Dave Whitelaw, Phil Doyle and Will Lockhart wax lyrical - read; force their opinions - on every geeky topic on under the sun from movies and games to comic books and TV.
You can follow Dave, Phil and Will on Twitter -
@midi2304, @evilninjaphil and @willziakds respectively.
Feel free to suggest a Ten Minute Topic for the show by either sticking a comment in one of the posts here or contacting any of us on twitter using the hashtag, #sonicsring
Other sites we love;
Worlds Wildest Dudes
Bad Education
Gamewank
Stage Clear
Uudders
Brake For Frogger
Edinburgh Zombie Club
Whisper it - this week's show may actually contain actual journalism! Also, standby for an exciting announcement for next week's show. This week Iain and I cover the following;
Inglourious Basterds
Defying Gravity
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Edinburgh Interactive Festival
Criminal: Coward
Thought I'd post up my favourite pic from EIF2009 - myself with Ian Livingstone. I also got a pic with Peter Moore but unfortunately it never turned out :(
As promised yesterday here is the second QnA session I recorded at the Edinburgh Interactive Festival 2009.
I (Iain/Mentazm) am just back from spending two days at the Edinburgh Interactive Festival 2009. The show has been running for 6 years and I managed to sit in on a group QnA session with the organiser of EIF, Chris Deering.
Part 2 now up and myself, Iain and Richard tackle the following;
Trailers: Where The Wild Things Are
What an episode! With the awesome Richard Brunton joining us from www.filmstalker.co.uk, it was an easy call to make this week's show a movie special. Before we knew it though, our tongues ran away with us so we've split a 90 minute episode into part 1 and 2. Part 1 covers the following;
Reviews: GI Joe: Rise of the CobraI've been meaning to write this article for a wee while so I'm going to get it done right now before I fire through my stack of comics for Sunday. There are a helluva a lot of podcasts and websites which I find myself visiting week by week and have a huge influence on sonicsring. If you are stupid enough to like our general lack of knowledge and poor excuse for humour, you are going to love these guys. Just make sure you come back after doing the tour!
First up is Stage Clear. Perrin Ashcroft and Rob Fahey have been nurturing this cracking wee video games podcast since the start of the year. What separates them from the rest of the pack is the inside line on what is happening in the industry (Rob is a games journalist, Perrin, a game developer) and the sharp, biting wit which they choose to unleash on one another and their audience. Season one finished a few weeks back but season two is due to start very, very soon so get them added to your iTunes weekly schedule.
Next up is the rather superb Gamewank. Ric and Jamie are a pair of reprobates who really shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near a microphone yet once a month they do exactly that. The forthcoming mix of video game reviews, discussion and sketches makes for me, the funniest gaming podcast out there by a mile. Joyous, irreverent stuff.
A lot of projects were heavily influenced and encouraged from the Consolevania forum not least of which was sonicsring. Another new site has sprung forth from a couple of Antipodean lads, Rob and Logan with the rather charming Up, Up, Down, Down-ers. Offering a mix of gaming opinion and plenty of hilariously well-edited videos. Very, very excited to see what the lads do with this site in the coming months.
For those of you more interested in film news rather than video games, you need to check out all the up-to-the-minute movie news Richard Brunton compiles on his site Filmstalker. Having had him as a guest on the podcast this weekend, I can tell you that he is the kind of person I desperately want to hate but can't - funny and knowledgeable with that rare ability of passing on that knowledge while never being boring. Damn you and your silky tongue, Richard!
Few other quick mentions… One Life Left is another show which I have discovered recently as recommended by Perrin from Stage Clear. Ste, Simon and Ann skillfully maneuver us around the weekly gaming news whilst keeping everything lighthearted and fun. You can find the podcast of their weekly Resonance 104 radio show here. Finally, it would be remiss of me to not mention what Rab Florence formerly of Consolevania is doing now. Along with his writing partner Iain Connell, they run the hilarious www.connellandflorence.com which has new content up there pretty much daily.
In between Iain and I calling each other twats, we squeeze in some minimal discussion on the following; Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Futurama voice cast back
Entourage Games we've been playing
Braid to PS3 Comic Con round up
It turns out that Dave's favourite show, True Blood, has saved HBO. It's a desperately needed smash hit for the one-time crown-jewel of Cable TV. It's sold all over the world, and the DVD and Bluray sales are through the roof.
Not so long ago they had 3 smash hits on their hands all at the same time - The Sopranos, Six Feet Under and Sex and the City. However when those shows finished HBO's status as the place for cutting-edge TV was taken up by Showtime. We were given Weeds, Dexter and Californication in quick succession. All of which are still running and doing big business, especially Weeds, now on it's sixth series.
The last true darling of HBO was 'The Sopranos', and Edie Falco (Carmela Soprano) has jumped ship to star as 'Nurse Jackie'. A overworked under-appreciated staff nurse with a serious prescription drug habit.
First episode we see her counting out 16 granules of Oxycontin, aka Hillbilly Heroin, shot in extreme close up. She snorts them to get her through her early morning shift at work. She is married with 2 kids, 1 with problems, and a shitty apartment. No-one a work realises she is married as she always takes her wedding band of. She bangs the hospital pharmacist so she can keep her supply stocked up.
Edie Falco is as far removed from her put-upon gangster's wife role as it's possible to get, always looking extremely tired and strung-out. Her glamorous look is gone, and we see her looking pasty skinned, with severe cropped hair and wearing blue hospital duds at all times. She is brilliant at her job, and dealing with the shit-storm that happens at her workplace on a daily basis so we're learning to love her. This show just keeps improving with each episode. Seems to be a slow burner.
Back over at HBO True Blood has kicked of a renaissance of sorts for the channel. Entourage is back for it's sixth series, and while it's never been a huge hit, each series see's an increase in viewing figures. It's one of the most consistently funny and entertaining 'bloke' shows on TV.
They've tried a different slant for their new show 'Hung'. Thomas Jane (The Mist) stars as Ray Drecker, a high school PE teacher who hates his job and life. He is broke, lives in a tent, his ex-beauty queen wife ran off with a dermatologist and his kids think he's a loser. He does have one very large plus though, his penis. After attending a Get-Rich-Quick seminar he realises he can put this god-given talent to use, and with the help of a Hippy Pimp starts stacking up the cash.
It has some Californication overtones, but isn't as extreme (Showtime is the new HBO in that respect), and isn't quite as funny. The characters are very well realised though, and it has a real bitter-sweetness running through it. It's the most promising new drama so far this year.
Here's to competition!
Excuses and vocabulary given equal short-shrift as mentazm and I discuss the following; Bruno Warehouse 13 Edinburgh Interactive Festival Marvel buys Marvelman
Secret of Monkey Island
Overlord 2
God Hand
Beneath a Steel Sky
Guild Wars
