Hell Let Loose and Dark and Darker

Games of killing each other.

Hell Let Loose

This is a 50 v 50 multiplayer army first person shooter set in World War II. Unlike the previous PvP games I've been trying where there are no servers to play this one was the opposite: most of the servers are full! I did manage to finally get in to experience the pretty decent game play which pits teams in historical battles and lets you drive vehicles without going to the ridiculous stunt level of the Battlefield series. Your class determines your (somewhat editable) load out and what vehicles you can drive (tanks need a tank crew person), and bullets are one hit killers: you'll probably never see who shot you (though bleeding out is lengthy enough for a medic to reach you).

That's a pretty accurate simulator right there, though it obviously can be a frustrating one. Squads with good leadership will dominate, and the leader is usually the guy with the binoculars because it is really hard to spot people in the distance. If you like this sort of game and don't mind the fatal bullets, definitely give this one a try.

Dark and Darker

A different sort of PvP game for sure, in this one you make your fantasy character class and then can optionally team up with up to two players to enter a dungeon to loot its spoils. The kicker is there are other adventuring parties in there, and they aren't friendly! I think the term for this now is extraction PvP? Loot the dungeons, loot the monsters, loot the other guys and get out when you find the exit portals which appear at some point late in the match. I went in as a solo rogue and was surprised with the amount of things I could interact with. Furniture, traps, light sources, giant spiders biting my face... Unlike Hell Let Loose you will definitely see what kills you in this game.

And no, it wasn't the spiders - it was some cleric player who came around the corner with a flame strike. :P Definitely interesting and this time frustrating for a different reason: you don't escape, you don't get any loot but anything you used is gone. PvP isn't my cup of tea but there's better odds of me trying this one again than Hell Let Loose.

Umbrella Academy (TV) and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Not fighting fair.

Umbrella Academy (4 Seasons)

This show focuses on a dysfunctional superhero "family" adopted by a domineering and eccentric billionaire father who uses them to fight crime. Alas after a botched mission they all go their separate ways for years until their hated father figure dies. It's as this point they discover they have to stop the apocalypse (or, a chain of them as it turns out). Some funny bits, some cool bits, and some decent fight scenes pepper the very weird plot so it is entertaining for the spectacle if nothing else. Acting wise I'd say Aidan Gallagher is the stand out performer here and easily steals the majority of the scenes he's in.

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

It is World War II and the British have had enough of the Nazi's dominating the seas thanks to their U-boats, so they assemble a small team (with members played by Henry Cavill and Alan Ritchson to name a few) to go an unsanctioned undercover mission to hit the U-boat supply station on a Spanish controlled island. On one side it's a very humorous take with Nazi's being terrible shots and having so many of them as fodder but there are a few brief bits of torture just to reinforce that the Nazi's are the very bad guys. Ultimately a movie to turn your brain off for, as that's the best way to enjoy it.

Godzilla Minus One (movie) and Ultimate Beastmaster (series)

Wouldn't these be sworn enemies? Lol.

Godzilla Minus One

Set at the end of World War II, when the Japanese forces are at their weakest, is when Godzilla decides to strike for... Godzilla reasons. While this famous kaiju appears early and often in his full glory, he is the antagonist to our hero - a failed kamikaze pilot who is having a tough time with all the deaths and the inability to earn his own. The sets and action sequences are great, and the story is pretty good too but it does drag on in some parts and I really didn't like the worthless protagonist. Only recommended if you are a Godzilla fan, and even then - its probably better to up the playback speed to at least 1.25x.

Ultimate Beastmaster

This three season sports show features one huge obstacle course nicknamed "the Beast" which has a starting point that looks like a dragon's maw which athletes from all over the globe attempt to conquer. It also has the same issue as Spartan where its people doing the same thing over and over and the editors know it, summarily speeding up less successful runs and also editing the course and rules each season to make it more exciting. What wins it though are the hilarious personalities of the multiple hosts from each host nation and their interactions with each other. Of course this doesn't stop us from watching it at 2x speed. :P

Extra note: Having exceptional hosts that people actually enjoy watching can really strengthen a series much like any of the shows on this list here. The latest season of Masterchef Australia also falls into this with new judges Jean Christophe Novelli and his crazy french energy as well as Sofia Levin's playful naughtiness. I do miss the opening song though.

Sisu and Rebel Moon - Part 2: The Scargiver

Movies with high improbability.

Sisu

Finland, World War II. An old gold prospector trying to distance himself from the war strikes it rich and begins his journey to the bank. Unfortunately a platoon of Nazi's decide to try get in his way. Unfortunate for them that is! This funny and violent flick stays that shallow for the whole thing, and I'm glad that most of the speech is in English. Our heavily plot armored hero encounters a lot of unlikely situations but all are quite entertaining.  A good movie if you just want to see some old fashioned "one good guy takes down a lot of bad guys". Recommended!

Rebel Moon - Part 2: The Scargiver

The continuation of this space Seven Samurai flick features a lot more action than the first outing which is both good and bad. Good in that the action scenes are nice with plenty slow motion artistry and cool CGI, bad that story wise you will either not care or just hate some of the protagonists, especially if you didn't watch the first movie. The opening narration tries its best to get you up to speed if you haven't seen it but you'll encounter a lot of "why is this person doing this" and "where did this thing come from" questions. I think the writers realized this problem and shoved in a montage string sequence at one part to try put a backstory to some of them but I'm not sure it got the effect they intended. Anyway, it's still an improvement on the first movie at least.

The Ice Road and All the Light We Cannot See

Two conditions you probably shouldn't be driving in? :P

The Ice Road

When an accident gets some people trapped in a mine, it is up to down to a few truckies including one played by Liam Neeson to sign up for a dangerous drive against time across a frozen lake while hauling a heavy load of equipment to save the trapped men before their air runs out. Since the writers figured that was too boring, they also decided to make it an action movie which results in some very poor brawling sequences, poor effects, and a questionable plot that is teeming with inconsistencies. It's not very good but it might still appeal for people that like watching big rigs doing things they shouldn't normally be doing.

All the Light We Cannot See

This four episode mini-series follows a blind French girl and a German soldier who have a shared passion for radios during World War II. While there are good sets, acting, effects and an interesting enough story, there's a heavy use of flashbacks (*bum-bummmm noise*) and in some parts you can actually feel the plot armor on some characters. Had this been told chronologically I think I would have liked it better. I mean, all the bits are filmed anyway for the audience but how they are revealed is mostly when someone asks a character about their past. Instead of having a plot that spans however many years, the entire story (the part that matters where all the "stakes" are) just takes place in a few days.

Only in occasions where someone is discovering the past through unrelated characters should flashbacks be considered, like in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. Anyway, that's just my little nitpick. It's still enjoyable as it is.

Black Orchestra

The only way to win is to assassinate Hitler!

This five person co-operative game takes place in Nazi Germany, and as one of the members of the titular Black Orchestra you must keep the Gestapo off your scent while you plan, prepare and ultimately try to kill Hitler - not easy given his military support and his penchant of hopping around the board. It's a game of planning and dice rolling, and while turns seem to go quickly the game does run quite a while. The expanding and contracting map which follows the seven event stages (which in turn follow the war) are a nice touch, and evading his lieutenants and building a conspiracy dice pool is a fun mini-game in itself.

For our first game, the plan was to ambush him in Prague. The team had gathered there and my wife managed to lure Hitler from the Eagles Nest. It was then up to DL, who rolled 6 dice (1 for passing the mandatory requirement, 2 for all of us being there, 1 for having a key item, 2 for using a one shot card) requiring three successes (Hitler's weakest in standard mode) - we had worked hard to reduce his military support for this very event! Alas it failed and he got away while we separated to collect more gear to try again.

Near the end of the war, we regrouped in Prague to try ambush him again - luring him from the Eagles Nest once more and DL this time had 8 dice requiring 4 successes. Still failed! Being reckless I opted to try snipe him instead, having 4 dice and requiring 4 successes. My attempt was so sneaky, no one even knew there was an attempt as I completely missed. They probably thought some local was duck hunting!

DL managed to stall Hitler's departure back to Berlin with a delaying card, but was subsequently jailed by the Gestapo soon after (game over if all of us are jailed simultaneously) and with the end of the war looming (which ends in failure for the team) I had one last chance to try kill Hitler with a hidden bomb. As my mom and wife had reduced his support again I now had three dice (as the bonus items were now either used or on map areas no longer accessible as the Germans had been pushed back from there) and required three successes... and I got him. We won with 2 turns left to spare!

They have a "win" card too!

This was quite a hard game to find, but it is definitely worth it. It does run a bit long though, and is comparable to Eldrich Horror in game-play time and dice difficulty. As a bonus, you might end up learning some history too! Highly recommend it, I give Black Orchestra 5 plots out of 5.

Insight: Hitler is weakest at the very start and at the very end of the war.

The Terror: Infamy (aka Season 2)

With World War II looming, this series follows the lives of Japanese-Americans who are treated rather badly by their own country - in particular a family "cursed" by a malevolent, (and hot) spirit (played by Kiki Sukezane).

I quite like this shot in the intro.

You'll probably also be cheering for the spirit most of the time since the protagonist (played by Derek Mio) is written as a huge douchebag, especially at the start. I get that characters need growth but geez, I still didn't like his character at the end.

While the sets and gruesome deaths are still great, there is a noticable lack of "doom" which pervaded the previous season - mainly due to the setting and the "monster". That is why I only give it 2.5 babies out of 5 this time around. Not bad, but not something I'd actively recommend either.

Escape from Colditz

Proving that castles were meant to keep people out, not in.

During World War II, Pat Ried was a POW in Colditz Castle and was one of the few to escape. It's based on his experiences that he designed this game and currently the only "historical" one in my collection. In it, one player runs the never ending supply of German prison guards while the rest (1-5) are escape officers of various nations who are trying to get their people out.

Normally this is a semi-coop where the escape officers are still trying to be the first to get two of their own pawns off the board but as my group is very much cooperative, it usually becomes everyone against the German player which is fantastic for us though it does up the difficulty for the guards somewhat. I know cause I've been both!

It's got a good looking map too.

Dice based movement and card drawing randomizes what your people can do per turn, and since everyone gets the same amount of rolls the odds of the guards catching -everyone- if they all escape at the same time is near impossible (unless you dice well and they don't). Indeed the only way for the Germans to win is for the time to run out. Closest I've gotten as the Germans is 9 turns remaining.

Also, for first timers the game is super daunting as they aren't sure what gear to go for or what route to attempt an escape. Hint: When unsure, always get rope. It is also a long game but the excitement certainly ramps up when the POWs start getting their escapes on.

Certainly a fun game once it gets going, and one I can recommend to those interested in this genre - as long as you have a friendly enough group to play it with (there are plenty of opportunities to be scum). I give it 3.5 lousy German cars out of 5.

Hacksaw Ridge

Good thing no one thought of cutting the rope ladder.

Desmond Doss (played by Andrew Garfield) grows up a man of faith who takes the commandment of not killing very seriously. This doesn't stop him from enlisting in the army for World War II as a pacifist medic and conscientious objector (one who refuses to wield a weapon or take lives).

Ofcourse he's good with ropes - he's Spiderman!

The film does a good job showing all the trials poor Desmond has to go through for being different, and also does a decent job depicting war is hell. I especially liked Hugo Weaving's portrayal of a character who already lived through the first World War in this respect.

Effects wise it's decent too with the blood,gore and explosions, though it does get a bit Hollywood at the end where the enemies can't hit a barn door and hip shots from good guys nail opponents each time. I'd still watch this inspirational flick again though, and give it three and a half Saturdays out of five.

Fury

Angry men in a tank take their anger out on Nazis in a most violently entertaining fashion.

This movie follows an American tank crew during World War 2, and depicts how dirty and evil war can be - but at the same time I was so entertained by the copious amounts of violence and gore present in this movie. In fact, the one quiet part they added which involved an awkward dining scene I found to be a detraction and unnecessary to the rest of the story. That part aside, the rest of the movie is great!

We have a tank and you want us to do a "quiet" scene?

Fury, the name of the main tank, is also an apt name as to the feelings of Brad Pitt's squad towards all the Nazis, especially the SS which I fit well with the theme. The tanks are awesome, the cast is good, and all the battle scenes are fantastic. Indeed only the hill billy character had me slightly worried as it was hard to understand some of his lines but that wasn't really an issue for me. I give Fury three out of five explosions and would definitely watch it again, though probably using that silly dining scene as a toilet break. :P