August 31, 2009
Video Game Night: Week 1
Here's one last thread for any and all thoughts/discussions about video game night. Also, I needed to let you guys know that I might not be there exactly at 8pm Eastern. Something's come up that I might need to be attending to. You all should mostly have each others' names, so I'll leave it to you to get some gaming going.
August 30, 2009
True Blood
Man, that was a crappy episode. You'd think with a thirteen episode season they wouldn't need any true padding, but seriously nothing happened. And it's not the good kind of "nothing happened" where we might get a fun little story. Nope, it was all about the big season plot, but they just moved the pieces around for an hour. I guess it's surprising that this is the first time I've felt this way. That's probably a good thing, I guess. Still, this episode was Poopsville.
Video Game Night: Week 1
Ok, so I think we've got enough people and enough kinks worked out to make this our first official Video Game Night week. As we decided, Video Game Night will start tomorrow, Monday August 31, 2009 at 8pm Eastern Standard Time and go until Midnight Eastern Standard Time. People are welcome to join in as their schedule permits. I'm sure that we're not all friends on Live yet, so we should probably use this post to post our Live handles.
As to the game of choice, we didn't get an opportunity this week to vote for a game, so I'm making the executive decision that this week's game will be Left 4 Dead. It seems pretty assured to be one of our four core games based on the current polling (if you know someone that hasn't voted in the poll, remind them to do so soon!). If you have a good reason why we shouldn't go for Left 4 Dead, post something in the comments. If you change my mind I'll make a post prior to game time.
As to the game of choice, we didn't get an opportunity this week to vote for a game, so I'm making the executive decision that this week's game will be Left 4 Dead. It seems pretty assured to be one of our four core games based on the current polling (if you know someone that hasn't voted in the poll, remind them to do so soon!). If you have a good reason why we shouldn't go for Left 4 Dead, post something in the comments. If you change my mind I'll make a post prior to game time.
August 27, 2009
August 25, 2009
Compassionate Release
Scotland recently released Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the only person convicted of the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 on compassionate grounds. Al-Megrahi has terminal cancer and was released to be with his family in Libya before he dies. Scotland also has a formal policy of compassion in their justice system.
Obviously, the relatives of people who died on that flight have been very vocally opposed, and have been joined by President Obama. Scots seem split on the issue. Supposedly Libya agreed that he would not receive a hero's welcome when he returned to the country, but was greeted by throngs of cheering people. There's also a rumor/conspiracy theory that Gordon Brown supported Scotland's release of al-Megrahi as a negotiating tactic in securing more trade with Libya.
So, what are your thoughts? Should he have been released? Is the justification practical (increased trade) or moral (compassion)? Should there be a general policy of compassion in criminal justice and if so, are there exceptions (say, terrorists?)?
Obviously, the relatives of people who died on that flight have been very vocally opposed, and have been joined by President Obama. Scots seem split on the issue. Supposedly Libya agreed that he would not receive a hero's welcome when he returned to the country, but was greeted by throngs of cheering people. There's also a rumor/conspiracy theory that Gordon Brown supported Scotland's release of al-Megrahi as a negotiating tactic in securing more trade with Libya.
So, what are your thoughts? Should he have been released? Is the justification practical (increased trade) or moral (compassion)? Should there be a general policy of compassion in criminal justice and if so, are there exceptions (say, terrorists?)?
Poll Results
Well, it looks like we'll focus our gaming nights on Mondays from 8-12pm Eastern Standard Time, playing mostly on the Xbox 360. Again, there should hopefully be regular posts here on the blog about Video Game nights, so if somebody wants to suggest a game from another system or a substitute or additional night for a particular week, just drop a comment. So make sure you're checking back here at least somewhat regularly to see if there are any developments, but there's our standard setup.
I'm putting a new poll up now, as you can see. Vote on the four games that you think should be our poll. If you vote for a sports game, post in this comment thread which version of the game you think we should get. Depending on how the poll comes out I think we may need to expand the number of core games beyond four (if, for instance, there aren't four clear winners), but we'll see how it turns out. As always, use this thread as a general comments thread for Video Game Night.
I'm putting a new poll up now, as you can see. Vote on the four games that you think should be our poll. If you vote for a sports game, post in this comment thread which version of the game you think we should get. Depending on how the poll comes out I think we may need to expand the number of core games beyond four (if, for instance, there aren't four clear winners), but we'll see how it turns out. As always, use this thread as a general comments thread for Video Game Night.
August 19, 2009
Game Suggestion Thread
Ok, so we're getting game night up and running. I think it would be a good idea if we had 2-4 games that everyone in the group owned. That way we have a pool of common games that can form the core of the Video Game Night experience. This isn't to say that every week will have one of these games. Sometimes another game will be selected through the vote outside these games and some people will own it and others won't. Those that won't may decide to pick it up, but they're certainly not expected to. Who knows though, maybe every four months or something we can all vote on a new game that everyone will buy so we always have an expanding roster.
So let's have it, name up to four multiplayer games that you think everyone in the group should own. Ideally, suggestions should include multiple genres, and including cheaper XBLA or other downloadable titles is also encouraged, as well as retail games that aren't necessarily brand new, and therefore might be found at less than $60.
So let's have it, name up to four multiplayer games that you think everyone in the group should own. Ideally, suggestions should include multiple genres, and including cheaper XBLA or other downloadable titles is also encouraged, as well as retail games that aren't necessarily brand new, and therefore might be found at less than $60.
August 18, 2009
Cake Wrecks
Thanks to a comment on Drew's place, I found Cake Wrecks, and got a hearty laugh in the process. Except for the Doctor Who cakes post, which was freakin' sweet. Link.
Poll
As you can see, there have been a few minor changes to the blog. It took me forever to realize it, but I guess Blogger offers some more fancy pants options than they did, lo those five years ago when we started here (5 years!). Among those changes, as you can see, is a weekly poll. The inclusion of a poll was the main reason for the update, particularly because several of my friends have discussed a weekly video game night. I actually hope to run two polls simultaneously so that one poll is always unrelated to Video Game Night.
The first poll is what night we should play. I think it's a pretty settled issue that whatever day we play on, the festivities should start at 8pm Eastern and run to 12am Eastern. That allows a large chunk of gaming as well as hopefully accommodating people's schedules and time zone issues. Obviously, people may not be able to start right at 8 and they may have to leave before 12, but that's our window.
As to system, most of the people I know have an Xbox 360. I know there has been some interest expressed in playing some PC games, particularly some MMOs. Hmmm, this may need to be another poll question, though I'm pretty sure I can run it concurrently to the "day" poll.
After scheduling is established, each week I'll put up poll where people can vote on what game will be played that week. I think we should probably agree upfront that one game should not be allowed to dominate VGN week in and week out. We're dealing with a semi-large group of people here, and in order to ensure continued participation I think we need to make sure that different tastes are being accomodated. So what should the rule be? Should no game be permitted to win two weeks in a row? Three? What mechanism should we use to enforce variety? Also, how many games should be in the weekly poll? If we have too many options, no clear winner could arrise, but we want to make sure that a variety of games are represented over time. How should we establish which games get in the poll for a given week? Should I just have a pool of game titles that people in the group are interested in and cycle through them? Should be have nominations?
Finally, I know people aren't going to want to play every game that wins a poll, and I'm sure that almost everyone will be unable to afford to buy every game that someone in the group wants to play. So all I ask is that everyone try their best. To keep this going we just need to make sure that we get people showing up regularly at the same time.
The first poll is what night we should play. I think it's a pretty settled issue that whatever day we play on, the festivities should start at 8pm Eastern and run to 12am Eastern. That allows a large chunk of gaming as well as hopefully accommodating people's schedules and time zone issues. Obviously, people may not be able to start right at 8 and they may have to leave before 12, but that's our window.
As to system, most of the people I know have an Xbox 360. I know there has been some interest expressed in playing some PC games, particularly some MMOs. Hmmm, this may need to be another poll question, though I'm pretty sure I can run it concurrently to the "day" poll.
After scheduling is established, each week I'll put up poll where people can vote on what game will be played that week. I think we should probably agree upfront that one game should not be allowed to dominate VGN week in and week out. We're dealing with a semi-large group of people here, and in order to ensure continued participation I think we need to make sure that different tastes are being accomodated. So what should the rule be? Should no game be permitted to win two weeks in a row? Three? What mechanism should we use to enforce variety? Also, how many games should be in the weekly poll? If we have too many options, no clear winner could arrise, but we want to make sure that a variety of games are represented over time. How should we establish which games get in the poll for a given week? Should I just have a pool of game titles that people in the group are interested in and cycle through them? Should be have nominations?
Finally, I know people aren't going to want to play every game that wins a poll, and I'm sure that almost everyone will be unable to afford to buy every game that someone in the group wants to play. So all I ask is that everyone try their best. To keep this going we just need to make sure that we get people showing up regularly at the same time.
August 10, 2009
Tycho Is Right
I love it when Gabe and Tycho argue publicly on the PA front page. Clearly though, Tycho is right here. Link.
July 30, 2009
It Just Blows My Mind
A coworker today told me a story that I can't get out of my mind. The coworker's niece has a heroin addiction. She has private insurance. She tried to get into a 28-day inpatient treatment program. Her insurance provider responded that before they pay for an inpatient program, they'd like to see her fail a few times in an outpatient program. Fortunately she managed to harangue them into paying for her inpatient program, but they were willing to literally risk her life because inpatient programs are more expensive than outpatient programs.
Bill Maher's right: the profit motive has ruined our health care system. If you ever needed convincing that our system needs to be reformed, there it is.
Bill Maher's right: the profit motive has ruined our health care system. If you ever needed convincing that our system needs to be reformed, there it is.
July 29, 2009
Wizard World '09
Finally, towards the end of the last day we found him: Fanny Pack Spider-Man. The years haven't been good to FP Spidey. You can see the gut and the fraying mask. And he kinda smelled a little. Damn it all though, he soldiers on, year after year, and year after year we'll find him and take his picture! And that's it! Wizard World '09! We'll see you in a year Fanny Pack Spidey! Make sure Lou Ferrigno has enough blankets in the rafters or he'll catch cold.
Excelsior!
Wizard World '09
Max Brooks, son of Mel and leader of all Zombiephiles, led a one hour discussion group on making your plans for when the zombie apocalypse comes. Yes, Wizard World is an amazing place where miracles happen. On the other hand, Max seemed kind of pissed off to be there.Oh, but I did ask a question which led to me becoming a running gag for through the discussion. That was almost as cool as being yelled at by Bruce Campbell.
Wizard World '09
The Baroness is right not to trust a picture with Jay. You might not know this, but as you can see here, she's quite the photog. Even terrorist leaders have hobbies.
Wizard World '09
I have no idea who this magnificent bastard on the right is supposed to be, but it's one of my favorite costumes of the con. I mean, is that some kind of pick axe in his belt? Intriguing!
Wizard World '09
I have to say, in the ranking of "sexy outfits a lady could surprise me with", Harley Quinn is right up there. And yes, the top five, though I can't say I've ever taken the time to make it, is almost certainly all nerd-related.You can tell that Joker here is really serious about his evil deeds because he rolled up his sleeves. He means business, and business is...um...bad?
Wizard World '09
Iron Fist is about to break his left wrist, assuming he's preparing to punch something.I really wonder what the relationship between these two is. Are they father and son? That'd be pretty cool. Spring-Autumn friends that met at a Gamesworkshop over Warhammer 40k? Creepy.
July 28, 2009
Wizard World '09
"Do these shorts make me look fat?"Also, Philly is a terrible place for parking an invisible jet.
Wizard World '09
Chewbaca gives a stirring speech on abolition on Kashyyyk. What a wookie.Also, three "y"s? Really George Lucas? Really?
Wizard World '09
Army of Two is the most violently homoerotic game of all time. At least the one guy is Wrist Strong.
Wizard World '09
I've always wondered if the class struggle writ large ever played out between guys like Two-Face and Scarecrow (a former lawyer and psychologist, respectively) and some of the more blue collar guys in Batman's rogues gallery, say, Clayface or Killer Croc.
Wizard World '09
The crew of the Galactica, caught by surprise by a Cylon audience, engage the table's FTL.
Wizard World '09
Who knows what evil lurks within the hearts of men? Carlos, the Fightin' Plaintain!
July 23, 2009
Wizard World '09
Friend 1: "Man, I'm going to be the new Bucky Captain America! It's going to be awesome!"Friend 2: "Oh yeah? I'm going to be Deadpool, and it's going to be totally awesome despite X-Men Origins: Wolverine!"
Friend 3: "Well I'm going to be Banshee, and it's going to be...a costume!"
I have to say though, while the Cap and 'Pool costumes are totally awesome (somehow I think that's what 'Pool would actually look like in real life), I've always had a soft spot for Banshee. I have a soft spot for lots of characters that never get any respect. Like Cyclops. He's the X-Men's leader! That's cool!
Wizard World '09
So a big black guy walks past us at Wizard World with a yellow shirt, jeans, and a chain belt and we say, "Was that guy supposed to be Luke Cage? He doesn't look really dressed up, but he'd be a bad ass Luke Cage."Five minutes later he walked past us again, this time having gotten a silver tiara painted on his head. Result!
I think Chris here is *this close* to being Danny Rand. He's also *this close* to hugging Luke Cage and getting his ass broken in two.
Wizard World '09
Is this guy the medic for a bank robbery team? A stylish safe cracker? A medical ninja? Your guess is as good as mine.
Wizard World '09
There's an orb joke in here somewhere, BUT THIS IS A CLASSY SITE!I think she's Evil Lynn from Masters of the Universe, but I'm not 100% on that.
Wizard World '09
Ed falls for the siren song of Commerce Batgirl. She draws nerds in for a picture and then sells them the various wares stashed in her utility belt...well, it's somewhere in there.
July 22, 2009
President Obama's Preser
It's a sad comment on our public discourse that the talking heads that I saw on both Fox News and MSNBC talked about how this wasn't a great press conference because there wasn't some big new announcement or position taken. President Obama spoke eruditely on the issue of healthcare reform and made some great points. He didn't detail a plan because he doesn't have a plan of his own. There are several bills working their way through Congress and they're all different. Bill O'Reilly was, unsurprisingly, particularly annoying in this respect.
So he was good, and he was interesting, and he was smart. I call that a win.
So he was good, and he was interesting, and he was smart. I call that a win.
July 21, 2009
Lily Allen
I've listened to most of the tracks on Lily Allen's album "It's Not Me, It's You" and I have to say...I like it. It's definitely light, pop music, which isn't my usual fair, but it's really damn catchy. Plus her lyrics are kind of funny and she's got a great British accent. So am I crazy or do other people like this over their most snobby impulses?
Wizard World '09
"Who ya gonna call?""Some other guys!"
Seriously, do any of those guys look like they have doctorates in anything relating to ghosts or nuclear physics? Ah, I get it! They're the Ghostbusters franchise from Wichita, where the only ghost is small scale agriculture.
Wizard World '09
Rogue makes a return appearance! It's a good thing she's got all that spandex or she'd be flooded with Ed's memories. Trust me sister, you don't want to go on that ride.
Wizard World '09
Ed does not approve of alien suit Spidey! Well, maybe it's "Black Cat made me a black suit" Spidey, who appeared after he ditched the symbiote but his superhero girlfriend liked him in black. That seems way more lame than "I got this black alien symbiotic suit on an alien world called Battleworld."
Wizard World '09
Ah, obscure without being made up. Nice. In case you're wondering, I'm attempting to cloud men's minds.
July 19, 2009
Agnosticism
There are plenty of interesting points to be made about the tension between agnosticism and atheism. Ultimately, I think Mr. Appel and I probably agree more than we disagree. Still, the passage that he quotes from Pope Benedict really irritates me. It assumes a false dichotomy between God not existing and the Roman Catholic conception of God. He offhandedly mentions the choice to live life as if God exists, but even if you narrow the field to Christian sects it'd be pretty hard to determine what is acceptable behavior in God's eyes. That uncertainty is one of the prime arguments that are made for agnosticism. It's that kind of straw man crap that instantly makes me think the person's not arguing in good faith. Link.
July 18, 2009
July 17, 2009
Wizard World '09
Ugh, bad, blurry picture taking Ben! Still, props to the woman appearing as Jubilee! One of the Marvel characters most associated with the 90s, Jubilee is also of of a small few Asian-American characters in comics, that is to say, a character who is Asian and not a ninja.
Wizard World '09
Another picture with the realest Thor I've ever seen. In this picture you can see his belt better. See that thick metal hoop by his right arm? That's because this hammer was seriously heavy. Ed proves himself to be a true hero by being able to lift Mjolner, though he can clearly only do it with two arms, so maybe half a hero.
Wizard World '09
There were a couple Thors at Wizard World, but this guy was easily the best. Look at that hat! And that hammer was over 40 pounds of real metal! You heard that right, this lugged a huge chunk of metal around because it looked cooler than a fake plastic thing. Commitment!
Wizard World '09
This was probably the most popular costumed person at the con, with lots of pictures. I believe she also appeared in either the Philadelphia Inquirer or the South Jersey Courier Post. She also had a three year old with her that seemed to really want to be in the pictures.
July 16, 2009
Wizard World '09
Was Ed thinking we'd be confused as to who was the Imperial Guard in the picture? If you are confused, it's the fellow in red.You know, somebody must have spent a pretty decent amount of time designing the Imperial Guard, only for us to only ever see them enter or leave a room. That must be the job that really good Storm Troopers get to ride out the last few years before they get their pension.
Wizard World '09
Like the Spaceballs, the best parts of conventions are seeing the people that go for pretty obscure characters. This guy here is Ragdoll II, from DC's Villain's United and Secret Six miniseries.It's also always tough to come up with something to do while having your picture taken with someone in costume. Jay and Ed seem to like showing approval or disapproval. I seem to go for some kind of action shot with the person. It's weird.
Wizard World '09
One of these kids is not like the others. One of these kids is doing his own thing.But seriously, with all the huge amounts of Star Wars nerdity at cons (Wizard World has had a light saber fighting/training area every year that I've been there), I've never seen anything from Spaceballs. I was genuinely thrilled when I saw these guys.
Wizard World '09
Boba Fett's are almost as ubiquitous at a convention as Storm Troopers and Jedi, mostly because you have been able to get really high quality replica helmets for years. Here, it looks like Jay supports bounty hunting, but what is he doing with his other hand?
July 15, 2009
ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME?!
Look, I Love Lucy was a great show and I'm as likely as the next guy to drop a "Babalooo!" from time to time. But come on, Senator Tom Coburn! Do you really think it's appropriate to say "You've got some 'splaining to do" to the first latina nominee to the Supreme Court?! Who are these people and how do they keep getting away with this crap? Link.
Wizard World '09
Ok, this guy looks enough like Blade that he might actually patrol the streets of Philly looking for vampires at night. If you're especially pale you might want to reconsider you evening plans.The other guy...I don't know. BUT LOOK AT THAT POSE! DYNAMIC!
Wizard World '09
This guy is exactly why I'll never go to a con wearing a costume. In order to really be awesome, as he clearly is, you either have to sink a ton of money or time into a costume. Probably both. I mean, that gun probably works! I'm assuming.
Wizard World '09
This is Marina Sirtis' booth. She wasn't there because she, her mother, and boyfriend had been abducted by damn dirty Ferengis.I've mentioned it before, but I'm pretty sure Lou Ferigno lives in the rafters of the Philadelphia Convention Center as some kind of Phantom of the Convention because he's always there.
Wizard World '09
I appear inappropriately excited to see Link, considering that I'm pretty sure that I've never actually finished a Zelda game. I came pretty close to finishing A Link To The Past on the SNES, but I never owned it so all my play time was in rentals, which makes beating any game difficult.No, Ed was not stoned. I don't think...
July 13, 2009
Wizard World '09
The Question. He, like several other Charlton Comics characters, was the basis for a character in Alan Moore's Watchmen; in this case Rorschach.Actually, the Vic Sage Question recently died in the comics (cancer) and was replaced by a female version (Renee Montoya, who was created for the Batman Animated series from the 90s). I'm pretty sure this was a lady in the costume, so maybe she was going for that.
Wizard World '09
When you're a Storm Trooper, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 must seem pretty small potatoes. On the other hand, these guys can't hit the broad side of a sand crawler, so I'm not so sure I want him in my multiplayer clan.
Wizard World '09
Here's K.I.T.T., though they didn't have the Mr. Feeny voice on.And for those that don't know, K.I.T.T. stands for Knight Industries Two-Thousand. Yup, like Batman, Michael Knight has a multi-national company behind him. Why does he drive around in a car? Because the company has an officially funded and supported vigilante division. I guess that's better than Wal-Mart, but it's still pretty crazy.
Wizard World '09
I wish I could use "Because I'm holding a thermal detonator" in more situations without getting arrested.
July 11, 2009
Torchwood
So, I don't live in the U.K., so there's no way I could have seen the new Torchwood miniseries. But let's just say I heard that it's both fantastic and heavy as shit. Everyone should watch it...when it's aired on BBC America.
July 09, 2009
Meet Q
We got a new kitten tonight. The fiancee thought our 2 year old cat "needed a friend." I thought that was crap, but whatever. So meet Q.
July 08, 2009
Transformers 2 F.A.Q.
Ok, as my review tried to establish, Transformers 2 isn't a good movie, but I thought it was kind of fun. In fact, though there are certainly better examples, I occasionally really like movies that are fun when I'm watching them but can also laugh at their absurdities later. And here is a hilarious F.A.Q. on Transformers 2 that puts it in just such a category. I might disagree with some of the points on substance (I don't think the movie is nearly as confusing as people both here and elsewhere seem to think it is) but it doesn't matter because his points work great for humor. Link.
Hat tip to Ezra for the find.
Update: Eh, Transformers, G.I. Joe, same difference. Here's a video of the most ridiculous escapes in the G.I. Joe cartoon. Link.
Update the Second: Ok, there's no real link to 80s cartoons with this one, but I did get this link from Ezra and I'm too lazy to do another post. The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. Link.
Hat tip to Ezra for the find.
Update: Eh, Transformers, G.I. Joe, same difference. Here's a video of the most ridiculous escapes in the G.I. Joe cartoon. Link.
Update the Second: Ok, there's no real link to 80s cartoons with this one, but I did get this link from Ezra and I'm too lazy to do another post. The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. Link.
July 05, 2009
Review: Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen
In short: Meh.
Look, let's be honest. The original Transformers TV show and feature film are pretty crappy. Sure, they're awesome and I'll love them my whole life, but the plots were thin, the characterizations almost non-existent, and there's a thin...ok thick layer of cheesiness that's just slathered all over. But hey, it's robots that turn into other things and then back and then they fight. That's still pretty cool.
So, does Revenge Of The Fallen take the series to new levels of depth? No. Not even close. This is a movie where robots turn into other things and then back and then they fight. If you're down for that then you won't be disappointed. Would I some day like to see a really serious take on the Transformer concept, where they fought over something more metaphysical than energon and where they managed to elicit an emotion from the audience other than whatever emotion accompanies big explosions? Sure. That'd be great. On the other hand, based on the box office returns, I think I'm probably in the minority for wanting to see Transformers: Field Of Robot Dreams.
Any way, what I kept thinking as I watched the movie, however, was that this movie isn't nearly as confusing as I had heard. Yes, there are times when you might not be able to name the robots that are fighting, but most of the time it's because one of the robots doesn't have a name. Do people complain that you don't know who's getting shot in a battle scene in a war movie? No, in any battle scene there's going to be some generic fodder characters and there are indeed some here. But otherwise I really didn't have a hard time figuring out what was going on.
At the end of the day, this is a big summer blockbuster about robots fighting. If you can't sign on for that, then why complain when that's what the movie presents?
Look, let's be honest. The original Transformers TV show and feature film are pretty crappy. Sure, they're awesome and I'll love them my whole life, but the plots were thin, the characterizations almost non-existent, and there's a thin...ok thick layer of cheesiness that's just slathered all over. But hey, it's robots that turn into other things and then back and then they fight. That's still pretty cool.
So, does Revenge Of The Fallen take the series to new levels of depth? No. Not even close. This is a movie where robots turn into other things and then back and then they fight. If you're down for that then you won't be disappointed. Would I some day like to see a really serious take on the Transformer concept, where they fought over something more metaphysical than energon and where they managed to elicit an emotion from the audience other than whatever emotion accompanies big explosions? Sure. That'd be great. On the other hand, based on the box office returns, I think I'm probably in the minority for wanting to see Transformers: Field Of Robot Dreams.
Any way, what I kept thinking as I watched the movie, however, was that this movie isn't nearly as confusing as I had heard. Yes, there are times when you might not be able to name the robots that are fighting, but most of the time it's because one of the robots doesn't have a name. Do people complain that you don't know who's getting shot in a battle scene in a war movie? No, in any battle scene there's going to be some generic fodder characters and there are indeed some here. But otherwise I really didn't have a hard time figuring out what was going on.
At the end of the day, this is a big summer blockbuster about robots fighting. If you can't sign on for that, then why complain when that's what the movie presents?
I Didn't Do It
Ezra's got a good post about people blaming the lack of speed or the quality of reform on Obama rather than the Legislature. Link.
Wizard World '09
Frequently at Wizard World, you'll run across someone who's clearly into it. They love the convention, they love the people, they love the source material, and they love the attention, so they make a very elaborate and super cool costume. Then you have their friends, who love the attention.Here we have the Golden Age Flash, Jay Garrick. Not the custom Mercury's Helmet. No small feat, friend. Then you've got his friend here, who's, uh, a guy in a coat? Don't punch me Coat-Man! Just continue to bleed attention off your more industrious friend!
Wizard World '09
Ah, a cool Beaker and...and...and...people with me actually said the other guy was supposed to be Bunsen Honeydew. ORLY?! Let's look at the evidence: glasses, camera, satchel with a Spidey mask hanging out. Does that scream Bunsen Honeydew? NO SIR, IT DOES NOT!
Wizard World '09
This woman is an example of a certain type of Wizard World costume-wearer: SHE'S A LIAR! Wizard World is a place of happiness and wonder, but also commerce. And many of business people there have studied the nerds long enough to figure out that people in costumes get attention, especially pretty women. So this lady's job was to just walk around in her low-cut top, with a bat symbol all up on her boobs and then try to convince people to go to some leather working booth. I don't know, I didn't really need anything leather.
Wizard World '09
Ah, Wizard World. The happiest weekend of the year! It's like Christmas and Captain Picard Day rolled up into one! So, over the next however-long-it-takes-me, I'm going to be posting pictures that I took from our days at the 'con. Hopefully I'll think of interesting things to add to them.Here, we have female Hush and Riddler. The Riddler must have come here after work, because you wouldn't want to rob a bank with a loosened tie. What would people think?!
Also, Jay's head!
July 04, 2009
Hot Off The Presses
Did you know you can read the script for the unmade full length feature film Grayson (likely to remain the best trailer ever)? It's true! Link.
June 25, 2009
10 Best Picture Nominees
So the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that they're increasing the number of Best Picture nominees from 5 to 10 this year. Initially this may seem like a stunt. Then you might think, "Are there really 10 great films in a given year?" But after that you may come around to the idea that it could be pretty interesting.
Limiting the Best Picture group to five has, in my opinion at least, limited the nominees to a pretty narrow band of movie-types: Very serious dramas with famous celebrities in the leading (and usually supporting) roles. It's become really easy to distinguish between normal movies and movies that are trying to emulate that type in an effort to get an Oscar nod (the most obvious to me was Pay It Forward, which didn't get anything despite trying oh so very hard to seem important). Increasing the number of nominees to ten means there's room to nominate a great documentary, foreign film, or pure comedy, none of which ever get that biggest of nods. Will the big self-important dramas still win most of the time? Probably, and don't take this post to mean that I haven't liked most of the nominees in the last few years, but this allows the Academy to recognize that "best" doesn't necessarily mean most heavy, emotional, or serious; at least not for most people. Link.
Limiting the Best Picture group to five has, in my opinion at least, limited the nominees to a pretty narrow band of movie-types: Very serious dramas with famous celebrities in the leading (and usually supporting) roles. It's become really easy to distinguish between normal movies and movies that are trying to emulate that type in an effort to get an Oscar nod (the most obvious to me was Pay It Forward, which didn't get anything despite trying oh so very hard to seem important). Increasing the number of nominees to ten means there's room to nominate a great documentary, foreign film, or pure comedy, none of which ever get that biggest of nods. Will the big self-important dramas still win most of the time? Probably, and don't take this post to mean that I haven't liked most of the nominees in the last few years, but this allows the Academy to recognize that "best" doesn't necessarily mean most heavy, emotional, or serious; at least not for most people. Link.
June 18, 2009
Healthcare
One of the most important aspects of the healthcare debate that you almost never hear about is that it's not about making people more healthy. Genetics and lifestyle play such an important role that it's only in a small minority of cases that having good quality insurance makes a decisive difference in medical outcomes. What healthcare reform *is* about, however, is cost. The U.S. spends more than any other developed nation on healthcare for pretty bad health outcomes overall.
Ezra, who you should really be reading every day for you healthcare debate fix, has a great peace up today that makes the case that we've set up a system in America where we pay through the nose so that we can avoid having to make tough choices, but that refusal is itself a choice with very real consequences. Link.
Ezra, who you should really be reading every day for you healthcare debate fix, has a great peace up today that makes the case that we've set up a system in America where we pay through the nose so that we can avoid having to make tough choices, but that refusal is itself a choice with very real consequences. Link.
May 18, 2009
Yeahbuhwha?
Can someone explain to me what's so great about WolframIAlpha? I've heard a news story about it, and now Ezra's talking about it at his new digs. I feel like a dumb, old man over here, but I don't get it. THESE KIDS, AND THEIR "MUSIC"!
Dollhouse Renewed
As Drew pointed out in the comments to the last post, Fox has opted to renew Dollhouse for a 13 episode second season, despite chronically weak ratings. Here's an article that has some interesting theories on the renewal. Most interesting to me was the idea that Dollhouse didn't do that great on TV, but did great on Hulu, which is also owned by Fox and where the bar for success is much lower. So Fox has a nascent web TV business (Hulu), and they want it to succeed by getting tech savvy viewers hooked on seeing their niche shows there. What better place than Hulu for a Whedon show to flourish, where Dr. Horrible made such a splash? It also helps that unlike The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Fox owns the actual show Dollhouse as well. So this is all corporatey goodness over at Fox, and with the added restriction of a lower budget, Dollhouse looks like a safer bet for renewal. Oh, and here's an interview with Joss.
Don't, however, take any of this as an excuse to not buy the Dollhouse Season 1 DVDs when they come out over the summer. This show needs (and deserves!) all the help it can get.
Don't, however, take any of this as an excuse to not buy the Dollhouse Season 1 DVDs when they come out over the summer. This show needs (and deserves!) all the help it can get.
May 10, 2009
Dollhouse: Episode 12
So, I missed a post or two, but here we are, the (possible) end of the series. Honestly, I'd be fine with this as the end of the series as long as Joss Whedon did another 12 episode series next year, and another the year after that, and so on. More than anyone else that I can think of, I think Joss Whedon is uniquely in a position to bring the UK format of television series to the US. He's got a smallish but totally devoted fan base and creates shows with enough watchability to pull in a few non-devotees here and there. His shows aren't going to be the center of a broadcast network's Thursday night lineup, but they'd make decent fill ins for the summer or after the fall lineup has been culled of the dead weight. He also knows how to sqeeze impressive results from a constrained budget. This is probably wishful thinking, because a stupid reality show will always be a cheaper fill in than a scripted show. Still, it'd be nice.
What would also be nice is if Fox would give Dollhouse another chance. They hobbled it from the beginning by dropping it behind the flagging Terminator show on Friday nights, when nobody watches TV. They made it a mid-season replacement, which probably get renewed even less frequently than a new show in the fall, which have pretty short average lives to begin with.
This episode, like most of the series, made interesting use of the premise and got great performances out of every member of the cast. It was also perfect in striking the balance between "end of the season episode" and "last episode ever," unlike Firefly, which was brilliant right up until it just stopped.
At the end of the day though, there's just not much I can say about the episode. If you've been following the series, you'll almost certainly like it. If you haven't been following the series YOU'VE BEEN KILLING SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL, YOU BASTARD! Ok, breathe...Anyway this leave enough open doors to pick right back up in the fall, but closes enough to not leave the fans screaming at their TVs (or computers if you've been watching on Hulu). Everyone and everything related to this show is underrated, and I can only hope that Fox gives the show a chance to catch on with a broader audience so that may be remedied.
What would also be nice is if Fox would give Dollhouse another chance. They hobbled it from the beginning by dropping it behind the flagging Terminator show on Friday nights, when nobody watches TV. They made it a mid-season replacement, which probably get renewed even less frequently than a new show in the fall, which have pretty short average lives to begin with.
This episode, like most of the series, made interesting use of the premise and got great performances out of every member of the cast. It was also perfect in striking the balance between "end of the season episode" and "last episode ever," unlike Firefly, which was brilliant right up until it just stopped.
At the end of the day though, there's just not much I can say about the episode. If you've been following the series, you'll almost certainly like it. If you haven't been following the series YOU'VE BEEN KILLING SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL, YOU BASTARD! Ok, breathe...Anyway this leave enough open doors to pick right back up in the fall, but closes enough to not leave the fans screaming at their TVs (or computers if you've been watching on Hulu). Everyone and everything related to this show is underrated, and I can only hope that Fox gives the show a chance to catch on with a broader audience so that may be remedied.
May 08, 2009
Review: Star Trek
Star Trek: The Next Generation premiered September 28, 1987. From then until the last episode of Star Trek: Enterprise on May 13, 2005, the Star Trek franchise was continuously on the air. An entire generation grew up with new sets of characters and a history that evolved through the series. The new Star Trek film from J.J. Abrams tosses out all that history and brings us back to the original series crew.
I guess we should settle this now: there is really no right way to do this. Like with comic book movies, hewing too close to the extensive cannon of the franchise will impress fans, but will likely drive away anyone without a PhD. in the subject matter. Ignoring the franchise's history will make the film more accessible, but there's a strong chance that you alienate your base. J.J. Abrams leans more to the latter than the former, but I think he did as good a job of balancing the competing goals as was possible.
The cast is just about perfect, and they all tread the very fine line between invoking the famous traits of their characters without pantomiming Shatner, Nimoy, or the other original cast members. The only down side I see to the cast is that by the time the Trek movies of the past were released, pretty much all of the actors were typecast as their Trek character. This allowed them to do several movies with a pretty fixed cast because nobody was getting other work. For some reason I doubt that Chris Pine is going to want to spend the next 10-20 years playing Kirk, but I also doubt that Paramount is going to stop making Trek movies if this one is successful but Pine wants out. I hope that they've signed everyone to at least a three picture deal, but I've got a sinking feeling that we'll start to see new faces subbed in eventually.
The special effects were really fantastic. The newer Trek series had increased their special effects so greatly that the original Enterprise, particularly the television version, looked pretty lame by comparison. This movie restores a sense of awe to the original ship that's been gone for a long time.
It's not the most contemplative science fiction story of all time, but Trek movies have mostly been about exciting space battles, so that's not the worst criticism of all time.
All in all, this is a great (re)start to the franchise, and I'm sure we'll see more films in the next few years.
I guess we should settle this now: there is really no right way to do this. Like with comic book movies, hewing too close to the extensive cannon of the franchise will impress fans, but will likely drive away anyone without a PhD. in the subject matter. Ignoring the franchise's history will make the film more accessible, but there's a strong chance that you alienate your base. J.J. Abrams leans more to the latter than the former, but I think he did as good a job of balancing the competing goals as was possible.
The cast is just about perfect, and they all tread the very fine line between invoking the famous traits of their characters without pantomiming Shatner, Nimoy, or the other original cast members. The only down side I see to the cast is that by the time the Trek movies of the past were released, pretty much all of the actors were typecast as their Trek character. This allowed them to do several movies with a pretty fixed cast because nobody was getting other work. For some reason I doubt that Chris Pine is going to want to spend the next 10-20 years playing Kirk, but I also doubt that Paramount is going to stop making Trek movies if this one is successful but Pine wants out. I hope that they've signed everyone to at least a three picture deal, but I've got a sinking feeling that we'll start to see new faces subbed in eventually.
The special effects were really fantastic. The newer Trek series had increased their special effects so greatly that the original Enterprise, particularly the television version, looked pretty lame by comparison. This movie restores a sense of awe to the original ship that's been gone for a long time.
It's not the most contemplative science fiction story of all time, but Trek movies have mostly been about exciting space battles, so that's not the worst criticism of all time.
All in all, this is a great (re)start to the franchise, and I'm sure we'll see more films in the next few years.
May 05, 2009
Wolverine
Short review: It's not great, but it's worth watching at some point. There are some things that are annoying, but they cast the movie well. The script is a bit bland and overly packed with fights, but it does do a good job laying out a backstory for Wolverine and tying him to several characters from the previous films. They also waste a lot of time and special effects money introducing a slew of mutants that really don't serve any function in the movie other than "Oh snap, it's Emma Frost!"
Overall, I'd give it a C, or a 70% or whatever. Not great, not terrible, worth watching.
What I *don't* understand is that I've seen several people online give essentially the same review that I just did, but say, "It's not great, but it's not Daredevil or Superman Returns bad." I still don't get what was so terrible about those movies. I don't think either was great, but though I though Superman Returns was better than Daredevil, I've seen much worse than either. Here are the main points that I remember people making against them:
Daredevil: They changed Daredevil and Bullseye's costumes. They made Kingpin black. The park scene with Electra was bad.
Superman Returns: They reused the airplane scene from the earlier Superman movies. They made Superman a deadbeat dad.
None of those were very convincing to me at the time, and I don't find them terribly convincing now. So, can anyone explain why those movies are considered at or near the bottom of the superhero barrel?
Overall, I'd give it a C, or a 70% or whatever. Not great, not terrible, worth watching.
What I *don't* understand is that I've seen several people online give essentially the same review that I just did, but say, "It's not great, but it's not Daredevil or Superman Returns bad." I still don't get what was so terrible about those movies. I don't think either was great, but though I though Superman Returns was better than Daredevil, I've seen much worse than either. Here are the main points that I remember people making against them:
Daredevil: They changed Daredevil and Bullseye's costumes. They made Kingpin black. The park scene with Electra was bad.
Superman Returns: They reused the airplane scene from the earlier Superman movies. They made Superman a deadbeat dad.
None of those were very convincing to me at the time, and I don't find them terribly convincing now. So, can anyone explain why those movies are considered at or near the bottom of the superhero barrel?
April 29, 2009
April 27, 2009
Uhhh...What?
It's two, two, two utterly bizarre ideas in one!
Up first, Warren Ellis is evidently working on a comic called "Supergod" and the graphic includes a crown of thorns. The only surprising thing would be if it ended up being inoffensive.
Second, we have a software company making a game where Mr. T and Will Wright (of Sim City fame) fight Nazis.
Uhhh...What?
Link 1 and Link 2.
Up first, Warren Ellis is evidently working on a comic called "Supergod" and the graphic includes a crown of thorns. The only surprising thing would be if it ended up being inoffensive.
Second, we have a software company making a game where Mr. T and Will Wright (of Sim City fame) fight Nazis.
Uhhh...What?
Link 1 and Link 2.
Six Days In Fallujah
Konami recently announced an upcoming video game called "Six Days In Fallujah," which chronicled one of the most heated battles in the current operations in Iraq. After getting heat from a number of sources (veteran's groups, families of soldiers, and probably miscilaneous people from the internet), the game has been cancelled. This has led to somewhat heated discussions, though bizarrely not nearly so heated as dicussions about which video game console is the best, about the appropriateness of the game, war games generally, and whether there's a proper place for interactive software to cover real world events in a similar manner to other media. Any thoughts?
Here's my post from the above discussion:
"For me, the "too soon" argument isn't about being too emotionally close to the events. Well, at least, that's not really the point. The point is that we've had more than enough time to settle the history on WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and (perhaps) the first Gulf War. What I mean is that we can pretty much all agree that the Germans were on the "wrong" side of the war in a pretty extreme sense and few would be offended by the portrayal of Germans as the villains of a game. Similarly, Vietnam has been determined to be a morally questionable war, and most representations in modern media reflect that.
The current operations in Iraq, however, a much less settled. It'd be far too easy to fall into caricatures; to represent the U.S. characters as unambiguously morally correct and the people they fight as unambiguously evil, and all the things that come with current caricatures of Islamic peoples. And no, I'm not talking about "political correctness," which is its own caricature, I'm talking about producing reflections on war that are of real social value. The tendency to produce the shallow, simplistic works that I described earlier in this paragraph don't add anything to our understanding of conflict, war, or the specific events of our history. They're produced as entertainment; as propaganda to make one side of a conflict feel superior to the other and justified in their actions. These aren't sober reflections on history but tools to further agendas which are still all too current and relevant. They're also, frequently, crass attempts to cash in on the emotions, patriotism, and sometimes jingoism that follow international conflict.
There is definitely value in using interactive software as a tool to explore history. From what I've seen, however, this is not the product to help interactive software shed its "games" label for something perhaps more respectable."
Here's my post from the above discussion:
"For me, the "too soon" argument isn't about being too emotionally close to the events. Well, at least, that's not really the point. The point is that we've had more than enough time to settle the history on WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and (perhaps) the first Gulf War. What I mean is that we can pretty much all agree that the Germans were on the "wrong" side of the war in a pretty extreme sense and few would be offended by the portrayal of Germans as the villains of a game. Similarly, Vietnam has been determined to be a morally questionable war, and most representations in modern media reflect that.
The current operations in Iraq, however, a much less settled. It'd be far too easy to fall into caricatures; to represent the U.S. characters as unambiguously morally correct and the people they fight as unambiguously evil, and all the things that come with current caricatures of Islamic peoples. And no, I'm not talking about "political correctness," which is its own caricature, I'm talking about producing reflections on war that are of real social value. The tendency to produce the shallow, simplistic works that I described earlier in this paragraph don't add anything to our understanding of conflict, war, or the specific events of our history. They're produced as entertainment; as propaganda to make one side of a conflict feel superior to the other and justified in their actions. These aren't sober reflections on history but tools to further agendas which are still all too current and relevant. They're also, frequently, crass attempts to cash in on the emotions, patriotism, and sometimes jingoism that follow international conflict.
There is definitely value in using interactive software as a tool to explore history. From what I've seen, however, this is not the product to help interactive software shed its "games" label for something perhaps more respectable."
April 16, 2009
Almost Makes Me Like The Bruins
This ad is hereby immediately nominated to the Hall of Fame for great advertisements. Link.
Oh, Old People
I cannot calculate how much I have loved the teabagging jokes of the last few weeks. In case you haven't seen it, here's Anderson Cooper's contribution, though he clearly doesn't understand which person is teabagged and which is the teabagger. Link.
April 13, 2009
Dollhouse: Episode 9
Man, that was a good one. Anyone else catch the cameo by David Fury (aka, The Mustard Man from the Buffy musical and Framkin, the pupped guy from Angel's "Smile Time")?
April 06, 2009
Farscape
So, every nerd has to at least be familiar with Star Trek and Star Wars to even have a little cred. Buffy's probably in there too, and I wouldn't be surprised if BSG became a part of the necessary nerd knowledge as time goes one.
Then there are the other shows. The shows that only the weird nerds are really into. These are the Babylon 5s, the Hercules/Xenas, SG-1s, Andromedas, and yes, Farscapes. Well, I've been watching Farscape for a while now, and I'm closing in on the end of Season 2 (of 4 total, plus a TV movie), and it's really turned into a good show. The first season was decent, though the quality wasn't quite good enough to distract me from the fact that everyone in space is an Australian. Despite being a sometimes serious show, this made for the more humorous version of space I've seen. But Season 2 really turns the show up to 11 with the greater focus on the villain Scorpius. Yes, just a short while ago I thought he was about the dumbest looking villain in a long time, but they make it work.
Anyway, I guess the takeaway is that if I wasn't before, I'm definitely one of those weird nerds now.
Then there are the other shows. The shows that only the weird nerds are really into. These are the Babylon 5s, the Hercules/Xenas, SG-1s, Andromedas, and yes, Farscapes. Well, I've been watching Farscape for a while now, and I'm closing in on the end of Season 2 (of 4 total, plus a TV movie), and it's really turned into a good show. The first season was decent, though the quality wasn't quite good enough to distract me from the fact that everyone in space is an Australian. Despite being a sometimes serious show, this made for the more humorous version of space I've seen. But Season 2 really turns the show up to 11 with the greater focus on the villain Scorpius. Yes, just a short while ago I thought he was about the dumbest looking villain in a long time, but they make it work.
Anyway, I guess the takeaway is that if I wasn't before, I'm definitely one of those weird nerds now.
April 05, 2009
Harold And Kumar Go To Washington
Just a quick blogging break from a brief I'm writing. An annoying, annoying, long brief.
Anyway, legalization of pot has quietly become one of the bigger stories of this recession. President Obama has been asked about it at town halls, legit journos are writing articles about it, and Senators are talking about restructuring our sentencing for drug crimes.
The most shocking figure that I took from those links is that 47% of all arrests in this country are related to marijuana. That's an enormous waste of money any way you slice it, particularly since it doesn't seem to be having the effect of reducing usage.
Link.
And now, sigh, back to work.
Anyway, legalization of pot has quietly become one of the bigger stories of this recession. President Obama has been asked about it at town halls, legit journos are writing articles about it, and Senators are talking about restructuring our sentencing for drug crimes.
The most shocking figure that I took from those links is that 47% of all arrests in this country are related to marijuana. That's an enormous waste of money any way you slice it, particularly since it doesn't seem to be having the effect of reducing usage.
Link.
And now, sigh, back to work.
April 04, 2009
March 31, 2009
Andy Hallett Is Dead
Andy Hallett, best known as Lorne on the Angel TV series, has died at the age of 33 from congestive heart failure.
What a damn shame.
Link.
What a damn shame.
Link.
March 30, 2009
Late Dollhouse
Back from a long weekend, so what'd you guys think of the new Dollhouse? There's certainly a change from the first five episodes, that's for sure.
March 21, 2009
BSG Finale
Haven't watched it yet, but I figure I should get this post up ASAP. How'd it all end? Were you satisfied? Enough questions answered? Did everyone turn out to be part of a dream of a disabled kid?
Dollhouse: Episode 6
Haven't had a chance to watch it yet. What's the verdict? Is this where Joss Whedon get a freer hand and turns the show up to 11?
March 17, 2009
Oops
Sorry I forgot the weekend posts, ladies and germs. Consider this an open thread for both Dollhouse and Battlestar Galactica.
Well, one (double length) episode left of BSG. I still can't shake the feeling that though I'm liking these last episodes they're leaving too much mystery for my taste. I mean, now you've got the Galactica going on a mission for a very important person, but they don't even really know what the person's significance is.
Dollhouse continues to truck along with good-but-not-great episodes, which doesn't bode well for a show that was already probably going to be a cult show and is airing on Friday night. The rumor is that either starting with the sixth episode or after the sixth episode the network stepped back from the show a bit and let Joss Whedon do more of what he wanted, so hopefully the next couple episodes will be great. I will say that "man reaction" was pretty good stuff.
Well, one (double length) episode left of BSG. I still can't shake the feeling that though I'm liking these last episodes they're leaving too much mystery for my taste. I mean, now you've got the Galactica going on a mission for a very important person, but they don't even really know what the person's significance is.
Dollhouse continues to truck along with good-but-not-great episodes, which doesn't bode well for a show that was already probably going to be a cult show and is airing on Friday night. The rumor is that either starting with the sixth episode or after the sixth episode the network stepped back from the show a bit and let Joss Whedon do more of what he wanted, so hopefully the next couple episodes will be great. I will say that "man reaction" was pretty good stuff.
March 12, 2009
Resident Evil 5...Again
Man, just when I think we're going to break through the idiocy on the Resident Evil 5 debate it runs right back to the same stupid ground it's run over since the beginning. The article makes a few good points, but I think a lot of that is undercut at the end when their supposed "expert" starts ranting about the "cult of political correctness." And Heaven help you if you wade into the comments...the stupid, stupid comments.
March 11, 2009
Joking On The Square
With the Kindle 2 now released, discussion about whether old technology can survive has resurfaced. Now, I'm not saying everyone has to go out and buy a Kindle. Personally, I don't think the technology is where I'd like it to be before I take the plunge (I'd like to see it get cheaper and with a color screen that can display pictures). In these types of debates, however, you see a lot of personal preference or opinion passed off as an intrinsic property of the subjects of the debate. Plenty of people make arguments about the pleasurable qualities of holding a book, when really that's just their preference because it's what they're used to.
The thing that irks the shit out of me, however, is when people try to argue that books would be considered great or even superior technology if they were introduced after digital products. It's not just Penny Arcade, I've seen this all over TV and the internet, always made by people who love paper based books and who are usually older. I know that mostly it's played as a joke, as it is in PA, but Al Franken had an apropos phrase in one of his books that he used to describe the way conservatives get away with saying some of the ridiculous things they say. He said that they were "joking on the square," by which he meant that they were phrasing their statement as a joke, and they may even think it's funny, but that they also believe that there's a grain of truth in there as well. You also get this a lot, and it annoys me just as much, on any cold day. Somene says, "Boy, I thought we were supposed to be getting into global warming or something, eh?" This person is almost always either a Republican, a global warming skeptic, or both. Of course, that's not how global warming works, and technology progression doesn't work such that books would be considered superior to digital media if they were introduced today.
The thing that irks the shit out of me, however, is when people try to argue that books would be considered great or even superior technology if they were introduced after digital products. It's not just Penny Arcade, I've seen this all over TV and the internet, always made by people who love paper based books and who are usually older. I know that mostly it's played as a joke, as it is in PA, but Al Franken had an apropos phrase in one of his books that he used to describe the way conservatives get away with saying some of the ridiculous things they say. He said that they were "joking on the square," by which he meant that they were phrasing their statement as a joke, and they may even think it's funny, but that they also believe that there's a grain of truth in there as well. You also get this a lot, and it annoys me just as much, on any cold day. Somene says, "Boy, I thought we were supposed to be getting into global warming or something, eh?" This person is almost always either a Republican, a global warming skeptic, or both. Of course, that's not how global warming works, and technology progression doesn't work such that books would be considered superior to digital media if they were introduced today.
March 08, 2009
Watching The Watchmen Reviews
The Watchmen comic is among my favorite works of fiction, so obviously I've been watching the development with alternating joy and horror. This is a comic that has gone through at least four attempts at being adapted for film that ended up collapsing under either legal or creative difficulties. It's a dense, complex work that has defied simplification into a two hour story by just about everyone that's touched it.
Now that it *has* been adapted, and now finally *has* been released, the question is, did they succeed? I haven't seen it yet, and the reviews are almost as tough to parse as the film itself. There's not universal support or condemnation, which raises all kinds of questions. Did the reviewer read the comic, or did they see the film fresh? Did the reviewer expect light super-hero fair and therefore didn't like what is supposedly still a pretty complex narrative in the film? Watchmen looks to be almost as difficult to review as it was to get made, and in these situations you can either go with people whose opinion you trust or just take the plunge and see it, reviews be damned.
Now that it *has* been adapted, and now finally *has* been released, the question is, did they succeed? I haven't seen it yet, and the reviews are almost as tough to parse as the film itself. There's not universal support or condemnation, which raises all kinds of questions. Did the reviewer read the comic, or did they see the film fresh? Did the reviewer expect light super-hero fair and therefore didn't like what is supposedly still a pretty complex narrative in the film? Watchmen looks to be almost as difficult to review as it was to get made, and in these situations you can either go with people whose opinion you trust or just take the plunge and see it, reviews be damned.
Dollhouse: Episode 4
And now thoughts on the latest Dollhouse? Watch out for spoilers. Boy, that Topher guy is creepy.
March 06, 2009
Coming This Saturday
I kinds wish the theme song was catchier, but there's very little to dislike about this. Link.
March 01, 2009
Dollhouse: Episode 3
Spoilerific thoughts on the latest? According to Drew, Eliza Dushku says that Joss Whedon had a much freer hand in producing the show after episode 6. It's been pretty good so far, but I'm hoping for a jump in interesting-ocity then.
BSG
Any thoughts on the latest episode? Be forewarned if you're not caught up, there will be no policing of spoilers.
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