HAPPY NEW YEAR
Have been practicing my water and cloud dragons. Here’s a cheerful one to wish you health, prosperity and many good things in 2012.
QUICK HI
Started production stage managing a show so having a little less free time. So here’s a quick look at what’s going on here at the pond.
Starting my Chinese New Year research/sketching. So far, having a lot of fun with Autodesk’s SketchBook on my iPad. Here’s a sample:
What else? Did you know
Mystery Science Theatre 3000 now takes it movie riffing on the road? I didn’t either until I wrote an article about Cinematic Titanic.
Got a Radio Free Roscoe DVD for Christmas. One of my favorite shows. Right up there with Get Smart, The Avengers, The Tick (animated), Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Space Ghost Coast to Coast (yes, that’s the 2 a.m in the morning list).
Reading a book called Origin of the Specious about the things people try to convince you are grammatical mistakes and aren’t. Much of the discord seems to be caused by inflicting Latin based structures on a Germanic language.
Yes, Life With Archie #16 is out, Kevin Keller is married, I only teared up a little, it reinforces my theory that people fall in love on the bad days, and the pile of Archie comics on my bedside reading table is growing. I do want the gay girl character introduced soon. She can be a brunette, although Riverdale seems to already have a bunch of those in residence. And are you reading the Archie Kiss crossovers. It’s goofy but the Francesco Francavailla alternate covers are dreamy. Yes, I said dreamy. Have to talk my comic guys out of the promo poster.
So happy to hear last night that The Web Files won two IAWTV Awards. Host Kristyn Burtt, Director/Producer Sandra Payne and the rest of the crew turned out consistently excellent episodes which introduced me to the world of web series, with a continuing dose of inspiration and information. Plus, they were always darn entertaining. And they’re nice people. Find out more at Kristyn Burtt’s blog.
Started to mull Midsummer but I think that deserves its own post. The new Blink Kitty Love Tumblr has gone from posting art thrice a week to twice a week but I’m very happy with the variety and consistency. Check it out. Here’s a sample:
Hmmmm…what else? Want to see Joyful Noise, caught Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Good performances, a little quiet, think the book might be better. Red Tails is on the must catch list, Pariah and The Artist need to come into town, Haywire looks like good kicking it fun.
Oh yeah, my new favorite blog is Autostraddle. Have I mentioned that? I’ll quote them: ”News, Entertainment, Opinion and Girl on Girl Action.” Plus, they post the frequent sounds so good I may actually have to try it recipe.
I’m now more than 30 minutes past my self imposed curfew and I have to deal with actors in the afternoon tomorrow so goodnight, enjoy your weekend and thanks for stopping by. Check out something from the list (it ranges, YOU can find something, I have faith in you), then come back and we’ll talk.
QUICK TO READ LIST
Have been zinging through a stack of books from the library so here’s three worth reading.
Why Matters Manner: The Case for Civilized Behavior in a Barbarous World by Lucinda Holdforth. Fast, witty, well researched, well thought out and a convincing argument for civility, especially in these seasons of politics + protests.
Snuff by Terry Pratchett. The master comedian’s latest effort seems to be lacking some of the texture and depth of the others, but that might make it a more accessible read for some. Many Goodreads reviews complain that once again Pratchett is hitting the every species (dwarf, troll, goblin, human, Nobbses, etc.) is equal if weird in unique ways message, but I think maybe Pratchett has figured out that it’s the only message that really matters.
Kissing Outside the Lines by Diane Farr. Because sometimes I get in the mood for a lively love story. This is a very thorough examination of her courtship with her Korean American husband, the stories of five other couples of mixed races and why all Americans should stand together culturally. I was surprised by how much turmoil Farr felt the relationship stirred up, but Farr can certainly tell a good tale, leaving in many of her own flawed moments.
On a non book note: I was very disappointed in the Wizards of Waverly Place one hour who is the family wizard event. Within five minutes, I was bored, the special effects were lacking pizzaz, the writing scraped 20 odd minutes worth of blah content over 48 odd minutes worth of airtime, leaving pacing issues that desperately needed patching. Plus, a loyal audience witnessed the waste of the talents of the very fine Wizards cast. Bah. The earlier Wizards movie was chock full o’action, filmed on location and written well. The writers, directors and producers needed to have made more of an effort to live up to the standard they set for themselves.
MOVIES X 2
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. Had not seen the first Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes take but after seeing this 10,000 frames per second entertaining mug shattering extravaganza from the SloMo Guys, who plugged the slow motion in the new Holmes, I was on my way to the cinema. And good decision. Really excellent use of slow motion to add textures to the fight scenes and layers to characters and interactions. The whole endeavor was much more of a fun romp than I expected. I was reminded that I enjoyed Snatch, another of Ritchie’s directing efforts. We bumped the first Holmes to the top of the Netqueue and it awaits us after any New Year’s Eve festivities that might occur.
Also saw Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. Not as much fun, but I did enjoy seeing Paula Patton in an action role after the romance of Jumping The Broom. Put her in more movies, people. Pegg always entertaining, I liked Jeremy Renner’s character by the end, Cruise does fine but is a bit too much of a peacock for me. I think Brad Bird might be too used to cartoons because some of the physics didn’t strike true. The sound effects subbing for readable fight scenes were aggressively used though.
Part of the reason the new Holmes + slow motion intrigued me is because Ghost Protocol had pushed me further into the superfast action doesn’t really work for me as an audience member camp. I had a fight coordinator in a staging Shakespeare seminar once tell us (and I tell my actors because it makes a lot of sense), that action needs to be slowed down to a level where the audience can get involved. And I’m finding that more and more movies do the opposite, everything is blindingly fast but lacking a sense of mastery. There’s no time to be impressed; the frames, actors and wrecked cars/robots/buildings/planets just fly by.
So the addition of slow motion into the Holmes action mix made for a enjoyable + exciting moviegoing experience. It also made my rewatch to see how things were done list so it will be an educational experience as well.
The GI Joe trailer did look fun and I am glad to have been introduced to Red Tails, a World War II Tuskagee Airmen story that’s made my see it on opening weekend list.
Enjoy your New Year’s Eve and best wishes for 2012. Don’t drink + drive and don’t get in a car with anyone who does. The American Automobile Association (AAA) and other organizations are sponsoring free rides in many locations. Find out your options. And go see a fun movie.
MERRY CHRISTMAS
JOAN JETT HAIKU
Wandered across (and I don’t remember how) Jett’s “You Want In, I Want Out” and started wandering around singing it. Which led to the discovery that my favorite of her album covers is “Up Your Alley” with its collar popped wall leaning confident cool. Many of her other album covers are less subtle about their invitations + innuendos. Which inspired this one recent afternoon.
Joan Jett Album Cover Meditation Haiku:
Naked Fetish Skin
Challenge Truth Raw Desire
Joan Jett rocks me in
FRIDAY + I’M TRYING THIS AGAIN
Alas, you missed last night’s blog post. I miss it even more than you as wordpress managed somehow to make the darn thing disappear. So I’ll give it another go. This time, the usual two sentences a topic. Let’s see how I do.
I don’t even remember Chuck is on on Fridays anymore. Although we did have a watch a fun Thanksgiving episode craving on Thanksgiving but we’d loaned the DVDs to a friend.
Hart of Dixie had a double header this week: fun. Cast is excellent, I’ve always liked Tim Matheson, it’s good to see him play someone with an edge.
Good Luck Charlie Christmas road movie was loud; want to watch it again and have a second opinion. Had some serious moments and a runaway story that might save a scared individual someday.
Arthur Christmas was full of Christmas fun and wonder, Aardman scores again. Solid story, excellent animation as always and great voice talent, especially Bill Nighy, who keeps popping up on my radar.
Eureka Christmas Special — oh yeah. They managed a great episode, included Taggart, left out Zane, gave a shout out to every animation style and animated Christmas special you can think of and had a bonus (and funny) Jim Parsons voice cameo.
Have been picking up Archie Comic Double Digests on visits to the comic book store. Lots o’ fun + comics for $3.99; Jughead’s edition my favorite so far.
There was a Joan Jett haiku but I’ll deal with that at a later date.
Did you see Joan Jett and The Foo Fighters on Letterman? Pretty intense, they all looked like they were having a great time and crushing “Bad Reputation” on their guitars was all they ever wanted to do in the world.
And the two sentence limit takes a pause:
Being in that zone is an amazing thing. Trying to get there with a new project — iApocalypso — and adding a new collaborator to the mix. So far, it’s a project of mystery kind of thing, although I am working on a logo* and there is a Tumblr account. Between the Mayan apocalypse and the upcoming political one, I figure there’s going to be no way to avoid to the wave of mention/interest, so why not try to use it as fuel. So if you have a favorite apocalypse scenario or related reading material, drop a mention in the comments or @ me. Twitter is where all the conversations happen.
My favorite people on Twitter are the ones who play along with Blink Kitty Love, the crazy crushing cartoon band that is as much a work in progress as I am. Experimented with having a guest stop by for an interview on the band blog, @TravisErwin, fun and funny author of The Feedstore Chronicles. Sent him half a dozen (half of them goofy) questions (the band is the snacks, music and goofing off parts of my personality), happy with how it turned out. Might look for a few more people to ask questions. Could be you. Here’s a sample:
Top a burger or build a sandwich for us so we can decide if we want to stop by for a snack.
I am a near complete carnivore so for me burgers and sandwiches are all about the meat, and nothing green, will ever taint my meat. Bacon, cheese, layers of other meats. That is the ONLY kind of toppers for me. I also do a lot of blends for the backyard bashes I throw. Grinding, say ham and beef together to create my own hamburger patties.
Feedstore Chronicles: how funny is it (aka is it safe to drink snortable fluids while reading)? And who should we buy it for?
I hope it’s damned funny. I hope it is Exorcist-like in that fluids shoot with great force from those crazy enough to drink while reading.I know it still makes me laugh and I’ve read, edited and re read the stories dozens if not hundreds of times. The reviews have been great. Well, all except for the guy who was kind of ticked he’d given the book to his nearly 80 year old mother. Apparently it was a bit risque for her taste. So I’ll say it’s for anyone with a sense of humor and a tolerance for lewd comedies.
Another group of @blinkkittylove buddies are Kristyn Burtt, Sandra Payne and Jennifer Bobiwash, all of whom once worked on the excellent The Web Files, which I’ve mentioned before and which just got nominated for IAWTV (International Academy of Web Television) awards in three categories. Check out Burtt’s blog for details. Congratulations. Glad to see all of their hard work get recognized.
Enjoy your holiday season. Hope whatever it is you want, you find yourself in that neighborhood. With parking available ; )
*Logo in progress, this is the second take:
1:42 AM
And probably lacking links.
The Avatar: The Last Airbender sequel Legend of Korra leaked opening sequence was out there this week. Looked good.
New Muppet movie didn’t thrill me. Walter was a bit of a drag. Did I miss the part early in the story where he whistled or listened to opera/classical music to establish a talent? Or the part where he was anything but an entry point for the audience. The audience doesn’t need an entry point. They’re the Muppets. They’re damn good entertainers. Let ‘em do it. And win.
No quarrel with Jason Segel the actor, a few with Segel the writer. Performances were excellent. Loved Dave Grohl’s cameo, Amy Adams shines as always, Jack Black was funny, Miss Piggy’s a star (but no Pigs In Space, Pigs in Space is ROCKET SCIENCE, BABY!!!) Camille and the Chickens rocked Forget You, ANIMAL!!!!!!!!!, score: B-.
Want to see Arthur Christmas, looks like fun, sounds like great voice talent.
Goodjoe, the t-shirt site, is doing weekly themed contests now + coming out with some good stuff.
Are you in a holiday mood? I’ve been shopping for the nieces + nephews (tiring), falling in love with Allison Krauss (may have to look into her Robert Plant collab) as she shimmies down the chimney, and appreciating Dolly Parton’s “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” which gets sentimental without miring itself in maudlin lament. A version you can actually listen to…thank you Dolly Parton.
Have had Joan Jett’s “You Want In, I Want Out” in my head for two weeks. Don’t even remember where I ran across it. On a search for the album (Up Your Alley) now. Not, of course, just because it may be my favorite album cover of hers, but because I want to blast it in the car where the household stereo resides.
Comics: Demon Knights still favorite of the DC 52, Legion Secret Origin a good book, Flash excellent art, dropping Blackhawks, picked up Marvel’s Legion of Monsters, also an Archie comics Betty Veronica and Friends double digest, which is a whole lot of comic fun for $4.
Have been busy. Writing for the paper again, just finished a story on a production of The Nutcracker, where I avoided talking to the Claras (Clara seems to dominate whenever I read anything Nutcracker). Talked to the Snow Queen, wrote about the learning process, I think it turned out well.
Have been contemplating writing + why I don’t do it more. I think it’s too personal. Other art doesn’t seem quite so out there. I associate writing with a state of heightened emotion. I need to remember that I don’t always have to burn rocket fuel on all emotional burners and that some of the best things I’ve written were not the result of anger, desire, frustration or any of their fellows. They were driven by a desire to communicate, express + explore. With a strong drive to experiment. It’s a great feeling when you know the words have clicked and what you want to say is right there. And if I had substituted I’s for you’s, I might be further along in the process.
Warehouse 13 Christmas special good, entertaining, but please can we have a little less let Pete walk us through the story and feel things deeply next season. Let’s get some more of the characters in the mix. Leena, Leena is too much on the periphery. Let’s bring her Warehouse orbit to periapsis.
Ok, have a great lead up to the holidays. Take care, stay warm, spend some down time doing something that doesn’t involve shopping and causes you (and possibly others) to grin…
Cheers!
CHOOSE YOUR OWN DARN COLOR FRIDAY
My sister actually likes the massed cold crowds in parking lots approach to starting the holidays. I’ve never understood that. This is the time of year I don’t even drive by malls, thereby avoiding traffic and retail related craziness. I did take advantage of Black Friday deals from 3 online retailers, one of them being Blackheart Records. Yes, I finally acquired Joan Jett related gear (1 hoodie, 1 CD — usually I do digital downloads but Gayle wants to listen to it in the car. Turns out (a little sadly) that the car has the best stereo we own.) I need to upgrade my office acoustic set up.
Movies: oh, best thing I’ve seen recently was Masterpiece (yes, the PBS people) Page Eight, with Bill Nighy and Rachel Weisz. Very excellent, full of precise conversations and Nighy’s expressive and subtle face. I’m still appalled that they CGIed over it in the second Pirates movie. Bill Nighy is also one of the voices in Aardman’s new movie, Arthur Christmas, which looks more fun the more I see of it. And great voice cast. I’d really love to see a voice actor Oscar category.
Been reading. Still getting through Retromania a chapter at a time; still enjoying it. Picked up The Best of Archie Comics, 70 years of good + good natured storytelling. It’s actually pretty impressive.
Caught up with Hart of Dixie again. Some very funny moments. And Rachel Bilson is charming. Liked her on How I Met Your Mother, liked her on Chuck, good choice to build a show around.
Kung Fu Panda: Legends Of Awesomeness is Nick’s new half hour animated series. Animation continues to mix styles and the replacement voices do a good job. Solid effort. I’ll watch ‘em when I come across ‘em.
Started catching Supah Ninjas again. Nice mix of comedy + action, plus bonus George Takei. Good Luck Charlie’s having a Christmas road movie. Looks fun. Wizards of Waverly Place is heading for the wrap. They should cheat + find a way for all three Russos to keep their powers. China Anne McClain keeps knocking songs out of the park and A.N.T. Farm is doing a good job with variety comedy styles — you’ve got the dumb blonde, the snide blonde, the smart dumb blonde, the snappy patter, the clever reference, the Keystone Kop, the slapstick, whatever it is, they’ve probably tried it. Jessie’s actually having nice ensemble movements and Debby Ryan is freed by not having to play off of or up to Cole Sprouse.
Want to catch the Muppet movie this weekend. And maybe pull a few favorites off the shelf. What about you?
Have been missing stop motion animation so Calvin and I cut out robots + had some fun in the backyard this afternoon. Enjoy.
TWENTY MINUTE SPRINT
Reading Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction To Its Own Past. Solid music references + author Simon Reynolds knows how to keep a discussion moving + interesting. Enjoying it. Considering who is innovating these days. Also, Joan Jett is trying out new music in concert. I’ve never had the anticipate a Joan Jett and The Blackhearts album thrill. I think I’d like to.
Finally picked up Malinda Lo’s Huntress but wasn’t impressed. Ok, girls kissing, but is that really the only reason people like it?!?!??! Very thin on plot and character. Too simplistic for me. Trying to figure a fictional way to get the taste out. Gayle suggested Bellwether. Read Bellwether if you haven’t; it’s a wonder.
Has anyone read the new Terry Pratchett, Snuff? I’m curious but fear that some plot points might be off putting. Pratchett can do that. But mostly what he does is turn out comic gems so if I see it at the library I’ll give it a try.
Tower Heist was mediocre, although I enjoyed Téa Leoni, Matthew Broderick and Casey Affleck’s perfomances. Rest of movie uneven. Car out the window stuff entertaining.
Catching up on the sixth season of How I Met Your Mother, which we skipped last year in prime time. Solid stuff.
Chuck just makes me sad this year. So much potential + comic talent wasted. And why is only Chris Fedak talking it up. Is the lack of Josh Schwartz influence part of the problem?
14% voter turnout on Tuesday. Appalling. Local write in city council candidate might have actually gotten enough votes so that’s the excitement of democracy in action. Of course, then he might get booted for a 20 year old drug charge, which is unclear legal language at work. Ah, America.
Being impressed by hustle. And considering how to be a bit more proactive about my own projects. Jason Sadler’s I Wear Your Shirt is selling next year’s calendar now. They wear shirts 365 days a year promoting businesses through social media. It seems both an unusual + successful strategy. And that’s a lot of energy + personality to put into a business. Lori Kirk of Cavata Clothing also impresses me with her get the brand out there + make something happen hustle. I want to do a Boston T-shirt/music safari sometime. Between Cavata, Declaration and Regan Smith Clarke, there’s certainly some things to see.
That’s 20. What are you reading/watching/thinking about?
