A Klingon, A Ferengi, A Hologram, and YOU!

[PKTrekGirl]

Well, don't worry about it. I don't need to talk about Firefly in there in any event. Actually, I *prefer* a small environment with my buddies like this - you, BigFoot, kevsthaman are all the discussion partners I need anyway!

Plus, I think you guys know me and know where I'm coming from a bit more. You know me well enough to know that when I say "I liked the show alot and think it has alot of potential...BUT ______"...you know I'm *not* trashing the show, but am just making an observation from my POV. And that I *really did* like the show.

I don't know...I've never been much of a bandwagaon hopper, I guess. I DID like the show....and I DO think it has alot of potential. But based on only 14 episodes, I just can't get as wildly excited about it as some. Not yet, anyway. If it gets another season, and that season is great, THEN you might see me be as big a gusher as I am about Babylon 5 or Buffy or Farscape. But at this point, all I can REALLY say is that it was a show with *alot* of potential...and that it was cancelled WAY too soon to tell if it was gonna be fantastic or not.

 

[BigFoot]

^ Here's the thing. If someone said that they like a certain show (for instance Firefly), but aren't crazy about it, that's fine with me. I don't even mind it if people trash a show, as long as they're willing to provide some more reasoning for it. What pisses me off in general is people that say they hate a show, for instance Firefly or DS9, and then say they've seen like two episodes of it. No offense, but you've got no right to criticise a show. On the other hand, if someone that's watched all of DS9 says they prefer TNG for whatever reason, maybe they like the characters better or whatever, that's fine with me.
Anyway...I'm really just saying stuff we already know, so I'm gonna stop rambling and go back to studying for my finals.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

Well...I competely agree with that, BigFoot.

Trashing something you have never, or barely seen is really not fair. I never liked it when it happened in the Farscape threads, I don't really like it when it happens in here...and I don't blame you guys for not liking it in the Firefly threads either.

But the thing is...I never said I DIDN'T like it. In fact, I said the exact opposite. I DO like it. But I'm just not ready to jump on the bandwagon yet. Not after only 14 episodes.

And I HAVE seen all the episodes.

Anyway...I really hope you guys understand where I'm coming from....

But if that makes me a "heretic"...well...whatever.

 

[BigFoot]

^ No no no, I hope you didn't get me wrong. I wasn't saying you were one of those people that diss something without even giving it a good chance. I know you've watched Firefly and I know you liked it. Just cause you don't love it, well who course. I don't think any less of you cause of it and it would be very petty and stupid of me to do so.
I was just saying that people that do NOT give a TV show a chance and then diss it really piss me off. Honestly, even if you said you hated Firefly, I'd be cool with it. You've seen the whole show, so you have the right to bash it.

 

[kevsthaman]

Man, when y'all get rolling about a topic, you really get rolling Well, without going into too much rehashing, I agree with ya Vash, on many levels. Guess that's what makes us sibling-ish. Honestly, I can't fault anyone for what programming they like or dislike. As you've probably seen with my comments toward different shows (hope I haven't been too harsh ), if I decide after viewing a show a few times that I'm not interested, I'm not giving it more times to "prove" anything to me. I won't trash it or anyone else who likes it, but sometimes I just decide it's not for me.

Somtimes, though, I will give stuff a second chance. For example, I'm definitely catching B5, Stargate, and Farscape again sometime. I think those were ones I would've liked, but my interests were elsewhere and I really don't keep up well with many shows at one time. My motivation for wanting to see those shows again has really come from the recommendation of folks on this board who I have lots of respect for (Vash, BigFoot, some others). I haven't decided to extend the same courtesy to Buffy & Angel yet, but that may be simply because my plate's full with the other three potentials

Anyway, I have also been ignored many times in posts. It really bugs me when I've made a post that I think is unique and (gasp) actually thought out, and I get NO RESPONSE. So I feel ya, Vash, it's sometimes not worth it to get involved. But like Sakrysta says, don't hold those folks in disgust. At least we still have each other on this quaint little board of DS9 and our quaint little thread at Quark's

 

[BigFoot]

Posted by kevsthaman:
Somtimes, though, I will give stuff a second chance. For example, I'm definitely catching B5, Stargate, and Farscape again sometime. I think those were ones I would've liked, but my interests were elsewhere and I really don't keep up well with many shows at one time. My motivation for wanting to see those shows again has really come from the recommendation of folks on this board who I have lots of respect for (Vash, BigFoot, some others). I haven't decided to extend the same courtesy to Buffy & Angel yet, but that may be simply because my plate's full with the other three potentials

Thanx man. B5 and Stargate are definately shows that need a bit of time to get really good. But hey, some people that love DS9 say the same thing about it. While I find S1 pretty good, it wasn't as great as the rest of the show. The same goes for both B5, Stargate and Buffy. But yeah, you really should check out those shows at some point. Angel on the other hand was good from the start, the thing is I strongly recommend that you'd watch Buffy first and then Angel. It's a more enjoyable experience. Anyway, every time we bring up this discussion I tell you how great all of these shows are, so I'm gonna stop that now.

They really are great though.

 

[kevsthaman]

So, I get the feeling you think those shows are really great??

Y'know, lots of folks gushing about shows can turn people off to them too. Like they get high expectations and get let down. Eh, it happens. One of these days, I'm gonna restart my NetFlix membership and start renting all those shows. Could be worth it.

On another note, I just got a free membership renewal to Replay. And I had like 8700 pts when my old membership ended, so they automatically bumped my balance up to 10,000 for a $5 certificate. Wow! I think membership is only $7, but I didn't see myself buying nearly as much as I did last year ($700 on videos in a year is pretty unprecedented for me!), so no need to renew. But hey, can't turn away free

 

[eastman23]

Posted by kevsthaman:
Y'know, lots of folks gushing about shows can turn people off to them too. Like they get high expectations and get let down. Eh, it happens. One of these days, I'm gonna restart my NetFlix membership and start renting all those shows. Could be worth it.

It is, believe me. I used a free trial (and extension because they screwed up at the start) from a Canadian version of it and managed to watch the first 4 discs of season 1. I'm still hunting around for the entire box set in stores so I can keep watching.

And chances are I wouldn't have started watching B5 if it wasn't for Vash and BigFoot praising it so much.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

Posted by kevsthaman:
Y'know, lots of folks gushing about shows can turn people off to them too. Like they get high expectations and get let down.

You know, I can't help wondering if this is partially what happened to me with Firefly. I mean, it's a good show and all....but after all this tremendous buildup (for a while there, they may as well have renamed the SFF forum to the Firefly Fourm! ) I thought it was gonna be the most incredibly perfect show to ever hit TV. And when it was merely "good, with alot of potential to be great", I was a bit disappointed!

I don't know...I think I just read too much buildup or something...

 

[BigFoot]

Posted by kevsthaman:
So, I get the feeling you think those shows are really great??

They're alright.

 

[kevsthaman]

Posted by Steven:
It is, believe me. I used a free trial (and extension because they screwed up at the start) from a Canadian version of it and managed to watch the first 4 discs of season 1. I'm still hunting around for the entire box set in stores so I can keep watching.

I've had it before, so I know the beauty of it. It's probably better now since there are plenty of distribution centers (I think there were only 1 or 2 when I joined). I wish I could get my old deal - 4 holdings at a time for $15.95 (later $19.95). Oh well, I'm sure I'll be back soon enough.

Posted by Vash:
I don't know...I think I just read too much buildup or something...

Yeah, probably. Kinda kills it sometimes. That's why I'm starting to shy from spoilers (especially about Serenity, I want to be totally surprised). I don't want my expectations too high that the final product can't live up to them.

These Replay folks keep calling me!!! Today, they left a message about triple points days this weekend. They sure seem pretty desperate

 

[BigFoot]

Well after weeks of convincing, I finally got my g/f to watch probably my favourite episode of Stargate today. So yeah, we just finished watching Window of Opportunity and she absolutely loved it.

 

[Montresor]

Posted by BigFoot:
Well after weeks of convincing, I finally got my g/f to watch probably my favourite episode of Stargate today. So yeah, we just finished watching Window of Opportunity and she absolutely loved it.

Great episode indeed!

"You are not the only one who has suffered discomfort, O'Neill." (Wham, wham, wham, wham, etc.)

 

[BigFoot]

Well, today has been a good day. First I managed to sell a couple of my school books that I won't be needing again, so I made $65 CDN on that. And then I had my last final which went well, so I should have an A in that course. I've already received the marks for all my other finals. I did pretty good, the worst I'm gonna have in any of the courses is a B. I got 91% on the comp235 final which I was actually worried about before I took the test. But now I should have an A in that class.

Anyway... cos of the fact that I'm done with school for three months and cos I got the cash for my books, I decided me and my g/f are gonna go see a movie tonight. We decided we're gonna go see Troy, so I'll finally be able to post my two cents about it tomorrow.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

I went to the movies this afternoon. My sister and I saw The Day After Tomorrow.

The special effects where pretty good...but there were *alot* of mistakes in it related to cold weather survival. And as a long-time Alaskan, that kinda annoyed me....mainly cus they were avoidable mistakes.

But anyway...the story was pretty decent, and the effects *were* cool...so I'm not complaining.

 

[eastman23]

/\ Really? What did they do wrong?

Anyways, today was an okay day until I got the mail. Didn't get my rebate for the DVD's. Instead I got a card saying because you put a Post Office box instead of street address we won't honour your rebate. But apparently I can send the card back with my street address and they'll give me my rebate.

Thing is, I put my mailing address, which happens to be a post office box, not my street address.

 

[kevsthaman]

^Yeah, they're sticklers about that street address. I think they want to market us or sell the list to others who want to market to us. Anyways....

Posted by Vash:
...but there were *alot* of mistakes in it related to cold weather survival. And as a long-time Alaskan, that kinda annoyed me....mainly cus they were avoidable mistakes.

I forgot you were a native Alaskan. Do tell us about 1-2 of those inconsistencies. I think movies like that are really a showcase of how well they can pull of special effects and get people out to see a big popcorn movie. I doubt it'll be part of many people's DVD collections. Well, not mine anyway

 

[PKTrekGirl]

Well, first of all, dad could *never* have made it from Washington DC to New York in a storm that bad. NO WAY. And I don't care how much of a survivalist he was...

Most folks who die on mountains like Everest and Denali do not die from falls and stuff like that. They die because they get trapped in storms and get lost and/or freeze to death. And these are mountaineers who are much heartier, who are working on the relatively confined space of a single mountain (not an area the size of a couple of states to cross!) and who are used to doing intense physical work under extreme conditions approximating those implied in the film. The fact that he could even FIND New York in a storm that bad when all the roads and landmarks were destroyed, the terrain was buried in several feet of new snow, the wind was blowing snow that badly, and there was debris (oftentimes dangerous debris) everywhere is unlikely, without getting himself killed thru accident or hypothermia.

Second....the kid. His clothes were not nearly warm enough to have made it. Especially thru the end of that scene where they are raiding the ship for supplies and get back inside that room in the library just in time. I mean think about it: he was running from COLD????? Those cracks on the library floor were the result of cold and regardless, they would still take a minute to form, even if the temperature was dropping very quickly. The fact that he was one step ahead of the cracks indicates that the air above the cracks was already cold enough to incapacitate him. And had been for some minutes, given the wimpy clothes he was wearing. I mean, if marble cracks like that at -150 degrees (I don't know at what temp it would crack...I'm just using this as an example), then in the moments before, it would have have to have been *at least* in the -140's. It's not like it dropped from 20 degrees to -150 degrees in 2 seconds. And that kid wasn't even dressed for 20 degrees ABOVE zero...let alone -20, -40, -70 -100 -120, or -140....all of which he would have had to pass on the way down to a temperature where marble would crack.

I've been in -45 degrees (not counting in a wind chill factor)...and lemme tell you folks...THAT is pretty doggone nippy. In a full-length cashmere coat, heavy sweater, turtle neck and undershirt, gloves with mittens over them, heavy slacks and long underwear, 2 paris of wool socks and snowboots, hat and scarf, I remember being so cold that I could barely reach out my arm to put the key in the ignition of my car, and was shivering quite alot. Guys on the North Slope of Alaska who work in -70 degrees routinely work 10 minutes outside in *extremely* heavy cold-weather gear (special parkas, bunny boots, special gloves, etc)...and then they come in for 1/2 hour to get warm. Then they go back out for another 10 minutes. No way that kids' clothes were warm enough to keep him mobile during the minutes before the temperature was low enough to make marble crack.

Those are two of the most glaring examples.

But it was still a good movie. I enjoyed it alot, actually.

 

[BigFoot]

^ Well, I haven't seen the movie yet, but you're definately right about the temperature most likely killing the kid. It can get pretty cold back home sometimes in the winter, even as low as -40 C and it definately isn't fun. Like you said, you're damn cold at that temperature even if you're dressed for it.

Anyway...Troy.
First of all, I liked it. It wasn't great, but I liked it, quite a lot actually. It could have been 20 or so minutes shorter though. The effects were great, for the most part. There were a couple of times when they were a little too obvious. One thing I have to say though, IMO Eric Bana totally stole the movie. Every scene he was in, he was just absolutely amazing. I liked him in The Hulk (didn't care much for the movie), but here he was even better. Brad Pitt did a good job too, so did most of the other actors. Orlando was pretty decent, but Diane Kruger was just...well, bad doesn't quite cover it. I don't know why, but I thought she was just awful. I was pleasantly surprised by the actress that played Polydora (Siri Svegler), and was it just me, or did she look a lot like Jessica Alba? It was also nice to see Saffron Burrows (Hector's wife Andromache) again. I don't really have to say that much about the movie itself. It was pretty much what I expected. But hey, that doesn't mean I didn't have fun.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

^ BigFoot, I feel much the same way as you do about Troy. I agree about Eric Bana - he was by far the show stealer, IMO. Peter O'Toole did an excellent job as well, IMO.

I thought Orlando was good...but his character was such a WEENIE until the very end...when he became Legolas. Then he was much better!

I'm not a huge Brad Pitt fan...but he turned in a pretty good performace, I thought.

I thought the movie was too long also. They spent WAY too much time on the battles. I mean, there were three or four of them, right? And they were all quite long. By the last one, I was WAY done with the whole blood & guts thing.

I don't know...it was a decent enough movie. And I'll prolly buy the DVD - although mainly for the Orlando factor. But with just a few things done differently, it could have been spectacular.