Tag: firefly

Movie Review: Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon

Transformers 3 posterTransformers 3: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel,Tyrese Gibson and John Turturro
Voice actors: Peter Cullen, Hugo Weaving, and Leonard Nimoy
157 min
Rated PG13

You might think that crazy-awesome special effects, a pulsing soundtrack and GIANT FIGHTING ROBOTS would be enough to guarantee an summer blockbuster. And you’d be correct – in terms of box office sales. In fact, Transformers 3 is currently the 47th highest grossing movie of all time.

But if you think the same formula would guarantee a movie worth 2-1/2 hours of your time…not necessarily.

The latest installment in the movie series based on Hasbro’s toy line of yore, Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon, has all the elements of a sure-fire Hollywood hit. Tested director of notable action movies like Armageddon & Pearl Harbor, Michael Bay? Check. Fan-boy favorite producer, Steven Spielberg? Check. Score by Steve Jablonsky, composer of the two previous Transformers film scores? Check. Voluptuous love interest? Check. Mighty morphin’ robots in disguise? Check.

Strong storyline told in logical progression…not so much.

Don’t get me wrong – I know that any Transformers movie is not exactly meant to have an Oscar-worthy script. I’m not expecting rich character development, or to be able to relate to the story on a deeply personal level. I know it’s a summer blockbuster that’s meant to be eye candy. And on that criteria, the movie did deliver. The transformation from vehicle to robot was as flawless as in the previous movies, with all the whirling cogs & gizmos, and usually while in motion. Visually stunning.

But the story seemed all over the place. It was like they just thought up a bunch of scenes, filmed them, and just threw them together. It felt very abrupt and disjointed, and was generally distracting, even with the impressive special effects.

Also distracting was the newly-introducted love interest – Rosie Huntington-Whiteley took over for Megan Fox in this installment. Her role was completely gratuitous to the story, though perhaps that’s to be expected, too, especially after the first two movies. Giant robots and a pretty girl, and fanboys are typically content. (oh I’m sorry, did my bitter resentment show?)

That said, a delightful surprise (for me) was the voice acting by Leonard Nimoy (need I say he played Spock in “Star Trek“?), and the “sidekick” part by Alan Tudyk (“Wash” from “Firefly“) as a rather flamboyant German assistant. So there was a little something for the geek girls – at least THIS geek girl. ;)

Overall, I’d say Transformers 3 is a renter, if anything.

LINKS OF INTEREST:

Jayne’s grenade

I am always pleased to find references to the tragically-short-lived, but epically-awesome TV series “Firefly“. I am of the opinion that any day with a little Firefly injected in it is a good day. Just the other night I had cause to exclaim, “Sure would be nice to have some grenades, dontcha think?”

Jayne Cobb's propsAnd lo, what does teh Internets yield up to me? One of Jayne’s grenades! (shown at the far left in this picture)

With all the fanfare for Jayne Cobb’s hat, I was very impressed to see someone step outside the knitting box and go straight for the ammo! Kudos to Brian at StormtrooperGuy.

Crafts of WonderCon 2011

WonderCon Intro 2If the San Diego Comic-Con is the arena rock star of the convention world, then San Francisco’s WonderCon is the concert-hall favorite. It’s not nearly as big, but much more manageable, and (in my humble opinion) just as much fun.

I attended two days of this year’s Con, where I met numerous writers, artists, and geek icons. My favorite folks to talk to, though, were the hard-working crafters tabling throughout the Con.

Some had made items to promote books and webcomics, others were devoted to selling thier handmade crafts. No matter the reason, though, they were always happy to stop and share a little about their creations.

  Continue reading Crafts of WonderCon 2011

Ballad of Serenity Cross Stitch

Ballad of Serenity Cross StitchI really miss Firefly. Every time I hear the first guitar twangs of the opening credits, I still get chills up my spine.

I got the same little thrill when I saw Craftster member audio’s  Ballad of Serenity cross stitch.

A simple piece, yes, but it possesses an honest, homey loveliness. Kind of like the ballad itself.

I could see something like this maybe hanging in Captain Mal’s cabin aboard Serenity. Out of sight of the crew, though, lest they think him overly sentimental.

Jayne Cobb Hat and Scarf

Jayne Cobb hatsAs my first geekcraft-sharing post, I thought I would share one of my own projects, or actually a couple. As a proud Browncoat (fan of Joss Whedon‘s TV series “Firefly“), I of course knit the requisite Jayne Cobb hat – one for my husband, and one for my son. I used Dryope’s Jayne Cobb hat pattern for the hat, though there are many variations on the pattern.

My husband says it’s the warmest snow-shoveling hat he’s ever had. In fact, after shoveling one particularly cold day, he remarked that it was too bad that there wasn’t a matching scarf pattern, to keep his neck and face warm as well. Not one to let my crafting superpowers go to waste, I began designing a scarf immediately.

I consulted with my son and fellow Browncoat, and he thought the stripes should be “random” (rather like Jayne himself), so he devised the pattern of stripes, and how wide each stripe should be. I think the resulting pattern turned out almost like a contemporary version of the Dr Who scarf, which just gives it extra geek points, in my mind.

I stuck with the traditional colors of the Jayne Cobb hat – red(ish), orange(ish), and yellow. I used Vanna’s Choice yarn in Brick, Mustard, & Rust, so it would have easy care & handling.

Here’s a rough pattern for the Jayne Cobb scarf I came up with:

cast on in desired width (multiples of 6)
knit two rows of garter stitch
then work in a 3×2 rib (K3, P2) for remainder of scarf:
row 1: K3, P2
row 2: P3, K2
end with two rows of garter stitch
Jayne Cobb scarf
pattern:
6” Brick/red
7” Rust/orange
1” Mustard/yellow
3” Rust/orange
4” Mustard/yellow
2” Brick/red
7” Rust/orange
3” Brick/red
6” Mustard/yellow
7” Rust/orange
7” Mustard/yellow
3” Brick/red
7” Rust/orange
6” Brick/red

Links of interest:

“Sudden, but inevitable betrayal” pillow

Over at Craftster, the Whedonverse (as in Joss Whedon’s worlds: Buffy, Angel, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible, and Firefly) Round 6 Swap is in full swing, and there are some amazing things over there! But my favorite so far is the embroidered Wash pillow. FiberAlchemist made it for her partner ifallthraindrops. The detail is so amazing, and the shading is gorgeous (shading is one of the many, many things I need to learn). I love cartoon Wash!