Fantastic improvement from previous, good on its own merits.
353380
This is so much better than Galley's last two books.  The difference is stunning, but it's obvious that it's still the same author.  He just worked hard and improved significantly.

I was a little tired of the characters from the previous two books, but I think if the previous two had been written with the quality of this one it would not have been the case.  When Galley is done with these characters and does a new story altogether, his improved writing will serve him very well.  He has earned a spot in my "will buy just to check out the new story" slot, and given how cheap I am that isn't easy to do.

There are some paragraphs in Dead Stars that are simply beautiful.  Some of Galley's descriptions are overmuch or technical without beauty, but there are concise bits in Dead Stars that are just plain good.  Galley paints a vivid picture of the Duchies of Albion as Farden stalks the enemies of his patron.  One scene in particular, an assassination in a rainstorm, was so delightfully murky and dreary that I could almost feel the soaking downpour.

Bottom Line:
 Ben Galley shows remarkable improvement and writes scenes and character arcs that rival some of the works of A-listers with this story.  If all of his books were like this, all of them would be "must reads."  If he writes a similar standalone story, I'll probably buy it and read it.  Cutting this story away from the rest of Emaneska would strengthen it a lot.  As it is, it is a solidly enjoyable offering and boosts the rest of the series simply by existing.

For a complete review with spoilers and some plot analysis, check out the full version on my blog:
[...]

A quick note: Amazon's star ratings are odd.  To them four stars is "I like it."  I consider that to be three stars, but I'm giving it four on here to comply with Amazon's rating system.  To me 1=bad, 2=sub-par but OK, 3=average or good, 4=above average, 5=fantastic.  Dead Stars is average but good.
3695935
Very good,  came with way more features. Definetly worth it!
2516338
The last two seasons were not that great, but this season was definitely an improvement. Some great episodes and truly a great season.
641296
I have tried DMC 3 and 4, and I have to say DMC 5 is my favorite. It is a big improvement for Capcom, a Japanese company, finally willing to hire non-Japaneses. The old DMC are too all two-dimensional and linear. The previous skill upgrade system is a hassle and I found the control a mess. This new one uses the Unreal engine, which makes it 3 dimensionally more acceptable, and the mechanics is a bit better. (Still not quite up to the standards, if you ask me.) The heterogeneous nature of the production team improves the gameplay. Video game industry is evolving at an alarming rate. The Japanese style was great, 20 years ago, but since then many things have changed. It is nice to see finally Capcom is willing to compete on an international scale. This game style is similar to Darksider and Darksider is more mature in terms of mechanics and story.
793248
For the film itself it was certainly a step up from the first film, though that isn't really a difficult feat to pull off. While the first film seems to have fallen into the "So Bad, It's Good" category thanks to its over-the-top acting and poor set pieces, this film has improved in its overall quality into "So Okay, It's Average". It is a better send off to fans of the original tabletop game as it contains many references to canon campaigns and shows that the film makers studied the source material seriously.

Now for the BluRay release.

I can only describe the quality as near-perfection. Every scene has a clarity in picture I've not seen before. It's possible to get a close up so pristine that you are capable of counting every hair in someone's stubble. The picture quality is also vastly superior to the BluRay release of the original film, which actually looks worse because of the picture clarity, allowing CGI imperfections to be more easily noticeable. The same goes for this film as the low-budget CGI effects are not well composed, jerky in animation, and not perfectly integrated into scenes. The sound quality is as good as it can be. The power of uncompressed audio allows for the more extravagant effects such as magic to ring clear through high quality speakers or headphones.

All the special features from the DVD also appear, but in their standard DVD quality. The audio commentary is rather enjoyable as instead of it being the usual Director/Producer/Cast commentary of every other film, it has three of the production team acting as three iconic D&D characters to deliver a commentary Mystery Science Theater 3000-style, citing unique character traits of various classes, D&D lore, and taking plenty of comical jabs at one another, adding an entertainingly enlightening experience.
4482600
I like the revisions they made from the first edition. It was a good game before, but now its even better.
3882519
I don't normally write a 5-star review.  I had one of the previous versions of this machine and it lasted me 10 years.  There are distinct improvements on this model.  However, I'll first note the nits:

Nits:
- the foaming wand on the left side was better on the right.  Now it's in the way of operating the grind basket.
- I liked the previous design that had multiple switches so that it was easier to have the steamer warming up and I could also make espresso without flipping a giant dial from one extreme to the other.
- The grate for the drip-tray is kind of useless for me.  I use a 4oz measuring "glass" and it doesn't fit if I use the stainless grate.  I have permanently stored it away.

Improvements:
- The drip tray is great.  It is easy to clean.  It is easy to remove.  The older model I had was not easy in any way in this regards.
- The new water reservoir is brilliant.  The old one I had used 2 hoses that went down into the tank.  Refilling the tank meant either arguing with those two tentacles, placing the entire unit (UNPLUGGED!) in the sink, or using a pitcher/cup to refill.  This is easy to pull out and reinsert.  I have seen comments here about how difficult it is to seat the tank -- I have not at all found that to be a problem in any way and it does not require above-average force.
- There was an exposed screw on the basket handle on the old model I had.  I immediately noticed they put a housing around it on this model.  I got burned on that screw several times, and now I do not foresee that happening.
- IT MAKES THE SAME GREAT ESPRESSO.  I got my other unit shortly after I returned from Italy, and I loved it.  I loved it for 10 years until it stopped foaming well, and the pressure through the grinds was obviously sub-optimal.  This works great, and I hope to get 10 years out of this one!
4136857
She Wants Revenge fans will be happy to know that the new album is even better than the first one.  While many will say that This is Forever is just more of the same, I personally believe that the beats and sound effects are much improved.  This album has a noticeably faster tempo and the songs are catchier and flow together well.  There really is no bad song in the bunch - other than the unnecessary introduction track - and the length of the album is just right.
1840867
Okay, I was there on Day One when the first AC dropped. I've seen the series highs and lows. Dropped out at Revelations but picked back up at AC3. I lost hope after Unity, not because the game was awful, but the inclusion of micro-transactions, a map that looked liked Trix vomit, and several other annoying elements (lock picking, for one) turned me off. The series has gone through lots of changes, and each game seems to drop certain features/gameplay elements while adding others. This is no exception. They seemed to have learned from Unity, fixing hiccups in gameplay, dropping lock picking, cleaning up the map, amongst other things.

The game has very likable main characters, the soundtrack is solid, and combat has been improved upon. But the inclusion of the grappling hook is by far one of the best gameplay additions. This mechanic allows you to shoot across rooftops rather than having to climb and jump the length of the city. It saves time and, more importantly, you can avoid those frustrating moments of getting stuck when you're simply wanting to jump to another building but for some reason the climbing mechanic wants to do something else...

The inclusion of entering "stealth mode", though, changes the game significantly.  This is a feature that should've been added so many games ago. I feel like I'm back on board for the AC series. If this is the direction they're headed, I'm all aboard.
3324808
You've probably already read the gaming reviews on this, so you know the stats: new Hero system, new items, new classes, no monthly fee, etc.

One of the most important new additions to the game series is the Hero system, where you can customize and have much greater control over your Heroes (upgraded henchmen). I tend to solo a lot, since I rarely have blocks of time or have the patience to deal with other players, so this lets me get an often more competent (you customize their skills) team together. The beauty of this latest Chapter is that it enhances all previous Chapters (Prophecies and Factions): you can use your Heroes in the prior Chapters. This backwards compatibility was quite the bonus to my prior investment, and rewarding loyal players is EXACTLY the right thing to do.

Every Chapter, ArenaNet has upgraded the graphics engine, and Nightfall continues that trend. I know, I know, gameplay > graphics, but this scores on both counts. Graphically, it has spoiled me for many other games, and the art direction and creativity is nothing short of astounding.

As for cons, it isn't quite as casual gamer-friendly as some of the other titles out there, such as City of Heroes. You do need to learn about how skills work, and sometimes you get item drops (there is loot!) that you don't know what to do with. However, if you know how to read, you can just look it up on the 'net.

I've found this latest release to actually be their best one yet, and I'm still debating whether to recommend new players pick up Chapter One (Prophecies) for the storyline or this one for sheer features and streamlined gameply and story. They've truly learned from the previous two Chapters and incorporated the lessons into Nightfall.
563088
Much quicker than the older model, well worth the upgrade.
4613912
Even better than the one I bought a year ago, they've improved on it by adding two release clips on the carrier strap. the new tip is tapered, which looks nice, and the underside of the 'brella is now white, which adds some contrast.
it took a STRONG wind to break the last one, so I'm pretty satisfied.
2556822
Powell's score is a noticeable improvement on the previous two scores, but it still has a few minor flaws which prevent it from being truly great. As a previous reviewer stated, the score works best when viewed with the movie. A select few of the tracks can't quite stand on their own on a purely musical standpoint, but do well as background music for some of the slower scenes in the movie. Others are best listened to in sequence.

However, Powell did succeed in providing two extremely memorable themes: the action-oriented main X-Men theme in "Bathroom Titles" most prominently, which shares similarities with Ottman's score, and the Phoenix theme, which ranges anywhere from a moderate pace with a lighter overtone in "Whirlpool of Love", to a more threatening tone in "Dark Phoenix's Tragedy", to a downright apocalyptic rendition in "Phoenix Rising", a major highlight of the soundtrack. A 3rd theme, present in "The Funeral" and "Angel's Cure" most noticeably, ranges from a fanfare to a romantic/love theme, and complements the other two themes nicely. "The Last Stand" starts out very mellow, but eventually evolves into a collection of all of the themes, and flows from one to the other very well.

There are also several other themes that appear briefly in tracks, mainly a quick theme from 1:19 to 1:43 in "Meet Leech, Then Off to the Lake", a great theme that apparently only appears in that one section unfortunately, but is worth mentioning. There are others just like this one present throughout that give a nice contrast to some of the weaker tracks. For the most part though, the majority of the slower tracks have low women's choir present, supported by percussion accents. If you like that kind of music, you will definitely find something to enjoy here.

Final verdict is that this soundtrack is worth buying just for the main themes, which are awesome, especially if you are not a hardcore fan of soundtrack music. But if you like a lot of slow, dark, ambient music, you will certainly find a lot more to enjoy than others will.
2969442
Another great addition to the Football manger series, lots of improvements on previous editions, some changes more beneficial than others.
2895148
An owner of the lst Kindle (plus the Sony Reader 505), I went out and bought the newest model (and sold the other two on Ebay). Amazon has come out with a much, much nicer device this time around with appreciated improvements over the 1st model. The design is much, much better making the device easier to hold. The buttons have been made smaller, which fixed the large buttons on the lst generation that made the device hard to hold and frustratingly easy to advance the page. The newest model looks like a iPod now, very slick and easy to use. The wireless is now turned on/off in device instead of having a separate switch.

Software improvements have been made to the device as well. The dictionary is now accessible on it's own, instead of only being accessible while in books. The dictionary, change text, and other options are given little unobtrusive pop up screens instead of the old device that would change the screen entirely to get to the dictionary and other options.

The text to speech feature is nice, but really for short sessions. Listening to a robo-voice to long periods might get annoying.

All in all, Amazon has a fantastic job this time around with this device.
3154568
Now this is a Bumblebee that I didn't see coming. Simply put, a tremendous improvement. However I did find one flaw. Read on to see how this Bumblebee kicks the RID version's tailpipe.

Vehicle mode: Bumblebee still transforms into a modified Camaro/Crysler 300 mix. Albeit the new Cybertronian armor. I love his look in vehicle mode without the armor anyway. But the armor adds a more beefed up look as well as putting Bumblebee reasonably in scale with Lazerback. The weapons are pretty darn cool looking. Bumblebee does include a pair of his RID blasters that can still attach to the hood/engine block. Granted this is pretty much the same mold buts it's also just that different too. Parents I would take caution with the spikeyness on the bumpers as they are not made of soft plastic. Unlike the other 3 wave one figures released Bumblebee doesn't have any problem holding together. In fact this version holds together better than the RID version. Rolls great. My last thing about vehicle that is a very minor inconvinience is the metal screws that held the tires on on the rid version is now a plastic snap. Yup the wheels are now being snapped on. Even on Wheeljack.

Transformation is Greatly improved. Well not really improved just a couple more steps added which in my opinion makes up for the simplicity or the RID version.parents you may have to help with the shoulders as the tire well now locks in place to heighten the should spikes. For childeren under 5 this may be confusing.
But yeah Im much happier with this Transformation. Now the only thing that hurts this figure. Is the canopy no longer attaches to his back as the rear windshield no longer folds.

Robot Mode. Bumblebee looks like hes ready to take on the cybertronian equivallent of 300 spartans! I love the new look. The paint is simply awesome. Autobot logo is now present. Bumblebees robot mode is all together just simply awesome. Pretty darn good pose ability, and surprising too with the added missles and such. His blasters can still fit on his arms too. But now he has the option of a crossbow now. I really hope to see this Bumbleebee in Beast Hunters but I know it will probably not happen.

Overall a great great and very cool looking addition. Buy him Now!
4915434
I'm a bit confused by some of the hate for this book, since I thought it was much improved from the previous book. While there are some problems, most notably Ms. Lackey's current practice of inserting pages of previous books into the current book, on the whole it moved the story along quite nicely.
I admit that I, like others, originally thought this would be a trilogy, although "Chronicles" does imply a longer series.  I've adjusted my thinking in that regard, which helped my enjoyment of the book tremendously.  In this installment, we learn Mags' real name and more about his origin, though not all.  Hints are given about Mags' true status--he's apparently important enough to send people looking for him, and for the head of state in his parents' country of origin to take a personal interest.  We also learn more about Karse, specifically how it got the way it was before Solaris and why Vkandis didn't step in sooner--and why Valdemar didn't just go in and perform regime change.  And Ms. Lackey introduces a new Suncat, which is enough for me--love the Suncats.  Secondary characters are moved along as well--the biggest development being between Bear and Lena.
To the problems in the book, besides the previously mention insertions (Ms. Lackey, if you're writing so many books you have to resort to this device, you have this avid fan's permission to slow down.).  I'm still not quite sure of how old Mags is and how long he's been at the Collegium.  Some passages seem to imply that it's been a couple of years, some that this it's been less than a year.  Mags at the start of the first book seemed to be about 11 or 12, in this book he seems to be 15 or 16.  Yes, the mine could have slowed his emotional and physical growth, but Lena seems quite young in the first book as well.  Of course I can assume that was her shyness, and I can just establish in my own mind that Mags was 14 but stunted due to conditions at the mine and that it has been about two and a half years since the first book.  But that's work that should be done by the author, not the reader.  And of course, Ms. Lackey puts in details about everyday Valdemar life, which I enjoy but others may not.
All in all, though, I thought this was a good continuation of the story, and I'm looking forward to the next book.