HEART #2 Review

Oren “Rooster” Redmond has tasted the fight life, and he never wants to go back to the 9-5 grind ever again. The second installment of this mixed martial arts tale chronicles Redmond’s journey from amateur to professional fighter. We meet the entire cast of characters at the gym where he works out, and they all have their own little story.

The life of a professional MMA fighter is brutal as the training is some of the hardest in all sports. It’s something you need to be 100% committed to to be successful. Redmond doesn’t want to be another weekend warrior or some guy who likes wearing skin-tight Tap Out shirts. He wants to be a world champion, and he is going to enjoy the ride. We discover how Oren got the nickname “Rooster,” and we see him in his first professional bout.

If you watch G4, you know Blair Butler is a huge fight fan. Speaking as someone who has dabbled with MMA training, Butler’s approach is pretty authentic, and her insight shows in her writing. It was a smart move to only make this series a limited run. That’s not a knock at all. The story can become redundant since it lacks a little of that comic element that fans long for. Anyone who is a fan of MMA or looking for something different on Wednesdays will not be disappointed.

UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida Preview & Predictions

(Column I wrote for gerweck.net)

UFC 140 appears to have been lost in the shuffle, with everyone focused on Lesnar vs. Overeem at the end of the month and all the new fights announced for FX and Fox in early 2012. The Air Canada Centre in Toronto will be treated to its second UFC event, which will feature a native featherweight favorite, two all-star bouts, and a world title fight that will set the landscape of the light heavyweight division.

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Can The Count Handle A Little Mayhem?

Spike TV’s swan song to The Ultimate Fighter has produced one of the most exciting seasons in years. The coach’s battle between Jason “Mayhem” Miller and Michael “The Count” Bisping is an evenly matched fight that should produce a lot of action. This will be Mayhem’s first fight since September 25, 2010, when he submitted a past his prime and first ballot hall of famer, Kazushi Sakuraba. This will also be Mayhem’s first fight back in the UFC since he lost a unanimous decision to Georges St. Pierre in 2005.

Miller was a dormant member of the Strikeforce roster despite CBS denying him entry on shows because he caused a post-fight brawl with the Diaz Brothers on live television. On the other hand, Dana White had no reservations about bringing the Bully Beatdown host into the promotion for a second go-around.

The Ultimate Fighter season III winner, Michael Bisping, finds himself coaching his second squad of UFC prospects. He has remained a staple in the middleweight division for quite some time, and now, the Englishmen look to shut up the loud-mouthed Mayhem and be next in line to fight Chael Sonnen.

Bisping is riding a three-fight winning streak with his last victory against middleweight journeyman Jorge Rivera. His second-round TKO finish of the Massachusetts native made him no friends when he spit on Rivera immediately after the fight was called to a halt.

Yes, Rivera taunted him with a plethora of slanderous YouTube videos leading up to the fight. Still, fans thought they were funny. “The Count” is a fighter people love to hate. He is booed more than most and has never been able to embrace the villain role.

Their styles will surely make for an exciting fight, but the most likely scenario for a finish is if Mayhem can control Bisping in his guard long enough for a submission off his back. Bisping will look for the knockout with his technical acumen, but his lack of punching power will make this an impractical task. Miller’s striking is elementary at best, and he needs to take the fight to the ground if he wants to win.

Bisping will look to stay off the ground but has been known to jump into someone’s guard to apply a little ground and pound. Miller’s takedowns are seldom clean, and he has to work from the clinch to achieve his objective. Bisping’s experience with high-caliber wrestlers will pay off for him, and thus, he will control the majority of the fight.

The Pick: Michael Bisping by unanimous decision.

Wolverine #19 Review

I almost can’t put into words how good this issue was and how much I enjoyed reading it. I’m not going to say too much because you should just take my word for it and buy this book.

It was just one big adventure that has everything a comic book fan loves. Wolverine, Fat Cobra, and Gorilla-Man are hiding inside the stomach of three dragons, using them as a disguise to break into Jade Claw’s secret hideout.

If that doesn’t hook you, then I don’t know what will. The art and colors are wonderful, and one of the panels on the last page is a bar scene where one of the dragons poke their head in the window and takes a sip of Fat Cobra’s 24-ounce beer mug.

The conclusion shows an unknown group of people looking at various targets, and they get the word they have to take out our adamantium-clawed Canadian. These last few pages really put over how much of a badass Wolverine is. I’m done typing, please; just buy it right away. It is the must-read Wolverine book of the year!

Why No Love For Jr. Pac-Man???

Santa Claus was extremely generous in 1987 when he left the Atari 2600 and my first video game, Jr. Pac-Man, under my tree. While my friends were accustomed to playing with Junior’s parents, I enjoyed the prospect of riding around a maze in a tricycle. What I want to know, though, is how come we can’t get any love for the little guy? Continue reading “Why No Love For Jr. Pac-Man???” →

The War of Attrition: Henderson vs. Shogun

Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was one of the greatest fights in the 22-year organized history of mixed martial arts. Years from now, historians will chronicle this epic encounter as one of the sports’ legendary nights. This fight had everything you could ask for. It was a brutal symphony of action, excitement, suspense, and drama between two veteran warriors with an undeniable will to win. Hendo was awarded the unanimous decision victory as all three judges scored the bout 48-47.

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Cung Le vs. Wanderlei Silva Preview

– Cung Le vs. Wanderlei Silva preview

(posted on gerweck.net)

The H.P. Pavilion will be jam packed to the rafters tonight as Wanderlei Silva vs. Cung Le will engage in a middleweight slug fest in the co main event of UFC 139. Cung Le’s reputation as an undefeated San Shou fighter had hardcore fans salivating over the prospect of his participation in mixed martial arts. Le made the move to the cage in 2006 and won by knockout in the first round. He won his first six fights and suffered his first defeat via knockout against Scott Smith. That was loss avenged in June of 2010 by dominating Smith with a barrage of body shots. This also marks the last time he has fought as he comes into the fight on Saturday after a 15 month layoff. The time away was due to an expanding list of Hollywood commitments. The 39 year old star will have a large contingent of fans cheering for him on fight night due to the Vietnamese population in San Jose.

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Strikeforce Challengers results Las Vegas, Nevada

Strikeforce Challengers results (coverage I provided on gerweck.net)

The Pearl at the Palm in Las Vegas, Nevada

Commentators: Stephen Quadros, Pat Miletich and Mauro Ranallo

Prelim results:

– Andreas Spang defeated Willie Parks via 1^st round TKO

– Quinn Mulhern defeated David Hulett by unanimous decision

– Bobby Green defeated J.P. Reese via Rear Naked Choke in the 3rd round

– Matt Ricehouse defeated Bill Cooper via unanimous decision

Main Card:

Middleweight- Referee Kim Winslow

Derek Bunson defeated Nate James via unanimous decision 30-27 across the board: Derek Bunson was the more aggressive fighter and took James downs at will even though he could not keep him down for long. James was poked in the eye with one minute in the first round. No point was taken away from Bunson. Same story in the second round until Bunson landed a belly to back suplex and James rolled through with a knee bar but Bunson escaped. Bunson had difficulty taking down James in the third round until he dropped him with a straight left hand and controlled him against the fence and on the ground for the remainder of the fight.

Light Heavyweight- Referee Steve Mazzagatti

Trevor Smith defeated T.J. Cook via guillotine choke from top position at 4:28 of the 1st round: Smith was just too strong for Cook as he took him down right away and kept working for side control until Cook escaped from the bottom position. Smith applied a sloppy arm bar and Cook got out of it and Smith caught him with the guillotine in the scramble.

Middleweight- Referee Chris Tognoni

Adlan Amagov defeated Anthony Smith via KO at 2:32 of the 1st Round: Amagov worked for the single leg takedown and planted him on the mat and worked from top position until Smtih got up. They traded punches until Amagov lands a hard right cross that Smith could not recover from.

Womens Featherweight – Referee Kim Winslow

Ronda Rousey defeated Julia Budd via submission by arm bar at 39 seconds of the 1st round: Rousey took Budd down right away and applied the arm bar. It was tight, and Budd had to tap out. This makes four straight first round wins by arm bar forRousey. “Judo” Gene Lebell was in her corner. Rousey called out Miesha Tate and Sarah Kaufman in the post fight interview.

Middleweight – Referee Steve Mazzagatti

Lumumba Sayres defeated Antwain Britt via KO at 28 seconds of the 1st round: Britt throws a right hand, Sayers ducks and attempts the takedown but it’s blocked by Britt. Sayres and Britt clinch against the fence and Sayres connects with a short right hook and an uppercut as Britt sinks to the canvas.

Interview with SIX AM Comics

If you like old school video games, horror films, comics, humor and really cool artwork, then prepare to get AM-inated by the crew at Six AM Comics. Mark Marianelli, Kevin Letourneau and Daniel Griswold are the creatively talented trio that make up the company.

Q: Tell me a little bit about you and your role at Six AM Comics?

Mark: I do a lot of odd-jobs within the site, more specifically though, my role within the group is the head illustrator. I’m responsible for illustrating our featured webcomic, “Scholars”, as well as creating the majority of imagery around the website. For example, the page headers and any basic web design. On our Facebook page, we select people weekly (through various contests) to be “AM-inated”, in which we draw caricatures for them to use as Avatars. If you’ve had yourself drawn, it was me who did it.

Kevin: I serve as the Marketing Manager for Six AM Comics and help develop overall brand identity and strategy. I also contribute scripts and ideas for the development of new comics and games. I do a lot of social media strategy and creative consulting for clients as a freelance contractor, but my long-term goal has always been to get into the arena of developing intellectual property and franchises through interactive storytelling.

Daniel: I do a bit of everything from writing with Kevin on Scholars to making my own web-comic Honestly, which has a more random humor to it. Mark, Kevin and I go back quite a bit, and in High School we made a lot of video shorts based on my stupid ideas. We did obscure classics (to us) like “The French Director”, “The Mystical Green Face”, “Baby Demons”, and “Kung Fu-tage”. We all collaborated to make our longest running character “Refrigerator Man” – a man who sold his soul for the ability to move between any household appliance due to a need to escape from his tortured childhood. I like to think of myself as an idea guy, and when I have a cup of coffee and something to write or type on, I enjoy creating, drawing, laughing and hanging out to make stuff. That’s probably why we all get along so well – we’re all that way. That was a long answer, but to be a bit more professional, right now my role is Creative Support, making Honestly happen every Thursday, shooting game and Scholars ideas/scripts to support Mark and Kevin, and thinking up new ways to get people excited about Six AM like we are. Continue reading “Interview with SIX AM Comics” →

‘Smokin’ Joe Frazier 1944 – 2011

Who Says Fighting Solves Nothing?

My parents hadn’t met each other yet when Joe Frazier was the heavyweight champion of the world. Still, I felt a lot of sadness when news of his passing broke. I’m a casual boxing fan at best who enjoys the big mega fight on occasion. Watching Joe Frazier beat Muhammad Ali, via VHS, was a moment for me that validated the notion that ethnicity is not defined by public perception or stereotypes. In the days leading up to their encounter at the Garden, Ali hurled a plethora of racial insults that questioned how “black” Frazier really was. Ali was loud and flamboyant while Frazier was reserved but fierce. Fight night arrived on March 8, 1971 and ‘Smokin’ Joe did his talking in the ring.

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