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.

Whedon Shall be Avenged

After months of rumor, it's official: Joss Whedon has announced he will direct Marvel's upcoming theatrical adaptation of The Avengers comic. From Whedon's comments, it sounds as if he'll be writing, or at least outlining, the film, too. Woo-freakin'-hoo!

Edit: A summary of Whedon's and J. J. Abrams' comments from their Comic-Con panel is here.

iCarcassonne

Fans of European board games in the readership will be interested to know that a version of Carcassone is now available for the iPhone/iPod/iPad. It's apparently pretty good, too.

Mouth Jewelry

Ah, remember Alyson Hannigan's first on-screen date with Seth Green? Maybe not, because it didn't happen on Buffy. Nope it was in the 1988 film My Stepmother is an Alien, and you can see it here.

2010 DC ProSolo: STR

Almost a month ago, I competed in the 2010 DC ProSolo. "What's a ProSolo?" I hear you asking. Well, solo is the name that the Sports Car Club of America uses for their version of autocross, which you've read me discus repeatedly on this blog. A ProSolo is not simply a solo contested by professionals; otherwise, I certainly wouldn't have been allowed to participate. No, a ProSolo is a closely related motorsport that mixes traditional solo with drag racing. It's a lot of fun, and, since the format is so different, I thought it warranted posting a video of me running my '09 NC Miata in Street Touring R at the event. Unfortunately, The video was cropped when I tried to embed it, perhaps because of the large number of pixels. So, instead, here's a link to said vid on YouTube. The superimposed text didn't work out as well as I would have liked, so I apologize for the difficulty you may have with reading it.

GR: Angie

Today I tied my previous personal record for the workout called Angie: 16 minutes, 59 seconds. That might have been a frustrating result, except I also set a new gym record for this workout at CrossFit Diesel. (See the comments here.) The new second-best time is about 3.5 minutes slower than mine. So, I'm quite proud of that performance. Sometimes being a smaller dude helps, as I've mentioned before.

In other CrossFit Diesel news, I've continued my trend of appearing on the gym's front page. For example, my image is included on the page for each of these WODs: here, here, and here.

Now please excuse me while I send this post to my mom.