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Look what I got!
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Jul. 24th, 2008 @ 10:03 pm
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Okay, let's take a look at Thursday's Haul!
This is the upper left corner of the Haul, and I don't know why it's rotated wrong. You can see a Red Sonja shirt (which I got while standing in the Rifftrax line, via the clever method of asking nicely), a picture of Jane Wiedlin's dead telegram girl in Clue, a poster for the Rifftrax of Transformers, complete-series DVDs of Muppets Tonight and Daria (which I will happily purchase legitimate versions of when the relevant companies kindly get off their butts and sell them), and a book from Real Life Comics. ( Cut for people who don't want to look at pictures of awesome stuff )
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Day One!
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Jul. 24th, 2008 @ 08:34 pm
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Day one is complete, and Rhias and I are hiding back at the hotel. It's nice being far away from the convention.
I was going to post pictures of all the stuff we got. But I forgot to, and now I'm running out of juice for the computer because the power and the Internet are not in the same place. So I guess I'll update more later.
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Up-to-the-minute Line Report
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Jul. 24th, 2008 @ 02:20 pm
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I am currently at the World Famous San Diego Comic Con. Specifically, I am standing in line for autographs from Robert Rodriguez and Rose McGowan, who will not even start signing for another 35 minutes. Right now, they're doing their Red Sonja panel, and none of the people in that audience will get here in time for autographs.
I can see Lori Petty (I got my copy of Tank Girl signed. She seemed nice), Alleged Wrestling Superstar Virgil (no line at all), and the place where the Rifftrax crew will be signing. You notice their signing is not adjacent to their panel. Also, they're signing for four hours, not one.
Oh, there's Mick Foley! He's got a line going, unlike the guy who played Boomer on the original Battlestar Galactica.
UPDATE: the Rodriguez/McGowan line collapsed into anarchy (and some shouted obscenities, not by me), and Rhias took my place in the Holding Pen of the Damned. I switched to the Rifftrax line, which is organized and moving quickly, and I think Rhias is "making her own luck", possibly by flashing her pro badge at the line staff. I just saw her get a T-shirt.
Also, I just saw Fat Momma, from Who Wants to be a Superhero. Even here, she is not a celebrity.Current Music: People talking about being in line |
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I am in San Diego
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Jul. 21st, 2008 @ 09:19 pm
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Greetings from the glamorous Hotel Del Coronado, fabled in story and song! Also movies, specifically Some Like it Hot and The Stunt Man. Our hotel room doesn't have proper Internet, but there's free wi-fi immediately outside our door. And when I say "hotel room", I apparently actually mean "cabana". We're about thirty seconds from the beach, which is nice.
Tomorrow, I think we're going to the zoo, and I will probably work in some time at Balboa Park, which is one of my favorite places in the world. Later, we'll be going to the Comic Con, which will be how it usually is these days. Thanks to the Internet situation, I will not be spending my vacation sitting on my bed reading web pages. So that's a good thing.
More later, probably.
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Off-kilter
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Jul. 20th, 2008 @ 12:16 pm
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Today, I am confused and discombooberated. I was certain our flight to San Diego was today, but it's tomorrow. So I keep feeling like I'm late for the airport, which is a feeling I hate.
I'm going to go to the comic book store now. Maybe that will confuse my brain into thinking that I've flown to Comic Con already. Of course, that will just cause more confusion tomorrow, when I do fly, but I'll deal with that when it happens.
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The Dark Knight
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Jul. 18th, 2008 @ 11:15 pm
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Hated it.
This is probably because before the movie even opened, I had been deluged with people telling me how it was the greatest movie ever featuring the greatest performance ever. By Friday evening, I was already sick to death of it. But I went to it anyway, and didn't like it. At all.
I realize everyone else loved it. I just hope they will stop telling me about it.
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I didn't like Hellboy II
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Jul. 14th, 2008 @ 11:19 am
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I thought I was going to love the new Hellboy movie. Every time I saw anything about it, I thought "That movie looks amazing!" Unfortunately, there were a few things I disliked, and I think I disliked them enough to sour me on the movie as a whole.
I go into detail here, but be warned that the process of "talking about why I didn't like a movie" inevitably involves a certain amount of "talking about things that happened in said movie". So if you're worried about spoilers, close your eyes or something.
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The most important panel
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Jul. 12th, 2008 @ 06:42 pm
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This is the Comic Con panel that I cannot miss. Whatever else happens, I will be at this.
Saturday 7:15-8:15 Mystery Science Theater 3000 20th Anniversary Reunion— From 1988 to 1999, the long-suffering captives aboard the Satellite of Love wisecracked their way through hundreds of cinema's problem children—those delirious B-movies of yesteryear created by twisted imaginations and, possibly, the need for a tax shelter. To celebrate the show's 20th Anniversary, join a historic reunion of cast and crew, including creator Joel Hodgson, producer Jim Mallon and fellow writer/performers Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy, Trace Beaulieu, Frank Conniff, Mary Jo Pehl, Paul Chaplin, J. Elvis Weinstein, Bridget Nelson, and Bill Corbett for a Q&A panel hosted by self-professed "MST3K nerd" and comedian Patton Oswalt (The King of Queens). Room 6B
Oh my yes.
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Comic-Con Thursday Programming
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Jul. 11th, 2008 @ 10:12 am
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These are things that caught my eye while looking at the Programming Schedule for Thursday of Comic-Con (which has finally been posted):
The panel I'm most excited about:
10:30-11:30 Freaks, Geeks, and Tiny Toons—Warner Home Video brings the hit animated television series Tiny Toon Adventures and Freakazoid! to DVD on July 29. This panel features Bruce Timm (storyboard artist, character designer), John McCann (Douglas Douglas, Hero Boy story editor), Paul Rugg (Freakazoid writer), Sherri Stoner (writer, producer, story editor), Paul Dini (writer, story editor), Jean MacCurdy (executive producer), Rich Arons (producer, writer, director) and Andrea Romano (voice director).
The phrase I find most worrying:
Keanu is Klaatu, an alien whose arrival on our planet triggers a global upheaval.
The panel with the most potential for horrifying fanboying:
12:00-1:00 Doctor Who—Writer Russell T Davies (Doctor Who), executive producer Julie Gardner (Torchwood), and writer Steven Moffat (Doctor Who) discuss their creative process and experience working on the BBC’s Doctor Who—Britain’s most successful sci-fi franchise—with exclusive clips and a Q&A session.
The panel that redefines "one-on-one" most egregiously:
2:00-3:00 Red Sonja: One-on-One—Robert Rodriguez (Sin City), Rose McGowan (Grindhouse), Doug Aarniokoski (2nd unit director, Resident Evil 3) and David White (Undisputed 2) are teaming up to bring back the red-headed warrior woman known as Red Sonja. Join Robert, Rose, Doug, and David for this one-on-one interview and Q&A session!
The other panel with the most potential for horrifying fanboying:
1:00-2:00 Torchwood—Writer Russell T Davies (Doctor Who), executive producer Julie Gardner (Torchwood), writer Steven Moffat (Doctor Who), and actors John Barrowman, Gareth David-Lloyd, Naoko Mori and Burn Gorman discuss their creative process and experience on working on BBC America’s highest-rated show ever—Torchwood— followed by a Q&A session.
The panel about a book I don't care about that still sounds like it's probably a lot of fun:
1:30-3:00 Artemis Fowl—Eoin Colfer, author of the blockbuster Artemis Fowl series, launches his sixth book in the series, Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox, with Fairies, Fiends and Flatulence, a hilarious one man live show that explains to fans the genesis of each of Eoin's characters in the books—both good and evil—all of which come from his four Irish brothers.
The panel it seems like ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) brannonb should be on:
2:15-3:15 Halo Wars and the Halo Universe—Prima Games, Tor Books, McFarlane Toys, and Microsoft Games Studio bring you an in-depth panel discussion on all things Halo. Panelists include Eric Nylund, author of Halo: The Fall of Reach and Halo: First Strike Onyx; Tobias Buckell, author of the upcoming novel Halo: The Cole Protocol; game universe writers Graeme Devine (Halo Wars) and Frank O’Connor (Halo Trilogy); and Jon Goff and Corrinne Robinson, McFarlane Toys’ brand management team for Halo action figures
No, wait, I bet this is the fanboy panel (also, what happened to the kids?):
3:00-4:00 Disney: Race to Witch Mountain—What secrets does Witch Mountain hold? Stars Dwayne Johnson and Carla Gugino and director Andy Fickman talk about the mysterious, paranormal activity around Witch Mountain. Dwayne, Carla, and Andy will present the first look at the movie and answer audience questions as they talk about the thrilling action-adventure that is set to hit theatres in March 2009!
Second most baffling paragraph:
9:00-10:00 Repo! The Genetic Opera First Look—See what director Darren Lynn Bousman has been up to since directing the last three Saw movies: Repo! The Genetic Opera. Check out the phenomenon that is this Goth Rock musical with sneak peeks and the new trailer plus stories from Darren and the actors themselves, including Alexa Vega (Spy Kids), Bill Moseley (The Devil’s Rejects), and Ogre (the band Skinny Puppy), among others.
Most baffling paragraph:
Warner Premiere and Warner Home Video: World Premiere of Lost Boys The Tribe—Prepare to sink your teeth into the long-awaited and highly anticipated next chapter of the cult phenomenon started by the 1987 cult classic, and be the first to see Lost Boys The Tribe before its July 29 DVD release at this special world premiere. More than 20 years in the making, Lost Boys The Tribe is an homage to the original 1987 cult hit and stars Corey Feldman as vampire hunter Edgar Frog, along with Tad Hilgenbrinck, Angus Sutherland, and Autumn Reeser, with appearances by Jamison Newlander and Corey Haim. Meet the cast and filmmakers as director P J Pesce and original Lost Boys star Corey Feldman are joined by Tad Hilgenbrinck, Angus Sutherland, and Autumn Reeser to answer questions and talk about the making of this new horror classic.
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Food is delicious!
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Jun. 25th, 2008 @ 10:31 pm
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We've had some really good food on this trip. On Monday, we ate lunch at the Blue Bayou, and both Rhias's Monte Cristo sandwich and my Tesoro Island Chicken were delicious. Although I think she had the better one. And the gumbo, creme brulee, and Key Lime pie were all mighty tasty.
Then tonight we had dinner at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen and were delighted again. I figured it would be some acceptable corporate food (because it's in the same complex as a Rainforest Cafe and an ESPN Zone, but the appetizer sampler plate we shared had some kind of seafood slider that was extremely good. My entree was a lobster and shrimp ravioli that I'm still smiling about. And Rhias's tournedos of beef was also quite tasty, although she was happier about her goat cheese risotto cake thing she got on the side.
I mean, we've had our share of crappy food, too. When you're tired and in the middle of Tomorrowland, you'll eat whatever gets served up. But there have been some good stuff mixed in there as well. Oh, and I can't believe I've never had that chilled pineapple whip they serve at the stand just outside the Tiki Room. It's refreshing. And yummy!
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Disneyland: Day One
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Jun. 23rd, 2008 @ 11:28 pm
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No notes, and I'm exhausted. So this is going to be kind of freeform.
Monday morning, we were up bright and early and strolled into the park right when it opened. My plan was to ride the fancy new Finding Nemo Submarine Ride before the line got out of hand. But the subs were broken, so that plan didn't last very long. Instead, we rode Autopia, on the grounds that it was A) right there next to us, and B) had no line. It wasn't much fun, and it certainly wasn't very futuristic. I did like the off-road section, although Rhias (who was driving) didn't care for that either.
Then we kind of wandered around randomly, going to Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and grabbing an Indiana Jones Fastpass on the way to Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates was quite enjoyable, and I did not mind the additions of Barbossa, Jack Sparrow, and Davy Jones. In fact, the Davy Jones effect was really cool. So there.
Then we went on the Haunted Mansion and got to spend some time in the secret pet cemetery. That was fun. Then we had some snacks in a surprisingly quiet and out-of-the-way spot right next to where the Columbia was docked. Next, after getting Splash Mountain Fastpasses, we tried to ride the Columbia, but it was taking too long to get the Mark Twain out of the way. So we ducked into the Golden Horseshoe and had a really good time. There was some darn good bluegrass mandolin playing in there!
Somewhere around here, we went on Indiana Jones. I wanted to stop and look at all the secret messages (I even printed out a decoder card!), but a cast member was using me to track how long the fastpass line was, so I felt bad about it. Then we had lunch at the Blue Bayou, and it was delicious. It turns out I like gumbo!
That's not the end of the day, but I'm really tired (my pedometer says I walked 8.1 miles today!) and I have to meet my mom, aunt, and two cousins at the park tomorrow at 8:30am. So I'm cutting it off here.
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Secret Diary of a Call Girl
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Jun. 17th, 2008 @ 05:47 pm
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In addition to recapping Hell's Kitchen for Television Without Pity, I'm now recapping Secret Diary of a Call Girl. The first episode is up now. So now you know.
Also, I think this icon is funny in this context.
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Movies
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Jun. 14th, 2008 @ 10:42 pm
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Today, I watched High School Musical and Dog Day Afternoon.
Here's what I found odd about High School Musical: it's set at an extremely multiethnic high school in Albuquerque, New Mexico. And when I say "multiethnic", I mean "mostly white, with some black and Asian kids". I didn't see any Hispanic or Native American kids. Well, except for Gabriella, but she just moved there. All I'm saying is that I don't think the high school accurately reflected the actual makeup of Albuquerque. They consciously mixed things up, but -- ah, forget it.
Also, there's no way Zac Efron was getting much of a basketball scholarship. It's not just that he's 5'6"; he just didn't look all that athletic.
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The Light Dawns
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Jun. 14th, 2008 @ 03:48 pm
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I don't really get Twitter. I usually don't even bother to update LiveJournal every day, and I don't think people would really be interested in "I just ate lunch! If getting a bag of chips from the vending machine counts as lunch, that is". I was thinking of going nuts with it at Disneyland, though, because "constantly updating how long the lines are" sounds kind of fun.
However, Defective Yeti has shown me the way: clearly, the appropriate use of Twitter is to share cheap jokes with the world. I say funny things all the time, and it sometimes makes me sad that the only people that get to hear them are the people lucky enough to be near me. Admittedly, sometimes they do not consider themselves all that lucky, but that's their problem. My point is this: from now on, my Twitter account is going to be a vehicle for theoretically humorous things.
However, I'm still not going to do those automatically-generated Twitter posts on LiveJournal. I hate those.
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Niche Geek Sadness
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Jun. 9th, 2008 @ 11:23 am
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Erick Wujcik has died.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles RPG was the first real long-term RPG campaign I played in. He also wrote Beyond the Supernatural and Ninjas and Superspies, which are two of my favorite RPG books ever. Oh, and Amber Diceless Roleplaying, which is one of the coolest systems ever created.
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Geek Power
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May. 31st, 2008 @ 08:51 pm
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Do you know what the #3 book on Amazon's best-sellers list is right now?
It's the "Dungeons and Dragons Core Rulebook Gift Set, 4th Edition" preorder. The box set of the three core rulebooks is number three. That's two slots above the current Oprah's Book Club entry. And even with the hefty Amazon discount, it's easily the most expensive thing on the list. There are only a handful of books in the top hundred that are as much as a third the price of the set. And it's still number three on the list.
I'm pretty impressed by that.
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Librarying
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May. 30th, 2008 @ 11:29 am
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I like to know how many books I have. I have them more-or-less alphabetized, except for the "still to be read" section, and I occasionally update an Excel sheet or my Librarything list.
I like the idea of getting a barcode reader and processing all of my books, but I've never bothered to get a barcode reader. So I'm delighted at the idea behind Delicious Library 2, which uses a webcam to read bar codes. So all I need to do is hold a book up to my laptop, which has a webcam built in? Perfect. And it also works with CDs, DVDs, and video games? Now you are absolutely talking my language. It only works with Macs -- but that's the kind of laptop I have. So everything's coming up Monty!
The only downside is that when I hit books without barcodes (which happens more often than you'd think with my tastes) I'll be outraged that I have to type them in manually. But I think I can live with that, you know?
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When I came home...
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May. 27th, 2008 @ 11:42 pm
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...this is what I saw:
Luckily, that's Rhias's computer, so mine was still unguarded. |
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Bah!
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May. 24th, 2008 @ 07:25 pm
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So I saw one of those bumper stickers calling George W. Bush a murderer, and I got to thinking: which U.S. Presidents have actually killed people? I'm not talking about starting wars or secretly authorizing CIA assassinations, you understand. I want to know which Presidents have actually, personally, killed people. After racking my trivia-addled brain and supplementing it with a fairly sketchy trawl through the Internet, I ended up giving up.
It turns out an awful lot of presidents served in the military during wars, and I don't feel like guessing which ones actually killed people. I mean, I know William Henry Harrison, Theodore Roosevelt, and Andrew Jackson all killed people personally. And George H.W. Bush deopped bombs during WWII, which probably counts too.
So it involved too many arbitrary judgement calls that would require real research. Phooey! |
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An Evening at the Theatre
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May. 23rd, 2008 @ 08:42 pm
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It's possible that the subject line should read "Part of an Evening at the Theatre". Or maybe "theater". As near as I can tell, the two spellings are at about 50% usage. Anyway.
Last night, I went to see "High School Musical: the Stage Show". It's the national touring company of the show that was a monster hit on the Disney Channel. High School Musical 3 is going to be in actual movie theaters, and it's going to be a huge hit even though hardly anyone I know even knows it exists. We saw the show because I have these season tickets for the Broadway series at the Paramount, and this is part of that. And I have to admit, I'm always kind of curious about massive pop-culture phenomena that are completely outside my experience.
We got there just as the doors were being bolted, and established that the audience was 80% tween and pre-tween girls. They were vibrating with excitement, and when the curtain went up, there was an absolute frenzy of applause.
Then the play started, unfortunately. I thought it was flat and uninteresting, with songs arranged for too many people. Once you've got twenty people all singing the same lines, it's kind of hard to make them out. And then there were the spirit fingers. It was just dull and uninteresting. All of the actors seemed to be just marking time. And I think we weren't the only ones who thought so, because all the pre-show excitement damped down to a completely silent house. The only thing we could hear was constant loud laughter from a gentleman with, I think, some form of mental disability. It seemed to make the kids a little uncomfortable.
The most interesting part from my point of view was a spot where one of the actors' microphones cut out. And because nobody projects anymore, that meant nobody could hear his dialogue. But when the song started, his part of the harmonies were perfectly clear. So it was fun to learn exactly what parts of the songs were prerecorded.
At intermission, we fled. We figured we'd seen enough to learn that it wasn't going to suddenly become enjoyable, and also that it wasn't even a good representation of the whole High School Musical... thing. So we didn't go back in for Act 2 (lookit me! I'm following in the tradition of Robert Benchley and P.G. Wodehouse!), instead choosing to go around the corner and see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which I will comment on over at Monty on Movies
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