Amazing Disappointment: So long, Peter Parker?

Cover for Spider-Man #700 (Photo via spidermancrawlspace.com)

I haven't read Amazing Spider-Man #700 yet, but the crawling was on the wall as the series was leading up to it's final issue. As most of you know (if you don't and care, you can stop reading this post right now), Doctor Octopus has switched bodies with Peter Parker and has been web-slinging around NYC in his place. Pete has been trying to find a way to get his body back as he's fading away in Doc Ock's deteriorating shell. From the rumblings online (and death threats to the Spidey creative team), he does not succeed in getting back to his perpetually youthful body. 

I am not impressed by this turn of events at all. I'll save my final judgement until I've leafed through the $8 book. I cannot understand how they could wipe out one of the most iconic characters/alter egos of all time and let a villain take the keys to Spider-Man's body. This is the lowest point of  Marvel's "Now" relaunch this year. On the flip side, you can never really die in the Marvel and DC Universes.

-Paqman

I Got Key'ed & Peeled (And I LOVED IT!)

image via nycgo.com

I was hanging out with RGD2, Willis Mack, and D-Ny over at The Weatherman's place last Friday.

When I'm with these dudes,  I know there's a chance I'll get exposed to some weird-ass, obscure TV series.....past examples include and The Increasing Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret and Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job.

This night was no exception, as this time they introduced me to "Key & Peele" on Comedy Central.

Get Rich Or Die Ansari

(All photos via  emceezansari.tumblr.com)

Please welcome Emceez Ansari to the webosphere, a brilliant tumblr account that features mashups of hip hop album covers and one of my favorite comedians Aziz Ansari. His face/look kills me when he's on stage and this takes it to the next level of awesome.

Take the jump to see more of these P&B approved gems.

What You Want Me To Do? I'm Sorry! I'm Back...And The Game Has Changed.

(Photo via antiquesweb.org)

It's been a while since I've dropped science in the form of a post. Shit has changed P&B faithful! Let's kick this off the right way: to all of our readers, thanks for hanging in. If you're anything like me you crave fresh information and the blog has been stale for a minute. We have some exciting things coming down the pipe which we will drop on you when the time is right. Please continue to come back and keep that subscription on lock.

NHLPA Beard-a-thon Update: Week 5

image via smr.newswire.ca

As promised, I'm providing an update on my progress in the NHLPA Beardathon.

Just about to enter Week 5, and the beard is coming in real nice right about now.

NHLPA Beard-a-thon: Growing Your Hair Because You Care

image via smr.newswire.ca

Growing a beard during the Stanley Cup Playoffs is a longstanding tradition for both players and fans alike.

This year, you can join in the tradition with some of your favourite players by supporting the NHLPA Beard-a-thon, with proceeds supporting the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

If you're an NHL hockey fan, or simply down with charitable causes (or both), check out the NHLPA Beardathon website  for more information on how you can get behind this great fundraising initiative.

NHLPA members Scott Hartnell, Claude Giroux, Jamal Mayers, Brooks Laich, Brian Elliott, Shea Weber, and Logan Couture are just some of the many players involved.

I'll be dropping my razor and supporting the cause as well.

Check P&B on the regular over the next few weeks .... I'll be posting update pics as my beard progresses.

Watch The Throne Beard!



-Turnbull

A Grandly Electrifying Dining Experience

image via foodjunkiechronicles.com

I am constantly on a mission to find the best bang for my buck when it comes to dining out in the city of Toronto, aka El Toro aka The Big Smoke aka The T-Dot.

This city has made a real name for itself on the North American restaurant scene in recent years. The success of local chefs such as Susur Lee, Jamie Kennedy, and Mark McEwan has helped put Toronto on the map for world-class eats and top-level dining experiences.

So with that said, the latest buzzworthy resto to hit the scene is Grand Electric, a diminutive, 29-seat "taco bar" run by ex-Hoof Cafe chef Colin Tooke, located in the city's Parkdale neighbourhood.

Balls Out: RIM Ex Co-CEO Bails Before 4Q Fiscal 2012 Earnings Announcement

(Photo via wallpapersgalaxy.com)

So much for the Captain going down with the ship. In true Schettino fashion, Balsillie retired from the company he helped to create as it continues to experience its fall from grace. Additionally, Newly minted CEO Heins cleaned up his shop, so we can all say goodbye to the current CTO and COO along with a handful of SVPs and VPs. Keeping with this theme, RIM bid adieu to their profits in the 4th quarter to the tune of a 125 million dollar loss. All in all, a shitty start for Heins who inherited a mess.

Everything comes down to BlackBerry 10, which is slated to hit the market later in 2012. So we're looking at 3 quarters of stale products before the next gen phone comes out (BTW RIM shipped 21% less Blackberrys in the last quarter of their fiscal year. Not good.). I really hope that any new phones they release between now and then will be compatible with the new OS (we all know this is not gonna happen).

RIM is betting the Waterloo on BB 10 and it better pay off. Or else you might buy your Samsung BlackBerry very soon.

-Paqman

Happy 1st Birthday, Paqman&Bull!

Turnbull & Paqman (Photo via us)

Well, it’s a bit of a belated birthday but here we are 1 year later and (hopefully) wiser. 276 posts, over 30,000 pageviews and hundreds of hours spent writing have come to pass. We feel that we're still refining our style to ensure we deliver the best product on the web while focusing on our mission: to be your source for insight on music, sport, and culture.

Comedy Review: Tracy Morgan Is A Sick Mofo (And We Love Him For It)

Yes. He killed it. (Photo via clubzone.com)

Me and the future Mrs. Paqman were waiting on The Turnbulls at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts for the Tracy Morgan stand up show. As we were hanging out, I saw a dude walk through the front doors with a white shirt and an impressive pot belly. I leaned over to Fabs and said "Is that Tracy Morgan?". Before she had a chance to answer, I instinctively yelled out "TRACY!!!!!" while she wooed it up. He looked over briefly and kept walking with his fiancé. He had that look on his face...you know, the signature look he has that just makes you want to laugh. And that was our preview to a great performance.

Instant Karma Got Me: Blackberry Playbook Lost and Found

(Photo via prweb.com)

I'm attending the Canadian Music Week conference for work and had a technology heart attack today. I was hanging out with my boy LC on the Mezzanine level of the Royal York Hotel, catching up on today's news. We left the spot and I accidentally left my Playbook on the bench where we were sitting. I NEVER leave anything behind, especially my beloved tablet.

In Which Radiohead Are Coming To Toronto And I Hate The Chase

(Photo via greenplastic.com)

Radiohead finally announced that they are playing a gig in Toronto and tickets went on sale Friday, March 9th. As of today, there are still tickets available via Ticketmaster for the show at Downsview.

Paradise Found at Jamaica's Tensing Pen

Just returned from a nice caribbean vacation with the wifey. Been to Jamaica several times before, but this was her first visit to the island.

We had to chance to visit several cities while we were there, including Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, and the capital city of Kingston, which is located in the parish of St Andrew.

But there's one particular stop on the trip that I'll focus on for this post: our 3 night stay at Tensing Pen Resort, in the West End area of the beautiful town of Negril.

Dig On Led Zeppelin's "III"

P&B brings you the "Dig On" Classic Album Series.  We'll delve into our vaults to discuss the records that have profoundly impacted our musical tastes.  The albums we present are considered essential to anyone's record collection. In the end, you can't understand the present (or future) until you "Dig On" the past.

(Photo via cat-bluesstuff.blogspot.com)

"I've been working from seven, seven, seven, to eleven every night, 

It kinda makes my life a drag...

Baby, Since I've Been Loving You, I'm about to lose, 

I'm about lose to my worried mind."

- Lyrics from Led Zeppelin's "Since I've Been Loving You"

Led Zeppelin could be the "Dig On" artist for the next 9 post (ok 8...still can't get into "In Through The Out Door"..."Hot Dog"...really??), but I'll focus on "III" for this edition of our continuing series. I can't speak for Turnbull, but Zeppelin deeply influenced my musical tastes and set a standard for all rock music that I listened to following my dive into the band's catalogue. My introduction to "III" came via my uncle, who had an amazing vinyl collection.

Atlanta Reckonerest: Radiohead Live March 1, 2012, As Experienced By Brittany

This series will create a virtual social journal collecting fan experiences as Radiohead tour the United States. Here are their reviews, unedited, and in their own words. The complete series can be found here.

(Photo via @BrittanyBoosh)

Radiohead @ Philips Arena in Atlanta

As experienced by Brittany @BrittanyBoosh

Tampa Bay Reckonerest: Radiohead Live February 29, 2012, As Experienced By Charlotte

This series will create a virtual social journal collecting fan experiences as Radiohead tour the United States. Here are their reviews, unedited, and in their own words. The complete series can be found here.

(Photo via @EarlyApoptosis)

Radiohead @ The Tampa Bay Forum in Tampa Bay

As experienced by Charlotte @EarlyApoptosis

Miami Reckonerist: Radiohead Live February 27, 2012, As Experienced By Steve

This series will create a virtual social journal collecting fan experiences as Radiohead tour the United States. Here are their reviews, unedited, and in their own words. The complete series can be found here.

(Photo via brooklynvegan.com)

Radiohead @ the American Airlines Arena in Miami
As experienced by Steve @marscape

Update - Do Or Die For The Blackberry Playbook: OS 2.0 Features and Release Date

UPDATE: OS 2.0 is available now! Go to settings (cog wheel in top right corner) on your Playbook, select Software Updates and press Check for Updates. The update will appear and should be about 400 MBs.

(Photo via mobilesyrup.com)

Word on the street is that the Blackberry Playbook OS upgrade to 2.0 is coming February 21st at 4:01 a.m. For those of you that own the device (I know I'm not the only one), this is welcome news as a truckload of new features are to be included. This will be newly minted CEO Thorsten Heins first major play and he will need to deliver this new software by the end of February at the latest or face the wrath of every media outlet, Blackberry nation included. As we patiently await its availability, here are the new bells and whistle that will bring the Playbook to the next level (hopefully).

From the RIM press release for OS 2.0:

Saluting Willie O'Ree: The NHL's First Black Player

image via sportsillustrated.com

In honour of Black History Month, P&B would like to pay special tribute to Canada's own Willie O'Ree, known as the "Jackie Robinson of Hockey."

A native of Fredricton, New Brunswick, O'Ree is the first black player to play in the National Hockey League, making his debut with the Boston Bruins on January 18, 1958 in a game against the Montreal Canadiens.

Busted: Michael Jackson VS Ancient Egyptian Sculpture

(Photo kinda via michael-jackson.wikia.com and artknowledgenews.com)

Chicago's Field Museum has a very familiar looking Egyptian bust. The resemblance to the Leader of the Jackson 5 is mind blowing and remarkable. The bust has been part of the permanent collection since 1899 thanks to collector Edward Ayer, who spearheaded the Field Office's foundation.

The statue is dated between 1550 BC to 1050 BC, which is know as the New Kingdom Period, and actually depicts a woman. So the question is: Did the King of Pop get inspired by this artifact for his look? According to the museum, Jackson never passed through the joint and didn't see his Egyptian twin.

Source: artknowledgenews.com

-Paqman