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Kingdom Rush: Hammer Time!

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Well, 2024 is looking a lot like 2023 so far unfortunately and it affected my painting a bit this week. I only have modest progress to show off compared to normal, unfortunately. My wife has a difficult job or at least it has been since she started it a little over a month ago and there was more drama in the building where I live in despite my best efforts to stay out of it. If only the interest rates would drop and drop rapidly this year so we can move. That would be a really welcome development.

The only thing I really painted this week is a pretty simple miniature for Kingdom Rush. Malik Hammerfury looks a bit like a genie but most of his shout-outs in the Kingdom Rush game are MC Hammer inspired. Regardless, painting him was pretty straightforward and I think I came pretty close to matching the art in the game too.

I did finish The Walking Dead: A New Frontier on Steam this week, which is hardly a new game but I still really enjoyed it. The first game is definitely the best with an absolutely excellent ending but I think this one wasn’t too far behind it.

There are some really complicated family situations like with Rick and Shane but much better in this one because Shane is a terrible person. There is also a character who was in the military and struggled to adapt to civilian life which I thought was interesting. I have no idea if its realistic but it was moving all the same. If you like The Walking Dead (Bret and GrumpyGnome, I’m calling you out!), you should really give the games a try. They require less reflexes than most video games and are heavily story based. They also don’t have amazing graphics so you can play them on mobile or a not that powerful PC. I’m pretty sure they’re on the various consoles too. I think the stories are quite a bit better than the comics, which is better than the TV shows from what I gather. So if you’ve experienced the comics or TV shows and not the games, you’re missing out! At under 10 hours to beat, each one probably take less time to watch the TV shows too.

And lastly, for Comics Corner, I recently finished reading the entire Uncanny X-Force run by Rick Remender which came out when I was collecting comics about ten years ago and I bought at least the first two volumes as they came out.  I quite enjoyed it back then and so it was interesting to revisit it. 

The series is unfortunately not easy to describe.  Its about a team that consists of Wolverine, Angel (who is trying to fight off his evil Dark Angel side), Psylocke, Deadpool, and Fantomex (who is probably not familiar to many people).  X-Force tends to be on the more violent and adult side of the X-Men and this book lives up to that.  The story starts off with a mission to kill the child form of Apocalypse, who is a very dangerous and powerful mutant that nearly eradicates humanity in either the future or a different timeline.  There is time travel to future dystopias and quite a lot of dangerous situations the team ends up in.  Even more so than your typical superhero book.

Image courtesy of https://roguewatson.com/

Even more noteworthy is that the book has absolutely top-level artists through most of it.  Seriously, even ten years on, you won’t find many books with better art. The artists rotate a lot which some people don’t enjoy but with the exception of one artist and story arc, the quality is so high, I could never complain.  My favorite part is that each member of the team has their own major flaws and personal demons.  Too often superheroes are too heroic and have nearly perfect personalities which makes this book quite refreshing.  For example, Wolverine has his dangerous desire to kill and his son, Daken, who he neglected as a child and Daken went on to become a villain which haunts Wolverine.

The main reason I revisited Uncanny X-Force was I wanted to give Deadpool a chance.  I’ve never liked the character and before I started X-Force, I actually tried to read an issue or two of Deadpool and I quickly gave up.  I can’t stand the barrage of jokes (many of them not great or lowest common denominator, if you will) in Deadpool comics.  Uncanny X-Force doesn’t go down that road, thankfully.  Instead, Deadpool comes across as someone a little bit desperate to be liked and insecure.  He often jokes in awkward situations and what he says is not really designed to make you laugh out loud, it shows his insecurities.  Its amazing how much better that makes Deadpool.  In a solo book, he talks and jokes around non-stop and I think it diminishes the story as you can’t take it seriously if Deadpool isn’t.  Not that every story has to be serious either, its just too much with Deadpool and the writing is never clever enough for my taste anyway.

For those of you who have seen the movies and/or read Deadpool comics, how do you feel about the character?  Many people like Deadpool and I know the movies have been very popular.  I’ve never watched them but might give them a shot one day.  I’m not sure if there any comics that will win me over.  Uncanny X-Force is by far my favorite depiction of the character and that is mostly because it strips away a lot of what is supposed to be Deadpool’s main appeal.  Deadpool is a lot easier to take on a team too because he can’t dominate the dialogue or the plot as much.  I know this is a roundabout way of recommending Uncanny X-Force but if any of what I described above sounds good, its definitely worth a read.  It isn’t my favorite X-Men book of all time but its probably second or third and that is nothing to sneeze at!

27 thoughts on “Kingdom Rush: Hammer Time!”

  1. Nice job on Malik, I like how you’ve done the skin, looks really nice!
    Can’t comment on Deadpool in comics as I’ve never read any, but whatever they did in the movies was pitched just right joke wise for me, but I can see how easily that could have been really annoying if you weren’t into the jokes. A friend of mine really dislikes the movies for exactly that reason, and that would be the same for a comic.
    I’ve heard good things about the Telltale Games games, but never played any, I’ll have to check them out!

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    1. Thanks, Nic! Truthfully, I suspect that the writing in the Deadpool movies is better than the comics overall, probably because they have a bigger budget for it. I will give the first Deadpool movie a try, if I can find some time and see what I think. I may end up being exactly like your friend but there’s only one way to be sure!

      Telltale made quite a lot of games so you can pick from different franchises to find your favorite flavor. I think their Walking Dead ones are probably the best but don’t look past The Wolf Among Us which is based on the Fables comics. It is basically a detective story and you don’t need to know or like Fables to enjoy it. I’m not a Fables fan myself and I really liked it.

      The games are basically point and click adventures with timed dialogue choices and some quick time events. There are no hard or obtuse puzzles which I think is a huge improvement from the vast majority of those older games.

      Hopefully that gives you a good idea of what you’re in for and if you give one a try, you’ll have to let me know what you think!

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  2. Great work on the model Jeff, the skintones are sublime. As you know don’t play many games, but it does sound good.
    I’ve always found Deadpool to be a complex character who covers his pain with jokes, but know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, I did like the movies, and their nod to X-Force but using some of the weaker characters that have appeared over the years, sounds like I’d probably enjoy this collection.
    Hope the real life situations improve for you and your wife, and life can become easier for you both.

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    1. Thank you, Dave! The Walking Dead and all of the Telltale Games are for people who like old-school point and click adventure games. Those require minimal reflexes and button mashing so I figure if there is any game out there that might bring you back, that could be it 😉

      I like Deadpool as a complex character and I know the movies have more obscure characters like Cable and Negasonic Teenage Warhead so I’m sure I’d like that part of them. Uncanny X-Force definitely stands out in the crowded superhero genre. I honestly don’t read that many superhero books from DC and Marvel but when I do, I try to read the ones that people say are the best and Uncanny X-Force fits into that.

      Thank you most of all for the kind words at the end there. We’re trying to take small steps and do what we can to improve the situation. Its not going to get solved overnight but hopefully we’ll see progress overall in 2024.

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    1. Thank you for the kind words and for sharing your experiences, John! I think the movies might be my best chance to get into the character so I will give them a shot since they are so well liked.

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  4. Nice colors on the mini, but I gotta ask if he’s wearing a chest plate?
    Video game time for me has been nil since I got back, busy time at work, etc.
    Deadpool was a knockoff of Spider-Man, that never worked for me. I did enjoy the movie, but I think Reynold’s humor sold it for me more than anything. If you like the movie trailers, I’m sure you would enjoy the movie.

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    1. Thank you, Brian, and no, the chest is just ridiculous and not particularly realistic 🙂 I hope you’re able to get some video game time in soon. Its a great way to relax (when you’re not painting!).

      I never thought of Deadpool as a rip off of Spider-Man but I can see where you’re coming from. I kind of think of the character as enabling some writers’ worst tendencies like breaking the fourth wall and trying out being a stand-up comedian 😀 I am going to try and give the movies a try at some point. I have so many things to watch as it is but I’ll have to make some time in the future.

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      1. Ah ok, I wasn’t too sure on the mini.

        I guess “ripoff” is a strong word, but Deadpool was “inspired” by the characters of Deathstroke (DC’s Teen Titan villain), Spider-Man, and GI Joes Snake Eyes. Which probably explains why the comics character doesn’t work for me. 🤪

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      2. I know what you mean. I don’t think Deadpool was ever going to appeal heavily to me. I really like the Spider-Man movies but have never read many of the comics, I also don’t know who Deathstroke is or really Snake Eyes. I only know of their general existence.

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  5. I hope stuff improves soon ish. I’ll do my best to make interest rates drop.

    The miniature looks good too.

    The last thing I read of X-men that I liked was called Fatal Attractions. After that I lost interest. Haven’t seen any of the movies. Barely even know who Deadpool is. I’ve barely seen any of the marvel movies other than the guardians of the galaxy. I’m probably getting old. 😀

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    1. Your effort is greatly appreciated, my friend 🙂

      I just Google’d it and that came out in 1993 when I was a mere eight years old. I’m impressed you remember it clearly! The X-Men movies are hit and miss unfortunately. Some really good and some stink. They also run from being some of the first superhero movies all the way up to a few years ago. Truthfully, its hard to keep up with all the Marvel movies and TV shows. I’m struggling with it though that’s probably because I don’t make it enough of a priority.

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      1. Makes sense. I remember reading it in high school lol. It’s one of the few comics that I still own which is why I can remember it. It’s around here somewhere…(rummage rummage). 😀

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      2. High school is an impressionable time for all of us 🙂 I hope you’re able to find it and that its in good condition if its worth something!

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  6. Great paintwork mate, as always. Particularly that skin tone.

    It sounds like a decent Walking Dead game but no time for that given how much I have to do.

    Deadpool is alright for me in small doses. Ryan Reynolds really makes the character his own and I can not see a comic version of Deadpool without Ryan’s take coming to mind. But a more insecure Deadpool would make his humor less annoying and add some depth. I have always like Wolverine even as a kid, before Hugh Jackman put his stamp on the character…. Which I thought he did remarkably well with. As a kid I liked Wolverine and Punisher precisely because I felt so many heroes lacked moral depth. I did not really get that Punisher was a cautionary tell rather than a hero to admire. Too many Mack Bolan books consumed at the same time. Captain America, Superman, Wonder Woman… too perfect, not interesting enough. Now I have a different take on it. I particularly like the MCU take on the two Captain Americas. Bear in mind I am more of a tv/movie than comic consumer.

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    1. Thank you, mate and yes, The Walking Dead games by Telltale are probably the best Walking Dead media you can consume so if you find yourself with some time and a desire to explore that world, I’d recommend them.

      I think I’m the same way with Deadpool. Small doses really helps. I’m not a huge fan of Ryan Reynolds, in general, but I can see why he plays the character. He’s well-suited for it.

      I think Wolverine is a bit like Clint Eastwood in many of his Westerns. He’s not nice in a traditional sense but he has a moral code that most people can accept, if not like. A little bit of wit goes a long way too. I enjoy reading Wolverine comics more than the superheroes you cited and I’m sure that is part of the reason why.

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      1. I agree with the Clint Eastwood Westerns comparison.

        It seems to me Frank Grillo needs to be cast as either The Punisher or Mack Bolan. Much better for the role I think than the guy who played Shane in Walking Dead.

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  7. Nice blending/painting on the figure, very impressive. Do have a question though, what is on his back?

    Still trying to get through Alien Isolation to even think about another game, but it does sound intriguing.

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    1. Thank you! Fortunately, he was quick to paint. He is holding a hammer kind of over his shoulders. The sculpting on the rocks is weird and so it doesn’t look like stone which makes it harder to figure out what is going on.

      Totally understand! I’ve heard that is a very intense game as well. I think you can get physical copies of some or maybe even all of the Telltale Walking Dead games for PS3 and PS4. The PS4 has a version that has all of the games in one. The nice thing is that the games should be cheap no matter where you play them too.

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