Saturday, January 15, 2011

Torchwood: "Meat" (S2, E4)


"Imprisoned, chained, and drugged. Welcome to Planet Earth."

Meat, Season Two, Episode Four

("Rhys discovers the truth about Torchwood and joins them as they battle to save an extraordinary creature.")

WHAT I LIKED

* Rhys showing some initiative--secretly questioning Gwen about her whereabouts, and then following her to the alien meat plant.

* Owen's "alarm deactivator"--a bullet.

* Rhys' quick thinking when captured.

* Jack engaging in a blustery argument with Rhys and then declaring: "This is quite homoerotic."

* Jack flirting with the receptionist, full of truck-related double-entendres.

WHAT I DIDN'T

* Nothing I can pin down; just felt a little flat is all.

WHAT I'M NOT SURE ABOUT

* At the accident site, cops are telling civilians like Rhys that Torchwood is on its way. Is Torchwood secret or not?

* Why this alien whale creature, which Owen identifies as a water dweller, seems to be doing okay chained up in a warehouse for weeks.

* The idea that this alien keeps growing and regenerating tissue, even though it doesn't sound like it's getting fed (feeding something that size would certainly cut into the operation's profits!). Where's the extra mass coming from?

DELETED SCENES

* Jack walks in on Ianto holding a gun in front of a mirror and trying out catchphrases. They decide against giving Rhys a gun, and then Jack and Ianto get very flirty in a completely inappropriate-for-the-workplace but funny way.

TORCHWOOD DECLASSIFIED

* Concept designs for the alien whale creature. The original ideas were far more "alien", and then grew more (in my opinion) mundane over time. Although presented as a creative choice, I'm guessing the realities of budgets and CGI had more to do with it.

* Filming the warehouse scenes without the presence of an actual alien whale, and creating the CGI effects in post-production.

* A bit on Rhys, his discovering Torchwood, getting shot, etc.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Sans rien ni personne [Book Review]


SPOILERS

It's been a while since I've posted about a French book, mainly because I've been slowly slogging through Québec author Marie Laberge's 434-page Sans rien ni personne ("Without Anything or Anyone"). It's a cold case mystery novel with a decent hook: in 1972, a young woman was murdered shortly after delivering a stillborn baby. Twenty-five years later, a detective from France arrives in Québec to assist local police in solving the case. One of the themes of the book is the cultural difference between French and Québecois detectives, with the French detective chain-smoking, sleeping with witnesses, and pursuing intuitive leads, while his partner is a more by-the-book sort. Anyway, it's all for nought as this is a talky, talky book that is quite slow to develop. The detectives don't get a good lead until about halfway through the book, it turns out the killer has actually been dead for years, and the "big twist" is mostly foreseeable. Good mystery novels don't need car chases and explosions, but they do need an intriguing plot that moves forward at a decent pace.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Check This Out

My good friend and favorite back-in-the-day Tecmo Super Bowl* partner has launched a new blog, An Av in Nebraska, in which he talks about sorts of interesting things: recent books like King's Under the Dome, movies like Shutter Island, and more general topics like advice on dating single parents. Good stuff, so check it out!

* Said friend once played a season as the 49ers in which every single offensive play was a pass between Joe Montana and Jerry Rice.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Torchwood Online Game Mission # 9

After opening Fischer's laptop, Torchwood discovers several documents which point to a terrible truth: an alien invasion is under way! Alien DNA has been implanted into clients of the Venus Clinic by New Eden scientists. For now, the DNA is inert, but it will be activated by some sort of signal, and once activated the alien cells will take over their hosts' bodies. The goal for Mission # 9 is to find out what that activation signal is. Unfortunately, the clues for this mission aren't particularly helpful, but going over research from previous missions provides the answer. Here are the documents provided:

1) A secret memo written by New Eden's CEO, confirming that alien DNA has been implanted. Apparently, the four deaths of cosmetic surgery patients (discovered in a previous mission) occurred from failed implantation. New Eden has named their plan "Project Prometheus" and reports that activation of all carriers will take place on March 21st.

2) Notes written by Fischer about his discovery of Project: Pegasus, the March 21st "Metamorphosis" date, and his speculation that the alien cells must have arrived via meteorite.

3) A newspaper clipping reporting on a meteorite falling to Earth and being recovered by New Eden.

4) A magnified look at an "alien stem cell."

5) A letter to New Eden from university scientists complaining that New Eden hasn't made the meteorite available for outside research.

6) The usual note from Ianto reminding the investigator to listen to Dark Talk.

7) A short video by Tosh reminding the viewer that New Eden does stem cell research.

8) This week's episode of Dark Talk which is devoted to the theme of witchcraft. A psychic calls in claiming to be able to predict what will happen next to Torchwood, but she's mysteriously cut off before she can say more. A woman calls in saying she arrived at a fancy hotel only to discover all the staff dozing and a black SUV peeling off (i.e., Gwen & Rhys' big wedding).

None of this material seemed particularly promising, so I hazarded a few random guesses. The game is nice enough to give you a clue after a wrong guess, and one of the clues is "What else has New Eden been working on?" I went back to my first post on Mission # 1 and saw they've been working on ultrasonic research.

The answer for Mission # 9 is "ultrasonic".

Monday, January 10, 2011

Clone Wars Campaign: Doxen, Undetectable Sniper



Mechanically, Doxen is a masterpiece of min-max character creation. With an extraordinary ability to sneak into places and remain undetected, and an unmatchable ability to kill enemies from a distance, he was the perfect sniper. He regularly did 30 to 40 points of damage per shot, and was able to pop up, fire, and hide again before enemies could figure out where he was shooting from. He even shot down a freakin' starfighter with just his rifle!

I was a little hesitant at first to allow an Ewok into a campaign set during the Clone Wars, but the player who created Doxen did a nice job with the character background (even created the stats for a new planet, Melosia) and it seemed like a story worth exploring. I probably should have been a bit firmer and not allow the character to use modern weapons, but hindsight is 20/20. I was able to bring in Doxen's patron, Senator Orelus of Melosia, at a few points during the campaign. I was never able to fit in as much of Orelus and Melosia as I would have liked--sometimes it's hard to address a single character's background with so much happening during a campaign unless a story-arc is devoted specifically to it like I did with A'tel and the Corporate Sector.

Personality-wise, Doxen was a lot of fun: gruff, but with a deep down fondness for innocents and children. He had trouble getting along with allies he saw as weak or naive, but developed a grudging respect for those who showed themselves capable.

As the campaign reached its final stages, Doxen's player wanted to take the character in a new direction by having him begin to learn the mysteries of the Force as an Ewok shaman. Again, story wise I don't think I did as good as job with it as I would've liked, but everything turned out well; and if it wasn't for his Force powers, Doxen would never have been able to take the crucial step in the final session that saved his and everyone else's lives.

Doxen

Male Ewok, Age: 23, Height: 4'10, Weight 155

Scout 5/Soldier 4/Scoundrel 2/Assassin 5

Hit Points 178

Damage Threshold: 31

Force Points: 9

Strength: 14 (+2)
Dexterity: 20 (+5)
Constitution: 16 (+3)
Intelligence: 18 (+4)
Wisdom: 12 (+1)
Charisma: 10 (+0)

Defenses (add 10 if not using house rules): Fortitude +21, Reflex +26, Will +18

Attacks: Blaster Rifle +18, d. 3d8+7

Languages: Ewokese, Basic, Bocce

Skills: Acrobatics +18, Climb +15, Deception +7, Endurance +15, Gather Info +7, Initiative +18, Jump +10, Knowledge (Life Sciences) +17, Mechanics +17, Perception +14, Persuasion +7, Pilot +13, Ride +13, Stealth +28, Survival +19, Swim +10, Treat Injury +9, Use Computer +12, Use the Force +13

Talents: Improved Stealth, Hidden Movement, Total Concealment, Devastating Attack, Dastardly Strike, Manifest Guardian Spirit, Evasion, Sniping Assassin, Sniping Marksman, Sniping Master, Guardian Spirit

Feats: Shake it Off, Weapon Proficiency (Simple), Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Sniper, Weapon Proficiency (Rifle), Skill Focus (Stealth), Skill Focus (Survival), Far Shot, Deadeye, Careful Shot, Weapon Finesse, Skill Training (Mechanics), Stand Tall, Force Sensitive, Force Training, Skill Training (Use the Force)

Force Powers: Cloak, Combusion

BACKGROUND

Doxen is one of the rarest creatures in the galaxy at this time in history as an Ewok. While the larger galaxy would not know of the existence of this race until the downfall of the Empire during the battle on the moon of Endor, there were a small number of this species who had left many years before the epic battle.

So although Doxen and his village (or at least what was left of it) had left Endor, with such a small number in the vastness of the galaxy very few met the reclusive Ewoks until after the destruction of the Death Star. The story of Doxen's village is a tragic one, the great unseen destroyer (disease) came to their village one autumn and was slowly killing the entire village. Within two months, 1/3 of the village had died and another 1/3 was fatally sick. The Ewok elders gathered and prayed to the great star god to show them a way to save their people. In the midst of their ceremony, a star fell from the sky and landed on Endor. The elders were convinced it was a sign from the sky god and that their salvation would be found at the place where the star struck the earth. They immediately began packing the entire village and by the next morning they were ready to begin their great pilgrimage. The journey was long and hard, lasting two weeks, during which 1/2 of the sick died and the remaining population began to show early signs of being touched by the unseen destroyer.

When the survivors reached the falling star they were amazed to discover that the star was a fallen piece of metal with a small number of lightly furred tall creatures (humans). When the Ewoks arrived, the creatures were under attack by some of the natural predators on Endor. Grossly out-numbered and with very few weapons, the creatures had already begun to be killed by the predators. The Ewoks still strong enough to fight attacked the predators and killed or scared them all away. Through the use of one of the metal creatures (a droid), the Ewoks were able to communicate with the star creatures. One creature claimed to be the chieftan son from a distant moon, while another claimed to be a healer. The doctor used the instruments and supplies on the ship to diagnose the disease and assist the most severe of the cases. The doctor did not have enough supplies or medicines to treat the remainder of the survivors but promised when their rescue ship arrived they would be able to provide more help.

Two days after the Ewoks arrived, a rescue ship landed to save the young noble. The noble and doctor offered to take all the surviving Ewoks with them, promising to give them the medicine that would save them--but they would have to travel into the stars to get it. The Ewoks, still believing they had been led to these star travelers by their Sky God did not hesitate to travel into the stars to be saved. They traveled to the noble's home world Melosia, where the doctor was able to cure the diseased Ewoks by using modern antibiotics. Once they were all cured and recovered, the Ewoks were given a choice: they could return to Endor or begin a new life on Melosia. The Ewoks decided to stay. The noble granted them a large piece of the royal forest right behind the palace. This served to both give the Ewoks land similar to their native planet so they could feel at home while giving the noble a large number of woodland scouts and protectors to prevent anyone from sneaking into the palace through the woods.

Doxen was one of the oldest youth at the time of the migration and therefore was the most interested in learning about the new tools and ways of their new friends. He became good friends with the noble they rescued and eventually began serving as one of his bodyguards and protectors. Doxen was one of the first ever Ewoks to be trained in the use of modern weapons. But it was his natural gift to disappear that made him an exceptional guard and protector. Doxen served his friend for many years until friend Orelus left to become a Senator. All of the Senator's bodyguards were native to his home planet, so the Ewok was left with no job. Doxen decided that instead of returning to the woods, he would travel and learn about other planets in the galaxy.

Return to Clone Wars Campaign Main Page

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Fantasy Football 2010 Playoffs Round Two

Before I briefly report on the second and final round of the fantasy playoffs: Wow, wasn't Marshawn Lynch's 68 yard dash yesterday an amazing play? Definitely the most impressive, powerful game-closing TD I've ever seen in the post-season, a highlight that will be shown every time the greatest playoff upsets are talked about on T.V. After watching the Seahawks upset the Saints, I couldn't wait to watch the Jets play the Colts. But my DVR decided not to cooperate, and I missed a great game. Now I am sad, but I have learned a valuable life lesson: don't let friends and a social life interfere with live NFL football.

I got handled pretty soundly in the second round of the fantasy playoffs, losing 183-137. I actually had a four-point lead after the first week (each playoff "game" is two weeks), but in the second week only scored 51 points while my opponent scored 101. With the loss, I finished up # 4 in the 10-team league. A disappointing finish, and an interesting reversal from last season where I did much worse in the regular season but won both playoff games.

The Wife's team won in the second round of the consolation bracket, and finishes the season as the # 9 team.

WEEK 16

ACCELERATED SUN RUNNERS (86 POINTS)

QB Tom Brady: 18
RB Ahmad Bradshaw: 5
RB Peyton Hillis: 3
RB/WR LaGarrette Blount: 16
WR Danny Woodhead: 18
WR Deion Branch: 2
TE Marcedes Lewis: 3
D/ST Jets: 3
K Sebastian Janikowski: 18

GULLY SIDE (82 POINTS)

QB Philip Rivers: 12
RB Michael Turner: 2
RB Michael Bush: 2
RB/WR Greg Jennings: 14
WR Pierre Garcon: 9
WR Dwayne Bowe: 21
TE Tony Gonzalez: 1
D/ST Packers: 14
K Robbie Gould: 7

WEEK 17

ACCELERATED SUN RUNNERS (51 POINTS)

QB Tom Brady: 15
RB Ahmad Bradshaw: 2
RB Peyton Hillis: 1
RB/WR LaGarrette Blount: 4
WR Danny Woodhead: -1
WR Deion Branch: 0
TE Marcedes Lewis: 6
D/ST Falcons: 17
K Sebastian Janikowski: 7

GULLY SIDE (101 POINTS)

QB Philip Rivers: 10
RB Michael Turner: 10
RB Michael Bush: 22
RB/WR Greg Jennings: 9
WR Pierre Garcon: 13
WR Dwayne Bowe: 6
TE Tony Gonzalez: 11
D/ST Packers: 17
K Robbie Gould: 3

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Captain Marvel (1989 one-shot) [Comics]


This 1989 "Giant-Sized Special!" (really double-sized, at 48 pages) explains how the Monica Rambeau Captain Marvel got her powers back after they were lost during her time with the Avengers. Rambeau, one of the Marvel Universe's few New Orleans-based heroes, takes on a job as a ship captain after moving back in with her mom and dad. On her maiden cruise, said ship is attacked by Powder Keg, a generic super-villain in an ugly costume (according to the Marvel Chronology Project, he has only made one appearance in the 21 years since this, his debut). Rambeau realizes her powers have not disappeared after all and soundly thumps him by burying him in six tons of wheat (the source of the quotation that ran on top of the Bullpen Bulletins page of every Marvel comic that month). It's never really explained how/why Rambeau has powers again, or how/why they are substantially different than her original energy powers (now she can't turn intangible, but has super-strength). Anyway, it turns out the ship was attacked because a crimelord named Ramos wants to steal a create belonging to Stark Enterprises. Ramos dresses up in a stolen power-suit to mess with the new and improved Captain Marvel, and also gets soundly thumped. The end.

It's not really bad. I actually kind of liked it. Just feeling snarky, I guess.