Hidden gems

[Battenberg]

This afternoon I was looking up Jesper Kyd soundtracks that I hadn't heard for some background music when I came across a mini TV series called The Resistance [http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELJFvCpRQgciM]. It's an 8 episode sci fi series (roughly 5 minutes each and all on YouTube) about a world where everyone has a deadly illness and needs a substance called 'Noxe' regularly in ordder to survive. As you might be able to guess there's an authority in control of this substance who rules over the world with it and a faction of the population who are intent on rebelling against the level of control this authority has. It's rough around the edges and a little rushed due to its brief running time (and subsequently the soundtrack I was previously interested in isn't as vast and exciting as I was expecting) but nonethless it's one my best accidental finds.

So my question to everyone else is what great accidental finds or hiddens gems have you discovered (and how did you come across them)? Could be anything, films, tv, music, literature, video games, anything at all that you've stumbled across and want to share with a wider audience.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Not much of a hidden gem but I've never seen Odin Sphere discussed so I assume it's not very popular. And it should be dammit, it's a fun, unusual, challenging action RPG. How I came upon it, I was just looking for "obscure" PS2 games and noticed Odin Sphere had very good ratings everywhere.

 

[bearlotz]

Odin Sphere

I've only worked through the first story so far, but it's pretty damn rad. In my usual fashion, the first thing I did was make a spreadsheet of maximum Phozon efficiency for alchemy recipes and ingredients (fuck yea, Baromet seeds and Muggles!)

OT: While I hesitate to award it the title of "Weirdest Thing I've Ever Seen", Black Snake Moan is definitely a strong contender. An old, cantankerous, heavily religious farmer in the American South (played by Samuel L. Jackson) holds a college-aged party-girl (Nicole Richie) captive and tries to break her of her "sinful ways", but ends up learning his own lesson about accepting other people. It's strange, it's disturbing, it shouldn't work on sooo many levels...but as the backstories get revealed and the main story plays out it becomes absurdly compelling. In addition the soundtrack restored my taste for jazz and blues.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Odin Sphere

I've only worked through the first story so far, but it's pretty damn rad. In my usual fashion, the first thing I did was make a spreadsheet of maximum Phozon efficiency for alchemy recipes and ingredients (fuck yea, Baromet seeds and Muggles!)

I loved farming for food & phozons. It gave the game a bit of an RTS vibe. Enjoy!

 

[Elfgore]

I came upon a really funny anime that I had previously planned to skip.

This image caused me to go and watch all twelve episodes of GJ-BU in one day. It was one of the funniest anime I have every watched, almost on par with Baka and Test aka the funniest anime ever. When I heard it was getting a second season I almost lost my shit in joy.

I also found out that Overlord is a really fun game that everyone forget exists. One you get the controls down and manage to beat the insane difficulty curve, you'll find one hell of a game.

 

[Queen Michael]

I was looking around in the library when I saw a comic called Cerebus. I checked it out, and it was alright to begin with but soon developed into the best comic I have ever read.

 

[lechat]

Odin Sphere

I've only worked through the first story so far, but it's pretty damn rad. In my usual fashion, the first thing I did was make a spreadsheet of maximum Phozon efficiency for alchemy recipes and ingredients (fuck yea, Baromet seeds and Muggles!)

OT: While I hesitate to award it the title of "Weirdest Thing I've Ever Seen", Black Snake Moan is definitely a strong contender. An old, cantankerous, heavily religious farmer in the American South (played by Samuel L. Jackson) holds a college-aged party-girl (Nicole Richie) captive and tries to break her of her "sinful ways", but ends up learning his own lesson about accepting other people. It's strange, it's disturbing, it shouldn't work on sooo many levels...but as the backstories get revealed and the main story plays out it becomes absurdly compelling. In addition the soundtrack restored my taste for jazz and blues.

it's christina ricci.
usually i'd let something like that slide but i'm a fan.....

 

[bearlotz]

Nicole Richie

it's christina ricci.
usually i'd let something like that slide but i'm a fan.....

Spoiler: jigglytimes redacted for space

How right you are, goodsir lechat. It's a strange to hear myself saying this, but I found that the fanservice/sex appeal was pretty much the least interesting thing about this movie while I was watching it. Mostly I was just amazed that there was actually a great movie coming out of such a fucked-up premise...also listening to the soundtrack :3

 

[Sellon88]

Two Kinds. I was trying to map the internet, or at least it's major community, and ended up finding a manga 10 years in development and still kicking. great story, diverse and interesting characters, A little sexual but it's not the reason your there. http://twokinds.keenspot.com/index.php?pageid=3

 

[lechat]

Nicole Richie

it's christina ricci.
usually i'd let something like that slide but i'm a fan.....

Spoiler: jigglytimes redacted for space

How right you are, goodsir lechat. It's a strange to hear myself saying this, but I found that the fanservice/sex appeal was pretty much the least interesting thing about this movie while I was watching it. Mostly I was just amazed that there was actually a great movie coming out of such a fucked-up premise...also listening to the soundtrack :3

no doubt, and when i say i am a fan i only spend half my time oggleing her girly bits, the rest is spent thinking how under appreciated she is as an actress

 

[darkcalling]

HMM Well I recently found out that the second Guyver movie is honestly pretty great compared to the abysmal original I stumbled across as a kid. You can watch the whole thing on youtube so check it out.

Shadowhearts and its sequels are amazing RPGs that no one I know has played so those might qualify.

I'm currently reading Resurrection Day by Brendan DuBois, an interesting alternate history novel where the Cuban missile crisis started a brief nuclear war between the USA and USSR. There is a plothole or two and some possibly dodgy science but its a fun read nonetheless.