New feed: http://onefinemess.rhinopanda.net/feed/

I’ll be moving everything over to the new site, and I have a back-up as of right now.  Moving further individual comments could be annoying.  Not that I have a rabid horde of commenters, but you dedicated 2 (or 4), hold on to ‘em for a few!

I find it surprising that Hank can keep up with Tony’s flight speed, especially at micro-size.

Splitting the Young Avengers around (see Wiccan in NA 51) is interesting…curious if that will have any effect on their sporadic series.  I think I heard somewhere that the original writer was finally coming back to pen another block – we’ll see.

The Asgard angle comes into play now, and makes some actual and amusing sense.  I’m also thankful that Wanda isn’t really active again, yet.

[Warning: May contain mush and cheese.  Viewers may not want to have full stomachs.]

So right, “duh” right? It changes everyone. This I know, but some of the changes are more interesting, from an internal perspective, than others.

When each of my sons were born, there was a noticeable “cracking” of something internal.  I’d like to think it’s my “reservoir of love” (cheesy as fuck I know, but roll with me here crowning crowd) growing – I never thought I’d have enough to love my family as much as I do.  OK that sounds weird, but I’ll elaborate a little if you can hold your stomachs:

I love my wife more every day.  Seriously.  No BS.  Each day we continue to survive ( ) together the bonds binding me to her grow thicker and tighter.  Every so often I’m like “Seriously?  I can love anyone this much?  How is there room in my heart?”  – and that has continued for years.

Then Z came and I was like “Wow, there’s room to love him immensely as well.”  Truthfully I was kind of surprised, because I’m not sure how that all fits in here.  And now with M…even more.  I look at them and sometimes it’s like I’m exploding; it’s hard to focus on it without being overwhelmed.

Something like an actualization of the old alchemical/Biblical metaphor of the “refiner’s fire”.

As a side effect of that I suspect, I’m much more prone to emotional response in general. This one is a bit more visible as I know Jen has commented on it as well.  I’m much more susceptible to stupid cheese moments with children in movies/tv. NO that doesn’t mean I’ll watch them on purpose, but if I happen to accidentally catch the death/harm/kidnapping/etc. of a child on something I’m more likely to be visibly affected.  This is kind of annoying at times, as most of the tripe really isn’t worth the emotional output.  But you know what – I’m ok with it. No need to be trapped in outdated 50s masculinity metaphors – I can cry and still kick your fucking ass if need be.  Maybe even while I’m crying.  But I’ll also be laughing at you.

What else?

Well, I have more patience that I would have thought humanly possible 10 years ago.  Things that I know would have drove me crazy years ago now just roll off (lack of sleep, son smashing your groin over and over and over and over, kids’ toy & general messes,  lack of free time, various marital scuffles, etc.).  Not to say I don’t get annoyed or bitchy – because the stress level has ratcheted up pretty damn high as well, but I can notice the difference internally at least.

My pain tolerance seems to have gone up as well, but I suspect that’s a side effect of the patience – or maybe just repeated injury.

I can sleep in stranger places.  Chairs, weird angles on couches.  Floors (true – sometimes I have to lay down on the floor next to Z’s crib to get him to go to sleep & I have to be careful not to get stuck in there for more than a few minutes or I’m likely to be gone as well).  When I catch myself falling asleep mid-word while reading to Z  I have to crack up a little.

Mostly it’s the love that amazes me though.  What will 3 or 4 children be like?  Equally incomprehensible I suspect.  Maybe we’ll find out.

They let Pixie just fly off into Limbo then just fucking left her there???????  While making a speech to Illyana about not leaving people behind???

MMMMM KAY.

Srsly.  Who edits the editors?

1. We lose two decent characters – both get good ending.
2. We didn’t have to sit through any Claire-angst.
3. Hiro gets a portion of his powers back in a decent manner (now he and Peter are both manageable and Sylar is left as a godpowerful bogeyman again…hopefully he dies next season!  I suspect he’ll make it through his self titled season finale…)
4. A missing favorite returns, although still wet behind the ears.  No one will be surprised by Rebel’s identity.  There was no one else it could be.
5. Ando shoots some dude – with lightning!
6. Baby Parkman…heh.  Lone Wolf and Cub I guess.

Can Bryan Fuller and Greg Yaitanes do all the episodes please?

You know, the one where “Phoenix” lives up to her name?

Or at least that’s how they’re soliciting it.  The fact that it’s so blatant makes me wonder/hope it’s a red herring.  Since it’s an arc involved Madelyne Pryor…could be something else.

We travel all these miles to get Scott & Emma somewhere interesting, then they throw in all these secrets with the X-Force/Dark Reign Cabal crap…and now Jean’s back huh?  Well.  It *could* be good.  But, you know, I have this sinking feeling about creeping status quo returns.

I’m hoping she’s a villain this time around.  The cover kind of has that look to it (besides being a little ugly) – that would at least be an interesting take on it (again).

PS:  Jean, your nipples called – they don’t understand how they’re cold in all those flames.

[Edit: OH.  It's a Greg Land cover.  No wonder.  *barfs in mouth*]

It’s an interesting read although my (obviously American-influenced) mind thinks the writer is taking some things a little too seriously.  Springsteen performing at the Superbowl half time didn’t mean anything to me – it’s one of the pinnacles of financial success in musicianship in this country (sadly or not) – why wouldn’t he?  Sure, I would have respected him more if he’d turned it down, but I certainly don’t respect him less for doing it.  Although I didn’t see the show…maybe he did something really goofy?

Plus, hopefully it exposed some folks who might not have been otherwise exposed to his music to his message – which if you check out the Magic album still seems to line up with themes presented in Born in the USA.

Be sure to check out some audio/video for the song on an older post I made about the album itself here.

Case in point: Heroes.  Obama agrees to internment camps for powered people.  AS HE’S SHUTTING DOWN GUANTANAMO.  And going against prettttty much everything he ran on.  The publicity shitstorm this would kick up  would be insane.   Yes I know people don’t know about the powered people in that universe…but people would find out about camps & a new gov’t agency pretty quick, even if they didn’t know what it was for – and he wouldn’t be stupid enough (at least I don’t think he would) to authorize something that would ruin his chances at a second term.

Case in point: Thunderbolts. Obama allows a semi-reformed murderer/corporate criminal to run a huge government security agency (think FBI).  There would be hearings, or something.  I don’t care if he shot a bad guy and everyone loves him – no one cares about war heroes like that anymore.  Not that no one cares, but being a war hero doesn’t grant you an automatic pass.  He’d still have the media buried so far up his ass he would never make it to an appointment.
YES YES I KNOW THESE ARE FICTIONAL WORLDS.

My point is that writers really haven’t come to terms with writing an intelligent president yet.  You can’t write him like Bush, with every George, Dick & Cheney pulling the wool over his eyes.  When you’re trying to make your reality look like ours, writing Obama at 50% intelligence is a hard shock out of the disbelief I’m trying to suspend.  Flying people – sure.  Obama authorizing a second Guantanamo?  Wahuhu???  (OK maybe he will later, who knows, but the point is, at the current political juncture – uh uh).

Plot thread necro from the Madrox limited series!

Buy this book.