Nothing much to tell about me in 2003. It was kind of the same as 2002, music and pizza. I took in a lot of media though. Here are my favorites.
TV: Venture Bros.
My favorite show on Comedy Central's Adult Swim. It's a humerous and absurd take on 60s TV show Johnny Quest. Dr. Venture is a super scientist with two boys and a bodyguard. They get menaced by various foes, each one zanier than the next, trying to steal his inventions. There are a lot of funny side characters and loads of references to current and past pop culture that are really fun to discover on repeat views. Patrick Warburton does the voice of Samson. I've been following him ever since. He's been in Seinfeld, the live action Tick, commericals galore, and other things. I always pick him out when I see him in something, "Oh, there's Patrick Warburton!". All the voice acting in the show is top notch though.
Film: Animatrix
I think about that first Matrix movie quite a bit even today, but I never saw Matrix 2 or 3; it was The Animatrix I saw next. In this 9 short animated film collection, Japanese animators tell the prehistory of the first Matrix movie. I recall a similar treatment to the Halo franchise, Halo Legends, in 2010.
Game: Goblin Commander
Ever since Warcraft II in 1995 I had been wanting a good console RTS. I thought Goblin Commander would be that game. It had a similar art style to WCII and similar gameplay. So I was very excited about it when it came out. Did I beat it? No. Something or other got in my way to that but, just like WCII, I really enjoyed the first half of the game. You gather resources to unlock bigger Goblins you can then pilot and also unlock turrets and upgrades for your troops. I believe Mark and I played a few multiplayer 1v1 rounds too. No co-op though.
Music: The Darkness - Permission to Land
So probably one my bandmates got me to listen to The Darkness and, at first, I couldn't understand all the falsetto singing. It seemed totally overkill and too much of it. Then, I happened to be in the music section of a department store and saw the above video on a monitor. I thought it was hilarious and suddenly got the joke. I was all in. I was so all in, I actually wanted to grow out a handlebar mustache like their bass player. I never did it because my band never had a strong sense of humor (like I wanted it to have). I'll add that The Darkness's Christmas song, "Christmas Time (Don't Let the Bells End" later that year is one of my favorite Chirstmas songs.
Book: My Favorite Universe presented by Neil deGrasse Tyson
Not exactly a book but a Teaching Company lecture series taught by director of the Hayden Planetarium, Neil deGrasse Tyson. This is how I found out about Neil, and I've been following him ever since. He would soon host Cosmos on TV continuing from the great Carl Sagan. Neil is a great educator. From him and others I've watched on Teaching Company lecture series, I've really become a fan of good teaching. These people are my heroes.
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SanAndreas
08/20/2020 at 03:26 AM
I remember the Animatrix had a segment done by the remains of Square's animation studio, then they got shuttered over the bad box office performance of FF: The Spirits Within.
I got a Gamecube for my birthday, just in time for The Wind Waker. Later that year I picked up the Gamecube version of SoulCalibur II, which featured Link as a guest fighter. Also Skies of Arcadia Legends for Gamecube. I graduated college that spring. Despite the hostile reception Wind Waker's cel-shaded look got from most people, it was pretty amazing to see it on the screen at the time. It looked like an animated movie, and I ended up liking it (and Twilight Princess) a lot more than I did the N64 Zeldas. The Gamecube was the best Zelda machine to come along, at least until the Switch came out with Breath of the Wild.
KnightDriver
08/21/2020 at 09:49 PM
I remember seeing Skies of Arcadia Legends all the time at Gamestops. I never bought it because the price never came down low enough for me. I wish I'd just bought it though. I always wanted it.
Matt Snee
Staff Writer
08/20/2020 at 07:23 AM
I was smoking a lot of weed in 2003, and working at the movie theater. We had free reign there, and connected a ps2 and N64 in the projection booth to play during movies. We played a lot of Goldeneye and GTA3. Fun times.
KnightDriver
08/21/2020 at 09:51 PM
For a second there I imagined you played the game on the big screen through the projector somehow. That would be sweet.
Cary Woodham
08/20/2020 at 08:38 AM
So as you know, 2001 and 2002 were rough years for me. I lost my gig at The Dallas Morning News and had some disagreements with family members for a short while. Right after college, it seemed like I was headed in the right direction, and companies were asking me to write for them. But then the dot.com bubble burst and 9/11 happened and it became super hard to find a job. Especially since I can't drive a car because of my disability. For a whle I even questioned why I even went to college at all. Was it worth it? (Looking back now I'd say no). I was so sad about the situation I even had almost a small nervous breakdown. So it was nice that 2003 had two things that FINALLY went right for a change.
The first good thing about 2003 was I finally got a true full time job. I worked at a local church, printing bulletins and answering phones and other things. I didn't like a lot of the people I worked with (which seems strange since it was a church) but I loved my job duties. I was able to use my skills I learned in college, so that made me happy. I worked there for three and a half years.
The other great thing that happened in 2003 was I started writing at GamerDad.com! And I'm still there today! Granted, the site is a LOT different now than it was back then, but I was finally able to get my foot back in the gaming journalism door, and the very next year I was able to go to E3 again. So I was quite happy about the whole thing.
I know I must've played a lot of games that year, but the one that really stuck out for me in 2003 was the first WarioWare game on the GBA. I liked it so much I named it my Game of the Year in 2003, and I was able to write a GOTY blog at GamerDad.com, too!
KnightDriver
08/21/2020 at 09:55 PM
Sometimes I think college was a waste of time too. I actually didn't want to go but my parents made it clear I had to. Well, it was a waste of money for them. I've done nothing with it so far.
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