A Sneak Peek into AXN Asia's Got Talent

What is "Asia's Got Talent"? "Asia's Got Talent" is the biggest talent competition in the world featuring some of the region's most incredible performing artists as they compete to take home the coveted winning title. It is it set to premiere on 12th March 2015, Thursday at 8.05pm and will be screened on AXN, Starhub TV channel 511.

"Asia's Got Talent" is the 63rd adaptation of the Guinness-World-Record-breaking hit "Got Talent" format created by Simon Cowell's Syco Entertainment and is co-produced by FremantleMedia. It is the most successful reality TV format in history and currently airs in 186 countries.

Hosts Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez

The Philippines-based TV personalities Hosts Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez will be the hosts of AXN "Asia's Got Talent". We witnessed their wit and humour firsthand, so you can be certain that their on-screen charisma will captivate you viewers out there. If Rovilson introducing their sponsor Pantene doesn't crack you up, I don't know what will. 

Dance Trilogy, The Candyman

Who says Singapore has no talents? Look at this group of kids from Dance Trilogy dancing it out on stage. A dance so sweet that it tastes like candy.

Benjamin Kheng from the Sam Willows

I am sure you are familiar with our homebred talents, The Sam Willows. This is Benjamin taking it away with Glasshouse. Just sounds so good, go watch it on youtube. 

Leng Rachanikorn Keawdee, Winner of 2nd Season of Thailand's Got Talent

Since we are talking about Asia having talent, this is one of the winners of Thailand's Got Talent, performing aerial acrobatics and it's simply a treat for all the photographers out there. He just looks way too good on the camera.

Based on all the acts before this, I am sure we can't wait to watch the performances that will be screened but that said, the performances aren't the only reason for watching. The time we have all been waiting for, the four judges!

Introducing the 4 Judges

David Foster, Grammy-winning Canadian musician

Known for his blunt and honest comments, David Foster is the truthful guy out of the four judges. If he says you can't make it, you know you can't but if he says you are good, you know you have the talent to make it big.

Anggun, Indonesian rock icon 

The most pleasant sounding judge out of the four, even a rejection from Anggun can sound sweet. She can be a stickler for certain things, especially when it comes to representation of cultural dances and the like.

Van Ness Wu, Taiwanese-American pop idol and actor

Everyone says that he is the nicest of the four judges. Perhaps it is because he knows what it feels like, after all he's been there and done that in his journey to become an actor. 

Melanie C, UK pop sensation and former Spice Girl

If there's one thing Melanie is looking out for, it is the theater aspect of the performance due to her background and experience. Even she agrees that making it big is about doing the right thing at the right time at the right place.

Judges with the golden buzzer

What's the golden buzzer? Judges have the opportunity to use the golden buzzer that will allow contestants to proceed to the semi-finals.

The Judges of Asia's Got Talent

From thousands for applicants across Asia, the four judges must select the most jaw-dropping, mind-blowing performances and those who advance to the semi-finals will face the AXN audience at home who will determine the winner of the first season of "Asia's Got Talent". Prizes worth up to US $100,000 are at stake, along with the opportunity for the winner to return and perform at Asia's leading entertainment destination.

For us viewers at home, this is one show we need to catch. 

Enjoy Music at your Fingertips with SoundTouch Wi-Fi music system

Don't all of us look forward to returning to our own homes after a day's work, to enjoy the comfort and convenience that awaits us?  One of these conveniences that I can imagine adding to my home is that of an easy to use music system. Who wants to go through the hassle of choosing music when we can have preset channels? I can picture myself kicking off my shoes, wearing on my slippers and dragging my feet to the living room where I look for devices to switch on some music.

Lifestyle Series III Home Entertainment System

Playing music is really as simple as ABC with the SoundTouch Wi-Fi music system. Brought to you by Atlas Sound & Vision together with Bose, this new Wi-Fi system allows music to be played wirelessly and effortlessly throughout the home. Unlike other Wi-Fi music systems, SoundTouch systems are simple, friendly and intuitive, letting you stream music in the easiest way available today, all at the touch of a button.

SoundTouch 30 Wi-Fi Music System

There are six preset channels available for instant listening. The alternative is that you can control everything from the gadget of your choice, be it a phone or a tablet. I find that really convenient and simple. No, I don't need countless remotes lying around and cracking my head over which controls work which system.

SoundTouch App

SoundTouch Controller

You can access many Internet radio stations from around the world, music services, and playlists from your personal library all at your fingertips. SoundTouch systems connect directly to the Internet, so there is no issue with searching for songs online.

On a side note, the system actually looks quite classy and if you are looking to decorate your home with an elegant looking piece of equipment, one that plays music, give SoundTouch some thought. After all, we know that the brand Bose is one that you can count on for quality. Sound wise, the quality of the sound produced is pretty impressive.

SoundTouch Portable Wi-Fi Music System

If you are looking for portable wireless music systems, choose your pick out of these two.

SoundLink Color Bluetooth Speaker & SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker (left to right)

I actually find the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker really good-looking in terms of the design. It looks like an alarm clock. One that is pretty slick and silver. Ok, personal preference but I like it and will probably get one if I am in need of a wireless speaker.

My Take on 'The Taking of Tiger Mountain'

Before I write my review of the movie, I would like my readers to know that this post is not sponsored so anything you hear from me is 100% my opinion.

So here are some things you should know about the movie:

Directed by: TSUI Hark 徐克

Starring : Zhang Hanyu 张涵予, Lin Gengxin林更新, Tong Liya佟丽娅, Tony Leung Ka Fai梁家辉, Yu Nan余 男, Han Geng韩 庚 

Brief Synopsis:

Adapted from the famous Chinese novel "Tracks in the Snowy Forest" set during the civil war era of 1946, when ruthless bandits occupied Northeastern China and threatened the lives of civilians...there. The most powerful bandit of all was Mountain Eagle (Tony LEUNG Ka-fai), with an impenetrable fortress up in Tiger Mountain and armed with strong artillery. Unit 203 of the Liberation Army, led by SHAO (LIN Gengxin), was crossing the Northeastern region when they encountered Eagle's men raiding a village. SHAO decided to stay and fight against Eagle. Headquarters sent a skilled investigator YANG (ZHANG Hanyu), who infiltrated Eagle's gang as an undercover. The duo was soon engaged in a battle of wits with the cold-blooded Eagle, deep inside the snowy forest.

Here is the trailer of the movie:

Ok, let me first start out with my thoughts after seeing the trailer. 

There were some things I didn't really like but of course, there had to be some things which prompted me to want to watch the movie. Well, for me I didn't like the background of the story. The civil war, the setting being China, I will elaborate on why later. I still remember my response to Kenny's question before the movie began, when he asked me what I felt about the trailer. My reply was 'Let's just watch it.'  I am the type of person who doesn't like to watch trailers and read up on movies if I want to watch them because I don't want to know everything about the movie before it even begins.

I like Chinese wuxia flicks and the thing about wuxia flicks is that there is a mix of action, wits and emotions to it and this movie seems to offer that, at least the first two.

When the movie commenced, I found myself lost. For a good reason too. The introduction of the movie began with a modern, present day life scenario and it was kind of like a flashback. When the actual event took place, people were shooting at each other and I didn't know who was from what faction. It was only later that I learned that there were two main factions, the Liberation Army and the Eagle gang. What took me a while to get used to was the accent and the choice of words. Taking place in China, you can imagine their use of Chinese and I had to make sense of the politics going on between the factions.

What really impressed me though was the CG, especially since bullets and explosions aren't very common in Chinese movies. Can you imagine bullets or grenades being thrown and exploding in slow motion? I was told earlier that this was the director's specialty which explains why such scenes were really good.

Shao, the leader of the unit

This is the undercover infiltrating a gang kind of plot, so it is really about Yang's wits and how he survives in the gang. 

Yang, he has the bandit kind of feel

I don't really have anything to comment about the plot, it's quite interesting how events fall in place and I don't want to spoil it for you. The only strange thing I felt was the timing of the attack on the fortress. While Yang was the one who told them when to attack the fortress, during their attack, his identity as an undercover was totally blown and he was unprepared to escape.

The 2nd chief of the bandits, the most devious looking one

The ending of the movie was quite playful I would say. The director suggested another ending for the evil villain which was in my opinion too dramatic. In fact, certain fight scenes were already bordering on exaggeration in some sense. After the attack ended, the audience was taken back to the modern, today setting. I actually think that this flashback technique was poorly used. I guess it was supposed to bring about a comical effect but it is too commonly used in Chinese dramas nowadays and rarely used well.

Overall, the movie is worth the watch if you enjoy wars that involve both action and wits. I certainly enjoyed it. 

Catch it in cinemas on 8th Jan 2015.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Sam's Version

I hope you have enjoyed my previous post about The Story of a Boy and His Watch.

Today I shall endeavour to bring you my version of The Boy Who Cried Wolf.

m.nationalreview.com

So we all know that the original story of the boy who cried wolf was that he eventually lost the trust of the villagers and when a real wolf appeared, he was eaten up or at least that's what I remembered of it.

Bringing you my version, Sam's version.


A long time after, in the 22nd century,

In the modern era where that boy lived, there were plenty of wolves and the wolf hunting business was the most profitable. There were all sorts of boys trying to spot wolves the fastest and they resorted to binoculars, satellite tracking, all forms of technology they could get their hands on, for the sake of earning the trust of the public. Their credibility was important. That was the only way they could get the villagers to hire them and earn a living. There were even those who used telescopes and other strange devices unheard of and there were still villagers willing to employ them.

The original boy who cried wolf survived the wolf's attack when it really struck. While his act of crying wolf was discovered, not everyone heard of this and call it strange but his reputation for crying wolf made him famous.

en.wikipedia.org

As much as there were people who disliked him, he found himself some supporters. As time went by, he upped his game and found himself a guard dog which he bragged about to the villagers and bought them over. Who didn't like dogs?

Especially dogs of this calibre.

io9.com

However with time, he faced a strong competitor. A girl who was well versed in the arts of tracking and hunting wolves. She was well liked by the housewives and fishermen and he hated her.  

tvtropes.org

After weeks of observing her, he learned that she like him, cried wolf way too often and he decided to discredit her by revealing the truth to the public.

He did that and both of them found themselves arguing it out, gaining the attention of the villagers. Some stood on the boy's side, after all he had amassed himself a large number of supporters over the years and the girl's practices were indeed wrong There were those who stood on the girl's side, since they had never liked the boy and were prejudiced against him. The girl did have her reasons for crying wolf, as she had a family to feed, so they reasoned.

So I stop here for a moment. The story has to have an ending right? What do you think should be the ending?

Here's my ending:

Regardless of who was right and who was wrong, the whole village heard the dispute between the boy and the girl and their fame spread throughout the village. As was before (the same which happened to the boy), even though the girl's practices were condemned, she gained more followers over time, unlike what the boy planned. He, however, had achieved enough from this incident. He might not have discredited her but he had certainly gained all the attention he could have ever wanted and once again, has becomed the most popular boy in the wolf hunting business.

afshan-shaik.blogspot.com

So, does it matter at all who cried wolf? I guess you can answer that for yourself.