Badass baddies. From 10th to 1st.

Having just been linked by my sister to her blog to read her opinion on her top 10 baddie characters from cartoons, I've decided to make my own list, with the only exception to the "cartoon" rule being the plasticine one. But, that is animation which all cartoons fall under.

Without further ado, here is my top ten.

10. Team Rocket
The late 90s evil trio. More often in the later series being comic relief, they were originally ruthless, patronising and actually had pokemon from the original 151. Always trying to capture pikachu or sometimes a pokemon that was the focus of the episode, and seemingly thwarted every time by Ash and being sent "blasting off again" with a finishing *ting*. Worst evil geniuses ever.

9. Bowser
You may be thinking that this is a video game bad guy, BUT, there was a short-lasting tv series about mario and the mushroom people and peach late 80s early 90s. Therefore, he is in my list. Of course, he's been kidnapping the same girl for over 2 decades and still is out done by an Italian plumber (question is, when was the last time that guy plumbed anything? The pipes are clogged with snapping plants!). This can only be because he does not think his plan through, and should really not give power stars back when he's lost a fight; what kind of strategy is that?

8. Venom
Absolutely ruined in the film, but, we're not discussing that here. Venom is originally from space, he get's attached to the hero, spiderman. They fall in love, have a few kids, then WHAM, spidey ditches him at the church tower (please note that this is not to be taken at face value). Venom then spirals out of control with a Mr. Eddie Brock, and they put spidey in heart-pounding situations. Venom later finds that he's pregnant, and gives birth to the bastard child Carnage and my goodness is that a terrifying onslaught of enemies. They both however have this really bad weakness to sonic/ high pitched sounds and this proves only to easy for spiderman to counter the alien onslaught. In the end, venom crashes like jelly.

7. Shere Kahn
Not much I can actually say about this guy. It was a long time ago since I last watched the Jungle Book and all I can really remember is it took several vultures, a boy and even a bear to conquer this tiger. I forget his motives but it was clear he was a challenge to bring down, and it was only when the vultures did something that it happened (I think). Anyway, yeah, Shere Kahn everyone.

6. Clayton

Voiced by the excellent Brian Blessed. This man had a knack for shooting most things and thinking of consequences later, which ultimately brought his demise. He had insane eyes in the thick of the film which just added that extra "OMG BAD GUY!" He also managed to manipulate a "missing link" ape man to show his family home so that he could rake in the gorilla cash. That, is pure genius.

5. Mrs Tweedy
Gotta love her northern accent, really adds spice to her whole character. Her ambitions to turn her husband's farm into a multi-billion company got the better of her though and she couldn't see the fact that, if the chickens can fly, they're not worth keeping. Bullied her husband and had awesome dress sense.

3. General Woundwort

Controlled his warren with an iron fist (paw), similarities to 20th century European/soviet Russian dictators. Was determined to make every rabbit suffer, and didn't seem to fear anything, except for a dumb seagull. This no-fear policy ultimately brought his reign of terror to an end, as he took on a dog in a fight that probably didn't last very long; no one knows. He was seen though easily taking down a rabbit with one lethal bite to the neck. I bet he had a hairball after.

2. The Groke
This purple monster gave me nightmares when I was a wee lad. There was one specific scene where another character walked past her, though we could only see a dark, shadowy figure on the screen. He then noticed her and turns to look at her and there is then an extreme close up of her face showing no emotion, though she was fully capable of just grabbing him then. She was a lonely, misunderstood creature though, who only actually wanted company but froze everything she touched.

1. Feathers McGraw
A penguin that manages to fool the world with his disguise as a chicken. A very subtle difference it was too. Stole a diamond that I am sure is bigger than any diamond the Tower of London possesses and nearly got away with it too, if it wasn't for that clever dog and his dumb owner. The chase scene around the house was just too epic to really not be seen as one of the greatest bad guy/good guy showdowns ever. Nick Park is a plasticine GOD.

So, there you have it. My top 10. Feel free to comment on what you think about this list, and whom you would rather pick.

Maybe I'll do a top 10 good guys list.

Until next time,

Toodles xx

A good thing, a better thing and a crap thing.

Thursdays are the second most looked forward to days in my week, straight after Saturday. It is the first day, before Saturday, where I get a good lie in.

Today, I woke up half an hour after my alarm clock time. Which, at first I thought was bad, but it didn't matter; I got to the bus stop on time. I also, this morning, got the mobile phone I had ordered on Tuesday evening. A nice Samsung C3050 stratus. Purple in colour. I don't particularly like dull colours any more; I've never liked white electricals and black is now EURGH in my view. See how I've grown up?

Anyway, this phone is a lot better than my previous, which had become unreliable; it phoned people when on lock and the battery just seemed to die after 2 minutes. When it was on speaker, it didn't speak. When it was on vibrate, it didn't vibrate and when it was on silent, it worked. What the hell?!

This new phone, though, has a bluetooth that works and is the first phone I've ever had that has the ability to take pictures. I'ma getting hip.

That was the good thing.

The better thing that happened today would be the news that a girl, whom I believed to be dead for over a year, was in fact alive. That didn't make me happy as I thought it would though, as I was quite attached to the girl in question, in fact it made me quite angry for being played for a fool and being quite miserable for a long time in 2009. But knowing she was alive was good and the fact that there was a lot of bad feeling lifted off me was good. I can now be more happy than usual and not feel guilt for having done something to a girl.

The bad thing that happened today, which wasn't exactly bad, but will have bad consequences on Monday, was History today. We didn't have our regular teacher today, she was off ill, instead having another history teacher covering. She left the class letting us "get on with the work" and made us write our names on a sheet to show who was there that lesson and who was not. Halfway through the lesson, when she was not in the room, 3/4 of the class just got up and left to go home early. She managed to catch the stragglers who tried to leave, and then made not of the guys who were left behind. The bad news in all of this, is that when it comes to Monday morning (my least favourite day of the entire week) and Ruth, the regular, returns, I will get earache for being a good boy. I hate shouting.

(I forgot to put a title again)

Today, was uneventful. I woke up at 9 in the morning, the latest I've slept in alllllll week. I had a wash and all that stuff, then I left to catch the bus. It was raining. It was windy. My bike's chain has rusted over. It struggled. I struggled. But I managed to get to the bus stop on time. Wheeeeey. I rode the bus only to Linton, then trudged through torrential rain to the little hair salon. 20 minutes later, I exited the salon with 2 inches less hair. I ventured past one bus stop, thinking that I would get soggy waiting for a bus to be late. I would like to mention now that I was overtaken by some joggers. I walked past a one way turning to see that the bus had driven up that road. This made me run in torrential rain and howling winds to the next stop that I had chosen to go to anyway because it had a roof. I ran uphill, I ran and leaped over puddles. I over took the joggers who were only going at my steady walking speed when I am not harassed by severe weather conditions. I reached the bus shelter. I sheltered. For two minutes. I was that fast.

I got back to my stop and proceeded to make the bike trip home. It wasn't as bad as earlier. The rain had died down. When I got home I had a well deserved shower.

That was pretty much all that happened to me today. Except that I dressed up as a pirate. I had a fun Saturday. In the next couple of weeks the Parks house will be accommodating an 18 year old German student hoping to improve his English. He's staying with the Parks family. There is no hope, there's only certainty. His family is well off according to our family in Germany, and they aren't shy about saying so. They sent us two big parcels yesterday containing delicious German food goodies and Sven, the guy coming to stay, is enthusiastic in buying me a Snooker cue as a gift seeing as I'm a Pool/Snooker enthusiast. He also wants to go to London several times with me, hoping that I will show him the sites of interest, take him to the good shops and all that stuff. I am a foreigner to my capital. I don't know where ANYTHING is. Good thing I can read a map.

Why can't he just want to see Cambridge? ...huh? There is more to Cambridge than just the Grafton and Grand Arcade? Where are all these places that apparently dwell in my City?!

That's all that happened worth telling this time round.

My name is Angus Parks and you've just been told.

Toodles X

There is no title. Only what you wish to be is a title. This makes complete sense.

Last night, being the good little teenager that I am, I went to bed at 9pm. NINE FRICKING PM. Just so I wouldn't be tired come early morning start today. It only became apparent, however, that when I was getting dressed and all those other things I do in the morning, I hadn't packed my bag. This is unusual because I hahahahaHATE preparing my necessary books on the morning of the day. It is a rush and not nice to think about in the mornings. I just want to grab my bag and be out of the house.

That was the first hiccough of the day.

On Saturday I went to Cambridge with my Grandmother to replace my boots because after two months they were already showing signs of falling to pieces, literally to pieces. When we got the money back for these boots (shame, I liked those boots), we went all around the town looking for a replacement pair. We looked in pretty much every shoe shop in Cambridge, and in the end bought a new pair from New Look. These boots, on first sight seemed quite sensible with a punk look to them. Wear them outside on a cold, frosty and still snow ridden landscape however, and you have yourself a death wish. No grip on them what so ever. I only found this out after I got off my bike at the bus stop (where I also found I left my keys to lock the bike at home) and attempted to walk the 50 yards to the bus shelter. I struggled, really, really struggled. When I reached the bus shelter, I checked the bottom of my boots to check if they were caked with ice, only to look up and see the bus coming. I stick my arm out to indicate I want that bus and the drive continues. Right past me.

Thoroughly pissed off, I struggled back to my bike and cycled home. I didn't have enough speed going to get up the little slop of my drive, and had to walk up; again struggling. I changed to my converses and got a lift to Linton, a town further on in the bus route towards Cambridge and my college. I waited 20 minutes for the bus to arrive, and another hour for it to stop and my stop in town.

After this incident though I had a good day. My grandma took my boots to a cobblers and they put on some grip to them, I finished my Media work and I have revised big time for my Biology exam for tomorrow. All this with time to spare to update you [3] all.

I hope you had better starts to your Monday and I spose I shall blog again in a week's time.

Toodles xx

The first one of "20-10"

Happy New Year!

I'm not really one of those people who thinks that a new year is a new start. If it were a new start, you would be relocated, memory erased and given a new family and restored to a baby. Otherwise there would be no way you can have a new start without the past influencing you on your decisions.

Anyways, I wasn't really going to talk about that. Just really update on the college front and weather, as I am a quarter English; I'm allowed to set aside a quarter of this post about weather.

College has got to that stage where I am a real part of the place and have a routine, a place to hang out with friends, lesson buddies and new guys to the friendship group. BUT, the whole thing is being put on hold because of the word every student hates to hear, even more than the work that is done at home (homework xD): exams.

So, really quite basic, I have 4 subjects that I am interested in. I now have to be examined in 3 of them. Chemistry, I find interesting. Hard, but interesting. The subject however is asking me for 1hour 15mins of my time on Thursday next week to answer questions and then a further hour (or more) being practically assessed. Right now, chemistry is my worst enemy.

Biology is asking for the same amount of time from me to answer questions, next Tuesday. A bit easier than Chemistry. It's less equations and more logic. I can do that. The revision though is more for the benefit of getting a good mark, which I am aiming for.

History. Ah, history. I had a really good feeling about history; up until the last week of term before Christmas and quite specifically, today. On the first day back from the holidays I was given the great opportunity to have a timed mock in history class. I am normally quite good at doing history essays. I just found out though that I am rubbish with time and I think I only just scraped a pass grade. Joy. My handwriting speed has declined since secondary school.

Fortunately Media requires less of my time as it is more hands on in getting an overall grade. 75% of my final grade, I think, comes from practical coursework. That just means making videos with friends and making it seem really professional. I'm not one to blow my own trumpet, but I am quite darn good at making videos look BBC style. A job in that department looks quite likely.

The weather has finally decided we need snow again. Not a lot, but enough for me to go home early today and take some time aside to write this blog. I don't particularly feel like filling up a quarter of this blog with weather now, my fingers are feeling quite blogged out, so I shall speak more some other time.

Maybe not though, I might try and decapitate myself with my fountain pen during a history exam.

In which case my sister shall keep this blog going xD

Toodles xx