Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Nightmares

Recently I had decided to re-watch the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series.  I know it's not the best television show, but there are also elements that I do enjoy.  The first time I watched Buffy I was of the target age group for which it was aimed.  I didn't see every episode, even missing huge chunks of it.  I have seen it from start to finish only once since.  This time round I'm trying to figure out why I like it and what my favourite bits are, so I have decided to write about some episodes and characters.

For those unfamiliar with Buffy, the show focuses around Buffy Summers, a young High School student who also happens to be a Vampire Slayer, charged with protecting the world from Vampires and Demons and endowed with super powers.  The show starts with her and her mother (recently divorced) moving to the town of Sunnydale to start afresh.  She is guided by a middle-aged, English librarian named Rupert Giles who is her Watcher.  She also becomes friends with Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg, two unpopular students at Sunnydale High.  The school they go to happens to be on top of a Hellmouth which attracts an abnormal amount of demonic and supernatural goings on.  The is also a love interest for Buffy in the form of the vampire with a soul, Angel.

The first season of Buffy was quite weak, mainly because there were only 12 episodes as opposed to the 22 of subsequent seasons.  The main core of characters are being established along with the set-up.  There are many poor jokes being made about juvenile problems.  The main theme of Buffy was initially "High School is Hell".  The demons being fought were metaphors for the personal demons and obstacles we face, in this case, as adolescence.  This is not subtly done and not a reason why I watch the show now.  When I first watched it I could identify more as I was closer to the age of the most of the main characters.  The earlier seasons have the show trying to find its feet and establish itself, like many other TV shows.

My pick of the first season is the episode Nightmares.  As the title may suggest, this episode focuses on the characters having to confront their fears.  I like this sort of exploration, where nightmares get manifested literally, mainly because I am very interested in dreams (specifically my own, but maybe that's another article all in itself).  There's not a great deal more that can be said for it.  Like much of the first season, it's just a bit of fun.

Hellboy

Honestly, I do watch other films aside from comic book movies.  I do love Guillermo del Toro's films ever since seeing The Devils Backbone for the first time.  Hellboy isn't his best film, it has to be said, but it's still great fun.  The visuals, as you'd expect with del Toro, are amazingly imaginative and a joy to view.  Throw Ron Perlman into the mix and you have an evening of entertainment

After watching Daredevil I really had to wash my palette.  Hellboy was my choice.  What struck me in this latest viewing is how superb the pacing in the film works.  The story development from beginning to end is timed to perfection, even if some of the dialogue came across a little cheesy.  Some of Hellboy's puns were pretty cringe-worthy too.  I especially liked how the villainous Karl Kroenen character was depicted in the film.  The elegance and grace displayed throughout the film are really offset against the horror of what lies beneath his mask.  His appearance in several costumes through out the film and the detail in each also express a depth of artistry.

I actually found myself enjoying this a lot more this time around.  I think it is a nice set-up for the sequel, which I may review in the near future.

Our Broken Garden

Our Broken Garden is the solo project of Anna Brønsted from Denmark.  I got a copy of the album Golden Sea a while ago now, but didn't give it a great deal of attention for a while.  The last couple of months, however, have found me listening to this beautiful collection of music more often.  Anna's voice is gorgeous and ethereal and the whole tone of the album is relaxed and comforting.

Below is a youtube video of the song Garden Grow, a more upbeat selection from the album.

Doodle Wallpaper

I spent a bit of time yesterday working on a new background image for this blog.  I found a few old sketches and doodles, pieced them together and spent some time fiddling with filters and effects.  It was nice to look through these old sketches.  It was inspiring.  I think the finished piece is good and works well with the tone and initial concept I have for this blog, unlike the more sedate background image on my art blog.

You may notice, however, that in some places it does obscure writing.  This is a problem that will have to be resolved at a later date because I'm not that clued up on blog editing.  The Blogger template editor is pretty poor and I found it frustrating.  I do have an advisor I can ask to sort out these scripting problems.

Nevertheless, I like having a background image I created.  It just doesn't feel like my blog until I have added my artistic touch to the design.  I still have to do a header and an image to use for entrecard, but for the time being this is more of a unique design and I'm feeling happier with it.

Daredevil - The Director's Cut

After watching Thor I decided to give the Daredevil film a go for the first time.  I heard the film was awful and avoided it because of that.  Even when I did get around to watching it, I chose the Directors Cut, because it is told to be better.

It was a pretty bad film.  Ben Affleck did not come across as a convincing superhero.  Also, I was never quite sure whether it was trying to be camp or serious.  I had low expectations going into this film and they were pretty well met.

I don't think this is a film that I'll give a second viewing - at least not of my own volition.  Then again, I've seen Ghost Rider twice and also The Worst Film I Have Ever Seen (which shall remain unknown for the sake of all humanity) twice.  Daredevil isn't quite that bad.  Nevertheless, the casting and visuals of the film could have been a lot better.  It seemed clear to me from this film that Daredevil is a character of pathos.   Yet, once again, too much was crammed into the time and the pathos of this film got buried.

Looking for the positive, the fight sequences were well choreographed and probably the highlights of the film.

Trains

I wrote another movie review last night which I'll post on another occasion.  Today I had to go to London for an appointment and I was planning on writing on any aspect of the journey that I enjoyed.  I didn't end up enjoying the journey, the trains were running late which made me late.  It got me to thinking that as I've grown up the magic and wonder of a trip into London has been lost.  It is not that I have lost all my child-like wonder towards the world, it's just that it is less prevalent.  The joy I used to have has been swallowed by the extortionate ticket prices for a service that has been in decline during my lifetime.  Even London seems less wonderful the more familiar it has become.

When I was a child it was the trains I loved the most.  I enjoyed every train journey.  I remember spending a lot of time by the window staring out and watching the different scenery and landscapes roll past.  In the short distance from my home to London there is a wealth to see, especially to youth-filled eyes.  That visual aspect of train rides has stuck with me and I do love to appreciate a good view.  There are still occasions when I am on a train even now when I'll be staring out of the window, glimpse something interesting to look at and feel like a child again - briefly.  The magic may have left the trains, but it hasn't quite left what lies beyond those windows.

Thor

For my first film review I shall be talking about Thor, because I watched it last night.  Thor represents to me a wave of films that promise something great but never really manages to deliver.  I do enjoy reading comic books, but I'm not overly familiar with the Marvel universe.  Thor is another in a long line of watch-able Marvel movies, that are fun viewing but not great films.  There was plenty of impressive special effects and thankfully the acting was from a satisfactory to a good standing.  The story line felt crammed though.  A lot was getting filled into the approximate two hours and I honestly don't think this was successfully achieved.  Thor's growth in the film seemed to happen effortlessly and I pretty much missed it.  It's actually one instance where I would have preferred more time being spent on fleshing out the love story within the film because it is an integral part of the plot and I don't think it got enough attention.  It is not thought provoking, it is not epic, it is not innovative.  This is an above-average action flick.

There is a lot I could pick holes in with this film, but that would almost be missing the point that it's a fun action film that's doing the best with its source material.  It is certainly visually stunning, something to gawp at mindlessly.  Unfortunately it's not as enjoyable as the Iron Man or Spiderman films were.  More along the lines of the Fantastic Four, a film which I don't love but seem to forgive and be able to enjoy more-so than others who have seen it.

I don't think I'm going to give things however many stars out of five or ten.