My adventures in Disneyland part 4

Day 5 on vacation: We were tired, sore, sunburned, and having the time of our lives.

We decided to check out Disney’s California Adventure, and if I was stunned by the beauty of Disneyland this place floored me. Being both a movie nut and a fan of any time before I was born, the old Hollywood look of the place just melted my heart. The streets looked just as I imagined they did when Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe walked down them, maybe without Goofy, but still pretty amazing.

We hit the animation studios department and I got a drawing lesson by a real Disney artist! I’ve drawn the Cheshire Cat before, but it was still cool. We also got to watch an animated Crush from Finding Nemo answer kids questions in a display of animation I’d never thought possible. After that the day was peppered with more rides, character encounters, and shopping (This was my souvenir day). Katie and I caught a stage performance of Aladdin, which was pretty spectacular, especially when the glowing camels came out and started eating audience members.

Once again we kept running into fantastic street performances that we just loved, including a 40’s song and dance show featuring Minnie Mouse. I hope people appreciate these things as much as I do, I’d hate to think of Disneyland turning into all rides just because people need digital media just to survive.

It was a magical day. Katie and I got lost along the boardwalk searching for Cars Land and ran into Donald Duck who was a big fan of my tee shirt. We rode a Little Mermaid ride, ate churros, and made our way to the land of talking cars, which was pretty impressive since it made us feel like we had stepped into the movie! Bugs Life land was the same way, but I didn’t like Bugs Life that much so it was cool but a lot of the effect was kind of wasted on me. We fast passed ourselves onto a ride that “flew” us over California in an amazing display of projection and 4D entertainment. We flew over orange groves and smelled oranges, and over the ocean and smelled a dead whale- or that was the kid next to me. Either way it was magical.

That night we got to see the parade again, only this time without breakdowns, as well as an extremely convincing Snow White. My backpack was full of Disneyland trinkets by this time, and we were all ready to drop where we stood, but we wanted one last show before we were done, so we made our way to the World of Color in California Adventures. It was a display of color and water like I’ve never seen, where they were able to build a sheet of water and project Disney films onto it, which once again brought tears to my eyes. During the Pirates of the Carribean scene they shot fireballs over the crowd, and I swear I lost an eyebrow in the process.

On the way back, we stopped by Disney’s rave club called the House of Cards and listened to a band cover pop songs. I liked it because I’m a huge Alice in Wonderland fan and the DJ was a white rabbit with LED ears. The place felt like Wonderland after dropping acid.

The next day we had the sad task of saying goodbye to the Magic Kingdom and heading home, back to blizzards, work and school. It was a bittersweet moment, softened only by my wonderful fiancé’s whisper into my ear the night before:

“Let’s come back in October.”

-JOE

P.S. Here are some pics that didn’t make it in the blog. J

My adventures in Disneyland part 3

Day two:

Our tickets for Disneyland included a “Magic morning”, which means we got into the park an hour early. This is cool in concept, but it means most of the rides and park itself was closed, so we didn’t have much to do. We did get to see the flag raising ceremony and check out Disney’s latest attraction, the Mideval fair, which featured a little air conditioned room where you could meet princesses. So Andrew Katie and I met Arial, Cinderella and Aurora.

We spent the day much like the first: Going on rides and meeting characters. After a riverboat ride, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blaster and Indiana Jones we found ourselves in line to visit Pixie Hollow, I having a niece in love with the modern interpretation of Tinkerbelle. The problem though was that the line was 45 minutes long and had little to no shade, so my fairer skinned traveling companions got a bit sun-fried before the end. When we finally got in to meet Miss Belle, we found that she wasn’t alone. Now I know I said that I’m a huge Disney fan, but forgive me for not being acquainted with Tink’s new circle of friends. Who did we meet? I honestly have no idea. All I know is that he was a boy fairy who really liked Katie’s shiny hat. Tinkerbelle was nice enough to not only give me her autograph and photo, but to let us videotape her saying hi to my niece Bella.

As I said earlier, Katie and Andrew didn’t do too well in the sun, so they went somewhere to cool off while I checked out some sort of animal land with Winnie the Pooh. It was fun to explore Disneyland on my own, as I made my way back to Fantasyland and ran into Repunzel and Flynn Ryder, two more of my niece’s favorite characters. More pictures and another video later and I was ready to meet back up with companions.

We decided to hit Downtown Disney to find dinner and the legendary Lego Store, a must-see for a Lego fan. After a brisk exploration through the outdoor mall, we found a massive Lego model of Malificent, as well as giant Lego Buzz Lightyear and Woody and Belle and Beast. Inside was a paradise where I got to build my own minifigures and pick up a Lego Superman key ring. I was like a kid in a candy store, but with candy you probably don’t want to eat.

The next two days we hit the other parks on our tickets: Namely Universal Studios then Sea World. Overall: Universal was pretty cool and Sea World was kind of disappointing.

Let me explain:

It may be that I’d been spoiled by two days at Disneyworld, but Universal Studios was fun but kind of disappointing. The high points included the Simpsons ride, which felt like we had been catapulted right into an episode of one of my favorite childhood cartoons, Jurassic Park ride, which had enough animatronic dinosaurs to make my inner child squee, and the Universal back lot tour, where we got to see the Mule from Serenity as well as the world’s biggest 3D screen and a murder at the Bates motel, all very exciting. The down side was the “big” prop museum, which for a studio that kept harping on how they’ve been making movies for 100 years, you’d think that the prop museum would be bigger than a 711.

Day four brought us to Sea World, home of the giant fish monsters. I honestly thought we’d sit in an audience while some marine biologist taught me about whales and dolphins while they splashed around and did flips. What we got was something much… different. The killer whale show was whales jumping around while a video taught us about saving the oceans, the dolphin show was a 20 minute water ballet with about 2 or 3 minutes of dolphins, and the sea lion show… Well… I don’t think it’s a good sign when a 6 pound sea otter chases off a 400 pound sea lion and the trainer looks embarrassed. The highlights were when we actually got to see the animals without the useless trainers trying to “entertain” us. We saw penguins and a baby whale that was beyond cute.

Wanna hear about the last day at Disneyland when we hit California Adventures? Check out Mormongeeks Monday for the thrilling conclusion!

-JOE

My Adventures in Disneyland part 2

Thanks for waiting. 

So day one and we walk over to Disneyland from our hotel, and as we enter I’m first struck by the beauty of the place. Remember, I’d just come from Utah where everything was either dead or frozen, so I’m wowed by the flowers and green grass, and delighted to see a marching band playing with the Mad Hatter and Alice. We hurry over to city hall where I can receive my coveted “First Visit” pin, and off we were in the park.

I didn’t have time to keep enjoying the grandeur though, as Andrew was meeting a friend later so he wanted to get on a ride as quick as he could. After a quick walkthrough Sleeping Beauty’s castle (Awesome effects when Malificent fights the prince BTW) we were standing in line for Star Tours. Now before this trip rides to me met Lagoon, a place I have a complicated relationship to say the least. On the one hand, they have an awesome lazy river and Rattlesnake Rapids, two things I insist on riding. On the other, they have everything else. I may be the oldest 27 year old in existence, but I honestly feel like most of the rides are repurposed interrogation devices. The last time I was there I had to pop my knee back into place after two different rides, due to it trying to calculate what the human threshold for pain is.

Needless to say, I wasn’t looking forward to rides at Disneyland.

How I was wrong.

Turns out Star Tours, as well as all the other rides at the park I had the pleasure of riding, not only accommodated the larger gentlemen and his backpack, but also were less interested in G-force and more interested with telling stories and showcasing animatronics. I loved it!

So with Andrew we did Star Tours (A ride featuring Star Wars characters and locales, perfect for a geek) then something involving life-sized AC cars before Katie and I were alone at Disneyland. I’m sure we were disgustingly cute to the other patrons, but like we cared. We were in Disneyland and in love, nothing could’ve been better.

Throughout the day we ended up riding a giant sailboat, a Snow White ride, Small World (Afterwards Katie wanted to use a drill to get the song out of her head), and the train, that turns out has animatronic dinosaurs, much to my delight.

What Katie and I loved was that Disneyland wasn’t just rides. As we sat on a bench waiting for our feet to stop throbbing, we heard an announcement that a patriotic show was about to start no more than 20 feet from where we were sitting. Well of course we went and caught the show, which was a delightful medley of patriotic songs acapella style then saw a robotic Lincoln reciting some of the 16^th president’s most memorable times. Back outside we caught the lowering of the flag, accompanied by the same band we heard earlier with Mad Hatter. It was stirring, though I was sad to see not as many people getting into it as Katie and I did. I felt blessed to be with someone who appreciates fine American traditions as much as I do.

Peppered throughout the day I got to meet characters. I bought a Mickey Mouse autograph book and started to fill it with some of my favorite characters. First thing first though: I got to meet Mickey. The Mouse is located in his house in Toontown, through an air conditioned maze of Disney memorabilia and little animatronic shows. After about 45 minutes I finally fulfilled my dream, teary eyed, met Mickey Mouse and got his autograph. I consider it a highlight in my life so far. Included in my autograph book that day is Rafiki, Genie, Aurora and Cruella DeVille.

We of course had to hit the parade, which was pretty cool, even when the wheel fell off the Mary Poppins float. The parade was a celebration of Disney music, and every float had the crowd singing right along. We ended up seeing it again on our last day, just to see what it was like when everything worked, and it was so worth it. 

We ended up stopping at a cozy little restaurant in the New Orleans area and had delightful Southern style sandwiches. As we ate and gushed over the Tennessee Barbecue, a server walked up to us and gave us both “Citizen of Disneyland” pins. I was so proud of it I wore it every day I was in Disneyland.

I know I’m kind of pathetic.

Toontown wasn’t my last teary eyed experience at the Magic Kingdom. That night Katie and I saw the fireworks over the castle. Julie Andrews told us about how Disneyland has been the place of hope and wonder for kids of all ages. As I heard lines from the movies I grew up on and loved for years, remembering Pinocchio, Arial and Peter Pan brought my childhood in full view. By the time they were simulating Pirates of the Caribbean I was losing it. It was a wonderful evening, made only more special by the hand of the woman I love in my own.

Okay so my first day was definitely an experience to remember, tears, rides and performances and all. Want to find out what happened the second day? Stay tuned!

-JOE

My adventures in Disneyland-Part 1

So in case you didn’t get from my five or six blogs about Disney or Disney related topics, I love Disney. I grew up on it. The first movie I ever saw in a theater was Little Mermaid. Since then I've been hooked. My iPod is full of Disney songs, from Cinderella’s So this is love to Tangled’s At last I see the light. I love every character, every hero, and every villain, almost to the point of obsession. Surprisingly though, up until last week I had never been to a Disney theme park in my 27 years of life. My beloved fiance  Katie, saw this blemish on my life and decided to use a combined Christmas, birthday, anniversary and Valentine’s day gift and drag me down to Anaheim to meet the Mouse.

So was it everything I’ve always dreamed about?

Yes, yes it was, and so much more. J

Let me preface this further: Growing up we owned nearly all the Disney movies in one form or another, and I would watch them religiously. I clearly remember at the beginning of every VHS tape a commercial for Disneyland, where despite the story it always ended with some little kid running up to give Mickey Mouse a hug in front of that castle, and the kid always looked so happy to be hugged by the world’s most recognizable mascot. This is what I grew up with. Now my family, bless them, was not rich. No matter what packages or deals Disney would offer, a trip to California or Florida was just not in the cards. So I always had the idea that Disneyland was always just going to be too expensive, and that I had more important things to worry about, like food and rent, then to think about the Happiest Place on Earth.

Luckily, I have Katie.

Katie loves to travel, she’s been to nearly every continent, and frequently makes trips to Portland and Denver to visit friends. She got us tickets and figured out how to make a trip to Disneyland affordable, all without batting an eye. It’s very rare to find someone who will help make you dreams come true, even dreams of princesses and castles from childhood.

So there I was, last Sunday morning, up at 5 AM with Katie and fellow Mormongeek Andrew, starting our trip to Disneyland. 12 hours, most of a murder mystery novel and a pile of Mad Libs later and we were pulling up to our Super 8 about two blocks from Disneyland’s front gates. The first thing I noticed, after coming from Utah’s current frigid wasteland, was how green and bright everything was. I’m sure my companions thought I was insane for just running around soaking in the sun, but it felt great. The second thing I noticed was that from our hotel we could see the back of what we came to find out was Cars Land. It reminded me of that scene from Who Framed Roger Rabbit where they can see Toon Town from a distance, with wacky things flying through the sky. It was exciting to see that the place I had dreamed about was so close I could almost touch it.

You want to find out how the first day went? Tune in tomorrow, same Bat-time, same Bat-channel. J

Five TV shows that need to end

I’m probably going to catch a lot of flak for this, but that’s okay I’m used to it. There are just some shows I’m sick of seeing, hearing about, or being told that I “have to see”. Here is what’s sitting at the top of my list. And for the record, I really did try to get into these shows, but honestly I either can’t do it anymore or I never could like them.

The Office

All this show does is take the one joke from the film Office Space and stretch it out into 8 seasons. Yes, I know that offices can be quirky, but come on 8 seasons? How long is this documentary supposed to be? It’s as bad as that endless bedtime story How I Met Your Mother keeps telling. The camera angle thing and the breaking the fourth wall are cute, but at one point it just gets old. This show even did the whole Ross and Rachel/JD and Elliot/Bones and Booth thing nearly every other TV show ever has done. They even had a baby and this show is still going! What is the appeal?

The Simpsons

I wouldn’t be a good internet nerd with a blog if I didn’t at one point complain that the Simpson’s is still on the air. What’s interesting is that when this show first came out they’re were tons of parents and morality groups screaming for it to go off the air for being too racy. It was one of the first cartoons to be aimed at teens and adults, talking about adult situations and even swearing at times, and it pushed the envelope as far as TV and animation were concerned, and I admit I love the first few seasons. So then what happened? Well essentially they stopped pushing the envelope. Shows like South Park and Family Guy came along and went WAY farther than Simpsons ever dreamed of going.  Because Simpsons wasn’t willing to compete, they just sort of stagnated in the market, relying mainly on in-jokes and putting their characters in wacky situations with each other. It didn’t say anything, it didn’t make any statements, and it’s just there, taking up time. Matt Groening, either grow the kids up or focus on Futurama. Speaking of Family Guy…

                                                                                   
Anything Seth McFarlane has out right now

Seth, I love you. Stewie is one of my favorite characters. I loved him both as the world dictator and as the effeminate baby, but do we really need three cartoons about middle-class working families? In fact, do we really need three ultra-liberal anti-religious cartoons about middle-class families? Say what you want about South Park, at least their statements are varied and happily attack anyone they can find equally. Family Guy especially, since I fear if it’s not happening now it’ll end up being like the Simpsons in the very near future, just stagnant and not having much going for it. And no more clones of Family Guy. When it first came out everyone called it a Simpson’s clone, but now you’re kind of proving them right. At least when Groening was green lighted for another project; he set it 1000 years in the future and made half the cast aliens and robots.

Big Bang Theory

This is probably what I’m going to catch the most flak for. Everyone tells me I should love this show, but frankly I despise it. Its 2012 now, walk into any Elders quorum in the US and ask who Doomsday is and you’ll find someone who can tell you about the death of Superman, and for that matter, nearly any occupation in America. This isn’t Revenge of the Nerds people, not all geeks are scientists and socially awkward around women. I’m not even sure who the audience for this thing is supposed to be, since it makes fun of geeks for being geeks but then makes jokes and references only geeks would get. Who are you trying to alienate exactly?

Glee

Is this show really still on the air? I feel like whenever I watch Glee that I’m just tuning through different channels seeing what’s on. One minute they’re having kooky conversations, the next it’s a big musical number, and then some serious moment, and then an overdramatic romance scene, and then another musical number. Pick a tone, people! I admit I like a lot of the songs; I’m always a sucker for a good remix or cover. It’s the context I don’t like. And the fact that the entire series is this massive convoluted drama on top of that, featuring a dozen characters doesn’t help. You practically need a flow chart and a score card just to sit through this thing.

Okay start sending the complaints.

-JOE

Joe's on vacation

Guess where I'm at this week...











Yeah....
Tell ya all about it next week.
-JOE

Joe got engaged! :D

So I apologize for my absence on Mormon Geeks recently. I personally have been dealing with a psychotic amount of homework as well as the fact that I recently got engaged.

That’s right people I’m engaged. J

Let me answer some of the questions I’ve already heard:

How did you ask?

Nothing special. We pretty much just decided. My fiancée Katie and I have been best friends for almost a decade, and we’ve been dating for about three years. It just felt right.

When’s your date?

May 24^th, 2014.

Why so far away?

We’re both getting ready to graduate soon, and Katie has a pretty awesome but busy job so we’re giving ourselves space so we don’t go nuts.

Everything else, we haven’t decided yet. We don’t know what temple we’re getting married in, we don’t know where we’re going to live, we don’t know where we’re going to go on our honeymoon, and we aren’t registered anywhere (Though unsolicited free gifts are always welcome.)

Now I know the last question you’re all asking: Who was able to snag a confirmed bachelor like me? Well let’s talk about Katie.

I met Katie in a Walmart parking lot about ten years ago. The first time I saw her I had the feeling of “where have you been all my life?”, but not in the romantic way, more “where have you been? I’ve been waiting for you, you dingbat!” and she felt the same way. Over the next several weeks we became best friends, and I started to fall in love.

They say opposites attract, and in Katie and I’s relationship it’s certainly true. Katie is an analytical, logical accounting major at Weber State. Before we started dating her geekiness included some tasteful Anime (She showed me Howe’s Moving Castle) and she was into casual gaming. Now she can (grudgingly) name about a couple dozen super heroes, watches Star Trek, and helped me found my World of Warcraft guild.

Not that much of that is really important. The important stuff is that Katie is the kind of person that would go out of her way to help anyone who needed help, and will do everything she can to see the good in people. Katie can make me laugh when I’m at my lowest, without even saying anything. Last year for Valentine ’s Day she gave me a Lego Death Star. The girl knows me.

One of my favorite quotes is “Happiness is being married to your best friend.” I’ve always subscribed to that philosophy, and I know without a shadow of a doubt that in a year I will be marrying my best friend. J

-JOE

Sometimes Sharing Helps

I apologize for not posting every week like I was doing up until the end of last year.  Between the Feed-The-Beast Minecraft modpack (specifically the Mindcrack pack) and work, I've been pretty busy!  Although I think my life will get much busier now that the 'Insanity' update for Don't Starve was released.  It makes the game much harder and much more...interesting.  And freaky.  Also, Diablo III released a patch that looks super interesting.

There goes my free time.

That aside, I had a rather interesting experience related to my current singles ward.  For those of you who aren't members, a ward is a congregation of members who live in an area.  A singles ward is specifically for singles only.  I tend to be a pretty introverted and shy person in new social situations.  I'm either not inclined to participate all that much or I tend to make jokes and hide my true thoughts and feelings.  One particularly rough weekend, I decided to post on the ward's Facebook group, explaining my feelings and how a large part of it was due to my perception.

The reaction was quick and very positive.  Many other members also expressed trouble with feeling like the 'fit in'.  Apparently during this last Sunday meeting, the bishop actually spoke about how we should act toward other members of the congregation (at least he did according to my friend, Joe.  I was probably falling asleep at that time).  It shows me that even if I am afraid of sharing how things are going, sometimes the response can be really positive.

I could argue that this post is geeky because it mentions Facebook.  To further add to the geekiness, I'll share a song.  It's from an anime called .hack//sign which is about a video game.  I don't think I could get any geekier than that.




That being said, I need to go figure out how to keep from going completely insane in "Dont' Starve".

Joe's top ten best Geek romances

Hay, guess what tomorrow is? Valentine’s day! And while you’re either getting ready to take your sweetheart out on the town or stay home, eat a carton of Ben and Jerry’s and cry, this list ought to put you in the right mood to do either on this fake holiday invented by girlfriends in order to get chocolate. So here it is, Joe’s top ten romances in geekdom. Enjoy!

10: Mario, Peach, Link, and Zelda from Nintendo

This is just on the list so I don’t have to hear about it later. I put both couples in the same place because it’s the same relationship. Every year or so Link and Mario trek across an increasingly visually appealing landscape to save their respective princesses from the bad guys. It says something to devotion when these characters are willing to go through the same thing over and over again for the women they love, though it could just be a sign of insanity.

9: Wash and Zoey from Firefly

I know some people are going to be disappointed that Mal and Inara aren’t on this list, but unfortunately the brevity of Firefly made it so that they’re attraction never really developed past a spark. Wash and Zoey on the other hand got some time to develop their love for each other. Like Roger and Jessica, they seem completely mismatched, but also like the cartoons they’re completely devoted to each other at the end of the day, even to the point of risking their lives with each other. In my saddest deaths post I discussed where there relationship end up, and to me it only cements them in my heart as one of the cutest, and saddest, couples.

8: Batman and Catwoman

The Batman story has too many writers and too many interpretations, putting Catwoman on any given day as a villain, a friendly ally, flirtatious tease, to true love for the Caped Crusader. Generally though, they have a certain bad-girl-good-guy chemistry that’s just irresistible  They've rescued each other more than they've battled at this point, and you always know whenever Batman and Catwoman team up the furs going to fly.

7: Homer and Marge Simpson

Say what you will about the Simpsons, at the end of the day they showed how a marriage can endure anything. These high school sweethearts married after Marge got pregnant with Bart, but they've shown that these two would've ended up together no matter what. No matter what ridiculous situation Homer gets into, his biggest concern is always to try and make Marge happy, and when she isn't he’ll move heaven and earth to put a smile on her face again. Marge has defended her husband dozens of times to her cynical sisters, saying that despite his flaws he really is a good man, and Homer would give Marge the world if he could. Although the show has gone through controversy and arguably isn't currently working with its best material, at least you can say it showed us a beautiful example of true love.

6: Tony Stark and Pepper Potts from the Marvel Universe films

Okay, I admit it, I don’t know a whole ton about Marvel. I’d do something from the X-Men, but honestly even Scott and Jean’s relationship seems a bit weird, and I can’t really say anything about Rogue and Gambit since theirs is problematic at best, but I love what Robert Downy Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow have done with the characters. These two aren't the cheesy super hero one-rescues-another model. Pepper is more than capable of staying out of trouble, and serves as a voice of reason to the millionaire playboy. I like how their romance has room to bloom in the films, and how in the Avengers Pepper is the one Tony calls when he’s not sure he’ll make it. Marvel has worked hard at making their super hero films great, and this relationship is proof.

5: Snow and Charming from Once Upon a Time

I've talked about this one before too, but I just had to mention them. These two go through one nightmare after another for each other, and they always end up together. This is another relationship that’s nice to see develop, especially when they start out enemies. I also love that no matter how hard the evil queen Regina tries, she can never keep these two lovebirds separated for long, proving that love truly is the greatest magic of all.

4: Rick and Lori Grimes from The Walking Dead

Before the first walker ate somebody, their relationship admittedly had problems. But considering what Rick goes through just to find his wife and child, I’d say there’s definitely devotion going on here. Weather in the comic books or the TV show, their reunion brings tears to my eyes, as they are both so relieved that the other isn’t dead. Rick is even able to forgive Lori of her indiscretions, and does everything he can to keep her safe throughout the zombie apocalypse.

3: Roger and Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Say what you will about this saucy redhead and her silly rabbit of a husband, but this relationship was probably one of the best parts of the movie. Both Roger and Jessica go to any lengths to protect the other from harm, including posing for “dirty” pictures and holding a judge at gunpoint. One of my favorite lines is when Jessica is asked what she sees in that guy, referring to the wanna-be Looney Tune, only to answer “he makes me laugh”. Let’s face it, sometimes that’s all you need.

2: Han Solo and Princess Leja from Star Wars

I love these two! They start off hating each other, in fact Han didn't even want to rescue her at first, and they end up together. First off, I love how that annoying Luke Skywalker didn't get the girl, and second, I love how this relationship doesn't even develop into romance until halfway through the second film. These days in movies it’s enough time to fall in love, get married, and have an obnoxious kid get kidnapped. The now famous “I love you” “I know” line is epic, and shows their relationship to a tee, with Han knowing flat out that it was just a matter of time before they got together. I also love how, like Batman and Catwoman, they take turns rescuing each other, showing that there is now weak link in this chain.

1: Severus Snape and Lily Potter from Harry Potter

An unusual pick I know, but let me explain: I've mentioned several times that I like it when the relationship has time to develop, and this thing had seven books (or 8 movies) to develop, completely unknown until almost the very end of the story, where every one of Snape’s wicked and hurtful actions are all explained in one concept: he’s heartbroken. It’s not the romance that happened; it’s the fact that it didn't that makes me love this one the most. Snape is a good guy, just as good as Dumbledore or Harry, but being the happy good guy isn't his thing. He’s bitter and angry at the world for letting the love of his life go with his worst enemy, and then forcing him to teach and prepare their son to fight the man that took his beloved’s life away. Then he dies, so he can save Lily’s son, the son of the man he hates and the woman he loves, and fulfills his destiny. Now that’s romantic! 

-JOE

The Fall of DC

Last week I talked about how DC Comic’s latest decision to cancel Young Justice was the latest in a long line of mistakes that’s making me want to switch to Marvel. I also said that this week I would air my grievances with the world famous comic book company and give it the full psychotic rant it deserves. Let’s do this by medium.

Comics

DC wouldn’t be anything if it wasn’t for their comics, so it seems like the logical place to start. About seven years ago DC pulled off their masterpiece Infinite Crisis, a gripping tale that set to clean up parts of the DC universe continuity and set the seeds for amazing storylines later on. Then the economy crashed. Unfortunately when people don’t have a lot of money the first thing to go are luxury items, so DC and Marvel both started to hurt. Their solution? One giant psychotic event after another, forcing readers to pick up stacks of comics just to follow the storyline from month to month. Where Marvel kept things relatively grounded with Civil War and World War Hulk, DC decided to go snooky bananas with more world shattering, reality altering nonsense. The entire universe ended up convoluted and confusing with little hope of recovery, so DC then just gave up and restarted the entire thing with the New 52. Supposedly the idea was to restart the entire universe from square one, and tell all the classic stories through a new modern lens, much like what Marvel did in 2000 with the Ultimate line. Unfortunately when they hit “restart” it didn’t quite restart everything. Events line Blackest Night and Killing Joke had apparently still happened, even though the characters were much younger and events like No Man’s Land and Death of Superman hadn’t happened. This turned what was already a jumbled mess into an even more jumbled mess only with even less answers. Needless to say, fans are not pleased.

Movies

Okay I’m just going to say this to get it out of the way, yes the Dark Knight series is awesome and yes we’ll get to the few things DC has done right in a bit, but I want to talk about the other movies. I wish I could say DC has been hit or miss with its films lately but it’s easier to say they’ve been Batman or miss. It started with Superman Returns, which while pretty good if you know the Christopher Reeve Superman storyline was confusing to audiences who didn’t catch a movie franchise that had ended 25 years beforehand. I’m sorry Superman, but especially near the end you’re just not Star Wars, and you can’t expect audiences to pick up where you left off. Next we get a few titles which would’ve been awesome if implemented correctly, namely Watchmen, which was needlessly turned into a gory pornography, Jonah Hex which had the same advertising and film budget as one uses to sell a bike, and Green Lantern, which was just out and out bad. DC has also been releasing straight to DVD and Netflix a bunch of animated films based on some of their most popular comics, which actually has more hits than misses, but let’s face it, comics translate best to animation anyway so this wasn’t a hard feat to pull off. Which brings me to…

TV

DC did the same thing that Fox did to Firefly when they messed up then cancelled Justice League Unlimited a while back. The Justice League cartoon was a tight, no-nonsense show about a team of heroes protecting the earth, and while I did like the fact that two of my favorites, namely Zatanna and Captain Marvel made appearances, I felt opening up the cast for Unlimited hurt the show more than it helped. Then when they were leading up to this big old war between the villains and heroes, they cancel the show and end with this stupid fight where they team up to take out Darkseid. A massive letdown for sure. Next DC tried to recapture the magic of Batman the Animated Series with The Batman, a show about Batman in high school of all places, and Brave and the Bold, which to me felt like DC Muppet Babies. Then we got a star, a glimmer of hope on an already bleak world in the form of Young Justice, and I already told you what they did to that. I could mention Smallville, and I will by saying take Dawson’s Creek and mix it with Twilight and there you go, except again, shout out to Zatanna who was totally awesome in her parts. DC’s been hinting at a show called Arrow, supposedly about Green Arrow and yesterday I heard rumor of Amazon which will follow Wonder Woman, but as I said, comics best translate to animation so live action is problematic at best.

As I said earlier, yes, DC has done a couple things right, which basically means just writing Batman on a big piece of paper and circling it a bunch of times. The Dark Knight series was excellent, some of the Batman titles in the comic books are actually okay, as long as he doesn’t deal with any of the other heroes in that world, and even some of the animated films are decent, I highly recommend Batman: Gotham Knight for the Anime buffs out there. The problem is that Batman alone cannot save DC Comics, and he shouldn’t have to. I know a lot of people give grief to DC heroes for being overpowered, but they still have some really great stories to tell, and they don’t always need to involve an emotionally bankrupt rich man running around in his undies. I have high hopes for the new Man of Steel movie coming soon, but if DC is really going to get back on track with its fans and the rest of the world, they need to stop playing catch-up with the Avengers and go back to what made them great in the first place: Great stories with heroes we loved.

And more Zatanna.

-JOE