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Separated at Birth: Scarlet Witch and Aerith Gainsborough?

I was psyched to see that io9 posted photos of Elizabeth Olsen as the Scarlet Witch from the set of The Avengers 2. I have high hopes for Ms. Olsen, as she’s on her way to supplanting her evil sisters as the best Olsen sibling in Hollywood. The news that she was cast as the Scarlet Witch was especially exciting. While I didn’t expect her to wear the ridiculous medieval swimsuit from the ’70s and ’80s comics, I wasn’t prepared for what I saw.

Apparently the costume designer from The Avengers 2 dropped by Final Fantasy VII and jacked Aerith’s clothes. Look at the red top and ridiculous boots! I half-expect her to cast “Holy” during the movie’s climax in order to thwart Ultron. The Scarlet Witch costume looks like a mashup of (mostly) Aereith and (a sprinkle of) Tifa!

Elizabeth Olsen’s version of the Scarlet Witch looks just like Aerith Gainsborough…to me, anyway. When you have a chance, check out the pics and give it some thought. Do you see the resemblance between Avengers 2 Scarlet Witch and FFVII Aerith? Or did somebody slip me crazy pills?

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Vaping Diaries #182: 2Puffs Interview (Munstro Mod and More)

Many vapers love 2Puffs pyrex tanks and drip tips. The company is still cranking out those products, but is taking its game to the next level with the Munstro. This mechanical mod comes with three tubes that use three different metals, a tritone drip tip, and a wood stand. At Vapers Exhibit, I caught up with 2Puffs partners Arnel Ang and Charles Tan. The two gave me details on the Munstro, shared some company history, revealed what was behind the 2Puffs name, and told me how a Johnnie Walker Black drinking sessions lead to the name of the Munstro mod.

Vaping Diaries #181: Naughty by Vapor Interview (Vapers Exhibit)

I never thought that I would post an article or video that combined vaping with adult film stars, but Naughty by Vapor took care of that! I’ve been wanting to meet the company for some time, as it’s a Filipino-American crew that has some cleverly named and delicious e-liquids. While the Naughty by Vapor Classic Line has a lot of fans, the new Luxury Line is getting a ton of buzz. The new juices are named after and inspired by actresses in adult films — genius!

In the interview above, CEO Ryan Palma and chief strategist Peter Castaneda talk about how the company got started, the concept behind the Naughty by Vapor brand, and the flavors in the Classic Line. Adult actresses Chloe Amour and Daisy Marie talk about their flavors in the Luxury Line.

This was the most difficult interview for me at Vapers Exhibit. It was really hard to concentrate with Chloe and Daisy around (though it was certainly an enjoyable challenge). Ha!

Vaping Diaries #180: Trabuco Vapors Interview (Vapers Exhibit)

As a huge fan of naturally-extracted tobacco e-liquids and a resident of Southern California, I was excited to meet the Trabuco Vapors crew at Vapers Exhibit. In SoCal, the majority of the e-liquid companies focus on fruit and dessert flavors. As a tobacco guy, I was pleased to hear about a SoCal juice maker that focuses on naturally-extracted tobacco juices.

At Vapers Exhibit, I chatted with Trabuco Vapors co-owner Robert Fairrington and juice master general Chas Trowbridge. The two talk about Trabuco Vapors’ origins, the company’s juices, the tobacco extraction method behind the juices, the company’s sweet mod holders, and more.

Vaping Diaries #179: Tobh Mods Jay-Bo Interview (Vapers Exhibit)

The Tobh Atomizer is the hot atty in the business right now, so I was psyched to catch up with Tobh Mods owner Jay-Bo at Vapers Exhibit. It was fun learning about how the company got started, what the company name means, and his fascinating background. While I’m still trying to figure out how someone with a background in deaf education, a passion for linguistics, and professional barista skills made an incredible atomizer, it was fantastic meeting Jay-Bo and learning more about Tobh Mods.

Check out the interview above to learn more about Tobh Mods, the features of the Tobh Atomizer, and upcoming products.

Vaping Diaries #178: Five Pawns Mixology Review (Fifth Rank, Perpetual Check)

Back in Vaping Diaries #173, I reviewed three e-liquids from Five Pawns new Mixology Edition. Now it’s time to review the remaining two — Fifth Rank and Perpetual Check. If you’re not familiar with Mixology Edition, these juices were inspired by alcoholic beverages. Fifth Rank incorporates champagne flavor, while Perpetual Check has a taste that’s similar to black currant liquer. Both are quality juices with lots of complexity. I loved one of them, while the other didn’t work for me. Now let’s get to the tasting notes!

Fifth Rank: When I first vaped this juice, I had to stop and think about what I was experiencing. There are so many flavors going on and some of the notes are so distinct. This Mixology Edition mix is a melange of horehound, champagne, vanilla bean, sweat cream, almond, and lime. The horehound flavor really made this juice for me, with its combination of moderate mint and licorice-like bitterness. The other flavors complement the horehound marvelously for a fantastic mix.

While horehound was the most distinct flavor in Fifth Rank to me, two of my friends thought that the lime had the most presence. Since this juice has so many layers and we all have different tastebuds, it’s possible that people will have markedly different experiences with this e-liquid. As for me, Fifth Rank was one of my two favorites from Mixology Edition, along with the excellent Sixty-Four. Coincidentally, this juice probably has the second-most polarizing flavor next to Sixty-Four.

Juice Specs: 6mg nicotine, 50/50 PG/VG

Perpetual Check: This Mixology Edition blend features black currant, lemon, fig, barley, and cinnamon stick. While I really enjoyed the black currant flavor and appreciated the complexity of this juice, this was easily my least favorite Mixology Edition e-liquid. It was also unusual to vape. For me, there was a wattage sweet spot with this juice where the black currant flavor was more pronounced. When the wattage got a little too high or a little too low, the cinnamon flavor became overpowering. This made vaping it on a mechanical mod an uneven experience, since output changes depending on the battery’s charge level. I preferred vaping this juice on a regulated mod with consistent output.

While a few of my friends liked this one a lot more than I did, some of them agreed that the cinnamon drowned out the other flavors. While this juice didn’t work out for me nearly as much as the other four Mixology Edition e-liquids, if you dig cinnamon and complexity then there’s a great chance that you’ll enjoy Perpetual Check.

Juice Specs: 6mg nicotine, 50/50 PG/VG

Steeping and Review Notes (Updated December 29, 2013)
On the advice of Wlad from Ahlusion, I’ve been trying a new steeping method as of December 27, 2012. When the e-liquids arrive, I leave them uncapped for five minutes. Previously, I left them uncapped for about two days. After the liquids are given a few minutes to oxidize, the caps are put back on.

RPad.TV e-liquid reviews focus on the flavor of the e-liquids, since throat hit and vapor production can be altered by the PG/VG ratio and nicotine level selected. Each juice is vaped over a period of days in a bottom-coil silica atomizer (The Russian and Aqua), various rebuildable dripping atomizers, and a clearomizer.

Jem and the Holograms Live Action Movie Coming

My buddy Gus posted the best news I’ve heard all month — a live-action movie based on the Jem cartoon is being made! Director Jon M. Chu (GI Joe: Retaliation) and his partners made the “truly outrageous” announcement on YouTube this morning.

For those of you not familiar with Jem, the cartoon was about a rich music executive named Jerrica Benton. For an ’80s cartoon, it was surprisingly layered and complex. Let’s see if I can sum it up in bullet points. Continue reading “Jem and the Holograms Live Action Movie Coming”

Coffee Talk #619: When In-App Purchases Go to Heaven

As many of you know, I’ve been playing the hell out of Heroes of Dragon Age. Part of it has been for work, part of it has been for fun, and part of it has been habit. I’ve also been lurking in the Heroes of Dragon Age forums. Reading about the in-app purchase adventures of many players has been a revelation. I’m astounded by how much money some players drop on in-app purchases and how frequently they do it. In the immortal words of Brian Fellow, “That’s crazy!!!”

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, being happy about Chris Brown going to jail, spicy meals you have to sign a waiver for, or the countdown to MLB opening day, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As a longtime Pokemon fan, I totally understand how addictive collectibility in videogames can be. Mobile games exploit that addiction and mask the habit in clever ways. Like several of its competitors, Heroes of Dragon Age doesn’t show in-app purchases in actual currency. It uses a gem system. Gems can be purchased in various increments, with 1,600 gems offering the “best value” at $99.99. Many players lose track of the actual dollar value of gems after they’re purchased. It’s much easier to justify 49 gems for an awesome new character than it is $5 for a virtual dolly.

The developers of Heroes of Dragon Age release new character packs every few weeks. Players can buy a chance to acquire new characters. It’s all about the random-number generator. Sometimes you’ll get lucky on your first pull and sometimes it takes dozens of attempts to get the character you want. When a hot new character or characters get released, some players spend hundreds of dollars on in-app purchases until they get the heroes or villains they want. Perhaps I’m just too used to the cartridge/disc model of gaming, but that seems completely nuts to me.

The free-to-play videogame model is relatively new and still evolving. Even in its infancy, I’m amazed by how successful it can be. It blows my mind that Heroes of Dragon Age players are spending hundreds of dollars on in-app purchases for a videogame that could very well be offline in three years. They’re not even buying new characters. They’re purchasing a lottery ticket for a chance to win the character they want. One poster in the Heroes of Dragon Age forums said they he/she spent a little over $300 until he/she got the latest “hot” character.

I wonder what these in-app purchase whales will feel like when the game goes offline. Will they be satisfied with their in-app purchases and consider it money well spent? Or will they be shocked by how much money they spent on a game that they can’t play anymore? As much as I’ve been enjoying Heroes of Dragon Age, I can’t imagine spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on in-app purchases. I’d feel like a dick when the game goes offline and my in-app purchases have gone to heaven.

Of course this could very well be a generational thing. A lot of younger gamers are being raised on free-to-play games and it’s possible that they think this is simply how the videogame world works. What do you think about gamers spending hundreds of dollars on in-app purchases for games like Heroes of Dragon Age? Can you see yourself dropping that much dough on a mobile game? Kindly share your thoughts in the comments section.

Arizona Diamondbacks Unveil $25 D-Back Dog

The Arizona Diamondbacks have unveiled the latest culinary delight available to baseball fans — the $25 D-Back Dog. According to ESPN.com, the D-Back Dog is, “an 18-inch corn dog stuffed with cheddar cheese, jalapeños and bacon, served with a side of fries.” That sounds…amazing! On paper, the D-Back Dog is sheer genius; corn dogs are an American invention, cheese completely rules, jalapeños are awesome, and bacon is one of man’s greatest inventions. While $25 is a lot of money for a concession-stand treat, the D-Back Dog sounds like one of those things that’s so ridiculous that it must be tried at least once.

What do you think of the Arizona Diamonbacks’ D-Back Dog? Are you intrigued? Would you pay $25 for one? Leave a comment below and let me know (please!).

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Vaping Diaries #177: Girls Who Vape and Boobs

One of the most popular vaping-related Instagram feeds is “Girls Who Vape.” The account owner posts photos of attractive women vaping. Recently, a naughtier competitor — called “Vape and Boobs” (seriously) — launched. As you’ve probably figured out, the account owner posts photos of scantily clad women vaping. That Instagram feed has been getting a lot of buzz lately, because…you know, vape and boobs. While I fully admit that I enjoy checking out photos from “Girls Who Vape” and “Vape and Boobs,” these Instagram feeds have me thinking about gender roles in vaping.

In many ways, vaping is similar to other nerdy hobbies I enjoy (videogames, comic books, pro-wrestling). In those hobbies, women are sometimes placed on a pedestal and sometimes unfairly dismissed. On the (arguably) positive side, women that vape get the benefit of being “gamer girl hot.” If a young lady vapes or builds her own coils, vaping boys will find her exponentially more attractive. It’s the same deal as nerds encountering a woman that knows her comics and/or games — guys find it hot.

While I’ve seen guys at vape shops drool over gals that can make nice coils, I’ve also seen guys that are wary of female employees at vape shops. I asked several vape shop patrons if they would rather have a guy or a girl build their coils at a store. All of them said that they would pick the guy. There’s no sound logic behind it and many of the people I chatted with own up to that, but the assumption is that guys build better than girls. It’s like gamers automatically assuming that females are inferior videogame players or comic-book fanboys automatically assuming that a woman can’t possibly be familiar with Jack Kirby’s Fourth World.

I’ve seen female vapers get hooked up with free gear and liters of free juice. That’s totally cool. I’m all about female vapers taking advantage of being “vaper girl hot.” It’s not cool that some male vapers are dismissive of their female counterparts, automatically assuming that they know nothing about mechanical mods, can’t build decent coils, etc.

So yeah, browsing photos on the “Girls Who Vape” and “Vape and Boobs” Instagram feeds lead to this column. Ha! Anyway, if you have any stories about female vapers getting props or getting dissed, please share your experiences in the comments section.