January 2012
1 post
Welcome to 2012! Now Let's Look back at 2011...
Welcome once again to my End of the Year Extravaganza! Unfortunately my own natural ineptitude means that 2011 has officially been and gone by the time I post this, so think of it more as a gentle easing into the new year with a fond look back at some of my personal favourite stuff from the past 12 months.
As I did last year, I want to take this opportunity to point out that what follows is in no...
September 2011
1 post
Torchwood: What the Hell Happened??
Torchwood: Children of Earth was one of the best things I’ve ever seen on TV. Which came as something of a surprise to me because the first two series (or seasons, if you prefer) were somewhat ‘hit-or-miss’ for me. But Children of Earth was in a different class; it was a triumph of television SF drama, and the realisation of the Torchwood concept’s full potential.
Except -...
December 2010
1 post
End of the Year Extravaganza!
The ‘End of the Year List’-type blog is hardly original – indeed, you’ve probably seen too many already – but sod it. This is my blog, so end of the year lists is what you’re getting!
Before we go any further, I should make clear that what follows is not so much my opinion on the Best of 2010 (though strong cases could be made in a lot of cases), but rather my personal Favourites of 2010. As well...
October 2010
1 post
(Brief) Superman: Earth One review
I’ve been really shit with this blog over the past 6 months, if not longer. To ease myself back in, I thought I’d just throw up a brief review of the the new SUPERMAN: EARTH ONEgraphic novel from DC Comics, written by J. Michael Straczynski and pencilled by Shane Davis.
[**This review contains SPOILERS so if you’re planning to read it (and you should) you may want to wait until...
March 2010
2 posts
WrestleMania XXVI Predictions
WrestleMania is the biggest show of the WWE calendar, if not the pro wrestling (or sports entertainment, if you prefer) calendar. And this year WWE has excelled themselves at the way they’ve built up the event. On paper, it’s one of the strongest cards they could put together. Certainly it’s the strongest line-up for a WWE pay-per-view in quite some time. I forsee this being in...
The Wit and Wisdom of Spider Jerusalem
I haven’t done anything on this blog in fucking AGES, so I figured I’d start up again with something fun (and, for my part, easy). Some of my favourite quotes - and some of the more memorable - from Warren Ellis’s Transmetropolitan.
Transmet was a fantastic comic book series, one of my all time favourites and in my opinion the best thing Warren’s done (and that’s...
December 2009
2 posts
Things to Look Forward to 2010
Before we begin, I should be clear that what follows is mostly a list of things that I personally am looking foward to in 2010, rather than some kind of expert opinion on what will be worth checking out in the new year. That being said, there is a definite lean here towards slightly mainstream pop-culture. I’m sure there are plenty of indie movies/video games/comic books due in 2010 that...
"My Top 20 TV Shows of the Decade...
… and Not Some Stupid Channel 4 List That Made Me Want to Beat Whoever Voted on it to Death with a Rusty Garden Tool”
If you saw the Channel 4 programme I’m referring to, then hopefully you were as incensed by it as I was. I was so annoyed by the general lack of sense that went into it (not to mention a clear bias against American shows in favour of some fucking awful homegrown...
October 2009
3 posts
Dollhouse: Season 2, Episodes 1 + 2
As I sit down to write this, it occurs to me that I may well have written more blogs about Dollhouse than any one other subject. For a show I still haven’t completely fallen in love with, that’s no mean feat. By the end of its first season, I was cautiously optimistic about the future direction of the show, though there were several key problems I had over the course of that season...
Thoughts on "House"
So I’m watching this week’s House (the third episode of Season 6, for those interested) and I’m struck by the show’s biggest flaw. It’s something that I’m sure others have picked up on, and certainly I’ve noticed it a few times in previous seasons, but never to this extent.
The show’s biggest problem (perhaps its only problem) is that House himself...
Burning down the 'house?
Dollhouse recently began its second season on US TV, somewhat miraculously given its low ratings the previous season. But with its numbers dwindling still further this season, the Joss Whedon fanbase (or as I prefer to think of it: the Whedonsphere) was abuzz with whispers and speculation that the show was close to being pulled off the air. As I write this now there is news that Fox has given...
September 2009
1 post
People are bastards
Haven’t written a blog in ages, which is largely because I’m pathologically lazy. Thankfully, I’ve had something of an epiphany and now I’m back to vent my spleen in a thoroughly whingey and self-important way. So if listening (or rather reading) my inane screen-dribblings holds no appeal for you, best look away now. Go on, I won’t mind.
So. My epiphany. It really...
August 2009
5 posts
"Wednesday Comics" halfway point rankings
I’m holding off on a full review of DC Comics’ weekly Wednesday Comics series until all 12 issues are released, but I thought it might be fun to do a brief post at the halfway point (#6) ranking the strips from best to worst so far.
15. Superman (Arcudi & Bermejo)
I’m sorry, but this strip just isn’t working for me; hasn’t worked, in fact, since the first issue....
Dollhouse 1.13: Epitaph One
[Note: This review was written as soon as the episode finished airing last night, hence its ridiculous length and the lack of a Chuck review this week]
Wow. Where do you even start with this episode? The phrase “saved the best for last” seems hardly to do it justice. Given how likely Dollhouse’s cancellation seemed not so long ago, this would have been an absolutely...
TV Reviews Round-Up
Dollhouse 1.12: Omega
Oh dear; and things were going so well. After last week’s first season high-point episode, it was perhaps inevitable that this week’s would fall a little short. Still, you would think that as this week was, to all intents and purposes, the season finale (next week’s episode, apparently, is something of an epilogue) you would hope for something a little...
The Worst Place on Earth?
Pontypridd. Anyone ever been there? Those who have, I’m quite sure, will be well aware what I mean when I say: it’s the worst place on Earth.
Granted, I have a certain negative association with the place because I have to go to the JobCentre there. But the fact that I only ever (and I mean EVER) go there when I’m forced to by the Government should tell you all you need to know....
Swansea, Bloody Swansea
So we decided to go into Swansea today. As it was a surprisingly nice day (surprising only in the sense that, considering it’s supposed to be summer, we’ve had nothing but depressing, miserable weather since May) and we had nothing else to do, it seemed liked a good idea. If nothing else, it would be a nice change of pace. I personally hadn’t actually been into Swansea proper for...
July 2009
14 posts
TV Reviews Round-Up
[The reviews are a bit on the short side this week, because I forgot to make any notes as I watched the episodes, so I’ve had to write this from memory. My bad.]
Dollhouse 1.11: Briar Rose
With the end of the first season hurtling towards us, Dollhouse is really bringing its A-game. This is by far the best episode of the season to date, and Alan Tudyk is almost wholly responsible for that....
TV Reviews Round-Up
Chuck 2.07: Chuck vs. the Fat Lady
Oh dear. Chuck has been on something of a roll the past few weeks, but that came to a grinding halt with this episode. I said last week that I hoped Jill didn’t turn out to be a spy/traitor/villain of some kind, and wouldn’t you know? That’s exactly what happened. If that wasn’t already a too-obvious-by-far revelation, the fact that this...
Amazing Spider-Man: New Way to Die TP review
Ever since the One More Day storyline altered/retconned Spider-Man’s status quo, I haven’t really been sure what to make of the new Brand New Day Spider-Man. I’m one of those who enjoyed J. Michael Straczynski’s run on the book, and had no problem with a married Peter Parker. But Marvel did have a problem with it, feeling that maybe the character had drifted too far away...
Sport day(s)
Something’s been bugging me recently. It started with Wimbledon and has picked up again with the current Ashes series. Now, first of all, let me say that I normally don’t give two tosses about either tennis or cricket. The only time I’m even remotely interested in tennis is when Wimbledon rolls around; likewise for cricket and the Ashes. But this year I’ve been particularly...
TV Reviews Round-Up
Chuck 2.06: Chuck vs. The Ex
OK, so here’s the thing: TV geeks annoy me. The reason they annoy me is because they are generally a) Hollywood-handsome; and b) have a tendency to date/have dated extremely hot women. I’m a geek (I know, it’s difficult to believe, but it’s true), and I’ve never dated anyone who looked like Yvonne Strahovski or Jordana Brewster.
In this...
Catching up
I feel like I’ve let this blog fall by the wayside over the past few days, partly due to the odd sleep patterns needed to watch UFC 100 live, which started at 3am over here… yikes. I’ve stayed up to watch plenty of WWE pay-per-views over the years, but they start at 1am and are usually finished by about 3.30. And when it first started being aired live over here a couple of years...
Bit of a laugh...
Moving some stuff around in my room ealier, I found something I hadn’t seen for a few years: a photocopy of a Herald Express feature printing some comical (and very genuine) answers from kids’ history tests. Most - if not all - of these are probably available online elsewhere, but just in case you’ve never seen them, I figured I’d share some of my favourties here....
TV Reviews Round-Up
Chuck 2.05: “Chuck vs. Tom Sawyer”
The second season of Chuck continues with what might be one of my favourite epsiodes so far. The reason can be summed up simply with: Stan Bush’s “The Touch”. I have no shame in admitting I geeked out big time when I heard that song on the soundtrack! Seeing (the original animated) Transformers: The Movie on the big screen is one of...
Ultimate Origins TP review
Brian Michael Bendis and Butch Guice’s 5-issue mini-series is collected here in this trade paperback edition.
[This review contains SPOILERS. You have been warned]
Sad to say, despite some good ideas across those issues, the execution isn’t as crisp as one would hope - or expect - from a writer as talented as Bendis. I’m a usually a big fan of his work, but the dialogue...
Video Games: Most Wanted
Given my (apparent) tendency toward blogs so long you need a toilet break halfway through, I decided to throw up a li’l short one. In an idea ripped off straight from several games magazines, I hereby give you my Top 10 Most Wanted Video Games.
[NB As I don’t own a PS3 (yet) there are no games for that console on this list, though if/when I do get one, I’m sure that would...
Ms. Marvel Vol.6: Ascension TP review
I was a latecomer to the Ms. Marvel series by Brian Reed. Too often in the past, superhero books with female leads suffer from an identity crisis brought about from trying to please both readers looking for good superhero stories and the stereotypical teenage fanboy who just enjoys cheesecake artwork. Thankfully, there is increasing evidence that this is becoming a thing of the past. Though I...
The Megan Fox Conundrum
So lately I’ve been thinking about Megan Fox. Yes, yes, I know – who hasn’t, right? It’s been hard to escape her since the hype for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen kicked into overdrive. Hell, maybe even since the first film came out two years ago. There’s no doubt in my mind she’s become Hollywood’s latest ‘It Girl’ and the entertainment media’s latest obsession. It seems there’s a new one...
TV Reviews Round-Up
Tuesday is a good night for cult TV fans in the UK. On Virgin 1 you have the second season of Chuck, whilst over on Sci-Fi (yes, it’s still called Sci-Fi over here and not SyFy *mutterstupidnamemutter*) the first season of Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse is unfolding.
Chuck 2.04: “Chuck vs. the Cougars” This week, we finally had some insight into Sarah’s background with a...
TV Reviews Round-Up
Tuesday is a good night for cult TV fans in the UK. On Virgin 1 you have the second season of Chuck, whilst over on Sci-Fi (yes, it’s still called Sci-Fi over here and not SyFy *mutterstupidnamemutter*) the first season of Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse is unfolding.
Chuck 2.04: “Chuck vs. the Cougars”
This week, we finally had some insight into Sarah’s background with a...
June 2009
5 posts
Wonder Woman: Love and Murder TP review
Wonder Woman has always been a character I’ve struggled with over the years. Despite being pushed by DC Comics as an equal of Superman and Batman within the DCU, that’s never quite become a reality in the real world. There’s been an inconsistency of characterisation, of origin, and of creative teams. The character’s latest re-launch in the wake of DC’s Inifinite...
Trinity Vol.1 TP review
Trinity was DC Comics’ third weekly comic book series, following on from the tremendous success of 52 and the… lets just say ‘mixed results’ of Countdown to Final Crisis. Whereas 52 was a compelling story, utilising several second-tier characters and successfully elevating them, and written by a who’s who of top comic book writers, Countdown was a decidedly more...
Selective memory?
I’ve talked (or tweeted) a little about this over on Twitter, but I thought I might expand on it a bit here.
It seemed the internet almost collapsed late last night as news began to circulate about the death of Michael Jackson. If ever proof were needed about how the internet was now the quickest method of exchanging information, last night was it. Though it was interesting to see how most...
Self-indulgent bloggery
OK, so I promised myself when I decided to start a blog that I wouldn’t turn it into one of those wannabe-emo, I-hate-the-world, everything-sux type blogs that seem to fill up all the dark corners of the internet. But today I’ve found myself in such a crappy mood, I figured maybe I could try beating that mood to death with some self-indulgent bloggery. So if you’ll allow...
First blog!
Yes, it’s finally happened! After a couple of false starts at other sites over the past few years, I have finally committed to getting down to some serious blogging!
Hooray for me! HOORAY!
Yes, well, anyway. I am hoping I will be able to make this as much a part of my ‘net routine as I have twitter (Yes, that was a plug. Follow me there!) and that I’ll be keeping things here...