to my friend Rick for introducing us to this series. If you don't get Showtime, Netflix it!

PS - OMG. DOAKES!!!

Knight Rider premiere tonight

Just in case you forgot, the new Knight Rider series kicks off tonight at 8/7 Central on NBC.

If you just can't wait another moment, or aren't sure which channel on your cable listings is NBC, you can watch the online premiere. RIGHT NOW! ZOMG!

I also heard that not a ton of people (a mere 9 million or so) checked out Fringe. It seems America is now hand-shy from repeated abuse by convoluted plots. Seeeeeeee Abrams and Carter? I TOLD YOU! But seriously, so far, Fringe is not like that. It's fairly simplistic and predictable, and mindlessley entertaining! Right up our alley, America!

That's some good BBQ

This was a recent Discovery Channel moment I wanted to share.

One really nice fall day last week, I was having a pulled pork sandwich on the patio area at our local Tex-mex restaurant. A yellowjacket stopped by, and spent a lot of time buzzing around, scoping out our food. They don't really bother me that much, though I've been stung before, but he seemed more persistent then average, and eventually landed on my sandwich. I figured he'd maybe lick of some of the barbecue sauce, and then leave us in peace. Instead, as I watched he began to use his mouth pinchers and forelegs to pull himself off a big (as in, about the size of his body) chunk of pork, and flew away with it!

It was really a suprising moment, I had no idea yellowjackets did that, or even that they were carnivorous, but apparently they can be:

Although adults feed primarily on items rich in sugars and carbohydrates (fruits, flower nectar and tree sap), the larvae feed on proteins (insects, meats, fish, etc.). Adult workers chew and condition the meat fed to the larvae. Larvae in return secrete a sugar material relished by the adults, an exchange of material known as trophallaxis.

Now didn't my blog make you feel smarter just then? I can't imagine there are larvae hanging out right now given the time of year, so if you ask me, this particular fellow has just caught on to the deliciousness that is barbeque. He might be a tailgater.

We were still talking about it when he came back...for seconds! He struggled with another more stubborn bit of pork that I was sure would soon have him rolling head over...wings onto the bun, but eventually got it loose and again departed.

By the time he came back for thirds, I was really wishing I had a camcorder or at least my camera. It was fascinating to watch, and though I don't speak yellowjacket, I know he was saying to himself, "Goddammit, that's some good barbecue!"

On the subject, my favorite barbecue places in the region are:

• Red Bones Barbeque: Davis Square, Sommerville MA. Meat in a bucket? We're there!


• KC's Rib Shack: Manchester, NH. Deep fried pickles and huuuuush puppies...and big squeeze-bottles full of different BBQ sauces.


• Firefly's Bar-B-Que: Framingham, MA. Phantom Gourmet favorite, with good reason.


• Rockin' Ribfest: Anheuser-Busch Brewry, Merrimack, NH. There's never enough time or stomach real estate to sample everything I'd like to, but it's a great summertime event.


• Longhorn Steakhouse: all over the place. Not barbeque per se, but I love the ribs there!

Pac-man...on the catwalk?

Retro always comes back into style. If you had a wardrobe of 70's bell-bottoms, I hope you didn't throw those away, because they are BACK. Again. And if you had a giant plastic pac-man hat, I certainly hope you held onto it...


According to top industry minds, pac-man is going to be all the rage next Spring. Or at least, fashion designer Giles Deacon seems to think so. Check out all the pictures from his Spring-Summer 2009 collection, shown at the recent London Fashion Week. Finally, high fashion in a form I can relate to!