ok let's get Smallville out of the way. I really didn't watch it this season. The show's mediocrity has been grating on me since day 1. The sad thing was the amount of potential the show had. They should have put him in the costume years ago. After prodding from me mum I watched the season finale which saw some wild, drastic changes. The appear to have really killed Lana Lang. How do you know a TV death is real? You go onto imdb.com and see she has several new projects in the works. This doesn't seem to jive with current DC continuity which is still in flux post Infinite Crisis. However, they do something to fix the Chloe/Lois debacle which was quite bizarre. A little background. They needed an investigative reporter for Clark to rescue so they created Chloe Sullivan, a spunky blonde who secretly crushes on the enigmatic Clark Kent. years later, we're shown that she's in fact a cousin of the infamous Lois Lane. Continuity fanatics started brainstorming about how she fits into the mythology of Superman from the comics. Maybe Lois dies and Chloe takes her name! Maybe they were switched at birth! This is an inherent flaw in the hardcore comic reader. What we know of comics is gospel and to tell us something different makes steam come out of our ears. We have to make the puzzle piece fit. Eventually we're introduced to Lois, and Jimmy Olsen, and just about everyone else in Clarks adult life. Yet he doesn't wear the costume. *Sigh*. OK back to the episode. Lois is mortally injured sneaking around a Lexcorp facility when Chloe happens upon her. Chloe begins to cry and as her tear touches Lois, Chloe's essence pours into Lois, healing her in the process. Wha-zu-huh?! After a trip to wikipedia, my favorite vacation spot, I'm now equipped with the knowledge that Choe had been exposes to Kryptonite (meteor rocks) and has been displaying some sort of super powers throughout the season. So I guess Chloe's knack for a story has now been instilled in Lois and that's how we'll get the character of Lois Lane. A very odd trip. We're also given a version of Bizarro for CK near the final moments which was a cheap thrill for comic fans. Bottom line is I'm just not interested in the show at this point. Too many broken promises and let downs.
Veronica Mars was a real treat when it debuted. Solid writing, developed characters, and a season long mystery which had viewers in a tizzy. Who killed Veronica's best friend. But like Twin Peaks before it, the people still alive in the town are the true focus. Veronica's is a obsessive sleuth who disregards personal relationships and the local law in order to discover the truth. This isn't a common reaction for a teenage who believes she was subject to sexual abuse (possibly rape) and has been abandoned by her mother, but it's somewhat believable. Hey, if you believe Bruce Wayne was able to focus the pain of his parent murder into becoming a Olympic athlete and the worlds greatest detective, you can accept this. The show was being compared to Buffy, partly due to it's strong, pint size female leads. But also for it's quality in storytelling. As the show entered it's second season we were given a new mystery which wasn't as intuiging, but ultimately provided an amazing finale to a very solid season. This leads us to the third season which ended up being it's last. The show made the very treacherous jump of putting our characters out of high school and into college. The show was also moving to the new CW and the network demanded shorter mysteries for our character to solve. This was initially off putting but I eventually settled in to the season only to have the show taken away from me. Like many great shows b4 it, Veronica Mars was taken before it's time whilst mediocrity like Smallville remains. I plan on covering this odd phenomenon in future posts but for now lets say it's disappointing. There are talks of the show moving to comic book format which is fun, but never quite the same.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Lil' Bush Fahrenheit 911 and Sicko
I caught an episode of Lil' Bush last night on Comedy Central. The animation is beyond crude but it was quite funny and inflammatory to GW. However, in preparation for Sicko, I watched Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 911 today. I realized I need to watch F911 maybe every 6 months to remember how outrageous our government has become. It almost made me sick to think I was laughing about this criminal not 12 hours ago. Watch the opening 10 minutes or so where Moore explains the corruption in Florida and the black congressman plead for at least one senator to challenge the Supremem Courts ruling. It will make you sick and angry and want to do something about it. We all need to pay closer attention to the people we vote into power who make these decisions as REPRESENTATIVES of our intentions.
Friday, June 22, 2007
TV Roundup
Thought I might review some shows I watch:
24 - This 6th season was a real disappointment for most fans. To much of the same old terrorist threats. I remember daydreaming with my friend Todd after the finale of season 5 with Jack now imprisoned by the Chinese. 24! Escape from Little Trouble in Big China! Starring Jack Bauer! Instead we picked up months later with a Jack Bauer, still imprisoned and badly tortured by the Chinese. Instead of breaking out of imprisonment, his release is secured by the USA, only for the purpose of offering him for sacrifice to middle eastern terrorists who have seized control of LA. Sound Familiar? However, we're treated to something new at the close of the episode when a nuclear bomb goes off on US soil. OK they've managed to shock us a bit. But that's not the prize at the bottom of the box. We see a Jack Bauer who still has the instinctive drive of a Hero, but lacks the means to do it. The loss of so many loved ones, combined with the psychologically devastating isolation and torture by the Chinese has left us with a hero ambivalent about his own life. He cringes when he sees a colleague torturing a prisoner. He drops to his knees and vomits when he sees the mushroom cloud in the sky. It shows us Bauer is not the invincible god who contends with Chuck Norris in ass-kicker of the year online polls. He's a human who has an amazing tollerance which has been worn down by these 6 awful days in his life. Where does he go from here?
Well, the producers decided not to go down that path. instead they have Jack lace up his boots and go into soldier mode for most of the season. The only break is when he discovers that his family was behind many of the dirty dealings of season 5. However, this swerve feels a little empty and belongs on a daytime soap. Only once the day is won in the 24rth hour do we see the humanity of Jack Bauer resurface. After acting out against Audrey (JB's love interests) father, he realizes he's in no position to care for her in her debilitated state. Jack wanders off into the sunset unsure of what hope is left for his life.
Despite this unsatisfactory season. I do have hopes for next year. The producers publicly acknowledged the shows staleness and I hope that means we'll see Jack in a new situation next year. Remember: the show's called 24. The only restriction is time.
HEROES- The ads for this show were all over last summer and while out visiting my parents in Cape Cod, I watched the opening episode and was intrigued. All the trappings of a superhero comic, many staples of Campbell's the Power of Myth, serialized storytelling. What's not to like. I continued to watch and then the 5th episode clonked me on the head. with minutes to go, The subway car Peter Petrelli and Mohinder Suresh are riding in stops as does time itself. Out of nowhere Hiro appears sans glasses but carrying additude, a samurai sword and a lot more hair. He is, in fact, a version of Hiro from the future who has come with a message for Peter: save the cheerleader, save the world. This appeared to be a message for me that this show was going to be something special. Unfortunately, it ended up being somewhat mediocre. The dialogue was cliche at times as were the situations. Flashes to a dystopian future were old hat when Claremount and Byrne did it in the X-Men. The prediction of Hiro stabbing Sylar occurred too early leaving us with several episodes that treaded water. When we finally get to the NYC showdown which has been alluded to for half the season, the fight is over before it began. We're also supposed to accept Hiro just got the jump on Sylar, that he didn't slow time to speed himself up? I'm also assuming a cop out to the Petrelli's suicide mission. Nathan could drop Peter b4 the explosion and Peter could somehow live through the meltdown as did the guy who had the nuclear power before. This is nice to keep the characters in but as Joss Whedon has taught me, every so often you need to pull the trigger and show that the stakes in your narrative are real.
I'll be back with LOST, and a small Veronica Mars and Smallville writeup
24 - This 6th season was a real disappointment for most fans. To much of the same old terrorist threats. I remember daydreaming with my friend Todd after the finale of season 5 with Jack now imprisoned by the Chinese. 24! Escape from Little Trouble in Big China! Starring Jack Bauer! Instead we picked up months later with a Jack Bauer, still imprisoned and badly tortured by the Chinese. Instead of breaking out of imprisonment, his release is secured by the USA, only for the purpose of offering him for sacrifice to middle eastern terrorists who have seized control of LA. Sound Familiar? However, we're treated to something new at the close of the episode when a nuclear bomb goes off on US soil. OK they've managed to shock us a bit. But that's not the prize at the bottom of the box. We see a Jack Bauer who still has the instinctive drive of a Hero, but lacks the means to do it. The loss of so many loved ones, combined with the psychologically devastating isolation and torture by the Chinese has left us with a hero ambivalent about his own life. He cringes when he sees a colleague torturing a prisoner. He drops to his knees and vomits when he sees the mushroom cloud in the sky. It shows us Bauer is not the invincible god who contends with Chuck Norris in ass-kicker of the year online polls. He's a human who has an amazing tollerance which has been worn down by these 6 awful days in his life. Where does he go from here?
Well, the producers decided not to go down that path. instead they have Jack lace up his boots and go into soldier mode for most of the season. The only break is when he discovers that his family was behind many of the dirty dealings of season 5. However, this swerve feels a little empty and belongs on a daytime soap. Only once the day is won in the 24rth hour do we see the humanity of Jack Bauer resurface. After acting out against Audrey (JB's love interests) father, he realizes he's in no position to care for her in her debilitated state. Jack wanders off into the sunset unsure of what hope is left for his life.
Despite this unsatisfactory season. I do have hopes for next year. The producers publicly acknowledged the shows staleness and I hope that means we'll see Jack in a new situation next year. Remember: the show's called 24. The only restriction is time.
HEROES- The ads for this show were all over last summer and while out visiting my parents in Cape Cod, I watched the opening episode and was intrigued. All the trappings of a superhero comic, many staples of Campbell's the Power of Myth, serialized storytelling. What's not to like. I continued to watch and then the 5th episode clonked me on the head. with minutes to go, The subway car Peter Petrelli and Mohinder Suresh are riding in stops as does time itself. Out of nowhere Hiro appears sans glasses but carrying additude, a samurai sword and a lot more hair. He is, in fact, a version of Hiro from the future who has come with a message for Peter: save the cheerleader, save the world. This appeared to be a message for me that this show was going to be something special. Unfortunately, it ended up being somewhat mediocre. The dialogue was cliche at times as were the situations. Flashes to a dystopian future were old hat when Claremount and Byrne did it in the X-Men. The prediction of Hiro stabbing Sylar occurred too early leaving us with several episodes that treaded water. When we finally get to the NYC showdown which has been alluded to for half the season, the fight is over before it began. We're also supposed to accept Hiro just got the jump on Sylar, that he didn't slow time to speed himself up? I'm also assuming a cop out to the Petrelli's suicide mission. Nathan could drop Peter b4 the explosion and Peter could somehow live through the meltdown as did the guy who had the nuclear power before. This is nice to keep the characters in but as Joss Whedon has taught me, every so often you need to pull the trigger and show that the stakes in your narrative are real.
I'll be back with LOST, and a small Veronica Mars and Smallville writeup
Monday, June 18, 2007
Back in the Saddle
Sorry for the delay, the pre-summer has been busy with birthday parties graduation parties and a wedding. But allow me to ease back into the hot bath that is this little blog with some more Star Wars related business.
First up is the Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed. This was a 2hr program that was on the History channel last month which featured interviews with filmmakers, historians and writers about the cultural implications of these movies. It was quite comprehensive and provided me with some insights I'd not come to myself. The fact that Solo's jacket and holster in ANH essentially gives him a cowboy outfit. The addition of the red-robed Royal Guards from ROTJ makes the empires color motif black and red which were power colors Hitler used in his regime. Although a bit verbose, I'd recommend it to hardcore fans.
Next, The Dharma of Star Wars, a book I received for my birthday which explains the basic ideas of Buddhism using the characters and themes of Star Wars. The books is by Matthew Bortolin, who was interviewed for the above documentary. I've been interested in Buddhism, specifically transcendental meditation and this has been a great primer for me. The ways of the Jedi include meditation, focusing on the here and now, forbidding attachment which all factor into Buddhist philosophy. If you're interested in either subject I would recommend it. A very easy read.
Finally, after taking these movies SO seriously, lets laugh at them a bit. Robot Chicken, the 1/2 hour stop motion animated comedy from the minds of Seth Green and Matthew Senreich had an all Star Wars themed episode that debuted last night as part of a Robot Chicken marathon. It was funny, often inside baseball, but overall I recommend again for the hardcore SW fan. Ultimately, Robot Chicken works better moving from subject to subject.
First up is the Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed. This was a 2hr program that was on the History channel last month which featured interviews with filmmakers, historians and writers about the cultural implications of these movies. It was quite comprehensive and provided me with some insights I'd not come to myself. The fact that Solo's jacket and holster in ANH essentially gives him a cowboy outfit. The addition of the red-robed Royal Guards from ROTJ makes the empires color motif black and red which were power colors Hitler used in his regime. Although a bit verbose, I'd recommend it to hardcore fans.
Next, The Dharma of Star Wars, a book I received for my birthday which explains the basic ideas of Buddhism using the characters and themes of Star Wars. The books is by Matthew Bortolin, who was interviewed for the above documentary. I've been interested in Buddhism, specifically transcendental meditation and this has been a great primer for me. The ways of the Jedi include meditation, focusing on the here and now, forbidding attachment which all factor into Buddhist philosophy. If you're interested in either subject I would recommend it. A very easy read.
Finally, after taking these movies SO seriously, lets laugh at them a bit. Robot Chicken, the 1/2 hour stop motion animated comedy from the minds of Seth Green and Matthew Senreich had an all Star Wars themed episode that debuted last night as part of a Robot Chicken marathon. It was funny, often inside baseball, but overall I recommend again for the hardcore SW fan. Ultimately, Robot Chicken works better moving from subject to subject.
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