Bigger and better

As much as I enjoyed X-men First Class, or quietly waiting in anticipation for David Fincher's remake of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, their success will continue the trend of franchise material. With a great deal of bandwagon jumpers joining the buzz surrounding HBO's Game of Thrones or AMC's Danish remade series: The Killing, my interest has slowly ebbed and I've been sniffing the air for something new.

It's a dangerous road attempting a well loved classic, most remakes flourish when the original's shadow has long faded. There will be another Wizard of Oz, a few Snow White interpretations, numerous Vampire spinoffs, and invariably a flood of zombie pictures (Walking Dead, World War Z, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies...). The more that people feel out of control, the greater the need for a way to escape.

If Hollywood wanted to attempt a comic/anime translation, why not veer toward the lesser known? Darker than Black, Mushi-shi, Baccano!, Fullmetal Alchemist, or Samurai Champloo all have in-depth story lines (Not to mention some of them do not feature Japanese protagonists). Taking a cue from the break out success of Game of Thrones there is the impeccable twin novel epic adventure by Guy Gavriel Kay, The Sarantine Mosaic. Or perhaps the lesser Disney spun tales such as Rumpelstiltskin or even Robert Munsch's Paper Bag Princess? For now, we'll have to be content with board games ... wholly original storyline and famous in name only.

Winter is coming...

After seeing the much hyped HBO debut of Game of Thrones, I must say it was .. okay. The sets, costumes, and superb cast saved what could have been a very disappointing opening.

Am I asking for too much? A great deal of the episode was shot high and static, with little camera experimentation and rather over-lit lighting. I expected slicker editing, pushed saturation on the final render, and especially... especially more humour entwined into the writing. If I were a newbie, I would have been lost in the first five minutes. Most fantasy sagas always begin with a voice over to explain the world that you are about to enter. With Lord of the Rings it was Galadriel's monologue, with Star Wars it was the written words disappearing into space, and even with Harry Potter, Hagrid's choppy explanation of the magical world hidden from everyday "muggles".

Perhaps a drunken minstrel singing a short history of their world? Or Eddard Stark telling Arya or Bran a story of his days when he helped Robert Baratheon capture the throne from the dragon loving Targaryens? All of this would have helped, a short, sweet, yet vital explanation of who is who and what is what.

For television, I was most surprised with the lack of occasional tight framing and the omission of low angles. I expected a POV from Bran, Jon, or Arya's perspective when the King's guard first entered Winterfell, adding a much needed feeling of unease. A few scenes of Arya's close relationship with Jon, a meaningful glance between Eddard's bastard son Jon and himself when they found the direwolves pups. All the loyalty, pain, and ties that are essential to establish for future episodes.

There was none of it.

It's probably too early to judge, most shows take a while to warm up, here's hoping...

Strange and the vivid

Nobody does it better than Japan when it applies to background painting. This exceptional series: Mushishi, created by Artland (spanning 26 episodes) is an animated series based off the manga by Yuki Urushibara. There is also a live-action version directed by Katsuhira Otomo (Akira).

Devoid of violence or nudity, it is still not recommended for children. With eerie and supernatural concepts of reality, the storyline follows Ginko, a Mushi master travelling across the land investigating strange cases involving "mushi"; ghost-like creatures that co-exist in our world. The format is similar to many North American series formats (Sherlock, X-Files, CSI), each episode serves a self-contained dilemma where the protagonist digs beneath the surface, discovering both answers and more questions.

I've recently found a few episodes online:

Episode 1 : The Green Seat

Episode 2: The Light of the Eyelid (this one really can creep out kids)

Episode 3: Tender Horns

Burned

Remember Macgyver? I don't know if it's kosher teaching the public how to steal, rob, swindle, and con people, but done in a very entertaining way I guess it's all right.

Burn Notice has the campy fun feel that suits Bruce Campbell like a glove, and has enough serious moments that it keeps things interesting. If you love Mission Impossible, but tire of the drama, I gotta say... this show delivers the dish quite nicely. I'm curious to see how the spin off, starring Bruce Campbell will turn out. Will he do double time?

Dilute a great dynamic? I hope not. It'll suck royally.

TV pee

What happened to The Mentalist? What is up with the Walking Dead firing all their writers after the first season. Can The Good Wife get even better?

I stick to 2-3 shows per week. I really don't watch anymore than that... after all, shows are usually best during their sophomore seasons after that... it's downhill from there. (Mentalist being the next on my chopping block... talk about losing their edge!)

I'm one of the disloyal watchers. I gave up LOST after they opened the hatch, got bored with X-Files after it became overly obsessed with Alien conspiracies, and dropped Mad Men when it got to the point where... well... not one of the characters are likable.

When the writing goes south and crap just recycles, it's hard to care anymore. Few drama shows can last beyond 5 seasons, and when spin offs are green lit prematurely, it just dilutes a talented show into "yuck".

Next year I'm happy to see yet another slew of fresh faces, and many "film" actors migrating to the small screen.

The BORGIAS : Known as the first crime family, the infamous Borgias mix religion, politics, and greed just the way Shakespeare would've loved it. (Jeremy Irons)

GAME OF THRONES: George R.R. Martin's version of Lord of the Rings + sex + death. No wonder it's HBO. (Sean Bean)

SHERLOCK season 2: I hope Martin Freeman will not be replaced as Watson, since he'll be busy on the HOBBIT. The chemistry between Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) and Martin Freeman (Watson) manages to upstage the recent film duo. Sizzling.