Return to Whedonverse

I love Netflix streaming. I’m aware that love of Netflix isn’t popular currently but there, I said it. The reason I love Netflix is because it opened up the Whedonverse to me. I have spent countless hours in the magical Whedonverse. I popped my Whedon cherry on Buffy and haven’t looked back since.

From Buffy I moved on to Angel, mainly because I was fairly certain Spike was resurrected on that show in its final season. Angel didn’t move me in the same way that Buffy did, when characters died in Buffy it actually stung for me, I felt a loss knowing they were gone. That isn’t to say that Doyle sacrificing himself didn’t leave me going “Whaaaa” or that the loss of Fred still doesn’t make me sad.

From Angel came Firefly and with it Serenity. I really enjoyed that show even though I knew going in that it was prematurely cancelled by television execs that would rather continue to air tripe like Two and a Half Men. I’m a better person for having become a Browncoat and for knowing Wash, even if he was cut down too soon. After Serenity I took a break from the Whedonverse, nursing my wounds from the many heartbreaking deaths that Joss Whedon feels necessary to bestow upon his creations.

During my sabbatical I immersed myself in Battlestar Galactica, and not the Dirk Benedict one (he’ll always be Faceman to me). I loved that FRAK out of that show! BSG was full jaw dropping deaths that you didn’t see coming (Dee what were you thinking!?) and from beginning to end I found myself totally enthralled with the crew of the Battlestar Galactica. Like all good things this too ended and I was left wondering where to go from here. So, I returned to the Whedonverse.

I am now two episodes into Dollhouse and already really enjoying myself. I knew that Eliza “Faith” Dushku was the star but I had no idea Tahmoh “Helo” Penikett was also in it. My two worlds have collided! I know I’m setting myself up for disaster. I know that the show was cut down too soon and I just know that someone is going to be killed that will leave me going “What?! No!” but I also know it’ll be worth the ride.

Love to Hate

Hate is an integral part of being a sports fan. As much as we love our team, we hate other teams, players and cities almost as much. Lovers of hate got a present last night when LeBron and the Heat lost the NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks. I am not a Dallas Mavericks fan, I'm actually New York Knicks fan, but I have to say the outcome of this finals made my day and I know I'm not the only one.

I cannot recall the last time I hatred of a team has been so palpable. I hate my fair share of teams (Red Sox, Patriots, Devils, etc) but those are based off my loyalty to teams that are their direct rivals. Hell, I've hated the Heat long before James was even in the league thanks to the great Knicks/Heat games of the late 90s. However, the hatred of the Heat transcends all normal sports hatred criteria. If you don't know why that is then let me remind you.

As a New York Yankee fan I'm well acquainted with those who blindly hate my team. The Yankees win more than any one else, they spend more than any one else, and more often they are better than any one else. Those are all reasons for nationwide hatred of a team. The difference between the Yankees and the Miami Heat is the reason why the hatred for the two is different.

As with the above picture, the Miami Heat acted in June like a championship was a foregone conclusion. They were cocky before they had anything to be cocky about. Call me crazy but I think it might've rubbed the other 29 teams and their fan bases the wrong way. Then there is the hatred the James brought with him.

The Decision might go down in history as the worst PR move ever. Yes there were many teams that wanted James and yes some of that hatred is based off a feeling of being spurned, but you cannot argue that the way he left Cleveland was just stone cold. Also, the idea that a self proclaimed king would choose to join a "super team" rubbed a lot of the all-time greats the wrong way. James wasn't just chastised by 29 other fan bases, now he was being chastised by the greats he idolized.

I'm not a sports reporter (obviously) but I have to believe that for some this championship will be remembered more by how the Heat lost and less how the Mavs won. And those of us who love to hate tip our caps to the Dallas Mavericks for giving us more fuel to our Heat hating fire. Hopefully next season the Heat will remember that you don't start the season by celebrating, you do what the Mavs did and end the season that way.

The Die Hard 2 Theory

"A sequel to an iconic movie will always pale in comparison to the original when compared, even if said sequel is a solid movie in its own right"

Die Hard 2 is a really good movie if you take it as a one off action film, the only problem is you can't. Here is John McClane again, and it is even Christmas again, a man alone fending off terrorists. They take McClane out of LA and out of the cramped Nakatomi Plaza and put him in DC at Washington Dulles International Airport, brilliant! It is a good movie, but it isn't a great movie for all the reasons that made the first one great.

I'm not sure when I came up with my "Die Hard 2 Theory" considering I was 8 when it was released, but regardless, the theory stands true. The impetus to share this theory with all 3 of my readers came after going to see The Hangover Part II with my sister. The movie as a whole was good but I could not stop thinking about the original while watching it.

What made the original so great was the novelty of the idea (if you disregard the fact that the premise of waking up and not knowing what happened the night before was done earlier in the movie Dude, Where's my Car), a bunch of guys at a bachelor party wake up with no clue as to what happened the night before and the groom is missing, shenanigans ensue! Alan was a brand new character and every idiotic thing he said was hilarious because we had never seen a character quite like him. All the things that made The Hangover great are all the things that made The Hangover Part II just okay.

If The Hangover Part III is inevitable, and I believe it has already been announced as happening, I only hope that it continues down the Die Hard route. Die Hard with a Vengeance, while still not as good as the original, was far superior from Die Hard 2. What the third installment did right was it took the character you knew and loved and didn't just throw him in a similar situation, but took him someplace new (and don't say The Hangover Part II did that just because they went from Vegas to Thailand).

In conclusion, if you liked The Hangover you'll probably enjoy The Hangover Part II, but it won't thrill you like the first one did. Oh and enjoy your summer of sequels!

Or, imagine, being able to be magically whisked away to... Delaware.

Delaware, or as I like to call it "Hey, were we just in Delaware?", is a magical state that I have never wanted to spend more than a few minutes in. It has been nothing more than a means to an end, that end being every other state worth visiting that you have to drive through Delaware to get to because you live in New Jersey. I had the good fortune of spending a few days in the armpit of America thanks to my brother-in-law.

Until I met my brother-in-law's girlfriend (now wife) I had no idea people lived in Delaware. Sure, I'd seen license plates for Delaware but I never actually knew anyone that lived there, was born there, or would admit to either. His wedding was this Saturday, so Lauren and I drove down Friday late morning (we had rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner on Friday).

As I sat down to make fun of Delaware I figured at least let me see if anyone famous was from Delaware or if there were any interesting fun facts. People of note from Delaware include, but are not limited to: the Shue siblings, Valerie Bertinelli, Henry Heimlich, Sugar Ray Leonard and not much more. Delaware boasts itself as The First State, and the state bug is the lady bug. Fascinating!

The wedding itself was lovely but there was literally nothing to do within the 10 square miles that make up the state, and yes I might be exaggerating on its size. I'm not sure how every person who lives there isn't an alcoholic because when I wasn't doing wedding related activities that required sobriety, I was pretty much drinking and/or drunk.

What more can I say? Wedding was fun but the state sucks. If you need further proof then allow me to fill you in on the origin of the state's name. Delaware was named for Lord de la Warr; he was the first governor of Virginia. That's right, they named the state for the governor of another state.

The Code

Don't let anyone fool you, guy code exists. As far as I know this mysterious code is not written anywhere, but the various rules are for the most part engraved into our subconscious. You follow the code or you get burned by your buddies, those are the rules, sadly I was witness to the breaking of the code first hand.

Without naming names or providing details, I was privy to a guy texting his wife the various happenings of our guy's night as they were happening. Now if any women are reading this (lets be honest, if ANYONE is reading this) what this man did was wrong. Wives/girlfriends, we love you (or like you) but there are some things you will never know, some things you should never know, and this is true no matter how transparent your relationship with your guy is.

When the women returned from their girl's night out, naturally the two groups collided. The men, myself included, were shocked to find out that the happenings of our sacred evening were being divulged by a mole within our midst. As of this morning I have yet to decide whether this indiscretion is worse then the guy code infraction of banging your buddy's ex without first asking him if it is cool to even go out with her.

Thankfully because we have all been friends for so long this blatant breaking of guy code was resolved with good humor and well placed jokes at the violators expense. It also has hopefully taught as a valuable lesson, next time we all get together, someone needs to take his god damn cell phone away from him.

Today's Generation Sucks

After watching the movie Crank I originally was going to write a piece on the death of writing in movie making. I was going to say that a place must exist for movies like Crank because a sequel exists, meaning it must have brought in a good amount of money. I planned to further go on and say how I had to believe the script for Crank, if a script actually even existed, must have been written in the span of a few hours on a Big Mac box. However, I finally reached a point in my brainstorming when I realized movies like Crank exist for only one reason, today's generation sucks.

The generation I mean when I say "today" is the generation that has always had a cell phone, doesn't know what a floppy disc is, can't recall a time when the internet didn't exist and believe Katy Perry and Ke$ha make great songs. This generation that demands instantaneous gratification and have the attention span of fleas are the demographic that Hollywood panders to, which is why we get an "action" movie like Crank.

I say "action" because when I think of an actual action movie I think of Die Hard, Rambo, Indiana Jones, etc. I think of movies that are not just filled with action, stunts and excitement, but movies that actually have some sort of story. I've played video games that had more of a story than Crank.

I don't care that this makes me sound like an old man, because it is all true. Today's generation is responsible for Stephenie Meyer being a famous author, and yes I had to look up her name on IMDB and yes this is how I found out that she named her main character Bella Swan. Seriously though, this is all these damn kids fault.

Super Bowl or Bust

Rex Ryan has stated that the goal for him and the New York Jets is to win a Super Bowl. He said it right from the start, perhaps it was what made it so easy for us Jets fans to fall in love with him. This "Super Bowl or Bust" attitude has led to many chiding him for his bravado and even claiming that such talk is putting unnecessary pressure on his players. I couldn't disagree more.

I have been a Jets fan for as long as I can remember. I also remember a time when just finishing without a losing record was a time to celebrate. That isn't the case anymore. Rex Ryan has ushered in a new culture to the team and its fans. No longer is just finishing 8-8 or better a cause for celebration. No longer can we say that we don't care what the outcome of the playoff game is, we're just happy we made it. We want that trophy, we want what has eluded this organization for 41 years, and anything less would be failure.

I laugh when people say that this mentality is putting unnecessary pressure on the team. Since when is setting your eyes on the ultimate goal unnecessary pressure? I would be disappointed if any player on that team hasn't dreamed of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. This is what it should be, as fans we should be upset if today's game against the Colts ends our season because being upset means we have finally had dreams of something greater for our Jets.

Win or lose I'll still love this team. I'll still watch all the games and I'll jump and thrash about my home. I expect them to beat the Colts and I believe they're good enough to win a Super Bowl. There is a new culture in place and it's finally Super Bowl or Bust.