Han Solo & Chewie back stage at the Kimmel show

If your a Star Wars fan you'll have to see this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWTtMdXAazs

Adventures of Wonder Woman Costume Revealed

I think every fanboy has... *ahem* fond memories of Lynda Carter's classic Wonder Woman. So much time has gone by since the original Wonder Woman show was aired that the original costume has entrenched itself in our collective geek consciousness. So when the studio released the first pictures of Adrianne Palacki in the new Wonder Woman costume for the upcoming Adventures of Wonder Woman, it was sure to cause a fuss. Fans are split on what to think. I, myself, think it looks a little to plastic-y and manufactured. A little too, "Hollywood." I actually like some of the pics floating around on the web showing a more gritty, realistic Wonder Woman outfit such as the one below next to Palacki. But lighthearted or serious, I just hope the studio invests the same energy they put into Smallville.  

Holy Black Lightsaber, Jedi!

Alright, I was one of those Star Wars fans. I hated Mace Windu's violet lightsaber. I've since made peace with the *shudder* purple lightsaber, but I couldn't help but notice two lightsabers from the Clone Wars CGI television show.

The first was a WHITE or SILVER lightsaber. Tera Sinube is the Jedi that carries this lightsaber. He actually has the handle of it concealed inside his walking cane. Very awesome lightsaber.

The second was a BLACK lightsaber. Pre Vizsla wields the black lightsaber. Apparently, this lightsaber is a Jedi/Sith artifact that was stolen from the Jedi Temple. Pre Vizsla isn't a Jedi or Sith - he's the head of the Mandalorian "Death Watch" terrorist group. This lightsaber is actually not round - it has an edge like a blade. Very cool looking lightsaber.

So, see - once you accept purple and yellow lightsabers, the sky is the limit. In fact, I check it out on Wookieepedia.com (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Lightsaber_crystal) and there are literally DOZENS of lightsaber colors from bronze to pink (yes, pink) to rainbow to brown. I'm fairly certain that you could collect enough different colored lightsabers to match every crayon in a 64 count Crayola crayon box.

Is this sacrilegious? Ridiculous? Silly? Unnecessary? Perhaps. But I have to tell myself it is not worth getting upset over it. A cool character is going to be cool no matter what color lightsaber you put in his hand. Except pink.

Firefly Returns! .... Sort of...

When I read an article in March 2's York Daily Record about Firefly returning I just about fainted. And then I realized the article was just about RERUNS. I think that it speaks volumes about the show's popularity that the fact it is going to be rerun warrants a newspaper article. Of interest: The show will feature a commentary by Dr. Michio Kaku - you know, the guy that cofounded the string field theory (that's big time real-life science there!). This Sunday, SyFy will begin their rerunning of the series.

Honey! Time to call the cable man and get the cable hooked up!

Firefly - SyFy
Fly on into limitless
Space and adventure

My BSG Summer

This past summer I watched the 2003 Sci-Fi (or SyFy *shudder*) Battlestar Galactica television show at the prompting of my friend, Bill. That is, I watched ALL of it. The miniseries. All four (or six, depending on how you count) seasons totally about 75 episodes. The movies, The Plan and Razor. And the multiple series of webisodes still available online. I watched it all. In one summer. If you do the math, I watched about an hour a day on average.

As you can guess, I was instantly hooked. What a FANTASTIC show. I can't recommend it highly enough to any fan of science fiction.

It's action packed. As you're watching, you never get the feeling that these characters as "safe" because in some metacognitive way you realize that they're the main characters and they can't die. It's got you on the edge of your seat the entire time. What's going to happen next? You just have to check out the next episode to find out. I was glad I didn't have to wait to find out because that would have been torture! There are quite a few ninety degree turns in which the show goes in a completely new direction out of the blue. They always kept it fresh.

It's gritty and mature. Star Wars and Star Trek are both very sanitized worlds - Star Wars is meant to be accessible to children and Star Trek represents a Utopian society. No so in BGS. The "heroes" are often forced into choosing between the lesser of two evils. Sometimes well meaning characters come into conflict with one another when they're both trying to do the right thing. The characters swear, drink, and, well, frak. Quite a lot of fracking, actually.

And last but not least, the characters. FANTASTIC characters brought to life by a fabulous cast. In numerous flashbacks, these characters (and there complex interrelationships) are detailed. Every character is distinct and unique. The cast is quite large (20 or so primary characters) and throughout the series characters that first appeared in the background become quite significant.

Some fans (bitter Brian) have expressed disappointment at the series finale but I thought it was a fitting end to the series. Perhaps my perspective is different than fans who watched it live on television, but I loved Battlestar Galactica from beginning to end. The only problem? The series is so great, no matter how hard you try your BSG role playing game will never be as cool.

Star Wars Family Guy VS Star Wars Robot Chicken

Both Family Guy and Robot Chicken have been releasing George Lucas backed Star Wars parody episodes over the past few years. Robot Chicken has released three episodes, simply titled Episodes I, II, and III. Family Guy has also released three episodes, titled Blue Harvest, Something, Something, Something Dark Side, and It's a Trap! Between the creators of the two shows there has been a healthy rivalry to outdo each other in creating the funniest Star Wars episode. So, who has won?

The approach of the two shows is completely different. Robot Chicken approaches it in its traditional sketch format. They jump freely across all six movies. One minute you're with JarJar trying to sell auto insurance, the next moment you're with Luke and Vader in a father-son dance competition. Alternately, Family Guy takes one movie at a time and literally retells the movie with startling faithfulness, taking pains to recreate exact camera angles and framing.

I found that in almost every regard, Family Guy beat Robot Chicken. You would think hopping freely around all six movies, Robot Chicken would be able to cherry-pick the best gags but quite a few of them are simply absurd and fall short of being funny. In all of the Robot Chicken Star Wars episodes only had one laugh-out-loud moment for me (it involved a jedi dropping a lightsaber on a starship). I actually found the Star Wars episodes to be less funny than a typical Robot Chicken. It's almost like they were trying too hard.

Family Guy's Star Wars episodes have a knack for integrating Family Guy conventions into the Star Wars story. There are jokes that work on so many levels, for Star Wars fans, Family Guy fans and as a social commentary. From episode to episode there are running gags that you look for (What's Meg going to be in this episode?). I found myself laughing out loud regularly and, in typical Family Guy fashion, uttering a shocked, "Oh my gosh!" at the irreverent humor ("You can't say that word! That's OUR word!") They manage to lampoon and celebrate Star Wars at the same time. I felt as if it's okay for them to make fun of Star Wars because it is so evident that they love Star Wars so much. I enjoyed these episodes more than your typical Family Guy episode. The Family Guy creative team truly reached its pinnacle with the Star Wars episodes.

So the winner? Family Guy in round one. And two. And three. They have beaten Robot Chicken in every imaginable way on this one. If you haven't checked out the Family Guy Star Wars episodes, sell your Robot Chicken collection on ebay so you can BUY, not Netflix, BUY these bad boys. You'll want to keep pulling them down off of your shelf time and time again.