Yearender: 5 Things That Happened in 2013

Well everyone. Another year has come and gone. And just like that, 2014 is just a few hours to go. With that in mind, let us look back at 2013 and the things that happened despite a few bumps and tragedies that have gone for this year.

5. 3D Printed Body Parts


Despite not being the top news story for the year when it comes to the world of 3D printing (they had more headlines relating to the 3D printed gun), this has been a major breakthrough for the medical industry. Now patients who have lost body parts can now get to have body parts out of a 3D printed without having to fear tissue rejection which has been a huge problem for transplant patients all these years. And 2013 has been a great witness for that feat.

4. Pope Francis



With the resignation of the former head of the largest religious group in the world came the emergence of a new pope in the name of Jorge Mario Bergoglio who is widely known today as Pope Francis. Being the first Jesuit pope and the first pope to ever do and say a lot of radical things, he is now gaining popularity for a lot of his good deeds as a pope and his views on things which has haunted the religious sector for a lot of years.

3. Prince George of Cambridge



The year 2013 also became witness for the birth of England's next heir. This may not be big news for most of the people outside of the Kingdom but this can actually change the course of the world in the years to come. And of course a birth of a child is always a happy thought. Look at that cute little thing and tell me "adorable" isn't the perfect word.

2. Tragedies, Calamities and Natural Disasters



For a large number of people, 2013 has also been a year of a lot of tragedies and calamities that have ravaged a lot of countries. In April, an old factory in Bangladesh collapsed leaving over a thousand people dead and two thousand more injured. The United States was once again a target of a terrorist attack when two brothers bombed the annual Boston Marathon, fortunately only 3 people were killed but leaving a few more injured. Speaking of attacks, a mall in Nairobi, Kenya was attacked by a group of militants leaving 62 civilians dead and 150 injured. Also later in the year my own country the Philippines was struck with two natural disasters namely the 7.2 magnitude earthquake and then Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda - the strongest typhoon to ever hit any country leaving more than 6,000 thousand people dead and missing. These calamities and attacks have been devastating for the people affected, but the resilience of the people and their will to move on has proven to be very effective.

1. Deaths of Celebrities and Prominent Figures

Nelson Mandela

Paul Walker

James Gandolfini

Death is inevitable. Even celebrities and prominent figures are not immune to it. A few of the famous people who passed away this year was the former South African president Nelson Mandela who died at the age of 95. 2013 also witnessed the passing of James Gandolfini, an American actor known for his role as Tony Soprano in the series The Sopranos. Another actor who passed away this year was Paul Walker who was widely known for his role as Brian O'Conner in the movie series Fast and Furious which was on the process of shooting for the 7th installment when Walker and his friend Roger Rodas crashed the Porsche Carrera GT they were driving after a night of partying for a cause.

But despite all of the crazy things that happened in 2013, those who have survived it, well let us just look ahead and hope that 2014 will be a better year than the last. And one more thing, let us just let bygones be bygones, forgive one another let 2014 bring its storm as we will surely weather it. What about you? Do you have some good memories to share for the last year? Don't forget to comment below and share! Cheers mates! Happy New Year! 

Entertainment: Rurouni Kenshin 2 The Great Kyoto Arc Official Trailer HD 2014 - A Review

To all anime fans especially those who really followed the adventures of our dearest reverse edge sword yielding friend Kenshin Himura from the animated series Samurai X, and to those who have witnessed the wonderful live action adaptation, this is really the sequel to watch for. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the unofficial review of the trailer for one of 2014's sure blockbuster hit Rurouni Kenshin 2: The Great Kyoto Arc.

The trailer starts off with Kenshin ducking and making a run for it above an old Japanese building (I'm just emphasizing the "old" part since this is supposed to be set on an old Japanese era.). And it is then followed by a couple of scenes where you can see the Great Battousai the Manslayer kicking several butts while still following his "Thou Shalt Not Kill" rule, meaning he hits them in strategic areas in the body to render them unconscious or at least unable to fight back temporarily. But nonetheless, it's still awesome! And once again, we will get to see Kenshin in live action doing what he does best.

Going back to the title: The Great Kyoto Arc, this would only mean one thing to those who have watched the animated series: Shishio Makoto, one of the series' villain, will probably be in the movie. And he actually is! He is shown in the later part of the trailer just as Kenshin is drawing his sword. Another hint this trailer has given Samurai X fans a giggle is the fact that Shishio's gang Juppongatana will probably be in the movie with him, as it would be meaningless to not include them since they are Shishio's most trusted company which will pose a great threat to Kenshin and his friends.

Verdict: With this trailer I would probably rate it 8/10, simply cause I did not understand a single Japanese word from the trailer. They could have just placed tiny subtitles for the non Japanese fans but from my point of view, the trailer simply tells it all. It would have been nice to also see a glimpse of Kenshin's friends but I guess they decided to let us enjoy their company while watching the movie itself. But yes, this is a great thing to be looking forward to in 2014! How about you guys? Are you as excited as I am for this coming of this What do you think? Do not be shy to like, comment and share this review with your friends. Cheers everyone and happy new year!

Entertainment: Arrow Season 2 Episode 9 "Three Ghosts" Review

DISCLAIMER: As exciting as this episode of DC and CW's episode might be, I will try my very best to write as few spoilers as possible, because I know it would be useless to write a review of this episode without ever having to give out some details about this very interesting episode for all comic book and Green Arrow fans alike.

This week fans of Arrow just bear witness to a jaw dropping, heart pumping and very revealing episode of DC's very own television series Arrow. Though the series has been going on for 2 seasons now, let me just clarify that this episode is very much worth writing a review for, simply because of the wonderful things that transpired during its 43 minutes airing time.

One of the good points in this episode of Arrow is the showcasing of not only one major DC character, but other minor characters as well (as we have witnessed in their previous episodes). Featured in this episode is the reappearance of none other than Barry Allen, who will later be famously known as The Flash, protector of Central City. And have been reported to have its very own series as a spin-off of Arrow. Another character that we can see during this episode is the villain Cyrus Gold, a villain imbued with superhuman strength and is under the command of Brother Blood, which in turn is under the command of a more powerful individual who will probably give Oliver Queen and his gang some real problems in the future. This individual is actually revealed in this episode but for the sake of those who still haven't watched it yet, I will not do so.

In this episode Oliver Queen comes face to face with people from his past, hence the title "Three Ghosts". These "ghosts" actually helped Oliver in realizing his real purpose of donning the hood while dealing with some minor problems of his own. This is also the first time some people from the island are actually seen on the "present" setting of Arrow. This is also the episode where Oliver Queen dumps his green eye dye to the Green Arrow mask we all know and love. And whose idea was it for him to change the mask? Watch it.

This one.

Verdict:

With all the exciting twists and turns this episode has shown, I personally would rate this episode 9/10, with a very little room for improvement. Since the beginning of this series CW and Arrow has really stepped it up with every episode, and they have actually stepped up big time for this one. For those who haven't seen Arrow or those who have held back due to recent letdowns in comic based television series, this actually is a show worth viewing.

Entertainment: Amazing Spider-Man 2 Trailer Review

Backed by a few countdown posts and videos in various social media sites, Marvel finally showed the entire world the much awaited trailer for the second installment of the reboot of our friendly neighborhood Spider-man. The Amazing Spider-Man 2, will feature the return of Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spiderman as well as Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy and other similar characters from the first Amazing Spider-Man movie.

For starters, upon watching the early part of the trailer, we can hear Andrew Garfield/Peter Parker say "The more people I try to save, the more enemies I will make". And villains are never out of stock in this movie judging by its trailer. Here we see the emergence of Peter Parker's best friend Harry Osborn played by none other than Dane DeHaan from movies like Kill Your Darlings and Chronicle. But aside from the up and coming Green Goblin, the trailer actually gives us a sneak peek of a couple of villains that will be shown in the movie and possibly in the third installment (if hopefully there will be one).

One notable villain in this movie (or perhaps the main one) is Jamie Foxx's Electro which has been big villain in the Spider-Man world especially in the video games. Another one will be Paul Giamatti's Rhino which will surely be a pain in the rear for our favorite web-slinger. Add Green Goblin to that and a couple more villain suits that can be seen throughout the trailer and boom! You got yourself a very Amazing Spider-Man trailer indeed.

Verdict:
Judging from the 7.6 million views in YouTube, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will surely attract millions of watchers and Spider-Man fanatics worldwide, including me. And if I were to ask, I'm beginning to like Andrew Garfield more as Spider-Man than Toby Maguire (though he held his own in the movies though so, respect). I just hope the movie will be as awesome as its trailer, or even better. And moreover, I hope and really pray that it will somehow tie up to the ongoing Avengers story line as well. What do you think guys? Tell me what you feel and comment below!