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Paul Tassi, Contributor
News and opinion about video games, technology and the internet
I'm going to go ahead and declare the Mass Effect trilogy done for good now that the Citadel DLC arrived and finally gave (almost) everyone the ending they wanted for the series. But it's a big universe, and just because Shepard's arc is over, that doesn't mean the universe will dissipate. Rather, it's likely only just getting started.
In a recent interview with OXN, developers Casey Hudson, Mac Walters, Dusty Everman, Mike Gamble and Preston Watamaniuk spoke about how Mass Effect might continue on with a new star, namely one of the many character's we've met so far.
"It'd be cool to do something completely unrelated to the larger storyline, like a story about a private investigator on the Citadel. Or maybe something detailing Garrus' time in C-Sec. While being one of Shepard's most loyal friends, Garrus has also had some of the most driven personal goals. He's a hero in his own right, as Archangel and beyond. Who wouldn't want to see the further adventures of the bold, charming Garrus Valkarian (there's a lot of guns out there to calibrate)."
"A game centred on brutal Krogan combat with more of a melee focus could be pretty exciting". I'm sure Grunt would be up for it."
"Following the story of Javik a little bit more would be pretty cool. As the last remaining member of a lost race, I think that we could tell a lot of stories about his adventures in the Milky Way, and coming to terms with his place in the new Galaxy."
Aria, The Illusive Man, and even Kai Leng are also mentioned as other potential stars of their own-spin-off titles.
There's a mix of ideas here, both looking into the future and the past, but I want to say in advance that I really hope Mass Effect doesn't go down the all-too common prequel route like so many other series these days.
Kotaku's Stephen Totilo recently wrote a rather fantastic short piece about the unfortunate rise of prequels, and here's probably the most relevant passage:
"The prequels that aggravate are the ones that over-tell, the ones that reduce the magic of the work they precede by not just explaining how the trick was down but by showing us what the magician had for lunch when he was 14.
The prequels that aggravate are the ones that follow a long line of sequels and seem designed to revive a franchise by making it safe for new fans to jump on board (you're starting at the beginning!) and for old fans to trudge back once again (we're going to make references only you, the loyal old-timers will get!).
The prequels that aggravate are the ones answer the already-answered questions."
This is what at least a few of these ideas suggest to me. They take characters that are interesting enough from when we've seen them already across three games, and aims to dive into their past to ensure they become far less interesting the more we know about them. We love Garrus, but do we care how he got all gruff during his time at C-Sec and why he's always wearing that eye…thing? The Illusive Man is a mysterious villain, but do we care about his teenage years when he fell in love with a young Krogan maid who broke his heart and turned him into an ice cold bad guy?
Going backwards is cheating. It's the easy way out when you don't want to innovate and move your story forward in any meaningful way. You already have the ending written, and have probably established some of the pieces along the way. Making a prequel, you simply have to fill in the blanks, and people fail to realize that sometimes it's a lot more interesting to leave blanks blank. Just ask Boba Fett.
I like some of these ideas. I think Mass Effect 4 starring Liara or Garrus (or both!) would be a pretty cool idea, though honestly I'd love an entirely new series where you once again got to create your own character. Maybe you could even choose your alien race this time?
Perhaps such a game will exist at some point, but until it does, I do imagine we'll see at least a handful of Mass Effect spin-off prequel titles like the ones mentioned. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe they could be great, but I think like so many other series Mass Effect would be better moving forward than looking backward.
Answering questions that were already answered…that's the single best way to sum up prequels.
With a game like Mass Effect, you introduce another issue. These games are known for players making choices that impact the rest of the narrative. The idea of a prequel essentially kicks the legs from under that premise because the rest of the story has already been told in the Shepard trilogy. That limits how massive of an effect your choices will have (see what I did there…?).
If they want to set the next story before the recent trilogy, then they would be well advised to avoid any direct link to the previous games or its characters. The closer you are to the previous narrative, the more you negate the impact of the actions/choices in the current game. Also, they will have to abandon any pretense that in the new game "you are going to save the galaxy"…it's a prequel, so the future is not in any danger. So even though they could create a story that has new characters (ergo, their individual futures are not charted), you still can't go too big in terms of an intragalatic crisis since…you already know that the Citadel will be intact, Omega will still be its grimy dystopian self, the council will still have their heads in the sand, that all the key players in the Shepard Trilogy will live and will not be impacted by this story at all. When you look at it like this…it kinda takes the fun out of the idea, doesn't it?
I would much rather see them put the game in the same space, just set into the future for a few reasons:
1) It will give Bioware the chance to prove that they can create a story after the trilogy that is sensitive to previous choices (refuse not withstanding…just like Shepard dying in ME2; it's not canon). If you look at Dragon Age: Origins and how it interacted with DAII, then it's not hard to imagine that Bioware could achieve something similar here. The possibilities are there.
For example, if you sabotaged the genophage cure, then you don't see any Krogan babies and instead of hearing about the Krogan population thriving, you will hear the opposite. If you paid attention to what "destroy" means, then you would be able to accept the possibility that the Alliance reactivated the Reapers and the Reapers are just big pieces of construction equipment as opposed to benevolent overseers (controlled by Shepard or self determined via synthesis). The Geth were reactivated as personal helpers/cheap labor, or something like that (…oooh! A story that incorporates the concept of self-determination, labor exploitation and what it means to be "alive…). So the developers could show you Reapers repairing the Citadel and Geth walking around but the choice you made in ME3 would not be negated because the scene would be framed by context, which could be expounded upon via prologue, dialogue, codex or any combination of the above. I would hope that for the sake of my eyes, that the electric green of synthesized eyes would be toned down a bit…that was waaay too bright.
2) It can give more clarity and closure to the endings in Mass Effect 3 because you will see FIRST HAND what impact Shepard's choice had on the galaxy! Who wouldn't want that?! True, Bioware was done with the endings in the Extended Cut, but still…some of us really truly want to know more about the future and want to continue on. Setting the next game in the future can address any concerns more than any epilogue could ever hope to achieve. After all, wouldn't it be nice to bump into Shepard and Liara via a TASTEFUL cameo (or at least hear some ANN news story about them and the little blue babies? This would feel a little more…genuine).
3) Bioware can create another galactic threat and have it mean something! Wouldn't it be great to revisit the whole 'dark energy' angle? And about that…
Wouldn't it be cool to be a scientist investigating strange emissions from nearby stars/suns? Or maybe a detective who's investigation somehow leads him/her into working with scientists? Revisiting the Quarians' mission on Haestrom and pouring over their research? Uncovering a natural threat aggravated by the overuse of mass effect technology, and that is being accelerated by some extremist death cult? Paralleling our real life issues in balancing technological advancement and conservation/preservation mixed with ecoterrorism without being preachy, cartoonish or condescending? Sounds a lot more sophisticated and deeper than "pew pew pew…space robots, on no!"…which I love too. But a story like this could really do wonders for stories told in this medium.
Back end ME3 was released there was considerable discussion as to why the ending they gave us had been a total screw up in regards creating sequels. (This was prior to the expanded ending DLC, when basically everyone and everything was either dead or going to die).
There were two points of interest in these discussions. The first was the overwhelming negative reaction to the thought of a prequel of any form. The second was the argument that by killing off everything (apparently) they had wrecked the potential for a sequel of any type. One of the 'sequel' ideas posted back then was for a 'Mass Effect Noir', basically a crime thriller set on the Citadel.
Clearly Bioware only paid half a mind to what their customers were saying, in that they seem to have picked up the 'ME Noir' idea but ignored the negative reactions to prequels.
BTW, why would I want to play as Garus? Wouldn't that force me to play as a particular character rather than allowing me to choose and create who and what I'm playing? You know, ignoring one of the things that made the ME series – and Bioware games – stand out….
Considering that my preferred ME3 ending (given to use in DLC) is Shepard refusing to make a choice, destroying all current sentient life but allowing the next cycle to defeat the Reapers, I'm opposed to ME sequels.
I am also opposed to prequels.
In fact, why not just say that the Mass Effect universe is done?
I was a fan of Synthesis myself. I have other Shepards I have imported into ME3 with whom I plan to choose different endings, but I digress…
I am pretty strongly anti-prequel, both in general and specifically in respect to the Mass Effect franchise. I'd be okay with a sequel, but only if it was written in a clever enough way that it could account for any one of the choices and still tell its story. This would be a "Far in the Future" scenario almost inevitably. Sadly, the Refuse ending would be the most difficult one to include in such a scenario, as it would have set the game more than 50 000 years after the end of ME3 in a universe with no humans, Quarians, Krogans, Turians, Asari, etc.
I dunno, maybe the best choice for BioWare would be to avoid spin-offs, sequels, sidequels and prequels altogether and just create a spiritual successor to the series: another kick-ass, troperiffic space opera with great characters, riveting themes, cool designs, and an awesome soundtrack. There really aren't enough SF RPGs. The RPG landscape is largely populated with generic heroic fantasy games, many of which aren't all that interesting or memorable. The world needs more good SF RPGs!!
Unless you've tried to create a 'new realistic' world for a story or game chances are you won't realise how difficult and time consuming it is. This is why practically all stories either use settings that are either already in existence or which are variations on those settings.
One of the strengths of both Mass Effect and Dragon Age Origins was the worlds those games were set in. They were rich, has their own history and logic and became believable enough that even players often found themselves wanting to see more of the world. (I always wanted to go walking around the Citadel so I could see the sights.) The problem is that creating these two worlds took years – around five years for Dragon Age, and probably something similar for Mass Effect.
This is why companies who find themselves with a successful new world will tend to stick with it for as long as possible. For them it is more cost effective to use an existing setting so they can churn out new titles/stories every eighteen months to two years than it is to spend three or four years developing a 'new' world that might not prove to have the same level of interest, detail or 'realism' as the 'old'.
It is also easier on the writers, as they can ignore the whole 'creating a world' aspect – which as I noted is not as easy as most people would think and certainly not something all writers can do.
So Bioware/EA have a financial reason for reusing the same setting, and the writers have a creative reason. Together this makes it inevitable that the Mass Effect and Dragon Age settings are going to be used until people stop buying the games.
You might also want to keep in mind that there is a Mass Effect film in the very early stages of development* – they are currently in the process of writing the screen play. It would be unthinkable for EA NOT to continue to produce Mass Effect games until after the film has been released or been consigned to the waste basket.
(*For those wondering the film rights were picked up by the same company who made the recent Batman films.)
Alex Knapp is right. It is nearly impossible to create a story, even space opera/science-fiction and fantasy in absence of human since fiction, or story is always about us. Well, they might tried to create something similar to human but work needed would be very massive in scale. ME sequel is impossible, while prequel having a big chance become only a officialized fanfiction. I'm opt for parallel or unrelated story that take in the same universe.
Would have to agree here. My favorite part of mass effect was traveling and checking out the universe. Think about being on me3 with those graphics and being able to land on the planet like me1. Would be pretty epic imo. I spent hours on me1 Just exploring.
Mass Effect is in a bit of a pickle I think. It seems that to move forward they will have to pick a canon ending, and that will likely upset some people. That said, you really hit the nail on the head Paul. A prequel is not the way to, although, let's be honest, it will probably still sell so I won't be overly surprised if they do it.
Anyway, I would love to see a sequel set quite some time after Shepard's story and with a brand new cast. The option of choosing your own alien race also sounds really cool. You were able to pick between different races in Dragon Age: Origins, so I don't see why you shouldn't be able to do that in ME4. I guess you could argue that could make a trilogy harder to craft, but honestly, does every game have to be a trilogy these days?
BioWare doesn't have to pick a canon ending. Setting the next game centuries or even a thousand years or more after the defeat of the Reapers makes it possible to treat any one of the endings as valid, as enough time will have passed for galactic civilization to rebuild and for the consequences of Shepard's choice to be little more to the average person living in the galaxy than a historical footnote.
The writers would just have to avoid putting the Quarians or Geth in the game, beyond a mention, if one species or both survived. It could be that synthetic life has reemerged in the galaxy even if Shepard chose to destroy it.
Little subtle differences could exist to account for the choices Shepard made, some of them related to stats, some to aesthetics, some could be small, optional quests that only exist if one or the other choice was made.
Personally, I would like to leave the Mass Effect series stand for itself, no new game, no sequel, no prequel. And I also see the community being skeptical here. They delivered a game with a 100h+ story of epic dimensions. I doubt that they can deliver anything close. After saving the world (or not), I can not imagine that anybody wants to be "some" cop on "some" station hunting criminals. Not fighting a world threat would just be lame. Take a look at the reception of Dragon Age 2… they tried it there, limiting the action to one city and solving "minor" society problems. Many considered that as one of the weak points of the game.
Now – they are doing it anyway – so I doubt a series/game with any of the existing characters would allow for a RPG type game "Bioware style". All existing characters are already defined in terms of gender and personality leaving limited choices for the player, as this is one of the core aspects of the game imo.
Of course this is only valid if they are still (action) RPG oriented and are not aiming for a shooter sequel/prequel. Then the got a ton of options for future releases since they created a ton of different places for a FPS in the Mass effect Galaxy. However – that version would be totally uninteresting for me.
I just recently acquired ME3, after it got really cheap. I could imagine a nice story as a prothean, being born as the war against the reapers is already going on, trying to built the crucible, realizing that it cannot be finished and that the war is lost. The "good" ending could be to preserve the crucible information for the next cycle. It would allow to include already known races (such as the asari since they are frequently commented by Javik) as well as new races. This would also allow for a "good" character development by not recognizing other races as weak as Javik/Prothean society does. Though I would imagine problems concerning romances since in some countries it was already a problem that you could romance an alien as a human (Singapore)… The story could be "told" by finding a prothean artefact containing the story and the player actually decides by her/his actions how the story unfolds… including the disappearance or change of the world in Shepards cycle when the ending is bad or neutral… some kind of traveling back in time and changing the future world… This way, Shepards world was just one alternate universe and nobody has to relate to the actions/consequences of the original Mass Effect series. They basics are all there. Javik had such an artefact in form his little beacon containing the stories of his friends in combat. It would also allow to include the cycle before the prothean cycle, just like the Mass Effect story carried the story of the Protheans.
A prequel involving main characters is definitely something that would cause me to not really care about the next mass effect game.
Plus I'm dead set on bioware making a space pirate game where you unite the terminus systems into a galactic force. Just give me a home base, a ship, and some things to raid and I'll be happy.
Enter Your CommentI notice you didnt say anything about Tali, I just wondered because she is a personal favorite. Anyway, we learn most of these things through the books. I don't think Bioware will do a prequel because they have been covering most of there bases with books. Also I would like to see a spin off of Garrus and Grunt as you said, maybe Marinda or Tali. All these characters would have ever so intriguing storylines because they all have their own personal strengths. I think however it would be very easy to make a character outside the main characters. Perhaps one that is one the otherside of the galaxy doing his/her own thing on a planet, a new hero. One that survives at the end, it could be any race this way. Honestly I love this franchise and I have renouced 14 years of being a die hard starwars fan for this, and really it would've just been easier to accept the indocrination theory but we got to make use out of what we got.
wat they doing then la noire on the citadel
In the end there are way too many choices for there to be any real future. The only way you could continue with a future is if they made it like 2000 years in the future. Because you have a choice whether your female or male, to date liara, Tali, Garrus, Kaidan, Ashley. Shepard would have to be a legend that only people would hear about once upon a dream basically. And like legends they'd be all different. Some will say Shepard was male and he got with Tali, or Ashley, some will say Shepard was female and got with Kaidan, or Garrus and Liara could be for either or, to you however, since Shepard was your own, you'd know the "Truth" a self cameo if you will. They would also have to come up with some incredible storyline to bring back the fans and make it just as popluar, maybe make it a real RPG. a set of races, same classes, new guns since its the future, new ships, new strengths and maybe some new races even. The Geth would exist, mainly because either one, they repaired themselves with the part of them that was not reaper tech or two, the Quarians remade them. Remember the real Shepard did the best you can possibly do in the game. The best choices in order to fight the reapers. The Quarians would've survived as would the geth. Shepard will have saved the max amount in the end in order to stop the Reapers and in the ending could be all the same in different amounts. If teh reapers still existed in this future they would be powered down emensely, if you chose syn, people went back to being organic possibly, destroy, they were reactivated on a basic level for their tech, then Shepard controls, he degrades them and there are just stories that he is inside of the reapers. In a thousand or 2 thousand years EVERYTHING can change.
Wait….TIM lost his heart to a Korgan? Man, I really gotta read the books/comics.
but anyway….
No interest in a prequel, I know what the future holds….
No interest in a game where the main story follows the pre-Shepard story of the ME companions…..I know what the future holds.
No interest in a concurrent story that's taking place at the same time Shep is screwing around with the galaxy…..I know what the future holds.
Maybe a little interest where the main story follows the post-Shepard story of the ME companions…..buuuuuut….then again, not really….Maybe if they were DLCs and about 20 hrs of gameplay each.
I'd be most interested in a post-Shepard story that takes place many years into the future…..new main character, new companions. The Universe is so big with so many people in it…..and so many alien races yet to be discovered…problems to be solved. I'd rather learn about them.
Honestly, an action-adventure stealth game starring Thane Krios would be pretty awesome. Imagine a cross between "Splinter Cell" and "Hitman" set in the "Mass Effect" universe. I would buy it in a second.
I stand by what I said, the ending of 3 still suck even with the damned DLC's!I would forgive if the at least fallowed up on the destroy ending! I can't forgive leaving us on a cliff hanger and not fallowing up on it. I'm not backing down. The Citadel DLC WAS NOT THE END OF THE OVER ALL GAME! Why people say it's a good farewell is beyond me! If Shepard doesn't come back, I'm not coming back either. Shepard and the players deserve a better ending than the crap they gave us. I'm not apologizing for sticking to my guns on that one. Bring on the hate. I'm done! Want a good ending, play Bioshock Infinite.
I agree that a prequel would not be what I would like to see. I think Mass Effect should move forward from the events in the Mass Effect Trilogy. Shepard's story is indeed over, but that doesn't mean there are no other stories worth telling.
People say they'd like to play an ME game set during the First Contact War, but the reality of it would probably prove to be much more boring than people think. For one, the Turians don't really work as bad guys when we've already gotten to know several Turians over the course of the series and while they are a warrior culture, they aren't all bloodthirsty but in fact complex, intelligent beings. It's far too easy to empathize and relate to them now. Secondly, the conclusion of the First Contact War is a foregone conclusion. Didn't like the endings to Mass Effect 3 because you felt your choices didn't matter? Well, they'll matter even less in the conclusion to a First Contact War game.
No prequels and for that matter no stories set during Shepard's life either. There is no way any contemporary of Commander Shepard's will ever be as important nor will there adventures be as epic or as significant to the fate of the galaxy. Any future games should be set post-Shepard's sacrifice. Centuries afterwards would be my preference.
I completely agree Paul. If anything if they want to continue in this Universe they need to either go off on another tangent post the end of ME3, or Way into the future which is gonna take another bad guy moving into the system. Though how much badder can they get than who they have already faced. That was one of the problems with having such an overwhelming bad guy to end the Trilogy. Anything less is well less, and anything close seems like BS. Might want to just create another reality like they did with this getting away from the Star Wars One, and creating this one. They could always just do team fighting online like 3, that was a lot of fun.
Prequel is a very safe for any form of writing, but I wouldn't called it inherently lazy. A lazy prequel, like you said, is much more like officialized version of fanfiction that covers the past that absolutely have nothing to do with story or bigger picture of the character. But, a well written prequel is not only makes the character deeper, it also drive forward the whole story into a new direction. But such is, a well written prequel is rare.
If they want to do it with serious notion, go for it, and make it very different with no safe bet taking. But, if they only opt for prequel just because its a safe thing to do, then, why wouldn't they make an unrelated stories that used the same universe? We get new story, we get new character, the veteran would like to love it, and the newcomer wouldn't get any difficulty to enter since its a new story.
What I mean is, ME universe is massive, it is have the whole galaxy as it setting. There are many references to many past history, events, and interesting that occured in the past. They should went out from Shepard's group, and create something that really unrelated with him. We might take KOTOR as an excellent example of this. Bioware might take a safe bet by making a Star Wars game with Yoda or similar characters we know, but instead they opt for the new story using Star Wars universe as it setting. People have no need to watch or play either older Star Wars movies and games. The veteran would madly renewed their love of the series while the newcomer might have found a better entrance into the series (just like me). While the story as a whole become enriched and goes forward.
Mass Effect is done.
Sequel – they couldn't even handle the tiny variances in the trilogy to come to a reasonable end. There's no way they can handle three entirely different universes (even if you exclude refuse as a viable ending).
Prequel – They suck, with good reason. You know the ending. It removes most of the dramatic tension of the story. It makes established characters flatter, because you have to see them before they develop. It makes a story forced because you can't let it flow naturally, you have to force it to end the way your original story began. The only "prequel" that I've ever seen done well is (ironically) KOTOR, but that's because they set it so far in the past it had no relation to the existing Star Wars universe except for the basic framework.
Side story – Possible, but who cares? Commander Shepard is out there saving the galaxy from certain doom, and you're a lowly grunt who's not out there saving the galaxy from certain doom. Boring. The only way that would work is if it's a different genre. Basically expand on the shooter elements of ME3 and turn it into a true shooter.
They should accept that it's over and move on. Come up with something new. Or, fix the ending and make it possible to have a sequel.
The ending doesn't need to be fixed. Let's just say the problems regarding the ending are a "user error", rather than a problem with the game itself. As with many errors in software, the person using the software doesn't want to admit they did anything wrong, and points to the developers or the publishers as the cause of the ending's issues.
As for the whole "variances in the ending", once again, too many people see the last 5 minutes as "the ending" and expected to *see* all their choices wrapped up in a cinematic cutscene (as I've read a slideshow wasn't enough for some people with the Extended Cut).
Instead, the people making the game said that the whole game is the ending, which does play out differently based off choices made in previous games.
At any rate, if people are still mad over the game's ending, which was almost a year and a half ago, I suggest they just move on, and play another game.
Accept the things you cannot change, change the things you can, and the reason to know the difference.
Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results (ending rewrite) is insanity at this point.
I guess when some people have become so invested in a fictional story, it's hard to let go, so they feel like they are owed certain things.
Like I said, most of the stuff to explain the confusing ending that doesn't make any sense can be explained by taking your time and playing the game.
I'm personally excited for the next Mass Effect game, whatever it may be. Prequel or not, I'm sure it'll be a good game.
It isn't "user error" that's the problem. It's an unbelievable inability to finish a story. Forget about all the choices, forget about all the great writing that happened up til the end game, forget about even the issues with the ending itself and consider the fact that still haunts so many fans today: Bioware didn't finish the game. They had all these great story components and all these fantastic characterisations and how well wrapped up so many storylines were–when it comes down to it, they just decided to NOT finish writing the story and decided to pull a "and then this happened" moment which pulled such a massive pall over the entirety of the series. Maybe you loved it maybe you didn't but there is only so many times you can fall in love with a story only to have the creators decide that they just don't feel like finishing the damn thing up. I don't care if it ends badly, I don't care if it ends awesomely, I only care if the story is complete and we didn't get that. Yes it is their game. Yes they did invest years in its creation. But guess what? We bought into the story they were telling. It's always so easy for people to say 'get over it' but when it's something THEY really care about, they are the most up in arms. That was what this was about, a commitment to fulfilling the story and promises made. They didn't do it and here everybody is still fighting about it.
So what are you going to do? Go on about this until Bioware fixes the ending the way you see it? Have them retcon the ending to take into account all those choices, when the entire game did that for you anyways?
If you went to a store every single day and harassed their staff for over a year and a half until you got the product you "believed" you were going to get, they'd probably throw you out for harassment or something.
They'd call the cops and have you locked up. Or probably take you away to the psych ward and put you in a rubber room until you were deemed sane and ready to enter society again.
This was Bioware's final word regarding the ending:
And that was a year ago. If people still can't get over this, I would suggest you seek some kind of professional help or something. You're getting upset over a video game ending.
When there are more important things to worry about, like paying bills or feeding your dog or something.
Forget about the choices? Did you not notice all those choices in previous games having an affect on the game as a whole? Of course not. People only see the last 5 minutes as the ending and expected all those choices to impact the last 5 minutes when the entire game did that anyways.
They told you before the game launched that you would required to gather clues in order to solve a puzzle:
If the ending doesn't make sense, then people didn't find all the clues. Bioware was not going to give us all the answers, or solve the puzzle for us anyways. That would defeat the purpose of the exercise.
"Mass Effect 3 will react to each decision you make as you play through a truly unique experience of your own creation."
Many people viewed this as:
"Last 5 minutes of Mass Effect 3 will react to each decision you make as you play through a truly unique ending of your own creation."
Heck, even the ASA people said that Bioware didn't false advertise (which has a lot more legal sway than the BBB, which isn't really a legal entity, but just some consumer watchdog group with no legal power), but you guys still didn't give this thing up.
"Maybe you loved it maybe you didn't but there is only so many times you can fall in love with a story only to have the creators decide that they just don't feel like finishing the damn thing up."
They wanted a story that people could talk about. You wanted one which wrapped everything up in a nice bow and left nothing to think or imagine about.
At the end of the day, if you are really so passionate and love this game series, then you would use every single possible thing in the game to figure out the ending. Maybe it's not as bad as you think. Perhaps people just have their emotions in a knot and can't see the brilliance of the ending. I mean, ask any psychiatrist, and they'll tell you people who are upset over something don't tend to think clearly.
I mean Bioware basically spent the last year spelling the ending out for people via DLC. Maybe instead of posting stuff about the ending here, you could actually play the game and try to figure it out.
It just sounds like you love the game, but you aren't "in love" with it. That's okay. I used to play games that I was obsessed over (WoW), but a couple years ago, something happened, and I lost interest. I then found Mass Effect, and I've been happy ever since.
it would be nice if its set to some good 100′s of years after the shepard story and only the long living aliens like liara are the people left to remind them new suckers what it took for the galaxy to be in peace. here is my idea:
if u choose control: the hostile people of that time would have advanced enough and did something to destroy the new guardians (the reapers) so that new conflicts arise
if your choice was to kill them: shepard (who supposedly run away with her/his lover) is now long dead and forgotten and the inevitable war is what mass effect 4 is all about
if synthesis was chosen: the machines have become understanding individuals and are no longer united as they were. the reapers would be easily moved out of the way by the now advanced races who nolonger have use for them. after some 100′s, the galaxy turned out to be divided again by hostile AI's and greedy races (…………and the creepy green looks would have either evolved or simply covered in makeup or smthing). either way, all ME3 end choices (with a video or text intro preferably) should lead to another war in mass effect 4.
it would be a very bad idea to feature an alien as the main character because i believe a human shepard is what made the mass effect story so special and immersing…………or just make an MMO where all planets have large areas and missions to explore and play.
the first contact war (mentioned by anderson in mass effect 3) would also make a great mass effect 4
A prequel wouldn't work for Mass Effect, as it would be better for Bioware to tell the stories of the squad mates in novels or comics where the narrative is linear and diehard fans can buy those stories without Bioware putting all the effort into making a game that many won't want to see. They released novels and comics to tell the stories of other characters who were in the trilogy, so why not do the same with the squadmates?
A sequel would be their best bet because they can change the state of their universe and develop more plot threads rather than make sure they follow their own continuity. Unless they want to reboot the franchise and have an alternate timeline like the 2009 Star Trek movie, then they should avoid a prequel.
I honestly think Bioware should let go of making more Mass Effect games, and then many people could move on from the franchise. They should focus more on this new IP they keep claiming they are making and use lessons of the past to make sure they don't get huge fan backlashes. It will sell like hot cakes, but I won't be interested in buying a prequel game.


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Russia market: Smartphone competition heating up
Mobile + telecom | 12min ago
Solartech mulls shift of solar cell capacity abroad in response to US anti-dumping taxation
Green energy | 16min ago
PCB/LCD equipment supplier Asia Neo Tech to debut on Taiwan OTC market
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UMC to ramp 28nm wafer capacity
Bits + chips | 59min ago
Young Optics 1H14 net profit down over 60% on year
IT + CE - Stockwatch | 1h 20min ago
Unimicron net profits up significantly in 2Q14
Bits + chips | 2h 4min ago
Silicon Motion looks to 15-20% sequential revenue growth in 3Q14
Bits + chips | 4h 24min ago
Radiant Opto-Electronics nets NT$3.07 per share for 1H14
Displays | 4h 26min ago
HTC conservative about 3Q14
Mobile + telecom | 4h 57min ago
Taiwan 2Q14 economic growth rate upward adjusted to 3.84%, says DGBAS
Bits + chips | 5h 13min ago
Taiwan IC suppliers to benefit as Samsung steps up purchases of IC parts
Bits + chips | Jul 31, 22:08
MediaTek hikes 4G smartphone solution shipment target for 2014
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Digitimes Research: Promotion of HEMS appliances in Japan faces problems
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Promotion of HEMS appliances in Japan faces problems
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China vendors ship over 101 million smartphones in 2Q14
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Taiwan ships 351.4 million small- to mid-size panels in 2Q14
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China sees increased smartphone AP shipments in 2Q14
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Taiwan digital camera shipments in 2Q14 up 43.3% sequentially
RESEARCH EXTRAS | Jul 30, 11:12
Smartphone AP shipments in China to grow 2H14
CHINA SMARTPHONE AP | Jul 29, 11:01
Taiwan makers ship over 67 million large-size TFT-LCD panels in 2Q14
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China sees increased tablet AP shipments in 2Q14
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Taiwan makers to ship 21.95 million handsets in 3Q14
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Japan promoting service robots
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Xiaomi to see slower growth in smartphone shipments in China market
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CSOT to see increased influence in AMOLED industry
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Optical-use sapphire demand to reach 12.44 million mm of 2-inch equivalents in 2014
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Global tablet shipments reach 55.06 million units in 2Q14
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January-May handset shipments in China market down 28% on year
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Analysis of China's revised domestic semiconductor industry goals
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Facing a funding shortage for local IC manufacturers, the China State Council in June 2014 published guidelines to strengthen government support for China's semiconductor industry, while stating the short-, mid-, and long-term goals for the related industry supply...
The transition to 4k TV - UHD TV market forecast, 2014-2017
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- Digitimes Research: China sees increased smartphone AP shipments in 2Q14
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- AUO reports staggering profit growth for 2Q14
- Digitimes Research: Taiwan digital camera shipments in 2Q14 up 43.3% sequentially
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- Taiwan market: FET aims at 95% 4G coverage at end of 2014
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Differentiation is the core advantage: Q&A MediaTek president Hsieh Ching-chiang
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1-Aug-2014 markets closed
|TSE electronic
|OTC electronic
- 2014 global high brightness LED market, trends and shipment forecast
For the global LED lighting market, the market size will reach US$25.82 billion in 2014 or a market penetration rate of 23.4%. This is attributable to exponential shipment growth for light bulbs, tubes, and directional lamps.
- Greater China touch panel shipment forecast through 2015
This Special Report provides forecasts through 2015 for Greater China touch panel shipments with breakdowns based on technology (glass, film, resistive), application (smartphone, NB and tablet) and by firm.
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This report analyzes the main players, their strategies and shipments forecasts for 2014, as well as other factors contributing to either growth or decline in various segments within the tablet market, with a particular focus on Apple, Google, Samsung, and Microsoft, along with whitebox vendors.

subset: commoncrawl


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Terry Lyndon Pack, 50, of Athens passed away Wednesday, March 6, 2013, at Huntsville Hospital.
Mr. Pack was born Oct. 21, 1962, in Limestone County to Lyndon Douglas Pack and Patricia Gail McMeans Pack.
The funeral for Mr. Pack will be at 11 a.m. Monday at Limestone Chapel Funeral Home. Burial will be in Limestone Memorial Gardens with Joel Carwile and Pat Lawrence officiating.
Visitation is from 6-9 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Wilson and Mattie McMeans and Mr. and Mrs. C.J. Pack.
Survivors include his son, Cobey Pack and wife Tiffany; daughter, Malia Pack; parents, Gail and Doug Pack; grandson, John Austin Harwell; and granddaughter, Ansley Pack.
Pallbearers are Greg McAlister, Tony Grigsby, Mac Clem, Cordell Bailey, Gary McMeans, James Clem and Bob Helton.
In lieu of flowers please make donations in memory of Terry Pack to the Athens-Limestone Hospital Foundation – Pink Elephant, 100 Sanders St., Athens, AL 35611.
Sign the online guestbook at http://limestonechapel.com.
Terry Pack
Terry Lyndon Pack, 50, of Athens passed away Wednesday, March 6, 2013, at Huntsville Hospital.


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Most family law cases involve serious and, often times, complex legal issues. You should consider consulting with a family law attorney before you make the choice to represent yourself. Many family law attorneys charge only a nominal amount or nothing at all for an initial consultation.
Shasta County Superior Court also has a program in place to provide personal assistance to self-represented persons in family law cases. The program is the Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center. The Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center is operated under the supervision of an attorney.
The Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center does not give legal advice as one could obtain from a privately retained attorney.The program provides services to both parties, or if there is a joinder, to all parties in the case. It does not represent any party in the case. No attorney-client relationship is created between a party and the program attorney as a result of any information or services provided to a party by the program. The emphasis of the program is to provide legal information and education, not legal strategy and advice. The services of the program are available to all self-represented parties as there is no income qualification prerequisite. The staff of the program will provide information about procedure, substantive law, and choices litigants may have, thereby allowing people to make informed decisions about their cases. Click here to view the Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center's drop-in hours and class schedule.
The Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center provides several services that include the following:
Assistance is available on a first-come, first serve basis. A limited number of appointments are also available for the Family Law Facilitator. Telephonic information about schedules and services may be obtained by calling the phone numbers on the "Contact Us" link below. Click here to view the Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center's drop-in hours and class schedule.
For further information on Family Law - See the Civil Department - Family Law Division.
All complaints regarding the Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center shall be in writing and may be submitted to the Family Law Facilitator/Self-Help Center for submission to the Court Executive Officer, Superior Court of Shasta County, or submitted directly to the Court Executive Officer, Superior Court of Shasta County, 1500 Court Street, Room 205, Redding, California 96001. A complaint form may be utilized for this purpose or the details of the complaint may be contained in a letter format. Complaints may be hand delivered or mailed.
Complaints shall be duly investigated by the Shasta County Superior Court Administrative Office. A written response to the complainant may be provided by the Court Executive Officer, or his or her designee.


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Just saw The Tillman Story; the theater was almost sold out. Heartbreaking and though there was a mockery of a congressional investigation, you should hear those generals and Rumsfeld play semantics - for the record. Our country is brought low this day because of the coverup of the reason for Tillman's death. When lies are needed to protect a war, we need to ask what is being done in our names. Here is a longer review just posted on NCR: The Tillman Story The Tillman Story Official … [Read more...]
The Tillman Story
August 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment


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This summer, Palm Beach Dramaworks will be celebrating the stage with its Concert Presentation series. Essentially staged readings of musicals, these full-length concert performances will include both the book and score of acclaimed Broadway musicals set to a limited instrumental accompaniment and minimal staging and design. This summer, two productions are slated: Zorba!, June 20-29; and The Most Happy Fella, July 18-27.
Adapted from the Nikos Kazantzakis novel Zorba the Greek, the musical Zorba! focuses on the relationship between title character Zorba and Nikos, a young American student who inherited an abandoned mine on Crete. Though their journey is filed with misfortune and tragedy, Zorba tries to teach his young friend to embrace life, to live for the moment.
Written by Joseph Stein (book), John Kander (music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics), Broadway veteran William Parry will take on the title role in the Dramaworks production. With more than 40 years of theater experience under the belt, Parry originated roles in four shows with scores by Stephen Sondheim (Sunday in the Park with George, Passion, Assassins and The Road).
- Palm Beach Dramaworks will stage 14 performances of Zorba! from June 20-29.
- Showtimes are as follows: Wednesday, 2 and 8 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 and 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 and 7 p.m.
- Specially priced, $32, preview night for Zorba! will take place on June 19 at 8 p.m.
Based on the play They Knew What They Wanted, the 1956 musical The Most Happy Fella harkens back to rural Napa Valley in the 1920's where a love triangle evolves. Perhaps a prelude to online dating, Tony, an older grape grower strikes up a mail-based relationship with "Rosabella," a younger woman from San Francisco. After swapping photos of one another—Tony's being that of a younger farmhand in his employ—the two decide to marry. But once the two finally meet, the lies laid through mail correspondence unravel.
Written by Frank Loesser (book, music and lyrics) in 1956, The Most Happy Fella was nominated for six Tony Awards. PB Dramaworks alum, star of last year's Man of La Mancha, William Michais will join a cast of 12 for this abbreviated performance.
- Tickets cost $40.
- Showtimes are as follows: Wednesday, 2 and 8 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 and 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 p.m.
- A specially priced, $32, preview show is scheduled for July 17 at 8 p.m.
- For more information, visit palmbeachdramaworks.org.


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Sunday, February 16 from 1-3 pm
Join two amazing teachers, Kelly and Brooke, for a weekend of learning and growth as you learn how to support students in their practice with intuitive assists and adjustments, while expanding your knowledge of all the postures.
This training is a must for all those wishing to learn more about their own practice, and develop a clearer understanding of alignment. Also a requirement to join the In-Room Teacher Assistant Team at Southern Om.
Teacher assistants earn a credit of two yoga classes for every one class they assist at Southern Om.
Cost is $350. Sign up here.
February Charity Class Night
Please join Kelly Judge as we rock the house this Valentine's Day in support of the Upstate chapter of the American Heart Association. Kelly will lead you through an upbeat Southern Flow class with love and fire! Cash and check donations are welcome (suggested donation is $10). You may also donate online at their website and bring us a receipt.
Sunday, March 2 from 1-3 p.m.
As spring approaches, our bodies, minds, and spirits ready themselves for increased activity, lightness, and exploration.
Please join SO Instructor Silica Larkin for two hours of gentle movement, breathwork (pranayama), and guided meditation to immerse ourselves in the qualities of Spring. No yoga experience necessary.
Cost is $25. Please bring a mat, towel and water.
Attendees will also receive a complimentary essential oil sample!
Sign up here.
Read more in our current newsletter.


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With Kyle Bekker selected as the third overall pick earlier in the day, this year's draft marks the first time in program history that two players were selected in the first round.
Bekker becomes the sixth former Boston College Eagle to be selected in the MLS Draft.
The Oakville, Ontario native figures to be a high draft pick in Thursday's MLS SuperDraft.
Reviewing the year's Boston College athletics predictions.
The Big East is dead. Long live the Big East!
BC Eagles women's soccer player Stephanie McCaffrey has been suspended over tweets she made mocking Penn State's sex-abuse scandal. Reactions and Bates' statement on the incident.
"Sometimes they get exacerbated by certain things — practice time, guys missing a day or two of practice, injuries, and other things that you have to try and compensate for. They're things that you...
The Eagles will be making their sixth straight trip to the National Tournament under head coach Ed Kelly and 12th overall.
"As we go forward it's something that we have to communicate with them and make sure it's something they understand – I've had that conversation with Jordan in particular. The other three I haven't...
The Eagles (8-5-4, 3-2-3 ACC) will travel to #4 Clemson (6-8-4, 3-2-3 ACC) for their quarterfinal match on Tuesday, November 6 at 7 PM.
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Mainstay Rock Bar has indeed become a mainstay in the blossoming downtown entertainment district. It's officially been four years since the venue (at 301 Fifth St.) opened, hosting regular shows by local acts, primarily of the "original artists" variety. This week, the club is celebrating its four-year anniversary with a string of free events, including several quality local Rock shows.
Tonight, the excellent Reggae group The Cliftones (check out their latest single here) perform a free show, while Black Signal takes over the stage Thursday night. On Friday, catch thrilling newcomers Lemon Sky and Founding Fathers, then go back Saturday for the triple bill of The Guild of Calamitous Intent, Halvsies and Cincinnati Entertainment Award winners for "Best New Artist" of 2013, DAAP GIrls.
All shows this week are free and start at 10 p.m. For more info on the club and upcoming events, click here or here.
Saturday at Downtown club Mainstay, progressive Doom/Drone Metal act Grey Host will celebrate the release of its latest, Dawn for Vultures. You can pre-order the six-track release (as a CD, download or with a T-shirt) at greyhost.bandcamp.com and get an automatic download of lead-off track, "Noble Beast." The band will also have copies of the release available at Mainstay. Grey Host is joined Saturday by Ohio Knife and Valley of the Sun, which is also working towards a new release. The 9 p.m. show is free. (facebook.com/greyhost)
Here's "Noble Beast":
Saturday at Covington's Madison Theater, local Death/Hardcore/Thrash Metal crew Gabriel's Hounds host a release party for their latest effort, The Struggle Between … EP. Joining the group for the 8 p.m., all-ages show: Dark Region, Holesinger, Serpentarius, Souls for the Taking, It's Either Me or the Mailman and In Ashes. Admission is $8. You can sample the new album's title track right now at reverbnation.com/gabrielshoundsofficial or here:
Eclectic Cincinnati Reggae crew The Cliftones — one of the best Reggae outfits in the region — will be celebrating the release of their latest single, "Hold Steady," this Saturday with a show at Northside club Mayday. DJ Mowgli will also perform. Advanced tickets are available now for $7 here. The first 100 people through the door will receive a free download card giving access to the single.
Like the band's previously released single — "Hard Ground," released in January — The Cliftones once again have some legendary ears/mixing fingers involved with "Hold Steady." "Hard Ground" was mixed in D.C. by Jim Fox, who has worked with icons like Black Uhuru, Gregory Isaacs, Barrington Levy and Culture. For "Hold Steady," DJ Prophecy (known for work with Bassnectar and Glitch Mob) handled the mixing, while Dub legend Scientist handled mastering duties.
The Cliftones will be unleashing two more singles in the coming months, leading up to a vinyl EP release this summer. Find out more about The Cliftones here and here.
Here's the exclusive stream of "Hold Steady":
Cincinnati-bred, Brooklyn-based Indie Rock group The National has revealed the tracklisting and album cover for its forthcoming Trouble Will Find Me, due out on the 4AD label May 21. The album — The National's sixth — is just a part of a slew of activity on the horizon for the band.
A few weeks ago it was announced that The National would perform at the Tribeca Film Festival, where the road documentary Mistaken For Strangers will also premiere (on April 17). The flick was made by Tom Berninger, a Cincinnatian and lead singer Matt Berninger's younger brother. Tom — who's called a "Heavy Metal and horror movie enthusiast" in the press materials — toured with The National as a first-time roadie and brought a camera along. The film will also screen at the NXNE fest in Toronto in late April/early May.
After the album release, of course, The National begin globe-trotting, touring the planet — including a sold-out headlining show at Barclays Center in Brooklyn and a slot at the Bonnaroo fest in Tennessee.
Here are details from the press release:
Trouble Will Find Me, The National's new album will be released on 4AD on May 20th & 21st. This is the sixth studio album for the Brooklyn band, and follows 2010's critical and commercial success High Violet. The album is the most self-assured collection of songs produced by The National in its 14-year career. In an interview with UK's UNCUT Magazine, front man Matt Berninger described the songs as more "immediate and visceral" than their previous work. Trouble Will Find Me possesses a directness, a coherency and an approachability that suggests The National are at their most confident. The album will be available digitally, on disc, on 180gram vinyl and in a limited edition deluxe boxed vinyl version.
After a 22-month tour following the release of High Violet the band returned home. Regardless of plans to wait to record new music for another year or two, guitarist Aaron Dessner began working on sketches of new songs that the other members were too inspired by to not fully realize. Matt confesses, "For the past ten years we'd been chasing something, wanting to prove something. And this chase was about trying to disprove our own insecurities. After touring High Violet, I think we felt like we'd finally gotten there. Now we could relax—not in terms of our own expectations but we didn't have to prove our identity any longer." The results are simultaneously breakthrough and oddly familiar, the culmination of an artistic journey that has led The National both to a new crest and, somehow, back to their beginnings—when, says Aaron, "our ideas would immediately click with each other. It's free-wheeling again. The songs on one level are our most complex, and on another they're our most simple and human. It just feels like we've embraced the chemistry we have." The album was recorded at Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, NY. Trouble Will Find Me was self-produced and mixed by Craig Silvey with additional mixing from Peter Katis and Marcus Paquin.
In advance of the release, the documentary Mistaken For Strangers will premiere at this year's Tribeca Film Festival as the festival opener on April 17th. The film, directed by Tom Berninger, follows The National on its biggest tour to date. Newbie roadie Tom (lead singer Matt Berninger's younger brother) is a heavy metal and horror movie enthusiast, and can't help but put his own spin on the experience. Inevitably, Tom's moonlighting as an irreverent documentarian creates drama on the road. The film is a touching look at two very different brothers and an entertaining story of artistic aspiration.
Following the May 21st release of Trouble Will Find Me, The National will embark on a world tour. Highlights include Brooklyn's Barclays Center, Bonnaroo Arts & Music Festival, the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles and Red Rocks Amphitheater. Tickets are on sale for most shows announced to date and more shows will be announced soon.
Formed in 1999, The National consists of vocalist Matt Berninger fronting two pairs of brothers: Aaron (guitar, bass, piano) and Bryce Dessner (guitar), and Scott (bass, guitar) and Bryan Devendorf (drums). Their first full-lengths, The National and Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers, and a crucial mini-album, Cherry Tree, preceded their signing to Beggars Banquet in 2004. Alligator (2005), included underground anthem "Mr. November," and raised their profile as the National grew into an incendiary live band. Boxer (2007), featuring songs like "Fake Empire", "Mistaken For Strangers" and "Start A War," sold over three times as many copies as its predecessor. The National's 2010 release, High Violet sold over 600,000 copies and was widely recognized for its critical and commercial success around the world. Both individually and collectively The National's members have been involved in countless artistic, charitable and socio-political pursuits.
TRACK LISTING- Trouble Will Find Me
5/16: State Theater Ithaca, NY
5/26: Boston Calling/ City Hall Plaza Boston, MA
6/05: Barclay's Center Brooklyn, NY
6/06: Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia, MD
6/07: Mann Center for Performing Arts Philadelphia, PA
6/08: The National Richmond, VA
6/10: Red Hat Amphitheatre Raleigh, NC
6/11: Stage AE Pittsburgh, PA
6/13: Lachine Canal Montreal, Canada
6/14: Yonge Dundas Square Toronto, Canada
6/15: The LC Pavilion Columbus, OH
6/13-16: Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival Manchester, TN
6/21: Hurricane Festival Scheessel, Germany
6/22: Southside Festival Neuhausen ob Eck, Germany
6/25: Cirque Royal Brussels, Belgium
6/28: Live At The Marquee Cork, Ireland
6/30: Parco Della Musica Rome, Italy
7/01: City Sound Festival Milan, Italy
7/02: Salata Zagreb, Croatia
7/14: Bunbury Music Festival Cincinnati, OH
8/06: Roy Wilkins Auditorium St. Paul, MN
8/10: Greek Theatre Los Angeles, CA
9/17: Red Rocks Amphitheater Morrison, CO
For more information visit: http://www.americanmary.com/
Elementz, which uses the Hip Hop arts to engage local inner-city youth, is celebrating its eighth anniversary this Thursday with a special "open house" reception at the organization's headquarters (1100 Race St., Over-the-Rhine) beginning at 5:30 p.m.
The event will feature numerous performances by artists who have been involved with and benefited from the Elementz program, from Hip Hop and R&B musicians to poets, street artists and dancers.
Advanced tickets are $10 (it's $12 at the door), which will go to help fund the center's programming. Last year's anniversary celebration drew around 300 people, according to elementz.org, where you can also find more info on the center and purchase advanced tickets. Elementz will be selling youth memberships for half off Thursday — for teens (13-18), a one-year membership can be obtained for $10; those 19-24 can join for just $20 a year.
Here's a quick video press release for the open house/party:
A pair of Cincinnati Hip Hop acts have recently released music videos showcasing new material. Both are compelling, well-produced clips for solid new tracks.
Alternative Hip Hop group Valley High issued the video for "That One Too" at the start of the month. The clip was directed by SnowRowe (who plays keys in the group) and, according to the YouTube page, the track is from the Valley High or Die Tape, due for release today. The group is fronted by MCs Moxy Monster and M.O. Click here for more on Valley High.
Last year, area MC Puck released the high-pro video for "Gitit," the latest of several clips. Now, Puck has returned with a new track and video that's perhaps his strongest yet. "Jordan Vs. Bird" is built around a hook from a remix of the band Grouplove's song "Colours." The video was directed by Dan Gotti. Puck is offering a free download of the track via his Soundcloud page here. Find out more about Puck here.
In May of 2011, a man broke into the home of Butler County Assistant Prosecutor Kelly O'Keefe in Fairfield and brutally attacked her. When her brother, Danny O'Keefe, came to her aid, he was also attacked, beaten and stabbed.
Miraculously, both siblings survived the attack. The man responsible was caught and sentenced to 21 years in prison. But the O'Keefe family's lives will never be the same. While Kelly has physically recuperated from the attack, Danny, according to an open letter from his mother, Kathy, has a long road of therapy and recovery ahead of him.
The mother of Danny, who was stabbed in the brain 19 times during the attack, writes, "Danny has Anthem insurance. They pay for 30 therapies a year. We got him on Medicaid, and they pay for 20 a year. Mercy Hospital is helping, but only for three therapies a week. We're told for Danny to get better he needs more, closer to 9 therapy sessions each week. He takes Speech, Occupational, and Physical therapy 3 times each week now. We're to send him to the University of Michigan UMAP program for speech. It's around $27,000 for 4-5 weeks of therapy, and his insurance doesn't pay for this. His doctors and therapists say he could need to go several times. Room and board for Danny and his caregiver (his dad will go with him) is not included in the cost. Neither is the cost of the other ongoing two therapies, physical and occupational."
The family has set up a website (where you can read about the harrowing attack and the siblings' recovery) and fund for people to donate here. This Saturday night at Bocca Billiards in Milford, three of Danny O'Keefe's cousins will reunite their local Thrash Metal band Azygous for one night only to perform at a benefit concert for O'Keefe's mounting medical bills.
The benefit will feature a strong lineup of local metallers, as well as raffle items from the show's various sponsors. Here are the set times:
11:30 p.m.-12 a.m. Azygous
11:00-11:30 p.m. Eyes On Tomorrow
10:15-10:45 p.m. Red Soul Rising
9:30-10 p.m. Specyphi
8:45-9:15 p.m. Soul Rot
8:00-8:30 p.m. Sinful Crow
7:15-7:45 p.m. Escape The Silence
6:30-7 p.m. One Shot Solution
5:45-6:15 p.m. Osiria
Click here for more on the event, which is open to all ages. Doors open at 4 p.m. and admission is a $10 donation.
Here's a video from Azygous taken from the band's 2007 album, Whiskey Driven Hate Machine.


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Unlock Your Motorola Phone by Codes
If you want to use your Motorola phone with different providers SIM cards and want to switch to another network, unlocking will allow you do that. You can unlock your Motorola phone by unlock codes and use with any compatible mobile network. When you unlock your phone, you will no longer have to be limited to a certain provider and have the freedom to choose any service provider you want.
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A Network or Service Provider lock is placed on your Motorola phone by the service provider you bought it from. The phone has this lock to make sure that you do not use any other sim card than that provided by the service provider. Motorola Unlock codes are the codes that will remove network or service provider locks on your Motorola phone and will allow you to use any compatible Sim card and Network by any service provider.
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How does Motorola unlocking by codes work?
When you place an order, unlock codes will be generated by complex algorithms using Motorola phone's Imei (serial) number or the codes will be obtained from manufacturer or provider's databases and will be sent with unlocking instructions. Once you receive your unlock code, you simply enter as instructed and your phone will be unlocked instantly.
What is IMEI and how can I obtain on my Motorola phone?
IMEI number (International Mobile Equipment Identity) is a 15 digit unique serial number to preporly identify your phone. Every mobile phone has a unique IMEI and it can be read by typing *#06# or you can read it on the sticker under the battery in your phone.
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Our Motorola unlock cell phone codes guaranteed to work. But on the very rare instance that your phone is not able to get unlocked, your payment will be refunded in full.
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We will provide network or service provider unlock code for your Motorola phone. This code is also known as Network Unlock Key or Subsidy Unlock Code. You can check Glossary and Unlock Code Table below for unlock code types.
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The process of unlocking your Motorola phone is very simple. Once you receive your code, follow these steps to unlock your phone.
Motorola Unlock Code Entry Instructions:
- Turn your Motorola phone off
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- Enter the unlock code and press the OK button
- Your Motorola should now be fully unlocked and ready to go
If you need help for Motorola instructions sets or have any questions, you may always contact us to get more information.
This section will help you to understand commonly used unlock code types and terms on this page.
Motorola Unlock Code: Refers to Motorola Network Unlock Code that is used to remove Network (Carrier or Operator) Lock from Motorola phones and allow users to use phone with different providers' SIMs (See Unlock Code Table below for more info).
Simlock Code: Simlock Code is another term that is used to describe Motorola Network Unlock Code.
Phone User Code: This code allows authorized users accessing to the phone when user lock enabled.
SIM PIN Code: SIM PIN (Personal Identification Number) code will allow authorized users to access to the SIM card.
SIM PUK Code: SIM PUK (PIN Unlock Key) code will allow authorized users to change or reset SIM PIN Code.
If you don't understand an entry or can't find a term on this section, you may contact us for further explanation.
Network Unlock Key
Network Unlock Pin
Subsidy Unlock Code
Motorola Phones
- Motorola Moto G Dual Sim
- Motorola Moto G 4g
- Motorola Moto E Dual Sim
- Motorola Moto E
- Motorola Razr D3 Xt919
- Motorola Razr D1
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- Motorola Photon Q 4g Lte Xt897
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ABOUT THE Table Covers
This product belongs to: Table Covers Ships In: 5 - 10 business days (pending credit, art, and proof approval) Material: Polyester Dimensions: 30 in. W X 90 in. H Imprint Area: 24.0 in. W X 16.0 in. H Decoration Method: Silkscreen Weight: 7.0lb.
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Q: How do I upload artwork? A: To use a graphic located on your local computer, click on the "Upload Now" button on the "Step 1: Get Your Artwork" page of the design studio. This will lead you to a new page. Click the "Browse" button and look for the file on your computer. Q: What is your Lowest Price Guarantee and how does it work? A: We guarantee that the item you are purchasing has the lowest price in the US. Be the first to find and report to email@example.com an advertised price that is lower than what you find on our site for the same product in a given Q: Why do minimum quantities differ from product to product? A: Minimum quantity requirements vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. In cases where a manufacturer's minimum order requirement exceeds your requested quantity, a Branders.com Specialist will assist you. Call us at 1-877-272-6337.
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AVAILABLE COLORS FOR YOUR CUSTOM Table Covers WITH LOGO
Royal Blue
Kelly Green
CUSTOMER REVIEWS FOR THIS PROMOTIONAL Table Covers
12 reviews
Logo looks great, I wish the fabric content of the runner was poly/cotton - it would be less slippery.
Replaced wrinkly runners with your wrinkle free ones..we shall see if it works at the show next week.
Since I have a printing career background, I was most impressed with the quality of the logo imprinted as well as the material of the runner.
Great quality that matched what our brand stands for.
This product has saved our tradeshow program the worry of "will the logo on my 6ft (full) tablecloth be visible on the 8ft table that is part of my booth space" this has solved the problem 100%! No matter what size table is provided, this does the trick!
The color red looked more like burgundy. We would have liked a brighter red.
Good product. We were satisfied with how our logo turned out.
Displayed our logo nicely.
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By Pat Nolan, Senior Vice President, DVL Public Relations
October 10, 2008
The Presidential debate at Belmont is history.
It was clearly a shining moment in the political spotlight for Belmont and the city of Nashville. (I was going to say in the political sunlight, but it rained way too much for that. Who knew that presidential debates were also drought busters?)
But did the debate here have any real impact on the race for the White House? Many observers are saying it was boring. Actually, I didn't think it was any worse than the Ole Miss debate. I started looking at my watch (ala President George Herbert Walker Bush) at about the same time in both debates (shortly after it was half way finished).
I think these debates have become so scripted and controlled, they don't leave anybody happy. Lots of folks tune in, such as I mentioned in my last column about the VP debate, because they want to see the car crash, the train wreck, the mistake that becomes a defining moment in the campaign. That didn't happen at Belmont.
At the same time, those tuning in the debates looking for where the candidates stand on important issues are also left frustrated, because it is very difficult to explain your thoughts about very complex issues like economy , and do it in 2-minute answers and 1-minute discussions or rebuttals. So the candidates revert to the safety of their talking points and their stump speeches and also usually ignore the time limits. Sometimes they even avoid the question all together to talk about something else.
Belmont and Nashville were the only clear winners in the second debate, proving the city (with a new convention center and a few more hotel rooms) is ready to host the next big national political event, a party nominating convention.
As for the candidates themselves, nobody landed any knockout blows or made any big mistakes. But with only one debate left, John McCain did not do anything to change the focus and momentum of the race, and so that leaves Obama as the winner, especially since the voter polls afterwards show Obama continues to make the bigger improvements in his "does his look presidential?" numbers than McCain.
I thought McCain's strategy was odd. In his first answer, he came out of the starting blocks strong with his new plan to have the government buy up all the bad mortgages in the country. Then he walked away from it the rest of the night, and did nothing to put Obama on the defensive. Now that more details are coming out about McCain's proposal, even he has kind of been backing away from it, as the fiscally conservative parts of the GOP are not happy at all with this kind of additional government intrusion into the private sector. Even Obama has come back with criticism, saying the new McCain plan could wind up rewarding the bad behavior of those who have helped create the financial mess this country is now facing. By the way, prior to the Belmont debate, that was what McCain had been saying about buying all the bad mortgages. Ouch.
Obama also got some more licks in after the Belmont event, by saying if the McCain campaign wants to continue to use its "guilt by association" tactics (such as Obama's relationship with his former minister, with a former radical domestic terrorist from the 1960s and a convicted Chicago politician), why didn't he bring it up to Obama's face on stage during the debate? McCain didn't, leaving it to surrogates until yesterday (October 9) when he too started mentioning it himself on the campaign trail.
So will McCain bring it up in the third and final debate? Will he start doing more TV attack ads on this subject? Will it work to change the campaign and the momentum of Obama? So far, Obama's polls must say no. While the Obama camp quickly brought up to counter McCain's attacks his past involvement with the "Keating 5" as a part of the 1980s savings and loan scandal, other than one day of talk, Obama's not pushing it. That will change if McCain ever find something to throw against the political wall and it begins to stick with the public.
Right now, the focus for both the candidates and the country is the ever-worsening condition of the economy. And even here McCain can't get much of a break. We've talked before about how unusual it is for the candidates to be out of the main spotlight as the election campaigns come down the home stretch. But that's what happened the last few weeks with the spotlight on a lame duck President and a lame duck Congress.
Now Congress has gone home and left President Bush to be in the spotlight, making nearly daily pleas to the country to remain calm and have confidence in the economy and the markets. So far, it's not working very well. Stocks continue to slide, and every time Mr. Bush comes on it seems to remind the country of what a failed presidency he has had.
It may not be fair, but John McCain is developing his own "guilt by association" problems as President Bush is someone McCain once admitted in one of his TV ads that he voted 90% of the time for his programs over the last eight years.
McCain wants this race to be a referendum on Barack Obama, about whether he is ready to lead or can be trusted as President. The economic problems the nation faces threaten instead to turn the race into a referendum on President Bush, and that's a fight McCain probably can't win.
I am also beginning to hear and see stories from the campaign trail about what appears be rising voter anger at campaign rallies, especially the McCain-Palin events. Some commentators, such as the well- respected CNN commentator David Gergen quoted in a CNN article today (October 10) are even openly expressing fears of violence. Let's hope it never comes to that from either side as this sharply divided country approaches the end of another heated presidential election.
Meanwhile, adding to all the other problems he faces is the fact that McCain is fighting the campaign on the defensive and with not nearly as many resources as Obama in terms of dollars and campaign organization. The states left to be decided are mostly traditional Republican areas, but where Obama is close enough McCain must commit his resources or face disaster. McCain is limited in his dollars by taking public funds. Obama is not taking public monies and continues to amaze everyone at how he is raising unheard of amounts of monies, mostly from small donors, and the Republican National Committee seems to be struggling to help McCain make up the difference.
It should be pointed out that I have still seen no polling that indicates Obama has the 270 electoral votes needed to win. In fact, even with some polls showing him at 265, it's based on a lot more states "leaning" his direction rather than solidly in his corner. So the race is still to be won, even if the momentum and movement in the race still seems to solidly favor Obama.
We are so pleased to have CBS Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer as our guest on INSIDE POLITICS this week. He came by the studio while he was here to cover the Belmont debate, and he gave us his thoughts about the status of the presidential race and about how he is preparing to moderate the third and final debate at Hofstra University on October 15.
Schieffer has a very interesting new book out. It's a compilation of his commentaries over the years called BOB SCHIEFFER'S AMERICA. Like Bob himself the book is very conversational and easy to read. And it's surprisingly up to date especially since several of Bob's commentaries go back 10-15 or 20 years. I guess Washington and our politicians don't change that much. I highly recommend buying Bob's book.
Our other guests this week are two local journalists who spent several weeks covering the Belmont debate: Colby Sledge of THE TENNESSEAN and Ken Whitehouse of NASHVILLEPOST. COM. You can see and hear their reflections on the importance of what happened at Belmont and some of the inside stories of being in Spin Alley and even inside the Curb Events Center while the debate was going on (Colby was so lucky).
You can catch INSIDE POLITICS every weekend on the NEWSCHANNEL5 NETWORK:
Friday, October 10 7:00 PM NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS, Comcast Channel 50
Saturday, October 11 5:00 AM NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS
Saturday, October 11 5:30 PM NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS
Sunday, October 12 5:00 AM NEWSCHANNEL5, WTVF-TV
Sunday, October 12 5:00 AM NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS
Sunday, October 12 12:30 PM NEWSCHANNEL5 PLUS
Join us! TiVos, VCRs and DVRS welcome too!
The rainiest day in Nashville recently was not the deluge that struck the Belmont debate Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
No, the darkest storm clouds were at the Capitol where Tennessee Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz said the state's financial picture is already so gloomy (even before calculating the impact of the latest Wall Street meltdowns) that the Bredesen administration will have start looking at using the state's ample "Rainy Day Fund" to keep Tennessee state government operating and providing critical services in the months to come.
In the meantime, Goetz has already informed state higher education leaders to look for more ways to cut back on their budgets. All this in the wake of declining tax collections that are already $150 million below the very conservative projections made earlier this year.
These comments about further cutbacks and even dipping into the Rainy Day Fund are not all that surprising given what has occurred in the national and world economy is recent days, but they do stand in stark contrast to the Governor's statement a few days earlier that perhaps the state would be able to avoid layoffs arising out of last year's budget cutbacks. The Governor is rightly concerned about the position state workers would be left in if given the ax. Finding any job is getting tougher all the time. But if we are dipping into the Rainy Day Fund I would say, stay tuned, and all bets could be off as far as what next year's state budget holds. Could another round of employee buyouts also be on the table? And will there be any takers at all this time?
State lawmakers specifically asked the Governor to hold off on any layoffs until the new General Assembly comes back to Nashville in January. Now who knows what they will face when they return and find the state's financial challenges once again squarely in their laps?
With the Belmont debate over, it's back to being pretty quiet on the campaign trail in Tennessee. The biggest excitement could come from Federal Judge Robert Echols as he considers a request by Clarksville State Senator Rosalind Kurita to reinstate her on the November ballot.
She claims the Tennessee State Democratic Executive Committee wrongly voided her 19-vote primary victory over Tim Barnes last August. Democratic officials defend the action saying the outcome of the race was incurably uncertain because of undue Republican influence on the election and other problems at the polls.
Courts are usually reluctant to intervene in party politics, so it would be unexpected if Kurita prevails. A decision by Judge Echols in this case will have to come very soon (in fact, he says he will rule sometime the week of October 13). With early voting starting on October 15, election officials will really be under the gun to get any ballot changes made if mandated, and does anybody know how they would handle the overseas ballots, which I suspect have already been mailed? And what if Senator Kurita loses but appeals the case and later wins?
If Senator Kurita doesn't win in court, she will have to put all her hopes on maintaining her seat in the Senate by winning a write-in effort against Barnes November 4. Again, that's another tough putt for her to make successfully. The Kurita race remains particularly important because of how evenly divided the State Senate is in terms of Republicans and Democrats. While both these candidates are Democrats, if Kurita returns she is likely to once again support Republican Ron Ramsey to be Lt. Governor and Speaker, while Barnes would support a Democratic Senator for that post.
It depends on how the other contested Senate races turn out, but the Clarksville Senate vote could again be crucial as it was two years ago when Kurita crossed over and first earned the enmity of Democrats statewide that has led to her hotly contested effort to win re-election.
On the other hand, it's still pretty quiet in the statewide race for the U.S. Senate between Republican incumbent Lamar Alexander and Democrat Bob Tuke. Tuke did try and take advantage of having Barack Obama in town, getting a public endorsement from him (Tuke was an early supporter of Obama) and getting his picture taken with him, which Tuke's underfinanced campaign immediately e-mailed across the state. Hey, do the best you can with what you got right? A joint TV ad would be nice too. But it appears the Tuke campaign is still scrambling to find the funds for a late minute TV ad blitz of its own.
Tuke is also trying to draw Alexander out by accepting a debate offer from a media outlet in Jackson and challenging Alexander to join him (which I would say is doubtful, if for no other reason why would Alexander want to give Tuke that kind of increased visibility and name recognition). But regardless of how it turns out, the debate challenge gives Tuke something else to talk about, and maybe get more exposure in the media.
That's no problem for Alexander, whose first TV ad hit the airwaves in the last week or so. What a contrast to the last U.S. Senate race in Tennessee, when it was impossible for weeks on end to turn on a TV set in Tennessee and not see ad after ad for either Bob Corker or Harold Ford, Jr.
The Alexander ad is remarkable in several aspects. A good bit of the spot is built around one of Senator Alexander's favorite sayings from the late Tennessee author/ historian Alex Haley: "Find the good and praise it." There's a lot of praising in the Alexander ad. In fact, at a time, when incumbents on the federal level all across country are on the defensive, this ad (with narration provided by Nashville guitarist and song writer Steve Cropper) seems almost gushy in implying how thankful voters should be for Alexander's many years of public service as Governor, Secretary of Education and now as Senator, working with both Republicans and Democrats to get things done in Washington.
Interestingly, the ad does not say whether Alexander is a Republican or a Democrat (if you'd dropped in from outside the state and didn't know, you couldn't tell from watching the spot). That's in sharp contrast to six years ago when Alexander made it clear he wanted voters to send him to Washington to help President Bush. So much for the GOP brand this election season even in a red state like Tennessee
Alexander is also not afraid to show how many years he's been in politics, with photos and videos in the ad showing a much younger Lamar than how the Senator appears today.
When you are a Tennessee political legend I guess you can get away with doing that.
Nashville Congressman and Democrat Jim Cooper is another elected official favored for an easy re-election in November. But his Republican opponent from Mt. Juliet, Gerard Donovan is not going down quietly. Twice in the last week I have gotten a roto-call political message on my home phone (one with a women's voice, the other recorded by a man). Both are railing against Cooper for his recent vote in favor of the Congressional bailout bill. The inference in both calls is that both Republicans and Democrats are unhappy and should come together to send Cooper a message and defeat him November 4.
I know there is a lot of public anger about that legislation and so far, its passage sure hasn't had any impact to improve things. But I still remain to be convinced that Donovan really has much chance to defeat Cooper on November 4, but the roto-calls are interesting. It's the first time I have ever received one from the Republican congressional candidate in this district. But, when you think about it, they are cheaper than TV ads.
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The Suffolk County Legislature banned the sale of chemicals found in some bath salts on Tuesday, resulting in a product it determined was "powdered synthetic cocaine" and has been ingested as a hallucinogen.
Sale of such bath salts has already been banned in Louisiana, North Dakota, and Florida, as well as other local municipalities, according to the county, and several others are considering the ban.
While the synthetic chemicals are most commonly found in and marketed as bath salts, they can also be found in other products that "manufacturers make with a wink of an eye," said the sponsor of the bill that calls for the ban.
"We're not banning bath salts at all, per se," said Jon Cooper, D-Huntington. "We are banning the chemical compounds, that's the best way to describe it. Because the manufacturer will call it a bath salt, or pond scum remover, or deodorizer. But what it is, is a drug."
The text of the resolution states that active synthetic ingredients in bath salts include methylone, mephedrone, and MDPV, among others, some of which bear similarities to ingredients extracted from the khat plant, an African plant with a similar stimulant effect as cocaine.
Cooper said that as a legislator eight years ago, he penned the nation's first bill to ban ephedra. Eight months later, he said, it was banned on the federal level.
"I'm hoping to see something similar to that," he said. "Because these chemicals are synthetically produced and relatively new, they have fallen under the radar screen."
Bath salts not including the harmful chemicals are exempt from the ban.
The measure passed by a unanimous 18-0 vote.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy has not yet signed the bill into law.