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Best of the Blog: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Mid-Afternoon / I Appeared as an Extra in the Movie The Itty Bitty Titty Committee / I Was Mugged in Broad Daylight Right Outside My Apartment / I Rode My Bicycle at Night Through Skid Row / I Played Softball With One of the Beastie Boys / I Hung Out Backstage at Conan O'Brien / Wil Wheaton Comments on My Blog Entries Tagged: How to Write / My Fiction / Art & Animation / Photos / Fan Art / Geek's Guide to the Galaxy / NYC Events / Recommended / Humor / SF is Important / Letters/Comments/Reviews / Nostalgia My Video Games: Dungeons Dank & Dismal / Best Doom 2 Deathmatch Map Ever / Defender / Caerion
Scott Pilgrim vs. the WorldAugust 28th, 2010It’s a little hard for me to believe that anyone reading this hasn’t already seen or isn’t already planning to see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, but just in case … go see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. And don’t take my word for it. Simon Pegg, a man of impeccable taste, also urges you attend.   Listener Support for the Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy PodcastAugust 26th, 2010Since the Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy podcast went on hiatus, we’ve received a fair number of messages from people who like the show. Here’s a sample: Antihippy: “I’m really sad to hear that it doesn’t sound like you’re doing this podcast any more. I really enjoyed it. You guys put me onto all kinds of cool stuff — I’ve been punting that trailer for Pumzi round all my mates. And I bought The Windup Girl and Hack the Planet almost exclusively because of the chats with the authors. I thought there was a ton of potential in the show as well. So I am giving you the sad face. :(” Farris wheel: “I’ve bought and read The Anubis Gates, Wild Seed, The Windup Girl, and Boneshaker because of the podcast. So thank you.” Sandikal: “I got hooked on Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty Norville series. I also pulled the Wastelands anthology off my to-read shelf and devoured it in a couple of days after the episode about apocalypses. The terrific reading list in that book led me to other good post-apocalyptic fiction, like Eternity Road by Jack McDevitt.” Mike: “I’m a huge fan of the show, and am sad to hear there may be no more. I’m one of those guys who actually knew about every single video game reference you guys made! Wish there were a mention of Deus Ex, though — was close in theme to a number of the books discussed in the podcast. ;) Good luck on all future endeavors.” Michael321: “I just discovered the Geek’s Guide podcast last week, and it has quickly become one of my favorites. You guys conduct great interviews, and you’ve turned me on to a whole ton of cool stuff I didn’t know existed. The banter between David and John is also very engaging; if you have trouble booking guests, I would be happy to listen to a podcast with just the two of you shooting the breeze. Count me as another one who is hoping the Geek’s Guide makes a comeback.” Ed: “I am a guy who has listened to every episode of your podcast since the beginning. I have enjoyed every single episode (except number 16, that one just didn’t do it for me). I have noticed the story podcast hosted by Ms. Lafferty has been canceled, and my precious Geek’s Guide has not been released on its usual schedule. I am filled with disquiet as a result of these circumstances and wonder if it is my fault somehow. Please pass on the following sentence to your corporate overlords. It may help. Ahem, ‘I have been in the unusual position that every time I hear a new episode of Geek’s Guide to The Galaxy, I am inclined, nay compelled, to purchase thousands of dollars of merchandise from Tor. My psychiatrist says this condition is incurable.’ There, hope that helps.” Pete S: “I note that the Geek’s Guide is ‘missing’. I hope it will return soon. I appreciate all of Tor’s efforts in podcasting stories as well as the Geek’s Guide, but when my time is limited, as it so often is, I find I look first for the Geek’s Guide each week. I’m 60+ and a reader of science fiction since I was 9 or 10, and a (continuing) purchaser soon after (if that is of any benefit to your marketing department). I do hope to hear from Dave and John again.” Siznax: “I’ve really enjoyed GGG episodes so far, and I hope you’re able to continue producing more. I find your interviews fascinating and entertaining. I’ve been amazed by your thoughtful observations and random knowledge, and you guys just really crack me up. Also, you’ve expanded my reading list, gotten me excited about new books and authors, and led me to read a lot of awesome stories. I find myself replaying your post-interview talks while waiting for the next episode, and it just never gets old. I was wondering how in the world you guys can be readers, authors, editors, anthologists, and produce a podcast, so I’m not surprised to hear how difficult it is. I was really hoping for GGG#999, but in the meantime I’ll continue enjoying everything else you guys produce, and all the great fiction you lead us to.” Fortunately for fans of the show, things are currently looking pretty promising for a Geek’s Guide relaunch in the near future. More news to come. Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated Out on DVDAugust 26th, 2010Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated is out now on DVD. The film, a collaborative effort by 150 artists, completely remakes George Romero’s 1968 movie Night of the Living Dead using a constantly shifting kaleidoscope of artistic styles, from animation to puppets, and features as a bonus an hour-long zombie discussion panel moderated by me and including John Joseph Adams, zombie authors Jonathan Maberry and Kim Paffenroth, and producers Peter Gutierrez and Rob Hauschild.  Here’s a photo from the panel as well as a graphic novel treatment. And here’s a trailer for the movie. Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead TV Series TrailerAugust 25th, 2010Robert Kirkman’s graphic novel series The Walking Dead is a must-read, a wise and sensitive portrayal of the psychological toll that surviving a zombie apocalypse would exert — week after week, month after month, year after year. A trailer for the upcoming TV series has just been released. Also, check out Kirkman’s first ever prose fiction publication, “Alone, Together,” in The Living Dead 2.  Toy YodaAugust 25th, 2010Just came across the Toy Yoda story on Snopes.com. Man, that’s cold: In 2001, 26-year-old Jodee Berry had bested the other servers at her restaurant in a competition to see who could sell the most beer in a month to that eatery’s customers, with the winner to receive a new “Toyota.” When the day came for her to be presented with her prize, Berry was led blindfolded to the restaurant’s parking lot to receive her award, but when the blindfold came off she was devastated to learn that the promised jackpot was not a Toyota automobile but rather a “toy Yoda,” a Star Wars doll. She quit her job and sued Gulf Coast Wings, Inc., the corporate owner of the restaurant, alleging breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation. In 2002 the suit was settled for an undisclosed amount of money, which one of the attorneys involved in the case said would enable her to go to the local car dealership and “pick out whatever type of Toyota she wants.”  I imagine the conversation went something like this: “Boss, winning a Toyota automobile is one thing. This is totally different.” “No, no different. Only different in your mind.” Harlan Ellison Documentary Dreams with Sharp Teeth on NetflixAugust 24th, 2010I just noticed that the biographical documentary Harlan Ellison: Dreams with Sharp Teeth (which I caught the premiere of back in 2007) is now an instant download on Netflix. If you haven’t seen it, it’s definitely worth checking out.  Just Say No MovieAugust 23rd, 2010Just Say No was an action thriller movie my friends and I made in middle school. It turned into an never-ending project, and ultimately convinced me that I was happier working on prose fiction, where you don’t have to worry about crap like actors forgetting their lines, actors constantly glancing at the cameraman, actors being unavailable because their parents have taken them to Cape Cod for the weekend, and, most annoying of all, the family who owns the camera moving repeatedly in the course of making the movie. If anyone cares, here’s the climactic finale, in which a pair of psychopathic drug dealers perform a home invasion and murder the only witness to their crimes, only to get caught up in a violent shootout with police.  Best ’80s Cartoon MusicAugust 23rd, 2010In today’s installment of ’80s cartoon nostalgia we’ll be covering the best tunes to appear in such shows. First off, Pole Position. Seriously, check out this song. I’ll wait.  Ba ba bum, they are always fighting crime… Oh, sorry, where was I? Yeah, so Pole Position. This was based on the popular arcade machine of the day, which was a straightforward speedway racing game. Of course to turn it into a cartoon you’ve got to make it more like Knight Rider and also make the cars fly and put in an adorable rodent and stuff. Actually, I have no idea what this show is about. It looks pretty stupid, and I don’t think I ever actually watched it, but I used to just listen to the theme music and then change the channel. I’d love to get a good remix of this song. There are a few attempts on YouTube, but as far as I’m concerned they’re all stuck in neutral. Next up, Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors. Another great song. Another show I’ve completely forgotten. It’s about heroes in battle cars who battle plant monsters who transform into battle cars. None of these characters are ringing a bell at all. Looks like there’s a Han Solo rip-off, a little girl, and a freaking wizard? Hmm, no idea. I am sure I used to have the toy for this monster though, the one who wields the fibrous penta-flail:  And last but certainly not least, Stan Bush’s epic “Dare” song from Transformers: The Movie (1986). You can watch the part in which this song appears here.  I still think this sequence is filmmaking at its finest. Notice how it kind of makes sense and there are actual emotions and you can actually tell what’s going on, in contrast to Michael Bay’s recent craptacular feature films, which possessed none of these virtues and which as far as I’m concerned succeeded only in transforming 350 million dollars into two steaming piles of dogshit. I’ve previously written about Transformers here, here, and here. I also wrote a short story called “Transformations” that some people seem to think is vaguely reminiscent of Transformers. Kick-Ass MovieAugust 22nd, 2010Okay, so I’d never even heard of this movie Kick-Ass, but I just rented it on a whim and it was pretty epic. It’s got McLovin from Superbad and Nicolas Cage in his first role of the millennium that didn’t make me want to gouge my eyes out. Definitely not for anyone who dislikes graphic violence though.  Richard Dawkins TV Program Faith School Menace?August 22nd, 2010Richard Dawkins questions the wisdom of faith schools in his new TV program Faith School Menace? There’s a constant effort in this country to force taxpayers to subsidize private religious education under the guise of “charter schools,” so it’s worth examining the disastrous effects this sort of thing has had in the UK. Faith schools in the UK have about 90% of their operating budgets paid for by taxpayers, but are free to discriminate on the basis of religion when it comes to admissions and hiring, and apparently have no real standards when it comes to teaching subjects like evolution and sex ed. Many parents are forced to switch churches, or fake religious beliefs altogether, in order to get their kids into a local school. In one appalling sequence, Dawkins discovers that every student at a Muslim faith school rejects evolution, and that the “science teacher” at the school is unable to explain how a scientist would answer the question, “If humans evolved from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?” — a question I’ve always regarded as the absolute gold standard of total stupidity. Dawkins also examines the role that faith schools have played in making the troubles in Northern Ireland into an endless, generations-long tragedy, because they ensure that children from Catholic and Protestant communities have no meaningful contact with each other. Much is made by proponents of faith schools of the right of parents to educate their children however they please, but Dawkins argues that children have rights too, such as the right to a balanced, broad-based education that gives them a fair chance to decide for themselves what religious beliefs, if any, they will hold. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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