From the Ashes

Nerd Lantern

2010-03-18T02:32:31Z

As if I needed proof of such things, when looking for something green to wear today, I of course grabbed my Green Lantern t-shirt.

And hey! Wednesday night #SubCafe chat!

J

Let's Talk Television: Lost 6x08 - Recon

2010-03-17T02:25:32Z

Island stuff good.

Off island stuff pointless.

But...I really liked this week's alternate flash. James as a cop is just...plain old fun. Those first few minutes where you just don't know if he's the same old Sawyer, or maybe he really IS a cop...really mess with your head and perceptions, and that's what Lost is always good at.

Still pretty pointless, but a fun pointlessness.

And ok, I'm happy to see Charlotte back. I'm easy, I know. ;D

A few more interesting tidbits dribbled out here and there, and the on-island arc continues to hold my interest at least.

I am SO looking forward to next week's though.

J

Grumble

2010-03-15T13:54:31Z

My DVD recorder hooked up to the TV has been getting increasingly less reliable with new commercial DVDs. They load, they get to the menu, and the remote just won't work. It's not a battery issue, the signal gets to the machine fine, it just says "Error!" every time I hit a button. Can't navigate, can't play, can't even stop. Not even hitting buttons on the machine. The only thing I can do is hit eject.

Now, I can look through the data on the disc and take a random guess and hope I find the right program buried in there somewhere. But sometimes I grab one that's a little wrong, and it will jump literally halfway through the film, or stop halfway through because it thinks the movie is over.

My best guess is that the increasing efforts by the MPAA or whomever to make their DVDs harder to pirate (yeah RIGHT) are interfering with the standards of what my player knows a DVD as, and it's not quite recognising things right, and the disc is essentially 'broken'.

Last night having Surrogates end midway through while watching it with my parents was the last straw.

I need a new DVD recorder. And yes, I do need the recording features. I do NOT need nor particularly want a tuner, an HDD, or a VCR built in. FUn, fun times. Must hit Wal-Mart at some point.

J

Note to Self

2010-03-14T13:15:13Z

I just wanted to make this as a reminder to myself that my mother got another renewal notice to one of her magazines today.

Why? Because she seems to get this particular renewal a LOT, and is always sending check after check. And it makes an argument between the two parental overunits over whether or not she did or not.

Now, if I can just remember this is here...

J

SubCafe Saturdays!

2010-03-13T18:59:59Z

Just a reminder to all the gang that it's Saturday, and thus chat night in the 'Cafe.

Seeya there!

J

Coming Soon

2010-03-13T13:12:48Z

I'm sitting here pondering my next movie review for Trisk, looking for something non-Full Moon to do for the second movie this month, and I totally stumble upon this great gem that once I saw who was in it, I just had to grab it.

Why?

Tom "Fourth Doctor" Baker.

And some images of the makeup kills me. This is gonna be fun.

J

Comics Next Week

2010-03-13T09:06:21Z

Avengers vs Agents Of Atlas #3 Regular Humberto Ramos Cover
Booster Gold Vol 2 #30
Brave And The Bold Vol 3 #32
Dark Avengers #15 (Siege Tie-In)
Fables #93
Farscape Vol 2 #5 Cvr B
Green Lantern Corps Vol 2 #46 Regular Patrick Gleason Cover (Blackest Night Tie-In)
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 #24 (Realm Of Kings Tie-In)
Hercules Fall Of An Avenger #1
Incredible Hulk Vol 3 #608 Regular John Romita Jr Cover (Fall Of The Hulks Tie-In)
Marvel Boy Uranian #3
Nation X #4
Nova Vol 4 #35 (Realm Of Kings Tie-In
Realm Of Kings Imperial Guard #5
Siege (Marvel) #3 Regular Olivier Coipel Cover
Siege Embedded #3
Supergirl Vol 5 #51 (Brainiac & The Legion Of Super-Heroes Part 2)
X-Factor Forever #1
X-Men Legacy #234

J

Angels and Demons

2010-03-11T19:19:15Z

Just completed a new review for Triskaidekafiles.

The movie this time is about a young girl from another land that enters into ours through the sewers, with her animal companion. While here, she is confused by our ways, doesn't quite fit in, and hacks up household objects to make clothes for herself.

No, it's not Enchanted. It's the 1990s Full Moon production, "Dark Angel: The Ascent". But the similarities are eerie.

Just click over to the site, and find it under reviews.

J

Photoblog: Paw Prints in the Sand

2010-03-11T01:52:31Z

One of the cats has taken to walking through the zen garden, and I decided to snap a photo of it, and be arty for a moment.

J

Marvel Comics: May, 2010

2010-03-10T04:43:16Z

Just been lazy about getting around to this. =P

DAZZLER #1
DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER #1 (of 5)
STEPHEN KING'S N. THE COMIC SERIES #3 (of 4)
THE MANY LOVES OF THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1
AVENGERS #1
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #1
ATLAS #1
CAPTAIN AMERICA #606
BLACK WIDOW #2
AGE OF HEROES #1 (of 4)
ENTER THE HEROIC AGE #1
HEROIC AGE: PRINCE OF POWER #1 (of 4)
INCREDIBLE HULK #609
FALL OF THE HULKS: THE SAVAGE SHE-HULKS #3 (OF 3)
MARVEL ZOMBIES 5 #3 (of 5)
SECRET WARRIORS #16
SECRET AVENGERS #1
LOCKJAW & THE PET AVENGERS UNLEASHED #3 (of 4)
THOR #610
THUNDERBOLTS #144
THE THANOS IMPERATIVE: IGNITION #1
UNCANNY X-MEN #524
NEW MUTANTS #13
X-MEN LEGACY #236
X-FORCE #27
X-FACTOR #205
X-MEN: SECOND COMING – REVELATIONS: BLIND SCIENCE #1
X-MEN: SECOND COMING – REVELATIONS: HELLBOUND #1 (of 3)
X-FACTOR FOREVER #3
X-MEN: PIXIE STRIKES BACK #4 (of 4)
X-MEN FOREVER #23
X-MEN FOREVER #24
X-MEN FOREVER GIANT-SIZE #1

J

Let's Talk TV: Lost 6x07 - Dr. Linus

2010-03-10T03:34:06Z

Not much new to report, you know the drill.

The sideflashes piqued my interest a little more than usual though, since we're starting to flesh out just where the timeline changed. Ben did still go to the island and such. Looks like he has a better relationship with his father, at least. Interesting that Alex still ends up a part of his life too.

Best stuff with the altnerate flashes was watching Ben-2 and Artz-2, probably two of my favourite characters. But still, ultimately, so far, throwaway stuff. Sure, it's doing character stuff, but why should I care? As the ending to this flash shows, these are clearly VERY different versions of the characters. They don't inform the people we know. This is NOT the Ben we've been watching so far. I could skip this entire flash and still get everything I need for the story.

I've long talked about doing a chronological re-edit of Lost, and while the time travel last year would have made that annoyingly difficult, I thought that the alternate flashes would make it downright impossible. Where do I put those? They take place in September of '04, concurrent with the first season events, so how do I fit them in? With each passing week wasting time, I become more and more certain that I could leave the alternate flashes out entirely of such a project and lose NOTHING.

I really really hope I'm wrong. I want there to be a point to the alternate flashes. I hate bitching about them every week, since they're nice stories, I just don't *care* in the Grand Scheme of Lost.

Anyways...hey, it's the Black Rock again, yay! I think that all but cements it as Richard's means of coming to the island. And very interesting to hear he's been touched by Jacob, and that's why he can't die. Was he maybe *literally* touched by Jacob? When we saw Locke touched in last year's finale, I figured that's what kept him from dying by falling out the window. But what if...what if all those touches to our cast in the flashbacks, what if all those moments are the VERY REASON that they all walked away from a horrendous plane crash? What if none of these people can die under most circumstances, like Richard? The creators went to great lengths to point out how odd it was that Jacob touched everyone in last year's finale. They even noted that he did NOT touch Juliet. And lookee, she's dead. She also came to the island via normal means.

There's still some details to work out there, like Jacob visiting Hurley and Sayid after they got off the island, but we don't know what else happened in their lives.

Overall, a very strong episode, mostly thanks to Emerson. The flashes are pointless, but the cast is still fun to watch in them, especially him, and his continuing manipulations.

Some good character stuff, and some outright answers, although delivered in a roundabout way.

J

Long Time

2010-03-09T15:46:03Z

TRON TRAILER! TRON TRAILER!

*cough* I love Tron, I really truly do. I am so psyched to see this. Almost more than Iron Man 2.

J

Technical Difficulties

2010-03-09T15:14:32Z

I love when my mother makes things more difficult than they need to be.

She's filling out a consumer info card survey warranty dealie that came with a new phone they just bought. The question is the usual, "Select the highest amount of education you've completed". We've all seen it, it is NOT a difficult question to answer.

She tells me there's three choices, and notes high school, college, and I presume the third is graduate degree. But she's having a problem with this because she took classes outside of the system for her time as a nurse.

"Did you graduate high school?"

"Uh huh."

"Did you go to college?"

"No!"

"Then this should not be hard to figure out, should it?"

"But I did stuff..."

"DID YOU GO TO COLLEGE?"

The instructions are there, the answers are pretty clear...grah. We have this conversation a LOT.

J

Where There's a Bill There's a Way

2010-03-09T04:22:29Z

Can anyone tell me just what the fudge a Fedex Air Waybill is?

Here's the deal; a friend of mine won an auction, and was wincing a little at the price, but it wasn't too bad...until he got the FedEx notice that dropped almost an additional 80 dollars on top of everything else. The auction does say that international shipments may have customs, duties, tarrifs, etc and they're not responsible for those, but the waybill seems like something else entirely. But finding out what a waybill is, is a pain in the ass.

We're trying to sort out just who to be annoyed at, if it's just something he has to suck up, or if the seller should have informed him of these charges beforehand, or if they're just the cost of international tarrifs.

J

Good News Monday

2010-03-09T00:17:34Z

Not only do we get the new Iron Man trailer, but we also get the announcement that J. Michael Straczynski is taking over writing Superman and Wonder Woman with 700 and 600, respectively. Yes, they say 701 and 601, but he has stories in the anniversary issues that kick off his runs, so why would you not push the hundreds, if that's when they actually start?

Also, it looks like 2011 will bring a Scifi Saturday movie that might be worth watching.

"Felicia Day, star of web videos The Guild and Joss Whedon's Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog, who also played "Vi" in the final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, will portray a werewolf-hunting descendant of Little Red Riding Hood in the new Syfy Saturday Original Movie, Red."

Now, to just remember it exists, when next year rolls in.

J

Ironic

2010-03-08T14:26:07Z

So.

Iron Man 2 trailer, anyone?

This looks like SUCH fun, and they worked in a few moments that made me absolutely squee.

J

I Dunno...

2010-03-07T23:58:33Z

I have no idea what's worse; that my mother is watching both Hostel movies, or that she's watching them on Scifi which has cut them to shit and back again.

J

Subcafe Saturdays!

2010-03-07T01:52:20Z

Don't forget (Like I almost did) about Saturday night Subreality chat on DALnet.

I'm doing crap, but I'll wander in eventually.

J

Comics Next Week

2010-03-06T06:06:22Z

Action Comics #887
Cable Vol 2 #24 (X-Men Second Coming Prelude)
Dark X-Men #5
Escape From Wonderland #5 Cover B Daniel Leister
Farscape Dargos Quest #4 Cvr B
Grimm Fairy Tales #45
House Of Mystery Vol 2 #23
Lockjaw And The Pet Avengers Unleashed #1 Regular Ig Guara Cover
REBELS #14
S.W.O.R.D. #5
Secret Six Vol 3 #19
Superman Last Stand Of New Krypton #1 Regular Andy Kubert Cover
Toyfare #153 Blackest Night DC Direct Cvr
Transformers Bumblebee #4 Regular Cover A
Transformers Last Stand Of The Wreckers #2 Regular Cover B
X-Men Forever Vol 2 #19
X-Men Pixie Strikes Back #2

J

Odd Day Out

2010-03-06T02:08:30Z

So, I've not had the greatest week. Nothing major, just a lotta things dragging me down with them, like the proverbial millstone around my neck. And yeah, some of that leaked over to affect my thoughts on Avatar, but I was also aware of that while writing them down, so did some compensation. I could have written something a lot longer, and a lot more pissed off, but I knew where my head was at, and was a little more charitable than I wanted to be. Still, some of that probably still affected my thoughts despite my best efforts.

Then came today, and a dentist appointment. Now, a lot of sane, normal people would have heaped the regular cleaning atop the pile of shit they'd been wading through, and yet...

While I was waiting my turn in the office, I just noticed that, of all things, I was smiling. Downright grinning. I have zero idea why, I don't really care either. It was just this weirdest sensation. It was just this absolute pure moment of "All is well, things are gonna be ok". Which hell, I knew that. None of the crap I was in was THAT bad, which is why I haven't troubled much of anyone with it.

And believe me, it certainly wasn't the fact I was at the dentist. It was just this random place I was at, out of the house, no noise in my head, no other voices of other people, just a moment to myself where my mood just randomly shifted back to normal.

Such a strange morning.

J

Dead Before Dusk

2010-03-05T00:03:25Z

Evil Dead done in 60 seconds with CLAY - 2010 from Lee Hardcastle on Vimeo.

Evil Dead in 60 seconds, and in claymation.

J

Let's Talk Television: Lost 6x05 - Sundown

2010-03-03T03:10:57Z

I really wish they'd stop promising Big Gigantic Multiple Answers unless they're really gonna deliver.

Which isn't to say I have a problem with what we ARE getting, as they are slipping us some info here and there, but every promo makes it sound hugely epic and uh, it's not. Not even close.

Sayid vs. Dogan, I didn't realise until I saw the fight starting that this is a fight I've been wanting to see since we met Dogan. Two bad-asses going at it. Awesome.

We did find out that there is indeed a good vs. evil conflict here, and the character of a man's soul is indeed important to the endgame here. It's a shame that Sayid has fallen into darkness. He's a good man, who has had to do some pretty dark shit over the years. I think that Smokey or NotLocke or whatever we're gonna call him is actually influencing his agents. The more dark your soul, the more sway he carries over your actions. Because I find it hard to believe that a normal Sayid would do everything he did tonight. Not very hard, but it would seem to take some pushing to do.

The alterniverse flash this week was the same boring crap, up until its final few moments where Sayid-2 met Jin-2. Here's hoping things start picking up. Nice to see Keamy again, though.

Loved the smoke monster's assault on the templt Great stuff.

J

Let's Talk Movies: Avatar

2010-03-03T02:11:00Z

Finally decided I should go see it so I could actually form my own opinion on it.

Could the plot have been any more generic? Any more boring? Any more cliche? Any more obvious? I predicted almost every big moment from nearly the outset of the film.

This movie is the new Matrix for me. A whole shitload of style trying to cover up the barest hints of substance that a lot of people are going to love because they do like their pretty. And yes, it's a very pretty movie, and that's the best thing I have to say about it. I actually like a good story that is supported by the style, not the other way around.

The best moment in the movie? The general enjoying his morning coffee while watching the Home Tree burn.

The CG was a step forward for characters, but not as much as some people think. The mouths were amazing, but the synch still felt off, and the characters moved just as stiff and were as awkward looking as every other CG character has until now.

And 3D does not make a movie better, people. Just because the little things look like they're flying in front of you off the screen does not change the story being told ONE SINGLE BIT. It just makes it more pretty, or something.

Seriously though, don't get me started on 3D. This was THE single worst experience I have EVER had in a theatre, and I will never, ever, ever see another movie in 3D again. Ever. And there will never be a 3D tv in this house. So long as the experience requires glasses, it is a non-starter for me, and possibly even afterwards without glasses. Maybe then will I give it another shot.

I honestly would have walked out of the movie I was so frustrated, if I had anywhere to go. And even then I still considered it.

There may be a seperate post about just 3D later on, if I'm still pissed off. I am sorely tempted to make a website and online campaign to stop 3D movies. Lost may calm me down.

J

Four Score and Seven Slayers Ago...

2010-03-02T10:31:08Z

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

What more needs to be said?

I actually wish this was a real movie, even if it was a cheap, direct to DVD affair. I'm way more interested in watching than reading this.
J

Blargh.

2010-03-02T01:31:42Z

So don't want to treadmill tonight.

Or watch Chuck.

But I will.

Probably.

At least there's 24.

J