Wolverine vs. The Incredibles

I just heard that Disney bought Marvel for four billion dollars and change.

I can see what Disney’s motivations might be. Marvel has demonstrated that its characters are capable of driving popular and profitable films. Take Iron Man, for instance, or the X-Men, or Spider-Man. And take the Fantastic Four and the Hulk– please. Seriously, though, some have compared Disney to a cultural Microsoft. Embracing and extending the public domain into films such as Aladdin, the Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Pocahontas, Beauty and the Beast, et cetera. So, from that admittedly disfavorable point of view, Marvel is simply a larder of fodder for the Disney machine. Of course, if you’re going to go down that route, you might as well claim that Marvel comics will be ruined forever, adulterated by pixie dust and wholesome girl-friendly family entertainment.

And many people are claiming that. But I don’t think that’s what will really happen.

Look at DC’s alliance with Warner Brothers. That did well, resulting in the live-action Batman movies and Superman Returns, and they’ve also got the classic Batman: The Animated Series, the Teen Titans, and Justice League Unlimited.

Aside from the movies I mentioned earlier, Marvel’s film and TV offerings haven’t been all that great. I could mention the 1990’s X-Men animated series, but I’m sure I remember that being much more cool than it really was. So perhaps Disney’s deep pockets will lead to some decent animated Marvel series. Let’s also hope that Marvel’s new benefactor gets the Avengers done right.

There could also be some other benefits.

I was at Disneyland just, er… yesterday. It seemed to me that Tomorrowland could use a bit of love. It’s great that they finally revitalized the submarine ride, but a lot of the attractions there are starting to look a bit dated (and not in the fun, retro, Populuxe way.)

An obvious idea might be to turn the carousel building into a Hall of Super Heroes. At the very least, they could replace Honey, I Shrunk The Audience with a new Marvel-themed 3D movie. That theater’s vibrating floor would be an excellent enhancement to a movie featuring the Sentinels… or Galactus.

Oh, and Stan Lee should get a statue.

August 31, 2009 | Tags: , | 3 Comments »

Five Novels I’d Read Again

This, I assure you, isn’t a meme— it’s an ordinary, harmless list. Never mind that I swiped the idea from someone whose name now escapes me. At any rate, if you couldn’t have already guessed, I’m going to list five novels that I’d read again. These aren’t my five top favorites, and they aren’t necessarily those I think I ought to read again. Instead, if a tale is like a trail, these are hikes I wouldn’t mind taking again.

5. The Hyperion Cantos, Dan Simmons
4. The Diamond Age Or A Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer, Neal Stephenson
3. Diaspora, Greg Egan
2. The Silmarillon, JRR Tolkien
1. Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams

August 28, 2009 | Tags: | No Comments »

On Low-Flow Toilets

Dear Low-Flow Toilet,

I know why you’re here. I understand that conserving water is important. I know you use a third of the water that a standard toilet uses. Now here’s our problem. If I have to flush you three times before you’re safe to use again, then haven’t your supposedly water-saving features actually cost me an extra flush?

Why can’t you be more like the industrial toilet at work? I press a button and ba-VOOM! All evidence is gone in an instant. Truly, the flush of the gods. Capricious, jealous gods who punish lowly mortals who dare gaze into the vortex of the beyond with a squall of cootie-water, but gods nonetheless.

As far as I can tell, the only difference between the two of you is that you have a tank full of water, and it has a tank full of machinery. Some sort of steampunk contraption that harnesses vacuum energy and converts it into hydraulic momentum, no doubt.

In conclusion, dear Low-Flow Toilet, consider this your final verbal reprimand. Should you continue your poor performance, punitive action will be taken. With prejudice.

Sincerely,

The Electronic Replicant.

August 24, 2009 | Tags: , | 4 Comments »

Braindump

GI Joe: I went expecting nothing more than a two-hour-long episode of a cartoon show and as a result was satisified. Or I was until James and Rex became Destro and Cobra Commander. Destro’s head looked hokey and fake, and Cobra Commander’s mask could have been better designed. Their Duke made up for it, though.

District 9: Very, very good. It’s well written in that you might actually find that you care about what happens to the characters. I’d like to see more movies like this, but of course Hollywood will take that to mean, “More movies about aliens filmed in a pseudo-documentary style.” Oh, Hollywood.

A “vacation” where you stay in town and still have to go to work isn’t much of a vacation, no matter how nice the hotel is. Even if the bit about the beach being “steps from your door” turns out to be true. Even if the definition of “beach” isn’t even stretched… much.

It does, however, get you to think about what’s missing from your life and what isn’t. Even if you don’t come up with any answers.

August 21, 2009 | Tags: , | No Comments »

Old What’s-His-Name

Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve been struck by an earworm of such ferocity that it’s tormented me for every waking moment for the past week. It makes me miss the days of being tormented by Science Fiction Picture Show. It’s the theme from My Name Is Bruce:

Guan-Di’s in your brain
Guan-Di’s making you insane
Guan-Di, Guan-Di, Guan-Di!

August 10, 2009 | Tags: | No Comments »

The Binary Meme

There are 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who don’t.
—Tee Shirt

Rules:

  1. You can ONLY answer Yes or No.
  2. You are NOT ALLOWED to explain ANYTHING unless someone messages or comments you and asks—and believe me, the temptation to explain some of these will be overwhelming nothing is exactly as it seems.

The “Exam”:

  1. Kissed any one of your Facebook/Myspace/Twitter friends? NO
  2. Been arrested? NO
  3. Kissed someone you didn’t like? NO
  4. Slept in until 5 PM? NO
  5. Fallen asleep at work/school? YES
  6. Held a snake? YES
  7. Ran a red light? YES
  8. Been suspended from school? NO
  9. Experienced love at first sight? NO
  10. Totaled your car in an accident? NO
  11. Been fired from a job? NO
  12. Fired somebody? NO
  13. Sang karaoke? YES
  14. Pointed a gun at someone? NO
  15. Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? YES
  16. Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? NO
  17. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? NO
  18. Kissed in the rain? NO
  19. Had a close brush with death (your own)? NO
  20. Seen someone die? NO
  21. Played spin-the-bottle? NO
  22. Sang in the shower? YES
  23. Smoked a cigar? YES
  24. Sat on a rooftop? YES
  25. Smuggled something into another country? NO
  26. Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes? NO
  27. Broken a bone? NO
  28. Skipped school? YES
  29. Eaten a bug? NO
  30. Sleepwalked? NO
  31. Walked a moonlit beach? YES
  32. Rode a motorcycle? YES
  33. Dumped someone? YES
  34. Forgotten your anniversary? YES
  35. Lied to avoid a ticket? NO
  36. Ridden on a helicopter? NO
  37. Shaved your head? NO
  38. Blacked out from drinking? YES
  39. Played a prank on someone? YES
  40. Hit a home run? NO
  41. Felt like killing someone? YES
  42. Cross-dressed? NO
  43. Been falling-down drunk? YES
  44. Made your girlfriend/boyfriend cry? YES
  45. Eaten snake? NO
  46. Marched/Protested? YES
  47. Had Mexican jumping beans for pets? NO
  48. Puked on amusement ride? YES
  49. Seriously & intentionally boycotted something? YES
  50. Been in a band? NO
  51. Knitted? NO
  52. Been on TV? YES
  53. Shot a gun? NO
  54. Skinny-dipped? NO
  55. Gave someone stitches? NO
  56. Eaten a whole habeñero pepper? NO
  57. Ridden a surfboard? NO
  58. Drank straight from a liquor bottle? YES
  59. Had surgery? NO
  60. Streaked? NO
  61. Taken by ambulance to hospital? NO
  62. Passed out when not drinking? YES
  63. Peed on a bush? NO
  64. Donated Blood? NO
  65. Grabbed an electric fence? NO
  66. Eaten alligator meat? YES
  67. Eaten cheesecake? YES
  68. Eaten your kids/siblings Halloween candy? YES
  69. Peed your pants in public? YES
  70. Snuck into a movie without paying? NO
  71. Written graffiti? NO
  72. Still love someone you shouldn’t? NO
  73. Think about the future? YES
  74. Been in handcuffs? NO
  75. Believe in love? YES
  76. Sleep on a certain side of the bed? YES

• A tip of the hat to Erik at Gambrinous with Griffonage for supplying this meme.

August 8, 2009 | Tags: | 1 Comment »

Now Reading: August 6

Now Reading: Virtual Organisms: The Startling World of Artificial Life by Mark Ward

Just Finished:Quasar, Quasar Burning Bright by Isaac Asimov

I’ve read many of Asimov’s books in the past (the Robot stories, the Bailey/Olivaw stories, and the Foundation series) and found them fairly good, so I was curious as to how his nonfiction would read. Someone once told me they couldn’t stand Asimov as he was “unbelievably dry,” and I can certainly see this side of him emerge in these scientific essays. However, it must be noted that they were written in another time, perhaps a time in which it was expected that scientific essays should be written in a particular tone and be liberally sprinkled with polysyllabic Latinate words for greater verisimilitude. Certainly, were such essays to be written today (and by someone else), they would be written in a hip, conversational tone, with lots of pop culture references and fart jokes, and sadly, there’d likely be a careful sidestepping of any remotely religious issues.

It was a pleasant enough read, but not what I’d consider revolutionary.

August 7, 2009 | Tags: | No Comments »

Twenty-Six Different Books

Just when you thought you’d seen the last of the meme, I had to go and drag one out of the timeless depths of the Internet. This is the ABC Book Meme:

For this meme, you list a favorite book that starts with each letter of the alphabet. If you don’t have a book for a letter (such as Z or X) than you can substitute a favorite book that simply has that letter in the title (ex. The Lost City of Z or Hot Six by Janet Evanovich). However, you can only do this a maximum of 3 times. (Z, X, and Q. But not Z, X, Q, and V.) Books can be of any genre from fiction to non-fiction to poetry to textbooks.

I created my list the easy way, by sorting my LibraryThing catalog alphabetically and then by checking my ratings. Of course, many times there were letters of the alphabet with only one book, and sometimes that was not even a good one. A few times there was not even that.

  1. Artificial Life: A Report from the Frontier Where Computers Meet Biology by Steven Levy
  2. Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream by Barbara Ehrenreich
  3. Corum: The Coming Of Chaos by Michael Moorcock
  4. Diaspora by Greg Egan
  5. Earth by David Brin
  6. Feast of Souls by C.S. Friedman
  7. Gone Tomorrow: The Hidden Life of Garbage by Heather Rogers
  8. Hackers by Steven Levy
  9. In The Blink Of An Eye: How Vision Sparked The Big Bang Of Evolution by Andrew Parker
  10. I, Jedi by Michael Stackpole
  11. Kobiyashi Maru by Julia Ecklar.
  12. Long, Dark Tea-time of the Soul by Douglas Adams
  13. Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
  14. Neuromancer by William Gibson
  15. On a Pale Horse by Piers Anthony
  16. Pattern Recognition by William Gibson
  17. Quasar, Quasar Burning Bright by Isaac Asimov
  18. Ring of Charon by Roger McBride Allen
  19. The Silmarillon by J.R.R. Tolkien
  20. That’s Mr. Faggot to You : Further Trials from My Queer Life by Michael Thomas Ford
  21. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud
  22. Virtual Light by William Gibson
  23. Words Without Pictures by Steve Niles
  24. A Spell For Chameleon (Xanth #1) by Piers Anthony
  25. You and Your Aquarium by Dick Mills
  26. Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny

Oh, and maybe tomorrow, I’ll write a real post.

August 2, 2009 | Tags: , | 1 Comment »

Link-o-Rama for Saturday, August 1st

Perhaps tomorrow, I’ll write a real post. Until then, please enjoy this hand-picked collection of randomly stumbled links of mild interest.


20 Technothriller Tropes We Hope Never To See Again
It’s like the Evil Overlord list, but for thrillers.
Stories We’ve Seen Too Often
And I wonder why I can’t come up with any good ideas of my own. I can think of too many bad ones!
Neoclassical Roleplaying Games
A provocative comparison of the iterations of D&D (and others) to artistic movements. If true, then we’ve got some interesting stuff ahead of us.
Brand New Antique Humanoids
A warehouse of forgotten Atomic Age robots has been discovered in Japan.
Efficient LEGO Storage
Most useful, as I have recently been diagnosed with acute LEGOmania.
Things I Won’t Work With
In summary, don’t work with anything that contains too much nitrogen, and/or anything that smells like Hell’s Dumpster.
FORA.tv – MythBuster Adam Savage’s Colossal Failures
If you don’t fail, you don’t learn. And sometimes, all you can do is apologize.
August 1, 2009 | Tags: , | No Comments »