This snowboarder is obviously a pro. Tackling this mountain takes a lot of skill. But skill only takes you so far when you catch more air than you bargained for.

The ski slopes used to belong only to skiers. Now, snowboarders are notorious with some skiers. This video is a good example of how they got their bad reputation.

This snowboarder was off to a good start, but it’s not the jump that hurts. What hurts is the horrible landing. Waving his arms like a bird didn’t help much.

You could tell this guy knew he was in trouble as soon as his board left the snow. I wonder how many times he rolled down that hill. He covered more ground after hitting the snow than he did on the way to the ramp.

Proper planning can avoid a lot of wipeouts. It’s important to know what you’re doing before you attempt a snowboard jump. Here’s a basic rule of the snowboard jump: don’t land on your back.

I’m sure this guy’s motivation on this stunt was to impress his friends. His attempt on the rail is impressive, but not for the reasons he intended. He didn’t even have any soft snow to land in.

The quest to impress continues. This guy was even more ambitious on the rail. Unfortunately, that translated to even greater injury.

You can tell this snowboarder is a professional. After a crash like that, not just anyone would get right back up again. He probably knows the right want to crash-land from experience.

This boarder almost pulled of a double backflip. The landing is always the hardest part. Especially when you hit as hard as he did.

Here is a wipeout from the snowboarder’s point of view, courtesy of a helmet mounted camera.

If all of these videos are getting you pumped up to do some wipeouts of your own, at least wipe out the proper way. This video teaches you how to fall safely when snowboarding. No one lands their snowboard jumps every time, so you might as well be prepared.

Solomon Grundy (Faces of Evil tie-in) #1: Pretty decent read, but I was bothered by the “Hulk Smash!” mentality of Solomon Grundy in certain scenes (you’ll know them when you see them).  I don’t really get this whole Faces of Evil thing, but this comic was decent. Mild Recommendation.

Wolverine: Switchback One-Shot: 2 Wolverine stories are featured. I know we get a new Wolvie one-shot every other week or so… which makes it hard for any of them to stand out. This one was no different. An enjoyable read, if you like the darker, killer side of Wolverine. Nothing special by any means, though.

See more comic book related goodness in our comic book reference section.

The rules are simple: Trace the picture, trying to be as accurate as possible, while not running out of either ink or time.

However, the execution of this game is way off the mark. Even a carefully traced attempt results in a relatively low score. There is no forgiveness given for those of us who do not use drafting-grade mouses and trackballs.

Perhaps a sequel will be made one day that is more playable. Until then, I’d stay away from Sketch A Match.

If you’d like to give it a go, you can find it over at Addicting Games.

Also, have a look at our ever-growing flash and java game directory over at 2Frog Games.

Clipped from Atomic Robo: Dogs of War #2

Atomic Robo: Dogs of War #2 of 5

This is a great series. I picked up issue #1 a few weeks ago, having never heard of Atomic Robo. What a refreshing and fun character.  This series is fast-paced, with lots of action and a great sense of fun.

It even manages to keep a sense of realism (related to war), but within it’s lighthearted fantasy context. A real winner from Red 5 comics.

Amazing Spider-Man #572

I can sum up the “Brand New Day” Spider-Man storyline for you in one word: REHASH. Sure, take 20 years of continuity away, then re-write the same stories all over again. Make Norman Osborne the green goblin again.  Yes, we now have Eddie Brock as anti-venom, which is mildly interesting, but this issue was a real downer overall.

Action Comics #869

Part 4 of the Braniac series. This is a good issue from start to finish.  The Braniac story arc is interesting, if paced a little on the slow side. Very little time seems to transpire in this issue, but it has room for a nice conversation between our guy Kal and some long lost relatives, as well as some insight into Braniac’s larger plans.

The Supergirl/Lois scenes were a little predictable, but they worked well as a break in between the Superman/Braniac exchanges.

One request: Cat Grant needs to change. She’s been wearing the same dress for several issues.

Robin #178

The recent Robin storylines have been hit and miss with me, probably due in large part to how this series is obviously geared towards a teenage audience.  However, I have to say this was one of the lamest issues to date.  Too much angst, and Alfred’s usually funny quips missed the mark.

Punisher #62

We are a couple of issues in to the current story arc, and I have to say it’s hard to follow up the previous arc. The first issue of this story seemed to have a lot of potential. It’s still a good, engaging story, but a little less interesting than I had hoped for.

Still, a good read, and the events that unfold in this one keep you guessing.

That’s it for today. Review and research some comic books on the Comic Book Reference Pages

http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/08/blurays_fouryear_surge_starts.php

Blu-ray’s Four-Year Surge Starts Now

By Danny King

Blu-ray discs will outsell standard DVDs in the U.S. by a 3-to-2 margin by 2012 as Blu-ray player prices fall, retailers clear more space for the format and more people use videogame consoles and other devices to watch the high-definition discs, according to a report released this week.

Blu-ray will overtake standard DVDs as the primary form of content software within the next four years, accounting for 61% of the U.S. DVDs sold by 2012, U.K.-based consultant Futuresource says. Such growth will easily outpace that in western Europe, where Blu-ray will account for between 39% and 50% of DVD sales by 2012, according to the report.

In June, trade group Entertainment Merchants Association said U.S. Blu-ray revenue will reach $9.5 billion by 2012.

“Much of the drive behind this increase is coming from growing consumer awareness and falling hardware prices, coupled with PlayStation 3 owners increasingly using their consoles for video playback,” Futuresource analyst Jack Wetherill said in a statement.

With Sony’s Blu-ray format emerging as the victor in the high-definition disc war over Toshiba’s competing HD DVD, such accelerated growth has already begun. Blu-ray’s share of U.S. DVDs sold for best-selling titles will double to as much as 12% by the end of the year, as retailers are likely to drop Blu-ray player prices to as low as $250 by the holiday season, Mr. Wetherill says. Blu-ray disc unit sales this year will jump fivefold from 2007, Futuresource said.

U.S. revenue from Blu-ray sales and rentals for the first half of the year was more than $200 million, representing a 300% jump from a year earlier; that comes despite overall home entertainment spending being little changed at about $10.1 billion, according to data compiled by Video Business magazine and Rentrak.

Blu-ray sell-through market share in France and the U.K. will more than double next year to as much as 6%, according to Mai Hoang, lead analyst in Futuresource’s home video team.