A lot of Queensryche fans have waited for it -- it is more than worth the wait. Nikki, from the original Operation: MindCrime has done his time and is released upon society. Once manipulated into killing for Dr. X and taking the fall, Nikki wants revenge, and he puts his violent skills to use for his own purpose, now to kill -- of his own freewill -- Dr. X.

"Freheit Overture" is a foreboding instrumental which leads up to Nikki's freedom in "Convict" and once free, Nikki is overwhelmed by the barrage of consumerism and propaganda that had taken over while he was jailed, "I'm American" the first single and video OMC II. A great rock song, really flawless. "One Foot In Hell" finds him on familiar ground with sarcasm and sardonic seething, and even all these years later, remembering even more about all that befell him. "Hostage" is a wicked rock song with stunning guitar work from Wilton, Stone and Jackson, where Nikki is remembers his courtroom disillusionment at the true blindness of justice. "The Hands" (the next single) follows as a kind of power ballad but not with the usual power ballad structuring, just a bit faster than mainstream standard -- a good thing. Nikki's amazed that after everything he has been through he still goes on, something seems to push him on, make him persist. "Speed of Light" finds Pamela Moore reprising her role as Sister Mary for a duet with Geoff Tate where Nikki is either reflecting on what she meant to him, or is perhaps being haunted by her -- and he decides X must die. Rockenfield's drums and Jackson's bass are especially good here. "Signs Say Go" is almost as fast as "The Needle Lies" and Tate hits notes he hasn't hit on record in a decade! Nikki is convinced that his freedom can't be free while Dr. X is alive -- the only way to know how free he is is to see if he can stand up to Dr. X and win, one way or the other...

"Re-Arrange You" finds Nikki stalking Dr. X, relishing the conflict to come. The guitars are frenetic and underneath a string arrangement percolates. "The Chase" finds RONNIE JAMES DIO perfectly cast as Dr. X, as Nikki closes in for the kill. To hear these two vocalists duel, as the characters do so is an amazing piece of aural art most cinematic! "Murderer?" has Nikki wondering what he has accomplished, and Mary haunts him again. Stunning bass work. "Circles" is a sad wisp of a poem, accompanied by mournful and psychotropic-al playing one would usually expect from Steve Hackett's more innovative compositions. "If I could Change It All" finds Tate sharing vocals with Moore again, accompanied by a haunting choral backdrop, which builds into a mescalinear delirium, right into "An Intentional Confrontation" and all I can say here is, imagine somebody arguing with what haunts them. Some mellower strangeness competes with some ripping soloing. Everything Nikki has done, and everything he remains hits him hard. What if...? "Fear City Slide" is the moment of truth (and I'm not telling here)-- ANOTHER amazing, fast-paced, melodic, and especially catchy song. "All The Promises" finds the drums mixed up front for some parts, and then down, acoustic guitar passages here and there, a solo or two, a real non-standard song in structure and perhaps the best duet on the whole album. The lyrics are impassioned and creatively imprecise. One can't be sure what EXACTLY is going on here, but one can't wait to see a live performance of this song.

Overall -- simply a stunning achievement for rock/ prog-rock/ modern music. Jason Slater's production of this album has brought out the best studio recording in the rhythm section since 94. Mike Stone (not-so-new guitarist) has really asserted himself creatively within the band, and one suspects the rest of the band got a second wind somewhere -- it literally SOUNDS like everybody brought a 110% to this. No matter how it charts (not bad so far!) this will be looked classic. An atmospheric album of depth and nuance, as well as ferocity, one will make time to return to for a single sitting listen, often.

While this album is not perfect, it is still a solid four star effort, and I can't imagine how anybody claiming to be a Queensryche fan could give it less. The sound quality is very good, and this IS a verifiable fact, simply listen... Assuming there has been no permanent hearing damge from years of concert going ;) Eddie Jackson has done a stellar job of bringing out some great live sounds. The bass and rhythm of every track is better than most live albums of late. Actually, all six tracks from Tribe which appear on AOL sound better than their studio counterparts.

This is the first time on CD (or DVD) that live versions of "Best I Can" and "Sign Of The Times" are available. Both tracks are peformed well, and I didn't miss DeGarmo on them. The former was superb, and the later was nice to hear because it was admittedly Queensryche's last significant radio hit and one of the good songs from the middling Hear In The Now Frontier album.

Some songs have been changed here. I thought the lyric changes to the acoustic "Roads To Madness" were too didactic and ruined the poetry of the original song. Musically, it was passable. There are anti-war themed songs off The Warning that the band could have done and they would have been relevant without making didactic alterations as they did with "Roads To Madness" -- as well as a number of songs from Rage For Order which would have been suitable.

I was most surprised by the acoustic re-working of "Global Mind" as this was one of my favorite songs from Promised Land, and when I had heard they had done it acoustic, I had no expectation of being able to stomach it, but it quickly won me over. Passionate playing is not always the loudest or the fastest. It is different, not worse. This track is certainly up to the standard they set with the MTV Unplugged stuff they did.

Of the MindCrime songs, "Breaking The Silence" comes off best, and most vital sounding. "The Needle Lies" was a tad slower, and some of the vocals were a bit different, but again not for the worse. If I wanted to hear an exact copy, I would go to the studio album.

A singer's voice IS going to change over the years, and in that instance it is better for the singer to change the song to suit their voice, than to strain for notes they can't hit. Geoff Tate has made changes on a few tracks here, and I have no complaint. He does what works best for the song. That IS what a singer is supposed to do. By the way there is no "total lack" of backing vocals. Some harmonies have been changed, but not for worse. Chris DeGarmo did add something of his own to the backing vocals / harmonies, but at this point I think we "need" him like we need Hear In The Now Frontier: Part Deux.

Some sound advice: it would be a good general idea for a serious listener to have different pre-settings on their system: one for non-remastered discs of 70s and early 80s, one for late 80s and early 90s non-remastered discs, one for re-mastered discs, one for pre-80s live, and another for post 80s live. You just can't listen to everything at the same setting, as not everything is/was recorded the same. Nothing is that uniform.

The overall story arc at work in the CloneWars is great, and the characterization of just about all the main characters is a bit deeper than the first two movies. Anakin's darkness is really explored. These episodes ARE good for that, and the fact that there are things that this bridges from II to III. The story and the pace are fine.

But in all honesty, the animation is subpar, and I fail to see how anyone can compliment this animation. After all the achievements made in the field of animation, stylistically and technologically, this is the best that can be done? The animation for Heavy Metal II: F.A.K.K 2 is far superior, for crying out loud, and from Lucas one would expect that any animated version of his characters would decimate any(every)thing else out there, but it simply doesn't. And there is no excuse -- he has the funds available to bankroll something brilliant. All it seems that has been done here, is that they have put something together that they can get away with.

Which begs the question, how can they get away with this? Do people not have a broader appreciation of what can be done with animation today? Perhaps the target audience are those too young to have any perspective on the field of animation, yet, or those who haven't viewed cartoons since the days when Marvel characters like the Hulk were shown on Saturday mornings leaping through the air without bending legs to jump, and villains snuck down hidden stairways without moving their feet, and military jeeps drove through the desert without their wheels turning.

The character designs are styled like something out of a MAD Magazine parody, which is odd to watch because the story itself is good and integral to the mythology.

Ever since this was shown on The Cartoon Network I have expected SOMEBODY to say something about this visual travesty sooner or later. It bodes ill that no one has. If we are made to wait long enough for a product are our standards supposed to decrease as time passes? That may work on fans of Def Leppard, but fans of Star Wars?!

I am an old fan of Warrior Soul from the first album. This second album was in my cassette (!) walkman a lot of the time the year it came out. It wasn't as musically innovative as their first, or their third even, but lyrically it just seemed to sum up the times as I felt and saw them. Musically, there seemed to be a greater effort at crafting some melody onto the still raucous energy of metal that had some punk attitude to it. Clarke wrote songs as if he actually thought they would make a difference, and I think they did when and if they were heard. "Hero" had the most significant airplay of any Warrior Soul song, and treads the path of the 'power ballad' but with conviction. This was perhaps the closest to mainstream they ever got.

The only weak song here would be "Rocket 88" as it just seems to be an unfocused egotistical rant. The kind of thing Ali might have come up with after he won a fight. Clarke was at his best when he was ranting against, or about, something, and was focused on a condition, on an issue, that affected society. This tune just seems to be a throwaway, perhaps some kind of satire or self-parody. It just seems to bring the album down, which is otherwise great. No one else in metal was doing it quite like this, no one. Not with this level of political rage, and occasionally some genuinely interesting (if you can stand the term) rock-poetry.

To me, Warrior Soul never did a five star album. However, they never did less than what I considered a four star album, and that consistency was maintained for the most part even with occasional line-up changes, throughout the band's existence.

Previous reviewers have said most of what is great about this DVD and the series in general. The Battlestar Galactica film, and the pilot version, were great for their day, at turns dark, and bright. And honestly about half the television episodes were just as great as well, with intermittent episodes of fair to mediocre quality.

SO IF I LIKE THIS SO MUCH... Why the one star only? The sound! In this day and age to buy a DVD, even from the late 70's / early 80s, that is in such a price range, and it only has 1.0 sound. That is simply not acceptable at all. Essentially one is getting a DVD with only VHS sound quality, and then the price you pay is supposedly justified only by the widescreen picture format.

The casting of Connery as an old Arthur was not bad. He was at least effective in the role the script provided him. Julia Ormand was a wonderful Guenivere. And Cross as Maliagaunt was especially great as the villain. I consider him to have stolen the movie outright from the others. I thought Gere was not the right pick for Lancelot, and further, it seemed he merely gave a pay-the-rent type performance.

The movie does get points at least for using as inspiration a source other than Sir Thomas, for a change, in favour of one of Chretien de Troye's tales. The whole of the Maliagaunt kidnaps Guenivere plot was right out of Chretien. It is not without some irony that where it is closest to Chretien, it is best. It does take things in different directions with different characters which seems more whim than artistic decision. The other Arthurian characters are either minimized, or not utilized at all. Maliagaunt is used most effectively, Arthur and Guenivere work fairly well, while Lancelot is just too card-board tragic as scripted. Those are the only characters that get the film time, really.

One of the oddest things about the movie was that they sent Arthur off in a pyre, burned up like a viking! No way the king will "return" after that, thereby killing the nationalistic resonance of the legend.

The visual look of the film is more of a pristine sort of, fantasy look. It isn't very gritty at all, with all the bright costumes, and bright architecture. There seems nothing dirty in the realm. And apparently, in some cases they didn't use real swords, that is, real prop swords even. If one pays attention there is a moment in the climactic battle where Lancelot is holding a sword, then merely a hilt, then his sword reappears again!

This film as far as I know is the only English language film that seems to have taken any inspiration from Chretien (there is a much better adapted French language one, script-wise). It is fairly acceptable for family viewing, (something which, generally, can not be said about EXCALIBUR) the good are fairly good, and the bad are really bad.

Judging from younger relatives, if they can sit through and enjoy Harry Potter, this might not be a bad introduction at least to other realms of fantasy.

The idea of a horror movie being so dull that it put me to sleep, and a restful sleep at that, really surprised me, as I like a lot of different film genres including horror and the variety of horror styles. I will try not to repeat what others have said, but essentially I expected better. If you like The Ring you will love The Grudge? What a lie. I did like The Ring, but I don't care much at all for The Grudge. If I was to give The Ring 4 or 5 stars, I could honestly give The Grudge not much more than 1 star.

A complete viewing of The Grudge later, did convey to me the basic concept and the essentials of the plot which were intriguing enough. I was left thinking what a great concept was in this movie, yet it was portrayed so lifelessly. The scares... Weren't.

Gellar's acting has been better. Pullman's wasn't so bad, but seemed merely workman-like. I think it did so well in the first week or so of initial release to theatres simply because the commercials and trailers were better than the movie they promoted. I do believe that I would likely appreciate much better the original(s) that The Grudge was based on.

I like everything Queensryche has done consider them to be one of the best bands still around. But, this is a weak album in comparison to what has gone before. Many fans who agree, blame Chris DeGarmo, as he was the primary force behind this album, which might be unfair, or accurate. If another band had released this, it may have been given three, or even four stars, but Queensryche has raised the bar so high on themselves. The weakest of songs, lyrically and musically, are those that are composed by Chris DeGarmo alone (except perhaps, Sign, which was good in both ways, and actually gained them some decent airplay locally), while the strongest songs, lyrically or musically, are those he composed with the other band members. Songs written by DeGarmo with singer Geoff Tate, Get A Life, Some People Fly, Saved, You, and especially the near-classic, nearly-unanimous, fan-favorite, spOOL, are very much up to Queensryche standards, lyrically, or musically, or both.

The Tate/Wilton composed, Reach, is a great rocker with some `let off the leash' guitar playing. It is an honest song about living free and the words weave so well with the music it works. The DeGarmo/ Eddie Jackson song, Hit The Black, rocks just as well as, Reach, and makes one wish there were more songs like this here, and that Jackson and Wilton had more input because clearly they come up with great stuff. The Tate/Jackson/DeGarmo composed, Anytime-Anywhere, is a great song to simply rock to, with lyrics that are essentially a list of obsessions for someone's (Tate's?) better-half. Sincere and absurd at the same time, but un-edited honesty comes off that way sometimes in song, and in life.

Why didn't they put Chasing Blue Sky on the album? This sort-of-ballad by Tate and drummer Scott Rockenfield could easily have replaced one of a half dozen songs on here originally, and would have added significantly to the overall feel of the original album. Great to see it on here as a bonus track at least.

Now, if you have the original CD release of HITNF is this worth getting? Yes...

Despite all the criticism there are some good, and even great songs on here, if you don't have it. And if you do have the earlier version, this release is 24-bit remastered (including Chasing Blue Sky) and also included, are three tracks Queensryche did for MTV Unplugged: Silent Lucidity, Killing Words, and, I Will Remember. If you're tired of, Silent Lucidity, due to radio over-play, you owe it to yourself to hear the Unplugged version. Killing, and especially, Remember, are stunningly rendered in acoustic versions.

Solomon Kane is one of Robert E. Howard's many enduring characters from his pulp-career, but not one that has caught on as much as Conan has, or even Kull. In a lot of ways Solomon Kane is more interesting as a character, as he is a Puritan adventurer. This gives Kane many interesting inner-conflicts. Right away, as a Puritan, he has experienced religious persecution, or seen/known others of his denomination persecuted, for their version of faith in God, which was counter to the dominant version of faith in God at that time in history. That could almost be enough, but you also have this aspect of his character which strives to reconcile how to put his faith to practice: he is not about lip-service, or hypocrisy. Can an injustice be allowed to continue, or go unanswered for? No. This is why when a rape-victim dies in his arms the man travels part of Europe, and sails as far as Africa intending to avenge her (as seen in "Red Shadows"). If there is no one, to help those who need it, to deal justice to those beyond the law of the land, to put wrongs to right, then "by God" Solomon Kane will!

The original stories, as done by Howard are classic and they hold up well today. One should keep in mind when Howard was writing about the past, his narritive voice slipped back in time as well. He approximates how people really thought back then. Also, consider that this was long before political correctness, and there was no such thing as "African-American" as a term. Howard tended to use the expression "black" which was thankfully better than a lot of writers and pulp-writers of that day. There are times when the character of Kane comes off as patriarchal, though well intentioned, but this is not to be seen as a reflection of Howard's own views towards women (which was actually very good, some say even advanced, considering his relative isolation and the era he lived), or other races of people, as much as a fairly accurate portrayal of how a lot of people would have behaved/thought at a given point in history portrayed in a story. Popular arm-chair sycophant literary criticism would have everyone believe that the character is the direct extension of the author, but really all that accompishes is to ruin stories that are fiction -- fiction -- and unfairly characterize writers who may be far from anything like the characters they create.

This edition is not bad. But, it could certainly have been better. If you can't find a better edition of Solomon Kane stories this one may do, but there have been better, and there is a hardcover collection being made available very soon.

In the original version, the self-titled EP would have rated 3 stars, to me. In some ways, after all, it was typical of that era (1982/83), as there were some Iron Maiden and Judas Priest inspired moments in the songs. Yet, in others not so typical. The band's musical brashness and intensity shone through. And of course since it led to greater works later on, this EP is a significant testament. When you think of it, these guys were in their late teens then, and though most had played extensively in other bands, Queensryche began, primarily, in a basement and recorded an EP before they had ever played live as a band. Back then, that was something.

It is admittedly my own fault that I am jaded these days towards, Queen Of The Reich, and, The Lady Wore Black. Over the years I have played the songs to death. Queen Of The Reich, comes off kind of cheese-y lyrically, these days, but, The Lady Wore Black, still stands up lyrically, being an especially high-quality song-writing moment for an EP from a band just starting.

What makes this remaster of the EP worth getting, is the number of extra tracks that have been added to the package, which are taken from the "Live In Tokyo" VHS (not otherwise released). Songs such as, Nightrider, and, Blinded, are seldom played in more recent years. Nightrider, is especially cool to hear as a live track with the volume cranked. One recalls lines of dialogue from Mad Max while listening. The live version of, Prophecy, is also quite good, as well as, Road To Madness, in classic form with the original lyrics.

Even if you are a Queensryche fan who has the initial version of the EP on CD, you have to get this anyway. The live tracks include all four EP tracks, Prophecy, and most tracks from The Warning.