Remote Viewing - What I'm watching on TV.

If you weren't watching the CW program ARROW, last season you missed not only an exciting show, but one of the better comics related shows I've ever seen.  Based on the classic DC character GREEN ARROW, this makes some changes to the characters origin (at least as it was back in the Silver Age, since I have no clue what they have done with GA since the New (not any more) 52 began), the most obvious is that Oliver Queen is in his 20s in the show and much younger than the four-color version.

You aren't going to see any 'boxing glove' arrows or other things of that sort, but with a few explosive exceptions Ollie uses a pretty basic hunting arrow when confronting the bad guys in Starling City.  The Arrow, is never called that in the show, but is referred to by the city media and police as The Hood.  Like the early BATMAN of Gotham City the police view him as a violent vigilante and to be honest, unlike the Dark Knight, The Hood doesn't hesitate from actually taking a life when he feels it necessary.

Stephen Amell is good both as the spoiled Oliver Queen and as his more aggressive persona.  I don't know how much of the stunt work is actually done by Amell, but the scenes of him working in his gym and close-up scenes show that he is in very good physical shape and able to handle himself when a stuntman would be too obvious. The story allows him to change and grow as he begins to see himself as more than just the one to carry out his father's vengeance.  He actually does become a hero in many ways, with assistance from his bodyguard, John Diggle (played by David Ramsey), who can be just as competent, if a bit less violent than his boss.  The creators were smart in bringing in Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards) a computer tech for Queen Industries to aide Oliver in her own fashion.

It will be interesting to see where the shows goes in its second season, having introduced several DCU characters in the first (Huntress, Deadshot & Deathstroke).  They have already announced that a version of Black Canary will be showing up and rumors of a FLASH appearing also have come out.  IMDB simply mentions 'Barry Allen' (Grant Gustin from GLEE and 90210) will be in two episodes.  We'll see if Barry gains his abilities in the show or already possesses them.

As you can see, I really enjoy the show and will try to have stuff about a few other programs that I'm currently watching.

Remote Viewing: SHARKNADO

This was originally going to be completed and posted a week or so after I saw the film, but I actually forgot I had begun a draft and had it here.  Hope you still enjoy it.

I had heard about this film probably a day or so before it was originally broadcast, but had just shrugged it off as another of those SyFy films that aren't worth the time to record or watch.  By the time I was getting ready for Comic-Con, it seemed that everybody was talking about it and even the Mainstream Media had to chime in.  In San Diego it was amazing how many people were talking about it and SyFy was taking advantage of the word-of-mouth by passing out postcards on the street promoting a sequel.  They were really clever by setting up a contest where folks could tweet in a suggested title for the film.



The film was instant 'cult classic' and if you've seen it you already know why.  It's fun with full of overacting, fake violence and laughable dialogue.  Pretty much all you need to be a success and start a franchise.

The basic plot (and it is really damn basic) is that a series of tornadoes over the Pacific Ocean off of California ('natch!) picks up the schools of man-eating sharks that coincidentally have come to the area.  Their first target happens to be the Santa Monica pier where hundreds of tourists suddenly find themselves chum.  Fortunately, a few folks are able to take shelter in a bar owned by Finley "Fin" Shepard (Ian Ziering), a former champion surfer a couple of co-workers and bar regular George (played with gusto by John Heard). Hard to believe that Heard, a one-time Emmy nominee, is reduced to this stuff, but everybody has got to pay the rent.  I also wonder if he only played George as drunk or was taking a few real drinks just to be able to get through the script until he met his fate.

Anyway, Fin and Co. make their way to his ex-wife's home to protect both her and his daughter.  The fact that neither wants to see him or want his protection is something you can foresee from early on, but you also know that by about halfway through this adventure they will be a bit more grateful that he showed up.  I'm not going to give anything else away, since you can probably figure things out for yourself from just the trailer and from having seen any film of this type the past twenty years.

The Last San Diego Comic Con Review

No, this was not the last San Diego Comic Con and it may not be the last I attend.  It is however probably the last review of the Con to be posted, since other folks are more on the ball and able to get these things up within a few days.  Last week was crazy at work and other things happened so the review I had been planning was put on the back-burner. It's certainly not going to be as long or as in depth as most of the reviews you've already seen, heard or read online. Also, if you are looking for breaking news you should have already read that stuff on The Beat  and Bleeding Cool .  Heidi and Rich are much better at keeping up with stuff than I am or ever was, even in the day when I knew a lot of folks actually working in the industry.

To be truthful I probably spent less time at this Con, at least in the convention center, than ever before, especially given that I was there for four days. My main goal this year was to catch up with some folks I haven't seen in a while and to spend evenings with Kristina, Sarah & Dan. While it would have been nice to meet up with some other people who were in attendance the chief folks I wanted to see were The Tony Isabella, Bob Ingersoll, Randy Renaldo and anyone I knew from Capa-Alpha.  I was fortunate to meet up with all three of those guys, as well as speaking for a few minutes with Jeff Gelb (who I met through K-a).

I didn't see any movie or TV stars, at least nobody I recognized.  First off, I wasn't going to spend hours standing in line for Hall H or Ballroom 20 and those celebs on the floor were generally surrounded by either fans or security folks. Seeing Neil Gaiman and Leonard Maltin on a couple of panels was cool, but those were probably the only folks who might be known outside of fan circles.  I was introduced to Jerry Ordway, which I thought was pretty cool.

I attended over a half-dozen or so panels, including Mark Evanier's annual QUICK DRAW, with regulars Sergio Aragones and Scott Shaw.  The third artist this year was Neal Adams who showed he really could get something down on paper in less than a few months.  Peter David played along, which has become a pretty regular event and he was joined this year by the aforementioned Leonald Maltin and British television personality, Jonathan Ross.  I thought they were all good sports and the surprise appearances of both Maltin & Ross certainly got the crowd even more enthusiastic.

I also caught several other of Mark's panels, including the Spotlight on Tony Isabella, where Tony received a well-earned Inkpot award; "That '70s Panel" with Marvel & DC writers of the '70s; both the Joe Kubert & Jack Kirby tributes and Superman: The Julius Schwartz Era.

Among the non-Evanier panels I hit was "The Monsters of Alternative Comics" with Ted Rall, Keith Knight, Shannon Wheeler and Steven Notley. Nice discussion of politics, how these guys get their stuff out there and a cool slide show running behind them with photos of them at work, panels from their comics and pictures of classic horror movie monsters.

Somehow I was able to sneak into the end of the line to catch a few episodes of AVENGERS ASSEMBLE, which featured the Squadron Supreme character, Hyperion.  Looks like fun, with some good voice work, plus I'm glad that the Falcon is a member at this point.

I went to other things and walked the hall for hours.  Lots of really nice cos-players, both male & female, many who obviously worked a long time on their outfits and some that appeared to have hit Costume City a few days prior to showing up. It stood out that there were less Batmen and I didn't see a single Klingon (OTS or feature film/TNG version), but the place was packed with Wonder Women and Supergirls.

Outside the con a popular location was the huge ENDER'S GAME tent, the news down there the fact that the LGBTG activists weren't making a big deal of the thing.  They were low key and using it as a teachable moment and a chance to speak to folks about the issues.  On the other hand, the well-known yellow & black signs of the 'Christian'' "You're going to Hell" picketers were present across from the center, and on Wednesday night they even had a van with loud-speaker proclaiming the same message traveling through the Gaslamp District.  Pretty sure they had come down the weekend before for "Gay Pride" and had stuck around to save the rest of us sinners. :-)

One cool presence throughout the convention was the Despicable Me 'minion' blimp that flew overhead everyday.  A few days we had some pretty heavy marine layer hanging over the city, so the blimp was pretty low which made it even more noticeable.

A quick rundown of my nights: Wednesday was La Puerta, in the Gaslamp, where we hit for 'Happy Hour' margaritas and Mexican food; Thursday night, after getting my first tattoo, we went to Hodad's a local burger & brew chain which was pretty good, but I'd stay out of the restrooms until after dinner (if you know what I mean) and Friday we drove to Darband/Fifth Avenue Grill for some really good Persian/Iranian eats.  Saturday Donna drove down and we had a nice home-cooked Italian dinner with plenty of wine.

There were other things I saw and enjoyed, but those were the highlights.  I say every year that this will be my last, but I have a feeling (considering that the girl's place is so convenient) that I just might make it down for another day or two next July.  Hope to see more of you down there!

Review: Man of Steel

Reviews of IRON MAN 3 & STAR TREK: INTO THE DARKNESS, plus some comics

Popcorn for One: Star Trek: Into Darkness review (few spoilers)

I don't want to give much away, since the revelation of one thing sets up a series of events.  All I'll say is that according to the writers of the screenplay the main villain of the story (played with nice intensity by Benedict Cumberbatch) was not originally planned to be a known character.  Of course, IMDB.com gives the whole thing away with its list of cast/characters , but I'll still refrain from doing so here.

The film starts out with a great chase sequence with Kirk & Bones ("Great, you just stunned our ride!"), followed by a dramatic scene with Spock.  You'd think that would be hard to top but it really does set up some events that come back to be resolved later in the film. All the major bridge/command crew introduced in the first film have returned, with some nice comic moments for just about everyone.  There have been some complaints from fans about Scotty (Simon Pegg) and Chekov (Anton Yelchin) being played for laughs more than their original characters were, but I really think it works and both actors do a great job, especially the brilliant Pegg who steals just about every scene in which he's in.  Karl Urban (as Bones) really does an amazing job capturing the spirit and attitude that made the original Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) such a favorite.  Of all the characters, he seems to have stepped out of the original series intact.

Chris Pine (Kirk) and Zachary Quinto (Spock) have grown since the first film, but the tension between their personalities and idea of duty continues.  The scene towards the end of the film, that could be seen as a flip of one from an earlier film, works because by that point the characters have arrived at a mutual respect and friendship.

The film could be interpreted as a re-imagining of an earlier ST movie, but there are more things going on and the movie works on all levels for me.  I think the great thing is that you don't have to be a ST geek to enjoy the movie, but things were tossed in for fans of the show that add to their entertainment.  Nice to see Bruce Greenwood return as Admiral Pike and Peter Weller is perfect as Admiral Marcus.  Again, there are twists and surprises I don't want to give away, but I'm happy that the trailers for the film don't give everything away while still showing many of the major scenes to ramp up excitement.

I'll be curious how you folks react to the reintroduction of Klingons and Tribbles.  One of these have a new look and I'm sure that cos-players are already gearing up to include that look for up-coming cons.  (Hope the Tribbles reveal didn't ruin the movie for anyone!)

Wasn't overwhelmed by some of the trailers shown before the feature, although the more I see of MAN OF STEEL the better I feel about where they are going with the characters.  The opposite for WORLD WAR Z, which could be any other zombie movie, as it doesn't reflect the best-selling novel from which it takes little more than a title.  Have little interest in seeing it on the big screen.  Not sure about ELYSIUM with Matt Damon & Jodi Foster as long lost lovers who discover...what?  it's not?  Oh, it's a SF film taking place in a future where civilization is split between halves & have-nots.  It takes place in 2014.  OK,  maybe later than that.  Nothing special except for the two stars as far as I can tell. 

That's it for me. Let me know what you think.

Popcorn For One: IRON MAN 3 review (SPOILERS)

Was it up to the level of THE AVENGERS? No. Was it better (much better) than IRON MAN 2? By far and more.  Let's go into some of the details with a few SPOILERS:

Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle are all back in their roles, possibly for the last time.  Tony is now having some anxiety issues stemming from his actions with the Avengers in New York.  He tries to cover them with his usual smart-aleck and assured attitude, but Pepper knows that something is wrong.  Meanwhile, a terrorist known only as The Mandarin has been attacking various American targets abroad and now in the U.S. When Stark announces his intention to hunt him down his own home is attacked and destroyed. 

Unfortunately, Stark's latest version of the IM suit has not been completely tested and it is further damaged during an attempt to battle the Mandarin's forces.  Without his equipment and miles from home he finds he has to improvise until he can return to action.

At about the three-quarter point in the film everything takes a pretty dramatic turn when we discover that The Mandarin (played in all his facits by the wonderful Ben Kingsley) is not who or what we thought he was, but actually a front for the actual villain.  Guy Pearce, plays Aldrich Killian, a scientist who had once been humiliated by Stark and now seeks revenge, while also putting himself into a position to increase his own wealth and power by whatever means.  Pearce, has changed more than his physical appearance and is also using a former lover of Stark's to entrap him.

A lot of folks are upset by the change in The Mandarin, from the way he has always been portrayed in the comics.  Not only does he not possess the rings of power that made him all but equal to Iron Man, but it turns out that he is a fake in more ways than one.  I was surprised, as everyone was, by this turn of events, but Kingsley was so good (as both the Mandarin and his true identity) that I forgave the deception.  The film-makers go for a political message about the public's need for a 'bad guy' to hate and the government's use of them for their own purposes.

I'm giving the film a 3.5 stars.  Also, while not a huge moment I do recommend you stay through the credits.  First off, the end credits are really nicely done with a sort of '70s feel to them.  Then there is a moment were we see to whom Tony has been telling the story in flashback since the beginning.  Funny bit with another Marvel character.  The movie has my recommendation.

Doctor Who - new season so far

Only three episodes into the new season (not counting the Christmas episode which re-introduced Clara) and I'm enjoying it for the most part. While I like Jenna-Louise Coleman in the role of Clara (Oswin) Oswald, I don't feel the immediate affection for her that I did for Amy Pond after only her initial appearance.  Maybe it was because Amy's first meeting with the Doctor as a child, and you just knew they were fated to finally be together (not in the way that the previous incarnation & Rose were, of course). It may be because the back story for Clara is not being completely revealed at this point.  After all, The Doctor has already met her twice and in both instances things went badly. (Didn't want to toss in a spoiler, just in case.)

While the first episode, involving the Internet and wireless technology was very good, I found the second (involving a soul-devouring creature) not as strong as it might have been.  As I believe I've said before, the opening and end sequences were solid, but it seemed as if the story was padded and the show is only about 40+ minutes, plus commercials.  It was like, "We've introduced the little girl and we know DW & Clara will rescue her, but what do we do for the next half-hour?"  A bit too much Star Wars bar scene, if you know what I mean.

The most recent episode, as of 4/13, was a really great story and brought back the classic Ice Warriors as the villain.  Taking place almost completely in the rather claustrophobic interior of a Cold-War era Russian
submarine.  Adding to the natural tension of stopping the menace and possible nuclear war, was the great David Warner in the role of a Russian scientist who had discovered the warrior encased in ice. A nice touch is the off-handed manner in which Clara discovers another wonderful thing about the TARDIS and why the Doctor seems able to communicate wherever he goes.  I don't know about other folks, but this sort of episode reminded me of older DW episodes where the Doctor and his companion are discovered in a place were they should not be. The Tom Baker Doctor always seemed to be popping up in the wrong place at awkward times and I was half-waiting for the Doctor to ask the Russian captain if he wanted a jelly baby.

Well, the up-coming episode HIDE, looks like a good old-fashion scary one and the folks who do the show certainly have proven they can do scary pretty darn well. I'm looking forward to it.

By the way, anyone else enjoying the DOCTOR WHO: REVISITED episodes on BBCAmerica?  Love seeing the interviews with past Doctors, companions and other cast & crew who watched the show and later became involved with it.  It's also the first time I've complete stories that the first three Doctors appeared in.  You really can see both the character and the show evolve over time (pardon the expression).

I think I have mentioned before, and even did a video, talking about dropping out of comics collecting.  I still love comics, but financially and interest-wise I just wasn't finding them worth it.  I would hit the shop every couple of weeks for my subscriptions and immediately catalog them when I brought them home.  Then, except for a couple of titles I would find that the rest would be unread for a couple of months.  If I wasn't that interested, what was the point.

I'm currently using the Comixology  and Dark Horse apps to keep up with what is coming out and grabbing some freebies along the way.

Marvel doesn't seem to be putting out as many previews as DC, which has a regular weekly one.  I'm finding that there really doesn't seem to be much in the new and continuing titles that catches my interest.  Nothing that would get me back into the shops anyway.  If I have a chance I may check out a shop on or near "Free Comic Book Day" to not only pick up any goodies, but maybe check out some of the other titles on the shelf to see if they still interest me.

I haven't seen my current schedule for that weekend, but if things hold true I will probably be working.  For some odd reason known only to the Library Gods, I have been scheduled to work on FCBD for each of the past five years.  Not really worth using a vacation day (which I am doing to attend San Diego on Friday, with my one-day pass this year), but it is annoying that I can't seem to get my hands on some of those great goodies.  Of course, I notice that some of the publishers will distribute either copies of the FCBD books or limited-edition 'convention' copies that reprint the same material with a new cover.

Sorry for the 'feeling sorry for myself' sound of this post.  I do miss comics and going to the shop, but thanks to those apps, rereading some of my collection and our Library's graphic novel/manga collection I haven't had to go completely cold turkey.  See you in the funny papers!

Remote Viewing - THE WALKING DEAD & DOCTOR WHO

The nice thing about having Monday morning off is that I can catch up on some shows I've taped, that Donna doesn't care about. Those are pretty much any fantasy/horror related stuff.

I'll try not to give away any spoilers here, but I expect at this point anyone who watches the shows has probably already seen them.  By the way, Rosebud was Kane's childhood sled, so you can skip that old B&W movie.

THE WALKING DEAD ended a pretty decent season with the death of several characters.  Personally, I doubt many folks will mourn the death of one of them, as she had to be the most annoying b**** on the show.  Of course she only got that spotlight after an even bigger annoying b**** died off earlier.  If fans had been expecting the battle at the prison we got to see in the comic, well they were certainly disappointed.  The folks behind the show decided they needed to give the b**** a goodbye scene, so that dragged things out for minutes longer than necessary.  Also, if everyone thought AMC was doing us a favor by making the season finale longer I'm sure they were delighted that it was extended so the network could plug MAD MEN every ten minutes.  Maybe I'm in the minority, but I have never had any interest in that show, maybe because I grew up in that era and the folks in the program sure as hell don't act like anyone I knew.  The promos for the show always made it look like an extended MAD Magazine spoof of Madison Avenue, drained of humor.  Call me shallow.

All that aside I actually enjoyed the episode, as it did have some surprises and set up some tensions going into the next season.  Great walker stomping and if anyone still had doubts about The Governor, this proved that the guy is completely bonkers.  Also, there is an incident involving Carl which brings the character more in line with the kid as portrayed in the comic.  His confrontation with his father brings home the fact that he is no longer the whiny "Carl stay in the house!" kid from the first season.  Now we just have to wait until October to see how these things come together.

The DOCTOR WHO season premiere was a great beginning for a season that will celebrate the Doctor's fifty years as an icon.  Most American's probably didn't get introduced to the Time Lord until the '70s with the Third Doctor (portrayed by Jon Pertwee), unless they had caught the two DW films made earlier featuring Peter Cushing in the role.  While the Doctor in those films does have a time traveling machine he is a human scientist.  The current Doctor (the 11th) is portrayed again by Matt Smith, who initially seemed too young for the role when I first saw him but quickly won me over in the initial episode in which he appeared.  We have seen this incarnation of the Doctor die and comeback, spend time with his once & future wife and see his companions choose a fate that drove him to travel back in time and stay away from playing the hero.  The first episode of this season picks up in a way from the Christmas special which introduced (re-introduced?) his newest companion, Clara "Oswin" Oswald.  Clara is 'the girl who died twice' and at this time (pardon the expression) is still very much a mystery to both The Doctor and to us.

The first show involves the Internet and specifically Wi-Fi, which is being used by someone/something to capture the 'souls' of people all over the world.  For the modern day Clara this is her first meeting with the Time Lord and his wonderful 'bigger on the inside' machine the TARDIS. (Oh, look it up!)  It appears, from trailers, that this season will have the thread of discovering more about Clara and why she seems to come back into the Doctor's life on different planets and different times.  Hints are also being dropped online about some of the things and characters returning for this special celebration.  Will the Doctor meet himself?  Well, he has done so in the past, so why not?

That wraps it up for me for the time (hee hee) being.  Peace out!

The Hobbit: my review

Geeking on Technology

Why I'm not buying comics.

San Diego Comic Fest - What I thought.

Thanks to Mark Evanier, I'm going to add this link to a video on the 1st San Diego Comic Fest which was held last weekend.  What you see in the video will give you a good feeling of what the convention was like and some of the folks who spent time there.

As I have said before, while my first 'convention' experience was a small one held in a high school in the Ocean Beach community of San Diego, about two months later I found myself at the El Cortez Hotel with hundreds of other fans for the 1975 SDCC.  In some ways those two very different experiences match the difference between what the current SDCC is to what was held at the Town & Country Hotel and Convention Center the past weekend. 

The utter size and overwhelming experience of SDCC is hard to imagine for anyone who has not gone to one.  I've been to dozens of cons around the country the past few decades but even the larger ones in NY, Philadelphia and Chicago could not match what you get when you enter the SDCC as it is now.  The sounds, sights, cos-players, famous actors and all the media crammed into that building for four-days is just way too much for me now.  I think my experience this year on Sunday was enough to prove that I am not able to deal with these events very well. I'm pretty sure that the one-day pass I already have for 2013 (Friday) will be even more tiring and may be the last time I go through the hassle and aggravation of even trying to get a ticket.

As Mark says in his post, Comic Fest was more about the feelings and nostalgia of those El Cortez days than a recreation of that era.  While those early SDCC's were smaller they were still all about the future of comics, film and entertainment.  Fans wanted to see the hot new talent, get the new titles and find out what the publishers were going to bring out in the coming year.  If there were panels on the Golden Age (and a number of the folks who created those books were still active at the time), more were about the current crop of creators or those trying to break in.

The contemporary SDCC continues that, with those panels that do deal with the older stuff becoming a smaller part of the overall picture.  While Comic Con has always been about more than comics, the modern event really is about the entertainment media beyond the four-color pages that fewer and fewer seem to care about.

For me Comic Fest was a chance to see some of the folks who made my early convention experiences so special.  It was the opportunity to hear others talk about what those events meant to them and how special they were.  While there was some sadness when people talked about those who were no longer with us, there were also a lot of laughs when those still here told stories of their lost friends.

Panels covered the anniversaries of BLADE RUNNER, ROBOCOP and STORM TROOPERS.  Creators talked about working on the 'underground' comix that had to be bought in headshops, adult stores and small bookstores in college communities.  People who had not seen each other in decades were reunited on stage or in the halls, some discovered things that had happened years before that they had never known about.  While some friendships were renewed, some old animosities were also brought out into the open.

Bottom line is I'm really glad that I went.  It was fun and I had some laughs, which is what you really want from any convention.

WALKING DEAD - New Season & other stuff

Hope you have caught the first episode of WALKING DEAD this past weekend, or recorded it and already seen it.  I'm going to publish some Spoilers so if you haven't watched it you might want to skip this for a while.

In a fashion, the series is coming back around to where the comic series was a few years ago.  Months have passed since the previous episode, with Lori (Booo!!) very preggers and still whining about one thing or another.  The rest of Rick's group seems to be coming to grips with the situation, with even Carl showing that he can take down the undead in the same ruthless fashion as the rest.  His first scenes with him shooting a walker and then taking some cans of dog food are telling.  Carl has matured and obviously has gone beyond the "Carl, stay in the house" routine he found himself in previously.  This is the Carl that fans of the book have come to know, there are only some moments when he can be a kid with the situation that surrounds him.

In the book the discovery of the prison brought about a shift in the dynamics of the group.  As the series has already made some changes, it remains to be seen what characters (if any) that are introduced among the surviving prisoners will bond with Rick's group.  We only see some of the prisoners in the final scene of the first episode, so they have not been introduced.  Teasers for the second episode seem to indicate that things may take a ugly turn pretty quickly.

We also get to see Michonne (one of the best and favorite characters in the comic) demonstrating why she will probably be just as popular in the series.  She and Andrea are separated from the main group and it will be interesting to see how they finally join up.  As the "Governor" and the community of Woodbury have not been introduced yet, it may be that the pair meets up with that group first.  However it works out I'm psyched about this season.

This weekend I'm going to be heading down to San Diego for the first SD Comic Fest.  This new gathering was conceived and planned by some of the same folks to started the original San Diego Comic Con back in the early '70s.  The idea is that this will be a smaller gathering and similar in feel to those first few cons held at the El Cortez Hotel and other locations.  No flashy displays by the big companies, no major stars pushing their latest product, just fans and pros getting together to talk about comics and 'the old days'.  I hope to have some photos and some things to talk about regarding the show next week.

Ta ta for now!

New Season for Doctor Who

Just a quick couple of things on the latest season of DOCTOR WHO on BBC America.

Everybody who follows the show already knows that the Doctor's companions, Amy & Rory will shortly be exiting the program.  A new companion will quickly be put in place and we'll have to give her a chance.

The first two episodes of the season were great, as you can't go wrong with a Dalek episode and dinosaurs on a spaceship are pretty cool.  On the other hand, I was rather disappointed with the third episode (shown this past Saturday), "A Town Called Mercy". 

There were some nice elements but it just seemed like they needed something to show The Doctor has been under some strain and to reinforce the notion that he needs a companion(s) to keep him in check.  Both David Tennant and Matt Smith have shown that given too much time alone the Doctor can forget the 'humanity' and humility that he needs.  Besides those moments the episode was nothing special and had that 'haven't we seen this before' feel.  You could almost have put Kirk, Spock & McCoy down in the middle of Mercy and had pretty much the same show.  For me, it was probably the weakest DW episode of the past couple of seasons.

As there are only a couple of episodes left with the Ponds, I have my fingers crossed that things improve.

Review: The Jakarta Plot

Despite the fact that the Joe Bob Briggs site hasn’t posted a new review for well over a year, I’m still finishing up the books I have. There should be three more after this one, I believe, but at this point I think I may have lost track of which books JB sent me and those I’ve picked up at cons.

While I’m at it I want to apologize again for posting so seldom but I have listed the reasons before. Hope you will forgive me and drop by every so often to see if I have actually blogged.

**************************************************************************
The Jakarta plot – R. Karl Largent; published by Leisure Books
ISBN: 0843945680

When you read these books you have to wonder how many ex-CIA agents are running around. Also, why does it seem the Agency always has to bring them back in to perform actions the current crop can’t seem to accomplish? I’m just asking.

Largent’s book is quite good, even though his hero, former agent Gideon Stone does seem to question himself a bit more than necessary. Stone is likable and I’m assuming that Largent will be bringing him back, if he hasn’t already (as the book was published back in 2006). One of the weaker elements is that some of the secondary characters, and there are dozens, never seem to really have any back-story, or any that we learn. We feel sympathy for them when they are injured or killed, but that’s because of how it affects Stone and not because we genuinely care about them. An odd thing is that this is truer of members of Stone’s team than of individuals on the opposing side. For instance, we know more about a native crewmember on a barge, used in a later mission, than we do about several servicemen who accompany Stone on his first rescue attempt.

When a group of Communist terrorists capture and hold captive U.N. delegates of an international meeting on the island of Java, including the U.S. Vice-President, the CIA is asked to attempt a rescue, while not admitting it publicly. Led by the popular Bojoni Sawak, the Bandung rebels demand that the current leader of their country step down and recognize the Bandung as the legitimate government, otherwise, the hostages will be executed one by one. With Stone already in the area, working to recover some documents lost when a civilian airliner is blown up, it’s an easy move to have him head up the assignment. Since he is an expert diver and former black op, you know that the ultimate rescue will involve at least some of those skills. When the initial attempt goes badly wrong, leading to the death of two of the group and the VP still hostage, the stakes rise. Stone has to get his team into the terrorist base, perform his mission and get everybody out alive. Complicating matters is the threat by China that any overt American intervention would be considered a provocative action and might lead to that country becoming involved.

As is typical of this type of book, Largent brings in a lot of technical information on the equipment Stone and his team uses. Interesting to a point, but it does make this reader skim over paragraphs of this stuff in order to get to the main action. If you are more into this Tom Clancy sort of thing and especially if you are interested in deep-sea vehicles and helicopters you might want to tack a half-star onto this. Overall I give this a solid -

Three stars

Do they really need a reason? Marvel Now & the 'new' New 52

As if keeping the continuity in mainstream comics wasn't difficult enough, given the number of 'events' that occur on a semi-annual basis in the Big Two, both have decided that a total reboot of their "universes" are necessary.  To be honest, we all know it comes down to orders from Disney & Time/Warner that sales need a boost even when the licensed film franchises are raking in millions for each company.  The monthly titles are just not generating enough to hold up their end, so something needs to be done to get the suckers...er, fans/readers interested again.

Last year DC's "FLASHPOINT" event led into the New 52, where all the company's books were cancelled and fifty-two titles were put in their place.  A third of them seemed almost half-hearted jokes to appeal to a small segment of fans, while the rest were basically Batman/Superman/Justice League tie-ins that had a built in audience that was likely to continue or even grow.  Well, it seems not so much.  So, of course, we get all the books getting a new first issue (or #0) or something like that, with some books spinning off from those and others ending.  I've given up caring on all but a few titles and may let this be a great time to drop all my DC buys.  I have "Court of Owls" and whatever the Teen Titan/Legion Lost cross-over was called to thank for helping me cut just about everything from my pull-list. As much as I was enjoying the two LoS-H books and Synder's BATMAN, I didn't appreciate feeling like my arm was being twisted to pick up related titles I didn't care for to begin with.

I know next to nothing about the current Marvel universe, having dropped all those books about six issues into the 'Heroic Age' era/event.  I had hoped that it really was going to be a positive push after the heavy stuff at Marvel from CIVIL WAR onward.  Sadly, it was pretty much more of the same, with most titles seeming to be little more than hand-wringing over what had happened the previous couple of years and waiting for the next event to get things going.  Wasn't the Sentry supposed to come back or something like that?

Apparently somebody, mostly likely not even directly involved in actually creating comics, decided that another short-term sales boost was necessary and since a reboot had gotten press and sales for DC, why not try it at the "House of Limited Ideas".  All I know is what places like Bleeding Cool, and a few other sites have had leaked to them and nothing I've read makes me care a whole lot.

Right now I'm down to Veritgo's AMERICAN VAMPIRE (with assorted tie-ins) and the occasional Marvel Zombie mini-series when it comes to titles from what were once my favorite publishers.  Dark Horse, IDW and Image (believe it or not) are the companies that are getting the majority of my comics cash nowadays.  From what I am reading and hearing I don't see that changing any time soon.

San Diego Comic Con 2012 - The Way I Saw It!

I’m a week late and everyone else in the world has already posted, but I thought I would throw in my own comments about my experience. This year, as some of you already know, I was only able to get a one-day pass for the event and that was for the Sunday. Most of the big events and stars had come and gone, but it didn’t stop the place from being packed. I seem to recall previous Sundays as being relatively light, but this year the aisles seemed to be filled.

I decided to take the train this year, rather than the hassle of driving and searching for parking. Remind me next year not to be that dumb! The trip south was just fine, with plenty of room and a nice view of the coast. Lots of surfers and paddle-boarders, along with some dolphins and I believe a shark fin sighting but I’m going to chalk it up to another single dolphin and my imagination. However, there had been some actual sightings of Great Whites in the area the past week, so you never know. Got a coffee and snack from the club car and couldn’t have been more relaxed. I’ll tell you about the very, different trip home later.

The train got in on time and I was at the Convention Center by 10:30, with hardly any line at all for badge pick-up. As bad as it is to actually order one online, the staff at the Center couldn’t have been nicer and more professional when you are there. This has been my experience the last few times I’ve attended the convention and don’t think the staff there gets enough credit for moving things along. This year the con gave out those giant bags that some companies were giving out previous years. Not sure about the previous days, but mine was promoting THE HOBBIT. I have to admit that the freebies table continues to be a disappointment for anyone looking for memorable stuff. I recall in the ‘90s the thing seemed to constantly being stocked with actual comics (full-size and ashcans) and trips back every few hours could earn you new material each time. Now you’re lucky to get some one-sheets for movies that will probably never see theatrical release, postcards and flyers for local stores and smaller retailers & publishers promoting their booths and events.

My only ‘must’ was to try and pick up a limited-edition Admiral Motti mini-bust from Gentle Giant for Kristina. You never know with those things, but I was in luck and hope she likes it when she finally comes to pick it up. It took me longer to find the booth, even though I had the number, than it did to actually get the item. I don’t know what it was like earlier but on Sunday there were only a few people in line ahead of me and the sales staff quickly got the bust and rang up the sale. I took it over to the Cons ‘coat check room’ and was able to wander the aisles with only the con bag over my shoulder.

There were only a few folks I wanted to see and actually did. I try to make it a must to stop off to see Randy Reynaldo, the creator/writer & artist for ROB HANES. If you are a fan of the old style comic strips like Terry & The Pirates, Secret Agent Corrigan, etc. then you should seek out Randy’s work. His site is http://www.wcgcomics.com/, where you can see samples of the Rob Hanes books and order copies of just about all the issues. I first met Randy at one of the San Diego cons in the late ‘90s and instantly became a fan of the character and series. Most of the issues are self-contained stories with Rob and his fellow agents of “Justice International” (notice there is no League in there nor super-heroes) solving crimes and stopping various felons. He is really a terrific guy, deserving of greater sales and more recognition. Independent publishers could do a lot worse than to put Randy, as either writer or artist, on one of their titles.

The other person I sought out was Marc Hempel, whose work on solo projects and with oft-times partner Mark Wheatley, I’ve been a fan of for years. Their two series MARS and BLOOD OF THE INNOCENT were two great titles from First Comics and WaRP respectively back in the mid-80s. They have worked together since and Hempel worked with Neil Gaiman on “The Kindly Ones” arc for the SANDMAN series at DC. Marc has really been nice to me on Facebook, acknowledging and responding to my questions and posts. Just wanted to drop by his table to thank him and he could not have been nicer.

Between those visits, wandering the aisles and picking up a few other things it was time for lunch. As usual I decided to head up to Dick’s Last Resort in the Gaslamp District. Dick’s is one of the more popular places for Con attendees and you can’t blame them. The waitresses and some waiters in cos-play, a nice selection of beer (on tap and bottles) and decent food, as well as its location make it all but perfect if you have an hour or so. The place is always crowded and noisy, but that is part of the attraction as well. If you have never been there keep in mind that wait staff is supposed to be slightly rude and pushy, so don’t take it personally. I know folks who hate the place, but they are not the kind of folks you want to hang with anyway.

Didn’t do much besides check out the larger displays and take some photos the last couple of hours I was there. Marvel had what is becoming an annual standard, namely a display of various Iron Man suits, including some from the up-coming third film. Good luck getting close to that most times of the day. DC is giving away fewer books, unless you want to stand in a very, long line to get a handful of logo buttons. I do like that they have placed Artist Alley down at the end of the exhibition hall and put the video game companies in the back. At least you can get through to that area and skip the always blocked aisles where the gamers are. AMC had a nice display this year featuring Michonne and her zombie duo. If you wanted (and were again willing to stand in line) you could have a collar placed on your neck and pose as the second zombie. As always it seemed a third of the costumers and many of the model & toy companies were promoting various Star Wars related products.

I finally decided a little after 4:00pm that I had done and seen just about everything, plus (also a regular thing) my left ankle seemed to have gone out on me and I was limping. I took one of the shuttle buses (Bless the convention for those!) and ended up gimping a couple of blocks to the train station. There I made the bad mistake of sitting in the station, and not going out to the platform until almost 5:30, figuring the train wasn’t due until 5:50. It turns out there was a waiting line for the 6:10 already around the building. It was interesting standing in line with a woman dressed as Jeannie, various manga/anime characters I didn’t know and at least one Doctor. Long story short I actually had to stand on my bad ankle from San Diego to Lake Forest (more than the ninety minutes it took in the morning), jamming myself and my two large bags into a corner with two folded wheelchairs. By the time I got home I could barely limp up the steps and the next morning I was using the bureau and walls to get to the bathroom.

Needless to say, when SDCC sends the e-mail in a month or so for pre-registration I’m going to try once again to get that four-day pass for 2013. The convention is just so amazing and despite the aggravation it is a lot of fun and I’d hate to miss it. Hey, at sixty-one I don’t know how many more cons I have in me!

DC Comics adding titles and a new gay character