Maybe one of these decades he'll actually give it to the people.

Stop likening your struggle to the Civil Rights movement. It demeans this country's moral journey.

Reuters story here.

I don't know if this is a bad thing. I don't know if it's a good thing, either. I mean, isn't every person different? Who am I to extend my definition of vacation to some venture capitalist trying to get his first thing off the ground while also trying to spend time with his kids? It's all relative.

I do think, though, that one reason Americans work all the time might be that Americans enjoy their professions more than people in other countries. That is to say, in this land of capitalism and start-ups and 24-year-old USC grads building their own production companies, it's far easier than anywhere else to make your living doing something you love.

Space Age junkies think we should celebrate the first moon landing as a holiday. It's hokey, but sensible considering all the other stupid shit we celebrate.

Oooh, looky, the title totally makes sense now! Go read page 7.

While you're doing that, I'll be in San Diego, sleepy as hell and pitching the Hand. Wish me luck!

Oooh, looky, the title totally makes sense now! Go read page 7.

While you're doing that, I'll be in San Diego, sleepy as hell and pitching the Hand. Wish me luck!

Yesterday, Asa and I enjoyed marvelous soda-pop in marvelous glass bottles. Here's a blog post/article about CA and LA's efforts to ban glass bottled Mexican Coca-Cola because of slightly elevated lead levels found in its paint.

What do we think of this Batman costume?

I just realized that Israel's Prime Minister really needs to use the following line in his next speech.

I will not sacrifice [Israel]. We've made too many compromises already; too many retreats. They invade our space and we fall back. They assimilate entire worlds and we fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And *I* will make them pay for what they've done.

Tangential thought: Could you imagine how strong the Trek movie franchise would be if all TNG movies were as kick-ass as First Contact?

Remember when I said I was reworking the Hand to submit to a contest? Well I made the first round of cuts, which means that next Thursday I go to pitch in front Platinum Studios. 2 minutes of pitch and 3 minutes of Q and A. Fast and furious, and I'll have to practice a lot. But I have faith. The Hand is, after all, incredibly great (just like Alex and I).

Check out the page here.

Read it. Good for the bones.

The post too perfect for us not to repost here... Matt Yglesias presents The Green Lantern Theory of Geopolitics!

Duncan has made his choice, and it's all downhill from here. Big fun! Well, not really. This is about the least fun story I've ever written.

Plus, check out the preview page for the new and improved version of the Hand we've been working on to submit to the Platinum Studios Contest. It looks pretty sweet if I do say so myself.

Okay, while there was not a ton of hilarity in SR, I did completely forget to mention that scene where Cyclops is talking about Clark perhaps being Superman and Lois mentions Superman's super-hearing. Then they pull out to reveal Clark listening to them. But when Cyclops and Lois look up at him, Clark has to act like he's not really listening, and so he has this really goofy look on his face.

Anyway, SR needed more moments like that.

Okay, I saw SR. I found it to be very good. I enjoyed it about the level I enjoy the Spider-Man movies (which is funny, considering both Spider-Man movies are essentially just Superman movies. God damn, it makes me mad that a generation of kids are growing up thinking that Spider-Man always reveals his outfit by running and ripping open his shirt, the MJ loves Spidey and thinks Peter's a big dork, and that Harry Osbourne and Spidey have a total Lex/Clark relationship. Bah!)

Like Asa, I bristle at the fact that Superman only lifts stuff. And that his power seems to change. At one point, he struggles to balance a 777; at another he thinks nothing of lifting a continent out of the water and throwing it - at escape velocity, mind you - into deep space. Oh, and he does the latter with a small piece of Kryptonite in him.

I did not enjoy Kate Bosworth at all. Superman needs a woman, not a girl. Plus, she's just not attractive enough to be Lois Lane (although this is probably just a matter of personal taste).

Spacey's Lex was okay. It wasn't really Lex, though, just Hackman's Lex. And he's still acting like a goddamn corrupt real estate mogul. Boooooring.

I loved Routh as Clark/Lex. Granted, he was just re-creating Reeve, but Reeve's performance was the cat's pajamas, so I can't be mad about that.

If anything, Routh was limited (as Asa pointed out) by the stupid super mopyness of the script's themes and tone. (Why the hell was the New Continent climax so damn gray and lifeless! This isn't Batman or X-Men. This is SUPERMAN. I want bright colors, high technology, and people smiling.)

I also didn't care much for the editing. There was too much "back and forth" as I like to say. Superman gets kryptonite in him and he falls in the ocean. Then he gets the kryptonite out and flies into space, whereupon the kryptonite is once again in him, and he falls to Earth sick again. Also, in the middle of all this Lois and Cyclops have arrived, left, and returned.

I guess Superman Returns is more a tribute to Donner's Superman than the actual Superman mythos. If I'm grading it only on how well it continues Donner's movies, it gets an A+. Excellent use of Brando, the old credits (I did love the whole opening), the spaceship, the farm, the sly references to Superman I and II. Now Superman movies are an actual series with tons of continuity behind them. Awesome!

On the other hand, all that continuity also hinders the new Singer films because some Donner continuity really sucks. Stupid crystal Krypton stuff, the whole "Superman can fly in space!" thing, the characterization of Lex, and so on.

So, as a Superman movie, it's a B. As a continuation of Donner's films, it's an A+. But I don't know if I ever wanted/needed to give that A+ out in the first place.

Extra Stuff

Because I like my Superman stories big and mythological, I didn't mind the Super Jesus bits. I

I also didn't see any of the "Superman is gay!" hysteria. And who the hell cares anyways. I love Smallville and that's gayer than anal sex.

Brandon Routh looks positively massive sometimes as Superman. Other times... not so much.

Note to Hollywood: Stop giving us little kids with shitty, shaggy 1970s hairdos. It's stupid, unrealistic, and distracting.

As I found with Batman Begins, there's a dearth of quotable dialog in these new DC films. The line I liked best was when Superman does his little "flying is still the safest form of travel" bit. And that's from the first film!

Also, because Superman was mopey and depressed, we didn't get enough Super Cockiness. I love that bit in the first one when he catches Lois falling from the chopper and she says "You've got me, who's got you?!" and Chris Reeve just smiles this cocky, "I'm Superman, bitch" smile. Or when he says, "Peter Pan flew with children in a fairy tale. This is real." Similarly, in TAS, there's a part where a thug tries to hit Superman with a baseball bat and Superman turns around, shakes his head, and says, "You're kidding, right?" He then throws the bat into orbit.

And finally...

I'm sick and tired of hearing about how Superman is Bryan Singer's "dream project." Bryan Singer had never even heard of the X-Men until he got that gig. I don't believe for a second that he's some big, lifelong Superman fan.