Flight Of The Phoenix

I heard rumblings this was a remake... as are sooooo many Hollywood productions of late, but as I have neither seen, or apparently heard of, the original, that is a moot point for yours truly...

I liked it. A bit hokey at times... the various characters seemed like tamed-down versions of those in Con-Air(which makes sense, since those guys were supposed to be whacked out crims while these guys are just whacked out riggers)... but the cast worked very well together... some recognizable faces, some not... and I was blown away by the fact that the albino-lookin' dude was Giovanni Ribisi!! Damn, that dude is awesome!!!

Anyways, solid plot -- I didn't see the twist coming til it was almost there... and the suspense leading up to the twist was good -- some of the SFX were amazing... Quaid is in fucking good shape for a dude of his years... chica from LOTR is HOTT... dude from 'House' was very different than his character there... I've heard this guy is an awesome, if somewhat unknown on this side of the ocean, talent... and thus far I have yet to be proven wrong...

If I were to bring forth one complaint, it would be the "bad guys"... completely unnecessary... with the exception of that dude flying back in slo-mo after being shot, they brought absolutely no redeeming qualities to the movie...

If your looking for an easily entertaining way to spend 2 hours, give or take, I recommend this... not gonna win any "awards", but who really gives a fuck, eh!

TV, Part 9

24 (Fox) -- I <3 Chloe. I also hate her, as she is the most annoying personality EVAR, but that is why I love her. Edgar needed to be treated as he was... will he hold a grudge? Probably not gonna be a plot-point of contention, so whatevs. Is Dina(sp?) dead??? Odds favour YES. But this is 24...

Boston Legal (ABC) -- last new ep before the hiatus for "Grey's Anatomy" (I won't be watching...). The new black lawyer chick came out of nowhere to a role with more airtime than most of the regular cast... wtf? Meh, she's hot and good, so it's ok, I guess. It's still the Spader/Shatner show anyways, the rest is just window dressing (and quite good window dressing at that). Glad the dude fought it... a lot of 'The Practice' in this ep... good version, so thumbs up :-)

Medium (NBC) -- meh. This one didn't do it for me. Still loving the show, but they need to get back to whatever it was in early eps that really had me... bring back the brother, he was hilarious! Less focus on the myraid complexities of her 'talents' and more on good stories/cases/drama would be my preference... listen up TV Gods!!

That 70's Show (Fox) -- been a while... missed some eps... but you can do that with this show and not really loose your place -- unlike say 24 or LOST. Loved the redhead/blonde in-joking between Eric and Donna... I'm very curious how they're gonna move forward plot-wise next season... not that this show needs to be overly plot-focused... Bring back Eric's hot sister!!! (the original role portrayer, please).

TAR (CBS) -- buh-bye and good ridence(sp?) you misserable little fucknut. Gawd, his whiny/bitchy ways were so unwelcome by yours truly. The darlings of reality TV continue to shine... the previews for next week look sooooooo good (but that could just be talented editing).

Blind Justice (ABC) -- here's the ep I thought was gonna be on the previous week with the dead cop/dirty cop angle. Anybody else watching? (It came 3rd of 3 in it's timeslot against SVU(to be expected) and Judging Amy(wtf?)). Swap nights with the new "Eyes" drama... because I'm not sure I want to watch "Eyes", but I'd gladly sit through 3 hours of ABC Wednesday's if it was LOST/Alias/Blind Justice!!!!! Should've been the original set-up, but they feared the L&O/CSI 1-2 knockout (and with good reason, I guess...) -- fucking Gary Sinese. Get off my TV!!

Survivor (CBS) -- Well, my entertaining red-neck is gone. Had to happen. Why can't those fuckers pull off a win. Is the fireman that dominant? Is the hot blonde going topless to distract Bobby John and his boys... and maybe the chica too?!? If so, Survivor needs to move over to HBO (and I need to get HBO!).

Alias (ABC) -- another "Syd's Sister" ep. Meh. She's hot, but she's a clone. The Vaughn story is all that really kept me interested. And the smugness that is just about every character. They do think they are that damn good, don't they! Gotta love teh Abrams.

Apprentice (NBC) -- hottie gets the boot. Because she tried using her feminine wiles one too many times and Carolyn busted her chops for it. George and C must've really lobbied for the team leader to stick around, because I think Trump wanted to give her the boot (he know's she can't beat the other 'older' lady left, so he figures why bother keeping her around when you could keep young/brash/Trump-like and/or young/hot/Trump-wife-like). Black buddy (how bad is it I don't know the names yet :lol:) really stepped up to the plate and hit a home run this week... but I just don't see him having the necessary leadership skills, as presented this week. You can't always do it by yourself. Go read his bio on NBC -- IMPRESSIVE SHITE!!!

The Office (NBC) -- meh. Any other comedy did this well at making me laugh, I'd be singing it's praises. But I've seen this before. And it was funnier the first time around. Can't wait til they burn off the Brit-Com retreads and get to some original scripts... Yes, I'll be watching.

Numb3rs (CBS) -- finally saw the trains ep. AWESOME. Got one on tape somewhere still... will go looking for it later today I think. This show rocks (I considered going the hard-core math route at one time, so I can relate to a lot of the behind the scenes stuff here...)

Joey (NBC) -- who is the best new character? I nominate the landlord/neighbour... hott, cute, funny... and a total unknown(to me) before this show. Joey's agent is a close second, but she's more a "regular guest star" than a core cast memeber. We all knew the split was gonna happen, it was just a matter of when. Look for her and Joey to hook up(either one-shot 'innocent' or full-on regular) by the end of season 2... they're gonna try and pull a Ross/Rachel on us here, I'm betting... just keep it creative, k folks?

Desperate Housewives (ABC) -- It's BACK! Another excellent episode. All the regular pieces of the puzzle played their respective roles to perfection. Loved the hottest housewife stealing the port-o-john... and the neighbourhood slut/skank was spot on in this episode... her character is growing on me(freud?) -- loved Matt(he will always be Matt to me) and the cable/porn moment... in Canada, next week, the episode will be 90 minutes long (something to do with the Juno's airing that night on CTV... meh).


The O.C. (Fox) -- YES! Ryan fights. Marissa is there. The pRon surfaces. Everyone plays there role. This is classic OC (can I even say that yet? -- I think I can). Again, no new ep next week... but they've had quite a run of new eps now(didn't take the long March hiatus like many) -- pre-empted next week for the return of Tru Calling... I can live with that.



Criminal Intent, Cold Case, Las Vegas, West Wing -- maybe next week?

Coming Up: 2 hours of TAR and TC ... Office moves to Tuesdays(between Scrubs and SVU) ... LOST returns!! ... Eyes debuts ... lots o' Basketball on the go ... Baseball just around the corner ... The 902??? ... Wrestlemania! ... whatevs. Party On, Party People!

This Is Funny...

PROVINCIAL TAX COMMISSION
HEALTH SERVICES TAX DIVISION.

1973-74


Dear Sir(s),

The Liberal government of Canada is introducing a new tax. Up until this time you have not had to pay tax on your "pecker" because 80% of the time it is unemployed, 10% of the time it is hard up, and the other 10% of the time it is in the hole.

But times are changing. As of June 1st. This year a new tax will be in effect according to its size and category.

10 to 12 in. ----- luxury tax
8 to 10 in. ----- pole tax
6 to 8 in. ----- privledge tax
4 to 6 in. ----- nuisance tax

Please give your personal cheque for its size and category. Those under 4 in. will recieve a baby bonus award. Under no circumstances cann you ask for an extension. You may subtract $2.00 for each of your dependents who are nuts.

PLEASE SIGN AND RETURN THIS LETTER WITH YOUR PAYMENT.

THANK YOU

sign here ____________________



... I don't know about the rest of you(we tend to have an odd sense of humor 'round these parts), but when this was read to me last night, I laughed my ass off!! Then I read it myself and laughed even harder :-)

Hostage

Saw this movie this afternoon. IT WAS AWESOME!!!

I can't believe it's not doing better than it is... best action movie I've seen in ages... not a slow/boring moment worthy of mention... Willis at the top of his game as far as action flicks are concerned(not better than DieHard, but c'mon, the DieHard trilogy is Willis' at his very, very best)... just WOW!

The two kids taken 'Hostage' (although Jennifer was far from a child....) were quite good in their respective roles -- and Mars brought all new meanings to the word creepy. I couldn't believe this was the same dude who played Spacker Dave in Punisher.

A bit of nepotism with the Rumer role, but I can let that slide when a movie rocks this fucking hard. GO SEE THIS MOVIE, NOW!!

Thursday, Part Deux

Thursday is the new Friday.

Yep, went out and got drunk again. Let the good times roll.

Replaced Bushmill's with Jamieson's, my brother's place with my buddy's place, Sam's with Dooly's/"The Heather", my cel with my coat(and glasses/case inside) and random Stellarton abode X with random Stellarton abode Y... and met a shit-load of new folks(and some old -- hey Jay), again...

And then there is the memory loss. Nothing new, but always a bitch (though sometimes it's probably just as well). One thing I'll say for Jamieson's... NO HANGOVER!!

Had intended on hitting Sam's again, seeing as how it was my bro's b-day, but shite happens... sounds like a good time was had by all, again. Now the question is whether I'll be in any shape come tomorrow to make proper use of a Saturday -- I'm thinking I will be... but no promises ;-)

TV, part 8

has it been a week already? -- wow, time flies when you are doing absolutely nothing ;-)

The O.C. (Fox) -- 2 eps. The in-jokes remain strong. Seth still brings the funny. But I find more and more the 'kids' stories are just filler/shock-and-awe for me, and the lives of the adults (Sandy, Kirsten, Slut-Mom and the Old Dude, amongst numerous guest-stars and others...) are providing more "good tv" this season (last year, it was clearly all about the Fab 4 -- and Oliver?!?) ... anyway, as the in-jokes went in the most recent ep, things are "gettin' back to normal" in Orange County... at least until next week :-)

Medium (NBC) -- it's starting. The episodes are all beginning to run together in my mind. I know it was good, because this show is consistently good, but damn if I can remmember the details... anyone?

24 (Fox) -- I think I know what's going on here. Thursday's drinking (see the tres emo post below this one :ugh: ... what was I thinking! :lol: ) has fried my memory of TV this week... cause when the details of 24 are not flooding back, that is a bad sign!!! Oh yes, the "shoot out at the OK corral" episode... decent... I hope buddy lives... I'm awaiting the next big twist (do they dare take out the president?!?)

CSI (CBS) -- another run-of-the-mill episode for CSI ... which means it was good, but not great. Because they no longer have to try. America is brain-washed. Nick v. the over-zealous cop was a nice bonus... I'm liking Nick a lot more this season... and like Willows a lot less (but she's still HOTT).

TAR (CBS) -- I admit, I'd had a few drinks into me when watching this ep... but the best parts, again, revolved around our Survivor couple, Rob & Amber. The fact that he convinced other teams to bow out of a challenge simply because he couldn't(or choose not to) complete it, was HILARIOUS!! Damn, that one dude scarfed it away pretty damn fast... Rob, you are becoming soft -- but your Survivor scheming skills are working for ya... I <3 Boston Rawb! (I also <3 Amber... for her body).

Blind Justice (ABC) -- WATCH THIS SHOW! It is very good. Formulaic, somewhat, but still great TV. Is it better than Medium? ... not sure yet, but they are both better than Numb3rs, which is also very good. The new PD's are bringing much more to the table than the run-of-the-mill clones of seasons past...

Survivor (CBS) -- old buddy probably could've done more to save himself, but it's not like I was attached to him or anything(there have been way better 'old guy' cast-member over the years)... kinda sucked that tattoo-chick got the boot... they should've booted the red-neck(even though he does provide a lot of the entertainment with his back-woods language and characteristics)... but it was a good twist. And Survivor needs good twists to keep the show interesting. The only chick left on the team that is getting decimated is the strongest Survivor chick EVAR. I hope she finds a way to make it far after the eventual merge...

Alias (ABC) -- with no LOST on Wednesday's over the last few weeks (Mar 30 = return date), Alias is my Wednesday night JJ 0.5 fix... (Survivor is on Wednesday's for a few weeks, so the night isn't totally vacant of great TV) -- good character ep for Jack, but it's not exactly anything we didn't know he was capable of... and the mystery of Vaughn's dad continues... what did Syd and the gang do this week?? Huh, I'm betting it had them wind up in a European nightclub at some point or other (a stolen joke, I know).

Apprentice (NBC) -- bastards decide to drag things out just a bit further with a "re-cap" show... Surivor used to do this shite... but they smartened up(watch that come back to bight me in the ass) -- sure, they're were a few little nuggets worth seeing(but if I ever see that douche's audition tape again, I'm ending it... some things are not worth living for... :ugh:), but overall it was a way for NBC to extend their show through the end o' sweeps... meh.

King Of Queens (CBS) -- "Fish Don't Fry In The Kitchen" ... damn, this was some funny stuff. I love this show. Carrie's storyline was hokey, but still worked. She's better in storylines that interact with Doug... the Albanian joke ruled. Deacon in various stereo-typical black roles ruled. KOQ rules!!!

Simpsons (Fox) -- 30 minutes of funny (less commercials). Still the standard by which all other current(and future) prime-time animated programs are measured by. Bart's picture in the envelope was great. Homer in the bedroom window was perfect. Marge slamming the microwave door was spot-on! I love this show!


That's it... 11 shows (1 less than last week, but there were 2 eps of OC) ... 30 minutes less of overall TV... baby-steps... I've dropped the new L&O without watching an ep... and the following shows(in order) are "on the cusp" : Criminal Intent, Cold Case, Numb3rs, Las Vegas, West Wing, That 70's Show -- but one at a time, folks... so the further down the list shows are probably quite safe at this time... only thing that's keeping me on CI right now is the likely return of Detective Logan(from the original L&O) as a cast-regular next season... otherwise, it'd already be shelved.

New Shows premiering this week include: Life On A Stick (Fox, Wednesday's: I might watch... and see...), The Office (NBC, Thursday's: Can't Wait!), Grey's Anatomy (ABC, Sunday's: not my thing, even though there are hott chicas...) , The Bachelor (ABC, Monday's: :ugh: -- though it is a quasi-celeb I somewhat recognize... nah, screw that shite)

Rico Out. (why I use that, when I no longer watch AI, or anything Seacrest related, is a mystery...)

Thursday

Fun.

Life is about fun(ok, it's about a lot of other things too... but for me, there are few that rank above fun). Thursday(and early Friday) was fun. Very fun.

Often I think people spend way too much time stressing out over shit, pissing/moaning about little things and generally not enjoying life as much as they should. And I am often just as guilty as the rest of y'all in this regards. That is where 'fun' comes in. You can never have enough fun... sure, you can't sacrifice everything in the name of fun, but I think we as a society tend to swing too far in the other direction, more often than not.

So what was so fun about Thursday. Everything. Well, maybe not everything, but a lot of things. Starting with the date. March 17th. "St. Paddy's" Day! The bestest holiday EVAR ;-)

Just the concept of a holiday that is primarily about getting shit-faced AND having fun... brilliant. So I decided, as I am often prone to do, to participate fully. This meant I had to resolve the 5 W's, in some manner: Who to have fun with, What to drink while having fun, Where to have said fun, When to start(that was the easiest one) and ... ok, I only needed to answre 4 W's I guess ;-)

When was ASAP.

Where was:
A) Home,
B) Elsewhere

Home is fine for getting started. But home, for me, is often not enough(you'll understand why if you know my home situation... respect is required... which limits the sort of 'fun' I was going for ;-)) Don't get me wrong, I love "home" -- but it's not exactly "my" home, if you catch my drift... anyways, moving on...

Elsewhere, in this case, wound up being my brother's new place. And later on, a local bar(surprise, surprise) ... and(eventually) back to my brother's new place... and it was a fucking blast!!!

What to drink? Seeing as how it is an Irish holiday, Irish Whiskey seemed appropriate. Bushmill's "Black Bush"(insert lewd joke here) was the poison du jour. With some cheap 6% Molson Dry Ice for good measure(I don't think I'll be going back to those any time soon... my palette is maturing... or something). And I got drunk. But not an overly bad drunk(which has happened on occasion in the past... but less and less as i've "matured" -- yeah right, like i've matured much). I'm sure I had some other drinks throughout the evenings festivities, but damned if I can recall 'em all :-P (I'm a wee bit notorious for the "I don't remember" mindset, the day after... meh).

So that's 3 of the 4 W's(in this case) -- leaving the grand-daddy of 'em all:

Who to have 'fun' with?

Seeing as how it was my brother's place, that answer is kind of obvious, at first glance. But he had other plans going on that night as well, so relying on him to provide entertainment(as I suck at bringing the entertainment... but that's a story for another time) was no guarantee... but, fortunately, a bit of a crew were on hand(my brother's "boys"), and some new folks(to me anyway) were introduced into the fray(hello, ladies :high five:), and others joined into the mix as the night progressed(I probably don't remember half the folks who were at the bar, but remembering isn't necessarily always the priority)... and(I believe) a good time was had by all! And that is what it is all about, as "good time" and "fun" are synonomous(sp?), right?

Anyways, it's probably a tad ridiculous for me to be going on(and on, and on) about this, but I really did have a LOT of fun(Did you?). So much so that I wanted to go out and do it all over again the next night, and the next night, and so on... BUT...

... this old man's(sad, i know) system couldn't handle it... slept more than was awake since the evenings festivities came to an end in the wee hours of Friday morning... I remember a time when the party started Wednesday and went through the weekend... and sometimes longer... and I was there for all of it... now, one night usually requires one or more of recovery... and here i am, a few days later and ready to roll again... but it's Sunday, and shit happens... but I soooo look forward to the next time, and the time after that...

Because, DAMN! That was FUN!


(getting the cel back in one piece, no worse for wear, was a definite bonus too... that would've dampered things a wee bit... but all's well...)

upcoming movies...

Lots of good one's comin' down the pipe -- but I need's a job so I can afford's to go ;-)

Some will be left for rentals(purchases?), I'm sure... but here are some cool trailers(and probably some not so cool... meh):

(Note: you will have to cut/paste the url into your browser... I'm trying to cut back on my hotlinking... k?


www.apple.com/trailers/wb/house_of_wax/
(Elisha is teh Canuck HOTTNESS!)

www.apple.com/trailers/fox_searchlight/roll_bounce/
(this made me grin... I just wish it wasn't staring BowWow :ugh:)

www.apple.com/trailers/fox/fever_pitch/
(perfect mix of cheesy/hokey... date flick?)

www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/zathura/
(thank god they said 'from the author of jumanji' a the end of this, because all i could think while watching it was 'i've already seen jumanji' ... lol -- good to bring a neice/nephew/little cousin to, if you have someone like that in your life, i guess...)

www.apple.com/trailers/paramount/waroftheworlds/
(I am rick's inner-geek... ah, who am I kidding, I'm just a plain ol' geek-o-saurus -- see, that is geeky just saying that... silly rick)

www.apple.com/trailers/dreamworks/red_eye/
(this... I'm not sure what to make of this... but I'm very intrigued... and a wee bit scared? ... which is always a welcome thing when it comes to thrillers... so I want to see more...)

www.apple.com/trailers/dreamworks/the_island/
(I'd watch for the cast alone... but on top of that, this looks FUCKING AWESOME!! ... this folks, this is movie making... wow)

www.apple.com/trailers/mgm/the_pink_panther/
(this is gonna be some funny shite -- yeah, it's a remake... and I should see the original... but I'll take a good remake over most sequels any day...)

www.apple.com/trailers/fox/fantastic_four/
(geek-boys, unite -- if you can't handle my geek-dom, you can kiss my rosy-red a$$ -- or as a buddy of mine is fond of saying -- take a long lingering lick of the end of my... well, you know ;-) -- vulgar? yes -- live with it... the FF rock)

www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/sin_city/
(cool)

http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony/layer_cake.html
(it is just business... but i'd rather watch it than live it... i think...)

www.apple.com/trailers/lions_gate/house_of_d/
(I know Williams can come off as a douche at times, but he can act! -- been a while since I've seen Duchovny... and his wife... this looks good -- "I'm not retarded anymore!")

www.apple.com/trailers/mgm/into_the_blue/
(Alba is everywhere!! -- 2005, the year of the alba)

www.apple.com/trailers/universal/kicking_and_screaming-tlr2.html
(Farrell > ALL! ... although this is more Elf than Anchorman... meh)

www.apple.com/trailers/mgm/the_amityville_horror/
(I <3 Ryan Reynolds... and no, I'm not gay... not that there is anything wrong with that ;-))

www.apple.com/trailers/fineline/theyearoftheyao/
(OMFG! ... Shaq movie flop flashbacks... although 'documentary' is better than 'acting' for these dudes, at least... :sigh:)

www.apple.com/trailers/independent/dallas_362-red.html
("Mary, there is a needle in my head", "What the hell are you doing; you are an adult" ... I could watch movies like this 24/7 til the end of fuckin' time)

www.apple.com/trailers/lions_gate/crash/
(what a cast... but couldn't they come up with a better title?)

www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/stealth/
(you can try in 2005, i guess, but you cannot top "Top Gun", ever -- don't kid yourself... I get a bad(read: sucks) vibe from this trailer... meh)

www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/the_cave/
(similar to stealth... although you pick the movie(s) it is playing on... it might surprise me, but I'll be going in with low expectations... oh, and worst tag EVAR.)

www.apple.com/trailers/touchstone/hitchhikersguidetothegalaxy/
(thought I'd end on a positive... again, yes! I AM A GEEK who hides amongst non-geeks and other geeks alike... and proud of it ;-) -- if you cannot appreciate that, and this, and the rest... well, that's just a shame... :-( )

no catchy title here...

Hey. Bored? Me too!

TJNR is down (again), and I've surfed everywhere I can be bothered surfing (I need to learn how to really surf!) -- I don't feel like reading anything(well, maybe the newspaper) or watching TV(except to surf -- wow! ... you can utilize surf anywhere!!) -- too lazy to actually go anywhere or do anything out of the norm... so other than eating and/or drinking(did that last night...), posting here is all I gots (insert cry-baby emoticon here).

Seen a couple movies of late that we're hyped a lot... which isn't usually a good thing. I <3 Huckabee's and Garden State. Both were entertaining, at times, but neither was the masterpiece others had made it out to be. I found myself wishing Garden State would hurry up and end once I got bored of the "make fun o' folks from Jersey" concept (you could easily replace 'Jersey' with 'Pictou', but I digress). Lots of good actors, and I get the message they're trying to send, but a tad boring at times... meh. I preferred the Huckabee's movie just because I was more intrigued by the concept/mystery of it. Another great ensemble (Hoffman rocked), but a tad ridiculous at times and I'm not the biggest fan of being left with the 'decide for yourself' ending style... another meh. They didn't suck... they just didn't rock.

Another VERY hyped movie I hope to see soon is 'The Incredibles'. And it will inevitably not live up to the hype(though I'm always open to pleasant surprises). My comic book bias will likely play a role here. But I still wanna see it(I am easily influenced by the media, even though I rant about their influence -- I can also laugh at myself from time to time, so it's all good). Cartoon movies are becoming more and more the norm of late, mostly due to the huge box-office success of many of them. They hit the perfect audience for selling tickets... kids! Kid's cannot go alone, so each kid is gonna bring at least 1 additional ticket buyer with them. I don't see many of 'em in theatres myself, rather waiting for the DVD release. I did see Shrek 2 in the theater, but it is a special case. Maybe I should stop watching anything but cartoons/animation? Between Teletoon, YTV and a few other networks, I could feasibly spend my entire day watching drawings brought to life... I kind of feel like going and watching South Park right now. I <3 Cartman. "Screw You Guys. I'm Going Home." -- EVERYTHING HE SAYS IS FUNNY!!

If you haven't read Colin Cook's new magazine yet -- Go READ it NOW!!! It is very funny... if you don't know what I'm talking about... ask!

My feet are, again, cold.

It would really, REALLY suck to be blind. Watch Blind Justice. It's good. But damn, that would suck.

Does anybody actually still watch AI? I didn't think so.

I fully expect to have a job lined up within the month. And if I don't, I'm leaning very heavily towards gettin' the hell out o' dodge, once again. So y'all better come through for me, places that I think I'd like to work for...

Politics are funny. But they shouldn't be. And that is sad. Using 'But' and 'And' to begin sentences is not considered 'good' english. Neither is putting 2 and's next to each other... or over-using quotes... or over-using any punctuation... or starting with 'neither' or using digits or improper usage of capitalization(or lack there-of)... but this is the internets, and therefore(and hencewith?) all that don't matter none! ;-) (I dare someone to put emoticons in an english-lit essay in school).

Heard any funny jokes lately? I have, but I keep them to myself for the most part since my delivery is so sad as to destroy the humor in the joke... even for myself!

Any wrasslin' fans out there?? -- WrestleMania, the grand-daddy of WWE events is just around the corner... I barely watch wrestling anymore, but I'd like to see this... if you are gonna see anything, this is what you'd see. RAW is going back to USA I've heard... I'm sure it'll still be on TSN up here though...

Does anybody else use notes/lists/post-its/calendars/etc to make sure they don't forget stuff... cause, I swear, without that stuff, I'd be sooooo fucked! ... or would I??

As I re-read each line I type, I think to myself "gawd, that sounds ridiculous"... then I continue typing.

...


( 0 ) ( 0 )


... here's looking at ya! (or here's something I like to look at.. take yer pick ;-))

Rico OUT.

TV, part 7

even fewer this week than last (only 12 shows!)

24(Fox) -- keeps on rockin'! Who would've thought Jack and Paul Raines would be teaming up so well after just an hour or so ago Jack was torturing poor Paulie?!? ... that's the world of 24 for ya! Michelle is back, although not nearly in as dramatic fashion as Tony... who will be next? Nice seeing the ol' DA from 'The Practice' pop up here... if these are the lengths corporations will go to to protect themselves, that's a scary thought (I see Enron as the target of the joke on this one...) -- with LOST on a 6 week hiatus, 24 moves up into the #1 slot.

CSI(CBS) -- unless I've just finished watching it moments ago, all PD's seem to overlap with one another... I'm sure it was good, as CSI is one of the best, but I don't remember much. Some character development(romantically?) between Willows and Warick I think... oh yes, it was the Chubby Chasers ep... some good double-entendre's... predictable though... not the best CSI, but still better than the best EVAR of CSI:Miami or CSI:NY.

TAR(CBS) -- lovin' it. Best reality TV... only things that come close are Survivor and Apprentice(see below for more on these 2). Rob & Amber prove they're here to win... the apparently not so bright team of War Vet and Ex-Beauty Pageant contestant manage to do quite well this week... one of only 2 all chica teams bites the bullet -- what is with the high levels of empathy between the loosing team and the team that just eliminated them this season? Two weeks running, the tears continue to flow...

Alias(ABC) -- now this, this is classic Alias. Sneaking around Sloane's house while on false pretenses, busting in on a situation that is not all it seems, plotting by lead characters behind other characters backs(but we're in on it, to an extent) and family-based mysteries(Vaughn) -- keep it up JJ!

Blind Justice(ABC) -- series premiere. I really liked it. They're gonna have to work hard not to have the 'stunt' over-ride the show, but I think they're up to it. A decent cast, an awesome lead, and uber-hottie Rena Sofer as the somewhat jaded wife make this a show I'll be watching... unless it goes way south.

Survivor(CBS) -- Fireman dude is this season's Rupert -- dominating the challenges!! I like the strong chicks on the loosing team... poor Bobby John is feeling a bit inadequate of late... as are all the loosing boys... I hope they start winning soon or the entire team will have absolutely no chance...

Apprentice(NBC) -- cool episode. Saw a lot of potential in certain characters that I didn't see before; and more potential in some of my favs. Then there was John. We all knew he wasn't gonna win, but I thought he'd last a bit longer than this. The chain was GAYY. He deserved to be booted just for that. Chew-Boy made the right call bringing his buddy to the room... otherwise it would've been his ass. Erin(the brunette lawyer) is HOTT!

SVU(NBC) -- Martin Short guest-stars. And he is one evil mother-fucker. Go watch it. Creepy as fuck. Best L&O show, and best season of SVU EVAR! Poor, poor Stabler...

This Is Wonderland(CBC) -- ADD lawyer sure loves his hookers... Alice is still HOTT. They need to tone the mental health cases down a bit... I'm over-dosin' on 'em. The unstable wife who forgot she was married now wants to live in polygamy with her old hubbie and new hubbie -- HILARIOUS!! The ADD kid(what' with this show and ADD) who's Mom is a pot-head(and also digs the 'shrooms) and Dad is a gambling addict made me laugh-out-loud... especially when mentally unstable lawyer started laughing along with him...

Without A Trace(CBS) -- good ep. Poppy's on-screen boyfriends turn to take the limelight, and of course he's up to it(this guy has headlined his share of good programs in the past... I always thought he was under-utilized here). Great guest-starring appearance by the buddy who's trying to relive his mistakes with his dead son through another boy(this dude can be seen everywhere it seems). Just another all around great episode. And the secret is out... Jack knows!

Simpsons(Fox) -- another Patty/Selma ep? Wasn't the gay ep just the other week?? Anyway, this time one of 'em(the non-gay, I think) hits menopause... and decides to adopt -- The Simpson's Are Going To Japan! ... decent episode, but so are those from Season 4.

Boston Legal(ABC) -- cyrogenics. Denny doesn't get it. Denny is a red-neck in a business suit. Denny is GOD. Good guest-star appearance by Chi McBride, reprising his 'principal' role from Boston Public. A number of shots at Fox and Fox News... Joe Billionaire... Who's Your Pappa... funny shite.

And, that's it. I got an episode of The O.C. I gotta get caught up on(you know, the one with the SW3 trailer during the commercials), and a bunch of PD stuff on tape... but more and more of my time is being swayed away from the idiot box and towards the internets... which is no better, but also no worse, I guess... meh.

DC, JAN-05

I covered off Marvel's January solicits last week, so here's the other big-bad-guy...

DC

A weak month for the distinguished competition, with 3 core titles not seeing their ways to the shelves made for easy pickings by the big dog on campus, Marvel. Let's see how they did anyways... (I will only cover that stuff I read -- although very brief mention of the rest might get tossed in...)

Teen Titans #20 -- DC's top performer, coming in at #14 on the charts... a bit of an upsurge in sales to around the 65,000 mark, thanks to an I-C tie-in apparently, and recent re-sales have proven strong... this title is showing some staying power.

JLA #110 -- right behind Titans at #15... 64,000+ issues sold... a new writer has helped a bit... a solid title all around.

JLA: Classified #3 -- still dropping, but this title will be switching creative teams very frequently(with a new one coming on next issue), so I would expect some up and downs... Morrison's run wasn't as strong as expected, I'd wager.

Batman #636 -- under 60,000 units. A year ago this was clocking in at around 90,000. Though Jim Lee likely had something to do with that. A title in need of some help... soon!

Flash #217~218 -- first an up-swing of about 6,000 issues(although with re-sales, it about comes even...), then a settling back to it's normal levels... slightly over 40,000 (a big drop from the previous DC title, Batman, at close to 60,000). This title seems to be catching on with folks though... I see good things if they keep up the quality of late...

JSA #69 -- steady. I-C helped some... a good writer should keep it solid. I'm a pretty big fan of this title -- and of all the team titles...

Legion Of Super-Heroes #2 -- typical issue 2 drop-off... (or so they say). Still leaps and bounds ahead of the previous incarnation, in no small part due to the writer -- Waid is a legend.

Detective Comics #802 -- quickly dropping, though still 5,000 issues above it's previous standard... not sure if the year long "pre" story concept their going with will actually be good for sales... but this title is one of two "will always see print" books, so they can afford to play with it as they please...

Outsiders #19 -- drops below 40,000 for the first time. I'm a fan, but it needs to do something to ensure it doesn't go too low, too fast...

Adventures Of Superman #636 -- another 5,000 issue bump thanks to I-C. Before this, a continual spiral had been in place... will it return to that next month, or does this bring the turning of the corner, so to speak?

Nightwing #101~102 -- not reading this yet. Next on my list.

Action Comics #823 -- the other 'safe' title. Sales have been spiraling(Austen is not a boon for comics sales... I figure he gets jobs because he is consistent in getting the job done... it's just not done well...)

Next is a whole bunch of stuff I'm not reading... then we get:

Wonder Woman #212 -- the third in DC's holy-trinity(supposedly) gets very little respect in terms of sales. 25,000 issues is close to cancellation levels for most titles... it has leveled out at least, but this title needs to see a boost, purely out of respect to DC's premiere super-female...

Superman: Strength #1 -- 25,000 issues... not great, but it is prestige format ($5.95 American), so acceptable. I haven't read it yet... it's "on my list". That was DC's top monthly premiere of the month, FYI.

So, there you have it. DC out-publishes Marvel, but does not out-perform (although they're quite competitive, and often take the lead in the top 10 when all guns are firing). Unlike at Marvel, I don't read 90%+ of what DC puts out... I avoid the Vertigo, Wildstorm and Kids labels... and only pick up around half(or less) of the rest...

One area where DC puts Marvel to shame is re-orders. Green Lantern: Rebirth is cleaning up here, as are Legion Of Super-Heroes, Superman/Batman, Teen Titans, Space Ghost(I'm gonna back-issue this some day), Batman, JLA: Classified, Superman, Adam Strange(ditto for this), Identity Crisis and many, many more...

Big winners for DC are: Legion Of Super-Heroes(Waid rules!), Flash, Nightwing(that's why it's next on my list...), Adventures of Superman(I-C) and Robin(also on my list).

Big losers(of note): Plastic Man(should be cancelled), JLE(ditto, but I think it's a mini), Hawkman(pity...), Firestorm(just can't hack it in today's market I guess), Batman and Wonder Woman

So, what would I do at DC. Not much, actually. They've got some exciting projects coming up and their big titles are doing well. Ship Jim Lee over to Wonder Woman after his run on Supes. Try and maintain consistency on the top sellers (currently that's GL:Rebirth, Superman/Batman and Superman). Keep up the good work on the various team titles. The Bat-verse could maybe use some stream-lining. Maybe a bit more inter-connectivity between some solo and team titles (as some of the solo titles need the sales boost). Overall though, DC seems to be a bit more on the ball, going forward, than Marvel. So Marvel had best look out.

The only other title I'll consider worth mentioning, which is outside the Marvel/DC spectrum, is Conan, as published by DarkHorse. I don't read this, but maybe I should... or maybe I'll wait for the TPB. I'm anti-Image til the day I die... and most of the licensing and/or self-published stuff out there ain't for me...

So there you have it. Thoughts?

My brother is moving out...

Now maybe I don't have to go ;-)

Nah, I gots to get out too... just gotta have all my ducks in a row first...

And now I've got one more place to visit when I wanna get trashed... which is always nice to know... until I wear out my welcome, that is (I give it 2 visits...)

All 7 will be here next weekend... and in a month or so, for the summer... well, except the one who just got a place... but he's working here so he'll be around all the time...

7 people 18+ under one roof = RIDICULOUS!!

Where should I go next??

I'm thinking Argentina... put I need a hoochie-mama before that's gonna happen!

lost hope...

A Star Wars III parody for y'all... it has it's moments... but littered with a lot o' cheese around them moments... at least jar jar get's whacked!

(For those of you who ain't figuring it out, the link is the title...)

cease and decist...

Got my first cease & decist (or however you spell/say that), sort of, this morning. Somebody named "Bubba" asked me to remove 2 pics from here... I have no idea who "Bubba" is, or what, for that matter (male/female, other?, marsupial??...) "Bubba" is... meh.

So, I took 'em down. Why? Because he/she/it asked. Not like I was attached to 'em or anything. Although I think I'll require a reason next time... just to satiate my curiousity... otherwise random asshats will start following suit... and the internets are just loaded with random asshats(yeah, I mean you.)

I'm bored.

Bye.

random pic, part 104

This babe is smokin'!!! For those unawares, this is Molly Sims... supermodel/actress... currently seen on "Las Vegas" as Big Ed Deline's daughter... and dating Danny from "Without A Trace" ... "Las Vegas" might just be the greatest hour of entertainment I partake of on a weekly basis... Is this how everyone dresses out at the cottage for the long weekend??

random pic, part 103

Another chica from TJNR -- and her 'boys'. They look like a fun crowd... but a wee bit intimidating I'd bet too!

random pic, part 102

True Story :-0

random pic, part 101

All I remember from this movie is that Alec Baldwin can scare the ever-loving shit out of me...

random pic, part 100

Are we at 100 already? Wow, how time flies... because of margin issues(tech, even if it is relatively low, talk time), I've removed the 's' from 'pics' in the titles for the 'random pics'(now 'random pic') -- so what do we have for pic #100 you ask? Some of my newest friends... of the cam-whore variety... does everyone get that dolled up like this to surf the 'net?? Not that I'm complaining mind you... the 'view' is quite nice from this side of the computer ;-)

random pics, part 99

She looks so nice, I posted it twice!! (Canadian chicks rule! And rock!!)

random pics, part 98

Excuse me Scarlett... will you marry me??

random pics, part 97

Any idea who this is? Anyone?? Here is a hint: little girl from a big-budget Kevin Costner "flip"flop... anyways... she's purdy.

random pics, part 96

You know when people say "aww, isn't that cute" and you think to yourself "not really, but whatever" ... well, this is cute... so stop over-using 'cute' people... your degrading the impact it has when it's truly appropriate!

random pics, part 95

OH MY DEAR LORD!!

I so enjoy nudity that isn't really nudity... say YES to crack!!! :-P

random pics, part 94

That's quite the pair of ..... socks Shania's got going on there ;-)

random pics, part 93

Pretty soon recording producers will be present in the delivery room to hand out recording contracts...

random pics, part 92

See! Proof positive that snakes are evil incarnate :-)

random pics, part 91

funny, I don't remember this part when I saw this as a child...

random pics, part 90

I just love the uxn logo's... this one is an homage to the 10 year anniversary of AoA

random pics, part 89

Careful there X-tina... your about to pull a 'Reid'...

random pics, part 88

how cute is she... MINE! j/k ... ;-)

random pics, part 87

How the mighty have fallen...

random pics, part 86

HOTT!

random pics, part 85

Yet another Canadian goddess... and she looks cold... I suppose I could offer to warm her up ;-)

random pics, part 84

This is just too fucking cool...

random pics, part 83

Poster for the last(?) all-new Star Wars movie...

random pics, part 82

The jacket cover art for the new HP ... in stores this summer...

random pics, part 81

Look at all the purdy super-heroes... :-)

random pics, part 80

This had better damn well live up to the hype...

random pics, part 79

New Avengers rocks so hard!!

random pics, part 78

Cover of the much delayed Wha... Huh! re-visit by Marvel... c'mon BMB -- get this on the stands already :argh:

random pics, part 77

... but then pics like this make me change my mind again!

random pics, part 76

A Canuck! Often I think the parents are hotter than the sexed-up kids on The OC... this is one of those times ;-)

random thoughts, part 7

Gonna be a short one this time... too many things on the go (nothing vitally important, mind you, but I'm just not willing to commit the time here rather than elsewhere at the moment)

Random Thoughts

- I need to get out more. And get drunk more. Because getting out and getting drunk are things I really enjoy!
- Sweeps are over. Thank God. Sometimes it feels like I'll never keep up to all the shows I watch. Then March comes.
- Am I a little fru-fru for being a GH fan. Probably. Live with it.
- 359 days til I'm 30. Am I counting? No.
- 1 week til my parents 30th annivesary(and my grand-mother's 79th birthday). What to do, what to do???
- Did I mention I need to get out more? And get drunk more?? Well, if I didn't, I do. And if I did -- well, I still do.
- Web Cams rock!!
- Reading comics is just as literarily(is that a word?!? -- if not, copywrite, me, 2005) stimulating as any other medium. Discuss. I can argue ANYTHING.
- March is also 'try out your new shows' month. First up: Trial By Jury and Blind Justice. Both look like they've got potential...
- I'm posting in a lot of places lately... so this place ain't gonna get the treatment it really deserves... bitch 'n' moan about it; you might have enough influence to sway me... or not.
- loosing power sucks. Every FUCKING time.
- politics... should I or shouldn't I??
- exercise... should I or shouldn't I??
- fart... should I or ... ah, who'm I kiddin' -- ahhhh, that's better!

That's it for now. I'm thinking of doing up some more pics(there are just so many) soon... amongst other things... stay tuned.

Rico Out.

for AD fans...

It is a funny show... for whatever reason I don't watch it very often... maybe I'll get it on DVD some day...

http://www.never-nude.com/

TV, part 6

straight to the goods...

Enterprise (UPN, via SPACE) -- for some DUMB reason, ASN didn't show the new ep this week... what a bunch of dumbs. So I had to wait til Sunday to catch it on SPACE. That meant two whole days of avoiding online spoilers, dammit! As expected, it was worth the wait. Section 31 rocks! Klingon foreheads are no longer a mystery... and teh resolution was pretty decent, I might add. Last new Enterprise of sweeps (as was the case with most shows this week). Some rich mofo's have put a sizeable chunk of change into that grassroots organization trying to save Enterprise... something might come of it yet. And I don't think (read: hope) we've seen the last of Section 31 this season... yippee!

Medium (NBC) -- is everyone in her family gonna wind up having a gift? This week, it's eldest daughter's turn. A good episode, but I prefer the kids as amusing background fodder to front-and-center of the action... other than that, more of the excellence I've come to expect from this great new show.

24 (Fox) -- never fails to impress. Black dude from CTU can provide the muscle when necessary... crack! Thankfully the CTU head's daughter storyline was going somewhere... opening the door for Tony to slip back into the easy chair (easy being a horrible choice of words). Nuculear meltdown has been averted... so what next? I, for one (and Mom for another) can't wait to find out. Love 24.

Scrubs (NBC) -- if Ally McBeal was a 'dramedy', does that make this show a coma? It fits with the medical motif at least :-) All I really know is this show is FUNNY. Dr. Cox jumping up and down in the parking lot was comic gold. Heather Graham's return was a nice touch. Turk and Carla are headed for a rougher than usual patch it seems. WHY ARE PEOPLE NOT WATCHING?!? :frustrated:

Smallville (WB, via ASN) -- well, ASN gets this one right at least. Recently returned to the Kent family farm Lois, has her sister arrive on the scene... and she brings trouble with her. What's with all the LL names in Superman lore anyways?? This was an ok episode... I love Lionel Luther... and the twist with Lana at the end was unexpected...

LOST (ABC) -- OH MY FUCKING GOD, THIS SHOW IS SOOOOO FUCKING AWESOME!!! Hurley finally gets his flashback episode, and it is a doozy. Last new ep for 6 weeks... :ugh: Other than that, all I've got to say is this: 4 8 15 16 23 42

King Of Queens (CBS) -- more Doug & Carrie antics... this time it's another scheme by Doug (don't all episodes start with that premise :-)) that he thinks is foolproof -- to get Carrie to stop being such a negative nancy around the house, he bribes construction workers down the road to make cat-calls and suggestive comments to his wife... eventually, as always, it backfires. They know the formula that works and they stick with it. Best comedy on CBS.

Amazing Race (CBS) -- 2 hour premiere. I could go on for ever, and have elsewhere, so rather than repeat myself all-together, I'll keep it brief. Wish the hillbillies had lasted longer. I'm rooting for Rob & Amber to go to the end, but maybe not to win. Great mix of teams this year. Clearly the Iraq War vet is gonna be a fan favourite, as he should be. I hope the team with the dude who kept saying 'suck it up' to his girlfriend is the next to get the boot.

Alias (ABC) -- continuation of the Sark/Julia ep from last week. Lots of action, intrigue and suspense in the typical Alias style. I love this show, but I don't think it's ever gonna fully catch on with the viewing audience (really, what else can they do but put it on post-LOST). Sark and Julia basically switch places from beginning of arc to end in this ep. And Sloane lets Jack know he's not sure he can be trusted anymore... coming from Sloane, that's quite a statement. I love Jack's use of ruthlessness to whatever ends/means necessary. I hope this show survives another season... I think it will.

Survivor (CBS) -- team 'hard-body' looses again. Some of the players are really impressing me this season, from both teams. And of course, others are as pathetic as any season. One of the physically stronger males takes the walk of shame this week... partially due to an injury, possibly due to strategy(I believe). My early pick to win it all is the tall, skinny dude from team 'not-hard-body'. Or the last chick standing in the water challenge. And get the tattoo chick some clothes... nipples, nipples everywhere! Nice to see the respect from Bobby Joe (or whatever his name is) for the fireman... it'll probably come back to burn him :-P

Apprentice (NBC) -- I just cannot see a man winning this season. The only ones I was giving much of a chance to have all screwed up in one way or another already, and don't look to be capable of recovering from their 'issues'. I'm guessing either sexy-brunette from team Magna or perky-blonde from team NetWorth will take the job this time around. All the chicks have a chance still, really. And maybe, just maybe the black dude. But he's no Kwame. He's not even season 2 black dude!! (who was probably better than Kwame, but I couldn't remember his name so I did it this way cause it sounds better).

West Wing (NBC) -- sneaky democrats get a bill through. Kids want the voting age abolished. Bartlett bickers with an old colleauge. Canada and America almost go to war. This is the stuff of WW legend... who will be the next president?

Law & Order (NBC) -- chef Rocco commits murder?!? Well, not Rocco, but a character with a lot of similar character traits. Another solid episode. Jury tampering was focused on here... I wonder if that was meant as a lead in of sorts to the new L&O Branded show... Trial By Jury. Or maybe just coincidence. If LOST has taught me anything, never believe anything is just a coincidence...

This Is Wonderland (CBC) -- the darling of my viewing line-up. The dramedy to Scrub's coma... and the best dramedy on the air now (and maybe ever?). Great Jew/Palestinian storyline this week, as well as a man with 'apocalyptic visions', a guy who believes hypoglycemia makes his back hurt (he's very, VERY insane), an old lady who can't even remember which man is her real husband and the regular cast o' characters to fill it all out... you must watch this show... you won't regret it.

Law & Order: SVU (NBC) -- Stabler gets pushed closer and closer to the edge every week. This week, it's a particularly hard nut to crack from Stabler's past. An interesting approach with most of the episode taking place over the 24 hour holding period as Stabler et al try to get a confession out of this fella... but it ain't happening. Smart as a whip Stabler pieces it together anyway and he and Olivia save the day... but Stabler's nerves are shot. He goes postal on his locker to end the episode... this all has to be leading somewhere... and I'm a bit scared as to where that might be.

The Simpsons (Fox) -- Gnooooooooooooooome. Grampa Simpson rules. Another fine episode. Mayhaps not greatly original or overly hysterical, but it had it's moments (Homer working at a WalMart clones, Bart living with Wolves... and of course, The Simpsons quartet! I will never stop watching the Simpsons. They are the legacy of Fox.


That's it. Yep, a short week compared to many. It would be nice if I could keep the numbers down, but it's unlikely to stick. I got about 8~10 hours of stuff on tape(I think), including the first 2 episodes of L&O: TBJ... TV Guide comes tomorrow, so I'll figure out my viewing week then. 24 is tommorow. Au revoir.

Marvel, JAN-05

Something new I'm trying... based off something I've read elsewhere, but with my own particular flair, of cousre ;-)

Basically, I'm gonna look at the 'Big 2' in comics (Marvel & DC for the still un-initiated) from a statisticians perspective (cuz that's what I do!) ... there won't be title reviews here, per se (but anything is always possible) ... more my thoughts on how good/bad things have done, are doing, will do... maybe my thoughts on why... and maybe some ideas on how they could improve... who knows... to be honest, I just start typing and go with da flow...

Marvel

New Avengers #2 is the top selling comic of the month. As it was last month. Thusly, I believe this to be proof to all the nay-sayers that 'Disassembled' worked. When you consider that during the pre-Disassembled time frame, 'Avengers' typically pulled down 50,000~60,000 in sales and this past month saw 150,000+ (the #1 debut last month was well into the 200,000's), there really is no arguing the point.

X-Men: Phoenix - Endsong #1 launched at over 100,000 sales... this is very good. And seeing as how the storyline is better than most X-stuff currently being published (Astonishing still rocks), the numbers are deserving.

Uncanny X-Men #454 - the 'flag ship' of the X line, supposedly, continues to droop in sales... clocking in just over 87,000 -- the 4th consecutive month of decline. Year over year it's roughly holding it's own, which is a sad statement in and of itself. This is a title that should be doing better. It wasn't that long ago this title ranked #1 or #2 (flip-floping with adjectiveless 'X-Men') every month. I hate to say it, but Claremont has to go.

X-Men #166 -- first issue of Milligan's run and the sales continue to decline... haven't had an up-blip worth mentioning since 'Reload'. And if this issue is any sign, Milligan ain't the solution. If you've seen my comments elsewhere, you know what my thoughts are... 2 words: Garth Ennis.

Amazing Spider-Man #516 -- drops below 80,000 sales for the first time in ages. Is JMS loosing his magic touch?

Wolverine #24 -- drops below 80,000 as well, but still up by 10,000~15,000 over Rucka's run.

Wolverine: The End #6 -- finishes at just under 75,000... finally. But this is a pretty good run for an X-mini, especially considering the delays.

X-23 #2 -- drops below 60,000. But that is still great for this MarvelNext launch.

Marvel Knights Spider-Man #10 -- just over 60,000 ... falling every month, but still respectable.

X-Men / Fantastic Four #2 -- just over 60,000 compared to near 75,000 for #1. Not entirely unexpected. If it can level out, it'll be fine.

Captain America #2 -- just over 50,000 sales. Down a lot from the re-launched #1. Title was mired in the 35,000~40,000 range for quite some time.

Spectacular Spider-Man #24 -- Steady just under 50,000. Plan is to re-launch soon for a sales boost.

Daredevil #69 -- drops below 50,000 for the first time in a while. Bendis' run is coming to an end, and it's probably the right time. Hopefully they do something high profile with him post-Bendis.

Incredible Hulk #77 -- not a huge jump, but a jump none the less for Peter David's return. Close to 50,000 sales. Title was bleeding readers before this.

Fantastic Four #522 -- Waid is almost done. As with Bendis on DD, it's time. And word is JMS is coming on board here.

New X-Men #9 -- below 40,000. Worse, the count is now less than half that of the #1 re-launch of New Mutants. Expect it to continue to plummet.

Punisher #16 -- drops below 40,000 for the first time. But still quite respectable.

Pulse #7 -- lowest #'s yet; under 35,000. I don't see this one lasting much beyond 12 issues, if that.

Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes #6 -- approx. 32,000. Nice #'s for this type of mini.

Exiles #58 -- nothing wild here, other than a continual, gradual decline. Still over 30,000 though, so no real worries yet.

New Thunderbolts #4 -- leveling out over 30,000. That's acceptable.

Stormbreaker #1 -- over 30,000 for a Thor-related launch. That's good.

Marvel Knights 4 #14. Another title that is in the range of half it's original launch at just over 30,000. It will hold on if only for the FF movie launch, but this title is in trouble.

Spider-Man/Human Torch #1 -- 30,000 plus. For this, that's fine.

Fantastic Four: Foes #1 -- same as above. And the FF rule aplies.

Arana #1 -- just under 30,000. Considering it was over 60,000 the first run, this is bad.

Marvel Team-Up #4 -- leveling out, but low #'s at just over 27,000. We'll see.

Nightcrawler #5 -- dying, and fast.

Cable/Deadpool #11 -- just over 25,000. A 'good' relaunch of X-Force(maybe not with that name) is needed for this segment of X-characters imo. But I love all things Deadpool.

Rogue #7 -- under 25,000! Somebody, just let it die.

Gambit #6 -- 23,500... ugh.

She-Hulk #11 -- pen-ultimate steady at around 23,000... not great numbers, but Shulkie isn't exactly A-list these days... and Slott is the next big thing, trust me (think Vaughn a year or two ago...)

Black Widow #5 -- pen-ultimate issue. 22,500. Meh. Acceptable, I guess.

District X #10 -- down every month. A lot. I know it's the 'MKX' book... but that's not enough.

Mystique #23 -- pen-ultimate issue. Always steady, but just not a big enough winner at under 22,000 (pretty much the cut-off line).

Captain America & The Falcon #11 -- 3 issues to go. good thing.

Madrox #5 -- final issue. 21,300. Did as expected, with great critical praise.

Bullseye: Greatest Hits #5 -- final issue. Just under 21,300. Decent considering it's Bullseye.

Spider-Girl #82 -- 20,000. As per usual. This title is apparently kryptonite to Marvel's axe department's Superman. Steady.

New Invaders #6 -- under 20,000. Dreadful. 3 issues left.

Spider-Man Unlimited #7 -- under 20,000 for the first time. Unnecessary title. Thankfully its only bi-monthly. X-Men Unlimited fills the alternate months. It's not much better.

Alpha Flight #11 -- pen-ultimate issue. Canada gets no respect.

Thor: Son of Asgard #12 -- that's all she wrote. Thankfully.

Tomb Of Dracula #4 -- final issue. Brutal.

Jubilee #5 -- penultimate issue. Sooooo disappointing. Marvel Age is a poorly thought out concept. Poor jubes.


So, that's it for January at Marvel. Amongst those titles that didn't see print were: Astonishing X-Men, Secret War, Daredevil: Father, Supreme Power, Iron Man, Excalibur, Strange, X-Force, NYX, Doctor Spectrum and X-Men Unlimited. All decent titles with varying degrees of lateness imo...

The most impressive monthly titles this month would have to be (based on the stats): Captain America, Wolverine, New Avengers and Incredible Hulk -- with New X-Men getting a minor compliment (and very minor at that... almost not worth mentioning... but watch me go on...) -- and, of course, the debut of X-Men: Phoenix - Endsong did very well, but it is a mini, so it doesn't get inclusion above.

Those monthlies hurting(but not already axed) include: Rogue, District X, New X-Men(see, it's on both lists... go figure), Marvel Knights 4 and Cable/Deadpool. Also of concern are X-men and Punisher. Spider-Man Unlimited would be on the list too if it weren't a bi-monthly.

If it were my call, I would keep the following as monthlies and ditch everything else(mini's exempted -- but reign in some o' the crap-fest there too).

-New Avengers (brand leader -- it's perfect as Bendis has envisioned it thus far)
-Uncanny X-Men (this title should never be re-numbered... please...)
-X-Men (along with Uncanny, needs, unfortunately, another relaunch of sorts... you can re-number this one if ya like, but leave Uncanny's #ing alone -- it would be an unfortunate fiasco if the did it... anyways, back to teh solution -- I recommend a cross-title 1 year(or more) run by Garth Ennis... under the MAX banner... can you imagine!)
-Amazing Spider-Man (this needs to be the premiere Spidey title... always! -- maybe JMS needs to move aside here...)
-Wolverine (keep him off the X-teams, and this title will prosper... the X-teams don't need him, that much, if they're handled properly)
-Marvel Knights Spider-Man (steady as she goes...)
-Captain America (all's good on this front -- Brubaker was/is the perfect choice for Cap)
-Daredevil (a new writer; a new direction)
-Incredible Hulk (give PAD a chance...)
-Fantastic Four (let's see what JMS can do)
-New X-Men (drop the Marvel Age rules... make this more core... letting the other 2 titles, or at least one of them, which in that case would be adjectiveless, flip over to MK or MAX ... and this title picks up some of the slack)
-Punisher (new writer after Ennis' next arc to keep the freshness alive -- and keep it MAX)
-Exiles (needs new direction; give it that, and continue to tighten the continuity as they have started of late and this title is a keeper ... maybe another that could go MK or MAX?)
-New Thunderbolts (bring back Hawkeye)

and, of course (but shipping timely, dammit!)

-Astonishing X-Men
-Supreme Power
-Iron Man
-Excalibur (these 4 titles are perfect as they are)

There you have it... 18 core titles... with room to add here and there as needed... 7 of which are primarly X-related, 2 pure Spideys and the other 9 core MU... likely a third Spidey will be added to the mix(though make sure the other 2 are taken care of properly first) and one or two more X-books(teams are preferable to solos)... plus Thor down the road... and maybe Defenders... but a max of 24 core monthlies should be maintained... go beyond that and the market flooding issue takes hold... 12 issue maxi series are a better approach that launching new-ongoings...

Coming Soon: DC!

first web cam pic...

http://img169.exs.cx/img169/6847/img00016ej.jpg

b-day #29...

Hello! I thought It would be fun to run down the events of my b-day... maybe it's cause I'm still feeling the significant effect of the booze I've been chugging back going on 12 hours now... but this seemed like a good idea ;-)

12:00AM : still up, and online (as per usual) ... doing my thing... what evs... getting sleepy... head off for bed shortly before 1:30...

1:30AM : snuggled up in my blankets, door closed (unless I'm drunk or on sleeping pills, leaving the door open allows enought light to shine in as to fuck up my getting to sleep... and those of you who know me know sleeping, while something I dearly love, is not something that comes easy to me)

7:00 AM : awake and tossing and turning for a bit now... decide 'fuck it', I ain't gettin' no more rest at this point... so up's I go...

7:30 AM : 'bathroom routine' complete... downstairs in t-shirt, boxers, joggers and bathrobe (my chosen wardrobe for the day) ... Dad is still working his way through breakfast (again, for those not in the know, I'm crashing at the folks these days... free rent, good food, laundry service... it's an arrangement that is working for me... for now) ... I hit the Diet Pepsi (breakfast of champions), grab a paper and shoot the shit... soon enough the rest o' the house is up... typical morning stuff... til everyone is off to work but me (because I have no job)

9:00 AM : TV time. I got part of TAR left to watch from the previous day, and last night's 'Alias' on tape... both highly entertaining...

11:00 AM : bored. More often than not, that means "head for computer... and hit the 'net"

11:30 AM : finished with the quick updates (email, fav sites, etc.) -- time to hit the message boards, amongst other things -- and since it's my b-day, I crack into the 151 !!!

12:45 PM : everyone is in for lunch (folks run they're own business and my brother who is home is working for them) ... I'm half cut already, but have some chowder and grill cheese with the fam... more 'shoot the shit' ...

2:00 PM : I've been back online for a bit... making an ass of myself, I'm sure... but it's all in good fun... every so often I check the fires... gotta keep 'em going or I get torn a new one...

5:00 PM : Tim gets home from Community College... another brother... he's living here now and commutting to school...

5:30 PM : supper. York Shire Puddings for my B-Day!!! (thx rushie for the idea) ... I'm wicked drunk at this point, and damn are they good with roast beef gravy... like going to heaven, I figure...

6:00 PM : back online... typical night, everyone doing they're own thing... I'm probably online more today than most days, but that's partly because I decided earlier on to not go anywhere or even get dressed today... it's my day, I'm getting drunk, staying drunk and fuck everyone else!!!

9:00 PM : take my leave of the computer to watch some TV... Survivor & Apprentice ... gotta get my fix!

11:00 PM : Have a wee chat with Mom about some work stuff... everyone is off to bed but me... back to the computer I go...


So there you have it... I'm still drinking (out of rum, so I'm onto the beers)... Life Is Good (can always be better, but I'm not whiny bitch) ... will be at 'er til midnight at least... probably til sleep starts a calling...

Happy Birthday Me!!!

general hospital...

I know I'm setting myself up for a lot o' grief with this, but here goes...

I watch General Hospital. There, I said it. Do I watch "faithfully"? No. Did I use too? Yes. Does this make me gay? No.

My favorite argument here is that my grandfather on my mother's side (Alvin) watched Another World. And Alvin was about as much a "man's man" as you could get...

What makes me "not gay", at least in part, is that I don't watch for many of the reasons a typical housewife would. I fast-forward through most of the romance scenes. I'm not watching for the T&A (lots o' other sources for that)... I watch for 2 reasons: compelling characters and intense moments(be they action scenes, death scenes, what have you...)

A "soap" like GH has been on for over 40 years... the only mediums with similar character histories are the comic books... and we all know how I feel about comics! I actually started watching Another World as a child... partly due to my grandfather, partly because the baby-sitter watched it... Another World was "the" soap to watch in Canada through the 70's and 80's... but eventually it went off the air (first it went off the Canadian airwaves, later it was cancelled outright) -- I tried picking it back up at one point after we got cable in the 90's, but it wasn't the same... and by that point I was a GH-aholic.

There were a few years there where I watched religiously... in recent years its been more touch and miss... I'll watch for a few weeks or maybe just days here and there for whatever reason and then walk away... too many other things to occupy my time with that rank higher on the priority list, and the show isn't nearly as good as it once was (though it still has it's moments)...

For the most part, I know get my GH-fix from my sister or the internet. Each monday I read a spoilers site that gives the gist of what is going on... of late, I haven't been watching but what I've read has begun to sound more and more interesting... with the "is he or isn't he" storyline revolving around little Michael's apparent murder at the hands of his kidnappers, amongst other things, I decided to tune in this past Monday (in Canada GH airs on CTV and is one a one-day lag, so I got both Friday's and Monday's episodes... Friday's are always the "good" episodes... with Monday's being the resolution of whatever cliff-hanger occured at the end of Friday's ep... so this was a good "leaping on" sort o' spot... not to say good stuff can't happen the rest of the week, but this is the typical formula...

Anywho, I'm finding myself being lured back in... very compelling stuff through 3 episodes now (the fourth of which I'll probably watch later today)... here's a brief (ah, who am I kidding, I suck at "brief") rundown of who's doing what, based on these 3 eps and in some cases what I've gleamed from other sources...

Luke: The GOD of GH. Best character EVAR. While I'm a big fan of Robert Scorpio, Sean Donelly and Frisco Jones back in the day, Luke is the KING. Someday I'll go into it, but I'm gonna try and keep this about what's happening now. Luke's current storyline revolves around the Cassadines(surprise, surprise) and the fact that his son Lucky, until very recently, was in a coma due to actions put into motion by Helena. Being Luke, he decided his son was a fighter and if given the chance he would fight... so, being the "person of record", or whatever, he decided to remove Lucky from life support. Not too many folks agreed with this, but he did it anyway... now Lucky is awake and not particularly happy with Luke... but Luke called him out on being a punk... it was a cool scene. As are most invovling Lucas Lorenzo Spencer!

Sonny: The center-piece of GH. Most, and often all, storylines revolve around Sonny. He is the head of the PC mob. I was watching when he first came on the scene as the owner of a strip club... he has definitely climbed the corporate ladder. A mental breakdown story seems to be in the books for Sonny... currently his 3 children(all from different pairings of biological parents) are missing... kidnapped by a person(persons?) who have gone to extreme lengths to get revenge on Sonny... I'm a fan of the Sonny character. I don't always like what they do with him... I miss the days of 'Luke & Sonny'... and of Sonny & Stone... Jason = nuStone.

Nikolas: The ying to Luke's yang. The "good" Cassadine (a virtual impossibility in Luke's mind). For a while the re-cast him, and that sucked. But now the originator is back... yippee! Too bad the original Lucky wasn't still on the scene... or the original Emily for that matter... those were the days... Nik is in prison for murdering his grandmother (a crime he thought he'd done, but she survived... and chose not to inform the authorities of such...) -- for a while there he was playing 2 characters (a look alike named Connor Bishop was the other... he's dead now) -- Luke has done something similar in the past under the guise of Bill Eckert (also dead) ... Nik could one day be the inheritor of Luke's thrown imho...

Elizabeth: The first-lady of GH. With the exclusion of some of the grandmothers, Elizabeth is one of the longest serving cast members amongst the females of GH. She of the huge rape storyline of the 90's... part of the Nik/Em/Lucky group... and the grand-daughter of Steve Hardy! She keeps the show grounded in it's history... families, doctors and nurses... if only the original Lucky would return, how glorious it would be! She is currently embroiled as the go to "chat" person for a number of characters in various storylines including her brother Steven, nuEmily, nuLucky and the character with the best name, Ric.

Those 4 are, to me, the core of GH. A lot of folks will disagree with my inclusion of Elizabeth, but I have my reasons, which should become even more clear as you read the rest of this. Everyone else can be grouped under several headings, as follows.

2nd Tier: Jason, Jax, Alexis, Ric, Faith
Quasi-Celebs: Lorenzo, Steven
Babes: Sam, Courtney, Skye
NuBabes: NuCarly, NuEmily, NuLois
NuDudes: NuLucky, NuJustus
The Oldies: Mac, Alan, Monica, Bobbie, Ned, Tracy
The Kids: Dillon, Georgie, Brooklyn, Diego

There are others not mentioned, but as they are not yet in the opening credits, I didn't put them above... amongst this group are: Durant, Reese, Rachel, Michael and nuEdward, amongst others...

Of all the female characters mentioned above, those that have matched or exceed Liz's history are either re-casts or pushed into supporting roles(yes, I know Liz herself has been pushed that way a lot of late, but I see that turning around already) ... the closest competitor is Alexis... but I feel all her storylines are more about other key characters... particularly Sonny and Nikolas... she used to play a larger role than she does now imho, and she doesn't have that hospital or Hardy connection... If original Carly were in the picture(a distinct possibility in the not too distant future I've heard), I'd definitely bump her up there with Liz... it's just a silly rule I have... unless it's to age a kid, I'm not a fan of recasts...

I really wish they'd do more with Ned -- he could easily be the key character in the Quartermaine dynamic going forward (nuEdward blows)... but it seems he's on his way down(and out?) rather than up... are they grooming Dillon for the role instead? It could work, but it might be too soon... this family is second in my books to the Hardy's in importance as far as maintaining a semblance of history to the show.

Here is what the other characters, as listed above, are up to...

Jason: part of the hunt for Sonny's kids... teamed up with Sam... his robotic shoot-out was so perfect for his character... loved it... but this character is hit and miss for me these days... former flame of Elizabeth
Jax: no discernable storyline I can figure out, other than being the patsie of others stories... which is a shame -- Jax is a great character... need to get him and Alexis back into stories together...
Alexis: Sonny's story(one of the kids is hers)... and pregnant with Ric's baby too... see Jax
Ric: see Alexis... former flame of Elizabeth
Faith: not long for this show I'm afraid... loved her character, but you can only make 'em so evil before they gotta be dealt with... a bit conflicting at times in terms of the lengths she'll go... gotta figure mental instability is part of the character make-up...
Lorenzo: under-utilized... potential storylines with his new-found son down the road seem to be about all this character has going for him... unless the Carly stuff is actually gonna happen this time... or they put him back into the loop as Sonny's arch-nemisis in terms of mob stories...
Steven: I like this character... curious to see where the current story is going... but he's too new to give to much props too... brother of Elizabeth
Sam: Jason's girl
Courtney: Jax's girl
Skye: Luke's girl
NuCarly: I'm anti-Nu, so I can't be nice here... best of the Nu's... primarily part of Sonny's story...
NuEmily: Nik's girl
NuLois: also under-utilized, so they toss her into Lorenzo's lap... if I were to cut a female character, it'd be her (or at least until Rena Sofer is willing to reprise the role)
NuLucky: and a quasi-celeb to boot... they've done so little with this character until just recently... I re-iterate -- the return of original Lucky would rock!! Oh yeah... former flame of Elizabeth.
NuJustus: meh. Token Black Character?
Mac, Alan, Monica, Bobbie, Ned, Tracy, Dillon, Georgie, Brooklyn, Diego: no appearances in the 3+ episodes thus far... used to be a big Mac fan... Tracy can be funny at times... potential for a new Lucky/Liz/Em/Nik deal with the kids here...
Durant: great character/storyline at first, but the zest has quickly faded... not to sure how much longer he'll be around...
Reese: new FBI agent in the Sonny story... I'm a Kari fan, so I hope she goes places with the show...
Rachel: also an interesting new character -- I'm witholding judgement for now ;-)
Michael: for a kid, he does a decent job... I hope he stays missing... will make for many better storylines... and they can always bring him back down the road aged to a teen...
nuEdward: former flame of Elizabeth... just kidding! Very disappointing.

That's it for now... I could say lots more, and likely will over time .. til then, ciao!