Arune.Com Will Return SOON

Folks, Arune.Com will return to regular programming soon– stay tuned for regular weekly updates. There’s a lot to write about, but for now, a few thoughts:

• How great is the Legacy storyline on WWE Monday Night Raw?
• College football is actually really fun to watch and I generally enjoy it more than NFL games.
• The newest Scott Pilgrim graphic novel is out in stores– get it NOW!
• I really haven’t much enjoyed Battlestar Galactica since the end of the New Caprica storyline.
• Meanwhile, 24 is firing on all cylinders
• Went on a few Hockey Trips– I shall update everyone on these soon, including my trip to this year’s Winter Classic in Chicago.
• I’m really excited for both G.I Joe: Rise Of Cobra and the new Star Trek films.

Random Thoughts In The Washroom

No, this isn’t going to be some discussion about bowel movements or natural, yet somewhat smelly, bodily functions performed in washrooms. Yes, washrooms. I refuse to call a public washroom a “restroom”– because I’m not resting there– and/or a “bathroom”– because I’m not having a bath there. But I am washing my hands. Anyway, I seem to do some of my best thinking when I am showering in my own washroom or sitting in my own washroom. Here are a few random things that were on my mind in the washroom this week :

• When are they going to do something cool with Star Trek? Noted cool dude Kurt Ingram and I were talking about ‘Trek because I’ve showed him the awesomeness that is Battlestar Galactica, prompting discussion about why Trek can’t make a kickass comeback. I know there’s a new prequel film in the works, but that doesn’t excite me– there’s nothing that feels “new” about going back to that time. Now I know that Trek is about the bright shiny future, celebrating the greatness of humanity, but it also seems like that rosy future just doesn’t feel very “real” to me anymore. Any of you have ideas for updating the franchise?
• For some reason I started thinking about a somewhat humorous experience from my time in Minnesota. I used to work in the Mall of America and was walking with a co-worker to a little convenience store in the mall, so we could get some gum and soda. Her husband was Hispanic and she was pregnant, but he didn’t work there, so when we ran in to some of her friends, I learned that all brown people do look alike. They congratulated both of us on the baby and while my friend looked at me with a funny expression on her face, I told these strangers, with a straight face, “Thanks, I’m really proud of my work and it was fun getting there.” So my friend proceeded to slap me and explain I wasn’t the father of her child, to which I exclaimed, “What, so who is?” which made her friends seem quite uncomfortable…and I got slapped again. I’m not sure why I was thinking about this particular moment, but it put a smile on my face to know that every so often I can be funny.
• My Super Sweet 16 is one scary show. I enjoy most of MTV’s “reality” programming in some bizarre guilty pleasure way, not enough to ever make an effort to watch an episode, but enough that I can enjoy watching an episode or two. But wow, My Super Sweet 16 just takes everything bad about the growing avarice in my generation and amps it up to make it seem…cool? I’ve never seen such shallow people parading around and acting like brats. Now I know that this is edited by MTV and I don’t know these people, but the sheer lack of awareness of the world and how it works just scares me– do these girls realize the cost of these parties and how bratty they’re being? I can’t watch a full episode of this show again. It just makes me angry.
• How do I describe my surgery to people in the most effective way? I basically had my chest cut open and my sternum sawed in two, but I wanted a more dramatic way to phrase it, so I figured that saying, “my chest was opened up like two french doors” would be the optimum description.
• It seems odd how much I love Heroes right now and don’t really enjoy the new season of 24 in the slightest. I never thought I’d enjoy Heroes this much after what I thought was a rough start, but the show is just firing on all cylinders.

Random + News + Redux

We’re half way through the month and close to tying last February’s record for number of entries, though as with last month, I think we’ve raised the bar in the last year. With that out of the way, let’s get to the stories!

• ‘His words pollute the atmosphere’: In this day and age, why is homophobia so widely accepted?
  

  The host asked Hardaway how he would interact with a gay teammate.

  “First of all, I wouldn’t want him on my team. And second of all, if he was on my team, I would, you know, really distance myself from him because, uh, I don’t think that is right. I don’t think he should be in the locker room while we are in the locker room.”

  If he did find out that a teammate was gay, Hardaway said he would ask for the player to be removed from the team.

  “Something has to give,” Hardaway said. “If you have 12 other ballplayers in your locker room that’s upset and can’t concentrate and always worried about him in the locker room or on the court or whatever, it’s going to be hard for your teammates to win and accept him as a teammate.”

  Sure, we all have our own views and I accept that, but I don’t understand the need of some such as Hardaway to push his views on others. If he dislikes gays, fine, I’m not going to waste time arguing with the stupidity of his discrimination, but why does he feel the need to make sure his views are forced on gay players so they’re forced out of his team? If someone did that to Hardaway because of his ethnicity, he’d cry foul, so why does he endorse the same kind of senseless hatred? I’ll never understand it.

• “Ben & Jerry Scoop Colbert”: While I do enjoy The Daily Show more than The Colbert Report, one can’t deny the charisma and sense of humor possessed by Stephen Colbert, so I’m glad to learn he’s being honored for his work:
  

  Ben & Jerry’s is fudging the truthiness.

  The maker of Phish Food, Cherry Garcia and Vermonty Python is adding Stephen Colbert’s Americone Dream to its collection of cult figure-inspired ice cream flavors.

  Billed as “the sweet taste of liberty in your mouth,” Americone Dream is vanilla ice cream packed with fudge-covered pieces of waffle cone and a caramel—or is that a conservative?—swirl.

  “I’m not afraid to say it. Dessert has a well-known liberal agenda,” Colbert said in a statement. “What I hope to do with this ice cream is bring some balance back to the freezer case.”

  Freedom has never tasted so sweet

  I’ll definitely have to try out this ice cream, as it sounds quite delicious and supports Colbert, which is always a good thing.

• “Should We Bury The Penny?”: I don’t know enough about the report involved in this story, but I do know that pennies have become increasingly useless in my life, which doesn’t mean we eliminate them, but I can understand the idea.
  

  The figures “show clearly that the one cent coin is not very useful and that consumers hoard or throw it away rather than deposit it and put it back into the distribution system,” the report said.

  Maybe I’m in the minority, but I can’t see a downside to removing the penny from circulation and slightly altering prices so that they’re not required.

• Battlestar Galactica Returns For A Fourth Season: Sure, this isn’t as important as the above news, but it’s good news for those of us enjoying this phenomenal (though uneven at times) show. This show seems like one that has a finite life and I’d like for the story to be told as need be, so viewers aren’t left with a lot of questions or an unfortunately rushed season (such as happened with Babylon 5).

Random + Television + Thoughts

There are a lot of little television tidbits I wanted to write more about, but I lack the time and energy to do that right now, so I’m going to touch upon them all here with the hope I can expand on these thoughts later this week. I doubt it’ll happen, but we’ll see how things turn out– after all, I never thought Arune.Com would be this busy one year later and we’re on pace to top last January’s numbers, with even better content than a year ago.

• Heroes returns this week, after finally airing an episode I liked and piquing my interest. I’ll say one thing for this show– it’s true to what it is, doesn’t have any delusions of grandeur and delivers real payoff. I do think that the pace hinders the shows in ways that affect my enjoyment, but considering the stellar reception by the rest of the world, I’m in the minority. I’m not sure I’ll watch this Monday, as I’m already recording two other shows, but I look forward to watching it on Sci-Fi later in the week. Fans need to check out CBR’s exclusive Heroes videos spotlighting this week’s episode and some specific cast members. CBR also offers weekly Q&A with the show’s writers, so make sure to check the site every Monday for more updates.
• WWE Monday Night Raw threatens to become less and less important to me, as each week’s show becomes more boring. Friday Night Smackdown is a brilliantly done wrestling show and with some minor exceptions, is the perfect wrestling program for me. TNA Impact!, airing on Wednesday this week, needs to promote the high flying X-Division if it wants to stay in the game. Right now it’s looking like a second rate show and not a real competitor.
• 24 has another new episode this week, hopefully without the “Stupid Person Plot Device.” What is that you ask? The father in last week’s premiere felt over the top stupid, when he knew what he was doing and still helped the terrorists. I understand the big impact of the final moments, but it would have mattered more to me if the character who put it into motion wasn’t acting so stupid. Same with the death of a major character– he seemed wildly out of character and his death had no meaning to me. I’m still loving the show, but I hope the silliness ends sooner than later. Jack’s “Count Jackula” moment was still pretty cool.
• Goodbye Smallville. I can’t begin to list all the reasons I dislike this show and I’ve watched it primarily because I’m a Superman fan…but since this Clark Kent is a petty, hypocritical jackass, there’s not much Superman for me to watch anymore on television. Still, one can’t ignore how much this show helped keep Superman in the spotlight over the last six years and for that reason I’m glad it came around. It also still features what I consider one of the best pilots I’ve ever seen and had some pretty good moments along the way, but I’m done with it now.
• For the Canadians, how much do Corner Gas DVD sets cost up North? The prices on websites seem ludicrious, so I’m hoping that Future Shop/Best Buy might have some deal on them that I’m not aware of right now. It sounds like a hilarious show and I’d love to check it out.
• With the cancellation of Passions and likely Days Of Our Lives cancellation in 2009, one has to wonder if the daytime soap opera is long for this world and if the powers that be will do anything to draw in new viewers– or even retain the ones they’re driving away. That’s a whole blog entry for another time, though I’d be surprised if we see daytime soaps on our television in 10 years.
• Studio 60 may be cancelled, which doesn’t come as a huge surprise to me, since the show hasn’t been able to find an audience. It’s a shame that television shows aren’t given more time to grow an audience and I’m hoping Studio 60 survives.
• If you’ve forgotten, Battlestar Galactica is back tonight.

Galactica Returns On Sunday

This Sunday, Battlestar Galactica returns with the second half of the stellar third season. I’m mentioning this today because the show has aired on Fridays for ages, but has now moved to Sunday, with the hopes of a ratings boost. Check your local listings to see the time it airs on the Sci-Fi Channel.

If you’ve never jumped into this show before, I doubt this will be the best time to delve into the intricate plotting that has made the series so famous, especially since the focus is on the religious aspects of the show, which have trended weaker. I find a lot of the ideas fascinating– looking at the way Cylons view humans vs the way humans view God, for example– but the overt religious episodes, such as the Tomb of Athena arc, always leave me a bit dry. That said, religion is always handled maturely in the show and in way that shows both sides of the argument.

Regardless, this season has included some of the series’ best moments (FTL jump inside the atmosphere!) and I’m excited to see where it is all going. If only Sci-Fi didn’t feel the need to use “It Ends Tonight,” the over-played song by The All American Rejects, in all their commercials for Galactica. It just doesn’t fit at all, as evidenced by this spoiler-heavy promo, which is sadly one of their better efforts at integrating the song into the advertising.

Regardless, Galactica fans can’t miss this Sunday’s episode– if Season 2.5’s first episode was any indication, this one should be a doozy!

Arune.Com’s New Year’s Resolutions

Well, we’re back with more New Year’s Resolutions from Arune.Com and a reminder that both 24 and Battlestar Galactica return soon. Onward!

Resolution #4: Write More

As I’m sure you know, we just celebrated one year at Arune.Com and while I’ve written a lot over the last year, I want to try and write even more this year. Not just for the sake of writing, but because the more I write, the better I will be at it. While that’s motivation enough, I’ve found that writing fictional stories allows you to challenge your own views and perceptions of the world by letting those characters take their course.

Working on this blog has also led to some interesting discourse about subjects ranging from comic books to moral law, so I’d like to continue to push myself to find new topics for discussion on such a public forum where so many people can offer responses. So if all goes well, I’ll be able to not only write more fiction, but also write more non-fiction through this blog.

Random + News + Weekend

Well folks, if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to check out Casino Royale the new– and my favorite– James Bond flick. It’s a really fun film with more depth than you might expect from a Bond movie. Not only does it borrow the best moments from the book (except one interesting philosophical debate that is left out), it adds a lot new scenes and interesting nuances to the origin of 007. Over at CNN.Com, there’s a good review of the film.

Onto the news!

• I interviewed the writers of the new Battlestar Galactica: The Cylon Wars comic book mini-series over at CBR and fans of the show will definitely not want to miss this book, which may well be in continuity when all is said & done.
• What are the ten bigget watercooler discussion moments from television? EW thinks it has the answer, citing the obvious (Luke & Laura’s wedding on General Hospital) to odd choices (a moment from Buffy). Still, it’s an interesting list and well worth a gander.
• IGN reviews Microsoft’s new music player, the “Zune” and while it sounds like a decent device, I really don’t know how Microsoft can hope to stand side by side with Apple in the digital music war. So many people have invested in Apple’s iTunes and like it or not, the music downloaded from iTunes can’t be used with another player– unless you concievably burn CDs and then rip the songs using the Zune software. I hope Microsoft does well, because competition would be a great way to get Apple to up their ante and deliver even better stuff to consumers.
• In time to buy me for Christmas: a Transformers chess set! Jokes aside, this is horribly overpriced and I may love Transformers, but even I have my limits.
• Lou Dobbs talks about being a populist and why it may not be a bad thing. It’s an interesting essay, though I’m sure that many may disagree with his viewpoint.

Random + News + Weekend

It’s that time again– Random News is back! Hope you all had a good weekend. Hopefully you can all help me: do you know of any reliable and reputable websites that can create long sleeve t-shirts and/or thermal tops? I want to create one like Iron Fist is wearing in this picture, but I don’t know where to start looking. If you’ve got any advice, just leave a message. Thanks!

• Battlestar Galactica continues to get rave reviews, this time from the L.A Times, which includes an interview with the producers.
• Kal Penn looks to have another success on his hands with The Rise Of Taj, the Van Wilder sequel in which he reprises his role as a nerdy Indian student. I’ve talked about Penn at length previously and I’m glad to see him headlining another film. I’m sure this film will have the same crude humor of the first film, but I’m sure I’ll still enjoy it– the first film didn’t offend me and wasn’t nearly as crude/vulgar as some more recent films.
• How is Heroes affecting comic books? No, this isn’t me criticizing the show– it’s Entertainment Weekly reflecting on how the show reflects & impacts the industry. Now despite what some think, I’m glad this show is succeeding and showing people how fun & complex superheroes can be. If it brings some people to comics, and they can discover all the great comics out there (All-Star Superman, Astonishing X-Men, etc), then all the better!
• Want to find that song you heard on a soap opera? It’s often hard to know the name or artist of a song on soaps, since soundtracks are never released, and they often use less known singles from artists.
• X-Box doesn’t see the PS3 as competition, only the Wii. That’s pretty bold, as Sony has strong Playstation-only franchises, but I personally do see the Wii as the big gaming system if the motion sensor works well. Nintendo may have another hit on its hands.
• EW lists the top 10 Bond Girls. What do you think?

When 24 Returns…

You think you’re sick of me gushing over Battlestar Galactica already, praising it almost every day in some context? Well folks, it really is one of the best shows on television, with some of the strongest writing, visuals, and overall vision that I’ve ever seen. Of course, that’s just my point of view, but the point is that it’s nothing compared to what you’ll see written about 24 when it returns in January. Now I love the show, but it’s far from perfect, and while I’m happy to turn off my brain so I can enjoy the excitement, there are a few things I’d love to see improved. That said, the show just gets better each year and somehow all the plot holes don’t much bother me because of the payoff.

So, please, no e-mails or comments about “why do you hate this show?” or “why can’t you enjoy it for what it is?” because being objectively critical and enjoying a show are not mutually exclusive states of mind. Nothing and no one is perfect, but it doesn’t mean we can’t love ‘em, now does it?

SPOILER WARNING: Beyond this point, this post contains spoilers for Seasons 1-5, as well as speculation for Season 6, based on revealed casting decisions and extrapolations from that information.

Continue reading When 24 Returns……

Why It’s So Good: Battlestar Galactica

It’s about time for another one of these. I figure if I’m going to express displeasure with so many things, I should express some pleasure to balance it all out. It’s no secret that my love for Battlestar Galactica seems to grow with every episode. This is one show that meets and exceeds every criteria I have for a television show, proof that I’m not really too cynical to appreciate brilliant television.

Interestingly enough, I had a hard time getting through the mini-series that launched this current series. But by the time I finished it, and got into the amazing first season episode “33,” I was hooked. The show keeps getting better and better. I haven’t a single complaint about Season 3, except for the way that a certain character loses a lot of weight WAY too quickly to be realistic (and I say this because the show is otherwise very realistic), and we all know that I can bitch up a storm at the drop of a dime.

Warning: there are spoilers in this article for Season 3, so if you aren’t current on the show, be warned. That said, this show is about the journey and I don’t think that I’ll say anything that will ruin your enjoyment of the show.

Continue reading Why It’s So Good: Battlestar Galactica…