Who won the debate? Dean or Sam?
I voted with my remote and watched "Supernatural" instead of listening to one of the potential Vice Presidents of the United States talk about why the other one (and his/her boss) should be shunned. And I'm a news wonk (and a poly-sci major, which is why I draw cartoons, of course), so I do try and stay informed. But I'm also a "dialogue guy." After years of parsing what people say, I have a hard time with sales pitches of any kind, and a lot of political speak just rankles me if it (1) manages to say nothing or (2) appeals to emotion instead of reason. So, when it comes to debates, I usually look for summaries after the event, kind of like getting the "highlight reel" from the big game. I also have to admit (in a non-political way, so don't send hate mail) that I have a hard time hearing Palin now that a friend mentioned she sounds like "mom" from the old cartoon "Bobby's World."
Anyhow, "Supernatural" was pretty good, for a time travel story. I'm not quite sure the time travel bit was needed, but it didn't paradox itself and seemed to fit the continuity, so I was fine with it.
I got a chance to do some D&D 4e with "the guys" recently, and we found it still to not be so different from 3.5, in that we still died about as much as before. Sure, you have "powers" now, but that doesn't help when your ranger misses the ambush and your wizard gets jumped while your paladin and cleric can barely keep the shifting kobolds from flanking them. Our DM even seemed a bit mystified at the challenge rating for what was, logically, supposed to be the second encounter for our 1st-level party (it's an official module he's working from). It looks like other maxims from 3.5 will still hold for our group: go out, get beaten up in one encounter, go back to town, heal up, go back out the next day, get beaten up 10 feet further into the dungeon/woods, go back to town...
Back to nerd-media again for a note that Kevin Spacy will apparently reprise his role as Lex Luthor in 2011's "Man of Steel" film. Spacy was good in "Superman Lifts Returns," but I wish there had been a better movie surrounding him. Singer made an homage to the work of Richard Donner when he should have just made a decent "Superman" movie. And Lex deserves better than being a con man bent on killing Superman with a lucrative real estate con as the result. In the comics, Lex is a genius industrialist who was even President of the United States for a while. I hope they take a good look at Clancy Brown's Lex Luthor from the animated series of "Superman" and "Justice League" before turning him into comic relief again.
Let's have some post-debate distraction:
- Some cool superhero art in the form of Magneto's Ride, showcasing that a used vehicle can indeed be a wicked ride, and Doctor Strange looking about as mystic as I've ever seen.
- As one who doesn't wear contacts because I get "oogey" about touching my eyes, I'm morbidly fascinated by this contact lens jewelry.
- A new recut trailer is bouncing around the net, this one mixing Toy Story and The Dark Knight to great effect. Not so serious, mind you... :)
- In the days before DvDs and VHS tapes, school children were subjected to "film strips," which were basically slide shows with a cassette tape for narration. You're a stronger geek than I if you can sit through Star Wars, the film strip.
- Alert reader "Luther" has created a flash game with a fun "mouse-slash" mechanic, Straw Hat Samurai. Weild your blades with honor... or at least try not to get too much villain on your clothes.
- And because we all need some more cute to help us cope, here's a kitten versus an electric toothbrush.