Are You Looking For Something To Do This Weekend?

If I might make a suggestion, I think you should go see John Carter.

Why, yes, that does mean that I liked it. Quite a bit, actually.

In fact, I thought it was a pretty darn fun movie. That seems to be a trend from the reviews and comments I've been seeing online as well. I suppose it could be selective reading. I mean, Flick Filosopher could not stand it, but while I can see where she is coming from and respect her point of view (unlike some of the insert-many-very-not-nice-words-here who decided to start a troll-fest in the comments section of her review), I do not agree with her overall takeaway. My experience with the film was quite positive, and it seems to me like the majority of the people who saw it enjoyed themselves.

Here are a few of the positive reviews I've come across:

io9: John Carter Will Dazzle You With the Best (and Worst) of Retro Futurism

Pink Raygun: John Carter Didn't Suck

Tor: Cynicism Aside, John Carter is a Charmer

Don't get me wrong, as a fan of the books, I had a few misgivings with some of the liberties they took, mostly because I thought they were either unnecessary or just weird choices. But if I'm being honest, I completely understand why either Disney or Andrew Stanton felt those changes needed to be made. In either case, the end result was, as I said, a very fun movie.

It's an adventure. It's a man who thinks he's lost everything struggling to accept an unexpected offer of new purpose. It's got aliens of many different shapes and sizes, ships that fly on light, some preposterous (yet fun) assumptions about how gravity affects a person from one planet to the next, and a woman who can hold her own with a sword and still do science better than the dudes. It's a real, honest-to-goodness, popcorn munching, laugh-out-loud, enjoy yourself movie. Completely worth the price of admission (though if you can find a 2D showing, I'd go for that unless you just really dig the whole experience of 3D).

Unless the negative hype you are hearing comes specifically from a person you know and who knows what you do or do not enjoy in a film, I advise you to make up your own mind. I think all of the negative press and poor marketing (and make no mistake, this film was marketed poorly when I look at the trailers and compare them to the actual movie) has set people up to expect it to fail miserably and therefore leads people to assume it is bad.

It's not. It turns out it is really kind of wonderful instead.

So, that's my two cents. If you're looking for a fun activity this weekend, good for pretty much everyone in the family, I vote John Carter.

Which One Were You Watching?

This past weekend the sixth season finale of (new) Doctor Who aired in the U.K. and America. Don't worry, no spoilers if you haven't seen it yet. I wouldn't want River coming after me!

All season long it has been extremely interesting watching the reactions in the fandom as each episode aired. It often felt to me like the people talking about it had all actually been watching very different shows--at least two, maybe three (at times, even more than that) different versions. To see what I am talking about, check out these three reviews (all spoilerific) of the season finale:

Maryann Johanson at Flick Filosopher

Charlie Jane Anders at io9

Teresa Jusino at Tor

It honestly feels to me like each of those people was watching a totally different show. One loved it, one was almost disgusted by it, and another...wasn't sure. All of these people have, as long as I have been reading them, been self-professed fans of the series and have thoroughly demonstrated their love of the show in their previous writings.

I say it has been interesting, but it has also been a little heartbreaking, because the people who didn't like it really didn't like it, and their disappointment was never just angry kvetching. It felt more like they felt betrayed to be let down so heavily by their once mighty love.

While I can agree that there have been some low points, and some confusing decisions in the storytelling, for the most part I have enjoyed the past season of Doctor Who. I largely think this is because I am just smitten with Matt Smith as the Doctor, and I completely adore Amy and Rory as companions. I have commented before that this season really lives or dies on how much you like River Song. I still think that's true, but there are other factors involved as well.

Quite a few people who liked River Song the first few times she showed up were completely done with her by halfway through this season, and are thoroughly unhappy with the direction in which her character was taken in the main story arc. They feel like she's been weakened or cheapened somehow. Personally, I disagree with this perception. Again, without spoilers, I can accept her story because circumstances revealed throughout the season a) make it reasonable that this is the period of her adventures with the Doctor where she would pop up with more regularity, and b) while we aren't viewing her story backwards, exactly, we are viewing it entirely out of chronological order. Any weakness she has at this point, to me, serves to show how much growth she did go through to become that badass we first meet during Ten's reign. (There's a neat little write-up of the chronology of all of her adventures that we have seen to date here.)

Aside from River Song, however, I think a lot of people never cottoned on to Amy, or to Amy and Rory together. Not because they didn't like Amy Pond (though I can't pretend there weren't those who didn't) but because they expected so much of her, of her relationship with the Doctor, and her relationship with Rory with the Doctor in their lives. Amy was always meant to be a flawed character, I think, and I loved her for it. Those flaws made her lack seem reasonable to me, or at least part of the story. Others didn't see it that way and just felt she was badly written.

Speaking of the writing, well, there's that too. I can't deny that Moffat and the other writers did seem to be a bit all over the place this season, but I never really minded. I'm always a bit more charitable about that stuff when I am enjoying the ride. But for those who weren't? Well, the writing was just unforgivable to them. I get it, I really do, but it makes me sad. I feel like a lot of long time fans (back to the old school days) are starting to give up on the new series. They no longer see anything they recognize in the Doctor and his actions. I don't for one second believe it was Moffat's intention to deviate so far from the series' roots, but it seems like he has. I can't judge this one for myself, since I have only seen the new series, but even I can see how much the Doctor has changed since then. It's not just the regeneration either, his entire outlook seems to have undergone a paradigm shift or three of late. Maybe all of this is just a consequence of being such a long-running show. The longer you go, the more things you try, and the more likely it is that some (or most) of them won't stick to the wall.

It's just...I don't even know. I still love this show, but it seems like the fandom is splintering, and that makes me incredibly sad. Doctor Who fandom has, quite frankly, been one of the coolest ones I've ever experienced. I hate that the fandom no longer seems like a cohesive whole. Don't get me wrong, I haven't seen any cat fights between those who have lost the love and those who haven't--a few spirited debates, sure, but all entirely civil.

I do wonder what else Moffat has in store for us, however, and if he actually has any chance of keeping this show from falling apart. I feel like when he took over he had just realized how universal the love for the Doctor was becoming--that it was no longer just a small campy scifi show for the citizens of the U.K. I think that awareness made him try to cater to a more universal audience, to give the show wider appeal, and in consciously attempting for that, he lost something of what made it so wonderful.

Sigh. Here endeth the rant.

We get a Christmas episode, and then nothing until the fall of 2012, apparently. I find myself hoping that the Christmas episode hearkens back to the show's roots and stays away from all of the big glorious complicated timey-wimey stuff that Moffat has been throwing at us. He does an amazing job with small, simple, contained stories, as he has proved on more than one occasion. Maybe Christmas will restore faith across the fandom.

Then we only have to hope that the wait until next fall doesn't build our expectations up higher than Mr. Moffat can deliver, eh?

New TV Scorecard: Outcasts

Okay, okay, I know, technically Outcasts isn't new. It's already completed its first season (and I think entire series) run across the pond. But it just premiered on BBC America this past week, so it's new to me. Avoiding spoilers has been no easy feat, either. At least now I am finally free to read the episode reviews io9 posted back when the show aired in the U.K. You can find the first one (which covers the first two episodes, so maybe wait until next week) here.

So. Outcasts. My initial take is that there seems to be a lot going on here, without many answers provided to the viewers. I am not complaining about this, just making a note. The basic premise of the show is that humanity has for some unspecified reason had to flee Earth. A group of pioneers has settled on a new planet called Carpathia. They've been there ten years and everything is not, of course, copacetic. On the ground we've got two factions gearing up for what is likely to be a very messy conflict. There is also a possible third group outside of the colony, unbeknownst to most of the colonists. I am guessing the folks in this third group are the titular outcasts, since it doesn't seem as if the primary Carpathians are Earth's rejects. In the air, so to speak, we have the incoming transport from Earth. As the story unfolds we quickly learn that it has been five years since the arrival of the last transport, as well as that the current arrival is likely to be the last. A little deft exposition also reveals that many of the transports that have arrived have had problems actually landing due to the ships being ill-equipped to deal with reentry into the planet's atmosphere.

I would be tempted to call this first episode purely set up, except it answers far too few questions to qualify as such. Instead I think it could better be termed an introduction into the world of Outcasts, an intriguing one at that. My only real quibble is the wasted use of Jamie Bamber. Don't get me wrong, he really got to flex his acting muscles here, but come on. Why make him go crazy and die in the very first episode? That's not cool, man. The many questions raised about his character's motivations (and sanity) were rendered moot before we could even begin to explore them. Why, then, raise them in the first place?

Bottom line: Right now I don't really have an attachment to any of the characters. I don't really know where my sympathies do (or should) rest. The episode spent a lot of time spread out between all of the different characters (two of whom died before it was over), and not enough with any one to really let us get to know them. But. That being said, I am very curious to see where it goes from here. So far this is my kind of science fiction. I will definitely keep watching. Bonus, with the knowledge that Jamie Bamber isn't a regular cast member, I can probably just enjoy the very short ride without being too disappointed when it is over.

Here are a few questions I will be hoping are answered before that end does come:

1. Who, exactly, are the outcasts in this scenario? Why are they outcast, exactly?
2. What happened on Earth to make humanity leave in the first place, and why  does the evacuation seem to have gone so poorly?
3. What is Cass' secret?
4. Why does Protection and Security think that they can keep anyone protected and secure without guns when no one appears to be enforcing the weapons ban?
5. Why does it seem like anyone who wants guns can get them, especially in light of said weapons ban?
6. Why the heck didn't the Carpathians let Earth know about the shoddy transport construction before they lost contact with those they left behind?

I may need to figure out how to turn on the close-captioning on my television before the next episode though. I had a hard time following some of the dialects, even with my regular exposure to the Brits. Still, all in all, a solid first entry if you're the sort who is willing to give a story the chance to unfold.

First Impression Rating: 8.75/10 (It loses a quarter of a point for killing Jamie Bamber off so soon. Alpha-Girl over at Pink Raygun knows what I mean.)

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Another Friday has come along, folks. Don't forget to check out Gronk today!

Your Mileage May Vary

Okay, first things first. This post contains spoilers about the most recent Doctor Who episode (to air in America, anyway, the Brits are a week ahead of us), "The Almost People," and anything that has come before. It also contains links to even more spoilerific posts about said episode. Consider yourself warned.

Read on only if you desire to be spoiled...

So, "your mileage may vary." I have seen that phrase used in regards to this episode on two different sites already. What it means, basically, is that both commenters acknowledge that anyone watching this episode is likely to have a very different take on it than anyone else. Boy howdy is that correct. Just reading the discussion on Flick Filosopher's site, which has been going on for a week since the episode aired last weekend in the UK (grr, silly BBC America, now we are behind), is enough to show that there are several different interpretations as to what actually happened..

Here are links to that discussion if you are interested or curious, they are well worth the read, especially if the episode left you as confused as it left me.

Flick Filosopher's review of the episode.

Flick Filosopher's post (and ensuing discussion) pondering the ramifications of the episode.

io9's review of the episode.

I hesitate to call this episode "polarizing," because there seem to be way, way more than two reactions to it. I don't think this is necessarily a hate it or love it episode. There are so many shades of grey in this thing that I am amazed it is only credited with having one writer. Of course, I am sure the input of many many people went into the writing of this episode (as with every episode), but there are so many ideas in there, it just seems insane that one person could have largely been responsible for the whole story.

The big conundrum seems to be this: When the Doctor disintegrates Flesh!Amy at the end of the episode, does he, in fact, negate everything the episode (and the one before it, as this was the second of a two-parter) has been trying to get across about the sacredness of the sentience of the Flesh?

I will be honest with you. When I actually watched the episode, I was so caught up in the shock of the reveal (i.e., that Amy was actually not Amy but Flesh!Amy and that actual Amy was being held captive somewhere about to go into labor) that the greater implications of the Doctor's actions with regards to the Flesh didn't even occur to me. But reading the reviews and then the discussions (on Flick Filosopher, at least, I try to steer clear of the io9 message boards for my sanity's sake) I do think it is a fair question.

The Doctor spent much of the first episode trying to get the humans at the factory to accept that their Gangers, once released from their control, were in fact just as much real people as their template humans. He made more than one point about the fact that the Flesh was sentient even in goo form. He went through the whole charade of switching with his own Ganger to illustrate to Amy that the Flesh versions of people were pretty much identical to their templates in every way. He stabilized the surviving Gangers from the factory so that they could live the lives they felt they deserved as much as the humans. He even encouraged Miranda to speak to the corporation about recognizing the sentience of the Flesh so that the rest of the world could accept this truths learned in the factory. Then he turns around and zaps Flesh!Amy out of existence, just like that.

There has been much back and forth as to whether Flesh!Amy was sentient at all, just how sentient the goo version of the Flesh really was, and whether or not the suffering pile of discarded Flesh!Jens were actually a truth or a clever ruse set up by Flesh!JenPrime to get Rory on her side, yada, yada, yada.

For what it is worth, here is my take on the whole thing.

1. I do think the way in which the factory workers utilized the Flesh and then discarded or "decommissioned" their Flesh Gangers after use was incredibly inhumane if the Flesh was at all sentient and able to feel the pain of the process, which seems to be indicated.
2. It seems the way the Doctor disintegrated the Flesh with his sonic screwdriver was a slightly more humane and less painful process for the Flesh. I do think he was reluctant to do it, however, and only did so when he felt it was the only option available.
3. It seems unclear what happened to the disintegrated Flesh. Did it return to goo state Flesh or was it just gone forever?
4. It also seemed to be indicated that Flesh!Amy was later Flesh technology, so I agree with some of the arguments that it is likely the Flesh that made Flesh!Amy didn't feel the pain of being disintegrated like the earlier models because maybe Miranda's recount of the incident at the factory got the people behind the tech to iron out that wrinkle. I feel like this is likely because the Doctor seemed so surprised that the Flesh was sentient, and at the level of sentience, but he was clearly familiar with later versions of the technology. If the sentience was an issue in later models, he would likely have been aware of it.
5. I suspect that the Doctor knew that, even if sentience was a possibility for Amy's Ganger once she was separated from Amy's control, he didn't have any means at his disposal of allowing the Ganger to remain intact once removed from Amy's control. To do that to the Gangers at the factory required a massive solar storm at the source of the controlling harnesses, which the Doctor doesn't have access to in the case of Flesh!Amy. So severing the link, restoring Amy's consciousness to her actual human body, was going to require decommissioning of the Ganger. So perhaps if the Flesh had to be decommissioned, doing so by sonic screwdriver really was the most humane way to do so.
6. It is clear that the Doctor felt it extremely imperative that Amy's consciousness be returned to her human body as soon as possible (probably because she was in labor, but I suspect there were also a few other reasons).

So...I don't think that what the Doctor did in offing Flesh!Amy was quite the same as killing the factory Gangers would have been. I think he regretted it, especially in light of what he learned while at the factory. I also think that he truly believed he had no choice. Why that was the case, we are only left to guess, but I do think it was.

I also don't think that the ending of the episode necessarily undoes the groundwork leading up to it in regards to the independent Gangers. I think perhaps the point of that groundwork was to illustrate that those who are willing to use the Flesh to do their dirty work, knowing its possibility for sentience (and it is hard to argue that future generations could be unaware of this possibility) are the least moral kind of beings there are. I also think they serve to explain to us what the heck was going on with Amy and her quantum pregnancy. Then of course, this also seems to establish, and indeed emphasize, the differences between Flesh!Amy and the Gangers. The Gangers, once zapped, are completely separate entities from their template humans, able to exist, think, act, and feel independently from (though certainly similarly to) those humans. Flesh!Amy is not able to do any of these things. She is an avatar. She is, for all intents and purposes, actually Amy, who is unaware that she is not present with the Doctor and Rory in body as well as in mind and spirit. Without intervention, her Flesh body could not exist separately from her human body once her consciousness had been restored to her human body. Given the problems we saw faced by the independent Gangers, would not that kind of intervention be more cruel than simply allowing the Flesh to return to its natural state?

That is my take on it, at least. Maybe I am rationalizing because I, like many others, want to believe the Doctor acted with the best of intentions. I do not pretend he is incapable of cruel or mercenary acts, even murder. But I do believe that he does not perpetrate such acts unless they are the last resort, and almost always for the greater good. Or what he perceives as the greater good at any rate. It is, after all, entirely subjective.

But hey, your actual mileage may vary.

Next week though, dude! River Song's origin explained?!?! Rory out for blood! (Good lord, I hope they don't kill him again.) I do know one thing though. It is gonna be a hell of a wait after next weekend until the back half of the season starts back up.

Let's Talk About The Doctor

He's been on my mind quite a bit lately, you know.

I've recently been working my way through my pile of DVDs to be watched and finally made it to the third season of The Sarah Jane Adventures this weekend. Oh man, I miss Elisabeth Sladen already. I will be very curious to see how the series is wrapped up after her loss. It has already been announced that the series will not continue without her (which would be ridiculous in any case). But I do wonder if they will just leave her final filmed episode as the final episode period or if they will get the rest of the cast together to tell one last story explaining the loss of Sarah Jane. I almost don't know which I would prefer. One thing's for certain, with the crazy time delay between that series airing in the UK and being available over here across the pond on DVD, I won't find out for quite some time. I am not aware of any US stations that broadcast the series at all, but if you are, by all means let me know!

Speaking of the delay, as I mentioned, I watched season three over the weekend. Season three of The Sarah Jane Adventures is a little special because it features David Tennant in his final filmed scenes as the Doctor.

It was...bizarre.

A season and a half in to Matt Smith's reign as the Doctor and seeing David Tennant in the role just felt extremely strange to me. I mean, I absolutely adored Tennant as the Doctor. He was my first, you know, and I will never forget him for bringing this strange and amazing character into my life. But this has only gone on to confirm what I have previously speculated. Matt Smith is very much my Doctor.

I wonder what it will be like to go back and watch older episodes of Doctor Who now, to see the other actors once more in that place? I am sure I will still enjoy the show just as much as I always have. I certainly hope so. I suspect what made Tennant's appearance on The Sarah Jane Adventures so startling and odd to me is that this was new ground to me. The episodes originally aired in the UK before Matt Smith appeared on the scene, but seeing them now after he has had the role for so long...watching a man who is for all intents and purposes dead running around and having new adventures. It just felt, somehow, wrong.

But I can tell you one thing. Saturday night when I fired up my telly to watch the newest episode of the eleventh Doctor's adventures? That, my friends, felt entirely right.

Now if only we Yanks didn't have to wait two whole weeks until the next episode!

There have been a few other pretty spiffy Doctor Who-related items floating around the interwebs of late as well that I thought I would point you towards in case you, like me, are impatient for your next fix.

Reddit user AndorianBlues made this absolutely spectacular infograph detailing the timelines of the relationship between the Doctor and River Song. It is mostly speculation and definitely subject to some argument, but it is still pretty amazing to behold.

io9 also recently shared this lovely timeline from NathanTheNerd showing all of the adventures to date of the new series Doctor and which companions were with him for what. It, too, is pretty darn spiffy.

I Can't Be The Only One Who Thinks It Should Have Opened On A Thursday

Does anyone else remember the movie Adventures in Babysitting? It was one of my favorites when I was a kid. It is the classic 80's teen movie, though I think it appealed much more to people who were my age when it came out than to people who were actual teenagers at the time. But whatever.

In that film, there is a character who is obsessed with the comic book character of Thor. The movie even features a crazy young Vincent D'Onofrio as a possible Thor. (More power to this movie for making the character obsessed with a superhero a little girl, by the way. Way ahead of their time in acknowledging the geekiness of girls. I approve.)

I have a small confession to make. I have seen that movie oodles of times (I do, in fact, own it on DVD). While as a kid the only comic book characters I was really familiar with were Archie and Superman, I have since college been getting more into comic books. Even if I haven't been reading the standard Marvel titles, I have been getting to know all of the different characters contained within that universe. Yet somehow, by some strange fate, it never occurred to me until yesterday that the Thor from Adventures in Babysitting was actually a real line of comics, or to connect the comics talked about frequently in that movie to the big summer action flick that is opening today. Huh.

I think it is just one of those things. When I was a kid I assumed they had just made up their own line of comic books, as television shows and movies were wont to do. I was quite familiar with Norse mythology (I was that kind of kid--books of myths and fairy tales were my comic books--when I wasn't reading Archie and Jughead of course. I loved Jughead.). I just assumed, if I gave it any thought at all, that someone said "Hey, we need a superhero for this kid to be obsessed with. How does a Norse god sound?"

So, yeah, I have gone through the whole of my life pretty much unaware that Thor has somehow had a long and varied life as a superhero in the Marvel universe until word of the movie came out. I guess I should feel a little bit ashamed about that but...it happens, right? But this leaves me woefully unprepared for the comic-book version of Thor that the movie is based on.

Did I mention I am going to see Thor today? No? Oh, yeah, hey, guess what, I get to go see a movie today! Thor! With one of my best friends who is a huge fan of Norse mythology (and has a little bit of viking blood running through her veins)! I am really excited about this! It seems like the universe is as well, because yesterday I got a couple of crash courses in the Marvel version of Thor sent my way. How nifty is that?

First, there was this article on io9: Everything You Wanted To Know About Thor (But Were Too Afraid To Ask)

It's a pretty groovy primer on the basic background of the comics v. the original mythology so you have a point of comparison for the characters that actually show up in the movie. It's also spoiler-free for the movie, yay!

Even more serendipitous, however, was the bonus item in my stack of comic books that arrived in the mail yesterday. There exists in this world a wonderful event known as Free Comic Book Day, and that day is this Saturday, tomorrow, in fact. Now, I don't have a local comic book store that I shop at (shame on me, I know, I have been considering rectifying this though), so I don't usually get to partake in the festivities. Things From Another World, the online shop from whence my comics come, however, does want to share the Free Comic Book Day love, so in the packages that get mailed out the week of the event, they do include one of the freebie titles.

What was my freebie title this year? The Mighty Thor Saga. I kid you not. Basically, it is a synopsis of the whole run of Thor comics to date. It features images from various comics and tells the tale in a lovely linear fashion. It is wonderful! Hands down the coolest Free Comic Book Day offering I have ever received. Also, the timing could not have been more perfect.

So I am off to get my viking on. Have a fantastic weekend! I certainly plan to.

Oh, and Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms and moms-to-be out there. I hope you have a lovely time on Sunday.

Oh, oh! I know I have been slacking on linking, but don't forget to check out this week's new Gronk! It is just over a year old, and still as wonderful as ever!

Ciao!

Oh, oh, oh! One more thing! Even though it took me far too long to connect the Thor comics from Adventures in Babysitting to the Thor of the upcoming movie, others were much quicker on the uptake, and now there exists this. Enjoy.

Okay, laters for reals this time, folks. See ya Monday.

The Encroaching Meh

Man, I didn't notice it happening, I really didn't, but at some point during last night's episode of Chuck I found myself overwhelmed by a sense of meh. I have watched and enjoyed this show from the beginning. Despite some questionable plot lines and oft continued rehashing of supposedly resolved stories, I have never found the show anything less than entertaining.

But last night, as Sarah was on the phone with Ellie failing to get excited about her wedding plans, I realized that I had barely been paying attention, and really wasn't that worried that I might have missed something. Sigh.

Possibly the frequently ever-more negative reviews of the show over at Pink Raygun are getting to me, though I like to think that isn't it. Though maybe it is just that they are pointing out things that I am also seeing. While I may not disagree with those aspects of the show with the same vehemence as the reviewer, they are starting to wear on me nonetheless. Heck, I don't think io9 is even covering the show any more, other than in their spoilers section. I can't remember a review of the show at all this season, which seems to indicate none of their writers are watching it anymore (or at least none feel like reviewing it).

I think, for me, it boils down to two things:

Everything that was shiny and new and original about the show has given way to cliches about geeks and spies. It has stopped being a tongue-in-cheek send up the spy genre with loving fun-poking at the nerd culture. Now it is just caricatures and buffoonery, and while that can be amusing from time to time, the writers do not have the kind of handle on it to make those the show's primary features.

Holy crap there is way, way, way, way too much focus on Chuck and Sarah's relationship. Look, I was routing for those kids, I am happy they got together. It is nice that they are gonna get married. But good lord, the way the writers have them acting, struggling over every single step forward they take in their relationship, I am amazed that they are together at all. I frankly find it impossible to believe that they are, in fact, a well-adjusted happy couple. If my husband and I, back when we were dating, had found these many issues coming up every single day, especially once we had started planning our wedding, well, I am pretty sure said wedding would have been called off and we would have gone our separate ways. I know, I know, drama is key to any story, but the relationship drama is the easy out. It is boring and grating. Chuck and Sarah's relationship should be the one solid foundation in their lives, with the drama centered around the actual spy missions. That drama shouldn't be about their relationship getting in the way of missions either (with maybe a once a season, extremely well done exception, twice tops). The drama should be focusing on Chuck's efforts to continue to grow as a spy, reconciling that with his desire not to kill anyone, and how he manages to still get the job done and appease his conscience at the same time. That is the show I want to be watching.

I think it is frustrating to me because now the show is a few seasons in, and instead of looking for new and interesting stories to tell with these characters, the writers have just given up and are coasting on the fumes of the earlier seasons. Sure, they make it seem that the characters are all growing as people--with marriages, and babies, and roommates moving out to strike out on their own for once (don't even get me started at how ridiculous it was that Chuck and Morgan were so reluctant at this stage in their lives to no longer be doing the roommate thing--it was completely unbelievable and I wanted to throw things at my television--it isn't as if anything was changing except that they would be sleeping under different roofs, and as grown men, that's really a good thing). But those changes are superficial. None of the characters have actually grown at all it seems. In fact, they all actually seem to be regressing. What the heezy, people?

So...I'm kind of at a loss with this show right now. I will probably keep watching the season, in hopes that it gets better. But, and I hate to say this, I don't think I'll be all that sad if it doesn't get renewed again. Chuck may have run its course. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe the next episode will totally surprise me with awesomeness. I can only hope. If not, well, likely I've got a new candidate to weed out come next season.

Reading Recommendation: Star Wars Imperial Commando: 501st

A thought struck him.  "So what happens if you're a nerf with a high midi-chlorian count?"

.... "Well, latent Force-user or not, I bet someone ate it."

                                 --Karen Traviss, Star Wars Imperial Commando:  501st

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Warning:  You can safely assume that the following post contains spoilers for Star Wars Imperial Commando:  501st by Karen Traviss, as well as for the books in the Republic Commando series by the same author.

This past Friday night my husband and I had a moment of nerdvana.  We, along with our daughter, had gone to dinner at our local Genghis Grill and I was attempting to feed her a piece of carrot from her bowl.  Normally she goes straight for her veggies, but it appears she prefers her carrots in whole baby carrot form rather than the sliced bits GG had to offer.  Also, she was totally chowing down on her noodles and wasn't feeling the carrot love at that precise moment.  She let us know this fact by pushing away the carrot bit and making a gesture very reminiscent of the Jedi mind-trick move.  Immediately my husband and I both looked at each other and said, "This is not the carrot you are looking for."  It was priceless, and extremely amusing to the both of us, and a very good indicator that we chose well when we married each other.  This poor kid has no chance of escaping our house as any type of non-geek.

Last night I continued on the Star Wars love by finishing up the first and only book in Karen Traviss' Imperial Commando series, 501st.  Imperial Commando was set to be the follow-up series to Republic Commando, which concluded, fittingly, with the fall of the Republic and the slaughter of the Jedi Order in Order 66.  Originally Traviss had been under contract to write at least one more book in the second series, which was supposed to have come out in July of this past year.  The series was canceled by Lucas' powerhouse, however, which is unfortunate, because 501st ends with a beginning rather than an ending.  There is little to no closure here, and I am a little saddened to know that fans of the series are unlikely to get any in the future.  I am sure I can probably by now hunt down some fan fiction continuing the series, but without Traviss' unique voice I am not sure I want to read it.

As disturbed as I was left by the abrupt ending of this story, which has so much more potential, I would still heartily recommend 501st to anyone who has read the Republic Commando series.  While this was clearly meant to be the first in a larger arc of stories, there is still much worth to be found within its pages.  Again, as a fan of the Jedi, I found myself constantly challenged by the opinions of Skirata and his clan toward force-users, as well as some of the events in the book itself.

This story takes place on two fronts:  Skirata's hideaway in a remote section of Mandalore, and Imperial City (formerly Coruscant) where Darman and Niner are stuck as part of the Emperor's elite commando unit since they did not manage to escape with the others on the night of Order 66.  Skirata wants to bring Darman and Niner home to Mandalore, but it is not as easy as all that.  Things have, of course, changed under the new regime, and Skirata and his allies find themselves on the Empire's most-wanted list for desertion and conspiracy against the Empire.  Darman and Niner meanwhile have been tasked with hunting down the remaining Jedi.  They are among the few who know that Palpatine is really a Sith, though they see little distinction between the two factions of force-users.

Because of his loss during the execution of Order 66, Darman has become fiercely determined to wipe out any force-users that might attempt to rebuild the Jedi Order.  His reasons have nothing to do with serving Palpatine, however, and everything to do with protecting his son from ever being taken by the order that, in his mind, took away everything he ever loved, all the while using up his brothers like so much cannon fodder in a war they were too stupid to see had been engineered solely to wipe them out of existence.  There is a lot of intensity going on here.

Back on Mandalore Skirata is still doing everything in his power to find a way to stop the rapid aging of the clones.  He even goes so far as to give safe haven to a Kaminoan Jedi who, it turns out, it at least a thousand years old and who is perfectly willing to allow Skirata and Uthan to study her DNA to find a way to extend the lives of the clones.  Kina Ha is a character I would dearly have loved to see more of had this series continued.  She was once an outcast from Kamino because of her aberrations, but now she is largely forgotten, by the Jedi as well as by her own people.  She exudes the true manner of the Jedi, however, and bears no malice toward her people for shunning her, even though her force-sensitivity was the result of their own experimentation.  She bears no ill will toward Skirata for using her to further his own ends, in fact, she willingly offers herself up for study if they believe it will help the clones.  She is calm and polite and observant, and goodness gracious if I didn't want to know more of what was going through her head half the time!

Throughout the story some things go according to plan while others go off the rail.  There are a few loose ends from the Republic Commando series that get tied up, certainly, but mostly we see the introduction of a new set of story lines.  With the loss of Etain, we spend much more time inside Bardan Jusik's headspace, and I have to say he has officially made it onto the top of my list of favorite Jedi throughout the franchise.  Considering he walked away from the Order, that says a lot about how this series has made me look at the Jedi, I think.  I mean, I will still always come down on the side of the Jedi over the Sith, of course, and of force-sensitives over mundanes, most likely.  Come on, the Force is pretty freaking awesome!  But it is very interesting to follow Traviss as she explores the implications of the different ways to actually use one's force-sensitivity, as well as what that says about a person or a culture.  In 501st the readers get to meet Djinn Altis, a Jedi who walked away from the Order long ago and set up his own temple, following a more old-fashioned ideology, allowing his students to love and have families.  I would truly have loved to have gotten to explore more of his group and their dynamic, especially given the moral dilemmas this presented to many of our main characters.

One last thing I'll mention about this book that I really enjoyed was that having so much of it set on Mandalore offered up a truly fascinating look into the Mandalorian culture.  Throughout the Republic Commando series we were given glimpses, but we get a much deeper exploration here.  Some of the speculation as to why the Imperial Commando series was canceled was that the Mandalorian culture Traviss presented varies wildly from that the television series Star Wars Clone Wars has been developing.  Traviss denies this is the reason, stating there were contractual issues.  It does seem that a story line she had in mind about Boba Fett would have had to have been changed up however, due to the live action Star Wars series Lucas has in development.  io9 did a brief write-up on that here that you can check out.  I stress the word speculation, however.  I do have to say, I much, much prefer Traviss' versions of the Mandalorians to what Clone Wars has given us, truth be told.  I think this is because it tends to fall much more in line with the culture of Mandalorians presented in Star Wars The Knights of the Old Republic and its sequel game.  But also because the Mandalorians on the cartoon are a bit too touchy-feely for my liking.  This makes a little bit of sense, I suppose, since it is a show aimed at kids, but still.  The whole point of Mandalorians is that they were hardcore.

Despite its unsatisfying ending--which was unsatisfying only because it wasn't meant to be an ending--I really would recommend this book to anyone who is curious about Mandalorian culture or the lives of the clones outside of what we have seen in the movies or on the television show.  Traviss really knows how to get into the world of Star Wars and bring it to life with characters that feel so much more real to me than almost anyone I've seen on screen to date.  This is the nitty-gritty, the reality of a war brought on by scheming politicians, and the backlash on the innocent and not-so-innocent bystanders.

(Incidentally, if you'd like an actual coherent explanation of why this series is so awesome, here is the article on io9 that got me interested in the series in the first place, back when Order 66 came out.)

Getting Past the Knee-Jerk Reaction

So, a few days ago I stumbled across this quick little post on io9.  It is just a little blurb announcing that the forthcoming fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series will not, in fact, be the last movie in the franchise.  Seems like Disney is gearing up to make a fifth and a sixth film as well, which it is looking to film simultaneously and then release as two films, similar to what it did with films two and three.

My instant, automatic, knee-jerk reaction to this news was "Oh God, why?"  But then something funny happened.  I started actually thinking about it and realized that, you know what, I am actually okay with this.  I love all three of the Pirates movies that we've had so far.  I am truly really looking forward to the fourth one.  I mean, come on, they're big epic set pieces with pretty boats and fantastic costumes.  Johnny Depp says and does many bizarre and often humorous things.  Orlando Bloom is pretty when he channels Errol Flynn.  I actually like Kiera Knightly, though I am not sure why.  Jack Davenport is all kinds of crazy awesome.  Plus, it's historical fiction, which I love.  Also, pirates.

Clearly, I am not alone in this, and there are many like-minded individuals out there, or Disney wouldn't be bothering.  These movies aren't exactly cheap to make.  I am not going to complain.  As long as these movies continue to entertain me, I will continue to go see them.  People who have not been entertained by previous films in the franchise, and expect to not be entertained by future films in the franchise should not go see them.  When people like that start to outnumber people like me, it seems pretty self-explanatory that Disney will stop making these movies. 

But that's not really the point of this post.  The internet is already undergoing a mild explosion at the news (heck, just check the comments thread on the post I linked to above for all of the negativity spewing forth from people who had the same knee-jerk reaction I initially had).  I will leave that be.  There's nothing I can do or say to stop it, so it seems silly to comment further on it.

Why do we, the public, get so darn offended when one movie turns into two, or three, or more?

Seriously, give it a moment to kick around in your brain.  These days, whenever a sequel is made, unless it is an adaptation of, say, a preexisting book series where we know we've signed on for several films to tell the story, there is almost always a huge public cry of indignation and outrage.  Sure, it is likely that a continuation of a story may be unnecessary, but unnecessary doesn't always equal bad.  Just because one story in a particular world was told satisfactorily, that doesn't mean that there aren't more stories from that world to be told.

These are the main objections I tend to see to the continuation of a movie franchise:

1)  The studio is just trying to milk as much money out of us as possible!

Well, duh.  I am completely over this complaint.  I am sick of it.  Done.  The movie industry is just that, an industry.  It is completely, utterly, and totally about making money.  They are trying to sell a product that they think we, the public, not only want, but will give them money to see.  Every once in a while, a big budget film is made that turns out to be art, but that really isn't the goal.  When it happens, it is an unexpected, if delightful, side-effect, but side-effect it is.  If you want to see art when you go to the movies, move to a town where you have access to an arthouse cinema.  Otherwise, understand that what you are getting when you go to see a movie is a product, designed to be sold to the masses.

If enough people enjoyed the original film, there's a good possibility there is a market for more in that franchise.  Sometimes, a story for a completely new and spectacular thing gets pitched, and the studio loves it but isn't sure that we'll bite.  But they look at it and think that it might work as a story set in an existing franchise, and so it gets made as a sequel instead of its own story.  Yeah, okay, this is a little insulting.  But apparently the studios are scared to make movies these days if they aren't 100% sure they will sell.  Nine times out of ten, that means they are going with the known quantity over the unknown.  It sucks, but it is the system.  You know it is the system.  If you keep supporting that system by going to see the stuff that they give you, then your soapbox for this particular issue is pretty much nonexistent.  There are two ways to fight the system:  Don't go see the big-budgeted mass-market films you think are crap, and do everything you can to support the unique, independent, truly different films that do manage to get made.  Griping on the internet is gonna do diddly squat though.

2)  This just shows that there are no original ideas left in Hollywood anymore!

Okay, look. I am not going to deny the veracity of that statement.  But if my choices are a new story set in an existing franchise or a remake of a movie that I still clearly remember seeing in theaters at some point in my lifetime (dude, I'm only 30, that's not a huge catalog), well, I am definitely going to take the former.  I can get behind extending one movie into a series of movies.  The remakes still give me the heebie jeebies unless they are done well and a significant period of time has passed between the original and the new one.  Very very few remakes fall into either one of those categories, and so, I don't go see them unless I have a compelling reason to do otherwise.

Also, as I noted above, there are plenty of "new" story ideas being pitched all of the time, it's just that right now new=scary to movie studio execs, so those movies are not getting made.  This is sad, but unlikely to change in the current economy.  Also, honestly, there really are very few actual new ideas left on this earth.  We as a species have been telling each other stories for thousands of years now.  At this point, we're just getting variations on a theme.  What we're asking for when we want "new" movies is a really cool variation that is unlike those that have come before. 

If I would be forced to answer my own question, I would say that the reason people get so upset about a movie becoming a franchise is that a) the follow-up movies aren't any good, and b) the follow-up movies somehow diminish their enjoyment of the first.

Granted, often, the first part of this claim is right.  Just because Hollywood is embracing the idea of series over one-shots doesn't mean they have actually figured out how to pull it off.  If you didn't like the sequel to a beloved movie, I can see being irritated that you wasted your money on seeing it in theaters.  But...that's not the kind of grudge a person really needs to hold on to for more than a day or so, is it?  After that, your trust has been lost.  There's no point in getting angry about future movies in the franchise.  Just don't go see them.  Then the only thing about those you have to worry about is the marketing campaign, which, honestly, should be pretty easy to ignore assuming you are capable of turning off your television/radio, changing the channel, not surfing a website you know will be taking about the movie, deciding not to look at a billboard or other print ad, etc.

The second part of that answer, though, that's just bull.  I am sorry, but if you liked the first movie, you liked it.  The second, third, whatever movies in that franchise are separate entities.  You can completely ignore the fact that they exist and just watch the first one over and over at your leisure.  If seeing the second one points out huge plot holes you didn't know existed in the first one, well, that sucks, but those plot holes were still there when you watched the movie and liked it the first time around.  Chances are you would have noticed them eventually.  I know I've addressed this specific topic before, about a sequel's actual inability to lessen your enjoyment of whatever it is a sequel to, so I won't get into it too much here.  It just baffles and saddens me, and I think people who use this as an excuse are just looking for a reason to be angry.  And honestly, if that's the case, that's a whole different set of problems that need to be addressed.  Let's not blame the movies, okay?

What strikes me as so odd about this regular reaction to a movie turning into a series of movies is that it is pretty much the exact opposite of the way things work in the book world.  There are plenty of stand-alone one-shot books out there, certainly.  But there are tons of series, and no one seems to bat an eye if one book turns into a trilogy or if a planned trilogy turns into an eight book run.  People often, in fact, seem to beg for them to do so. 

Maybe this is just me, and maybe this is why I have less of a problem with the movie conundrum than others, but I love book series.  Most of the books I read are series.  Sure, a one-shot or even a trilogy is easier to get into further on down the line, and with an extended series, you run the risk of never finding out how the story ends.  But with the really good series, each book is a stand-alone tale.  There should be an overarching story arc, sure (one that lasts for just a few books or for the entire series), and the stories should all be about the same person/group of people or at least set in the same universe.  This way they can tie together and fit under the umbrella of a series.  I think what I enjoy most about these is that when I pick up a new book in a series I am already invested in the world I am diving into.  There is less for me to figure out, and so I can enjoy the details more and jump right into the action of the story.  I don't have to wonder why this character is doing X while that one is doing Y, because that is just how I would expect those people to behave.  It is lovely.  Upon reflection, I am sure this is why I have gotten so much more into television series than movies over the last few years. I don't think it is a bad thing for movies to take advantage of this formula. 

I guess maybe the better question here would be:  Why do people get so emotionally involved in movies that they let themselves get so worked up about more of the same being made?  I mean, really, if a movie comes out that you don't want to see, don't get mad that it got made instead of, possibly, something that you did want to see.  Just don't go see it.  Instead, go watch the movie you did enjoy again.  Or pick up a book, or watch a television show.  Heck, go for a walk outside and enjoy reality for a bit.  There's plenty of originality there, I guarantee you.

Me, well, now that I've realized I have this knee-jerk reaction, I know that I need to work on getting past it.  If enough of us can do that, then I think the world will be a much better place.  Full of loads of second-rate movie sequels and series, maybe, but also full of happier people.  I'll take the first any day if it means I can have the second.

Can Spoilers Go Too Far?

Don't forget to watch the all new episode of Stargate Universe, tonight on Syfy at 8 pm CST!!!!!

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Also, check out the newest episode of Riese:  Kingdom Falling right here!

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Warning:  This post is about spoilers.  It might therefore be reasonable to assume that it contains spoilers.  

 (Mostly for Stargate Universe, but also a little bit for the BBC show Luther.)

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Spoilers, you say?

So, remember last week in my review of the SGU episode The Greater Good I said it pretty much looked like Ginn and Perry had been killed by Creepy Lucian Alliance guy? Then, the day after the episode aired, a bunch of people from the show (most notably David Blue and Joseph Mallozzi) went on the record telling us not to jump to conclusions, and we didn't know what we thought we know?

Sure, a couple of the trailers for tonight's episode have made it look pretty convincing that those characters are now ex-characters, but that could all just be down to editing.  Then, yesterday, I am perusing the weekly What to Watch article on io9, and imagine my surprise to find that this is the synopsis for tonight's episode:

Simeon makes his escape from Destiny after killing Ginn/Amanda Perry, sending Nicholas Rush on a vengeful mission. But Young and Greer attempt to retrieve Simeon unharmed.

Well.  That seems pretty darn definitive.  

Then, yesterday afternoon, I was catching up on Sunday's episode of Luther, which is a really fantastic miniseries that has been airing on BBC America for the last few weeks.  I was fast forwarding through the last commercial break of the episode and stopped when I got to what looked like the return of the show.

Except, that's not what it was. 

It was a preview for next week's episode, which for some reason BBCA decided to air before the episode was actually over.  In this preview, we see that Luther's wife Zoe has been murdered by his crooked cop pal and framed for the crime, and now Luther is on the run trying to prove his innocence.  My brain exploded a little bit.  When last I saw Zoe, before the break, she was alive and well.  After the preview, the episode wrapped up, giving us the big climactic scene wherein the crooked cop kills Zoe.  But the scene had lost all of the tension that the show had worked so carefully to create, because I had just seen an ad for next week and knew that Zoe didn't make it.  It really killed the end of the episode for me.  At least next week's ending won't be spoiled in the same way, since it's the final part of the series and there won't be any previews to show.  But still.

All of this got me thinking about spoilers and how they have wormed their way into the mainstream in the last few years.  Do television viewers truly not want any more mystery in their shows?  Is it just that the people who make the preview trailers aren't paying attention and put in something they think will grab viewers without realizing it gives away the ending of the episode?  

I really don't understand the thought process that went behind the programming decision to air the preview for the next week's episode before the episode had actually ended.  Granted, this series had already aired in its entirety across the pond in Britain earlier in the year.  Maybe somebody just figured that it was technically a rerun and spoilers were off the table? 

Then again, BBCA isn't the only network doing that, now that I think about it.  Psych on USA usually had their ad for next week before the last bit of the show as well.  Although usually the bit after the last break for that show is a wrap-up and all of the big reveals in the episode have happened already.

As far as preview trailers go, I know I've seen quite a few that have raised the ire of actors or writers from a given show.  They feel like they worked hard to make a really cool episode that would keep you guessing, and then someone with some editing tools somewhere went and cut together a teaser that doesn't tease but in fact totally gives it all away!  (The return of Carson Beckett in season four of Stargate Atlantis, anyone?)  What, then, is the point of bothering to watch the show?

The really good teasers do just that.  They hint at what the twist might be, and the best make you think it is something completely different from what it actually is, so that when you watch, you really get the full effect of the reveal.

I mean, I am all for spoilers for the most part.  I tend to see them as harmless fun that gets me excited for the new show.  I mean, heck, I read a daily article on io9 called Morning Spoilers after all.  But I very rarely read the whole thing.  I tend to skim, and only check out the entries for shows or movies that I like or am anticipating.  But if it's just an episode synopsis of, say, the sixth episode of the season that hasn't started airing yet, or an actual reveal about a big plot point, I try to skip it.  The spoilers I am usually looking for are casting scoops, or a general idea of where a show is headed for a season (as in, the vague overarching plot).

So, I guess when I say I like spoilers, I mean I like hints.  The problem is that the hints tend to get roped in with the really big ruiners and it can be hard to separate them without stumbling across some of the latter.  Sure, it's my own fault for reading the spoilers page in the first place, or the comments on a discussion thread or whatnot, but I do like to have a general idea of what could happen.  It's knowing that something is probably coming, but not knowing how it's gonna end up happening that makes it worth watching.

I have this problem with books a lot too, actually, because I read so many series.  I remember one of the first fantasy series I really dug into in college, I had read the first two books (out of six) and went to the store to pick up the rest of the series before I went out of town on a trip.  I read the back jacket of the fourth or fifth book, and it totally gave away the ending of the book I was reading at the time.  I was so appalled!  What made it worse was that it was a plot development I had seen coming and was really hoping would end up not happening.  So I was grumpy reading the whole rest of that book.  Now, I don't even look at the back cover (or inside flap) of books in a series unless it is the first book and I am trying to decide whether to pick up the series or not.  I realized the other day when putting away a book I had read multiple times that I had never read the story blurb on it.

But sometimes, even if you're someone who goes out of your way to avoid spoilers, you can't escape them.  Like when it's right there in the commercial before the show is over (and the networks are pushing you to watch things live), or when the usually spoiler free preview for next week instead gives away the big reveal at the end of the episode.  Heck, I love the author Jim Butcher, and as much as I enjoy The Dresden Files series, I completely adore his Codex Alera series so much more.  But once I read the first couple of books, and looked at the titles for the next few books, I realized that the actual titles of the books themselves are kind of a spoiler.  It's crazy!

I have really struggled with this in my reviews of the Star Wars Republic Commando series that I have been doing on this blog.  I've tried to discuss the primary plot of each book without giving away any of the really cool stuff that actually happens in the story.  For example, there's one plot line throughout the series which I totally left out of my review, as much as I wanted to expand upon it, because I just felt it would not be doing right by the readers to tell them that it happened before they read the book. 

I'm just left wondering, can spoilers actually go too far?  It's right there in the name, isn't it?  Spoilers.  If you're looking at something labeled "spoilers" aren't you asking to find more than you're probably looking for?  I do know that it's not fair to inflict spoilers on someone who isn't suspecting them.

I know, I know, life isn't fair.  Sigh.  But don't you kind of wish it was?

Anyway, I don't really have any answers on this topic, it has just been on my mind, and I wondered if anyone else hangs out in the middle of spoiler-land like I do.  I'll just be floating around, trying to figure out the best way to cope without letting all of my fun get ruined, I suppose.

No word count update today.  I did a lot of world-building yesterday but no actual writing, sadly.  On the other hand, I now know exactly what the paper is made of in the various countries in my story.  I also know what kind of fabric they use and what they eat, and how their language evolved.  Whee!  In that sense, my word count from yesterday is huge, because I added to my notes like crazy, but nothing in the story sad to stay.  Still, I am right about on track, and I think at this point it's very important to get my ducks all in a row in the notes so that I don't have to stop to look things up when I really get into the wrapping-up part of things.

Ta ta for now, folks.  Join me tomorrow, when we'll find out if Ginn and Perry really are dead or not.  (And you'll get to see me express my rage or amazement about how it was pulled off if they really are still alive.)

My Daughter Is Now a Monkey

Last night I got to experience another moment of simultaneous joy and terror at watching my daughter figure out how to do something new.  I noticed this past weekend that, while trying to grab something out of her reach at the back of the couch, she swung one of her feet up toward the cushion like she was about to climb on up and get it herself.  While I was pretty impressed at the time, and thought to myself, "Hey, I bet she'll be climbing soon!"  I was completely not prepared for "soon" to equal "four days later."  Sigh.

She didn't make it up onto the couch, but last night she did manage to climb up onto the coffee table.  Repeatedly.  And then stand up and try walking around on it.  The first few times she got up there, I kept an eye on her, and when it looked like she wanted down, I put her back on the floor, only to watch her turn around climb back up.  Eventually, she was sitting on it, ooching around backward and pushed herself off of it, and I was not quick enough to catch her before she made it to the ground.  Thankfully the coffee table is not high up and she fell in an area clear of anything to hit her head on.  She was completely unhurt in all but her pride.  There was some crying, and I held her and rocked her for a bit.  And when I put her down again, she climbed right back up on the table.  Sigh.

After I put her to bed I had my husband help me move the coffee table out of the room.

I know that this will only be a temporary safety measure, and hopefully we won't have to have a big honking coffee table in our bedroom, attacking our unwary shins at night, for too long.  But hopefully, for the time being, this will keep her out of any extra trouble.  Being a parent is so awesome.  No, really.

Wally naps in the aftermath of playtime.

So before the whole coffee table fiasco last night, I finally got to watch Toy Story 3.  I never got a chance to see it when it was in theaters.  I think one of the only things I really truly miss about life pre-baby is going to movies.  I used to do that a lot.  But, I am confident that in a few more years I can resume that habit--and with a buddy in tow!  I loved the movie, of course.  It really was an excellent movie, and I think it would have stood well on its own had the other two movies not come before it.  I can admit I cried my eyes out at the end.  So sad, and then, so happy!  The character Bonnie actually made me think of Baby Girl quite a bit, and what I think/hope she will be like in a few more years.  It got me really excited for those times to come.  (See, parenting really is cool.)  Also, it made me feel bad for every toy I have ever given away or stuffed in an attic.  I may or may not have given each of Baby Girl's toys a hug and a kiss as I put them away last night...

I am making decent progress in my novel-writing adventure.  I currently stand at 9,744 words (out of 50,000).  The NaNoWriMo rules state that the goal is a 50,000 word novel, which they say breaks down to 175 pages.  So when setting my goals, I divided 175/30 to get that I would need to write six pages a day, and I did manage to make six pages on Monday.  And then I did some math, and realized that however I have MS Word set up on my computer, six pages is a lot more (about twice as much, actually) than what I need to be doing to make the word count goal.  So, it's day four and I am already a little bit ahead, and just starting to find my momentum, which is awesome.  I did struggle a bit on Monday to get those six pages in though, so I have decided to adjust my goal to four pages a day.  It's still more than the minimum I need to do, but it's not so much that I feel overwhelmed trying to hit my goal.  My only real problem right now is that NaNoWriMo's website is being glitchy and I have been having trouble keeping my word count up to date on their site.  And really, that's no biggie, as long as they get the validation tool fixed before the end of the month!

Remember the other day when I mentioned that I was worried my story might not end up being long enough?  Well, I no longer really have that worry--as I thought, introducing other people into the action has started eating up pages--but I stumbled across this article in io9 that just made me smile.  It seemed timely (well, yeah, I mean, he was talking about NaNoWriMo), and relevant to my particular worries.  It even helped me lay my fears just a bit more to rest. 

It actually turns out to be a very good thing that I am already a bit ahead, as I am going to be giving up a big chunk of my writing time today to head out to Dallas for a book signing by Brandon Sanderson!  My completely wonderful awesome excellent mother-in-law is even going to watch Baby Girl so we can meet up with a friend and get to relax with a nice kid-free evening.  I am looking forward to it very much.  I will try to have a write-up for you tomorrow about the event.

In the mean time, kids and kiddos, have a groovy day.