Friday, June 30, 2017
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Music Claims: A YouTuber's Worst Nightmare
Within the past week, there has been a bit of a controversy going on regarding a game, Starr Mazer: DSP. The composer, Alex Mauer, is going after anybody that is playing the game and using the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) to ensure copyright strikes on YouTube. While this isn't the first for many, this is still a dilemma that worries any channel. Unfortunately, YouTube and Google are a big joke in regards to ID claims and copyright strikes and responding to them. It's led me to think about some of my ID claims on my own channel.
As far as game music goes, I'd say 95 percent of game companies are okay with it. You have to be careful a little bit, though, because games like Grand Theft Auto have licensed music and the worry isn't Rockstar, but groups like Warner and Universal going after you with music copyright issues.
My first YouTube channel, I didn't see any ID claims issues other than one time of playing Medal of Honor Underground for PlayStation. It was some bogus group claiming it, and I was able to dispute it and then no issues after that. When I decided to re-do things from scratch and created the current YouTube channel I use today, I did an entire playthrough of Underground. That was when Adrev for a third party was becoming a common issue for many people. It seemed that almost every video of that game was getting ID claimed because of the music. I'm sure Michael Giacchino doesn't have issues with his game soundtracks being heard on YouTube.
There is an Adrev site, but I don't think they are affiliated with the person that was claiming everything. Unfortunately, YouTube does not put up a fight. I think it has to do with its issues with Viacom, music companies of Warner and Universal, and anybody that is involved in television. Even before all the Adrev stuff, it was almost always automated messages from some moron who has posts that look copy and pasted on Microsoft Word and sent to whatever forum it goes to whenever someone is looking for help.
Since 2014, I haven't had too many issues with ID claims. There was one for Driver, but that was taken cared of. A few Sonic and Knuckles videos was bogus claims, but was resolved. A few Doom PlayStation videos had claims because of its composer Aubrey Hodges being on YouTube, but since then, he has disappeared from the site and no claims from it. Really, I've only had a few that have been on ID claims since 2015 and deleted a video because of another one.
I did a playthrough of the original Super Mario Bros. on NES. I didn't realize after the fact that Nintendo was also going after every game console they have made and games that they completely own. My impression was it was just stuff on Wii, Wii U, 3DS, DS. Maybe even Game Boy Advance. After that, I have stopped any thoughts of doing Nintendo videos. Personally, I don't think it's worth the headache of a channel that has no personal gain in it.
The video I deleted was a tribute to the Sega Genesis back in August of 2014 to celebrate 25 years of the system. At first, it was blocked in a few countries. After that, it was blocked everywhere. The reason was TMS Entertainment. This is the company that made stuff like Little Nemo, Tiny Toon Adventures, and many other Japan made and international cartoons, films, etc... They claimed the music for Star Light Zone from the original Sonic the Hedgehog, which they had no involvement in. Like the Nintendo stuff, this is not worth the headaches, and it leaves me a little concerned about doing the original game. I fear if I upload a playthrough one day, I could wind up with a copyright strike because of a company that had no involvement with a franchise until 2003 (Sonic X) and would be bought in 2005 by Sega Sammy.
That's about it for this blog. Outside of Nintendo and a few other companies, gaming is accepted on YouTube and developers and publishers are okay with it. I wish for the site to get better in dealing with bogus claims, but I doubt that will ever get fixed. Upload at your own risk, then.
As far as game music goes, I'd say 95 percent of game companies are okay with it. You have to be careful a little bit, though, because games like Grand Theft Auto have licensed music and the worry isn't Rockstar, but groups like Warner and Universal going after you with music copyright issues.
My first YouTube channel, I didn't see any ID claims issues other than one time of playing Medal of Honor Underground for PlayStation. It was some bogus group claiming it, and I was able to dispute it and then no issues after that. When I decided to re-do things from scratch and created the current YouTube channel I use today, I did an entire playthrough of Underground. That was when Adrev for a third party was becoming a common issue for many people. It seemed that almost every video of that game was getting ID claimed because of the music. I'm sure Michael Giacchino doesn't have issues with his game soundtracks being heard on YouTube.
There is an Adrev site, but I don't think they are affiliated with the person that was claiming everything. Unfortunately, YouTube does not put up a fight. I think it has to do with its issues with Viacom, music companies of Warner and Universal, and anybody that is involved in television. Even before all the Adrev stuff, it was almost always automated messages from some moron who has posts that look copy and pasted on Microsoft Word and sent to whatever forum it goes to whenever someone is looking for help.
Since 2014, I haven't had too many issues with ID claims. There was one for Driver, but that was taken cared of. A few Sonic and Knuckles videos was bogus claims, but was resolved. A few Doom PlayStation videos had claims because of its composer Aubrey Hodges being on YouTube, but since then, he has disappeared from the site and no claims from it. Really, I've only had a few that have been on ID claims since 2015 and deleted a video because of another one.
I did a playthrough of the original Super Mario Bros. on NES. I didn't realize after the fact that Nintendo was also going after every game console they have made and games that they completely own. My impression was it was just stuff on Wii, Wii U, 3DS, DS. Maybe even Game Boy Advance. After that, I have stopped any thoughts of doing Nintendo videos. Personally, I don't think it's worth the headache of a channel that has no personal gain in it.
The video I deleted was a tribute to the Sega Genesis back in August of 2014 to celebrate 25 years of the system. At first, it was blocked in a few countries. After that, it was blocked everywhere. The reason was TMS Entertainment. This is the company that made stuff like Little Nemo, Tiny Toon Adventures, and many other Japan made and international cartoons, films, etc... They claimed the music for Star Light Zone from the original Sonic the Hedgehog, which they had no involvement in. Like the Nintendo stuff, this is not worth the headaches, and it leaves me a little concerned about doing the original game. I fear if I upload a playthrough one day, I could wind up with a copyright strike because of a company that had no involvement with a franchise until 2003 (Sonic X) and would be bought in 2005 by Sega Sammy.
That's about it for this blog. Outside of Nintendo and a few other companies, gaming is accepted on YouTube and developers and publishers are okay with it. I wish for the site to get better in dealing with bogus claims, but I doubt that will ever get fixed. Upload at your own risk, then.
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
The Simpsons Shorts; Gone Fishin, Skateboarding Reviews
Short #20: Gone Fishin
It's another basic concept for this short. Bart and Homer go fishing and an adventure ensues. I see it as more of a technical achievement, though this is a funny short. Klasky-Csupo was able to show bigger improvements as far as small things like a waterfall and the boat moving in the same shot. There's not much to complain. A little strange Homer being serious about catching fish, but other than that, a hell of a way to end the first month of 1988.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #21: Skateboarding
Another great showcasing by Klasky-Csupo and a great funny short to boot. It shows what makes Bart one of the best characters of the franchise. He is an ass to his sisters and tries to be a show off with his skateboarding. It's cartoon like, but watching Lisa and Maggie best him is worth watching. As far animation goes, the modeling is getting closer, and the neighborhood is a big improvement over some of the earlier shorts like Football. This is a must watch.
Score: 8 out of 10
More kid antics next week. The kids anger Homer in The Pagans, and Bart hides in Closeted.
It's another basic concept for this short. Bart and Homer go fishing and an adventure ensues. I see it as more of a technical achievement, though this is a funny short. Klasky-Csupo was able to show bigger improvements as far as small things like a waterfall and the boat moving in the same shot. There's not much to complain. A little strange Homer being serious about catching fish, but other than that, a hell of a way to end the first month of 1988.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #21: Skateboarding
Another great showcasing by Klasky-Csupo and a great funny short to boot. It shows what makes Bart one of the best characters of the franchise. He is an ass to his sisters and tries to be a show off with his skateboarding. It's cartoon like, but watching Lisa and Maggie best him is worth watching. As far animation goes, the modeling is getting closer, and the neighborhood is a big improvement over some of the earlier shorts like Football. This is a must watch.
Score: 8 out of 10
More kid antics next week. The kids anger Homer in The Pagans, and Bart hides in Closeted.
Friday, June 23, 2017
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
The Simpsons Shorts: Scary Stories, Grandpa and the Kids Reviews
Short #18: Scary Stories
This kind of story is so cliched, this shouldn't be funny. However, it is. It plays on that idea of fear that kids have when they hear about certain things. The writing plays it off very well and gets some good laughs as Bart scares himself and his sisters by telling them scary stories. Groening worked on the idea of what a kid's mind goes through. Overall, a solid short that you wouldn't have thought would be good.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #19: Grandpa and the Kids
This is the first short to feature a recurring character that didn't debut on the show. Hence the title, it's Grampa Abe Simpson. As far as character modeling goes, they got him down right the first time. Not to mention improvements in how the other characters looked as well as the backgrounds. For this one, Abe does sound a little frail compared to his show counterpart and is like a normal grandfather, though with a mischievous side at the end. It'll definitely feel strange the first time you watch it, but you'll appreciate how good of a debut he had.
It is a short that starts slow, but picks up and gets better as it goes on. They hit it on the right cylinders and it shows. A good way to start 1988.
Score: 7 out of 10
Next week is more Bart adventures. He is on a boat with Homer in Gone Fishin, and he shows his sisters lessons in Skateboarding.
This kind of story is so cliched, this shouldn't be funny. However, it is. It plays on that idea of fear that kids have when they hear about certain things. The writing plays it off very well and gets some good laughs as Bart scares himself and his sisters by telling them scary stories. Groening worked on the idea of what a kid's mind goes through. Overall, a solid short that you wouldn't have thought would be good.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #19: Grandpa and the Kids
This is the first short to feature a recurring character that didn't debut on the show. Hence the title, it's Grampa Abe Simpson. As far as character modeling goes, they got him down right the first time. Not to mention improvements in how the other characters looked as well as the backgrounds. For this one, Abe does sound a little frail compared to his show counterpart and is like a normal grandfather, though with a mischievous side at the end. It'll definitely feel strange the first time you watch it, but you'll appreciate how good of a debut he had.
It is a short that starts slow, but picks up and gets better as it goes on. They hit it on the right cylinders and it shows. A good way to start 1988.
Score: 7 out of 10
Next week is more Bart adventures. He is on a boat with Homer in Gone Fishin, and he shows his sisters lessons in Skateboarding.
Friday, June 16, 2017
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
The Simpsons Shorts: World War III, The Perfect Crime Reviews
Short #16: World War III
There was still a fear of the Soviets when this short of The Simpsons debuted in November 1987. It's not one that is funny until the very end as the family reluctantly does Homer's drills. Another thing I would say is that it's weird seeing Homer in charge. If today's version did this, he would injure himself. It's more of a short to look at in a retrospective sense. Back then, countries were fearing the worst when everybody had nuclear weapons. The only other bright spots include better looking and improved parts of the house, as well as small improvements in the character modeling on a few of the Simpson clan.
Score: 6 out of 10
Short #17 The Perfect Crime
Who doesn't want a cookie? Marge bakes up some chocolate chip ones and Bart finds the opportunity to eat them with no one noticing other than Maggie. It's such a mundane concept, but it works so well. This is a great short that showcases the kind of troublemaking Bart does and the attempts at eating the cookies. Lots of laughs all around, there's not a silent moment for this one. A really great short with improvements on the kitchen compared to its first season efforts.
Score: 8 out of 10
Next week's reviews include scary stories and the first appearance of Grampa Abe Simpson.
There was still a fear of the Soviets when this short of The Simpsons debuted in November 1987. It's not one that is funny until the very end as the family reluctantly does Homer's drills. Another thing I would say is that it's weird seeing Homer in charge. If today's version did this, he would injure himself. It's more of a short to look at in a retrospective sense. Back then, countries were fearing the worst when everybody had nuclear weapons. The only other bright spots include better looking and improved parts of the house, as well as small improvements in the character modeling on a few of the Simpson clan.
Score: 6 out of 10
Short #17 The Perfect Crime
Who doesn't want a cookie? Marge bakes up some chocolate chip ones and Bart finds the opportunity to eat them with no one noticing other than Maggie. It's such a mundane concept, but it works so well. This is a great short that showcases the kind of troublemaking Bart does and the attempts at eating the cookies. Lots of laughs all around, there's not a silent moment for this one. A really great short with improvements on the kitchen compared to its first season efforts.
Score: 8 out of 10
Next week's reviews include scary stories and the first appearance of Grampa Abe Simpson.
Friday, June 9, 2017
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
The Simpsons Shorts: Space Patrol, Bart's Haircut Reviews
Short #14: Space Patrol
I'm finding it amazing how much abuse Bart takes in these shorts. He really was the mascot for the Simpson family way before he became huge (or infamous if you are the Bush family). Space Patrol is slapstick with the girls taking advantage of Bart with a vase on top of his head. It works effectively and isn't overly done. Even Maggie gets a few licks at her alien brother. This is a pretty good short that will have you chuckling throughout the entire thing.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #15: Bart's Haircut
Cursing back in 1987 was not a new thing, but to see that in animation would feel strange. Check out The Transformers: The Movie on YouTube for the few curse words they had. For The Simpsons, even with the show, they're not one to push many buttons in that category. Unlike Family Guy and South Park, they don't abuse the concept, even with Bart saying hell in this short and having "Who the hell are you?" as a catchphrase in the show's early days.
Speaking of which, Bart's hair is too long. It's actually been a while since seeing a new location with the barber shop. You can see the improvements on how to make different locations and they did a good job with that and providing humor at Bart's expense. The character modeling on Homer and Marge seems like a small improvement, but it's another step closer to what they would look like on the actual show. Another solid short. Not many chuckles, but they hit them at the right time.
Score: 7 out of 10
Next week's short reviews include Homer readying for nuclear war and Bart's attempts to steal cookies. Read on next Tuesday.
I'm finding it amazing how much abuse Bart takes in these shorts. He really was the mascot for the Simpson family way before he became huge (or infamous if you are the Bush family). Space Patrol is slapstick with the girls taking advantage of Bart with a vase on top of his head. It works effectively and isn't overly done. Even Maggie gets a few licks at her alien brother. This is a pretty good short that will have you chuckling throughout the entire thing.
Score: 7 out of 10
Short #15: Bart's Haircut
Cursing back in 1987 was not a new thing, but to see that in animation would feel strange. Check out The Transformers: The Movie on YouTube for the few curse words they had. For The Simpsons, even with the show, they're not one to push many buttons in that category. Unlike Family Guy and South Park, they don't abuse the concept, even with Bart saying hell in this short and having "Who the hell are you?" as a catchphrase in the show's early days.
Speaking of which, Bart's hair is too long. It's actually been a while since seeing a new location with the barber shop. You can see the improvements on how to make different locations and they did a good job with that and providing humor at Bart's expense. The character modeling on Homer and Marge seems like a small improvement, but it's another step closer to what they would look like on the actual show. Another solid short. Not many chuckles, but they hit them at the right time.
Score: 7 out of 10
Next week's short reviews include Homer readying for nuclear war and Bart's attempts to steal cookies. Read on next Tuesday.
Friday, June 2, 2017
Thursday, June 1, 2017
Wanted: Griffin's Head
It amazes me that people are still pissed about last year's Presidential election. You can tell with all the Jon Stewart type idiots like the unfunny bitch Samantha Bee and unfunny loser Stephen Colbert. Despite my complaints on these two, they look like saints in comparison to what Kathy Griffin did. What she did has got to be one of the lowest things anyone famous could do, even if she isn't an A-list person. Even though I've tried to stray from politics, this is one that can't be ignored as far as entertainment goes.
A quick brief on Griffin, she is a comedian. In the 90s, she appeared as a guest star on sitcoms like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Seinfeld, the latter where she is a pain in Jerry Seinfeld's ass. She has never really had fame and has tried for years to be successful, but nothing has panned out. Now these days, she hosts CNN's New Years with CNN host Anderson Cooper. Now I think she has no career now. Griffin had a photo shoot and did images with a severed bloodied head of President Donald Trump. It lead to a lot of backlash to the point where she issued an apology.
I'm not buying into her apology. It felt very rushed and almost like she had written it in five minutes. She has never been funny. Even with her few appearances on Seinfeld as Sally Weaver, she didn't make me laugh. I don't know what the last thing she has done outside of CNN, but this does seem like an attempt to be back in the limelight. Honestly, I don't know how many times Griffin has had 15 minutes of fame. She is nearing 60 years old in a few years. I think she knows she doesn't have much left to do in her career and will do anything to have her name mentioned.
Did Griffin break the law, though? That's what some news outlets wondered. Unless she deliberately said she wanted Trump dead, no. I don't see her going to jail. However, I do think there has to be serious consequences for this stuff. Sure, comedians like Bee and Colbert say stupid things to their idiot viewers, but so far, they haven't crossed the line... I hope. I would think CNN would fire her from anything she might be involved in, but I wouldn't bet on it.
In the end, I don't know. It feels like a comeback that backfired before it even started. There's a reason Griffin has never been an A-lister, and she continues to prove why. I get this is the case of every President getting made fun of, but this is very low. She should be ashamed and should rethink her priorities.
A quick brief on Griffin, she is a comedian. In the 90s, she appeared as a guest star on sitcoms like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Seinfeld, the latter where she is a pain in Jerry Seinfeld's ass. She has never really had fame and has tried for years to be successful, but nothing has panned out. Now these days, she hosts CNN's New Years with CNN host Anderson Cooper. Now I think she has no career now. Griffin had a photo shoot and did images with a severed bloodied head of President Donald Trump. It lead to a lot of backlash to the point where she issued an apology.
I'm not buying into her apology. It felt very rushed and almost like she had written it in five minutes. She has never been funny. Even with her few appearances on Seinfeld as Sally Weaver, she didn't make me laugh. I don't know what the last thing she has done outside of CNN, but this does seem like an attempt to be back in the limelight. Honestly, I don't know how many times Griffin has had 15 minutes of fame. She is nearing 60 years old in a few years. I think she knows she doesn't have much left to do in her career and will do anything to have her name mentioned.
Did Griffin break the law, though? That's what some news outlets wondered. Unless she deliberately said she wanted Trump dead, no. I don't see her going to jail. However, I do think there has to be serious consequences for this stuff. Sure, comedians like Bee and Colbert say stupid things to their idiot viewers, but so far, they haven't crossed the line... I hope. I would think CNN would fire her from anything she might be involved in, but I wouldn't bet on it.
In the end, I don't know. It feels like a comeback that backfired before it even started. There's a reason Griffin has never been an A-lister, and she continues to prove why. I get this is the case of every President getting made fun of, but this is very low. She should be ashamed and should rethink her priorities.
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