This Hulu.com original web series stars Xander Berkeley( Nikita, 24 ) as a mysterious man who takes meetings in a diner, offering clients literally whatever they wish in exchange for a "task". The task is always challenging and often criminal, but sometimes it's also a challenging act of goodness. And whatever the wish, the man somehow has the power, or authority, to grant it upon completion of "the task". The Man's motives, power and origins are a mystery that is never revealed. So I wouldn't watch in hopes of finding out who or what the mysterious man is, or who he works for. What's more interesting and telling is the lengths people are prepared to go to get what they want, or what they think they want. I cringed as I watched people do, or nearly do, some of the most horrible things to bring about what they most desire. There are some major philosophical and theological ramifications based on who The Man really is and who he works fo...

I'm not a fan of MMOs. I hate the monthly subscription concept. Call me traditional, but I like to pay for a game once, and for that game to be complete. I also dislike the idea of having my play experience spoiled by someone who just feels like anonymously ticking off other people. But if there were ever an MMO I would give a try, it would be DC Universe Online. And when it went free to play, and I suddenly had a new laptop that could run it, I had to give it a go. So here are my first five impressions of the first five hours of gameplay (although I've played WELL over five at this point!) 1. Character creation is a bit narrow and pre-packaged. I could also find no way to examine how your selected powers and skills would advance over time. Functionality of powers isn't that varied. Differences between different attack abilities seem mostly cosmetic. If you've got an idea for a really cool character with a unique mix of powers or skills, you won't be able ...

I'm a huge comic book fan and despite being a far greater DC comics fan, I've enjoyed following The Avengers in the Ultimate Marvel comics universe. Like millions of others, I became very excited when Nick Fury told Tony Stark about "The Avengers Initiative" in that first bonus scene at the end of the first Iron Man movie. But over the years I've learned not to get my hopes up for comic book movies. Despite many really good ones coming out in recent years, I've come to the conclusion that film is not the highest potential expression of the superhero genre. Comic books are, probably followed closely by animation. The limitations of live action productions always leave the most epic superheroes falling short of their true potential. And let's not forget Hollywood's ability to screw up a really good thing. Especially when it comes to superhero flicks that add more and more characters to their stories. The original Batman movie franchise, the Spi...