There and Back Again

Staff writer: Tony Robinson     

(SPOILERS WITHIN)

December 17 2014 was the release date for “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.” by

Peter Jackson. The last of the three part trilogy picking up where the last film left off, Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) is on his way to LakeTown to desolate it. He manages to destroy all of it before Bard (played by Luke Evans) kills him with a black arrow, saves the surviving people and becomes an unofficial leader of the remaining survivors. The dwarves barracked themselves within Erebor, as Bard approaches with the survivors to come collect their wealth Promised to them by Thorin Oakenshield. (played by Anatoli Ravikovich) Unfortunately, he does not honor his promise and sends them off in his rage from the lost Arkenstone, which young Bilbo Baggins (played by Martin Freeman) has hidden. The battle then takes place and some of the dwarves die, which is to be expected. After the intense battle we follow young Bilbo as he returns home. Years pass and we make a full circle and end the film on a very nostalgic scene of 110 year old Bilbo hearing Gandalf at the door.

The Film has a very cinematic feeling from it, including the camera angles from helicopter view as well as the strange orange tint (which didn't take away from the film at all). The Hobbit was filmed in 48 fps which is fairly different because most films are filmed in 24fps. The total gross income was 915 million, it was the second highest grossing film of 2014. It rated a 7.7 out of 10 on IMDb. All in all the movie was great fun and a general good time, check it out.

Test your knowledge with some riddles from the hobbit book, riddles in the dark

AGCS Pep Rally -- Get Wild & Honor the Academic Team

Staff Writer, Alyssa Reed

Are you in the loop with what is to come with the AGCS Prep Rally? It is going to be a great time to get pumped as we celebrate our Academic Team and prepare to send them to the Playoffs! Lets get wild for our first AGCS Pep Rally! The Pep Rally will be on February 8th during 8th period in the Gym. Make sure to wear your AGCS gear!

Have you wondered why are we having this prep rally? Well that is a great question and Mr.Brutto said” The point of this Pep Rally is to have something fun as we highlight students on the academic team with their great achievement and have some fun as we celebrate our Academic team making into the playoffs.” I know that most Prep Rallies celebrate sports teams and stuff like that but we should build school pride and be excited for the groups that we have here at AGCS!

There have been lots of questions about what this Pep Rally will look like. This pep rally will consists of several games involving the students and teachers! There will be an animal game, hula hoop game, a minute to win it game, and pie a teacher in the face. I was talking to Mrs. Weik and she said ” I am looking forward to seeing the minute to win it game the most because it’s going to be fun to watch. It will  also be intense and exciting.”

I would like to give a big thanks to teachers, staff,  and students who are involved with setting this up and volunteered to participate in this event. The games were made up by Mrs. Weik, Mr.Brutto, Mrs. Smith, and Mr. Delfin.The community service team made decorations, the student council sold raffle tickets,  and the band is working on music to play. Looks like a lot of hard work was put into this event and it looks like it is going to be a magnificent Pep Rally.

Mr. Brutto said“ The point of this  Pep Rally is for the students to have fun and help destress the Academic Team as they get ready for the big match” I believe having this Pep Rally will be worth it because it will show the academic team that we support and care about them! I can tell you that you want to attend this and don't want to miss out because it is going to be amusing as we get our Academic Team excited and ready to win their big match!!

~ Wishing you all the best of luck in the Playoffs- think like a pro!

Dice: A New Start

Staff writers :Jesse Eckman & Nevan McFoy

Summary:Dice the original makers of the BattleField series, are teaming up with Visceral and are making a whole new experience for gamers that will play this new to come game.Visceral are the makers of the Dead Space series. They are also known for The Sims Series and the Army of Two. Dice and Visceral are making a whole new game with a different concept from the original series of BattleField. Instead of a militaristic experience Dice and Visceral are taking the route of having players play a cop versus robbers experience.

Reviews:The game is getting a lot of criticism because they are taking out all of the LMGs consisting of the M249, the M60, and the M240 Bravo which are all used in the Military. The reason why they are doing that is  because they want people to feel like a cop more than a soldier in the streets of California. Plus they are moving away from their militaristic experience for players.

Features:The game is still going to have levolution which is when a crane and/or building falls from players interacting with the map. They are also letting players shoot through or destroy walls.They can also destroy the walls and/or doors with a breaching charge or grenade launcher.

Classes:The game will have all the original classes but will be renamed. Assault will be called the Operator, the Engineer will be called the Mechanic, the Support will be called the Enforcer, and the Recon will be called the Professional. Each class still operates how they normally did. The Professional uses long range weapons but they are the only class that is allowed to use automatic pistols. The Operator will use carbines and assault rifles. Mechanics are equipped with SMGs and can choose from a wide range of tools, including Repair Tools for vehicles. The Mechanic are vehicle and gadget specialist of the Police and Criminal forces. The Support personnel of Police and Criminal forces.The Enforcers are equipped with heavy rifles and shotguns as well as ammunition boxes, explosive charges, and Ballistic Shields to support their teammates.All classes will be allowed to use a gas mask, grappling hook, zipline, and grenades such as the M67 hand grenade, flashbang, gas grenade, and the incendiary grenade/molotov cocktail.  

Gameplay:Battlefield is well known for more realistic gun sounds and realistic gameplay. Battlefield is also real good with many different varieties of vehicles. But in hardline instead of militarised vehicles, the game has twenty-seven vehicles that The game features that are used by police and swat forces. Vehicles such as motorcycles, various automobiles, armored trucks, and helicopters. Most vehicles are more detailed than any other battlefield. Along with the more realistic feel of the vehicles, and the firing of the guns. The multiplayer is fun but it could use a little more work on the feel of it and its realness.  

Platforms:

PS4

PS3

Xbox one

Xbox 360

Steam

rating:

Sources:Blog mostly to our own experience only looked to get ideas of what other review articles looked like.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/battlefield-hardline-review

www.gamespot.com/battlefield-hardline/

www.ign.com/games/battlefield-hardline/ps4-20019571

Qui Est Charlie?

Staff Writers Keaghan Knight and Sarah Morris

“Je Suis Charlie.” These were the words that hit the streets of Paris on 11 January 2015, when over two million people gathered in an effort for national unity. This rally came in the days following an attack on the satire magazine Charlie Hebdo on 7 January when two Islamic militants killed twelve people and injured eleven others over a controversial depiction the magazine made of Muhammad.

The magazine is widely known for its strong anti religious sentiments, and after the incident the publication came under fire for its often offensive satirical humor, and people began questioning whether the cartoon that led to the shooting should have been published at all. In the aftermath of this, a debate has begun with the limits of free speech at its center.

Those declaring “Je Suis Charlie,” have no problem defending the rights of the magazine, but now is the time to ask just who free speech applies to in today’s world, and why it only seems to apply to people with ideals that match our own.

In the midst of the debate it is important to recognize that there are limits to freedom of speech.  However, French prime minister Manuel Valls declared a war on “terrorism and radical Islam”. The prime minister is directly violating the rights of any citizen who is a supposed “terrorist sympathizer” when his citizens are being jailed for speaking their mind. It is discriminating to French Muslims.

Of the 68,000 French prisoners, 60% are reported as being Muslim.

This statistic follows the fact that only 33% of the French population identify as practicing Muslims. Since the event the Associated Press reported that, “French police have arrested more than 70 people since the attacks for allegedly defending or glorifying terrorism.”

It is becoming clear that Muslims are being targeted in the midst of this. We have a situation where millions of people are defending the rights of Charlie Hebdo to say what they want, because the things that they are saying do not scare them. As soon as an Islamic person shares equally controversial views though, they are immediately accused of terrorism. When comedian Dieudonne M’bala M’bala posted on facebook,

“I feel like Charlie Coulibaly,”

(a combination of the names Charlie Hebdo and the attacker Amedy Coulibaly) he was arrested for his comments. He later said in a letter,

“You consider me like Amedy Coulibaly when I am no different from Charlie.”

M’bala M’bala really highlights this hypocrisy taking place. Charlie Hebdo was allowed to take satire to an extreme, but Muslim people are being persecuted for expressing their own extremes, even in what is meant to be a comedic context. Even though the cartoons incited violence, both sides have a right to freedom of speech and freedom of expression. And as this fight is going on, it is important to remember that everyone has the right to be “Charlie.”

False Frame

Staff Writer / Chase Ryan  

     Foxcatcher by Bennett Miller pulled in only $400,000 opening weekend.

This makes sense considering it only opened in specific theaters at first and had very few advertisements. The movie itself was fantastic, thought to be Steve Carell and Channing Tatum’s best performances yet.

   

      The movie plays out the events leading up to the shooting of David Schultz in 1996. Foxcatcher starts around ten years before the murder looking at the life of Mark Schultz years after his gold medal win in the Olympics. The movie makes Mark’s life seem like he is a washed up athlete although Mark has come out against Bennett viciously contradicting nearly the whole movie. The movie depicts Dave as the famed wrestling champion and Mark as just his little brother in his shadow whose accomplishments do not mean nearly as much. Mark is furious about what seems to be an underlying sexual tension between him and DuPont.

       He has said that he overlooked it at first but now that critics are saying things about the subject he won't have any less then have Bennett publicly say that that portion of the story was fictional. The movie focuses on Mark’s training at Foxcatcher farms and his creation of an American team to represent DuPont in the upcoming competition. Carrell is nearly unrecognizable and this role is a huge step up from his whole career of comedy.   

"Left the theater with a dark, strange feeling." - Tony Robinson

8/10

                     

5 New Artists You Should Definitely Be Listening To

Staff Writer: Katherine Angeline

James Bay

• James Bay is an englishman who favors the acoustic guitar,his music is like the famous man,Sam Smith.
• “Favoring an acoustic guitar to go along with his sweet voice, and wearing a hat that makes him look a little like a sunken-cheeked Jack White…”
• He is a 24 year old singer who has already released 3 EPs, so far.
• His hit single is “Hold Back the River”,I think it is good and you should go listen to it.

Mickey Guyton

• She is an African American country singer,who has grabbed attention from everyone.
• “Better than you left me” is her hit single that caught attention from many radio stations. “...added to 79 country radio stations in its first week — the highest one-week add total of a country artist's debut single in Country Aircheck history.”

Francesco Yates

• A curly headed, 19 year old singer whose from Toronto, had caught attention from Justin Timberlake and Pharrell Williams.
• “This Toronto native started writing songs at the age of 11 and got signed to Atlantic Records by 16.”
• Yates has an R&B style going and some say he might be the ‘next big thing’.
• His song “Call” has brought him fans, the song that made him noticeable.

JD McPherson

• “McPherson’s first album, Signs & Signifiers, won him a reputation as a first-rank roots-rock revivalist”  
• His retro sound has pulled people in,his mix of rhythm and blues is a nice come-back for the ones who are into it. “Could he be this generation’s Chris Isaak — without the hair gel and wisecracks — making the raw sounds of early rock into something that hits a general audience...“
• His song “I Wish You Would” has definitely caught my attention and I hope it catches yours.
  Ryn Weaver

• Weaver’s single “Octahate” has many talking, Charli XCX had co-written it,which had caused Ryn’s popularity to grow. “She made a high-profile debut at this year’s CMJ Festival, so maybe she’ll grow up to be more like one of the indie artists …”
• “Octahate” does have a strange music video to go with it, but I think thats just to pull people in,so they can listen to Ms. Weaver sing.

To Deflate or Not Deflate

Staff writer, Justin Reed

Hold your balls, America.


There’s another scandal in town, and another irrelevant gate added onto the end. According to a plethora of news companies, including Dan Wetzel- of Yahoo Sports, with nothing better to report on than balls deflated 1.5 pounds per square inch less than the NFL standard- writes,

What they found was that the way the Patriots prepare the outside surface of their footballs – scrubbing, rubbing, etc. – actually raises the pound per inch levels inside the ball. Once that process ends and the ball reaches an equilibrium, the ball that was once legally measured to be 12.5 psi naturally drops to the illegal level of 11.5. Throw in the climatic differences between a room temperature locker room and a cold playing surface, and it's 1.5 psi or enough to cause this whole kerfuffle

Since 1972 when the Watergate scandal occurred, gate has been tacked onto the end of a number of words to give more controversy to an NFL story than what is needed. You have the Spygate, coincidentally also a scandal related to the patriots, the Bounty Gate, a scandal where the New Orleans Saints paid players to injure opponents, and now we have Deflate Gate.  How many readers are actually informed about the original ‘gate’ scandal?

This over inflated story has been published to the popping point, and even Bill Nye the science guy finds himself invested in the topic. The real scientist opens up to ABC News about Belichick's theory of ball rubbing being the culprit in deflated balls,

I’m not too worried about coach Belichick competing with me… What he said didn’t make any sense.

To check out Nye’s interview follow the following link: Bill Nye "The Science Guy" Refutes Bill Belichick's 'Deflate-Gate' Explanation

If the Patriots are found to have been tampering with their balls illegally, then they might find their wallets flattened. ABC News reports that according to the NFL official handbook calls for a fine of $25,000 for each tampered balls. Though to put this into perspective of the lucratively contracted NFL world, on any given Sunday the Patriots quarterback could afford the eleven reported deflated balls with a healthy $479,220 going back into his own bank account.

Now with all seriousness, the Patriots would have defeated the Colts playing with blindfolds covering their eyes and while throwing  beachballs. The Patriots embarrassed the Colts, and now we wait to see if the latest Super Bowl winner will need an asterisk next to their name.

#dontmesswithyourballs