The Latest on My Heroes!

My heroes are hard ato work, producing new stuff, so let's update you on what's going on.

First up, Kevin Smith. Smith got a bad reputation in the comic book world, what with his 3-year delay between issues 3 and 4 of Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil that Men Do. But, Smith has been slowly working his way back into writing comics. He swore, after that Spider-Man/Black Cat fiasco, that we would take a new approach to writing comics. And that is, if the story arc is going to run for x issues, he'll sit down and write all x issues and fire them off to the publisher. No more of this, "Writing one issue per month" crap. that way, if an issue runs late, he can deflect the blame to the artist.

That's how he wrote his return to comics, the 3-issue miniseries Batman: Cacophony, which ran December-March and is due out in trade paperback form this fall. And, based on that, DC is giving him another crack at the Dark Knight.

Smith's next maxi-series for DC is Batman: The Widening Gyre. This 12-issue series will chronicle Batman training a new hero to patrol the streets of Gotham. And here's what Smith is doing to incorporate his trademark tardiness. The 12-issue series will be published in 2, 6-issue books. The first six issues (aka "Book I") come out, he takes a six month break, and then the final six issues (akak "Book II")come out. He says he already has those first six issues completed and sent off to DC.

But here's where things get tricky. During that six month break, he's going to start writing a bi-monthly comic about this new hero that Batman has trained.

But that's not all!

Smith goes on to recount how, after he finished setting this up with DC, he got a call from the comic book publisher Dynamite Entertainment. Turns out Dynamite just got the comic rights to the Green Horent, and how would Smith like to write the first arc in their Green Hornet book?

Smith said, "Sure!" Smith's Green Hornet arc is going to be largely based on his unproduced screenplay, back when he signed on to write and direct it and then chickened out because Jersey Girl tanked.

So, there you have it. Smith is back in comics.

And, my other hero, "Weird Al" Yankovic. On his Twitter feed, Weird Al has just announced that he's finished recording all the original, non-parody songs for his next album! Now, is he going to put them in the vault for six months while he works on parodies, like he usually does?

Nope!

He's going to release them digitally (e.g. on iTunes) next month.

Watchmen on DVD

So, they've announced when one of the biggest movies of the spring, Watchmen, is coming on DVD. As is the normal situation these days, there'll be three versions: single-disc, 2-disc special edition, and Blu-Ray. Bonus feature breakdown:

Single disc:

• The movie. That's it.

2-disc special edition:

• As previously announced, it'll boast an "extended edition" of the film, running 25 minutes longer than what you saw in theatres.
• The Phenomenon: the Comic that Changed Comics - Documentary about the original comic
• All 11 episodes of director Zack Snyder's "making of" Internet documentaries
• The music video of My Chemical Romance's cover of Desolation Row
• A digital copy of the film, so you can legally watch it on your iPod

Blu-Ray

• Everything mentioned above in the 2-disc special edition
• "Immersive maximum movie mode." This is becoming a big thing on Blu-Ray. No longer satisfied with the traditional running commentary, you can also watch special featurettes via picture-in-picture, and the director appears on screen to point out certain things and such forth.
• Sync up with Facebook! In case you don't know yet, most Blu-Ray players have high speed Internet cards so you can connect them to the internet, and thus download new bonus materials. They call it "BD-Live." It's DVD-ROM bonus material taken to it's next step. Anyway, with the Watchmen Blu-Ray, you'll be able to sync up with your Facebook account, so you can comment on the film, chat with friends, and pretty much do all the crap you normally do on Facebook while you watch the film.

July 28 is when it hits your favourite DVD emporium.

Disney Returns to 2D Animation!

This is going to be a great year for lovers of animation...specifially, traditional, 2-D, hand drawn animation.

First up, Disney returns to the medium that made them famous with The Princess and the Frog. This'll be Disney's first 2D animation film since Home on the Range in 2004. This re-telling of The Frog Prince is set in New Orleans in the roaring 20s. It comes to us from John Musker and Ron Clemmens, who gave us the Disney classics The Little Mermaind, Aladdin and Hercules.

First up, here's the movie poster, just revealed today.



Secondly, the trailer has been leaked online. You'll be seeing it in theatres in two weeks in front of the latest from Pixar, Up.



The Princess and the Frog hits theatres in November.

But coming this summer is the latest from the world's most famous animator, Hayao Miyazaki. His last film, Ponyo on a Cliff, was released in Japan last year and a massive hit. And now, Disney is dubbing it and getting ready to release it in theatres this August. For it's North American release, it'll be called simply Ponyo. It chronicles the adventures of a goldfish princess who longs to be human, and the human boy who shows her kindness.

As with Miyazaki's last two films, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle, the dub is being supervised by Toy Story director John Lasetter, who is one of Miyazaki's ardent admirers. Lasetter is teaming up with Hollywood uber-producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall on this one, because Lasetter wants to make it Miyazaki's biggest hit ever in North America.

The first movie poster has been unveiled, and it is right here:



No word yet on when we're getting the first trailer...some say it'll be in front of Ice Age 3 this July.

Pixar Comes North

Looks like my dream of working for Pixar might be coming closer to fruition.

On Friday, Pixar announced that they're going to be opening up a studio in Vancouver!

The studio will be dedicated to "producing short-form quality computer animation for theme parks, DVDs, television, and theatrical distribution."

Translation: those nifty short films at the start of Pixar's films? They'll be making them. Along with TV specials and the things that keep you entertained when you're standing in line at Disneyland.

Here's the whole story

Latest Targ's Up!

Time once again for a new episode of U62: The Targ!

I've been all over the place the past few weeks, and Episode 2.31: Great Time for Geeks reflects that. We've live from Red Deer for Free Comic Book Day, live from Highway 2 for car culture, and live from West Edmonton Mall reviewing Star Trek!

Click here to listen!

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Star Trek and Wolverine reviews are up!

I don't know how much longer my Internet connection will remain stable, so I'd better hurry and get my full reviews for Star Trek and Wolverine online!

You can read them right here.

Quickie Capsle Reviews

OK, I'm having perpetual Internet problems at home, so I have no idea when I'll be able to publish my full reviews of Star Trek and Wolverine on the official site. So, best to run on down to the office, borrow the computer at work, and write some quick, off-the-cuff reviews.

Going back in time 6 years, that's why I originally created this blog anyway. No Internet at home? Well, something that can be updated quickly and easily at Internet cafes and library and other forms of pulic Internet access.

Anyway, I played hookey from work yesterday so I could see Star Trek on opening day. Well, I guess it's not really playing hookey when you responsibly book the day off two days in advance. And while I was at it, I made it a double-feature day and saw Wolverine. Quick reviews:

Star Trek

What I Liked: This is the Star Trek movie I've wanted ever since the Star Wars prequels and Lord of the Rings came along...this is Star Trek writ large...a true Star Trek epic. Most of the characters are pretty much dead-on. It's full of in-jokes and references for fanboys like me, but not so much that it's distracting. And we finally learn the genesis of Dr. McCoy's nickname.

What I Didn't Like: Despite their efforts, it still falls prey to several Star Trek cliches, such as the rest of the crew falling into the background and settling the focus on Kirk and Spock. There's one central change to a certain character relationship that just kind of comes out of left field. And who the heck decided that Chekov should sound like Borat?

Final Assessment: As I said, this is Star Trek writ large, and I loved it for it.

3.5 Nibs

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

What I Liked: Wolverine proudly proclaiming he's Canadian. What little we see of Deadpool. What little we see of Gambit.

What I Didn't Like: Just the overwhelming sense of "It's all been done." It's been done bigger and better.

Final Assessment: Offers nothing new for the X-Men film franchise...vastly underwhelming.

2 Nibs

Titan Maximum

Here I am, taking a personal day to go see the new Star Trek movie today, but before I hit the road, I just want to take a minute to talk about the new production from the makers of Robot Chicken.

The guys behind one of the funniest cartoons on the planet are getting ready to give us a new stop-motion animated comedy cartoon. It's called Titan Maximum. And I'm loving the premise so far.

In the distant future, humankind has colonized the entire solar system. Saturn's moon of Titans is defended by a group of teenage fighter pilots whose vessels combine to form a giant robot called Titan Maximum. And when of their own goes rogue and tries to conquer the solar system, they must set out to apprehend him.

If it sounds kind of familiar, that is because they've taken their inspiration from such class anime as Voltron, Robotech and Battle of the Planets. But that's where the similarities end.

Says co-creator and head writer (and former Twisted ToyFare Theatre writer) Tom Root: "All these shows revolve around a group of young people who hold the fate of the universe in their hands. In reality, that would end horribly. That last thing you want when a bunch of giant monsters attack is a group of teenagers defending you. Titan Maximum is about what would actually happen if a group of idiot teenagers were put in charge of a 6-story robot."

Root created the show with fellow Robot Chicken writer Matthew Seinrich. Robot Chicken creator and producer Seth Green will be producing and voicing the villain. The voice cast includes such Robot Chicken regulars as Brekin Meyer, Rachel Leigh Cook, and Dan Milano. The writing staff even includes current comic book legend Geoff Johns.

No word yet on when it'll premiere.

Musings on Free Comic Book Day

So, this past weekend, I found myself once again in Red Deer for a family function. Looking for something to occupy myself on Saturday, I was reminded that it’s that worldwide nerd holiday known as Free Comic Book Day. So I decided to seek out Red Deer’s only comic book store and get my hands on my free comics.

For those not in the know, Free Comic Book Day is this massive initiative started by the comic book industry to get more people reading comics...to get the point across that comics is no longer a medium just for kids. The concept is simple: on the first Saturday in May, comic book stores give away free comics. The first Saturday in May was chosen because just about every summer this decade has included a blockbuster based on a comic book, and they almost always come out on the first weekend in May. Since interest in comics is high that weekend anyway, why not take advantage of it? The comic book publishers got on board with this, and most produce an exclusive comic book to be given away on Free Comic Book Day.

I found Red Deer’s only comic book store in the heart of Red Deer’s downtown. With my Google map in hand, I wandered up and down the street until I realized it was probably the store with the neon Superman and Batman logos in the window. I stepped inside, and found myself in the stereotypical comic book store. Row upon row of longboxes, stuffed full of old comics. A simple newsstand to the side where the new stuff was displayed. It was dark...windowless and narrow. The scent of old newsprint filled the air. And, behind the counter, a fat, bearded nerd sipping a Slurpee. I browsed through the store before approaching the lord of this manor. “Pardon me, sir, but I understand that today is Free Comic Book Day.” He motioned to a box by the front door. “They’re right there. Limit 5.”

I started looking through the box, and realized that even with the glee of Free Comic Book Day, the Red Deer comic book store doesn’t get a lot of business. I flipped through the box and found this year’s free comics...and last year’s free comics...and the free comics from two years ago...and three years ago...and so on.
This is actually indicative of a problem I’ve been having with Free Comic Book Day. My first one was two years ago. I stopped by my favourite comic book store in West Edmonton Mall, as I was in town for Spider-Man 3. I entered the store, walked up to the clerk, and said “Pardon me, sir, but I understand that today is Free Comic Book Day.” He replied with a heavy sigh, reached into a box behind the counter, slapped a comic book in front of me and said, “Here.” Needless to say, I was turned off by the whole experience. If the whole point of Free Comic Book Day is to get people into the stores and buying comics again, and experience like this really didn’t encourage me to come back.

Things were much better when I was back there last year for Free Comic Book Day. I walked in the front door, and was immediately greeted by a friendly clerk. “Hello! Did you know it’s Free Comic Book Day? The free comics are laid out on a table in the back. Help yourself to two! And while you’re here, we’ve got this on sale, and that’s on sale...it’s all kinds of Free Comic Book Day specials! So please, enjoy!”
THAT’S how you do Free Comic Book Day. Make it an event! Make your stores warm and inviting so people want to come back! Because some times, free comic books aren’t enough. And advertise it a little bit, too. Balloons and a big banner outside never hurt anyone...except in that unfortunate incident in Boise, Idaho.

Let's see now...what did I make off with on Free Comic Book Day? I was only expecting to get one comic, but with their limit of 5, I decided to load up. I got DC's Offering, Blackest Night #0, Marvel's offering, a special edition of The Avengers, a G.I. Joe/Transformers flipbook, issue #1 of the Transformers movie adaptation (from 2 years ago) and, the coolest one of all....

This year, 2009, marks the 25th anniversary of the media franchise known as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. So, to celebrate, Mirage Studios' offering for Free Comic Book Day was a special re-print of the comic that started it all, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1.

I still remember the tale of how the Ninja Turtles came to be. It was recounted quite a bit in various news outlets at the height of turtlemania back in 1990. The Turtles' creators, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, even recount it in their own words in the intro to their special Free Comic Book Day re-print. And I'm sure it still represents "the dream" to a lot of struggling young artists.

There they were, Eastman and Laird, a couple of starving artists. They kept knocking on the doors of all the major comic book publishers, but no one would let them in. Then, finally, they went, "Screw it! We'll form our own comic book company, and do our own independent comic!" They formed their company, Mirage Studios. But then, what should their first comic be? Eastman pulled out a sketch he did a few months earlier of an anthropomorphic turtle wielding a pair of nunchucks and said, "Let's do this! Let's do turtle ninjas!"

The end product: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a one-shot comic designed to be a highly-intricate parody of/homage to the comics of the day, particularly Frank Miller's work on Daredevil. It hit comic book stores in May 1984. To their surprise, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was a massive hit, leading them to do a second issue, and then another, and turn it into a regular series. In 1986, it had become big enough that it was brought to Playmates Toys as a potential action figure line. The toys, and a cartoon to promote them, came out in time for Christmas of 1987, and the rest is history.

I often wonder what happened to Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird and what other contributions they made to comics. Thanks to the Internet, that's really easy to do.

Peter Laird decided to pay it forward. He formed a non-profit organization dedicating to handing out grants to starving artists to they can self-publish their work. And, he's also become the current guardian of the Ninja Turtles franchise. He bought out Eastman's share as this decade began, and Laird has kept a watchful eye over every iteration of the Ninja Turtles from around 2002 and on.

Kevin Eastman fulfilled a lifelong dream by purchasing and become publisher of his favourite comic, the legendary Heavy Metal magazine. He also went on to party like a rock star, marrying former Penthouse pet and B-movie superstar Julie Strain.

And leafing through the special Free Comic Book Day re-print, there's all kinds of merch coming this year to celebrate the Turtles' 25th. The first 6 seasons of the original cartoon are on DVD, with the 7th coming this year. The original Eastman and Laird comics are coming in trade paperback form, along with the Archie comics that were popular in the early-1990s. And the live-action movies are getting all-new super-special editions due out this August.

And before I go, just one last thing about Free Comic Book Day. It's nice to see that the marketing concept is starting to catch on. Two years ago, a group of record stores decided to take the concept and create Record Store Day.

As we all know, between the big box retailers selling CDs at ridiculously low prices and piracy, the small, independent mom and pop record store is dying out. So, to help battle this, the creation of Record Store Day, celebrated on the third Saturday in April.

Recording artists release exclusive albums on this day, along with special in-store promotions like album signings and performing. The stores get in on it with free hotdogs and balloons and, well, everything that I said that Free Comic Book Day should include.

Makes me wish there some small, independent record stores closer to where I live so I can take part. I'll have to keep my eye open for participating stores in Edmonton next year.

Latest Targ's Up!

Ah, the beauty of the timer on blogger! Here I am, posting this new episode of U62: The Targ on Thursday, but thanks to the timer, it'll automatically go out to the world on Sunday! How about that?

This week, I've worked ahead to bring you Episode 2.30: Inconvenience. I have a few things I need to get off my chest, do some reading up on Expo 2010, and we're finishing our countdown to the new Star Trek film!

Click here to listen!

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G.I. JOE TRAILER!

"When I'm finished, this world will never forget."

"We have never faced a threat like this."

"They're the best operatives in the world."

"What does it accelerate?" "You."

"This is General Hawk. The mission is a go."

"This has only just begun."

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra



Good points: Snake Eyes vs. Storm Shadow

Bad points: Since when do the Joes need power armor?

August 6.

New Transformers Trailer!

"I'm seeing symbols."

"There's much we've kept from you, Sam."

"This isn't my war." "I fear it will soon be."

"What you're about to see is top secret. Do not tell my mother."

"They've gotta mean something. Like a message or a map."

"Megatron wants what's in my mind!"

"Fate rarely calls upon us at a moment of our choosing."

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen



June 24.

Some Movie Bitlits

Haven't had much to blog home about lately, but there's been a few bits of movie news come across my desk that I feel like sharing.

First up, the world famous British animation house Aardman Studios, which gave us the Wallace and Gromit franchise, and what I think is one of the funniest animated movies ever made, Chicken Run. Aardman just announced their next slate of films.

First up, Pirates! Pirates! will be based on the book The Pirates! (in an Adventures with Scientists), which is about a group of pirates who have a wacky adventure with Charles Darwin and a talking chimp.

After that will be the holiday flick Arthur Christmas, which seeks to answer the age old question, "How does Santa deliver every present in one night?"

Pirates! will be made in the classic stop-motion animation that Aardman is famous for. Arthur Christmas will be computer animated.

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As we all know, the big trend in Hollywood right now is remakes.

Yesterday, they officially began filming the remake of the classic 1981 fantasy film Clash of the Titans. For those who don't remember, Clash of the Titans was based on the classic Greek myth of Perseus. It's also notable in that it was the final film to feature special effects from stop motion animation maestro Ray Harryhausen. The original starred Harry Hamlin as Perseus and Laurence Olivier as Zeus.

The remake stars Sam Worthington, soon to be seen in Terminator Salvation as Perseus, Liam Neeson as Zeus, and Ralph Fiennes as Hades. Apparently, in the remake, Hades is now the villain. Louis Leterrier, director of The Incredible Hulk, is directing.

March 2010 is the targeted release date!

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If we're not doing re-makes, then we're doing sequels to beloved 80's franchises. Bruce Willis gave us one more Die Hard, Harrison Ford gave us another Indiana Jones, and as I write this, Disney has begun filming Tron 2.

The latest 80's franchise that's getting a long overdue sequel...Wall Street.

That's right, the classic drama directed by Oliver Stone and starring Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen as ruthless stockbrokers is getting a sequel. It focuses on Douglas's character of Gordon Gekko, released from prison, and getting back in the game. Today, it was announced that Stone is coming back to direct.

Latest Targ's Up!

Another Sunday morning can only mean the best of Sunday traditions...a new episode of my podcast, U62: The Targ!

This week, it's Episode 2.29: Rule of 3. We're going to sit down and chat about me having spent 3 years in Athabasca, yet another treatise on my love of KFC, and there's a couple of straight-to-DVD movies I just have to tell you about.

Click here to listen!

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Another New YouTube Vid: A Taste of Athabasca

Alrighty then, we've got a new YouTube video!

A Taste of Athabasca is the biggest annual fundraiser for the Athabasca Heritage Society...the community group dedicated to historical preservation. A variation on the traditional potluck supper, this one has people preparing a variety of foods from around the world. You get a wide variety of foods from around the globe, without having to leave Athabasca.

And, as I've said many times in the past, if there's food involved, I'm there.

So here it is! A Taste of Athabasca.

Latest Targ's Up!

U62: The Targ kind of went for every week to every two weeks this month, just because a lot of weekends were spent driving to various family Easter functions.

But, all of the Easter craziness is behind us, so we should be back on our regular timetable.

This week, it's Episode 2.28: Cloudy Skies. I'm offering up thoughts on Gordon Ramsay, the final episode of Corner Gas, and the best worst line in comics.

Click here to listen!

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Aggregator!

Nothing really fancy in this blog entry...just some news that's been bubbling up inside me that I need to share.

First up, news on my hero, "Weird Al" Yankovic! This is, perhaps, a little bit out of left field, but it is very cool.

A few weeks ago, Weird Al posted on his Twitter feed a picture of himself with Rob Zombie and Malcolm McDowell. A few hours later, the Weird Al websites had it figured out.

Weird Al has a cameo in Zombie's upcoming slasher film, Halloween 2!

Zombie officially confirmed it on his MySpace page earlier this week. The set-up: Malcolm McDowell is back as Dr. Samuel Loomis, the psychiatrist who seeks to rehabilitate Michael Myers. He's like the Van Helsing to Michael Myers' Dracula. Anyway, in #2, Loomis has written a book about his encounters with Michael Myers, and goes onto a talk to show to pimp it. And who else is on that talk show? Weird Al!

Wow. Who knew that Zombie is a Weird Al fan? Rob Zombie's Halloween 2 is due out Halloween this year.

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It's a proud Pixar tradition to have an animated short film in front of their feature films. Pixar's latest, Up, comes out at the end of May, and they have announced the details on the short film that'll be in front of Up.

Partly Cloudy seeks to answer that age-old question about cartoons: if storks bring babies, where do the storks get the babies?

The answer: storks get them from clouds, who sculpt babies out of clouds.

What happens when a stork and a tempermental cloud get into a fight? Find out in...Partly Cloudy.

Partly Cloudy was written and directed by Peter Sohn, a Pixar animator and storyboard artist who worked on Finding Nemo, the Incredibles and Ratatouille.

The End of Corner Gas

Well, I just wanted to take a minute to talk about the end of that Canadian pop culture phenomenon Corner Gas.

For those who missed the CTV promotional blitz, Corner Gas had its final episode last night. After six seasons, they decided to bring it to an end. And in a way, I applaud them for that. Series creator and star Brent Butt said he wanted to go out while the show was on top. Far too many sitcoms these days are on long after they stop being funny. Besides, it leads into my podcast from a couple weeks ago, where I discussed the concept of finite storytelling and bringing TV shows to an end at a logical point.

But yeah. As much as I loved Corner Gas, I started losing interest. It was early in season 4 where I went, "Oh. They've discovered their formula and they're sticking to it." I've missed pretty much all of season 5 and season 6. I blame CTV for that. It used to be on at 8PM, and because I have to go to bed so early because of my job, I could watch it right before bed. Then some genius had the idea to move it to 10:30PM. Oh, well. I see you can watch most of the episodes at ctv.ca, so maybe I should go do some catch-up. Or, I can also buy the DVDs.

The final episode itself...had a bit of a cute plot. Brent keeps disappearing on Wednesday nights, so finally people decide to follow him to find out where he's been running off to. Turns out he's performing at a comedy club in the city, and is becoming a minor success as a stand-up comic. Of course, the whole set-up was a bit of an in-joke to the genesis of the series. Butt frequently said he came up with the idea for the show back when he was being interviewed for his stand-up shows. Reporters would always ask, "What would you do for a living if you weren't a stand-up comic?" and his answer would always be, "Probably back in my hometown pumping gas."

Butt said that he didn't want to do the massive final episode like most American sitcoms do...that he wanted it to feel just like a regular episode. And in that aspect, he succeeded spectacularly. It really feel just like a regular episode. It reminded me of the final episode of that other Canadian pop culture phenomenon, The Red Green Show. Just like Red Green, Corner Gas even resolved the loose ends with a simple coda saying what all the main characters went on to achieve.

But it was good. And it's gone now. But it'll live forever, online, on DVD, and on reruns on the Comedy Network.

My New YouTube Vid: The Athabasca Community Centre

While I didn't get a new episode of my podcast up this weekend, I was able to throw together a new YouTube video.

The Athabasca Community Centre was a proud part of the Athabasca landscape for a very, very long time. But it got too old and too small. So they built the Athabasca Regional Multiplex to replace it. And the Community Centre came tumbling down.

OK, I only made this because I fell victim to the guy thing of watching heavy equipment at work. Yay, heavy equipment!

Behold the demolition.

No Targ This Week

Sorry, folks, once again, there's no episode of U62: The Targ this week. Why? Because it's Easter! I'm home in Entwistle, munching on chocolate bunnies.

Next week, I won't be running around so much on weekends, so we should be back to a regular schedule.

In the by-and-by, you can help yourself to a rerun.

Pokemon 11 Review

Alright! Because people actually have been asking me about this all weekend, it's time to finally sit down and watch and review Pokemon 11. Or maybe, I should finally start referring to it by its proper name....

Pokemon: Giratina and the Sky Warrior

Original Japanese Name: Giratina and the Sky Bouquet: Shaymin

Directed by Kunihiko Yuyama...just like the first 10.

Backstory: Holy moly! Can you believe that there have been 11 of these films? And I own them all on DVD. Whenever I hear about the latest one, I begin the countdown to its North American release so I can add it to my collection and have the whole franchise! Gotta catch em' all, after all. Plus, there was some interesting musings afoot about this film. Seems that the creators of the franchise are trying something new with the film. The prior film, The Rise of Darkrai, was the first in a trilogy, making this part II. How would they continue the story? Why would they bother? Let's find out together.

Plot: Our story begins with Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn resting in a picturesque seaside city when, out of the woods, comes a timid little Shaymin. Shaymin is on a journey to a mythical flower garden, where she and the rest of their kind will change to their sky forms and fly off on an epic journey. But, this Shaymin had a little detour. Seems it was caught in the crossfire between Giratina and Dialga, and now the Giratina is hunting it down. Not long after, our heroes are sucked into Giratina's domain, the strange parallel world known as the Reverse World, where they meet a scientist named Newton, who has been studying the Reverse World. Newton explains that, thanks to Shaymin getting involved, Giratina is trapped in the Reverse World. But that's not all. Also mucking things up is Zero, Newton's one time assistant whose time in the Reverse World has now driven him mad. Zero now seeks to capture Giratina and conquer the Reverse World, destroying our world in the process! It's up to our heroes to save the world! That's a lot of exposition just for "big Pokemon fight lots."

What I Liked: Big Pokemon fight lots. And some very beautiful animated locations, for a Pokemon film.

What I Didn't Like: Far too much exposition for what we've come to expect from these films. And it's quite formulaic for the franchise.

Final Assessment: A respectable entry in the franchise.

3 Nibs

Bonus Features: None. Nada. Zilch. Zip.

Where Are We This Time?: Following the trend that started with the fifth movie, the location was based on a real life location. This time around, our heroes traveled to the city of Bergen, Norway and the Sognefjord

The End of Giratina and the Sky Warrior, but our heroes will return in: Arceus: To the Conquering of Space-Time

Latest Targ's Up!

Sunday morning means a new episode of U62: The Targ, and this is appropriately titled Episode 2.27: Sunday Morning.

In this one, I explain why I didn't have an episode this week (but you already know why if you've seen my latest YouTube video), I offer up my thoughts on the Family Guy/Star Trek episode, and the latest news on the Toy Story franchise.

Click here to go listen to it!

Click here to find it in iTunes!

The Athabasca Auto and RV Show

My latest YouTube epic is ready to be unleashed on the masses!

Last weekend was the first-ever Athabasca Auto and RV Show. Thanks to my job, I was up there, broadcasting live on location, mingling with the crowd, and just being a super radio star.

And, as I do, the camera was along and I filmed as much as I could.

So, here it is...The Athabasca Auto and RV Show.

Various News Bits

Again, just a compilation of news bits I've picked up from around the 'net.

YAY! My collection of brilliant-but-canceled TV shows on DVD will once again be complete! Today, they announced the release of Pushing Daisies: The Complete Second Season.

You'll get all 13 episodes from the second and final season, plus four featurettes about the TV show. Available on regular DVD and Blu-Ray, for those who've made the Great Upgrade.

The big day? July 21.

This, of course, is really good news because it wasn't too long ago that series creator Bryan Fuller was saying that they couldn't announce a release date until the final three episodes had aired on TV. Since they're announcing this release, it's a safe bet that the final three episodes will air before July 21.

---

And also, we've got good news for the Pixar fans.

It's been known for some time now that Pixar is planning on re-releasing Toy Story and Toy Story 2 to theatres, all re-mixed and converted to 3D. Of course, this is part of the promotional blitz for Toy Story 3, which is going to be Pixar's summer blockbuster for 2010.

Toy Story was scheduled for a release in October of 2009, and #2 was going to be out in February of 2010.

Well, today, they announced that, for the first two weeks in October, the two Toy Story films will be released as a double-feature, kind of like Grindhouse.

Truth be told, I'm kind of looking forward to this. The first two Toy Stories are the only Pixar films I haven't seen in the theatre.

---

And this one is just kind of neat.

The man...the legend...accomplished actor, stand-up comic, writer and playwright Steve Martin is going to be performing at...the Grand Ole Opry.

How did this come about? Well, among his many talents, Steve Martin also plays the banjo. He worked it into his stand up act back in the 1970s. Many actually consider him a bit of a banjo prodigy. Anyway, back in January, Steve Martin released his first bluegrass album, The Crow: New Songs for the 5-String Banjo.

Steve Martin's Opry performance is going to be on May 30, so mark your calendars accordingly!

My Thoughts on the Family Guy/Star Trek Episode

Stayed up late last night to catch Not All Dogs go to Heaven, aka "The episode of Family Guy with the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation." The set-up: fed up that he never got to ask the cast question at a Star Trek convention, Stewie decides to abduct the entire TNG cast so he can spend the day hanging out with them.

Now, since Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane is a devout trekkie, I was expecting something filled with in-jokes towards TNG, much like Where No Fan Has Gone Before, aka "The episode of Futurama with the entire cast of the original series (except Scotty)". But no. Sadly, the stuff with the TNG cast turned out to be a very weak subplot in a very weak episode.

Essentially, if you saw this preview that Fox posted on Thursday, you saw every Star Trek joke that was in the episode:



Although, I will admit, the one in-joke that didn't make that reel was when as soon as the cast materializes in Stewie's room, Stewie promptly kills Denise Crosby "as a warning to the rest of you." That made me laugh out loud, and I really was hoping for more stuff like that.

But yeah...as a said, it turned out to be a weak subplot in a weak episode.

In case you're curious, the main plot had to do with Meg finding God and atheist Brian trying to convince her the error of her ways. Yeah...it degenerated into Brian preaching the joys of atheism. "Family Guy" and "preachy" don't mix.

No Targ This Week

Sorry, guys, that I don't have an episode of U62: The Targ this week. This past weekend, I was broadcasting live from the first-ever Athabasca Auto and RV show, that took up a lot of my free time.

Don't believe me? Here's a picture of me hard at work.



Yes, this is my job.

But still, feel free to head by the the Targ website and help yourself to a rerun.

Thursday News Wrap-Up

Wow. Looking at the stats for my blog, readership goes up quite a bit when I remember to share these new entries on my Facebook page and my Twitter page. I just might be doing a lot more of that in the future!

Anyway, got a bunch of news stories here that you've heard in other media outlets that I just want to share because...well, I like them.

First up, y'all know I'm a big fast food junkie, but even this might be too much for me. The baseball team the West Michigan Whitecaps have a new item at their ballpark concession stands, and it's a doozy.



The Fifth Third Burger is, quite possibly one of the biggest hamburgers ever served at a ballpark. You start off with a specially made, 1 pound bun. Then you add a cup of chili. Then you add 5, 1/3 pound burger patties (5/3, get it?). Then, you top with cheese, nachos, nacho cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, and sour cream. The finished burger weighs well over 4 pounds, and will set you back $20.

It's not for those on a diet, as it contains 4800 calories and 300 grams of fat. Naturally, the suggested serving is to cut it up into smaller pieces and share it with your friends.

However, the ballpark will have special T-shirts made up, that you will get for free if you manage to eat the whole thing. I'm guessing the T-shirts will read, "Holy crap, I'm still alive!"

Full story here.

Next up, we got some movie news on Tom Hanks. Hanks has just secured the movie rights to Major Matt Mason, and is looking to develop it into a movie starring himself.

Wow, with the success of Transformers and G.I. Joe, they're turning every action figure into a movie now, aren't they? Major Matt Mason was a fondly remembered action figure line from the 1960's, and was created as Mattel's response to Hasbro's runaway hit G.I. Joe. Major Matt Mason was an astronaut "who works on the Moon!" the ads proudly proclaimed. The big gimmick though was that it was grounded in reality. Matt Mason's space suit, moon buggy and other vehicles were all based on NASA designs at the time. And with the space race on everyone's minds when it hit store shelves in 1966, Major Matt Mason was a runaway hit.

But then, 1969. The Eagle had landed, and the space race was no longer enough. Major Matt Mason then started veering into sci-fi, and some aliens were introduced for the Major to fight, but it wasn't enough, and the toy line was discontinued in the early 1970s.

Anyway, Tom Hanks was a fan and has idea for a movie. He just got the movie rights from Mattel. Hanks will be producing it through his company Playtone Productions, in association with Universal. Hanks is also hoping to star as Major Mason. No word yet on when it'll hit theatres.

Full story here.


And it's always great when a couple of my heroes, Adam Savage and Jamie Hynaman, the Mythbusters, make the news.

Apparently, the myth they were testing was the old saying "knock your socks off." They wanted to see if they could literally knock someone's socks off.

So, they got a crash test dummy, loaded him with 500 pounds of ammonium nitrate, and lit the fuse.

The resulting explosion shattered a few windows in the neighbouring town. The Mythbusters were cool about it and replaced all the broken windows.

Full story here.

Where the Wild Things Are Trailer

Well, here it is, the one trailer that everyone's geeking out over today.

The live action movie version of Where the Wild Things Are has been a long and trouble production...over 6 years in the making. People where taken aback when Spike Jonze was hired to bring it to the big screen. After all, Jonze brought us such quirky, existential dramas like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. How the heck would he adapt one of the most beloved children's books of all time?

And that's why it was more than six years in the making. The studio wanted a fun, bouncy kids film. Jonze wanted something that was a more realistic depiction of how children imagine thing...and something just a little bit on the dark side. It was supposed to come out last year, but rumor has it a disastrous test screening led into massive re-shoots.

And now, it looks like it's ready for release this October.

So, here it is, the trailer for Where the Wild Things Are:



See, right away it doesn't look like a kids film. It does, however, look like a Spike Jonze film.

And as I'm sure you could figure out, the Wild Things were animatronic creations from Jim Henson's Creature Shop, and they tell us that they're enhanced with computer animation to make their faces more expressive.

October 2009!

New Astro Boy Trailer! Ponyo Release Date!

For the most part, I love my living situation, but minor inconveniences can turn into big ones quite quickly.

My Internet is down. But, because my landlord won't be home until 6, I can't call anyone to complain about it, or get it fixed. So, no Internet. Causing me to go batty because I couldn't check my e-mail.

Oh, well. It's a nice day for a walk. May as well walk on down to the library and use one of their free Internet terminals. Lace up my boots, strap on the MP3 player, cue up Lily Allen's new album, and hit the road! I get to the library and...all the Internet terminals are full. Darn kids and their spring break....

Luckily, the office is just down the street from the library, so may as well pop in at the office and get my Internet fix.

Now, what's so important that it couldn't wait until 6PM for me to call and complain to my landlord?

New Astro Boy trailer!

Anyone who's watched a lot of Japanese cartoons -- or just really liked The Incredibles -- can tell you that superheroes and animation are tailor-made for each other. None of this worry over getting the right actor...just draw them however you like. And things that seem impossible in live action just become possible when they're lines on a piece of paper...or vectors in a computer.

So that brings us to the new, computer animated movie version of Astro Boy. The classic Japanese cartoon character is being brought to the big screen by Imagi Entertainment, the same studio that brought us that computer animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles a couple years back.

It's due out this October, and while the animation doesn't look to be groundbreaking, it definitly looks fun.



October 26 is when it hits theatres.

And speaking of classic Japanese cartoons, we have the North American release date for Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea, the latest animated epic from Hayao Miyazaki, generally regarded as the world's greatest animator.

The story is about a goldfish princess named Ponyo who longs to be human, and befriends a 5-year old boy.

The English language dub includes the voices of Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, Tina Fey, and Cate Blanchett. Frankie Jonas -- the littlest Jonas Brother -- voices the 5-year old boy, and Noah Cyrus -- the littlest sister of Miley Cyrus -- voices Ponyo.

As with the last two Hayao Miyazaki films (Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle), the English dub is being supervised by Toy Story director John Lasseter. Lasseter teamed up with Hollywood super-producers Frank Marshal and Kathlleen Kennedy to dub Ponyo, with the goal of making it Miyazaki's biggest hit in North America.

Anyway, what's the release date?

August 14.

Latest Targ's Up!

Friday was the first day of spring, making this the first podcast of spring! Does U62: The Targ usher in the new season with great aplomb, or just the usual?

Well...the usual stuff.

Today, it's Episode 2.26: Finite Storytelling, in which I urge Hollywood to keep TV shows short, discuss celebrities following me on Twitter, and even talk a little bit about the Edmonton Capitals.

Click here to go listen to it!

Click here to find it in iTunes!

Cracker-Cats No More

Granted, I'm not much of a sports guy, but I wanted to take a minute to talk about the demise of one of the stupidist sports names in Edmonton sports.

Yesterday, it was announce that Edmonton's Golden League baseball team, the Cracker Cats, would be renamed the Edmonton Capitals.

I'll never forget when Edmonton was granted a Golden League Baseball franchise four years ago. How the name Cracker-Cats came about is...well, foolish. According to urban legend, which was widely reported at the time, the name Cracker-Cats came about like this. The owners of the team spent millions of dollars on a marketing study to choose a name for the team. When the marketing wizards came back to the owners to present the team name, the owners said, "That's a stoopid name! We're not using that."

Because Edmonton has always been a centre of oilfield activity, they wanted a name that reflected the oil industry. So the owners grabbed the Big Book of Oilfield Terms, randomly flipped through the pages, and their finger landed on the term "catalytic cracking," which is a chemical process in the early stages of oil refinement. They flipped it around, and got "Cracker Cats."

Needless to say, lots of people thought it was a stupid name. Some baseball historians even went so far as to call the name racist, as "the Crackers" was the name of Atlanta's old Negro League team.

There were lots of problems with the Crakcer Cats, which have been widely reported in the Edmonton media. The owners lived in Florida, and never, ever set foot in Edmonton. It almost seemed as though the owners were dedicated to driving away fans, with a series of meaningless and almost random front office changes. There were reportes of game attendance dwindling at around 150.

But all that seems to have changed. At the close of the 2008 season, the Cracker Cats were bought by...the Edmonton Oilers! And the Oilers seem dedicated to turning the team around and making it viable. They've even announced that they're moving some of their offices out of Rexall Place and down to Telus Field as a show of support.

And yesterday, they announced that the name is being changed from the Cracker Cats to the Capitals...which was the winner in a city-wide "name the team" contest. Says Capitals governor Patrick LaForge, "Alberta's Capital City. Oil Capital of Canada. It just makes sense."

Along with yesterday announcement, they also unveiled the team's new colours - which is the Oiler's copper and blue - and the launch of a "design a logo" contest.

I want baseball to work in Edmonton. My mother was the baseball nut in the family, and I've got many fond memories of going to Edmonton Trappers games when I was a kid. Baseball does work in Edmonton. It can work again.

Here's the story announcing the new name.

Here's the Edmonton Capitals' new website

See? I Remembered!

I remembered the rest of my brilliant thoughts from yesterday!

Yes, the rest of my thought had to do with Hot Wheels and other tiny toy cars of that type. This is predominant on my mind because down at the Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy, the aisles are currently glutted with Hot Wheels, Matchbox, and all other manner of toy cars. That, and I have a renewed interest in them, having gotten some as a gag for Christmas.

I guess the source of my obsession is how come the toy car collectors never receive much press? Here I am, an action figure collector, and I'm a social pariah, frequently the butt of jokes on sitcoms the world over. Every couple of years, usually around the anniversary of Barbie, you hear of Barbie collectors and their conventions. But the toy car collectors? They get to exist in anonymity.

How come they get off easy?

Granted, I do boast a couple of toy cars in my collection. Given my love for all things Batman, of course I have a couple of Batmobiles. Because of my love for Speed Racer, I've got a couple of Mach 5's. And, I even have a soft spot for Herbie the Love Bug from my youth, so I snapped up a Herbie when I had the chance. My holy grail is still a DeLorean Time Machine, from Back to the Future.

It seems that every little boy goes through a phase where they're all about the toy cars. And wow, did Pixar find a way to tap into that. For the Pixar junkies like me, Cars is generally regarded as the lesser of their films to date. However, in terms of merchandise sales, Cars is the most successful film Pixar has made to date.

So, yeah. Cars. That was my brilliant thought. Not as brilliant as I thought, but there it is.

Show Prep

I hoped to post this on Tuesday afternoon, but Internet problems prevented me from getting through to Blogger. If you’re reading this, either the Internet is working again, or I put it on a flash drive and went for a walk to the library.

I was out for a constitutional yesterday, and I had several brilliant thoughts occur to me. I was going to save them for my next podcast, but feared that I would forget them, so figured it was best that I jot them down.

So the other day, I was blogging about the new Law & Order: UK. Now, a British television series usually has a very small number of episodes in a season. Law & Order: UK got an order of 13 episodes for its first season...a number that is incredibly high for a one-hour British drama in its first season. However, Law & Order creator Dick Wolf laments that the season is so short, and is hoping that he’ll be able to convince the British producers to eventually do an American-style season of 22 episodes.

Now this got me thinking about a discussion I was having once with my best friend. He’s become quite a fan of Japanese anime and OVA and how an anime series might only run 26 episodes or so. “Can you imagine that?” he said to me. “That’s such a finite space to tell a story! What kind of story could you tell on TV in just 26 episodes?”

“You think that’s a short space?” I replied. “What about this British dramas, where a season is just 6 episodes! What kind of story would you tell in 6 episodes?”

There really is something to be said for finite storytelling...a TV series of limited length that has a set beginning, middle, and end. The way American television has set things up, it is designed to never end. That’s how we get The Simpsons and the original Law & Order running for more than 20 years. Some would say that that is a more realistic way of storytelling, because just like real life, there is no end. It just keeps going on.

But therein lies the rub. It’s more realistic in the never-ending sense, but in real life, characters are allowed to grow, change, and evolve. Not so on a TV series. Characters are expected to remain relatively consistent during the 10 years or so that a TV series is on. Fry said it best on an episode of Futurama: “People don’t like clever and unexpected. Clever makes them feel stupid, and unexpected scares them.”

But thanks to finite storytelling, because you know that end is coming, you can feel free to take the characters on an arc that will change them forever. Just when the characters have evolved to a point where your audience won’t love them anymore, well, that’s it. That’s the end of the series.

I wonder why North American television hasn’t embraced the concept of finite storytelling more. I can only think of a few examples. Babylon 5 was only designed to run for 5 years, and 5 years was for how long it ran. I believe there’s a similar plan in place for Lost. Listening to the running commentaries for the short-lived sitcom That’s My Bush!, either Matt Stone or Trey Parker (I forget which one) says, “Ya know, in a way, I’m glad this show lasted only 8 episodes. Because by around episode 7, we were starting to feel like the premise was wearing out.”

I hope finite storytelling is embraced. We shouldn’t fear the end when it comes to TV shows.

---

So I’ve been on Twitter for a couple of weeks now, and I’m starting to learn the ropes. I’m searching around, following more people, and picking up more followers, but still, its surprises me who chooses to follow me.

As part of all forms of media embracing Twitter these days, I’ve found a few of my favourite Edmonton Journal columnists, and started following them. But the weird thing is...they then turned around and started following me.

What’s going on here? Now, I don’t think it’s the “follow me and I’ll automatically follow you” system that celebrities like Britney Spears have set up. When they follow you back, it’s pretty much instantaneous. But with these Edmonton Journal columnists, it took hours – days in one case – for them to start following me back. So I’m assuming from this that it must have been on a conscious decision on the part of the columnist.

Why did they choose to follow me? Was it because I’ve tweeted during my morning show enough that they went, “Oh, fellow media guy. We media folk must stick together!” On my Twitter page, I’ve linked to enough of my other projects, like the podcast and the YouTube videos and even this blog. Have they perused these projects and went, “Wow, a kindred spirit!”

It boggles my feeble mind, and I have yet to work up the courage to go, “@columnist Hey! Why are you following me?”

But in the off chance that they’re reading this blog, I’d like to say, “Hello, Edmonton Journal columnists! I’ve always believe that deep inside every blogger beats the heart of a frustrated writer, and I know that’s true in my case. Reading your stuff inspires me to get more good.”

---

I had more brilliant thoughts as I was on my walk, but alas, they have escaped me. I had the thoughts on the walk up the hill, and it was on the walk back down the hill that I forgot them. I could sit here and try futilely to remember them, but I find that thoughts are like cats. The harder you hunt for them, the harder they hide. Best to just put your feet up and wait for them to come to you.

Law and Order International

Just doing some random googling, and I discovered that this much-hyped TV series has now started airing!

Ladies and gentlemen, it's the official British re-make of Law & Order, which is now a proud member of the franchise under the title Law & Order: UK:



Of course, right away for me, it earns its nerd cred for its casting of Freema Agyeman as the character of court prosecutor Alesha Philips, who fills that Law & Order stock role of "feisty young female ADA."

It's first season consists of 13 episodes...over in the UK, they're about 4 episodes in right now. For the first season, each episode is a flat-out re-make of an episode of the original American version, only with the appropriate changes made to make it work in British culture and the British legal system. Oh, and of course the setting was changed from New York to London.

Apparently, Law & Order creator Dick Wolf was quite involved with this British re-make, and is quite impressed with how it's turned out. According to Wikipedia, he's even lobbying NBC to pick it up for American re-broadcast.

And you know, that's why this first made headlines when it was announced around a year ago. With British television gaining ever more outlets in the USA, what with them winding up on various cable channels, there does exist a very real possibility that this'll be coming to North America.

But you know, discovering this got me digging around YouTube. This isn't the only international re-make of a Law & Order series. Before this one came along, the best-known Law & Order re-make out there was the French version of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Or, as the French re-make is known as, Paris enquetes criminelles.



The setting has been moved to Paris, and every episode is a flat-out re-make of a Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode, with the appropriate changes made to make it fit into French culture and the French legal system. Apparently, this is a condition on all these international Law & Order remakes.

But apparently the most popular of all these international Law & Order remakes is the Russian version of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. When this first premiered in Russia, apparently it was a full-on pop culture phenomenon. Same rules apply...setting changed to Moscow, and each episode is a flat-out remake of an SVU episode, with all the appropriated changes made for the Russian culture and legal system:



Here's an actual clip from the Russian Law & Order: SVU. I chose this because you get to hear the opening narration in Russian, plus you can see that it boasts what my best friend once dubbed the "low budget made in Canada" look. Seriously. It's got the look and feel of an episode of The Littlest Hobo:



The Russian re-make was so popular that it also led to a Russian remake of Criminal Intent. I could find only one clip online, and it's in good ol', super-poor "video camera filming the TV" vision:



But still, out of all these remakes, I think the best one still has to be...the Sesame Street remake of Law & Order:

Latest Targ's Up!

It's time for that Sunday morning ritual of mine...posting a new episode of U62: The Targ, my podcast!

This week, Episode 2.25: Comic Toast. In this one, we're talking Watchmen, Wonder Woman, and Pokemon. Just a typical show, really.

Click here to go listen to it!

Click here to find it in iTunes!

My latest YouTube vid!

So, here's my newest YouTube epic.

The Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta recently had a fundraiser in Athabasca, with a portion of the proceeds going towards the Athabasca Good Samaratin Mission. (That's our local food bank).

The fundraiser was a hockey game. Some of your favourite PC MLA's and cabinet ministers vs. municipal politicians and local celebrities.

Filmed it. YouTubed it.

Here's The PC Hockey Game.

Think of the Children: New Movie Laws in Alberta

So I just saw on the 6 o'clock news that here in Alberta they're bringing in some changes to the movie rating system. Well, not so much changing the ratings, but changing the way they're enforcing them.

Here's the original news story. You can read the text, or even watch the video!

For those too lazy to click, it pretty much boils down to this. All children aged 14 and under would be banned from movies rated 18A.

(For those not familiar with the Canadian movie rating system, 18A is pretty much the same as the American rating of R.)

It used to be that if kids 14 and under were accompanied by a parent or someone of legal age, they'd be OK to see an 18A movie. But nope! Not anymore! If you're 14 or under, you're not going to see Watchmen, you're off to see The Jonas Brothers 3D Concert Movie next door.

Also as part of this new law will be hiring narks to enforce it.

Of course, the complaint about this is that the government is overreaching their bounds and not letting parents be parents.

That's got to be the biggest argument against it: government, stay out of our homes and let the parents be parents.

The biggest argument FOR it would have to be this posting at one of my favourite websites, Not Always Right.com. For those too lazy to follow the link, let me skip straight to the punchline:

"With all due respect, ma'am, the movie is rated 18A, the movie poster is a picture of a stripper, and the film is called Sin City. What on earth made you think it was appropriate for your 8 year old child?"

Granted, I don't have kids, so this new law isn't going to affect me. However, you just know it came about because some overreacting parents lobbied the government, and now a different set of parents are overreacting to the law. Heck, in the news story, Minister of Culture Lindsay Blackett pretty much says as much.

On the plus side, this probably means no more crying babies when I go to see something like 300.

Also as part of this law, video rental stores will be unable to rent videos unless they're rated. Now that one does seem unfair. As they point in the news story, consenting adults like myself will be unable to rent award winning documentaries and foreign films simply because they couldn't afford to be submitted for a rating.

All in all, I think this new law is a bit of an overreacting.

And while I'm at it, I'd like to criticize how the news story was put together. For an example of an 18A movie, they used a clip from Watchmen. Fair enough...it's #1 at the box office right now and it's rated 18A, it's a prefect example. But....

...they used a clip featuring all the characters standing around in their bright, colourful superhero costumes. That, alone, helps skew the news story towards the fact that it's an overreaction.

Had they used one of the full frontal nude shots of Dr. Manhattan, or when Nite Owl is having sex with Silk Spectre, or when Rorschach hacks the guy's head in two, that probably would have been a little more accurate to the spirit of the law, and probably have a lot more people agreeing with it.

Watchmen Review is Up!

My review of Watchmen is now online!

Actually, it's been online since Monday, but because I adopted the policy of "one blog entry per day," I'm only blogging about it now.

So, if you're not my friend on Facebook, or if you're not following me on Twitter, or if you don't check out my official site twice daily, this is the first you're hearing about it.

So go read it!

Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder Review

You know, DTV movies don't have to suck. And I'm starting to learn that with all the ones I'm starting to amass in my collection. Let's get to my latest addition...

Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder

Directed by Peter Avanzio

Starring the voices of Billy West, Katey Sagal, John DiMaggio, Tress MacNeile, Maurice LaMarche, Phil LaMarr, Lauren Tom, and special guest voices Phil Hendrie, Penn and Teller, Snoop Dogg and Seth MacFarlane.

Backstory: Well, I am a Futurama geek, and I reveled in the news that the series was being resurrected in a series of 4 DTV films. But, all good things must come to an end, and the fourth and final film was finally released. The track record for me goes like this: #1 was awesome, #2 was kind of weak, #3 was good, but still not as good as #1. Where will #4 lie in spectrum?

Plot: After the construction of a newer and bigger Mars Vegas, Leo Wong (Amy's father) reveals his latest plot: to build the universe's biggest mini-golf course. To do so would require the destruction of 12% of the galaxy. Key to this construction is the destruction of a violet dwarf star, around which orbits an asteroid teaming with life. But little do they know that the destruction of this star would play into the hands of the Dark Ones, the culmination of evolution of the galaxy's fiercest predators. The only one who can stop the Dark Ones is our hero, Fry, who has been rendered telepathic thanks to a chunk of metal embedded in his skull. Can Fry stop the Dark Ones and save the universe? In other subplots, Bender starts dating the wife of the Robot Don of the Robot Mafia, and Leela joins an outlaw band of eco-feminists, and Zapp Brannigan is ordered to bring her in.

What I Liked: Well, there's definitly more laughs in this one than in the last two films. The first one was good because of all of its "WE'RE BACK!" vibes...this one is good because of all of its "SOB! IT'S OVER...AGAIN!" vibes. But still, the melancholy attitude keeps them from knocking it out of the park.

What I Didn't Like: OK, the whole plot with the Dark Ones does get a little confusing. And, as I said, it's good because of it's "IT'S OVER!" vibes, but they really don't kick in until the final 10 minutes.

Final Verdict: Bender's Big Score is still the best one, but this one is now a solid second. Good-bye, Futurama! This was an OK finale.

3 Nibs

Bonus Materials: For bonus features, you get a running commentary with the voice cast and directors, deleted scenes, featurettes, and a couple of nifty little comedy bits. I'm getting to lazy to type out the complete list.

Wonder Woman Review

Alright, I spent my Sunday afternoon watching those direct-to-video (DTV) movies I picked up in the city yesterday, so let's get to it! Let's share my opinions with the world on....

Wonder Woman

Directed by Lauren Montgomery

Starring the voices of Keri Russel, Nathon Fillion, Alfred Molina, Rosario Dawson, Marg Helgenberger, Oliver Platt, and Virginia Madsen.

Backstory: So, the DC/WB has had a pretty good streak so far with the DTV animated films. For their latest one, they finally get around to the third part of the DC trinity, the Amazon Princess herself, Wonder Woman. Producer Bruce Timm himself admitted that they were never able to give Wonder Woman her due. Would they finally be able to do it by making her the star of her own DTV film?

Plot: For centuries, the Amazon warriors of legend have live in peace and solitude on the hidden island of Themyscira. Their only duty: to stand guard over Ares, god of war, rendered powerless by Zeus. But, their existence is shattered one day when American Air Force pilot Steve Trevor crashes his plane on their island. Ares takes advantage of the commotion to escape. So then, the Amazons choose a champion to go on a mission to Man's World. The mission is twofold: return Trevor to his home, and apprehend Ares. The champion chosen: their own princess, Diana. Will Diana be able to navigate the hazards of Man's World and re-capture Ares?

What I Liked: The one thing I wasn't expecting about this film was how funny it is. It's just funny as hell to watch Diana arrive in Man's World, and then spend a great deal of time bitch-slapping every piece of crap that women are expected to deal with in today's world. The voice acting is top notch, too. I'll admit, when it was announced that Keri Russel would be voicing Wonder Woman, I didn't think she had enough..bad-ass-itude to pull it off. But she does so wonderfully. And also, Nathan Fillion as Steve Trevor...again, funny as hell. But it's not all giggles. There's also some pretty hardcore action scenes with lots of blood and be-headings.

What I Didn't Like: Sadly, I found Rosario Dawson's voice acting to be a little flat. And it was so darn short. I don't know who decided that these WB/DC DTV films have to be 75 minutes, but that person must be punished. With so little time, there's so many supporting characters that I feel got short shrift.

Final Assessment: This is the best DC Universe DTV animated film to date. Keep 'em coming!

4 Nibs

Bonus Material: The film is out in both single-disc and 2-disc special editions. Of course, I got the 2-disc special ed. For bonus materials, you get a running commentary with the director and producers, three featuretts (the first one about making the film, the second about the history of Wonder Woman, and the third about Wonder Woman's ties to Greek mythology), a couple of Wonder Woman-centric episodes of Justice League, and a sneak peak at the next DC Universe DTV film, Green Lantern: First Flight, due out this summer.

Latest Targ's Up!

Ah, a new week, means a new episode of my podcast, U62: The Targ!

On this week's episode, it's Episode 2.24: More Music of the Bat. You might remember, a few weeks ago, I special-ordered an ultra-rare copy of the soundtrack to Batman: The Animated Series.

Well, I finally went through all 2.5 hours of music on the 2-disc set, and I play my favourite clips for you!

Click here to give it a listen!

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My Day in the City and Some Comments on Watchmen

It's almost a monthly ritual for me, heading into the city, spending too much money on DVDs, and then heading to see a movie.

For those curious, the DVDs I spent too much money on this month are a couple of straight-to-DVD movies. First up, I had to get the latest DC Universe animated film, Wonder Woman. It's been getting some fantastic reviews, so I'm looking forward to watching it soon. And, I also got the fourth and final Futurama DTV film, Into the Wild Green Yonder. I love the first Futurama DTV film, felt the next two kind of wavered, but the reviews for the fourth one is that it's almost as good as the first one.

As with all DTV films of mine, look for reviews in this here blog in the days ahead.

But that's not all! I also had to pick up some new CDs to rip and load into my MP3 player. Snapped up Lily Allen's new one, It's Not Me, It's You. I do so love Lily Allen. She's got the kind of voice that haunts me.

I also had to pick up the debut album from The Lonely Island, Indredibad. For those too lazy to click the link to Wikipedia, The Lonely Island is a comedy troupe that includes Saturday Night Live cast member Andy Samberg and SNL writers Akiva Shaffer and Jorma Taccone. They are the trio responsible for most of the SNL digital shorts. If it's a rap video, it's these guys, so this album is made up of pretty much all the comedic rap songs they've done for SNL. There's some funny stuff here, so once I heard it was out, I knew I had to snatch it up.

To get all this new media, I wound up spending a lot more money than I intended to. I tend to feel less guilty about spending a lot if I buy at least one thing that I really need. Good thing I needed socks.

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So...Watchmen.

Needless to say, Watchmen has been quite the experience these past few years. Not gonna lie...I'd never heard of Watchmen until I met my best friend in college and he started re-introducing me to comics. Even then, I never went down to the library and checked out a copy. Instead, I turned to the Internet (which I was just discovering at the time) and started reading about Watchmen. Armed with plot synopses and critical analysis, I was able to keep up a conversation with my best friend.

(In an amusing side-note, by best friend's girlfriend at the time was a great follower of the works Matt Stone and Trey Parker. Again, I did a lot of extensive research on their projects so I'd be able to maintain a conversation with her. One night, after an extensive debate about the merits of Cannibal!: The Musical, I shattered her world when I revealed that I had never actually seen the film...just read a lot about it. Finally got around to seeing it last year...it was pretty good.)

Anyway, as this decade went on, I still never got around to reading Watchmen, but still I read just about every article and synopsis and guide that could I find. That's right, rather than immerse myself in the book itself, I immersed myself in the Coles notes. When the release date of the film was announced, that became my ticking clock to finally read the book.

Signed it out of the library a month ago. Finished reading it three days ago.

Needless to say, it was an interesting reading experience, too. I'd read a few chapters, then go online and watch the film's trailer again, or some of the viral videos that were released to promote the film, and everything started falling into context. "Oh, that's what that scene is...I still don't understand that. Maybe it'll be explained in the next chapter."

I can honestly say that I've never walked into a film knowing more about it beforehand that I ever have before.

I found the film to be really, really good. It was as faithful as it could possibly be.

However....

I had the same problem with it that I had with that other Alan Moore adaptation, V for Vendetta. In order to get it down to a marketable running length, they had to cut out so many subplots and character moments and universe developing bits of coolness. It's almost like, well, reading a synopses.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a fantastic film, but the book just has the opportunity to flesh things out a little more.

I'm feeling generous today, so I'll go ahead and give it my highest rating of four nibs. A complete review will be coming in the next couple of days.

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Oh, and just a little observation about my favourite fast food place, Wendy's. They've finally started doing something that I've wanted fast food places to do for a long time.

And that is, you can now choose the size of your fries and drink with a combo meal.

A "small combo" comes with small drink and fries, a "medium combo" comes with...well, you get it.

However, I would recommend ordering the small, as I went with the medium, and discovered that what they now call medium was once called large.

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Oh, and one last thing. When watching Watchmen today, I tried something new.

I now have my Twitter account set up so I can tweet using text messaging from my cellphone. I was posting my off-the-cuff comments while I was watching the end credits!

So, follow me on Twitter for the next time I see a movie!

Third and Final Star Trek trailer!

The thrid and final trailer for Star Trek is in theatres this weekend in front of Watchmen.

But it's online now!



Wow. This is looking big and epic...something that a Star Trek movie hasn't looked like in a long time.

This one hasn't given me goosebumps like that last two. This one ramps up the explosions and the action.

But still, I think this is going to be a good one.

Here's where you can watch it in all kinds of high quality versions.

And my online empire grows....

WOO WOO! Everyone on the bandwagon!

I just signed up for Twitter.

Follow me, and I'll follow you

Man, I need to get out of the house more.

The Latest from Kevin Smith is....

Well, me and my fellow Kevin Smith geeks are dumbfounded by the announcement of what Smith's next film is. It's not his horror film Red State, which he was so hellbent on making. No, his next film is....

A Couple of Cops, starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan!

The plot is being described as about a couple of veteran LAPD detectives who set out to track down a stolen, rare, mint condition 1952 baseball card.

Quite a few things make this notable. First up, this is the first film where Smith will be the director only. That's right, Smith didn't write this. It was written by Rob and Marc Cullen, who wrote for the TV shows Las Vegas and Heist. They also wrote and produced the unsold pilot Manchild, which starred...Kevin Smith!

Also, this is Smith's first film for a major studio. It's being made by Warner Brothers. All his other films to date were made by smaller, indie studios.

A release date of January 2010 is already locked in.

This is quite a surprise, but as I am still a massive Kevin Smith fanboy, I'll still be there opening weekend.

The Winter Festival of Speed!

It's been a while since I've had a new YouTube epic to share! Here's my newest one.

Here's the deal. Out in Lac La Biche, they recently had the Winter Festival of Speed. All kinds of motorsports out on the frozen lake. Our sister station in Lac La Biche, Big Dog 103.5 issued a media challenge. All the surrounding radio stations were invited out to race on the ice for charity.

And of course, we here at 850 the Fox picked up the gauntlet that they threw down.

They only wanted one volunteer from the station, and my colleague/news guy Chris Byrne raised his hand first.

Which left me free to make a movie about it!

So, here we go, with the Winter Festival of Speed Media Challenge

Latest Targ's Up!

Another week, another episode of U62: The Targ!

This week, it's Episode 2.23: Gilgamesh. We're talking remakes, DVD discount bins, my history of blogging, and Conan O'Brien.

All in all, a fairly by-the-numbers affair. I'll try to have something more exciting next week. Captain Excitement, that's me!

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