Free Form Comments

Say whatever you want to in the comments to this post -- random, off topic thoughts, ideas, suggestions, questions, recommendations, criticisms (which can be anonymous), surveys, introductions if you have never commented before, personal news, self-promotion, requests to be added to the blog roll and so on. If I forget, remind me. Remember these comments can be directed at all the readers, not just me.

ALSO. You can use this space to re-ask me questions you asked me before that I failed to answer because I was too busy.

AND you can use this space to comment on posts that are old enough that no one is reading the comments threads anymore.

You do not have to have a blogger account or gmail account to post a comment -- you can write a comment, write your name at the bottom of your comment like an e mail, and then post using the "anonymous" option.

WRITING FOR THIS BLOG. If I see a big free form comment that deserves more attention, I will pull it and make it its own post, with a label on the post and on the sidebar that will always link to all the posts you write for this blog. I am always looking for reviews of games, tv, movies, music, books and iPhone apps.

Uncanny X-Men #240

[Jason Powell continues his issue by issue look at Claremont's X-Men. This is an especially good entry. ]

“Inferno: Part the First — Strike the Match”

So begins “Inferno,” the 1988 X-Men fall crossover. This is the one everyone hates. To sum up the history at this point: 1986 was the year of the first X-over -- “Mutant Massacre,” a flawed but entertaining comics event built around a suitably momentous occurrence in the franchise’s history: the large-scale massacre of an underground mutant population. It wasn’t meant to be the start of a yearly tradition; but the commercial success of the project guaranteed that Marvel would attempt to duplicate it in 1987. Although “Massacre” occurred during the summer, the following year saw it placed during the autumn months – hence, “The FALL of the Mutants.” Unlike “Massacre,” this second event was tied together by concept rather than story, with each of the three core mutant titles (X-Factor, New Mutants and Uncanny) seeing tragedy befall at least one member of the team (Angel, Cypher and all of them, respectively). “Fall of the Mutants” was shrewdly economical, eschewing the bloated excess that ultimately weighed down on the latter parts of “Massacre” in favor of something quick and clean: three issues of three titles (with the middle installment for each series being “double-sized”), and then done.

By contrast, the number of Marvel comics published in the latter half of 1988 that tie in to “Inferno” is in the dozens – a horrible display of excess on behalf of the company, one which would be repeated many times in the following two decades. (Every aspect of “Inferno” promotion is over the top – on the core series, including Uncanny X-Men, the art department even pastes the word “Inferno” over the line usually reserved for “The Uncanny” – the first such textual manipulation of the logo since “The Uncanny” was added in the first place, eight years earlier.)

"Failure is to form habits"

I am teaching Walter Pater today and thinking about habits. I am also thinking about General Tso's Chicken: My wife goes to this Chinese place all the time and I, by default, always got General Tso's chicken. I would sort of pick at it, and stop, and pick at it again, and then still be hungry, but would not finish it. I asked her why that was and she came back with "You don't like it." And I realized with a little shock that she was right -- I did not like it. And yet I kept getting it, just out of habit I think. The habit was stronger than my dislike of the thing, to the point that I did not realize I disliked it until someone pointed it out. And I thought about it again, as I noticed leaving the house that I had some comics on the table I had not read yet, comics I picked up Wednesday (I won't say which ones because I am tired of getting hate mail when I say I do not like a comic book). And there was that feeling again -- I had not read them yet because I did not LIKE them. But then why did I BUY them? Habit. Scary little thing, habit. I am digging things like facebook's statistics that tell me how often I post and what the most recurring words are and so on -- and I wonder how much of my media consumption is habit and how much is enjoyment. I feel like the pure "habit" media is a small percentage, but once you realize you can think you like something when you actually don't -- well that is the thread that unravels the whole thing in a way, or at least has the potential to.

Where is habit overrunning your good taste in your life? What needs purging and why?

(Also -- I feel like Plok's style has infected mine more than a bit here. Interesting.)

Twin Peaks, Season 2 Episode 19

By Jill Duffy, girl reporter [continuing her episode by episode look at Twin Peaks.]

Why is Windom Earl so hokey?

Before we knew him, when we only knew of him, he was threatening. Before a character is formally introduced, if we viewers are told that he’s a mastermind evil genius, we’ll buy it. “Hey, our guy Cooper seems legitimately afraid of what Windom Earl might do, so we’d better take him seriously.”

Eventually (several episodes ago), Windom Earl does become a character with a face, a voice, body language, and a maniacal laugh. Only the laugh isn’t so maniacal. It’s more like the laugh of a bad guy on a children’s Saturday afternoon low-budget television show; like I expect Windom Earl to shout out, “Rats! Foiled again!” and shake his fists in anger when 30 minutes is up. Here, and in the previous one or two episodes, he keeps putting on ridiculous disguises as he trails Cooper, Donna, Shelly, and Audrey. It’s goofy. He’s very cartoonish. Need I remind anyone that this is the same tactic Bugs Bunny used to outwit Elmer Fudd?

Character Actors

I am not sure "character actor" is the right phrase I want for this: I want to talk about those TV and movie actors who play very small roles but who I am always irrationally happy to see. I want to talk about that moment where you watch something and smile and say "Oh, THAT guy. I love that guy" and you say "that guy" because you probably don't even know his name -- you just know him as "the guy from that other show." I am also not sure what I want to say exactly, except that they bring this strange pleasure with them -- part of the reason I like to see these actors is that for some reason I am glad so see them continue to get work, and part of it is that they are so small that I can feel closer to them than the big star -- there is an odd sort of unconscious identification with them, in part because I know if I was an actor I would be one of these minor guest stars rather than a main player. There is no way I will be able to remember enough of these guys: they can be hard to think of out of context. You guys will help. Here are 10 to start you off.

Leslie Jordan is the 4'11" actor I know most from Will and Grace, where he played closeted millionaire Beverlie Leslie, and Reba where he also played a character who acted fay. David E Kelly is a big fan of his -- he appeared on Boston Public, Alley McBeal and Boston Legal.