Custom dictates that I spend the first paragraph after a lengthy silence explaining what exactly has caused said silence. Well. It's been more than a little bit of a lengthy silence. In fact, I haven't babbled at anyone about anything since the end of September. Which is really where this all begins. But first of all, I wish to attribute the quotation title - the magnificent G-Man from the Half-Life series of games. This quotation specifically from Half-Life 2. Though I suspect a great number of you already figured that part out by now. So, without much further ado, time to explain where I've been the last few months. Just to warn you, it's not terribly exciting...
Anyway...
I think the most dramatic way to phrase it would be to say that I've been immersed in The Writerverse. Immersed...I like that word. Don't use it often enough. Ahem. Moving swiftly on. Okay, so a long, long time ago, in a blog post far, far away I talked about the notion of The Writerverse. I babbled quite a bit about my journey through The Writerverse, where I was going, how I was getting there. That was June 2012. An awful lot has happened since then.
One of the most important things I talked about in that blog post was the sense of...fundamentally interconnected community there is in The Writerverse. There is a great community of writers I know from my days at university, but I have also met some in the course of my current paid vocation. That being a front of house dancing monkey/jack of several obscure responsibilities at Boston Tea Party Bath. In the course of my work, I met an awful lot of interesting, bizarre, wonderful people. Oft it is said that my job is a brilliant job for a writer, all those characters. I can't help but have horrible flashbacks to Daisy Steiner in Spaced*...
(*Author's Disclaimer: I really, really love Spaced. It's awesome).
Anyway, getting on with it...
Over the many years I've slaved away at Boston Tea Party, there have been a gaggle of steadfast regulars. Some have gone to my lament, leaving me with no one to write nerdy quotations on the side of their cup for. Some have remained throughout the years and it is one of these men I speak. He is a gentleman by the name of David J. Rodger, a fellow science-fiction author, though he beats me on account of being published. I'm still pining for the fjords on that one. Anyway. One fateful day, 24th September I suspect, which is funny to me for various reasons, I'm chatting with Mr Rodger as he sips at his dark side coffee, talking about his rush of writing/re-writing short stories (for further info, check out his website, look up his page David J Rodger on Facebook. Including a link to that but not sure it'll work, but you all get the gist). In the course of discussions over his recent flurry of activity, I mention my months and months of inactivity. I mention potentially going back over short stories I'd written a long time ago, wanting to rip apart the ones I did in my teens and put them back together again with the skills I have now. I say all this in that off-hand, "Yeah, maybe one day" kind of voice. I am promptly informed that I should get frakkin' to it (no one but me says frakkin' though, alas) and near ominously, Mr Rodger informs me that he is now officially on my case.
I cannot tell you how important and motivating that was. The next day, I come to work armed with a short story I wrote at the beginning of 2012 and many told me I should expand into a novel. I showed it to David, he skimmed it, came back to me and told me I could easily cut the 8,000 word story down to 2,000 words. We agreed upon a deadline of next week to regroup with a finished, 2,000 word short story. When I finished work that afternoon, I returned home, sat down and using David's suggestions on how to condense the story, blitzed through 2,000 words. Upon its completion I sat back, let out one of those "Holy crap, I just did that!" sighs (might be embellishing slightly here) and realised to my complete and utter surprise, I had just written the chapter one I had been wanting to write for so long. Not contended to just sit back and write that, I launched into chapter two, completing 1,000 words before I succumbed to the need for sleep. I printed off the triumphant chapter one and reported to David the next day. Suffice it to say, my improvements met with his approval.
Over the next couple of months, whenever David drifted into work for his dark side coffee, I would report my progress and if there was an lack of progress, an explanation of why and what the frak I was planning to do about it. Finally, on the night of Sunday, 29th December 2013, it all came to a head. 109,894 words later, the first draft of the novel was finished.
While it might somewhat go without saying, (a funny turn of phrase, since it is always proceeded by that which allegedly doesn't need to be said) I owe a rather huge debt of gratitude to David J Rodger for giving me the push in the right direction I so sorely needed. Undoubtedly, should my book ever be published, much kudos will go to him in the acknowledgements at least. Fun fact though, I appear in the acknowledgements of his book The Social Club, as do several of my Boston Tea Party colleagues for our coffee fuelling services.
So there you have it. For the last three months, I have forbidden myself from writing anything but the first draft of my novel. I'm taking a brief break, then conning people into proofreading it before moving on to the massive editing process. And while I await feedback, I intend to be working on some short story notions I have brewing, as well as work peripheral to the novel.
Now in my three month silence, many things have happen, TV shows and movies watched, etcetera, but for me the biggest thing, the thing that I must note because it is so frakkin' worthy of it, is the tenth anniversary of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica.
I marked the occasion with a rather nerdy status. I used the words "So Say We All", which I can barely do with a straight face. A fact that became so much worse when I discovered a parody video of Katy Perry's song "Fireworks" on YouTube, entitled "Cylon". It's incredibly catchy, really rather awesome from the perspective of a Galactica-obsessive. Also sung by a beautiful redhead, who evidently loves Galactica and is also British. Knowing my frakkin' luck or lack thereof, she's on the other side of the country with a boyfriend who possesses ten-megaton biceps the size of Belgium with which to crush my puny mortal frame. Still the biggest Galactica nerd in Bath, just not the country it seems.
Oops, think I digressed from the point there.
Back on track now that I have publically sealed my own doom, suffice it all to say, I want to make a big deal of Battlestar Galactica's tenth anniversary. On the tenth anniversary of season one's first broadcast, I may even have my own little Colonial Day. Oh and Quantum Mechanix are so on my wavelength (or I on theirs, depending on existential perspective), because they are releasing a tenth anniversary print in celebration, much as they did for Firefly. Honestly, I squealed like a giddy school child when I saw it. I will be obtaining it, framing it (octagonally) and putting it up right next to my framed Firefly print. Must also get my Map of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol octagonally framed too.
Anyway, with some level of mercy, we have reached the end of today's babble. As it is the 31st December 2013 when I write this, I wish everyone a Happy New Year. A 2013 retrospective will appear soon, as will a review of Iron Council once I've blitzed my way through the last thirty-odd pages. Been resisting that too because I knew I'd want to blog about it straight away.
Right then.
Ladies and menfolk, Cylons and Colonials, Happy New Year. May 2014 bring us all good fortunate, be it in a clever disguise or glaringly obvious.
So say we all.
(Almost had a completely straight face that time...)
Showing posts with label Quantum Mechanix. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Quantum Mechanix. Show all posts
Tuesday, 31 December 2013
Thursday, 20 September 2012
I aim to misbehave
Some months ago I made note of what I considered a startlingly oversight in the geek community - the lack of a day specifically devoted to the enjoyment and honouring of Firefly. I proposed that we (the geek community) appoint a specific day as "Shiny Day", whereby we proudly display our Browncoat roots and sing merry renditions of "The Hero of Canton". So today, the tenth anniversary of Firefly first being aired in the United States, is my inaugural Shiny Day. All Browncoats are welcome to join in this celebration.
To honour this day, I'm wearing my Browncoats t-shirt that I obtained from Quantum Mechanix, one of my first purchases from that website, along with the River Tam maquette (alas, sold out now. Sorry Browncoats). Later on, I intend to sit down with my dinner and watch Serenity, the film that kick-started my journey into the world of Firefly and by far still my favourite movie of all time.
But right now, it's time for a list. To honour the inaugural Shiny Day, here are my top ten Firefly/Serenity moments.
10. "Yeah...that went well." (Firefly, 1x11 "Trash")
For the ladies, this may have been the best way to open an episode - Nathan Fillion sitting naked on a rock in the middle of the desert. As we learn later in the episode, our dashing Captain Tightpants has lost the aforementioned pants as a result of his double-crossing snake of a "wife", Saffron. But in the immediacy of the opening of the episode...it's a brilliant hook. For me, however, it's his opening line of dialogue. "Yeah...that went well." I myself have used it on many an occasion when things have gone distinctly less than well. By far, one of the best opening moments of Firefly.
9. Too Much Hair! (Firefly, 1x07 "Jaynestown")
Firefly is full of brilliant, gigglesome moments and Shepherd Book's frizzy Einstein haircut definitely ranks among the best. While it doesn't steal the episode, it definitely steals the scenes it's in, especially our first glimpse - which was enough to make River run for a smuggling hold! According to her babbling, "his brains are in terrible danger". His brains aren't in terrible danger. Not from the hair anyway...
8. "Wash, tell me I'm pretty." (Firefly, 1x13 "Heart of Gold")
It's a brief moment but nonetheless one of my favourite lines of dialogue. Alan Tudyk and Jewel Staite's exchange is just...well...I just love it. Mostly Alan Tudyk's delivery of "Were I unwed, I would take you in a manly fashion". Wash was a wonderful character and had many, many opportunities to showcase his brilliance and shoot-off some great one-liners and for me, this is one of them. Even though it wasn't necessarily a one-liner moment.
7. The Wash-Mal Torture Argument (Firefly, 1x10 "War Stories")
Conventional logic generally holds that there's a time and a place for everything. When in the midst of being tortured by a sadistic mob boss aboard his space station, it's clearly time to discuss why your Captain ordered his first mate not to marry the pilot. An order she disobeyed, naturally. While a little harrowing, seeing our beloved characters tortured, their argument over Mal's positions on shipboard romances provide genuine humour and much-needed levity to this slightly disconcerting moment.
6. The Hero of Canton (Firefly, 1x07 "Jaynestown")
"Jaynestown" makes another appearance on our list, but this time it's the Hero of Canton. The concept of Jayne Cobb being a hero and...well...the song. The Hero of Canton, the Man They Call Jayne. The episode takes an incredible, surreal turn when the crew, happily minding their own business in a bar in Canton, discover through the medium of song that Jayne Cobb, the selfish, brutish and questionably loyal "public relations" man is Robin Hood-style hero. The subtext the episode has about the truth behind heroics is great and all, but it's the song that steals the show.
5. "Also, I can kill you with my brain." (Firefly, 1x11 "Trash")
Our second entry for "Trash" is one of my favourite River Tam moments ever. After Jayne has gave his spine a bit of a thrashing, he's treated by Simon, who learned through River's mind-reading that Jayne sold them out to the Alliance two episodes before, on the planet Ariel. Simon proceeds to give Jayne a speech on how he (Simon) will never harm him as long as he's a patient, then leaves. River lingers a moment, then utters her line in a way that approaches cute...if the threat weren't pretty damn real and mildly terrifying. Especially after what we saw her do in "War Stories" with one pistol and her eyes closed...
4. "If you take sexual advantage of her..." (Firefly, 1x06 "Our Mrs Reynolds")
Partly, it's the speech Shepherd Book gives Mal, but mostly it's what's in the picture. That lingering moment with Book poking out of the passageway, giving Mal one final reminder of "the Special Hell", before promptly disappearing again. It makes me giggle no end. But we can't forget the speech that started it all, where Book warns him of the special level of Hell he will be going to if he sleeps with his "wife", Saffron. One of Shepherd Book's finest moments.
3. "What was that?" (Serenity - Big Damn Movie)
The movie has drawn to a close. A patched up Serenity flies off through storm clouds and into space amidst wonderfully uplifting music. It hurtles off into the Black to continue its adventures with a new lease of life, a fresh lick of paint, all fixed and ready to...oh wait, something falls off! It flies towards the screen, we fade to black and Mal's voice asks "What was that?" A perfect echo of his first line of the movie (where, again, something flies unceremoniously off the ship) and...just the best end to the movie. Pure Joss Whedon brilliance. One of the reasons I loved this movie so much - this final moment, for me, seems to epitomise everything about Firefly: no matter what, there's always a catch, something's always falling apart, but Serenity never stops flying.
2. "Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!" (Firefly, 1x01 "Serenity")
It may cause some controversy that this moment isn't number one, but...well, I'll explain later. But nonetheless, it was a close race as Wash's introductory scene is pure genius. Nothing sums up Hoban Washburne better than this scene. I want to make a descent paragraph out of this but...well, it speaks for itself. Pure, solid gold genius.
1. The First Rule of Flying (Serenity - Big Damn Movie)
I'm a hopelessly sappy, sentimental romantic. I hold my hand up and admit this proudly. For this reason, my favourite ever Firefly/Serenity moment is Mal's final speech, delivered to River Tam. And I hold to the belief that Mal has it right. "Love. You can learn all the math in the 'Verse, you take a boat in the air you don't love she'll shake you off just as sure as the turn of the worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells you she's hurting before she keens. Makes her home." I can deliver this line with far, far too much heartfelt conviction. And soon, I shall have an awesome print with that quotation on it. Thank you, QMx!
So there you have it for my inaugural Shiny Day. I'm off to cook then watch Serenity. I aim to misbehave :)
To honour this day, I'm wearing my Browncoats t-shirt that I obtained from Quantum Mechanix, one of my first purchases from that website, along with the River Tam maquette (alas, sold out now. Sorry Browncoats). Later on, I intend to sit down with my dinner and watch Serenity, the film that kick-started my journey into the world of Firefly and by far still my favourite movie of all time.
But right now, it's time for a list. To honour the inaugural Shiny Day, here are my top ten Firefly/Serenity moments.
10. "Yeah...that went well." (Firefly, 1x11 "Trash")
For the ladies, this may have been the best way to open an episode - Nathan Fillion sitting naked on a rock in the middle of the desert. As we learn later in the episode, our dashing Captain Tightpants has lost the aforementioned pants as a result of his double-crossing snake of a "wife", Saffron. But in the immediacy of the opening of the episode...it's a brilliant hook. For me, however, it's his opening line of dialogue. "Yeah...that went well." I myself have used it on many an occasion when things have gone distinctly less than well. By far, one of the best opening moments of Firefly.
9. Too Much Hair! (Firefly, 1x07 "Jaynestown")
Firefly is full of brilliant, gigglesome moments and Shepherd Book's frizzy Einstein haircut definitely ranks among the best. While it doesn't steal the episode, it definitely steals the scenes it's in, especially our first glimpse - which was enough to make River run for a smuggling hold! According to her babbling, "his brains are in terrible danger". His brains aren't in terrible danger. Not from the hair anyway...
8. "Wash, tell me I'm pretty." (Firefly, 1x13 "Heart of Gold")
It's a brief moment but nonetheless one of my favourite lines of dialogue. Alan Tudyk and Jewel Staite's exchange is just...well...I just love it. Mostly Alan Tudyk's delivery of "Were I unwed, I would take you in a manly fashion". Wash was a wonderful character and had many, many opportunities to showcase his brilliance and shoot-off some great one-liners and for me, this is one of them. Even though it wasn't necessarily a one-liner moment.
7. The Wash-Mal Torture Argument (Firefly, 1x10 "War Stories")
Conventional logic generally holds that there's a time and a place for everything. When in the midst of being tortured by a sadistic mob boss aboard his space station, it's clearly time to discuss why your Captain ordered his first mate not to marry the pilot. An order she disobeyed, naturally. While a little harrowing, seeing our beloved characters tortured, their argument over Mal's positions on shipboard romances provide genuine humour and much-needed levity to this slightly disconcerting moment.
6. The Hero of Canton (Firefly, 1x07 "Jaynestown")
"Jaynestown" makes another appearance on our list, but this time it's the Hero of Canton. The concept of Jayne Cobb being a hero and...well...the song. The Hero of Canton, the Man They Call Jayne. The episode takes an incredible, surreal turn when the crew, happily minding their own business in a bar in Canton, discover through the medium of song that Jayne Cobb, the selfish, brutish and questionably loyal "public relations" man is Robin Hood-style hero. The subtext the episode has about the truth behind heroics is great and all, but it's the song that steals the show.
5. "Also, I can kill you with my brain." (Firefly, 1x11 "Trash")
Our second entry for "Trash" is one of my favourite River Tam moments ever. After Jayne has gave his spine a bit of a thrashing, he's treated by Simon, who learned through River's mind-reading that Jayne sold them out to the Alliance two episodes before, on the planet Ariel. Simon proceeds to give Jayne a speech on how he (Simon) will never harm him as long as he's a patient, then leaves. River lingers a moment, then utters her line in a way that approaches cute...if the threat weren't pretty damn real and mildly terrifying. Especially after what we saw her do in "War Stories" with one pistol and her eyes closed...
4. "If you take sexual advantage of her..." (Firefly, 1x06 "Our Mrs Reynolds")
Partly, it's the speech Shepherd Book gives Mal, but mostly it's what's in the picture. That lingering moment with Book poking out of the passageway, giving Mal one final reminder of "the Special Hell", before promptly disappearing again. It makes me giggle no end. But we can't forget the speech that started it all, where Book warns him of the special level of Hell he will be going to if he sleeps with his "wife", Saffron. One of Shepherd Book's finest moments.
3. "What was that?" (Serenity - Big Damn Movie)
The movie has drawn to a close. A patched up Serenity flies off through storm clouds and into space amidst wonderfully uplifting music. It hurtles off into the Black to continue its adventures with a new lease of life, a fresh lick of paint, all fixed and ready to...oh wait, something falls off! It flies towards the screen, we fade to black and Mal's voice asks "What was that?" A perfect echo of his first line of the movie (where, again, something flies unceremoniously off the ship) and...just the best end to the movie. Pure Joss Whedon brilliance. One of the reasons I loved this movie so much - this final moment, for me, seems to epitomise everything about Firefly: no matter what, there's always a catch, something's always falling apart, but Serenity never stops flying.
2. "Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!" (Firefly, 1x01 "Serenity")
It may cause some controversy that this moment isn't number one, but...well, I'll explain later. But nonetheless, it was a close race as Wash's introductory scene is pure genius. Nothing sums up Hoban Washburne better than this scene. I want to make a descent paragraph out of this but...well, it speaks for itself. Pure, solid gold genius.
1. The First Rule of Flying (Serenity - Big Damn Movie)
I'm a hopelessly sappy, sentimental romantic. I hold my hand up and admit this proudly. For this reason, my favourite ever Firefly/Serenity moment is Mal's final speech, delivered to River Tam. And I hold to the belief that Mal has it right. "Love. You can learn all the math in the 'Verse, you take a boat in the air you don't love she'll shake you off just as sure as the turn of the worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells you she's hurting before she keens. Makes her home." I can deliver this line with far, far too much heartfelt conviction. And soon, I shall have an awesome print with that quotation on it. Thank you, QMx!
So there you have it for my inaugural Shiny Day. I'm off to cook then watch Serenity. I aim to misbehave :)
Tuesday, 7 August 2012
Do what I do. Hold on tight and pretend it's a plan!
I'm going to begin by saying "Quantum Mechanix, this is all your fault!" You can't escape this, QMx. You posted the link. On your head this whole thing lies! For you see ladies and menfolk, my mind is being warped...by the 1978 disco-style remix of the Doctor Who theme tune. In this article from io9.com, re-posted by QMx, therein lies the video with the aforementioned funky tune. I mean FUNKAY...oh dear gods, the funk. It won't leave my brain.
In order to distract myself (even though I have the video playing in the background because it's frakkin' addictive), I have decided that this will be the perfect opportunity to blog about that great stalwart of British science-fiction, Doctor Who.
I'm a geek and I'm British. It follows in bizarre logic that I am, of course, a fan of Doctor Who. While I imagine you could probably, somewhere, find a British geek not a fan of Doctor Who, it would likely be rather difficult. I will conduct a poll about this at work with all the geeky regulars, but until then, I want to talk about Doctor Who to get my mind off the brain-melting funk. That addictive, funky goodness...
Let's face it. As a science-fiction writer, I have toyed with the idea of writing about time travel. Come on, we all have. In fact, I dare any science-fiction writer who's watched an episode of Doctor Who to put their hand up and say they haven't dreamed about writing an episode themselves. While tied to a polygraph. With a bunch of kittens dangling over a shark-infested pool, to be dropped in at the first sign of a lie.
My journey with Doctor Who...well, I can't actually remember where it truly began, though I know my mother, something of a geek like myself, was an avid fan of Doctor Who in its glory days. One of my earliest memories of Doctor Who is a bizarre one. It was 1999. I can tell you that for a certainty because I saw this episode just before I went to see Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace for the first time. Before I truly understood the genius of the first three films and how Empire Strikes Back is the best by far.
But I digress. It was 1999. And it was perhaps the most epic of classic Doctor Who episodes to watch. It was, at the very least, the first part of..."Genesis of the Daleks". It was years later that I was talking to my mum about these episodes and she told me her favourite part...the part, which, as a child, had her on the edge of her seat screaming at the screen.
For those who have not seen "Genesis of the Daleks" and would prefer to watch it without knowing what happens...I'd stop reading about here...at least just skip over the next paragraph. Or two.
It was the Doctor. (*The* Doctor for all you Tom Baker loyalists out there). Holding two frayed lengths of wire. All he had to do was touch the wires together and *BOOM*, that's it, no more Daleks. But he hesitates. Two wires. Staring at these frayed copper conductors, he realises that of all the things he can do as a Time Lord, he cannot do this. He cannot destroy the Daleks. It would undo too much, destroy too much history, too much of the timeline. Too much of his timeline. Even though his companions are urging to do it, to end the most terrifying threat the Universe has ever known, the Doctor...spares the Daleks.
A part of me wishes I could go back and tell my ten year-old self just how incredibly important a moment that was, just how brilliant the writers were for putting the Doctor into that position.
Of course, six years later (2005), Doctor Who made one heck of a comeback. In the clever guise of Christopher Eccleston with the brilliant line "So? Lots of planets have a north!" to explain his accent, Doctor Who once again caught the hearts and minds of the British public. And in those last seven years...well. We've had Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant and Matt Smith, all fantastic Doctors with wonderful companions but...
...well...
...a lot of my friends will be rolling their eyes here, but...well...
...it's totally all about Amy Pond.
I'll hold my hand up and admit it - feisty red head with a Scottish accent and a knack for being...well, fiery, determined and thoroughly Scottish? You're godsdamn right I went head over heels when this girl stormed onto our screens in 2011 screaming lines like "Twelve years and four psychiatrists!"
But that isn't the finest moment in Doctor Who. As much as I love Amy Pond and think she is wonderful (and Karen Gillan a fantastic actress), there is one episode that stands out above all others, that for me marks the high point of Doctor Who.
"Blink".
It's 2007. David Tennant is the Tenth Doctor. Freema Agyeman is his companion, Doctor Martha Jones. And yet this episode, this brilliant, brilliant episode features for them for probably a grand total of five minutes. For there's two things that steal the show - the beautiful, incredible leading lady Sally Sparrow (Carey Mulligan) and one of the most terrifying nemeses the Doctor has ever faced.
The Weeping Angels.
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but as a writer there are things you read or watch and you're thinking "Oh gods, why the frak didn't I think of that first?" I can honestly say, the Weeping Angels are up there. In fact, I might do a top ten list of things I wish I had thought up first in terms of genius storylines/ideas. And the Weeping Angels are definitely up there.
While their appearance in the 2011 series dulled their fire just a tad, the Weeping Angels remain one of the finest creations to come from the mind of head writer Steven Moffat. And when I was reading China Miéville's Perdido Street Station, the central "villains"/monsters, the slake-moths...they reminded me a little of the Weeping Angels. Insofar as when I was reading Perdido Street Station and the excitement that gripped me when the slake-moths were introduced convinced me that China Miéville should write an episode of Doctor Who.
Of course, no one would ever, ever sleep at night. Ever again. Yet I can't help feeling it would be *SO* worth it. Anyone else with me on this one? Might be a bit late for series seven (the trailers for which look EPIC), but maybe series eight, eh? I think it would be an epic idea. Neil Gaiman wrote an episode, why shouldn't China Miéville? *Sod's Law follows that China Miéville hates Doctor Who...*
In order to distract myself (even though I have the video playing in the background because it's frakkin' addictive), I have decided that this will be the perfect opportunity to blog about that great stalwart of British science-fiction, Doctor Who.
I'm a geek and I'm British. It follows in bizarre logic that I am, of course, a fan of Doctor Who. While I imagine you could probably, somewhere, find a British geek not a fan of Doctor Who, it would likely be rather difficult. I will conduct a poll about this at work with all the geeky regulars, but until then, I want to talk about Doctor Who to get my mind off the brain-melting funk. That addictive, funky goodness...
Let's face it. As a science-fiction writer, I have toyed with the idea of writing about time travel. Come on, we all have. In fact, I dare any science-fiction writer who's watched an episode of Doctor Who to put their hand up and say they haven't dreamed about writing an episode themselves. While tied to a polygraph. With a bunch of kittens dangling over a shark-infested pool, to be dropped in at the first sign of a lie.
My journey with Doctor Who...well, I can't actually remember where it truly began, though I know my mother, something of a geek like myself, was an avid fan of Doctor Who in its glory days. One of my earliest memories of Doctor Who is a bizarre one. It was 1999. I can tell you that for a certainty because I saw this episode just before I went to see Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace for the first time. Before I truly understood the genius of the first three films and how Empire Strikes Back is the best by far.
But I digress. It was 1999. And it was perhaps the most epic of classic Doctor Who episodes to watch. It was, at the very least, the first part of..."Genesis of the Daleks". It was years later that I was talking to my mum about these episodes and she told me her favourite part...the part, which, as a child, had her on the edge of her seat screaming at the screen.
For those who have not seen "Genesis of the Daleks" and would prefer to watch it without knowing what happens...I'd stop reading about here...at least just skip over the next paragraph. Or two.
It was the Doctor. (*The* Doctor for all you Tom Baker loyalists out there). Holding two frayed lengths of wire. All he had to do was touch the wires together and *BOOM*, that's it, no more Daleks. But he hesitates. Two wires. Staring at these frayed copper conductors, he realises that of all the things he can do as a Time Lord, he cannot do this. He cannot destroy the Daleks. It would undo too much, destroy too much history, too much of the timeline. Too much of his timeline. Even though his companions are urging to do it, to end the most terrifying threat the Universe has ever known, the Doctor...spares the Daleks.
A part of me wishes I could go back and tell my ten year-old self just how incredibly important a moment that was, just how brilliant the writers were for putting the Doctor into that position.
Of course, six years later (2005), Doctor Who made one heck of a comeback. In the clever guise of Christopher Eccleston with the brilliant line "So? Lots of planets have a north!" to explain his accent, Doctor Who once again caught the hearts and minds of the British public. And in those last seven years...well. We've had Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant and Matt Smith, all fantastic Doctors with wonderful companions but...
...well...
...a lot of my friends will be rolling their eyes here, but...well...
...it's totally all about Amy Pond.
I'll hold my hand up and admit it - feisty red head with a Scottish accent and a knack for being...well, fiery, determined and thoroughly Scottish? You're godsdamn right I went head over heels when this girl stormed onto our screens in 2011 screaming lines like "Twelve years and four psychiatrists!"
But that isn't the finest moment in Doctor Who. As much as I love Amy Pond and think she is wonderful (and Karen Gillan a fantastic actress), there is one episode that stands out above all others, that for me marks the high point of Doctor Who.
"Blink".
It's 2007. David Tennant is the Tenth Doctor. Freema Agyeman is his companion, Doctor Martha Jones. And yet this episode, this brilliant, brilliant episode features for them for probably a grand total of five minutes. For there's two things that steal the show - the beautiful, incredible leading lady Sally Sparrow (Carey Mulligan) and one of the most terrifying nemeses the Doctor has ever faced.
The Weeping Angels.
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but as a writer there are things you read or watch and you're thinking "Oh gods, why the frak didn't I think of that first?" I can honestly say, the Weeping Angels are up there. In fact, I might do a top ten list of things I wish I had thought up first in terms of genius storylines/ideas. And the Weeping Angels are definitely up there.
While their appearance in the 2011 series dulled their fire just a tad, the Weeping Angels remain one of the finest creations to come from the mind of head writer Steven Moffat. And when I was reading China Miéville's Perdido Street Station, the central "villains"/monsters, the slake-moths...they reminded me a little of the Weeping Angels. Insofar as when I was reading Perdido Street Station and the excitement that gripped me when the slake-moths were introduced convinced me that China Miéville should write an episode of Doctor Who.
Of course, no one would ever, ever sleep at night. Ever again. Yet I can't help feeling it would be *SO* worth it. Anyone else with me on this one? Might be a bit late for series seven (the trailers for which look EPIC), but maybe series eight, eh? I think it would be an epic idea. Neil Gaiman wrote an episode, why shouldn't China Miéville? *Sod's Law follows that China Miéville hates Doctor Who...*
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
I need spaceships or I get cranky
I've been building up to this one for a couple of days. Partly active social life/work consuming time related. There should be a special theory of relativity for that...putting this on my to do list. Invent time machine and give the idea to Einstein.
Okay, I'm digressing. Big time. So, to explain, the title of this blog...well, it's not a quote from the Whedonverse like most of my blog entries. No, these are words straight from the man himself.
This entry is, once regarding the pain and anguish of not going to San Diego ComicCon, specifically the awesome Firefly 10th Anniversary Reunion Panel. But also...this is about Firefly and what it means to me. As always, this will follow the usual format - chronological context of how and when I came to Firefly, followed by lots of ramblings and personal anecdotes, maybe even a little bit of gushing about stuff here and there.
As the presenter of the Panel, Jeff Jensen, said - "Let's get on with the thrilling heroics".
It was 2005, the tail end of. I was watching Film 2005, hosted back then by old Jonathan Ross. It was their "Film of the Year" show and Serenity netted the top prize. I saw the clips they played, Joss Whedon's acceptance speech and I was thinking "Hey, I actually have a total lack of awesome spaceship sci-fi. I should get this on DVD when it comes out, it looks totally cool". Roll on February 2006. I pre-ordered Serenity. It arrived...on a Wednesday, I think. I was in my penultimate year of secondary school, I was thinking about university. As soon as I came home from school, found that Serenity had been delivered, I broke open that package, put the DVD in my Xbox, played the DVD.
I fell in love.
Pure and simple here, kids. I fell in love with this movie. In the space of Serenity's two hours, I had a new favourite film. It's still my favourite film, of all time. It even beats Joss's latest epic, Avengers. Which was bad ass. But it can't hold a candle to Serenity.
Like the Hero of Canton, my love for it now, ain't hard to explain. It was the characters, the warmth, the soul of the film. It's not an epic...well, it is, but it is by not trying to be an EPIC, it's not trying to be a mind-expanding exploration of the human soul, it's not a summer blockbuster. It just is. It's a beautiful piece of simple writing, with amazing performances bringing life to characters that you absolutely truly believe are a family. It's...incredible.
And heck, kids, this is just Serenity.
Funnily enough, shortly after falling in love with Serenity, I obtained Firefly. I fell even further and deeper in love. I knew true heartbreak about the fate of certain unnamed characters. I became even more attached to the characters. And when I learned the true nature of Firefly's fate, Joss Whedon became my idol.
As a writer, you have to learn to deal with rejection. Like I said, in 2006 I was getting towards thinking about university. I previously mentioned in a prior blog post about The Writerverse that I decided, when I was 15, that I wanted to be a writer. By the time I was 17, I was coming closer to understand the trials that writers undergo and finding my idols, people to admire and hold as inspiration. Joss Whedon's refusal to let Firefly die and giving me my favourite film of all time was that inspiration. Added to that the brilliance and wit of the dialogue of his writing, the darkly beautiful humour that slips into the most serious of episodes...I have taken that and introduced it into my writing. During the days of workshops at university, it was mentioned, often positively. I owe you, Joss Whedon, for teaching me that there's always a place for dry witticism.
But this isn't the end, it's not just about the influence the show and the film had on my writing, how Joss Whedon became an inspiration. It's about the people Firefly has helped me to meet.
Ladies and menfolk, my fellow Browncoats.
It was university. By this time, I had my beloved Serenity t-shirt. To this day, one of my most complimented t-shirts. And largely due to this t-shirt, I met many, many fellow Browncoats. There are so many of us. So, so many of us. We do have a lot of other major interests, but...well...we largely came together because of Firefly, because we are Browncoats. It was that curious fact that you come across, that exclamation of "You like Firefly? So do I! That's awesome", which spirals into a much deeper, more meaningful friendship. And from that very starting point, some of my best friendships have developed. If I had not watched Serenity and fallen in love with it, who is to say I would have met these people and become such great friends? Well, might be a slight over-exaggeration, but still. Being a Browncoat has brought me closer to some wonderful people.
But the story isn't just the influence on my writing or the fellow Browncoats I've met.
I work in a café. It's been mentioned before. Now while I am determined I will be a successful writer in some shape or form...I've contemplated a back-up plan. A café. A geek café, in Bath, because I just feel there's a sad lack of a major hub of geek congregation in Bath. There's a comic book shop, but it's small. We need something bigger. With tea and coffee.
To this end, my back-up plan - Leaf on the Wind. Two-fold reference: obviously, Wash's beautiful, if slightly tragic, line from Serenity. Secondly, a reference to the fact that only loose leaf tea would be sold in this café. It would emulate the fusion of Western and Eastern furniture seen in Firefly. There would be a memorial to our most beloved, fallen character. There would be an alcohol license so we could serve, probably only late in the evenings, the cocktail, the Sereni-Tea. I would be able to justify and write-off all QMx purchases of awesome Firefly collectibles as business expenses. The only permitted expletive for staff would be "gorram". There would be a pool table, with a sign next to it saying "Management not responsible for ball failure" with the notice repeated in Mandarin underneath. All the menu boards would be in English and Mandarin. Staff would be encouraged to say "Shiny".
I would go utterly mad with power, just as I seem to have gone mad with ideas.
But then again, this is all about what Firefly means to me, so...it's to be expected.
Ladies and menfolk, I am a Browncoat, proud and tall. I aim to misbehave.
Okay, I'm digressing. Big time. So, to explain, the title of this blog...well, it's not a quote from the Whedonverse like most of my blog entries. No, these are words straight from the man himself.
This entry is, once regarding the pain and anguish of not going to San Diego ComicCon, specifically the awesome Firefly 10th Anniversary Reunion Panel. But also...this is about Firefly and what it means to me. As always, this will follow the usual format - chronological context of how and when I came to Firefly, followed by lots of ramblings and personal anecdotes, maybe even a little bit of gushing about stuff here and there.
As the presenter of the Panel, Jeff Jensen, said - "Let's get on with the thrilling heroics".
It was 2005, the tail end of. I was watching Film 2005, hosted back then by old Jonathan Ross. It was their "Film of the Year" show and Serenity netted the top prize. I saw the clips they played, Joss Whedon's acceptance speech and I was thinking "Hey, I actually have a total lack of awesome spaceship sci-fi. I should get this on DVD when it comes out, it looks totally cool". Roll on February 2006. I pre-ordered Serenity. It arrived...on a Wednesday, I think. I was in my penultimate year of secondary school, I was thinking about university. As soon as I came home from school, found that Serenity had been delivered, I broke open that package, put the DVD in my Xbox, played the DVD.
I fell in love.
Pure and simple here, kids. I fell in love with this movie. In the space of Serenity's two hours, I had a new favourite film. It's still my favourite film, of all time. It even beats Joss's latest epic, Avengers. Which was bad ass. But it can't hold a candle to Serenity.
Like the Hero of Canton, my love for it now, ain't hard to explain. It was the characters, the warmth, the soul of the film. It's not an epic...well, it is, but it is by not trying to be an EPIC, it's not trying to be a mind-expanding exploration of the human soul, it's not a summer blockbuster. It just is. It's a beautiful piece of simple writing, with amazing performances bringing life to characters that you absolutely truly believe are a family. It's...incredible.
And heck, kids, this is just Serenity.
Funnily enough, shortly after falling in love with Serenity, I obtained Firefly. I fell even further and deeper in love. I knew true heartbreak about the fate of certain unnamed characters. I became even more attached to the characters. And when I learned the true nature of Firefly's fate, Joss Whedon became my idol.
As a writer, you have to learn to deal with rejection. Like I said, in 2006 I was getting towards thinking about university. I previously mentioned in a prior blog post about The Writerverse that I decided, when I was 15, that I wanted to be a writer. By the time I was 17, I was coming closer to understand the trials that writers undergo and finding my idols, people to admire and hold as inspiration. Joss Whedon's refusal to let Firefly die and giving me my favourite film of all time was that inspiration. Added to that the brilliance and wit of the dialogue of his writing, the darkly beautiful humour that slips into the most serious of episodes...I have taken that and introduced it into my writing. During the days of workshops at university, it was mentioned, often positively. I owe you, Joss Whedon, for teaching me that there's always a place for dry witticism.
But this isn't the end, it's not just about the influence the show and the film had on my writing, how Joss Whedon became an inspiration. It's about the people Firefly has helped me to meet.
Ladies and menfolk, my fellow Browncoats.
It was university. By this time, I had my beloved Serenity t-shirt. To this day, one of my most complimented t-shirts. And largely due to this t-shirt, I met many, many fellow Browncoats. There are so many of us. So, so many of us. We do have a lot of other major interests, but...well...we largely came together because of Firefly, because we are Browncoats. It was that curious fact that you come across, that exclamation of "You like Firefly? So do I! That's awesome", which spirals into a much deeper, more meaningful friendship. And from that very starting point, some of my best friendships have developed. If I had not watched Serenity and fallen in love with it, who is to say I would have met these people and become such great friends? Well, might be a slight over-exaggeration, but still. Being a Browncoat has brought me closer to some wonderful people.
But the story isn't just the influence on my writing or the fellow Browncoats I've met.
I work in a café. It's been mentioned before. Now while I am determined I will be a successful writer in some shape or form...I've contemplated a back-up plan. A café. A geek café, in Bath, because I just feel there's a sad lack of a major hub of geek congregation in Bath. There's a comic book shop, but it's small. We need something bigger. With tea and coffee.
To this end, my back-up plan - Leaf on the Wind. Two-fold reference: obviously, Wash's beautiful, if slightly tragic, line from Serenity. Secondly, a reference to the fact that only loose leaf tea would be sold in this café. It would emulate the fusion of Western and Eastern furniture seen in Firefly. There would be a memorial to our most beloved, fallen character. There would be an alcohol license so we could serve, probably only late in the evenings, the cocktail, the Sereni-Tea. I would be able to justify and write-off all QMx purchases of awesome Firefly collectibles as business expenses. The only permitted expletive for staff would be "gorram". There would be a pool table, with a sign next to it saying "Management not responsible for ball failure" with the notice repeated in Mandarin underneath. All the menu boards would be in English and Mandarin. Staff would be encouraged to say "Shiny".
I would go utterly mad with power, just as I seem to have gone mad with ideas.
But then again, this is all about what Firefly means to me, so...it's to be expected.
Ladies and menfolk, I am a Browncoat, proud and tall. I aim to misbehave.
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
Life is Pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something
Life is pain, but not the in the context our dear Westley meant. No, today, as I forgo the words of Joss Whedon for the words of The Princess Bride, I'm not talking about heartbreak...oh wait, yes I am. But not heartbreak and pain as Westley understood it. No, for today I talk about something that has been tormenting my soul for the last couple of weeks.
San Diego ComicCon 2012.
It's a simple dream, held by many a geek the world over. One day to have the money to attend San Diego ComicCon. To those geeks who are going, who have the money and resources, I salute you in my near Hulk-like greenness of envy. If there was ever a year to go to San Diego ComicCon, it would appear to be 2012.
Perhaps this is mostly because I've become far more clued into the happenings of the geek community since starting up this blog in January. You see, before then, I didn't use Twitter except for a dark time in my third year known as "Professional Writing" and didn't follow as many fan pages on Facebook. But thanks to this blog and a certain school friend and Caerdydd-based "Landshark", I am, as aforementioned, far more clued in.
And it's torturing me.
Let's start with Quantum Mechanix. These beautiful, wonderful people have been the light of my growing geek collectibles collection and bane of my bank account since July 2011, when I obtained the River Tam Big Damn Heroes maquette and my beloved Browncoats t-shirt. As is to be excepted of geeks of their talents, artistry and prominence, they have a booth at San Diego ComicCon, (hereafter abbreviated SDCC, because while I'm OCD enough to keep saying San Diego ComicCon, it'll probably be easier on your eyes if I say SDCC). At this booth...oh lords, oh lords, the goodies! Pictures are abounding Facebook and Twitter. The key source of torment? These. Dogtags. Firefly dogtags. Oh, they say it's just prototypes, but...as the Futurama Fry meme goes - "SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!" Come on, QMx, you know you have it. I might as well just set up a direct debit, you take monthly instalments and just send me your awesome stuff. Please? Pretty please?
Then there's the panels. Doctor Who. I know I'm British, I know I only live an hour's train ride from Cardiff (and have friends there too!), but you know, I've never seen much of Doctor Who outside of the episodes on TV. Oh and once, Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor), regularly visited my workplace while performing at Bath's Theatre Royal. So I've been in the presence of the Seventh Doctor, but that's it. And let's face it, he does not have a companion as drop dead gorgeous as Karen Gillan. So maybe I would want to see the Doctor Who panel just for her.
But then there's an Iron Man 3 panel! Tantalising promises of panels from industry professionals! As a writer, that last part intrigues me most - don't get me wrong, an Iron Man 3 panel with the likelihood of Robert Downey, Jr popping in for a quick stage-stealing appearance? Hell yes! But...as aforementioned, I'm a writer. It's twenty to three in the morning here. I'm babbling about the heartbreak of not being able to attend SDCC 2012. One day, my wish is be on one of those SDCC panels. So I best get writing.
And it's not just panels either. I mentioned Quantum Mechanix and their goodies. A while ago, back in April, I stumbled upon a link someone had posted on Thief's wall. It was about ALL COLOUR versions of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim series. Guess what's going to be at SDCC 2012.
However, I'm not quite finished here. Oh no. For you see, I've saved the real kicker, the real heartbreaker of not being able to go to San Diego ComicCon 2012 until last.
The 10th Anniversary Reunion of Firefly.
This article, where I'm getting a lot of my heart-wrenching info on what's happening at SDCC, reckons there won't be a dry eye in the house when those guys get back up on stage together. I agree. I don't know if my eyes would be dry. Throats are probably going to be raw screaming approval. Women swooning over Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk. Men swooning over Jewel Staite and Morena Baccarin. The sheer awesomeness of the momentous occasion.
I cannot adequately express how much I could be there. Even if I was crammed in, way at the back of the room, struggling to see, I wish I could be there. There's only one thing in the world I wish for more and believe me, between Firefly reunion and that unspecified thing, it's one frakkin' tough call!
However, although I'm going to miss out on a lot of these awesome things, I'm determined not to entirely languish in self-pity. I may not be attending SDCC for a long, long time due to not having near enough money to fly out to California, I'm going to have my own little geek-fest I think. I can't pretend it'll be anywhere near as epic or awesome as San Diego ComicCon, but if the best I can do is curl up with my favourite geeky movies this weekend to try and numb the pain, then by the gods it's what I'll do.
For those lucky enough to be attending, once again, I salute and envy you. San Diego ComicCon 2012 is yours. Bring back some great stories, kids. You owe us that much!
San Diego ComicCon 2012.
It's a simple dream, held by many a geek the world over. One day to have the money to attend San Diego ComicCon. To those geeks who are going, who have the money and resources, I salute you in my near Hulk-like greenness of envy. If there was ever a year to go to San Diego ComicCon, it would appear to be 2012.
Perhaps this is mostly because I've become far more clued into the happenings of the geek community since starting up this blog in January. You see, before then, I didn't use Twitter except for a dark time in my third year known as "Professional Writing" and didn't follow as many fan pages on Facebook. But thanks to this blog and a certain school friend and Caerdydd-based "Landshark", I am, as aforementioned, far more clued in.
And it's torturing me.
Let's start with Quantum Mechanix. These beautiful, wonderful people have been the light of my growing geek collectibles collection and bane of my bank account since July 2011, when I obtained the River Tam Big Damn Heroes maquette and my beloved Browncoats t-shirt. As is to be excepted of geeks of their talents, artistry and prominence, they have a booth at San Diego ComicCon, (hereafter abbreviated SDCC, because while I'm OCD enough to keep saying San Diego ComicCon, it'll probably be easier on your eyes if I say SDCC). At this booth...oh lords, oh lords, the goodies! Pictures are abounding Facebook and Twitter. The key source of torment? These. Dogtags. Firefly dogtags. Oh, they say it's just prototypes, but...as the Futurama Fry meme goes - "SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!" Come on, QMx, you know you have it. I might as well just set up a direct debit, you take monthly instalments and just send me your awesome stuff. Please? Pretty please?
Then there's the panels. Doctor Who. I know I'm British, I know I only live an hour's train ride from Cardiff (and have friends there too!), but you know, I've never seen much of Doctor Who outside of the episodes on TV. Oh and once, Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor), regularly visited my workplace while performing at Bath's Theatre Royal. So I've been in the presence of the Seventh Doctor, but that's it. And let's face it, he does not have a companion as drop dead gorgeous as Karen Gillan. So maybe I would want to see the Doctor Who panel just for her.
But then there's an Iron Man 3 panel! Tantalising promises of panels from industry professionals! As a writer, that last part intrigues me most - don't get me wrong, an Iron Man 3 panel with the likelihood of Robert Downey, Jr popping in for a quick stage-stealing appearance? Hell yes! But...as aforementioned, I'm a writer. It's twenty to three in the morning here. I'm babbling about the heartbreak of not being able to attend SDCC 2012. One day, my wish is be on one of those SDCC panels. So I best get writing.
And it's not just panels either. I mentioned Quantum Mechanix and their goodies. A while ago, back in April, I stumbled upon a link someone had posted on Thief's wall. It was about ALL COLOUR versions of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim series. Guess what's going to be at SDCC 2012.
However, I'm not quite finished here. Oh no. For you see, I've saved the real kicker, the real heartbreaker of not being able to go to San Diego ComicCon 2012 until last.
The 10th Anniversary Reunion of Firefly.
This article, where I'm getting a lot of my heart-wrenching info on what's happening at SDCC, reckons there won't be a dry eye in the house when those guys get back up on stage together. I agree. I don't know if my eyes would be dry. Throats are probably going to be raw screaming approval. Women swooning over Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk. Men swooning over Jewel Staite and Morena Baccarin. The sheer awesomeness of the momentous occasion.
I cannot adequately express how much I could be there. Even if I was crammed in, way at the back of the room, struggling to see, I wish I could be there. There's only one thing in the world I wish for more and believe me, between Firefly reunion and that unspecified thing, it's one frakkin' tough call!
However, although I'm going to miss out on a lot of these awesome things, I'm determined not to entirely languish in self-pity. I may not be attending SDCC for a long, long time due to not having near enough money to fly out to California, I'm going to have my own little geek-fest I think. I can't pretend it'll be anywhere near as epic or awesome as San Diego ComicCon, but if the best I can do is curl up with my favourite geeky movies this weekend to try and numb the pain, then by the gods it's what I'll do.
For those lucky enough to be attending, once again, I salute and envy you. San Diego ComicCon 2012 is yours. Bring back some great stories, kids. You owe us that much!
Tuesday, 27 March 2012
I'm lost. I'm angry and I'm armed...
First, some clarification. I'm not lost. Well, not geographically anyway. Metaphysically, maybe. I'm not angry, despite a day in the basement and the relentless tide of idle humans who had the opportunity to lounge about in the sun today while the rest of us pandered to their caffeine-craving whims. Also, I apologise for the bitterness. The heat makes me cranky.
However, I am armed.
Sort of.
I have to say, FedEx are frakking awesome. While the impending letter on import duty to be paid will likely put a downer on things, from shipping to delivery, it took them four days. Four days to get my latest item of QMx swag from California to Somerset.
Ladies and menfolk, I am now the extremely proud owner of a replica of the stunt pistol used by the one and only Captain Malcolm Reynolds of the Firefly-class transport Serenity.
All I need now is a long coat of a brownish colour.
But most importantly, I have my replica of Mal's pistol. It is sufficiently, if not - scratch that, IT IS - frakking exceptionally gorram awesome!
As has been promised, pictures will follow eventually. My dear friend Phoenix is still buried under mountains of work, but after that, a photo of me wielding Mal's pistol with the tagline "I aim to misbehave" (predictable, yes, but entirely necessary!) will be forthcoming.
In other news, still no new computer. Once again, a blog post is being composed from my housemate's Mac. Current soundtrack: Ketto - Bonobo. Always makes me think of jPod (series, not the book, though both are awesome) and Kam Fong. I swear, every time I hear this song I feel I'm about to bundled into a Chinese mafia kingpin's limo. To date, this still hasn't happened and as my iPod headphones died around the same time as my computer, these fears won't be surfacing on my walk to work. Or general walks into town. I do miss my soundtrack...
There's not much other news from the land of geekdom. It's pretty much my ownership of Mal's pistol. So let's talk about it some more.
It's a strange thing, finding such fondness and beauty in a weapon of all things, but from the first moment I saw it in Serenity (yes, I did the whole Firefly-Browncoat-fandom a bit backwards), I loved that pistol. From an aesthetic standpoint, it's a beautiful thing. It's the shape, it has all the right dimensions in all the right places. Though it may also be some kind of spiritual connection to the wielder of the weapon. There's no denying it - Malcolm Reynolds (and, by extension his actor, Nathan Fillion) is a damn fine and handsome man. And there's a little part (or maybe big part), I imagine, of many, many male Browncoats that look at Mal, aiming to misbehave with that pistol of his, wishing that they were him, that suave, down-to-Earth-That-Was and dashing rogue. Or you were me, wishing you were that loveable pilot, cursing dinosaurs for their sudden but inevitable betrayals.
If only I could pull off a Hawaiian shirt...
Speaking of these damn fine men, I was reading something rather amusing earlier - SFX magazine's Top 200 Sexiest Characters in Science-Fiction. They've paired their Top 100 Men and Top 100 Women lists and the pairings are more than a little gigglesome. And Number 5...yeah, dude, that is totally destiny.
Until next time my dear readers, I'm going to walk around with Mal's pistol looking gorram shiny.
However, I am armed.
Sort of.
I have to say, FedEx are frakking awesome. While the impending letter on import duty to be paid will likely put a downer on things, from shipping to delivery, it took them four days. Four days to get my latest item of QMx swag from California to Somerset.
Ladies and menfolk, I am now the extremely proud owner of a replica of the stunt pistol used by the one and only Captain Malcolm Reynolds of the Firefly-class transport Serenity.
All I need now is a long coat of a brownish colour.
But most importantly, I have my replica of Mal's pistol. It is sufficiently, if not - scratch that, IT IS - frakking exceptionally gorram awesome!
As has been promised, pictures will follow eventually. My dear friend Phoenix is still buried under mountains of work, but after that, a photo of me wielding Mal's pistol with the tagline "I aim to misbehave" (predictable, yes, but entirely necessary!) will be forthcoming.
In other news, still no new computer. Once again, a blog post is being composed from my housemate's Mac. Current soundtrack: Ketto - Bonobo. Always makes me think of jPod (series, not the book, though both are awesome) and Kam Fong. I swear, every time I hear this song I feel I'm about to bundled into a Chinese mafia kingpin's limo. To date, this still hasn't happened and as my iPod headphones died around the same time as my computer, these fears won't be surfacing on my walk to work. Or general walks into town. I do miss my soundtrack...
There's not much other news from the land of geekdom. It's pretty much my ownership of Mal's pistol. So let's talk about it some more.
It's a strange thing, finding such fondness and beauty in a weapon of all things, but from the first moment I saw it in Serenity (yes, I did the whole Firefly-Browncoat-fandom a bit backwards), I loved that pistol. From an aesthetic standpoint, it's a beautiful thing. It's the shape, it has all the right dimensions in all the right places. Though it may also be some kind of spiritual connection to the wielder of the weapon. There's no denying it - Malcolm Reynolds (and, by extension his actor, Nathan Fillion) is a damn fine and handsome man. And there's a little part (or maybe big part), I imagine, of many, many male Browncoats that look at Mal, aiming to misbehave with that pistol of his, wishing that they were him, that suave, down-to-Earth-That-Was and dashing rogue. Or you were me, wishing you were that loveable pilot, cursing dinosaurs for their sudden but inevitable betrayals.
If only I could pull off a Hawaiian shirt...
Speaking of these damn fine men, I was reading something rather amusing earlier - SFX magazine's Top 200 Sexiest Characters in Science-Fiction. They've paired their Top 100 Men and Top 100 Women lists and the pairings are more than a little gigglesome. And Number 5...yeah, dude, that is totally destiny.
Until next time my dear readers, I'm going to walk around with Mal's pistol looking gorram shiny.
Tuesday, 21 February 2012
Eggs. The Living Legend Needs Eggs.
Once again, I'm borrowing a line from Firefly, but it appears to be my thing. That and it just seems that Joss Whedon managed to conceive a line of dialogue for every occasion. Joss is Boss. Fact. Just wait. Avengers is going to prove that. The trailer has shown us this already.
However, as much as Avengers is so awesome it's getting mentioned again, this is more about Pancake Day. Hence why I'm quoting Jayne Cobb. Today at work someone wondered what was the deal behind Pancake Day (though I'm fairly sure they phrased it as "Shrove Tuesday", Pancake Day's official name). My response - "Jesus. It's something to do with Jesus."
Now why am I babbling about this? I'm a fatalist. To that end, let's talk about the pancakes. Or, more precisely, the failure of our experiment with coffee in the pancake mix. I think the failure was the result of the kind of coffee used (at this point, I have *definitely* worked in the coffee industry too long). We used soluble coffee granules, the kind from a jar. The problem was I expecting something like iced coffee. You know, shot or two of espresso in the mix, that would've worked. A note for next time.
Okay, so I'll be honest. A bit underwhelmed by Pancake Day this year. I had, pretty much, one pancake. Well, two. One coffee pancake and one regular pancake. With cherries. I don't the cherries were the problem. My inability to find maple syrup, that was a problem. Must admit, I'm also fearing a slight Christmas Effect here. Allow me to elaborate.
Ever found that, as you grow up, Christmas becomes less and less exciting? Back in the day, as a kid, you couldn't wait. You'd wake up at ridiculous o'clock, sneak into the living room and watch really, really random CGI animation things (that you only ever found at Christmas and still have no clue what it was called), desperate to open those presents staring at you from under the tree because you've already exhausted everything that was left in the stocking. Or, in the case of my later years, under my little Christmas tree. This is the Christmas Effect - over time, excitement decreases. Has this happened to Pancake Day for me?
Well, just going to have to wait until 2013 to figure that out. For now, I'm blaming no maple syrup. Maple syrup was good last year. Also, my flipping technique needs a *lot* of work.
Random digression time. Mass Effect time. Just finished my second playthrough of the first Mass Effect. Finally decided to get around to playing Mass Effect 2. Not played very much yet. Enjoying so far nonetheless. Don't think I'll have it done in time to play Mass Effect 3. I'm saying Mass Effect a lot today. Mass Effect.
Oh, now here's something good to babble about. My growing collection of Quantum Mechanix swag. My last post prior to my list of top ten villains mentioned my anticipation of the arrival of my Claudia Donovan (of Warehouse 13 fame) maquette and F-302 (Stargate SG-1 fame) replica. But, thanks to QMx's ability to torture me with awesome stuff (namely free Firefly buttons), I now have a Viper keychain. Attached to my bag. Complimenting my Quantum Mechanix rocket (which came with my River Tam maquette) and my Millenium Falcon Lego keychain that was a gift from my nephews when they went to Legoland Windsor.
I still haven't been. A fact that still torments me to this day.
So yes. I have my new QMx swag now. Claudia is now dutifully guarding my GameCube and, by extension, looking down on me whenever I'm watching a DVD or playing a video game. Thankfully, not in a judgemental manner.
Pictures of my QMx swag will follow. Eventually...
Now to wrap this up with some kind of profound thought. "He who asks is a fool for five minutes. He who does not ask remains a fool forever." Chinese Proverb. I think that's pretty profound.
However, as much as Avengers is so awesome it's getting mentioned again, this is more about Pancake Day. Hence why I'm quoting Jayne Cobb. Today at work someone wondered what was the deal behind Pancake Day (though I'm fairly sure they phrased it as "Shrove Tuesday", Pancake Day's official name). My response - "Jesus. It's something to do with Jesus."
Now why am I babbling about this? I'm a fatalist. To that end, let's talk about the pancakes. Or, more precisely, the failure of our experiment with coffee in the pancake mix. I think the failure was the result of the kind of coffee used (at this point, I have *definitely* worked in the coffee industry too long). We used soluble coffee granules, the kind from a jar. The problem was I expecting something like iced coffee. You know, shot or two of espresso in the mix, that would've worked. A note for next time.
Okay, so I'll be honest. A bit underwhelmed by Pancake Day this year. I had, pretty much, one pancake. Well, two. One coffee pancake and one regular pancake. With cherries. I don't the cherries were the problem. My inability to find maple syrup, that was a problem. Must admit, I'm also fearing a slight Christmas Effect here. Allow me to elaborate.
Ever found that, as you grow up, Christmas becomes less and less exciting? Back in the day, as a kid, you couldn't wait. You'd wake up at ridiculous o'clock, sneak into the living room and watch really, really random CGI animation things (that you only ever found at Christmas and still have no clue what it was called), desperate to open those presents staring at you from under the tree because you've already exhausted everything that was left in the stocking. Or, in the case of my later years, under my little Christmas tree. This is the Christmas Effect - over time, excitement decreases. Has this happened to Pancake Day for me?
Well, just going to have to wait until 2013 to figure that out. For now, I'm blaming no maple syrup. Maple syrup was good last year. Also, my flipping technique needs a *lot* of work.
Random digression time. Mass Effect time. Just finished my second playthrough of the first Mass Effect. Finally decided to get around to playing Mass Effect 2. Not played very much yet. Enjoying so far nonetheless. Don't think I'll have it done in time to play Mass Effect 3. I'm saying Mass Effect a lot today. Mass Effect.
Oh, now here's something good to babble about. My growing collection of Quantum Mechanix swag. My last post prior to my list of top ten villains mentioned my anticipation of the arrival of my Claudia Donovan (of Warehouse 13 fame) maquette and F-302 (Stargate SG-1 fame) replica. But, thanks to QMx's ability to torture me with awesome stuff (namely free Firefly buttons), I now have a Viper keychain. Attached to my bag. Complimenting my Quantum Mechanix rocket (which came with my River Tam maquette) and my Millenium Falcon Lego keychain that was a gift from my nephews when they went to Legoland Windsor.
I still haven't been. A fact that still torments me to this day.
So yes. I have my new QMx swag now. Claudia is now dutifully guarding my GameCube and, by extension, looking down on me whenever I'm watching a DVD or playing a video game. Thankfully, not in a judgemental manner.
Pictures of my QMx swag will follow. Eventually...
Now to wrap this up with some kind of profound thought. "He who asks is a fool for five minutes. He who does not ask remains a fool forever." Chinese Proverb. I think that's pretty profound.
Sunday, 29 January 2012
Sour Times, Impending Arrivals and TROLL!
I want to go to Norway. This is not a new thing. It's never been a secret thing either. But as will be revealed by the end of this blog, my desire to visit the wonderful land of Norway has been rekindled.
However, since I'm borderline obsessive-compulsive at the best of times, I'm going to explain all three parts of the title in chronological order.
So.
Sour Times.
I blame H.G. Wells. I won't explain exactly why, but for those who don't know, watch Warehouse 13. Start to finish...well...start to current point of broadcast programming. Then you'll understand why H.G. Wells is to blame. Anyway, to the parts that I can explain. Sour Times is my current song addiction. Every now and again, I look up a song on YouTube and I'll listen to it, pretty much on a loop, for maybe a month or two. Sour Times is by Portishead. It's a wonderful song and the video...the video is incredible. As a storyteller, it amazes how brilliant a story the video tells.
Basically, it revolves around a woman plotting and enacting her revenge on a man who she was involved with, who tried to kill her. It's told in a non-linear fashion (a style of storytelling I've always loved, but never quite mastered myself) and when it finally dawns on you why this guy is being shot by a sniper rifle...well, when it dawned on me, I was in awe. Not only is Sour Times a great song, but it tells an amazing story. Good times.
Now - Impending arrivals. Back in November 2011, Quantum Mechanix, my eternal tormentor and provider of awesome geek collectibles, had a Black Friday sale. In that sale, their replica of the F-302 fighter/interceptor from Stargate SG-1 was $19.95, down from $119.95. Bargain? You're godsdamn frakking right! And so it was ordered, along with the Claudia Donovan (of Warehouse 13) maquette, which had just been made available for preorder. Thus, it's been a long wait until the fabled Quarter 1 shipping date. But at last, after a couple of months of waiting, they have finally been dispatched! This makes me happy. Naturally, I'll be happier when they arrive and take pride of place in the locations I have picked out for them; Claudia taking up position next to my GameCube (as River Tam already defends my Nintendo 64, with Kaylee distracting anyone who tries to after it!), with the F-302 on top of my bookcase.
And now...
TROLL!
If no one's figured it out yet from the not so subtle clues of Norway and "TROLL!", I watched Troll Hunter this evening. I missed a bit of the start, but I was quickly filled in on the pertinent details. Including the shouting of "TROLL!" (meme soon to follow).
Okay then. Troll Hunter. What to say? Damn. Godsdamn. Epic frakking movie. Just...seriously, it will have you yelling "TROLL!" at every possible opportunity. Or finding similar finding words and shouting those - "BOWL!" and "MOLE!" to name but two.
The movie itself is, as my previous comments may have suggested, brilliant. It one of those documentary-style numbers, with a camera crew being caught up in a hunt for...well...trolls. Oddly enough. While the filming is pretty damn serious, there are some genuinely brilliant moments of levity that make this an amusing and compelling film. Also, Norway is very, very pretty. When I do go there one day, I may have to add troll hunting to my itinerary of seeing the sun at midnight and watching the aurora borealis.
However, since I'm borderline obsessive-compulsive at the best of times, I'm going to explain all three parts of the title in chronological order.
So.
Sour Times.
I blame H.G. Wells. I won't explain exactly why, but for those who don't know, watch Warehouse 13. Start to finish...well...start to current point of broadcast programming. Then you'll understand why H.G. Wells is to blame. Anyway, to the parts that I can explain. Sour Times is my current song addiction. Every now and again, I look up a song on YouTube and I'll listen to it, pretty much on a loop, for maybe a month or two. Sour Times is by Portishead. It's a wonderful song and the video...the video is incredible. As a storyteller, it amazes how brilliant a story the video tells.
Basically, it revolves around a woman plotting and enacting her revenge on a man who she was involved with, who tried to kill her. It's told in a non-linear fashion (a style of storytelling I've always loved, but never quite mastered myself) and when it finally dawns on you why this guy is being shot by a sniper rifle...well, when it dawned on me, I was in awe. Not only is Sour Times a great song, but it tells an amazing story. Good times.
Now - Impending arrivals. Back in November 2011, Quantum Mechanix, my eternal tormentor and provider of awesome geek collectibles, had a Black Friday sale. In that sale, their replica of the F-302 fighter/interceptor from Stargate SG-1 was $19.95, down from $119.95. Bargain? You're godsdamn frakking right! And so it was ordered, along with the Claudia Donovan (of Warehouse 13) maquette, which had just been made available for preorder. Thus, it's been a long wait until the fabled Quarter 1 shipping date. But at last, after a couple of months of waiting, they have finally been dispatched! This makes me happy. Naturally, I'll be happier when they arrive and take pride of place in the locations I have picked out for them; Claudia taking up position next to my GameCube (as River Tam already defends my Nintendo 64, with Kaylee distracting anyone who tries to after it!), with the F-302 on top of my bookcase.
And now...
TROLL!
If no one's figured it out yet from the not so subtle clues of Norway and "TROLL!", I watched Troll Hunter this evening. I missed a bit of the start, but I was quickly filled in on the pertinent details. Including the shouting of "TROLL!" (meme soon to follow).
Okay then. Troll Hunter. What to say? Damn. Godsdamn. Epic frakking movie. Just...seriously, it will have you yelling "TROLL!" at every possible opportunity. Or finding similar finding words and shouting those - "BOWL!" and "MOLE!" to name but two.
The movie itself is, as my previous comments may have suggested, brilliant. It one of those documentary-style numbers, with a camera crew being caught up in a hunt for...well...trolls. Oddly enough. While the filming is pretty damn serious, there are some genuinely brilliant moments of levity that make this an amusing and compelling film. Also, Norway is very, very pretty. When I do go there one day, I may have to add troll hunting to my itinerary of seeing the sun at midnight and watching the aurora borealis.
Monday, 16 January 2012
Back in the World of Blogging
It's been a while. I haven't had a blog in well over a year. So this post is liable to be brief and rambling.
So. A year. Over that, in fact. To honour this, how about a retrospective on 2011? I would say it began as it meant to go on, but since the Anime Society Cosplay Ball in Bristol, there have been no more. Not that I've attended anyway. However, while I didn't cosplay then, I did later, in March. It was a friend's birthday party. I went as Spike, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I sat in a chair most of the night and had great fun, especially when I was asked to do his opening speech about vampires and the cruxifiction. Now that was fun.
It was a hell of a year. Film wise, definitely. More specifically, Marvel films. Now I'll admit, I'm not extensively knowledgable with regards to Marvel comics. That falls to my housemate, who briefs me on various aspects when I ask relevent questions. But I love the Marvel cinematic universe. And this year was so very, very good for that. I may have been a tad sceptical about Thor at first, though the awesome trailers put those fears to rest a little. Then the film came. I watched it with my Marvel-knowledgable housemate, on its day of release. It was about then that Mjolnir pretty flew out of screen (despite watching it in 2D), found my scepticism and promptly banished it to Nifilheim.
Thor was then followed by X-Men: First Class. I don't know what it is about movies, but they have this way of protraying the 1960s with an excessive amount of charm and awesomeness. Throw in James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender into the mix and...well...wow. I mean, there are a few holes here and there. It's an inevitable fact with most adaptations. Michael Fassbender's fluctuating accent is equally amusing, but when it comes down to it, the film is still frakking awesome!
Finally, there was Captain America. Chris Evans, redeeming himself from Fantastic Four and following on from what I would say was a pretty damn underrated performance in Push, which was shamefully underrated. Damn good film. And Captain America did not disappoint either. Hilariously over-patriotic (but hey, it's Captain America. The clue was in the title) and thoroughly, thoroughly entertaining. The result of this film and Thor gives me great, great hope for The Avengers. That and the frakking awesome Avengers trailer.
So that's 2011 in film. In television, I'd say it was fairly unremarkable. Right now, until halfway through this paragraph, when I'll likely have some manner of epiphany about what I've seen. But so far, I'll stick with my Warehouse 13 epiphany.
I blame Quantum Mechanix entirely for this. If it wasn't for the Claudia Maquette (which I now have on pre-order, in the same order as a Stargate SG-1 F-302 interceptor), then I wouldn't have obtained the first series. Then I wouldn't have been exposed to the true awesomeness of Claudia Donovan and fallen promptly in love with her. And then I wouldn't have bought seaon two of Warehouse 13 and fallen even more in love with her and a particularly interesting character I won't mention here. Just watch the show and find out!
So I'm not sure how much more I can say about 2011. Like any year, it was full of upheavals, sadness, happiness. Life, love and great friendship (and she knows who she is, I'm hoping she'll be reading this - shameful injoke/referencing hidden here). When all's said and done, I'm still here, I'm still alive and by gods I'm going to keep being here and being alive, with those great friends by my side, as I will always be by theirs.
But since I mentioned Quantum Mechanix, I'll talk a little bit more about them. And how much I love them but simultaneously hate them.
It began with River Tam. Specifically, the River Tam maquette. It has, alas, sold out in their Black Friday sale (where I picked up Claudia and the F-302), but I picked one up in July, along with an awesome Browncoats t-shirt. Since then, I have pined for their Colonial Fleet Viper Mark II replica (from the awesome, amazing Battlestar Galactica), acquired the Kaylee maquette and have a pair of Colonial Fleet dogtags, with my name and serial number, dangling around my neck.
Okay, I think I'll stop rambling now. Hope you ladies and menfolk have enjoyed this ramble, as there will be more to follow - at very, VERY sporadic intervals, as 2012 - the year of great change - progresses.
So. A year. Over that, in fact. To honour this, how about a retrospective on 2011? I would say it began as it meant to go on, but since the Anime Society Cosplay Ball in Bristol, there have been no more. Not that I've attended anyway. However, while I didn't cosplay then, I did later, in March. It was a friend's birthday party. I went as Spike, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I sat in a chair most of the night and had great fun, especially when I was asked to do his opening speech about vampires and the cruxifiction. Now that was fun.
It was a hell of a year. Film wise, definitely. More specifically, Marvel films. Now I'll admit, I'm not extensively knowledgable with regards to Marvel comics. That falls to my housemate, who briefs me on various aspects when I ask relevent questions. But I love the Marvel cinematic universe. And this year was so very, very good for that. I may have been a tad sceptical about Thor at first, though the awesome trailers put those fears to rest a little. Then the film came. I watched it with my Marvel-knowledgable housemate, on its day of release. It was about then that Mjolnir pretty flew out of screen (despite watching it in 2D), found my scepticism and promptly banished it to Nifilheim.
Thor was then followed by X-Men: First Class. I don't know what it is about movies, but they have this way of protraying the 1960s with an excessive amount of charm and awesomeness. Throw in James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender into the mix and...well...wow. I mean, there are a few holes here and there. It's an inevitable fact with most adaptations. Michael Fassbender's fluctuating accent is equally amusing, but when it comes down to it, the film is still frakking awesome!
Finally, there was Captain America. Chris Evans, redeeming himself from Fantastic Four and following on from what I would say was a pretty damn underrated performance in Push, which was shamefully underrated. Damn good film. And Captain America did not disappoint either. Hilariously over-patriotic (but hey, it's Captain America. The clue was in the title) and thoroughly, thoroughly entertaining. The result of this film and Thor gives me great, great hope for The Avengers. That and the frakking awesome Avengers trailer.
So that's 2011 in film. In television, I'd say it was fairly unremarkable. Right now, until halfway through this paragraph, when I'll likely have some manner of epiphany about what I've seen. But so far, I'll stick with my Warehouse 13 epiphany.
I blame Quantum Mechanix entirely for this. If it wasn't for the Claudia Maquette (which I now have on pre-order, in the same order as a Stargate SG-1 F-302 interceptor), then I wouldn't have obtained the first series. Then I wouldn't have been exposed to the true awesomeness of Claudia Donovan and fallen promptly in love with her. And then I wouldn't have bought seaon two of Warehouse 13 and fallen even more in love with her and a particularly interesting character I won't mention here. Just watch the show and find out!
So I'm not sure how much more I can say about 2011. Like any year, it was full of upheavals, sadness, happiness. Life, love and great friendship (and she knows who she is, I'm hoping she'll be reading this - shameful injoke/referencing hidden here). When all's said and done, I'm still here, I'm still alive and by gods I'm going to keep being here and being alive, with those great friends by my side, as I will always be by theirs.
But since I mentioned Quantum Mechanix, I'll talk a little bit more about them. And how much I love them but simultaneously hate them.
It began with River Tam. Specifically, the River Tam maquette. It has, alas, sold out in their Black Friday sale (where I picked up Claudia and the F-302), but I picked one up in July, along with an awesome Browncoats t-shirt. Since then, I have pined for their Colonial Fleet Viper Mark II replica (from the awesome, amazing Battlestar Galactica), acquired the Kaylee maquette and have a pair of Colonial Fleet dogtags, with my name and serial number, dangling around my neck.
Okay, I think I'll stop rambling now. Hope you ladies and menfolk have enjoyed this ramble, as there will be more to follow - at very, VERY sporadic intervals, as 2012 - the year of great change - progresses.
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