Star Wars Sword Master Dies

Star Wars sword-fight master Bob Anderson dies at 89 http://gu.com/p/34dc6

'1222'

Snowbound, with a wealth of personalities : http://wapo.st/rp5nBJ

Media Sexism, Overlooked in Media Inquiry

Leveson inquiry should address media sexism, women's groups demand http://gu.com/p/34cc2

RIP Steve Jobs 1955-2011

Steve Jobs, one of the last great showmen of American Business

Steve Jobs died today. I can't believe it. I feel so sad right now. What he gave to the world and consumers of technology in particular is truly immeasurable. I remember buying my first Mac, one of the first Titanium PowerBooks, nearly a decade ago. Right away, you were made to feel like you were part of something special. You were made to feel that you had joined a creative community of writers, artists, graphic designers and others whose work was made a lot easier by the fact we were using technology that just let us work without the usual distractions and frustrations associated with Windows at the turn of the millennium.

As a consumer, he always seemed to have our interests at heart with amazing innovations like the iTunes store. I mean who could imagine buying an album for $9.99 or a song for $.99 a pop before 2003? Certainly not me. I can remember gathering at the Apple Store in Albany, NY that year for the big announcement, where you could watch a video stream right there in the store. I can't remember doing anything like that at any other retail establishment, before or since.

No one brought the kind of excitement to the field of technology that he did. I know I'm rambling right now, so I'll stop here. We lost a huge force for good in the world of technology today, a world that will never be the same because of it.

Another 4 Star Review for The Abattoir (An Ellie Danson Mystery)

Lindsay Horne 

The Abattoir received another 4-star review this week from Lindsay Horne, whose blog, Everyday is an Adventure is one of the most thoughtful book blogs that I have seen so far. I hope that you will check it out for yourself and see all of the interesting reviews of books in a wide-range of genres that she has posted to the site. She reviews, young adult, fantasy, mystery and a host of others. I enjoy reading it often and I'm sure that you will too.

Rizzoli & Isles Episode 4, 'Brown-Eyed Girl'

The Girls Are Back for Season 2

The fourth episode of Rizzoli and Isles’ second season was by far its best IMO. It used the ticking clock device to add suspense to an episode taut with white-knuckle tension. A thirteen year old girl, Amanda Matteo, is kidnapped in a child abduction case that brings to mind the real-life cases of Jaycee Dugard and Elizabeth Smart. A welcome addition to the cast as a guest star was Max Martini (The Unit) as Dan, a former partner of Rizzoli’s who is the father of the missing Mandy. Another welcome sight was Anne Wersching of 24 fame as the mother of the missing girl.

The episode was the first truly serious show of the season in my opinion. Gone for the most part was the playful banter of opposites attract between Rizzoli and Isles that have marked most of the episodes this season and in its place was a thrilling story line that was a bit frightening for anyone with children. The abduction of Mandy was done very well, with the late reveal of her abductor rising from the back seat of the vehicle giving the teaser a terrifying kick that sucks the viewer in right from the start.

The investigation itself was also much more creative than anything we’ve seen in the first three episodes too. Angie Harmon was brilliant as an angry, disgusted Rizzoli wondering how a woman could be so heartless as to be part of an abduction of a young girl. Sasha Alexander was very good too as she explained how psychologically damaged women like this tend to be. The use of everything from a broken muffler, to a license plate and finally the water quality of surrounding counties and their effect on a child’s teeth as clues in the investigation really gave you the impression that here were investigators at work instead of the rather tired plot devices used to ‘solve’ cases in the first three episodes penned by series creator Janet Tamaro. I mean the way the last episode ended, with Frost and Korsak finally coming to the realization that the rapist/killer wasn’t a real Naval officer, seemed to take forever, especially when I came to that realization after the show’s first act.

Needless to say, this episode filled me with new hope that the show is finally back on track after last year’s brilliant finale. I definitely look forward to seeing it again next week.  Let’s hope that Julie Hebert has written more episodes this season like this one. She’s the cat’s meow when it comes to writing episodes of great police procedurals. She did a great job on other shows like ER and Numb3rs back in the day and she's clearly lost none of her touch with this week's effort. Janet Tamaro? Not so much. This episode’s grade: a solid A.

The Phone-Hacking Scandal at News of the World and its Impact on Crime and Corruption in Journalism

Murdoch the Merciless: Press Baron's management style ultimately led to paper's downfall

 

What is most shocking about the firestorm of criticism now surrounding Rupert Murdoch’s Sunday tabloid rag, News of the World, is not that its advertisers have all but abandoned it, or even the old codger’s decision to shutter the 168-year old paper under the weight of the scandal, but the degree of collusion that was exposed between police investigators selling scoops to jounalists. This calls into question not only the character of detectives sworn to protect the public but of writers and editors ruthless enough to hack into the voicemail of a British teenager, Milly Dowler, and erase messages which allowed them to gain an interview with her undoubtedly suffering family in 2002. It’s sickening, if you ask me, and the inevitable result of the ruthless style of the Murdochs, who run the paper.

Profiting from the disappearance of a teenager, and the deaths of soldiers

Milly Dowler: Missing teen's voicemail hacked by NoW

How the journalists of the NoW could be so unfeeling as to delete messages from the mobile phone of Milly Dowling and then conduct an interview with members of her family knowing full well that their unlawful acts were responsible for raising the hope that she might be alive is beyond me. The lack of ethics involved becomes less astonishing once one realizes that the take no prisoners style of the Murdochs, both father and son, likely motivated the ‘scoop at any cost mentality’ that drove the staff at NoW. It raises questions about whether this phone-hacking culture at the Sunday tabloid is limited to Murdoch’s UK publication or if it is a virus infecting his entire media empire on both sides of the Atlantic. If so, and knowing how zealously Americans like to guard their privacy rights, the implications could be explosive.

Just as bad is the revelation that the voicemails of family members of British soldiers who have fallen in Afghanistan and Iraq were hacked for the very same purposes. Call me crazy, but I’m pretty sure that I would find it difficult to invade the privacy of grieving families while listening in to their distraught phone messages informing or being informed that a son or daughter had been lost in combat. I mean, behavior like this rises to the level of psychopathy, when you’re willing to set aside any empathy for what a mother or father whose suffered such a permanent loss must be going through.

A culture of corruption starting with House Murdoch

Andy Coulson will be arrested Friday

Rupert Murdoch’s acquisition of News of the World in 1969 heralded a changing of the guard in news, even the tabloid-style journalism of the 1950s and 60s had nothing on the kind of rough and ready newsgathering that his management style introduced. It has led ultimately to this, with the revelations that payments (as much as $48,000) to detectives for scoops isn’t even the most outrageous of accusations being lobbed in a story dealing with the murder of a child and the cruelly-exploited grief of families. If we can’t trust detectives to keep the secrets of an investigation, to maintain basic duties like chain of evidence and information confidential in order to avoid compromising an investigation, then the whole system is at risk and murderers everywhere can rejoice. But publications like NoW couldn’t be concerned about that, they were too busy chasing the almighty pound to realize that they were (and are) putting people in danger by corrupting the system in pursuit of a story. This is Murdoch’s doing, and clearly his son James, who’s taken the reins in his wake. It is the inevitable result of chickens coming home to roost IMO, the result of eggs laid forty-two years ago with his purchase of the paper and his bare-knuckled style of journalism. The question now is whether he can contain the damage to his empire’s reputation (such as it is) and that remains to be seen.

Final Thoughts

The only good that come of this is that political interests on both sides of the Atlantic begin to wake up to the danger Murdoch’s style of journalism, both in the UK and in the US, poses to criminal investigations everywhere. A cop is only as good as his word, and when that word is compromised, you really don’t have much left. I wonder just how far his ‘journalists’ at the New York Post and elsewhere have penetrated into the ranks of the NYPD and other departments across the country if it's as widespread as it appears to be in the UK. I have a feeling that it is far worse than we suspect. At the very least, Rebekah Brooks, who was editor of News of the World at the time of the most egregious offenses of the phone-hacking scandal, should go from News International as its Chief Executive altogether.

Facebook Author Page

I've said this earlier, but I'm trying to establish a presence on Facebook. I have an author page there and would really appreciate it if some of my readers out there would give it a like to show your support. I think you need 25 likes to get your own custom URL so that would really be great. Thanks a lot for your help.

Ramona Rocks iTunes Festival in London

The Sexy, Sultry Karen Anne

As I've said before, I've been watching the iTunes Festival all this weekend. It's been great, the sound is really great, the music is great and it really is the next best thing to being there. Anyway, I was blown away Sunday night by this band called Ramona, and their lead singer, Karen Anne. It's funny how the supporting acts actually seem to be outshining the main acts so far. I thought it was that way with the Smoke Fairies when they played in front of Seasick Steve (who was still great himself btw) but wow, Ramona was a revelation. Their setlist included songs like "Tell That Girl," "Trophy Wife," and my personal favorites, "New York City," and "Steve McQueen." There was even a distraction of some kind at one point during their rendition of "Five Years," some kind of loud noise that would have halted the momentum of even the most seasoned band but they played through it like champs. I urge you to check their album when it drops later this year, I was a little disappointed that I couldn't buy it on iTunes right on the spot after their performance, they've only got a couple of songs (How Long, and Steve McQueen) available on an EP and even that's only available in the UK store. Bummer, but I look forward to seeing them in concert in America hopefully sometime soon.

Nimoy Rules in Transformers: Dark of the Moon (Caution *Spoilers Ahead*)

Starring Role: Leonard Nimoy voices Sentinel Prime

I saw Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon Wednesday and felt it was a decided improvement over its predecessor, Revenge of the Fallen. From the story line to the characters, Dark Side of the Moon had a lot more coherence than Revenge of the Fallen. Of course adding Leonard Nimoy to the cast as Sentinel Prime, mentor to Optimus, couldn’t hurt either, in fact it was the one element that actually gave the film a bit of gravitas, strange as that may seem coming from a film about giant space robots.

Sam and the New Girl
The first thing we notice in the film is that Sam Witwicky has a new main squeeze in Carly (Victoria’s Secret Model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley). Together they make as much of an unlikely couple as Shia LeBeouf and Megan Fox did, and I thought Michael Bay missed an opportunity to create the same tension of the dorky guy seeking the hot girl that existed in the first film. Instead, she’s already his, lounging around his apartment in Washington (which she pays for) in what I presume to be a Victoria’s Secret outfit under one of his white button-down shirts. We get that Sam is a different guy now from the dorky high schooler in the first film, but it would have been nice to see a better use of LeBeouf’s comedic talents.

At any rate, Sam is a newly minted college graduate who is seeking a job like millions of others. Of course unlike everyone else, he stumbles across a plot by the Decepticons to take control of what are known as pillars from The Ark, an Autobot spaceship that crash landed on the moon millennia ago, and whose discovery became the catalyst for the Space Race of the 1960s.

Soundwave is lethal underground

Optimus, Sentinel, Primes and the Leadership Matrix
Optimus discovers a piece of The Ark during a special ops mission at Chernobyl and confronts American intelligence about their withholding of this information from the Autobots during the time of the first film. He undertakes a mission to the moon and discovers Sentinel Prime (Nimoy) the former leader of the Autobots who was embarking on a mission to Earth when his ship was damaged in transit from the planet Cybertron, inside a hidden compartment of the ship. The relationship between Optimus and Sentinel, both Primes, one a pupil and the other a mentor, is the spine of the film and voiced with great dramatic power by both Peter Cullen and Leonard Nimoy. The scene in the desert, where Optimus offers Sentinel Prime the Leadership Matrix that would make him the leader of the Autobots once more, is a very touching one and Sentinel’s decline of it, saying that he has nothing more to teach Optimus, is equally affecting. Of course it only foreshadows a gut-wrenching betrayal that powers the film through to a climactic (and seemingly endless) battle over Chicago.

Carly and Epps at the Premiere

Final Battle, Final Thoughts
The final battle of the film was far more coherent than the franchise’s last outing at the Egyptian Pyramids. While you still couldn’t figure out where exactly the special ops soldiers were in relation to the Optimus and the Autobots, it didn’t really matter. One thing that was priceless was the way the writer Ehren Krugen had Sentinel Prime spouting lines that were a reversal of one of Spock’s most famous lines with “The needs of the few outweigh the needs of the many,” it was a nice touch that brought a little life to the final conflict in a tongue-in-cheek way that brought a smile to any fan of Star Trek.  If you’re wondering how Michael Bay convinced Nimoy to redo those lines with a twist, especially since they’re some of the most sacred words in the Star Trek franchise, it turns out that Nimoy is married to Susan Bay, Michael’s cousin, meaning he had a bit of family pull there in his favor. There was also Bumblebee’s use of Spock’s final words from The Wrath of Khan as he and the Autobots are being exiled from Earth, “I am and always shall be, your friend” that was also very nicely done.

All in all, the film was a good two and a half hours of fun. Even Carly was able to play a pivotal role in the film’s climax, playing upon the egos of the big boys as only a pretty girl can that turned out to be the one move that would turn the tide in favor of the good guys once and for all.  I give it a grade of A- since it was a lot better than I had any right to expect, especially with all of the Spock references.

iTunes Live Festival in July

The Foo Fighters are scheduled to play live on July 11th

The iTunes Live Festival can be seen streamed for free on an app on an iDevice every day this July. The festival showcases performances from 62 recording artists on 31 nights, that include Paul Simon, Coldplay, Duran Duran and a host of others. I've watched the first two days, and was able to see Paul Simon, Smoke Fairies and Seasick Steve and was very impressed, not only with the quality of the performances but of the seamless streaming through Wi-Fi as well. I guess that's another side benefit of all that iCloud goodness coming in the fall. Simon's rendition of 'Late in the Evening,' the Smoke Fairies performance of 'Storm Song,' and Seasick Steve's 'Back in the Doghouse' in particular were very good.

There are a few hiccups of course, one is that the set lists don't always seem to be in sync with the song being played, and you can't seem to set an iCal reminder for some bands more than one day in advance. It would be nice if we could set reminders for the entire month, but I guess you can't have everything. Despite these shortcomings, I urge you to take a look for yourself.

'The Killing,' Conflict and Controversy on AMC

Was Darren Richmond the Killer? Only Time will Tell

AMC’s The Killing is an extraordinary police procedural that had me riveted from beginning to end. The question of who killed Rosie Larsen became little more than a footnote to me in many ways as I found myself more intrigued by the characters investigating her murder, grieving over her loss as well as those suspected (wrongly or rightly) of being responsible. The A-list talent that AMC secured for the show’s cast was definitely the difference maker in its novel approach to the rather shopworn conventions of the TV police procedural that provided a much needed breath of fresh air for the genre and a little outrage too, especially in the much-discussed season finale.

The Investigators
Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnamon as Detectives Sarah Linden and Steven Holder were positively brilliant in their respective roles. Enos, with her shock of red hair pulled back in a ponytail and those thick fall sweaters that her character was prone to wearing in the bleak, damp Seattle weather, was a revelation in the show’s central role. Her lack of makeup allowed her natural beauty to show through in a way that I’ve rarely seen on network television. Moreover, as Linden she possesses a reserved manner that is rare in homicide detectives I’ve seen portrayed on television that makes her unique. The way she quietly discerns the fact that the Stanley Larsen who’s ATM card was found in Discover Park was not a suspect in a disappearance but rather the father of a victim was breathtaking. It was all done in a single glance at the pink bicycle in the Larsen garage and then of course that with that single, devastating question “Mrs. Larsen, do you have a daughter?” I couldn’t help but feel a lump in my throat as she asked it, even while knowing the answer.

Joel Kinnamon as the Wigger-esque, former junkie/narcotics Detective Steven Holder was just as good in his own way. At first he was a grating presence on the show for me, with his street patois and constant niggling of Linden’s decision to call it quits with Seattle Homicide in favor of a new life with her son and boyfriend in Sonoma, CA. Gradually however, Kinnamon was able to imbue his character with enough humanity that I began to see past the street smart exterior to a cop who seemed like a genuinely good guy underneath. It was great the way he deployed his ‘street persona’ honed during his work in buy bust operations to go places at Fort Washington High where Rosie was a student that the more reserved Detective Linden simply could not. He constantly surprised me with his every move which at first glance seemed to be in service to himself, but would invariably turn out to be in service to the investigation.

The Family
Michelle Forbes and Brent Sexton as Mitch and Stanley Larsen blow the doors of the place in conveying the grief that descends upon a family that loses a child to an act of violence. A lot of it was hard to watch, though not due to any lack of dramatic skill, if anything, it was because there was a surfeit of it. The way Forbes can speak in a voice cracking with fear for Rosie and then crackling in fury as she calls around looking for her (“I swear that girl is gonna get the ass-kicking of her life”) had a lot of depth to it and brought back memories of the same righteous anger that she could demonstrate in her roles as Ensign Ro in Star Trek: TNG and as Admiral Helena Cain in Battlestar Galatica (Re-imagined).

Brent Sexton was also amazing to watch. As the gruff but lovable Stan, he really made you feel the differing stages of grief he was undergoing, from the emotional support he provided to his wife in the aftermath of Rosie’s death, to the emotional breakdown he experienced after viewing Rosie in the dress they provided to the funeral director. The Jekyll and Hyde aspects of his character was fascinating to watch.

Jamie Ann Allman as Terri Marek, Rosie’s aunt and Mitch’s sister also turns in a great performance. She becomes the rock of the family in becoming more involved in raising the boys as Mitch and Stan go through this crisis. 

The Suspects
I found this aspect of the show to be the weakest since you knew that Rosie’s killer couldn’t have been the red herrings we viewed early on, like Jasper and his buddy Kris Echols. The teacher Bennett Ahmed (Brandon Jay McLaren in a brilliant role) was a more interesting suspect because of the racial angle and his connection to possible Islamic extremists. Billy Campbell as Darren Richmond was excellent as ever, even better than his role as Jordan Collier in the acclaimed sci-fi show 4400.

Thoughts on the Season Finale
I know that the finale was very controversial because of the doubt cast on the guilt of Darren Richmond in the final minutes of the episode. I was glad to see that he wasn’t really the killer. I thought it was too easy since the fact that Rosie’s body had been found in the campaign car clearly indicated that it was a setup from the start. One thing that I haven’t seen mentioned often is Terri’s obvious recognition of Jasper’s father, Michael Ames as a client in her guise as a Beau Soleil girl during the gathering after Rosie’s funeral. It was awkward and purposely pointed out to viewers in an obvious way.

The fact that Ames was a client of Beau Soleil does not necessarily make him the murderer but he is a real estate developer whose interests coincide with the Mayor’s in developing the Seattle waterfront, and what better way to eliminate Richmond than to frame him for murder? I don’t know, doesn’t really sound plausible to me, seems that all they would have to do is expose Richmond’s use of Beau Soleil to do that, though perhaps Jasper’s dad and the Mayor were loath to risk exposing their own involvement in the escort service as well. If I were wagering, I’d put my money on Senator Eaton, Gwen’s father. A murder like Rosie’s would have to have two motives in my opinion, that combine the personal with the political. It is only in Senator Eaton that we have both. He is already on record as having expressed his disapproval of Richmond both as a candidate and as his daughter’s lover from the start. His social position already marks him as an obvious candidate for using Beau Soleil’s services, thus he would have likely been acquainted with Rosie if he were indeed a client. Only in Senator Eaton does a personal interest and a political interest in Richmond’s destruction collide.

At any rate, The Killing was amazing, and I urge you to see it if you haven’t already done so. It is first-rate, and even if there was no definitive resolution at the end, what of it? Are we Americans so obsessed with closure that this show’s lack of it is enough to drive us mad with anger just because it chose to raise more questions than it answered? I think Veena Sud’s desire to defeat the conventions of this particular genre is to be commended; the acting, moody soundtrack and atmospheric cinematography all combined to provide one of the best viewing experiences of the year IMHO, as well as inspiration in accomplishing the same in my own work. I look forward to seeing more next season.

Long Island Massacre Driven by Addiction?

Killer in plain sight

Police pegged the motive for the heinous massacre at a Long Island Pharmacy this weekend over a presumed addiction to painkillers on the part of the suspect captured in surveillance footage. I agree that this is probably the motive, but we can't ignore the possibility that this man could have been involved in distribution as well. Either way, it's a horrendous crime that with any hope, will not go unpunished. I mean, just think of the lives this man destroyed in the desire to feed his habit. A high school senior days away from graduating from high school. He's definitely a sociopath, but whether it was his lack of empathy for his victims or the addiction talking, only time will tell. Let's hope they catch this guy quick before he can hurt anyone else. If you recognize this guy, please call the Homicide Squad at 631-852-6392. all calls will be kept confidential.

Stieg Larsson's girlfriend Eva's Viking Curse

Eva Gabrielsson reflects on her life with Stieg Larsson in a new book

Very interesting article in the New York Times on Eva Gabrielsson, Stieg Larson's girlfriend, who describes putting a Viking curse on his father and brother in her new book ‘There Are Things I Want You to Know’ About Stieg Larsson and Me.” I don't know what to think about this whole thing, except that the only thing that seems to be without blame in this affair is the magazine that he devoted a good portion of his life too, is Expo the anti-racist publication investigating Swedish far-right groups. Makes me think the royalties should have gone to Expo instead of the family.

In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night…Well, You Know What I Mean

Ryan Reynolds Shines as Hal Jordan

I saw Green Lantern yesterday, and while disappointed with it to some extent, I lay blame for any failures it may be guilty of with the Hollywood suits and the straitjacket they inevitably place on any origin story set in the world of comic books rather than the writers or Martin Campbell, the director. Ryan Reynolds did a good job as Hal Gordon, the daredevil (or devil may care, take your pick) test pilot who is pressed into service as a member of the Green Lantern Corps when his predecessor Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison) dies from an attack by Parallax.

Things That Could Have Been Better
Now, to anyone familiar with the Green Lantern comics, Parallax was actually Hal Jordan, but I’ll give it a pass on that because I always hated that story line since it was always a bit too grim for me. The film had several strong performances in my opinion, from Mark Strong as Sinestro, to the aforementioned Temuera Morrison as Abin Sur (however short) and Clancy Brown voicing Parallax. My primary problem with it was that too much of it was set on Earth for my liking. The parts of it on Earth, whether cheering up his nephew after crashing an F-35 in an incident eerily similar to the way his father was killed, or taking Carol Ferris on a joyride over Coast City a la Clark and Lois’s ride over Metropolis in the first Superman movie bored me to death and the latter scene in particular was presumptuous as all hell, since Campbell’s film doesn’t even begin to approach Donner’s classic from the late ‘70s. Another thing I didn’t like was that there was far too little of Kiliwog. His entrance and exit was far too brief for a story, even an origin story, about Green Lantern in my opinion. What there was of him was pretty good however, as he taught him about the importance of strength of will and forming constructs but it could have a been a lot better. I’m still not sure about Michael Clarke Duncan voicing Kiliwog either, though that probably had less to do with Duncan’s performance than the fact that I was able to recognize him instantly, which took a little away from the suspension of disbelief needed to enjoy it. The constructs that Kiliwog came up with to test Hal during this sequence were well done however, you could feel the effort expended by Jordan to keep up and sold me on the film's ability to render Oa and the Corps in future films.

Oa and the Guardians
The Guardians were done very well, and to be honest I actually preferred the filmmakers’ version of Parallax as a fallen one of their number more than the actual comics original version. Hal’s initial introduction to life in the Corps by Tomar-Re (voiced by Geoffrey Rush) was very well done, one of the best moments in the film. Peter Sarsgaard as Hector Hammond was also done very well and his relationship with his Senator father (Tim Robbins) was mildly interesting. The final battle at the end was more along the lines of what I expected for the entire film with Hal going all out against Parallax, though even here, the constructs he created to sling the fiend into the Sun weren't quite as good as I had hoped.

Final Grade
I give the film a B-, hopefully the sequel will be better, but for that to happen the filmmakers will have to be willing to leave the confines of Earth a lot more for the story to work. I mean he is after all in charge of an entire sector of space (2814) right? We need to see him do more than just hang out on Earth if you ask me.

Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides

Depp is better than ever in the 4th film

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was a lot better than I expected. I felt it was far superior to the franchise’s prior installments that starred Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley. While Johnny Depp’s performance as Jack Sparrow is without doubt meant to be the heart of the film franchise, it was Ian McShane’s performance as Blackbeard and Penelope Cruz’s turn as his romantic interest that really set this one apart from the others. I found the story line a lot more interesting as well, about the quest between Britain, Spain and Blackbeard for the mythical Fountain of Youth.

Better Chemistry
The humor and swordplay between Depp and Cruz felt a lot more genuine than that between Depp and Knightley, especially the first scene between them where Sparrow is facing off against an impostor who seems to know his every move, every parry and thrust that he’s been known to use against opponents. It’s simultaneously fraught with danger, mystery and a bit of sexiness that underlies a good deal of romantic chemistry between the two stars that I hadn’t expected.

Better Villain
That is topped only by Blackbeard’s introduction, on the Queen’s Head Revenge, where Sparrow has been kidnapped due to his presumed knowledge of the location of the Fountain of Youth. Having suborned mutiny among the crew, Sparrow stands on deck in  premature triumph, until the door of the Captain’s quarters opens behind and out emerges for the first time, an antagonist even darker than Davey Jones, Ian McShane’s Blackbeard. He possesses an ungodly power over the Queen’s Head Revenge, which enables to him squash Sparrow’s mutiny and set the ship back on course for the Fountain of Youth.

Return of Old Friends (Or Enemies)
Geoffrey Rush is back as Barbossa, who is on a single-minded pursuit of Blackbeard for  taking his ship, or Jack’s ship if you will, The Black Pearl. With an alluring (yet creepy) interlude with mermaids and a finale packing a confrontation of the nations that was very well executed (and historically accurate as well) if Spanish history is any indication, the movie's pace never flagged at all, which I've found to be quite rare for any movie nearly two and half hours in length. This is one installment you won’t want to miss.  I give it a grade of A, it allows you to lose yourself for two and a half hours which is more than I can say for the earlier three films in the franchise.

Green Lantern: Emerald Knights

Kiliwog's History Revealed

I watched Green Lantern: Emerald Knights this week prior to the premiere of the feature film and was amazed at how good it was. It was a series of stories that detailed the history of major characters in the Green Lantern Corps like Killiwog, Mogo and Laira. In a perfect world, stories like the ones told in this animated feature would be shot as a live action film, for it and its predecessor Green Lantern: First Flight far outshone the Ryan Reynolds vehicle that premiered on Friday.

Ancient Enemies
At the outset of the film, a Green Lantern on her way to Oa is killed while passing near the surface of Oa’s sun by vile beings known as shadow demons. Boy they pulled no punches in this scene either, when Green Lanterns fall, they die violently and Lauren Montgomery and her animation team didn’t hold back anything in demonstrating that in the opening scene. The shadow demons are beings of antimatter and have apparently come under the control of Krona an ancient enemy of the Guardians and who created the antimatter universe and serve as the precursors to his eventual arrival out of the star itself to destroy the Guardians, the Lantern Corps and Oa.

Avra and the First Construct

Unlikely Heroes
As the Green Lantern Corps prepare for battle and the Guardians begin spiriting away relics and other treasures like the Book of Oa in anticipation of the struggle to come, Hal Jordan (voiced by Nathan Fillion) tells a young, newly designated Green Lantern named Arisia Rrab the story of the first Lantern. Avra is a “mere scribe” who forged the first construct, a weapon that was to become the forte of the corps and the foundation of the power of the Green Lanterns. I really enjoyed this story the most of all, since its hero was such an unlikely one, and a skinny, nerdy writer at that!

Kiliwog’s Kiliwog
The next story about Kiliwog gave a great deal of insight into his character as well, even demonstrating that the term “poozer,” his signature line, was something handed down from one generation of Lanterns to another, just as the first construct was.

Laira and her Father do battle

Like Father Like Daughter
Laira’s (voiced by Kelly Hu) story was very powerful in an emotional sense and easily possessed some of the best action of the entire film. Her struggle against her family, particularly the scene of her battling her father as tender images of her childhood with him were activated across her bedchamber was like something out of Kurosawa. Extraordinary stuff.

Final Thoughts
Mogo’s story hails from an Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons comic written over a quarter century ago and was a great way to bring to life yet another classic narrative made by the immortal duo who created the graphic novel Watchmen. Abin Sur's (Arnold Vosloo) battle with Atrociticus was a nice way to round out things, particularly the philosophical conversation (or debate?) he has with his comrade Sinestro. The final struggle with Krona was excellent, far more rousing and satisfying than anything in the live action film and the reason why I have to give this film an A+, since it really captured the essence of the Green Lantern ethos in a way that few stories, animated or live action have in a long time. Go see it, you’ll have a splendid time.

‘The Protector’ While Familiar, Has a Family Dynamic That Ultimately, Works

Ally Walker’s new police procedural, “The Protector,” definitely got better as it went along for me. At first, I was pretty blase about the show since the premise felt a little too close to her last police procedural, ‘Profiler’ that premiered on NBC in 1996. The show’s saving grace for me wasn’t the rather standard plot about a mugging that eventually turns to murder, it was the way that Detective Gloria Sheppard (Walker) juggled her responsibilities as a mom of two boys with the grisly details that working homicide in a big city like LA entailed.

A Compelling Dichotomy
The show juxtaposed these two areas of her life with enough humor to keep me watching, since I’ve alway been a sucker for this kind of stuff. The Protector has a few other things in its favor as well however; the first is a good supporting cast, from Tisha Campbell-Martin (Martin, My Wife and Kids) as Sheppard’s partner Michelle Dulcet, to Chris Payne Gilbert (Dexter) as her brother Davey, with whom Sheppard and her sons have moved in with and her boss, Lt. Valdez, (Mel Ferrer) who runs interference for her with higher ups when her unorthodox crime solving techniques get her into hot water like any boss worth his salt should. I know I’ve tweeted this before but I just have to repeat it because it was such a great example of what the show is ultimately shooting for. I’m talking about the scene where Sheppard notices her older son Nick (Sage Ryan) about to thumb through her case folder while she’s fixing breakfast one morning. Rather than the harsh scolding one might expect in such a situation, she simply stops him with a warning that a photo of a corpse with its head split open is what awaited him if he opened that folder, and his fingers returned at light speed to where they belonged.

More moments like that is what I’m looking for from this show. It airs on Lifetime on Sunday nights at 10 p.m., so give it a shot, I think you’ll like what you find there.

Game of Thrones - Episode 8 "The Pointy End" The Dwarf, the Dothraki and Racism? Do Tell

 Khal Drogos gets ready to rumble

Out of a season of brilliant episodes, 'The Pointy End' stands head and shoulders above the rest. Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister is absolutely magnificent. The way he deploys his wit (and the Lannister fortune) to save his skin time and time again never fails to impress. The scene of him with Shaga, son of Dolf was a perfect example of how well he can think on his feet when his life is at stake (as it so often is, alas) and was even better than the scene last week of how the same quick thinking won him his freedom.

The storyline with the Dothraki is my next favorite element of GOTHR. I must confess that I never had much respect for Jason Momoa (due to his turn as the horribly-written Ronon in Stargate Atlantis, may its name live in infamy) but his performance here as the Dothraki warlord, Khal Drogos, makes it look like his upcoming role in the remake of Conan the Barbarian might work after all. I'm particularly taken with the metaphoric nature of the Dothraki language, where he refers to his Khaleesi as "Moon of my life" and she in turn refers to him as "my sun and stars." It's strangely tender and flowery for a people with such a violent way of life.

I've come across a line of thinking toward Game of Thrones while googling it that accuses the show of a racist depiction of the Dothraki as opposed to the people of the Seven Kingdoms who are clearly a stand-in for the people of Western Europe circa the thirteenth century. It has been said that especially during the wedding between Khal Drogos and Daenerys Targaryen, depictions of the near tribal, Asiatic-looking Dothraki bordered on the offensive, with their displays of public coupling (especially of the non-missionary kind) and consumptions of horses' hearts. I don't know that I agree with that.

While I would agree that the Dothraki are a combination of tribal African and Asian influences, I see the primary historical element of the Dothraki as Mongolian in nature. Of course even Khal Drogos' speech after an attempt on Daenerys' life was foiled is but another bastardized version of the most famous quote of Genghis Khan made even more famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger in his Conan. If you're comparing a group to the Mongols, then you're being anything but racist, since they proved themselves superior, militarily anyway, to the European mounted Knights and crossbowmen on the field of battle.

In my view, George R.R. Martin and the filmmakers adapting his vision to the small screen are simply using the the broad outlines of history to craft a compelling tale of great fiction, no more and no less.  Rather than leveling baseless charges of racism at the show, maybe those offended by certain aspects of it should simply turn the channel instead.

I also love the portrayal of Tywin Lannister by Charles Dance, that introduction of his character gutting a deer in his tent was quite nasty. When he expresses his disapproval in one way or another of both his sons Jaime and Tyrion, it has a really hard-edge to it. And what about Prince Joffrey? (has anybody ever looked more inbred than little Jack Gleeson at the moment?). Anyway, I really look forward to next week's episode. Only three more days to Sunday! With all the maneuvering going on in Game of Thrones to look forward to, it's starting to feel like an eternity.

Interview at The Freelance and Fiction Blog for The Abattoir

I'm happy to report that an interview conducted by Rachel V. DiMaggio at The Freelance and Fiction blog has been posted for you to read at your leisure. In it, you can find out about my motivations for writing the book, how I created the mood for the narrative and a few personal things about me. It was a great experience, and one that I hope to repeat with other book bloggers who might be looking for guest posts and interviews with indie writers in the near future. Thanks a lot Rachel! I had a great time.