QUIZ: How Hyped Should You Be For 'Watch the Throne'?

Little by little, news about Jay-Z and Kanye West's upcoming collaborative effort, Watch the Throne, is being released. Over 4th of July weekend the album artwork came out on the same day that pre-orders became available. Then Hova graced us with actual information in the form of an official track listing. This week the first single, Otis, dropped and predictably the internet exploded. There's no official release day (although pre-sale info indicates August 2), which means it could drop at. any. time. Which begs the question, how hyped should you be for this super-secret, collision of rap-icon goodness? Luckily for you, HHCB has assembled this brief quiz to assist you.

1. How many Jay-Z albums do you own?

a) Just one, Best of Both Worlds. (-10)

b) Just one, Reasonable Doubt. (0)

c) One to five (+10)

d) All of them, even Collision Course. (+20)

2. Which is Kanye's best album?

a) The College Dropout (0)

b) 808's & Heartbreak (+3)

c) My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (+10)

d) It's yet to come! (+15)

3. How do you feel about ostentatious displays of wealth?

a) I find it disgusting in a world where so many people have so little. (-15)

b) I'm ambivalent. (0)

c) It's all part of the game! (+6)

d) I'm sorry, what was the question? I couldn't hear you through my diamond-crusted mink earmuffs. (+25)

4. Complete this sentence: The best thing about Kanye is...

a) ...his impeccable fashion sense. (+2)

b) ...you never know what he's going to say next. (+6)

c) ...when he shuts up and makes music. (+4)

d) ...he's a true entertainer. (+8)

5.Complete the analogy, Jay-Z:Kanye::

a) Bert:Ernie (0)

b) Colbert:Stewart (+2)

c) Ben:Jerry (+5)

d) Butch Cassidy:The Sundance Kid (+8)

6. How do you feel about collaboration?

a) Too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup (-10)

b) Two heads are better than one (+10)

7. The best verse on "Monster" was...

a) Yeezy's! (+7)

b) Hova's! (+7)

c) Nicki's! (0)

d) The Teflon Don's! (-14)

8. If Jay-Z was an American president, he would be...

a) Jefferson (+5)

b) Buchanan (-10)

c) Hayes (-2)

d) JFK (+10)

9. Complete this sentence: Hip hop is...

a) ...dead. (-5)

b) ...evolving. (+1)

c) ...past its prime. (-3)

d) ...better than ever! (+15)

10. If Watch the Throne was a superhero movie it would be...

a) Batman Forever (-10)

b) X-Men: The Last Stand (-5)

c) The Incredibles (+5)

d) The Dark Knight Rises (+15)

Now add up your score to determine how hyped you should be for Watch the Throne...

Less than 0 (What is Watch the Throne?): I'm not sure how you got here, or why you decided to take this quiz.

0 - 49 (You are slightly hyped): You seem to have an appreciation for hip hop in general, but aren't too sure about it's current status.

50 - 79 (You are moderately hyped): You are genuinely excited for this album. You may have ordered it on pre-sale, but you have more or less continued to live your life normally.

More than 80 (You are extremely hyped): Congratulations. You have been playing Otis on repeat. Jay-Z and Kanye are your alpha and your omega. You may have one or more Jay-Z or Kanye related tattoos or you might be a member of Yeezy's entourage.

Wu-Tang vs. The Golden Phoenix

HT: Vulture

Terminator Salvation

One of the better trailers last night featured The Batman himself... as John Connor. I'm trying to decide how stoked to get for this movie. It's really a matter of what wins: Christian Bale's superb acting, or the influence of one McG, a man perhaps best known for directing the Charlie's Angels franchise and producing The O.C..

The Dark Knight: The 4am Review

There are a lot of reasons it’s hard to write a review of a movie you just got out of an hour ago. Not the least of which is that it’s tough coming up with original adjectives at 3:40 in the morning. But, luckily I’m not planning on coming up with any grand, innovate analysis of the movie. I can’t dispute much of the buzz already going on.

Heath Ledger turns in an intense and brilliant performance. Christopher Nolan has taken the comic book movie to new heights. Maggie Gyllenhaal is not suited for HD (or whatever type of cinematography they used). Overall, it was a thrilling experience.

What I realized about comic book movies while watching The Dark Knight, and maybe this is true of all incredibly hyped fantasy movies, don’t have to be perfect to be amazing. The dialogue can be filled with clichés. The plot can leave a lot of questions unanswered, or more often than not provide answers that are flimsy. But ultimately, none of this matters.

Movies like The Dark Knight are judged by a different, simpler set of criteria: 1) Does it stay true to the comic (if not the story than the spirit)? 2) Does it show imagination? The Dark Night definitely does both.

Ledger reincarnates The Joker as a rabid dog with a deranged sense of a higher purpose. While Aaron Eckhart’s Harvey Dent/Two-Face is overshadowed, he’s nevertheless outstanding. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman each skillfully reprise their roles as the elder statesmen who seem to endlessly provide one-line wit and wisdom. Meanwhile, through special effects, new gadgets and great cinematography Nolan keeps the action going practically non-stop.

The Dark Knight meets the standards of a great comic book movie and then some. It may even be a great movie by any standards. But in the end, that’s not what matters. A movie like this only has be truly great the first time you watch it.

After what seems like years of hype and anticipation all The Dark Knight had to do was avoid disappointing. Luckily it did. It was truly entertaining. And that’s more than enough to make plenty of moviegoers, including myself, go back for more.

Frank Miller, Batman: Year One

When a summer blockbuster like The Dark Knight comes along you don't just buy a ticket and popcorn and sit your ass down in a some over-air conditioned movie theater. At least not when you've been anticipating a movie the way I have been waiting for this one. With that in mind I ordered Frank Miller's classic revamping of the Batman origin story, Batman: Year One.

The story behind Batman: Year One is simple enough. 50 years had gone by since DC had introduced the world to their caped crusader and they were looking to update the hero (along with Superman and Wonder Woman) in order to maintain his relevance. According to editor Denny O'Neil's introduction this was a tricky task, because Batman's origin story wasn't outdated. It was fine the way it was. So, instead of changing the story they decided to "add depth, complexity and a wider context."

Frank Miller, who wrote the graphic novel but relied on David Mazzucchelli for the artwork, certainly succeed at this goal. Year One retains all the elements of the original Batman story but bathes Gotham City in a fresh coat of grit, vice and corruption.

The result is a story that more realistic than Bob Kane's original vision, but at the same time leaves room for suspension of disbelief. Bruce Wayne punches through brick and kicks over a tree while training. Lt. Gordon cheats on his pregnant wife. The Batman story is made more human, without losing its superhuman qualities.

Batman has always had a very unique appeal as a superhero who has no super powers. Aside from ridiculous amounts of money, he's really just like you and me. Maybe his story didn't need to be redone the way Superman and Wonder Woman's did, but had it not, it's doubtful Christopher Nolan could have created the vision of Batman and Gotham he did in Batman Begins. After reading Year One I could see the traces of Frank Miller's work everywhere in Nolan's.

Now, having revisited Batman's beginnings, I'm ready more than ever for the next cinematic chapter.