With the premiere of BBC America's Copper less than an hour away, it got me thinking - why are we so fascinated with period dramas? Copper is a crime drama set in 1864 New York City, from Five Points to Fifth Avenue, and follows an Irish Catholic cop as he tries to solve crimes in a corrupt city. I am so excited to see how this turns out; it has been described as a grittier Gangs of New York.
So, Copper, Gangs of New York, Titanic, Downton Abbey...what's the intrigue? I believe the attraction of period drama is our fascination with our own history. Sure, the costumes are usually beautiful and mildly mindblowing, so add to the awesomeness that is a period piece, but I find myself drawn to historical projects because I love the glimpse into how life used to be (however Hollywood-ified it may be). I love imagining myself in the costumes and in the society - upper class, of course ;)
I love history. I prefer certain periods more than others, of course, but I like knowing where we've been and - as pessimistic as this may sound - what mistakes we're repeating. As the saying goes, "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it" and I find it all fascinating.
I would love to get immortality just so I can go to school for years and years and study everything I would love to study. But for now, I'll just have to settle for my period pieces.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Obsessions - Unhealthy, but Fun
Obsessions are different from addictions....an addiction is caused by a chemical something-or-other in your brain, where an obsession is something you really really like and don't have the desire or willpower to avoid thinking about all of the time - no chemicals here. Nerds seem to be especially adept at it, too; we have "an unnatural ability to obsess and focus when others would be content with 'letting it go'" (yes, I'm quoting Chris Hardwick's The Nerdist Way again - page ix). Later in the book, Chris goes on to write that "a 'Nerd' is someone who homes in on a topic to an almost quantum detail, much of the time at the expense of healthy social interaction. Nerds get caught up in minutiae because there is a tremendous and fulfilling sense of control in understanding every single detail of a thing more than any other living creature" (p4). So, really, our obsessions actually define us as nerds! Think about it - there are Star Trek Nerds, Science Nerds, Book Nerds...all named after the subjects they obsess over. I refer to myself as a nerdy fangirl because I belong to several different nerd groups...I'm a Book Nerd, I'm a TV Nerd, I'm a little bit of a Movie Nerd...so, to include everything that I enjoy and am a fan of, I'm a nerdy fangirl. I've discussed some of my obsessions on this blog before, so I'm just going to go through the highlights...
My nerdiness first manifested when I was introduced to Buffy in 1998. I began watching in the middle of the second season, and have been obsessed with Joss Whedon's work ever since. I have seen the Buffy movie, the entire Buffy series, the entire Angel series, all fourteen Firefly episodes, Serenity, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog, both seasons of Dollhouse, The Cabin in the Woods, and I will even count Captain America: The First Avenger (barely - Joss had final rewrite and edit rights) and The Avengers. I am not a major fan of horror movies - mostly the gory ones, I just don't understand the need for everything to be covered in blood and guts - so the only reason I even thought about going to see The Cabin in the Woods was that I heard Joss Whedon had co-wrote and produced it (and Drew Goddard - a writer/producer on several of Joss's shows - co-wrote and directed it). I am one of the diehard Whedon fans who will buy/see anything he does, because I know I will enjoy it.
Once I was hooked by Joss Whedon - and had the Lord of the Rings trilogy for my bedtime stories as I was growing up - I started exploring more scifi/fantasy. Supernatural, Doctor Who, Misfits, The Vampire Diaries (the show and the books - which I consider separate universes), the Inheritance series (the books, NOT the movie)....they are all thanks to Joss Whedon.
I do have to talk about my latest obsession, which I don't think I have mentioned before. Earlier this year, I discovered TeeFury.com...it was the best and worst thing to happen. The best, because I now have a pile of awesome, nerdy shirts, but worst because of the impact has on my wallet - sure, each shirt is only $12 (shipping included), but eventually that adds up. I have to try to space it out across paychecks (which I can do now that I have a job again!!) I would recommend it to you, but honestly, you may not thank me for it ;)
My nerdiness first manifested when I was introduced to Buffy in 1998. I began watching in the middle of the second season, and have been obsessed with Joss Whedon's work ever since. I have seen the Buffy movie, the entire Buffy series, the entire Angel series, all fourteen Firefly episodes, Serenity, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog, both seasons of Dollhouse, The Cabin in the Woods, and I will even count Captain America: The First Avenger (barely - Joss had final rewrite and edit rights) and The Avengers. I am not a major fan of horror movies - mostly the gory ones, I just don't understand the need for everything to be covered in blood and guts - so the only reason I even thought about going to see The Cabin in the Woods was that I heard Joss Whedon had co-wrote and produced it (and Drew Goddard - a writer/producer on several of Joss's shows - co-wrote and directed it). I am one of the diehard Whedon fans who will buy/see anything he does, because I know I will enjoy it.
Once I was hooked by Joss Whedon - and had the Lord of the Rings trilogy for my bedtime stories as I was growing up - I started exploring more scifi/fantasy. Supernatural, Doctor Who, Misfits, The Vampire Diaries (the show and the books - which I consider separate universes), the Inheritance series (the books, NOT the movie)....they are all thanks to Joss Whedon.
I do have to talk about my latest obsession, which I don't think I have mentioned before. Earlier this year, I discovered TeeFury.com...it was the best and worst thing to happen. The best, because I now have a pile of awesome, nerdy shirts, but worst because of the impact has on my wallet - sure, each shirt is only $12 (shipping included), but eventually that adds up. I have to try to space it out across paychecks (which I can do now that I have a job again!!) I would recommend it to you, but honestly, you may not thank me for it ;)
A sampling of my collection
"Whovian Crest" by WinterArtwork, "Galactic Battle Crest" by Bamboota,
"Imagination Mash-up" by MightyRain, "Bride" by khallion
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Oh, Companions...
**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**
The BBC America "Women of Doctor Who" special was tonight, which got me thinking...who is my favorite companion of the Doctor? I can't say much about classic companions - except a little about Sarah Jane, who made appearances in the modern series - but I can speak about the modern companions; Rose (and Jackie), Mickey, Captain Jack, Martha, Donna (and Wilfred), Amy, Rory and River.
I often group Rose, Jackie and Mickey together...Rose Tyler was the main companion, but her mother Jackie was very important to her and Mickey Smith was the ex-boyfriend who stuck around and became more of a family friend. I have to admit I got attached to Rose. Whenever I watch Doomsday (when Rose is forced to leave), Journey's End (when the Doctor leaves Rose with his Biometacrisis - think human clone) or End of Time (when, as he's regenerating, the Doctor goes back to the Rose who didn't know him) I always cry like a baby. Billie Piper and David Tennant are so skilled at making me care for Rose and their relationship, that every time her heart breaks, so does mine.
Captain Jack Harkness is a unique character. He came into the story line while Rose was the primary companion, had a few recurring appearances, then starred in his own spin-off, Torchwood. A time traveler in his own right, Jack simply liked the Doctor (and Rose, then Martha) enough to keep coming back.
Martha Jones was, to oversimplify it, the Doctor's rebound after Rose. Though he had already met Donna (more on that later), and Donna made him start to heal, it was Martha who helped him move forward. She was strong, confident, and studying to be a doctor herself. Unfortunately, she fell in love with him and left after one season, though she did reappear a couple times as a member of U.N.I.T. (Unified Intelligence Taskforce). She's also the only modern companion to leave of her own volition, when she realized she was going to waste her life pining after the Doctor if she didn't "get out".
Donna Noble is unique in that she's the only companion to come back. She was the companion in the 2006 Christmas Special, between Rose and Martha, and then left. A year later, she and the Doctor accidentally crossed paths again, and this time she didn't let him leave her behind. Donna speaks her mind, won't take his crap, and becomes his best friend (with NO romantic tension). Their season has been described as "a buddy cop movie through time" (Jonah Ray, "Women of Doctor Who", BBC America) and in fact, the first episode in which Donna returns is titled "Partners in Crime" and that is truly the best way to describe them. Unfortunately, in the most heartbreaking farewell of the companions, Donna experiences a biometacrisis that makes her part-Timelord. Because her physical brain is still human and unable to handle it, the Doctor must erase EVERY SINGLE memory of everything the two of them did together. Wilfred is Donna's grandfather who becomes friends with the Doctor, and accompanies him on Ten's final adventure before he regenerates into the Eleventh Doctor.
To round out the Companions within the Tenth Doctor's time period, we come to River Song, an archaeologist who spends most of her time with the Eleventh Doctor (so far). We meet River in season four, while the Doctor is traveling with Donna, and she has obviously known the Doctor for years and has been very very close to him. We don't really know who she is until later, so we'll come back to her. However, this is when River physically dies. The Doctor is able to digitally save her onto a hard drive, but as far as we know, River has passed on. Though we've only known her for two episodes, we get the sense that this is someone very important to the Doctor's future and I always cry. Especially knowing what I know now. But again, that's for later.
The next companion after he changes into his eleventh regeneration is Amy Pond, followed closely by Rory Williams. For the fifth season, Amy was the primary companion, but about halfway through, Rory joined them. Amy and Rory grew up together and were engaged to be married when Amy ran off with the Doctor the night before their wedding. The unique thing about Amy is that she has known the Doctor - and waited for him - for most of her life. He crashes into her backyard when she is a child, returns 12 years later (on accident. he meant to come back in five minutes) and then finally comes back for her fourteen years after they initially met. Amy is a brazen Scottish girl who is incredibly strong willed. Rory is her sweet, incredibly loving boyfriend/fiancee/husband who seems to have a bad habit of dying. A lot. He's come back every time so far, but he might want to try to stop that....
Finally, River Song comes back as a true companion in the fifth season. In the sixth season, we finally learn who River is. She is the daughter of Amy and Rory, Melody Pond. She and the Doctor get married in the season finale of the sixth season, so we are left with the feeling that her story is no close to over yet.
So, who is my favorite Companion? I'd have to go with Idris. We meet her in the sixth season episode, "The Doctor's Wife" and find out that she is the human incarnation OF THE FRICKIN' T.A.R.D.I.S.!!! The soul of the T.A.R.D.I.S. was stolen and put into a human body, so for the very first time in the 700 years that they have been together, the Doctor and the T.A.R.D.I.S. are able to SPEAK WITH WORDS. And they portray it absolutely beautifully. I'm not going to try to describe it - you need to see the episode to understand it. But she has to be my favorite companion, because even though we only meet her in human form once, no matter what happens, no matter who comes or goes, it will ALWAYS be the Doctor and his T.A.R.D.I.S. Because, of course, he is in fact a madman with a blue box.
I also really love Donna and Rory, if I have to pick humans.
The BBC America "Women of Doctor Who" special was tonight, which got me thinking...who is my favorite companion of the Doctor? I can't say much about classic companions - except a little about Sarah Jane, who made appearances in the modern series - but I can speak about the modern companions; Rose (and Jackie), Mickey, Captain Jack, Martha, Donna (and Wilfred), Amy, Rory and River.
I often group Rose, Jackie and Mickey together...Rose Tyler was the main companion, but her mother Jackie was very important to her and Mickey Smith was the ex-boyfriend who stuck around and became more of a family friend. I have to admit I got attached to Rose. Whenever I watch Doomsday (when Rose is forced to leave), Journey's End (when the Doctor leaves Rose with his Biometacrisis - think human clone) or End of Time (when, as he's regenerating, the Doctor goes back to the Rose who didn't know him) I always cry like a baby. Billie Piper and David Tennant are so skilled at making me care for Rose and their relationship, that every time her heart breaks, so does mine.
Captain Jack Harkness is a unique character. He came into the story line while Rose was the primary companion, had a few recurring appearances, then starred in his own spin-off, Torchwood. A time traveler in his own right, Jack simply liked the Doctor (and Rose, then Martha) enough to keep coming back.
Martha Jones was, to oversimplify it, the Doctor's rebound after Rose. Though he had already met Donna (more on that later), and Donna made him start to heal, it was Martha who helped him move forward. She was strong, confident, and studying to be a doctor herself. Unfortunately, she fell in love with him and left after one season, though she did reappear a couple times as a member of U.N.I.T. (Unified Intelligence Taskforce). She's also the only modern companion to leave of her own volition, when she realized she was going to waste her life pining after the Doctor if she didn't "get out".
Donna Noble is unique in that she's the only companion to come back. She was the companion in the 2006 Christmas Special, between Rose and Martha, and then left. A year later, she and the Doctor accidentally crossed paths again, and this time she didn't let him leave her behind. Donna speaks her mind, won't take his crap, and becomes his best friend (with NO romantic tension). Their season has been described as "a buddy cop movie through time" (Jonah Ray, "Women of Doctor Who", BBC America) and in fact, the first episode in which Donna returns is titled "Partners in Crime" and that is truly the best way to describe them. Unfortunately, in the most heartbreaking farewell of the companions, Donna experiences a biometacrisis that makes her part-Timelord. Because her physical brain is still human and unable to handle it, the Doctor must erase EVERY SINGLE memory of everything the two of them did together. Wilfred is Donna's grandfather who becomes friends with the Doctor, and accompanies him on Ten's final adventure before he regenerates into the Eleventh Doctor.
To round out the Companions within the Tenth Doctor's time period, we come to River Song, an archaeologist who spends most of her time with the Eleventh Doctor (so far). We meet River in season four, while the Doctor is traveling with Donna, and she has obviously known the Doctor for years and has been very very close to him. We don't really know who she is until later, so we'll come back to her. However, this is when River physically dies. The Doctor is able to digitally save her onto a hard drive, but as far as we know, River has passed on. Though we've only known her for two episodes, we get the sense that this is someone very important to the Doctor's future and I always cry. Especially knowing what I know now. But again, that's for later.
The next companion after he changes into his eleventh regeneration is Amy Pond, followed closely by Rory Williams. For the fifth season, Amy was the primary companion, but about halfway through, Rory joined them. Amy and Rory grew up together and were engaged to be married when Amy ran off with the Doctor the night before their wedding. The unique thing about Amy is that she has known the Doctor - and waited for him - for most of her life. He crashes into her backyard when she is a child, returns 12 years later (on accident. he meant to come back in five minutes) and then finally comes back for her fourteen years after they initially met. Amy is a brazen Scottish girl who is incredibly strong willed. Rory is her sweet, incredibly loving boyfriend/fiancee/husband who seems to have a bad habit of dying. A lot. He's come back every time so far, but he might want to try to stop that....
Finally, River Song comes back as a true companion in the fifth season. In the sixth season, we finally learn who River is. She is the daughter of Amy and Rory, Melody Pond. She and the Doctor get married in the season finale of the sixth season, so we are left with the feeling that her story is no close to over yet.
So, who is my favorite Companion? I'd have to go with Idris. We meet her in the sixth season episode, "The Doctor's Wife" and find out that she is the human incarnation OF THE FRICKIN' T.A.R.D.I.S.!!! The soul of the T.A.R.D.I.S. was stolen and put into a human body, so for the very first time in the 700 years that they have been together, the Doctor and the T.A.R.D.I.S. are able to SPEAK WITH WORDS. And they portray it absolutely beautifully. I'm not going to try to describe it - you need to see the episode to understand it. But she has to be my favorite companion, because even though we only meet her in human form once, no matter what happens, no matter who comes or goes, it will ALWAYS be the Doctor and his T.A.R.D.I.S. Because, of course, he is in fact a madman with a blue box.
I also really love Donna and Rory, if I have to pick humans.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
I Haz a Job!!
For those of you who don't follow my Facebook, I am officially employed...sort of. Target has offered me a job, and Orientation is tomorrow. I'm not exactly sure what that entails, but at least they have agreed to pay me to walk around the store and take people's money!!
Yes, I meant to word it that way. The piece of paper I was handed reads, "Sales Floor Hardlines/Softlines" which I think translates to cashiering and walking the sales floor.
Unfortunately, I accidentally applied to the wrong store (which is easy to do when you don't have to go to the physical store to apply, and they just list the stores close to you when you go online) so I will be looking at an hour drive for early morning weekday shifts, or 30 minutes on a good day when there's little traffic and no school (I have to get through the local high school traffic to get to my store, and having gone to that school for four years, I know what a MESS it can be). Especially since I will be sitting in traffic at least half that time, I am not looking forward to the toll this job is going to take on my gas tank.
BUT THERE MAY BE A SOLUTION!! If I move in with my dad, it will cut the distance I have to drive in more than half...the only unfortunate side to that is the six people currently living there. (That number can be bumped up to nine if you include the kids (like me) who have moved away.) Now, it's not a tiny house, but it's not a mansion either, and I would venture to guess six people is just about what it can comfortably hold. On top of that, the only room available to be converted into a bedroom is a small library, with no closet, in the basement. And the basement bathroom? Down right scary; it's very likely to be infested with spiders on any given day, and it is only used regularly by two teenage boys, so you can imagine how well they keep it clean.
Whereas I currently have a very spacious bedroom on the second floor, with my own bathroom - I know I have it good where I am right now. Not to mention, my grandmother's house is a mere ten minutes from the community college where I plan to finish the twelve credits outstanding on my degree. If I had managed to get a job at the Target nearer to her house, I would be on (relative) easy street. As it is, I have a dilemma I must solve as soon as possible.
What I think I am going to do, is "live" with my grandmother, but stay with my Dad whenever I have multiple days of work. For example, if I have shifts from Monday morning to Wednesday afternoon, I will stay at my Dad's house from Sunday night until Wednesday evening. Hopefully this will help my gas consumption just a little bit. And then, once I am established at the company, I plan on trying to request a transfer to a store closer to where I am living.
But nevertheless,
I HAZ A JOB FINALLY!! YAY!!!!!
Yes, I meant to word it that way. The piece of paper I was handed reads, "Sales Floor Hardlines/Softlines" which I think translates to cashiering and walking the sales floor.
Unfortunately, I accidentally applied to the wrong store (which is easy to do when you don't have to go to the physical store to apply, and they just list the stores close to you when you go online) so I will be looking at an hour drive for early morning weekday shifts, or 30 minutes on a good day when there's little traffic and no school (I have to get through the local high school traffic to get to my store, and having gone to that school for four years, I know what a MESS it can be). Especially since I will be sitting in traffic at least half that time, I am not looking forward to the toll this job is going to take on my gas tank.
BUT THERE MAY BE A SOLUTION!! If I move in with my dad, it will cut the distance I have to drive in more than half...the only unfortunate side to that is the six people currently living there. (That number can be bumped up to nine if you include the kids (like me) who have moved away.) Now, it's not a tiny house, but it's not a mansion either, and I would venture to guess six people is just about what it can comfortably hold. On top of that, the only room available to be converted into a bedroom is a small library, with no closet, in the basement. And the basement bathroom? Down right scary; it's very likely to be infested with spiders on any given day, and it is only used regularly by two teenage boys, so you can imagine how well they keep it clean.
Whereas I currently have a very spacious bedroom on the second floor, with my own bathroom - I know I have it good where I am right now. Not to mention, my grandmother's house is a mere ten minutes from the community college where I plan to finish the twelve credits outstanding on my degree. If I had managed to get a job at the Target nearer to her house, I would be on (relative) easy street. As it is, I have a dilemma I must solve as soon as possible.
What I think I am going to do, is "live" with my grandmother, but stay with my Dad whenever I have multiple days of work. For example, if I have shifts from Monday morning to Wednesday afternoon, I will stay at my Dad's house from Sunday night until Wednesday evening. Hopefully this will help my gas consumption just a little bit. And then, once I am established at the company, I plan on trying to request a transfer to a store closer to where I am living.
But nevertheless,
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
I'm Not Just Cult
I know I tend to talk more about cult favorites on this blog...Buffy, Battlestar Galactica, Doctor Who, Supernatural, etc...but I don't only like things in the science fiction or horror comedy genres, and I have found other - more "mainstream" - favorites as well.
For example, the movie Waitress. Now, yes, I first saw it because it stars Nathan Fillion, a scifi/horror comedy sweetheart, but I watch it repeatedly because it is a cute movie and Nathan does what he does best - plays adorably awkward and imperfect to a T. Keri Russell is an unhappily married woman, Jenna, who becomes pregnant when she accidentally sleeps with her husband Earl (Jeremy Sisto) after he gets her drunk one night. Nathan Fillion is Jim Pomatter, the young, attractive, married doctor who is taking over Jenna's doctor's practice. The two begin an affair that they must hide from their spouses, the nurses at the practice, and Jenna's friends and coworkers at the local pie diner. With a delightfully colorful cast of characters brought to life by Andy Griffith, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Shelley, Eddie Jemison, Lew Temple and others, this movie illustrates one woman's struggle for independence and asks the question, What is happiness?
I'm also a big fan of the USA and TNT channels. On USA, I enjoy Covert Affairs, White Collar, "old" shows like In Plain Sight, and the new limited series Political Animals. On TNT, aside from the fact that they have a syndication block every weekday morning called "Primetime in the Daytime" where they run Angel, Charmed, Supernatural, Las Vegas and Smallville, they have shows like Leverage, Franklin & Bash (which I keep meaning to watch - they look SO good) and Perception (I'm also interested in the reboot of Dallas, but since I wasn't quite born yet for the first run, I feel a bit less attached to it than I feel like I would if I remembered the original). Covert Affairs and White Collar have been around a few years and are both pretty popular, so I'm not going to go too much into them, but I don want to make sure to mention the new shows, Political Animals and Perception.
Political Animals follows the Hammond family, who are very clearly fashioned after the Clintons (though, this is an original story and they aren't exactly the Clintons). Sigourney Weaver plays Elaine Barrish, the Secretary of State who ran against the current President in the previous Democratic primary, and who divorced Bud Hammond (Ciarán Hinds), the former President, when his philandering got to be too much. However, they are still in each other's lives both professionally and personally, because they have adult twin sons, Douglas (James Wolk) and T.J. (Sebastian Stan). Doug has ambitions to become White House Chief of Staff, and T.J. is a homosexual drug addict who just wants something to call his own, and is currently fixated on owning a night club. Also in the cast are Ellen Burstyn as Elaine's mother, Carla Gugino as the cutthroat journalist who has ingratiated herself in the Hammond inner circle, Brittany Ishibashi as Doug's finacee, Dylan Baker as Vice President Fred Collier, and Adrian Pasdar as President Paul Garcetti. Creator Greg Berlanti (Dawson's Creek, Dirty Sexy Money, Everwood, Brothers and Sisters) perfectly balances political intrigue with family drama and keeps me coming back for more.
Perception stars Eric McCormack (y'know, Will from Will & Grace?) as Dr. Daniel Pierce, a professor and expert of neuroscience - coincidentally, a sufferer of schizophrenic hallucinations - who helps his former student turned FBI Agent Kate Moretti (Rachel Leigh Cook) solve cases involving the mentally ill. For the Trekkies out there who aren't quite convinced, LeVar Burton has a recurring guest role as Dean Paul Haley. Filled with humor and true science, this is a brilliant "mainstream" show that is sure to bring in the nerds with the real facts utilized.
For example, the movie Waitress. Now, yes, I first saw it because it stars Nathan Fillion, a scifi/horror comedy sweetheart, but I watch it repeatedly because it is a cute movie and Nathan does what he does best - plays adorably awkward and imperfect to a T. Keri Russell is an unhappily married woman, Jenna, who becomes pregnant when she accidentally sleeps with her husband Earl (Jeremy Sisto) after he gets her drunk one night. Nathan Fillion is Jim Pomatter, the young, attractive, married doctor who is taking over Jenna's doctor's practice. The two begin an affair that they must hide from their spouses, the nurses at the practice, and Jenna's friends and coworkers at the local pie diner. With a delightfully colorful cast of characters brought to life by Andy Griffith, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Shelley, Eddie Jemison, Lew Temple and others, this movie illustrates one woman's struggle for independence and asks the question, What is happiness?
I'm also a big fan of the USA and TNT channels. On USA, I enjoy Covert Affairs, White Collar, "old" shows like In Plain Sight, and the new limited series Political Animals. On TNT, aside from the fact that they have a syndication block every weekday morning called "Primetime in the Daytime" where they run Angel, Charmed, Supernatural, Las Vegas and Smallville, they have shows like Leverage, Franklin & Bash (which I keep meaning to watch - they look SO good) and Perception (I'm also interested in the reboot of Dallas, but since I wasn't quite born yet for the first run, I feel a bit less attached to it than I feel like I would if I remembered the original). Covert Affairs and White Collar have been around a few years and are both pretty popular, so I'm not going to go too much into them, but I don want to make sure to mention the new shows, Political Animals and Perception.
Political Animals follows the Hammond family, who are very clearly fashioned after the Clintons (though, this is an original story and they aren't exactly the Clintons). Sigourney Weaver plays Elaine Barrish, the Secretary of State who ran against the current President in the previous Democratic primary, and who divorced Bud Hammond (Ciarán Hinds), the former President, when his philandering got to be too much. However, they are still in each other's lives both professionally and personally, because they have adult twin sons, Douglas (James Wolk) and T.J. (Sebastian Stan). Doug has ambitions to become White House Chief of Staff, and T.J. is a homosexual drug addict who just wants something to call his own, and is currently fixated on owning a night club. Also in the cast are Ellen Burstyn as Elaine's mother, Carla Gugino as the cutthroat journalist who has ingratiated herself in the Hammond inner circle, Brittany Ishibashi as Doug's finacee, Dylan Baker as Vice President Fred Collier, and Adrian Pasdar as President Paul Garcetti. Creator Greg Berlanti (Dawson's Creek, Dirty Sexy Money, Everwood, Brothers and Sisters) perfectly balances political intrigue with family drama and keeps me coming back for more.
Perception stars Eric McCormack (y'know, Will from Will & Grace?) as Dr. Daniel Pierce, a professor and expert of neuroscience - coincidentally, a sufferer of schizophrenic hallucinations - who helps his former student turned FBI Agent Kate Moretti (Rachel Leigh Cook) solve cases involving the mentally ill. For the Trekkies out there who aren't quite convinced, LeVar Burton has a recurring guest role as Dean Paul Haley. Filled with humor and true science, this is a brilliant "mainstream" show that is sure to bring in the nerds with the real facts utilized.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Shameless Promotion
JENNA IS WRITING A BLOG!!!!
Ok, yes. I am her best friend and slightly biased, but I just read the first post in her food blog, Faux-Vegan, and it's totally something worth checking out. (There's a link to the right if you don't feel like clicking the link I embedded above)
I suck in the kitchen. My idea of cooking is throwing some noodles in boiling water and dumping a jar of spaghetti sauce in a pot. There, delicious spaghetti!! Jenna, on the other hand, owns a catering business. She and her mom together own Southern Comforts Catering, and make amazing food (you can learn more about Southern Comforts in her first blog post).
I have known that Jenna can cook for years now. When we were in school and I would stay with her for a few days, we always had home cooked meals that she made herself, and they were always delicious.
Faux-Vegan is a blog where, infused with humor, Jenna provides tasty vegan recipes, even though she's not vegan (don't worry, she addresses it [boom! paraphrased-Community-quote-no-one-will-recognize!])! The writing is funny, the food is delicious, and you won't regret giving it a shot. Trust me, there's a reason I've been friends with her for almost five years (take that as you will).
Monday, August 6, 2012
Siffee
For the most part, I really love the SyFy Channel. I even remember back when it was the SciFi channel, instead of today's Siffee (who decided to change it to SyFy?? I mean, c'mon people). They had these really cool bumpers with fantastic images that either came from or became everyday things, and then the word iF would come up and turn into the SciFi logo...SO cool. They have a little too much ghost hunting for my taste, but that is really my only negative feedback for this channel.
Even the SyFy Original Movies make me love it all the more. SyFy is the channel if you want awful special effects, campy acting and a not-quite-there script - it is the ultimate trash tv for a science fiction nerd. Dinocroc vs. Supergator, Frankenfish, Anonymous Rex... I'm not making this up, these are actual movies that they have made. (Wikipedia has a full list if you don't believe me.) There's even one called Bats: Human Harvest. It seriously does not get any better than the SyFy channel B movie selection, it's just junk food for your brain.
Another thing I love about the SyFy channel is their (usually) better quality miniseries. The full series they produce are usually pretty good - I was addicted to Eureka and have plans to watch Warehouse 13 - but every once in a while they come out with a brilliant miniseries. The first one I remember getting attached to was in December 2002; Steven Spielberg's Taken. Over ten episodes (each lasting an average of an hour and half, or two hours with commercials), five decades and four generations, we follow three families (the Keys, Crawfords and Clarkes) as each family member must deal with the repercussions of a genetic experiment aliens are trying to conduct with the Keys and Clarkes. It all culminates in the birth of Allie Keys, whose biology holds some genetic key the aliens want. I found myself attached to each and every generation, even though I knew they were going to get old and pass away before the series was over. They even made me care about the Crawford family, who are the antagonists! It's Steven Spielberg, so it's no surprise, but this is such a well-made miniseries that I have been searching for an affordable copy for a decade now.
Two more miniseries I fell in love with were both directed by Nick Willing; Tin Man (2007) and Alice (2009). I have not had a chance to see his miniseries Neverland (2011) yet, but I hope to soon. Tin Man is a modern take on The Wizard of Oz and stars Zooey Deschanel in the Dorothy role. Although it is beautifully shot, well written, and well acted, I have to admit I have not seen it as often as I have Alice.
Alice is a modern take on Alice in Wonderland. It is set one hundred and fifty years after "Alice of Legend" came to Wonderland and caused the upset with the Queen of Hearts. In that time, the Hatter has started running a Tea Shop (think investment trading for emotions) and the Queen of Hearts owns the Hearts Casino where human people are kept in a catatonic state and sapped of their emotions, which are very valuable to natives of Wonderland. The Queen has basically created a supply-and-demand economy for instant gratification. It has a semi-complicated plot with hidden identities, political intrigue, and legends becoming truth so I'm not gonna go too deeply into it, but suffice it to say it is an excellent miniseries and well worth the three hours it takes to watch completely.
Like I said before, I have not yet seen Neverland, but it is a four hour interpretation of Peter Pan and I am rather excited to finally sit down and watch it.
So, although SyFy has it's flaws (how many ghost hunting shows do there need to be?? I mean, honestly....) overall it is an awesome channel with programming for pretty much any taste. I recommend looking into it.
Even the SyFy Original Movies make me love it all the more. SyFy is the channel if you want awful special effects, campy acting and a not-quite-there script - it is the ultimate trash tv for a science fiction nerd. Dinocroc vs. Supergator, Frankenfish, Anonymous Rex... I'm not making this up, these are actual movies that they have made. (Wikipedia has a full list if you don't believe me.) There's even one called Bats: Human Harvest. It seriously does not get any better than the SyFy channel B movie selection, it's just junk food for your brain.
Another thing I love about the SyFy channel is their (usually) better quality miniseries. The full series they produce are usually pretty good - I was addicted to Eureka and have plans to watch Warehouse 13 - but every once in a while they come out with a brilliant miniseries. The first one I remember getting attached to was in December 2002; Steven Spielberg's Taken. Over ten episodes (each lasting an average of an hour and half, or two hours with commercials), five decades and four generations, we follow three families (the Keys, Crawfords and Clarkes) as each family member must deal with the repercussions of a genetic experiment aliens are trying to conduct with the Keys and Clarkes. It all culminates in the birth of Allie Keys, whose biology holds some genetic key the aliens want. I found myself attached to each and every generation, even though I knew they were going to get old and pass away before the series was over. They even made me care about the Crawford family, who are the antagonists! It's Steven Spielberg, so it's no surprise, but this is such a well-made miniseries that I have been searching for an affordable copy for a decade now.
Two more miniseries I fell in love with were both directed by Nick Willing; Tin Man (2007) and Alice (2009). I have not had a chance to see his miniseries Neverland (2011) yet, but I hope to soon. Tin Man is a modern take on The Wizard of Oz and stars Zooey Deschanel in the Dorothy role. Although it is beautifully shot, well written, and well acted, I have to admit I have not seen it as often as I have Alice.
Alice is a modern take on Alice in Wonderland. It is set one hundred and fifty years after "Alice of Legend" came to Wonderland and caused the upset with the Queen of Hearts. In that time, the Hatter has started running a Tea Shop (think investment trading for emotions) and the Queen of Hearts owns the Hearts Casino where human people are kept in a catatonic state and sapped of their emotions, which are very valuable to natives of Wonderland. The Queen has basically created a supply-and-demand economy for instant gratification. It has a semi-complicated plot with hidden identities, political intrigue, and legends becoming truth so I'm not gonna go too deeply into it, but suffice it to say it is an excellent miniseries and well worth the three hours it takes to watch completely.
Like I said before, I have not yet seen Neverland, but it is a four hour interpretation of Peter Pan and I am rather excited to finally sit down and watch it.
So, although SyFy has it's flaws (how many ghost hunting shows do there need to be?? I mean, honestly....) overall it is an awesome channel with programming for pretty much any taste. I recommend looking into it.
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