If you've ever spent far too much time compiling a Halloween playlist, you'll get a kick out of this sketch from the third season of Mr. Show.
Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Television. Show all posts
Thursday, October 31, 2013 Halloween Treat: Mr. Show - "Monster Parties"
If you've ever spent far too much time compiling a Halloween playlist, you'll get a kick out of this sketch from the third season of Mr. Show.
Thursday, October 24, 2013 Halloween Countdown: Section V
Today's Occult Detectives are the heroes of the cult classic television series, Ultraviolet.
Officially the "Complaints Investigation Branch" of the London Metropolitan Police Force, the CIB is actually a joint operation with the Vatican's Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith - otherwise known as the Inquisition. Despite this connection (and the fact that the squad is headed by a priest), the CIB make a strenuous effort to keept the metaphysical at arm's length. The word "vampire" is never uttered; the enemy is referred to as "Code 5's", "leeches", or the "infected". Like Carnacki, the agents of Section V confront the supernatural equipped with the latest technology, employing concentrated garlic gas, carbon-tipped bullets, and gun cameras in their forays against the undead.
But the Code 5's remain stolidly supernatural. No effort is put forth to come up with a convoluted scientific explanation as to why they don't show up in mirrors or are able to reconstitute themselves (and their wardrobe) after being reduced to a fine powder. But despite their traditional characteristics, the vampires on Ultraviolet have a unique feel thanks to their creepy hivemind qualities.
The acting on Ultraviolet is top notch, with Idris Elba being an especial stand-out. It was my first exposure to him and I quickly became a fan - especially after an incredibly tense warehouse scene, probably the most memorable moment in the series.
There were only six episodes of Ultraviolet and the series ends on, if not an outright cliffhanger, a teasing note. Interviews with show creator Joe Ahearne indicate that he never intended for the show to continue, but personally I would love to see him revisit the property to type up a few loose ends.
The entire run of Ultraviolet are available for free viewing on Hulu. Whether you're looking for seasonal viewing or inspiration for a campaign of Night's Black Agents, the show is definitely worth sitting through a couple of on-line commercials.
- Code 5's do not show in mirrors, photographs or videos. Their voices cannot be recorded or transmitted by phone. Image and sound can only be detected face to face.
- They are immortal. They cannot be killed, only reduced to ashes (neutralized).
- They can be neutralized by exposure to sunlight or by introducing carbon into the chest cavity (projectile, probe or explosive). Resulting immolation releases enough energy to start fires.
- Code 5 ashes can be regenerated and must be kept secure.
- They can be repelled by ultraviolet light (the radiation in sunlight) or by allicin (the chemical in garlic).
- They can shield themselves from ultraviolet light with tinted glass.
- They can be affected by polluted blood.
- There may also be an aversion to religious symbols. This may be psychological. The effect of religious symbols on Code 5's is unproven.
- When they feed, the host wound heals over in minutes and can only be detected in ultraviolet light. The bite can be treated with lasers. The skin around the wound is burnt away leaving a small scar.
- If untreated, a human becomes suggestible and develops aversion to sunlight.
- When drained to death, a human becomes a Code 5. No-one is forcibly recruited. They only take those who want to go.
Wednesday, October 23, 2013 Occult Detectives: Carnacki the Ghost-Finder
Today's subject is one of the most enduring Occult Detectives, William Hope Hodgson's Carnacki the Ghost-Finder.
Thomas Carnacki was a true detective. Unlike other occult investigators, he would systematically eliminate every possible mundane explanation before exploring a supernatural solution to a case. And while Dr. Hessilius may have been the first to enlist the scientific method in the battle against the supernatural, Carnacki was the first to incorporate technology. In addition to the hoary tomes and rites used by other ghostbusters, Carnacki employed then-modern tools such as photography and electricity (the "nanotech" of his age). His most famous device was the electric pentacle, a souped-up version of the traditional occult symbol that was proper steampunk.
It's this techno angle that's led Carnacki to enjoy a mild resurgence in recent years, but it's the stories themselves that are key to the character's longevity. Hodgson is one of the key figures in horror literature, and his Carnacki stories are imaginative and tense. While the lead character is rather sketchily drawn, the fact that Carnacki is fallible and often overcome by fear himself help make him a ghostbreaker readers can identify with.
Despite the character's influence - and public domain status - there have been almost no attempts to bring Carnacki to the screen. The sole exception is an episode of the classic ITV series, The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes, that adapts Hodgson's "The Horse of the Invisible". Donald Pleasence plays Carnacki as a boffin, an engineer rather than a scholar, who consults ancient texts and historical records as if they were instruction manuals. It's a great portrayal and I wish Pleasence had gone on to a Carnacki series.
"The Horse of the Invisible" is available on DVD as part of the first Rivals of Sherlock Holmes collection. (The whole series is well worth your time.) And the episode is also available on YouTube, at least for now. Watch it while you can!
Friday, December 7, 2012 Zombies + Data = Geek Love
Yet another reason to cheer, "God Bless Canukistan!" The fine folks over at the National Post have created an awesome graphic charting all of the zombie kills on the tv version of The Walking Dead. Data points include weapons used, who did the killing, and zombie gender. It's way too big to reproduce in its entirety so head over to the National Point site and give them some pageviews.
Saturday, December 1, 2012 Somebody Loan Me A Few Million Dollars
Because I want to buy the Batmobile. From the LA Times:
Original Batmobile to go up for auctionThe reporter made a "Holy Something" joke. How hilarious and original.
By W.J. Hennigan
November 29, 2012, 6:00 a.m.
Holy hot rod, Batman!
The iconic Batmobile from the 1960s television show is going up for auction early next year.
The midnight-black and fluorescent-red-pinstriped car that Adam West's Batman used to battle villains in Gotham will be up for grabs Jan. 19 at Barrett-Jackson, the Scottsdale, Ariz., rare and classic auto auction house.
There is a reserve price for the car, but neither the auction house nor the car owner, famed car customizer George Barris, would confirm the lowest dollar amount they would accept. Plans for the sale were revealed at the L.A. Auto Show.
“Let's just say it's in the multimillions,” said Craig Jackson, chief executive of Barrett-Jackson. “The car is true Americana. It's hard to put a dollar figure on something like that.”
There's likely to be plenty of potential buyers. The one-of-a-kind 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car was originally created by a design team at Ford Motor Co.'s Lincoln styling department. The 19-foot-long, two-seat, bubble-topped grand touring car prototype was entirely hand-built in 1954 by Ghia Body Works in Turin, Italy, and unveiled in its original pearlescent “frost-blue” white paint finish in 1955 at the Chicago Auto Show.
In late 1965, 20th Century Fox Television and William Dozier's Greenway Productions tapped Barris to come up with a car to foil Batman's enemies. Barris said he transformed the Lincoln in just 15 days for $15,000. The heavily modified car, known around the world, was built at Barris' auto shop in North Hollywood.
Barris, who also made the Munster Koach and “Beverly Hillbillies” jalopy from the 1960s TV shows, turned out a monster.
The car features bulletproof plexiglass bubble windshields and the Bat Ray (dual 450-watt laser beams that blasted obstacles to bits). It also has a Bat-O-Meter, which identified the location of the bad guys, as well as oil squirters (fashioned from lawn sprinkler heads) to foil evildoers.
“I saw the script and it said, ‘Bang,' ‘Pow,' ‘Boom,'” Barris, now 87, said. “That's exactly what I wanted the car to do. I wanted it to be as big a character as the actors.”
Since the television show ended in 1968, the Batmobile has been on display at Barris Kustom Industries on Riverside Drive in a gallery. Selling the car is bittersweet for Barris. It's been his trademark for years. His cellphone's ring tone is a familiar theme song: “Na na na na na … Batman.”
“It's difficult to part with,” Barris said. “Whoever the lucky buyer is, I hope they have as much fun with it as I did.”
Adam West gave me a fist-bump once. I think that shows how deserving I am to be the owner of the original Batmobile Donations can be sent care of this blog.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012 Best Wishes for Rich "Svengoolie" Koz
Chicago media columnist Robert Feder reports that Rich Koz has been hospitalized following a heart attack Saturday night. Koz has posted a message to his social media sites that he is taking some time off following a busy Halloween season. And Sven was very busy this year, making personal appearances all over Chicagoland and being super-nice to an endless stream of fans that included Your Host.
It was an immense pleasure to meet someone who was an important part of both my childhood and my incredibly misspent adulthood. Rich and his family have my most heartfelt wishes for a full and speedy recovery.
Sven receiving his new coffin at Nightmare on Chicago Street. I was so totally there!
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 Halloween Countdown: Cinematic TItanic vs the Wasp Woman!
Holy schnikes! Cinematic Titanic is on Hulu!
For those that don't know, Cinematic Titanic is the current riffing project of Mystery Science Theater 3000 luminaries Joel Hodgson, Frank Conniff, Trace Belieu, Mary Jo Pehl, and Josh Weinstein. CT has only a handful of releases (especially compared to its half-brother, RiffTrax) but it's definitely a case of quality over quantity.
All of the team's earlier efforts are viewable. I think the live offerings are the best, as the audience sparks some spontaneity that is missing from the taped sessions. However, The Wasp Woman is one of my favorites and the episode I'm sharing here today.
And hey! After you're done with Cinematic Titanic, you can check out the Hulu channels for MST3K and RiffTrax. We do live in an age of wonders!
Sunday, October 30, 2011 Halloween Countdown: Kolchak, the Night Stalker
A while back, I came across this column by Michael Phillips, movie critic for the Chicago Tribune. It says everything I would want to express about one of my childhood heroes in a far better way than I could manage:
Vegas vampires in the 1970s faced an unforgettable foe
August 19, 2011
This week's release of "Fright Night," a sharp-witted remake which brings vampires to modern-day Las Vegas in all its sunny horror, marks a fine time to celebrate the memory of Darren McGavin and one of his choicest roles.
I refer to Carl Kolchak, the Vegas reporter in the porkpie hat, featured in "The Night Stalker," originally broadcast Jan. 11, 1972, as an ABC Movie of the Week. (Kolchak moved to Chicago for a short-lived TV series.)
Remember those? I certainly do. I remember the tear-stained hallways of my grade school the morning after "Brian's Song" aired. And I remember the not-quite-11-year-old me dying to watch "The Night Stalker" a couple of months later, which the promos made look pretty racy for network television, and then watching it (dad, mom: thanks), and not so much dying of fright (though it was scary for the time) as going crazy for McGavin's brashly comic portrayal of a seeker of truth and reluctant vampire slayer.
Talk about a genre mash-up. A refugee from a '30s newspaper comedy plunked down inside a serial killer movie with a mythic supernatural premise.
And people did talk about it. With a script by Richard Matheson, "The Night Stalker" was a huge ratings success up against "Hawaii Five-O" and an NBC documentary special on the troubles in Northern Ireland. The cast of "The Night Stalker" included Carol Lynley, Simon Oakland, Claude Akins and Ralph Meeker. Until seeing "The Night Stalker" again recently, in the less-than-ideal YouTube edition, I'd forgotten that Meeker was part of the cast. (By the way, if you haven't checked out the Criterion Collection reissue of Robert Aldrich's "Kiss Me Deadly," starring a vicious, sneering Meeker as Mike Hammer, do so as soon as possible.)
Johnny Depp has expressed interest in developing a remake of "The Night Stalker," which has already undergone a reboot or two in various formats. The original ABC version spawned a lesser sequel ("The Night Strangler") and a short-lived TV series. Vampires never die, as we know. They're everywhere, and they all seem to have their own franchises to run. I was frankly surprised how much the new "Fright Night" brought to a crowded party.
Revisiting "The Night Stalker" reminded me of how dependent the teleplay was on McGavin's rumpled charisma. Had "The Night Stalker" featured a less interesting actor as Kolchak, the ratings probably still would've soared. But while various aspects of "The Night Stalker" date, or weren't especially fresh to begin with, everything McGavin does adds to our enjoyment. Everything. A wonderful character man, he never really got his due or the career, busy and productive as it was, that he deserved. He also had a wonderful way of tilting a porkpie hat just so. Bloodsuckers come and go, and many are worth the time and trouble. But Kolchak was something special: an immortal mortal.
Fantastic Kolchak JACK O'LANTERN (!) by Benchak at DeviantArt
I was too young to watch the original movies when they first came out, and the follow-up series aired after my bedtime and I doubt my mom would let seven-year-old me watch something so spooky, anyway. I was fascinated by a TV listings ad for the "Vampire" episode of the series ("Remember that vampire Kolchak killed in Vegas?"), so I was ecstatic to finally catch up with Carl when CBS aired reruns as part of its Friday late-night block of programming (which is where I also discovered stuff like The New Avengers).
Naturally, I was hooked right from the start. The monster of the week format, the Chicago setting, but above all Darren McGavin's wonderful portrayal of Carl Kolchak as a broken-down newshawk who always fought the good fight no matter how terrified he was. And Carl got terrified a lot. Only Shaggy and Scooby could give him a run for the money in that department. But still Kolchak soldiered on, and it was one of the reasons we loved him so.
Given that the series was not a ratings bonanza, it's not surprising that there has been almost no Night Stalker merchandise. I was rather giddy when Fanogria #3 fell into my hands in 1979. It had a complete Night Stalker episode guide, and full color mini-poster that hung on my wall until it literally fell apart. But my first piece of Kolchak memorabilia was a copy of Arrgh! featuring a parody of The Night Stalker. Arrgh! was a monster-themed humor comic put out by Marvel in the early seventies. It had even less success than the Night Stalker show.
Here's the complete Night Stalker spoof from Arrgh! #4
Even today, now that geeks have inherited the Earth, there's precious few Kolchak tchotkes to be had, aside from Moonstone's line of Night Stalker comics and prose books. However, I did come across this replica of Kolchak's legendary straw hat. It's pricey as hell but it looks great (especially if you tuck this baby in the brim). Maybe someday, when I have a big house and I can set up a corner desk with an old manual typewriter, flash camera, and "portable" tape recorder. Make it look like ol' Carl had just stepped out for a moment to look something up in the file room.
Happy Halloween, Mr. McGavin.
Monday, October 24, 2011 Halloween Countdown: Halloween with The League of Gentlemen
Anyone familiar with the British comedy troupe, The League of Gentlemen, should be well aware of their love of the macabre. The group's work is rife with references to classic terror films, and both their eponymous television series and its follow-up feature often veered into outright horror at times. The League has kept up their interest in spooky stuff with various projects as a team or individuals (I'm still trying to track down a copy of their DVD commentary for Blood on Satan's Claw), and I'll be sharing a few of them in the next couple of days. First up are a two radio programs recorded in actual haunted houses.
Reece Shearsmith's Haunted House is a roundtable discussion of horror media recorded live at Sutton House in London and broadcast in two parts by the BBC in October, 2009. Among the panelists are comedian Vic Reeves, ghost hostess/charlatan Yvette Fielding, and Reece's fellow League member Mark Gatiss. The show features highlights from great horror films as well as rare clips from classic UK radio and television programs.
Also on offer is The League of Gentlemen's Ghost Chase, in which the gang attempt to stay the night at the most haunted hotel in the UK. Although the team all profess to be non-believers, it's interesting to see how things work out when each is alone in a creepy old manor with only a tape recorder for company. I felt their pain; I'm a skeptic, too, but I am also a chickenshit.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011 R.I.P. Elisabeth Sladen
Elisabeth Sladen
1948-2011
1948-2011
Well, goddamn. The BBC is reporting that dear Liz Sladen, better known to two generations as Sarah Jane Smith, has passed away. She had been battling cancer for some time but apparently kept this private. Sarah Jane was my first companion and she will always have a place in my heart.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011 R.I.P. Nicholas Courtney
Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon
Lethbridge-Stewart
1929-2011
Lethbridge-Stewart
1929-2011
This one is pretty hard for me to talk about, so I'll leave it to the many other memorials and reminiscences pouring on to the 'net. Suffice to say that one of my childhood heroes is gone.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010 The Dead Walk (On TV)
I don't have cable, so I had to catch the Halloween premiere of AMC's The Walking Dead on the downlow. While early buzz on the show was good, the opening episode should truly dispel any lingering doubts fans of the comics may have. Aside from the "light switch" speech, which was too long and poorly scripted, all of the changes from the source material were rock solid and heightened the sense of pathos and dread that define Kirkman's series. And it was surprisingly gory, though I couldn't help notice the modesty extended to even the most decomposed female zombies - even undead boobies are too dangerous for basic cable.
The show needs to be a different beast from the comic, if for no other reason than to keep the comic fans from anticipating every little plot point. It's clear that the show is in good hands, and I look forward to seeing how the new twists and turns play out.
I've heard through the geekvine that there's a theater in North Carolina showing the series "live" as it airs every Sunday. I would love the Brew N' View to do something similar.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 Dead Set on IFC
Your poor, blighted masses without region-free DVD players and/or the good sense to order a Region 2 copy of the fantastic zombie mini-series, Dead Set, are in luck. IFC has been airing the program all this week, with a encore showing of the complete series on Halloween. Set them DVRs, people.
Monday, October 25, 2010 Zombies vs. the Windy City
I am really looking forward to Sunday's premiere of AMC's adaptation of The Walking Dead. All of the advance buzz has been really positive, and the stills and press releases have convinced me that the production team knows what they are doing with the property.
The promotional team, on the other team, may have hit a bit of a snag. As part of a world-wide PR event, zombies will swarm down Michican Avenue early tomorrow morning - right when one of the strongest windstorms in seventy years is expected to hit Chicago. Oops. Expect bits of latex application and promotional flyers to land as far away as Urbana.
From the Chicago Tribune's RedEye:
The promotional team, on the other team, may have hit a bit of a snag. As part of a world-wide PR event, zombies will swarm down Michican Avenue early tomorrow morning - right when one of the strongest windstorms in seventy years is expected to hit Chicago. Oops. Expect bits of latex application and promotional flyers to land as far away as Urbana.
From the Chicago Tribune's RedEye:
'The Walking Dead' zombies to swarm Chicago Tuesday
Curt Wagner on 10.25.10 at 11:05 AM
Zombies will invade downtown Chicago Tuesday to promote AMC's "The Walking Dead" series, which launches Halloween night.
AMC's zombie infection series "The Walking Dead" begins Sunday, but the network launches a worldwide promotional invasion Tuesday that hits Chicago.
Beginning at 7 a.m., zombies will swarm around the Chicago Tribune building, home of RedEye and Show Patrol. You don't want to get too close to the zombies--even a scratch and you'll be infected--but feel free to talk to the brand ambassadors accompanying them.
The ambassadors will have information for you about the new series--which is awesome by the way--and about how to win a role as a zombie on the show. I am sooo going to try for that.
"The Walking Dead" premieres at 9 p.m. Sunday on AMC. The show is based Robert Kirkman's popular graphic novel series of the same name that's published by Image Comics. Kirkman and writer/director/producer Frank Darabont are part of the team that is bringing it to TV (read more in my "The Walking Dead" archive), not only in the U.S. but around the world. AMC and Fox International Channels are releasing "TWD" how films are released: FIC will debut the series in 120 countries and 33 languages within the first week of its U.S. premiere.
I'll have more on the show later, including cast interviews with Andrew Lincoln, Jon Bernthal, Sarah Wayne Callies and Emma Bell, photo galleries and my review--um, 4 stars by the way. Pick up Friday's RedEye for more, and come back here Tuesday and all week.
I have more from the AMC release below.
"The Walking Dead," from the graphic novel of the same name, premieres at 9 p.m. Oct. 31 on AMC.
WORLDWIDE ZOMBIE INVASION SWARMS CHICAGO
WHO: Zombies and Brand Ambassadors for AMC's "The Walking Dead" will swarm outside the Tribune building during Tuesday morning's commute as part of a global invasion staged by AMC and Fox International Channels on Tuesday, October 26 in anticipation of the premiere of AMC's new drama series, "The Walking Dead," which premieres on Sunday October 31 at 10 p.m.
WHAT: Taking direction from "The Walking Dead's" legendary make-up artist Greg Nicotero, hundreds of zombies will consecutively take over major cities worldwide during a 24-hour period. The planned global outbreaks will center in and around the world's major landmarks, including Westminster, Museo del Prado, Marienplatz, The Bosphorus Bridge and more. They will begin at daybreak in Taipei and Hong Kong, followed by Istanbul, Madrid, Munich, London, Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires, New York City and Los Angeles, among others. Attacking a total of 26 cities, each outbreak will be documented and shared with fans the world over as it happens.
WHEN: Tuesday, October 26, 2010 Walk begins promptly at 7:00 AM
WHERE: Chicago Tribune building (435 N. Michigan Ave.)
ABOUT THE WALKING DEAD
"The Walking Dead" tells the story of the weeks and months that follow after a zombie apocalypse. County Sheriff Rick Grimes (played by Andrew Lincoln) travels with his family and a small group of survivors, constantly in search of a safe and secure home. The original television series also stars Jon Bernthal ("The Pacific" "the Ghost Writer"), Sarah Wayne Callies ("Prison Break") and Laurie Holden ("The Sheild"). Kirkman serves as an executive producer on the project and three-time Academy Award nominee Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile) serves as writer, director and executive producer. Gale Anne Hurd (The Terminator, Aliens, Armageddon, The Incredible Hulk), chairman of Valhalla Motion Pictures, serves as Executive Producer. David Alpert from Circle of Confusion serves as Executive Producer. Charles "Chic" Eglee (Dexter, The Shield, Dark Angel) serves as Executive Producer.
"The Walking Dead" Global Zombie Invasion Attacks
* Chicago, USA
* New York City, USA
* Washington DC, USA
* Boston, USA
* San Francisco, USA
* Los Angeles, USA
* Taipei, Taiwan
* Hong Kong
* Istanbul, Turkey
* Athens, Greece
* Sofia, Bulgaria
* Estonia, Tallinn
* Belgrade, Serbia
* Munich, Germany
* Madrid, Spain
* Rome, Italy
* Johannesburg, S. Africa
* London, UK - Westminster
* Lisbon, Portugal
* Sao Paolo, Brazil
* Buenos Aires, Argentina
* Santiago, Chile
* Caracas, Venezuela
* Bogota, Colombia
* Mexico City, Mexico
* Guatemala City, Guatemala
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 August Zombie Round-Up
Whiz-banging around the intertubes is the length preview trailer for AMC's upcoming series based on Image Comic's The Walking Dead. Early promo stills had me excited, and the preview just stokes the flames.
If the series is only half as good as the comics, it's going to kick ass. I keep up with Robert Kirkman's zombie opus via trade paperback collection, and I swear I tear through each new volume in mere minutes, rushing through the pages in an anxious desire to find out what horrible thing happens next. I expect - and hope - that the television series will carve its own path and eventually stray from the on-going plot of the book. As long as AMC preserves the mood and nail-biting tension of the source material, I'll be happy.
While The Walking Dead may be unique on traditional television, the 'net is crawling with zombie web series. Most are amateur affairs, long on enthusiasm but short on production values (and all too often, talent). So a professional joint like Universal Dead really stands out from the pack; even though it's budget probably wouldn't cover catering for a Tom Cruise film, it looks great and features a couple of actors you might actually recognize. The downside? Chapters are short and are apparently released on a sluggish bi-monthly schedule. The first installment is below, and you can catch up with the rest via the link above.
Social commentary in zombie flicks ain't nothing new - Fido, Deadgirl, Homecoming, and of course Romero's pioneering works. The latest in this vein is a Spanish-Cuban production called Juan of the Dead. As the title suggests, it's a comedy. A slacker named Juan decides to profit from an undead uprising by selling his services as a zombie killer. Wackiness ensues. Expect a third-act epiphany that leads to Juan abandoning his capitalist ways in order to defend his family and country. Oh, and there's a rumor I totally believe that Fidel himself has a cameo. As a zombie.
Sneak peeks like the one above (more are available on YouTube) have not been very enticing, but it is cool to see a zombie movie coming from such unexpected quarters. The unique viewpoint may make Juan of the Dead worth checking out. I mean, it can't be any worse than Zombies of Mass Destruction.
And finally, thanks to RPG.NET, I have been made aware of a site selling custom zombie marital aids. The sellers also offer models inspired by Cthulhu and Alien. We can only hope they are being purchased for their conversational value and not for any practical use.
If the series is only half as good as the comics, it's going to kick ass. I keep up with Robert Kirkman's zombie opus via trade paperback collection, and I swear I tear through each new volume in mere minutes, rushing through the pages in an anxious desire to find out what horrible thing happens next. I expect - and hope - that the television series will carve its own path and eventually stray from the on-going plot of the book. As long as AMC preserves the mood and nail-biting tension of the source material, I'll be happy.
_________________________________________
While The Walking Dead may be unique on traditional television, the 'net is crawling with zombie web series. Most are amateur affairs, long on enthusiasm but short on production values (and all too often, talent). So a professional joint like Universal Dead really stands out from the pack; even though it's budget probably wouldn't cover catering for a Tom Cruise film, it looks great and features a couple of actors you might actually recognize. The downside? Chapters are short and are apparently released on a sluggish bi-monthly schedule. The first installment is below, and you can catch up with the rest via the link above.
_________________________________________
Social commentary in zombie flicks ain't nothing new - Fido, Deadgirl, Homecoming, and of course Romero's pioneering works. The latest in this vein is a Spanish-Cuban production called Juan of the Dead. As the title suggests, it's a comedy. A slacker named Juan decides to profit from an undead uprising by selling his services as a zombie killer. Wackiness ensues. Expect a third-act epiphany that leads to Juan abandoning his capitalist ways in order to defend his family and country. Oh, and there's a rumor I totally believe that Fidel himself has a cameo. As a zombie.
Sneak peeks like the one above (more are available on YouTube) have not been very enticing, but it is cool to see a zombie movie coming from such unexpected quarters. The unique viewpoint may make Juan of the Dead worth checking out. I mean, it can't be any worse than Zombies of Mass Destruction.
_________________________________________
And finally, thanks to RPG.NET, I have been made aware of a site selling custom zombie marital aids. The sellers also offer models inspired by Cthulhu and Alien. We can only hope they are being purchased for their conversational value and not for any practical use.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009 SuperVision
I've never followed Smallville. The initial "Dawson's Creek with superpowers" concept didn't exactly bowl me over, and nothing I've heard or seen about the series since has grabbed me, either. I don't mind that the show has it's own take on the DC Universe, but that take simply lacks appeal for me. However, I did watch the episode featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes, if just for the novelty of seeing live-action versions of some childhood favorites. And I'm being drawn back again by the upcoming two-parter featuring the Justice Society.
I've long loved the JSA. It's probably due in part to my fondness for the 30's and 40's, the era in which the Justice Society originated. They got to ride on running boards, wear fedoras, and slug Nazis - how cool is that? And I prefer "mystery men" types to heroes with limitless powers. I think that good guys who aren't invulnerable and who can't solve their problems with a wave of their hands are more interesting and more heroic than their bullet-proof brethren. And though the JSA has members who pretty much define "omnipotent", most of the team are regular joes like the Atom and the Sandman. Finally, the relative obscurity of the characters and the whole Earth-1/Earth-2 arcana surely appealed to my geek nature.
So as a fan, my interest was piqued when I heard about the upcoming JSA appearance on Smallville. Then this week, Entertainment Weekly had some promo pics of the episode:
Now, I should be geekgasming over the sight of a live-action Doctor Fate. Instead, I can't help but feel that the costumes may look kind of ridiculous in the context of the show. Again, I'm not a fan, but from what I've seen, Smallville aims for a more realistic (ha!) depiction of superheroes. Compare the JSA shots to the Smallville versions of the Legion and Justice League:
Very streetwear, more X-Men biker gear than comic book spandex, nothing that screams "superhero". So it's a little jarring to see Hawkman, Dr. Fate, and Stargirl in such traditional, four-color togs. It may be that Smallville is starting to fully embrace its comic book roots, but their JSA bucks the trend established by the show, and I'm a bit worried they might come off looking silly as a result. Hell, check out this still of Hawkman. I know, right?
I worry because I want the audience to embrace these characters. I want this episode to be a hit. I want the possibility of another show featuring the likes of Wildcat or Hourman or Starman or the current, way-cool Mr. Terrific. I don't care if it requires a more modern take on their costumes or personas. That's what adaptations are for - if you want something exactly like the source material, go read the source material.
Anyway, the trailer for the episode has me a lot more excited than the stills do. The classic round table! Green Lantern! That group portrait! The Sandman! Woot!
_________________________________________
While I'm on the topic of superheroic television, I just finished watching the first episode of Misfits, a new British show about urban yoof who gain paranormal powers while performing court-appointed community service. So far, the young characters are realistically drawn, which means they are almost unbearable and nigh unintelligible. The mix of powers displayed so far is interesting and has plenty of dramatic potential, and with only six episodes to a series I'm pretty confident the plot won't be slowly dog-paddling in circles like any given season of Heroes. Well worth a download, though you'll pine for subtitles.
I've long loved the JSA. It's probably due in part to my fondness for the 30's and 40's, the era in which the Justice Society originated. They got to ride on running boards, wear fedoras, and slug Nazis - how cool is that? And I prefer "mystery men" types to heroes with limitless powers. I think that good guys who aren't invulnerable and who can't solve their problems with a wave of their hands are more interesting and more heroic than their bullet-proof brethren. And though the JSA has members who pretty much define "omnipotent", most of the team are regular joes like the Atom and the Sandman. Finally, the relative obscurity of the characters and the whole Earth-1/Earth-2 arcana surely appealed to my geek nature.
So as a fan, my interest was piqued when I heard about the upcoming JSA appearance on Smallville. Then this week, Entertainment Weekly had some promo pics of the episode:
Now, I should be geekgasming over the sight of a live-action Doctor Fate. Instead, I can't help but feel that the costumes may look kind of ridiculous in the context of the show. Again, I'm not a fan, but from what I've seen, Smallville aims for a more realistic (ha!) depiction of superheroes. Compare the JSA shots to the Smallville versions of the Legion and Justice League:
Very streetwear, more X-Men biker gear than comic book spandex, nothing that screams "superhero". So it's a little jarring to see Hawkman, Dr. Fate, and Stargirl in such traditional, four-color togs. It may be that Smallville is starting to fully embrace its comic book roots, but their JSA bucks the trend established by the show, and I'm a bit worried they might come off looking silly as a result. Hell, check out this still of Hawkman. I know, right?
I worry because I want the audience to embrace these characters. I want this episode to be a hit. I want the possibility of another show featuring the likes of Wildcat or Hourman or Starman or the current, way-cool Mr. Terrific. I don't care if it requires a more modern take on their costumes or personas. That's what adaptations are for - if you want something exactly like the source material, go read the source material.
Anyway, the trailer for the episode has me a lot more excited than the stills do. The classic round table! Green Lantern! That group portrait! The Sandman! Woot!
_________________________________________
While I'm on the topic of superheroic television, I just finished watching the first episode of Misfits, a new British show about urban yoof who gain paranormal powers while performing court-appointed community service. So far, the young characters are realistically drawn, which means they are almost unbearable and nigh unintelligible. The mix of powers displayed so far is interesting and has plenty of dramatic potential, and with only six episodes to a series I'm pretty confident the plot won't be slowly dog-paddling in circles like any given season of Heroes. Well worth a download, though you'll pine for subtitles.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009 (Very) Odds and Ends
Had a long holiday weekend with limited internet access. Not much is going on, anyway, but a few topics have come up worth blathering about but not deserving of their own entries.
Last Friday, Wired's Danger Room ran a bit on a zombie-awareness version of Army Knowledge Online, the US Army's intranet service. I've no idea of what kind of info is available on the site, as access is limited to AKO accounts. Still, it's heartening to see Our Boys preparing themselves for the Inevitable Zombie Apocalypse, even if the whole thing is officially a spoof. Wink-wink.
Speaking of zombies (and I do, ad nauseam), I stumbled across this charming bit of garden sculpture:
Manufactured by something called Design Tuscano and sold via friggin' Skymall, of all places, it's proof of just how far the walking dead have permeated the mainstream.
I haven't heard of Design Tuscano before this. They seem to mix geek appeal with more mainstream tat, offering cast iron chimeras and pricey reproductions of Waterhouse paintings in addition to cutsey angels and Maurin Quina tin signs. They're a bit like an upscale version of that tacky Noble Collection whose catalogs plague my mailbox.
Their zombie sculpture isn't the only garden oddity Skymall is offering. A quick look shows some more Tuscano stuff, a Bigfoot statue (three times more expensive than the Archie McPhee version and probably three times nicer), and some alien gnome snatchers. The last one is the only item I'd consider owning, but only if I had a garden gnome and, of course, a garden. I do really like saying "gnome snatchers", though. Maybe I should form a band.
Hey, everyone knows that Twilight is pure, soul-sucking evil. It's either undead propaganda intended to sway our youth into accepting vampiric overlords, or it's some seriously messed-up broad convincing young girls that it's not twoo wuv unless he's a domineering stalker seeking total control of your life and you're willing to risk death to be with him. But it has given us some good things, hasn't it? Like sparkly marital aids and cougars battling tweens and these images:
Oh God, what I wouldn't give to see that last one become reality...
Finally, a buddy of mine has been forwarding me interesting news items from India. This one in particular took my fancy:
Yeah, good luck with that. Public urination was epidemic everywhere I went in India except the temples. The cab drivers especially would pee anywhere, right in front of you. They'd pull over, pull it out, and let fly no matter how many women or children were walking by.
The littering, however, was worse. Everyone would toss paper cups, empty cigarette packages, food wrappers, and anything else wherever they went. No one picked up after themselves, and no one showed any consideration for the environment. This attitude carried over to the trainees we had here as well; the area set aside for their smoke breaks was covered with butts despite the conveniently-placed ashtrays, and pop cans were left everywhere. Maybe the caste system has most people believing that cleaning up their own mess is beneath them. Or maybe they're just all jerks.
As far as over-charging foreigners go, I tell first-timers to always settle upon a destination and a fare before you get in the cab. Don't hire any of the cabbies who badger you with offers of sight-seeing or shopping trips as you walk down the street; "sight-seeing" is driving all over the city to ring up an exorbitant fare, and the shopping is at places that kick back money to the driver. And be sure to have the hotel pick you up when you arrive at the airport, either by shuttle bus or private car. It's when you're most vulnerable to unscrupulous drivers, and they know it.
_________________________________________
Last Friday, Wired's Danger Room ran a bit on a zombie-awareness version of Army Knowledge Online, the US Army's intranet service. I've no idea of what kind of info is available on the site, as access is limited to AKO accounts. Still, it's heartening to see Our Boys preparing themselves for the Inevitable Zombie Apocalypse, even if the whole thing is officially a spoof. Wink-wink.
_________________________________________
Speaking of zombies (and I do, ad nauseam), I stumbled across this charming bit of garden sculpture:
Manufactured by something called Design Tuscano and sold via friggin' Skymall, of all places, it's proof of just how far the walking dead have permeated the mainstream.I haven't heard of Design Tuscano before this. They seem to mix geek appeal with more mainstream tat, offering cast iron chimeras and pricey reproductions of Waterhouse paintings in addition to cutsey angels and Maurin Quina tin signs. They're a bit like an upscale version of that tacky Noble Collection whose catalogs plague my mailbox.
Their zombie sculpture isn't the only garden oddity Skymall is offering. A quick look shows some more Tuscano stuff, a Bigfoot statue (three times more expensive than the Archie McPhee version and probably three times nicer), and some alien gnome snatchers. The last one is the only item I'd consider owning, but only if I had a garden gnome and, of course, a garden. I do really like saying "gnome snatchers", though. Maybe I should form a band.
_________________________________________
Hey, everyone knows that Twilight is pure, soul-sucking evil. It's either undead propaganda intended to sway our youth into accepting vampiric overlords, or it's some seriously messed-up broad convincing young girls that it's not twoo wuv unless he's a domineering stalker seeking total control of your life and you're willing to risk death to be with him. But it has given us some good things, hasn't it? Like sparkly marital aids and cougars battling tweens and these images:
Oh God, what I wouldn't give to see that last one become reality...
_________________________________________
Finally, a buddy of mine has been forwarding me interesting news items from India. This one in particular took my fancy:
India targets 'Mr Pee' ahead of Commonwealth GamesNEW DELHI — In an effort to improve New Delhi's image before the Commonwealth Games next year, the Indian capital is to launch a publicity campaign to stop people urinating in the street.
"Don't be su su kumar" ("Don't be Mister Pee") goes one of the catchy slogans for billboards that will be displayed at city intersections, reported the city's Midday newspaper.
"We have prepared 600 signboards with messages related to cleanliness. These will be displayed to educate people," Delhi Mayor Kanwar Sain told the paper.
Some 8,000 athletes and 100,000 spectators are expected in New Delhi for the October 3-14 Commonwealth Games next year.
The mayor said the drive would also target the habit of spitting in public and the city's many litterbugs.
Lessons in etiquette are already being imparted to the city's auto-rickshaw drivers, who have been criticised for their fast, dangerous driving and for over-charging foreigners.
Yeah, good luck with that. Public urination was epidemic everywhere I went in India except the temples. The cab drivers especially would pee anywhere, right in front of you. They'd pull over, pull it out, and let fly no matter how many women or children were walking by.
The littering, however, was worse. Everyone would toss paper cups, empty cigarette packages, food wrappers, and anything else wherever they went. No one picked up after themselves, and no one showed any consideration for the environment. This attitude carried over to the trainees we had here as well; the area set aside for their smoke breaks was covered with butts despite the conveniently-placed ashtrays, and pop cans were left everywhere. Maybe the caste system has most people believing that cleaning up their own mess is beneath them. Or maybe they're just all jerks.
As far as over-charging foreigners go, I tell first-timers to always settle upon a destination and a fare before you get in the cab. Don't hire any of the cabbies who badger you with offers of sight-seeing or shopping trips as you walk down the street; "sight-seeing" is driving all over the city to ring up an exorbitant fare, and the shopping is at places that kick back money to the driver. And be sure to have the hotel pick you up when you arrive at the airport, either by shuttle bus or private car. It's when you're most vulnerable to unscrupulous drivers, and they know it.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009 Random Notes 9/16/09
Dear Universe,
Please, please, please make it so the recently-announced Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is not actually based on the wonderful Tim Powers novel of the same name. Yes, the first movie was fun. And yes, it would be nice for Powers to get a huge check. But John Travolta and Miley Cyrus will be in it. And that's terrible.
Thanks,
Preterite
The US release of the third series of The IT Crowd came out yesterday. You should buy it.
Of course, the art for the US release is a bit more generic than that of the UK version:
Which is completely understandable, given that the show is a hit in the UK and all but unknown here. We wouldn't want any BestMart employees stocking it in the anime section, God help us. Still, I don't think I'll pick up the US release like I originally planned. The UK disc is about the same price, and as I already have the R2 versions of the first couple of seasons, it'll keep things consistent.
And the Limited Internet in a Box Edition kicks both their asses, any way.
"John Lennon" smiling in the commercial for The Beatles Rock Band is THE CREEPIEST THING EVER.
Did you see that? Man. Creepier than Yoko nekkid.
As part of the publicity for the upcoming Zombieland (please don't suck), the official website has an article by Cracked.com's Chris Bucholz on How Iconic Movie Characters Would Deal with a Zombie Attack. It's funny. Not as funny as The IT Crowd, but there you go.
I really hope the movie doesn't suck.
Please, please, please make it so the recently-announced Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is not actually based on the wonderful Tim Powers novel of the same name. Yes, the first movie was fun. And yes, it would be nice for Powers to get a huge check. But John Travolta and Miley Cyrus will be in it. And that's terrible.
Thanks,
Preterite
_________________________________________
The US release of the third series of The IT Crowd came out yesterday. You should buy it.
Of course, the art for the US release is a bit more generic than that of the UK version:
Which is completely understandable, given that the show is a hit in the UK and all but unknown here. We wouldn't want any BestMart employees stocking it in the anime section, God help us. Still, I don't think I'll pick up the US release like I originally planned. The UK disc is about the same price, and as I already have the R2 versions of the first couple of seasons, it'll keep things consistent.
And the Limited Internet in a Box Edition kicks both their asses, any way.
_________________________________________
"John Lennon" smiling in the commercial for The Beatles Rock Band is THE CREEPIEST THING EVER.
_________________________________________
As part of the publicity for the upcoming Zombieland (please don't suck), the official website has an article by Cracked.com's Chris Bucholz on How Iconic Movie Characters Would Deal with a Zombie Attack. It's funny. Not as funny as The IT Crowd, but there you go.
I really hope the movie doesn't suck.
Saturday, September 5, 2009 TV Party
While I spend a lot of time in front of my tv, I never watch the major networks. It's not that I'm a snob, it's just that I have zero interest in the style of programming that seems to make up 70% of their schedules, reality television.
A rare exception was The Colony, as a Discovery Channel show about a bunch of people trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic environment seemed tailor-made for me. But the first episode was disappointing, with confessionals and all the other standard-issue reality show trappings present (including contrived inter-personal conflicts, as promised by the previews of upcoming shows). And I'm questioning the presence of a "martial arts expert" and mock raids by actors all done up in a Mad Max stylee - are the survivors expected to get physical with these guys? I mean, I would if some bozo from Central Casting was trying to take away the only snack chips I'd be seeing for the next twelve weeks. But in the first episode, at least, it doesn't appear that the survivors are really taking the whole thing seriously.
Which leads to the show's only real entertainment potential, as I second-guess most of the decisions they make. Sending your only doctor out into the wilds to look for water? Really? And while the survivors earned points for posting a guard all night, they lost them by not planning for what the guard should do if an intruder did turn up. I guess only us geeks have spent any time considering what to do in a post-holocaust situation. Well, except for militia nutters, and who wants to hang out with them?
While I'm tempted to sit through all of The Colony for the nuggets of survival tech that look to be buried therein, I'm probably better off just reading recaps somewhere like Television Without Pity.
Now, while I might have no time for reality tv, I feel the complete opposite about reality-based tv. I love MythBusters and Top Gear, and now a new show has pinged my radar. Bang Goes the Theory is a BBC program in which graphic demonstrations are used to explore and explain scientific principles. I stumbled across this clip of one of the hosts experimenting with a homemade vortex cannon:
Sadly, they did not unleash their creation on a pig carcass like the MythBusters would've.
In another episode, the team whips up a homemade defense against the US Navy's cutting-edge sonic weapon. I think I really need to start following this show.
Speaking of doing terrible things to dead animals, about the only thing Spike TV's Deadliest Warrior was good for was the graphic demonstrations of medieval weapons on flesh and bone (which admittedly were pretty neat). Otherwise, the show usually contained less than 1% of your daily recommended allowance of actual fact.
Compare and contrast with Warriors, a History Channel program in which a Henry Rollins look-alike travels the world to learn about great battles and the people that fought them. Here we get historical and cultural context as opposed to propaganda and bluster. We learn how the warriors trained, how they built and used their equipment, and why we consider them important to this day. And imparting this information are actual historians and university professors and not just fans and re-enactors.
Even the host is a huge improvement over the swaggering presenters of Deadliest Warrior. Terry Schappert is enthusiastic, modest, and generally the very opposite of what you might assume a Green Beret hosting a program about warfare would be like. He even tears up once or twice when talking about some of the sacrifices and hardships these men and women went through.
A DVD release of the program is imminent; however, for some reason the "Braveheart" episode is being left out of the collection. You can download the missing show via Rapidshare here (the password is dokujunkies.org). The entire dokujunkies site is a great resource for documentary television; the English-language program listings start here.
I recently caught an episode of Robot Chicken in which the Creature from the Black Lagoon, jealous of Dracula and Frankenstein, attempts to market his own cereal. The resulting "Creature with the Black Macaroons" immediately put me in mind of my buddy Hector's claim for the existence of Mocha Mummy cereal.
I got to poking around on the internet, and Wikipedia has a pretty informative entry on the General Mills monster cereals - I can at long last confirm that my memories of seeing posters for the cereal in my preschool class are not false, as Frankenberry and Count Chocula were first distributed in 1971! I also came across this commercial on YouTube, one that I saw countless times growing up:
I did some business at General Mills HQ last year and was able to pick up some BooBerry from the company store for my cousin Mike. Otherwise, you have to wait until Halloween to find the stuff. Yummy Mummy and Fruit Brute are no longer manufactured, which might be for the best, at least in the case of Fruit Brute. I remember those lime-flavored marshmallows as being pretty nasty.
Still better than trying to eat while staring at a box of Freakies, though. The Seventies, man. The decade of WTF.
Finally, if you're a fan of 80's action flicks, you'll want to check out this promo for the UK's Channel Five. If only...
A rare exception was The Colony, as a Discovery Channel show about a bunch of people trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic environment seemed tailor-made for me. But the first episode was disappointing, with confessionals and all the other standard-issue reality show trappings present (including contrived inter-personal conflicts, as promised by the previews of upcoming shows). And I'm questioning the presence of a "martial arts expert" and mock raids by actors all done up in a Mad Max stylee - are the survivors expected to get physical with these guys? I mean, I would if some bozo from Central Casting was trying to take away the only snack chips I'd be seeing for the next twelve weeks. But in the first episode, at least, it doesn't appear that the survivors are really taking the whole thing seriously.
Which leads to the show's only real entertainment potential, as I second-guess most of the decisions they make. Sending your only doctor out into the wilds to look for water? Really? And while the survivors earned points for posting a guard all night, they lost them by not planning for what the guard should do if an intruder did turn up. I guess only us geeks have spent any time considering what to do in a post-holocaust situation. Well, except for militia nutters, and who wants to hang out with them?
While I'm tempted to sit through all of The Colony for the nuggets of survival tech that look to be buried therein, I'm probably better off just reading recaps somewhere like Television Without Pity.
_________________________________________
Now, while I might have no time for reality tv, I feel the complete opposite about reality-based tv. I love MythBusters and Top Gear, and now a new show has pinged my radar. Bang Goes the Theory is a BBC program in which graphic demonstrations are used to explore and explain scientific principles. I stumbled across this clip of one of the hosts experimenting with a homemade vortex cannon:
Sadly, they did not unleash their creation on a pig carcass like the MythBusters would've.
In another episode, the team whips up a homemade defense against the US Navy's cutting-edge sonic weapon. I think I really need to start following this show.
_________________________________________
Speaking of doing terrible things to dead animals, about the only thing Spike TV's Deadliest Warrior was good for was the graphic demonstrations of medieval weapons on flesh and bone (which admittedly were pretty neat). Otherwise, the show usually contained less than 1% of your daily recommended allowance of actual fact.
Compare and contrast with Warriors, a History Channel program in which a Henry Rollins look-alike travels the world to learn about great battles and the people that fought them. Here we get historical and cultural context as opposed to propaganda and bluster. We learn how the warriors trained, how they built and used their equipment, and why we consider them important to this day. And imparting this information are actual historians and university professors and not just fans and re-enactors.Even the host is a huge improvement over the swaggering presenters of Deadliest Warrior. Terry Schappert is enthusiastic, modest, and generally the very opposite of what you might assume a Green Beret hosting a program about warfare would be like. He even tears up once or twice when talking about some of the sacrifices and hardships these men and women went through.
A DVD release of the program is imminent; however, for some reason the "Braveheart" episode is being left out of the collection. You can download the missing show via Rapidshare here (the password is dokujunkies.org). The entire dokujunkies site is a great resource for documentary television; the English-language program listings start here.
_________________________________________
I recently caught an episode of Robot Chicken in which the Creature from the Black Lagoon, jealous of Dracula and Frankenstein, attempts to market his own cereal. The resulting "Creature with the Black Macaroons" immediately put me in mind of my buddy Hector's claim for the existence of Mocha Mummy cereal.
I got to poking around on the internet, and Wikipedia has a pretty informative entry on the General Mills monster cereals - I can at long last confirm that my memories of seeing posters for the cereal in my preschool class are not false, as Frankenberry and Count Chocula were first distributed in 1971! I also came across this commercial on YouTube, one that I saw countless times growing up:
I did some business at General Mills HQ last year and was able to pick up some BooBerry from the company store for my cousin Mike. Otherwise, you have to wait until Halloween to find the stuff. Yummy Mummy and Fruit Brute are no longer manufactured, which might be for the best, at least in the case of Fruit Brute. I remember those lime-flavored marshmallows as being pretty nasty.
Still better than trying to eat while staring at a box of Freakies, though. The Seventies, man. The decade of WTF.
_________________________________________
Finally, if you're a fan of 80's action flicks, you'll want to check out this promo for the UK's Channel Five. If only...
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