<p>I came to this show really late.  I knew it would be my kind of show but for some reason I just never got around to watching it.  I finally rented the first season back in September and I am so glad I did.  The show sucked me in and I haven't been able to stop watching it.  At this very moment I'm downloading the 4th season so I can be all caught up for January.  And I still have to watch Razor.  <br /> Since I was able to watch three full seasons back to back with no breaks, I probably experienced it a bit different than those who have been with the show since the beginning.  Either way, it is a show that I feel has been solid all the way through.  Sure there might have been a slow episode here and there but it never bored me and I always wanted to watch the next.  <br /> The finale of the third season was probably one of my favorite season finales of any television show I've seen.  The reveal of the 4 cylons at the end with All Along the Watchtower in the background gave me goosebumps.  I can't wait to watch the next ten episodes and be ready for the final set in January.  </p>

<p>I'm completely engrossed in the Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin at the moment and very thankful to my friend who recommended it to me.&nbsp; I should finish the 3rd book Storm of Swords today and Feast of Crows is waiting on my dresser.&nbsp; The fact that HBO is planning a series around this maked it even more exciting to read.&nbsp; The way Martin weaves such an engaging story with so many key players, and plot twists and surprises is amazing.&nbsp; What I&nbsp;love too is that no character is safe in this series which makes it all the more exciting because you never know when your favorite characters might killed off.&nbsp; I&nbsp;highly recommend this series to anyone.&nbsp; Well, except for kids seeing as it is teeming with violence, language, and sex.&nbsp; It is definitely a series for adults.&nbsp; And don't assume it's a big fantasy series either.&nbsp; There are definitely some fantasy elements but they come in small doses but when the do come it usually has a big impact on the story.&nbsp; Read these books, you'll be thankful you did.</p>

<p>That sounds great.&nbsp; A whole new character and storyline is much more than I&nbsp;thought we would get.&nbsp; I still haven't even beaten Niko's story.&nbsp; I'll have to get back to it but there are so many great games out now I'm not sure I will.&nbsp; GTA was great but I&nbsp;just found I&nbsp;wasn't having as much fun as I&nbsp;should have been having.&nbsp; Having to drive back to a mission start everytime you failed one got boring real fast.&nbsp; And the whole taking out your friends on dates was so stupid.&nbsp; I'm sure I'll go back to it at some point before the DLC&nbsp;comes out but not until I&nbsp;beat Fable, Gears of War, and&nbsp;Fallout.</p>

<p>I&nbsp;dowloaded Fable 2 to the HD last night and it was so sweet not to hear the disc spinning so much.&nbsp; I never thought the noise was that loud but now that it's gone I&nbsp;realize it was really noisy.&nbsp; I'm going to get some fans for my component rack soon so that should cut down on noise even more.&nbsp; I got nervous for a second though when halfway through the download it gave me an error.&nbsp; But I&nbsp;just had to clean the disc a little and it went fine. </p>

<p>Dowloaded it this morning.  It is definitely sexier and easier to navigate than the previous system.  I especially enjoyed creating my avatar.  I'll have to get my wife to make one for herself.  Sure it's a take off from the Miis but who cares.  Imitation is the highest form of flattery.  And Microsoft of course did it better.  It will be fun to keep customizing your avatar's appearance as more clothing and accesories are released.  Hopefully some stuff will be attached to achievements and such so you can show them off on your avatar.  And you will be able to use the avatars in games designed for it.  So far all I've heard of is the new Scene It and the live game shows like 1 vs 100 once that feature is released next spring.  But I'm sure it's something many more games will start to incorporate.</p><br /> <p />I'm definitely happy about the download to the harddrive feature.  That is the reason I'm buying a bigger drive.  The xbox is fracking loud and it will be wonderful not to hear that disc spinning all the time.  Since Hanso mentioned the PS3, I find that after about 30 minutes of watching a movie it's fan kicks in and makes an aweful lot of noise as well.</p><br /> <p />The party feature is actually a great thing but only for playing games.  It sucked going from being able to have a 4 person private chat within a game on the Xbox to not having that feature on the 360.  Now it is improved to 8 people.   And really, who is going to be having a photo party over live?  Oooh, let's all get together and share photos.  Lame!  Wait a minute, now that I think about it, I see naughty things happening with that feature.  I think a lot of teenagers will enjoy sharing "photos"</p><br /> <p />And of course since I'm in Canada I can't even enjoy the coolest feature, namely Netflix.  Hopefully Xbox up here gets there isht together and offers us some sort of video on demand service other than our already lame selection on Marketplace.</p><br /> <p />All in all it's a good change and freshens things up for the next half of the 360's life cycle.  Because I'm sure by next year we'll be hearing whispers of the next Xbox.</p><br /> <p /> </p>

<p>I'm reading the third book to this series right now and I can't wait to see this on television.&nbsp; I'm glad it will be a series and not a movie and HBO is the best channel to handle this.&nbsp; It could be a lot like Rome, a show I&nbsp;miss a lot,&nbsp; if it is done the right way.&nbsp;&nbsp; There are so many characters and twists&nbsp; and the world is so vast in these books that only a television series could encompass it all.&nbsp; Hopefully they do one season for each book.&nbsp; </p> <p>If you haven't read these I highly recommend them.&nbsp; They are basically about seven different factions fighting to rule one large kindgom with just enough magic, dragons, and undead to make it interesting. &nbsp; Granted, with so many characters it is sometimes hard to keep the many changing alliances and betrayals straight.&nbsp; But that is what makes it such compelling reading. Martin also tells the stories in such an intrigueing way.&nbsp; Each chapter follows one of 7 or 8 different characters throughout the books.&nbsp; The main characters are followed throughout all the books but in each one he adds one or two new perspectives and you get to learn more about characters that used to be in the background.&nbsp; It will be interesting to see how this is handled on television.&nbsp; It seems to me like it will have to be a little bit like Lost or Heroes, since they are both ensemble casts with many characters that need screen time.&nbsp; Also, in the books, many of the characters are children, and since this is much like mideviel times they have sex and lead armies into battle and such.&nbsp; So I'm thinking they will probably increase the age of the younger characters to make it not so wierd.&nbsp; Kind of like they switched out the one kid in Rome for an older actor once he had to start being Ceaser.&nbsp; Guess we'll have to wait and see</p> <p>The potential for this series is great and I'm really looking forward to seeing this begin.&nbsp; If you like reading definitely pick up these monster long books.&nbsp; I'm sure the series won't be able to touch on half of what is in the books so reading them beforehand will make the tv show that much more compelling. </p>

<p>Crichton is my favorite author and I&nbsp;will definitely miss reading new books from him.&nbsp; It's too bad his most recent novel was probably one of his worst in my opinion.&nbsp; Hopefully they release the book he was working on when he got sick.&nbsp; </p> <p>I completely agree with you DarthDuck.&nbsp; I too read Jurassic Park in 5th grade and have been a voracious reader ever since.&nbsp; &nbsp;I really hope we at least get some new QUALITY movie adaptations from some of the books that haven't been made films in the future.</p>

<p>I&nbsp;can put your fears to rest Whiskey and tell you that the scene you mentioned definitely occurs in the film.&nbsp; The entire scene plays a tiny bit differently than the book but the main action is all there.&nbsp; They would have been crazy to make a change that drastic.&nbsp; Although I&nbsp;did read at one point before they decided to split up Deathly Hallows that they were actually thinking of removing the entire hallows plot from the film.&nbsp; That would have been retarded.</p>

<p>It's too bad it leaked and showed so much of the climax.&nbsp; Dumbledore in the fire is pretty much the coolest thing he does in this installment&nbsp; and they show it in the trailer?&nbsp; I'll never understand teasers that show so much.&nbsp; I've seen the beginning and end of the film and that scene is the climax of the whole movie.&nbsp; Especially since they cut out the small battle in Hogwarts after Dumbledore's demise.&nbsp; </p> <p>And if you guys think you are pissed about the delay of the film I'm doubly pissed.&nbsp; My job at Imax converting the film to 3D got put on hold because with all the extra time they have they are taking their sweet ass time locking the print.&nbsp; At least it will benefit the film as a whole but I need money!&nbsp; </p>

<p>I have to disagree with everyone so far and definitely say Xbox 360.</p><br /> <p />I'll start by saying that I too have all 3 systems and am not biased by any fanboyism to any one console.  In saying that, the console I find myself playing the most by far is the Xbox 360.  If great games is what you are looking for then the Xbox is the console for you.  All I ever use my PS3 for is to watch BluRay movies.  There has not been one game so far to come out for the PS3 that I have wanted to play.  Little Big Planet may just be the first to pique my interest enough to by.  Whereas I have played a multitude of amazing titles on the 360 since it's release.  Game exclusivity is a big factor and PS3 used to have a leg up on the Xbox but  most of its previously exclusive titles are all moving to the 360 including Resident Evil, Final Fantasy, and there are rumors of Metal Gear coming out on the 360 as well.  Add to that Microsoft's great exclusives, all the existing and upcoming Halo titles, Gears of War, Fable 2, Mass Effect, Ninja Gaiden and so many more (check out full lists on Wikipedia), as well as Xbox Live aracade, the new Xbox Primetime feature (delayed until next spring), and there is no doubt that a better gaming experience exists on the 360.  </p><br /> <p />The better online experience as well has to go to the Xbox.  Yes you have to pay fifty bucks but it is completely worth it.  Sure, Home sounds cool but we've been waiting a while for that.  And what good is free online play when the games to play aren't really that great?  Microsoft pioneered the online console system with Xbox Live.  They've been doing it longer and the PS3 is just playing catch up.   One plus for the PS3 with it's online capabilities is surfing the internet but I honestly rarely use it.  It's much easier to walk to the next room and use my PC.</p><br /> <p />I'm not sure why sportswarrior called the 360 a bare bones console when it too is a multimedia platform.  You can stream music and videos from your media PC,  You can rent HD movies.  You can download content and games.  The only downside is lack of Blu Ray but you've got that covered so who cares how good a player the PS3 is in your case.  </p><br /> <p />All in all, if you are looking to play the most great games possible with one console, go for the Xbox.  Sure you might miss out on the exclusives the PS3 has left but in my opinion you'll be giving up way more if you don't get the Xbox360.</p><br /> <p />The choice is yours!</p>