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Jul. 19th, 2011 12:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gwydion* So why haven't I posted any mention of what I thought of Hollowstone or Deadline despite my promoting them here before release? Money's been crazy tight for months. I finally have a little slack, enough for cat meds, renewing two magazine subscriptions I care about but had to let lapse this year. Enough for to finally order these books I've been so excited about. I may only have had three hours sleep thanks to the flu and have failed to go swimming as a result, but I did manage to finish all four books needing to go back to the library, mail my swap, and do my bits of ordering online. Of course I screwed up one order. Of course. I can't sort things out until tomorrow as Squirrel was gone with the car before I figured it out. Sigh. still I feel productive.
* However, everything on the internet took twice as long as it needed to today. Sigh.
* il_volpe found, "A time before bras:" http://thehairpin.com/2011/07/the-17th-century-breastoration-a-time-before-bras
This made me queasy, but likely won't bother normal people.
* So where am I in Babylon 5? Three days ago, I watched the moment so iconic in it's terrible beauty in which Londo watches the destruction of Narn. Two days ago, I watched the episode that gave the first hint of what the Vorlons were really like. (No, not the big reveal in the garden, but the inquisitor episode, which raised the first alarms). Last night, I finished season two. Getting dressed today, i had shivers at the first Ivanova opening credits voice over. I remember how shocking it was when we were watching it in real time. It's still pretty fucking startling, even knowing it's coming.
* I've been thinking about the differences between the Dexter books and the show. I think the real strength of the show is that because the viewpoint shifts out of dexter's head into something a little more objective, the characters no longer divide into cover and antagonists. This allows the characters who aren't Dexter, Rita, and Debra to breath and expand into real people. I always thought Angel was quietly cool, but now he gets a character arc and fleshing out. The real beneficiaries are folks like LeGuerta and Masuka (or Joey Quinn who isn't in the books, but if you look at the barely sketched Deborah partners in the books, Quinn is so much better) who suddenly become whole people with strengths, flaws, character arcs, and internal logic. The huge, never explained hole in Matsuka, who in the books is a two dimensional Asian stereotype, who's main character traits are 1. Dexter likes him because he's also fake, though the why is never explained. 2. Sexual inappropriateness, suddenly gets filled in an utterly logical way in season four, and suddenly his whole character comes into sharp focus and he makes sense. LeGuerta is the real winner though. The book version is a one dimensional villain; the show version is nuanced and while still ambitious and a touch venal, now has a good motive for her early nasty treatment of the Morgans and has an upward trajectory in general. At some point I was watching her and thought, wow, I'm really rooting for her here. She's still competitive and flawed, but I want her life to work out.
Please don't tell me a thing about season five. I'm completely up to date on the books, but not the series.
* Speaking of spoiler tags, thank you all for spoiler tagging your Torchwood stuff. I still don't have access and I want it all to be a surprise.
* I still haven't seen the Doctor Who finale as I was out of town when it aired, though I have some hopes of legal access before Summer's end. (I found a time BBCA is airing the last season, but they can be erratic with scheduling so I'm not holding my breath for the finale to air when I think it will.)
*
Oh my God, we need more naked Alcide ASAP! I'm not big on the character, but the actor is yummy.
How cool was it that they had Katherine Helmond play Caroline Bellefleur? (I've loved her since she was Jessica on Soap). I'm glad they addressed the did Bill know about the blood lines issue directly. I'm not a Bill fan generally, but his instinctive horror and old fashioned manners following so so right.
Poor, poor Jason. I'm not generally fan, but I've really been liking him this season.
Poor, poor Terry.
Lafayette FTW, as always.
I'm really not into the Marne/possession thing, and they seem to being doing the witch stuff with a lot less nuance than I'd hope for.
I am going to be pissed if they do in Pam.
* Jude Law has alleged his phone was hacked by News Corp in the US, which means that there may be US charges filed in the near future. It turns out Rudolph Giuliani's extremely corrupt jailed police commissioner was likely in Murdoch's pocket. Giuliani keeps defending Murdoch. Um hum.
* Why history matters: http://www.sparkindarkness.com/2011/07/gblt-history-and-teaching.html
* A different set of Harry Potter cocktails.
* How fucked up is it that I didn't here about South Sudan winning their Freedom until it was mentioned on colbert? Fake news scoops real news again! Let's hope this helps.
* Looks like the anti-scientific anti-gay bullshit around giving blood is getting even stupider; http://www.suntimes.com/news/6495246-417/man-says-blood-center-rejected-him-because-he-appeared-gay.html
I still don't understand why we don't base blood policy on the current blood borne disease technology instead of subjective jusdgements about who's gender presentation pisses off the people collecting blood, or old policies made 30 years ago before they knew what caused AIDS. I mean there is a serious blood shortage going on. Shouldn't science and technology decisions be based on science and technology instead of prejudice?
The Clutch:
* However, everything on the internet took twice as long as it needed to today. Sigh.
* il_volpe found, "A time before bras:" http://thehairpin.com/2011/07/the-17th-century-breastoration-a-time-before-bras
This made me queasy, but likely won't bother normal people.
* So where am I in Babylon 5? Three days ago, I watched the moment so iconic in it's terrible beauty in which Londo watches the destruction of Narn. Two days ago, I watched the episode that gave the first hint of what the Vorlons were really like. (No, not the big reveal in the garden, but the inquisitor episode, which raised the first alarms). Last night, I finished season two. Getting dressed today, i had shivers at the first Ivanova opening credits voice over. I remember how shocking it was when we were watching it in real time. It's still pretty fucking startling, even knowing it's coming.
* I've been thinking about the differences between the Dexter books and the show. I think the real strength of the show is that because the viewpoint shifts out of dexter's head into something a little more objective, the characters no longer divide into cover and antagonists. This allows the characters who aren't Dexter, Rita, and Debra to breath and expand into real people. I always thought Angel was quietly cool, but now he gets a character arc and fleshing out. The real beneficiaries are folks like LeGuerta and Masuka (or Joey Quinn who isn't in the books, but if you look at the barely sketched Deborah partners in the books, Quinn is so much better) who suddenly become whole people with strengths, flaws, character arcs, and internal logic. The huge, never explained hole in Matsuka, who in the books is a two dimensional Asian stereotype, who's main character traits are 1. Dexter likes him because he's also fake, though the why is never explained. 2. Sexual inappropriateness, suddenly gets filled in an utterly logical way in season four, and suddenly his whole character comes into sharp focus and he makes sense. LeGuerta is the real winner though. The book version is a one dimensional villain; the show version is nuanced and while still ambitious and a touch venal, now has a good motive for her early nasty treatment of the Morgans and has an upward trajectory in general. At some point I was watching her and thought, wow, I'm really rooting for her here. She's still competitive and flawed, but I want her life to work out.
Please don't tell me a thing about season five. I'm completely up to date on the books, but not the series.
* Speaking of spoiler tags, thank you all for spoiler tagging your Torchwood stuff. I still don't have access and I want it all to be a surprise.
* I still haven't seen the Doctor Who finale as I was out of town when it aired, though I have some hopes of legal access before Summer's end. (I found a time BBCA is airing the last season, but they can be erratic with scheduling so I'm not holding my breath for the finale to air when I think it will.)
*
Oh my God, we need more naked Alcide ASAP! I'm not big on the character, but the actor is yummy.
How cool was it that they had Katherine Helmond play Caroline Bellefleur? (I've loved her since she was Jessica on Soap). I'm glad they addressed the did Bill know about the blood lines issue directly. I'm not a Bill fan generally, but his instinctive horror and old fashioned manners following so so right.
Poor, poor Jason. I'm not generally fan, but I've really been liking him this season.
Poor, poor Terry.
Lafayette FTW, as always.
I'm really not into the Marne/possession thing, and they seem to being doing the witch stuff with a lot less nuance than I'd hope for.
I am going to be pissed if they do in Pam.
* Jude Law has alleged his phone was hacked by News Corp in the US, which means that there may be US charges filed in the near future. It turns out Rudolph Giuliani's extremely corrupt jailed police commissioner was likely in Murdoch's pocket. Giuliani keeps defending Murdoch. Um hum.
* Why history matters: http://www.sparkindarkness.com/2011/07/gblt-history-and-teaching.html
* A different set of Harry Potter cocktails.
* How fucked up is it that I didn't here about South Sudan winning their Freedom until it was mentioned on colbert? Fake news scoops real news again! Let's hope this helps.
* Looks like the anti-scientific anti-gay bullshit around giving blood is getting even stupider; http://www.suntimes.com/news/6495246-417/man-says-blood-center-rejected-him-because-he-appeared-gay.html
I still don't understand why we don't base blood policy on the current blood borne disease technology instead of subjective jusdgements about who's gender presentation pisses off the people collecting blood, or old policies made 30 years ago before they knew what caused AIDS. I mean there is a serious blood shortage going on. Shouldn't science and technology decisions be based on science and technology instead of prejudice?
The Clutch: