It may be based an old idea, but ‘V’ is the best new science fiction show I’ve seen since Stargate Universe. Maybe it’s my lady-crush on the lovely (and in this case horrifying) Morena Baccarin of ‘Firefly’ fame, but mostly it’s just great television. If you haven’t had the chance to catch an episode of ‘V’, which has just wrapped up it’s second season, you are missing out. So what’s the deal with ‘V’?

Visitors have arrived on earth, professing to be of peace and bearing gifts of advanced medicine and technology. It all seems too good to be true, and it is. The visitors want something from us, and it is up to FBI Agent Erica Evans (played by the ever-talented Elizabeth Mitchell, best known for her role as Dr. Juliet Burke on Lost) to figure out what the V’s want with humanity…and with her son, Tyler. As it turns out, they want everything. But it’s a little bit more complicated than just a mere invasion…

Unfortunately, like most good sci-fi that makes its way onto prime time tv, ‘V’ is in danger of not being renewed for a third season. Though the first season did do better than the second in terms of ratings, ‘V’ has always attracted at least 5 million viewers per episode. The second season of ‘V’ was cut down by ABC to only ten episodes after an original order of thirteen episodes,  further adding to the feeling I have that ABC will not allow this show to last much longer.

Hopefully ‘V’ will be renewed for a third season, as producer Scott Rosenbaum promised in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly that the best is yet to come in season three. For those currently watching the show, it is clear that Erica will be mighty upset when she realizes what has happened on the New York mothership during the season two finale. Season three of ‘V’ promises to deliver the all-out conflict that we have been waiting for since the show began, which would make it even more tragic if this show were to be cancelled now.

When I first found out that Stephen King was working on an original comic series, I could not wait to get my hands on it. Though some of King’s work (such as the Dark Tower series) has been adapted into comics, this is indeed his first foray into writing specifically for the medium. ‘American Vampire’ was created by Scott Snyder, who has worked for Marvel and DC, but it is his first creator-owned series – making it somewhat of a career landmark for both authors.

The first volume of ‘American Vampire’ (issues 1-5) absolutely blew me away. King tells the old west origin story of the first American Vampire, Skinner Sweet, while Snyder’s story catches up with Sweet in 1920’s Los Angeles. Set against the backdrop of various iconic times and places in U.S history, this comic must have been a playground for all involved in its creation – and it is an equally fun read. Both story lines are equally compelling, and if you are a fan of comics and/or horror Skinner Sweet will rock your world.

Skinner is not your average vampire. For reasons you will have to read the comic to find out, Skinner

Visually, ‘American Vampire’ leaves nothing to be desired, and features some of my favorite cover art ever – Rafael Albuquerque is truly a master of his medium. It’s also a worthy side note that 1920’s Sweet also slightly resembles a certain hobo cowboy from a certain comic strip on the Website of Doom – if he were an evil vampire, that is. is transformed into a new kind of vampire that can walk in the sunlight. He also takes a very different form than the traditional European vampires, who also have a place in this tale of greed, revenge and power.

Fellow constant readers: we’re not in Salem’s Lot anymore. Despite the physical evolution of the classic vampire in this original comic series from Vertigo, Snyder and King have resuscitated the badass attitude and killer instincts which made vampires scary in the first place – and their timing could not have been more perfect. After all, we still have at least two more installments of the Twilight saga to endure.

-Mary Hoffman

The original Dead Rising game was nothing short of a masterpiece of the horror genre. If you’ve never played, it’s essentially like being dropped into George A. Romero’s classic zombie flick, Dawn of the
Dead. You play the role of Frank West, a reporter trying to uncover the truth about the outbreak as well as saving as many survivors as he can along the way. It’s fun, the story is compelling, and best of all
there are thousands of zombies to be killed. In a mall.

The only issue with the game is that it is extremely difficult for non-hardcore gamers to complete
the ‘true ending’, and saving all of the survivors is next to impossible. If you’ve done either of these
things, I salute you. Personally, it took myself and two friends a sleepless weekend, various internet
guides and a lot of patience to complete these tasks.

These issues have all been perfectly remedied in Dead Rising 2. Set in Fortune City (which is New Vegas
but I guess that title was already taken) you play the role of Chuck Green, a motocross-racing single
dad. Also, your daughter is infected and you have to give her Zombrex every 24 hours to keep her from
turning. I don’t want to say any more about plot in this game, because frankly it’s as good if not better
than the original and should be experienced firsthand.

Tons of improvements have been made in terms of gameplay, the key one being a far easier schedule to keep in terms of completing all of the cases to reveal the main plot. The levelling system is also much quicker due to the PP boosting addition of combo weapons – pretty much the best part of the game. Fifty unlockable weapons are available, which are assembled by Chuck out of various objects. From nail- embellished boxing gloves to dynamite laden arrows, the zombie killing possibilities are nearly endless.

Unlike the original, the use of quickstep drinks is not mandatory in order to complete the plot on time –
though it does help tremendously while attempting to rescue all possible survivors, including Snowflake,
a 3 year old Bengal Tiger. Many walkthroughs and achievement guides are available online for this
game, but the following tips I will provide are a good spoiler-free introduction to DR2.

1. Easy quickstep – You can make quickstep drinks (which make you run faster as well as restoring five bars of health) at the bar in the Americana Casino. Just pick up some wine at the bar, which is of unlimited supply, and place two in the blender on the counter. You can make as many of these as you can carry, and they come in quite handy – especially later in the game.
2. Books worth grabbing – There are a few choice books you can find at various locations within Fortune City. For saving survivors, the leadership book located on the desk in ‘One Little Duck Bingo’ on the Silver Strip is indispensable. It increases the speed of survivors being led by Chuck, as well as improving their skill with weapons. If you plan on gambling, getting all three gambling books dramatically increases your winnings. The first is located on the second floor of Royal Flush Plaza, on the floor in ‘Ragazines’. The second is in ‘Stan’s’ on the second floor of Palisades Mall, and the third is behind the desk at the back of the Shamrock Casino on the Silver Strip.
3. Getting backup – Arming your companions is all well and good, but taming Snowflake is an excellent way to get backup as well as a really cool, though completely irresponsible gift you can give your daughter. Snowflake is located in the Atlantica Casino. After dealing with the psycho she is with, all you have to do is get Snowflake to eat three pieces of steak. You can bring these with you, or get them in and around her pen. Take care not to hit her, as you are attempting to refill her health bar. This takes a bit of patience, but as long as you clear out the distracting zombies around her pen and place the steaks where they are easy to see, it is not too difficult to accomplish. Once you have backup, always keep their health up by giving them healing items – this will keep them from defecting and attacking you.
4. Combat – The best weapons for fighting Psychopaths are Claws (boxing gloves + bowie knife) and Tenderizers (MMA gloves + box of nails), though pretty much any fast weapon will do once you are a high enough level. For large hoards of zombies, the Paddlesaw (chainsaw + kayak paddle) or the Defiler (fire axe + sledgehammer) are great.

-Mary Hoffman