Dragon*Con 2009: Star Wars

At Dragon*Con, you can't swing a long-tailed cat without hitting three stormtroopers.

Dragon*Con 2009: Star Trek

Where no fan has gone before.

Dragon*Con 2009: Pirates (of the Caribbean)

Arrr!

Dragon*Con 2009: Lord of the Rings

One post to rule them all.

Dragon*Con 2009: Ghostbusters

Who you gonna call?

Dragon*Con 2009: Doctor Who

Well, Dragon*Con 2010 is almost upon us, and I haven't posted even half of my photos from the 2009 edition of the convention. So, here's the next batch of pics. Well, the next pic anyway. I really enjoyed this interpretive, rather than literal, Dalek costume. Note the whisk.

I Don't Want Directions

You know, I had almost exactly this same conversation last week. Except I was more polite about it.

Automagic

I may have invented this word today, but I feel like I've heard it somewhere before. A quick web search didn't turn up this meaning, so here you go:

automagic, adjective. Automatic to a seemingly magical degree.

Example: Look, I don't know how the software does that; it just happens automagically.

Perhaps Arthur C. Clarke would approve.

TV Review: Jekyll (2007, BBC)

(This review contains no significant spoilers.)

Alison and I just finished watching Jekyll via Netflix download, and I thought I'd post a review to this long-neglected blog.

The Setup

Note that I'm talking about the 2007 BBC miniseries, not the 2007 American movie of the same name. This series is not a direct adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson novel or a remake of any adaptation. Rather, it is a sequel. The main character is Tom Jackman, a contemporary Scotsman who does not create an evil alter ego by drinking a potion. Each of the six episodes was written by Stephen Moffat, who wrote perhaps the best single episode of Doctor Who and has been running Who for the last year.

What I Liked

• The plot. The story is very interesting and moves very quickly.
• The acting. James Nesbitt did an amazing job of portraying two very different characters. His expression, tone of voice, demeanor, and posture all changed from Jackman to Hyde, but remained consistent within each character. I think I've mentioned before that I was really impressed with Allyson Hannigan's and Amy Acker's portrayal of multiple characters within a single episode. Nesbitt was just as impressive in these roles. I also enjoyed Meera Syal as the detective, Miranda.
• The makeup. I really enjoyed the subtlety of the makeup that was used to effect the transition from Jackman to Hyde and back. It was done so that the two characters were different at a glance, but it was difficult to say exactly how. (There was one glaring exception to the high make-up standards; during one scene, an ear prosthesis was glaringly, distractingly obvious.)
• The music. The incidental music for this show consisted mostly of creepy and ethereal instrumentals combined with creepy and ethereal vocals. The result was, well, creepy and ethereal. But also effective.

What I Disliked

• The resolution of the main storyline was very melodramatic.

The Bottom Line

Let me just say that, at the end of each episode, I wanted to see the next immediately. Alison felt the same. I give this show 8.5 out of 10. If you are an britophile like me, add another 0.5.

Firefly, Generic

Firefly flans may be amused by this comic chronicling a generic episode of the show.

Torchwood. Now with Espenson

It appears that Jane Espenson, a well regarded writer for Buffy and Battlestar, has been added to the writing crew of the new, fourth season of Torchwood, which scheduled to air in 2011 and will feature a stongly serialized storyline like that of Season 3's Children of Earth mini-series.