Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
This week we have Sly from Cop Land by Tom Hodges. I discovered Tom’s art through his DA site. I saw that Tom was going to be drawing live on UStream so I commissioned several sketches which will be posted in the coming weeks. Tom still draws regularly on UStream and it’s always a blast watching him sketch and interacting with the crowd.
Last night UFC on FOX featured what should have been three very good fights. And that’s what they were. Good fights. None rose to greatness, but that happens sometimes. Let’s take a look at them and my predictions:
Demian Maia (15-3) vs Chris Weidman (7-0)
Prediction: Weidman scores the win.
Result: Weidman defeated Maia via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28). Making me 1-0 for the night.
Chael Sonnen (27-11-1) vs Michael Bisping (23-3-0)
Prediction: Bisping in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.
Result: Sonnen defeated Bisping via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) making me 1-1 for the night.
Rashad Evans (21-1-1) vs. Phil Davis (9-0)
Prediction: Evans scores the win.
Result: Evans defeated Davis by Unanimous Decision (50-45,50-45,50-45) making me 2-1 for the night.
Final Thoughts
* Weidman took the fight on 11 days notice and had to lose over 30 pounds to make weight. So I wasn’t shocked when Weidman began to gas out late in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I was surprised that Maia gassed as well. Conditioning could have been the difference in the fight and it wasn’t.
* Hats off to Weidman for taking the fight on short notice and winning!
* I thought Bisping won the fight. By my scoring he won the 1st and 2nd rounds and lost the 3rd. I wasn’t alone in thinking that. Seems that even Sonnen felt it could have gone that way. Unfortunately, the judges felt differently.
* Rashad Evans dominated Phil Davis in every round and every aspect of the fight. Hats off to Sugar Rashad. His next fight is going to be for the title against Jon “Bones” Jones and should be a great battle.
Hey, here’s a recent photo of Sly that was sent to me yesterday from a source that wanted to remain anonymous. That’s an unusual request, so I cleared it with Sly and he was cool with me posting it. And yes, the photo was taken this week. Yes, Sly has found the fountain of youth — and it consists of discipline, diet and time in the gym!
Tonight the UFC on FOX features what should be three very good fights. Let’s take a look at them and my predictions:
Demian Maia (15-3) vs Chris Weidman (7-0)
Thoughts: Maia is the BJJ expert and Weidman is known for his superior grappling. Weidman could be at a disadvantage since he took the fight on two weeks notice and had to drop over 30 pounds. Still , Weidman is favored.
Prediction: Weidman scores the win.
Chael Sonnen (27-11-1) vs Michael Bisping (23-3-0)
Thoughts: This is the fight that I’m most looking to seeing. Sonnen totally dominated Anderson Silva when they fought. Who else do you see doing that? The winner of this fight is supposed to get a shot at Silva and the title. I’d love to see a Sonnen / Silva rematch. Sonnen is going in as a HUGE FAVORITE against Bisping. Although I think that Bisping is under-rated, and everyone is picking Sonnen, I’ve got a crazy feeling that we may be in for a HUGE UPSET.
Prediction: Bisping in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.
Rashad Evans (21-1-1) vs. Phil Davis (9-0)
Thoughts: Evans and Davis are both excellent wrestlers, with perhaps Davis getting the edge. Evans has the better stand-up. The winner of this bout should get a shot at Jon “Bones” Jones and the title.
Prediction: Evans scores the win.
This is the trailer for The Hunter starring Willem Dafoe! It looks interesting, but not as cool as the poster. [And I’m still hoping for a big-screen version of The Hunter by James Byron Huggins starring Sly Stallone.]
There’s a new teaser for The Walking Dead, Season Two online now!
Lance Sawyer makes his second appearance, this time with his riff on Sly as John Rambo from “First Blood.” I’ve been a fan of Lance’s art for a while. Recently I had a chance to purchase a few sketches from him and I could not be happier in how they turned out!
If you’d like to see more of Lance’s art, you can right here.
That’s Vin Diesel on the set and in character as Riddick. I have a lot of hope that his next outing as one of our favorite anti-heroes will be on par with his introduction in Pitch Black. (Although I have to admit if it’s at least as good as Chronicles of Riddick, I’ll still be happy.)
More often than not, when you hear about research on how internet use and computers are changing our lives, there’s a negative spin. Well, here’s a positive piece about 15 Ways the Internet is Changing Our Brains.
Thanks and a tip o’ the mouse pad to Bill Crider for the link.
Did you know that Mick Foley has a new blog? Well, he does. He calls it Countdown to Lockdown and if you’re still reading this, then you should be interested enough to check it out.
We all know that Mick’s an excellent pro wrestler, has mad mic skills, and is a best-selling author [Have a Good Day] so my guess is that his blog is going to be a blast. [And I’d have said that even if Mick didn’t hook me up at Heroes Con.]
So the carnival is coming to town and you’re planning to take your wife, girlfriend or significant other to the midway. Before you go, especially if you’re planning to win some prizes, you should take a couple of minutes to read Beat the Carnies: How to Win 5 Popular State Fair Games.
I love movies. Classics like “Drive” starring James Dean, Eva Marie Saint, Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy, or Fritz Lang’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” or Bruce Lee in “The Matrix” or Blake Lewis’ “The Hangover” with Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Jack Lemmon and that classic Muhammad Ali cameo!
What? Really? You haven’t seen them? You can if you check out Peter Stults‘ Movies from an Alternate Universe.
I’m looking forward to seeing Rampart and not just because of this very well designed poster.
Mike Torrance aka The Krayola Kidd is back from “Paradise Alley” and he brought Sly as Cosmo Carboni with him! I think Mike did an excellent job of capturing Sly from one of his most under-rated movies.
You can see more of Mike’s art at The Daily Sketch with The Krayola Kidd and his Deviant Art site. Mike is available for commissions and his prices are very reasonable.
