Here is where I catch up on yet another show. Caprica was certainly much better than the Doctor Who Easter special. I did feel like the creators of Caprica were repositioning Battlestar Galactica as a brand for the young adult market, which left a cynical taste in my mouth.
Caprica was a creation myth about the building of the first Cylon. It was set only 58 years before the events of BSG and I thought that the first Cylon war was longer than 18 years. Am I going crazy?
I felt that the club scenes were arresting in their concept and level of public nudity and violence, but it also tried very hard. But then they were the creation of teenagers and they do indeed try overly hard to be cool.
The acting was good, the casting and sets were good, and the twist at the end made the whole show. It's worth watching, especially for BSG fans. Of course, I'm so late in posting this that you've probably all seen it already.
What truly disappointed me is that this show reveals that the "one true god" of the Cylons was based on a human religion. I think this wrecks BSG a bit for me because I thought that having robots come up with their own monotheistic religion in contrast to their polytheistic creators was just so lovely. Now it's like a favourite toy has been broken, and I feel a bit sulky about it.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Found a Bad Egg: The Doctor Who Easter Special
I finally sat down to watch the Doctor Who Easter special, and I have to say it was a disappointment. I found that I had to keep rolling it back because my attention would wander, and that never happens to me when I'm watching something.
Russell T. Davies is like a British Joss Whedon. If I find a show by either writer, I'll watch it slavishly. But you can just tell that Davies is ready to move onto something new.
Even die-hard Doctor Who fans will find little to enjoy here, and the introduction of Michelle Ryan as companion does little to spice things up. I liked her in Jekyll and Bionic Woman, but despite trying hard, there is no chemistry between her and David Tennant.
Maybe they filmed this special to prepare us for the new doctor, because now I'm actually beginning to look forward to him.
Russell T. Davies is like a British Joss Whedon. If I find a show by either writer, I'll watch it slavishly. But you can just tell that Davies is ready to move onto something new.
Even die-hard Doctor Who fans will find little to enjoy here, and the introduction of Michelle Ryan as companion does little to spice things up. I liked her in Jekyll and Bionic Woman, but despite trying hard, there is no chemistry between her and David Tennant.
Maybe they filmed this special to prepare us for the new doctor, because now I'm actually beginning to look forward to him.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Hal and Dave on the "Moon"?
Just found an interesting movie trailer from one of my SF Twitter feeds. Thank you, TorBooks! Moon stars Sam Rockwell as a lone worker on a moon base. His only companion is a HAL-esque computer. He has two weeks of his three-year stint left when he discovers a body that looks exactly like him.
The trailer has a lot of clever pop-culture and SF references. It looks well-acted, tense and psychologically complex, but any SF fan will note the strong hints of the HAL/Dave dynamic. The look is different than Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyessy, but there are some strong parallels here. I will be interested to see if this movie can position itself in relation to 2001, or if it will be a knock-off.
I make HAL/Dave jokes at work all the time, so I will probably enjoy this movie a whole lot.
To view the trailer, click here.
The trailer has a lot of clever pop-culture and SF references. It looks well-acted, tense and psychologically complex, but any SF fan will note the strong hints of the HAL/Dave dynamic. The look is different than Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyessy, but there are some strong parallels here. I will be interested to see if this movie can position itself in relation to 2001, or if it will be a knock-off.
I make HAL/Dave jokes at work all the time, so I will probably enjoy this movie a whole lot.
To view the trailer, click here.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
New Harry Potter trailer
I found this new Harry Potter trailer on Twitter today from SciFi Wire. To view, click here.
I'm getting excited about this movie. The visuals look pretty amazing.
I'm getting excited about this movie. The visuals look pretty amazing.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Spacey/Spooky: The Clips Post
So after my 10-day "holiday" aka procrastination session/twitter discovery, it's time for a clips post. I'll quickly cover reviews of the episodes I've been enjoying over the past two weeks.
Supernatural, Episode 18
Up until now I've always said that shows or movies about the writing process are usually self-indulgent and twee, but I've had to eat my words. This is how writing about writing should be done. The latest Supernatural was the best episode in the series to date. It's up there with "Blink" from Doctor Who or "Hush" from Buffy. I'm not just gushing here.
This episode broke down the fourth wall and the man writing pulp novels about the boys discovers that he is "the great prophet, Chuck" and the boys are real. Hilarity ensues as the boys discover their own slash fiction, and try to rebel against Chuck's prophecies and fail.
The act of writing becomes the true source of horror in the episode, a theme that could easily fall into cliche, but the guest star does a great job as Chuck, and I found the ending sold me on the horror of the writer cursed only to observe and not influence events.
Kings, Episodes 3-5
Of all the shows I've been reviewing this week, Supernatural and Kings are the most well-written and well-acted. Like I predicted, Kings is not doing well, and has been moved into a new time slot. It's too bad because this is the best new show of this year, regardless of genre. It's intelligent and totally relevant to the politics of the moment, without being totally obvious about it. Fans of West Wing and Battlestar Galactica would love this show.
Over the past episodes, peace for Gath has been achieved and lost and regained again, but at a dire price for David's family, a price that becomes too great and tears them apart. Members of the royal family plot against each other and King Silas struggles with his double life.
The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, Episodes 2-4
This show has really picked up steam from the first episode. The actors seem more comfortable in their characters, and that pacing issue I noted for the first episode has resolved itself. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency is on my list of recommended shows, especially as a mental palate cleanser after watching some horror or sci-fi/horror.
Dollhouse, Episodes 7-9
Dollhouse is improving with each episode. Whedon is ramping up the tension between the main characters. Since he's not depending on humor in the same way that he did for Buffy, he has to play with tension and show concept to keep viewers tuning in. Luckily, that is exactly what he is doing. It's turning into a not half-bad show. I tune in and I enjoy it, but I don't watch each episode over and over, the way I do for Supernatural or Legend of the Seeker or Doctor Who.
The Listener, Episodes 4-5
The mystery surrounding the origin of Toby Logan is only hinted at, but it's one of the more interesting parts of the show. What is so refreshing is that the main character doesn't have any of the usual neuroses about attracting lovers or the "I'm too wrapped up in my job to date" pose that a lot of characters in TV seem to have.
Episode four has a trans character, and they handle it sensitively, as far as I can tell, although they say that FTMs take "steroids" rather than T, although I'd have to do a re-watch to confirm that for sure. I'm not sure that's actually correct, but I could be wrong. They treat the character with respect and don't have the "look at the wacky, unusual person" attitude that Law & Order falls into at times.
In episode five, a woman takes Toby home, they are interrupted by an ex and then she ends up dead by the next morning. So Toby has to eliminate himself as a suspect. It's not a huge twist, but it's hard to be fresh in the well-worn police procedural format, so I give them props for plotting this episode well.
Law & Order UK
It's just so crazy to see Jamie Bamber (Apollo from BSG) as a British DCI in this BBC localization of the venerable American show. It's pretty much exactly the same show, but with crown prosecutors, instead of DAs and assistant DAs.
Supernatural, Episode 18
Up until now I've always said that shows or movies about the writing process are usually self-indulgent and twee, but I've had to eat my words. This is how writing about writing should be done. The latest Supernatural was the best episode in the series to date. It's up there with "Blink" from Doctor Who or "Hush" from Buffy. I'm not just gushing here.
This episode broke down the fourth wall and the man writing pulp novels about the boys discovers that he is "the great prophet, Chuck" and the boys are real. Hilarity ensues as the boys discover their own slash fiction, and try to rebel against Chuck's prophecies and fail.
The act of writing becomes the true source of horror in the episode, a theme that could easily fall into cliche, but the guest star does a great job as Chuck, and I found the ending sold me on the horror of the writer cursed only to observe and not influence events.
Kings, Episodes 3-5
Of all the shows I've been reviewing this week, Supernatural and Kings are the most well-written and well-acted. Like I predicted, Kings is not doing well, and has been moved into a new time slot. It's too bad because this is the best new show of this year, regardless of genre. It's intelligent and totally relevant to the politics of the moment, without being totally obvious about it. Fans of West Wing and Battlestar Galactica would love this show.
Over the past episodes, peace for Gath has been achieved and lost and regained again, but at a dire price for David's family, a price that becomes too great and tears them apart. Members of the royal family plot against each other and King Silas struggles with his double life.
The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, Episodes 2-4
This show has really picked up steam from the first episode. The actors seem more comfortable in their characters, and that pacing issue I noted for the first episode has resolved itself. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency is on my list of recommended shows, especially as a mental palate cleanser after watching some horror or sci-fi/horror.
Dollhouse, Episodes 7-9
Dollhouse is improving with each episode. Whedon is ramping up the tension between the main characters. Since he's not depending on humor in the same way that he did for Buffy, he has to play with tension and show concept to keep viewers tuning in. Luckily, that is exactly what he is doing. It's turning into a not half-bad show. I tune in and I enjoy it, but I don't watch each episode over and over, the way I do for Supernatural or Legend of the Seeker or Doctor Who.
The Listener, Episodes 4-5
The mystery surrounding the origin of Toby Logan is only hinted at, but it's one of the more interesting parts of the show. What is so refreshing is that the main character doesn't have any of the usual neuroses about attracting lovers or the "I'm too wrapped up in my job to date" pose that a lot of characters in TV seem to have.
Episode four has a trans character, and they handle it sensitively, as far as I can tell, although they say that FTMs take "steroids" rather than T, although I'd have to do a re-watch to confirm that for sure. I'm not sure that's actually correct, but I could be wrong. They treat the character with respect and don't have the "look at the wacky, unusual person" attitude that Law & Order falls into at times.
In episode five, a woman takes Toby home, they are interrupted by an ex and then she ends up dead by the next morning. So Toby has to eliminate himself as a suspect. It's not a huge twist, but it's hard to be fresh in the well-worn police procedural format, so I give them props for plotting this episode well.
Law & Order UK
It's just so crazy to see Jamie Bamber (Apollo from BSG) as a British DCI in this BBC localization of the venerable American show. It's pretty much exactly the same show, but with crown prosecutors, instead of DAs and assistant DAs.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Healthy Pumpkin Pie Hot Cereal Recipe, or, the Totally Off-Topic Post
Sorry, but I'm obsessed with pumpkin pie, and this is my new favourite breakfast.
I've perfected my Healthy Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal/Hot Cereal recipe and I was so happy about it that I had to share it with the universe somehow. Vegan, sugar-free, and non-fat, but sooo good. We'll return to TV land by the next post, I promise.
I use a mix of steel-cut oats and amaranth, but you could also use seven-grain cereal or Sunny Boy. If I have only oats, I get hungry in an hour, but if I mix grains, I can last into the mid-afternoon, if I need to.
Healthy Pumpkin Pie Hot Cereal
Makes two servings.
Ingredients:
2/3 cup cereal grains of choice (seven grain, Sunny Boy, steel-cut oats/amaranth/millet, etc.)
1/2 ripe mango (pureed or diced into small pieces)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2/3 cup almond or soy or hemp milk
1 cup or so of water (or, brewed chai tea would work a treat if you don't have the spices on hand. Not the sugary crap from the tetra pak, BTW.).
2 TB flax seeds, or to taste
10 to 20 pecans, or to taste. I also mix in other nuts if I feel like it. I like nuts!
2 TB or so of hulled hemp seeds for an extra protein kick (optional)
1/4-1/2 tsp orange zest (a little goes a long way!)
cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and fresh ginger (amounts to vary based on whether you like your pumpkin pie spicy or not)
salt to taste
Instructions:
1) Before you go to bed, cover grains with plenty of water and throw it in the fridge. It will soak overnight and then it won't take so bloody long to cook in the morning. DO NOT do this with normal quick oats or other quickly-cooked grains.
2) In the morning drain the grain and put it in a pot. Mix in all the ingredients EXCEPT for the hemp seeds. Crumble the pecans in your fingers and add them to the pot. Cook over medium-high heat until bubbling, stirring occasionally, then turn down to just above minimum heat and cover, stirring occasionally until done. Add water as needed if it gets too dry or whatever.
Divide into two bowls, sprinkle the hemp seeds on top and serve.
If you soak the grains, your breakfast will be ready by the time you drink your first cup of coffee, maybe 5 to 10 minutes (I haven't really timed it).
I've perfected my Healthy Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal/Hot Cereal recipe and I was so happy about it that I had to share it with the universe somehow. Vegan, sugar-free, and non-fat, but sooo good. We'll return to TV land by the next post, I promise.
I use a mix of steel-cut oats and amaranth, but you could also use seven-grain cereal or Sunny Boy. If I have only oats, I get hungry in an hour, but if I mix grains, I can last into the mid-afternoon, if I need to.
Healthy Pumpkin Pie Hot Cereal
Makes two servings.
Ingredients:
2/3 cup cereal grains of choice (seven grain, Sunny Boy, steel-cut oats/amaranth/millet, etc.)
1/2 ripe mango (pureed or diced into small pieces)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2/3 cup almond or soy or hemp milk
1 cup or so of water (or, brewed chai tea would work a treat if you don't have the spices on hand. Not the sugary crap from the tetra pak, BTW.).
2 TB flax seeds, or to taste
10 to 20 pecans, or to taste. I also mix in other nuts if I feel like it. I like nuts!
2 TB or so of hulled hemp seeds for an extra protein kick (optional)
1/4-1/2 tsp orange zest (a little goes a long way!)
cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and fresh ginger (amounts to vary based on whether you like your pumpkin pie spicy or not)
salt to taste
Instructions:
1) Before you go to bed, cover grains with plenty of water and throw it in the fridge. It will soak overnight and then it won't take so bloody long to cook in the morning. DO NOT do this with normal quick oats or other quickly-cooked grains.
2) In the morning drain the grain and put it in a pot. Mix in all the ingredients EXCEPT for the hemp seeds. Crumble the pecans in your fingers and add them to the pot. Cook over medium-high heat until bubbling, stirring occasionally, then turn down to just above minimum heat and cover, stirring occasionally until done. Add water as needed if it gets too dry or whatever.
Divide into two bowls, sprinkle the hemp seeds on top and serve.
If you soak the grains, your breakfast will be ready by the time you drink your first cup of coffee, maybe 5 to 10 minutes (I haven't really timed it).
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Isn't it Bromantic? Or, Finally, a LOTS Post
As you can probably tell from my blog banner, I am a Legend of the Seeker fan. Because anyone who can pout while chopping wood has my respect. Don't laugh, wood chopping is hard!
The last time I chopped kindling was in Wells, BC in the Rockies (4000m elevation and 80km from the nearest bank or grocery store). I worked in an art galley/school heated with a wood-burning stove. As the gallery dogsbody, it was my job to chop the day's wood. Of course, I was a down-south city girl with noodle arms. The only way to get the axe through the kindling was to balance the piece of wood vertically and use the momentum of the axe to get through the wood in the direction of the grain. Every time I raised the axe, the piece of wood would fall over and I'd swear. The Buckley Pub's tabby cat stalked out into the backyard and would watch me chop. Yes, the pub is named after Buckley's cough syrup. Then the pub owner, who looked like a descendent of Rasputin, came out to watch, laughing helplessly at me. Even the cat was laughing. So, dear readers, when I say that looking good while chopping wood is hard, you can fully appreciate my private joke banner.
Oh yeah, LOTS. OK we're back in TV land now. I have an affection for popcorn fantasy/sci-fi. I own all but the last season of Stargate, for example. In tone/mood and level of writing Legend of the Seeker reminds me of Stargate. LOTS is popcorn high fantasy, and Stargate was popcorn sci-fi.
By popcorn, I mean that something is reminscient of the classic adventure serials from the first half of the 20th century — lots of action, a evil guy in a funny costume who is evil just because they are essentially evil, with emphasis on fun over content. I like popcorn, for the record.
What Legend of the Seeker (LOTS) has in its favour over Stargate is that the big baddie of LOTS, Darken Rahl, (the antagonist for my fellow English majors out there) is actually kinda smarter than the hero, and the hero doesn't always win. Most of the time Rahl uses his wits, brawn and magic to outwit the Seeker. I'm really enjoying this.
Off the top of my head, there haven't been a lot of high fantasy shows out in the past few years other than Merlin (BBC), Robin Hood (BBC) and, of course, Xena. I'm counting The Tudors as creative history more than fantasy. LOTS was created by the same people as Xena, and is based on Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series. So I was pretty stoked about Legend of the Seeker, although the book is so porny I wasn't sure how they could make a TV show out of it, outside of HBO.
The first season has been up and down, but overall I quite like that the writers are creating their own universe and not strictly following the books. Up until this past week, I rated the quality of the episode on how porny it was. Hey, I'm just being honest here. Legend of the Seeker is a guilty pleasure for me. It's a show with an oddly inconsistent tone. Episode 8 had some rather kinky scenes I would never allow a child to see, but I quite enjoyed. The next episode lurches into the middle of YA-child-special-guest land, but again, I still liked it. That's actually part of LOTS's charm. You never know what you're getting when you tune in.
Episode #17 broke this trend. It was a good episode without bare chests! We were given a great fist fight, which wooed a D'Haran captain into a pretty great bromance with our Seeker. I have to say, that guest star can come back any time! Also, we had a former McLeod's Daugther's alumni as second guest star — it's always nice to see a familiar face. There were some really good character development scenes that complicated the Seeker's mission. No longer are the rebels wholly good and the D'Harans wholly evil. By the end of the episode the Seeker really is down the rabbit hole. He goes undercover in a D'Haran fort and ends up fighting both the rebels and the D'Harans and rescuing a D'Haran village.
I was quite happy about the quasi-political-lite plot twist about land mines. In the Terry Goodkind books, some of the anti-communist tone seems a bit dated. I felt that this episode's topic nicely updated the series for today's viewers without being too heavy-handed in the didactic department. I really enjoy fantasy that mixes magic and technology. The magical sonic land mines in this episode were a clever touch.
If you liked Merlin, you'll love LOTS. If you don't like popcorn genre TV, you probably won't get into it. But Craig Horner is my current workout inspiration, so I'll be tuning in each week!
The last time I chopped kindling was in Wells, BC in the Rockies (4000m elevation and 80km from the nearest bank or grocery store). I worked in an art galley/school heated with a wood-burning stove. As the gallery dogsbody, it was my job to chop the day's wood. Of course, I was a down-south city girl with noodle arms. The only way to get the axe through the kindling was to balance the piece of wood vertically and use the momentum of the axe to get through the wood in the direction of the grain. Every time I raised the axe, the piece of wood would fall over and I'd swear. The Buckley Pub's tabby cat stalked out into the backyard and would watch me chop. Yes, the pub is named after Buckley's cough syrup. Then the pub owner, who looked like a descendent of Rasputin, came out to watch, laughing helplessly at me. Even the cat was laughing. So, dear readers, when I say that looking good while chopping wood is hard, you can fully appreciate my private joke banner.
Oh yeah, LOTS. OK we're back in TV land now. I have an affection for popcorn fantasy/sci-fi. I own all but the last season of Stargate, for example. In tone/mood and level of writing Legend of the Seeker reminds me of Stargate. LOTS is popcorn high fantasy, and Stargate was popcorn sci-fi.
By popcorn, I mean that something is reminscient of the classic adventure serials from the first half of the 20th century — lots of action, a evil guy in a funny costume who is evil just because they are essentially evil, with emphasis on fun over content. I like popcorn, for the record.
What Legend of the Seeker (LOTS) has in its favour over Stargate is that the big baddie of LOTS, Darken Rahl, (the antagonist for my fellow English majors out there) is actually kinda smarter than the hero, and the hero doesn't always win. Most of the time Rahl uses his wits, brawn and magic to outwit the Seeker. I'm really enjoying this.
Off the top of my head, there haven't been a lot of high fantasy shows out in the past few years other than Merlin (BBC), Robin Hood (BBC) and, of course, Xena. I'm counting The Tudors as creative history more than fantasy. LOTS was created by the same people as Xena, and is based on Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series. So I was pretty stoked about Legend of the Seeker, although the book is so porny I wasn't sure how they could make a TV show out of it, outside of HBO.
The first season has been up and down, but overall I quite like that the writers are creating their own universe and not strictly following the books. Up until this past week, I rated the quality of the episode on how porny it was. Hey, I'm just being honest here. Legend of the Seeker is a guilty pleasure for me. It's a show with an oddly inconsistent tone. Episode 8 had some rather kinky scenes I would never allow a child to see, but I quite enjoyed. The next episode lurches into the middle of YA-child-special-guest land, but again, I still liked it. That's actually part of LOTS's charm. You never know what you're getting when you tune in.
Episode #17 broke this trend. It was a good episode without bare chests! We were given a great fist fight, which wooed a D'Haran captain into a pretty great bromance with our Seeker. I have to say, that guest star can come back any time! Also, we had a former McLeod's Daugther's alumni as second guest star — it's always nice to see a familiar face. There were some really good character development scenes that complicated the Seeker's mission. No longer are the rebels wholly good and the D'Harans wholly evil. By the end of the episode the Seeker really is down the rabbit hole. He goes undercover in a D'Haran fort and ends up fighting both the rebels and the D'Harans and rescuing a D'Haran village.
I was quite happy about the quasi-political-lite plot twist about land mines. In the Terry Goodkind books, some of the anti-communist tone seems a bit dated. I felt that this episode's topic nicely updated the series for today's viewers without being too heavy-handed in the didactic department. I really enjoy fantasy that mixes magic and technology. The magical sonic land mines in this episode were a clever touch.
If you liked Merlin, you'll love LOTS. If you don't like popcorn genre TV, you probably won't get into it. But Craig Horner is my current workout inspiration, so I'll be tuning in each week!
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