Elementary, My Dear Watson

6th January, 2010 by Christina - 4 Comments

I must admit, I have a crush on Sherlock Holmes.  He falls into that category of logical genius that Mr. Spock and Sheldon Cooper already occupy. In fact, Sherlock Holmes would be my first choice to make out with.  Probably followed by Dr. Watson as a second choice.  So of course over the holiday I made a little trip to the movie theater to see the new, Guy Richie-directed, Sherlock Holmes.  And with Jude Law as Dr. Watson, Sherlock gets bumped down a few notches for all that making out.

Now, I’m not inclined to review movies (especially ones that everyone seems to be reviewing) too often, but I felt that this particular one stood out as an example for creating a film adaptation of a beloved book/literary character.  It’s a difficult thing to create a movie that is creative, unique, and intriguing and does not upset the ardent fans of the original.  Most movies, however, struggle with the concept of staying completely true to the original text versus using the book’s ideas and characters as a jumping off place to create something new.  Both have their pitfalls–many true adaptations end up pandering to the fans, making the movie unwatchable for others who might have shown an interest in the original book because of the movie, while some of the innovative branches result in movies completely unlike their literary counterparts in all but name.

Over the years, Sherlock Holmes degenerated on film into the the “Gentleman Detective” more akin to Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot than his more eccentric–and high–literary counterpoint.  The dumbing down of Dr. Watson into a bumbling fool of a sidekick actually destroyed the brilliant workings of Sherlock’s mind–anyone could solve a mystery faster than a moronic Dr. Watson.  But as a logic based detective, Holmes was still tops.  People are still ardent fans of the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books and others of the movies. 

Many articles and reviews on the latest interpretation of the sleuth and his sidekick have pointed out how much more in line Robert Downey Jr.’s take on the character is with the one immortalized on page.  A studier of boxing, fencing, and martial arts–Sherlock Holmes would have had some rough and tumble in him.  Additionally, he had contacts in the criminal world that he could use for spying and information.  People forget that his was addicted to cocaine and a regular laudanum user (oh, and a bit of a slob).  Dr. Watson, meanwhile, is a former military officer, crack-shot, and the reason he’s less likely to solve a case than Holmes is because he’s slightly less observant and factors his own emotional responses into his deductions (and, to share his vices as well–he’s a womanizer and gambler).  The two men are mental foils for one another and strong enough to fight their way out of a tough situation. 

Watching the new Sherlock Holmes however, has left me wanting.  Wanting more Moriarty, wanting less romantic interest for Holmes (his attraction to Irene Adler is actually for her intelligence and self-sufficiency, traits that were considered masculine in the Victorian era.  Holmes is repeatedly shown to be disinterested in romantic attachment and would prize logic and intelligence in any person over those emotional or sentimental in nature), wanting this movie to be less a set-up for a sequel.

As a movie, yes, I enjoyed it very much.  But it seemed more a mash-up of James Bond and Dan Brown.  The occult was a popular subject at the time, so I don’t fault working in the reality of mysticism into the plot.  However, the political conspiracy tie-in falls too closely into DaVinci Code territory as the constant ACTION! and EXPLOSIONS! are a little too double-oh-seven. 

Overall though, the movie is a successful example of using a body of work to create a new storyline for beloved characters.  Could it have been presented a little differently or reworked in some ways?  Sure.  And it’s impossible to please everyone–despite a well done movie there will always be fans of the deerstalker hat wearing Sherlock Holmes, with his prim deductions and whose only vice is smoking a pipe.  The new version is thrilling, the old classy, and both make logic sexy.  Sherlock Holmes has been popular since his first appearance 122 years ago–he captures our imagination for daring-do, crime fighting, and mystery.  He has spawned as many literary adaptations as Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, as well as countless movies.  His stories even predicted the use of forensics to solve crimes.  So whether you like one version of detective over another is immaterial–the man is here to stay.

Either version, I love Sherlock Holmes whether he is captured on film or in the pages.  I’ve loved him since I was a little girl when my grandmother would allow me to bring a big magnifying glass with me to the local farm where she would buy a bunch of vegetables for dinner and a licorice pipe for me.  I’ll continue to love him as I add various compilations of the stories to my collection.

And I still want to make out with Jude Law Dr. Watson.

4 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: Where Do We Go Now?

4th December, 2009 by Christina - 16 Comments

I was seven-years-old when Star Trek: The Next Generationcame out–kids that age don’t have control of the remote during prime time hours.  So here I am, twenty-two years after the show premiered, finally getting around to watching the series.  Amnesia of the Future has been a fun ride as my geek envy has turned me a little more geekish. 

The past month has seen this site and my Twitter account dominated by all things Star Trek.  I tweeted things about how I danced in my kitchen to the theme song while making lentil soup or how I would totally marry a rich man for the holodeck he could buy me.  I wanted to build a shield around my cube at work so that no one could bother me while I talked shop with friends who were fans of the show.  Each week, I eagerly looked forward to a new disk arriving and how many hours it would be until I was home and able to watch the show.

People really got behind my mini-addiction by sending me links and photos and general encouragement.  Inkwell Bookstore sent me the cute Spock drawing, Rik brought over a giant computer monitor for better viewing while Ryan, Heather, and Reagan all joined me as I dipped my toe into obsessive behavior.  I’ve even gotten a few offers to accompany me to a convention and a suggestion to make next year’s Mermaid Parade costume into a Trekkie Mermaid. 

And the coup de gras of it all, Wil Wheaton quoted a line from one of my posts on Twitter.  At first I thought he was linking to my site and then I almost fainted in the cobbler’s once I clicked the link and his site began to open because–Holy Shit! Wil Wheaton wrote about me!  An entire post.  And I proceeded to annoy all my friends and family by gloating.

I’m rather sad that my little journey is over.  Wil Wheaton is currently working on Volume 2 and I don’t want to suspend my viewing until it’s published so that I’m able to continue reviewing the book and episodes in tandem.  But I also can’t watch the episodes and review them later because time and experience is going to color my views.  As I reviewed these first 13 episodes, people would occasionally question the fact that I liked certain episodes because there are so many better ones out there…I can’t compare though because I’ve never seen them.  Wil Wheaton recalls liking Datalore when he was younger, so it seems fit that upon my first viewing, I too would like episodes that degenerate with repeated viewings. 

I don’t think I would sit down and just read the book cover to cover despite how entertaining it is.  Rather, it’s well-suited for reading with the episodes, the slower pace of reading allowing each chapter to retain its hilarity.  My viewings and writing style were definitely colored and influenced by Memories of the Future in a similar way to seeing a movie before reading the book–suddenly you picture each character as they were on film rather than developing your own image. 

Similarly, in his chapters Wil Wheaton is in the role of critic–looking for glitches and anything to turn into a joke.  When I finished watching Datalore, I immediately wrote up my review so that it wouldn’t be influenced by the eyes of the jaded.  I wanted my review to be a pure reaction based solely on watching the episode as a fan, not a reviewer. 

Last night I watched Angel One and 11001001.  Oh, all the things I thought to say!  So I’d like to know…

There’s no book to review for now, but do you want me to keep going with my reviews? 

I have to reassert Stacked as the book blog it is and therefore would make a sub-blog focusing on reviews of the episodes through the eyes of someone who has never seen them before.  The plan would be to eventually watch all of TNG before going back to watch the original series and the movies.  Somewhere along the way maybe I’ll end up at a convention and finally get around to watching Deep Space 9 and Voyager. 

Please let me know in the comments, via Twitter (http://twitter.com/stackedblog), or email me at info@stackedblog.com to let me know what you think. 

Now the important part:

Dear Wil Wheaton,

Thanks for being cool with my satirizing the title of your book and writing my own reviews of TNG.  If people would like me to continue Amnesia of the Future, I want your blessing–because, lets face it–I’m totally riding on your coattails here.  I promise to only drop a few @replies on Twitter to get your attention, maybe a comment on Memories of the Futurecast–which, by the way, I totally love–but I won’t stalk you (unless you happen to be at whatever convention I decided to get myself to, in which case I’m hunting you down).

I don’t want to infringe on your territory with Memories of the Future, and if you don’t like the idea, I will let things end as they are. 

In the meantime, I can’t wait for your next book and thank you for being part of the catalyst that has made me into a Star Trek fan.

Christina

With or without a continuation of my reviews, I’ve boldly gone into geek territory and come out the other side more appreciative of my own geek behavior.  To all the non-Trekkies who have put up with the influx of posts the past few weeks, thank you for your patience ,and to all the Trekkie supporters, thanks for stopping by and encouraging my viewing.  In the meantime, while I decide what to do, live long and prosper. 

16 Comments

2009 Stacked Gift Guide

2nd December, 2009 by Christina - 4 Comments

While I love giving books as gifts, after seeing so many other book bloggers offering various lists, I decided I wanted to do something a little different.  Even wrapped, books are pretty easy to pick out and many people are very picky about what titles you get them, so books can be difficult to give as a surprise.  For the 2009 Stacked Holiday Gift Guide, here are nine gift suggestions to get the book lover in your life that aren’t books.  All of these can be found on Etsy, and in some cases are one of a kind.

1. One-of-a-kind embroidered 5×7 journal by Spacedog Studios $35.00

2. Custom bookplate stamp by Asspocket Productions $13.50 (may take three weeks for custom work)

3. “I Like Bookworms” pin by beanforest $1.00

4. “I’m Late” White Rabbit pendant necklace by Cinsational Baubles $20.00

5. Etched metal dragonfly filigree bookmark by ZENTRUM STUDIOS $20.00

6.  “Don’t Judge Me” Kindle cover by Busted Typewriter $25.00

7. Good Books, Inc. tote by pnp printing $15.00

8. Handcrafted mermaid bookends by junhuang $50.00

9. “Oak Reading Rooom” 8.5 x 11 print by naokosstoop $20.00

All items were found on Etsy.com.  Stacked has no prior relationship with any of the shops and did not receive any form of payment for including these items.  We just liked them and thought our readers would as well.

4 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: Datalore

2nd December, 2009 by Christina - 3 Comments

I can just see it now, Brent Spiner first getting the job on Star Trek and being told to act like a robot attempting to act human.  Then, thirteen episodes in, act like a robot attempting to act human, act like an almost identical robot attempting more successfully to act human, and act as that second robot attempting to act like the first robot.

Hayley Mills, Lindsey Lohan–your role(s) of twin sisters in The Parent Trap was a cakewalk compared to the acting chops Brent Spiner just displayed in Datalore.  I finished watching the previous episodes over a week ago and hung onto the disk to re-watch as I wrote my reviews and returned it to Netflix so that even with the long holiday weekend I’d be able to watch Datalore on Monday evening.  And I was so excited to see an email state that the disk had been sent and it was going to be waiting for me…right there in the mailbox, just waiting…until I got home from work.

Let’s reiterate that Brent Spiner is brilliant.  I’ve totally started stalking him on Twitter now.  You’re next, LeVar Burton.

What I don’t understand about this episode is how they couldn’t tell Data and Lore apart.  You’re on the frickin’ Enterprise!!  You can make ninjas appear in the holodeck, have a machine that will eventually form matter into Earl Grey tea, can tell that Lore has left his quarters…and you’re all relying on a facial tick and speech choice to tell the difference between the two?  The same person who forgot the firewall to keep the Ferengi out of the computer’s library must have been in charge of the “Data GPS Chip” that would have allowed the ship’s computer to recognize Data.  Let’s also point out the fact that the Lore head, when Data picked it up, had stupider poofy hair!  Did a haircut come with assembly?

Even Harry Potter had a fancy map that told you who was where in Hogwarts, and changing clothes with someone does mess the map up.

Memories of the Future:  Chapter 13

Thanks to watching original Warner Brothers cartoons as a kid, my adult life is really messed up–like the fact that I see about 4+ operas a year, and it’s rather difficult to be watching Figaro deliver his famous song only to see Bugs Bunny there in front of you instead of whichever tenor is on stage.  Or listening to blues and mis-hearing “Blues in The Night” as “My momma done told me when I was in knee pants to bring something home for lu-unch.”

So when Wil Wheaton writes:

Data wants to put it together and activate it, so he can love it and keep it and pet it and call it George.

I squealed.  Cannot tell you how many times I’ve said that and gotten the Christina-has-officially-lost-it looks.

But then he keeps writing and I realized that I had overlooked a lot of bad stuff that was going on in this episode–possibly because of my crush on Data and just how well Brent Spiner played the dual role.  So now, I just want to say “SHUT UP, WIL WHEATON!” cause you totally ruined Datalore for me now that I read the chapter and I’m never going to be able to go back and just be entertained by this episode.

Oh, and when does Volume 2 come out?  I’d like it tomorrow.  Make it so, Wil Wheaton.

3 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: The Big Goodbye

1st December, 2009 by Christina - 4 Comments

Before I talk about The Big Goodbye, I want to briefly tell you a little story about what a small world it is. 

I got a note from a friend on Facebook this weekend stating that he met a woman from LA named Debbie (who is a friend of a friend of mine) at a dance thing in Melbourne, Australia.  I’m not sure of the order in which this conversation all took place, but apparently she met Wil Wheaton recently at Wootstock, and when Darren mentioned my blog, the first thing she said was, “That’s the one that Wil Wheaton mentioned!”

Hello fifteen minutes.

In other news (promise I’m getting to the review in a minute)…last night, on my way home to watch Datalore, I found out that the twins my sister is carrying will be identical boys.  I think she should name them “Data” and “Lore,” but I’m pretty sure I’m getting vetoed on that one.

So, The Big Goodbye.

This weekend, I styled a photo shoot for a friend and the theme was Speakeasy/Prohibition.  It’s really difficult to do a shoot like this because getting the period look is difficult enough and even more so when you have no money.  The reason I was asked to do this was because of the whole swing dancing thing.  However, my clothes are vintage inspired, which means they don’t really look accurate.  And I go more for a 1960s Mad Men look than I do 1920s flapper.  A friend joined in and we went more for capturing the essence of Prohibition than we did accuracy.

There was an episode (Life in the Past Lane - clips on YouTube) of Dariawhere Jane started dating a vintage obsessed fellow, and in one scene he admonishes her for mixing a 1940s dress with 1950s shoes, and she retorts that he’s being too nit-picky seeing as they’re going to a tiki-lounge and he’s wearing a zoot suit.  In the late ’90s, swing dancers and loungers were really hung up on authenticity.  It’s calmed down a lot since then, but people still get worked up over authentic music and make fun of newb dancers who like Big Bad Voodoo Daddy over Duke Ellington or wear saddle shoes and poodle skirts instead of Keds and sweat-friendly tee-shirts. 

So while it’s unlikely I’ll ever become a hardcore Trekkie, I completely understand that obsessive behavior of getting things right.  Watching The Big Goodbye made me realize how brilliant Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner are as actors and made me appreciate Gates McFadden as an actress–because up until this point, we really haven’t seen what she can do.  And here she nails that fine line of trying to fit in while still being completely awkward in her surroundings.   There’s so much to posture, movement, and speech that has changed in the past 70 years that makes it really difficult to capture that essence now, and McFadden does a lovely job of being naive, enthralled while imitating the period with limited knowledge. It would sort of be like going back to an Elizabethan court and trying to act natural based on a few biographies and too many viewings of Shakespeare in Love.  As a result she’s a lovely ingenue. 

I also love the looks and reactions of the Starfleet crew in the holodeck.  They’re just so excited to be there, sort of like those Tony and Tina’s Wedding performances where you are both observer and participant; they can be thrilled with the unfolding of events as long as they think they are safe and removed from danger.  That immediate switch to “Oh, shit–Houston, we have a problem” is seamless. 

With this review, I don’t really have anything snarky to add, so I guess I’ll just say that if I didn’t already love Data, seeing him in a vintage pinstripe suit would have done the trick.  Swoon.  That goes for Captain Picard too.  And you know what, Dr. Crusher too.  She’s smokin’ in this episode. 

Also, I want a holodeck of my own.  I’m thinking I can clear out one of my closets and just put it in there.

Memories of the Future:  Chapter 12

I’m really failing here.  So far, I’ve re-read the chapter a few times, and I still don’t know what to say.  In part, I think this is because The Big Goodbye is such a good episode–how do you really make fun of it?  Even Wil Wheaton snark ebbs low–so it’s not just me blathering about what great actors these people are.  Hearing him talk so highly of the skills his fellow co-stars possess is great.  You can really see in his writing how much he admires the talents of Patrick Stewart. 

As in every episode, there are problems and inconsistencies, but just as in previous episodes, sometimes great acting covers up the issues.  While I’ve been enjoying all the jabs of previous episodes, the slight change of tone here is surprisingly refreshing.  If Wil Wheaton has been grading all these on a curve, and this episode won a Peabody, and future seasons are supposedly much better than this first one…well then I’m excited to continue watching because it’s already enjoyable.

4 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: Haven

30th November, 2009 by Christina - 2 Comments

My dad and I have this joke that my mother MUST get her way–all the time.

Actually, it’s not so much a joke as it is the truth.*

Watching Haven, Lwaxana Troi totally reminded me of my mother.  I’m not sure if I should be happy mom doesn’t watch/never watched Star Trek and so can’t be insulted or to maybe rent the disk next time I visit my parents so that she can watch it and maybe get the hint that I don’t need her to call and remind me to brush my teeth every night.

Okay, that’s an exaggeration–my mom isn’t thatbad or anywhere near as annoying as Lwaxana. 

But if you’re a Big Bang Theory fan, you might recall this season’s episode where Penny and Leonard set Howard up with Bernadette and the two bond over the fact that their mothers are a bit…smothering.  After the episode premiered, my mother sent me an email stating that SHE was Howard’s mother–while visiting the previous weekend she had made me healthy lunches and chosen outfits for me for the week.

By the way, if this is my last post ever, please know that my mother has just killed me for sharing all that. **

That’s basically the long-form way of saying that for one episode, and one episode only, I did not hate Troi.

And rather than ruin the funny that I’ve already written, I will sum-up by stating that I enjoyed Haven and am not going to bore you with other random thoughts and facts.

Memories of the Future:  Chapter 11

Let’s reiterate things I’ve said in past posts while reviewing Memories of the Future–Wil Wheaton is funny.  First-off, if I didn’t love my liver so much, I might be inclined to take part in the drinking game he talks about in the Haven chapter.  My favorite line in the entire book is included in the synopsis of the episode:

If you’ve been playing [the drinking game], and you’re not passed out by now, I’d like to say how cool I think it is that Keith Richards is reading my book.

I’ve also previously stated that my favorite parts of each chapter are the Behind the Scenes moments, and I’m disapointed they aren’t longer.  With Haven, we learn a little more ab0ut the process of writing/directing a television show, which the average person (i.e., ME) is completely unaware of but can make or break a show.  As shows now make their way to DVD, we get all sorts of bonus features–anyone watching all the extras is paying a lot of attention to the man behind the curtain.  On one of the Brothers & Sisters DVDs, instead of having the director or cast do a voice-over commentary, the writers of a particular episode talk about the choices they made in writing and seeing their words come to life. 

It was interesting to learn that so many different writers and directors were involved in Star Trek and even more surprising at how few writers would even bother to talk to the actors about the personalities of specific characters.  To do that just seems so risky; you end up with a very flat show that no one wants to watch because the audience cannot connect with any of the characters.  Lucky for the Haven episode there was a talented writer who made me not hate Troi for once and some rather lovely acting and character development.

Additionally, back in 1987 a large budget was still too small for the special effects that were needed.  I don’t think many of us give much thought to the fact that in twenty-two years technology has progressed to a point where it’s now so cheap to make chameleon roses actually change colors more than once, or to create a snake-like vine plant that doesn’t look like a clearance item from the K-mart silk plants department and only moves for five seconds.  Despite the large budget, had things been cheaper back then, both things could have been a lot of fun in this episode.

Also, the little girl in the Partridge Family had her own clothing line (not that she saw a penny of it) while her show was on the air.  How come Sears didn’t have a line of Wesley Crusher sweaters? 

*Seriously.  Some people who used to work for her at this charity event she ran called her DAISY.  Which is a NASA acronym for “Do As I Say, You!”

** In the weird coincidence that something “does” happen to me, please note that my mother would have had nothing to do with it.  She’s actually the most awesomest mom ever and just happens to be a really easy to pick on.  If she was your mom you’d pick on her too because she just sets herself up for it and rarely ever gets annoyed about it.

2 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: Hide and Q

25th November, 2009 by Christina - 9 Comments

My two first impressions of Hide and Q were as follows:

1) Yay!  No Troi!  Please don’t let this be a trick!
2) Q?  Ah man.  What a crappy trade-off.

And then I began to like Q.  Well, not like him.  He’s an obnoxious patronizing egoist who when he doesn’t get his way belittles before acting like a petulant child.  I dated a guy like him once.  Never again.

Unlike my ex, Q is fun.  And despite his deranged assumptions and approaches to dealing with mankind, he’s also millions of times smarter. Q is also much more interesting than Troi. 

Back in January, I set myself a little goal of reading 100 books over the course of the year.  After finishing watching The Battle, I got nervous that maybe Amnesia of the Future had maybe gotten in the way of achieving this.  It sort of has.  I’ve so far read 87 books (88 once I’ve finished watching Datalore), and were it not for the regular Star Trek watching, I’d probably be ahead of the required two books a week.  While I’m not behind, I can’t screw up at all lest I set myself back and am unable to recover. 

However, I read because I like expanding my mind.  It’s surprising to me how much that has happened with 10 episodes of Star Trek.  I wasn’t expecting this.  Watching Hide and Q–particularly that fantastic scene between Q and Picard where they quote Shakespeare–I realized that quite a number of famous works of writing have been mentioned–the aforementioned Shakespeare, Data’s obsession with Sherlock Holmes, a nod to pulp-fiction mysteries, Sun Tzu.  How appropriate that the book blogger pick up on these references.  Also it was appropriately subtle to have Picard say, “I know Hamlet,” and proceed to quote from the play.  Nice touch there, writers, way to get back on your game. 

Anyway, it’s interesting watching Q’s interaction with the crew–sort of like a fraternity brother during the hazing period right before initiation making some poor pledge (Riker) give up his old friends.  I’d like to point out that I said to the screen, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely,” about twenty seconds before Riker said it. 

Oh, and does anyone else find it sort of creepy that Geordi LaForge is all “Looking good Wesley,” to the adult body/boy-genius mind of Wesley Crusher?  It’s all ikky like Wooderson in Dazed & Confused when he says, “That’s what I love about these high school girls, man.  I get older, they stay the same age.”

Memories of the Future:  Chapter 10

Apparently it’s the episode of book references.  Lord of the Rings?  Animal Farm?  I love a good book reference though, and the Helms Deep comparison was entertaining.  As I attempt to combine episode and chapter reviews, I find it difficult not to give too much away so that people will actually purchase Memories of the Future.  What I find most interesting about them is the brief and often surprising post-recap writing, which makes it difficult to avoid spoilers.*

This episode makes me want to reiterate the “Show.  Don’t Tell” concept as there is a lot of talking.  To quote Wil Wheaton:

There are moments of engaging character interaction between Riker and Q, Riker and Picard, and Picard and Q, but there’s a lot of expository, preachy, I-am-going-to-make-my-point-and-you-can’t-stop-me dialogue in those scenes that’s emotionally disconnected and tiresome.  If a writer or producer wants to get points across to his audience, I think it’s better to do it less obviously, with more allegory and fewer Powerpoint presentations.

I pretty much just gave you the entire “bottom line” there.  Sums it up pretty well, although I’m glad to see it was creatively done rather than having (choose one) Data/ Wesley/Troi/Dr. Crusher lecture Captain Picard on something that any human–especially a Starfleet officer–should already know. 

This chapter also gave me greater insight into Wil Wheaton’s own reactions to what was becoming the Wesley Crusher Hate Brigade.  Up until The Battle, I couldn’t see what all the hub-bub was about or why Wil Wheaton kept harping on it.  Understanding how shitty it must have been to be a teenager, at a convention, and to have someone ask for your autograph…on a photo of you being stabbed to death…I’d be asking for a permanent security detail (maybe Worf has some relatives?) and someone to taste-test my food if I were in that position. 

 
TANGENT & POLL:

I posed a question on Twitter last night and feel that it makes a statement about me and the fact that I’ve admitted to people that the fictional characters I want to play tonsil-hockey with lately are:  Data, Sheldon Cooper,and Fawkes.  (Yup, the adult “I’m a dick” Wil Wheaton role on The Guild–if you missed the note at the beginning of this post about my ex, this one makes soooo much sense.)  I’ve started to wonder about the types I’m  attracted to:  an android, a genius with social issues, and an asshole.  Awesome. 

Through Twitter, I engaged in a conversation with Jackie, to which she said:

Worf would be total passion without needless emotion.  Geez, now you’ve sucked me into thinking about this!

Well, if she were up on her Star Trek, she would have heard Worf admitting in Hide and Qthat he has no place in his life for sex (followed by Q’s lovely, “WTF, everyone needs and loves sex!” reaction), so apparently Worf isn’t a very practical option as a lover right now.

Anyway…

Yes, I have a crush on Data, an obsession with Spock, and I’m now curious as to which characters other fans of Star Trek lust after.  Please do tell in the comments and don’t make me feel really embarrassed for sharing that last paragraph.  Doesn’t matter which series/movie the character is from–who would you do and why?

*There were another two paragraphs that after reading I realized were basically my own reflections on everything Wil Wheaton said after.  It’s never easy to cut one’s own writing when one has something they want to say, but as I mentioned, it’s a good book and spilling all the details defeats the purpose.  In true nerd fashion, I am more than willing to chat more privately on my other thoughts, including the fact that I’m glad to see LeVar Burton had more lines this time around (although he is sadly underutilized).

9 Comments

Amnesia of the Future: The Battle

24th November, 2009 by Christina - 2 Comments

I just spent two hours thinking I had no point, no cohesive summary for The Battle.  And then, looking at my list of nine bullets pointing out the good and the bad of the episode, I realized something.  All along, Wil Wheaton has been pointing out that the actors on a show are sort of at the mercy of the writers.  And if your writers sort of suck…

There was some good stuff to it all; the Ferengi in this episode would have made a much better intro to the diabolical, shifty, and crafty enemy race.  I’d trust these guys about as far as Wesley Crusher could throw them.  Which isn’t particularly far. 

Patrick Stewart really saves the day in this episode.  His acting is outstanding and you feel such tenderness for very simple moments–whether he is describing his action on the Stargazer that would later be dubbed as The Picard Maneuver (such a boy moment!) or the emotional tugs of being on the bridge of his old command–he just really nails it. 

But the rest of the cast has to deal with crap.  Troi is still pointless in an episode where she should be of some use with Picard’s double thoughts. The Battle is sort of a repeat of Lonely Among Us:  Picard’s mental faculties are taken over by an outside force that convinces him to beam himself out of the safety of the Enterprise and into a dangerous situation where he’s probably going to die.  The crew is pretty up on esoteric ancient texts; they should take a page from The Odyssey and handcuff their captain to his chair in the bridge as he hears way too many Sirens calling out to him. 

Meanwhile, Dr. Crusher has to deal with a script that forces her to pointlessly explain to Picard, for the benefit of the audience, how humans have overcome headaches (which doesn’t make a ton of sense to me; unless you’re perpetually drugging your people a la Brave New World or evolution booted headaches, wouldn’t the human body and mind function the same and therefore still produce them?) and act like a bit of a moron unable to figure out what’s wrong with Picard despite the fact that she’s clearly not.

I also feel bad for Geordi La Farge.  As a character he’s simply an echo of Wesley Crusher.  Speaking of whom, I finally get it.  Clearly, Wheaton’s Law is forgotten over the course of the next 400 years, because Wesley Crusher, you sir, are a dick.  You haven’t gotten laid, you are a nerd with no friends, and here you are being all snarkyand teenage rebellious behind your mom’s back.  Before this, Wesley was the pitiful nerd boy and I’m not sure why the writers gave him an attitude.  Other than becoming acting ensign a few episodes, it’s not like he’s really done anything (like that Edo chick)  in the past episodes to warrant such a drastic personality change.

Some things I don’t understand and will chalk up to the writers realizing they’d dug themselves into a hole:

1) Why doesn’t Riker just destroy the “thought maker” that’s on the Enterprise rather than hoping he can get through the altered thoughts of Picard to blow up the one on the Stargazer?
2) Wouldn’t there have been more DRAMA! and TENSION! if the audience didn’t realize there was a control device until Worf went to search through Picard’s belongings?
3) I realize there had to be some way of discovering that the signal pattern from the “thought maker” and the pattern of Picard’s thoughts matched–but it was just stupid using Wesley to figure it out for two reasons:

a. Who lets an acting ensign tinker around with the ship?  Isn’t that what school is for?  So you learn in a controlled environment and don’t accidentally break the real thing?

b. Mom is a doctor, not Wesley.  I understand he’d be the only one whose presence in both engineering and sickbay is understandable, but wow, contrived.  He’s an engineering boy-genius, not a doctor!*

Memories of the Future:  Chapter 9

I’m really grateful to have Wil Wheaton’s Memories of the Future on hand.  As I’m watching these episodes for the first time, I miss a lot while trying to absorb all that’s going on.  There are definitely cringe-worthy moments and others worth some sort of award for the acting involved.  Truth be told, my reviews come from a mix of watching an episode, watching it again while taking notes, and watching it a third time after having read the corresponding chapter.  

It’s not a completely honest first-time reaction as a result; however, I do try to write it all before reading and watching for the third time.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t go back and retweak for clarity when working out a final draft. 

What I like about the book is that I get to notice things that make sense and are so obvious, but that I miss because I’m checking Twitter/getting a glass of water/sleep deprived and imaging cockroaches in my apartment.**

Here, in the Behind the Scenes, is finally the explanation for why alt.wesley.crusher.die.die.die existed.  Or does it still exist?  I might want to join.  The scene in sickbay stood out immediately whereas the first time around I didn’t notice how Wesley bypasses all chain of command in the bridge.  He’s a little sullen and petulant to all the adults (including Captain Picard) and on top of a complete personality change has dialogue that makes him sound like a douche while incomprehensibly saving the day.

Now, I really don’t know anything about writing for television, but it seems that there should have been someone in the room as this script was worked out who could point out all its shortcomings.  It’s not the worst episode I’ve seen so far, but clearly not the best either.  Why wasn’t there a producer culling the wheat from the chaff with each successful or unsuccessful episode?  The quality of an entire episode should be a combination of great writing and great acting, a fusion of parts to create a whole.  That success shouldn’t rest squarely on the shoulders of one actor, no matter how talented he may be.  Just to be clear, I’m referring to Patrick Stewart. 

It must have been incredible to be Wil Wheaton back then getting to watch Stewart do his thing.  He may not have appreciated The Blue Boy, but being around a master of the trade has got to be such an amazing experience.  I get chills watching Picard on my little 14” computer monitor.  As an actor, to be in the same room must have been so inspiring. 

*I was trying to figure out where that “I’m a doctor, not a…came from on Google and was completely unaware that it was a common Star Trek: The Original Series phrase.  I feel cleverer than that accidental choice in comment really was.

**Once you have a large cockroach crawl up the inside of your pants, forcing you to drop said pants on a subway platform at 1 am, you too will see them EVERYWHERE!  Especially when sleep deprived.

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Amnesia of the Future: Justice

23rd November, 2009 by Christina - 2 Comments

If there were any justice in space, Wesley Crusher would have gotten laid. 

As an episode, Justice was a welcome surprise.  We seem to be back on track with good episodes and the about-face in direction during the episode was unexpected and well done.  Planet Marvin Gaye suddenly becomes Planet “We Don’t Talk About These Subjects At Cocktail Parties.” 

The episode starts with a few famous last words by Picard as his away team prepares to beam down to the reincarnated Garden of Eden, “Let’s just hope it’s not too good to be true.”  At first, I was expecting Riker to get caught with his pants around his ankles, resulting in some sort of intergalactic crisis because he was boffing the planetary leader’s number one gal or for bringing back space clap to the ship.  Switching to  a message of theology, capital punishment, and defining the moving lines of justice was crafty and intelligent.

My dislike of Troi continues.  Her acting seems more confident and therefore more believable, but she still can’t do her job as ship’s councilor.  All she feels on the planet is a lot of innuendo rather than Wesley’s extreme discomfort at being hugged.  In fact, it takes one of the natives to pick up on the fact that Wesley is extremely innocent.  The young girl hints at the fact that they should play a game of their own and what she wants to say is “show me how to play with your balls.”  But when Wesley starts stammering and turns beet red, she changes tactics and asks him to teach her to play ball.  Out of the three boys she’s hanging out with, Wesley should clearly not be her first choice in sports education.

I hope that for the ordeal that he’s forced to go through, Riker takes pity on the boy.  Not only did the kid not get laid in the land where everyone does the mattress mambo, he also gets a death sentence.  Set up the holodeck so that Wesley can have a “first encounter” because after his verbal stumbling in front of a sure thing he’s seriously never going to get a little sumthin’ sumthin’ that doesn’t involve a sock and some hand cream. 

Oddly enough, despite all the hanky panky going on among the Edo, none of the crew is partaking.  Instead they’re sitting around, still fully clothed…discussing capital punishment?  Wait, did I miss something here?  Or has Worf been given the job of setting Wesley up with a virtual hooker in the holodeck with the idea that ”capital punishment” involves whips, wax, and Wesley in the submissive role?  Nope, we’re really talking about the fact that forbidden fruit is now a forbidden plot of land and instead of being kicked off the island you get to die when you partake. 

I rather enjoyed the episode.  The subject matter is pretty surface-based, but similar to the fact that Picard really has to look at his own beliefs to discover the proper course of action, I think Justice, and Star Trek as a whole, encourages viewers to analyze the ethics and morality of various cultural values.  In day to day existence, it’s very easy to have faith like the Edo do in their god; it’s much more difficult to make choices based on free will. 

At one point, I even found myself understanding the point of view of people who believe that the Sphinx and Great Pyramids were built by aliens who have long since abandoned earth.  The idea is quite old with contemporary analysis of Mayan carvings on  the sarcophogus lid of King Pacal suggesting rulers flying in space ships and as Tom Stone learned while studying the mythology of Zeus, some Greek communities have and still believe that the Greek gods were actually aliens messing with and looking after human affairs.  I’m not about to go don my own tinfoil hat, but it does raise some interesting questions as the Edo worship an alien race that orbits their planet and looks after them.

Memories of the Future: Chapter 8

In the “Behind the Scenes” portion of the chapter, Wil Wheaton goes on a little tangent about a teacher encouraging him to check out the painting The Blue Boy which was housed at one of the locations used for this episode.  So here’s my own little tangent. 

In 1987, my family moved into a new house that we’d had built and proceeded to decorate room by room.  While my parents’ decorating choices involve comfortable furniture, the house has a “high-end bed and breakfast feel” to it.  My bedroom was one of the first ones complete with a typical 7-year-old girl theme that was classic enough to be appropriate years later after I’d moved out (had I not destroyed half the furniture and carpet over the years)–white frilled canopy bed, pink and blue floral wallpaper…and a print of The Blue Boy and his companion painting Pinkie.  Like Wil Wheaton, by the time I was 15, I was unimpressed with the paintings, felt the entire room made me a dweeb, and proceeded to cover the surrounding walls in Absolut ads.  Clearly I WAS a dweeb because rather than going collage style or adding clippings of cute actors and favorite bands, I arranged my ads all parallel to each other and would rearrange them as I added new ones so that there was never a lone ad–everything had to be squared off.

Wil Wheaton points out that, “It’s never easy to tackle things like capital punishment and religion, because you’re bound to offend someone, but we did it pretty fearlessly in this one.”  Star Trek handled the subject matter with class and elegance.  By acknowledging the tender footing that is required when dealing with a different set of beliefs and still remaining confident in presentation allows the episode to be successful. 

It is further proof to me that things are looking up.  Overall the episodes are much stronger than the earlier ones.  Occasionally there is a blip where things start to go downhill but I now look forward to forthcoming episodes for the general enjoyment and delight of them and the provocative philosophy they present.

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