Wednesday 29 June 2011

Now Avatar Makes Sense...

In the movie Avatar, it turns out that all of the trees on the planet are joined in a massive godlike hivemind called Eywa - who is conincidentally the Na'vi God. So, Eywa is a planetary brain made out of all the trees of the world. That alone is quite amazing, but not divine.

Okay, so all Pandoran life hooks into her, but only plants are wired to her network full-time. Eywa liked being worshiped as a goddess and chose to use her control of the world's more primitive animals to keep the Na'vi locked in scientific and technological stasis so that they would never advance far enough in science to study her true nature and blow the whole thing. After all, when she provides them what they need, why would they advance?

Her plans hit a snag when humans came to Pandora. Here was a sentient species with technology to reach the stars and the science to figure out what she really is. These people obviously had to be gotten rid of before they could spill the big secret to the Na'vi. But she had to do it in such a way that no curious Na'vi would consider talking to or learning from the humans should they return, which ruled out a simple Zerg Rush of wildlife (which would also have risked the humans attacking from orbit).

She finds out that they are here for the Unobtanium, which is the perfect source for the conflict she needs. Eywa, in her role as Na'vi goddess, tells her people to be as uncooperative as possible. She has them spurn all offers of technology or science, and tells them to ignore the desperate need the humans have for the stuff that they're sitting on. As per her orders, some engage in low-level guerrilla warfare (such as the arrows on the truck tires). They expel the school from their village, which raises tension.

When Jake Sully arrive on the planet and becomes an Avatar, she senses in him someone bitter with humanity and fascinated by the lushness of Pandora. As a bonus, he is not a scientist. She decides that these things make him valuable as a pawn, which is why she called off Neytiri's attacking him and orders him let into the Hometree. She has him bond with animals of Pandora, perhaps subtly messing with his brain via her control of them, until he comes to feel more Na'vi than human. This has the bonus effect of distracting him from his diplomatic mission.

She needs atrocities to be sure that the Na'vi remain anti-human and anti-science. She allows the destruction of the Hometree in order to galvanize the anti-human sentiments of both her pawn Jake and the Na'vi. The naive chumps make it even easier for her by bringing her Dr. Grace to heal. Grace is the top scientist on the planet, who had been actively hunting her secret and who would have loved to reveal it if she found it; that would have caused Eywa's whole charade to crumble. And she gets to "heal" her? Perfect! As a bonus, Grace was shot by a human, so Jake's anti-human sentiments were raised even further. Dr. Grace took wounds in the chest, which shouldn't affect her mind — but they do give Eywa the perfect excuse after she absorbs the poor woman's mind. "Her wounds were too great"? Likely story. She was still alive, and her mind was intact. Nothing stopped the transfer but the fact that she would be far more useful to Eywa dead than alive. Also, to be sure that Jake further reveres her, she has Grace's hollow shell say, "I'm with her, Jake. She's real." A planetary brain that can control thousands of animals at once can control one more body (even a human one) for a minute.

Then, to ensure that all the tribes of Na'vi remember the humans only as bringers of death, she gave Jake the Toruk to gain power over them. He led them into battle, where the humans' superior technology easily slaughters them. Eywa wanted this. She needed plenty of death to get the Na'vi to hate and distrust humans forever after. A

fter she judged the slaughter to be sufficient, she commanded her mindless herd of slave-beasts to charge and overwhelm the humans. She could have done that at any time.

After that, she has the Na'vi "escort" the humans offworld. Note her insidious effect on her pawn Jake Sully: by then, he referred to his own species as "aliens". Then she transferred Jake Sully's mind to his avatar form permanently, probably performing any remaining necessary mind rearranging as well.

The plan worked like a charm. The humans are gone. The Na'vi are led by a firmly anti-human leader who deifies her. The Navi are embittered towards the humans. There is no more risk of the Navi realizing that they've been played for fools. That's right, the true villain won. You just didn't see it.

(This is an edit of a Fan Theory which blew my mind.)

Saturday 25 June 2011

Monday 13 June 2011

I wonder...

I wonder at what age I will start untying and then re-tying my shoelaces properly, instead of just jamming my feet into already-tied shoes.

Wednesday 8 June 2011

X-Men: First Class - Review

The X-Men comics were always far too... well, 40 years worth of being too big and sprawling for me to ever really start reading. I know bits and pieces of the X-Men’s history. I know the cliff-notes of the Phoenix Saga and the Extinction story arc, and I’m aware of who most of the main X-Men are. Like a good Joss Whedon fanboy I’ve read his short run on Astonishing X-Men. (Although, I got thoroughly confused as to what was going on when they got to Breakworld, but then that’s another thing entirely.)

I’ve seen all the X-Men movies a couple of times each, and I even watched Wolverine when it was in cinemas, despite it being a dull and pointless waste of two hours of my life. And so I can say this with some conviction – First Class is the best X-Men movie yet.

The story is fairly simple, and right there in the title. This movie takes place in the 1960s, when the two old guys from the previous movies were young. Before they were Professor X and Magneto, they were just Charles and Erik. Two people who happened to have superpowers, which they use to help the CIA track down an ex-Nazi trying to destroy the world. And the movie takes itself just as seriously as it should with a plot synopsis as bonkers as that.

This isn’t Batman, where a serious director is trying to fit the Dark Knight into a gritty and realistic setting to deal with dark themes. This isn’t Spiderman, where we see how an ordinary guy deals with the pressures and dangers of his responsibility. It’s a fun crazy blockbuster that moves quickly, with lots of characters with superpowers that they like to show off.

The real strength of this film is the cast. All of the main X-Men are great to watch, they have an amazing screen presence, and they all have their own story arcs, which we see in this first movie instead of being teased that it might come in sequels. They aren’t making progress for progress sake, they all have reasons for being who they are, and most important of all, for becoming who they become.

It’s a shame the villains are never that menacing, and that they don’t have much to do. Their ‘plan’ is under-explained at best, and a huge plot hole if you ever think about it, and so they don’t actually do much. Kevin Bacon is the only one who actually speaks, and all January Jones does is give people cold looks.

There are some very cool action scenes, and the finale (with the submarine) is the coolest scene I’ve seen at the cinema this year. It’s not a flawless movie, it doesn’t break new ground, and it isn’t a must see. But as a summer blockbuster, it is good fun, and I don’t ask more than that.

Sunday 5 June 2011

Captain America - final trailer

Final trailer before the film is released, and it's looking amazing. I'm off to see X-Men soon, so I'll review that once I've seen it.


Thursday 2 June 2011

Super 8 is unfair...

I have just discovered some sad news.

The movie Super 8, the project being worked on by Steven Spielberg and J.J Abrams, which looks all kinds of awesome and which I am looking forward to seeing...

... is getting a delayed release in Europe. In America, it's being shown in cinemas from June 9th. Western Europe has to wait two whole months before we can see this film.

I want to watch your movie. Why wont you let me give you my money for this movie! I want to give you my money, you fools!

Saturday 28 May 2011

Truth..


As always, click the picture to embiggen.

Thursday 26 May 2011

Community in Cougar Town.

So, about a month ago, an episode of Community ended with one of the characters telling an anecdote about how he was able to be an extra in Cougar Town. It was pretty forgettable.

And yet, jump forward to the season finale of Courgar Town, (a show I don't watch, but someone on the internet does,) and during a scene with two characters having a conversation at an outdoor table, there in the middle ground… is Abed.


It’s such an extraordinary pay-off to a joke. A joke is set up on one show, and the punchline is in another show, on another channel, in the next month. And as Abed had described it in Community, he panics mid-scene, and runs off the set, catching the attention of the regular characters for a moment. A nice touch.

Wednesday 25 May 2011

An Unfortunate Editorial.

So, an editorial over on Technology Website, VentureBeat has become infamous this week. In his weekly column, (which I don't think many people were read before this,) Dean Takahashi goes on a rant about how the new Warhammer 40k videogame is a shameless rip-off of Gears of War. He writes that the similarities are embarassing, and of course, he then gets ripped a new one by an angry internet posse who can;t believe he didn;t bother to quickly google warhammer and realise it predates Gears of War by decades.

Anyways, it's just such a cringe worthy piece to read, and the comments section just proves how no-one should ever express an opinion on the internet.

http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/25/how-many-ways-can-thqs-space-marine-game-rip-off-gears-of-war/

Monday 23 May 2011

One Year Later.

Happy One Year Anniversary of the finale of Lost.

Live together, die alone. Do not mistake coincidence for fate. Don't tell me what I can't do. See you on the other side. Whatever happened, happened. We have to go back. You make your own luck.

See you in another life, Brother.

Thursday 12 May 2011

Superheroes 2011

There are four big budget Superhero movies coming out this summer, and I am excited for all of them. Here is a quick preview of how I await them.

Thor: isn't shown anywhere in Exeter in 2d, and I have no interest in seeing it in 3d with crappy and expensive glasses. Why is my life so hard!

Green Lantern: was recently given an additional $9million to "fix" the special effects, because that is the most important thing about a movie where computer-generated Ryan Reynolds hits other computer-generated people.

Captain America: Chris Evens is made to look first malnourished, and then later made to look like he is on a boat-load of steroids, using computers. This is awesome.

X-Men, First Class: I paid money to see the Wolverine movie, and wished I hadn't, and then there was a quote about trying to get Twlight levels of angsty self-obsessed melodrama in, and then I stopped caring. Then they released a new trailer, and I cannot wait for this movie. Yes, I am aware that my geek heart is fickle.

Thursday 5 May 2011

A Fistful of Paintballs


Community have just done a second paintball episode. I had been worried, that this season finale would just be a lame attempt at trying to recapture the magic of last year. The worst of Community this year, (even though there's been only a few poor episodes), has been the writers relying on the best of last year, rehashing old plots as a crutch for a poor script.

This was not a crutch for a poor finale. This was amazing.

Community is the best sitcom of TV. By such a long way. I love this show, oh so much.

Thursday 28 April 2011

Sorry for lack of posts.

Sorry about a lack of posts; I've been writing my dissertation, which has filled up my life quota with a whole headache of jumbled writing.

I remember having to decide on my dissertation topic at about 4am the day before deadline, over a year ago now. That was not the first I had given it consideration, of course, but having almost all of my mind working on my second year project, due that same day, an unmarked dissertation proposal was a distant second priority.

I ended up going with my gut choice, but it was a vague and undefined question covering the Pacific in WW2. That was about as well defined as it was a year ago. 'Something something Japan something 1930-1945.'

For this essay I'm finishing writing now, that 'something' has become the history of the Singapore base, the great folly of the British Empire in the 1920s & 30s. It didn't become that until nearer christmas. Partly, it took so long to define the thing because while it was undefined it was in a state of limbo where I could push it from my mind. I had time, so it wasn't a real problem. It's probably my biggest mistake in the whole dissertation, putting defining the question off because that would make the problem too real. It was make it too hard. While it was not a question, but only a topic, I could feel progress through vague research, instead of getting on with real work.

Truth be told, that was not too big a flaw. I dealt with it now, or so I hope. But given how I've handled the whole thing, it's been going pretty well. I don't want to speak more about it while i'm still writing the thing, but I'm sure I'll tell it some time.

Tuesday 26 April 2011

Game Of Thrones

So, Game of Thrones started this week, and I'm loving this show. The look and feel of the show is amazing, building a world I really cannot wait to see more of. The cast is more of less perfect, especially the children, which I was afraid they would have trouble with, especially given the tough things coming later in the series for them.

With the mindset of having read the books, it stuck me how well they managed to strike an incredible balance between remaining faithful and integrating new material. The new scenes felt like they fitted perfectly into the narrative, instead of clearly being inserted artificially. There was a fair amount of world building and exposition, but that is always necessary for a story with a scope as grand as this.

But, really, the thing I hope they keep to, for it is the thing I love most about the books, is that everything every character does is because of who they are. Ned and his honour, Cercei and her family, Sanha and her fairytale prince, Jon and his bitterness. Their story is driven by actions, but not defined by them, and the characters adapt to their lives, as is so often forgotten in genre televisions. In GoT, the characters have a reason for what they do, they have a motive, and trying to work out what that is, that's why this show is so exciting for someone who already knows where actual the narrative is going.

I love this series so much, and I cannot wait to love this show.

Sunday 24 April 2011

Dissertation Problems

Affect/Effect

Seriously, english language, why bother with two words?

*headdesk*

Monday 18 April 2011

It ironic or something.

There is no better way to be great at something than to be busy working hard at something else.

I'm sitting there, writing my dissertation, and *bang!*, I have a great idea for something hilarious to write.

But as soon as I log in, it's gone. You have no idea the number of amazing anecedotal observations that posterity is missing out on.

Sunday 17 April 2011

Game Of Thrones Tomorrow!

Game of Thrones starts tonight, I literally cannot wait.

Wednesday 13 April 2011

Exam revision

Revising for final exams is an amazing buzz kill. Everything fun in the world becomes less fun, thanks to the pressure of knowing that any second that you aren't preparing, you are getting dumber.

It is actually worse than writing my dissertation, because there I can feel a small sense of achievement and put that pressure from my mind.

I think I'm gonna spend this month focusing more on that small sense of achievement.

Sunday 27 March 2011

I can relate


This happens to me all the time.

Monday 21 March 2011

Now on Tumblr!

ThinkingDDude is now on Tumblr!

Oh! The wonderful news!

Click the link to see.

Thursday 17 March 2011

I Cannot Wait

One month to go until the first episode of Game of Thrones! I so cannot wait! And, the day my exams are over I am totally going to start reading Clash of Kings.

To quote Rebecca Black, I so Excited!

Saturday 12 March 2011

Busy, sorry

Been busy recently, sorry for the lack of updates.

Tuesday 8 March 2011

I will re-read GoT.

I'm thinking about re-reading Game of Thrones. With the TV show starting soon, it's been on my mind. And it is a brilliant story, and I really want to get into the world properly this summer, reaing the sequels now that I have the time.

Of course, it is quite long, so I'll probably spread it out until the end of Easter.

Winter is coming!

Monday 28 February 2011

Just a thought...

Having a birthday on February 29th wouldn't actually be too bad. I mean, aside from people making those occasional jokes about it, and you having to celebrate a day early or late, it would be an otherwise decent time of the year for a birthday.

My real sympathy is for those whose birthday is right next to Christmas. Or, worst of all, on Christmas day. Those poor brave souls.

Sunday 20 February 2011

Cool Cats


Yes, that is a picture from the newest episode of Community, and yes, they are in costume as Cool Cats. I'm loving this show so much.

Friday 18 February 2011

My Comma Crisis

OK, so, this is, on the grand scheme of problems, about as serious as that time I asked for spicy cheese on my subway and they gave me american cheese. That time I decided not to say anything, because, y'know, the decision had been made and since it was trivial, there was little left for me to waste my time on.

See, this here, is about as serious as that, because, this is the crisis I am going through right now, and it is all about abusing commas. Of course, here I am playing it up for emphasis, (EMPHASIS!), but nonetheless, it is something I want to cut down on. Mainly because I have to write an essay by hand, again, this summer, for my final exams, which is something I haven't had to do since, oh I dunno, this time last year, in those exams.

See, the first time I write any essay it always ends up being a jumble of loosely formed thoughts, sometimes with an actual academic point, other times involving words that have been misspelled and misstyped, and then, during my second stage of essay writing, I tidy everything up and it starts to look like, totally, some actual, real, academic thoughts instead of the demented livejournal twilight fanfiction of a thirteen year old girl living in California.

And one of the reasons for this is my use of commas when I don't actually have an end for a sentence planned. And it makes my work read amateur. And I, totally, hate that. I am definitely the sort of person who begins a sentence and then thinks up where it will end whilst speaking. It almost always works out fine... although sometimes it means that... I end up trailing off... as I realise.. I have nothing left to say... because... of...

Damn, did it again.

Long story rapidly coming to an end, while reaching the point where it can't be called a 'short story', I want to avoid this this summer. And so I have been paying more attention to how I use commas in my essays. I will probably dump the spare ones over here, so consider yourself warned.

Tuesday 15 February 2011

You want me to think of a title too? Bleh.

I've been waiting for Windows to finish installing updates. So I ate a biscuit. Then ate another biscuit. IT CAN'T GO ON LIKE THIS. I only have so many biscuits.

And yes, it was worth it to blog that thought, as soon as Windows finally allowed me to again access the sacred internet.

Sunday 6 February 2011

Ronald Regan Day

So what are you doing to celebrate the first annual Ronald Regan day?

Wednesday 2 February 2011

Leap Year Fact

If this were a leap year, then today, February 2nd, would be the 33rd day of the month, and we would have 333 days left of the year.

I would wait until the next leap year to drop this knowledge bomb, and I am sure it would be more impressive on the actual day, but hey, if I wait, I'll probably forget it.

Wednesday 26 January 2011

XKCD

XKCD are back on great form. And here they do what they do best... jokes about physics. In Rio de Janeiro, at the 2016 Olympics, the same jump would get an athlete 0.25% higher, (which is still less than 1cm,) than in London 2012. Not a huge difference, but still interesting.

As always, click the picture to embiggen.

Monday 17 January 2011

New TV 2010 – The Mega Review Part 5

Better With You –ABC


To be totally honest, I had very little hope for this. It is a romcom, based upon two sisters. One of them is in a long term relationship, but not married, and the other has just got engaged with a guy she’s only known for seven weeks. Oh, and there’s their parents, who’re cynical, just like all old people are. There is no introduction to a wacky neighbour, no mention of kooky friend, the pilot episode is just these three couples. And it is filmed like a standard sitcom, with three wall sets and a laugh track. It seemed like a run of the mill, totally forgettable, potentially annoyingly melodramatic, romcom. I was not intrigued. And yet it was funny.

I laughed several times. At actually funny jokes! They were pretty well set up, and they were timed just right. This sets it up to possibly be the funniest of the traditional-comedies this season. (The depressing thing is that how that is damning with faint praise.) Of course, I’m not convinced it’s really my thing. Most of the plot looks like it was draw from jokes about their relationships, and all the characters seem a bit too fond of bearing their souls to each other. And while the actors all put in solid performances, the conversations all do stick with ‘deliver exposition, pause for affect, sarcastic punchline!’ But if you are looking for a tv romcom, then this looks like it could turn out to be a pretty decent example of it. And hell, it is so very many miles better than Mike & Molly or $#*! My Dad Says.


Undercovers – NBC

Undercovers was a spy show, based upon a two married spies getting back into the business they thought they’d quit. I say it ‘was’ a show, because in the months it has taken me to get around to writing this up, poor ratings have meant it has already been cancelled. It was a light-hearted spy show, with an adventure-of-the-week style, and truth be told it seemed like a poor version of much better shows. It was not as funny as Chuck. It didn’t have the heart of Chuck. It was just not as good as Chuck. And it couldn’t complete with the more engrossing season-plotline of Nikita.

The twist was that these are two newly married spies, who slowly find out they might not know each other as well as they thought. They have a civilian life of trying to run a restaurant, which truthfully just felt like needless baggage on their spy-work. They had a handler who gives them missions and gadgets, and he was the most annoying prat imaginable. Their chemistry wasn’t that great, and I didn’t really care about them. And most of the episode took place at night, which honestly got annoying with everything happening in the dark all the time.

But this was not a bad show. It was a decently made, enjoyable spy show. It just wasn’t good enough to watch or recommend. I suppose it is a shame it has been cancelled, but honestly it comes as a bit of a relief not to have to think about watching any more of this. As I said, not because it is bad, but because I would much rather watch new episodes of Chuck or Nikita.


Chase – NBC

This is a show about US Marshalls, who track down the most dangerous, on the run, criminals. They don’t play by the rule, don’t wait for warrants, and they run about getting results, goddamnit. Annie Frost leads the team of Marshalls, which often seems to involve chasing people on foot. The pilot gives about a third of its airtime to establishing the man who is on the run, showing just how dangerous he is, and just how insane he is, but also that he has a good heart as he wants to run away with his young daughter to Mexico. I suppose some people will like it.

I hated it. It was boring, it was predictable, and it was patronisingly simplistic. I don’t begrudge anyone any enjoyment they may get from it, but I don’t see why they would. It looks set to be villain-of-the-week, and truth be told this could be a much more interesting show with genuine characters instead of placeholders, and a longer campaign of tracking a fugitive, instead of a one-a-week approach the pilot provides. Oh, and there is a far superior show about US Marshalls which started a few months ago, Justified, which means there is almost no need to care about this.


The Defenders – CBS

In all honesty, I pre-judged this show. I thought it looked like a boring law procedural about two middle-aged white lawyers in Los Angeles. Very little about that sentence summoned up any interest. And yet, this was one of the most interesting pilots of all those I have seen so far.

Pete Kaczmarek and Nick Morelli are two Las Vegas defense attorneys, but the twist the pilot takes is not over what happened, we are told fairly early on exactly who did what and why, but focuses much more on how our lawyers approach the trial and who they organise their defence. As opposed to The Whole Truth, were new evidence drives the plot, here the actual characters drive the plot. This is so much better than the way it is normally handled – when our protagonists simply follow the plot. It is actually their approach to the situation which creates the drama. As a plus, Nick & Pete are both well developed, and I would definitely be interested to see more of them as the story progresses.

However, I have still not given up my misgivings. I hope it doesn’t become too formulaic, with a case-of-the week formula that becomes too repetitive. As a legal drama, it is definitely the best of the new season, and as so it’s very much worth a look.

Mega Review - Finished!

My New Poster

I just received this:


Now my room is even more awesome.

Tuesday 4 January 2011

Raptors, they are cunning...

You need to be aware, at all times.



Raptors can operate lever style door handles. This means that, if that is what you have, then your location is not secure.

Constant vigilance is required.

However, do not assume that just because you have a different type of handle, you are secure. Raptors are adaptable, and you must always be alert.

Now you know. And knowing is half the battle!

Saturday 1 January 2011

Happy New Year!

Since the post title has said it all, here is an unrelated picture of Captain Hammer.