You know that moment *just* prior to orgasm? The one where the blood is pounding so hard in your ears that the only thing it is possible to think about is the expectation of what's coming next? (ooh, good pun!)
Well, I've been having that moment all day, ever since I caught the tail end of a story being reported on Attack of the Show about a rumour recently circulated at this year's Comic Con concerning
The bit that I caught went something like "... and so fans can look forward to new episodes of Babylon 5 in the near future. Now, to the MySpace girl of the day..."
So naturally I have been in a state of perpetual almost ready-to-orgasm ever since. The hands-down best scifi show ever made, and the precursor to ALL good non-trek scifi is going to get new episodes made!
Apparently JMS (Creator of the B5 universe) has been given the green light to produce new anthology-style episodes that would each tell stories of individual characters prior to the events of the series.
I'm guessing that these stories won't be about either Dr. Franklin or G'Kar, what with the actors who played them being dead and all.
Here is the link to the only article I've been able to find confirming the rumour at this point. And if you've got the time read through the comments for a few good laughs courtesy of the B5 haters.
Yup, as I've maybe mentioned before (here, and here) a new Star Trek movie is coming, and a teaser poster was released the other day to whet appetites like mine.
No, not those kind of appetites.
Not much info to go along with the release of the poster. No hint at the plot of the new film, save for what can be gleaned from the image itself: That its set in the Kirk-era Trek universe. But its enough.
Click the pic for a full sized desktop.
I can't fucking wait for this movie.
Story over at StarTrek.com
And fyi, I have had the exact icon from this image hanging on my rear view mirror for years. I briefly flirted with getting it for my next tattoo, (I'm big on symbols) but my desire for it didn't quite win out over my desire to stay married to Superwife. Not quite, but it was close.
So today I finished watching the first (and only) season of Firefly, and man was that ever a great show.
A friend of mine from work and I got comparing thoughts about movies awhile back after discovering that we were both scifi geeks, and I happened to mention how much I enjoyed Serenity; and how shocked I was at how much I liked it, considering it was more Bonanza than Star Trek. He told me that he had watched its television predecessor when it was first aired and that he had snapped up the DVD set as soon as they were released, and would I be interested in borrowing them?
I'm glad I did but at the same time I wish I hadn't. This show was so great that it only served to remind me that not only had I completely missed the boat on getting into the show when it was on but also that they wouldn't ever be making more of them.
Sort of like biting into a chocolate covered apple and finding out it was a lemon inside instead. Sweet yet bitter yah?
But what follows is probably the highest compliment a geek like me can give a show: Out of all of the scifi shows that I watch (and have watched), Firefly's story is the most believable:
People still can't get along no matter how many worlds they're spread across, governments are still oppressive and totalitarian, the rich enjoy the comforts and are a small minority while the vast majority are dirt poor and have to work their asses off for their next to nothing.
Yup, sounds about right.
I'm not saying that Firefly is better than Babylon 5, or BSG, or Trek (although it IS better than
Here's the link to the Firefly Wikipedia article, which sums up the show nicely.
Man can that Joss Whedon write a good tv series. He's like the Aaron Spelling of our generation. Except without the talentless daughter.
I'll end with one of the best quotes in the entire series; I don't know why I find it so funny, but here it is:
"If wishes were horses, we'd all be eating steak"UPDATED JULY 26 - I just read on scifi.com about a so-called entrepeneur that is trying to rally fan support behind producing a season 2 of the series, to be made available via direct download and other formats. Check out the scoop here (at present it is the second article from top) and sign up to support the season 2 initiative here if you're so inclined.
If you haven't been to the website Spamusement and are in the mood for (or could use) a really good laugh, you should check it out. The artist takes Spam email lines and makes ridiculously funny cartoons out of them. This site was sitting unouched for the last few months; The Creator was going through a bit of artist's block I think. But he's back and better than ever.
Here are two of my all-time favourites. Look for the link after the jump:
Did You See Me?
Hide What You Watch on Cable TV From Your Wife
Set aside an hour or so, and get ready to laugh your ass off as you check out the hilarity at Spamusement.
Here are two of my all-time favourites. Look for the link after the jump:
Did You See Me?
Hide What You Watch on Cable TV From Your Wife
Set aside an hour or so, and get ready to laugh your ass off as you check out the hilarity at Spamusement.
Labels: funny
So Trinity, Superwife and I just got back today from our first vacation of the summer, and now I'm settling into the first of four graveyard shifts in a row. (Don't worry boss: I'm blogging this on my lunch!)
The first day of my four days off we drove to my in-laws place on the lake for a well deserved break that was just long enough for everyone to have a great time. The trip up always takes 5 hours (each way!), which with the baby is about 4 and 1/2 hours too long. We're planning on hooking up an in-car DVD player for Trin so she can watch Sesame Street for at least a few minutes of the trip before she gets bored, (and thereby give Mom and I a little break) on the next trip.
We had a great time though. Trin got to go for her first real fishing trip and she loved it. I caught my limit in fish and exceeded my limit in UV rays; I forgot the sunblock and got one of the worst sunburns I've ever had. At least now, when the Big C: Cancer finally shows up, I'll have no one to blame but myself.
Note to self: obscure Alec Baldwin SNL reference, check!And now that I'm back and plugged back in, I have a plethora of likely-only-interesting-to-me things that I have been intending to blog about, but lack the werewithal to write separate posts about each. So the following are some good links to click on, in no particular order:
- The Matrix is right around the corner. Scientists have found a way to implant a neuroprocessor in a human brain that can be used to detect brain activity and transmit those signals to a computer to then do .... pretty much anything I guess. Pretty soon, you too can say "I know kung-fu".
- Star Trek 40th Anniversary Convention. If there were a way for me to simultaneously get out of work AND convince Superwife that its a good idea for me to go to Vegas alone for a weekend, I would SO be going to this.
- 2 faced kitten video (courtesy of MSNBC) Pretty much proves evolution in one fell swoop because no god could be this much of a fucking jerk.
- Natalie Portman to star in the next Indiana Jones movie. Guess they managed to cast the part of Harrison Ford's Great-Great-Great-Granddaughter.
I miss it already.
Labels: everything else, family, work
"An essential characteristic of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero, and there's the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When he wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic that Superman stands alone. Superman did not become Superman, Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears, the glasses, the business suit, that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He's weak, he's unsure of himself... he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race."
-Bill (David Carradine) from Kill Bill Vol.2
I don't know if I entirely agree with cynical Bill, but the quote makes a good point about The Man of Steel: The man that everyone calls Clark Kent was born to be Superman.
I watched the movie Superman Returns at a drive-in theater with Superwife and my one year old daughter a few nights ago, and it was everything I could have hoped for, and then some. And if you run a search on this blog on the words Superman or Smallville, you'll get an idea of just how high my expectations were.
In a few words: I am a lifelong Superman fan.
And if director Bryan Singer's epic story of the return of Superman doesn't disappoint a fanboy like me, how can it go wrong with the rest of the world?
There are so many little nuances to this movie that make it so great, such an homage to all of the Superman canon that has come before. The initial credits, carefully recreated to mirror those from the 1978 movie; the little snippets of dialogue culled from earlier movies; the recasting of Marlon Brando as Jor-El (see my entry about that masterstroke here); the salute to Action Comics #1 (see photo above); the masterful reworking of the Superman score that everyone knows by heart; the gorgeous special effects; I could go on and on.
The bottom line is that Superman Returns is a triumphant re-imagination of the world's most iconic and beloved superhero. Bryan Singer is to be commended for his careful and loving treatment of the legend of the last son of Krypton.
Here's a (mostly) spoiler free review from Scifi.com.
If you like your reviews spoiler-full (you've been warned!) check out supermanhomepage.com.
And finally a good friend of mine has some very well-written thoughts on Big Blue's Return on his blog here, including an excellent recap of the pertinent events from Superman I and II that directly affect the plot of Superman Returns. And as a parent, his use of Jor-El's words to a young Clark/Kal-El can't help but tear me up everytime I read them.
I think it would take some work to find someone who wasn't aware of the mythology of Superman, regardless of the corner of the world you're looking. Everybody has heard of Superman. In fact, Superwife and I were recently watching a special on aid in South Africa and one of the poverty stricken children waiting in line for a meal was wearing a (way too large) Superman t-shirt. It made me realize just how global the mythology of this character really has become.
What I'm driving at is that Superman is a legend that has touched millions of people across the world and that it would take a lot to satisfy the myriad facets of the character and his exploits that those people have come to enjoy so much over the years. I think that the movie Superman Returns is the best possible realization of that goal, and it is the one movie that I will be recommending to everyone I know, all summer.
I'll finish this love-in about Superman Returns with one of my favourite movie quotes ever, delivered by Brando to a then-young Clark on what he can do for humanity:
"They can be a great people, Kal-El. They wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all — their capacity for good — I have sent them you, my only son."
Dear Trinity,
Today was your first birthday.
I've been both looking forward and dreading this day for a long time, because its such a huge milestone in your life with us, and because it means that you have been with us for a year already. I have a very hard time trying to get my head around the fact that you have been such an integral part of our lives for so long and it seeming like its been only a few moments.
You had more firsts this month: your first swim in your turtle pool, although swimming is a strong word for the splashfest you threw on my lap. That was a lot of fun!
You also got to go to your very first movie. We went to a drive-in to see Superman Returns, and while you slept through pretty much all of it, you managed to sleep well even with the warm summer air coming through the windows and the sounds of the movie pouring out of the radio.
This month, you went to the zoo for the first time, and even though it was a long day for you, you loved it. You particularly liked the parrots and macaws, because when you talked to them, they talked back.
You spent your birthday mostly with your Mom and I, though we had your Aunt Lisa and your Grandma and her husband over for a barbecue for lunch. We took you to get professional pictures taken of you in your birthday dress this morning and just like you do through most things, you laughed and smiled your way through the whole sitting.
You also got to go to another barbecue later this evening, one which I had to work through, but I heard from your Mommy that you got sang to by everyone there, and that event wasn't intended to be about you at all. My only regret about today is that I had to work and couldn't help put you to bed tonight. But that is tempered with the knowledge that your Mommy, who is such a good Mom, is there to do it for both of us.
We had your birthday party on Saturday, and we invited those people that you have come to know well over the first year of your life. We figured it would be hard enough having a few dozen people around, so we made sure they were people you knew well and were comfortable around. It must have worked, because you had a great time. You shared your day with friends, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, even your cousin-to-be showed up, though he/she was in your Aunt's tummy!
You got lots of presents from everyone, further proving how much everyone loves to spoil you. And you got to have your first ever taste of cake! Up until Saturday, your palette was limited to pureed veggies, fruit, and meats, and the occasional cookie. But you dove into that cake like you were born to it, and in so doing, you let everyone there know that you are your Mother's daughter.
I know that I have written along these lines before, but when your Mother gave birth to you a year ago, you changed our lives irrevocably and for so much the better than I would ever have believed possible. Every day with you is a joy, and I hope you know that I will always love and support you for as long as I live.
This last year of our lives has been so exciting and seen so many changes in you, I really don't know what to expect for the next 12 months.
I have watched you grow from the tiny, fragile being you began as into the animated, personable, beautiful child you are today. I have seen you crawl and laugh and point and cry and sleep and hug and wave and say Dad, and each of these things has humbled me and made my heart melt.
I can't wait to see what the next year with you will be like.
Love Daddy
Today was your first birthday.
I've been both looking forward and dreading this day for a long time, because its such a huge milestone in your life with us, and because it means that you have been with us for a year already. I have a very hard time trying to get my head around the fact that you have been such an integral part of our lives for so long and it seeming like its been only a few moments.
You had more firsts this month: your first swim in your turtle pool, although swimming is a strong word for the splashfest you threw on my lap. That was a lot of fun!
You also got to go to your very first movie. We went to a drive-in to see Superman Returns, and while you slept through pretty much all of it, you managed to sleep well even with the warm summer air coming through the windows and the sounds of the movie pouring out of the radio.
This month, you went to the zoo for the first time, and even though it was a long day for you, you loved it. You particularly liked the parrots and macaws, because when you talked to them, they talked back.
You spent your birthday mostly with your Mom and I, though we had your Aunt Lisa and your Grandma and her husband over for a barbecue for lunch. We took you to get professional pictures taken of you in your birthday dress this morning and just like you do through most things, you laughed and smiled your way through the whole sitting.
You also got to go to another barbecue later this evening, one which I had to work through, but I heard from your Mommy that you got sang to by everyone there, and that event wasn't intended to be about you at all. My only regret about today is that I had to work and couldn't help put you to bed tonight. But that is tempered with the knowledge that your Mommy, who is such a good Mom, is there to do it for both of us.
We had your birthday party on Saturday, and we invited those people that you have come to know well over the first year of your life. We figured it would be hard enough having a few dozen people around, so we made sure they were people you knew well and were comfortable around. It must have worked, because you had a great time. You shared your day with friends, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, even your cousin-to-be showed up, though he/she was in your Aunt's tummy!
You got lots of presents from everyone, further proving how much everyone loves to spoil you. And you got to have your first ever taste of cake! Up until Saturday, your palette was limited to pureed veggies, fruit, and meats, and the occasional cookie. But you dove into that cake like you were born to it, and in so doing, you let everyone there know that you are your Mother's daughter.
I know that I have written along these lines before, but when your Mother gave birth to you a year ago, you changed our lives irrevocably and for so much the better than I would ever have believed possible. Every day with you is a joy, and I hope you know that I will always love and support you for as long as I live.
This last year of our lives has been so exciting and seen so many changes in you, I really don't know what to expect for the next 12 months.
I have watched you grow from the tiny, fragile being you began as into the animated, personable, beautiful child you are today. I have seen you crawl and laugh and point and cry and sleep and hug and wave and say Dad, and each of these things has humbled me and made my heart melt.
I can't wait to see what the next year with you will be like.
Love Daddy
Labels: trinity
Last week, the genius that is The Daily Show with Jon Stewart came up with an appropriate title for people like me:
Child in Man's Body.
The name came in a bit about ESRB ratings that Stewart et al would like to see on videogames, in response to the recent brouhaha surrounding game violence. Okay, not recent at all; more like constant. But recent because of the governmental committee currently investigating an alleged connection between violence in videogames and violent crime.
The bit is very funny, and worth watching. Have a look here.
And while we're on games...
I think it likely that I am one of only a very small group of people that think XPlay, the G4TV show starring the spectacular Morgan Webb and the unimpressive Adam Sessler, is worth watching.
In talking to other gamers online I have read that most self-respecting gamers can't stand the show; either because Sessler can't get past the first level of any game he's ever played, or because the show spends too much time doing skits about reviewing games, and not enough time actually reviewing games.
But you can get reviews of games anywhere, and most of the time, you're better off to try a game yourself than listen to what someone else thought of it. Videogames as a medium are far more complex and suited to individual taste than tv or movies are.
So I watch the show for skits like this, a parody of RPGs that makes me laugh my ass off.
The bit with Sessler 'Summoning Intern' and the bouncing in place he does while waiting for his turn to fight are totally worth the watch.
Child in Man's Body, indeed.
Labels: funny
