Monday, January 25, 2010
Still Tracking the Sherlock Posts
Here's an unnecessarily scathing review ("Boo-hoo, Downey didn't do a Rathbone impersonation and Watson wasn't a doddering near-buffoon") that left me wondering how boring the critic's own Sherlock's Last Case was. I googled, curious how reviewers responded, and found a NYT review that didn't surprise me at all.
Elsewhere, kottke.org linked to this examination of new film's well-crafted title sequences.
I still haven't seen Avatar and think my brother and I made the right choice going to see Sherlock Holmes instead.
Labels: movies
19:59
cdogzilla
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
http://www.thrfeed.com/2010/01/fox-readying-us-version-of-torchwood-.html No, no, no. You can't reboot a series that is hooked (however loosely) into another ongoing series. Fans of Dr. Who will have to ignore the new Torchwood in order for the Who continuity to make sense. Else we'd have to reject the Who continuity -- which ain't gonna happen. This article also mentions a possible US Who reboot ... How reliable is this madness? ... which is an even worse idea right now. US Who fans are watching the BBC Who and don't have room for a reboot. The only way either of these alleged reboots could work would be to move production of the current series to Fox. That would be like giving the keys to your brilliant new luxury hybrid sports concept car to your idiot neighbor's meth-head stepson his first day out of juvenile detention. Fox would kill the franchise and then Who fans would have to wait another 20 odd years for the series to revive. Who and Torchwood belong on the BBC where Who at least has a shot at running for several more years. If Fox needs a Who property to sully, give them one of the old companions to reboot: The Peri Chronicles or something. With no crossovers and no interference with the Whoniverse. It's strained enough already. Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Posted via email from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
13:05
cdogzilla
Monday, January 18, 2010
Every so often, you would see one waiting on a metro platform. When the train pulled up, the dog would step in, scramble up to lie on a seat or sit on the floor if the carriage was crowded, and then exit a few stops later. There is even a website dedicated to the metro stray (www.metrodog.ru) on which passengers post photos and video clips taken with their mobile phones, documenting the savviest of the pack using the public transport system like any other Muscovite.
Posted via web from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: non-monkey animals, science
19:45
cdogzilla
Sunday, January 17, 2010
No Country for Old Men
On Your Flickchart
#400
Global Ranking
#35
Finally saw "No Country for Old Men" yesterday. I went in with mixed expectations. Love the Coen Bros. movies, don't have much patience for (source novel author) Cormac McBoring's ponderous pondering. I haven't read the novel, and won't, but I have a feeling it's what's wrong with the movie. The performances were outstanding. Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem were all excellent. But the women in the movie weren't given much to do, and some of the dialogue was so painfully corndog I suspect it was straight from the book.
I'm glad I saw it, but if I'm ever faced with the choice of watching this or the other Coen Bros. set in Texas, "Blood Simple", the latter wins.
Labels: movies
12:41
cdogzilla
Cursebird. "A real time feed of people swearing on Twitter." Pretty funny. And it comes with a graph.
Labels: interweb, Lists
00:32
bone daddy
Following up on c-dog's post about UConn's beatdown of Notre Dame, I'd say this UConn team reminds me most of the 2002 version. That team had the best starting five in women's history - Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Swin Cash, Tamika Williams and Asjha Jones - but not a lot of depth. Everyone kept wondering what would happen if they got in foul trouble or had an off game. That talk continued right up to the championship game, which they won.
C-dog, you should see this team if you get the chance. I took Ivy and a friend to Gampel for the North Carolina game and even though it was a blowout, I could tell we were witnessing something special. You need to see Maya Moore in person before she graduates. Sooner or later you're going to wear some UConn colors to Duke. Might as well warm up with the women's game.
Labels: anti-Duke, local flavor, TV, uconn
00:07
bone daddy
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Watching the Huskies go all Ben Grimm ("It's clobberin' time!") on Notre Dame, I'm a little nostalgic for the 2001 and 2002 teams: Svetlana Abrosimova, Shea Ralph, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Swin Cash, Asjha Jones, Tamika Williams, Jessica Moore, Kelly Schumacher ... so many talented players it's unbelievable. Taking nothing away from the current stars, Maya Moore & Tina Charles are clearly as talented as any of my old favorites; I just don't get to see this team or listen to the golden tones of Joe D'Ambrosio describing their exploits on the radio the way I could those teams, so these ESPN & CBS national games are my only chance to get to know today's players.
I'd really like to get to the MLK Day game vs. Duke. The thought of setting foot on that campus kind of skeeves me out though. On the other hand, it would be fun to throw the gear on and glare at the Dukies.
Posted via email from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: anti-Duke, sports, uconn
22:45
cdogzilla
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Who Says It's Better to Burn Out Than Fade Away?
Ol' TC has been my blogging home for so long that despite devolving from a lively group blog to a (mostly) one-trick-pony enhanced by the occasional bonedaddy post (and sure enough a post came in while this was sitting in draft) to break up the c-dog blitz, I've been loathe to give up on it. And I'm not. Not exactly. But, I am setting up another blog -- this time with the aim of making it my primary public web presence. Yes, I'm already on friendfeed, twitter, posterous, and probably other platforms I've forgotten about, so it may seem silly to be setting up a new blogspot. Oh well. Silly may be what I do best.
If you've been a TC reader or lapsed conributor these past ten years, please consider paying a visit to
http://cdogzilla.blogspot.com/
That's where I'll be when I'm not here. (While you're there, why not add the feed to your favorite reader, or sign in with Google Friend Connect? You could do worse, yeah?)
I'm going to do some experimenting with cross-posting -- posterous and even facebook (using Blog It app) give me the ability to post to one location and send those posts to both TC and the new Cryptonaut-In-Exile. So please bear with me while I work out the kinks. With all these sites that update each other, it's inevitable I'm going to create an echo-chamber effect and have double posting occurring somewhere in the dizzy maze I've created.
I know everybody is on facebook and/or twitter and probably feels they don't need another site to check out, but, while I'm plugging for my new blog, I also highly recommend friendfeed for its lively community, slick interface, and useful functionality. I see it as the best of both those other services without the downsides. And, your parents probably aren't on friendfeed.
Anyways, to sum up:
TC -- not dead yet, but our upcoming 10 year Blogiversary may be a good time to take its pulse again?
New blog -- just getting started
Friendfeed -- still highly recommended
Facebook & Twitter -- I'm on 'em but they're spammy and not as good as FriendFeed
P.S. a1pha of YOY, if you're reading, your hosting us the last several years is still greatly appreciated ... please don't shut us down yet! TC is still a going concern and the domain is paid for and pointing to the same place for several more months at least.
Labels: admin
23:15
cdogzilla
Saturday, January 09, 2010
A priest at Catholic churches in Wayne and Duplin counties has been arrested and suspended from his job on allegations that he molested a boy in Brunswick County.
Rev. Edgar Sepulveda, 47, of 208 Cavenaugh St. in Beulaville, was arrested Friday on one count each of second-degree sexual offense and sexual battery. He was released on a $100,00 secured bond.
Wow. What shocking news. Again.
As a parent, I can't imagine what leads other people to believe their kids are safe with these guys? I mean, how many sexual abuse scandals does it take? If anything, the fact that these grown men have as their sole qualification for child care the fact that either they really believe in magical mumbo-jumbo, or can convincingly pretend that they do, ought to disqualify them from having any kind of contact with children.
Posted via web from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: atheism, local flavor
15:03
cdogzilla
Thursday, January 07, 2010
This Brings Back Some Memories
I miss Berenson's.
Labels: jai-alai, pictures
20:56
cdogzilla
WALTER
Nihilists! I am beshrewn. Say what thou wilt
Of fascist tenets, Knave; it seeks to stand
Philosophy and politic, not void.
And let it noted be that wildlife kept,
Amphibious rodent, in domestic walls,
Is retrograde to right and civil laws.
Posted via web from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: movies
20:32
cdogzilla
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
Had Conan Doyle been a better writer, the problem might never have come up. Holmes is so memorable because, like later superheroes, he is less a fully developed character than a collection of fascinating traits. Raymond Chandler once complained that Holmes was little more than a few lines of unforgettable dialogue and an attitude: the drug habit, the boredom, the violin playing, the show-offy logical deductions, which Conan Doyle freely admitted were based on one of his medical school professors.
Not a great article, but of interest for examining, if only superficially, why Holmes has endured.
Posted via web from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: Books, movies
19:25
cdogzilla
A Long, Strange Trip Indeed
Mr. Yamaguchi (survivor of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki) has passed away.
Labels: 2010, history
17:35
cdogzilla
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
I'm dying to hear a funny joke so I can say, "That made me laugh so hard I just restored the original meaning to the phrase 'underpants bomber!'"
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Labels: 2009, underpantsbomber
08:59
cdogzilla
Saturday, January 02, 2010
I haven't seen a MotD list better than this one. 1-10 are linked here. The whole list is worth checking out though.
Posted via web from "Here's to plain speaking and clear understanding."
Labels: Lists, movies
19:56
cdogzilla
BoneDaddy's Top Ten Shows of the Decade I'm king of the late lists.
10) Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. No one talks about this anymore, but for a while it was as funny as anything on TV. Laughing at it or laughing with it? Either way, you're laughing.
9) 24. Yes, it's a stupid show. Anyone who uses it as an excuse for Bush-era torture is simply an idiot. I got sick of the torture before most. Before it went off the rails, this show was fun, comic book entertainment. TV needs more action, bad accents and wives with amnesia.
8) World Series of Poker. Like everything else on this list, ESPN's heavily edited broadcast of the WSOP Main Event entertained, amused and informed. Nothing else on this list, however, made me money. Respect must be paid. Also, somewhere along the line I started liking Norman Chad. As former Bear Stearns exec Steve Beglieter made a raise - "That's a big bet! Especially in this economy!"
7) Freaks & Geeks. Has an Outsiders-esque cast of future stars. There's a lot of regret in TV geek circles that this show did not last beyond one season, but I'm not sure it needed to do more than it already had. (Technically, this show started in 1999, but most of the shows aired in 2000 and I suspect more people have seen it on DVD in the past decade than saw it broadcast so here it is.)
6) The Office. When I heard they were remaking the brilliant British show I thought, that's stupid. When I heard they cast Steve Carrell I thought, that's brilliant. And it is.
5) Friday Night Lights. Up and down seasons two and three keep this show from landing higher on the list. The first season was pitch perfect. Mr and Mrs Coach get the well deserved acting kudos and Taylor Kitsch sets the hearts a-swooning. For me, Zach Gilford as QB2 Matt Saracen is the heart and soul of the show.
4) Mad Men. The show has such great depth it takes me three pages to say anything about it. Sometimes commentary over at Pandagon, or from Mrs. BoneDaddy, or from Tony Kornheiser on the BS Report will make me re-think scenes in completely different ways because there are many valid ways to read this show. Also, it's one of those shows that just hit on a great cast top to bottom.
3) Lost. This could flip with #2 if it sticks the landing. It's also possible that it could plummet completely off the list if it squanders and sputters to a meandering nonsense ending. Scares me to type that, but it's true. Lost could finish as the longest Twilight Zone episode ever. That could be a great compliment. On the other hand, some of those Twilight Zone episodes aren't actually as good as we remember. (Please stick the landing ...)
2) Arrested Development. One of the best comedy casts of all time combined with the best comedy writing on TV. How good was this show? The jokes you only catch the second time around are better than the jokes other shows labor to set up and announce with a laugh track.
1) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I believe you could study modern U.S. presidents through the comedians who best lampooned them. Nixon through Herblock, Reagan through Doonesbury. Clinton through This Modern World. The best comedy about the W tragedy, and often the best commentary and even the best reporting of the time, came from The Daily Show. One thing the top 7 shows here have in common is great supporting casts. The Daily Show correspondents - going back to the time Ed Helms, Steve Carrell and Steven Colbert worked together and without missing a beat to today's Aasif Mandvi, John Oliver and Larry Wilmore - created some of the best moments on the show. I would buy a "This Week In God" DVD in a second and a "Daily Show news of the 2000s" even faster.
Honorable Mention/Haven't Seen Enough Yet/Cop Out Section: 30 Rock, Dexter (only on season 2), Sportscenter, The Wire (I'm guaranteed to love this show so I haven't watched any until I can devote the time to devouring the whole series, odd as that sounds), Battlestar Galactica (someone should pass a law separating new religions, mythologies and prophecies from TV science fiction. Just stop it.) and The Colbert Report.
Labels: Bush, Lists, poker, sci-fi, TV
09:57
bone daddy
Friday, January 01, 2010
It's Almost Like the Meta-Reviews Are Back: My Armond White vs. Sherlock Holmes at YouTube.
Did something happen to embedding at YouTube? Don't see a way to grab an embed code any longer.
Labels: movies, youtube goodness
18:23
cdogzilla
