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shadowkat1. This link touched me today in such a way that tears silently rolled from my eyes:
http://65redroses.livejournal.com/139488.html?nc=1147
It's the journal of a young woman who had cystic fibrosis and recently died. Her words remind me a bit of Cassie's from the BTVS episode "Help" except different.
2. Today is cool, but soft and springlike, with a bit of flower in the air, and a light dusting of rain...and I went to my new church to listen to a liturgical choir on Palm Sunday. The Choir was singing a new arrangement on Handel's Chandos Anthem - using the psalm from David in the Old Testament, My song Alway. Was quite lovely and I'm not a fan of liturgical choral music - tends to put me to sleep or just annoy me. But this was lovely, felt a bit like listening to a rumbling brook or a quiet breeze in a glade as swans swim by. Although, in reality, I was sitting on a cedar pew, with a red cushion beneath me, staring up at tiffany stained glass, with light streaming in, as the choir sang...their voices melding with the string instruments that backed them.
As I sat there, I thought on other things...
As a child my father used to entertain me in church by clasping his hands together and saying, this is the church, then steepling his index fingers, and here is the steeple, and...he'd open up his thumbs (open the doors), and then wriggle his fingers - "here are all the people".
Looking around the church - it struck me, not for the first time, that it was the people that made it what is was. The choir, the pastor/minister, the congregation...it always is, regardless of the religion.
3. Found this while looking for spoilage on Buffy Issue 35 - which I'm still being foiled on.
Dang it. I want to know where the stupid story is heading before I invest any more of my precious time and money on it. If it's heading towards Twuffy fighting the big bad and living happily ever after? Count me out. Because you know, that's just beyond my capabilities of suspenison of disbelief. Plus if I wanted to read that - I'd be reading the Twilight novels, thank you very much.
Anyhow, what I did find out, which you may already know about and chose to ignore...is what that one-shot I predicted would show up either in August or December would be.
In the break between Buffy #35 and 36, there will be a one-shot centered on Riley the purpose of which will be to explain a lot of the plot developments that have recently happened in "Season Eight." #36 will be out in September where Joss Whedon will conclude the writing of the final five-issue arc.
Apparently they realized that Riley hasn't been doing anything in the comics and they sort of need to explain what he has been doing so that we can you know actually care when and if he kicks the bucket. (Don't worry, Whedon only kills characters I like not one's I'm ambivalent about. Well he might kill them, but they usually get brought back without skin.)
Am curious to see if they can make the character actually interesting and not just further the cliche on military dudley do-right that they started - since As You Were. Shame. Was a half-way interesting character up As You Were, and any hopes that I might have had of the comics changing that foul-up has been blown to smithereens. Something tells me the one-shot isn't going to help that any - unless Whedon writes it, as opposed to Petrie or someone else.
Personally, I just wish they'd get on with the story already. The fact they are still doing well and still have readers, like myself, is bewildering considering how thin this story has been stretched out. What can I say? We're all clearly masochists when it comes to serials written by Joss Whedon.
4. Caprica - not much to say really. I liked last week's episode better. The best parts were the three girls, the weak parts focused on Clarice Willow and Amanda Graystone - who may have died, but not so lucky on Clarice Willow - who I was really hoping would die, that character is beginning to just annoy me. And I'm beginning to agree - the STO story isn't working. I only know why Barnabas is a terrorist from James Marsters interviews on the topic, not from the show. I should know from the show! We need an episode that tells us exactly why Barnarbas is blowing things up. Right now, he seems to be doing it as a bit of a power-play with Willow. He's more of a smuggler than anything else - but we don't know what or why he is smuggling things. All we know is he like Willow manipulates teens to do his bidding - which is realistic, lots of religious cults recruit teenagers to do their bidding - was all the rage back in the 1970s. Saw numerous movies about it.
At any rate, I will state I liked the scenes with Marsters, even if they didn't make a lot sense. And felt incoherent. Not Marsters fault. That's the writing. The writers clearly have not figured out the whole STO angle yet.
What does work...is the scenes between Zoe and Philoben, Zoe and Graystone, and Zoe and Lacey.
Also the whole bit with Tamara, Josef and Josef's female friend (who it turns out was also aiding him in the V-world). Her interaction with Tamara was interesting. She lets Tamara know that Tamara has to sever the link to her father so both of them can move on. Her father can't live in the virtual world and Tamara can't come back to the real one.
So while I still adore Caprica on many levels, the story is uneven when it comes to the STO.
This could change once things heat up...and we get into Lacy's character a bit more. Up to now, she's been on the periphery aiding Zoe. When the series picks up again, she may be front and center. Also Willow is clearly going to be more involved...according to the previews.
But right now...that part of the story is the weak link. I'm hoping they are daring enough to let Amanda Graystone bite the bullet so to speak, because her arc was also weighing the story down. But I doubt it. There's a secret there - that we haven't been told - a reason why she wanted to kill herself - what did she see in that room. Was it a memory? Not sure.
http://65redroses.livejournal.com/139488.html?nc=1147
It's the journal of a young woman who had cystic fibrosis and recently died. Her words remind me a bit of Cassie's from the BTVS episode "Help" except different.
2. Today is cool, but soft and springlike, with a bit of flower in the air, and a light dusting of rain...and I went to my new church to listen to a liturgical choir on Palm Sunday. The Choir was singing a new arrangement on Handel's Chandos Anthem - using the psalm from David in the Old Testament, My song Alway. Was quite lovely and I'm not a fan of liturgical choral music - tends to put me to sleep or just annoy me. But this was lovely, felt a bit like listening to a rumbling brook or a quiet breeze in a glade as swans swim by. Although, in reality, I was sitting on a cedar pew, with a red cushion beneath me, staring up at tiffany stained glass, with light streaming in, as the choir sang...their voices melding with the string instruments that backed them.
As I sat there, I thought on other things...
As a child my father used to entertain me in church by clasping his hands together and saying, this is the church, then steepling his index fingers, and here is the steeple, and...he'd open up his thumbs (open the doors), and then wriggle his fingers - "here are all the people".
Looking around the church - it struck me, not for the first time, that it was the people that made it what is was. The choir, the pastor/minister, the congregation...it always is, regardless of the religion.
3. Found this while looking for spoilage on Buffy Issue 35 - which I'm still being foiled on.
Dang it. I want to know where the stupid story is heading before I invest any more of my precious time and money on it. If it's heading towards Twuffy fighting the big bad and living happily ever after? Count me out. Because you know, that's just beyond my capabilities of suspenison of disbelief. Plus if I wanted to read that - I'd be reading the Twilight novels, thank you very much.
Anyhow, what I did find out, which you may already know about and chose to ignore...is what that one-shot I predicted would show up either in August or December would be.
In the break between Buffy #35 and 36, there will be a one-shot centered on Riley the purpose of which will be to explain a lot of the plot developments that have recently happened in "Season Eight." #36 will be out in September where Joss Whedon will conclude the writing of the final five-issue arc.
Apparently they realized that Riley hasn't been doing anything in the comics and they sort of need to explain what he has been doing so that we can you know actually care when and if he kicks the bucket. (Don't worry, Whedon only kills characters I like not one's I'm ambivalent about. Well he might kill them, but they usually get brought back without skin.)
Am curious to see if they can make the character actually interesting and not just further the cliche on military dudley do-right that they started - since As You Were. Shame. Was a half-way interesting character up As You Were, and any hopes that I might have had of the comics changing that foul-up has been blown to smithereens. Something tells me the one-shot isn't going to help that any - unless Whedon writes it, as opposed to Petrie or someone else.
Personally, I just wish they'd get on with the story already. The fact they are still doing well and still have readers, like myself, is bewildering considering how thin this story has been stretched out. What can I say? We're all clearly masochists when it comes to serials written by Joss Whedon.
4. Caprica - not much to say really. I liked last week's episode better. The best parts were the three girls, the weak parts focused on Clarice Willow and Amanda Graystone - who may have died, but not so lucky on Clarice Willow - who I was really hoping would die, that character is beginning to just annoy me. And I'm beginning to agree - the STO story isn't working. I only know why Barnabas is a terrorist from James Marsters interviews on the topic, not from the show. I should know from the show! We need an episode that tells us exactly why Barnarbas is blowing things up. Right now, he seems to be doing it as a bit of a power-play with Willow. He's more of a smuggler than anything else - but we don't know what or why he is smuggling things. All we know is he like Willow manipulates teens to do his bidding - which is realistic, lots of religious cults recruit teenagers to do their bidding - was all the rage back in the 1970s. Saw numerous movies about it.
At any rate, I will state I liked the scenes with Marsters, even if they didn't make a lot sense. And felt incoherent. Not Marsters fault. That's the writing. The writers clearly have not figured out the whole STO angle yet.
What does work...is the scenes between Zoe and Philoben, Zoe and Graystone, and Zoe and Lacey.
Also the whole bit with Tamara, Josef and Josef's female friend (who it turns out was also aiding him in the V-world). Her interaction with Tamara was interesting. She lets Tamara know that Tamara has to sever the link to her father so both of them can move on. Her father can't live in the virtual world and Tamara can't come back to the real one.
So while I still adore Caprica on many levels, the story is uneven when it comes to the STO.
This could change once things heat up...and we get into Lacy's character a bit more. Up to now, she's been on the periphery aiding Zoe. When the series picks up again, she may be front and center. Also Willow is clearly going to be more involved...according to the previews.
But right now...that part of the story is the weak link. I'm hoping they are daring enough to let Amanda Graystone bite the bullet so to speak, because her arc was also weighing the story down. But I doubt it. There's a secret there - that we haven't been told - a reason why she wanted to kill herself - what did she see in that room. Was it a memory? Not sure.
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no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 03:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 04:20 am (UTC)Espenson is writing it. So not as good as if Joss were writing it, but better than Petrie. I liked "Harmonic Divergence" and I like the way Espenson writes Riley (especially in "The Replacement") so I'm looking forward to it. Petrie is a very good writer, except that he has a huge blind spot when it comes to Riley. He just likes him way too much. This wasn't a problem in most of his S4/S5 episodes; "The Initiative," one of the Rileyest episodes in the series, is actually quite good because the Riley-as-goofy-good-guy thing gets undercut constantly with the parallels with Spike; same with his "Fool for Love" scenes. But he does reduce him to Dudley Do-Right in "As You Were." He likes Faith as well, but doesn't let it cloud his judgment of the character.
I do hope Riley doesn't die actually...I hope you're wrong about the one-shot existing just for this reason. But you may be right. Honestly, there isn't anyone I'd be happy with dying. Both because I still like the characters, and, more importantly, that the characters haven't been developed enough this season for me to be satisfied with them being offed. Oh well.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:21 pm (UTC)I enjoy them for what they are. But I can't take them seriously. And there are aspects that I find grating. ;-)
As for the characters? I don't mind character death if it is done well.
Characters that would further the plot and resolve things if killed and I sort of think they should kill: Twilight and Dawn. Actually, make that just Dawn for plot, and Twilight because I find the character beyond annoying and the worst villian ever. Also a good way to ruin one of my favorite characters. I liked Angel. I hate Twangel. Proof - I suppose, that Angel is only interesting if he is no where near Buffy. ;-)
Characters that have lived past their usefulness? Warren
Characters that require more development and explanation: Xander, Riley,
Satsu, Kennedy, Spike, Giles, Faith,
Characters that I'd stop following the story if they died:Spike, Buffy
Characters that I wish they'd bring back from the dead and I think did require more story: Anya, Renee and Ethan
Characters that I'm ambivalent about and don't really care what they do with: Amy, Riley, Dawn, Kennedy, and Andrew and about 85% of the slayers with names I keep forgetting
I'm tired of the B/A angst it's redundant. And Twangel is just...words fail. People call it blight, and that's not a bad term, I prefer Twuffy, because I laugh when I think of it.
Sorry for the snark - in a dastardly bad mood tonight. ;-)
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 09:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 04:40 pm (UTC)I get that Whedon's going for some metaphorical theme on Buffy and her exe's who resemble her Daddy issues here...but seriously...this could be better done.
Oh well, I'll wait and see what people think of it.
I'm just hoping it's not Espenson filling the blanks of her Retreat arc.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 05:04 pm (UTC)Agreed. Was so disappointed in that arc, though looking back I'm not sure how much of it was Jane's fault. It depends on whether she was just given marks to hit to get the story from A to B, or whether she was told in specific detail what to write.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 04:56 pm (UTC)(Which explains a lot.) She acted more like a hired gun, then
part of the actual team, which to date appears to be just Whedon, Meltzer, Jeanty and Allie.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 08:48 pm (UTC)Mind you, she was badly let down by the art. Battle scenes are not Jeanty's forte.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:58 pm (UTC)Although - I think the plot points are Whedon's not Espenson. I give Espenson credit for the stuff I liked and Whedon/Allie credit for the stuff I didn't. ;-)
Sigh. To be honest, I'm very close to giving up on the comics at this point. After looking at the preview pages of issue 34, it's going to take a lot for me to buy that issue (which looks like a piece of crap based on those four pages alone) and issue 35. OR to
continue after that. I'm not liking the story the writer has chosen to tell me and I've reached the point in my life that if I don't like a story, if it bores me? I stop reading. Life is painful and tough enough without adding to it.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 09:14 am (UTC)You know, if you're 4 years into a story and still have to come up with extra issues to make the plot comprehensible, there's a good chance you're doing something wrong...
was all the rage back in the 1970s. Saw numerous movies about it.
There's a lot of 70s influences in Caprica, I think (not just the original BSG) - there's something of the same "death of the dream" feel to it that there is to many late-60s/early 70s films, except filtered throught a post-9/11 SF lens. Zoe crashing the car was a clear
ripoffhomage to Vanishing Point (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067927/), for instance.Otherwise, agreed both on the STO (that's been my main complaint about them all along - what the hell are they trying to achieve, and why?) and on the supremely dull (in every sense of the word) Amanda. Though Tamara and Zoe broke my heart in this. Good series. Still with the potential to be great. But the break isn't going to help matters...
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 04:49 pm (UTC)My thoughts exactly. If they have to explain the plot to us, then there's a problem. The last issue was hilarious, in a way that I seriously doubt was intentional.
Though Tamara and Zoe broke my heart in this. Good series. Still with the potential to be great. But the break isn't going to help matters...
Feel much the same way. When Tamara and Zoe are on-screen - the show works. It also works when we are concentrating on Daniel Graystone or Sam Adama to an extent. Lacey...I'm on the fence about. The STO bit, you are correct, needs a bit more clarification. What is Barnabas hoping to accomplish? Willow seems to want eternal life? But I'm not sure about Barnabas. I know where they are going with it and why - but only because I read the interviews. If I hadn't? I wouldn't know. This needs to be on screen.
And sigh, the last time Amanda was interesting was when Sam was threatening to kill her for Josef. Sort of wish he had now.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 08:59 pm (UTC)What - you mean we were supposed to take the sparkling vampire and fated eternal love and implied Xander/Cordy kiss-fanfare seriously? Huh. ;-)
Willow seems to want eternal life?
As I understand it, she already believes in eternal life - she's a True BelieverTM - but she wants to be able to present absolute proof of it in order to win people over. And therefore she may be after Daniel's avatar research... or something. I'm not sure her plan makes a whole lot of sense, but hey, that's the BSG!verse; as long as you say there's a plan, there's a plan. :-)
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 05:06 pm (UTC)Well yes that.. (although to be honest I find it difficult to take comics seriously on any level, I mean, they are comics after all ..not to mention comics about a superpowered girl killing vampires, when ahem, she's not shagging them
;-0 ) ...and also the headquarters, Giles muttering about sturm and drang (again) and the implied Twuffy sex.
Seriously, Twuffy??? Bangle, maybe. But Twuffy? LOL!
As I understand it, she already believes in eternal life - she's a True BelieverTM - but she wants to be able to present absolute proof of it in order to win people over. And therefore she may be after Daniel's avatar research... or something.
I got the feeling it was more than that. It's not just proof she wants, she wants the ability to achieve it while living, to actually go there. She wants to prove it is possible, but only for STO and a specific place.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 05:47 pm (UTC)I prefer "Blight" myself. ;-)
I got the feeling it was more than that.
You may well be right. After BSG, I try to not think too hard about everyone's long-term planning in Caprica and just watch it for the metaphors and the drama.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:05 pm (UTC)Blight on the series. ;-) Twuffy however makes me giggle. I can't take these comics remotely seriously - they jumped the shark with issue 33.
True. When it comes to planning and tv series and comic books, it's best to not think too hard about it. Intricate plots that make logical sense aren't exactly a strong point of either medium. Although will give Caprica and BSG credit, they make more sense than Whedon currently is. ;-)
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 08:28 pm (UTC)~Ami
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:02 pm (UTC)On the other hand, Twuffy is funnier, it makes me giggle just thinking it.
I can't take these comics seriously anymore, they jumped the proverbial shark with issue 32 and keep on going.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 09:42 pm (UTC)but I'm loving Zoe and Tamara, and enjoying JM as Barnabas; generally I'm feeling like I'll hang in there and see where this takes us, because I was always interested in the cylon backstory in BSG.
Re: The Buffy comics, I guess I don't feel that my time and money are being wasted... I spend more on soda pop, and I do get a laugh out of these (although, amazingly, Felicia Day's 'Guild' comic book was WAY WAY better! Did you check it out?). I'm not attached to the story line, but there is no way I'm quitting on it (and I do not believe for one instant that we are going to get any kind of Bangle 'happy ending' that would be ridiculous! In fact I expect a huge problem sending both Angel & Buffy into despair with him returning to LA and more IDW comics, while she is spring boarded into BtVS season 9).
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 10:59 pm (UTC)I may be done with Whedon and the comics. We'll see. Right now the spoilers for issue 34 are beyond silly. The only way, I'll continue at this point is if Twilight is killed. If that doesn't happen? I'm done.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:07 pm (UTC)I'm just curious because I'm reading your post as tho you said if Joss doesn't kill Angel then you're done... which seems like you might just as well announce that you're done since Joss clearly can't kill him.... Just make him really miserable, like he always does.
But of course I don't read the spoilers, too much fandom angst for my taste.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 11:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-04-04 03:21 am (UTC)