Argephontes
5/03/2003
Saw X-2 last night, and I'm vastly pleased. I liked the first one, but this one definately surpassed it.
The only problems I had with the movie can be generalized into one point - It wasn't long enough. Nothing that was there was really wrong, but I felt like there were bits missing - bits that hopefully were edited out and will show up on the DVD.
What I loved about this movie - it's all about the subplot. Like a story arc in a comic, although you follow a clearly laid out story-line, with a resolved conflict, ten other possible storylines are set up. The movie was more about the characters than the events, and the story shapes and develops them even as they develop the story. I cannot wait for the next one.
Other sundries worth mentioning - Halle Berry's Storm was an improvement - like in the way that you actually buy that she's Storm rather than Halle Berry in a Storm costume, for lack of a better way of putting it. From the previews, I had serious fears that Nightcrawler was going to be uber lame. Although - and I'll talk about this more momentarily - I've never been a huge X-Men fan, I LOVE Nightcrawler. Consider me quite joyfully mistaken. Nightcrawler was just plain Awesome. Wolverine is far more Wolverine than he was in the first one, and we get more of the anger and lunacy this time rather than just Mr. Woe-Is-Me-It-Hurts-And-I-Don't-Remember-Stuff. And Ian MacKellan is just wonderful.
On a more general note, one of the reasons I'm so pleased with this movie is because I haven't really read all that much X-Men. Around the time I started reading comics, the X-Men were so huge, and there was so much of it, that it intimidated the hell out of me. I had neither the desire nor the energy to wade through it all, unlike other comics ("Daredevil", for example) that you could go back and read somewhat selectively and have a pretty good grasp of the story. On the other hand, because of having a general interest in the characters (and hanging around a lot of comic book fans who talk a lot), I am familiar with them. Unlike the Spidey or Daredevil movies, where I have to reason with the voices in my head saying, "Nooo , that's not how the story goes" (And if you've been reading this you know I liked both movies immensely, but its different because it involves a certain amount of creative thinking about the movie-making process), I can watch these movies with no pre-determined expectations about the story. So the relative ages of some of the characters are screwed up. No problem. So Iceman is [wishing he was] tapping the Rogue ass instead of Gambit... *shrug* Since I don't know the details, the retelling of them doesn't bother me a whit. What's important is the characterization - how a character gets from point A to point B is unimportant, as long as they get there. I can just sit back and appreciate, and furthermore, I get to sit back and see a story that I have heretofore been unable to find the time or the money to get to have. That's just plain cool - and I realize that for other people Spidey and DD have done the same thing, so they get props on that, too, just not specifically from me.
Now if only there would be some badass DC movies. None of this Ashton Kutcher-as-Superman type garbage, and PLEASE no Joel Schumacher. I was thinking about movies that I would like to see made, and I decided that Arsenal needs a movie. Ex-druggie-turned-single-dad with an inferiority complex who happens to be a lesser superhero (Plus he's hot - you can add him along with Nightcrawler to the list of fictional characters I have a crush on, which seem to far outnumer "real" people... I'll have to post a list sometime) - great movie material. Also Nightwing, who I personally think has a far more interesting story than anyone has ever bothered to tell. And by the way, if there are any good Nightwing (hmmm... crush on him too) story arcs out there, someone let me know. ¶ 5/03/2003 06:58:00 PM
The only problems I had with the movie can be generalized into one point - It wasn't long enough. Nothing that was there was really wrong, but I felt like there were bits missing - bits that hopefully were edited out and will show up on the DVD.
What I loved about this movie - it's all about the subplot. Like a story arc in a comic, although you follow a clearly laid out story-line, with a resolved conflict, ten other possible storylines are set up. The movie was more about the characters than the events, and the story shapes and develops them even as they develop the story. I cannot wait for the next one.
Other sundries worth mentioning - Halle Berry's Storm was an improvement - like in the way that you actually buy that she's Storm rather than Halle Berry in a Storm costume, for lack of a better way of putting it. From the previews, I had serious fears that Nightcrawler was going to be uber lame. Although - and I'll talk about this more momentarily - I've never been a huge X-Men fan, I LOVE Nightcrawler. Consider me quite joyfully mistaken. Nightcrawler was just plain Awesome. Wolverine is far more Wolverine than he was in the first one, and we get more of the anger and lunacy this time rather than just Mr. Woe-Is-Me-It-Hurts-And-I-Don't-Remember-Stuff. And Ian MacKellan is just wonderful.
On a more general note, one of the reasons I'm so pleased with this movie is because I haven't really read all that much X-Men. Around the time I started reading comics, the X-Men were so huge, and there was so much of it, that it intimidated the hell out of me. I had neither the desire nor the energy to wade through it all, unlike other comics ("Daredevil", for example) that you could go back and read somewhat selectively and have a pretty good grasp of the story. On the other hand, because of having a general interest in the characters (and hanging around a lot of comic book fans who talk a lot), I am familiar with them. Unlike the Spidey or Daredevil movies, where I have to reason with the voices in my head saying, "Nooo , that's not how the story goes" (And if you've been reading this you know I liked both movies immensely, but its different because it involves a certain amount of creative thinking about the movie-making process), I can watch these movies with no pre-determined expectations about the story. So the relative ages of some of the characters are screwed up. No problem. So Iceman is [wishing he was] tapping the Rogue ass instead of Gambit... *shrug* Since I don't know the details, the retelling of them doesn't bother me a whit. What's important is the characterization - how a character gets from point A to point B is unimportant, as long as they get there. I can just sit back and appreciate, and furthermore, I get to sit back and see a story that I have heretofore been unable to find the time or the money to get to have. That's just plain cool - and I realize that for other people Spidey and DD have done the same thing, so they get props on that, too, just not specifically from me.
Now if only there would be some badass DC movies. None of this Ashton Kutcher-as-Superman type garbage, and PLEASE no Joel Schumacher. I was thinking about movies that I would like to see made, and I decided that Arsenal needs a movie. Ex-druggie-turned-single-dad with an inferiority complex who happens to be a lesser superhero (Plus he's hot - you can add him along with Nightcrawler to the list of fictional characters I have a crush on, which seem to far outnumer "real" people... I'll have to post a list sometime) - great movie material. Also Nightwing, who I personally think has a far more interesting story than anyone has ever bothered to tell. And by the way, if there are any good Nightwing (hmmm... crush on him too) story arcs out there, someone let me know. ¶ 5/03/2003 06:58:00 PM
5/01/2003
So we got the apartment, which isn't really a big surprise but still a relief to know. Or at least, a relief in the sense that little piece of knowledge caused me to have my very first panic attack ever yesterday.
I kind of, um, convinced myself that I side-swiped someone's car, which is sort of impossible. Especially since, in my make-believe story of how I committed a hit-and-run, I didn't "notice" until I was down the road. All logic defies the possibilty of such a thing having happened, although I still can't quite shake the feeling that maybe it did. After-effects of a paranoid freak-a-zoid afternoon, I guess. Anyhoo, I got over it. And I feel better now. Hopefully, I'm getting all the freak-outs out of the way early, so that when I crack down and get really busy, I can handle it. Riiiighhht.
So I was thinking about moving. Alicia and I have this theory (which so far, no one has bothered to disprove). I may have mentioned it before, I don't remember. But the theory is that all people from New Jersey only have to make two phone calls to have someone killed. I wonder. How long do I have to live there to get my two phone calls? ¶ 5/01/2003 11:07:00 AM
I kind of, um, convinced myself that I side-swiped someone's car, which is sort of impossible. Especially since, in my make-believe story of how I committed a hit-and-run, I didn't "notice" until I was down the road. All logic defies the possibilty of such a thing having happened, although I still can't quite shake the feeling that maybe it did. After-effects of a paranoid freak-a-zoid afternoon, I guess. Anyhoo, I got over it. And I feel better now. Hopefully, I'm getting all the freak-outs out of the way early, so that when I crack down and get really busy, I can handle it. Riiiighhht.
So I was thinking about moving. Alicia and I have this theory (which so far, no one has bothered to disprove). I may have mentioned it before, I don't remember. But the theory is that all people from New Jersey only have to make two phone calls to have someone killed. I wonder. How long do I have to live there to get my two phone calls? ¶ 5/01/2003 11:07:00 AM
4/30/2003
4/28/2003
Hockey hates me.
I have noticed a tendency for the Flyers to lose games when I watch them, and win when I don't. For example, during the quarterfinals, twice there were events which prevented me from watching the whole game. Both times, Flyers won. One of the games didn't come on TV in my area....Flyers won. I was on a plane during game 7 (although I totally blew good-luck kisses at the First Union Center on my way to the Philly airport, and I am convinced they had something to do with the results of that game)... Flyers kicked mucho ass.
Moving on to the current battle against Ottowa. Game one - I come home late from a dog-walking date and turn on the game - Score is 2-0, Flyers. Within twenty minutes of my having turned on the tv, Ottawa scores 3 goals. By this time, I'm getting pretty outraged. I change the channel, cursing the Hockey Gods who have decreed me the Flyers' Bad Luck Charm. This lasts through the end of the 2nd Intermission, when I can't stand it anymore. Turn the game back on at the beginning of the 3rd, to find that nothing has happened, which isn't too bad. Within minutes - Sens score AGAIN. Dammit. This time I really did turn it off for good.
Yesterday, I had the game on, but I was doing other things. Like talking to my Dad, and then Ryan on the phone. I was also trying to watch Angel during intermissions, and hence getting distracted. And guess what? Flyers totally won.
This is unnacceptable, Hockey Gods. I do not have the energy to attempt to psych you out by pretending I am not paying attention to the game. I only to want to watch the play-offs, that's all.
On a related subject - My DirectTV has a delay. Ryan and I both had the game on when we were talking yesterday, so I knew what was happening next (via Ryan's exclamations, gasps of glee/horror, and the fact that he had the TV up a little loud) about a full 8 seconds before I saw it happen. That was very strange, and sadly anti-climactic. ¶ 4/28/2003 03:42:00 PM
I have noticed a tendency for the Flyers to lose games when I watch them, and win when I don't. For example, during the quarterfinals, twice there were events which prevented me from watching the whole game. Both times, Flyers won. One of the games didn't come on TV in my area....Flyers won. I was on a plane during game 7 (although I totally blew good-luck kisses at the First Union Center on my way to the Philly airport, and I am convinced they had something to do with the results of that game)... Flyers kicked mucho ass.
Moving on to the current battle against Ottowa. Game one - I come home late from a dog-walking date and turn on the game - Score is 2-0, Flyers. Within twenty minutes of my having turned on the tv, Ottawa scores 3 goals. By this time, I'm getting pretty outraged. I change the channel, cursing the Hockey Gods who have decreed me the Flyers' Bad Luck Charm. This lasts through the end of the 2nd Intermission, when I can't stand it anymore. Turn the game back on at the beginning of the 3rd, to find that nothing has happened, which isn't too bad. Within minutes - Sens score AGAIN. Dammit. This time I really did turn it off for good.
Yesterday, I had the game on, but I was doing other things. Like talking to my Dad, and then Ryan on the phone. I was also trying to watch Angel during intermissions, and hence getting distracted. And guess what? Flyers totally won.
This is unnacceptable, Hockey Gods. I do not have the energy to attempt to psych you out by pretending I am not paying attention to the game. I only to want to watch the play-offs, that's all.
On a related subject - My DirectTV has a delay. Ryan and I both had the game on when we were talking yesterday, so I knew what was happening next (via Ryan's exclamations, gasps of glee/horror, and the fact that he had the TV up a little loud) about a full 8 seconds before I saw it happen. That was very strange, and sadly anti-climactic. ¶ 4/28/2003 03:42:00 PM
Although I usually try to stay away from political things on the blog, Scott has a post that's just too well-written and thought provoking not to link.
¶ 4/28/2003 12:09:00 PM
