Boardwalk Empire Season 3 E01 Review--Spoiler level: Extreme

The best show on TV is back. After an upsetting cliffhanger, the show's third season premiered on September 16th on HBO, and will ultimately focus on Nucky Thompson's evolution from politician to full-fledged gangster.

As you can see above, one thing that really interested me in this episode was that all of the gangsters that have been at each other's throats since the beginning (Rothstein, Lansky, Remus, Luchiano) are all here relaxing together on new year's eve and casually discussing business. But the narrative purpose of this meeting was to show how Gyp Rosetti, a newly introduced character, is a loose cannon and will definitely cause endless amounts of trouble this season. It only took about four minutes to commit the first murder of season three, and all over a can of oil. And by the way, never tell a native Italian what "regina" means.

We get to see some of our favorite characters interacting with their new surroundings, two of which stand out the most. Richard Harrow, who's two best and only friends were murdered in the season two finale, tries to fit in as an enforcer at Jillian's club. She lectures him for trying to remind Tommy who his real mother is. Next is obviously the lamming "George Mueller," a.k.a. the notorious Nelson Van Alden. For those of you who dislike Van Alden, you will be pleased to see his new life is not quite working out. He's doing a nightmarish job--selling irons door-to-door on new year's eve to support two infant children. Yes, you heard me. Two. He had another child with his Dutch house keeper from season two. It's a boy. He has an interesting interaction with Al Capone where he unwittingly helps a store keeper repel Capone away. This interaction will definitely be narrative fodder for later in the season when Van Alden is desperately strapped for cash.

One of my favorite characters, Eddie Cantor shows up to perform at Nucky's new year's party, and he's not alone. He's got a beautiful accomplice, who I must confess I've got a serious crush on, Lillian Kent. She's a performer, and at the end of the episode, it's revealed that she has been Nucky's gumar (as Tony Soprano would put it) for an unidentified period of time. Although I'm a fan of Nucky+Margaret, it's definitely going to make things interesting if the affair ever comes out in the open.

Speaking of Margaret, she is handling married life seemingly well. She took the NJ road money as a stepping stone toward the life of total philanthropy, and it's shown as she is given a tour of the new Margaret and Enoch Thompson wing of the hospital. She's being so generous because she's trying desperately to atone for her sins and the sins of her partner, shown in dense themes of religion and Catholicism in season two.

I've been a fan of Manny Horvitz since his first appearance, and especially with what he brought to the proverbial table of religions. I don't know much about Judaism, but Boardwalk gives more attention to the Jewish faith than any other show/movie/book that I've ever seen or read. It's nice to see strong characters representing true Jewish values that aren't the awful stereotypes that are rampant in the few representations of Jewish characters in The Sopranos and The Wire. So seeing a huge amount of screen time dedicated to Horvitz gave me high hopes for this character in season three. My justification was that now that Jimmy and Angie are dead, they've got to divide plot lines evenly among less protagonistic characters. But these hopes were dashed when, early on January 1st, 1923, Richard Harrow shows up and shoots Horvitz in the face with a shotgun. It was shocking to see this, especially when I was hyping Horvitz to myself throughout the entire episode. But I definitely don't blame Harrow--Horvitz was directly responsible for the death of the woman he loved, Angela Darmody, and indirectly responsible for the death of his best friend, Jimmy Darmody. Horvitz had it coming, but this was a little soon.

I tout Boardwalk Empire as the best written show on TV and the most detailed historical portrayal I have ever seen, and here's to hoping that season three will be able to carry on without Jimmy. 

Downton Abbey Season 3 E01 Review--Warning--Spoiler Level: Extreme

If you live in America and are like my parents, then you probably didn't see the series three premier of Downton Abbey because it didn't appear on BBC America. The show isn't scheduled to air in the U.S. until much later this year/early next year. But if you have an internet connection, you really have no excuse for missing out on this amazing show.

Second Spoiler Warning--Extreme series spoilers abound in the following review

Wedding fever has officially reached Downton. If you all remember the romantic ambiance from the Christmas special, this episode picks up where that left off, focusing more on the practical details of planning and executing a high-brow wedding worthy of the Granthams. Weddings are a staple of TV series, and I've seen more than I care for, but DA definitely pulled it off. I think it was because most of the time, a TV show will put a wedding in the season finale and have some foolish cliffhanger (see Friends season four), but because this was the first episode of the new series, and keeping in mind that DA is normally a no-nonsense sort of show, I was sure that the episode would end with a happily wedded Matthew and Mary.

With weddings, come the guests, and there was no shortage of appearances in this episode. We got our first glimpse of Cora's mother, played by Shirley MacLaine, and turned out to be an American version of the Dowager Countess. The members of the household began building her up about a quarter way through the episode, and with good reason: as soon as she arrived, she began slaying British culture and being a typical American! Branson and Sybil also come back from Ireland for the wedding, and created some interesting drama in the house upon their return. Of course we all know that Sybil and Branson's marriage was seen as uncouth, but the family seemingly wants to give him a chance. But this chance only revolves around Branson's compliance with complete assimilation into the culture of the high-bred Downton-ites, a condition that he simply cannot undergo. He is too close to his Irish roots to change, a trait that I highly respect. Throughout the episode he becomes upset with his hosts while discussing Irish war for independence, a topic that the family discusses lightly, but Branson, of course, weighs heavily on. This arc comes to a head when Branson is making more of a scene than ever before and appears to be drunk in front of extended company, featuring the family of close friends, one of which used to court Sybil long ago. It turned out that Sybils former love interest had drugged Branson with hopes that he would make a fool of himself in front of polite company. Luckily, this man was found out and humiliatingly scolded by his father in front of the group while Branson was forgiven. And as the Dowager Countess most hilariously puts it: "Forgive, perhaps. Forget, never!"

There's trouble in the workforce as well this week, as a new footman (who looks surprisingly like William) is hired despite the tight budget. Daisy wants a raise, and with encouragement from Thomas (who else), goes on strike as best she can. It's a rather sad attempt at getting Ms. Patmore's attention, and ultimately ends up in the same position as before. Moseley is worried about his lack of job security and makes up for it by working harder, and is rewarded by reassurance from Matthew.

The aforementioned money troubles all stem from a poor investment by the Earl, resulting in a huge sum of money being lost, most of his wife's great fortune. But Robert will never give up on Downton, and he tells his lawyer so despite the obvious problem of running a large estate on fumes.

Mary eventually comes to know of this and is delighted when Matthew tells her that he will very probably inherit the Swire fortune, as he is third in line to receive it after his late fiances father named him heir. But obviously, Matthew feels troubled by this considering the events leading up to Ms. Swire's death. I definitely understand why Matthew would not be so keen on using the ill-got Swire fortune to save Downton, but unfortunately, his new fiance doesn't understand like we do. There is a brief quarrel where Mary behaves exactly as you would expect and Matthew comes and saves the day, showing true initiative as a future husband. It was a delightful scene.

This episode was a good premier, and did great justice to the moment that many viewers have been waiting for. It was extremely well written and the actors were amazing as always. 

The Batmen and Women of the New 52: Year One

The New 52

In September 2011, DC comics underwent a massive relaunch, collecting and renumbering 52 of their best, brightest and most beloved titles. Many of these 52 titles feature Bruce Wayne, Batman and his many, many allies. This month marks issue twelve for each of DC's 52 titles, meaning that a year has passed since the #1s made their debut. By the end of August, all the #12s will be on the stands, but at this point in writing, only a few of the twelve Batman titles have hit the shelves. This post will aim to give an overview in Batman: Year One of the New 52, based on my personal opinions and beliefs. There are a lot of Batman books that come out every month, and I'm hoping that this blog can help you figure out which one or ones are right for you. Or if you're like most people and haven't been in a comic book store yet this year, maybe this post will spark your interest in a particular title and convert you.

Pictured above are the covers from each of the #1 issues. In order from right to left: (top) Batman, Batgirl, Batman Incorporated, Batman & Robin, Batman: The Dark Knight, Batwing, (bottom) Batwoman, Birds of Prey, Catwoman, Detective Comics, Nightwing and Red Hood and the Outlaws

Must Read Titles

Batman

If there was one thing that fans got from Batman comics this year, it's that you don't mess with the Court of Owls. The first major crossover of the New 52 took its roots in the early issues of Batman and provided an action packed story arc within Batman's own pages, while the Court spread its mayhem through the #8 and #9 issues in many of the other titles occurring on the streets of Gotham City. This crossover culminated in the "Night of the Owls," and resulted in some of the best action I had yet seen from the New 52. The Court of Owls are a crime syndicate dating back to at least the 17th century, the members of which use their high stations in society to manipulate the city to their liking. When the city grows into a form that the Court deems unfit, they unleash their army of nearly-unkillable assassins upon the city to kill a long list of public officials and top-players in Gotham City. If you encountered the Court of Owls in one or two of your other favorite Batman-themed titles and wondered what their story was all about, I highly recommend that you go back and read Batman 1-11 to get the whole picture behind the dastardly deeds of the Court of Owls.
#12 focused on Harper Row, a young civil electrician who has decided that it's her fate to aid the Batman after he saved her and her homosexual brother from a violent hate-fueled mugging. I'm hoping Scott Snyder has big plans for Row, because I've already taken a heavy liking to her and I can't wait to see the sparks fly when she meets Damian.
In September, the #0 issues will premier, giving us a new perspective on Batman's early days of crime fighting. Then after that, the Joker is back in Gotham in #13. 

Batman Incorporated

Batman Inc. was part of the second wave of DC's New 52. Some titles get cancelled for various reasons, and to keep the title count at an even 52, titles have to get added every now and then. So even though Batman Inc. is only coming up on issue #3, the awesomeness that occurred in the first two issues of vol. 2 have at least a year's worth of amazing story, written by the one and only Grant Morrison. Morrison is my favorite writer, and his traditional slow-burning story style pays off in this series. He's combing the back catalogs of old Batman characters who deserve to see the light of day again, and is using their unique quirks to carve a masterful story behind Batman's worldwide crime-fighting squad. Batman Inc. made headlines in July when DC comics and the creative team behind the title decided in the last minute to pull it from the shelves due to some disturbing imagery that related too closely to the shooting that occurred in Colorado the weekend before issue #3 was supposed to hit comic stores. Morrison is known for pushing the envelope, but I hope that this doesn't affect the title negatively. There are many more positive qualities within the pages of Batman Inc. than there are offensive and negative images, and I know that fans of both Batman and Grant Morrison would say the same thing. Issue #3 hits the stores on August 22nd and then we'll see how this incident affected the title.

Batman & Robin

Batman & Robin focuses on the father-son relationship of Bruce and Damian Wayne, putting a personal touch on this most classic crime fighting duo. So not only does this comic tell an intriguing story of the home and office lives of these two dynamic characters, but it also fleshes out and enlivens the story of the caped crusader and the boy wonder. The first story arc, written by Peter Tomasi, focuses on a past ally whose father helped train Bruce Wayne in the deadly arts before he donned the cape and cowl. But this killer, calling himself "NoBody," because he wants to kill but desires no recognition for his acts, crosses a line that Batman cannot abide. But Damian believes that NoBody's methods are exactly what the duo needs to clean up the crime in Gotham. Trained as an assassin by his mother, Damian has killer instincts that NoBody takes advantage of when trying to coax him to the side of evil. Imagine a 10-year-old whose father denies him an ice cream cone, but a stranger offers a cone with three different flavors. It's not hard to believe that the 10-year-old would be eager to disobey his father and reach out for the ice cream offering. Now imagine that the ice cream symbolizes murderous methods and the 10-year-old is Damian Wayne, the son of a revenge seeking master assassin and the caped crusader himself, and you can easily see how this title keeps one on the edge of their seat. So Batman & Robin is well written and well drawn, but it stands as one of my personal favorite comics because it gives Damian more page time than any other title. Damian as Robin is my favorite character in the entire catalog of DC characters, and if you pick up Batman & Robin, you'll see why. In September's #0 issue, Tomasi will showcase Robin's origin, which promises to be an intriguing story whether you already know it or not.


Batwing

If you're like me, when you first saw Batwing on the rack, you didn't recognize him from his short debut in Batman Incorporated. Instead you just assumed Batman had a new black ally with a silly bat-themed name. Well, after picking it up, I discovered that not only is Batwing the first Batman of Africa, but also that this is one amazing comic book. David Zavimbe is an AIDS orphan and was a gifted child soldier, forced to fight and kill by a malevolent mercenary. He escapes and vows never to kill again and eventually becomes a police officer in the city of Tinasha, Democratic Republic of Congo. This book is one of my favorites because it shows a rare side of crime fighting and appropriately showcases the brutality of mercenary conflict in Africa with beautiful art. Batwing was imagined by Grant Morrison and first appeared in Batman Inc. #5, but Morrison got the idea from a one shot story in Batman #250 called "The Batman That Nobody Knows," as described in the bonus content in the back of the hardcover edition of Batman Inc. Vol 1. In this short story, Bruce Wayne takes a group of underprivileged youngsters on a camping trip, and the Batman becomes a topic of discussion. The three children begin to describe what they believe the Batman is really like. One child ultimately decides that Batman is "Muhammad Ali--Jim Brown--Shaft--an' Superfly all rolled into one!"  

Now that is a hero we can all believe in. And with a new design by Chris Burnham and Yanick Paquette, Batwing was ready for his own monthly series, one that I that hope will continue on for many years. Plus, in the first story arc, a Justice League-esque African super hero team emerges. I believe that "The Kingdom," as they are called deserve their own series one of these days. Though I can only hope.

Batwoman

Written and drawn by J.H. Williams, Batwoman has some of the most dazzling spreads in any book I've ever read. The art and panel work is reason enough to pick up this book every month, not to mention the fact that the story is killer too. This title stands out to me in particular because it shuns the tradition of having female characters appear in books for the sole purpose of romantic drama with the protagonist. Romance and relationship drama is a big part of the new Batwoman title, but because Kate Kane is a lesbian, it provides a new take on an old dish. The art, the action and the forward thinking are reasons enough to pick up this title, and I highly recommend that you do.

Must Read--Honorable Mentions
Red Hood and the Outlaws

I put this book in the honorable mention section because it's a book that I like for specific reasons, but I don't care enough to defend it tooth and nail to convince the naysayers otherwise. It has several problems, but I pick it up every month because Red Hood, or Jason Todd, is a former Robin, and all Robins keep a special place in my heart. His story of resurrection and his thirst for violent vengeance fascinates me. The outlaws, although they are never actually referred to as that are Princess Koriand'r, or Starfire (fans of the Teen Titans TV show should recognize her) and Roy Harper, or Arsenal, a wise cracking archery ace who is also a former Teen Titan. 

In the same way that Batwoman is forward thinking, Red Hood and the Outlaws reverts back to the oggling days of old--Starfire has been converted to a sex object, constantly sporting the most revealing of outfits and having intercourse with both her teammates within the first few issues (although finally settling on Harper). Although it can be argued that her alien socialization provides her with a more liberated take on sexuality, I still believe that she is portrayed as a too-perfect being who's sexually ready and willing at all times. Basically every comic fanboy's dream. Maybe subconsciously, that's really why I like reading it. Plus the art is great and the colors are awesome.

Catwoman

If you can get past the softcore porn and all the annoying quirks, Catwoman is actually an interesting title to read. The story is intriguing and the current villain is pretty disturbing, so this is one title that I pick up each month despite the embarrassment that it brings. So this title is not for everyone, and in a few months it might not even be fore me, so read this one with caution.

Read if you're bored

Nightwing

So far in the first 11 issues, Nightwing is an interesting read, sort of mediocre. Nightwing is Dick Grayson, who can boast that he's held the position of both Robin and Batman. The first story arc revisited the killer of Grayson's parents while the second story arc focuses on Dick fighting with a group of young adults in disguise who desire to be tomorrow's leaders. Nightwing is a good character, and a former Robin, but I think a change in writer is necessary in the next few months.

Batgirl

As comic books, Batgirl and Nightwing are almost identical, simply formatted for a different audience. I imagine that Batgirl is written for teenage to twenty-something girls and Nightwing is written for a similar age group for guys. Both Barbara Gordon and Dick Grayson are fast talking crime fighters who crack-wise page after page. Batgirl has been interesting so far, but because of how it's written, it's not for everyone. I like this title in particular because the brutal serial killer James Gordon Jr. made his debut in the New 52 on the pages of Batgirl, after he went to Arkham in the dark events of "The Black Mirror." So if you want to chose between Nightwing and  Batgirl, you have to pick up both and figure it out yourself. But personally, after one year, I pick Batgirl.

Birds of Prey

Birds of Prey is about a group of masked female adventurers who fight people, usually benefiting themselves in the aftermath. I use the term masked adventurer because they are not crime fighters in the same respect as Batman, Superman etc. They're wanted as criminals for crimes that they actually committed and many of them are not afraid to kill when necessary. The current Birds roster is composed of Black Canary, Starling, Katana, Poison Ivy and occasionally Batgirl joins the team when they decide to do good rather than evil. The book is entertaining--filled with action, violence and clever one-liners, but how long it will stay entertaining is another matter. Pick it up if you're a girl or if you like hot girls. 

Don't Bother

Detective Comics

I really wanted to like this title. It's a classic, plus it prominently features Batman! But the Dollmaker was the villain of the first story arc, and I couldn't stand it. He was all about capturing people, taking the body parts and putting them back together in unholy combinations. Normally this would sound pretty cool but the execution was all wrong. Then he faced off against the Penguin and boring results ensued. This is all on top of the fact that the Two-Face back up story that carried on for far too long wasn't good and had crummy art (40 page comics like Detective, Action and Justice League have back up stories in addition to the regular comic story line). But there is awesome news. #12 came out at the beginning of August and resolved the end of the current mediocre plot line in a surprisingly cool way, and the back up story began to answer the question "Why did the Joker cut his face off at the beginning?" Detective Comics is definitely on its way up, and even though in the past it's a title that I picked up reluctantly with low hopes, now I am on the edge of my seat waiting for #0 and #13.

tl;dr--START AT #12 AND BE HAPPY 

Batman: The Dark Knight

This one is irredeemable. The first arc was a sad attempt at trying to hype Bane in a book before The Dark Knight Rises hit theaters. It featured several prominent villains getting hold of Bane's Venom toxin and using it to mimic its affects on themselves. One of these villains was Clayface disguised as a jacked and shirtless Joker, a sight that I would have been much more comfortable avoiding. This book also suffers from being too all over the place. It tries to include a romantic relationship for Bruce Wayne but can't focus enough for it to mean anything other than page-filling. The Flash and Poison Ivy show up briefly, but their appearances have little consequence as well. There is a really peculiar Alice in Wonderland themed issue, and as a fan of the Disney movie, I can't say that I particularly enjoyed TDK's rendition. Avoid this book.

ASOIAF Baller Status

http://imgur.com/a/tBGYt/all#0

Autoethnography and Narrative Analysis Project Proposal

Final Project: Proposal

            For the final project in this course, I propose to combine the methods of narrative analysis and autoethnography to examine the Christian church and my faith in its current state. With guidance from Jesse Stevenson, an associate pastor at Port City Community Church (PC3), I will do an autoethnography to examine the role that faith has played in my life until this point, and what part it may play in my future path. I will analyze how the church has affected my life through a large lens, focusing on a few key moments that had specific influences on me as a Christian. Some topics that will play a large role in my autoethnographic essay are my family, my traditional upbringing, music and different types of church services. I chose PC3 as my source of guidance because I became familiar with the organization through observation and analysis in our ethnographic project. During my observation of the church services I came to respect the organization and their mission statement, and realized that I have grown away from God and the church while I have been here in Wilmington. Through an autoethnographic essay and analysis, I will be able to retrace my steps through faith to understand the factors that took me away from religion over the past few years and why things happened the way they did. I feel very strongly about autoethnography because of the impact that our class’ first autoethnographic project had on me. I found that this type of self-reflection can be therapeutic, especially on these types of issues that I don’t normally dwell on.

            While doing this autoethnography for self exploration, it will also be founded in research to see if there have been other projects to determine a reason for young adults to stray from the path of faith while studying in college. I have found two sources that relate to this subject, entitled “Religious Beliefs and Scholarship: A Complex Relationship” and “The Effects of Communication, Religiosity, and Organizational Support on Student Commitment at a Church-Related University.” These sources discuss issues in communication and religious belief both on and off campus (at religiously affiliated schools). The source that addresses organizational support will be especially important for me to possibly identify why I, along with other students in similar situations, may have drifted away from faith while in school.

            The interview/discussion with Mr. Stevenson will serve as a source for my autoethnography, but will also be my interview for narrative analysis. After or during our discussion of faith in my life, I will ask him for his faith story, and how he became an associate pastor. I will stress the questions about his faith while he was at the period of time when he was at the crossroad that I am at now. With the advice from Dr. Scott, I have decided to shift the interview from myself to Mr. Stevenson with the question, “Will you tell me your story?” It is likely that Mr. Stevenson has told this story several times and will be comfortable telling me how he came to be in his position in the church, but I have to be sure to relate my story to his by asking about specific periods in his life and his faith journey.

            My primary goal in this project is to use the two research methods to uncover the steps in my past that led to my current position in faith, and what my role will be in the future through self reflection and academic research. I will use narrative analysis to discuss the role that faith and the church have played in the life of Jesse Stevenson, and to compare his story to mine.

Ethnography: Hawksnest

Practice Ethnography: Hawksnest

The Narrative

Hawksnest can be best described as bustling during the late-morning and early-afternoon periods of the day. Students are hurrying to get their lunch so that they can leave as quickly as possible to get back to their dorm, apartment or next class, while others act more leisurely during their breaks. The building has many different sectors, and most students understand the purpose that each one can serve, even if they don’t register it each time they walk through the building during their break. The areas that are mostly designated for lunch seating have high traffic during periods between the :50s of one hour and the :20s of the next, serving hungry students searching for a fast lunch. The students in these seating areas usually sit for no longer than 20 minutes. This is somewhat similar to the seating area immediately outside of the post office, which gives students a series of circular tables with four chairs each, allowing them sit alone or with friends while eating or studying.

In another section, the section in which I sat during my observation, is a section that is clearly defined as a quieter zone, regulated by unwritten laws created by the students who sit there. The area is characterized by several clusters of soft couches and arm chairs, with intermingling coffee tables between arm chairs. Most of the couches are set up with coffee tables directly beside them and with armchairs facing each other in front of the couches. During my observation, I noted the distinct difference in sound levels of this area of hawksnest versus the other seating areas. During the 30 minutes that I sat, watched and listened, I noticed that this area is most strictly used as an extended break area for students between classes. I have had the misfortune before to have a break between classes on Tuesday/Thursday, and with an hour and a half between each class, finding a place to wait and study, relax or read during the break is important. There were about six students in the area during my observation most of them sitting quietly with their eyes glued to their cell phone, ipod, computer screen or pages of notes. There was a couple sitting on one of the couches directly in front of me, who were chatting but even as I was straining to hear, I could only make out the crinkle of the skittles bag that the girl was feeding to the guy. And even that was only barely louder than a whisper. Eventually the girl got out her laptop and headphones, signaling to the guy that the time for banter had come to an end, and from that point the only sounds that the couple produced where the clatter of skittles in the bag.

I unwillingly became a participant in the student culture of the hawksnest common area. I was sitting in one of the armchairs in a pair separated by a coffee table, sitting next to a fellow student who was rapidly scanning pages of notes on looseleaf paper. Through my peripheral vision, I eventually became aware that he had been stealing glances at me every now and again, and finally he looks at me and asks “Will you be here for a while?” From experience, I knew what he wanted without him having to finish his request. In fact, he did not finish, he knew there was a mutual understanding in what he was asking of me. He walked away and I assumed a vigilant watch over his belongings until his return. I sat in guard, hoping that he wouldn’t be gone for too long, because even though I still had 10 minutes before my class resumed, I wanted to be sure I wouldn’t have to abandon his belongings for my own purposes. The guy returned after only a few minutes, I wondered to myself whether he would bother to say thank you. I did not care one way or the other because it is an extremely simple task, but after a few seconds he strained to make eye contact with me and said a quick “thanks,” and I returned with a “no problem.”

A guy appeared with a long board in hand, and he continues to approach one of the loungers, who had previously had his headphones in and had eyes only for his ipod. The two continue to have a conversation, and although it never gets louder than a grunting laugh, it still seems to be the loudest period of direct communication that I had witnessed. I could tell that the two students were actively trying to limit the volume of the conversation, looking around every now and then to see if they were disturbing anyone.

A tour group of parents and high school kids appears at the base of the stairs. One girl who had been previously sitting with her eyes down on her phone and her hood pulled up over her head saw the group and immediately stood up and quickly walked off, perhaps knowing what was to come. The tour guide proceeded to shout facts about hawksnest to her group, ensuring she was heard by every ear within 50 feet, pausing only to urge her group to come in closer, presumably so that they would be able to hear better, but even though the group collectively scooted, I noticed no variance in her volume levels. The students lounging and I looked at and sized up the group, and they looked back, trying to get a feel for what the average UNCW student did with their time. After the loungers had our initial moment of interest, we had no choice but to resume our previous actions and behave like animals in a zoo for the parents and kids in the tour group; even me, the ethnographer, tried to put on a performance of how an ordinary student of UNCW behaves in his natural habitat.

The Analysis:

I left the area and the building before the tour group vacated, thinking critically about what I saw, measuring it against my prior expectations and thoughts about the different seating areas of hawksnest. The most important conclusion that I drew from my observation was the importance of volume control in that specific seating area of hawksnest. When interacting with fellow members of the population, nothing above a whisper will stand. A casual conversation with an outsider can exceed whispering, and may even feature a muffled guffaw, but nothing too crazy. And lastly, tour group leaders can shout to their heart’s desire, having the greatest interest of recruitment in mind.

I believe that the reason that students respect each other to this great degree is because they are simply acting as they would like to be treated. In this community, all of the members have to be together, and if one bothers another, the vibe of relaxation will be upset. These students stick to themselves, seeking interaction only to ask his neighbor to watch his belongings, or to look up at the kid who is vigorously scribbling in his notebook, stopping only to stare at the students around him. The students who lounge in this area just want to relax and be undisturbed, so it is totally unfortunate that the school decided to put that exact spot as a stop on their university tour. 

America's Economic Priorities: Mortgage, Car, Video Games

Wilmington, N.C.

            The general manager of the Best Buy store on South College Road is frantically finalizing the preparations for this Monday night. As manager, a lot of responsibility has fallen upon Dale Marshall, and he insists that every employee be prepared for what the night will bring. “We’ve gotta make room for that Mountain Dew display over here so the tournament center will be clear,” says Marshall. The general manager walks the aisles of the store between the cell phone department and the video game section to do a few final run throughs with his employees to make sure the night will go off without a hitch.

At 12:01 A.M on November 8^th, electronics stores will celebrate the release of Activision’s “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3,” for which Best Buys, Walmarts and Gamestops across the nation have been diligently planning for months. “Modern Warfare 3” is the newest installment of the widely popular “Call of Duty” first-person-shooter franchise.

The game is a follow up to last year’s release, “Call of Duty: Black Ops,” which is currently the best-selling video game of all time. “Black Ops” shattered theatrical box office, book and video game sales records for a five-day sell-through period of more than $650 million. This release exceeded Activision's previous five-day worldwide record of $550 million set by 2009’s “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,” according to internal Activision estimates. Activision, the game developing company behind the “Call of Duty” franchise seems to have a firm hold on the entertainment industry, and they do not plan on letting up with the newest release. “Historically, ‘Call of Duty’ is the best-selling video game franchise, and they tend to move more units than anything else, industry wide,” says Best Buy manager Dale Marshall on the success of the series.

Not only will this week’s “Call of Duty” debut have a huge national impact, but many local businesses will also be appearing at the midnight release at the Wilmington Best Buy on South College Road to get some publicity and to endorse the new game. Coastal 97.3 has teamed up with Mountain Dew to continue on with Dew’s marketing campaign leading up to the release of the game. Fanboy Comics, a local comic shop is supplying an array of comic and game related door prizes and is sponsoring a by-lottery tournament for a copy of the game.

Many analysts are predicting “Modern Warfare 3” to beat out the sales records set by its predecessors, but many other hefty releases will compete to make their mark among the rising black lines of the sales charts this fall. “This fall’s video game release season is shaping up to be the perfect storm with Electronic Arts’ and Activision’s flagship shooters, ‘Battlefield 3’ and ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3,’ respectively, going head to head by releasing a mere two weeks apart,” says Michael Klappenbach of About.com. Klappenbach does not mention some of the other heavy hitting titles appearing this holiday season from the “Batman,” “Assassin’s Creed,” and “Uncharted,” franchises that are also likely to stimulate high sales.

Representatives from Activision, Microsoft, Gamestop and Best Buy all declined to discuss the projected number of units of “Modern Warfare 3” that had shipped or the projected sale information due to legal reasons. But Michael Pachter, a high profile gaming research analyst for Wedbush Securities offers some thought on the possible number of units sold. “‘Modern Warfare 3’ will come out on top with some 16 million copies being sold in the fourth quarter of 2011 and 24 million by the end of 2012,” says Pachter. He points out that the figures are simply estimates, but if the pattern of sale in recent years remains the same, “we’re in for another ‘biggest launch in history’ all over again.”

24 million is an intimidating number of consumers, but some people see the “Call of Duty” franchise as a simple fad. “I got tired of ‘Call of Duty’ when they were making games about World War II,” says Owen Blanton, a graduate of East Carolina University. Blanton claims to be one of the only gamers that he knows of to be dissatisfied with the direction that “Call of Duty” has taken in recent years. “My favorite first person shooter was ‘Medal of Honor: Allied Assault,’ which totally dominated PC games sales for years,” commented Blanton. But Blanton admits that he will definitely be among the millions of Americans who will be $60 dollars poorer this fall when “Assassin’s Creed: Revalations” hits the shelves.

To the rest of the world, it may seem a bit strange for gamers to spend $60 per new release, and to spend hundreds of dollars replacing malfunction system hardware. “I have experienced the ‘Red Rings of Death’ five times on my Xbox 360,” says Matt Gudlaugsson, a former UNCW student. The Red Rings of Death are an infamous sign of massive hardware failure on an Xbox 360 console, and can only be repaired in a slow process by professionals at the customer’s expense. Gudlaugsson often questioned why he continued to give his money to Microsoft time after time, and attributed the cause to a single reason: “Halo 3.” Gudlaugsson said this of his gaming addiction: “If it weren’t for ‘Halo’ I would have either switched to Playstation or given up on gaming a long time ago.”