BTW, I’m not a “real” diehard fan or even a “real” geek when it comes to these films / genres. I love superheroes and enjoy Star Trek (mostly The Next Generation), but I’m definitely ignorant about way too many things about them. So my reactions are those of a layman, so to speak, and my interpretations of certain plot points could very well be off the mark.

1. The whole Mandarin subplot was anticlimactic. I was really hoping to see Ben Kingsley as a ruthless villain, considering the controversy surrounding his casting. As I’m not a comic book aficionado despite my love for superheroes, I was looking forward to seeing the Mandarin for the first time. I understood the purpose for what the writers did, but it still left me deflated and dissatisfied.

2. The movie was very much a Robert Downey, Jr. fanservice thing, with zingers flying all over the place as only RDJ could deliver them. It was fun half the time, but the other half, it got a bit old.

3. Pepper Potts kicking ass! :D All right, so it was a fluke, and I still had to cringe my way through another “damsel in distress” scene in order to see a fantastic payoff, but beggars can’t be choosers where female roles in adventure films are concerned. Sigh. Too bad it was short-lived, but it was naturally too dangerous for her to be in that state (plus it’s not in her nature to be violent), so I had to regretfully bid her ass-kicking kinda-sorta alter ego goodbye.

4. Guy Pearce rocks every role he takes on. Period.

5. How would the Avengers writers work this into the Avengers 2 timeline? At the end of the movie, I assume that Tony Stark’s retired even if he still has Jarvis, but it means starting over where his suits are concerned in case S.H.I.E.L.D. calls him into action again. All the memories that haunted him were all from the first Avengers battle in New York and no hints of anything else we haven’t seen. I might be reading this incorrectly, of course, but still.

All in all, while the movie was a fun way of spending an idle evening, it wasn’t anywhere near the first Iron Man installment (and the less said about the second movie, the better).

And today, we saw Star Trek: Into Darkness.

1. I’m still very fuzzy as to Marcus’ purpose for doing what he did. I’m wondering if I have to watch it again in order to follow the story more closely seeing as how the first viewing is really mostly about experiencing the movie with zero ideas on what to expect, plot-wise. Now that I know what happens, I need to mull over specific details that drive the story forward.

2. The plot adds nothing new – at least to fans of Star Trek – but it continues to introduce non-fans to the universe (albeit an alternate one). On a fangirly note, I’m now wondering whether or not the Romulans will ever be brought in if there’s another movie in the works; I mean, hey, now we get to see the Klingons, right? The Romulans have always been my favorite villains. :D

3. Female roles – yeesh. Yes, Uhura’s a strong female character, but she still had to be turned into a love interest. At least she wasn’t shadowing Spock around like a watery-eyed, lovestruck puppy the way she did in the first movie. Carol Marcus is a weapons specialist who had to be momentary eye candy in her underwear. Sigh. Wanted: serious ass-kicking female hero, fully clothed and with no romantic interest anywhere within her lifetime.

4. Benedict Cumberbatch is magnificent. But I expected nothing less from him. I guess I’ll have to watch Amazing Grace and enjoy his work as William Pitt while ignoring the overly romanticized take on William Wilberforce’s fight to abolish slavery. I’ve been on the fence with regard to that movie, and I really shouldn’t be. ^^;;;

5. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are holding their own pretty damned well as Kirk and Spock. I was pleased to see Scotty get more screen time compared to before, though too bad Sulu remains sadly underused even with him taking over the captain’s role for a moment. But working with an ensemble cast is a tricky juggling act, and priorities need to be made according to character hierarchy, I suppose.

I definitely enjoyed this film much more than Iron Man 3 despite its somewhat stagnant take on the Trek universe and its muddy plot points. At the very least there’s a lot more going for it by way of characterization, and, yeah, I wouldn’t mind seeing it again.

So – since I’m firmly on entertainment mode, I thought I’d fangirl the fantastic combo of Florence and the Machine and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

I haven’t seen The Great Gatsby as I’m not that keen on the book even if I appreciate Fitzgerald’s style and the book’s point. I’m also not too keen on anachronistic soundtracks, either, but Florence and the Machine’s song works. Brilliantly.

Reblogged from Jane Austen's World:

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Inquiring readers, It's such a delight to receive first-hand information from a friend who lives in the U.K. Frequent contributor, Tony Grant, writes about his impressions of seeing the BBC2 special last Sunday entitled Pride and Prejudice: Having a Ball. The scenes were filmed in Chawton House wherein a Regency ball was reconstructed in a way that Jane Austen's contemporaries knew well, but whose meanings in many instances have been lost to us.

Read more… 2,722 more words

I. Garmin-Sharp won Stage 11 of the Giro d’Italia. My man, Ramunas Navardauskas, did it. While I’m bummed that Ryder Hesjedal’s too far back to repeat last year’s win, stage-hunting is always a good thing, and I’m used to seeing my favorite team come up as the scrappy underdogs in these big races. :D It makes their successes even sweeter and way more special.

That said, Ryder Hesjedal remains my all-time favorite Grand Tour winner* (Cadel Evans comes a close second) because he’s with Garmin-Sharp (no, I’m not biased), he’s the first Canadian to win a Grand Tour (big, happy way to our neighbors upstairs), and by golly, he’s so laid back and unassuming (unlike a certain Tour de France winner who’ll remain nameless). I hope that, despite not having the form this year, he’ll still be able to win a stage either at the Giro or the Tour.

II. Tyler Farrar wins Stage 4 at the Tour of California, making today a Drunken Celebration Day for us Garmin-Sharp fanpoodles. And good for him, finally getting a good result under his belt – with him being up against Peter Sagan, of all people.

Yay, team!

My bike, Emmy, no longer gathering dust. Woohoo and yeehaw!

III. Last but not least, today was my first day back on the bike after a month of being off it because of my Achilles tendon problem. The swelling’s now gone (or at least minimized and rapidly healing), thanks to some anti-inflammatory supplements I’ve been taking that aren’t ibuprofen (Cissus Quadrangularis and turmeric) and physical therapy plus some chiropractic work.

I only went for a super flat, slow-ish, and short route (6 miles at 30 minutes) as per my doctor’s orders, but I was so relieved and excited finally being in the sun again after a month of living like a mole person. Dear God, it was boring, being cooped up for so long. While it’s true that I still tried to put in some (half-hearted) work on my core and arms, there’s nothing like being out there on the road on a breezy, sunny day, with everyone at work, ergo, minimal traffic everywhere.

I didn’t feel anything in my affected ankle until around the 29th minute, when a very, very faint twinge happened in the medial and lateral sides of my left ankle, and that went away after about five seconds. Beyond that, my foot felt quite normal. :D

So it looks like I’m healing faster than what my podiatrist predicted, as I’m back on the bike at four weeks instead of six weeks or later. I’ll be taking it slowly, though, and will be riding the same distance for about another week before gradually increasing my riding time by 10% until I’m back in the game and going after hills again.

And some extra fangirly goodness: Dan Martin (Garmin-Sharp, naturally!) won both the Volta a Catalunya and the Liége-Bastogne-Liége. It’s the luck of the Irish, baby!

* Please note that I’ve only been watching the pro cycling scene since 2004. Not a lot of years under my belt, and I’m not as avid a follower as those fans who could whip out stats for every pro cyclist through history without much effort.

Which means I might as well wait off on the third novella in order to begin work on Masks number seven. I want to finish the series in a timely manner even if it’ll be a pretty bittersweet process.

And speaking of the Masks series, my rights to my books from Prizm will begin reverting back to me on September, and the first three novels to be pulled with be Masks: Rise of Heroes, Icarus in Flight, and Banshee. Yes, I plan to go back and revise those books further and then re-release them with new covers, etc., and that’ll be true with every title that I get back from Prizm.

It’s going to be a pretty busy second half of 2013 and beyond. But don’t worry (say I to myself)! A healthy dose of Bruce Springsteen-style zydeco will make it all better.

Damn straight, pay me my money down, buster!