The Year-End Spectacular

It probably won't be that spectacular, but it might just be my last post of the year.

These last few weeks have definitely been eventful. In some ways good and bad in others. I've taken on more responsibility concerning my new baby brother. So have my two sisters. I've also been working a lot more (which means I've spent a little more cash than usual, thus defeating the purpose of working more hours...) and hope to hear in the next few weeks about a possible second job. One with substantial pay that includes benefits, vacation time and paid holidays. That would put me working at least six days a week, until I go completely out of my mind anyway. It would be a major step up though, and the pay is fantastic.

Christmas was a big day for my family. My sister Kelly got engaged to her long-time boyfriend. I couldn't have picked a better man for her if I wanted to. While I was extremely excited for them I grew encreasingly frustrated with almost everyone elses need to make the event about themselves. Especially my girlfriend and my other sister, who were so jealous it made me violently ill. But, there wasn't much I could do about that, besides propose to my girl, and that's not gonna happen (remind me to give my lecture on marriage someday...).

As big a present as that was for the whole family, there were still others to go around. I didn't give quite as good as I got though. My girlfriend got tickets to go see Wicked, which is still a few months away, but it was what she wanted. She also got Nintendogs and a DS, but she got those well over a month ago because she couldn't wait. I got Simpsons Season 7, the extended Sin City DVD, Burnout for the DS, two jackets, one of which didn't fit, South Park Season 5, Vol 2&3 of Speed Racer, the Marvel Legends Deadpool figure (easily my most favorite present!!), a nice Fossil watch, Thundercats Vol. 1, an odd little drinking game (even odder that I don't drink much). I think that covers it all. Well, except what I've gotten for myself recently.

From Amazon I got the Seinfeld Season 5&6 gift set (for about sixty bucks too!), the new John Oszajca cd, Toy Story 2 and Snatch. From EB Games I got Planetes Vol. 1, Aeon Flux: The Complete Series, Garfield and Friends Vol. 4 (no, I don't have 1-3, but it was $15), the Outsider and the Man Who Fell to Earth. For baby bro and myself to enjoy I picked up the Disney Treasures Silly Symphonies set. Got it for under $15, found out it's worth quite a bit more since it's out of print. Lucky discovery by me. Oh, and I actually found a copy of Danger Doom at Target. I bought it and love the hell out of it. It's like Wu-Tang for the geek crowd, well worth the ten bucks it costs.

I've also bought a number of comics lately, so here's som short snippets about 'em.

Y, the Last Man #40

A stand alone story focusing on two women in Yorick's life. With this Vaughan takes a bit of a soap-operatic approach. It was still interesting, and the surprise was definitely a surprise, it just feels like he's running out of ideas so in comes the melodrama. Hopefully things will get better with the upcoming arc.

Cable & Deadpool #23

Thank God this is over. Confusing, weird, and only occasionally funny, this is easily the wors arc the book has had since its first. Even I didn't know enough about the world of X to understand everything that was going on here. Good stuff with Cage and Iron Fist though.

Penny Arcade 25 cents

Yeah, this was even wors. Not funny at all and even more confusing. Likely over my head since I know diddly about the books origins as a comic strip. But, you'd think this would be a good place to hook someone like me, instead I'll probably never read another strip. Give me PvP anyday.

Local #2

Anyone else get a screwed up copy? Had to read it twice to realize I got double pages, and even then I didn't care about the story. Maybe I'm just too damn old, but all this just seemed to scream "play some emo music!!!!" to me. Kids, I'll never understand them.

Jonah Hex #2

Hrm. I loved, loved, LOVED the first issue, but this was only slightly above mediocre. The story is sloppy and you barely have time to get invested in it before it's over. But, since these are stand alone stories I'll likely pick up $3 and see if they can bounce back. Nice cover though.

Grounded #4

Listening to DVD commentaries has brought the term "10%-ed" into my vocabulary. What it means is that a show is run through a machine that speeds everything up by 10%. It helps to fit more material in and viewers can rarely tell the difference. This series is the equivelant of that, only instead of not being able to see it, it's bothering the hell out of me. I like the basics, I like the characters, but so much of it just flies by and is left unexplained that I fel like I'm lost in this world. When the series wraps I'm going to reread the whole thing and see if I can understand the thing any better.

A Distant Soil #1-3

These certainly aren't new, but damn are they good. Doran is a master at this type of storytelling. It's the comic equivelant of the Holy Trilogy, before Lucas mucked it all up. Well, it's far better than the Star Wars films really. There's more thought put into the story, though Doran admits to constantly seeing things she wants to change in it, and she has changed it to make it better (or had, since these are pretty old issues), only she actually made it better. I need to track these down, but I'm hoping to find a few trades online, or maybe someone selling an entire run.

Joker/Mask #1-4

Good mini that focuses on what happens when Joker discovers Loki's Mask. Interesting look into what makes the Joker the Joker, but outside of that it's nothing really special. Good art, appropriate since it seems to bee more of the animated Series Bats than the regular DCU Bats. You can almost hear Mark Hamill's voice coming off the page.

Batgirl: Year One #1-9

Another oldie I've finally gotten around to reading. Never been a big Dixon fan, but I think teaming him with Beatty helped keep the script less fetish-y, and art by Marcos Martin and Alvaro Lopez is fantastic. Babs is one of my favorite characters in comics, and I always try to pick up any story that involves her as Batgirl, and this didn't disappoint.

Maybe more later...maybe!

-L

There's No Place I Can Be, Since I Found the List

Jeez whatta week. Read lots of comics, saw a few movies and watched some TV, so I'll actually have a post about most of that later. For now though, here's some stuff you can buy to stuff some stocking's.

Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.0

I guess I need to start watching this. Everyone keep's telling me how good it is, so it'll be Netflixed I suppose.

The Brothers Grimm

This, though, I heard wasn't that great. Definitely want to rent it though.

Chicago - The Razzle-Dazzle Edition

Bleh. I didn't like it the first time around.

Cry Wolf (Unrated Widescreen)

Tis the season for crappy horror films.

ER - The Complete Fourth Season

Never got into it.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Special Edition, Unrated)

See, told ya.

Four Brothers (Widescreen Edition)

I did want to see this, but the preview just made it look terrible.

Gatchaman, Vol. 4: Collection

Still haven't finished watching Vol. 1.

The Great Raid (Widescreen Director's Cut)

Never heard of it.

Must Love Dogs (Widescreen Edition)

Normally I'm a Cusak fan, but this just didn't look all that interesting.

Party of Five - The Complete Second Season

Boy that Lacy Chabert was cute.

Rebound

Hahahahahahahaha......no.

Serenity (Widescreen Edition)

Possibly the best movie of the year. Buy it, you will not regret it.

-L

The Re-release List

Lotsa stuff hitting this week as well, but again only a few things I wouldn't mind having. Most of it will get added to the "rent" pile. Like this-

The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

I enjoyed the hell out of Judd Apatow's TV work, and I've heard nothing but positive buzz for this, but I'm on-again-off-again with Carrell. I like him in Anchorman, but he annoys me so much in The Office I can barely watch it.

Airplane - The "Don't Call Me Shirley" Edition

I like the fact that some classics have been getting these re-releases. It sucks for anyone that already has them for sure, but hopefully it brings it a new audience as well. BTW, Circuit City has this for $12.99, which makes it very tempting to pick up.

Bad News Bears (Widescreen Edition)

What no "Unrated" edition? I'm disappointed. I may go ahead and buy this. Billy Bob and Linklater = Genius.

Big Bad Mama - Special Edition

Angie Dickinson and The Shat? Who could resist. The DVD has a commentrak, but Amazon fails to say who is on it, damn them.

Cowboy Bebop Remix 3

It's likely I'll buy the Remix set when all the volumes get released. They're doing a hell of a job with them.

Death Race 2000 - Special Edition

Yet another re-release. Of another movie I haven't seen, but probably should.

Dice: Season 1 Complete Collection
Dice: Season 2 Complete Collection

Never heard of it.

Dukes of Hazzard - The Complete Fifth Season

Ah Coy and Vance, and the season that doomed the show. Stupid network idiots. By the way, the movie stinks.

Family Bonds - The Complete First Season

Couldn't get interested in it. And who thinks it's a good idea to release reality shows on DVD?

Frank Miller's Sin City (Recut, Extended, Unrated)

Dammit.

Giant Robo - The Complete Collection

I don't know what the hell it is, but it comes with a giant purple eyeball. That makes it very intriguing.

Gilmore Girls - The Complete Fifth Season

You know, I liked the first season, but I really can't see myself picking up any of the rest. It's on TV ten times a day now, and I spoiled any suspense with all the relationships by watching one of the newer episodes. And knowing all that, I just kind of lost interest.

Girls on Bulls

Easily the best DVD title ever.

Godzilla - Final Wars

Must...resist...singing...

Harryhausen Gift Set (Scrapbook) (3pc) (W/Book)

It's just not a Harryhausen collection without Clash of the Titans.

The Island

I'm definitely renting this. It looks like big dumb fun.

Killadelphia

And here we have the funniest DVD title ever.

King Kong - Peter Jackson's Production Diaries

Man, you's really have to be a Jackson lover to want this. Man that just came out wrong.

Kronk's New Groove

I didn't much care for the orignal, outside of that particular character. Now, since Kronk was the only good thing, I'm tempted to check this out.

Miami Vice - Season Two

In case you missed the two full friggin days on Nick this weekend.

The Newsroom - The Complete First Season

Canadian TV, finally on DVD so we can enjoy it. This sounds pretty funny, I'll have to Netflix it.

Planetes, Vol. 4

Another show I'm Netflixing, been meaning to get into it for awhile now.

The Producers (Deluxe Edition)

Never seen this, but I liked the musical, and might like the new movie. I'll have to check this out.

Rambo, Vol. 5: Snow Raid
Rambo, Vol. 6: Face of Freedom

I don't even remember there being a cartoon.

Reba - Season 2

Gah, I hate this show.

Rock 'n Roll High School - Special Edition

Boy, these re-releases are pissing someone off for sure. This has got to be the biggest list of them yet.

Roll Bounce (Widescreen Edition)

Heard this was pretty good. Might rent it.

Scooby-Doo in Where's My Mummy?

I've enjoyed all the DTV Scooby movies so far, hopefully this one too.

The Simpsons - The Complete Seventh Season (Collectible Marge Head Pack)

Also available in a regular old school package. I'm getting the Marge to go with my Homer.

Tour of Duty - The Complete Series

Never watched it.

Valiant

I wanted to see this too.

The Yards - Director's Cut (Miramax Collector's Series)

Never saw it, but I wanted to.

-L

Finally

Some time off. Not much, but it's nice to be home before midnight for once. Seems this week all I did was work, and if I wasn't working I was spending money on Christmas. I haven't even finished my next column, due tomorrow. Time is definitely not on my side this week. BUT! It could be, and very soon. But maybe not

I'm applying for another (or maybe just a second) job that would be three 12 hr shifts a week. I'm crossing my fingers, but I have very little faith that I'll get it. I have an inside chance because I know one of the guys, but it's still a slim one. Starting pay would be fantastic, including paid vacations and other benefits. But, I'm not getting my hopes up.

I've got two discs of the Prisoner waiting to be watched, but I just haven't had the time. I'm hoping I will tomorrow afternoon, but that all depends on if I get the column done tonight. I also need to update my sidebar and throw out some links I haven;t had time to get to. So what's say we make this one massive ass post, complete with reviews?

Gunslinger's Revenge

It's been a while since I've seen an Italian western, probably not since I went out and bought the special edition of The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. I think that was almost a year ago. Veronesi (the director) doesn't have the eye or the dramatic sense that Leone brought to his pictures, but he's still pretty good. The plot is as simple as it needs to be; a gunslinger retires and returns to a family he's never known. When his past catches up to him him, his family and their friends put their lives on the line to stay together. It sounds like something Leone would have directed.

Harvey Keitel playes the old gunslinger, and while he isn't bad, I didn't buy it. The guy can play bad ass, he even pulled of a priest-you wouldn't-fuck-with role in From Dusk Til Dawn. But here, he just seems too tame. I was expecting "The Wolf" and I got a sheep. But, the man's still a great actor and he brings a lot to the film despite all of that. The rest of the "good guys" are filled with actors who's names I can barely pronounce, but they're all pretty good. Especially the young boy, Yudii Mercredi. The story relies a little too much on humour, but when it's provided by the town drunk, played by Jim van der Woude, it's at least funny. And then there's the star of the movie, David Bowie. I know what you're thinking, but the movie is worth a watch for this reason alone, nevermind anything else.

Bowie plays this odd British/Southern/Italian type of character, who's seems to be after Lowen (Keitel), just for the fame it might bring him. He's uniquely perfect, and probably the best description I can give is "The Joker of the Old West". He definitely steals the movie.

Veronesi's biggest problem is that he can't decide if he wants this to be a family film or a gritty, violent western. It could definitely do with some better editing, although the dub is almost spot on. Like I said, it's worth the time for Bowie's performance alone, and outside of that it's still a decent movie. Worth a rent, or even a buy if you find it cheap enough.

Blackball

Think of it as Dodgeball for our British friends. The movie got distribution in the U.S. through the National Lampoon's label, probably ensuring at least a few watchers. Which is a shame, because it's not a bad movie. Plot: Cliff Starkey is a bad boy from across the tracks. He's exceptionally good at bowls and would like nothing more than to represent his country nationally. The only thing stopping him? Ray Speight (played by James Cromwell) and his country club buddies, who want no part of this new rebellious kid and his disregard for tradition. Enter Rick Schwartz (Vince Vaughn), agent extraordinaare. He turns Starkey into the British Dennis Rodman, and suddenly bowls is the most popular thing on TV. Eh, I probably took too long explaining the plot there. Vaughn turns in a small but decent performance, and Cromwell is as good as he ever is. Paul Kaye plays Starkey as over-the-top as he should be, but still keeps him relatable and you can't help but root for him. Written by Tim Firth (Calendar Girls) and directed by Mel Smith (best remembered as the albino from Princess Bride), it's a good movie, something that's predictable, but still funny, mostly because of the British wit. It's not a bad way to spend a few hours, and probably worth the rental fee.

Hero at Large

I can't help but feel Sam Raimi cribbed the plot of this movie for parts of his Spider-Man films. Only, with a real hero instead of John Ritter. Ritter plays an actor looking for work who happens to foil a robbery while wearing a Captain Avenger costume. It send sales for the movie and it's merchandise through the roof and the producers (as well as the mayor) draft him to foil fake robberies and the like. Now Ritter must find a way out of the deception, get the girl of his dreams, and keep the hopes of the city alive.

I liked this, probably more than I should. It's a typical 80's flik, but it seems out of the mold for what Ritter normally chose. His character is far more competent (despite being out of work) than most roles you see him in. It's goofy and sensible, probably has too much heart, but the Hollywood/politics stuff rings as true now as it ever did. And there's a part of me that believes that Marvel/Sony/whoever as well as Warner would gladly do what the producers in this movie do if given the chance.

Just the Ticket

Ticket scalper Gary Starke (Andy Garcia) has a chance to finally get his big score and start a legitimate career for himself and his on-again/off-again girl Linda (Andie McDowell). Now he just has to dodge the cops and the new scalper that's moving in on his territory, and convince Linda that he's doing the right thing. Garcia is charming as hell here, but the movie is far too happy, even in the midst of despair. The real story is in the exploration of Starke's relationship to his runners, not in the star-crossed romance between him and the too-cute-to-exist McDowell. I lost interest about halfway through and screwed around on-line while the rest of it played out. The end looked promising, then everything just turned into typical, and I couldn't wait for it to be over. Unless you're just bored, I'd stay clear.

Jay & Silent Bob Do Degrassi

The three episode arc of Degrassi: The Next Generation that Smith and partner in crime Mewes guest starred in. The "reasons" are easily explained, Smith is filming his next movie (the brilliantly titled) Jay & Silent Bob Go Canadian, Eh, and is using Degrassi High as a location. The episodes do a good job of introducing newcomers to the world of Degrassi, and it's clear that the writers and director are familiar with Smith's world. His dialogue, as well as Mewes', is perfect, but after the first episode I was more interested in the kids and the parents on the show than I was in this fictional Smith/Mewes pairing. I know the season are getting released, so this may be another Netflix addition. Smith came back for another two episode stint in the 5th season, and I'm hoping those hit DVD as well, just to add to the collection. Anyway, the DVD does it's job. I picked it up just because, and now I'm genuinely interested in the show and its characters.

One Tree Hill-The Complete First Season

It was hard to like this show at first. The plot is convoluted; two half-brothers are thrown together on the varsity basketball team after years of animosity have separated the two. Believe me, that doesn'n't do it justice. But, it's well written, and most definitely well acted. There are times when it wears it's heart on it's sleeve, and there are times when it's as subtle as a baseball bat to the head, but even then the actors pull you through. Chad Michael Murray isn't someone I would feel comfortable in saying "he's good", but, really, he's not bad. Fortunately he has Moira Kelly, James Lafferty, and Paul Johannsen to carry him when he stumbles. The soap operatic twists and turns the story takes definitely hooked me, more so than any other teen drama to come along in forever. It beats the pants off all the other similar crap (except Smallville, but that's because it's friggin Superman) out there, and most of what's come before it. It's like 90210 with a Melrose make-over, only with better actors and writers. That saud, if it hadn't been $15, I'd never have bought the damn thing.

Loveless #2

The best thing I can say about this is, at least it's pretty. Azzarello goes the typical route with the plot and everything just seems convenient, but Frusin can draw the hell out of it. He tries to give it an epic feel, bringing in historical elements, but it just feels confined and claustraphobic. I liked the first issue okay, but this was just bad. Definitely my last issue.

Angeltown #1-2

Nate Hollis is a private dick hired to find a missing basketball player suspected of murder. As he investigates he finds nothing is what it seems. Blah. Chinatown this aint. Shawn Martinborough does a good job on art, infusing crime-noir with a bit of urban sprawl, but the writing is just disappointing. Predictable, especially if you've ever seen any crime-noir story, or even read one. Hell, the plot for Ford Fairlane is leaps and bounds over this. I only have the first two issues, so I didn;t get to see how the story played out, so maybe I'm judging it prematurley. But, after the first two issue, I didn't really care to see what happened next.

Identity Crisis #1-7

Hmmm...what can I say that hasn't already been said about this? Nothing. Well, apparently Brad Meltzer saw Presumed Innocent a few too many times as a kid (or even an adult), because if you take away the damn costumes, that's almost exactly what this is. You're probably better off watching that than reading this, unless you just have some desire to see you're favorite superheroes behave in immoral fashion (well, some of them). It reads like fan fiction that's not about what it says it's about. Meltzer seems to be commenting on the state of comics, and how "dark" they've become by using those very tools to make his case. If Watchmen were the beginning of it, and this were the end, then it would serve as a perfect bookend. It showcases just how horrible a good idea can become when it's used as a blanket for the entire damn universe. And I'm not so sure that's what Meltzer was trying to do. In fact, I'd bet my life it wasn't. Mostly though, I just didn't care. About any of it. The only good thing in all seven issues was Slade kicking the shit out of the League. I heart Deathstroke the Terminator.

Burnout Revenge

Hey, a video game! And damn is it a good one. If you can operate a controller, buy this game. Saying anything else would only ruin the experience. Buy it, rent it, just get it.

Man, there's been so much put up at the Galaxy that I don't even know where to start. Well, okay, how about my last column and a review of a damn good comic, Happy Birthday Anyway. After that, just go to the front page and read EVERYTHING ELSE!~!!!!!!!

And hey, ADD is back to blogging! Go say hey.

Mrs Tegan got name dropped in a comic. I'd be jealous if my name wasn't Logan.

I didn't make the list, but a few of my friends did.

There's more, but that's all I have time for right now. Maybe this weekend!

-L

Spacecataz

So, one of the DVDs I bought today was Aqua Teen Vol. 4. I popped it in when I got off work, just for background noise while I did some laundry. I clicked "Play All" on the menu, and guess what happened? It played all 13 episodes. AT THE SAME TIME. It might just be the funniest thing EVER. Definitely the funniest DVD feature ever.

I also got the second great Star Wars DVD to come out in the last, oh, well, however many years Star Wars DVDs have been coming out. Haven't opened it yet, but I loved the cartoon when I saw it originally, and I look forward to watching both seasons back to back.

I wanted to talk about other crap, but I had to pull a long shift at work, and I have to go in early tomorrow. Maybe that means I'll get off a bit early and will actually get to post some stuff. I've read a few books and watched a few movies, and I plan on writing a little something about them. So, stay tuned!! Plus, maybe a few links to some great sites.

-L

The "If I Were a Rich Man" List

Dammit, I need to be a millionaire. I'm happy to say I haven't bought a DVD in weeks (for myself at least), and actually I've gotten rid of quite a few thanks to a local shop that buys used ones. I'm well on my way to clearing up much needed shelf space and kicking the bad habit. I still haven't bought the new Seinfeld sets! Which I'm sure I'll pick up eventually...

But, looks like I'll be breaking down and buying at least two things this week, probably three though. You'll just have to guess which.

24 - Season Four

I stopped watching after Season 1. The death of his wife REALLY pissed me off. I'll eventually get around to Netflixing the rest of the seasons.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Vol. 4

My name is Shakezula, the mike ruler, the old schooler, you wanna trip, I'll bring it to ya. Maybe the funniest show on television. Man I cannot wait for the movie!

Batman - The Animated Series, Volume Four

I still haven't bought the second or third volume.

Cinderella Man (Widescreen Collector's Edition)

Also availabel in a single disc edition. I'll probably be renting this in the next week or so.

Combat - The Complete Series

My Dad would love this.

The Dukes of Hazzard (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

I'm still on the fence about this. I love the show for it's all out goofiness, but I don't think the movie captures it. It just looks like a slick Hollywood remake with no thought to the original premise, or even why it worked.

Everybody Loves Raymond - The Complete Fifth Season

I like the packaging on these sets. Other than that I'm not terribly interested in them at all.

Fantastic Four (Widescreen Edition)

Best Buy has an exclusive set that comes with a cd-rom of the first two years of the original comic. I'm debating on picking it up.

Full House - The Complete Second Season

My niece loves this show. I have no idea why...

Garfield and Friends, Vol. 5

Another show I wish I'd been buying. I'll catch up one day though.

Gargoyles - Season Two, Vol. 1

Good show, but I still haven't broken down and bought the first season.

Green Acres: The Complete Third Season

Here's a show I definitely won't be getting. I could never stomach it.

Kenny Vs. Spenny - Season One

I've seen this talked about, but I've never seen it on TV. Maybe I'll add it to the Netflix.

Land of the Lost: The Complete Series

Way before my time. And far too cheesy.

Law & Order - The Fourth Year

That makes it sound more important doesn't it? I like SVU.

M*A*S*H - Season Nine (Collector's Edition)

For the last freaking time, it's not a "Collector's Edition" if it's the ONLY edition.

MacGyver - The Complete Fourth Season

I loved it as a kid, but as an adult it seems, I dunno, really dumb.

The Magnificent Seven - The Complete First Season

There was a TV show? Geez, talk about milking the cow.

Millenium - Seasons 1-3

I assume this is just a re-list, packaging all three sets together.

Murder She Wrote - The Complete Second Season

I wish my Grandmother were still alive, this was he favorite show. She like MacGuyver and Matlock too.

Newlyweds - Nick & Jessica - The Final Season

Hahaha, definitely the punctuation at the end of that sentence. That title is perfect.

Rock Star: INXS The DVD

Pass.

The Rockford Files - Season One

Another show my Grandmother loved. Never seen it, I'll have to Netflix 'em.

Roseanne - The Complete Second Season

No syndication episodes in this set. They should really go back and fix the first set. I might at least watch them, if not buy them.

Roswell - Seasons 1-3

Another re-list, I have Season 1, wouldn't mind getting the others. I've liked what I've seen.

Saved By the Bell - The New Class: Season 6 & 7

The New Class lasted that long? Geez.

The Simpsons - Seasons 1-6

And another re-list! This one is actually a good deal though.

Star Wars - Clone Wars, Vol. 2

Well, at least somebody knows how to do Star Wars right.

Superman - The Animated Series, Volume Two (DC Comics Classic Collection)

Another show I haven't been buying! At least there's only two sets out. $40 will get both!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Original Series (Volume 3)

Ah, this brings back some memories.

Thundercats: Season One, Volume 2

I just can't afford these.

The West Wing - The Complete Fifth Season

I can never get into political shows.

That's one big ass list.

I'll be back later with some actual content, got a few things to get out of my head.

-L

Talk About a Crisis

A friend of mine wanted to borrow some DVDs, so I printed him up a list of my collection. He took it home and he and his wife looked it over to see what they wanted to borrow first. Mostly they want some TV sets, which is cool. He comes back to me and asks me about the My So-Called Life set I have, and is it the real set or a copy. Then he asked me how much I paid for it. It's the real set, the whole series, and I think I paid about $40 for it. I ask why, he tells me to go home and check on eBay.

So, I get home and look it up. $200 folks. That's how much people are paying for the entire series. That's insane. Especially since Noggin airs the show (or, did air it, they might not be anymore, I dunno).

Now, I like the show, well enough to pay $40 just to have the whole thing, but there are almost no features on the set. I think the Pilot episode has a commentrak, and there's an interview maybe. That's very, very little, and the commentary was hardly that interesting, so much so that I don't really recall the episode it's on. So, I'm wondering, should I sell mine. I mean, I can copy the DVDs to VHS and have the shows to watch anytime I want. Eventually there may be a re-release since this wasn't even a studio set, but a BMG set, produced for their little movie club. And it may have some special features that would make me want to re-buy it, which would make my set almost worthless. I mean $200? People are crazy.

Even better, does it make me a horrible person to want to capitalize on the craziness of these people?

Probably. But $200? Isn't that like a 500% profit? Who could resist?

-L

Be Seeing You

Okay, so I've been watching The Prisoner. I'm waiting for Disc 4 to get to me, which means I've seen six episodes. One of them twice apparently. Which kind of pissed me off. What the hell is the point in putting the same episode of two discs? Oh well. So, six (five, whatever) episodes in, and here's what I think...

I like it. A lot. I don't love it, but it's a show that I think I could definitely watch over and over.

But, before I say anything else, let me say this. The DVD's suck. The audio is terrible and the picture looks slightly above VHS quality. I feel for all you fans that bought these, A&E screwed you. I doubt we'll ever see a good solid release of the series, but if one does ever come along, I will buy it. But, I won't buy these. I don't mind paying for anything ,as my DVD library shows, but if it's on DVD it should most definitely have good sound and picture. It doean't have to be digitally remastered and all that jazz, but at least good, you know? This is just terrible, so bad I'd rather listen to it through my mono TV than my stereo surround. So, A&E, do the fans a damn favor and release a good quality set, even if the price is a little steep (can't be much more though, the damn single discs are like $20 a piece...).

Back to the actual show...

In high school I took two years of Spanish (9th&10th grades) and it was okay, I didn't really get the language, which made it kind of difficult to learn, but I did okay. The in 11th grade I took Latin. After a month of that Spanish made a lot more sense. I could see the origins of the entire language, it was weird, back tracking like that. Watching the Prisoner is a lot like taking Latin after two years of Spanish.

It almost de-values every sci-fi type of series that I've ever seen. And I'm only three discs into a 10 disc series.

Seriously, you can trace the origins of probably every good sci-fi show, comic, movie, whatever, back to this. Not even just sci-fi stuff either. It's all very surreal. On top of that I've watched the first two discs of Lost as well,which is most definitely a spawn of The Prisoner. But I can talk Lost another time. The first things that came to mind were the Matrix, and oddly enough, Wolverine. The Matrix is supposedly an offshoot of Morrison's Invisibles series, which I have never read, but I can definitely see elements of this in it. And Wolverine...well, the entire Weapon X program, the memory wipes, almost everything we've been given about his adult past seems to be directly inspired by this show. Of course, there's more "fantasy" elements in Wolvie's past than in the Prisoner, but the basics are there. And I'm sure the Prisoner isn't a shining example of originality. Most likely McGoohan was inspired by something to create it, but it's clear how much it has inspired everything since.

Right now my mind is racing, I desperatley want to know the answers to all the questions of the show. Who is Number 1? What's the deal with the revolving Number 2's? Is it ever really explained? Does the show actually have a conclusin? Or am I going to get left hanging, with only more questions in the finale than answers? Why did he retire? What the hell is the big ball? Is he going to ever really escape? Or will they get their answers? Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? It's all just one long series of questions!! But, as much as I want to know, I want to see it unfold for myself.

I'm fast on my way to becoming a major fan of The Prisoner, It's been suggested to me by many a person, but when ADD hit me up in email and told me I need to see these (after I asked for recommendations I should add), well, I knew he wouldn't steer me wrong. He never has before.

Scared some of you with that title there, didn't I (and if you haven't seen the show, well, you probably still don't get it)? Disc 4 can't get here fast enough dammit!

-L