How I met Your Mother finale review

I’ve just watched the final episode of season 9 of the Hit US sitcom How I met your mother which, if you haven’t seen it is the story of how Ted meets the mother of his children and the love of his life.

Need I say *Spoiler alert* ahoy?

The series has taken up the mantle left by Friends and matched the same dynamic of a group of friends from mixed backgrounds in their late 20s living in a flat in New York and frequenting a bar – with a sly nod to Friends by having them hang out in a coffee shop once and hating it.

The characters are all linked to Ted, who is also the narrator and the central axis of the story with his search for love. It also swept me up in the story as it showed a guy, about my age with the same problems as I have. The whole growing up and making adult decisions, moving out of the 20s into the 30s and leaving his old life behind him in kind of a right of passage from youth to adult to father and husband.

Like Friends it has had a really decent run, it had nine seasons and around two hundred episodes covering a vast array of subjects, encounters and growth of all the characters. There are mountains of cultural references, in gags, great human quality and drama despite the comedy. It was after all, a story about love, life and friendships across the years.

So season 9, the final season, has just finished and I am left with serious mixed emotions. Firstly, as a season I’ve been quite disappointed. The overall story arc was about Barney and Robin’s wedding but with the other leading edge that Ted was going to meet the unnamed mother and fall in love. Sadly it dragged. There were so many complications with the wedding and the other characters (like Lily and Marshall’s planned move to Italy vs. his being given a Judgeship in New York state, Ted still having feelings for Robin and finally letting her go, Barney finally putting his commitment issues down etc…).

Although the episodes were mostly good, it felt like they were stalling the main plot and to quote my wife at the end of most of them;

Hurry up and get married for Pete’s sake!

There were lots of references to the Mother, and she meets all of the others and helps them in one way or another, even convincing Robin to go back and marry Barney. With only two episodes to go we were still on the edge of our seats. Marshall and Lily were expecting baby number 3 and decided to go to Italy, Barney and Robin were married and Ted was due to meet the mother by the next episode. Other lose ends were also tied up, even little ones like what was Blah-Blah’s real name? How did Scooter get over Lily? What the hell was Barney’s job? (Please…)

The last two episodes seemed to rush things as they passed the meeting and passed into the future with Ted and (the still unnamed) mother having their two children, Lily and Marshall having their third and his return to corperate law and the devastating news the Robin and Barney have divorced as they couldn’t make things work. We were left with Robin leaving the group of friends as she no longer had any thing in common and that being around Barney was too painful.

So, the finale.

We begin to tie up even more threads. Barney becomes a father after one of his One night stands finally backfires – a truly moving moment when he holds the baby girl for the first time and tells her how much he will love her forever and you finally see him grow up. It was something that struck accord with me as I remembered holding Sophie in my arms for the first time and the feeling that evoked and that deep down I changed as I’m sure we all do the moment we become parents.

 Marshall becomes a judge and out of the job he despises and Ted and (the still unnamed mother) get married on a day that Robin comes back to be with her best friend’s big day, a day that many didn’t think was coming. We see Ted talking of his love for the girl, who we finally find out is called Tracy(!!!!)  and all the times he looked back fondly on their life together, through the highs, lows, the petty arguments and when she got sick and died.

Yes, she died.

The scene dissolves back to his study where he has been narrating the story to his children over the last nine years and telling them about his life and they tell him if they want their permission to ask out Aunt Robin that’s ok. It ends with him standing outside her house holding the iconic blue French horn, a symbol of their love (he stole it for her on their first date back in the pilot!).

Part of me was overly gratified that the subtext for the first four/five seasons of on/off romance and affection (in true Ross/Rachel style) was gratified. Even the other great love of his life (and the girl I’d been rooting for), Victoria had said at the end beginning of season 8 that Ted had to chose between her and Robin’s friendship (reminds me of Emily’s ultimatum in Season 4(?) of Friends…). The show had prided itself that all those who had predicted Ted and Robin would get together were wrong and just when we had accepted it all they fired off that last twist in the last five minutes.

As a romantic and someone who has read a lot of love, the human experience and even walked in the footsteps of Ted at more than one point in my life, I will admit that I cried a little when I re-watched it on E4+1 whilst writing this review.

Then again, the teenage daughter makes the valid point that the whole story barely doesn’t have the mother in it – I mean I can understand the first 8 seasons as it is all about growth and life and hints being dropped about the mother (sorry Tracy) as well as his romantic encounters including being ditched at the altar (by Stella played by Sarah Chalke), the great love that was Victoria (Ashley Williams), the turbulence of Zoe and Jenette… But Season 9 barely has her in it as well and this was meant to be the season they met and fell in love, so in a way – I’m not surprised and a little let down. They have gone to the standard sitcom cliché of he’ll get with her, she’ll be with him and he’ll marry out of the group etc…

Don’t get me wrong it is something that if I ever get a free 100 hours to rewatch the series I’ll be watching it from another viewpoint and nodding along with that smug I know what happens look like the second time I watched Sixth sense, but part of me will always be disappointed a little by the ending and feel eminently sorry for Tracy who has been killed off without chance to be developed fully and is a virtual unknown.

It has been a fantastic series, one that never lost its way like Friends, never changed its basic make up and chemistry like Big Bang Theory and did not over run by too much like Frasier. I have thoroughly enjoyed it and if you have never seen it – dude, you need to watch this sitcom! – I am just in a state of shell shock at the ending and a little disappointed but then again, when there is ever an ending to a series that isn’t your ideal, won't you always be?

 

 

Decieved by Julie Anne Lindsey - Book trailer

DECEIVED by Julie Anne Lindsey 

Ever since she could remember, Elle has had to hop from town to town to keep up with her dad's demanding career as a corporate insurance agent. Each time, a reoccurring nightmare followed her wherever she went--until the day that the frightening figures haunting her at night became all too real. When news of a serial killer spreads throughout her new school, Elle worries that the Reaper has been leaving her his calling card in the form of cigarette butts on her doormat and an unusual ribbon in her locker. With the help of Brian, a boy she meets at a flea market, she discovers that this isn't her first encounter with the murderer and that her father has been concealing her true identity for the past twelve years. But despite her father's desperate attempts to protect her, Elle still comes face to face with the darkness she has been running from her whole life. Trapped in the woods and with help hundreds of miles away, will Elle be able to confront the Reaper and reclaim the life she lost? 

Available September 18th on Amazon Barnes & Noble Book Depository and more. 

About Julie: 

Julie Anne Lindsey is a multi-genre author who writes the stories that keep her up at night. In 2013, Julie welcomed five new releases in three genres including her newest title, DECEIVED, a YA suspense from Merit Press, and her first cozy mystery, MURDER BY THE SEASIDE, book one in the Patience Price, Counselor at Large series from Carina Press (a digital imprint of Harlequin).  

Julie is a self-proclaimed word nerd who would rather read than almost anything else. She started writing to make people smile. Someday she plans to change the world. Most days you'll find her online, amped up on caffeine and wielding a book. 

Julie is a member of the International Thriller Writers (ITW), Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI), Sisters in Crime (SinC) and the Canton Writer’s Guild. 

Find her online: 

Tweeting her crazy @JulieALindsey 

Soothing her book obsession on GoodReads 

Pinning the pretty on Pinterest 

Tumbling lamely on Tumblr 

Blogging about books and writing at Musings from the Slush Pile 

Facebook 

Star Wars Battlefront III

For fans of the original Star Wars Battlefront and its successor Battlefront II there has been a long wait for a sequel on a newer platform and now it looks like our dreams may be answered.

A sneaky teaser trailer was released onto the internet earlier this year giving Star Wars fans and gamers the chills as they begin to hope for more running around blasting Stormies/Rebel scum depending on your orientation.

The first two games were fantastic and allowed many of us Fanboys to finally do what we had always wanted to do - run around as Stormtroopers, drive AT-ATs and fly TIE fighters in combat.

The levels were all straight forward and held the same format as the World War two variants of the game with taking bases to increase your potency, bring you forward command posts and weaken your enemy.

There were two eras to choose from, The Republic (vs the Confederacy of Planets) and the Empire (vs. the Rebellion) with each army haing basciallythe same untis but with specialised elites.

The first offered a limited role for starfighters with only the Bespin level making them the focus. The role was mainly close support and anti-vehicle role but the smallness of the levels meant that you could never open up the throttle.

The AT-ST was the king of the battlefield and somewhat unstoppable if you had a pilot character inside and the Droidika was the best in built up eras and corridors.

Although the campaign wasn't great it was entertaining as you cross the galaxy and if you win enough battles you get to remove a planet (by Death Star or Blockade) or instantly get it to switch side (if you're the good guys). Each planet offers a benefit for your campaign like more ammunition, health regenration or more reinforcements.

There were heros avialable on certain levels for a limited time period dependent on how many hits you took and how many bad guys you killed.

The Second offered much much more to offer gamers.

Although the AT-ST was toned down and erial support was removed from ground battles certain other bonuses came forward.

Firstly Officer class characters who are able to rally troops with a mod and carry a greande launcher. Personally i didn't use this much and stuck to my trustee Stormtrooper (or Sniper) class.

The biggest change was the advent of Space Battles. Each side having four classes of Starfighter (Fighter, Interceptor, Bomber and Transport.) with Pilot class and Marines for boarding - Yes Boarding!

I was elated to thefirst time I climbed out of my TIE fighter and ran around a Mon Cal Cruiser. Unfortunatly the accessable area is fairly small but worth exploring.

space battles revolve around scoring points by destroying parts of the enemy's Capital ship like Engines, sensors, Gunnery and sheilds. You can do that outside or for trooper fun - inside.

The Campaign for the single player is fantastic and follows the career of a 501st clone from Geonosis up to the battle of Hoth fighting droids, Rebels and Clone troopers with a story mode feel with individula mission objectives making it feel less samey and more story based.



A Droid Marine



Galactic Conquest has been streamlined so there is only one battle per planet but you earn points per planet owned to pay for new Starfleets or unlocking new troop types. The Starfleets can only move along the Space lanes and through systems you control making it ever so more tactical.

It is a game that never really tires and that can appeal to the General of the Grunt - If the new game runs on a similiar engine and is even half the game that I and II were then it should be amazing...

I, and a lot of other gamers and Star Wars fans wait with baited breath!

Game Review: Skyrim

A year or so ago I saw a trailer like this on the television and I turned to my wife and said;

I have got to play this game dude...

I have played a lot of shooting games like Call of Duty Modern warfare and Black ops as well as other games like The Sims 3 and was thinking about a change and this trailer caught my eye.

I hadn't played a role play game like this in a really long time, since Daemon's gate on the PC and that was more of a strategy rather than a one player game.

As I loaded the game I began to get excited as the black cleared to reveal three other NPCs in a cart, one is gagged, the other is a soldier and the fourth a Horse thief. As we're taken to Helgen for execution and our heads put on the block when a dragon descends and torches the city and you have to flee for your life.

Character generation can be lengthy but as it is your character for the rest of the game it is indeed worth it.

You can skip through with a cursory "yep" and a click if you're not bothered how you look or size etc but race is very important as each has its own bonuses and draw backs. My first character was the embodiment of an old Dangeons and Dragons character I used to play as - Uglύk the half Orc barbarian - now a fully fledged Orc warrior who is now level 50 and fairly unstoppable in most fights smashing through bandits and Drauger with relative ease. My current character is based on one of my other favourite Lord of the Rings characters, the Wood Elf Haldir of Lothlorien, who is now at level 4 and who got eaten by a bear lastnight...

The game itself is ultimatly fairly sandbox and although there is a story mission you are relatively free to wander the huge area that is Skyrim and make your own adventure. Indeed as Uglύk I have only done one Legion mission and only completed Part 1 of the main story missions but have completed the thieves guild, become thane of most of the holds and chief Wizard at the College of Winterhold.

I find this the most enjoyable part of the game. Skyrim has a vast sprawling landscape of mountains, grassy valleys, icy tundra and swampy estuaries. The whole landscape is peppered with caves, creepy castles, bandit camps, huts and mines. Each is crawling with bandits, enemy factions, undead, necromancers, wild beasts and Vampires and flying high above you are Dragons...

The graphics are really good and quite entrancing at first. I wasted many hours riding from place to place just because I enjoyed the landscape and for the random encounters. Once you have been to a place however there is always Fast travel between them which will move you, your horse and any companions to that location. It can be quite helpful if you, like me, regularly lose their horse and can't remember where it is parked.

Aela the huntress

The missions themselves are pretty good with a variety of sneaking, cunning and downright bloody fighting - it is totally up to you.

With every skill used you gain experience and with every level we gain a perk point which can be allocated to a skill tree giving you bonuses. For example as you assign points to Archery you can unlock the overdraw (which does more damage), Eagle eye (which allows you to zoom in) and Hunter's discipline (which allows you to recover more arrows from a fallen foe). So whatever you want to be your key skills can be maxed out. This is why Uglύk is such an awesome two handed weapon wielding heavy armour wearing killer blacksmith with secondary sneak and bow skills.

There is scope to get married and with the add ons you can even build a house (rather than buy) and adopt children for the full total immersion. This game does suck you in and you find yourself totally immersed and losing time just by running around or going to the next town to sell your plunder or buy the latest gear.

The draw backs are that the game has quite a few bugs. Some missions get stuck and you need to reload from quite a time before. I did one dungeon and found on trying to exit that a door had slammed shut and wouldn't let me open it. I've also been unable to complete certain quests even though I have done so and they show up repeatedly in my "To do list". I am also barred from buying the house in Markarth as I completed two quests at the same time and missed the dialogue with the steward which is most vexatious.

The loading screens can be quite tiring as well and can take a loooooonnnnnnnnggggg time to load between going between sections of dungeon, out of a building or into a city irrespective of the size of the location you are entering. This can be quite annoying if you are playing to a time limit or running around a city. I once ran spent as much time on loading screens as I did actually running around!

If you like fantasy or role play games, freedom to explore and do what you want without the oppressive "Story" hanging over your head and pulling you back then this is definitely the game for you. Easily ***** despite the bugs!

Tomb Raider Reborn: Game review

This may seem slightly premature as I'm only about a tenth of the way through the game but I am already

hooked which is rare for any game. Usually I get a day or so in, hit a snag or a tricky bit and put the game down for a while or I come home from work and I am too tired to play but this one... this one had me the moment the first title screen started rolling.

I have never really played any Lara Croft games before. I was a teenager at the time the first one came out on the PS1 and like any teenage boy I spent more time marvelling at her form than at the game itself - that and I didn't have a console to play on!

Any way, despite the reviews of my peers I didn't really get into it. I am not very good at judging distances for jumps and have loathed platform games in the past much preferring real time strategy like Dune II or Sudden Strike and flight sims like European Air War or Reach for the skies.

I thought I would give the franchise a shot though with Lara Croft; Angel of Darkness but in all honesty I didn't get very far and became stuck trying to jump from a house to another part of the street, became bored and played something else.

I was fairly surprised when I was in Game and saw Tomb Raider: Underworld and Tomb Raider; Reborn and looking at the back of the boxes decided to give the cut down pre-owned games a shot. Underworld I'll review else where but Reborn has blown me away!

The cinematic game footage is pretty sharp and dramatic, the graphics are so convincing it is like watching a movie. There is a lot of cinematic moments through the game which in previous games was quite annoying with stop starts just interrupting your flow but in this game they act as moments when you can catch your breath and they are seamless, often only a minute in length and even interactive.

The plot is that you are looking for a legendary Japanese island and seat of the Sun queen when your ship is sunk by a mysterious storm. Having been washed up on an island and kidnapped by some guy you now have to get back to your crew and get off this rock but things aren't what they seem. Imagine the imagery and basics of Lost but ten times better. The "Others" in this case are very much out to kill you and capture you so you need to be on your toes because they don't hold back at all. Daubings on the wall say eerie things like None shall leave and the bodies of World War Two Japanese, 16th Century Portuguese ships and modern vessels and planes litter the landscape as a testament to that.

To make things even more interesting you aren't the seasoned warrior that Lara has become in later games rather you are the girl fresh out of university learning how to survive, how to kill and put what you have learnt into practise. You earn skill points for actions that can be invested into skills allowing you to find your way around, survive, fight and gain precious salvage. Salvage is used to upgrade your weapons making them more accurate, have better magazine capacity and do more damage. .

However you do start the first level and a bit you don't have a weapon at all and rely on your wits before finding a modified Longbow, which in my opinion is the best weapon in the game so far, although the pistol has a higher rate of fire the bow is good for stealthy kills and distractions.

This game has something for everyone in it. If you are into shut'em'ups you can play it gung-ho and hammer through or you can go stealthy in a  Hitman style.

There are still lots of jumps and exploring to do that have kept from the original series but it isn't a dominant force. In fact I find the jumps, scrambles, climbing axes and rolling into cover a lot easier to do than on other games so if you are think; Ugh not another platform jumper

Then do think again. It isn't like that

I feel driven to save Lara, to find out what is going on on the island and get us off it. The cinematics make it feel like a movie and I've really found myself rooting for the lead character .

At one point Lara had her feet caught in a beer trap and there were wolves coming out of the undergrowth and armed with a pistol I had to take one shot at each - my heart was racing with adrenaline. I spend much of the game fearful and curious of what is going on. It is real entertainment.

If you have never played Tomb Raider before, as was the case with me, I would strongly suggest you start with this one. As a reboot to the popular series I can only hope that any further games are made in the same mold as so far this has been a fantastic experience.

Definitely my favourite game of the moment ***** out of 5!

Lego Batman DC Super Heroes - Game Review

DC Heroes in Lego form - awesome

I have been a big fan of the Lego franchise of games since the first Lego Star Wars came out and I've managed to play most of them.

There have been many improvements through time to these games such as the advent of Split screen which means you no longer accidentally drag the other player over cliffs!

There is also the ability to change characters mid  free play game that allows you to swap to a character that hasn't been been selected by the game. This means that the amount of Toggled characters is kept to a minimum and you don't have to scroll through a dozen characters for the one you need now. This is a great improvement on the first Lego Batman game as in free play you had to go through all the Batman and Robin suits and then a handful of villains with special abilities which could easily be up to fifteen characters and very time consuming!

Moving on to Lego Batman II it has everything we've come to expect from Lego games with fun puzzles, and character specific rooms that need to be done on free play. In that respect there are no surprises and no complaints, like all the games it keeps you on your toes and makes you think about things.

There is an added free play aspect in that now you get to wander around Gotham City and look for more Gold bricks, vehicles, superheroes and Super villains. This is quite fun and is a an interesting break from levels! The down side to it is that you will (often and I mean often) get attacked by goons which can be a little annoying even when you are invincible!

The other thing is that even when you unlock all of the vehicles you cannot use them in missions even on free play - though it is fun cruising around Gotham City in a Squad car with the lights and siren on.

The plot is pretty good with you trying to bring down Lex Luthor and the Joker who are trying to bring down Batman and Gotham city with 15 levels.

The levels are, as I said pretty good but with a couple of downsides.

The first is that the only playable characters on Story Mode are Batman and Robin and then from about half way through Batman and Superman and the variety is slightly lacking.

There is a vast swathe of Justice league characters who you can play with but only in the last two levels of the Story mode. Flash, Green Lantern, Cyborg and Wonderwoman which is a little disappointing but they are all there for Free play!

There is also a vast array of villains that appear in the first three levels like Catwoman, Bane, Riddler, Harley Quinn and Scarcrow but they are only seen in these levels as a bit part for you to overcome quickly and instead you focus on just Joker and Lex.

The Story also follows the Joker's giant robot that they are using for about six levels with the same enemy being fought in different ways through out and that can get a bit samey.

There is also another glitch that means that if you are playing two player and you are aiming with a sonic gun, laser eyes, freeze breath or water gun and Player 2 is running around your aim will move all over the place and you can't do anything. Sometimes it feels like the game was designed for One player at times rather than Co-op.

Over all though it is a good game and continuation with the Lego franchise. If you have played any of the other Lego games and enjoyed them you'll like this one and I can recommend it as a worthwhile purchase.

*** Stars out of five.