Help, my slash googles are stuck to my face!

March 10th, 2010 2:48am by rusty-halo | 7 Comments »

( spoilers for White Collar 1×14 )

Anyway, um, but maybe that’s just me?

Regardless, it was an absolutely fantastic episode. I’m so happy that I found this show!

Since I haven’t posted a linkspam in months…

March 4th, 2010 6:49pm by rusty-halo | 5 Comments »

* John Simm will be playing Hamlet! Apparently it will open in Sheffield in September. Hmmm… I’m planning to go to the Lymond gathering in Paris in October… September is close to October… and England is close to France…

* Why Strong Female Characters Are Bad for Women – Great article that gets at the heart of why Hollywood continues to fail at creating female characters.

* bodlon on character death: “I object to being told that art is a democracy, or that writers are not allowed to make people sad [with] their stories, or that one reading of a text is the only reading of a text.” Fantastic post.

* This long-haired David Bowie picspam is so very, very pretty.

* A funeral for Internet Explorer 6. Web developers, rejoice!

Okay, I Admit That I Officially Like White Collar

March 4th, 2010 5:07pm by rusty-halo | 6 Comments »

Last night, I watched White Collar 1×13 twice in a row, and then spent a full hour watching a goofy internet Q&A with the lead actors.

It’s time to admit the truth: I officially like White Collar.

Oooh, it’s so fun to have a fandom again!

Here are the things that I like about it:

* It’s character-driven. The plots are an excuse to explore Neal and Peter and their relationship. (Which is good because characters are way more interesting than plots, and also because White Collar’s plots kind of suck.)

* I love Neal and Peter and their relationship. They have a fantastic dynamic. Last night, Tim DeKay said that their relationship is a mix of father/son, older brother/younger brother, old married couple, and professional equals who love working together and have their own language that only they can understand. Which, yes, that’s it! The equals with their own language thing, even though they have power imbalances in other areas of life. It’s the key to nearly every ship I’ve loved: Doctor/Master, Sirius/Remus, Brian/Michael, Fraser/Ray, Sam/Gene, even Sharpe/Harper in a way. Or Jaime/Brienne, who work together brilliantly and understand each other better than anyone else, even though they suck at communicating.

* Their interactions get better with each episode, as the actors grow into their characters, and the writing is also getting sharper.

* Matt Bomer is insanely gorgeous. I could just stare at him all day. (I know, I didn’t think so at first, but he grew on me. He’s still too Hollywood-perfect, but his eyes are lovely, and the character is such a great mix of slick/charming and messed-up/vulnerable…)

* They have promo photos like this. Look, I’m only human, okay?

( spoilers for 1×13 (slash and woobification) )

* The writers do a great job of interacting with their fans. I’ve really been enjoying following WCwriters and jeffeastin on Twitter. I particularly love the script screenshots that Eastin is posting.

* This show makes NYC look so pretty. I was at this penthouse apartment the other day whose huge bedroom window looks right out at the Empire State Building, and I just about died of jealousy. But anyway, um, watching White Collar in high res on my giant flatscreen TV is almost like having a view.

* My expectations are low, so the show is unlikely to disappoint me. It’s not particularly progressive, but it’s not terribly offensive either. It’s not stunningly dark, or brilliant, or interesting, but it’s not incredibly stupid or annoying either. It’s just kind of there, and pleasant, and Neal is gorgeous and it’s fun to watch him and Peter interact. There’s no stress over how the writers might Ruin Everything or how the other fans are Getting It Wrong, because… it doesn’t really matter. This is the least invested I’ve ever been in canon and, oddly, the most I’ve ever just plain enjoyed it.

HBO Picked Up A Game of Thrones!

March 2nd, 2010 6:28pm by rusty-halo | 4 Comments »

HBO picked up A Game of Thrones for a 10-episode season.

Woohoo!

I can’t imagine it’ll last long as a series, but I’m super excited that we’ll get to see at least one season.

Current Mood: excited

White Collar = Pure Id Crack

February 24th, 2010 4:58pm by rusty-halo | No Comments »

I am maybe kind of a little bit obsessed with White Collar.

I still don’t think the show is that good. There is nothing intellectually stimulating about it… and yet it is pure emotional crack.

It’s not even the slash that has me hooked (although if you look at it through slash googles, it’s incredibly slashy). It’s more the way it explores trust and vulnerability. The writers keep up a fantastic balancing act, developing the relationship between Neal and Peter while keeping them wary of each other. Each is taking a huge risk by trusting the other; either could hurt the other deeply by betraying that trust. They both lie to each other, and at any moment, Neal could run, or Peter could put Neal back in prison. And they’re both constantly aware of the potential betrayal, but they want and need each other enough to risk it. That’s the core of the show, not the silly plots-of-the-week or the MacGuffin Kate.

( spoileriffic )

Hi Again…

February 9th, 2010 6:25pm by rusty-halo | 4 Comments »

Um, hi. I’ve let myself get out of the habit of posting. Again. (Sorry.)

I actually have been reading my friendslist, though. (Some of you will have noticed totally random comments from me over the past few weeks/months.) *waves*

I miss being in fandom; I just don’t have much to talk about. Mostly I’m worrying about real life stuff: money, and possibly moving again, and my cats’ health, and work, and… it’s just depressing, really.

But I do have a few fannish thoughts on my mind! I have mostly been occupied with:

* David Bowie, of course. I’m up to Heathen, from 2002. It’s fantastic! I can’t believe it came so late in his career! The cover of “Cactus” is awesome, and “Everyone Says ‘Hi’” is very moving. I’m hesitant to listen to “Reality, though, because it’s the last one and (unless he comes out with something new *fingers crossed*) once I hear it, this whole Bowie odyssey will be over. *sniffle*

* I started watching White Collar. I haven’t watched a current American TV show in years; I guess I kind of missed the experience? I chose it for utterly shallow reasons: I saw the ad on the subway and thought the guy looked hot in a Brian Kinney way. (He is cute, but alas, nowhere near Brian Kinney.)

( vague spoilers for White Collar )

* Robert Downey Jr. Sherlock Holmes really was awful, despite the fantastic chemistry between Downey and Jude Law, but the Iron Man 2 preview got me madly excited. I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed the first one; I ended up rewatching it something like ten times in January.

( vague spoilers for Iron Man )

Men Who Are Or Once Were CUTE

January 6th, 2010 2:42am by rusty-halo | 12 Comments »

I have just managed to amuse myself greatly, and I feel compelled to share the entertainment with others who will understand.

I found a chart I made of “Men Who Are Or Once Were CUTE” as of January 1994, when I was eleven years old. This is like the prototypical document of the obsessive fangirl.

It’s an attempt to compile a list of every attractive male actor, ever. In alphabetical order, with a color-coded key to identify the traits of each one.

( Notice anything odd about the list of traits? )

Current Mood: weird

Sherlock Holmes Fic Recs?

January 2nd, 2010 3:02am by rusty-halo | No Comments »

I can’t bring myself to click “Play” on the Doctor Who download.

Instead I am reading Sherlock Holmes wank. This write-up is a thing of beauty.

I’ve already seen the movie twice. It’s not very good, but Robert Downey, Jr and Jude Law are so fantastic together that it doesn’t need to be. Perhaps we’ll get lucky and the sequel will have a decent plot to go along with the gorgeous actors and their delightful chemistry. In the meantime, anyone have Holmes/Watson 2009-movie fic recs?

It’s funny, I was reading through my old posts about Robert Downey, Jr, and in 2006, I complained that “Robert Downey, Jr. films generally suffer from a dearth of explosions.” My, how times have changed!

Oh, and happy new year, everyone. :)

Why I Love Lymond

January 1st, 2010 2:43pm by rusty-halo | 6 Comments »

I got drujan to read the Lymond books. She likes them, but hates Lymond, and accused me of “only liking him because he’s hot.” I honestly cannot fathom how anyone could hate Lymond, but anyway, she got me thinking about the myriad reasons that I love him.

Here’s a list of things that I either like or relate to in Lymond. (They’re kind of mixed up because he has a lot of traits that I don’t exactly consider “likable,” but that I connect with and that make the character more meaningful to me.)

( Why Lymond Is Wonderful )

random linkspam

December 3rd, 2009 8:12pm by rusty-halo | 6 Comments »

This letter written by 20-year-old David Bowie to his first American fan is pretty much the cutest thing ever.

(Well, I guess the surprised kitten is cuter.)

I’ve been having a hard time with Farscape fanfic (first step to making a story readable: Find: “half-breed”; Replace: “Scorpius”) but I’ve been enjoying vids. Particularly comedy vids, like this Scorpius/Braca one, or Scorpius as the Grinch. Man, I wish I’d been in the fandom when the show aired… I love it very much but there’s not really any kind of outlet for my enthusiasm. Active fandoms are a lot more fun.

Current Mood: dorky

Fannish Stuff on eBay

December 3rd, 2009 2:08pm by rusty-halo | 1 Comment »

I’m selling some fannish stuff on eBay:

* Buffy the Vampire Slayer Initiative Xander Action Figure (New York Comic Con 2007 Exclusive)

* Pirates of the Caribbean 2 Scruffy Norrington Action Figure

The Norrington one is really cute. Um, for an action figure. (Look at the close up of his face!)

I’m also selling a new, unopened 120GB Playstation 3 (with all accessories) if, uh, anyone wants one. (Long story–I decided to buy an HDTV on Black Friday but to make it worth the cost I had to buy it in combo with a Playstation and then sell the Playstation.)

I’m also selling some books and DVDs. Everything’s listed here. I’ll give free shipping to any of my fandom friends who buy any of these. (If your eBay name doesn’t match your fandom name, let me know who you are so I know to take the shipping cost off.)

Current Mood: weird

The little kids who grew up listening to Davie Bowie are old enough to write TV shows now

November 16th, 2009 1:45am by rusty-halo | 8 Comments »

♥♥♥Doctor Who♥♥♥

( spoilers )

Current Mood: impressed & drunk

Top 10 Bowie Songs

October 29th, 2009 12:01pm by rusty-halo | 6 Comments »

Top 10 Bowie Songs:

These are my personal favorites, not which songs I think are “objectively best.” Sort of in order, but some are too close to call.

1. Station to Station
This song is dark, beautiful, complex, innovative, and disturbing. Its enveloping atmosphere and progression of emotions captures a sense of the search for life’s meaning, the fear of emptiness and hope for transcendence.

2. Ziggy Stardust
The perfect archetypal rock song for the perfect archetypal rock star.

3. Subterraneans
So beautiful, longing, and sad. Bowie’s a master at capturing this particular emotion; “Subterraneans” is the best example, although…

4. The Bewlay Brothers
Even the Bowie encyclopedia doesn’t seem to quite know what to make of this song’s enigmatic lyrics. Whatever it’s about, the vivid imagery and haunting music are eerie and sad, steeped in a nostalgia for something deeply precious and irrevocably lost. (Plus, Bowie deserves major props for turning that chipmunk vocal effect last seen in “The Laughing Gnome” into something effectively ominous here.)

5. “Heroes”
Specific and universal, ironic and yet deeply moving–”Heroes” is an epic contradiction of a song. (I already raved about it here.)

6. Always Crashing in the Same Car
So much emotion brews beneath the cool surface of this song. It is a mood, a musical landscape of numb disconnection.

7. Alternative Candidate
I can’t believe this jaunty and twisted outtake wasn’t even on the album!

8. Cygnet Committee
Perhaps a bit over the top, but I love the sincerity of this folk epic. Bowie’s impassioned criticism of the corruption of 1960s ideals is a reminder of the substance beneath his style.

9. My Death (July 3, 1973 live version)
This isn’t even a Bowie song, but it ranks in my top ten for the quality of the performance alone.

10. The Man Who Sold the World
Thanks to Nirvana, I grew up with this song; I still adore Kurt Cobain’s raw vocal performance. Bowie’s original is equally sad, with a detached performance that gives its emotion a more distant quality. The lyrics are among his early best.

(Runners up: Life on Mars?, Five Years, Moonage Daydream, Rock N Roll Suicide, Aladdin Sane, Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing, Big Brother, Young Americans, Who Can I Be Now, Stay, Wild is the Wind, A New Career in a New Town, Neukoln, Ashes to Ashes, Ricochet, Loving the Alien, Jump They Say, Outside, I’m Afraid of Americans)

I know my descriptions tend to linger on the angsty aspects of the songs, but a lot what makes them so effective is Bowie’s irony, self-awareness, and sense of the absurd.

Farscape Series Reaction… and, Fic Recs, Please?

October 13th, 2009 12:51pm by rusty-halo | 26 Comments »

Where do I go for Farscape fic? Anyone have recs? Ideally centered on John, Aeryn, and/or Scorpius (or Harvey).

Good: Hurt/comfort, long epics, alternate seasons, humor, darkfic, slash.

Bad: Schmoop, babyfic, agendafic, anything OOC or too AU.

Please?

Yes, everyone who tried for years to talk me into watching Farscape was right. I loved it.

I just finished the series. I began to really like it in seasons two and three, but didn’t find myself totally in love until season four. It took a while for the show to actually gel into the quality they were attempting all along, but once it did it became absolutely brilliant. I had no idea how dark, odd, twisted, and kinky the show would get! And yes, I did fall totally in love with John Crichton. He’s an insane, hilarious, fucked-up mess of a character. He ended up hitting all my fictional kinks and probably creating a few new ones. Aeryn Sun just got better and better, passionate and vulnerable without compromising her strength and competence. John and Aeryn might be the best portrayal of a relationship of equals that I’ve ever seen on television.

You were all right. I should have watched it sooner. And I would really like to smack in the face whatever moron at the Sci Fi Channel decided to cancel this amazing show!

( a couple of complaints and a bunch more things I loved )

I am so totally going to watch it again. And again.

And… fic recs? Please? Must… have… fanfiction…

Current Mood: pleased

Hi…

September 21st, 2009 3:24pm by rusty-halo | 17 Comments »

I haven’t been on LJ or DreamWidth for about two months. Um, did I miss anything?

I’m not sure if I’m coming back. I was basically forced off because my computer broke, but my computer has been working for a month now and… yeah. I’m really enjoying the free time that comes with not spending hours on journaling sites every day. I also think that removing myself from the obsessive lunacy of fandom has done wonders for my own sanity. :P

I miss you guys, though. I’m thinking of maybe trimming my reading list to just real people and checking in a couple times per week.

Part of it was post-Writercon burnout. Part is that I’m just kind of… done… with mainstream television. Canceling my cable TV was one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life. I’m not even angry about the myriad ways TV sucks; I’m just not interested in spending time on it anymore.

I’ve been cooking every day, working on freelance projects, getting my finances in order, organizing my apartment, taking long walks around NYC, going to museums (the Neue Galerie is amazing), reading proper books (currently on The Power Broker about Robert Moses), and downloading lots of 1970s David Bowie goodies.

(Proof that I’ve drunk the Bowie Kool-Aid: the other day I found myself listening to the Young Americans album with unreserved adoration. I’ve also been watching a lot of interviews and was surprised to find that I really like David Bowie. When I got into his music, I really was not expecting to find him likable as a person. I respect his intelligence, hard work, self-awareness, and courage to take wild creative leaps.)

But part of the reason it’s foolish to post here is that you guys are not the appropriate audience for my thoughts on David Bowie. It is really starting to hit me that in my heart, I’m not a TV fan; I’m a music fan who happens to get into TV fandoms in the off periods when I can’t find music that engages me. I’m not sure what the appropriate venue is, though; music fandoms tend to center around message boards full of pedantic fanboys with whom I wouldn’t fit either. I think the best answer is probably just to go back to being a solitary fan.

( The main reason I’m posting is to tell Cindergal that I am still watching Farscape as promised )

So… what have you all been up to?