Book Review: The Hunger Games Trilogy

The Good:

The Hunger Games trilogy sucked me in right from the beginning and had plenty of unexpected twists to keep me interested. Unlike much young-adult literature, there were no gaping plot holes, the characters were consistent, and the characters each had their own unique personalities. The characters were believable enough that it was easy to sympathize with their plights, and I found myself choosing favorites from among them, which shifted from book to book. I appreciated that the author used a dystopian-futuristic setting, but one in which there have not been absurd advances in technology and where people behave in a manner cohesive with reality. The first person narrative was appropriate in driving the fast pace of the story telling and in withholding vital information from the reader to build suspense.


The Bad:

These books are graphic and violent, not to an extreme, but enough that I question marketing them to a young adult audience. Sometimes I felt like the author killed off characters just for the shock value of losing a favorite character or to drive in the anti-war message, more than for driving the plot forward or crafting the story in any useful way.


The Ugly:

Sadly, the third book of the series was a mess. In this book, the author absolutely abuses sleeping, fainting, being knocked out, and being drugged out as a plot device. The main character spent at least as much of the book asleep or otherwise incoherent as she did actually doing anything. Unfortunately, that's not my main complaint with the third book. The worst thing about it is that the author sends the main character and chums off on an adventure in which they overcome all sorts of trials, obstacles, and enemies. The action continues to build and is just about to reach its climax when the author sends the main character into one of her stupors, then reboots the plot, throwing away everything that happened in the last hundred pages. Apparently this was supposed to be a clever plot twist, but it only made me wonder what the point was of all of the hard work and sacrifice if nothing was accomplished and the character didn't grow in any way. Worst of all, the two secondary main characters have no grand finale. They reach the end of their journey at which point they should do something great, then just go away until the epilogue. A terrible way to end what was otherwise an excellent series.


Conclusion:

The first two books in the series were fantastic and are very much worth reading. If you decide to read the third book, only do so for finality, but don't go in expecting a proper conclusion.

P.S. My favorite character was Finnick.

David: The Gatherer

The following blog post may not interest everyone, but it was a special request from Jared, so I am happy to oblige.

Today I will be talking about some of my favorite Magic decks and Magic cards that are currently in the Standard format. Let's start out with my favorite cards from each of the five sets that are currently in Standard:






Zendikar (common):
Journey to Nowhere
Steppe Lynx

Zendikar is my favorite set in Standard because it has so many powerful commons. That's also why I had to choose two favorites in this category. Journey to Nowhere goes in almost every white deck I can put it in. As creature removal it beats almost any other card that has ever been made. Not only will it get rid of creatures of any power and toughness, but it will get rid of a creature of any color, and it will exile it so there can be no graveyard shenanigans. Steppe Lynx, on the other hand, is one of the best common creatures of all time. It might look like a sissy, but it can hold its own against bombs.

Zendikar (uncommon):
Vampire Nighthawk

Flying, deathtouch, lifelink, all in one tight little package. This guy should have been rare.

 Zendikar (rare):
 Arid Mesa

There are plenty of cards that are cooler than Arid Mesa, but few that are more useful. Search my library for a land of either of the two best landfall colors which I can immediately tap for mana, trigger a double landfall, thin my deck by one, all for the cost of one life? Yes please! This card is extremely useful in any Boros (red and white) deck, but borders on ridiculous in Boros Landfall. Goblin Guide and Pyromancer Ascension were runners up for being the most damaging and the most fun rares, but Arid Mesa does so much for so little in so many decks that its economy could not be ignored. This one will be useful long after it has left Standard.

Zendikar (mythic):
Obsidian Fireheart

Maybe not the best mythic ever made, but he wins for having the best reminder text of all time and because I'm just a sucker for burn.

Worldwake (common):
Halimar Depths

A land and a Ponder in one! In most cases it will be identical to playing a land and then a Ponder because you will have one extra card in your hand in the slot Ponder would have occupied instead of filling that slot with the draw from Ponder. The advantage is that it only takes up one slot in your deck and you get to see that one extra card in your opening hand instead of waiting until you draw it. Also, its value improves significantly if you can repeatedly bounce it back to your hand.

Worldwake (uncommon):
Canopy Cover

So much fun with infect.

Worldwake (rare):
Joraga Warcaller

Joraga Warcaller might be in Standard, but it is best used elsewhere, "elsewhere" being an Extended elf tribal deck. I enjoy pairing him with Immaculate Magistrate because things get out of hand really fast and the game usually ends with someone grabbing a calculator to find out just how dead they really are.

Worldwake (mythic):
Admonition Angel

Jace and Avenger of Zendikar are both far more powerful, but Admonition Angel is more fun, oozes flavor, and has some killer art.

Rise of the Eldrazi (common):
Kiln Fiend

I throw this guy into all of my burn-heavy decks. In most situations he will double the effectiveness of your burn spells, but unlike many burn doublers such as Fire Servant and Pyromancer Ascension, Kiln Fiend comes out on turn two and is online turn three (okay, Ascension can do that, but usually doesn't). But why quibble over which card is best at doubling the burn when you can throw them all in the same deck together? Disortion Strike was a close runner up, and incidentally is awesome with Kiln Fiend.

Rise of the Eldrazi (uncommon):
Forked Bolt

In Standard, this is usually the first burn spell I throw into a deck after the ubiquitous Lightning Bolt. This card at best is a two-for-one, and at worst is a Shock, neither of which is shameful. I consider it a better card that Staggershock only because it has a cost of one as opposed to three, which is very important in a burn spell, but I usually wind up running both if I run either.

Rise of the Eldrazi (rare):
Student of Warfare

My favorite leveler (sorry Kargan) and one of the best white weenies around. If you have any leftover mana at the end of your turn, this card is the perfect mana sink. Double-strike makes it one of the best targets for equipment.

Rise of the Eldrazi (mythic):
Linvala, Keeper of Silence

A 3/4 flyer for four mana ain't half bad, shutting down the opponent's activated abilities is crazy. Also, the first mythic I ever opened at a draft (before ROE I wasn't drafting, just playing with friends).

Magic 2011 (common):
Lightning Bolt

Nothing else even comes close.

 
Magic 2011 (uncommon):
Reassembling Skeleton

This might wind up being the only black card in my list. Reassembling Skeleton is awesome because he assures you never run out of blockers, he's a wonderful target for sacrifice effects, and he's just so adorable. Also fun when someone mills him into your graveyard for you.

Magic 2011 (rare):
Mitotic Slime

My token deck loves Mitotic Slime. In that deck he is more powerful broken in pieces than he is if he's kept whole, so he's an automatic four damage per turn since no one will block him. For a mere five mana, you get at least 12 attack damage, so he is very efficient.

Magic 2011 (mythic):
Inferno Titan

Lightning-bolt-on-a-stick!

Scars of Mirrodin (common):
Ichorclaw Myr

Infect at its finest. He's cheap, he's infectious, nobody wants to block him, but everyone has to. This card really should have been uncommon, but I'm glad it's not.

Scars of Mirrodin (uncommon):
Myrsmith

The heart and soul of my myr deck, but overlooked by most opponents until it's too late. The myr tokens pumped out by Myrsmith get most of the same benefits as the other myr, but don't cost nearly as much.

Scars of Mirrodin (rare):
Livewire Lash

Makes for many fun combos in my infect decks. Pairs well with Distortion Strike or Assault Strobe. Tempered Steel is a close runner up for fun in myr decks.

Scars of Mirrodin (mythic):
Molten-Tail Masticore

Repeatable burn and very hard to get rid of. I really like the art as well. I find it's best to wait until turn six to bring him out in order to keep mana open for regeneration.






Here is my current favorite Standard deck assembled from many of my favorite cards. It has a pretty good track record thanks to its high power for such a low mana curve:

David's Boros Landfall

Land
4 Arid Mesa
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Marsh Flats
4 Teetering Peaks
4 Mountain
4 Plains
2 Evolving Wilds

Creatures
4 Steppe Lynx
4 Plated Geopede
4 Goblin Guide
4 Kiln Fiend

Other
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Forked Bolt
3 Staggershock
4 Journey To Nowhere
3 Adventuring Gear

Sideboard
4 Revoke Existence
3 Arrest
3 Ricochet Trap
3 Tunnel Ignus
2 Kor Firewalker


Here is another deck that I have been using quite a bit lately. It's a rather successful deck, but it often wins on turn 3 or 4, which isn't much fun for the opponent. I enjoy it though because it's not a typical infect strategy. This deck will try to pump the infect creatures to get a ton of poison damage through on turns 3 and 4, then it uses Canopy Cover or trample damage to get the remaining poison counters in:

Gangreen

Land
22 Forest

Creatures
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Ichorclaw Myr
4 Blight Mamba
4 Cystbearer
4 Putrefax

Other
4 Vines of Vastwood
4 Primal Bellow
4 Groundswell
4 Canopy Cover
2 Garruk Wildspeaker

Sideboard
3 Asceticism
4 Nature's Claim
4 Autumn's Veil
4 Corpse Cur

The next deck is all about burn and multipliers with blue cards that help to set up the combos needed to win. Fire Servant can be used in place of Pyromancer Ascension:

Disco Inferno

Land
4 Halimar Depths
4 Teetering Peaks
4 Evolving Wilds
4 Terramorphic Expanse
6 Mountain
2 Island

Creatures
4 Kiln Fiend

Other
4 Assault Strobe
4 Burst Lightning
4 Forked Bolt
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Distortion Strike
4 Preordain
4 Foresee
4 Pyromancer Ascension


Finally, here is a myr deck that has been reasonably successful, but is mainly just a ton of fun to play with:

Myrage

Land
24 Plains

Creatures
4 Myrsmith
4 Gold Myr
4 Palladium Myr
4 Myr Galvanizer
4 Darksteel Myr
4 Steel Overseer
2 Myr Battlesphere

Other
4 Journey to Nowhere
4 Tempered Steel
2 Myr Reservoir

The Decade in Moving

January 2011 marks ten years since I left for the MTC. Since then I have lived in many different places and for some reason I have never really settled down. Tara and I are contemplating yet another move in order to get out of Lexington and into one of the surrounding towns where we can hopefully find cheaper rent while moving into a house rather than an apartment. Thinking of moving again has made me realize that the last decade has been pretty crazy for me. Here is a list of all of the places I have lived in the last ten years:

1. Home on Reata rd. in Kennewick, WA: Jan 2001 (the last time I really lived at home)
2. Missionary Training Center in Provo, UT: Jan 2001 - Mar 2001 (bad food with good friends)
3. Marks, Russia: Mar 2001 - Jul 2001 (a small muddy town with friendly babushkas)
4. Ulyanovsk, Russia: Aug 2001 - Sep 2001 (the birthplace of Lenin)
5. Balakovo, Russia: October 2001 (a creepy town with cool church members)
6. Samara, Russia near Kirova Square: Nov 2001 - Dec 2001 (I lived here while working in the mission office)
7. Samara, Russia near the train station: Dec 2001 (great views of the city from this apartment)
8. Samara, Russia near the soccer stadium: Jan 2002 - Feb 2002 (still working in the office)
9. Saratov, Russia: Mar 2002 - Jun 2002 (springtime in Russia was awesome)
10. Samara, Russia in Bezimyanskiy area: Jun 2002 - Dec 2002 (my favorite area)
11. Kennewick, WA and Liberty Lake, WA back and forth: Dec 2003 - Mar 2003 (living and working)
12. Provo, UT at Cinnamon Tree apartments: Apr 2003 - Apr 2004 (roommates with Josh)
13. Rexburg, ID: Apr 2004 - Jul 2004 (this is where I met Tara, roomies with Isaac)
14. St. Petersburg, Moscow, Samara, Ulyanovsk, Marks: Aug 2004 (traveled throughout Russia)
15. Provo, UT at Victoria Place apartments: Sep 2004 - Dec 2004 (Tara and I dated and got engaged)
*Tara and I got married in Dec 2004*
16. Idaho Falls, ID: Jan 2005 - Mar 2005 (we didn't have a clear direction in married life, so we moved to Idaho to be near friends)
17. Columbia, KY at Hartland circle: Mar 2005 - Jul 2005 (moved here to try - and fail - at Nikken)
18. Nampa, ID: Aug 2005 - Dec 2005 (tried my hand at sales, hit rock bottom, then wised up and went back to school)
19. Provo, UT at Parkside apartments: Jan 2006 - Dec 2006 (Tara and I had some really good times and some really dark times here, but being back at school was a very good thing)
20. Provo, UT at the green house on 311 E 200 S: Jan 2007 - Aug 2008 (we still think of this house as home, it was a good time for us and we long to be back in a house)
21. Columbia, KY with Tara's parents: Sep 2008 (time between graduating and getting hired at Lexmark)
22. Lexington, KY at Colt's Run apartments: Oct 2008 - Oct 2009 (working at Lexmark, meh)
23. Columbia, KY with Tara's parents: Oct 2009 - Feb 2009 (laid off from Lexmark, worked on side projects until I found my next job)
24. Lexington, KY on Shoreside dr.: Feb 2009 - Jun 2009 (hired at Savi, yay!)
25. Lexington, KY in our current apartment: Jun 2009 - Present (moved to a larger apartment)

Wow, that's an average of 2.5 moves per year! We're hoping that in a  few years we can get a house and settle down, but first we need to feel that life is more stable and we want to save up a good down payment. Here's hoping the next ten years have more stability than the last ten years.