I know I've Been Watching Too Much Football Because . . .

while waiting to start teaching a class this morning, I overheard a student talking to another about "Kafka" and my first thought was "Mike Kafka, the Eagles third-string quarterback?"

The Buffy Comic Project: "Love Sick Blues"

Buffy the Vampire Slayer # 14

Dark Horse (Volume 1, 1998-2003)

Creators: Andi Watson (writer), Cliff Richards (penciller), Joe Pimental (inker)

Setting: Season Three

T.V. Character Appearances: Buffy, Angel, Spike, Drusilla, Willow, Xander, Oz, Giles, Cordelia

Major Original Characters: Todd Dahl (singer), Selke (vampire), Dr. Flitter (Selke's aide)

Summary: After Buffy saves him from a vampire attack, dooshbag musician Todd Dahl falls madly in love with her. He begins following her around, sending her gifts, etc., much to Buffy's dismay. Her problem is conveniently solved, however, when some of Selke's super-charged vampire cronies kill Todd. Guilt ensues. Meanwhile, Spike and Drusilla have come to town to watch the Selke-Buffy fight play itself out. And as for Selke, she has her pet doctor perform an occult ritual to create an evil duplicate of Buffy; but the strange brew doesn't ferment and all that happens is a puddle of slime.

Review: It's great to see Spike and Dru make their first appearance in the main Buffy book, even if they don't do a lot. Selke as a recurring villain still isn't particularly interesting, nor is there a sense that the series is building towards a big confrontation. Dialogue and characterization-wise, the Scoobies seem well handled, but the trademark Joss Whedon wit is missing. In other words, it's all kinda okay without ever being awesome.

Notes

* It's never really explained why Dr. Flitter's evil-Buffy experiment fails.

* It looks like Spike & Dru try to poison the special blood Selke uses to make herself and minions stronger.

* Not sure what to think about the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer Collectible Bears." On the one hand, they're kinda cute. On the other, they're perfectly generic and very much in the vein of "slap any old logo on a fuzzy bear and wait for collectors to snap them up."

Next Issue

Clone Wars Campaign: A'tel Por'Ten, Jedi Poet

A'tel was a Jedi PC that joined the group at the beginning of the crucial City of Sand storyline. The character added an interesting element to the group, because he was idealistic, heroic, and even prone to oratory and poet writing--in all respects, different than the other PCs that then made up the group. This created some excellent role-playing opportunities, even if the other, more cynical PCs seemed to think of him as a "naive kid brother."

The character got a chance to shine during the Hostile Takeover story-arc set in the Corporate Sector. A'tel's brother, Garritt Por'Ten, lured him and the other PCs there to continue a long sibling rivalry. A'tel managed to defeat his brother in a duel (which a little help from some friends) and lead a successful attack on a fortified Separatist encampment at the Joriander Beacon.

As time went on in the campaign, A'tel seemed to lose some of his initial faith in the Republic and drifted from cause to cause: the Jedi Order, Clones, his friends, and more. In a shocking turning point, the character decided to voluntarily undergo the Acceleration process at a forgotten Arkanian colony. A'tel was reborn as a vastly more powerful and intelligent being, but also one inhuman and soulless. In his new incarnation, the being formerly known as A'tel only wanted one thing: complete mastery of the Force.

A'tel Por'Ten

Level 12 Jedi Knight

Human Male, Age 20, Height: 1.9 m, Weight: 73 kg

Strength: 12 (+1)

Dexterity: 16 (+3)

Constitution: 15 (+2)

Intelligence: 14 (+2)

Wisdom: 16 (+3)

Charisma: 12 (+1)

Fort. Defence: 16 (house rule), 26 (normal)

Reflex Defence: 17 (house rule), 27 (normal)

Will Defence: 15 (house rule), 25 (normal)

Hit Points: 99

Damage Threshold: 26

Speed: 6

Initiative: +12

Force Points: 6

Languages: Basic

Combat: Lightsaber + 14, d. 2d8+8; Combat Gloves +11, d. 1d6+4

Skills: Acrobatics +14, Climb +7, Deception +7, Endurance +8, Gather Information +7, Initiative +14, Jump +7, Knowledge (Jedi Lore) + 13, Mechanics +8, Perception +9, Persuasion +7, Pilot +9, Ride +9, Stealth +9, Survival +9, Swim +7, Treat Injury +9, Use Computer +8, Use the Force +13

Talents: Weapon Specialization (lightsaber), Battle Meditation, Forceful Warrior, Lightsaber Defence, Build Lightsaber, Ataru Lightsaber Form, Force Point Recovery

Feats: Force Sensitivity, Weapon Proficiency (lightsaber), Weapon Proficiency (simple), Martial Arts I, Acrobatic Strike, Force Training, Weapon Focus (lightsaber), Strong in the Force

Force Powers: Battle Strike, Force Stun, Surge, Force Thrust

Equipment: Lightsaber, Combat Gloves, Comlink, Pocket Scrambler, Code Cylinder, Datapad, Aquata Breather, Breath Mask, Electrobinoculars, Glow Rod, Fusion Lantern, All-Temperature Cloak, Synthrope, Binder Cuffs

Return to Clone Wars Campaign Main Page

Fantasy Football 2010 Week Six

I had high hopes going into Week Six, since I was facing off against an 0-5 team. And then I got blown out (66-94), and fell to 4-2 and second place in my division. Starting Matt Ryan instead of Tom Brady was the right move since he did score more points (14 to 11), but it wasn't enough to make a difference. My running backs did okay (21 points total), but were outmatched by my opponents' surprise 38 points out of usually low-scoring players. My receiving corp also tanked, and one of my players (Austin Collie) got injured and will be out for at least a few weeks.

I'm putting Tom Brady back into the lineup next week and Terrell Owens will be back from his bye, but I'll have to play the Falcons D/ST instead of the Jets. The big news, however, is that I'll be going head-to-head against The Wife for Patrick-family bragging rights. She's lost some interest in the league after two straight losses, heedless of my words that a football season is a marathon, not a sprint. I will show no mercy.

Accelerated Sun Runners (66 Points)

QB Matt Ryan: 14

RB Ryan Mathews: 7

RB Ahmad Bradshaw: 14

RB/WR Donald Driver: 3

WR Wes Welker: 5

WR Austin Collie: 11

TE Marcedes Lewis: 1

D/ST Jets: 5

K Ryan Longwell: 6

Sacks in the City (94 Points)

QB Ben Roethlisberger: 20

RB Joseph Addai: 16

RB Ryan Torain: 22

RB/WR Brandon Lloyd: 7

WR Roddy White: 8

WR Percy Harvin: 9

TE Dallas Clark: 5

D/ST Chargers: 3

K Matt Bryant: 4

Cage (1992) [Comics]

In the 1970s, Luke Cage was the co-star in a long-running Marvel series, Power Man and Iron Fist. When the series was suddenly cancelled, Cage floated around in the background of the Marvel Universe forseveral years before being awarded his own series in 1992. The book only lasted twenty issues, and its cancellation sent Cage to limbo (figuratively speaking) for several more years before he became a star in New Avengers and other recent books.

The premise of the 1992 series is that Cage, recently exonerated in the death of his former partner, lives in Chicago and is a "Hero for Hire." When a new newspaper, the Chicago Spectator, needs a hook to distinguish itself from competitors, it offers Cage a sizable fee in return for getting the first scoop on all of his adventures. Fashionistas out there should know that Cage no longer wears the bright yellow open-vest shirt and headband he sported in the 1970s. However, and although I'm somewhat color-blind, I think he's running around in skintight purple pants in this series.

The first four issues set up some elements that recur throughout the series: Cage's poor relationship with his father, whom he thinks is dead; supporting characters like Dakota North (a private investigator) and journalists from the Spectator; and a mystery villain named Hardcore who seems to have insights into Cage's past. Hardcore is a weapons expert of some kind with an odd (Jamaican?) accent and is the villain for the first issue, while # 2 features Nitro, Tombstone, and a kinda-goofy limited time-travelling character named "Kickback" as antagonists. Issue # 3 is the inevitable guest appearance by an established star, intended to bring in readers from other books. You can guess what era a Marvel Comic was written based upon who the third-issue guest star is; today, it would probably be Deadpool; a few years ago, certainly Wolverine; in the 1980s, Spider-Man. But in the early 1990s, there were really only two options: Ghost Rider or Punisher. The Big P gets the call for Cage, and his appearance continues in issue # 4.

Issues 5-8 feature a storyline titled "The Evil and the Cure." Cage rescues a boy named Troop and is hired to find the kid's guardian. The search takes him out to Colorado, where Cage is lured into a trap by villains who have been trying to duplicate the "Power Man" process that made Cage invulnerable and super-strong. Even with the help of the West Coast Avengers, Troop's guardian is killed. There's some interesting mixture of current and flash-back narratives in this story-arc, and the big reveal at the end is that Dakota North has discovered that Cage's dad is alive.

Issues 9-10 involve Cage getting mixed up with the recently-escaped Rhino in a fight against the Hulk. A well-done slugfest between Cage and ol' Greenskin takes place on the Chicago El. Issues 11 and 12 see Cage trying to find the recently-runaway Troop, but getting captured by Hardcore. Dakota North and Iron Fist race to rescue Cage, but not before an old villain's son (Cruz, spawn of Bushmaster) steals some of Cage's power and becomes "Power Master." From the letters pages, I think a lot of fans were expecting a big deal out of the years-in-the-making reunion of Cage and Iron Fist, but the book didn't do a whole lot with it.

Crappy art begins in issue # 13. Was the writing on the wall and the Powers That Be decided to save costs on the book? Issues # 13 and 14 involve Cage linking up with the Tinkerer's son ("The Agent") to battle the Corporation. If my notes are correct, Cage's brother becomes a super-villain named "Coldfire." They could be wrong. Issues # 15 and 16 are parts of the "For Love Nor Money" crossover with Silver Sable and Terror Inc., discussed here.

Issue # 17 is an "Infinity Crusade" crossover, but actually has some important plot points. The Chicago Spectator prints Cage's real name ("Carl Lucas") and details of Cage's mom's murder by gang members are revealed. In addition, we see the first clues of a mysterious killer of homeless people, the resolution of which will see the series through to the end. It turns out the mysterious killer is an entity capable of possessing people and is named "Bogeyman." Yes, apparently an old Power Pack villain, but all the same fairly well-done here. Cage ends up getting possessed and tearing up Chicago. When he finally manages to break free,

he flees to New York and hides out with the Fantastic Four. Johnny Storm goes "semi-nova" and burns Bogeyman to death (or the equivalent). Cage is presumed dead by the mainstream media, and Dakota promises to help him "tie up [his] loose ends back in Chicago."

Cage is actually better than the standard super-hero comic it may seem at first blush. The creators worked hard to give some depth to the creator by telling stories about his family and background, and his unique angle, being a "Hero for Hire", could have had potential. Unfortunately, Cage is simply somewhat bland as a super-hero--basically, he can punch stuff real good and get punched real good. The character needs a certain attitude and edge to really come alive, and his more recent appearances reflect this better than the 1992 series.

Elak of Atlantis (Planet Stories # 4)

The fourth book in the Planet Stories line is Elak of Atlantis by Henry Kuttner. The book is a collection of six short sword-and-sorcery stories originally published in Weird Tales between 1938 and 1941. Four of the stories feature Elak, a (voluntarily) exiled prince adventuring through a fairly standard generic medieval-Europe style land called Atlantis. With the help of his always drunken friend Lycon and the mysterious druid Dalan, Elak gains the thrown of his native land over the course of the stories after battling evil wizards and the like. The last two stories in the book feature a character named Prince Raynor as the hero, who has similar adventures assisted by a loyal (but always subservient) bodyguard named Eblik and a sword-wielding love interest named Delphia.

Despite the glowing introduction by Joe Lansdale, there's nothing particularly noteworthy or memorable about these stories. They are competent, straight-forward noble hero vs. evil wizard adventure tales, but whatever originality they may have had in the 1930s is definitely gone by now. For the hardcore sword-and-sorcery fan only.

After reading several, I'm pretty bummed with the Planet Stories line of novels--there's a lot less in the way of hidden gems than stories deservedly forgotten.

Torchwood Online Game: Mission # 6

It's been several months since I've posted about the Torchwood Online Game, but since the posts are apparently about as popular as anything on the site, I'll try to finish the game before the websites and links eventually die out.

When we last left off, we discovered that Natalie Blake had killed her twin sister Naomi and geneticist Fischer on behalf of the New Eden research facility led by John Winters, but was then mysteriously murdered herself at the Century Hotel in Cardiff.

The goal of Mission # 6 of the Torchwood Online Game is to discover the identity (or pseudonym) of the leak inside New Eden that had been feeding information to Fischer. The following documents are provided as clues:

1. An Internet access log of Natalie Blake, showing that, before her death, she researched some unusual stories on the BBC, looked up Wikipedia on twins and heart defects, and visited an usual website: http://blakeenquiries.co.uk/pleasesaveme.html The last website is password protected.

2. A newspaper reporting how mysterious figures (including one wearing an old-fashioned greatcoat) trundled a body into a waiting black SUV outside the Century Hotel (i.e., Torchwood recovering Natalie's body).

3. A letter from "Aaron" at "the Pharm" advising "John" that Natalie's nose-job should be performed by "Laura" (Laura Winters at the Venus Clinic).

4. A Torchwood autopsy report confirming that the body found at the Century Hotel is indeed Natalie, and that she was killed by a poison administered by the Pharm.

5. A note from Ianto, reminding investigators, as always, to listen to Dark Talk.

Dark Talk this week consists only of a long eye-witness account of Torchwood removing the body from the Century Hotel. I like the concept of a conspiracy-oriented radio show, and wouldn't mind seeing Abigail Crowe written into some flashback fiction.

Discovering the solution to the mission requires visiting the Blake Enquiries website (# 1, above) and putting in the password "Naomi". This brings up a video from Natalie in which she appears disoriented and confused about having killed her sister, blames John Winters and New Eden for planting something alien inside her body, and claims that the whistleblower inside the organization will use the codeword "Blue Sky" to contact her on the next episode of Dark Talk.

Thus, the solution to Mission # 6 is "Blue Sky"