A common TV series pitch--or parody of one--is taking an "odd couple" and placing in them in situations where they solve mysteries and defeat criminals. This trope is called They Fight Crime, and examples include Numb3rs ("He's an FBI agent; he's a math professor. They Fight Crime!") and Blood Ties ("She's a Canadian police detective who is slowly losing her sight. He's a vampire. They fight crime!").
1.) Go to TheyFightCrime! and find a crimefighting pair that makes you swoon. 2.) Go to the Hero Machine and illustrate your duo! 3.) Repeat as necessary or until your mom tells you it's time for bed.
I'll illustrate one I did, but first, guess this famous media property. You'll be surprised who it is--I certainly was! Answer after the images below:
"He's a battle-scarred veteran of the war in Afghanistan! He's a substance-abusing dilettante grad student! They Fight Crime!"
"He's a leather-clad guitar-strumming photographer who believes he can never love again. She's a virginal insomniac bounty hunter who hides her beauty behind a pair of thick-framed spectacles. They fight crime!"
And the odd couple mentioned above?
Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes.
Friday, November 16, 2007
More on the Writers' Strike
A Daily Show writer covers the strike in Daily Show style:
Friday, November 09, 2007
Caught in a web
MadJenny posted this video from the Writers Guild of America explaining the reasons for the Hollywood writers' strike. It succinctly explains their side of the issue:
A few miles south of Lynchburg in Campbell County sits a large and attractive octagonal building which is home to one of most unique churches in the world. Founded in 1977, “The Spock,” as the church is called, is the world’s only church of Star Trek, a religion centered on the popular 1960’s television series featuring the adventures of a crew of interstellar explorers. “The Spock” promotes beliefs associated with one of the popular characters in the TV series, Mr. Spock, who was from a peace-loving race of aliens known as “Vulcans.”
The ideology of the church is centered on so-called Vulcan philosophy which includes the belief in pure “logic” and which emphasizes a lifestyle devoid of emotion. A huge stained-glass likeness of the church’s namesake is featured in the sanctuary, where churchgoers recite sequences of dialogue from the series and participate in what they call a “Holy Mind Meld.” Many church members wear stick-on pointed ears (mimicking those of the TV character) during services and at other church functions (in one case of excessive dedication to the “faith,” one member attempted to have his ears surgically altered but with disastrous results, requiring extensive corrective surgery).
Now, normally, I find myself of the same mind as Professor Steven Dutch on this subject:
Contrary to popular psychology, this is not a society where people are out of touch with their feelings. This society wallows in feelings. If anything, what most people in this society need is precisely to get out of touch with their feelings for a while. Beirut, Belfast and Belgrade were all creations of people who were entirely too much in touch with their feelings.
When film does show rational people, it is often as a caricature. The Vulcans in Star Trek are the type examples. They are regularly portrayed as secretly longing to have human emotions but unable to do so because of their conditioning. (The Vulcans nearly destroyed themselves before they learned to control their emotions. See Beirut, Belfast and Belgrade above.) Or when the characters simply proceed rationally (Star Wars: The Phantom Menace) critics lambaste them as stiff and wooden. Considering the number of people in the arts who have destroyed themselves through suicide, substance abuse or self-destructive lifestyles, I conclude that many media critics are simply unable to relate to characters who solve their problems rationally without going into depression or hysteria, that unless a character has some defect requiring deep therapy, they simply aren't interesting to the critics.
Clearly, though, these "Spockians" are not acting rationally at all, since a rational person would be the first to admit that one cannot be rational all the time. In fact, the effort to do so is extremely irrational.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
The Day The Science Died
Another icon has passed away.
Don Herbert, AKA Mr. Wizard, has passed away at the age of 89.
Mr. Wizard, through both his show in the 50s and the 80s, introduced two generations of children (including this blogger) to scientific principles illustrated with common household items.
It's almost ironic that a science icon passes on while public understanding of science is in such a tailspin.
OK, this story from AlterNet reminded me why Trey Parker and Matt Stone are such comic geniuses. I don't really watch South Park religiously (ha!) anymore, but this reminded me that the show still has its bite (link includes three clips from the episode).
This comic makes me wonder about the episode's conclusion, though.
Coming to the US my biggest shock was how seriously people took religion. It was a form of religious intensity that I had never encountered. In Saudi I had endured a totalitarian theocracy (is there another kind?) but I had never seen the man on the street be so wrapped up in their religion. I had never met people who defined themselves, first and foremost, on the basis of their religion.
The United States is the most religious nation in the developed world, if religiosity is measured by belief in all things supernatural -- from God and the Virgin Birth to the humbler workings of angels and demons. Americans are also the most religiously ignorant people in the Western world. Fewer than half of us can identify Genesis as the first book of the Bible, and only one third know that Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount...
...Approximately 75 percent of adults, according to polls cited by Prothero, mistakenly believe the Bible teaches that "God helps those who help themselves." More than 10 percent think that Noah's wife was Joan of Arc. Only half can name even one of the four Gospels, and -- a finding that will surprise many -- evangelical Christians are only slightly more knowledgeable than their non-evangelical counterparts.
I wish I could say I was surprised, but then I regularly have arguments with family members who know very little about what their Catholic faith is actually about.
Well, I for one will be spending Easter in my annual ritual of watching Jesus Christ Superstar (Norman Jewison version, of course).
"Heaven on Their Minds" (JUDAS)
The first song after the overture. Featuring a fantastic performance by Judas (Carl Anderson) and one awesome guitar riff! One of my favourite pieces. I wish Webber could have kept writing like this.
JUDAS Listen Jesus I don't like what I see All I ask is that you listen to me And remember I've been your right-hand man all along
You have set them all on fire They think they've found the new Messiah And they'll hurt you when they find they're wrong
"This Jesus Must Die" (CAIAPHAS, ANNAS, SANHEDRIN)
High Priest Caiaphas and his brother-in-law Annas convince the Sanhedrin that Jesus is a threat to their power and must be eliminated. Excellent contrast between Caiaphas's (Bob Bingham) deep bass and Annas's (Kurt Yaghjian) falsetto.
ANNAS What then to do about This Jesus-mania? Now how do we deal with the Carpenter King? Where do we start with a man who is bigger
SANHEDRIN MEMBER Than John was when he did his baptism thing?
CAIAPHAS Fools you have no perception! The stakes we are gambling are frighteningly high We must crush him completely So like John before him, this Jesus must die
"The Last Supper" (JESUS, JUDAS, APOSTLES)
Jesus (Ted Neely) confronts Judas about his forthcoming betrayal. The confrontation scene is one of my favourites.
JESUS Peter will deny me in just a few hours Three times will deny me - and that's not all I see One of you here dining, one of my twelve chosen Will leave to betray me -
JUDAS Cut out the dramatics! You know very well who - Jesus Why don't you go do it? JUDAS You want me to do it! JESUS Hurry they are waiting JUDAS If you knew why I do it . . . JESUS I don't care why you do it! JUDAS To think I admired you For now I despise you JESUS You liar - you Judas JUDAS You wanted me to do it! What if I just stayed here And ruined your ambition? Christ you deserve it!
JESUS Hurry you fool, hurry and go, Save me your speeches I don't want to know - Go! Go!
"I Only Want to Say (Gethsemane)" (JESUS)
Jesus's solo piece where he pleads with God to spare him the coming pain and suffering. Neely's most passionate performance.
JESUS Why, why should I die? Oh, why should I die? Can you show me now That I would not be killed in vain? Show me just a little Of your omnipresent brain Show me there's a reason For your wanting me to die You're far too keen on where and how But not so hot on why
"Trial Before Pilate (including The 39 Lashes)" (JESUS, PILATE, CAIAPHAS, CROWD)
Pilate (Barry Dennen) is one of my favourite characters.
JESUS You have nothing in your hands Any power you have Comes to you from far beyond Everything is fixed And you can't change it
PILATE You're a fool, Jesus Christ How can I help you?
CROWD Crucify him! Crucify him! Remember Caesar You have a duty To keep the peace So crucify him! You'll be demoted You'll be deported So crucify him!
"Superstar" (JUDAS, ANGELS)
Speaking from heaven, Judas questions the whole enterprise.
JUDAS Every time I look at you I don't understand Why you let the things you did Get so out of hand You'd have managed better If you'd had it planned Now why'd you choose such a backward time And such a strange land?
If you'd come today You could have reached the whole nation Israel in 4 BC had no mass communication
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Mensa sana...
I went and tried the Test the Nation IQ test on the CBC website, and apparently my IQ is 124. Not too bad, though of course IQ only measures potential, not application.
I was then inspired to take the true test of intelligence: the Nerd Test!
'Nuff said.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Oprah's dirty little "Secret"
For those not aware, Oprah's been hawking another useless self-help tome, this one being Rhoda Byrne's The Secret. The Amazing Randi has gone to town on this, but this article in Salon really gets to the "secret":
Steve Martin used to do a routine that went like this: "You too can be a millionaire! It's easy: First, get a million dollars. Now..."
If you put that routine between hard covers, you'd have "The Secret," the self-help manifesto and bottle of minty-fresh snake oil currently topping the bestseller lists. "The Secret" espouses a "philosophy" patched together by an Australian talk-show producer named Rhonda Byrne. Though "The Secret" unabashedly appropriates and mishmashes familiar self-help clichés, it was still the subject of two recent episodes of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" featuring a dream team of self-help gurus, all of whom contributed to the project.
The main idea of "The Secret" is that people need only visualize what they want in order to get it -- and the book certainly has created instant wealth, at least for Rhonda Byrne and her partners-in-con. And the marketing idea behind it -- the enlisting of that dream team, in what is essentially a massive, cross-promotional pyramid scheme -- is brilliant. But what really makes "The Secret" more than a variation on an old theme is the involvement of Oprah Winfrey, who lends the whole enterprise more prestige, and, because of that prestige, more venality, than any previous self-help scam. Oprah hasn't just endorsed "The Secret"; she's championed it, put herself at the apex of its pyramid, and helped create a symbiotic economy of New Age quacks that almost puts OPEC to shame.
I was taught "The Secret" when I was younger by a well-guarded book shown to only those who can understand the secret. It's called "The Little Engine that Could". He thought he could do it, he worked towards his goal and he took the chance to prove he could do it when the situation presented itself. AMAZING!
Friday, July 21, 2006
Recently I rediscovered the early 90s series, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. This was a TV western that incorporated a lot of fantastic and science-fiction elements, but mostly humour. Starring the incomparable Bruce Campbell, the show lasted one season, though it managed to finish the main story arc of that season: Brisco's hunt for the outlaw John Bly, killer of his lawman father. Although the show was fantastic, it was not renewed for a second season. The main reason for this was low ratings, but I have my own theories:
The show was aired on Fox. Fox is the network that kills promising TV series. Along with Brisco County Jr., Fox also killed Brimstone, Firefly, Fastlane, Space: Above and Beyond, Futurama, and Arrested Development. (I'm sure I'm forgetting some.) Fox sets these shows up for failure by placing them in lethal spots in the broadcast schedule (the infamous "Friday night death spot" that killed Star Trek back in the 1960s, for example), or shuffles them around the schedule making it difficult to build an audience, or not allowing these shows the time to develop a proper audience. Fox instead promotes dreck like COPS, Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, When Animals Attack, and Married with Children (to be honest, I found the latter entertaining most of the time, but it couldn't hold a candle to some of the cancelled series). The Simpsons and The X-Files appear to be the only atypical (at the time) and promising series that didn't get cancelled by Fox and went on to incredibly successful runs, only to peter out on a whimper in the case of the X-Files, or continue ad naseum while its fresher, hipper successors make it look like the tired and old franchise it is in the case of the Simpsons.
To be fair to Fox, I should note that in most cases, Fox was the only network willing to take a chance on shows like the above, while the "Big 3" played it safe, preferring instead to rip off Fox's successful ideas. The success of the X-Files, for example, led to several knock-offs, most of which sucked (Dark Skies, anyone?). These days, though, it looks like the networks are out of good ideas. Creativity is coming from cable and syndication these days.
Brisco County was a Western in a time when the genre was starting to die off. Although the genre got a bit of a shot in the arm from the Lonesome Dove miniseries and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, by the mid-90s is was clear that the genre was just about done. The influences of the Western were quiet profound on American fiction, TV and cinema. Many aspects of the Western genre could be found in action films, science fiction, and martial arts movies. But the Western itself seemed to be on its last legs (this is before the more recent revival thanks to shows like Deadwood).
