This was the weekend of Things To See and Read
Got all three writing assignments for various fic exchanges. Got my Yuletide one this morning - could be worse.
This weekend, I should have been filling out various forms. Instead, I watched HP7a and read comics.
Watched Harry Potter last night. Yes, I used to be in the fandom, but haven't been so keen on the movies. My partner, on the other hand, doesn't have much truck with the books, but likes the movies, especially from Prisoner of Azkaban and beyond. I thought this movie was one of the best of the lot (I have mad love for PoA), and that it was better than the book. I liked book seven overall, even though some parts of it dragged, the pacing was off for such a final tome, and some events were so unnecessary, so yay for HP7A for making the story seem tighter (so far).
Harry and Hermione - in the book, I could see why people shipped that particular couple: there's an ease between them that the canon romances of Harry/Ginny and Hermione/Ron lack. The movie sold me more easily on the Ron/Hermione pairing 1 you got the flash of feelings between Ron and Hermione, the time where they were in the eatery, and Ron wipes a spot of blood from Hermione's cheek as he tells her to dispose of the DE as she saw fit, "Because you've always been the best at spells." Then the images Harry/Hermione kissing with the Horcux, showing Ron's niggling fears and jealousies - but he destroyed it. Go, Ron! Hermione ready to shred Ron with her wand because he came back and she missed him so much but still so angry at him leaving but glad that he was back. She was less Mature and Keep Everything on the Level Hermione, and more a girl with conflicted emotions. It was a nice look for the bit, and her being cold towards Ron for the time. Go for Harry hiding Hermione's wand and preventing her from casting an epic hex ("Who, what? What wand? I don't have it.") was luz.
Oh, and d'aww at the platonic dancing scene with Harry and Hermione. When they did that old Morris type dancing, with the Muggle music; it was a good wink and nod to the fact that they both straddle different worlds, and are committed to the world that is wondering whether to accept them or chuck 'em out in a way that Ron wouldn't quite understand, since he's a pure blood Wizard through and through.
For all of Rowling's faults2 she writes teens very well.
The best part of the movie for me was the Tale of The Three Brothers - with the animated puppetry and its stylised angles. So. Good. OMG. The insight to the fact that the Wizards have their own legends and Brother's Grimm fairy tales was a pleasing detail, and a foreshadow to Voldemort's DE's attacking the house, and them closing in on our plucky trio. That Bellatrix and Hermione scene made me feel uncomfortable, and I approve, because it should. Fiennes as Voldemort lent a much welcome malignant air to the entire business, especially at the end. The movie should have that air of dark days revisited, and how everything is closing in on the trio. Of course Hedwing should have died, but she died taking a hit for her master, so props to her.
Dobby! I baww'd, and Harry dug his grave! Without magic!
There's a lot more to tell, because the movie had so much going on. The costuming, cinematography (that DE on the train tracks as he halted the Hogwarts train? Yeah, chills), everything felt completely whole (the Ministry of Magic's office) as if all the movies, all the sets, everything was building up to this, and everyone stepped up to the challenge. I'm not a person to see movies more than once though (I can't afford it, nor do I have the time), so I'll wait for it to come on network TV and appreciate it again then.
As a knitter, I liked everyone of Hermione's jumpers (sweaters) in the movie. Particularly that fair isle number, with the cool blues and navys and off whites against the ice grey of the jumper which she wore under a navy pea coat. That button band - cabled - with the spaces of the cable twists as button holes. Clever! I'm hoping that some ravelry designer reverse engineers that cardigan and releases the pattern into the wild.
1 I'll never be convinced of Harry/Ginny to be honest. It's always seemed a bit pasted on and left field, although Rowling was dropping hints, but at the end of it, Harry only noticed Ginny when she was out with other boys, and Ginny was all, "I went out with them, but I was thinking about you all that time." Way to show your hand, Ginny girl. The movie gets it better, but not by much.
2 I've always said that when she had her happily ever after, with her own 'Harry' and brood of kids, it really made her work suffer. There's a slack of tension after PoA and it never picked up again until Deathly Hollows. The long delays between books, then her belief that she was 'changing a world' via writing HP, really made the series lag for me, and her supposedly 'writing' a GBLT character - but we never found out that he was gay until she said so in a Q &A. But it's supposedly canon. No, it's not. If it's not written in the book, it's just something said in a Q&A
Comic Reviews
Oh, read part 2 to Iron Man: The Rapture. I must say, I'm not really a fan of the story so far, which is a shame, because I liked Irving's work on The Ultimates novelisation ( Against All Enemies), but he's missed a trick or two in this comic . I normally do like various takes on Iron Man, like Iron Man: Noir for instance, but this one? I'll finish reading the series, because I'm like that, but so far, no dice.
Spider Girl 1 is cute. It's not May Parker, no, it's Anya Sofia Corazon, Marvel's first Hispanic Superhero! i Anya's a great girl who has a great relationship with her dad, works at the library part time translating Spanish texts, tries to make friends, and is just such a good kid. She tweets her adventures, and the book is so much love. May it have a better run than Young Allies.
Young Allies: I had the choice between this and Avenger's Academy on pull, and I chose this one. But now it's cancelled. Baww. I liked the end of this, with Angelica Jones and Emma Frost, and how Emma tries to convince her to come back (but you know Emma, why use honey if she can try condescension with a dollop of frosty hauteur to boot). Angelica stands her ground against her former mentor and is at ease with herself and her stance, and the comic ends on a good note. I'll now put Avenger's Academy on my pull list, and get caught up.
X:Men: To Protect and To Serve: This comic is vignettes of the various heroes of the X-teams as they go about their business. There's Anole and Rockslide, snarking and getting dangerous, Emma against the Mandrill, and she puts her snotty, ice queen powers to good use. There are a couple more stories I enjoyed, but I've been so out of the X-verse for such a long time, I barely know the new young uns, and with the death of Kurt, I don't know if there's a place for me anymore. But this comic has changed my mind, I'll try and make their aquaintance. I'm pretty charmed with Anole. There are three more parts to this series, I think I'll put them on my pull list.
Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade: I've been squeeing like a mad, crazed groupie given front row seats to my beloved band's concert. This comic has everything. There's Billy and Teddy - I know that some people over in the cbr forums deride the pairing as being all a bit too 'Starbucks' (as in, attractively packaged, easy for the masses to consume) but damn it, they are so adorable. Who says that being a gay teen must always be fraught with angst and sadness and death? What's not to love about this relationship? They consider themselves equals, are committed enough to each other to understand and take on the clusterchuck that's family. Secure in each other for Billy knowing that Teddy's going to rescue him and totally give him a piece of his mind after they get clear. All relationships should have the space and strength for you to tell your loved ones when they have gone beyond the pale.
Eli and Kate are on the outs. Well. They are teenagers. That's how they roll. Eli and Magneto are engaged in a war of words; Eli is out of his depth but too stubborn to know it and too proud to back down. I love you, Eli. Pietro and Erik - so alike in so many ways, and joined by their concern for Wanda, and yet, each man wants to use her as a pawn in their individual schemes. Family matters, boy.
New Avengers no. 06: I don't read Mighty Avengers because mainly, I can't stand Romita Jnr's art. He's better than Larocca, Dillon and Land, true, but still his art is yuck. I refuse to read a comic where the art isn't reasonable, but on the other hand, I can't read Loeb's Ultimates' farce either, although Cho's art is scrummy; Loeb doesn't give a toss about the characters at all. But I digress. Brother Voodoo is dead (BOO!)and Luke is probably the only poc about. Oh well, at least there's (white) women?
C'mon Bendis, do better.
You have heft over in Marvel now, and I'm sure the way how the demographics are going, Caucasians in the US will be less than fifty percent to the other ethnicities combined by the next generation. Over here, in the UK, mixed race children are the fastest growing minority. It's shameful that one wants to have such a distorted view of demographics in comics, where it's just white people all the timeii. Marvel is better than DC at this, in terms of including minorities but their better still isn't the best.
i Lie. There's Cecilia Reyes: But she was an X-man, and truth be told, didn't like the whole hero biz, but still, she stepped up.
ii: I do remember having this conversation when the Ultimates came out in the trades, and someone was scandalised that Jan was Asian American and Nick Fury was African American. But in this day and age, especially with comics set in New York (not Central City or Metropolis, or Gotham or whatever the white default cities that DC tends to name), and you only have white males, with one or two white females (who tend to be het, cis gendered and able bodied) and call that diversity?
Right, I have Things To Do this week, which will include some writing, since I have two fics due on December 20th, and one due a week before that. Hmmm.
This weekend, I should have been filling out various forms. Instead, I watched HP7a and read comics.
Watched Harry Potter last night. Yes, I used to be in the fandom, but haven't been so keen on the movies. My partner, on the other hand, doesn't have much truck with the books, but likes the movies, especially from Prisoner of Azkaban and beyond. I thought this movie was one of the best of the lot (I have mad love for PoA), and that it was better than the book. I liked book seven overall, even though some parts of it dragged, the pacing was off for such a final tome, and some events were so unnecessary, so yay for HP7A for making the story seem tighter (so far).
Harry and Hermione - in the book, I could see why people shipped that particular couple: there's an ease between them that the canon romances of Harry/Ginny and Hermione/Ron lack. The movie sold me more easily on the Ron/Hermione pairing 1 you got the flash of feelings between Ron and Hermione, the time where they were in the eatery, and Ron wipes a spot of blood from Hermione's cheek as he tells her to dispose of the DE as she saw fit, "Because you've always been the best at spells." Then the images Harry/Hermione kissing with the Horcux, showing Ron's niggling fears and jealousies - but he destroyed it. Go, Ron! Hermione ready to shred Ron with her wand because he came back and she missed him so much but still so angry at him leaving but glad that he was back. She was less Mature and Keep Everything on the Level Hermione, and more a girl with conflicted emotions. It was a nice look for the bit, and her being cold towards Ron for the time. Go for Harry hiding Hermione's wand and preventing her from casting an epic hex ("Who, what? What wand? I don't have it.") was luz.
Oh, and d'aww at the platonic dancing scene with Harry and Hermione. When they did that old Morris type dancing, with the Muggle music; it was a good wink and nod to the fact that they both straddle different worlds, and are committed to the world that is wondering whether to accept them or chuck 'em out in a way that Ron wouldn't quite understand, since he's a pure blood Wizard through and through.
For all of Rowling's faults2 she writes teens very well.
The best part of the movie for me was the Tale of The Three Brothers - with the animated puppetry and its stylised angles. So. Good. OMG. The insight to the fact that the Wizards have their own legends and Brother's Grimm fairy tales was a pleasing detail, and a foreshadow to Voldemort's DE's attacking the house, and them closing in on our plucky trio. That Bellatrix and Hermione scene made me feel uncomfortable, and I approve, because it should. Fiennes as Voldemort lent a much welcome malignant air to the entire business, especially at the end. The movie should have that air of dark days revisited, and how everything is closing in on the trio. Of course Hedwing should have died, but she died taking a hit for her master, so props to her.
Dobby! I baww'd, and Harry dug his grave! Without magic!
There's a lot more to tell, because the movie had so much going on. The costuming, cinematography (that DE on the train tracks as he halted the Hogwarts train? Yeah, chills), everything felt completely whole (the Ministry of Magic's office) as if all the movies, all the sets, everything was building up to this, and everyone stepped up to the challenge. I'm not a person to see movies more than once though (I can't afford it, nor do I have the time), so I'll wait for it to come on network TV and appreciate it again then.
As a knitter, I liked everyone of Hermione's jumpers (sweaters) in the movie. Particularly that fair isle number, with the cool blues and navys and off whites against the ice grey of the jumper which she wore under a navy pea coat. That button band - cabled - with the spaces of the cable twists as button holes. Clever! I'm hoping that some ravelry designer reverse engineers that cardigan and releases the pattern into the wild.
1 I'll never be convinced of Harry/Ginny to be honest. It's always seemed a bit pasted on and left field, although Rowling was dropping hints, but at the end of it, Harry only noticed Ginny when she was out with other boys, and Ginny was all, "I went out with them, but I was thinking about you all that time." Way to show your hand, Ginny girl. The movie gets it better, but not by much.
2 I've always said that when she had her happily ever after, with her own 'Harry' and brood of kids, it really made her work suffer. There's a slack of tension after PoA and it never picked up again until Deathly Hollows. The long delays between books, then her belief that she was 'changing a world' via writing HP, really made the series lag for me, and her supposedly 'writing' a GBLT character - but we never found out that he was gay until she said so in a Q &A. But it's supposedly canon. No, it's not. If it's not written in the book, it's just something said in a Q&A
Comic Reviews
Oh, read part 2 to Iron Man: The Rapture. I must say, I'm not really a fan of the story so far, which is a shame, because I liked Irving's work on The Ultimates novelisation ( Against All Enemies), but he's missed a trick or two in this comic . I normally do like various takes on Iron Man, like Iron Man: Noir for instance, but this one? I'll finish reading the series, because I'm like that, but so far, no dice.
Spider Girl 1 is cute. It's not May Parker, no, it's Anya Sofia Corazon, Marvel's first Hispanic Superhero! i Anya's a great girl who has a great relationship with her dad, works at the library part time translating Spanish texts, tries to make friends, and is just such a good kid. She tweets her adventures, and the book is so much love. May it have a better run than Young Allies.
Young Allies: I had the choice between this and Avenger's Academy on pull, and I chose this one. But now it's cancelled. Baww. I liked the end of this, with Angelica Jones and Emma Frost, and how Emma tries to convince her to come back (but you know Emma, why use honey if she can try condescension with a dollop of frosty hauteur to boot). Angelica stands her ground against her former mentor and is at ease with herself and her stance, and the comic ends on a good note. I'll now put Avenger's Academy on my pull list, and get caught up.
X:Men: To Protect and To Serve: This comic is vignettes of the various heroes of the X-teams as they go about their business. There's Anole and Rockslide, snarking and getting dangerous, Emma against the Mandrill, and she puts her snotty, ice queen powers to good use. There are a couple more stories I enjoyed, but I've been so out of the X-verse for such a long time, I barely know the new young uns, and with the death of Kurt, I don't know if there's a place for me anymore. But this comic has changed my mind, I'll try and make their aquaintance. I'm pretty charmed with Anole. There are three more parts to this series, I think I'll put them on my pull list.
Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade: I've been squeeing like a mad, crazed groupie given front row seats to my beloved band's concert. This comic has everything. There's Billy and Teddy - I know that some people over in the cbr forums deride the pairing as being all a bit too 'Starbucks' (as in, attractively packaged, easy for the masses to consume) but damn it, they are so adorable. Who says that being a gay teen must always be fraught with angst and sadness and death? What's not to love about this relationship? They consider themselves equals, are committed enough to each other to understand and take on the clusterchuck that's family. Secure in each other for Billy knowing that Teddy's going to rescue him and totally give him a piece of his mind after they get clear. All relationships should have the space and strength for you to tell your loved ones when they have gone beyond the pale.
Eli and Kate are on the outs. Well. They are teenagers. That's how they roll. Eli and Magneto are engaged in a war of words; Eli is out of his depth but too stubborn to know it and too proud to back down. I love you, Eli. Pietro and Erik - so alike in so many ways, and joined by their concern for Wanda, and yet, each man wants to use her as a pawn in their individual schemes. Family matters, boy.
New Avengers no. 06: I don't read Mighty Avengers because mainly, I can't stand Romita Jnr's art. He's better than Larocca, Dillon and Land, true, but still his art is yuck. I refuse to read a comic where the art isn't reasonable, but on the other hand, I can't read Loeb's Ultimates' farce either, although Cho's art is scrummy; Loeb doesn't give a toss about the characters at all. But I digress. Brother Voodoo is dead (BOO!)and Luke is probably the only poc about. Oh well, at least there's (white) women?
C'mon Bendis, do better.
You have heft over in Marvel now, and I'm sure the way how the demographics are going, Caucasians in the US will be less than fifty percent to the other ethnicities combined by the next generation. Over here, in the UK, mixed race children are the fastest growing minority. It's shameful that one wants to have such a distorted view of demographics in comics, where it's just white people all the timeii. Marvel is better than DC at this, in terms of including minorities but their better still isn't the best.
i Lie. There's Cecilia Reyes: But she was an X-man, and truth be told, didn't like the whole hero biz, but still, she stepped up.
ii: I do remember having this conversation when the Ultimates came out in the trades, and someone was scandalised that Jan was Asian American and Nick Fury was African American. But in this day and age, especially with comics set in New York (not Central City or Metropolis, or Gotham or whatever the white default cities that DC tends to name), and you only have white males, with one or two white females (who tend to be het, cis gendered and able bodied) and call that diversity?
Right, I have Things To Do this week, which will include some writing, since I have two fics due on December 20th, and one due a week before that. Hmmm.