Last week August had an issue with his braces where the piece that held the rubber band that holds his headpiece in place broke. So we had to go to the orthodontist and have that replaced. It wasn’t the quick fix everybody expected. They had to take a new impression of his mouth and set up for an additional round of work.

In the mean time, he has these “spacers” (essentially industrial type heavy duty and thick bands) over his molars where the bracket will go next week. This is done to keep the space open to allow easier placement of the bracket when it is ready.

The appointment went well enough and a follow-up visit for next week was made. We went to school and that was that.

Until right after school yesterday when he told me his “spacer” fell out.

We got home and I called the orthodontist. Because of traffic there was no way I would make it over there before they closed and had a chance to see August as their afternoon was already packed. I said I could bring him over first thing in the morning as they open at 8:00, and it was agreed.

This morning we all get going, me and the four kids, and not only get everybody appropriately ready for school, but on the road and to the orthodontist on time. We even arrived a few minutes early!

School starts at 8:20, so I was aware the kids were going to be late. I couldn’t drop Déla off on the way to the orthodontist, something like 45 minutes before school, so she was with us. But missing a few minutes at the beginning of the school day was an acceptable loss for this because it simply had to get done.

Just after 8:00 as I am getting ready to call the school and let them know August and Déla will be late, I was informed that August was done.

Rapidly piling back in the van we head out to school. The trip to school, which is a block and a half away from our house, was nearly half the time it took to get to the orthodontist. Not only were August and Déla not late for school, they arrived a few minutes earlier than if we had walked to school on an ordinary day!

Success! While a bit rushed, it was really nice to start the day off on a positive note.

Much of The Aquabats stage show and music is steeped in Japanese tokusatsu and super hero culture. You don’t need to know this to enjoy “The Aquabats Super Show. If you are familiar with shows like “Krofft Super Show” and “Banana Splits” you’ll recognize many of the elements here.

As a kids’ show “The Aquabats Super Show is reminiscent of the past with its mixture of humor, action, live action, animation and more. This is the sort of stuff I would see on Saturday mornings when I was a kid. The pace, however, is much faster.

Each of the five band members have their own specific trait. There’s Jimmy The Robot on keyboards, Ricky Fitness with super speed on drums, Eaglebones Falconhawk wielding a weaponized guitar, Crash McLarson on bass with the ability to gain in size and strength, and M.C. Bat Commander’s leadership.

If you’re looking for something that is sensible and linear then look elsewhere. If there’s an opportunity for a decent joke “The Aquabats Super Show” makes use of it. This includes material directly in the show or in various intersertials that take place. There’s a cartoon series of the Aquabats in their super hero adventures serialized and completely separate from the rest of the show. Then there are fake commercials and another animated short featuring the band’s mascot.

And music. Since The Aquabats are first and foremost a band, there’s music in every episode. Sometimes it’s from an album, but most of the time it will have been written specifically for the show.

The DVD set of The Aquabats Super Show Season One includes all 13 episodes on 2 DVDs, with 5 of the episodes featuring audio commentary. On the second disc we get more bonus features starting off with the unaired pilot episode which shows much of the show in its final form and also has an audio commentary. Then there’s a blooper reel and some behind the scenes videos which are staged, but amusing.

Season 2 starts up in a few weeks, so now’s a great time to catch up. You should be able to find a random episode on The Hub television network to see if the show’s mix of humor and action is for you or your kids. If it is, definitely pick up this DVD set.

Again.

And yes, I capitalized the name, because it’s a proper name, I not only have a “slow cooker” but it’s the brand I use.

My previous one died a few months ago after being in use for several years. And I used the heck out of it, sometimes 3 times a week. The heating element went out. And we wanted a bigger one, what with 6 mouths to feed, so getting a replacement seemed like a natural solution.

Only thing is, the replacement worked for just a couple of months.

This morning I noticed my Crock Pot has a crack. Not on the bottom, but the on the lip at the top on the side. I took a picture but it didn’t come out what with the black ceramic and flash. It isn’t a chip, but an actual crack that runs down the side of the ceramic removable portion of the Crock Pot about 2 inches.

Now we have to debate replacing that with another one, or going through the hassle of the warranty. And we don’t have the receipt for our current unit. Really, who saves the receipt for things like this? And the original packaging got junked the day after I used the Crock Pot successfully. Since the darn thing worked, I saw no need to keep it.

I use my Crock Pot at least once, sometimes twice, a week. During the depths of winter I’ll use it three times a week for stews and chili and other hearty fare. I love this thing and having it out of commission is most bothersome.

I went to Crock-Pot.com and replacement stoneware costs $15, which is much more cost effective, but unfortunately no option to actually buy  it exists. Why bother having a price if I can’t order it?

And it is at this point I consider buying an alternate brand of slow cooker.

To be continued.

Warner Brothers has now released LEGO Batman: The Movie comprising of cutscenes from the game as well as new pieces to combine them. While there are a few changes nothing drastic was done and what we get is the same story as the video game, just without the interactive elements.

As the film opens we get strains of the Danny Elfman theme and the words “A Jon Burton Film” appear on the screen. Clearly somebody really likes their work and a good joke – Jon Burton is a co-founder of Traveler’s Tales, the development studio behind LEGO Batman 2, the game on which this movie is based. The name was too good of a coincidence to pass up.

Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor are up for “Man Of The Year” awards when Joker crashes the festivities with the help of a few allies. Naturally Batman dispatches of the gang, then Lex Luthor hatches a plan to eliminate the heroic competition.

Not only is this a funny film, but it works as a decent super hero story. Then there is the use of LEGO bricks for the set pieces. This is a very well made film that utilizes everything at its disposal very well.

It takes an hour for the other heroes to show up (other than Superman and Robin) and then they aren’t on the screen for very long. It’s a shame, really, that while there are some changes to the story (but not much) with some of the cutscenes and intersertial pieces that were based on the game levels, I was sort of hoping the other super heroes would how up a little bit earlier.

A few special features are present, starting with a 15 minute featurette on using LEGO to create stop motion animation. The first LEGO Batman stop motion short is little more than an advertisement for a website. There are 5 actual LEGO Batman shorts that were entered in a competition that are certainly worth checking out. two episodes of “Batman: The Brave And The Bold” and one episode “Teen Titans” are also on the disc.

LEGO Batman: The Movie DC Super Heroes Unite is really worth the investment. There’s the Blu-ray but also the DVD in the same package (and an exclusive mini-figure which my 10 year old really liked). My kids love the story and the humor. I enjoyed watching it as well, and maybe it’s because I happen to enjoy a decent super hero film, but I wouldn’t be upset at watching this again (just not three days in a row like my 5 year old).

I should mention something about the voice acting, how several of the actors are taking on the role for the first time, or how Clancy Brown is awesome as Lex Luthor (again) but the fact that this is an afterthought actually speaks (ha) to how well done it all is. And my 10 year old laments that not all the shorts from the game are used in this movie. Whatever. This is a different product.

A while ago it was released on DVD via MGM’s direct manufacture option. Now Shout Fctory has given the film a proper release on Blu-ray and included special features in addition to better picture and sound.

This film will certainly not surpass anybody’s opinion about the much larger budgeted 2011 film. The cast is bigger, the scope is bigger, and it fits into an overall set of films. However, I firmly believe much of the success the recent films based on Marvel comics properties can be attributed to this release. Previously there was Howard the Duck, which bombed, and The Punisher starring Dolph Lundgren which saw very limited distribution (for good reasons). Undaunted Captain America arrived and while it would be a few more years before another Marvel hero would arrive, 1998′s Blade, and the string of success would begin, the lessons learned are very clear. Where previous films took a number of liberties with the characters, Captain America strayed less from the familiar origins and offered up a (for the time) decent story.

Matt Salinger is Steve Rogers, willing to take risks with an experiment to serve in World War II because he is prevented by having polio. Of course the experiment is a success and before the process can be duplicated (stop me if this sounds familiar) the person is killed. And then there’s another super soldier experiment going on in Italy.

Quickly wrapping this story up we get Captain America froze and revived in the then near future of 1993. Here we get a familiar story of Red Skull, lost love, super soldier serum, and … well, if you’re at all familiar with the Captain America story, you’ll sort of know what you’re in for. Yes there are plot holes and unnecessary changes, but it’s a comic book film.

If this were the pilot for a television series, I imagine there would be a lot more praise for 1990′s Captain America. I am wondering if that was the initial plan and something before pre-production changed.

Is this 1990 film of Captain America good? That’s a relative and subjective term, but let’s just say this isn’t bad. It could have been a lot better, but it also could have also been a heck of a lot worse. I know it’s not exactly the ringing endorsement Shout Factory might be hoping for, because they put more effort into this Blu-ray than MGM did with the DVD. When compared with what has come since, this Captain America falls short. Despite its “PG-13″ rating it’s not overly offensive or too inappropriate for younger viewers. This film really does feel in many ways like a “comic book movie” which is both a blessing and a curse. One has to remember when this was made, and how even the 1989 Batman film looks dated and pales in comparison to the recent efforts with the character in his trilogy.

Shout Factory did a great job putting this Blu-ray together. While not remastered in high-definition, at least the image looks cleaned up and appears much better than I imagined it would be. A new featurette interviewing the film’s director and star offers up plenty of insight and information and even if you’re not a major fan of the film or the character this is certainly worth checking out. I was sort of surprised with how candid they were. We learn that Howie Long was wanted to fill the role of Captain America as part of a dual role, how it felt wearing the costume on the set for the first time, budget concerns, where the costume is, and more.

If you’re a fan of the character, 1990′s film of Captain America is enjoyable if you go in with lowered expectations. Shout Factory put together a nice package considering the “value” of the film and treats it with a lot more respect that it got 23 years ago.

August (age 10) without missing a beat chimes in “It’s like the Lorax, but for Laundry.”

“What”

“I am the Borax and I speak for the clothes.”

Tuesday was August’s actual 10th birthday. I previously posted about his party last Friday. Here he is blowing out the candles on his cake.

Then he opened up the biggest present from his grandparents containing the biggest LEGO set he’s ever gotten (the Monster Fighters Haunted House) with over 2000 pieces. He is equally daunted and excited about putting it together.

This last picture of him shows some excitement because I finally broke my own rule about giving video games as presents.

The next day (literally) Xavier turned 3. Instead of another cake we got cupcakes. next year we’ll probably have back to back cakes.

It was an overwhelming day for him. We let him open a present in the morning, and another later in the day, then another before dinner. Essentially we were trying to not give him too much at once, but even still it was a lot for a little guy whose concept of time is “now” or “not now” and having his older brother have a party AND a birthday, then his, well, he was appropriately confused.

The following day in the back yard I found him using some “walkers” or whatever they are called on his own for the first time.

Let me get my problems with the game out of the way, because I really do like the game. First up is the camera. Yes, you can rotate it around, but there’s no option to pan it back. The field of vision is not optimal. Combat can be clunky as well. The simple mechanics are meant to be “streamlined” or whatever but it just doesn’t feel as developed as it should be. The difficulty of combat increases at a greater rate than the character’s abilities.

Despite these two (admittedly not small) issues, Mars: War Logs is enjoyable. The story starts off in a prison of war camp, on Mars, and is set after some indeterminate apocalyptical event. We don’t get to spend much time exploring much of the mythology of future Mars, and I would like to see another game set here that explores some of the bits that were brought up here.

The game features a number of nice touches, such as the way equipment changes in appearance as it is crafted. The world and characters look better than one would expect for a title such as this.

Players are offered choices, which for a $20 game is a sort of big deal. Previously we’ve been limited to the big budget AAA type released to offer up dialogue trees and moral choices to make. Now we get that with Mars: War Logs. Part of those choices come from actions, some from dialogue, and the script is a mixed bag. At times earnest and other times arbitrarily near incoherent, Mars: War Logs is better than I expected it to be.

Maybe that’s the key to the game. It’s a $20 RPG. It’s not trying to be Mass Effect. Go in with lowered expectations and you’ll probably enjoy it. I did.

The premise for the show has shades of Toy Story where Dottie “Doc” McStuffins aids toys that come alive when nobody else is around. Often times it is a medical issue, other times she acts as a social worker.

Now we get the second collection of episodes on DVD – Doc McStuffins: Time For Your Checkup. Included are 5 random episodes from the show’s first season. While each episode is broken up into two separate (and different) segments, it appears the episodes on this DVD are presented as they originally aired rather than separating the segments, which is actually nicer than you might realize. It’s just too bad the episode selection is random.

Gulpy, Gulpy Gators!/One Note Wonder
Tea Party Tantrum/Blast Off!
Arcade Escapade/Starry, Starry Night
Bronto Boo-Boos/Brontosaurus Breath
Doctoring The Doc/Hot Pursuit

“Doc McStuffins” may not be as directly or implicitly educational as other programs aimed at younger viewers, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t without value. First off there’s the issues I brought up in my first paragraph and the positive images this precedent sets. There’s the social interaction examples that appear as the toys interact providing many great talking opportunities for parents and their kids. And finally there’s a focus on health and wellness, an area that doesn’t get much attention in kids’ lives, let alone on television.

As for the individual episodes, I don’t have a favorite, nor do my kids. They like how the different animals have their own personalities (though Stuffy and Chilly are a bit too similar) with Hallie the hippopotamus assistant being a “no-nonsense” favorite. At times individual characters are featured, sometimes with a “guest” toy and others the whole game is featured equally.

With 5 full episodes of content of a solid and positive show, I highly recommend Doc McStuffins: Time For Your Checkup.

Shanghai Noon was his next “major” film – Mulan was an animated film and High Risk was a Hong Kong comedy/drama that wasn’t widely released (but still successful). Where Rush Hour used a variety of genres to good effect, Shanghai Noon took it a step further by placing Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson in the Old West.

I enjoyed Shanghai Noon when it was in theaters. I was previously a Jackie Chan film long before he exploded in popularity in Hollywood. And then there’s Owen Wilson, a comedic actor who was on the rise at the time. The two worked well together, having a solid chemistry that helped to sell the film’s ludicrous story that involves an outlaw gang, arranged Imperial marriage, and more. It’s a silly story, but it works well enough to get the two together.

Shanghai Noon was successful enough to warrant a sequel, and Shanghai Knights came out a few years later after both leads had gained in popularity. The sequel finds the two picking up some time after the first film and their circumstances are very different, but in many ways similar. Success after saving the princess does not always translate to success in life. Then the two wind up in London, taking the “fish out of water” idea even further.

The problem with the second film is that it tries to cram too much coincidence and cleverness in, rather than simply allowing the story and characters to stand on their own. It’s not a bad film in any way as both films are equally enjoyable. By adding in a couple of characters that turn out to be (redacted for spoilers) is a little distracting and feels almost as if the writers were trying too hard. not that there weren’t any in the first film, but it was almost a preoccupation in the sequel.

Despite that misstep, Shanghai Knights is just as enjoyable as Shanghai Noon. Chan and Wilson make a good team and even without further films in this series I would have liked to have seen the two of them do more together.

Now on Blu-ray we get both films on one disc. This means they aren’t remastered for high definition, but these films don’t really need to be. It would have been nice to have each film on its own disc, but really, the average viewer for this type of film won’t care. By having both films on one Blu-ray disc it saves on money making this package more cost effective for Warner Brothers to release and therefore more affordable for consumers to pick up.

Should you pick this up? If you like Jackie Chan or Owen Wilson, sure. If you’re a fan of the action genre or “buddy cop” genre, sure. Is this worth upgrading over the previous DVD copies? Why not. There are no new special features, and the ones that are carried over from the previously released DVDs are in standard definition (saving disc space and money) but it appears that nothing got the boot. We get audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes and more. I know I’m glad to have this disc with both films with slightly improved picture and audio quality and to help save shelf space.

Rated “PG-13″ these are a bit milder than some action fare and could be a could way to introduce some younger viewers to the greatness that is Jackie Chan. For those of us that already are familiar with him, this is certainly a good buy.