Anway, here are some dis-jointed thoughts on the weeks events, I'll try not to refer to things that may have happened only in my aforementioned epic dreams.
The Clemens Hearings - OK, first things first, this was a tremendous waste of time. But come on, that's what Congress does, waste time. At least this week it was on something interesting. I don't like Roger Clemens, and I've never doubted that he used PED's, but still, so did most likely 50% of the rest of the major leagues and we all need to get over that fact. We're never going to know everyone who did, so either give up on that era or accept it as it is. I don't think Roger Clemens got any more of a boost from HGH than Babe Ruth did from not having to bat against an African American pitcher. That said, man, was that an entertaining hearing. I love that Jose Canseco's pool party has now been parsed out (in Congress) about as much as whether there was a second shooter on the grassy knoll. High Comedy.
Final word: to paraprhase Bill Simmons on the subject, if your defense in front of Congress require you to throw:
- Your Wife
- Your Best Friend
- Your Best Friend's Wife
- Your Former Employee
- Your Former Employer (Bud Selig)
- Your Union
- And (as a matter of course) The Media
The Indiana Jones Trailer - This was surprisingly not bad. Granted, the thing that most worries me is the need to add some "new hotness" in the form of Shia LeBeouf, smacks of Cousin Oliver. Regardless, they seem to be ackowleding that, yes, Harrison Ford is old, but shit, if Sean Connery can kick ass in his 80's, Indy can certainly do so into his 60's. Granted, my hopes have remained high for this flick simply because of Spielberg. In the last few years he's made some fantastic movies (Minority Report, Munich, Catch Me If You Can) and even his mis-steps (War of the Worlds, A.I.) were interesting and by no means bad. He's definitely nowhere near as out of touch as Lucas is.
Also, while I was sick, I re-watched Last Crusade for the first time in quite a while and I was struck that there's a lot of bad in that movie. The effects are pretty crap, the story is kinda stupid and it's a little too goofy, but, the thing about it (and the other Indy flicks) is that it moves. You just don't get a chance to stop and say "Hey....that was dumb," cause next thing you know, Indy is stealing horses and bitching to Sallah about camels. So that's the thing, Indy 4 doesn't need to "good", it just needs to be fun.
If I hadn't already talked about it too much on this blog, I'd tell you that I watched most of the first season of 30 Rock on Thursday, and damn if it's not getting close to beating Arrested Development in terms of re-watch-ability.
Read while sick:
Nova Annual #1 - A good issue, but I'm kinda leery of these mid-storyline issues getting re-branded as Annuals (see also: Iron Fist). It used to be that Annuals were held separate from the on-going storylines, though sometimes they would be used to wrap them up. But this annual is, essentially, part 4 in a 6 part arc, so it's kind of odd that it's an Annual. Sure, it's longer than an average issue, and it's very new-reader friendly, but still. Call a spade a spade and don't charge me an extra dollar for a regular issue. Still, on its merits, it still a good issue in a very good series.
Fantastic Four: The Lost Adventure - Kudos to Marvel for publishing this, a "lost" issue that Jack Kirby drew, but due to deteriorating relationships at Marvel, never saw print, except for panels cut up to be used as flashbacks in a later issue. It's a good, fun late-period Stan N' Jack tale, though it's odd, since Stan Lee only recently scripted this issue, he plants some 21st Century references to cell phones and DSL lines, that just seem so out of place. Also included are Kirby's original pencils, with his notes, which is fascinating for anyone interested in his craft. Also, there's the story from FF #108, which some of the panels were recycled into. Overall, a very interesting package and while something of a curiosity, and interesting glimpse into how a book was put together 40 years ago.
Iron Man: Hypervelocity - Have owned this for a while, but I re-read it while I was cycling through sweating and shivering (I swear to God, I thought I was going thorough The Change). A pretty-much out of continuity tale that feels like it was commissioned so Marvel would have enough done-in-one I.M. trades on the shelves in time for the movie, this book features a self-aware set of Iron Man armor that's been st-up by terrorists to be chased down by S.H.I.E.L.D. This is a fun series that is so over the top, it makes Shoot Em Up look like a think-piece. Adam Warren continues his exploration of Mecha-Life in the Marvel Universe that he had begun in Livewires (a really fun little series) and you can almost hear him cackling with glee at the weapons he invents for S.H.I.E.L.D. to throw at our hero. The art, by Brian Denham, is very good, but in the extras they give you Warren's sketches of issues number one, and it just makes you wish he'd been able to draw the whole thing.
Marvel Adventures: Iron Man Vol. 1 - Apparently, I had Iron Man on the brain while ill, but hey, I don't know why. Anyway, I've had this digest laying around for a month or so and finally got around to reading it and it's pretty great. So far, I've only read the Avengers in Marvel's all-ages Adventures line and that book's been a hoot. Iron Man, though not at the same super-high level, is still very good. Four done-in-one tales that are perfect for kids who are, you know, too young to be going to see the movie when it comes out. I understand the need to make these movies cool for us 20 & 30 -somethings, but hey Hollywood! Can you make a superhero flick I can let my 5-year-old watch? That's right Shazam...I'm looking at you.
Other books read, that were good, but were mid-storyline, thus not much worth reviewing: X-Factor #28 & '76 #2.
Anyway, so that was my week, hope everyone had better health at least, I'm going to try to get a longer post about the one book I picked up this week, but didn't mention later on. Plus, I ordered a bunch of cheap-o CD's on amazon, so hopefully I'll have some music thoughts to shout at you later too.
2 comments:
The thing I like about that Indy trailer is the scene where he fails to make his swing into the back of the truck. My favorite action movies are the ones that have little moments I find amusing (the other Indy movies, the Die Hard flicks, stuff like that). As long as they don't take the whole thing too seriously, that should help.
Regarding Last Crusade, when you say the effects are pretty crap, do you mean by today's standards, or even by the standards of when they came out? I know the whole "aging really fast" doesn't hold up as well as it did when I was a kid, but I don't know how it does compared to other stuff from that time.
I compare Last Crusade to the other flicks in the series. Look at the plane going through the tunnel. That's totally awful, but the tunnel chase in Temple of Doom looks awesome. The dude getting old looks bad, by todays standards, but it still doesn't look as good as the dude's melting in Lost Arc.
And yes, Indy swinging back into the truck was a high-point of the trailer.
Post a Comment