5.17.2006

Random items

You can park almost anywhere now in our fair city. Most students = vamoosed or holed up studying. I rode my bike to the library and nearly went back for the car.

That cereal restaurant closed within months, as predicted.

Anyone seen the Everything Is Illuminated movie? Picked up its tag at That's Rentertainment. First impulse: take it up to the counter. Second impulse: pause thoughtfully, then doubtfully, then put it back and step away.

Peter Orner is reading tonight at Prairie Lights, 7pm. From Thisbe:

"peter orner ('98 workshop grad, author of "esther stories") will be reading from his novel "the second coming of mavala shikongo" tonight - wednesday the 17th - at prairie lights at 7. i really think it's a reading you shouldn't miss if you can manage to get there - the book is extraordinary, and peter's wonderful - truly one of my favorite writers."

Softball tonight, workshop-heavy Serenity Now vs. McClure Engineering Company. 9pm Hawkeye Softball Complex, Field 3.

Saturday night at The Mill: local stars Death Ships, Wisconsin's Wandering Sons, Drakkar Sauna, and SF's Two Gallants, about whose album Vice magazine says, "Take Kerouac with his up-to-late, thinking too much, missing-everything-and-needing-nothing amphetamine fueled rants, add it to foot pounding front porch anthems with swelling guitars and you've got an unbeatable album..." Doors 8pm. $7. With the students gone, we might even get a booth.

Anyone else read any William Golding besides Lord of the Flies? Currently being blown away by his novel The Inheritors.

Saw the first season of Battlestar Galactica via a friend's DVD. I recall Chad and I think Charlemagne praising it to the skies some time ago. Thanks for the hype -- it totally rocked. Character-driven sci-fi is pretty much the Holy Grail to me, and this delivered. Is Season 2 as good?

Finally, for the love of God, check out "Silent Library 3," via Trevor's Creekside "More Questions Than Answers" link (click on the video image). Why we don't have game shows like this I cannot fathom.

7 comments:

chad said...

I am a BSG newcomer. But since seeing the miniseries about a week and a half ago I have watched every episode available on DVD. Vampiro lent me them as he is wise emough to own them. I may break into his house to watch the unrealeased episodes which he has on DVR. He and Charlemange turned me on. Season 2 it twice as good I'd say. I haven't been this excited about TV since Deadwood. They have a dozen balls in the air, and since they are in space they are all staying there.

Grendel said...

Ah, it was Charlemagne and Vampiro who were oozing so much love for BSG. Among the many things I love about that show is the fact that they are technology skeptics now, for obvious reasons. On the Enterprise, a few people controlled everything with buttons. Whereas on BSG scores of folks run everything by hand, running all over the place, and Adama doesn't even have a chair, apparently. And his phone looks like it's from the Korean War.

cfp said...

B-Star Rocks. What did people think of season 2? I thought higher highs, lower lows.

Vampiro said...

Higher highs, lower lows is a pretty good way of putting it. That show, somehow, never ceases to surprise and shock me. I've watched many an episode with my jaw literally dropped. And it has so little to do with sci-fi, really. It's just really good character work and really good moral dilemmas. It is odd to find yourself sympathizing with what could possibly be called a totalitarian military regime.

I don't know if you've all heard, but the creaters of BSG are launching a second regular series on Sci-Fi. It is set in the BSG world, 50 years in the past--before the wars & before the destruction of humanity. I believe the story actually starts with the creation of the very first cylon. (damn toasters!) It's going to be a family/historical drama. And, by Gods, I think it'll probably be pretty damned good.

Grendel said...

Shadow-boxa, I'm now about 2/3 the way through and can hardly STAND the tension. It's like watching a car wreck in slow motion.

Vampiro, that's frakin' great news. btw, has anybody figured out the religion of the colonists or the cylons? The humans seem to have reverted to Greek mythology, whereas the cylons remind me of born-again Christians.

dunkeys said...

Our passions for good television enflamed by these lusty pro-BSG exhortations, we watched the full miniseries last night. But while I enjoyed it immensely, I was underwhelmed by the "character-driven" aspect. Maybe the depth starts in the actual episodes? That'd make sense, as the creaters would have more open space to fill. The mini-series' character depth seemed comparable to that of Top Gun, though, not Deadwood.

Do any of you watch/get-overwhelmingly-frustrated-by Lost?

Grendel said...

I totally agree, dunks. Actually, we baaaaarely made it through the miniseries at all. I was really disappointed. The good stuff starts in the series and gets better and better. In fact, I claim the miniseries could have been cut entirely and the thing would be better as a whole. Hang in there. It's worth it.