Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law return to fill their respective roles as Sherlock Holmes and his faithful sidekick Watson. Replacing Rachel McAdams as the female lead is Noomi Rapace, playing a gypsy named Sim. She aids Holmes and Watson in their adventure in stopping the new villain, Professor Moriarty, played by Jared Harris.

Alongside the returning actors is director Guy Ritchie, whose visionary eye expertly stages the action scenes and creates a unique atmosphere that is present throughout the entire movie. His direction is what sets this series apart.

The first Sherlock Holmes created a unique style for itself with its impressive slow motion action sequences. They were carefully placed throughout the movie to keep their impact and not seem overused.

The sequel uses this slow motion technique more frequently and while it is still pleasant to look at, its visual impact is lessened by its frequent use. Even still, anyone who enjoyed the first film’s action scenes will feel right at home here.

One of the film’s strengths is with its new villain Moriarty. Moriarty is a much stronger villain than the previous one, with Harris doing a great job balancing Moriarty’s true genius with his evil side.

The film’s first thirty minutes are a muddled mess. The action feels unnecessary, the humor is too silly and broad and the plot set up is sloppy.

After this however, the film kicks into high gear with a very satisfying last two thirds that more than make up for the unimpressive first. The action feels like it has a purpose, the jokes get funnier and the plot gets much more interesting.

Also the final confrontation between Moriarty and Holmes is unique and something not seen in most high budget action films.

The main issue with this sequel however is that it feels more like an action adventure film than a mystery. The first Sherlock Holmes had more of a mystery plot. In this film Holmes and Watson both know that Moriarty is the villain and what he is up to fairly early on in the plot and the rest of it is them just trying to find him.

Sherlock Holmes is a detective first and foremost. He is given little time to investigate other than in the beginning and very end of the movie.

In addition to the weak beginning, the film stumbles in spots since the comedic banter between Holmes and Watson is not as fresh as it once was. However this issue is addressed with the addition of a new comic relief character.

Also the plot is not as interesting and Noomi Rapace is mostly wasted in her role.

Even with these problems there are too many other unique aspects to this interpretation of the famous detective to ignore. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows mostly lives up to the original and gets four dastardly plots out of five.

A popular summer favorite, Foster the People, played at the Wiltern in Los Angeles on Oct. 15 and 18, but tickets for this show sold out quick.  Foster the People are far in the limelight with their summer hit “Pumped Up Kicks” and “Helena Beats.”

The Dirty Heads will also be having a concert at the Grove of Anaheim, with Gym Class Heroes and special guest Wallpaper.  Gym Class Heroes, whose front man is Travie McCoy, will drop their new album The Papercut Chronicles II, on Nov. 15. Last but not least, Katy Perry, who has gone to fame with hits like “Teenage Dream,” “E.T.,” and “California Girls,” is going to have a show on Nov. 22 at the Staple Center.  Perry will be playing with DJ Skeet Skeet and Elie Goulding as her supporting acts.  So do not wait, go and get your tickets now, or they will be like Foster the People tickets: gone in a flash.

The story is not very interesting, but Kirby was never about having the most emotional story you have ever experienced. The game play is the meat of any game, and Mass Attack is no exception. At the start of the game, you only have control over one Kirby. However, as you eat food and defeat enemies, Kirby will start to clone himself. The game allows you to control up to ten of Kirbies at the beginning of the game.

Controlling all ten of them is easy with the touch screen controls, from running to launching them at enemies. There might even be some things that Kirby might not be able to do by himself, but when all ten of them are being controlled at once, it truly is something charming and fun that makes this highly addictive. A giant bird that one Kirby just can not beat by himself?

Maybe five might do the job. The game is overwhelming at first, but once you learn how to play, it becomes a very enjoyable experience.

The visuals, while simple, have their own unique charm as well. From huge grass plains to scary forests, every stage has something new that you might not expect.

Earning gold ranks for any of the ten Kirby’s not getting hit and medals in all of the unexpected places make exploring these colorful stages a necessity. There are a couple mini-games as well to help pass the time and take a break from the main story.

Overall, the game has a lot to offer for those willing to get past the steep learning curve. Kirby: Mass Attack gets three pink heroes out of five.

Game play consists of a variety of platforming, gliding, and hand-to-hand combat with Arkham City’s various thugs and villains. The game has an open world environment, allowing you to roam freely around with mission indicators telling you where you need to go to start the next story related mission. Along with the lengthy story based missions, Arkham City contains several side missions which are separate from the main plot.

Arkham City has a great blend of both stealth and action combat in addition to platforming and gliding around the city. With the game as lengthy as it is, this variety of game play ensures that no one will get bored as the game nears its end. Not only the variety of gameplay keep the main story missions interesting, but Arkham City’s story line contains several twists and turns that will keep the player on pins and needles until the end.

Alongside its lengthy main story and side missions, Arkham city contains several challenge modes that put you as Batman or Catwoman against several thugs that you must incapacitate either in combat or using stealth. Note that the Catwoman missions and challenges only come with new copies of the game, so if you buy a used copy, you will need to buy this content separately.

Batman: Arkham City is a great value for your dollar. With a long, but well paced story mode, and additional challenge maps, Arkham City will find its way into either your PC, PS3 or 360 for months to come.

Batman: Arkham City gets five batarangs out of five.