« February 2007 | Main | April 2007 »
March 29, 2007
Battlestar Galactica - What's up with Moore?
Movies, tv shows, novels ... I rarely delve into the background of a singular piece, preferring to take the story as it is presented. One of the reasons is that creators can disappoint. Take George Lucas.
Please.
Kidding aside, I've watched, loved and commented extensively on Battlestar Galactica since its 3-part pilot years ago, yet I have rarely visited its website on Sci-fi channel (save for pics) or listened to the podcasts or read much of the written commentary from Ron Moore, et al. Any good story, no matter how the plot twists, has both a consistent theme and an internal logic. BSG has been no exception, excelling at exciting plotting and challenging themes. I've been more than satisfied to pick up my clues for where the story might go from the actual show I'm watching. If the author has done his or her job correctly, then the reader's/viewer's perception should dovetail with the author's intentions.
So it really irritates me to read this interview (thanks to commenter VRWC drone for bringing it to my attention) wherein Ron Moore rambles more like a pretentious, teenaged prankster than an accomplished and talented storyteller.
One can't read comments like ...
R: Now there are two half-human, half-Cylon babies -- Hera and the Chief and Cally's child. Will you be dealing with that?... without wondering if Moore has actually never had any planned story arcs, just writing stuff as mood struck him ... or is he just having a huge joke at all our expense?RM: Oh, yeah.
R: Are there other half-human, half-Cylon children?
RM: You never know.
R: We've never seen a child in Cylon society. Am I right that there are no pure Cylon children?
RM: That's true.
R: So Tigh and the others were put into the Colonial fleet as adults?
RM: I don't know if it's that simple. I think it's something that goes back pretty far. ...
--------
R: Why did Roslin have a mental connection to Sharon and Six and not the other Cylons on board?RM: They are fundamentally different Cylons.
--------
R: When did you decide to make these four characters Cylons and how much did you have to go back and check to make sure that fit with things we already knew about these four characters?RM: It was something I came up with this season as I worked toward the finale.
BSG has broadly hinted at the basic conundrum of predestination vs freewill. A certain tension comes from the conflict between "this has all happened before and will happen again. " and "I make my own decisions." Even the Cylon/Human shared yearnings for an answer of "Why am I here?"
But have these themes, which elevate BSG from mere space opera to serious fiction, come about accidentally or from Moore's considered direction?
I fear what the final 22 episodes hold if Moore is more interested in 'gotchas' than in crafting an enduring piece of film.
Technorati: Battlestar Galactica, Ron Moore,Scifi
Posted by Darleen at 11:34 AM | Comments (4)
March 27, 2007
So, what have I missed?
Yep, personal life has taken precedence the last several weeks. As excited as I've been with moving, I'm also so tired that even the writing monkey - usually on my back - slid off to cower in a corner somewhere with nary a whimpering nag in my general direction.
Oh, I've paid attention to the news and events. But I've been unable ... and sometimes unwilling ... to vent my spleen on the the disgusting events. Sean Penn is the perfect spokeshole for Defeatocrats ... all incoherent feeling and no brain. What can one really add to such obvious pusillanimous palavers?
But hey ... I'm back in the homeowner category again, we finally got the idiot cable company to get their act together (though they deleted our email accounts and claim they can't restore 'em), the last two episodes of Battlestar Galactica rocked (and NO, the 'four' are not Cylons and neither is Starbuck ... but we have to wait NINE months for new episodes? WTF?), and I have a ton of email to catch up.
Why today to start writing again? Well, Gov. Arnold actually did a very good thing a few days ago ... a DDA in my office was appointed to be a Superior Court judge and he was sworn in today. The courtroom where he was sworn in was packed; by our office, his family, other judges, even numerous defense attorneys. A more talented, decent, fairminded, thorough and just plain nice guy would be very hard to find. He is going to be a tremendous judge.
When the good guys win one, it's inspiring.
See y'all tomorrow.
Posted by Darleen at 09:00 PM | Comments (4)
March 09, 2007
The 'new tone' in Washington
I've been busy at the new house all week but that hasn't kept me from listening to the radio or briefly wandering the 'net when I'm home before collapsing in bed (usually after midnight).
The Democrat Surrender Party keeps hitting new lows, John Edwards recent behavior in declaring Jesus "appalled" by American "selfishness" then refusing to debate other members of his own party because the debate is co-hosted by Fox News, and yet another instance of petty viciousness from people who proclaim themselves "progressive" demonstrate, indeed, that there is a "new tone" in Washtington.
"Progressive" is the new "fascist".
Too harsh? Well, contemporary American "progressives" are all about teh Euro-culture and values and this is how France treats "free speech".
Paris - A new law in France makes it a crime for anyone who is not a professional journalist to film real-world violence and distribute the images on the Internet.And in France, there is no such thing as a freelance reporter/photographer/journalist. You are either part of the registered profession or you are not a "journalist" and thus can get up to five years in prison if convicted under this new law.
I'm sure right now Edwards, Harry Reid, "Fairness Doctrine" Kucinich, and other "we'll decide what is legitimate news and debate" progressives are envious.
Posted by Darleen at 07:10 AM | Comments (12)
March 05, 2007
Ok...I lied....ONE more question
The hardest part of painting is prepping... so I'm in an empty house, washing down walls, spackling (love this pink stuff that turns white as it dries) and listening to the radio. Local KFI640 carried Matt Drudge. He's playing clips of Hillary going full Rainmaker schtick at a black church in a faux Southern accent so thick you can almost taste the molassis dripping off it.
So how come Ann Coulter is (correctly) chastised for a beyond the pale "joke" about John Edwards, but no one is calling out Hillary for her mocking Southern speech?
Is the Clinton machine THAT powerful, it shuts UP the MSM?
Posted by Darleen at 12:04 AM | Comments (13)
March 04, 2007
Ok, another quick question before I collapse into bed ...
The pic a couple of posts back of the front of our new home? See the short, peaked roof over the front door?
Frakking f*cking pigeons have a nest up there!!
Suggestions, please, on how do I get rid of those feathered rats and keep 'em from returning?
Posted by Darleen at 11:32 PM | Comments (3)
Battlestar Galactica -- NO NO NO NO
I'm tired, my clothes are covered in paint (an incident from the "getting acquainted with my new Wagner Power Roller" phase) and I've just watched the writers possibly kill off Starbuck.
Good thing I've also got a couple of gin-and-tonics in me ... otherwise I'd want to hunt down a writer or two and ask 'em, how the hell are you going to pull THIS off?
Is there something (someone?) down on the planet we don't know about? Was there really another ship?
Come on...someone help me out here. You don't give what was essentially a character that started as a callow, devil may care fighter jockey the layers, nuance and detailed back story, having them grow and change, just to flush 'em in the third season.
Do you?
Oh... the last scene with Adama destroying his model?
Still frakking best show on television.
Technorati: Battlestar Galactica, Maelstrom,Scifi
Posted by Darleen at 11:10 PM | Comments (4)