Posts Tagged ‘Christmas’
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Apologies for the lack of an update or any forewarning on Monday. After being with my family for a full weekend, Cami and I both pretty much crashed Sunday night. Monday was reserved for doing darn near next to nothing.
It’s dissapointing to me in a way because I always trick myself into thinking "Oh, boy! A holiday! Time off from work! I’m gonna get SO MUCH STUFF DONE for the site!" and then it never happens because prior commitments and exhaustion set in. Right now, I’m so thrown off my routine, I don’t know what’s what…
There will be a comic on Wednesday. I promise.
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Dec28
When you’re married, you’ll put up with a lot of crap in the name of love.
Today’s comic is kind of true and kind of false. Yes, I did score an awesome haul in Christmas DVDs and yes I did receive all those mentioned. Cami’s reluctance to watch is where the comic embellishments come in.
All weekend long I kept talking about how awesome Sin City was when I saw it back in April. But I didn’t run out and buy it when it came out on DVD in August because I knew that it wasn’t the full version. There would be another version released before Christmas with tons of behind-the-scenes extras and deleted scenes added back into the movie. I knew I wanted the FULL experience, so I patiently waited.
I get the extended edition for Christmas and I’m chomping at the bit to see it. But here’s the thing – I don’t want to half-ass this. I don’t want it on in the background. I don’t want it to be part of the din in our holiday festivities. When I sit down to watch this thing, I want to totally dedicate my attention to it. I want to study it.
Plus, it’s not like people getting their heads cut off and their intestines ravaged by wild dogs is really the kind of holiday-themed entertainment we want penetrating the bubble of a Rockwellian family gathering. Sorry, we’re just not that kind of clan.
Imagine my surprise yesterday when Cami e-mailed me at work on a couple different occasions asking me "So, do you want to watch Sin City tonight?" What a gal!
Part of today’s comic that’s half-true deals more specifically with Fantastic Four – a movie I didn’t see when it was in the theater, but was curious enough to ask for this Christmas. I guess there was a bit of eye-rolling involved when Cami saw the film on my Wish List. She was with her parents when they bought it for me and she said "I don’t know why Tom says he wants that. He said it was lame when it came out this summer."
It’s strong logic. Why would I want my own personal copy of a movie that I’ve never seen? One that could potentially ruin the good memories I have of a comic book franchise I grew up with? The honest answer? I don’t know. Morbid curiosity, I suppose. I mean, maybe it’s bad – but it can’t be any worse than the Roger Corman version from 1994, right? And I’ve seen that one at least twice. I guess if there was a movie out there that I wanted REALLY badly, but couldn’t justify spending the cash on, Fantastic Four would be that movie. THERE’S a ringing endorsement for you!
Anyway, after I get back from working out at 7:00 o’clock tonight, Cami and I are going to settle in for some stark-contrast and watch Sin City together. It’ll be her first viewing, so I’m very interested in her reaction. I’ll let you guys know what she thinks.
Later!
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We’re creeping into that time of year when there are less and less high-profile movies to write about. So I struggled a little bit with today’s comic.
I’ve been told by some that I should make a more concentrated effort to talk about movies that aren’t some big, dumb blockbuster or over hyped sequel. But in the back of my mind, I fear that if I don’t make fun of stuff people have at least a peripheral knowledge of, I’m going to have a lot of frustrated readers scratching their heads saying “Huh?”
I mean, even if you don’t go to the movies that often, odds are you’re going to get the joke I make about Alvin and The Chipmunks before the joke I make for The Diving Bell and The Butterfly – know what I mean?
That said, the joke I made about a movie (I assume?) not everyone has seen – Juno – kind of straddles the line between making fun of the film and making fun of our experience in real life.
Seriously – I feel like I’ve been hearing about Juno for months. And it was pissing me off. Great articles about the film and its performances being Oscar worthy. All this talk about screenwriter Diablo Cody… and I can’t see it! It makes me feel lame.
Of course, it didn’t help that my partners-in-crime, Joe Dunn and Gordon McAlpin from The Triple Feature live in major metropolitan areas. I mentioned that I still hadn’t seen Juno during last week’s broadcast. “Seriously?” said Joe. “I’ve seen it, like, three times.”
If I were Charlie Brown, you’d see that little black squiggly line of frustration over my head right now.
I can’t be the only one experiencing this frustration. Look at this FAQ for Juno over at IMDB (man, that’s a lot of acronyms). It lists the release date for the film and the first seven paragraphs are about it’s release in the US.
It opened December 5 in New York and Los Angeles, then Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Dallas/Ft. Worth, Philadelphia, San Diego, Seattle, Denver, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Portland, and Toronto on December 14. On December 21, it adds 17 cities and is running in a total of 200 theaters. By Christmas it expands to 1,000 theaters. Finally, on January 4, it expands nationwide.
I *hate* it when studios do this. Basically they sneak the movie in big cities so it can be eligible for the Oscars before the end of the year deadline. Then, in an effort to stay topical and ahead of the competition, entertainment journalists start covering the film, doing reviews and interviews. Now that the hype is in place and I’m ready to see it, I can’t and it leaves me with the worst case of cinematic blue balls. QUIT TEASING ME, ALREADY!
That said, I finally got to see the movie on Saturday and I enjoyed it a lot. My only complaint? Not enough Michael Cera! That kid has the market cornered on awkward sweetness. Beyond that, I think the movie does a great job of telling it’s story and putting the spotlight on Ellen Page in another great performance. There seem to be so few female characters in film with a wit like Juno’s, so it’s refreshing to see something like that on screen. All of the supporting performances feel authentic, especially those of Juno’s understanding parents (played by J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney).
I don’t know if the film is quite the Oscar contender that some critics have built it up to be. In some ways, the film didn’t meet the high expectations I walked in with. But I’m sure that’s mostly the effect of hype. I’d love to see this movie again and I’m sure when it comes out on DVD in a few months, I’m going to buy it and treasure it like the unique jewel that it is. See it if it’s in your town. I mean, it should be by now, right?
One last note – I want to encourage everyone to call in LIVE during our broadcast of The Triple Feature tonight at 9:00 PM CST. Tonight, Joe, Gordon and I will be doing our much-anticipated Top 5 of 2007 show and we want as many listeners as possible to call in and keep us honest! Will our picks be completely off base or right on the money? Do they jive with your picks for the year’s best? Call in and let us know!
Again, the show starts at 9:00 PM CST and we WILL be taking your calls. So be sure to dial us in! See you there!
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If you’ve been listening to The Triple Feature for the last two weeks, then you know – in no uncertain terms – how I feel about Marley & Me. Specifically, how the film adaptation of John Grogan’s best seller is being marketed toward children and the timing of it’s release on Christmas Day.
I’ve obscured the spoiler Jared mentions in the first panel. But, if you’re curious, here’s a link to the article he references. OBVIOUS SPOILER TERRITORY AHEAD!
I’ve aligned myself with these taggers because (if you’ve read the book and know how it ends), it seems particularly cruel to market this film to the family audience over the holidays. I see them being particularly blindsided by the revelation.
Imagine if you will a happy family gathering for the holidays. The children tumble down the stairs early in the morning screaming in delight at the bounty Santa left under their tree. The family exchanges gifts while the children tear paper in tornadic glee. Grandpa quiets sips his coffee. The present-opening done, the family lazily starts to gather around the kitchen for holiday snacks before sitting down in front of a glorious meal. Stories are exchanged and everyone is laughing. People are happy.
“Hey, I have an idea!” exclaims one of the family members. “Let’s go see a movie!”
The family piles in the car and drives to the local movie theater.
“What do you want to see, kids?”
“I wanna see the movie with the puppy in it!” “Yeah, the puppy!” “Puppy! Puppy!” “WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!”
The family buys tickets to Marley & Me.
Cut to two hours later. Mom and Dad are trying to calm down their hysterical children down as they try to salvage what’s left of an otherwise perfect holiday.
Aaaaaaand SCENE!
Maybe I’m being a bit pessimistic to assume an Owen Wilson is going to ruin a family’s holiday. Well, at least at a higher likelyhood than your AVERAGE Owen Wilson movie. But I used to work at a movie theater. I had a mother come back to the ticket counter and demand a refund for Serial Mom because it was too violent for her 8 year-old.
For starters, it’s callled SERIAL MOM! It’s about A SERIAL KILLER MOM! Second, it’s a John Waters movie. Even if it wasn’t violent, his track record should tell you that there probably isn’t going to be a lot in his film that would be acceptable for an 8 year-old.
People don’t research the movies they see.
Originally my good friend Joe suggested that I go whole hog with my critcism of Marley & Me and spoil it six ways from Sunday. Although I know that’s more likely to follow Jared’s commandment of not spoiling a movie before it’s time, he was seeing the feedback we were getting during The Triple Feature broadcasts and saw that people were on the same page. It would have been a great opportunity to generate a little controvery for the site.
But I guess the holiday spirit got the better of me. I didn’t want to Scrooge people the same way I expect the movie to.
Sure, I could claim I was falling on my sword to protect people. But, ultimately, my actions make me no better than the movie itself. And, who knows? I could be totally wrong about the film. It might end up resolving itself differently than the book or with different emphasis on specific events. Then I would look pretty stupid.
Even though I have no interest in the film, Joe’s laid down an interesting challenge. He challenged me to see the film and judge it on its own merits, not on the book that preceded it. At this point, I almost feel obligated to do so. Truthfully, for as much chest-thumping I’ve been doing over this film, I need to either put up or shut up. So, stay tuned.
Real quick, I wanted to give you guys the heads up that there will be no new strips next week. There are two reasons for this. The big one is that I won’t be in town! Cami, my sister-in-law and myself will be going to California at the end of the year for a well-deserved break. We’re leaving Henry with my in-laws and skipping town for a few days. I’m really looking forward to it. This will be our first honest-to-goodness vacation since May of 2006. We’re due.
The second reason is because I plan on releasing a redesign of the website on Monday, January 5 and I need to make sure that everything is lined up appropriately to make sure the transition occurs as smoothly as possible. I’m not only introducing a new look and feel to the site, but I have also switched over to WordPress, so the back-end operates COMPLETELY differently.
I think you guys are really going to like the changes. I’ve been working on this design on and off since October of last year. Polishing it as I went along. I’ve had a lot of people help me along the way and I think it’s been refined to the point where I’m ready for it to set sail!
So be on the lookout for that in the New Year!
I the meantime, be sure to listen to The Triple Feature tonight at 9:00 PM CST. We’ll see you there!
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And with an awkward pause, we inch quietly away from 2008. That’s the note I leave you on.
Today will be the last comic of the year. I’m going on vacation with Cami and my sister-in-law starting Sunday and there will be no guest strips to pad things out while I’m gone. Don’t forget about me! You’ll want to be sure and check out the site again in 2009 because I’ll be introducing a new site design as well as announce the pre-order for Theater Hopper: Year Three! Big news all around!
As for today’s comic, it’s somewhat based in truth. Cami *did* in fact get me a Blu-ray DVD player, but for my birthday, not Christmas. And it’s true that we put it through it’s paces by watching Forgetting Sarah Marshall. It’s probably not the first movie you’d think of when it comes to testing out the picture quality of a Blu-ray DVD player, but I have to admit — I did notice a distinct difference in picture quality!
It’s funny, because I was talking about receiving the Blu-ray player for my birthday during Monday’s night’s Triple Feature podcast and I was riffing on how you have to find a movie that’s worthy of the technology because it’s cost-prohibitive to buy every single DVD you want in that format. Specifically, I think I said “I’m not going to get Step Brothers on Blu-ray so I can see Will Ferrell’s jacked up teeth in 1080i resolution.”
Oh, but Jason Segel’s wang is perfectly acceptable!
I should point out that I tried to get something cool, but Cami nixed The Dark Knight because seeing in the theater bummed her out and she didn’t want to watch it again. Also, pathetically, I couldn’t find any copies of Iron Man at my local Best Buy. LAME! I did grab Wall-E, though. We haven’t watched it yet because we actually watched it a few weeks ago in the inferior “regular” DVD format.
I think I have a clever idea about replacing some of my old DVDs with Blu-ray editions, though. I had the idea to sell them on eBay with an original sketch of the title character. So you guys out there can bid on one of my old movies and get something a little extra to boot. It might be fun! We’ll have to see how it works. Stay tuned for that in the future.
Anyway, Forgetting Sarah Marshall was great. A lot funnier than I remembered it! There’s a lot going on in that movie. Lots of different plots and character points to keep up with. That’s a good thing! Gives a comedy dimension rather than it being a catch phrase machine.
I’m kind of kicking myself that I didn’t pick it up on DVD earlier, but now I’m kind of glad I didn’t so we could enjoy it on Blu-ray. The extras are crazy. There are literally dozens of them. Good stuff.
That does it for me today. I hope everyone who celebrates the Christmas holiday had a happy and safe experience.
Remember, no new comics next week and that includes taking a break from The Triple Feature as well. So if you’re a fan of the show, we’re not recording on Monday.
I’ll be sure to post a reminder of the hiatus to the front page on Monday as well as ways you can be notified when the new site design goes live on Monday, January 5th. You guys are going to love it. I’ve shown it to a bunch of my web comic buddies and they’ve been very supportive. If these guys can’t find anything wrong with the layout, than that means you guys are going to LOVE IT!
Have a safe and happy New Year and I’ll see you again in 2009!
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Hey, guys. Today’s blog will be short as I was up extremely late putting the finishing touches on today’s comic. You’d think I would have taken the month off to build up a buffer or strategize how I was going to produce the comic while taking care of a new baby. But ohhhhhh no. I’m flying by the seat of my pants, as usual.
What’s important is that I’m back, baby!
I thought it would be kind of fun to address my hiatus in the comic with a short story arc. And, as in most soap operas, a coma was an easy out.
I really thought about doing a comic a couple weeks ago when the Iron Man 2 trailer hit the web. It didn’t seem fair that I was away from the site while that was happening. So this is a fun opportunity to revisit it.
If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, by the way, here it is.
…and, really, I’m only adding it because – like I said – today’s blog post will be extremely short.
HEY! Something that I wanted to mention that should excite you! Tonight we’re recording a new episode of The Triple Feature – our first since November 30. We have a lot of movies to catch up on and also a VERY. IMPORTANT. ANNOUNCEMENT.
So, if you want to know what’s going on before everyone else, be sure to listen to The Triple Feature LIVE tonight at 9:00 PM CST.
Now, I must scurry off to bed. But please take this opportunity to discuss the Iron Man 2 trailer. I know it’s probably been examined to death elsewhere, but I was bummed that I didn’t have a chance to have this conversation with you. So let’s have it now!
Leave your comments below!
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Apologies for the late comic today. I’m getting into a unusual habit where I am doing more than my requite four panels and adding a ton of effects and emotion to my comics lately.
This would not normally be considered a problem if I were able to plan somewhat in advance and produce the comic on time. But I’ve definitely been playing catch-up lately. Sorry about that.
The good news about today’s delayed comic is that you get to hear my opinion about Tron: Legacy! I finally had a chance to see the film Monday night with some friends and I’m still kind of… processing it (see what I did there?)
I know I’m a little behind the curve, since the movie came out last week. But it’s been interesting monitoring the reaction to it online. The general consensus is that the film is amazing to look at, but light on plot. I’m inclined to agree, but I wasn’t really bothered by the deficiencies in the storyline.
Maybe it was a case of managed expectations, but when compared to a similar feast for the eyes that was light on plot like James Cameron’s Avatar, I was far less disappointed.
If I could make one complaint, the first act of the movie establishes that Jeff Bridges’s character discovers something inside “The Grid” that would change every idea mankind ever had about science, medicine or religion. Once Bridges’s discovery is revealed, the Earth-shattering ramifications aren’t really explored.
I think it’s because the filmmakers would rather have us extrapolate the meaning of his discovery, but I would have preferred a little more discussion around it. I really think it would have helped anchor the story and raised the stakes in terms of why this discovery was worth defending. Instead, it feels a little bit tacked on.
And I guess if I could make one additional complaint, it would have to be about Jeff Bridges’s performance. Basically, he channeling a digital version of The Dude from The Big Lebowski. Trapped inside The Grid for over 20 years, Bridges’s contemporary take on Kevin Flynn has him adopting Zen principles and an odd delight in calling everyone “man.” For me, it comes off as a little too colloquial and flippant. Again, it diminishes the stakes.
But, truthfully, these are petty squabbles. Like I said before, the plot deficiencies in no way subtract from the overall experience Tron: Legacy brings to the screen. The visuals are astounding. Even Bridges’s rubbery, digitized performance as his younger self has an odd allure.
It easy to see why Disney didn’t promote Tron: Legacy with a re-release of the original Tron on blu-ray. The visuals Joseph Kosinski’s film blow the original out of the water. While there are several clever references to the original film, this sequel is an entirely different beast.
I ended up seeing the film in 3D and I don’t know that it particularly added anything to the experience. I don’t think I felt any more or less “immersed” in the world of Tron than I would have if I had watched it in 2D. Frankly, that’s a compliment toward Kosinski’s direction. I felt like I was leaning into the film the whole time. Despite being somewhat dreary, Tron is a place I wouldn’t mind inhabiting for a while!
One more thing I’ll say… there was a lot of hype around Daft Punk providing the soundtrack to this movie. It seemed like a natural fit and something that fans could get excited about. I bought the soundtrack before the movie came out and it left me a little cold. I was hoping for a little more funk and a little less orchestration.
I can say now that I’ve watched the movie, the context for the soundtrack has been completely re-contextualized for me. It is much better than I originally gave it credit for because I was too busy focusing on what I wanted it to be instead of enjoying it for what it was. If you enjoy soundtracks, I strongly encourage you to pick it up. Great stuff.
I’ve run out of things to say about Tron: Legacy, so I’ll just say that I enjoyed it greatly and leave it at that. I have designs to see True Grit sometime in the near future. Although Cami has been trying to pull together a date night so we can see The King’s Speech. Truthfully, I’m good either way. It’s a win-win! But we’ll see what happens.
Thanks for your patience with today’s comic. If you have additional thoughts about Tron: Legacy, feel free to leave them in the comments. See you in 2011!
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I can’t tell you how long I’ve wanted to make a Baby: Secret of Lost Legend reference in this comic. Now, after 10 years, I’VE FINALLY DONE IT!
What’s that, you say? You don’t remember Baby: Secret of Lost Legend? Then take a minute to watch the trailer from this steaming 80s turd-burger…
Feel better? I know I do.
Turning our attention toward the comic, I want to let people know that this is NOT how Cami informed me that we were pregnant with Henry back in 2006. It would have been pretty cool if she did, but it didn’t shake out that way.
I do remember, however, that Cami had a unique fascination with John Hughes’ She’s Having A Baby leading up to and during that pregnancy – which I didn’t mind because, on the one hand, John Hughes. However, on the other hand… Elizabeth McGovern. Not one of my favorites.
I don’t have much more to add to this comic. To be truthful, I’m wiped out. After producing two comics back-to-back with the Christmas holiday thrown on top, I’m actually looking to New Year’s Eve so I can get a little REST!
As for Theater Hopper, this is the third to last comic. I’ll produce one more this week – likely Thursday or Friday – and the very last comic will be Monday, December 31.
Incidentally, I recently learned that James Kochalka’s American Elf is ALSO ending it’s run next Monday. This was not planned. But now I’m bummed out. I love American Elf. We’re losing a great journal comic, folks. But I’m interested to see where Kochalka goes next.
Anyway, that’s all for now. Please share up this comic to put some extra eyeballs on it. If the internet is anything like me, they’re probably a little distracted at the moment!
See you soon!
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I’m uploading this comic crazy late on Friday night, but I wanted to get it up there before the weekend.
Yeah, I know that this comic is totally schmaltzy. But I felt since I had been building up the pregnancy question throughout this entire year-long arc, it was important for there to be that confirmation and pause to celebrate.
Frankly, I’m finding it hard to put my sentimentality in my back pocket as we’re rocketing toward the end of the comic on Monday. I can’t believe it’s actually happening.
I had to kind of force myself to do it, you know – end the comic. 2012 is creeping to a close and it just sounded profoundly lame for me to stretch out this conclusion into 2013. But as lame as I found it, I could easily see ways I could have made excuses for myself and keep the comics going.
But facts are facts. I can’t do that to these characters, to you readers or to myself.
This entire year has been about the long, slow process of letting go – both for yours and my benefit. I guess with the crush of the holidays weighing on my shoulders, I haven’t been able to look back and take stock of the last year like I wanted to. I’m feeling a little rushed, to be quite honest. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. In some ways it feels like the tearing off of the bandage that I wanted to avoid all year. I wanted things to be peaceful. Instead I feel like I’m driving a car without brakes.
It will all be over soon – and I’ll be okay with that. It hurts now, but it’s the right thing to do. In the very least, I’m confident that I’ve gone about it the right way.
Thanks for putting up with all of the “flying by the seat of my pants” antics the last few weeks as I bring the comic to a close. I hope you’re not feeling as hurried as I do. I swear I’m not trying to push these characters out the door.
If anything, I feel like I’m clutching their pants cuffs and they’re dragging me out the door with them.
See you Monday.
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