Author: Timpane

Joss Whedon. You’ve heard me rave about Angel, Buffy, and Firefly. But here’s an unexpected part four.

OH, and at the bottom, there’s a link to the SERENITY trailer… if youre good.

I’ve been away, and had very little time for fun except my continuing love for comics. And there are two that I would recommend highly.

FIRST: Astonishing X-Men, written by: Joss Whedon.

Yup, the Buffy creator has been writing this new X-Book for a year or so, and let me tell you, it is the best its ever been. This is the best stuff since the Claremont/Byrne days of the early 80’s, complete with really engaging storylines, great art, and true “Whedonisms” (example: WHITE QUEEN to BEAST, regarding how CYCLOPS will never truly love her because of his love for the late JEAN GREY – “Looks, superpowers, the best body money can buy and I still rate below a corpse”, or WOLVIE’S “I really like beer” in the middle of a battle.)

So, yeah. Astonishing X-Men is fantastic, and if you are an X-fan or a Joss fan, you’re missing out if you don’t read it.

SECOND: “FRAY” Been missing the Buffyverse?

Joss has written a Graphic novel about a slayer a couple hundred years in the future – its called “FRAY”, and it is true Buffyverse with a bit of a “Star Wars” twist. There is the typical Whedonism stuff (“You hid me in da mout wid a girder…” “You were supposed to duck”) and the usual betrayal, shock and surprise. It also has a fast paced sci-fi feel and a lot of heart.

So, yeah… pick it up!

Oh, and expect a fifth posting in September after “Serenity” comes out. Meanwhile, check out the SERENITY TRAILER!

http://www.apple.com/trailers/universal/serenity/

Enjoy.

EDIT by matthew: Linked, couple tpyos corrected, lots of “almost ellipses” (..) replaced with commas :).

I was inspired. Have you ever found one of those websites you just laughed and laughed at and then had to tell everyone about? I have, and I just finished another one.. and, well.. I want more.

SO.. I will share some of my faves and please check them out, and please share some of your faves so I can have something to look at when Im supposed to be working.

http://www.realultimatepower.net THE OFFICIAL NINJA WEBSITE This is the funniest site I have ever seen. Not for everyone.. definitely rated PG13 at least.. but I cried when i saw this site a year or two ago. Click on PumpUp and PumpUp2 and Seppuku. funny funny stuff

http://www.supermanisadick.com also http://www.superdickery.com SUPERMAN IS A D**K Click on image galleries and just check them all out. These are real pictures of actual superman comics that prove that Superman is a.. well, lets say that the short form of Richard is in there a lot..

http://www.angryalien.com/ 30 SECOND BUNNY THEATRE Famous movies re-enacted in 30 sec by animated Bunnies. Titanic and Freddy Vs. Jason are my faves.. Also, Scream

Okay.. I’ll add more as I see them.

your turn

EDIT by matthew: Linked.

Amazing..

Today, in Minnesota, 6 students, a security guard, and a teacher were gunned down by a teenager.

This guy killed his Grandparents before and killed himself during.

Whats not amazing is his rampage, the tragedy of the victims, the use of legal guns, the environment of the school.. whats amazing is how I kind of don’t care as much… and I’m mad at myself for it.

Since 9-11, I kind of look at this sort of thing and say, “Well, its only 10, look at the WTC (or the Russian school, or the Iraqi car bombs.. or heck, even Columbine). This is the worst school shooting since Harris and Klebold became household names, and unlike that day where I followed intensely, today I’m just, well, not that upset.

I should be.. I should be outraged.. I should be looking up the family members names.. trying to write songs.. watching CNN… but I’m not. I’m just sort of, “wow.. too bad.” And I’m ashamed of myself.

What has happened to me.. what has happened to the country that this is about the same as a right to die case or Michael jackson coming to court with a Doctor.. are we that desensitized?

I try not to be. Tonight, i will make myself pray for those horrrified families, those shattered lives.. and maybe I’ll throw one more at the Big Guy for myself and my country.. not because its is as bad as it is.. but that we’re used to it.

Hey guys… this is not a shot by shot description as the last one was, but is a preliminary description here, hours before it airs on the OC tonight and tomorrow with ROBOTS.

REVENGE OF THE SITH, the second trailer.. spoilers may be below – If I find a more detailed description, I will post a part 2, but for now.. enjoy the scoop!

The trailer begins with the following exchange:

Palpatine: “The Dark Side of the Force is the pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural.”

Anakin: “Is it possible to learn this power?”

Palpatine: “Not from a Jedi.”

We are then introduced to the political maneuvering of Palpatine, Obi-Wan and Mace Windu. All of them actually want to use Anakin as a pawn in their game (Palpatine makes Anakin his “personal representative on the Jedi Council” while Obi-Wan wants him to “report on all the Chancellor’s dealings”). The first minute or so is surprisingly heavy on dialogue and consists mostly of shots of various characters speaking to each other (intercut with short glimpses of evil droids, space battles etc.). We even see how Mace Windu and three other Jedi attempt to arrest Palpatine (he grabs the lightsaber and confronts them). When Mace Windu tells Anakin “You are on this council but we do not grant you the rank of Master”, Anakin loses it and joins the Dark Side (Sidious: “Every single Jedi is now an enemy of the Republic”). At least that’s how the trailer makes it look.

Then the more “visual” half starts with some very neat scenes like a low angle shot of Anakin marching in front of a Clone trooper army. We see Wookiees on some kind of war machine, the duel in the volcano field, gigantic 10-wheel military transports and actual destruction of the Senate chamber. Everything is very dramatic, several deaths are implied, Padme is seen crying loudly and music from the Emperor duel (ROTJ) is heard.

Overall, the first half of the trailer is surprisingly specific, making no sense whatsoever to people who don’t know Star Wars well. The second half is very dark and dramatic, but with lots of action. Bad guys (apart from Sidious) only appear for a fraction of a second and have no lines. The final seconds consist of Obi-Wan shouting “You were the chosen one!”, fighting Anakin while both dangle from some ropes/wires. After the closing titles, there is a bonus shot of Vader and Sidious standing side by side, accompanied by Vader’s breathing.

This is a preliminary version with effects and sound not quite finalized. One part of the trailer is actually without music (either for dramatic effect or John Williams’ new score will be inserted here?). The length is little under 2:30.

When further questioned about the “evil droid”, our source confirmed that there wasn’t a clear shot of General Grievous but there was one of the bodyguards:

There is some evil-looking humanoid droid with a cape around his head and torso, flanked by two classic battledroids (from Episode I). He seems to hold a lance in his hand. Later, Obi-Wan is seen swordfighting with a humanoid droid but he’s only seen from back and moving quickly. (I’m 90% certain it IS Grievous, but it’s extremely short and quick shot.) Anyway, both of these shots are VERY brief (about half second).

One of the shots depicts Obi-Wan being surrounded by dozens of droids. Some of them look different and wear capes, maybe one of them is Grievous. But it’s very wide shot, the characters are small.

I sit stunned.

This is a non-spoiler post so I won’t spoil the end of Angel, and I ask that no one else spoil it either.. suffice to say.. I finished Angel season 5 a week ago and I’m still reeling.

This continuation of Buffy the Vampire Slayer takes place in LA, with Cordelia, Angel, and eventually much of the Buffy regulars either as main characters or guests.. including the Slayer herself in “I will remember you”, the most emotional episode of either series outside of “The Body” on Buffy.

This series is as good if not beter than the Buffy that spawned it and its in its differences that it shines. On Buffy, Humand good, non humans basically bad unless they have a soul. On Angel.. many more shades of Gray.

The concept is this.. Angel, the vampire with a soul, leads a quest to “help the helpless” in an effort to thwart the plans of the Evil “Senior partners” who are lawyers.. with the devil himself as a client (satan plays a mean game of raquetball). If Angel can redeem huimself, he gets to be human, not a vampire.. and then he can go find perfect happiness.

There’s more, but thats the gist. Angel stunned me, broke my heart more than once, made me laugh out loud, made my wife cry three times, and left me speechless when it ended. Its dialogue is as fresh as Buffy.. its as funny.. but its a grown up show whereas Buffy is aimed at high school to college.

Like Star Trek: DS9, it takes a while to hit its stride – and like Buffy, it can’t be picked up half wayu through very easily.. so lots of folks say “I couldn’t get into it”.. but I assure you, I said the same thing in the first five eps.. and by the end I was more into this show than Buffy.

As for the future of the “Buffyverse”, Joss Whedon has been working on a cartoon taking place during Buffy’s high school years.. but really, we want our grown up shows back. Ther ehas been talk of a “Ripper” show featuring Giles, a show featuring Spike.. but nothing certain.

Today i am trying to watch other shows without holding them to the high standard set by joss Whedon. Buffy, Angel, and Firefly.. all shows that you need to give time to grow on you.. but once they do,, watch out.. its wonderful, terrible, and addictive as hell.

Literally sometimes.

Today, our new Barnsonian, Bryan, wrote something funny. He noted that if it were a category in High School, I would have been voted “Most Likely To Be Matt Barnson”. I’d be mad if it weren’t really true (and if you thought I was bad the year you were there with me, you should have seen the Train wreck of the years after.. I was to Matt what Bizarro was to Superman.. same idea, but wacked)

So, sparked by that, and by the redesign of the site, I thought it might be appropriate to reintroduce, the bloggers here.. and how they came to the site. I don’t know whatever happened to Bryan, nor does he to me.. I don’t know exactly Curtis’s relation to Matt, nor do I know really where Weed came from. Ante up again.. who are you?

Finally, one of my posts has made the top 3.

Sure, I did very little but paste a description of the Star Wars Episode 3 trailer, but still.. I’m honored and would like to thank the members of the academy.

Star Trek Enterprise is Cancelled on UPN.

Major bummed… first time since 1987 without Star Trek on TV.

First time since 1978 withoug Star Trek In Development.

How did they do this? ER is still popular. NYPD Blue still has viewers (in this, their final season). St:TNG final ep in 1994 had like 25 million viewers!

I’m So Bummed.

This just in from www.timpane.com

Saturday, January 22, 2005

Hello, friends. As many of you know, I have been studying for the last three years to be a registered nurse. It was an odd decision, given that my passion is acting and music.. but as my other artistic friends know, sometimes it doesn’t quite pay the bills.

If that was my reason for starting, I quickly found that I really did enjoy the science and the art of caring for people in need. It has become another passion in my life, and the road has been difficult.

Last Friday, I took the NCLEX-RN, A.K.A. the State Boards, and I found out this morning that I have indeed passed. So, next week, my new journey begins, as I begin my job as a registered nurse.

I have had so much support from my wife, parents, siblings, family, and friends, and I thank you all.

As for the acting, fear not, this actually means I get to pursue that career indefinitely, and have already begun shooting the next big project, “Dead Hunt”. In the next few months expect a new headshot (finally), a demo reel, and more music as well. As always, stay tuned to www.timpane.com.

Much of that thanks goes to you, my Barnsonian buddies. You guys have helped me challenge a part of myself that was sometimes stifled throughout this ordeal. So, thanks.

Not to be a simpleton, but I’m having a simple problem installing City of Heroes. I get the game all installed fine, but when it tries to connect to the server, it simply can’t.

I know Matt is a Playa, and he also has a hardware firewall. He must have fixed this at some point. I simply don’t know what simple things I am talking about, so forgive simple ignorance, but help me Matty-wan-kenobi, you’re my only hope.