Red Bull etc

Challengers to Red Bull ...

Picked up a few cans from the energy drinks aisle in Sainsbury's a while ago, thought it would be interesting to see if Red Bull can justify being #1... after all, if you say energy drink, most people think 'Red Bull'.

The new Sprite3G, 250ml, same as Red Bull, and the '3G' refers to Glucose,(caffeine from) Green Coffee Beans, and Guarana, bit desperate really. It is also pretty low in the caffeine department, at 20mg/100ml, but then I guess it has the other stuff to perk it up some.

Taste wise, as expected from a 'Sprite' its still lemon and lime, but the added glucose etc numbs the sharpness to make it pretty dull to be honest, its not nearly as enjoyable as Sprite or Sprite Z (which for the reference is one of the few 'diet' drinks I've found to be fairly good) while being utterly different in flavour to Red Bull. Maybe it will find itself a niche in the market, but I don't rate its chances of being around in 6 months. (Update - appears the site on the can is for regular sprite too, you lose points for that Mr Coke).

Ok, maybe our Scottish friends can do better with IrnBru32. Same deal, 250ml can, but at least the 32 is relevant, being 32mg/100ml of caffeine, with taurine, glucose and vitamins this time. Strangely, it tastes like a 'faded' diet version of Irn Bru, an amazing thing to pull off when you consider the amount of added sugars in the form of glucose and sucrose. Not bad, and an improvement on Sprite's offering, but I can't see it encroaching on the 'Vodka 'n' RedBull' market any time soon. I didn't poke around the site too much, but at least it is faintly relevant. Hell, it even tells you IrnBru32 is ok for veggies and it is halal, but not vegan. More info that I am used to, most promo sites seem to be very much style over substance.

Well, last chance, Relentless, another one by Coke, but maybe this time it won't be going the way of Dasani. For a start, it comes in a 500ml can, like most lager, and it's at a similar price point to Red Bull, around £1.09, the others were around the 89p mark. Twice as much for your money, but that's no good if you wouldnt want the first half! It seems that all the usual suspects are inside, caffeine, taurine, guarana, vitamins, etc, although surprisngly, going on taste, less sugar than the other two, per 100ml.

Taste wise, Relentless is definately the closest thing to Red Bull, in fact I have to say I slightly prefer it. Althought I don't drink vodka 'n' red bulls, I imagine this would be an ideal substitute, and a way to save a few pounds on supplies without having to go down the Tesco Value Energy Drink route. After all, same price, twice as much! I say its closest of the three, but that isnt saying much when the others are Sprite and Irn Bru, so I'll restate the opinion, that Relentless is actually fairly similar in flavour to Red Bull, and could well take a small chunk of Red Bull's Market, although I dont see it appearing in pubs and clubs alongside Red Bull any time soon.

On a small side note, Relentless looks like a lager at first glance, so may even get you left alone at parties when you dont want to drink, and everyone is going 'ahh go on, have a drink, have one, you can have ONE drink, go on go on'. The website, very much style over substance, again.

Sadly, I can't comment on their actual effects, as my sleep patterns, well, they just are not patterns!

Obligatory Big Brother Post

Ok, I admit to 'missing' the opening show, but having viewed some of the 'live' footage.

Unsurprisingly disappointed, but somehow the BB bosses have managed to not fulfil even my low expectations...

Every single person seems reasonably attractive, they all seem to be 18-25 clubby types, horrifyingly extrovert, although I guess you wouldnt choose to be on BB if you weren't. It seems all the stereotypes have been filled, laddish males, over the top camp gay man, some kinda of page 3 parody woman, and this year a Tourette's Syndrome sufferer. Don't get me wrong, I'm not above laughing at other people's misfortune, but it doesn't seem right to use mental illness as a way to sell more premium rate phonecalls.

I read a few of the profiles, it sounds like everyone cant wait to wave their 'bits' at the camera, have a fight, and hump the rest of the 'housemates'. As for the girl with a '30M' breast enlargement, doctors, if someone comes to you with such low self esteem, that they want to be carved up, perhaps consider prescribing therapy and drugs? Oh hang on, plastic surgery is more profitable, isn't it...

My suggestion for Big Brother 8 though, and it comes from the admittedly interesting idea of having one person go in from a kit kat wrapper... Pick 12 people at random from all the people that apply, and run the show with them. You'll still get fights and roma-, uh, pointless nudity and sex, and all the other stuff, but it might actually be faintly interesting to watch different social groups living with each other, instead of 12 people that could have all been put on the bus from a single nightclub.

Mario lives again

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2139555376132383479&pl=true

Heh, found it on google video, at a college talent show in Massachusetts, there was a fine recreation of Super Mario Bros, the first game.

For some reason this kinda thing is very popular on japanese TV I hear too...

It's a rather horrible sign of the world we live in that this clip got pushed from the number 1 spot by a 9 second clip of a woman getting punched in the face. No gag, no humour, nothing interesting about it, just a moment of violence, and that is the most popular video clip on google...something wrong with the world.

Just kill me now...

I've been in today, and as its a nice day out, someone nearby has their windows open and stereo up, and hey, I've got no problem with that. It's the middle of the day, after all.

What is rrrrrreally beginning to wear away at me, is that since around 3pm, Phats and Small's "Turn Around" has been on repeat.

Yes, ONE track, that was quite annoying in the first place, so far on repeat for over four hours!

Hang on, they drive me to write about it, and now it's stopped! How strange.

Ok, a minute's silence and they're actually playing some Reef..'Place your hands' if you remember it. Its like getting a steak after a month on nothing but mashed potato.

Heh, for all of a minute, now they've gone to some kind of lounge music, and I realise I'm rambling, but 4 hours of 'Turn Around' has actively lowered my IQ, I believe.

Oh thats it, I've been set off now!

And another thing!

Did anyone else feel a flow of purest joy when they saw an ad for 'Strongbow Cider'.

The current few ads just sum the whole media nonsense for me perfectly.

http://www.visit4info.com/details.cfm?adid=31288
http://www.visit4info.com/details.cfm?adid=31290

If you haven't seen, you can take a peek there, the only troubling thing is I keep seeing new ads, and fully expecting the strongbow arrows to finish off the ad, but no, its for real, its another stupid product for stupid people....*sigh*

Only worrying thing, is I can full see the ringtone from the first ad actually getting adopted by people with no sense of irony...hell, no sense full stop.

Wayne Rooney injury...

Firstly, why would I care, football does nothing for me.

But I cant understand, are the media telling me our national stands or falls on one player?

How many premiership teams do we have? as a newbie to football, my understanding is there's 11 players to a side, and there's about 20 or so teams in the Premiership, can we really not find a replacement for Wayne Rooney that is nearly as good?

Surely for our national team, with so many players, we must have 12, hell, maybe even 13 good players?

As a bonus, if Wayne Rooney isn't earning, it might cut down on his girlfriend's clothes shopping, too.

I don't wish to appear rude, but HOW did she become a 'style icon' after months of ridicule?

It's just that, as someone that doesn't follow fashion, I firmly believe you could get me drunk, blindfold me, and cover me in velcro, and I could pick out a better outfit than her.

Now, it may seem unfair me having a go, when I'm always complaining about how the media picks holes or idolises 'famous' people on a whim, when they've generally done nothing 'good' or 'bad' to deserve it, but there's a reason for that, I'm a hypocrite, so you can all just move along now.

3 Months since my last post?

Damn, and I've had so much to vent about too!

Hopefully I'm pulling myself out of the bleak fug I've been stuck in.

Oh, and I saw 'Silent Hill' and it was all I hoped it could be, a little confusing for people that don't know that game, and the main character has all the self preservation of Daphne from Scooby Doo, but when the movie really kicks in, you're there, stuck in Silent Hill, no way out.

A special mention for the special effects guys too, I heard they relied more on make up and latex than CGI, and as ever with Silent Hill the 'monsters' are more disturbing than 'BOO' style scary, and we may have a new horror icon in ol' Pyramid Head!

That was one I was concerned about, Pyramid Head could have been done so wrong. But he's believable, genuinely provoking a stalking feel, and gives off a real feeling of power.

I don't believe I've given any spoilers away for anyone that saw the trailer, but I can recommend it, although there is some blood etc, it's the rest of it that would dissuade me from sending a horror-phobe to go see it. Having said that, a great first date movie, if she's weird!

http://http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/silenthill/