Sunday before last, my car got hit from behind while stopped at a stoplight. By a guy in a big pickup truck on his cell phone. With his kids in the car.

As of today, his insurance company still hasn't gotten a hold of him. So I'm in limbo until that happens. And, before anyone asks, I was stupid and didn't call the police when the accident happens. I figured nobody seemed to be injured, our vehicles were driveable, and the police have better things to do with their time. And, before anyone asks, I realize now that was stupid, and will probably end up causing me huge frustration and problems.

I hate that we live in a world where the police aren't just there to protect us against crime and enforce the law. We need them to make people do the right thing, to just stand up and be honest.

The other day I was driving down to the insurance place to have the damage to my car appraised. The freeway on-ramp is metered, and there's a carpool lane for cars with more than one person in them. And as I sat in the line of cars waiting to get onto the freeway, I saw one car after another zip down the carpool lane with only one person in them. And that's when I think I snapped. Or just broke.

I try to be a nice guy. I try to be polite and courteous and follow the rules. And what's the point? People push in front of me in lines, they race past me on the freeway, they get whatever they want in stores and restaurants and wherever because they know that if they push and shove and shout they can pretty much bully the rest of the world into giving them whatever they want. And they know that, because it totally works for them.

A friend of mine told me that she's reading a book that says just that: if you raise your kids to be polite and caring and to follow the rules, they're just going to get screwed later in life, because nobody else is raising their kids like that. And that upsets me on a fundamental level.

Don't get me wrong; being who I am has benefited me in the only ways that are really important. I have people who respect and love me because I'm not a pushy jerk. Lura wouldn't be with me if I was that sort of person.

More importantly, I can live with myself. Maybe I feel bad or tiny or powerless because I can't even get a fucking store clerk to back me up when I ask people to not cut in front of me in line, but I'd rather feel all those things than how I know I'd feel if I pushed in front of people or treated them badly. And I'd rather live with the frustration of getting stepped on all the time than the knowledge that I had chosen to be a jerk.

But that doesn't make it any more fun.

As part of my (once again) renewed committment to try to post a blog entry every week, I'm going to go through the TV shows that I'm watching. Rather than try to say it all in one huge, boring post that becomes a struggle to finish, I'm going to break it down and write about one day each week.

On Mondays, I watch The Big Bang Theory on CBS. I can best sum up its appeal for me when I tell you that after my lovely fiancee and I watched it together for the first time a couple of weeks ago, she started laughing hysterically, then turned to me and said, "I'm marrying the Big Bang Theory." I wish I could say that there were moments on the show that weren't exactly like times spent with my friends, but sadly, that's not the case.

Part of what makes the show great for me, besides it being really funny, is that it treats the geek characters with warmth and sympathy. They're funny because--like all geeks--they're obsessed with things outside the mainstream, and this makes them outsiders to a certain degree. But while this may make them awkward, it doesn't make them stupid, or unemotional, or whatever. Penny, the "normal" woman in the cast, doesn't treat them like they're any less human just because she doesn't understand all the things they talk about. And that's what won me over from the very first episode.

(Also, producer Chuck Lorre's vanity cards at the end of each episode are hilarious, if you take the time to freeze and read them. Or you can just read them online at the handy link I just posted.)

A new show I'm watching on Mondays is Castle on ABC. It stars Nathan Fillion, of Firefly/Dr. Horrible/Buffy fame, but I'm not just watching it for the geek casting. I skipped the entire first season, because the concept just sounded DOA. Fillion plays Richard Castle, a mystery writer who helps the NYPD solve crimes while working with them for research for his books. It's Murder, She's Old, only tonight the part of Jessica Fletcher will be played by Nathan Fillion. At least, that was my initial perception.

Now that it's made it to a second season (and been renewed for a full 22 episodes) I'm willing to give it a shot, especially since it comes highly recommended by a friend whose opinion I trust. And it's a lot of fun. It's got a police setting, but it's not a cop show. It's an old-fashioned mystery/romance show, kind of in the vein of Moonlighting but more grounded. The dialogue is snappy and witty, and the characters are engaging. It's got nothing really to do with police procedure, but Columbo isn't any less of a show than Hill Street Blues for the same reason.

Coincidentally, the two shows I watch on Mondays star actors from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: Nathan Fillion and Simon Helberg. Maybe I should start watching How I Met Your Mother again for Neil Patrick Harris, but there's just not enough time.

The last book I finished reading was And Another Thing by Eoin Colfer.

As a kid, I loved the works of Douglas Adams, and that probably had more of an influence on my sense of humor than anything (except maybe my Dad). Loved the books, the TV series, the radio series... I even got to go hear him speak once (with my Dad) at the University of California, Berkeley. He may have been the first one of my idols I actually got to see live, if you don't count the guy in the Darth Vader costume we could barely see in a crowded Fisherman's Wharf T-shirt store one day back in 1978. (Which I was also taken to by my Dad. I miss him.)

Those books are products of such a distinct voice, I--quite reasonably--balked when I heard that his estate had approved a new book in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, almost a decade after his passing. It's one thing for an author to be one of a crowd writing a series of media tie-in books. It's also one thing for an author's estate to commission someone to finish a series left incomplete by an author's untimely passing. But this... It's not like Adams had left notes about a new Hitchhiker's book, or even had anything beyond vague plans to write another book at some point, reportedly.

However, this was going to be written by Eoin Colfer, who I also like. I really liked the first three Artemis Fowl books that he wrote. (I thought the third one ended the series so perfectly I really don't have any interest in reading beyond that.) I also loved The Supernaturalist by him, and have Airman on my to-read stack.

So it became clear to me that I was going to have to read And Another Thing... I planned on just getting it from the library, but as the publication date approached, and Internet buzz from folks who had read preview copies of the first half seemed good, I decided I didn't want to wait, and went ahead and ordered the book.

It's hard for me to really articulate my opinions about it. It's not just a new Eoin Colfer book; it's a new book by him about somebody else's characters, continuing somebody else's story. It's not just a new Hitchhiker's Guide book; it's the first one not written by Douglas Adams (something which would have once seemed unthinkable). So I come to this book with more baggage and expectations than I might if it was just one thing or another.

I enjoyed it enough that I read it all the way through, but I found it ultimately dissatisfying. For one thing, it's mainly a Zaphod Beeblebrox story, and he's not really my favorite character. Everyone else pretty much spends most of the book sitting around doing nothing. Not saying a Hitchhiker's Guide book needs to give everyone equal time; I love So Long and Thanks for All the Fish even though it's mostly an earthbound romance story featuring Arthur Dent. But this isn't just another book in the series.

To Colfer's credit, he doesn't try to write a pastiche of Douglas Adams' writing style. But this may also be a reason for my ambiguous feelings. He gets the characters' voices right--I can totally hear the radio/TV actors saying the lines--but the story they're in isn't written like any of the others I've read. So it feels a bit different, because it is a bit different. Also to his credit, he describes his own book as "authorized fan fiction," instead of claiming his is the official continuation of the series.

There are funny bits, which made me laugh out loud. It feels true to the spirit of the original series, which is good. It's also kind of unnecessary, and if someone--Colfer or anyone else--were to create another Hitchhiker's book, I'm pretty sure I'd wait to get it from the library this time.

This is like six different flavors of awesome.

The Cat Piano from PRA on Vimeo.

So the big comics news of the day is the restructuring of DC Comics, with Paul Levitz (who I once met, and is a really nice guy) stepping down as publisher.

For me, though, that's all business stuff. Another story, bigger for me, because it's more personal, involves Adventure Comics. A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about how much I loved the first issue. I haven't even received the second issue yet, but yesterday, I learned that the creators were leaving to work on a new Flash series. Now, I loved Geoff Johns' work on Flash in the past, but I was disappointed to read that he wouldn't be staying on this new book that had already grown so dear to my heart.

Today, it was revealed that the new writer on Adventure will be Paul Levitz. So now I feel much better.

Paul Levitz is the writer who got me to fall in love with the Legion of Super-Heroes in the first place. Back when he was writing it, it was one of my favorite comics. (One of? Probably my favorite comic.) He did a great job of creating a believable, vivid, consistent future, and managed to balance a huge cast of characters. Each one felt unique and distinct, with their own personalities, and their personal lives were every bit as interesting as the adventures they had.

They say you can't go home again, and maybe his return (and Johns' to the Flash) will end up disappointing. But right now, I'm excited. Which is a lot better than being disappointed and depressed.

Here's something for me to look forward to...

Here is a confession that will surprise absolutely nobody who knows me: I love old pulp fiction. Particularly the adventures of the Shadow and Doc Savage, currently being reprinted in very nice editions by Anthony Tollin's Sanctum Press. Obviously, I only know the books from reprints, and I haven't read too many of those.

A lot of what passes for "new pulp fiction" comes across to me as poorly-written fan fiction. Particularly with the print-on-demand options available through places like Lulu.com, it just seems too easy for a pulp fan to churn out a dull, overwritten story about characters called "Prof Brass" or "The Silhouette," sell them for $20 a pop, and call themselves pulp writers. Fortunately, there are new stories that pay tribute to the old pulps without sacrificing quality or imagination.

A particular favorite of mine right now is the Gabriel Hunt series, created by Hard Case Crime editor and publisher Charles Ardai. The series, credited to Gabriel Hunt, is being written by multiple authors, with Ardai writing the second volume, Hunt Through the Cradle of Fear. So far, both Hunt books feel like contemporary adventures with their feet planted in the pulp tradition.

In Hunt Through the Cradle of Fear, Hunt finds himself on a quest for a mythical creature. Ardai skillfully blends elements of adventure and the fantastic, balancing them in a style reminiscent of the Indiana Jones movies. It's not an out-and-out fantasy, nor is it a real-world adventure. In this way, it effectively captures the genre-bending spirit of the old pulps, while still feeling fresh and contemporary.

The Hunt books are fun and fast-paced, action-packed without sacrificing character. (Yes, Guillermo Del Toro's Strain, I'm looking at you.) In this installment, we learn more about Hunt's family and background, in addition to his quest. The information is smoothly integrated into the adventure, instead of feeling like a forced break in the action just to insert exposition. The villain is colorful and just a little over-the-top, but it works in the world that Ardai and his fellow authors are building. The action sequences are fairly easy to follow, and the story is pretty unpredictable.

It's not a perfect book; Ardai inserts a cameo appearance by himself and his wife that--to me--stuck out like a sore thumb. On the other hand, he also includes a second, weird-tales adventure story in the book, completely unrelated to Gabriel Hunt. It's fun, and makes the book feel even more worth the money.

I also read Lobster Johnson: The Satan Factory by Tom Sniegoski, featuring the pulp crimefighter from the pages of Mike Mignola's Hellboy comics. It's less twisty and antic than the Gabriel Hunt books. Because it's a spin-off from the comic book series, it's also a bit light on character development. The character of the Lobster is a complete man of mystery in the comics, and the comics are rightfully where the details should be revealed. Having said that, I still had fun reading this book. Sniegoski did a great job fusing the masked hero genre with the sort of weird, Lovecraftian horror that features in Mignola's comics.

Finally, I read Doc Wilde and the Frogs of Doom by Tim Byrd. This is an exception to my earlier comments about writing characters that are classic pulp heroes with the registration numbers filed off. Doc Wilde is absolutely a stand-in for Doc Savage (or, perhaps more accurately, his son). The difference is, he isn't the main hero. Instead the book focuses on the young Wilde siblings, Bryan and Wren. Like the Gabriel Hunt books, it tells the sort of fantastic, over-the-top adventure that the classic pulps specialized in, but in a style completely appropriate for its audience.

Byrd is writing a story designed to excite and inspire young readers, and he understands that he won't do that by writing a story that reads like it was written sixty years ago. The story is as full of gadgets and weird monsters and action as a Doc Savage novel, but feels contemporary and up-to-date. Pulp fans will probably squeal like little girls at the in-jokes--because that's the indication of a quality story, of course--but pre-teen readers will get a kick out of this, too.

Took the cat to the vet this morning. Even with Zhanti (the parakeet) and Lura (the fiancee) in the house, it still feels empty with Penelope gone.

Yesterday, I raved about how Adventure Comics lived up to my lofty expectations. Unfortunately, that's not always the case.

Last week, I read The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan. I'm a fan of Del Toro's films, and Chuck Hogan has apparently won awards for his mystery writing. (I thought I had read good reviews of his novels, as well as comics by him, but I was confusing him with Charlie Houston, I only just realized.) Unfortunately, this book, the first of a trilogy, wasn't particularly good.

To me, it reads like the treatment for the first act of a movie. It's 401 pages long, and not only does nothing really happen, but the characters are almost nonexistent. Only one is really fleshed out to two dimensions, and he's still not that interesting. I can see that if the characters were played by charismatic actors, and the action was unfolding visually on the screen instead of being described--sometimes in excruciating detail--on the page, this could be the first third of a cool movie. Instead, it's a fairly uninvolving opening installment to a prose trilogy, and there's not really enough there to make me want to read part two, a whole year from now.

Also a bit disappointing--though nowhere near as much--was the first issue of Doom Patrol from DC Comics. I've been a Doom Patrol fan since the 80s, through all its various permutations. I was particularly looking forward to this one, because it features the original characters, and it's written and drawn by creators who I like. And it is very pretty, and the characters are fleshed out more than those in The Strain.

Unfortunately, it's not a particularly good first issue. It opens at the tail end of an adventure that doesn't seem very well set up, and the rest is follow-up on the consequences of that adventure. I didn't feel as if it really established the current status quo for the team so much as it expected me to already know it.

I get that I'm not always going to be completely up to speed on every comic book character, because I don't read every comic. But if any issue of a series should help the reader get caught up on background and current events for a character, it should be the first one. I felt as if this would be an effective second or third issue, but as a "welcome back" for the Doom Patrol, something felt missing.

I now have a Twitter account. Feel free to follow me; my user name is penelopecat.

I have a confession: Several years after lambasting Geoff Johns for his comic, Green Lantern: Rebirth, Green Lantern has become one of my favorite superhero comics. It's got just the right mixture of Hill Street Blues, Star Wars, and superheroics. Instead of an endless string of battles against supervillains, one after another, Johns' Green Lantern is pretty much just one big story, which has gotten even bigger as it currently embraces the rest of DC Comics' superhero universe in the pages of Blackest Night.

I'll probably write more about Green Lantern and Blackest Night at a later date. But today I want to rave about Geoff Johns' newest comic, Adventure Comics #1. Certainly my favorite comic of the week. If it keeps up, probably my new favorite superhero comic.

While I try not to be too much of an old man, bitching about why can't comics be just like the ones I used to read, truth is, there are comics I used to read and love and can't find anything like any more. One of them was The New Adventures of Superboy. I liked the small-town setting, and the fact that, unlike Superman stories, the Superboy tales were less about him fighting supervillains and more about his life on the farm and his relationships with his friends and family.

(Of course, it's possible that the actual comics were nothing like that. But that's the thing about nostalgia, isn't it? You don't want to reexperience something just like you did before; you want to reexperience it the way you remember experiencing it the first time.)

I'm not a huge fan of the current Superboy. Nothing wrong with him; in fact, I really liked his earlier adventures by Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett, with their neo-Jack Kirby vibe. But that's because I was a fan of those creators, not of the character specifically. I was planning on buying this new Adventure Comics series, because I like Geoff Johns and the artist, Francis Manapul, not because it was about Superboy. (Oh, and because it has a Legion of Super-Heroes backup.) It was a comic I was anticipating enough to order, but not one I was necessarily more excited about than the other superhero comics I get.

Then I was listening to the podcast of the Superman panel from this year's San Diego ComiCon, and James Robinson (one of my all-time favorite comics writers, and the man responsible for my reading Superman comics again) described Adventure as having a Ray Bradbury or Norman Rockwell feel to it. And I realized that's how I remember those older Superboy comics feeling. And while I love the comics I am currently reading--otherwise I wouldn't be buying them--I'm not getting anything that feels quite like that. So I started getting excited.

The comic totally lived up to my anticipation. We see Superboy on the farm, going to school, rescuing a girl who falls in a river, and talking to his friend/father Superman. (He's not a son; he's a clone. Not sure what the right term for his relationship to Superman would be.) No supervillains, no fights. And while there are hits of trouble down the road, they seem more rooted in character than plot contrivance. It's exactly the comic I was hoping for.

And the art is nice, too.

Plus, it's got the Legion of Super-Heroes as a backup feature. I first discovered the Legion when it was being written and drawn by Paul Levitz and Keith Giffen, pretty much universally recognized as one of the team's golden ages. I kept reading it even after Levitz left, but gradually drifted away. It just wasn't the same for me, and apparently I wasn't the only one. DC has tried numerous revamps and reboots for the series, none of which have restored it to its former glory (by which I mean sales).

I think switching to the backup format may be the best idea yet to rebuild interest in the feature. It keeps the Legion in the public eye without the burden of carrying their own book. Perhaps more importantly, the short page count forces Johns and his fellow creators to focus on one or two characters at a time. One of the Legion's selling points--at least for me--has always been its big cast. However, I can see why trying to learn all those characters can seem off-putting to new readers. Giving the Legion a format that allows more of a focus on the individuals will help ease readers into the series, instead of dumping them in the deep end.

Will the series continue to hold my interest and excite me? Only time will tell. But for now, I'm hooked.

So I haven't seen Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince yet (but I want to), nor have I seen GI Joe yet (although that's not necessarily a must-see). However, we did go to see Julie & Julia yesterday. Not a particularly explodey movie, but probably more relevant to our lives than the other two.

It's based on a book by Julie Powell, detailing a year she spent cooking every recipe out of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking and blogging about it. It's also based on Julia Child's autobiography of the years she spent writing the book, and her relationship with her husband. It stars Amy Adams (Amy McAdams? Rachel Adams? Can't keep them straight) as Julie Powell, and Meryl Streep as Julia, with Stanley Tucci (one of my favorite actors) as Julia's husband, Paul Child, and some Hollywood pretty boy as Julie's husband.

I had read Julie Powell's book, and enjoyed it. I liked the movie, too, but I think I liked the "real" Julie better. The movie just didn't really give a strong sense of the reasons why she decided to take on the project of cooking her way through the book. I get that a book is always going to be deeper and more introspective by its nature, but considering that the movie is about the Julie/Julia Project, explaining its origins is pretty much a necessity. Following on from that weakness, the movie Julie and her husband come across as fairly shallow, and a little too cute. When they do have problems, they seem to come out of nowhere, and get resolved just as easily.

The Julia Child segments, on the other hand, are a lot of fun. Perhaps there is nothing particularly earth-shattering about writing a cookbook, but that doesn't make the story any less interesting. Even more interesting is her relationship with her husband, Paul. Meryl Streep's portrayal of Julia Child is perhaps a bit broad (in the way that Las Vegas in the summer is a big hot) but Stanley Tucci--as Paul--is so grounded and down to earth and believable, he helps bring Meryl Streep down with him. He makes you believe that these are two people completely in love. And when we see them together like that, we understand that she isn't just some easily-parodied crazy chef. While perhaps best known for her passion about food, she was clearly passionate about all things in life, as this movie illustrates.

So, while perhaps not a completely successful movie, it's certainly one that I enjoyed.

Okay, it's snowing outside. Well, maybe it's stopped snowing, but it's cold and icy and there's snow all over the place and it's 35 freaking degrees out. I know it's mid December and all, but it's the desert. What's up with this shizzle?

Sources: Daisies, Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Canceled - E! Online

Sources: Daisies, Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Canceled - E! Online: "ABC has canceled Pushing Daisies, executive producer Bryan Fuller confirms to me exclusively.
According to our inside sources, Eli Stone and Dirty Sexy Money have also been canceled. Reps for both shows have declined to comment.
Is the pie-maker dead? Will we ever see him again? Read on for the exclusive inside dish straight from the top...
Bryan Fuller tells me, '[ABC president] Steve McPherson called me, and said 'We gave it the best shot we could.' '"

Production Art from Boorman's 'Oz' - ComicMix news

Production Art from Boorman's 'Oz' - ComicMix news

Love the original Wizard of Oz books, so I'm looking forward to this movie. Hope it actually gets made.

MTV Movies Blog � EXCLUSIVE: Emma Thompson Chooses ‘Nanny McPhee’ Sequel Over Harry Potter

MTV Movies Blog � EXCLUSIVE: Emma Thompson Chooses ‘Nanny McPhee’ Sequel Over Harry Potter: "“The working title is ‘Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang’,” she revealed to us. “It’s not a sequel, actually, it’s a new story.”

The original film had Thompson’s wart-heavy governess employing magic to help a father tame his wild kids. “[The second film] is set one hundred years later; the only thing that is the same is Nanny McPhee,” she explained. “It’s about two families: A family of country children, and a family of town children, [both] during the war. So it’s about evacuees, and the father is away at war. So this time, the lone parent is the mother. That’s what it’s about: The big war, and a war between these two sets of extremely different children.”"

Is Pushing Daisies Really Dead? - E! Online

Is Pushing Daisies Really Dead? - E! Online: "Although yesterday was the final day of production on Daisies' episode 13 (I'm told it was an emotional day on set), ABC insiders tell me that the network is waiting on one crucial determining factor: how Daisies does when it returns this coming Wednesday after being preempted for two weeks (for Dancing With the Stars and the Country Music Awards).
'We do want to see how Daisies does in the postelection viewing environment, which we have not been able to see yet,' one ABC source tells me. 'The next week or two will be critical.'"

So if you've been thinking of checking out Pushing Daisies, it looks like now is the time to do it. There may not be too many more chances.

How excited am I?

Less than two months away!

Just got this book in the mail today. So excited!

V is Returning to TV! - ComingSoon.net

V is Returning to TV! - ComingSoon.net: "V is Returning to TV!
Source: Variety October 10, 2008

ABC is developing a new adaptation of 'V,' the 1980s miniseries about alien lizards visiting Earth, reports Variety.

'V' spawned a second miniseries and TV spin-off — written by 'The 4400' co-creator/executive producer Scott Peters.

Warner Bros. TV, which was behind the original, is once again producing the project, which was sold as a spec script to ABC."

There's a part of me that says that any new V series should be done by series creator Kenneth Johnson.

However, I read Johnson's V: The Second Generation novel, and it wasn't very good. And I loved Scott Peters' 4400 series, and miss it. So, really, if Scott Peters produces a new series of V, I'm pretty much okay with that.

Scale Plastic Model Kits by Airfix

Scale Plastic Model Kits by Airfix: "As times change and the hobby industry evolves, Airfix has started to create some fantastic new box art illustrations using the latest technology!

With these new eye catching pieces of art, we hope to grab the attention of the younger generation, thus making them pick up a kit and start modelling. This new way of creating artwork also ensures that all the subjects have an extremely high standard of both detail and accuracy."

Part of me laments yet another example of hand-crafted art given up in favor of computers. Another part of me is amazed that it took this long for them to switch over.

I used to love building model planes. Haven't done it in years.

CW's 'Graysons' takes flier on Robin - Entertainment News, TV News, Media - Variety

CW;Graysons; takes flier on Robin - Entertainment News, TV News, Media - Variety: "Holy prequel, Boy Wonder, the CW is prepping a series based on Batman sidekick Robin’s pre-Caped Crusader days.
'Smallville' exec producers Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson, as well as 'Supernatural' exec producer McG, are behind 'The Graysons,' which has landed a put pilot commitment at the netlet."

What Can Save The Sarah Connor Chronicles? | The Underwire from Wired.com

What Can Save The Sarah Connor Chronicles? | The Underwire from Wired.com: "Sarah Connor has a serious problem. And it's not the relentless army of bots cloaked in human skin determined to kill her and her son.
It's the show ratings, which are steadily dropping with each episode.
Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello delivered a grim outlook last week: 'An SCC insider tells me that if the show's numbers don't start to climb, Fox is unlikely to order any additional episodes beyond the 13 currently in the pipeline.'"

Okay, I really enjoy this show. Plus, an old friend of mine from junior high works on it. So, if you've been thinking of watching but haven't, now's the time to start.

Okay, first things first: did anyone else watch Billie Piper in Shadow in the North on Masterpiece Mystery last night? Damn PBS wussies cut out the love scene between Sally and Fred! And last week, they cut out the epilogue scene from Ruby in the Smoke. Sons of ...

Anyway.

So last week, I had one day off and worked six days in a row, so no posting here for me. Got some catching up to do.

Last Monday saw the season premieres of Big Bang Theory and Heroes. Big Bang Theory was probably my favorite new comedy last season (which is kind of damning it with faint praise, because the only other new comedy I started watching was Samantha Who?). Wisely, they haven't made major changes, so I'm still loving it.

Heroes also seems to be back on track, although between a lackluster second season (though hardly the worst thing on television, as some Internet "critics" seemed to claim) and a nine-month gap between seasons due to the strike, I'm a little over it. Still a TV series I want to watch, but I don't think I'll ever be as in awe of it as I was the first season.

Tuesday saw the sixth season premiere of NCIS, another long-time favorite. Last season's finale shook things up a bit by breaking up the team, but I'm glad that was only a short-term change.

Tried to record the premiere of Knight Rider on Wednesday, but my stupid DVR screwed it up. (Although it's not a problem that has reoccurred, so it was more likely a transmission problem.) Downloaded it for free off iTunes the other week, so I'll see it one way or another.

And I'll get to the rest of the week later.

Atonement | 18 Wild Trips to the Library Stacks | Photos | EW.com

Atonement | 18 Wild Trips to the Library Stacks | Photos | EW.com

SFX: the leading science fiction, fantasy and horror magazine

SFX: the leading science fiction, fantasy and horror magazine: "Douglas Adams’s widow, Jane Belson, has given her blessing for Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer to write a sixth Hitchhiker’s novel, 16 years after Mostly Harmless was published."

Feeling a little bit torn. On the one hand, I absolutely love Douglas Adams' work, especially the Hitchhikers series. His voice is so unique and distinctive, the idea of reading a book about his characters that isn't by him just feels a bit wrong.

On the other hand, I liked the recent movie (written by him and posthumously rewritten by other hands) and the recent adaptations of the last three of his books for radio (also adapted by not-him). And I like Eoin Colfer's work, what I've read of it, although I'm not interested in reading past the third Artemis Fowl book, because I think the series ends just fine at that point.

Aw, who am I trying to kid? Of course I'll read this book.

downthetubes interview: David Flicking, Publisher of The DFC

downthetubes interview: David Flicking, Publisher of The DFC

The DFC is something I look forward to each week, so it was interesting, reading this interview with publisher David Fickling.

Not a lot to talk about, except still enjoying Terminator and Fringe on Fox. Watched last night's One Tree Hill, which, being pretty much all about death, wasn't the most pleasant of experiences. Tonight saw the return of Lincoln Heights, a how I really enjoy, but am about three episodes behind (from last season).

Perhaps I will manage a longer post sometime over the next couple of days. In the meantime, please enjoy the new Cinematic Titanic trailer.

Giles News

Giles News: "Noted author and longtime Giles County resident Gregory Mcdonald has died at the age of 71."

When I was in high school, I loved Mcdonald's Fletch novels. (The Chevy Chase movie was actualy fairly faithful to the first book.) I had bought a new copy of the first book recently, planning on rereading the series. Think I'll move that up on my to-read list.

Obviously, it's been a while. Once again, I'm going to try to use the new TV season to try to impose some sort of schedule on my blogging.

So here's my thoughts on what's new in the world of television:

Much as I love the work of Steven Bochco (NYPD Blue, Hill Street Blues, LA Law) I decided to give his new show on TNT, Above the Bar, a pass. Tried it out for about five minutes, and while it looked perfectly well-made, I just felt like I had seen it already. Just not interested in a lawyer show right now. Maybe it brings something new to the table beyond the story of overworked public defenders struggling to keep their clients from being swallowed up by a system that doesn't care. If so, someone let me know and I'll Netflix the DVDs. As should be evident to anyone who even kind of knows me, I watch a lot of television already. Don't need an excuse to add more.

I had thought about checking out the new 90210, but when the day rolled around, I realized I just really wanted to watch it because of my crushes on Shannen Dougherty and Jennie Garth, formed while watching the original version. Not the worst reason for watching, but on the other hand, I would have to sit through another teen drama, and I already watch One Tree Hill. (Which, to its credit, has moved beyond the teen part.) So, at the last minute, I passed, and watched a recording of another old favorite, Tales of the Gold Monkey.

And I did not watch Prison Break. Didn't really enjoy last season, and the news that they're bringing back Sarah after beheading her last season was the last straw for me. Unless they brought her back as a head in a bottle, a la Futurama. But that's not what happened. (I asked a coworker.)

Loved the season premiere of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Lots of great action sequences, as usual. The developments with Cameron will hopefully turn out to be a good idea; I liked her character before, but I think she'll be a lot more interesting now that it's no longer as clear whether she's simply the "good Terminator." And the twist at the end with Shirley Manson's character caught me completely by surprise, and yet made perfect sense.

I'm not quite as enthusiastic about the new HBO vampire series, True Blood. It held my attention all the way through, and I definitely want to see the next episode. And Anna Paquin has quite the young Holly Hunter vibe. (Loving older Holly Hunter in Saving Grace, so not a bad thing.) In some ways, I guess I feel, as with Raising the Bar, that I've kind of seen this stuff before. But while lawyer shows follow a pretty clearly established path, vampire shows are--if nothing else--weirder. So here's hoping.

Speaking of weird, I liked the premiere of the new JJ Abrams show, Fringe, quite a bit. It owes quite a bit to X-Files, obviously, both in tone (been watching early X-Files on DVD recently) and just in the "government agent investigates weird phenomena with hints of some sort of big backstory connecting things" obvious sort of way. Having said that, it doesn't just follow the pair of characters/believer/unbeliever pattern of X-Files, and the larger ensemble cast should make things a little more interesting. Plus the fact that one of the characters is completely mad. And I generally enjoy the shows JJ Abrams produces. (Yes, even Six Degrees and What About Brian. Judge me.)

And that's about it for new American TV. As far as British stuff, I didn't hate Spooks Code 9 as much as the rest of the Internet, but I'm not going to accuse it of being good television. I saw the first episode of Mutual Friends and liked it enough to want to see the next two episodes, but haven't yet. I think I like the cast more than I do the premise. I really liked the first episode of Lost in Austen, about a contemporary London girl who finds herself stuck in the story/world of Pride and Prejudice, while Elizabeth Bennett disappears off to contemporary London.

As far as reading, I am about halfway through Brad Meltzer's latest book, Book of Lies. So far, it's a good, gripping thriller. Also still listening to the audiobook of Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime, although that got sidelined by my desire to listen to the new Torchwood soundtrack over and over again. And I'm about a third of the way through the first collection of IDW"s Complete Little Orphan Annie. As with all chronological reprints of comic strips, the strip is never quite as good at the beginning as it later becomes, but it's not bad, either. I'm enjoying the strips on their own, and as a means to watch the development of Harold Gray as the strip goes on.

James Bond – Quantum of Solace movie

James Bond – Quantum of Solace movie

New trailer!

Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean.” | The LA Progressive

Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean.” | The LA Progressive: "“So Sambo beat the bitch!”
This is how Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin described Barack Obama’s win over Hillary Clinton to political colleagues in a restaurant a few days after Obama locked up the Democratic Party presidential nomination."

Cat hired as station chief brings passengers back

Cat hired as station chief brings passengers back: "A money-losing Japanese train company has found the purr-fect pet mascot to draw crowds and bring back business — tabby Tama.

All the 9-year-old female cat does is sit by the entrance of Kishi Station in western Japan, wearing a black uniform cap and posing for photos for the tourists who are now flocking in droves from across the nation."

SFX: the leading science fiction, fantasy and horror magazine

SFX: the leading science fiction, fantasy and horror magazine: "Great news for the hordes of posters on the SFX forum who were raving about BBC’s Being Human – the show has been commissioned for a further six episodes, the BBC confirmed today.

The original hour-long quirky drama about a ghost, a vampire and a werewolf sharing a flat was broadcast as part of BBC 3's drama pilot season in February, and proved hugely popular with both viewers and critics, and was a download smash on the Beeb’s new iPlayer service (which must say something about good word of mouth)."

Still not really in a big thinky-writey mood right now, so I will have to delay my thoughts on this week's episode of Doctor Who until later. But I did think it was great, and wallpaper of Donna-in-parka now decorates my computer desktop and my phone.

Finished Starcross on Friday, and read A Diet of Treacle by Lawrence Block yesterday. Like most Hard Case Crime books, it only took a couple of hours to read. And I can't think of anything to say about it. It definitely gave a sense of what Greenwich Village must have been like in the early '60s, and as a story, it definitely held my attention. But it didn't seem particularly deep, either, so I can't really say anything deep about it.

Today, I started Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt. After Starcross, I wanted another Steampunk story, and I had this lying around the house. About 100 pages in so far, and I'm liking it.

Not really feeling too much like writing right now. Need breakfast. But, really quickly:

Finished the NASCAR romance Tuesday night. Forbidden Attraction, it was called. I continue to be curious about the background mysteries these books are setting up, and I'm enjoying the books okay, so I'll be reading the next one. (Truth & Consequences?)

I am about a hundred pages into Starcross, Philip Reeve's sequel to Larklight. Like the first, this one is a clever parody of Victorian science fiction, this time with a bit of Agatha Christie mixed in. Loved the first one, loving this one.

Now, breakfast.

According to plan, I finished Three Shirt Deal today. I really liked it, but I see it's getting some negative reviews on Amazon.com, including one from Publishers Weekly. If I'm honest, I suppose none of the Shane Scully books have been as good as the first one, but I didn't really have any problems with this one. Maybe I was all caught up in the story of Shane and Alexa trying to reconnect, because I'm just a big softie. Maybe I'm just not very critical, but I know what I like, and I liked this.

I think I'm also predisposed to liking this particular series, because I've also gotten my brother hooked on it. My brother, a cop, doesn't read anything except the Harry Potter books and this series, as far as I know. We don't have a lot of stuff to bond over, so it's nice that we have this.

Speaking of being a big softie (okay, pussy), I think the next book I'm going to read is a NASCAR Harlequin Romance, although it's downstairs right now and I can't remember the title. Go ahead and judge me. The thing is, when I first was introduced to NASCAR by an ex-girlfriend, the Pedophile, I couldn't get into it. Then I found a novel about the early years of NASCAR, first book in a paperback series, I think called White Lightning. (That was the book title; can't remember the series title any more.) I read it in an attempt to put a more human face on the sport, so I could better connect with the girlfriend. Apparently, I would have had better luck if I had instead chosen to f*ck teenage boys, but there you go.

Anyway, I enjoyed reading that series of books, and that led me to start enjoying watching the races. Looking for something similar, all I could find was this Harlequin series, which is an ongoing series focusing on a couple of different racing families. I like series, especially big, multi-character ones. I like NASCAR, although I'm not a fanatic. (Can't spare the energy from my Doctor Who obsession.) So I gave the first one in the series a try, and enjoyed it enough to want to read this second one.

So, you know, go ahead and make the jokes.

So, I still haven't watched Saturday's episode of Spectacular Spider-Man or Friday's episode of Sarah Jane Adventures (although I've seen that multiple times already since it's original UK broadcast). And my stupid recording of Saturday's stupid NASCAR stupid race cut off about 17 laps before the end, so I didn't see who won. (Found out later it was Jimmy Johnson, but it's not the same.)

TV I did see on Sunday, though...

A Room With a View on Masterpiece: Very beautiful, very well-acted. Only, I've never read the story or seen any previous adaptations, so I guess I was expecting a bit more twists and complications. Still, nice scenery, although this is the second British TV program shot in Italy I've seen this week, after Doctor Who, and I can't help thinking that this would have been livened up a bit with the inclusion of lava monsters.

Everybody Hates Chris: Not a whole lot to say. Another hilarious episode of one of my current favorite comedies. Why doesn't this show get more attention?

John Adams on HBO: Again, not a whole lot to say, except as well-done as the previous five installments. A much smaller scale episode after the casts of thousands we've seen in previous weeks, but no less effective for it.

And I'm about halfway through Stephen J. Cannell's Three Shirt Deal, the seventh novel in his Shane Scully series. Like most of the other books in the series, corruption in the LAPD seems to be a major theme once again. As always, Cannell proves himself to be an extremely able, effective storyteller (as you might expect from such a TV veteran).

I have to admit, one of the problems I had with the last book in the series, White Sister, was the seemingly miraculous recovery of Scully's wife, Alexa, after being shot in the head. Not that I wanted her to die, but it just felt too much like a TV series "everything is going to be all right now, just like it was before" type of ending. So while it's painful to read, I appreciate that, in this book, we see the aftereffects of Alexa's injury, and it's clear that it's not quite such a happy ending after all. Hoping to finish this book today or tomorrow.

Comic Book Resources > CBR News: Stranger Than Fiction: Cornell on “Fantastic Four: True Story”

Comic Book Resources > CBR News: Stranger Than Fiction: Cornell on “Fantastic Four: True Story”: "There’s nothing more satisfying that just diving into a good book. This July, the First Family of Marvel Comics will do literally just that in the pages of the four-issue miniseries, “Fantastic Four: True Story,” by writer Paul Cornell (“Wisdom,” “Captain Britain and MI:13”) and artist Horacio Dominguez."

Okay, literally just finished this week's new episode of Doctor Who. New in the UK, that is; coming to SciFi in about three weeks or so.

Last year, the second episode of the season, The Shakespeare Code , was a lavish, lively, historical adventure that quickly became one of my favorite stories. This year, the second episode of the season, The Fires of Pompeii, is a lavish, lively, historical adventure that has almost immediately become one of my favorite stories. Written by the talented James Moran (about whom more later), it manages to shift from comedy to action to tragedy seamlessly, with some fantastic visual sequences and some heartbreaking emotional ones.

Catherine Tate continues to amaze as Donna Noble. In some ways, the relationship between her and the Doctor reminds me of his relationship with Sarah Jane Smith, (her from The Sarah Jane Adventures, who traveled with the Doctor back in the 70s). I said it last week, and I'll say it again: because she's not a lovestruck young woman, they come across more as equals. As she was even back in her debut story, The Runaway Bride, she's someone who can pull the Doctor back from the brink of alien coldness, someone who can revive his humanity.

Once again, I'll try to keep this spoiler-free, but it should come as no surprise that a story called The Fires of Pompeii features the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the destruction of the city. Seeing Donna's heartbreaking attempts to fight history by trying to save just one person, and the plight of marble merchant Caecilius and his family, nearly brought a tear to my eye. I loved the moments when she stood up to the Doctor, forcing the two of them, and the series in general, to directly confront and deal with how set in stone history truly may be, and just how much the Doctor is slave to these fixed points in time. And I loved when she lent her support at a key moment, which I won't describe here, but which made me cheer out loud (much to the surprise of Penelope, who was curled up next to me, also watching).

And then there are the mysterious prophecies, and yet another mention of missing planets... Where is it all leading?

Well, next week, I suppose it's leading to the planet of the Ood, in an episode entitled Planet of the Ood. Can't wait.

James Moran is definitely a name I'll be keeping out for. He was a guest at this past February's Gallifrey convention, where he revealed he's going to be writing an episode of Primeval next series, and is writing an episode of upcoming Spooks spinoff, Spooks: Code 9. Clearly, I also need to watch his debut horror film, Severance

Oh, and I finished the second novel in the Shadow collection. I really enjoyed this pair of stories, billed as author Walter Gibson's favorites. While the editorial material doesn't quite spell out why he favored these tales, they certainly are changes of pace from the bulk of the stories I've read. They're more personal in focus, dealing with small-scale stories of revenge and other personal motivations, instead of the usual series of crimes committed by master supervillains. Definitely recommended for folks who like this sort of thing.

Of course, I'm still not actually finished with the thing, since there's still an article and radio script in the book for me to get through. But I will finish tonight.

In the on-deck circle: Three Shirt Deal by Stephen J. Cannell. I loved watching Cannell's TV series in the 80s, and I really enjoy his books, especially his series about LAPD Detective Shane Scully (of which this is the latest installment). More once I start reading it.

Just some quick thoughts about Thursday's TV:

My Name is Earl: Almost didn't watch it, to be honest. I'm glad I did; it ended up making me laugh. But I think there's only so much humor that can be milked from having your main character in a coma. (Again, Dad's hospitalization may be having an effect on how I'm viewing this storyline.)

30 Rock: I find I have nothing to say about this episode. I like the show, and I liked this episode, but there's nothing that particularly stood out for me.

The Office: Thought it was hilarious, although between seeing Michael and Jan at home this week, and Dwight's home earlier in the season, I'm not sure I want to see anyone else's home lives at this point. They're just too weird, and I'm getting really creeped out.

I did enjoy last night's Battlestar Galactica. Although, with the lightest moment probably being when a bunch of characters were machine-gunned to death, I am glad that the option exists for me to watch Doctor Who the next day, instead of right before Battlestar. Really, with SciFi's Friday lineup being Sarah Jane Adventures, followed by Doctor Who, followed by Battlestar Galactica, it's like having a light, frothy, wonderful dessert, followed by a full, rich, well-balanced meal, followed by some big guy kicking you in the groin over and over again with steel toed boots.

Still reading my Shadow book. Since Walter Gibson wrote two Shadow novels a month, I think it may actually be taking me more time to read them than he took to write them.

So I finished Den of Thieves Monday afternoon. Totally wrong about what I thought was a setup for the next book. Shows what I know. There are already two more books out in the series, so I've ordered the next one.

Monday night, I started reading the 14th book in the new series of Shadow pulp reprints, collecting The Grove of Doom and The Masked Lady. I've been a fan of the Shadow since I was a kid. Part of the fascination may have been the idea that, once upon a time, decades before I was born, there were whole novels published every other week about this character (I've always loved serial fiction). Years later, DC Comics published a collection of the Denny O'Neil/Mike Kaluta comics that were my first exposure to the character. In his introduction, O'Neil explained that part of the reason for the Shadow's enduring popularity may be because he basically has all the trappings of a sinister villain, but he's a hero. I think that may be part of it, too.

So far, I'm maybe halfway through The Grove of Doom. (Didn't have much time to read last night.) It's interesting, in that it's set on a Long Island estate instead of the usual urban New York setting, and the motivation behind the incredibly weird crimes seems to be a family squabble. The domestic setting is unusual. Additionally, this book ostensibly collects two of author Walter Gibson's favorite Shadow stories, so going in, the expectations are a little higher than usual.

Last night saw the return of NCIS with new episodes. I've said many times before that I enjoy the show because of the characters, and nothing has changed. Nice to see Gretchen Egolff guest-starring as a homicide detective; good to see she's finding work after the cancelation of Journeyman.

In related news, TV Guide's Michael Ausiello reveals that a series regular will be gone by the end of the series. So that's something that will keep me watching (as if I wouldn't otherwise).

Meanwhile, not too sure how I'm feeling about the new season of Hell's Kitchen. On the one hand, I thought that last week's premiere made this season look a bit too gimmicky and game-showy, like they were trying too hard to make it as flashy as other reality shows. This week's attempt by Cory to strategically eliminate her competition backed that up. Ultimately, the show redeemed itself by having chef Gordon Ramsay remind everyone that the prize is an actual job running an actual kitchen in an actual restaurant, and that at the end of the day, regardless of strategy and game-playing, the winner had to prove that they could do the job. So he overrode Cory's choices and got rid of who he saw as the weakest link. So kudos to Gordon Ramsay for keeping it real.

I write an awful lot on this blog about television. Partly, it's because I do watch an awful lot of television, unashamedly. It's also partly because it's easy. I don't like to talk a lot about personal stuff here, because it's private. I also don't have a lot of personal stuff to talk about. But every night, I usually see something new on TV, and that gives me something new to talk about here, when I get around to writing new entries.

Lest my faithful readers (both of you) think I do nothing but watch TV, I have decided to start talking about the books I'm reading as well.

Right now, I'm pretty close to finishing Den of Thieves, the third Cat Royal book by Julia Golding. Sadly unavailable in the US, I ordered the first book in the series, The Diamond of Drury Lane as a result of one of the very rare instances of Amazon.co.uk making a useful recommendation. (Generally, their recommendations seem along the lines of, "You ordered a book with pages and a cover. Here are other books with pages and a cover.") Set in the 18th century, the books tell the adventures of Cat Royal, an orphan growing up at the Royal Theater in London, and her adventures through a cross-section of London society, from the gangs of thieves running the streets to an aristocratic family she befriends. The second book goes further into the complex morality of the time, as she struggles to rescue her escaped slave friend, Pedro Hawkins, from the clutches of his cruel master.

In this third book, faced with the closure of the Royal, Cat finds herself acting as a spy in revolutionary Paris. At the same time, she has entered into a dark bargain with evil Billy Shepherd (which, it seems to me, can't possibly be wrapped up in this book, and may be setting things up for the next volume). The closest thing I can think of to these books are Philip Pullman's Sally Lockhart books, although Pullman's books are set in a different time period, and his plots are a bit more melodramatic and fantastical. The Cat Royal stories are gripping adventures that pretty much show her struggles with the problems of her ordinary life, without the addition of mysterious jewels and treasures and secret weapons.

For what it's worth, the first book won the Nestle Book Prize, something it has in common with other favorite books of mine, like Varjak Paw by SF Said, The Fire-Eaters by David Almond, Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve, and some books about some kid named Harry Potter.

Okay, so I just finished watching Partners in Crime, the first episode of the fourth series of Doctor Who. And I loved it.

As I have alluded to in recent posts, things have not been all happiness and light in the Penelopecat household. There have been ups (managed to pull off a huge program at work, a comics convention, that attracted a thousand people, plus I got promoted) but they seem so tiny compared to the downs. Well, one big down, really; my dad passed away a week before Christmas, and it still haunts me, every single day. Sometimes there are things that distract me, but I never forget. But Doctor Who has always been more than a distraction for me, more than just a favorite TV show. In the words of Paul Cornell, it's a lifestyle choice. Whether it's a book or a magazine or a comic or whatever, Doctor Who has always been something I could completely lose myself in. And a new TV episode that I've never seen before? Better than anything else in the world.

And it helps that the show goes from strength to strength. Catherine Tate, returning as Donna from Christmas, 2006's Runaway Bride is phenomenal. I loved Billie Piper as Rose during the first two series. I loved Freema Agyeman as Martha last year. But after one new episode of Donna, I don't particularly miss either one. (Having said that, I'm looking forward to Martha's return. And, of course, Rose.) I know only too well that Donna/Catherine Tate had her detractors; the vehemence of some online comments is what keeps me backed away a bit from online fandom. But me, I loved her in The Runaway Bride, especially at the end, when we see how Donna has grown over the course of her adventure with the Doctor. I swear, anyone complaining that Catherine Tate only played the character as shouty, self-centered, stupid, and soulless must have turned the show off five minutes before the end. Their loss.

This episode builds on the development we've already seen Donna go through, and she is a fully rounded-out character. She's clever, she's inquisitive, and she's oh so funny. And she's not funny because she's playing a stylized character in her own comedy series, but because she's a woman with a sense of humor. She also has some wonderful moments of warmth, particularly in her scenes with her granddad. Partners in Crime is the perfect title for this episode, because that's how the Doctor and Donna come across: as equals. With Rose and Martha, with the various shades of romance in their pairings with the Doctor, plus their relative youth, that sense of equality wasn't quite there.

Once again, I find myself not at all interested in the online reaction, because I can predict the complaints. I'm going to generalize here, but the more comedy in an episode, the more upset the vocal parts of the fan community seem to get. Whatever. I laughed out loud over and over again, but not because the episode was played for laughs at the expense of the story. The humor fit right in, although it must be said that the story wasn't as dark as other episodes. That's the thing, though; this is a show that can go up and down that scale with ease. And that's why, as much as I like Battlestar Galactica and admire the quality of writing and acting and all that, it's too dark and joyless for me to give myself up to it so completely, the way I can with Doctor Who.

So excited for next week. And I would be remiss if I didn't at least mention That Sudden Surprise Toward the End, but I don't want to give anything away. So I will just leave you with this: loved it, loved it, loved it.

NBC Fall Schedule Scoop! - Ausiello Report | TVGuide.com

NBC Fall Schedule Scoop! - Ausiello Report | TVGuide.com: "NBC's schedule for the 2008-09 TV season has been announced, and here's the big news: Friday Night Lights has been renewed (13 eps will air beginning in January following a fall run on DirecTV's The 101),"

One week and counting...

It's been a while since I've posted anything, because things have been fairly crazy, and mostly in a suck-ass kind of way. But then something comes along to cheer me up. Something a little bit like this...

The true meaning of Christmas, courtesy of WetheRobots.com:

In case folks didn't see these Children in Need bits last Friday:

Cinematic Titanic

Cinematic Titanic

New thing from Mystery Science Theater 3000's Joel Hodgson. No idea what it is. Stay tuned.

Father Awarded Millions for Funeral Protest - New York Times

Father Awarded Millions for Funeral Protest - New York Times: "The father of a fallen Marine was awarded nearly $11 million Wednesday in damages by a jury that found leaders of a fundamentalist church had invaded the family's privacy and inflicted emotional distress when they picketed the Marine's funeral."

You know, I'm against the war as much as anyone, but I say, "Good." Because there's a time and a place to protest appropriately, and this just isn't it.

Watch with Kristin - Best News Ever! Joss Whedon Spills Exclusive Deets on His New Series

Watch with Kristin - Best News Ever! Joss Whedon Spills Exclusive Deets on His New Series: "Whedon's new Fox series, called Dollhouse, stars Miss Eliza Dushku, best known as Faith to you Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans. And this show isn't just a pilot. It's already been given a seven-episode commitment by Fox. Woo!"

Comics Commentary: Scorchy Smith

Comics Commentary: Scorchy Smith: "On the subject of future projects, since we've already sent the solicitation info to our book distributor, I can announce that in June 2008, I will release an oversized, 11' x 11' hardcover: SCORCHY SMITH AND THE ART OF NOEL SICKLES through IDW. It will contain the complete Sickles Scorchy for the first time ever, plus about 60 pages of Sickles's magazine and other illustrations."

Yet another classic comic strip collection I must have.

If anyone is curious about why Kate Mulgrew replaced Genevieve Bujold in Star Trek: Voyager...

A model of Scrooge McDuck's money bin - a photoset on Flickr

A model of Scrooge McDuck's money bin - a photoset on Flickr

As a longtime reader of the Scrooge McDuck comics, this just sems pretty cool.

Daniel Craig Signs For Four More Bond Films - James Bond 007 - CommanderBond.net - James Bond At Its Best

Daniel Craig Signs For Four More Bond Films - James Bond 007 - CommanderBond.net - James Bond At Its Best: "Daniel Craig has been signed on for four more films as James Bond, according to trade paper, The Hollywood Reporter. MGM chairman and CEO, Harry Sloan yesterday revealed the news at the Forbes MEET II conference."

Of course, Timothy Dalton was signed for three films, but his deal lapsed after two, so nothing is ever guaranteed. And while Casino Royale seemed to signal a turning point in terms of quality for the James Bond series, so did For Your Eyes Only.

But it's not like I'm not going to go see a new James Bond movie, so fingers crossed.

E! News - Prison Break for Girls?

Ha ha! I had been joking that after being sent to a Panamanian prison to break someone out for the mysterious "Company," Prison Break's Michael Scofield might soon find himself being forced to break yet another person out of another prison. The twist this time? It's a women's prison!

And then I read this...

E! News - Prison Break for Girls?: "Fox is reportedly plotting a Prison Break spinoff that would take place at a women's penitentiary and follow a new character who's expected to make her debut later this season on the serialized thriller."

I've also joked about Scofield having to break out of a space prison made out of an asteroid. Let's see if that one comes true.

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Pushing Daisies Picked Up for Full Season

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Pushing Daisies Picked Up for Full Season: "Fellow pie lovers, rejoice! I'm hearing from a few reliable sources that ABC is officially extending the Pushing Daisies party! Rumor has it the back nine episodes were just ordered, which means the show is going to enjoy a full season! Let's all have a slice of lemon meringue to celebrate, 'kay?"

Trailer for the live action Ben 10 movie on Cartoon Network.

Okay, now that we're well into the new fall TV season, here's the new shows I'm finding myself watching:

First, the only new show I think I'd miss if it was canceled is Pushing Daisies. According to E! Online, it's doing well, and stands a good chance of surviving, which is great. It does push the charm and whimsy-o-meter right up to the line, but not quite to the breaking point. I would say it almost feels like a Tim Burton TV series, only it's nothing like Family Dog at all, which is the one TV series Tim Burton produced, off the top of my head. But it's fun, it's sweet, it's clever, and if their attempts to expand the envelope of what prime time network TV drama can be don't always work, at least they're not just producing the same old stuff.

And still, the best show on TV right now continues to be Friday Night Lights.

Comedies: I'm watching Aliens in America, The Big Bang Theory, and Back to You. All I ask from a comedy is that it make me laugh, and all three have. Big Bang Theory was probably the biggest surprise, since I was expecting it to be a "Look at the funny nerds" show. But I watched the pilot, thanks to a free iTunes download, and I liked it. I give it a lot of credit for allowing the hot blonde chick to treat the nerds as if they are normal people, and not looking down on them or treating them as stereotypes. Aliens in America is pleasantly low-key, a good follow-up to Everybody Hates Chris. And Back to You, starring sitcom vets Kelsey Grammer and Debra Heaton, is about as traditional as it gets, but it's still funny.

Oh, and I'm watching Curb Your Enthusiasm again, and am finally on board watching 30 Rock. None of these shows, new and returning, have grabbed me the way shows like The Office, Everybody Hates Chris, or My Name is Earl have, but I'm enjoying them.

Dramas: Journeyman is kind of a low-key Quantum Leap. I appreciate that the main character's wife has already accepted that he's traveling through time, and we don't have to watch episode after episode of him trying to explain his "mysterious" disappearances to her. Beyond that, I like the whole idea of him helping ordinary people instead of getting caught up in big events. Not watching anything new on Tuesdays, except for the gripping and soon-to-be-ending Damages.

Wednesday, it's the aforementioned Pushing Daisies and Private Practice and Bionic Woman. Again, both entertaining enough to bring me back next week, neither shows that I'd miss if they got canceled. In particular, Bionic Woman seems like a bigger-budgeted version of SciFi's dead series, Painkiller Jane, which I fell behind on and eventually stopped watching after four or five episodes. Michelle Ryan, as Jamie Summers, is just fine, but overall, the show is just a little too dark and heavy. That works okay on producer David Eick's other show, Battlestar Galactica, but since Bionic Woman isn't an allegory for the war on terrorism, it's an uncomfortable fit here.

I think it's also interesting that of the three shows set in San Francisco this year (Journeyman, Bionic Woman, and Women's Murder Club) Bionic Woman is the only one set exclusively in the parts of San Francisco that are dark, shitty, rainy, and look exactly like Vancouver. And since almost every TV show and movie try to pass Vancouver off as someplace else, Bionic Woman looks like it's set in the same place as every other TV show or movie. No real sense of place at all. (Heck, Nash Bridges did a better job of feeling like it was really set in SF.)

Private Practice is the much-anticipated Grey's Anatomy spin-off that is really just an okay medical drama. But that doesn't mean Amy Brenneman, Kate Walsh, or Kadee Strickland are in it any less. (Or Tim Daly, Taye Diggs, or Paul Adelstein, but the attraction isn't the same.) And just because it isn't groundbreakingly brilliant doesn't mean it's bad.

Don't believe I'm watching anything new on Thursday, beyond the fantastic, almost-finished-for-this-year Mad Men. Oh, and I've decided to check out Law & Order: Criminal Intent again because Alicia Witt has joined the cast. Been a fan since Cybill, created by the man behind The Big Bang Theory.

Friday is the home of the one new show I sampled and decided to pass on: Moonlight. The idea of a vampire detective sounded very Angel, and, in fact, Angel cocreator David Greenwalt worked on Moonlight briefly. In fact, it turned out to be more Forever Knight, without all the supernatural weirdness that made Angel interesting. Having said that, Sophia Myles was totally hot, and great, and almost enough to get me to watch the show if there wasn't anything else in that time slot.

But there is something else in that slot. Two somethings, in fact. There's the aforementioned Friday Night Lights--best show on network TV, and better than most cable--and the new Women's Murder Club. Like Private Practice, it's a good, solid traditional genre show (cop show instead of doctor show) that's quite well made and acted. On its own, it's just fine, but compared to something truly great, like Friday Night Lights, it pales a bit. However, I enjoyed it better than Moonlight, so I'll watch it over the vampire detective thing.

And I'll write about Sunday's new shows tomorrow.

I've stumbled across this picture in a couple of places now...

Look! A Christmas present!

Coming next Saturday! How excited am I?

Dog Star Wars Costumes - Pictures of Halloween Pet Costumes - Good Housekeeping

Dog Star Wars Costumes - Pictures of Halloween Pet Costumes - Good Housekeeping

Pushing Daisies - Comic Book - ABC.com

Pushing Daisies - Comic Book - ABC.com

I was already looking forward to this new series from Bryan Fuller, creator of Wonderfalls and Dead Like Me and former producer of Heroes. So this was fun, finding an online comic for the show (which premieres in 11 days, according to the countdown clock on the site) actually written by Fuller and drawn by some of my favorite artists, like Zach Howard and Cameron Stewart.

Coming Monday!

THE BEAT � Blog Archive � RIP: Phil Frank

THE BEAT RIP: Phil Frank: "San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Phil Frank creator of FARLEY died this week at age 64. He had announced his retirement due to illness only a few days before."

I really loved Phil Frank's work. I had drifted away from reading Farley on a daily basis, but just came back to it. And I just discovered Elderberries, the new strip he was drawing.

First Marshall Rogers, then Mike Wieringo, now this. Very upset indeed.

Dark Roasted Blend: Miniature Crimean Castle

Dark Roasted Blend: Miniature Crimean Castle

How cool is this?

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Slitheen For Sarah Jane

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Slitheen For Sarah Jane: "New CBBC series The Sarah Jane Adventures will feature the return of some familiar Doctor Who enemies when it debuts later this month. The Slitheen, a family of scheming monsters first seen in Aliens of London / World War Three are back - and out for revenge."

SFX

Thank you, SFX Magazine. (Now where's my copy of the lastest issue?)

SFX: "Because it's Thursday and because you're worth it, we've got a little treat for you to pass a few minutes today. Thanks to the lovely people at ITV, we've got an exclusive video interview with Primeval co-creator Adrian Hodges in which he gives us some tidbits about the next series (due to hit screens in the new year). But enough of our yakking - it's over to Adrian..."

BBC's Robin Hood site now says the show is coming back in the fall!

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Series Five

Time for some Doctor Who news...

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Series Five: "Series Four, which went into production in July 2007, will hit UK screens in Spring 2008, followed by a special episode for Christmas 2008. In 2009 Doctor Who will return with three specials starring David Tennant, with Head Writer, Russell T Davies. The full-length fifth series will transmit in 2010."

Blog@Newsarama � Ennis to write Dan Dare series for Virgin Comics

Blog@Newsarama � Ennis to write Dan Dare series for Virgin Comics: "Virgin Comics is bringing Dan Dare: Pilot of the Future out of retirement to star in a new line of comics and a big-screen adaptation. Variety reports that the classic British science fiction character is a favorite of Virgin's Richard Branson, who spearheaded the effort to acquire publishing, film, television and video game rights to the Frank Hampson creation. The new comic, which debuts in November, will be written by Garth Ennis. "Dan Dare is the quintessential British hero," Ennis tells the trade paper. "He's our Captain America, our Superman, our Batman; he's all of them rolled into one.""

ComicMix.Com

ComicMix.Com: "Disney Adventures, the monthly supermarket digest magazine containing a huge chunk of original Disney-related comic strips, will be ending its 17 year run with its November issue. "

As a telefantasy fan, I feel like I should write up something about just how disappointing SciFi's new Flash Gordon series is. About how they've taken a story about an ordinary man going to another planet to save the Earth, and turned it into a story about a guy who lives at home with his mom and waits for stuff to come to him. About how the show didn't even name one of it's main characters, Zarkov, until a third of the way through the second episode.

But, it turns out that Lance Parkin has already written it for me.

SCI FI Wire | The News Service of the SCI FI Channel | SCIFI.COM

SCI FI Wire | The News Service of the SCI FI Channel | SCIFI.COM: "Moviehole.net reported that the upcoming sequel film The Scorpion King: Rise of the Akkadian is set to begin shooting in South Africa on Oct. 1 and is casting for a hero to fill the shoes of Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, who won't be reprising the title role."

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Grace Saved: Holly Hunter's TNT Drama Renewed!

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Grace Saved: Holly Hunter's TNT Drama Renewed!: "Good news for Holly Hunter and Saving Grace. Faring better than Treat Williams' Heartland in the post-Closer time period on TNT, the show has execs at the cable net mighty pleased. Just three weeks out of the gate, the series has received a 15-episode second-season order. Or so I'm hearing from show insiders. Stay tuned for official confirmation..."

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Burn Notice Will Be Back!

Watch with Kristin - Breaking! Burn Notice Will Be Back!: "USA has ordered 13 additional episodes for a second season of the fabulous Burn Notice."

Woo hoo! Just read in TV Guide that on Sunday, August 26, Jennifer Finnigan will be returning to The Dead Zone as psychic/occasional girlfriend to Johnny Smith, Alex Sinclair. It was seeing her on this show that led me to watch her in lawyer show Close to Home on CBS two years ago. I stopped watching it after the first season, not because she wasn't good, but because it really was just another lawyer show. So I'm happy to see her back here.

Okay, so it's been a while since I've written anything new. And, instead of talking about that, I'm just going to jump right in and talk about new stuff.

First, I saw Stardust over the weekend. It's been a number of years since I read the book, by Neil Gaiman, so I can't say how exactly faithful it is to the original. But it feels like I remember the book feeling, so that's a good thing. I like the Disney Pirates of the Caribbean movies just fine, but while Stardust is similar to those in that it's a historical fantasy/adventure, it's way better. I loved it.

On to television...

Saw the season finale (and apparently series finale) of HBO's John From Cincinnati. Wish I could say it made sense at the end, but no, not really. Maybe I'm just thick. But it was still well-acted, the dialogue was great, and it was fascinating to watch.

The 4400 and The Dead Zone continue to be reliably entertaining. Sort of the good, solid mainstream programming that networks don't produce any more. Not that they're old-fashioned, but sometimes you want good, solid, straightforward storytelling with likable, human characters. Not edgy or experimental, just fun to watch.

Over on TNT, Heartland came to the end of its first season. Not a spectacular show, but one I watched because I like the cast. If it comes back, I'll watch it again, and if it doesn't, I won't shed a tear.

Saving Grace stirs mixed feelings in me. I really enjoy watching it, but when I think about it, the cop show stuff isn't really any better than any other cop show, and the stuff with the angel trying to bring Grace back to God doesn't have any connection to the cop stuff, so it's almost like it's shoehorned in. So what makes it so special? Holly Hunter, obviously. Twelve feet of pure sex shoved into a five foot woman. Apparently, it has been renewed for a second season, and I'm glad.

A new favorite is Kyle XY. It's almost like a low-key Smallville, and maybe that's what I like about it. (More about a superkid discovering his powers while trying not to become an outsider, less of the whole beating-up-women thing that Smallville had seemed to focus on for a while. Although, to be fair, they seemed to get away from that in the 2/3 of the most recent season that I've seen.) And Kyle XY is less melodramatic.

Meanwhile, over on Hell's Kitchen, Gordon Ramsay made the right choice by picking Rock to win. Admittedly, I wanted Bonnie to win, but only so she'd be working down the street from me and I could go stare at her in a way that wouldn't be stalker-ish at all. Still haven't tried Terra Rosa, the restaurant run by last year's winner.

Another new favorite is My Boys on TBS. (Which surprises me, because the part of The Bill Engvall Show I caught on the same network was supremely unfunny.) It's a bunch-of-friends-hanging-out-together sitcom, along the lines of (obviously) Friends or Sex in the City, but it makes me laugh. Not as hard as Psych, but still.

And I watched the first episode of ABC Family's new cartoon, Slacker Cats. Not as funny as My Boys, not by a long shot. It sort of reminded me of the sort of cartoon we got in the early 90s, when everyone was trying--and failing--to duplicate the success of The Simpsons. Maybe it's because there's a Simpsons movie out. Or maybe it's because shows like Family Guy strike me the same way, but it seems to be doing okay. Anyway, I laughed once or twice, so I'll give it another shot.

NEWSARAMA.COM: MIKE WIERIGNO PASSES AWAY

NEWSARAMA.COM: MIKE WIERIGNO PASSES AWAY : "The comics industry lost a luminary this weekend - Mike Wieringo passed away Sunday of a sudden heart attack. Details are still sketchy as of this time, but according to close sources, the acclaimed artist had chest pains at some point during the day and called 911, but the responders did not make it in time."

One of my favorite comics artists. Very sad.

DARK HORSE TO PUBLISH NEW INDIANA JONAES COMICS - NEWSARAMA

DARK HORSE TO PUBLISH NEW INDIANA JONAES COMICS - NEWSARAMA: "Lucasfilm's celebrated action/adventure hero, Indiana Jones, the forerunner of popular characters such as Lara Croft, will be making a triumphant return in 2008 with the yet-to-be-titled fourth installment of the Indiana Jones film series. Starring Harrison Ford and directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is slated for release in May 2008. Dark Horse Comics is excited to announce that it has acquired the comic book rights to the world's most famous adventurer and will launch a new series in 2008. Fans can plunge themselves into the adventures of the fedora-wearing archaeologist well before then. In February 2008, Dark Horse Comics will publish the first of two Indiana Jones Omnibuses collecting Dark Horse's previous entries in the saga. Then April sees the release of volume one of Indiana Jones Adventures--a digest-sized graphic novel designed for the enjoyment of young readers as well as adults. The Indiana Jones Adventures volumes and the Omnibuses will continue on a quarterly basis--including Omnibuses for the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and the original Marvel run of Indiana Jones comics.

A comics adaptation of the film will be released simultaneously with the motion picture, followed immediately by an all-new Indiana Jones comics series."

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Donna says "I do!"

BBC - Doctor Who - News - Donna says "I do!": "Catherine Tate is set to return to the TARDIS for the complete 13 week run of Series Four of Doctor Who.
Award winning comedian Tate will reprise her role as Donna, the runaway bride from last year's Christmas special, despite turning down the Doctor's invitation to travel with him at the end of that adventure."

I don't think I want to go near a Doctor Who message board for, oh, the next year or so...

From a press conference about the new Speed Racer movie:

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The children were nestled all snug in their beds...

Star Wars: Video

Star Wars: Video

Preview of the new CGI Clone Wars cartoon. I'm looking forward to it.

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Home sweet home.

Here's the first episode of a new web series by a bunch of former Stargate producers. It's only the first of eight installments, but it's enough to make me want to come back for the next part...

Paul Cornell's House of Awkwardness: British Summertime in the USA

Paul Cornell's House of Awkwardness: British Summertime in the USA

Can I just say, I love this book?

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Hammer horror films set to return

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Hammer horror films set to return: "Cult Hammer horror films will return to the big screen after the company behind the movies was sold to a group headed by Big Brother creator John de Mol."

(This would excite me more if there didn't seem to be an announcement of someone reviving the Hammer brand every 24 hours...)