Review Day

There are no spoilers in these reviews.

The Wire, Season Five:
The fifth and final season of The Wire goes out on a high note, tying every aspect of the previous seasons together (even the second season which, to date, has seemed more like a prologue to the third season). At times it feels a little more sensationally dramatic than previous seasons, but this works well since one of the season's themes is media sensationalism. I would definitely recommend the complete series without hesitation.

Final Grade: A-

Waltz for Koop by Koop:
Koop Islands was a fun, quirky jazz CD with some fresh sounds. This album is its precursor and mainly features throwaway combo jazz that is unmemorable. The fact that the CD was over before I had finished lunch is also a major negative point against it.

Final Grade: D+

Terraria:
I know I've talked about this plenty already, but figured I should have an official review for the game as well. Terraria is a mining/building sandbox game with a look and feel from the days of Super Nintendo. Although it's not three-dimensional, it's essentially Minecraft done right -- decent soundtrack, a sense of progression, and a vast catalog of craftable items. Scrolling through the list of crafts when you have a lot of ingredients can be mildly tedious, but I generally spent more time digging and fighting than crafting. I did not try multiplayer, but do appreciate the fact that you can transfer characters and items between worlds, and that your very expensive pickaxe doesn't degrade over time.

Final Grade: B

The Cage by Dirt Poor Robins:
I first heard Love Again on Pandora. While the rest of the album is good, it is not in the same style as that song, which could be a disappointment. The Evanescence-tinged vocals are perfect for the serious "these are the most important songs you'll listen to in our lifetime" genre that Muse also subscribes to. Some songs are better than others, and some songs I deleted as soon as they got annoying.

Final Grade: B-