The James Logan Courier

By Rick Bentley
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

Ron Moore helped take a rather cheesy old TV series called "Battlestar Galactica" (1978-79) and make it something special.

As co-executive producer and writer of the current series on the Sci Fi Channel, he gave the show depth through a rich and often complicated mythology and a more serious style in the stories.

Four years and 71 episodes later, "Battlestar Galactica" has picked up two Emmys and a prestigious Peabody Award, akin to a Pulitzer Prize for broadcasting. Viewers have made a cable hit out of the story of a group of human survivors of a space war trying to find a place called Earth after their planets were destroyed.

By Brandie Moore, Courier Daily Editor

The first book to Cornelia Funke's popular series InkHeart comes to life on the big screen this week.

Many people have been entranced by this incredible book and its brave and courageous characters. Now all the fans who fell in love with Mortimer Folchart and Meggie Folchart and the journey they take have a chance to see on the big screen what they have read so much about.

This book/movie is about a young girl and her father who have to fight against fairytale creatures. Mortimer Folchart was born with a very special gift, whenever he reads a book out loud the story comes to life. But is this really a gift of a curse?

Warning: Plot Spoilers Ahead!

By Brandie Moore, Courier Daily Editor
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Here we head to book 4 of Circle of Three. Book four is centered around Annie. In this book we learn more about Annie and what she brings to our story. All we really know about Annie to this point is that her parents died when she was young and she lives now with her aunt and little sister.

By Jessica Stewart, Courier Editor-in-Chief

“Gradually I got used to the silence and darkness that surrounded me and forgot that it had ever been different, until she came—my teacher—who was to set my spirit free. But during the first nineteen months of my life I had caught glimpses of broad, green fields, a luminous sky, trees and flowers which the darkness that followed could not wholly block out.”

The Story of My Life is Helen Keller’s autobiography, which covers her life up until age twenty-two. It explains her extraordinary circumstances and how she deals with her disabilities. It also discusses who she is as a person, her assorted faults and strengths, and her many passions. It was an interesting read, although there were some parts that seemed to drag on a bit.

"The Lord of the Rings: Conquest"
For: Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and PC
From: Pandemic Studios/EA
ESRB Rating: Teen (violence)
By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)

Hey, do you like "The Lord of the Rings?" And did you like "Star Wars: Battlefront?" Well guess what: You'll love "The Lord of the Rings: Conquest," even when the game itself dares you not to.

Like "Battlefront" — which Pandemic Studios also masterminded — "Conquest" is a tactical action game. Your essential objective is to carve through opposing armies, but you're working alongside an army of your own and are free to swap between different classes (warrior, archer, scout, mage). While the number of times you can perish in a single mission is limited, "Conquest" otherwise operates like a multiplayer game: If and when you die, you simply respawn as a character type of your choice while the action carries on uninterrupted.

By Cait Baca, Courier Staff Writer

January 9th's "Let it Rock" Winter Ball didn't quite live up to everyone's
expectations.

"It was fun. But it thought it was going to be better. The DJ didn't
play a lot of good dance songs." said Senior Raquel Ortega.

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune News Service (MCT)

Many thousands of new Wii owners got their first taste of "Wii Fit" this holiday season. And over the course of the next few weeks, most of those people will realize not only that the wait wasn't justified, but that they'll need some closet space for that Wii Balance Board until more worthy software comes along.

In the meantime, the original gaming workout sensation remains, 10 years and umpteen editions later, the best way to burn calories and game at the same time. And while the newest round of games does little to set the franchise on fire, they'll still make you sweat off pounds in ways Nintendo's trendy peripheral can't.

If this is your first go-round with "DDR" and you have an Xbox 360 handy, "Dance Dance Revolution Universe 3's" arrival couldn't be timelier.

Following two near-identical iterations of the same core game, "DDRU3" significantly ramps up the accessibility quotient, complementing an already-loaded collection of single- and multiplayer modes with a set of tutorials that not only makes the game friendlier to new players, but teaches them how to excel in ways previous games never bothered to do. The single-player quest mode, a source of aggravation in past games, is exponentially more approachable, and the game's most enjoyable multiplayer mode grades you on competency but lets you and your opponents dance as gracefully or poorly as you please.

By Lorissa Salvatin, Courier Staff Writer

“For what it's worth: it's never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be…”

A movie based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a movie that captures the imagination and that touches the heart. It follows the story of Benjamin Button, as his journal is read to an old dying Daisy Fuller. Born old on the night of World War I, Benjamin goes through his life growing ever younger. His life begins when he is abandoned by his father and is left in the hands of Queenie, an African American maid of a senior home. Here, Benjamin is exposed to the idea of life and death. As Benjamin’s age declines, he does on many adventures, many of them involving events of history. He also meets many different kinds of people that teach him about music, morality, idealism, life, and death, which are the over-all set up of the movie’s implicit theme. Benjamin’s story also includes his physical and mental fight for the love of the graceful eccentric Daisy who, unlike him, travels through time normally. Ultimately, the life Benjamin leads illustrates great ideas of life and death and those that awaken the thoughts.

By Mei Xin Yang, Courier Staff Writer
Your last chance to see an exhibition of hundreds of modern artworks by Asian American artists is fast approaching.

San Francisco's De Young Museum has been presenting an exhibition called Asian/American/Modern Art: Shifting Currents, 1900–1970 since October, but the show which features art works from over 60 artists of Asian ancestry who worked and lived in the United States ends Sunday.

By Mia Tungol, Courier Staff Writer

On a recent weekend, my mom and I visited my aunt, who lives in Santa Clara. We wanted to eat out for lunch, so we decided to try a sushi restaurant that we haven't tried before called Yoyo Sushi. When we arrived, the restaurant was not crowded and we were able to be seated right away.

By Asma Yasini, Courier Staff Writer

The pop-punk quartet Fall Out Boy released their fifth studio album entitled Folie À Deux (literally, the madness of two) in mid-December. While FOB fans had their hopes high for this album to be their best yet, after the disappointment of last year’s Infinity on High, they were once again let down. Don't waste your money buying this CD.

While trying not to re-create a sound that has already been heard, the band piles everything onto this CD. There are so many cameos that you wouldn’t know whose CD it was if the band's name wasn’t on the case.

By Jenelle Gallardo, Courier Staff Writer

This pop-rock quintent hails from Maryland. All Time Low a.k.a. ATL consists of lead vocalist Alex Gaskarth, guitarist Jack Barakat, bassist Zack Merrick , and drummer Rian Dawson. Headlining their very own tour last season and participating in last year's Vans Warped Tour, ATL is way on their way for making a name for themselves in these times of one-hit wonders and up and coming bands.

By Jessica Stewart, Courier Editor-in-Chief

“Gracie knew she would rather be staked out naked on a fire ant hill than ever have anything to do with Riley Whitefield again. She didn’t need any more humiliation where he was concerned. And who knew what tortures he would be willing to endure to avoid the likes of her?”

Unfortunately for Gracie and Riley, fate has other plans in store for them. I really enjoyed reading this romance. The plot was interesting and there was a lot of depth to all of the characters, even the shallow ones. They all seem like people you can actually meet one day, if you haven’t already.. I found myself laughing out loud a few times, and I felt the same pain and sorrow the characters had to suffer.

By Cary Darling
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

Even the Golden Globes run to the mandatory three-hour awards-show mark but they always feel breezier than their stodgier statue-giving counterparts.

Here's a rundown of some memorable moments:

Shhhh!: That the Globes aren't the Oscars was evident right at the start. The crowd just kept yakkin' so much that Jennifer Lopez had to scold, "Hello! Momma talkin'."

Later, Ricky Gervais quipped, "How rude are you lot? Just because you're film stars."

By Suzanne Wu, Courier Staff Writer

On a lazy, and late, Tuesday afternoon my parents and I dropped the car off at the auto shop and carpooled over to a restaurant near our former place of residence near Thornton Avenue. Palace Chef, an excellent and authentic eatery, is hidden behind the old McDonald's, blending in with the frozen yogurt and donut shop nearby. Although it looks old and unreliable, don't let its appearances fool you. Parking around the area is few and the outer and inner appearance isn't fabulous, but what the restaurant lacks in good looks, it makes up in sheer volume and taste.

By Cait Baca, Courier Staff Writer

Many students are anxious to bust a move at tonight.Winter Ball

The Logan Leadership promises a different dance this year, one to be more "crackin," said Leadership member Ika Solis, a senior.

Those who did attend last year's winterball were faced with the wristband rule for the first time. With the wristband rule, any student caught "freak dancing" for a first time would get their wristband cut off. If caught a second time, the student(s) would be dismissed from the dance.

By Jim Abbott
The Orlando Sentinel (MCT)

VON IVA "Girls on Film" 3 stars (out of 5)
On the band's myspace, the members of all-girl trio Von Iva list "early Tina Turner" as an influence.

At first blush that doesn't seem to fit with the band electro-pop mindset, but a quick spin through the 6-song EP "Girls on Film" exposes enough traces of soul and funk to make it legit.

The San Francisco band's third release coincides with some wider exposure, including a song and cameo in the Jim Carrey comedy "Yes Man." "Girls on Film" recycles some songs off the band's 2007 release, "Our Own Island," and features three new songs.

By Jessica Stewart, Courier Editor-in-Chief

“Like oil spilled in a dirty gutter, it all came back to the surface: her duty, and Luther’s inability to ever grasp or accept it. He was a damn cop, and given half a chance he’d arrest her, see her prosecuted, and stand by while unknowing normal people saw her locked away.”

In her sequel to Servant: The Awakening, Lori Foster continues the story of Gabrielle Cody, who must learn to accept not only herself, but her new friends. I really enjoyed reading this book. I loved the characters and the plot was creative. My only complaint is that I had to go running for my dictionary quite a few times to look up some of the words, which I initially though were spelling errors because I had never read or heard them before. Everything else was absolutely fantastic, and I cannot wait for the next one in the series.

By Brandie Moore, Courier Books Editor

"She couldn't breathe. Something was in her mouth. A rag. It tasted of dirt and oil and something else she couldn't place, like overly sweet cough syrup. Her head hurt, and a lingering chemical scent filled her nose as she tried to pull air into her lungs. She attempted to spit out the rag, but it was held there with something that wound tightly around her head. When she tried to bring her hands to her face, she found that they too, were bound. Tape, she thought, a dim recognition flashing briefly through the haze that engulfed her mind. It's tape.”

Book three of Isobel Bird's Circle of Three novel series is seen though Cooper's eyes. Now, instead of reading all about Kate, we get to see more to what Cooper brings to the story.

By Troy Wolverton
San Jose Mercury News (MCT)

It would have been hard for even the most innovative product to stand out this year in such a lousy economy. But even had the economy been good, the tech industry wouldn't have earned many headlines.

In short, there was nothing comparable to the debut of the iPhone or even Windows Vista.

That said, 2008 wasn't exactly boring. Although many developments were more incremental than world-shattering, they may yet change how we interact with technology in important ways.

By Mia Tungol, Courier Staff Writer

James Logan’s Improv team wins first competition at home!

Before the holiday break, James Logan’s Improv team had their first Improv competition against San Benito. All their hard work and efforts came into play on stage. Both teams accomplished the goal: to entertain the audience.

However, by the end of the first half, San Benito was ahead of Logan 14 to 7.