I'm Not Dead...

I've just had to spend the last week in bed because of the H1N1 virus getting the better of me. And by better I mean making me sweat while I'm freezing cold and get such splitting headaches that if hurts to much to think to keep my eyes open.

Better now though. My temperature's down, not coughing up phlegm, and the only headaches I've gotten in the last little while can easily be attributed to the sedentary state of my brain after lying in bed watching NCIS and Reba reruns for a solid five-six days. I'm just kidding. I never watched Reba, and I only sat through NCIS because Charles Durning was guest starring in the episode and the man does good work.

But no, not dead. Slightly bowling ball-ish, but not dead. And sorry there wasn't an image to accompany this. I found an image of a skull inside a bowling ball that would've gone perfectly with the whole "bowling ball-ish" thing, but as an image alone, it's confusingly oblique at best.

Speaking of confusing, I'm surprised I got the H1N1 after my noted debacle with the swine flu from earlier in the year. I didn't think you could get the same flu twice in a year... I figured it was like how a husband and wife can't be tried for the same crime -- you know, you don't have to worry about it. Gah. My brain hurts. Gonna go.

Y'know... I Don't Really Care for "Glee"

It's funny -- I meant to write about this a little while ago after watching the first and second episodes of "Glee", but I guess I couldn't muster the enthusiasm to get around to it. It's not surprising, I suppose. I mean, It's not like I thought "Glee", the "little show that could" du jour, was an awful show. For one thing, it has all the ingredients of a show that I'd enjoy: Musical numbers, a good cast, teenagers played by people that look like teenagers, quirky dialogue, the confidence to make it's characters look stupid and people rip on them for it, etc. And yet... it all feels very patchwork. Like it's trying too hard. It feels like the Disney Channel version of something that's actually entertaining.

Worst of all, the musical numbers aren't all that fun. Sure some of the songs are catchy and well-orchestrated, but instead of totally embracing what they're doing it all feels too safe, like they're trying not to offend their target demographic. The only thing worse than something that's just plain bad is something that's frustratingly close to being good. I wouldn't say "Glee" is necessarily just shy of being a good series (or downright awful for that matter), but it's certainly frustrating how it has all of the components of a good show but is content to proceed in mediocrity.

Random/Useless Thoughts of the Moment

What's the appeal of Saved by the Bell? It wasn't a very good show, and yet it's been running continuously since it first aired twenty years ago. I like to think I'm a fairly intelligent person with an eye for quality television, and yet, if it's on, I'll watch it, even though I know it's not that great. Even when it was still airing new episodes, I knew it wasn't that great. I remember thinking as a ten year old that it "really went downhill once Screech's voice changed". It always bugged me too how every non-main cast member student was some sort of stereotype, and how all of the classes seemed to be held in that one room across the hall from Mr. Belding's office, and how 75% of all classes were taught by Mr. Tuttle or Mr. Dewey. And still, God help me, if I come across an episode, odds are I'll stay with it at least until the commercial break. Maybe they have some kind of hypnotic thing going on, like that episode where Zack put a hidden message in a song to get Bayside's female student body to fall for him during that Valentine's Day, heart-swapping thing.

Now I don't know what's worse. That I admitted to watching Saved by the Bell*, or that I made reference to an episode.

*I caution to add that that's infrequently, if ever. Just so we're clear.

Just a thought...

But when do you think movie studios are going to stop having to put those warnings on DVD boxes because people have realized that the black bars on the top and bottom of the picture are normal. Seems like folks would've realized it's normal by now, what with widescreen TVs and all. Just a thought.

Wonderfully Twisted

I came across these TV theme remixes while checking out Happy Days clips on Youtube. A little off, true, but mostly in line with what I consider uproariously hilarious. There's a Ducktales remix that was pretty good but awfully twisted that I might post, but I'm afraid it might be a little much for the more pure of mind out there. Either way, great work who ever you guys are.




(To clarify I didn't just happen to think of Happy Days out of the blue -- it was just on TV Land and that got me thinking about it. That's all, I swear.)

Thoughts as I'm Watching "Seinfeld"

I'm watching the sixth season of Seinfeld on DVD and two things come to mind.

1) Third Rock From the Sun wasn't a very good TV show. Sure, it had it's moments, but once the novelty of the premise and the performances wore off, there really isn't much there. It all boils down to the reason I stopped watching it during the run and why it died a slow painful TV demise -- there was just no progression and it was the kind of show that needed it. Not a big sweeping change to the status quo or anything, but some forward movement. If a show is based around a gimmicky premise, it's a necessity after a few years. I thought That 70's Show was running in circles after a while, but the core idea behind the show, that basically of teens hanging out, is solid enough there are directions to go with it organically. Third Rock From the Sun's premise is that they were aliens on Earth to study humans while pretending to be humans. Unless you do something to shake things up you're going to start repeating yourself after a while. Wouldn't have even needed to be a big change, maybe something as simple as Mary finding out the truth, or Sally marrying Officer Don while keeping the secret going. There were subtle changes to the status quo over the years on the show, but it invariably reset itself after a while, and that lack of forward momentum killed the show. Why bother with a new episode when you've seen the same dozens of times before?

2) What ever happened to that woman Kramer got pregnant in "The Chinese Woman" episode of Seinfeld? Not that they confirmed she was pregnant, but that whole thing seems an odd thing not to get back to.

Hi there.

I was writing a long post about what I'm watching on TV nowadays, and it got erased. Still figured I'd leave something here since I haven't written a good post in a little while. I guess I point was a lot of my favorite shows are off the air now -- Arrested Development, Alias, Stella, Justice League Unlimited, and Veronica Mars, for example -- and, amid much apprehension, I was able to find a quartet of new series -- Chuck, Pushing Daisies, Bionic Woman, and Dirty Sexy Money -- to ably fill the void.

And let me tell you, it was a really great post. And long too. I was barely half way through, and we're talking like, six paragraphs. A real kick the balls, is what that is. Oh well.

By the way, I don't know if I mentioned I'm now a writer for the Marvel Appendix website, having contributed two profiles so far, with two waiting to be added. The site is run by one of the guys who handles the Official Marvel Universe Handbooks for Marvel, and some of the contributors to the site have also written for the books, so it's a little daunting and nerve-wracking, but I'm enjoying it. I mean, they haven't said my stuff sucks so far, which, you know, is a good thing.

Anyway, here's a funny picture for some additional filler. Bye for now, then.

Battle of the Insurance Company Spokes-Characters! Addendum

I forgot to mention this, but when I was looking for images for my insurance company spokes-off, I found a surprising amount of Erin Esurance pornography. Although I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised. After all she's a woman, and she's a cartoon character. All she needs are cat ears and a tail.

Battle of the Insurance Company Spokes-Characters!

You know, I was trying to figure out which recurring insurance company spokes-character I enjoy more.

The Geico Gecko.

Or Esurance's Erin Esurance.

I came the conclusion that I would watch a show featuring either of them before I'd watch that dumb "Cavemen" show. Although in all fairness, the Erin Esurance show would probably be full of action and adventure, while the Geico Gecko show would probably be dry and observational, so it isn't really fair to compare them.

And this is the kind of crap that goes on in my head. The next post'll be better. Promise.

Holy Christmas!

Five posts in one day, and another post the next day! It's almost like I have scores of people actually reading my blog and I have the urge to update for their benefit.

Anyway, I've updated all the entries with label tags for easy access. So if you just want to read my incoherent ramblings on TV, Vacations, Things that have screwed me over, or reasons why I think I'm going to Hell, you can, and with the click of a button. There's even a label marked "Button"!

...

I'm going to bed now. Sorry.

What I've Been Up To

Not a whole lot. Mostly school and all that. Trying to write more but not having much success on that front. Kerr finally bought an LCD HDTV and a 360 to go with it, meaning he passed along his old, occasionally faulty TV to me. Score! Right. Anyway, the trip to Florida with the guys in August (has it been that long? Geez I'm lazy) was great fun. Went to the parks down there -- Universal and Disney World. Went to the Magic Kingdom and hit all the rides I never did as a child. Pirates of the Caribbean. Splash Mountain. Haunted Mansion. The Country Bear Jamboree. I caught a really bad cold in Sarasota though which carried through to Hamilton for a week or two. Might've been Red Tide, which, it turns out, is airborne and not released through contact with the Gulf, as I'd suspected. Aside from that things have been same old. Been meaning to update my blog for the one or two folks who might stumble upon it but kept putting it off. I'll try to check in sooner next time. Bye.

After the Finale...

So, the JLU series finale aired. It was pretty good. The animation was sharp as always and some of the returning characters were surprising, but I'd be lying if I said I was totally satisfied with it. I was hoping that some of the character that popped up during the this season -- The General, King Faraday, Deadman -- would return since their last appearances were so open-ended. Granted the finale didn't really call for them to show up again, but from a story stand-point their returns were called for since the odds of getting closure at this point is nil. Also the big bad, however shocking and fun his final fight against Superman was, came out of left field and deprived the expected all-out brawl between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom. I think the problem with this season was the handling of the Legion.

The whole idea of doing the LoD is so you can have them square off against the Justice League. Of course, not doing this is a nice twist, but having the Legion as anything but direct adversaries for the Justice League is pointless when you don't actually care about any members of the Legion. Most of them were background fodder anyway with no prior animated appearances to draw from, and the few new villains that did get a moment in the spotlight -- Dr. Polaris, Atomic Skull, the Key, Silver Banshee, Sonar - received no development as characters at all. They were basically one-dimensional bad guys with gimmicks. The few villains that did show up from older series -- Metallo, Giganta, Toyman, Sinestro -- were included in episodes so overloaded with material they weren't given any chances to do anything new and lost any uniqueness that made them so memorable to begin with. The one "new" villain (a brief, non-speaking role aside) to pique my interest was Atomic Skull, and that was only because of his natural sounding voice contrasting with the fact he's a huge guy with a flaming green skull for a head.

But really, the big reason why the Legion failed as a season-long arc was that there was no depth to it. Cadmus worked because you had real people with understandable motives who didn't think they were evil -- they felt they had legitimate reasons to fear and strike against the Justice League. The Legion on the other hand, know they're evil. They just about say as much in several episodes. And, unlike Cadmus with it's rich multi-episode endeavors, the Legion only shined in the season premiere that introduced the team and set up the promising premise of an anti-Justice League, the Warlord and Viking Prince episodes that furthered the story and set up the intriguing idea that Grodd was willing to sacrifice members of his team to keep the Secret Society a true secret, the Deadman episode, and then the two part finale. The two other Society appearances throughout the season were either too brief, as in "Grudge Match", or played for laughs, as in "Great Brain Robbery".

The entire season moved away from episode-to-episode developments of JLU's first and second seasons and instead spent either half of the season on separate mini-arcs with the SS. This shift ultimately contributed to the lack of character development through JLU's final thirteen episodes and brought the show back to the arguably less refined style of the original Justice League series. It's frustrating as a fan because I've seen how well they can handle a mature Justice League Unlimited and made the season less satisfying on the whole.

That said, the finale packed a punch indeed with a great many shocks and surprises in the forms of shocking returns and the deaths of several DCAU vets. I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it a great deal but the lack of any emotional connection to the characters coupled with the fact that the huge developments called for action over character meant there was little emotional resonance to the proceedings. J'onn's return was a nice touch -- I'd forgotten about him but remember hoping he'd come back during the season -- but Darkseid menacing the world again felt old hat at this point. I got charged up when the Daily Planet was destroyed, but Superman didn't even seem to care, much less worry about Lois Lane and company who were inside when it went down. I felt the same way when Hawkgirl got a spear thrown at her, only to have her shrug it off soon afterwards. What could have been a shocking, emotional moment became a throwaway bit.

So I enjoyed the finale. It was made all the more better watching it on Sean's 42" plasma screen with him, Kerr and Raf, JLU newbies all (and they actually started to like it too!) And with the finale so ends the DCAU proper. Sure there'll be things like the Superman DTV down the line, but I think this is a last real hurrah for these characters. It might not have been my favorite way of closing the curtains, but they still went out with style. Kudos all, and from someone who's been watching since that fateful Saturday in September 1992, thanks for the memories.

Oh Yeah...

I have a blog. How about that.

Uh... I had a birthday. Watched the series finale of JLU. Been keeping up with South Park, Veronica Mars, Two and a Half Men, and Everybody Hates Chris. Got Justice League season one and In Dream of Jeannie on DVD. Schools wrapping up. Made some money. Suddenly started recalling the entire score to Sweeney Todd (not a bad thing). A friend got a 42" Plasma screen TV, and I have a feeling my brother will too. Been going to Boston Pizza at least once a week -- like the pasta and salad deals. Haven't been up to too much else. Will try to check in soon, as long as I remember I have a blog.

Trinity Con

So, the TV preview was a bust. The main attraction was a pilot the guy from the market testing group claimed was a year or two years ago but was hopelessly cheesy and littered with bad acting, bad dialogue, bad editing, and that, quite frankly, looked at least a decade old. I attended the event with John and Sean, buddies from way back, and they believed the pilot, "Soulmates", to have been a soap opera (which would explain a lot), but I think it was just really, really, really bad primetime TV.

But on an entirely lighter and far more interesting note, I went to the Southfield, Michigan Trinity Con. It's mostly a gaming event for role-players and card game folks and all that, but the real attraction was that Dwayne McDuffie, prolific comic writer and story editor/writer on Justice League Unlimited, was there. I probably spent more time driving there and back than I did at the actual show, but it was worth it. I had a chance to chat with Mr. McDuffie and then attended a panel on JLU and the upcoming batch of episodes. I had an incredible time, and it was a real thrill to be able to talk to one of my favorite writers. He even remembered me from his message board and for the signed card he'd sent off from the San Diego Comic-con (another amazing thing I have to thank him for again).

Here's a couple of the interesting things I learned at the show, with all spoiler bits blotted out for you protection:

JLU's audience is 40 to 45 percent women, surprising because most action series are targeted toward boys while comedy-action series target girls. Shows like JLU are expected to pull in about a quarter female audience, so JLU is looked upon as a fluke.

Static Shock's Gameboy game is continually in flux. One week it's ready to ship, the next, it's being held up indefinitely. Additionally the next Static Shock DVD is unscheduled, despite the fact the first DVD outsold the first Teen Titans DVD volume released at the same time.

JLU producer James Tucker is hard at work prepping ***********. It'll be outside JLU continuity because *********** is on the team.

*********** will be appearing on JLU in a episode structured like the *********** that *********** used to appear in.

Bruce Timm is working on two original series right now.

Mr. McDuffie is working on a potential *********** series. Although other *********** characters will appear it won't be part of *********** continuity, and will have a more anime flavor.

Vague enough for you? Anyway, I had a great time. I found a few Suicide Squad and Hardware comics for sale from the only vendor selling comics at the show. I really, really enjoyed the Hardware issues and will keep an eye out for more in the future.

So, hopefully something equally interesting will happen in the next little while so I can tell all the people that frequent my blog about it. Until then...

Hi there.

So, Johnny, my "brother from another", got tickets to a TV pilot preview. I don't remember the details, but it had to do with his work at the Toronto Film Festival last month. I'll try to remember what happened so the imaginary visitors to my blog can get all the juicy details, but I'll probably have to sign a confidentiality agreement or something. I'd still like to write about it for my online feature writing course.

I'll get back to you on that later.

This and That

The Teen Choice Awards are on right now. I watched long enough to watch Jesse McCarthy and Mischa Barton present the "It Girl" award to Alexis Bleidel. Now I know the latter is one of the Gilmore Girls, but who the hell are the other two? Again I'm completely baffled, but at least I'm old enough to chalk it up to being out of touch rather than being hopelessly square, although I'm probably right on both counts.

The production of Sweeney Todd I'm working on as a PA is going all right. I still resent the utter elite-ness given off by the theatre actors, but still find enough to keep me busy otherwise. There was a party the other day at someone's house that I found out about after the fact that's made me pretty cheesed off though. Have I mentioned how much I hate actors?

"Epilogue"

So the season finale of Justice League aired on YTV tonight, and for the second time in as many months, YTV screwed up the airing by instead showing an infomercial and then "Snailympics" for the first five minutes of the show. No word if they'll be reairing it, which would be great since it was a spectacular episode.

Aside from not, not much else to report on. I've been thinking alot about Michael Reaves though, a Batman writer whose episodes I never really liked, they were mostly lower-key, realistic romps and his dialogue occasionally sounds tinny, but the more I think about it, and see his episodes again, I've found they're some of my favorites. "Bullet for Bullock", "Avatar", "Read My Lips", "Sideshow", "Vendetta" -- not the episodes of the classic series (now on DVD) that spring to mind, like say a "Heart of Ice", but all very solid with excellent animation. Definitely underrated as far as DCAU writers go, but right up there with the best of them.

Let's try this again...

I watched a bit of today's Jerry Springer, "I'm really a woman", or some such nonsense. And I literally mean watched -- I was talking to John, a big Spinger fan in the day, so much so that his email is still jerryspri@popularemailservice.com (I can't figure out how to not have the fake email highlighted like that. Sorry). Today's show was basically two out of shape women fighting over for a man John recognized as a heroine addict (the cheekbones, he says, are giveaways). Do people still watch Springer, because if it weren't for the odd flip into mid-broadcast I'd just as well assume it was cancelled back in 1998. Is there still an audience for that rubbish, a sentiment espoused by my dad back when I used to watch the show for fun as a teen, but that I now find myself feeling, or are the viewers merely folks like myself, viewing the show as an exercise of curiosity? Not that I expect an answer or anything...

The weather was nice today. Almost BC-esque -- blue skies, a nice breeze. It's warm inside so I've been using Kleenex to wipe my forehead, only to have bits tear off and get stuck to my face. So here's a notice: If you see me, and I have something stuck to my face that shouldn't me there, please, let me know.

Right well, hopefully I'll offer up more scintillating commentary soon. Have a good day.