Neuroposter Mask.

-  So Disney bought Star Wars.  If you don’t know.  Which is… meh.  I mean, I’m not like a huge Star Wars fanboy or anything so I don’t have to strong of feelings either way.  I do, like 80% of humans, love the old Star Wars movies; and I do, like 85% of humans, hate the new ones.  From what I’m reading from people who know a lot about this stuff, there are novels that act as the official “post-Original Trilogy” story.  Something to do with Han and Leia’s kids, Luke running a new Jedi order, and the resurgence of the Empire and the Sith.  This could be decent I suppose.  The problem with the new ones — and I’m sure this has been written about extensively — is the fear of treading new ground.  This notion that they had to fall back on the old ones to be good.  You can see that in everything from the bizarre and wacky coincidences written into the story, the way the ships are designed, even the way Palatine was scarred to look like a shitty Halloween costume of himself in Jedi.  As long as they don’t do any of that, and focus on a new story, new characters, new designs, they should be alright I hope.

[But hey, I'm one of like 3 million assholes writing my opinions on the Internet about this so what the fuck do I know?]

Brendon over at BleedingCool seems to think he’s courting Hamill and Fisher about being in them… this sounds risky.

-  William Gibson’s seminal novel Neuromancer is being turned into a film as we speak.  Little is known about the project.  The IMDB page is empty, to say the least.  Liam Neeson’s name is on the cast, which may or may not be true, but sounds awesome.  If you don’t know about the novel it’s one of the best science fiction novels of all-time.  It started the genre we call “cyberpunk”.  It also featured characters “jacking into” the Internet which was obviously directly lifted for The Matrix movies.  Anyways, here’s a new poster (the first):

-  A Rioter’s Prayer: Pussy Riot’s Yekaterina Samutsevich on protest, art, and freedom.

I have the impression that this is the opinion the government wants to impose on people, their way of opposing the situation. I think that when a person goes somewhere, she reflects, she thinks about where she is going and why, because she is using her time and energy. It’s a conscious choice. I don’t go to a demonstration because it’s cool. It isn’t at all cool to go to demonstrations today. The forces of order are nearby. They can beat you up. The demonstration on May 6th proved that. Nowadays, many people find themselves behind bars solely because they went to a public demonstration.

-  Chuck Klosterman on why Fantasy Football is bad for the game (and your mental health) over at Grantland.

If I mentally transpose the words “entertaining” and “sport,” Dylan’s sentiment gets close to what I’m trying to express (and what I want to feel, but can’t). There was a time when I watched football in order to not think about my day-to-day life, but fantasy sports slowly changed that — in fact, my affinity for fantasy only makes it worse. I turn the players I draft into tiny parts of my life, which stops me from remembering that they have no relationship whatsoever to who I am. It makes me unconsciously think of them as extensions of myself. And I wonder if this is more problematic than I want to accept. Do I have any right to get angry at Chris Johnson? Does anyone?

-  The Trouble With The Mask.  Great op-Ed on the inherent problems with the new Joker in Batman and featuring a brilliant Bukowski quote.

-Sonny

Aliens Like Us/Plateau Among Clouds.

- Thank [insert God(s) of choice] the NFL season is finally over with.  No, I don’t hate the actual game; that’s a common misconception (I used to play).  I hate the NFL in all its big-business, money first, capitalistic, corporate glory.  Lucky for me, there’s a chance of a lockout next season.  And, I think it goes without saying, but: what in the world were they thinking picking the Black Eyed Peas??

- Really, really excellent and articulate article arguing that intelligent extra-terrestrial life is probably similar to us and vice-versa.  One of its points is that although there are over 100 elements on the periodic table, over 90% of them are hydrogen… therefor, “the odds that two randomly selected atoms are the same element is at least less than 80%”.  One could refute these claims, though, pointing towards NASA’s recent discovery of arsenic-based life (if this is true, something poisonous to all life as we previously knew it being a building block of life, that means our understanding of how life is created and what it is made of is feeble, at best).  The opinion is from an excellent blog called “Overcoming Bias“.  I’d check it out.

- This picture has been making it ’round the Net today, but I can’t help myself… it’s just too damn cool (and no, from what I’ve read this is NOT Photoshopped):

-Sonny

The Rat Packer.

I’ve talked about sports — and sports only — I think twice since this page’s inception back in September of 2007.  During the Stanley Cup playoffs last year I called Scott Hartnell a “bitch”; I also said I hoped the Flyers are out in 4 even though I “don’t like the Penguins at ALL”.  A year earlier I said the Stanley Cup would be the best championship, in terms of quality, since the 2000 Cup.  But that’s the extent of real-life sports talk around here.

Well, I’m from Minnesota.  And as indifferent I can be towards the NFL, its legions of dumb-fuck fans, ego-centric players, and totalitarian owners, I had to mention this story.

Last week during the Vikings win over a jealous ex-girlfriend-esque Green Bay Packers, a guy named Ryan Hinderaker (resident of Minneapolis who’s originally from the land of cheese) stabbed… yes, STABBED another man he followed out of a pizza joint where patrons where watching the game.  Hinderaker apparently started arguing with in the restaurant, even though the guy he picked was a Seahawks fan.  To avoid a potentially dangerous situation, the Seahawks fan left the establishment and was followed by Hinder-loser, sporting a Packers T-shirt.  He pulled out a small knife and shanked the man once in the stomach, fled.  Later he would call the MPD and confess.  A few casual observations here:

1. NFL fans are total dipshits.  Countless stories like this seem to come out each and every week.  There was that case where a RB’s yard, who’d fumbled that previous Sunday, was vandalized by FANS of the team (New England, I believe?).  I mean, I know at one time a fan fought Ty Domie in a penalty box, but NFL have got to take the cake as the most jackass-ish (not to mention the dumbest).
2. Whitest professional sports fans = Packer fans.  Seriously, is there a whiter fan base in the realm of professional sports than Green Bay Packer fans?  Blaze-orange hunting vests?  That awful “Go-Pack-Go!” chant?  The use of Todd Rundgren’s “Bang the Drum All Day” after TD’s?  I honestly don’t think so, not even in the NHL.
3. They’re so so bitter.  Self explanatory.

Unrelated, but Chris Chelios NEEDS to retire.  Now.  In a move of utter desperation, Chelios could be skating this Monday with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves.  Wow, dude.  I mean I know you think you complete lack of speed won’t be taken advantage of among AHL players, but trust me, it will.  You’ll be walked at least 3 or 4 times per game.  Bring it in, Chris.  For fuck’s sake.  You’re not Brett Favre.

Speaking of hockey, Luongo, David Booth, and Thomas Vanek aren’t pulling their weight on my fantasy team.  I’m giving it another month or so, then I’m dropping each to waivers if they don’t pick their shit up.

-Sonny

Senseless Notes and Reports.

Mike Vick is back.  I’ve written the first third of a new short story.  It’s looking decent.  Takes place in the early 1950′s.  Cross country trip – out West – to find a father.  Or to die and be reborn, one of the two.  Reading Western Lands.  Very impressive.  Many times more mature than say Naked Lunch.  Or even the infamous Nova Trilogy.  According to the ancient Egyptians, we all have 7 souls.  All for different purposes.  Golf in my backyard.  Well, my neighbor’s backyard.  Waiting on a job, could be a while.  Weeks?  Months?  Re-strung the acoustic.  Stones covers and a bunch of odd finger picking.  Les Paul’s dead.  Page owes him, hell… everyone owes him.  New camera today.  A 7.1 pixel Nikon.  It’s an impressive little device.  Heading to the dome tonight.  Last time?  Maybe.  Probably not.  Some kid was playing on the grass, I just about pulled a Gran Torino on his ass.  But… naw.  That’s not me.  He’d probably just laugh assuming I was kidding.  Town Halls are getting way out of hand.  BBC headlined a story today: “Unhealthy Debate”.  Everyone’s angry sometimes.  It’s healthy to be.  Not in a sense of trying to get things done, though.  Common knowledge tells us to not do anything important when we’re angry, we aren’t thinking rationally.  Neither are these people.  Not because of their positions, because of the way they’re voicing themselves.  It’s sad.  Political discourse in this country died with Kennedy and Watergate.  Please, Mr. Joe, bring me something I can feel.  There’s a massive generational, ideological, philosophical shift going on in this country right now.  Could take 10 years deep.  Can’t wait to see what the future holds.  Not cause it’ll be better in any way than the past, because… well, I’m just damn curious.

-SonnyW.

Number, Artist, and Prime-Time Changes.

Few quick things:

- Great, well written and explained, article about how JJ Abrams’ version of Star Trek (still haven’t seen it) is basically a rip off of Star Wars IV: A New Hope.  This guy’s dead on, he gets it.  Coincidentally, I’m not saying the movie sucks, just pointing out that this reiterates what I said before in “The Wrath of Reboots”: looks decent enough, but it ain’t REAL Star Trek, it’s an imposter.

- I didn’t realize this last Fall (probably because the Bengals suck so much ass, and are therefor never spoken of late in the season), but Chad Johnson — overrated NFL reciever currently playing for the Bengals – legally changed his name to “Chad Ocho Cinco”.  What a fucking idiot.  I hate football players so much.

- Future legendary, may be there already, comic book artist Phil Jimenez will be joining the uber-British Warren Ellis on his book Astonishing X-Men starting this Fall.  Here’s what Marvel released as a “preview” of how he’ll be drawing Ellis’ X-Team… LINK.

- Upcoming ABC show FlashFoward actually sounds really interesting for a prime-time network television show.  The show is centered around a very bizarre worldwide event which many people, who aren’t into speculative Sci-Fi, may roll their eyes at: for 2 minutes and 17 seconds every single person on Earth experiences a simultaneous mental and physical black out.  I know, it could be horrible… At least they’re trying; instead of creating a show about slutty whores trying to marry a celebrity (or dance).

-Sonny