Vir + Light - Loss of Dreams

The boy waits under a star, watching it in awe

To him it's not far.

He can feel her warmth on his skin

Because of her he'll always find north.

His guardian The Fishermen calls out to him;

He says "It's past your bedtime little champion."

The boy never sleeps with ease he'll take any measure 

Just to stay awake awhile longer.

But the boy can barely keep his eyes open. 

So The Fishermen carefully lays him in his hammock.

But the boy is as restless as an ocean wave. 

"I wanna stay awake!" He pleads.

"Why not stay awake in your dreams?" replies The Fishermen.

The boy tells him he can't,

Streams of darkness are the only surprise

When he closes his eyes. 

The Fishermen old and wise

Takes pity on the boy,

For he can never see the wonders

Which flowers from deep within his mind.

If the boy cannot dream in his sleep 

Then The Fishermen shall tell him a tale;

So that he may while awake. 

The tale of a knight The Hero 

Who did not fight for a king ,

But for the sake of others.

He was clad in colours of red and gold,

Biting evil's hand in every corner of the land. 

It captured the boy's imagination,

Becoming his desired vocation.

The Fishermen wished him well,

And watched him drift into an empty shell.

But The Fishermen could tell, 

That the boy's dream was merely lost,

And would only need to be found.

By Daniel Dean Russo

The Crane Fly & It's Web!

The other day, I came across something that made me stop in my tracks and got me periodically thinking. What I saw before me, was a crane fly that had seemingly hung himself, by the remains of a spiders web.

The thing that got me thinking, was how symbolic this scene was. For those of you who are unaware, the crane fly is often referred to (more often through confusion) as a ‘Daddy-Long-Legs.’ The irony in this case, is that a daddy-long-legs would have survived and escaped the web, whereas this fly died. What I’m really getting at here, is that this insect had lived his life deceiving many people (essentially lying about his race) before being killed in this web of lies.

The analogy of the crane fly and the web could so easily be translated to the types of liars and deceivers we have in our world.

Now we’ve all told the odd white lie here and there, to get ourselves out of a situation we’d rather not find ourselves in; but there are people out there who I class as professional liars. These are the kind of people who can’t help themselves but lie and deceive others. It’s more than likely you’ve already come across one of these types of people in your lifetime – and if you haven’t, then you’re bound to sooner or later.

Could we not compare these kind of people to the crane fly who deceive so many with just their appearance? Sooner or later they could all end up in a web of their own lies, or perhaps a trap left behind by a smarter other.

I guess you could say the morale of story is, tell enough lies and you could find yourself trapped or hanged in a very sticky web!

- From The Inquisitive Mind Of Ed

Strangers

The line is blurred between the morning and night

No warning for when tomorrow may come.

The only light you see is the invite for sorrow,

The only colour you know is snow.

The dream is never the same,

In it you endeavour the nightmare.

The ones you knew never stay,

Their remembrance your shackle,

You choose to stray,

Numb to condolence.  

To live is to win;

You’ve no kin.

The only solace is in solitude.

Safety is not a number,

It’s you.

Only you can watch over yourself while you slumber.

Only you can stop the hunger burned in to your stomach like a dagger.

Only you can follow the road away from the aching cries

Only you deserve to wallow,

As you disguise the pain you feel,

By locking away your eyes.

The person you can’t see before you isn’t real,

The two of you aren’t brothers or sisters;

We’re nothing more than strangers.

By Daniel Dean Russo

Vir + Light - The Boy in the Forest

This like most stories is about a boy and a girl,

Its about quite a few in fact.

Our story begins in paradise

But it's abstract affair

Is akin to a nightmare.

Rainfall is all that greets the island

With two peaks.

Fish by the boat load is all those who visit crave above all.

Where its sand was once white and all effulgent

 Its now a sorry sight with violent waves abundant.

It is here and now where a young boy finds solace in the forest,

Kept at bay from joy by his peers that torment in chorus.

An extrovert forced into the role of an introvert,

The boy's nature is to venture.

Turning the palm tress in to climbing frames,

And making the animals take part in his fun and games.

What was once a quite existence,

Must one day become a pursuit for the truth

 spanning across an unordinary distance  

The only fuel; persistence. 

By Daniel Dean Russo

Detective Poetry: Plants in the Pants

Driving through this winding avenue

Slamming the gas on this boiler

Leaving behind a trail of scorch marks and speeding tickets.

SHIT!!!

I nearly hit that lady off her own porch.

  Wait was that a lady? No its a drag queen.

I must still be in that part of town. 

...

Where did they go?

Better ask the nearest daddy-o for the 213,

I pull up beside this teen; 

I catch him like a deer in the head lights

I didn't mean to make the kids voice drop

I just wanted him to lend me an ear. 

He shoves his hand down his pants faster than a sheikh in the west.

64 BIT STREET!

Follow the adventures of a young boy and his best friend through the glitch riddled 64 BIT STREET! 

Retro Glitch: Symphony of the Night Pt. III

Welcome to Retro Glitch, a retrospective of the gaming industry’s most shining moments prior to the advent of DLC, micro transactions and online multiplayer. In this entry we’ll be taking an in depths look at the process and circumstances that led to Konami’s masterpiece Castlevania: Symphony of the Night; as well as its narrative, themes, characters and aftermath.

Fewer Dreamers

London / New York, September 2013

I would sink into a daydream

while I rest on a bench

too old too soon

too young still

I would write I am famous

I would write I am grand

and while a parade marches by

past central park

I would rest my aching back against the stone wall

the lonely wooden bench 

listening to the wind in the trees

I would carve a heart into the wood

with our lovely initials

how they rhyme

on an Autumn day in Manhattan

too many lives gone

the place 

where the dreams go 

has 

fewer dreamers this year

the list too long

words cannot describe what has been lost

I would rest the blade

I would cry

as too young and too soon

you had gone 

and left me here

on this bank

near Central Park

By Zorro Rodriguez 

Яeverse Review from a Different Dimension: DREDD

A quick throwback review from one of my favourite films of last year – DREDD! This is the prequel to Christopher Nolan’s critically acclaimed “Dark Knight” series. Although very different visually, it’s narrative stays dark and serious much like the original trilogy.

Actor Karl Urban plays Batman’s great grandfather - Kenneth Wayne. The story follows a young Kenneth Wayne trying to earn his superhero license. Unfortunately for our young hero, he has no powers and soon becomes the joke of his fellow superhero trainees consisting of Nacho Libre, Mr. Incredible, Blankman, The Blue Raja and their leader The Shoveler.

Lament of Light - Vir + Light Prologue

Light bends, blinds and surrounds
She washes her glow over every kingdom
Her reach knows no bounds
She breaks through every window, 
Cracks through every wall 
And slips through every door.
She wakes you from your pillow,
Moulding your eyes as she sends away the squall
Her devotion is more than you can ever ask for.
She wants nothing more than to glisten on a stream 
To be that sparkle in the corner of your eye
The final glimmer before you dream.
But for all she gives, it's never her own story
You never ask about the girl in white
With hair so bright it blazes with glory.
Hymns of ancient tragedy 
Could never compare to her agony.  
She stands in the middle of your space
Witnessing your coming and going
Weaving like the winds through your mornings, days and nights
She knows every face; she’s been to every place. 
It’s a journey she can never share
For the pain of her plight is too much to bear.
But she's now become numb to the sorrow,
Waiting for the fire that will bring her
Her own tomorrow.

By Daniel Dean Russo

Retro Glitch: Symphony of the Night Pt. II

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

Welcome to Retro Glitch, a retrospective of the gaming industry’s most shining moments prior to the advent of DLC, micro transactions and online multiplayer. In this entry we’ll be taking an in depths look at the process and circumstances that led to Konami’s masterpiece Castlevania: Symphony of the Night; as well as its narrative, themes, characters and aftermath.

Яeverse Review from a Different Dimension: KICK-ASS 2

KICK-ASS 2, not the most appropriate title for a children’s animated film (the number in the title being the most offensive thing to me) but is that any reason to judge it? I’m going to tell you no; despite the name KICK ASS 2 delivers what is one of the most imaginative and charming visuals and narrative since Monsters, Inc.

Detective Poetry: An Eye for a Shoe

I was stood on the corner of the street

Stalking my client's husband like death.

The night was cold,

The kind of cold where you can see your own breath.

A white fog pouring out our mouth

disguising our words.

Seems like everything in life is hidden by something else

A wall, a mist, a hat, a face

Maybe that's the one truth we know about ourselves,

Our nature is to lie.

...

Is Life Just One Big Game...?

Is life just one big game…?

…

Is Earth our console, are our lives the game?

Do we live in possibly the biggest open map; you’ve ever played in or with?

Is education not our boring instruction manual, which we never use once were done with it?

Do we “level-up” and boost our abilities by studying and undergoing various tasks?

Are our siblings the sequels and our children the crappy remakes?

Are our friends not our loyal allies?

Do we not hate our foes like villains?

Are our icons and heroes just better players at this game?

Occasionally we get viruses and become non-functional. Is that our data becoming “Corrupt.”

Surely sleeping is our way of saving the days progress?

Are historic artifacts just really big Easter eggs, to a time we know little about?   

Can money and currency be compared to a points/rewards system?

Wouldn't you agree our points system goes towards our character customization?

Isn't God just another legendary hero from an ancient time?

Could retirement be a stage in our game, where we've finished the story and get to tie up lose ends?

Is every day a new level?

We have an arsenal of Weapons but are they really a necessity in this game to win?

Who’s the final/big boss in your copy? A teacher? A lover? Yourself?

The jobs we undergo, are they not our side-missions? If so, what’s our main goal?

But more importantly… Once we’re out of lives can we hit the re-start button, and start again..?

…

Or is it simply GAME OVER…?

  

- From The Inquisitive Mind Of Ed

Retro Glitch: Symphony of the Night Pt. I

Welcome to Retro Glitch, a retrospective of the gaming industry’s most shining moments prior to the advent of DLC, micro transactions and online multiplayer. In this entry we’ll be taking an in depths look at the process and circumstances that led to Konami’s masterpiece Castlevania: Symphony of the Night; as well as its narrative, themes, characters and aftermath.

Kill the King

His eyes look down at you

You who hath built his kingdom 

You, the pillar holding the roof over his head. 

He, who has only ever know freedom

He, whose greatest achievement is the same as his father's

Their lineage.

We served.

We carried their weight, their debt, their burden, 

We gave more than what they ever deserved.

They have stolen from us, lied to us, preached to us

While we buried our face in to the fire

All for whatever they desire.

But now you are going to kill the King.

There would be no justice in his incarceration.

It would be better to sever his head and take everything, 

You can do this without any hesitation. 

The skin passes through the blade like hot bubbles,

He's neck spills a fiery gold, 

His bowels release precious gems, fine diamonds and sapphire rubble. 

Sink in to the throne, marvel at it's size

before you look it to the eyes of the head you hold. 

By Dean Russo

Яeverse Review from a Different Dimension: Elysium

Elysium. Yet another movie letdown in 2013’s bucket. The films synopsis follows a poor chimney-sweeper named Matt (Played by Matt) in the year 1254, in an interesting and original take, on how we developed into the modern society we live into today. In this movie universe, planet earth is a desolate wasteland and its inhabitants have been divided into two colonies. The first colony struggle to survive in this wasteland, whilst the second live in luxury on a spaceship-like haven; just below the earth’s atmosphere, called Elysium. Matt has one goal - to break into Elysium and cure his Cancer and Aids ridden body, using the medical beds, which can cure any disease known to man.  

Detective Poetry: A Lady of Interest

I was sat at the bar, like I usually would.

Pouring in my regrets like scotch,

Blowing away my worries like smoke

Etching my name in the caramel fudge table.

That's when she came in
Stealing the light in the room,

Shining it in my face like a bad cop.

Яeverse Review from a Different Dimension: Only God Forgives

From the minds of what was easily 2011's only saving grace in the motion picture department; comes Only God Forgives. A film being undeservedly ushered out of our cinemas in order to make room for Hollywood's ever growing roster of disappointments; such as Grown Ups 2 (it has a 2 in the title so we should all know better). Films being released today which so much as resemble something with an artistic merit, are spending about as much time on the screens as a traveler in a south London comprehensive. As unjust as that fact may be; it simply means you'll have to invest in either a DVD/Bluray/iTunes purchase in order to watch it, and watch it you should.

Welcome to Space Lion

You have entered a realm where logic and perception transcend, and imagination is so dense light bends around it. A place free of the contamination that riddles cyber space; a haven for those who would create rather than extinguish. Escape with us in to the stream; that will run in to the wave that shatters the walls built by percentage averages.