The New Musings of a Quiet Geek

When I heard what LucasFilms' first "anthology" film (a word I still prefer to "story") would be, I had my doubts for the following reasons:  Unlike more diehard Star Wars fans, I really couldn't get into the "Rogue Squadron" series of novels as largely the characters we all knew and loved had nothing to do with them.  Subconsciously, in the early days of rumors, I'm sure I thought that's what the movie was about on some level but the new characters bit is still applicable.  Then I heard it wouldn't have Jedi (Donnie Yen's character, Chirrut Îmwe, being a Guardian of The Wills instead is pretty much semantics by the way but lets overlook that for now...) I wondered how it would be different than a Han Solo movie since he's the stereotypical "average guy" established so far in the universe. Rogue One allayed my concerns pretty quickly, however.  Felicity Jones' Jyn Erso was not a smuggler and I did not find mysel

No, this isn't about the election. I'm not ready to unlease that upon the world just yet.  Instead, allow me to share my thoughts on another fantastic entry into Marvel's cinematic universe.  Doctor Strange was the perfect blend of the tone we are used to and the adding of the supernatural world. Friends on Facebook may have noticed my comment that the first part of  The Imitation Game  was unexpectedly hilarious due in large part to Benedict Cumberbatch's turn as Alan Turing so it comes as no surprise he's awesome as arrogant neurosurgeon (a redundant phrase in my personal experience.) Doctor Strange, like Ghost Rider, is really not a character that lends itself to having a love interest but since it's an origin story, it worked here with  fellow surgeon Dr. Christine Palmer. Certainly better than in that movie ... I've loved Rachel McAdams since The Family Stone  but I'm sure the character'll just go the route of Thor' s Jane Foster and ju

Because both Netflix and Twitter are down, some thoughts on the Netflix series Luke Cage 1. I would say it was only about 90% as dark and broody as Daredevil and Jessica Jones . Whether it's a coincidence hardcore DC fans on Twitter didn't gush about it as they did the previous two series is hard to say. Also, were there more scenes set during the day or was that just me? 2. Also hard to say is just who the Big Bad of the show was. There are really 3 possibilities: Cottonmouth Stokes who you could easily argue was just forced into the family business; Willis "Diamondback" Striker, the disgruntled half-brother of Luke Cage; or the villain left standing, Councilwoman Mariah Dillard?  The obvious choice is the last one but remember, Darth Vader is much more recognizable than Emperor Palpatine... Anyway, the fact it isn't in your face also adds to the ways the show was able to differentiate itself just as much as the change in setting and definitely the music...

DC's shared universe has gotten off to a rough start. Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman  presented movies that were mixed bags for even comic nerds such as myself. True, I haven't serious fed my comic addiction in about a dozen years but I still watch the movies, TV shows and animated offerings but that really should be beside the point. Studios do not shell out money for movies only a select group will watch any more than TV networks do... With each successive film, they've improved but they have a long way to go. Their third movie, Suicide Squad, continues the upward trend but still isn't a film that'll win over discerning viewers.  You'll hear stories on how studio interference meddled in the scriptwriting and how writer/director David Ayer had only six weeks to throw together a script. I'm sure it's true to at least some level.  Sony notoriously interfered with Spider-Man 3 and Amazing Spider-man 2. The need to rush the "world-building"

Regular readers of this blog know my love of Terry Brooks and his Shannara books. Some readers may have caught my rant on the Rizzoli and Isles TV series being irritatingly different than the books. Why change Maura's serial killer mom to a gangster dad? Why change Warren Hoyt's name to Charles? (I do appreciate now the series is definitely it's own thing now in it's final season.) I had caught most episodes of the new Shannara Chronicles series when it originally aired and was pretty intrigued. Yes, most of the characters were not how I visualized them when I read Elfstones of Shannara back in high school (Reading the World of Shannara reference tome, I discovered my mind's eye was always wrong on that score anyway...) but the characterizations were spot on which is definitely more important. Yes, people who haven't read any of the books published recently may complain about the "cameos" made by remnants of our 21st century world but since it was

 X-Men: Apocalypse is the third of the "prequel movies" and today is my second favorite after First Class.  Don't get me wrong: the last one,  Days of Future Past , was far from terrible but you could easily argue it was an excuse to feature Hugh Jackman. The other two do just fine with cameos (which are both awesome and unnecessary but I digress...) The two biggest complaints I've had about the franchise are the lack of even internal continuity and lack of effort. This movie clearly had the attitude they know continuity is messed up and they don't give a shit. Havok and Cyclops are brothers but inexplicably 20 years apart in age but certainly don't look it. In '83, Prof. Xavier sees CIA Moira McTaggart for the first time since the Cuban Missile Crisis and comments, "You haven't aged a day!" Not even James Bond is a field agent in his late '50's but whatever... (Speaking of Moira,  Rose Byrne is Tasmanian while the character is Sco

As I was recently discussing with someone on Twitter, I'm not a big fan of "Good Guys Manipulated Fight Each Other" films so it's sad that Captain America: Civil War came out so close on the heels of Batman v. Superman . As maybe I've confessed before I am more of a Marvel fan but that is not why this one was better.  DC fans frequently point out this was the 13th Marvel film while BvS   is only the second of their new cinematic universe. To me, that's why it worked better. The tension was building out of the last Avengers  movie and the characters have interacted for several movies worth of time (One must assume interactions happen off screen as well) so they know each other pretty well. Two friends having a disagreement carries so much more weight than two strangers going at it.  In my critique of  Batman v. Superman ,  I noted that the end of the featured fight hinged on the fact both characters' mothers were named Martha. Here, the big fight ended wh

Saw Batman v. Superman this weekend. Overall, I really enjoyed it. Seeing Superman, Batman AND Wonder Woman on screen made me squee with as much delight as seeing Avengers the first time, as it should. Man of Steel for me was both the best Superman movie and worst Superman movie. Director  Zack Snyder still admits he finds the character boring.  In that movie, Superman is inexperienced as superhero and consequently, there's more death and destruction  then we're used to. Batman's mistrust of the Kryptonian in Batman v. Superman comes from this. Also, the film reminds you, Bruce seemingly hasn't let go of the anger over failing to stop the death of his parents as a child. (The movie hints that the events happen sometime after the death of Robin #2  Jason Todd at the hands of the Joker. No Robins are specifically mentioned so we have no idea how many this version of Batman had. Those readers who don't know anything about Batman after the '66 TV series are p

As many of you know, for the past 5 or 6 years, I have been actively pursuing Social Security Disability.  It has not been an easy road. It was hard for even my lawyer to wrap his head around the fact I have a Masters degree in Library Science.  Never mind that there was little wrong with the left side of my brain. I, like many with disabilities, have been able to beat the odds and overcome adversity. My parents were told I was blind and would never walk. Sure, both are issues for me but I can still do them!  And then my dream job at the seminary happened. How can I prove I can't work when I in fact am and am now reasonably able to pay most of my expenses? Should I have turned down? Maybe. Have I ever pondered saying "No?" Hell, no. Two months later, the seizures happened and simultaneously, I experienced the darkness months of my life (Much of that time I don't actually have memory of...) but my case, morbidly gained new life. Recently, I've been mentally, ps