Another day, another "Best Of" list

I just had to post something about this list, because it a)includes three of my favorite characters and b) speaks up in defense of my favorite pilot, who, I find, is sometimes unfairly maligned by those who don't know better.

The list in question names the Best Characters of the Decade, and on at least three counts, the makers of the list were spot on. Here are the ones I totally agreed with and what the list writer had to say about them:

• #3. Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter. Loony Lovegood arrived late in the Potterverse: she made her first real appearance in 2003 in Order of the Phoenix. What makes her work as a character is that she's mad the way Hamlet is: merely north-north-west. There are things about the world, and about Harry, that only she can understand.

• #4. Wash from Firefly. In a show full of vivid characters, Wash was perhaps the vivid-est. He wasn't conventionally heroic -- he was never slow to point out the imminence and inevitability of the entire crew's destruction -- but when the chips were down, he was as brave as any man, or woman, on board. Except maybe his wife.

• #8. Dr. Horrible from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. The great thing about Dr. Horrible is that in a comic book world, he defies the conventional categories. He's neither a hero nor a villain. He's just a human being who wants to be loved. And who wears goggles and carries a freeze ray. And who periodically breaks into song.

And the treats just keep on coming!

The Pixar people are on a roll, because here we are with yet another little treat from Toy Story 3!

This time, the teaser is an actual clip from the movie, introduced by director Lee Unkrich. The clip is from near the beginning of the film when Andy is deciding what to do with his childhood toys.

Honestly, I'm rather surprised that Pixar is leaking so many pics and sneak peeks so early. I'm ecstatic too, of course, but still surprised. I guess they want the anticipation as high as possible by the time June 18 rolls around.

I, for one, will be in the front of the line!

Toy Story 3 updates

Just thought I'd share a little treat from the people at Pixar. Remember, just six more months til Toy Story 3!

Behold:


And:
Now, obviously, these pics are staged and not from real scenes. However, they do give us a bit of info.

For one thing, they tell us which of the characters we've known and loved will return. Notice that Bo Peep (among others) is missing. If they include a scene showing her departure and Woody's reaction, that could be some pretty heartbreaking stuff.

For another thing, the pics give us a bit more insight into the feelings of the character. In both pics, Woody seems to be the only toy who is concerned/worried about the daycare. I would have thought they'd all be a bit upset about being discarded by Andy and sent off to daycare. Hmmm...

Oh, and we also know the name of the daycare: Sunnyside.

All in all, it's not much, but it's something.

I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS MOVIE.

UPDATE: One more! Here it is:


We already saw this scene in the trailer, but it's nice to see the still anyway. I mean what's not to love about this? The return of the "Astro Nut," the Jessie/Buzz cuteness, the "oh no, what is WRONG with him?" look on Woody's face - it's all classic.

Celebrate the Nerdery

I made a fantastic discovery today, and I'm still geeking out about it!

Singer Marian Call is, as it turns out, the voice for geeky/nerdy people everywhere. She's made some really well-done fan music for the sci fi genre, particularly Battlestar Galactica and Firefly / Serenity. But my favorite song of hers is the non-fandom-specific "The Nerd Anthem." Enjoy:

Let the awards season begin!

The Golden Globes nominations came out recently and brought with them a few surprises and several squee-able moments. A few of the highlights:

• I was a bit disappointed that Up wasn't nominated for Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical. Yes, it was nominated for Best Animated Feature, but I find that category somewhat limiting. Animation is a method, not a genre; animated films can be both comedies and dramas, and they should be allowed to compete in those categories.
• Speaking of Best Animated Feature, I think the field is pretty good. Of course I'm rooting for Up, but it might get some heavy competition from the critically-acclaimed The Fantastic Mr. Fox, the new Disney classic The Princess and the Frog, and the beautifully animated Coraline. The only film I wouldn't call much of a threat is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, which was visually wonderful but light on story.
  
• Glee love! Glee was nominated not only for Best Television Series, Comedy or Musical, but also Best Actor (the AWESOME Matthew Morrison - I love him), Best Actress (the talented and pitch-perfect Lea Michele), and Best Supporting Actress (the hilarious and incredible Jane Lynch). I call this revenge of the Gleeks!
• Meryl Streep was nominated TWICE for Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical. The nods were for Julie and Julia and It's Complicated. I haven't seen It's Complicated, but I'd say Meryl is a shoe-in for her joyous and chameleon-like turn as Julia Child.
  
• Stanley Tucci was nominated for his role as a serial killer in The Lovely Bones. I haven't seen the film yet, but I've read the book, and if anyone can make that character as creepy and complicated as he's supposed to be, it's the talented Mr. Tucci, whom I've loved ever since I saw him play Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream.

UPDATE: Can't believe I forgot this the first time:

• Um, a question for the Golden Globes people: Where's the love for The Big Bang Theory? Seriously, the show is awesome, with great characters, great writing, and the beyond amazing Jim Parsons. Which brings me to the next question: why the **** didn't he get a nomination? What, he's good enough for the Emmys but not for you? Fail, Golden Globes people. Epic, epic fail.
  

The Princess and the Frog

Let me start off with a disclaimer: I am a child of the Disney Renaissance. When I was growing up, nearly every year brought a new masterpiece from the House of Mouse: The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, Hercules, Mulan. These movies are classics, and for good reason. So it's probably a bit of an understatement to say that I have HIGH STANDARDS for my Disney movies.

So what did I think of The Princess and the Frog, the film that marks Disney's return to the hand-drawn animated musical format (which, in my opinion, it never should have left)?

Bottom line, I call it a major win. Not perfect, but a great return for the good, old-fashioned Disney musical.

First of all, the film is BEAUTIFUL. If anyone thought that hand-drawn animation was passe in the age of computer animation, they were wrong. The settings were absolutely amazing - so amazing, in fact, that they seemed to glow.

Next, the characters. I have to begin with Tiana, the newest member of Disney's most exclusive sisterhood: the Disney Princess club. I thought the writers did a fantastic job of creating a princess for the 21st century. Tiana is smart, driven, and concerned about more than her looks or finding her Prince Charming. In short, she's a great role model for the girl of today.

Of course, she does find her Prince Charming in the end - or, more precisely, her Prince Naveen, the spoiled but charming prince of Maldonia who learns a lesson about hard work and dedication from Tiana. I must say, I might have a new favorite Disney prince. Well, no, that's not true; Beast is still my first love, but Naveen is a close second. This prince is hilarious, sweet, and pretty darn handsome, I must say.

I also really loved the chemistry Naveen and Tiana had. They had a really fun, sweet, honest vibe between them, which really made me believe it when they fell in love. And unlike a lot of Disney couples, Tiana and Naveen actually had a chance to get to know each other before they fell in love. In fact, they hated each other at first, and it was only after they saw each others true colors that hate gave way to friendship and, eventually, to love. It reminded me a bit of Beauty and the Beast, actually, and that's a high compliment.

As the villian, Dr. Facilier was downright creepy. The best part was his minions: the oh-so-creepy shadow creatures that snaked across surfaces and did his evil bidding. Dr. Facilier wasn't quite as deliciously snarky as Scar or Ursula, and he didn't have the hilarity of Hades, but his evil scowl was enough to make him a worthy member of the Disney villians club.

As for the music, I enjoyed it for the most part. The score definitely gave a fun, bouncy, New Orleans vibe, even if the songs themselves were rather "meh"-worthy. I love Randy Newman as much as the next person - I'll never forget that he's the man who brought us "You've Got a Friend in Me" and the tear-jerking "When She Loved Me" - but I found myself longing for the musical genius of Alan Menken. Luckily for us, Menken will be doing the score for Rapunzel, coming out in 2010. To me, that man IS Disney musicals. Period.

One element that really shocked me: Disney actually KILLED A CHARACTER. And the character I'm talking about is NOT THE VILLAIN (who always seems to die in Disney movies, so that death wouldn't be a surprise). I won't reveal here who exactly shuffles of the mortal coil, but I will tell you that I was very surprised. True, Disney has killed characters before - Bambi's mother and Mufasa, to name two - but they rarely kill anyone in the climax of the film (Megara doesn't count - she was only mostly dead). I wasn't sure exactly WHY they killed the character, though I did think the death scene was effective: it was handled very sweetly and got me all teary-eyed. Honestly, I'm torn: I don't know whether I should be horrified that Disney offed a major character or appreciative that Disney is gutsy enought to trust that kids can handle something as emotionally heavy as death. I'm leaning toward the latter.

Well, those are my thoughts. Please, share your own in the comments! I'd love to hear what others thought.

Alpha Love

SPOILER ALERT. READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK.


Oh, Alpha, I love you. Deep, deep fan love.

Yes, you're a psychotic, murderous compilation of forty-plus unstable imprints. You sliced Whiskey's face, killed Dr. Saunders 1.0, cut up Victor, killed nearly everyone who'd ever loved Echo, left Paul Ballard brain dead, and committed all kinds of other monstrous acts along the way. In short, you're evil, ruthless, and scary as all hell.

But you're also incredibly smart and wildly unpredictable, and that's what makes you so fascinating. Really, once you set your mind to some new act of evil, it's all the Dollhouse staff can do to scramble six or seven steps behind, trying to stop you. I mean, let's take a look at the list of people you've outsmarted so far: a tech genius; an ex-FBI agent; a who-the-hell-knows-what-he-did-before-but-he's-got-some-scary-skills head of Dollhouse security; and an anal control freak of a Dollhouse manager. That's pretty impressive.

So, Alpha, I just want to say that I LOVE it whenever you appear on an episode, and not just because you're played by the awesome Alan Tudyk (though, seriously, that's a big part of it). You're easily the scariest villain I've seen on TV in a while, and you turn every episode in which you appear into a wild, wild ride. We never know what you're going to do or how you're going to do it. And on top of it all, you're so damn funny!

So thanks, Alpha, and I can't wait to see you again.

And now, a bit of news from the "Bad Idea" bin...

Buffy fans, I want you all to try something with me. Close your eyes and think about the show. Imagine your favorite scenes, characters, lines, story arcs, etc. - whatever it was that kept you watching. Now, try to imagine any of that without Joss Whedon.

Can't do it? That's what I thought. Without Joss, there would be no Buffy - at least, not as we knew it. But apparently, someone has decided that the time is right to resurrect our favorite Slayer in a movie - one WITHOUT any involvement from Joss.

Can anyone else see a disaster waiting to happen?

I don't even get why they think anyone would go SEE this movie. I mean, maybe some people who only have a vague notion of what the show was might go out of curiosity, but any true fans would stay far, far away from a Joss-less Buffy. Such movie would be like resurrecting a body without a soul: It looks the same, but the actual person, the essence, is gone. And since several of the stars of the series - including Alyson Hannigan (Willow) and Anthony Stewart Head (Giles) - have already said they won't participate in a movie without Joss, the film seems like a no-go from the get-go.

If you want to make a Joss-written, Joss-directed Buffy film, then bring it on. But otherwise? Forget it. Please.