Random Pictures of the Month - Dec.

Well, it's the end of the year and I have some pictures to end the year with.

Oh man... now that is one look I don't want from anyone.

I think Doc Ock needs to get his glasses or meds checked out.

Now this is one Christmas party I won't go to!

Yes, they did meet once. As you can tell, that meeting didn't go well.

TV Talk - Miami Vice

So, I have a confession to make… I am very fond of the 1980’s. You could say I love the 80’s, but I don’t know if I’m that committed. There was awesome music being blasted on the radio waves, there were some great movies, and there were some cool TV shows. While I don’t remember the 80’s on the account that I’m 28, there is one 80’s show I managed to catch up with later on in life: Miami Vice. It was a cop show that detailed the exploits of Miami’s vice squad as they work to catch the drug dealers, the pimps, and the all-around buttheads.

Background

I never watched the show while it was on. I believe I was 3 at the time it was cancelled and I highly doubt my mom would had let watch it anyway. I do remember seeing an ad on TV about getting the show on VHS back in the 90’s. It wasn’t until 2003 where I saw an episode of MV. My mom, dad, and sister went to Oklahoma for a week, so my grandmother and I stayed at my uncle’s house for the week. I’ll say that was a weird couple of weeks. The channel that eventually became Spike TV was showing a week-long marathon of the show and I ended up tuning in.

It would be another few years before I would see any of the show again. I think TV Land did a weekend marathon of the show in 2006 and I tuned in for some of that. In 2010, I saw that Hulu had all (or almost all) of the episodes, so I decided to go through it all. I ended up stopping in the 3^rd season. In 2013, I got Netflix and saw that the show was on there as well. A couple of months ago, I decided to finish from where I left off.  I also own the first season on DVD.

Graphic Novels - Astonishing X-Men Vol. 1 - Gifted

So, what’s so great about Joss Whedon? Is it the fact he’s created shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly? Is it the fact that he’s made awesome characters such as Mal Reynolds and Buffy? Is it the fact that he kicked butt by directing The Avengers in 2012? I think I may have just answered my own questions. Let’s just not mention that movie called Alien Resurrection.

In 2004, Marvel attempted to once again revitalize the X-Men franchise with a small book called Astonishing X-Men. At this time, The X-Men were reeling from the effects of the man known as GRANT MORRISON... yep, that bald man’s been everywhere. Jean Grey had died (spoilers…) and things were once again changing for the “merry” mutants. The book was basically set in its own story and wasn’t really affected by much of the things going on in the Marvel Universe at the time. Whedon (apparently a long-time fan of the team) was the writer. John Cassaday, the artist for books like Planetary, Captain America, and Uncanny Avengers, provided the pencils. This is their first arc: Gifted.

Weird Star Trek Eps. - Sarek aka "The One Where Picard Loses His (Insert word here)!"

I think it's time to look at some really good episodes that have the weirdest moments in them. Today's episode is no exception. "Sarek" comes from TNG's pretty solid 3rd season. It was definitely one of their better seasons and it had some really exceptional episodes. Today's is one of them.

Sarek: I see that you are wearing the traditional Federation skirt again. It looks quite dreadful.

In this episode, the Enterprise has to escort Ambassador Sarek and his entourage to a peace conference. After the negotiations, Sarek will retire. As Sarek is on board, angry emotions begin to spike up at random moments with the crew. After some investigating, Picard and the crew find out that Sarek has contracted a incurable condition called Bendii Syndrome. The condition makes him lose control of his emotions and his the stress of the conference is making his strong emotions latch onto others. In order to help Sarek complete his final negotiation, Picard undergoes a mind meld with Sarek to help him regain control of his emotions. While Sarek is back as his old self and doing the conference, Picard sits in his room heavily burdened by Sarek's strong emotions. After the conference, Sarek and his group leave the ship and head back to Vulcan so Sarek can get treatment.

This episode is one of my favorites from this season and from the show in general. A lot of that has to do with the fact that we have a character from the classic series in a main role here. I think this episode is what cemented my like for the character of Sarek. We see him at his end here and it's pretty sad. He's contracted a disease that's akin to dementia or Alzheimer's. It is also rare to see a Vulcan other than Spock express a lot of emotion. I also enjoyed the crew getting mad at each other. I especially love that fight in 10-Forward.

Picard just saw Kirk's death scene from Star Trek: Into Darkness. I think he disapproves.

The biggest thing about this episode I remember is Picard losing it at the end. It's unexpected and kind of funny especially in the first few seconds. After that, we get to see a side of Sarek that we haven't really seen before. We see him  monologue about growing old and losing control over his emotions. Picard  also mentions the love Sarek isn't/wasn't able to show his two wives and Spock. If only we got a Sybok reference in there... Anyway, it was some great acting from Patrick Stewart. It's definitely an episode to check out and watch.

My Justice League Team

Well, I'm finally at the end of Justice League Month. It's been fun going through all of this. I might do another one next year, I'm not sure yet. For my last post for the themed month, here is my ultimate Justice League team. So if I was Maxwell Lord -- eh, never mind. That guy's a bit of a d-bag. So, if I was a random alien force bent on world destruction/domination -- now that's too threatening. How about this: I'm a random guy who wants to assemble a group of the best heroes. Who would I choose?

1. Superman - It's simple. He's one of the best  heroes and one of the most powerful of the League. He's there on the first sign of trouble and he's not that bad of a leader neither. 
2. Batman - They need the money... as well as a man who is skilled at just about anything. 
3. Wonder Woman - They'll need a woman... a wonderful woman. Her compassion is as strong as her power and she's got an invisible jet! That's cool!
4. The Flash (Wally West) - He's the fastest man alive and he can be pretty funny at times. 
5. Martian Manhunter - J'onn J'onzz is a wise one and he has a lot of varied powers that can be useful.
6. Green Lantern (Any of them Really...) - The Green Lantern has a power ring that can pretty much do anything. Personally, I'd probably go with Stewart, but Rayner's cool. Hal's okay, but that Guy Gardner fellow is definitely not in.
7. Zatanna - She's an awesome magician. The League would need that. She's also pretty cute as well.
8. Cyborg - That's right. As I said before, he would make for a good Leaguer. He's good with machines.
9. Vixen - She can access animal's abilities and use them. She's also pretty cute.
10. Orion - He's a New God and the biological son of Darkseid... yeah, that's all I got.
11. Green Arrow - He's a good version of a loudmouth and he looks cool in a hood.
12. Captain Marvel/Shazam - They'll need a mascot... who is almost as powerful as Superman.

And that ends Justice League Month. I'll take it easy for December and save January for something different. I'll give you a hint with the video below. Peace.