Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Posting Less

Not that anyone would notice, considering how often I post, but I will most likely be posting even less for the next month. I am participating in the National Novel Writing Month. The event is where writers attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. I figured that I'd give it a try, guessing that maybe a hard deadline will actually get me to write - and finish - something.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

The Music Top 10 (Week Ending August 11th)

  1. Bring Me To Life - Evanescence
  2. In Time - Mark Collie
  3. Everything Burns - Ben Moody Featuring Anastacia
  4. Snakes on a Plane (Bring It) - Cobra Starship
  5. Learn To Crawl - Black Lab
  6. Doctor Who Theme - Murray Gold & BBC National Orchestra of Wales
  7. Batman Beyond Main Title - Kristopher Carter
  8. You Know My Name - Chris Cornell
  9. Let Go (LP Version) - BarlowGirl
  10. Toccata and Fuge D-Moll BWV 565 - Johann Sebastian Bach • Vanessa Mae (Violin) • Produced By Mike Batt

Thursday, August 02, 2007

One Less on the Newsstand

At the end of August, the newsstand will see one less tabloid. The Weekly World News has announced that it end publication, remaining on the internet (read the story here). In spite of its net presence, it will be missed at the checkout counter. So, in honor of the Weekly World News, a few headlines that we won;t be seeing on the newsstand.

Zany Town Elects Park Bench Mayor... For The Third Time!

Aliens Ruin Property Values By Parking Flying Saucer In Front Yard

Three Signs That Your Child Is A Serial Killer

Roswell Aliens Back Barack... Feel Hillary Showed Too Much Cleavage

Election Reform Requires Talent Show For Candidates

It's True! Ross Perot Really Won The 1996 Election!

Anti-Christ Returns To Earth... As Llama

Sunday, July 22, 2007

More Random Thoughts and Lists

Action Figure Lines that Should Be Considered

1) Classic Television - Would include Firemen Roy and Johnny from Emergency, Sgt. Joe Friday from Dragnet, and MacGuyer.

2) Pulp Heroes - This line would have to include The Shadow, Doc Savage, The Spider, and Tarzan (either in 6 inch or 12 inch format).

3) Primeval - A British series about scientists investigating creatures that are slipping through holes in time. This would be a small scale figure series to allow for the creatures to be produced.

4) Firefly/Serenity - A 12 inch line that would include Malcolm Reynolds, Jayne Cobb and Zoe to start off with. A second series, if it did well, would include Simon and River Tam, mechanic Kaylee, as well as a Reaver.

5) Dresden Files - Choose either the TV series, or the novels, both would make some really cool looking toys.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Random Thoughts and Lists

Top 5 Missions that Show G.I. Joe is running out of Adventures
1) Peril of the Tax Audit
2) Mystery of the Lunch Meat
3) Search for the Honest Politician
4) Secret Mission to the ATM
5) Search for the Parking Space


Top 5 Names Action Man's Dr. X has been Called
1) Mr. X
2) Professor X
3) Dr. Evil
4) That X guy, what's his name?
5) Murray


Top 5 Vehicles That Would Be Cool for G.I. Joe
1) Carthaginian Elephant
Imagine a 1/6th Hannibal riding a 1/6th war elephant. That would be very cool.
2) Striker
See old episodes of Mail Call for this one.
3) PT Boat
4) 2 man exploration sub
We've had the Sea Wolf for the Adventure Team. We need to see something like this again.
5) Police Cruiser


Top 5 Animals that Need to be Made in 1/6th Scale
We've had some dogs, and lots of miniature apes, along with the cheap plastic animals that dominate many an Adventure Team photostory, but I'm talking about articulated animals done to scale.
1) Elephant
I'd buy a couple if this was released.
2) Gorilla
The pygmy gorilla, either version, just doesn't cut it for me.
3) Lion
This one would be cool if it came articulated and with a "real" mane.
4) Rhinoceros
5) Okapi
If Joe can pursue yetis, he can go after a discovered "cryptid"


Top 5 Rejected G.I. Joe Ideas
1) K.P. G.I. Joe
2) Senator G.I. Joe
3) War Profiteer G.I. Joe
4) Tear Gas Training G.I. Joe
With no gas mask, and special tearing and getting sick action
5) Bucking for Section 8 G.I. Joe
Think Klinger from M.A.S.H.


Top 5 Figured that Should Be Made
1) Villain Poacher
Comes with rifle, ivory handled pistol, safari hat with eagle feathers in the hatband, alligator boots, snakeskin belt, and tiger tooth necklace.
2) Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
A good one this time, with articulation... lots of articulation!
3) Frontier Scout
Something that won't set us back a couple of hundred because the only one out there was made in England in 1973.
4) Die Hard's John McClane
If they can make tons of James Bonds, how about a John McClane. It could come with stolen machine gun, service pistol, lighter, twinkees, and, of course, no shoes.
5) Medieval Highland Warrior
Like from Braveheart, but more historically accurate.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

5 Shows for Summer Viewing

It's summer, and it's too hot and too buggy to go out. So that leaves you flipping through the tv channels trying to find something to watch. Here are a few suggestions

Burn Notice - Jeffrey Donovan plays Michael Westen, a spy who's been "burned." Basicly cut off from his former life, Westen is stuck in Miami, trying to find out why he's been burned. Naturally, he's forced to take on various odd jobs in his pursuit to find out what happened.

Monk - Tony Shalhoub returns as Adrian Monk, San Francisco's obsessive compulsive detective.

Eureka - Sci-Fi brings back Jack Carter's adventures in "America's smartest little town." Look for Season 1 currently on DVD.

Doctor Who - David Tennant returns at the last of the Time Lords. Joining the Doctor on his journeys through space and time is Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman).

Ghost Hunters - Undoubtedly the most successful of Sci-Fi Channel's reality television series. Whether you are a believer or skeptic, it is fascinating to watch each investigation.

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Worst Movies of the Last 10 Years

Let me start off by stating that this is my list. Undoubtedly, there will me people out there who will think I'm crazy for choosing what I have. If you care to make suggestions, be my guest, but remember, this is strictly my own opinion.

As for my criteria, it's pretty simple. First off, the movie had to be released within the past 10 years (1997-2007). Secondly, I had to have seen it. Sure, Town & Country may have been hideous, but I didn't see it, so it doesn't count. Finally, it must have been released in theaters. This rules out all direct to DVD and Sci-Fi channel shlockfests.

The list (in no particular order)

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace - A real disappointment since the first three movies which are actually the last three movies (I'm stopping there before the headache gets worse). The characters were flat (except Jar Jar Binks, who was just annoying), and the story was weak, a real shame considering how long Lucas had to work on it. This was the movie that made me not want to pay full price for a movie again (yay matinee).

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones - Episode 1 was a disappointment in that I thought it could have been a lot better than it was. Episode 2 killed the magic of Star Wars for me. Where the characters were flat and uninteresting in Episode 1, the were just total jerks in Episode 2. It is sad when you have a talented cast like Episode 2 had (and Hayden Christensen), and the best acting is from a computer generated muppet.

Aeon Flux - I never really got into the original MTV cartoon, beyond the occasional appearance on Liquid Television. I was willing to give the movie a chance. Unfortunately, I found it totally incomprehensible. Sadly, I doubt that following the original source material would have improved the experience.

Ultraviolet - Probably the first time in a long time that I've watched a movie and not cared one bit about what was going on in the movie. Basically, it's on this list because I was left with a feeling of great indifference.

Batman & Robin - I loved Burton's first Batman, and liked Batman Returns, though I felt that there were too many villains. Batman Forever was so-so; I would have preferred a more cerebral Riddler (like in 1990's cartoon series). But Batman & Robin? Poor acting from Clooney, Silverstone, and absolute wastes of villains Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy and Bane (who could have carried a movie on his own... if he was done like the comic). Clooney was right, he killed the franchise. Thankfully, Hollywood had a Lazarus Pit (ask a comic geek if you don't get that).

Alone in the Dark - Why is this on the list? Because they cast Tara Reid as a scientist.

House of the Dead - Based off a video game (and bearing little resemblance to it), this movie was not just cliched, but horribly cliched. It's no surprise that reviews of its sequel often say, "This isn't by any means a good movie, but at least it isn't as bad as the original."

Bloodrayne - This movie cemented Uwe Boll's reputation as a 21st century Ed Wood Jr. (though, let's face it, Plan Nine From Outer Space is so much better than anything Boll has produced). Also remember, Uwe Boll is also responsible for the above mentioned House of the Dead.

Matrix Reloaded/Matrix Revolutions - My final two movies for the list, which I put together for a specific reason. In my opinion, these two movies, separately, are two pale sequels to the original Matrix. If you would take these two movies, make a few edits (like cutting down the orgy in the grotto from the second movie), and combine them into one 2 hour movie, you would probably have a real good movie. Otherwise, as 2 separate movies, it just dragged way too much.

Monday, April 09, 2007

Hero Sounds

Just for fun, I decided to put together a playlist of hero related music. The basic criteria was that it had to have been in some sort of hero/superhero movie, tv show, or the such (so songs like R.E.M.'s Superman did not qualify). I did upload this to itunes, but (of course), not all my selections were available, so the 60 song list dwindled to 18. Here is the full list (with explanations). As always, I am open to suggestions for other such songs (as well as looking for The Phantom soundtrack to add... I may have to just bite the bullet and buy it from Amazon).

Doctor Who Theme - The version I used is from the new BBC series.
Superman: Main Theme - From the Richard Donner Superman movies.
Bring Me To Life - One of two contributions to the Daredevil soundtrack from Evanescence. Not all that bad of a movie, as superhero movies go, but the Director's Cut is better.
Jonny Quest - The theme to the classic Hanna Barbera cartoon
The Tick - Not the live action version, but the far superior animated version... SPOON!
Batman Beyond Main Title
In The Light - From the Elektra soundtrack. Good soundtrack, bad movie.
Molossus - From Batman Begins
Robocop - Main title from the movie
Batman - the Main theme from Tim Burton's cinematic version, composed by Oingo Boingo frontman Danny Elfman
Learn To Crawl - From Spider-Man
Fantastic Four - main title score
The Shadow - Main theme from the Alex Baldwin movie
X2: X-Men United Suite - Available on the CD Comic Strip Heroes
Angel - The opening title theme to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Main theme from the TV series
The New Adventures of Superman - Classic cartoon theme
Spider-Man - Like the Superman theme above, this is the classic theme to the classic cartoon
Daredevil Theme (Blind Justice Remix)
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest - An attempt to update Jonny Quest for the 90s, aging Jonny to teenager, and adding in virtual reality elements.
The Six Million Dollar Man - "Steve Austin, astronaut. A man barely alive. Gentlemen, we can rebuild him"
Everything Burns - From the Fantastic Four soundtrack
In Time - From The Punisher soundtrack, standing out because of how different it sounds from the rest of the album, and its performance during the diner serenade.
The Name's Bond... James Bond - Representing the British superspy, taken from the Casino Royale soundtrack
Touched - By Vast, from the Angel: Live Fast, Die Never CD
Extreme Ways - From The Bourne Supremacy
Burn - one of the few Cure songs I like, from The Crow soundtrack
Yu-Gi-Oh! Theme - Call it a guilty pleasure, but for a while, I was actually watching this anime show afternoons (it beat watching Springer).
Somebody Help Me - Theme song to Tru Calling, Eliza Dushku's second heroic role, though no where near as rocky as Faith's path to heroism.
I Melt With You - Bowling For Soup's cover for the Sky High soundtrack
Mystery Men Oath - Not really a sound, just a dialogue life from the movie that appears on the soundtrack
Holding Out For a Hero - Jennifer Saunders performs this in Shrek 2 as Shrek races to the rescue.
Sin City End Titles - Fitting music for the Frank Miller inspired movie
Flash - Danny Elfman's theme to the short lived TV series.
Save Me - Smallville main theme
The Incredible Hulk - Theme - Actually the closing theme, always played as David Banner is forced to move on
The Avengers - "Mrs. Peel, we're needed."
Red Right Hand - Peter Yorn recorded this for the Hellboy movie. I think the better version is the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds version, found on the X-Files: Songs in the Key of X CD
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai - Another guilty pleasure
The Rocketeer To The Rescue & End Credits
Princes of the Universe - Queen's theme song for Highlander
Conan The Barbarian - Anvil of Crom - Arnold Schwarzenegger's star turn as the Robert E. Howard sword and sorcery hero.
All Star - Smashmouth's song, used for both Mystery Men and Shrek
Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman - Theme from the ABC tv series
Mortal Kombat - A real guilty pleasure of a movie
The Green Hornet - from the 60s tv series
Stargate - From the movie.
The Lone Ranger - Little known fact: The Green Hornet and the Lone Ranger are related.
Darkman - Danny Elfman composed this moody piece for a hero without a face.
The End Is The Beginning Is The End - Smashing Pumpkins contributed this to the Batman and Robin soundtrack, the one with George Clooney
Won't Back Down - By Fuel, found on the Daredevil soundtrack
Hero - The big summer hit from Spider-Man, sung by Nickelback's frontman Chad Kroeger
Bother - From Spider-Man, Attributed to Stonesour frontman Corey Taylor on the soundtrack, and the full band on their album.
My Immortal - Evanescence's second contribution to the Daredevil soundtrack, later becoming a huge hit from their own CD
Broken - From The Punisher, heard playing over Joan's radio right before Frank Castle beats up her abusive ex-boyfriend.
Slow Chemical - Also from The Punisher soundtrack, though most wrestling fans will know it as Kane's entrance music.
Breathe No More - Appearing on the Elektra soundtrack by Evanescence. A live version appears on their Anywhere But Home CD
I Stand Alone - From The Scorpion King
Space Ghost - The classic Hanna Barbera theme, before he became a cheese talk show host.
The Raider's March - The theme to Raiders of the Lost Ark, and nearly every Indiana Jones related project since.