Ad Astra

If you're going to look for me at Ad Astra, and I know you will, I have a short schedule this year. Two panels on Sunday, Dueling Openings 12:00 - 1:00, and Parodies 1:00 - 2:00. I will also be at Julie Czerneda's pizza party Saturday night.

Short movie review. Batman: The Dark Knight. Heartwarming drama for the entire family. A real tear-jerker. And oh, yeah, lots and lots of laughs. Let's put a smile on that face.

Short TV Review. Dollhouse. I am not a Joss Whedon fanatic. I liked Buffy, thought Serenity was okay, and only saw ten minutes of Firefly without wanting to see more. Whedon is a master of dialogue, but snappy lines isn't always enough. Especially if you're doing Sci-Fi. You need story, you need the effects and the ability to use them. IMHO that is where Serenity fails. I mean, strapping dead people to the hull of your space ship is a nice and gruesome effect, but somehow I just don't think the corpses would remain in place after launch.

Still, I gave Dollhouse a shot and I'm beginning to wonder about Joss Whedon. I appreciate a strong kick-ass female character, BUT--

Buffy, a pretty girl who gets beat up on a nightly basis.

Serenity. River is a pretty girl who is hunted for her special abilities.

Dollhouse. Echo is a pretty girl put into dangerous situations and is physically abused by violent men before she slaps them into Sillyville.

Is there a recurring theme here?

Makes me wonder what he wanted to do with the Wonder Woman movie before he got yanked of for, ahem, creative differences.

Well, she does have that lasso of hers.

Mike