Crafting Can Be Geeky Too

I've been thinking about getting crafty again. I spent several years trying out crochet, knitting, sewing, making plushies, jewelry, etc. Mostly for myself, but sometimes I'd make something for a friend or family member. I'd put myself firmly in the "novice" camp in crafting capability but I truly love such homemade/handmade projects, especially those that are cute (duh!) and/or geeky.

So you can imagine how timely this post from Comics Alliance was about geeky cross stitch patterns. Designs come from Etsy user weelittlestitches and I love them! Maybe I'll try out cross stitch as my next craft -- who doesn't need a nice throw pillow or hand towel with the JLA or cast of Firefly?

More Batman Casting Revealed

I like directors who find acting partners that they re-use in move after movie. Some of my favorites have employed this practice --Alfred Hitchcock had several actors who showed up in multiple movies (James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Cary Grant). Tim Burton has Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. And now, it seems, Christopher Nolan is repeating the pattern as well.

Over the weekend, it was announced that Joseph Gordon-Levitt will appear in the next Batman installment, The Dark Knight Rises. (Recall as well that Tom Hardy (Eames in Inception) has also been cast in Dark Knight Rises, as Bane.) Based on this post from Movie Line, Gordon-Levitt has signed on as Alberto Falcone. This doesn't mean much to non-comic book fans, but for those of us who are, it's pretty exciting. Falcone appeared in a late 90's storyline from Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale, called The Long Halloween. I really enjoyed that story arc, so I can only hope it will influence/inspire the coming movie.

I've followed Gordon-Levitt since his days on 3rd Rock from the Sun and think he is a promising actor. He was a surprising, interesting addition to Nolan's most recent work, Inception.

There's still over a year for the new Batman movie, but I have to say, I'm more excited about it than the upcoming Green Lantern movie. I hope to be pleasantly surprised by it, much like I was with Iron Man. We'll see...

Anyway, here's one more gratuitous photo of Gordon-Levitt, this time from Inception -- I loved the scene with walking on walls.

Wonder Woman Costume Revealed

Thanks to Entertainment Weekly for kicking off Friday afternoon with a bang. Here's your new Wonder Woman:

Now, I've already commented that I think this show is pretty much doomed from the get go. But I had held out hope for some great costuming. I'm sorely disappointed, folks. This looks like a cheap Halloween Costume anyone could pick up from the "slutty superhero" section.

In addition, as many commenters on that post point out, she hardly looks athletic, let alone like a superhero. She doesn't need to be a WWE wrestler, but would a little muscle definition kill anyone?

I'm positive I've seen better, more convincing costumes from enthusiasts and cosplayers at Comic Con. Wow, way to fail.

Off to find something I like to balance the overall negativity of this post.

Fringe: The Best Sci-Fi on TV

With pouring rain most of the weekend, and a near car accident, I decided to forget the movie weekend and instead stayed in the comfort and safety of my apartment. I then had grandiose plans of watching a bunch of movies on Netflix, but after about 20 hours of gaming, I couldn't deal with watching a single 2 hour movie. (This makes no sense since I can sit down and watch 4-8 hours of episodic shows that are about 45 mins a piece, but dedicating 2 hours at one time sounds like such a chore.)

So, instead I caught up on Fringe. God I love this show. I hate that Fox moved it to Fridays to accommodate yet MORE American Idol -- is anyone even watching this now that Simon is gone? I am frustrated that our current system of collecting data on TV watching behaviors depends on an antiquated system that doesn't take into account the whole picture of viewing habits and downgrades those that are becoming more and more common (watching online or on DVR is not equal to watching live broadcast according to advertisers).


It's too bad. Fringe has been a consistently good show, with interesting characters, storylines, and some great acting. It's often compared to X-Files, which I see as a plus. I suppose I should be thankful it's made it through 3 seasons so far -- the amazing Firefly didn't even make it through one season on Fox.

If you like science fiction or stories of the strange & unusual and aren't already watching Fringe, check it out before it's gone. And here's to praying for a Season 4.

Movie Challenge: What to See this Weekend?

I've managed to tweak my neck/back (likely after hours on 3 crappy computer set-ups this week), so will likely not be able to game as much as I'd like this weekend. So, I'm thinking about hitting up a movie -- it's been a slow start to the year for movie releases. Maybe that's fine; I'm pretty much a homebody until Daylight Savings takes effect (Sunday!!).

Anyway, here are my options this weekend:

Rango (animated movie with Johnny Depp as voice of lead character):

Red Riding Hood (loosely based on the fairytale story with Gary Oldman and Amanda Seyfried as Red):

Side comment: While I love the red hood, am I the only one who thinks everyone in the cast looks just a little too clean and coiffed for a medieval village?

and Battle: Los Angeles (sci-fi action thriller with alien invasion of LA starring Aaron Eckhart):

Pretty sure it's going to come down to Rango (liked by Fans & Critics) or Battle: LA (liked by Fans). I'll keep you posted if it is a "feel-good" or a "blow s**t up" kind of weekend here in PDX.

I Know How You Feel, Stephen Colbert

I don't get to talk about him much here (and maybe I'll change that soon while I wait for the summer movies to start rolling out), but I LOVE Stephen Colbert. I loved him on The Daily Show, I loved him in Amy Sedaris' Strangers with Candy, and I absolutely adore The Colbert Report. I admit that when the show first started in 2005, I didn't get it. But I kept with it, and now it's among my regular favorites.

This week, he covered a very important topic: The release of Apple's iPad 2.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Stephen Wants an iPad 2
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive

Oh My God, I Need It!

I currently own no Apple products, but I have technology-envy with this one. I have to say, the iPad is pretty sexy and without even seeing it, I'm pretty sure the iPad 2 continues the tradition (despite it's still awful name).

There must be some research need for the iPad 2, right? Let's see if we can come up with one to justify such a purchase...

Hipster Superheroines

And the meme goes on!

This week, Comics Alliance follows-up up the Hipster Disney Princesses with something even better: Hipster Superheroines. There's even an opportunity to clip the images and make your own snarky hipster superhero. I see geeky birthday cards for all my friends!

A few favorites from the CA link:

Zatanna (it was a toss up between this one and the one with the PBR reference)

Wonder Woman:



Power Girl -- this one has a special place in my heart because of the Portland reference. So true, why bother?