Hex Picks: Comics we want for Christmas

So here we are at the end of 2014, with our final set of recommendations for the year. As with the rest of December, the theme is stuff we'd like to get for Christmas and, as with the rest of December, I've picked something I haven't actually read or seen yet. I've been looking forward to this one for a while, because I really really want to read this comic, and it's always fun to tell people about how weird it sounds. For instance, I never expected to use the words "gay porn" in one of these reviews, but there it is!

So, to find out what comics the Hex crew are hoping to find in their stockings this week, for the last time this year, click the image below. Happy Christmas!

Hex Picks: Games we want for Christmas

I've really been hitting the indie-games on Steam this year. I mentioned one of them last month, but this month's Christmas recommendations gave me the chance to talk about my favourite discovery of this year - a gem of a series that I really hope people will check out.

To see which retro adventure series it is that I'm talking about, and to find out which (slightly less indie) choices the others made, point-and-click the link below!

Hex Picks: Films we want for Christmas

The Hex team continue writing our imaginary Christmas lists this week, picking movies we'd like to find in our stockings this year. And, of course, we continue ignoring and breaking the rules. We were supposed to be highlighting films that came out this year... and I totally failed to do that.

As usual, hit the link below to check out our choices.

Hex Dimension: The Star Wars Trailer Awakens

So, a thing happened this week. You may have heard about it, and you may even have witnessed it first-hand. It was the new Star Wars trailer. And it set the internet alight.

Since my brother and I are Hex Dimension's biggest Star Wars nerds (which, at this point, means we're experts in stuff that doesn't matter any more) we naturally had thoughts and wanted to share them. Our reactions turned out to be very similar, but for quite different reasons. David once again demonstrates why he's the one with a writing degree - firstly by having a much better argument than mine, and secondly by saying more with two words ("exquisitely dumb") than I managed with two whole paragraphs. It was fun to write against each other like this, though, even if we did both somehow use the word "freaking" the exact same way.

To read our thoughts, click the image below. This blog post actually continues after the link, because I have a few additional points to make. So, once you've read the article, head back here if you fancy some extra fanboy rantings!

You back? Ok, so you've read the piece, and you've probably rolled your eyes at my rather excessive reaction to something that's only on screen for a couple of seconds. As David says in the article, my disdain for that lightsaber is probably somewhat misplaced. Certainly, I've receieved a few comments from readers to that effect - it is, after all, just a prop in a film.

But here's the thing. If you'd never seen the trailer, and I showed you a screenshot of that lightsaber, would you even know what it was? Would you be able to tell that it was from a Star Wars movie? Because, for every other lightsaber in the series - even the purple one, or the one with two blades, or the Inquisitor's crazy spinning frizbee from Rebels - you can always instantly tell.

This thing? I don't think you could. Personally, I wouldn't even know that it's from a sci-fi - it looks more like a fire-sword from a fantasy movie. For all that it shows us familiar things, like X-wings and Stormtroopers and droids, the lightsaber in this trailer doesn't even register as a lightsaber. And, for me at least, that is a huge problem.

And, on top of that, I have a growing fear that the stupid design for this 'saber - from it's turbulant blade to its rediculous crossguard - is just another symptom of the backward-facing rehashing that David wrote about. We know that the new X-wings are derived from Ralph McQuarrie's early concept-art for the original film, and that the new droid is based on early notes for R2-D2. What if this production is so stuck in the past - so beholden to nostalgia - that they're using designs from old posters too?

...I really hate that sword.

Hex Picks: Books we want for Christmas

Since Doctor Who is well and truly over, and there's no possible way I can drag The Companion Piece out any longer than I already have, there's now a Monday-shaped gap in this blog's schedule. Starting this week, I'm going to be posting Hex Picks - our weekly collection of recommended media - on Mondays instead of Tuesdays. That, of course, opens a new scheduling gap on Tuesdays... but we'll worry about that when we come to it.

For now, please enjoy this month's book recommendations which are, of course, a list of the books we want for Christmas. Some we've read, some we haven't, and all are worth checking out. Click below to take a look!