The Disgruntled Individual

Much to my relief, earlier this week when the Jurassic World trailer appeared online, it was good. As a 2 minutes and change introduction to what I had previously considered a senseless money grab, it was solid. It was yet another piece of evidence in Colin Trevorrow's growing armada of evidence that suggests that his entry into the franchise won't be pointless after all. Not a complete dissuading of all fears - only the film itself will be able to do that - but as opening arguments go, it was convincing.  Of course, marketing is meant to be manipulative, and I can think of nothing quite as emotionally manipulative as that haunting piano music that ends this trailer. But lets set that aside for a moment and revel in this footage.

Nothing like a good reveling. Of course, while we're doing that, we start to pick up on some things. What exactly this trailer tells us about the film, and what it carefully omits. Many sites have went over the trailer, frame by frame, but I thought I'd go over it a little more analytically. What does this footage, carefully pruned from the final bouquet, reveal? The influences, the foreshadowing, and whether the film really is worth getting excited over.

Hit the jump for a journey into absurd detail.

The BBC has been right rampant with teases and hints and musings about it's upcoming Christmas season, and I thought I'd collect them all in one easy to find spot.

Starting off, Radio 4 has announced that Dirk Magg's six-part adaptation of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens will begin airing on the 22nd of December and run straight through the holidays until the one hour finale on the 27th. To cap this announcement, they've released a clip of show, containing the author's cameos.

After the jump, things get Strange. We should probably call the Doctor, as the game is afoot.

Courtesy of HBO

This week's episode was the least cohesive episode of the season thus far, but somehow that failed to impact the overall quality of the episode. The through line of the season is now clearly the legal drama involving Neal's leaker, and that provided the dramatic backbone of the episode. The rest was a series of mad cap comedy scenes, meant to be as clever and entertaining as possible. This season, perhaps because of Paul Lieberstein's stewardship behind the scenes, has been the best of the three, and that is in no small part due to the greater influx of comedy. The show has never not been funny, but the comedy seems much more directed, much more purposeful this year. Maybe part of that has been the use of comedic actors in the larger guest roles, which has been working very much to the show's credit.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that despite their intentions, have a tiny bit of dickishness in their voice when they speak.

When Jurassic World was first announced, I was among the dissenting voices. And slowly, as more and more details emerged, I moved on from my initial gut, emotional reaction, and began reacting to actual data. And slowly, I warmed to the film that Colin Trevorrow. Today, they have unleashed the first trailer, a full trailer rather a teaser, and...

I have chills. Maybe it's the incredibly melodious solo piano version of John Williams' theme song. Maybe it is how beautiful this early footage looks (even if it is overly computer generated). Maybe it's because I want to go to there so much, even with the running and the screaming. Later in the week, barring something unforeseen, I'll be looking at this 2:30 minutes in a little more detail.

In the mean time, I'm very happy.

Courtesy of Marvel Television Productions

I think that Agents of SHIELD might have turns a corner. I think they might have ironed out their issues and, whether accidentally or through sheer will and and glorious purpose, created a television show worth not only watching, but worth anticipating. At nearly the half way mark of the second season, I found myself riveted by the show. I clung to the screen as the events played out, and found myself wanting more. I am looking forward to the next episode, something that has happened only once in the 30 episodes produced so far.

Between the last episode and this, the show has stumbled on to a plot worth investigating, and have come at it not with plodding uncertainty or padded waste, but with a surge of revelatory gusto that has given new life to a dwindled and discarded series. Yes, ultimately, the show isn't saying anything of any lasting or profound effect, but at least it's fun to watch for once. That's one of two conditions I just gave Constantine  for being worthwhile, the other being meaning. Neither of these series have that yet. And I can't honestly say that one is better than the other. This one at least benefits from the occasional cameo from Hayley Atwell.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that requires experimentation.

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Television

As a personal aside, life might be swings and roundabouts, but that doesn't mean the roundabouts suck any less.

Yesterday, NBC announced that they would not be extending Constantine past their initial 13 episode order, though retaining the right to renewal the show for a second season if they so decide. The internet promptly declared this the deathblow to the series which, as is no surprise on NBC, is struggling in the ratings. I choose to take a more pragmatic and optimistic approach. My personal opinion is that no season of television should be more than 13 episodes, as few writer's rooms are able to extend any plot beyond that without falling victim to bloat and padding (there are, of course, exceptions to this but they are few and far between). I look at a 13 episode order as the best possible thing for Constantine, because it'll reduce the opportunity to spin its wheels.

And, it deserves 13 episodes. The series has been getting better with each episode. We're not yet out of the initial six, the truest proving ground for any series (I also admittedly believe that any series should be given at least six episodes before judgement should be past on future viability). There was a rocky start, and some behind the scenes turmoil, but on screen things seem to have found their footing. At the very least, it has settled into a range of tone.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that knows exactly the kind of dessert that pairs right with pig's blood.

Courtesy of HBO

I've been disillusion by some of the TV I watch recently. Watching episodes week to week seems like such a burden. Maybe I'm suffering from depression, or maybe its because so much of TV is just weak soup. What I needed was a punch to the solar plexus, a one-two of good writing, good acting and an episode I could fall into without fear of being assaulted by hack-eyed nonsense. I need a genuine laugh and to genuinely care. And I got it in this episode of the Newsroom, which could have easily been called "Couples Retreat," and in which Aaron Sorkin played to his greatest strengths as a playwright: people talking. Not action (not really), not fiction impugning reality, not any of the things that usually get in his way on the Newsroom. Here, he just wrote discussions, and it was exactly what I needed to cleanse my palette.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that need 4 billion dollars, cash.

Him again...

I don't go in for "viral advertising," especially in the context of films. While I understand and respect myth and world building, a film should be able to stand on it's own and not have to rely on a myriad of background provided by a website. In at least one instance (Prometheus), the "viral" material was more interesting than the film it was meant to be promoting. But for the most part, these attempts to attract the digital audience are either empty-hearted or inconsequential. I've yet to find one that was actively detrimental, but I'm sure it has happened.

Universal has launched their attempt at viral marketing for Jurassic World, which is a little more than six months away. The site is in the guise of the Masrani corporate site. Masrani will be the successor to InGen in the new film, operating the fully functional dinosaur park. the site does give a lot of cool information about the history of the company, filling in some of the gaps between the original films and the new one. But again, if any of this is relevant, it'll be covered in the film and likely in a more engaging fashion.

As a fan of film, it did interest me to learn that, in universe, John Hammond died in 1997, shortly after the events of The Lost World. This makes a certain sense, considering that he was sickly in that film and the InGen's CEO had recently been eaten by a T-rex. Having one of your products unleash mass horror on San Diego probably helped to bring that stock price down. The fully realized Jurassic World opened in 2005, meaning the film will take place during their tenth successful year in operation.

But again, all of that should, or will likely, be part of the film.

Via Collider.

Courtesy of Warner Television

Finally, an episode that feels true to the source material, but not bound by it. But first, an ongoing issue I have with the series: John's tie. I'm a tie man, I appreciate a good tie, and from moment one, I spotted something off with Johnny's. Last week, I figured out what was setting me off: it is tied wrong. Or, rather, it is tied so that it is loose. The pulled loose look is meant to convey the ramshackleness of Constantine's nature, the worn to the edge lifestyle he has adopted. That his situation is so relentlessly grinding, that he must pull loose his tie for even a moment's deep breath. And that would result in an off balance tie, which adds to the overall sense of haphazardness. The tie worn by Matt Ryan has been perfectly tied, with balanced ends, to look loose. To give the illusion of disheveledness. And perhaps that is intentional, yet another smokescreen that Constantine affects to suggest that he doesn't care about himself or others, but actually pays intense and specific attention to every detail. Like tying a tie just wrong.

This was a ballpark episode, as far as this series and NBC in general is concerned. And it achieved this level of quality in two ways. first, it focused on the characters, establishing motivation that inspired action to move the plot forward. And secondly, it ramped up the horror aspects, which lulled the audience into accepting the hero has the focal point of hope, only to dash that concept expertly. If this is the level that the series is able to achieve weekly, or continue to improve upon, the rest of this season should be something to look forward to.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that address the being inside you.

Yesterday, humanity accomplished a first. I love it when that happens.

At 1600 GMT the Philae lander, launched from the Rosetta spacecraft, successfully landed on the surface of the rocky, roughly duck shaped comet 67P, marking the first time a man made object has touched down on the surface of a comet, asteroid, or other Small Solar System Body. The Rosetta mission, launched in 2004 by the European Space Agency, has traveled more than 6 billion kilometres to reach it's current position 510 million kilometres away, in the space between Mars and Jupiter. It caught up to 67P's elliptical orbit, which extends slightly past Jupiter and brings it in to approximately half way between Earth and Mars, and spent weeks mapping the surface of the object so that the Earth-bound team could find the optimal place for a touchdown attempt. An attempt that they gave only a 50% chance of success.

Philae, which will remain in operation until March of next year, with the orbiting Rosetta continuing on until December, or possibly six months after that depending on fuel consumption, was sent to study the composition of primordial comets. Comets were formed 4 billion years ago at the initial formation of the solar system, and have remained preserved since then. To directly study the composition of comets is to both study the original base building blocks of the solar system, and gives us insight into how our planet was formed. Comets, which are frozen balls of ice from the Oort Cloud, are responsible for the vast majority of the water present in a solar system, as comets fall out of their cloud and into the sun's gravity well, randomly smashing into the larger planets and moons further on in. The water that was discovered on the moon is there because of the repeated bombardment over the millenia by comets.

But more than that, research such as the 2005 Deep Impact mission, which shot a copper block at a comet to study the detritus cast off, suggest that comets carry the essential basic elements necessary to create the building blocks for life. The problem is, only so much research can be done studying spray residue and spectrographic analysis. Sometimes, you need to get your hands dirty. The Philae lander is equipped with 10 instruments that will allow for hands on research. These include drilling down 20cm for sample collection, and creating a map of the comet's interior using radio-waves.

The touchdown took seven hours, most of which mission control was completely in the dark. When they reestablished contact, they discovered that a key component of the mission - a twin set of harpoons meant to moor Philae to the surface of the comet - hadn't fired. Meaning that while currently stable, the craft, which weighs only half an ounce in the gravity-weak field generated by 67P, is subject to environmental issues. Namely, gaseous outbursts. Comets, when cold, are icecubes. But when they warm, as 67P will are is nears the sun, they are subject to melting, which in turn allows trapped pockets of pressurized gases to escape in violent bursts of energy. These have been effectively dramatized in Deep Impact. The six month life span of the Philae was given because, by that time, the instruments will become too warm as it swings around the sun. That evaluation was based on Philae being securely tied to the surface. Without the harpoons keeping it tied down, the craft will be subject to potential expulsion should an explosion occur too close.

Whether the Rosetta mission is ultimately a success or a failure, this is nothing short of a monumental achievement. Humanity managed to successfully park a complex and delicate scientific instrument on a snowball hurtling through space at 135,000 km/h, and it mostly worked on the first try. If private companies are serious about wanting to mine asteroids and gather precious element that we've been depleting here on Earth, these are the first steps that must be taken. These initial endeavors will set the stage for all that comes after. This won't be the last such mission, and the data that Rosetta and those that follow gather will give us our best look at how the solar system evolved, from formation to fruition, like cracking open a time capsule. That that sort of information can, without hyperbole, be described as potential life altering. And that is exciting.

Via the Guardian.

In 2013, the worst flood in Alberta occurred, wreaking $1.7 billion in damage to 32 separate communities including Calgary, and killing four people. It was a horrific event, and one that lacks any kind of measurable silver lining. Except, maybe, to paleontology.

Last August, a father and son fishing in the Castle River, west of Lethbridge, discovered a 1133 kilo bolder with exposed fossils inside. Last month, after a year of study on location, the stone was removed to the Royal Tyrrell Museum, Canada's premiere dinosaur research facility. The initial study of the fossil - now believed to be an intact hadrosaur skull - is that it dates back 80 million years and may well belong to a new species. These are, however, preliminary findings, and subject to further and more extensive study now that the specimen is in the lab.

Dr. Donald Henderson, curator of Tyrrell, is excited about the prospects this find has for dinosaur research in Alberta. While the area of Drumheller, in the middle of the province, is one of the best fossil beds in the world, comparatively few fossils are found in the south, nearer to the Montana border. Henderson hopes this discovery means that is about to change. Despite the 200 metres near the discovery site being scoured for further indication of bone fragments, none were found. Henderson believes the stone was shifted during the extreme water conditions during the flood. Lending credence to this notion were the discoveries of other, minor fossil remains made in neighbouring river systems over the course of the summer.

It would be nice if something of value came out of the misery of that flooding, and personally I feel that the discovery of an entirely new species falls firmly in the category of valuable.

Via CBC.

Courtesy of Marvel Television Studios

SHIELD has been "balancing" four main storylines this season: Sky's dad, Ward, Hydra and Whitehall, and Coulson's alien scribbling. This episode finally took the last of those to task, and pretty much resolved the entire plot thread. It was rather sudden, and showed the sort concise storytelling that should be in play when a show is working off a constricted episode count. Which I feel is for the best, because this show has shown a lacking ability to seed  and weave arc information throughout multiple episodes. A serial killer etching the mystery symbols into his victims could have been a season long draw, and served as the major impetus for Coulson's desire to find out what is happening to him. Instead, they opted to introduce Brian van Holt in the last aired episode and then, in one episode, bring an end to the crux of the Guest House mystery.

The upside is that the episode was tight, mythic, well structured and above all, interesting. It was yet another example of what the show can do when it has the right motivation. and I've noticed a correlation between episodes that really work and episodes that feature Coulson going into the field. Too often I think the writers forget that Coulson is a highly trained agent, who took out two armed robbers with a bag of flour in one of the Marvel One Shot's. Episodes like this remind us of his capabilities beyond the snark.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers which were on page 117 outside, and are still on page 117.

Coming off his success with Mandatory Fun, RadioShack (which is still a thing, apparently; I thought they went under long ago) has enlisted Weird Al to act as their holiday emissary. In what I suspect is the first of several commercials we'll see between the Thanksgiving rush and Christmas, Weird Al sings his way through the Shack's selection of tech toys.

It's not as weird as it could be; I expect that this is RadioShack not wanting to appear completely insane. You can bet that if Al had complete creative control, this commercial, while being illustrative and informative, would have also included a remote control badger or illuminated cheese, or some such oddity.

Via Uproxx.

A few months ago, Bruce Campbell let slip that an Evil Dead TV series was in the making, but could offer no specific details about when, or with whom. At the time, I disregarded it as the usual fan wank, since "when are you making an Army of Darkness sequel?" is literally the question Campbell gets asked the most, and he's been giving general noncommittal answers for years.

Well, this shows us. Starz has ordered ten episodes of Ash Vs Evil Dead, which will see Campbell return to his star-making role 23 years after he last played Ash. The 2015-expected series will concern "a Deadite plague [that] threatens to destroy all of mankind, Ash is finally forced to face his demons –personal and literal." Campbell will produce the series along side long-time collaborators Rob Tapert, Ivan and Sam Raimi. The latter Raimi will direct the first episode, as well as co-write the series with his brother and former Chuck scribe Tom Spezialy. Said Sam, "Bruce, Rob, and I are thrilled to have the opportunity to tell the next chapter in Ash’s lame, but heroic saga." While not mentioned in this first announcement, I would guess that the other Raimi, Ted, will also be involved in some capacity onscreen.

I've always felt that Campbell's TV work (the Evil Dead movies not withstanding) has been his superior product, be it his time on Xena, or Brisco County, or Burn Notice. So I'm properly excited about seeing what he'll be able to do with Ash in a long format environment. And Starz, with their wiliness to push the content envelope, might be a fertile ground from which the Evil Dead can rise again.

Via Den of Geek.

Courtesy of HBO

I don't think the phrase "the more things change, the more they stay the same" has ever been more true than with Aaron Sorkin's The Newroom. Returning for a final six episode season, the HBO drama is coming off a highly uneven second year, one in which Sorkin attempted to course correct his mistakes from year one, and ended up making all new ones. Season two had some big highs (the two part finale) and some miserable lows (the Africa storyline chef among them). This third season was given, not because the audience was clamoring for it, or the critical reception demanded it, but more because HBO was being respectful of Sorkin's talents, and recognized that even in an uneven season, there are treasures, and that such a talented cast deserves anything they can do for them.

In universe, it's six months later, and Boston is in turmoil (this time skip allows Sorkin to bypass the Sandy Hook tragedy entirely). He wastes no time, kicking the episode off with the April 2013 terror attacks, while also setting up the major plot lines of this shortened, and hopefully therefore tighter season. He piles on a lot very quickly, and manages to hold it all together, giving us a solid premiere and a promising start. If he can hold it together.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that throw rocks at people in trees.

Courtesy of Warner Bros Television

So, three episodes and one "creative redirection" in, and can we determine what kind of series Constantine is going to be. Honestly, it seems like an inconsistent one. Within these two episodes at the very least, there is a sharp dichotomy of quality at work, that I chalk entirely up to the persons responsible for the script. But before we get to that, let's settle a moment on the idea of the "creative redirection" that saw the empathetic Lucy removed from the long term, and replaced by the psychic Zed (Angélica Celaya).

It would seem that the crux of this redirection began and ended with these actresses, because the fabric of the series remained unfreyed. Perhaps there was a long term plan that Goyer and co. had in place that had to be dramatically altered, but we'll hopefully never see the vestiges of that. All we do know is that they swapped out their leading lady and little else.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers which did good earlier.

Until a few years ago, my favourite non-Westeros or Harlan located TV show was TNT's Leverage. While everyone was debating about which network TV show was the "real" geek how, Leverage slipped under the radar for five seasons, but for my money wins the prize. It remains a personal disappointment to me that I let slip the opportunity to review Leverage on this site, if only to make a few more people were aware of it while it was on. Every episode was a mini Ocean's Eleven, packed with real humour, not hurtful stereotypes, an amazing array of guest stars and actual, knowledgeable geek references built into every single episode organically.

Producer and writer Dean Devlin (he who used to work with Roland Emmerich, and I suspect was both the reasonable and funny of the pair) now turns his attention to a new series, a spin off of his successful Librarian made-for-TV movies starring Noah Wyle. The series, called The Librarians, will star Rebecca Romijn, Christian Kane (sticking with Devlin from Leverage), Lindy Booth, John Kim and John Larroquette as a group of specialized agents tasked with hunting down ancient and mystical relics, and keeping them safe in a specialized housing facility disguised as a library.

If that sounds vaguely like Warehouse 13, its because that sounds a hell of a lot like Warehouse 13. But if this trailer is any indication, where they might overlap in terms of plot device and tone (and this trailer really plays up the comedy, which was Leverage's strongest suit), this series looks to diverge with a more liberal application of magic and mythology, and less with steam-punk pseudo-science. I haven't actually seen any of the three films that inspired this series, but this trailer is enough to get me on board. The series begins with a two hour premiere on Dec 7th, and will run for ten episodes, all of which will be reviewed on this site my me. So look forward to those.

Courtesy of Indigo Events

I always have a tight bunch of nerves deep in my gut before I attend such events; this is because, while I feel little embarrassment for myself, I feel considerable embarrassment for others (oddly, this is the only kind of empathy which I'm capable of, which suggests I'd make a rather interesting psychological study subject). And so, when I decide to sit and watch someone present themselves as themselves, with no benefit of script or structure, but are expected to just talk, I worry uncontrollably that it won't be any good. That the person in question will suffer that most indignitable of failures, that they are human. I have sat through many an excruciating presentation where a speaker has fallen short, and is unable to live up to the demands put upon them by the audience. I feel for them, and wish such moments to be over.

I should not have felt this way for John Cleese. Perhaps it is because he has spent his life having to be continuously clever, that his mind remains a wet stone on which he can polish his life, and thus responds with youthful dexterity and aged wisdom when asked about even the most cobwebbed corners of his existence. Saturday evening past I had the chance to see him speak, marking the publication of his 75 year spanning memoir So, Anyway..., covering everything from his earliest memory to the Python's recent final bow at the O2. A sit down, one on one interview conducted by the Globe and Mail's Ian Brown, and an evening of personal philosophy and brutal honesty. And simply put, one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life (so far). Cleese here is his simple self. Not the arrogant, angry straight man character that he has refined himself to be in the media over these long years. Certainly, it is a portrayal, a more sympathetic one than some who might have known hi through his life would suggest is honest, but a more flexible and introspective Cleese.

Hit the jump for the brief review.

Courtesy of the BBC.

And just like that, it seems, we're done for another series. We're actually an episode shorter than a usual series of Who, but an end is an end, and for the first time in a few years I'm sad to see it go. With a new Doctor and a refreshed creative philosophy (or at least, reoriented intentions), this series was a marvel. It felt well worn and comfortable, while being new and challenging. It paid homage without living too often in it's own shadow, and largely avoided tripping over it's own details. This is what Who feels like when it mostly works, when it almost completely comes together. This was Who done right.

I took last week off, and thus didn't review Dark Water by itself. But, I don't think I would have been particularly inspired to do so anyway. I'm conflicted with multi-episodes stories, as very rarely are they ultimately worthy of the additional episode. The one thing I did like about the last series so so was the decision to do away with them. And this series too avoided them, right up to the end, and I cant help but wonder if it really deserved it. The first episode of this pair felt like little more than a prolonged prologue, an overly wrought and detailed bit of exposition that might have been more succinctly dealt with in the additional twenty or so minutes that was afforded to the proper finale, which it too didn't put to the best use.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that aren't good or bad, just an idiot.

Archer kicks off it's sixth season in the new year, and last week we got our first glimpse of the gang getting back together. Because of those bastards in Syria, when everyone reconvenes it won't be under the ISIS brand, which I suppose for Adam Reed and the producers its lucky that they took the show in such a dramatically different direction last year, giving them the organic opportunity to shed the name. And after last year, I think we can all agree that the show can handle major changes, so minor ones won't be an issue.

Courtesy of Disney

I'm not, looking back, a big fan of Disney animated films. It's not that I think they aren't good films (some are, some aren't), it's that the majority of them don't hold my interest. Those that I do prefer - Winnie The Pooh, The Great Mouse Detective, The Rescuers - have fewer obnoxiously memorable songs, and tend not to be about princesses falling in love. Whatever affection I did have the studio waned almost entirely when they made the move away from hand drawn animation, and became yet another Pixar-mimic. Again, not because they became a Pixar-mimic, but rather since then their output hasn't engaged me in anyway. I've sat through each of their latest offering, and been left feeling cold and unimpressed.

So it was that, when Big Hero 6 was announced, I couldn't be bothered. I was no more interested in it than I might have been an ad for foot fungus ointment, or the rantings of a street-corner lunatic. That it was a super hero film, and based on an obscure Marvel property carried no weight with me (I follow no lead blindly), and if it was going to attract my attention, it was going to have to earn it. Which it did with it's first trailer, showcasing the comedic potential of the inflatable med-droid Baymax. It was enough to raise my curiosity level to "mild," enough to get me to buy a ticket, but still a far ways off from "Guatemalan insanity." The net result: I left the theatre merely content. Big Hero 6 is a decent enough film, two thirds of which are energetic and engaging when confronting you but leave a quickly faded impression on you mind, which will have all but disappeared by the time you get home.

Hit the jump for the review, which contains spoilers that are satisfied with their care.