The sound of falling ratings...
Sorry, "Sarah Connor Chronicles." I liked you too much, so you got canceled... maybe. Granted, you had a rough start, and there were times when your budget limitations showed, but after that (actual) finale... darnit! I at least want a direct-to-DvD movie-length wrap up. I'd even settle for Sci-Fi/SyFy picking it up. They could just reallocate the money they were going to spend to make knock-offs of "Terminator: Salvation" for their next movie marathon. I'd be so much happier with that option than seeing something called "Roboborgs" or "Termabots" starring Willie Ames and Pamela Anderson.
"Dollhouse" is also possibly going away, though I admit that I decided to hold off on seeing it until it came out on DvD about halfway through the "backup singer" episode. I hope Joss Whedon finds work on HBO or Showtime with a new series that doesn't have so much interference from the higher ups. Or that he gives us more "Doctor Horrible." Or both. I'm not picky. :)
"Doctor Who" gave us an Easter special that was obviously an Easter special because they had him wish someone "Happy Easter." I'm thankful it didn't rain colored eggs on London at the end (grin). It was a decent episode, most notable for the foreshadowing of David Tennant soon leaving the TARDIS to his next regeneration. Also from the UK was the only comedy show where I kind of missed the ol' laugh track, "Red Dwarf: Back to Earth." There's loads of good nerd humor here (the comic shop owner was well-written), especially if you're a fan of "Blade Runner." As "meta" as it was, I think the episode "Back to Reality" was more mind-warping.
"Krod Mandoon" is a recent show that comes off like what I'd envision a D&D campaign to be if it was being played by a bunch of office workers led by a middle manager. But that's a good thing. It's a self-aware parody that mixes modern jargon with a "Conan the Barbarian by way of Mel Brooks" vibe. I'm not sure it's for everyone, and I don't know if it'll last, but if you watched "Xena" and "Hercules" for camp value, you'll probably dig Krod.
Fans of "Fallout 3" might want to check out the upcoming video game that ties into the Terminator movie franchise. The trailer for it looks great, but the plot-specific bits make me fear this is going to be more of a "Call of Duty 4" sort of game, where you follow a rigid plot, fighting in limited areas until you do whatever unlocks the next bit. Which is a shame, because a Fallout-style RPG set in the Terminator universe would be awesome.
The trend of casting villains (or at least adversarial) characters in positions of power continues in Spider-Man as New York gets a new mayor. Much like Norman Osborne getting named to head up the Avengers, I worry that it's a cheap gimmick since both Spidey's thorn-in-the-side and Osborne are too easy to "reboot" out of their newfound positions by just exploiting their natural flaws and hatreds of other characters. All it takes is them focusing on a vendetta to the point where they cross some line (probably both against Spider-Man) and they get kicked out and we're back where we were with not much changed. I'd respect these comics if they didn't go that route, but after "Brand New Day," I'm not holding out for these changes sticking around.
Linking. It's what's for dinner:
- Alert reader Nathan sends us bacon news: For starters, bacon is like the Human Torch of foods! It is also the Punisher of foods!
- Tabletop gaming just got a little more interesting for 80's nostalgiacs. The boardgame "Monsterpocalypse" has added 'Voltron' to its rosters.
- Classics junkies, prepare to weep. What if Homer's Odyssey had been spread via Twitter?
- What more natural pairing can there be other than kittens and turntables?
- There are some business owners that want to let you know the vandalism needs to stop.
- Tonematrix is a fun little background music flash toy. Click pixels in whatever pattern (or no pattern at all) and get some baseline tunes.
- Here's a little nerve-wracking game called I Love Traffic. Manipulate the traffic signals to get enough cars through the intersections in the time allotted without causing a wreck.
- If you've got a lot of time and need to catch up on your internet history, here's the 100 most iconic 'net videos.
- We close with yet another Star Wars mashup set to the MacGyver theme.