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Wow, Scott McCloud! Great work, Kingzjester! The second episode of Behind The Bytes is up now. This time we're looking at the Zelda franchise. Or at least our absurd approximation of it. KQGWc8Mmsw4 A few tweaks after last time: a shorter script, generally pacier editing, and a different location for one of the talking heads. Hopefully it's better overall. The last episode was featured on Kotaku, so I'm hoping lightning strikes twice...

Move over Dragon Age 2, the Metacritic commenters have a new target. Edit: Good old RPS.

Sleepdance, Miffy, glad you both liked it! Now, Thunderpeel... Thanks for the comments, and I'm glad you liked it overall. And, yeah, all the points are valid, and ones that occurred to us when we were shooting/editing: Acting: The straightforward answer here is that we're not actors, apart from Samantha (who I think is noticeably better). We aimed to keep the team tight, so the three guys are all hyphenates. Also, we were still feeling out the characters as we went through the day-long shoot. Location: We shot it all in one day at a friend's flat, so were limited in terms of space. For the Jeff Tozai segments, we were going for 'corporate void', and instead got a slightly reverb-tinged man-in-an-empty room effect. If there's a next time we'll try something different. Thanks again, guys. We're trying to get it out there, and get some eyeballs on it, just to see if there's actually an audience for a series like that. So far, traffic has been slow, but I'm hoping it picks it up soon.

Straight up: here's a pilot for a webseries I've been developing with a couple of friends. Just some dudes with some equipment and a sense of humour. We've called it Behind The Bytes, based on Behind The Music (and, more importantly, the Simpsons episode 'Behind The Laughter'). It will peddle completely fictitious short documentaries, looking at the scandalous lives of video game characters. The pilot is about Tails, from Sonic the Hedgehog: it is a tragic tale of companionship, obsession, and sprinting. Have a look. 0OV2ZRm3o44 Comments, pointers, feedback? We're going to see if there's an actual audience for this kind of thing, before proceeding.

Me too! Damn, those maps were brutal.

I know I'm not part of the Left 4 Thumbs crew, but I do have the games on PC now, so will be up for some! I'm free this evening, too. So shoot me an invite if you're lacking in survivors.

Do we have enough PC Thumbsters to get a private stabbing match going?

I've actually been put off the multiplayer, because three matches in a row froze on me - once during a 'sweet execution'. I'll cool down and try again later.

Around 27 for me. Surprising list, really. I guess that's consensus for you. Interesting to chart the shift from 'classics' (the wodge of Dickens) to 'cultural touchstones' (Lolita, Crash, Androids, Foundation, Hitchhikers, Dune!) and then the absolute split between popular and critically-lauded fiction in the late 20th century. And, wow, two books by the author of The Kite Runner?

Not sure I have the wad of cash for Shogun 2, but I've taken advantage of the Steam sale to catch up. Medieval 2: Total War for £2.50!

How about Age of the Dragons? 'The film will be a loose retelling of Herman Melville's novel Moby Dick, but with a dragon instead of a whale.' 5sjMdYnOZ_k

Hm, been the victim of a minor calendar malfunction, so I'll have to bail out, I'm afraid. Next time, definitely. Sorry chaps.

I'll be the ginger guy with a beard looking awkward.

On Monday I'm off to see a screening of an African film called Viva Riva! that's in Soho from 6.30. I should be able to meet for drinks after, though.

http://longreads.com/ is a site collecting various pieces of longform journalism from around the web - even with a handy description of how long each article is. They usually find something amazing every day or so. Also Longform.org.

Great work, Kingzjester! I've added the RSS feed to my reader. Looking forward to reading more of it.

Sure! Once I start writing it... I'm only sending in the proposal today.

Big fan of Kon's work, Perfect Blue in particular. Still need to see Paranoia Agent, though. I'm sending in my Masters' thesis proposal today, and I'm writing about fansubbing, so I guess I need to watch a lot more anime, and call it research.

Yep, they've been screening it for critics over here since before Christmas, so I've had colleagues and friends going on about it a lot. But then, when it came to the actual review, another guy covered it (same with The Fighter), so I have to wait. You're missing out. I liked it a lot. Sure, I guess the characters are middle class, but I don't think loss is a 'white suburban problem'. And it's not really drawing 'all the nominations' at all, which I think is a shame, because I think it - and Blue Valentine - deserves a lot more recognition. They're both similarly complex, sincere, and powerful.

Neither of those films are nominated for Best Picture. Why 'fuck Rabbit Hole'? I still have to see The Fighter and True Grit, because they've not been released here yet. Oh, and Winter's Bone, as I missed it at the time.

Are you looking at the listings for the upstairs screen (in purple, right)? The double bill is listed for the downstairs screen (red, left) on the 28th.

All-Star Superman is essential, I'd say, but you've got a good list there to work through. In kinda-books news, I got the new 'issue' of McSweeney's Quarterly Concern today. It's a box, that looks a little like a pink Clark Gable, full of literary goodies. Here's a pic of it on my shelf: And a video going through the contents: sAkURFRqu_8

I completed Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light today. Fun game! I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected, and it was a steal for [cheap price on Steam]. I'm surprised that no one on my friends list seems to have gone further than the first couple of levels. And, judging by the leaderboards, a startling 75% dropped off before getting to the final level. Deserves a little more attention, because I think the puzzle-adventure design is top-notch.

I'd second a few up that have already been mentioned, such as Kate Beaton. I read quite a few webcomics, but here's one I'll recommend: My Cardboard Life - The art style might look like a gimmick at first, but the very distinctive sense of humour (a mixture of dry wit, groan-inducing puns, silliness and passive-aggression) is what brings me back. Plus, there are some great ideas, such as this recent strip, where one of the characters attempted to escape from the comic.

I'm sure they've done Alien/Aliens before. They must have. Maybe they're trying something different. I recently renewed my membership, so I might go to this!* *Probably won't. Factors, and all that.