Pork & Beans Music Vidja

Here's the music video to Weezer's single, Pork & Beans. As RoboRoommate v.2 said, it makes the song better. Which is true. Because the video is great. The song is, sadly, still mediocre. 

Here's to hoping the rest of the album is better (but with equally as cool music vids).

-RoboNixon

Baby Be Gone!

Girls: Always complaining that you have to take the brunt of anti-baby procedures? Annoyed with consuming pills everyday? Or getting shots? Or sticking doodads in the hoozit with the watchit? Well, the end of your suffering may be near! Popular Science has a slideshow detailing four new ways to prevent the Male End of the baby spectrum from affecting your life. Male Contraception... close... But a pipe dream for now...

Put the Dude's Thingie on the Chopping Block.

-RoboNixon

Weird Science?

Two cool articles:

First up, a piece from wired.com about how buying that brand new Prius may not be the best carbon-offset-car-purchase you could make. Rather, they suggest buying old used cars that get decent gas mileage. Ch-ch-ch-check it. 

...the point is, you don't need to buy a Prius -- or any other hybrid, for that matter -- to get great fuel economy and minimize your carbon footprint. You might feel better driving a hybrid, but you won't necessarily be greener.

Also up at bat is a piece on what I've been calling the Post-College Malaise -- that feeling you get when you're out of school, excited to go out and DO something and then it hits you -- the real world fucking sucks. But hey! It's natural. Or so says this stub over at Popular Science.

The longitudinal study tracked the life circumstances and mental health symptoms of nearly 600 University of Alberta graduates for 7 years. The researchers learned that the elevated levels of depression and anger customary of “emerging adults” significantly declined over the 7-year period.

The results, say the authors in the paper, “suggest a growing psychosocial maturity on the part of young people that is adaptive.” Basically, one gets used to the rat race.

Get used to the rat-race... or get used to being a rat? YEESH!

-RoboNixon

The Dandy Warhols Flip Off Labels

So take a look at this. The Dandy Warhols have forsaken record labels in favor of distributing their own music, but not necessarily in the way you would suspect. No, in fact, it goes far beyond "whatever-you-want" pricing that Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails have used recently, to something more dynamic: Subscription service.

For $35 a year, you can subscribe to The Dandy Warhols. What does this mean? Well, let me make a list of what you get:

--The latest album, ...Earth to The Dandy Warhols..., available immediately as a download.

--The latest album is then sent to you as a packaged CD album in the mail, along with " a limited edition silkscreen poster created just for us by our friends, The Christopher Twins."

--10% off all merch on their website.

--Free B-sides, live tracks, and videos to DL whenever you want.

--Pre-sale ticket access to (US) shows.

And, as they say on their website, with all of this you can " Listen to them on your computer, your iPod, burn them to a disc, throw it in the garbage - whatever you want."

The entire album is up for streaming, so you can, in fact, LISTEN to the album before you decide to purchase or subscribe. Which is smart. And as a huge Dandy Warhols fans, this isn't such a bad deal. I'd spend probably $15 on the album anyway, and with the addition of the poster, that probably brings the total up to $22 (ish). 10% off merch in the store would probably save me an additional $3-5 a year, so we're up to $27. getting tickets before they sell out? That's priceless. And free B-sides and live tracks? I think that's worth notching the total amount to $35. So essentially, it's prepaying for what you would, as a big fan, pay anyway.

Alternatively, if you are NOT a huge fan, this deal is unappetizing. While I am of the belief the album is being self-released to record stores, this deal is not a particular boon for casual fans, or new fans. So what does this do?

Well, it limits music as a sort of mass pop-art form. Were every band to go this route, music would become much more stylized to the particular preferences of an individual. And at $35 a year, how many different bands would you subscribe to? Music no longer becomes mainsteam, and instead becomes niche. Which isn't a bad thing, but, at the same time, is hard to analyze because it's so contrary to the current system. 

So am I going to subscribe to The Dandy Warhols? I don't know. I honestly don't. Because I love the band, but... really... is this the future? Do I really want to spend this much money? Is it worth the time and the effort (even though it is essentially effortless)? This system brings up all sorts of questions. And it's something I'm going to have to think about before I take the plunge, regardless of the fact that I cerebrally support it.

Anyway, there's a lot that this brings up. Thoughts? Comments? What bands would you subscribe to. What bands would you stop listening to if this were the only way to get their music? 

-RoboNixon

Women and Sci-Fi

io9 has a great editorial up about the strange interactions between women and sci-fi. There is a popular public perception that sci-fi is exclusively the realm of nerdy (typically young) men, and that women sci-fi fans are not only few and far between -- but weird! Ewwww... GIRLS! 

Now, I don't mean to say that this problem is, you know, like a major WORLD EVENT that needs changing. But it is a bummer. Here's some of what io9 has to say:

If there's something keeping women away from enjoying science fiction, it's not spaceships. It's not "aliens on some far-off planet." It's the fact that people on our very own planet keep telling us that women aren't supposed to like science fiction. It's a self-confirming prophesy, because the more that scifi creators are told this, the more they imagine that their audience is all boys. So they write rich, believable male characters and boring, cookie-cutter lady characters. They organize conventions with panels devoted to shit like "the hottest women of science fiction" and nothing devoted to female heroes — or the kinds of hotties that straight women might want to see (i.e., men).

I totally agree that it is a self-fulfilling problem. But it gets better: 

Women who do love science fiction see all this going down, and they are ashamed to admit that they like science fiction. I'm not saying this happens to all of us, but many women wind up assuming that there's something wrong with them for liking SF. After all, everybody keeps telling them that SF is for boys, and the only reason why women would like it is if the definition of SF is "expanded" to include magic and romance. (Nothing against magic and romance, mind you — it's just not typical of SF.)

I agree again. It's like the only "sci-fi" that women are "supposed" to like is fantasy and magic. RoboGirlfriend is an example -- she loves fantasy stuff, but I had to drag her kicking and screaming over to Battlestar Galactica -- a show she's just as into at this stage as I am. It's a cultural stereotype, like girls must like pink, and guys must dig football, that each gender reinforces on their own to fulfill some sort of social norm. But guess what? Not all dudes love football. Not all women like pink. A lot of women like football, and a lot of dudes (RoboNixon included) wear pink. Just because it's the standard doesn't mean it has to be the norm. It doesn't mean that the pattern can't be broken. But here's the kicker: 

Women love tons of science fiction, regardless of how many boys are main characters, because they like good stories as much as the next guy.

And that's what it comes down to. Battlestar Galactica works for men and women because it's a dynamic, well told story. And it doesn't hurt that it's filled with a dynamic range of intriguing, well drawn females. Star Wars' Princess Leia is more badass than Luke (I would argue), and while she certainly gets her fair share of "being saved" she also fucking kills Jabba the Hutt. On her own. In a golden bikini.

LOST is a great example of the mainstreamification of sci-fi for everyone. Strong characters are both male and female without skimping on the traits of either gender. Jack is the masculine leader, but Juliet and Kate are also bad ass and driven. Sawyer's typically whining, and Rousseau (RIP) was crazy-jungle person. Not only that, but it uses sci-fi in a non-conventional way. It's like saying you're taking your date to the "theater" only to bring them to a cabaret -- yeah, you know, it's theater, but it's not exactly what you were expecting. LOST is an adventure show... that, like the cabaret, is something different, simultaneously.

Hell, dudes who like sci-fi like chicks who like sci-fi, because it's one more thing to have in common, to share together. RoboGirlfriend and I watch BSG together, as well as LOST. And we jointly nerd out over them (though I'm sure she'd protest that we never "nerd-out" about anything). Sci-Fi, like any genre, should be the realm of men and women. 

Otherwise, we're all missing out.

Check out the original editorial. It says it much better than I ever could.

-RoboNixon

Just Can't Get Enough

io9 reports that more BSG "movies" may be coming to a TV screen near you.

Chicago Tribune columnist Maureen Ryan, who's connected with the BSG producers, has confirmed the rumors from last week that BSG will be making more TV movies. But Ryan's insider sources only have "cautious optimism" about whether the films will happen.

This is on the heels of a report made last week, in which io9 asks for, please, dear Cylon Lord, no more!

I have to agree. Razor blew. Sorry Razor fans. But it sucked. Flashbacks within flashbacks? Crazy confusing narrative structure? Protagonist we care nothing about? The addition of more whacky mythology in a show BUSTING AT THE SEAMS with whacky mythology? Plz, 4 rlz, Ron Moore, nada mas.

-RoboNixon

Gaeta Won't Shut Up, and Other Events

"Guess What's Coming to Dinner"

This past Friday's episode of Battlestar Galactica managed to do something I didn't know was quite possible -- be totally awesome, and totally annoying, entirely at the same time. 

So we start out with Lee berating Roslin for not confirming whether or not she is sharing visions with some of the Cylons. Like it matters. Isn't this like the First Wife seeing a psychic and seances? That is, entirely irrelevant? But I guess Lee's mostly-out-of-the-picture, now that he's an elected official (like in real life!), and they need to bring him in somehow. I think without a clear goal, Lee's become much less interesting. Where is he headed? What is he up to? Whining to Roslin about BS is... well, BS.

But then we get the Basestar jumping into the fleet without the Demetrius in a case of what I like to call Sci-Fi Convenience -- problems with the FTL aren't set up, but because it's "crazy technology" we don't know about, we just kind of go with the flow. OK. Alright. Lame. But whatever. Loved that Tigh saved the day and then is terrified he saved the day -- he had no good reason to know what he did, and is a little scared that maybe... just maybe... he isn't really the same man he always was. Duh! Dude, you're a Cylon! Get with it, holmes.

When Cylon Six Natalie sits down for her pow-wow with Roslin, Adama 'n Co. (Tory + Tigh) is a scene I was pretty excited for, and it delivered. I wish we had more Adama recently, but him being skeptical is nice whenever we get to see it. Loved the look on Tigh and Tory's faces. Though I do think that again this episode falls victim to Sci-Fi Convenience -- oh, there's a resurrection hub? We can make sure none of the Cylons can ever again DL into new bodies? Wow. Wouldn't that have been good information to know, like, you know, at any point previous to this. Contrivance? Perchance. 

Then it happens. The worst part of the episode, and the thing that led to the episode being awesome/dicey simultaneously. But as great as my write-ups are... I cannot beat i09's description of The Lameness: 

What I haven't been telling you about this episode is that Gaeta keeps singing. I don't want to think about it, because Gaeta was totally my boyfriend until Friday — he was the cutest person on Galactica by far, and he's always doing geeky things like looking at maps and computers and making comments like, "We can't use our FTL because the wazzleblorp needs the most recent software patches from the zompleflip." So hot. But in this episode, Doc Coddle has to chop his leg off. Remember how Anders shot Gaeta during the mutiny? Yeah, Gaeta is now a one-leg, and apparently there is no prosthetic technology to fix him up.

According to a shell-shocked looking Anders, who spends the whole episode working the bug-eyed stare, Gaeta sings every time he feels his phantom limb. Apparently he feels it a LOT. And his songs sound like something the dude from The Decemberists would sing if he had been hit on the head with a two-by-four and a dog had chewed on his vocal chords. I say this with great sadness, since I love The Decemberists and Gaeta was my boyfriend and all. But seriously, every time he started singing, I wanted to bitchslap my TV set and every writer ever involved with BSG. And maybe every TV that has ever tuned BSG too.

Back to non-Lameness: It's totally awesome that such great efforts are put into securing the Final Five -- because they clearly know the way to Earth (yeesh!). Wouldn't the Final Four (that we know) just save everyone a heck-of-a-lot of effort (and probably many, many lives) if they just came out and said, "Hey! Hey e'rybody! We're the Final Five. Crazy, yes, we admit that. Evil? Nay. Confused? Definitely. Knowledgeable in the way to Earth? Definitely not. So maybe we should sit down and, you know, examine more maps or sumpin'." Or isn't there a line they can drop an anonymous tip into?

Roslin calling out Tory on her Baltar-boning ways? Nice. Roslin is pissed, maybe because she's starting to feel the tug of his One-God too. Or maybe she just thinks it's super-sexy time for Madame President and the Hugh Hefner of the Lord.

Why does Roslin hate her government so much? For someone who puts so much weight on her position as President (and savior of man-kind) she has an awful lot of resentment towards other elected officials. Shall we look back to the end of season 1, when Adama arrests Roslin and takes over control of the government? Well, this Roslin is just as bad as that Adama. Neither of them cares for or respects the law. Which is an unfortunate reflection upon the current state of affairs in the world... and leaders who believe they are doing right... and, in fact, doing wrong.

Hera should be airlocked. I mean, that kid is clearly the anti-christ, so I don't know why they don't just shoot her into the vacuum, ASAP. If I had a child who woke me up with an ominous "Bye Bye," I'd probably call the local minister and exorcise the shit out of them. But that's just me. Instead, Athena just gets all whiney, then freak'd out, and then, of course, when Hera stumbles upon Natalie, homicidal-like. I though the stand-off with Athena and Natalie was sweet, especially that Athena doesn't stand down and caps Natalie like she ain't no thing -- and this right after Natalie gave a speech to the Quorum mentioning how great mortality is. Whoops. Shoulda seen that coming. I think randomly killing off major characters for pseudo-vague reasons is always a little silly, but, at the same time, killing off a major character is bad-ass, so I guess it balances itself off. It's just, when it happens like this, it's a little too soap-ish for my tastes.

But the ep. ends on an up-note with the Hybrid being plugged back in and screaming JUMP, taking the Basestar (and all aboard) to some mysterious location. I have heard, through the Series-of-Tubes, that we may get a glimpse of the Cylon "homeworld" during this season -- maybe this is where they end up? The den of the lion? We'll see.

As it is, a good episode with way, way, wayyyyy too much lame singing. Sorry Gaeta. Maybe the Cylons can grow you a new one.

-RoboNixon

ps. Does anyone else think that the teaser for next week implies that Tigh maybe Seth Rogen'd* the imprisoned, Baltar-lovin' Number Six? 

*knocked-up

For LOST Nerds

I somehow was turned on to this awesome blog that focuses exclusively on LOST. I heartily recommend it for you obsessive-types out there. It's much more in depth than my little RoboBlog could ever be. At least, you know, in terms of LOST.

'njoy.

-RoboNixon

They Aren't So Lost Anymore... Right?

"There's No Place Like Home"

A few things before I begin. 

1) This episode was awesome, even though it causes the viewer to suffer from a serious case of TV-Blue-Balls. 

2) The preview for the 2 hour finale looks like some serious shit is going to happen, which also makes me giddy.

3) BSG and LOST can now comfortably exist in cross-over land together (more on this later).

I'm not super into summarizing the episode -- you can get that from the link above, or more in depth from Lostpedia -- but I wanted to share some thoughts. Let's begin with Flashforwards.

The opening is fantastic, and, I think, something we've been waiting for since Oceanic 815 crashed onto the Island. The mood of these post-Island scenes is very different than what we've seen post-Island before, due, I think, to a sense of relief on behalf of the characters -- before shit gets bad again. Also, the Oceanic Six's minder, Karen Decker, is played by Admiral Caine from BSG herself, Michelle Forbes.

(I loved the momentum in this episode; now that rescue is so close, the Losties loyalty to each other -- to getting everyone off the Island -- is paramount. The urgency was pronounced and visceral. They are GETTING. OFF. THE ISLAND.)

Also, I love how one of the pilots clings to his lucky charm, like having the Oceanic Six on board is some sort of terrible terrible curse... That maybe bad-luck clings to them like underaged girls to Rob Lowe in 80's sex-tapes. 

And finally they land and the moment where they step onto Non-Island land, and their families are there (except for Kate's) was... magical. I especially loved Hurley dragging Sayid over to meet his family. And it's nice to know that Jack was not birthed from an egg but rather a woman who is his mother.

Oh God, there's so much I love in this episode and I want to keep it short. OK, what else -- The presentation by Decker on how the Six survived was also great and, I think, not entirely crazy -- it kind of made a smidge of sense and if we hadn't been watching what actually happened for four seasons, I might, you know, think maybe they were telling the truth. Like Jack said earlier, "They'll just think we're in shock." 

"Jack," Sun replies, "We are in shock."

Sun telling her father that she owns a controlling interest in her company, and that he's essentially responsible for Jin's death (along with another unnamed party... dun Dun DUN!) and he can go fuck himself, she's in charge. Great to see her character change, from pre-to-post Island. And I loved the look on his face when he realizes that, yeah... maybe he is completely terrible.

Thought that the stuff w/Cheech (ie. Hurley's Dad) bringing him to the car they had always wanted to fix up together -- now pristine -- was really touching. In fact, I thought so much of what happened in these flash-forwards was touching that it kind of pains me to know that something wicked this way comes. Also: Island themed party? Hurley on his mom: Yeah, she just doesn't get it. Fantastic.

I also thought that Matthew Fox was GREAT in the scene after his father's memorial service, where Claire's mom comes to tell him that his sister was on the plane... and named Claire. We, the audience, know what's up, but he just fucking loses it. When he turns to Kate and Aaron after Claire's mom leaves, the look on his face... such complete and utter devastation... was worth its weight in gold.

Also, I'm super bummed out that Sayid gets the shaft... because in pretty much every moment of this flash-forward... he's happy. Happy with Nadia. Happy at the party. Happy to be off that godforsaken Island. But we know where it all leads him... right back to Ben...

OK, to the ISLAND stuff.

Alright, an ass-load happens, and there's a lot of confusion and back-and-forth, so I won't cover it like I covered the flash-forwards (and let's not play games -- they were the highlight of the episode). But I liked it. I liked it a lot.

I like how leave-no-man behind is so real for them now that rescue is so close. When Daniel flips through his book, sees the drawing of the Orchid, and turns to Charlotte: "We need to get off this island NOW," I was stoked. Lots of running back and forth in the jungle, lots of explosives on the boat -- possibly connected to Keamy's weird arm-thingie? -- and Michael being reintroduced to everyone else... just, so much! So much! I loved every second.

Especially Ben surrendering. "How many times do I need to tell you? I always have a plan." I'm pretty excited to see what's inside the station... and what it does.

Ugh. So two weeks before we get the rest. But let me state, that not only am I super excited, but this could prove to be the most bad-ass season finale that Lost has yet had (which is tough because Seasons 2 and 3 were also bad-ass). 

Stay tuned, guys 'n gals. We're in for a bumpy ride.

(thanks to Lostpedia for pictures)

-RoboNixon

Ex Machina

RoboRoommate v.2 has a problem with superheroes, despite reading a lot of their comics.

"A superhero can fight crime, but who the fuck are they? They're not elected. They're vigilantes who do whatever they want. They don't actually fight the sources of crime."

I have to agree, in a way. What causes crime, how do we solve the problem. RoboRoommate v.2 had the answer:

"Hundred is kind of like a social superhero. It's great that he's more effective at mayor than he ever was as a superhero."

Mitchell Hundred, the protagonist in Ex Machina, by LOST and Y: The Last Man writer Brian K. Vaughn and artist Tony Harris, is, in fact, the mayor of New York.

A New York City civil engineer, life is fine-and-dandy (maybe too dandy, as the comic hints), when one day, out on a boat under the Brooklyn Bridge a mysterious floating object explodes in his face and he

is left permanently scarred (he has markings on the left side of his face and body remniscent of a circuit board or electrodes); and develops the ability to communicate with and command mechanical devices. This includes anything from guns, to cellphones, to cars (but not, as Hundred discovered, a device as simple as a bow-and-arrow).

(Wikipedia)

The machines can give him information, can listen to him. But they can also lie.

So he does what any man raised on comic books would do -- he becomes a superhero -- the Great Machine. Assisted by Bradbury and family friend (mentor) and enabler Kremlin, he sets out to right the wrongs in Pre-9/11 New York City. 

And he's terrible at it. He has no training, and flies -- sometimes literally -- by the seat of his pants. It's too much for him, he doesn't want to die looking like an idiot, and hangs up the suit. Decides to run for Mayor, where he can make real change until...

A hijacked plane flies into the World Trade Center. Then the Great Machine takes up the call one last time... and becomes a hero.

That's just the set up for the story. Because after saving the 2nd Tower, Mitchell Hundred, savior, is elected mayor of New York. But Hundred isn't a typical politician. He's a guy who grew up middle-class, raised by a politically active single-mom, and in the heart of New York. 

But that's not where the series starts. Rather, it starts in 2005, with a dejected looking Hundred telling us, "People blame me for Bush in his flight suit and Arnold getting elected, but truth is... those things would have happened with or without me. Everyone was scared back then, and when folks are scared they want to be surrounded by heroes. But real heroes are just a fiction we create. They don't exist outside of comic books. [...] Anyway, this is the story of my four years in office, from the beginning of 2002 through godforsaken 2005. It may look like a comic, but it's really a tragedy. That's life, huh?"

The rest of the series is structured similarly to LOST (appropriate that Vaughn was hired last season on staff), intercutting real-time drama with flash-backs in various moments in time. We see bits and pieces of Hundreds up-bringing, of his brief-stint as the Great Machine, and, of course, of 9/11. It works just as well in comic form as it does on the TV screen.

Hundred is a man who tries to fight the source of crime as mayor, rather than all gussied up as a superhero. But maybe the tragedy is... as horrible a superhero as he was... At least as that he was mostly harmless. The series is limited to 50 issues, and now that we're down to the last quarter, it seems to be building towards something grand.

The series is smartly written, and the characters are extremely dynamic. Mitchell Hundred is pragmatic, bullheaded, good-natured, and in over his head, though surrounded by people who think, maybe, just maybe, this is the guy that can really change things (sounds a lot like the real world, doesn't it?). 

Also, there is a mystery surrounding him that makes me feel like he's that friend who keeps everything bottled up inside. It's frustrating to spend so much time getting into his head, only to have him shut things off, keeping you at bay. For instance: is Hundred gay? It's alluded to... hinted at... but it's so ambiguous... It's frustrating, but at the same time forgivable. Hundred's our friend, and goddamnit, even if he won't let us in on his secrets, we have to respect his commitment to privacy.

Dave Wylie is a councilman of the city who is surprised with becoming the Deputy Mayor upon Hundred's election. A much smarter political maneuverist (is that a word?) than Hundred, he provides a counterpoint to his boss's full-speed-ahead attitude, and brings his attention to facets he wouldn't normally see. And, of course, Bradbury, head of Hundred's security now that he's mayor, is the only truly loyal person Hundred has. And Kremlin... well. You need to read it to see.

The point I'm trying to make is that, in a huge rarity for comics, the characters are well drawn (figuratively and literally), with depth and poise. Not only that, but Harris' art gives them an extra layer of truth. Using staged-photographs to compose each frame, Harris' style is so particular, and beautiful and exaggerated at the same time, that he gives his illustrations the quality of performance, like watching a great actor up on the screen. 

In a day-in-age where we focus so much on ineffective leaders making bad decisions, attacking the problems rather than their root... maybe what we really need, even if just in a monthly comic, is a superhero to run things for us. 

(You can find Ex Machina HERE on Amazon, or at your local comic-shop)

-RoboNixon

I NEED A PARTY - STAT!

This was too awesome not to share.



That's right. A button that brings the party to YOU. Read the article on it here.

I want one. But with a discoball, flashing lights, and maybe a stripper pole rising up from the ground (Tony Stark's plane-style).

-RoboNixon

The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely

I was originally going to write a "real" review of this album, when I realized, screw that shit, I ain't no music critic. I'm a music fan. It does no good for me to analyze the album -- I love Jack White and even if he released an album of nature sounds I'd buy it because he could make even that dynamic. He doesn't always nail it, but man, does he try.

Which is why I'm pleased to report that The Raconteurs, which he fronts with solo-act Brendan Benson, along with Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler of The Greenhornes on bass and drums, respectively, is no sideshow project. The band is the real deal, and their sophomore effort comes through in spades.

The album's title track starts off the adventure, with a deceptively White Stripesian guitar riff before the drums come in and you know, this isn't some White Stripes derivative ordeal. This is a rock 'n roll band. Song grooves along, and just when you think it's gonna be boring, Jack White jumps in, screaming over the opening riff, like he and Benson were torn in two different directions. White Stripes or Raconteurs? But then -- BAM -- it speeds up again, plowing ahead like it needs to, bringing you with it. You remember why you like this band as a separate entity from White's other musical adventure, held steady (as she goes, if you will) by solid rhythm work from Keeler and Lawrence. The drums really add to the sound, and you're glad White decided to leave Meg off in the country for this excursion.

Lead single "Salute Your Solution" is the second track on the album and the one I skip past the most. I've heard it too much, and it's good, a single, but it doesn't hold me like other songs on the album. If you haven't heard it, turn on the radio. Form your own opinion.

"You Don't Understand Me" begins with a breathy "1-2-3-4" and a piano steps in, then bass and drums, and Jack White sings, tenderly, "You don't understand me, but if the feeling was right you might comprehend me." Maybe, Jack. The Raconteurs' signature sound comes through in the harmonies between White and Benson, and it's a mellow little piece that reminds me, inexplicably, of the Beatles. Maybe it's the background vocals, but it really sticks with me.

In fact, I get a lot of The Beatles from this album. I can't quite nail down what it is, but it's there. Maybe it's the chord changes, or selections in production, but whatever it is, it's not bad when a song makes you think of perhaps the most influential rock band of all time.

(Yeah, you heard me.)

"Old Enough" begins quietly, with Benson and White singing together over gentle guitar picking before they hit you over the head with a fiddle, rock organ, and the rest of the band. If Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem of Muppets fame made a legitimate rock song, in the real world, I imagine parts of it would sound a lot like this. It's not trying to hard, and brings to mind the fact that despite their origins as musicians in Detroit, Nashville is the home of this band now. "What you gonna do (what you gonna do?) now?" I don't know, let's see!

Following track "The Switch and the Spur" adds to the sense that this album represents a kind of national rock 'n roll. "In the heat of the desert sun on the blistering trail an appaloosa and, a wanted man sprung from jail..." And there it is. I felt like I was driving through Texas, the hot sun casting down on the desert, as the horns in the song blare, the piano chiming along, the drums beating slowly, methodically. Like each song represents a different locale, a different style. The song itself is a little too long, a little too cluttered to be classic, but the Raconteurs give it their all, and if not a victory, it's not quite a loss. 

We then get a trilling guitar before the band starts to shout "HOLD UP!" One of the guitarists (either Benson or White) decides to tear it up a little bit with the drums before we get to the meat. It's thrilling in this day of pop-punk and hardcore on the radio that a rock band actually uses their guitar. We  get a verse, and then it's back, like a fly, like a gnat we can't get rid of, moving us forward, making us hunt for it as they decide to roll out the stops, to avoid the pretension, and just rock out. Again, the song isn't a complete success, it's a smidge too long, like a lot of the songs on this album, but the guitar work is great, and Keeler really beats the hell out of those drums, like they called him a dirty name or something.

"Top Yourself" takes a step back, a little breather. Perhaps more than any other song on the album, this sounds like the White Stripes, if they suddenly had a full band. I think I always worry that the addition of other sounds would ruin the White Stripes aesthetic, but this song really shows what that band could be if a few more musicians hopped on board. A good song, a great White Stripes song, that sounds out of place merely because it's a song for the wrong band.

Following this is the grand, horn filled, Las Vegas version of the band with "Many Shades of Black." I originally thought this was a cover, it's so out-of-place, in a way, yet it totally works. I just imagine White dressed up as Elvis, the horns behind him, until the great guitar solo kicks in and you know, well, maybe this was written by them. One of my favorites.

"Five on the Five" I think is my favorite song on the album. The Raconteurs go punk, is how I'd describe it. Hard, fast, with a jangling cow-bell in the background -- because why not? -- it rocks. Simple. 

"Attention" is a Benson lead rock piece with more great work from Lawrence and Keeler. I prefer White's vocals to Benson's as the lead, but surrounded by the right melody, the right instrumentation, Benson can be the train that drives you to Rockville. Parts of it strangely-enough remind me of Bon Jovi, but in the best possible way. I mean that. For real.

"Pull This Blanket Off" and "Rich Kid Blues" are not much to speak of. I didn't really like them, they're more low key, and there's not much driving them. Skip. Skip.

But they have to go out with a bang, don't they, and the album's final track, "Carolina Drama," clocking in at nearly 6 minutes in length, is that song. The fear of a Stripes-type track sets in early with White howling like he does. But as he delves into the story of this Carolina Drama the rest of the band steps up, slowly, making sure to keep us going, but not to overwhelm the proceedings. It's a masterful little bit of musical-storytelling, and a lot of fun to listen to. It slowly escalates, more singers filling in the back, maybe a little bit of -- what is that? Ukulele? -- "La La La La La La La La Yeah." That's how I want to end my bit of time with The Raconteurs.

Consolers of the Lonely. It's out. Go get it. It's good. Lord knows I can't get enough...

-RoboNixon

BSG Return to Form

"I Know All the Games You Play"

Finally. Friday's BSG was satisfying in many, many ways. Let's start at the beginning, shall we?

Thank goodness we didn't have to sit through more Baltar or Chief at the beginning of this episode, and instead we get Gaeta's leg exploding in a nasty gunshot-wound from Anders, and Starbuck coming to her senses. Bad ass. I had read somewhere online that Gaeta would be shot in this week's episode and was worried -- he's one of my favorite side-characters -- but it looks like he made it out of this week's episode alive, though whether or not he has to lose his leg is still up in the air. Ouch. Maybe you should have shot one of the nameless marines, Anders.

Starbuck and Co. jumping into the remains of the Cylon-on-Cylon battle was also badass. It's been said well in other places (like here) but finally discovering that the Base Stars are bio-organic is a welcome surprise, and watching giant-base-star-innards floating through space is one of the more breathtaking images us BSGers have been given in four seasons (following the amazing Liberation of New Caprica sequence in season 3). 

When Platinum Six offs Random Crew Member (somewhat inexplicably -- she slams the woman's head against the raptor, who then stands, mutters something, then dies -- maybe reader RoboBrandeis and his pre-med ways can explain this to us in comments) we get a tense showdown with Anders claiming justice and Starbuck bitching about not-screwing over the alliance. As I sat watching with RoboGirlfriend, I kept shouting at the TV (as sometimes I do. what. someday it'll hear me) "Do it! Do it!" the it being shooting Platinum Six in the head. RoboGirlfriend replied, "No. Don't do." And it looked like RoboGirlfriend may have had more influence on the TV than me -- Lead Six goes to talk to Platinum about how, you know, I thought we had worked through all this you-being-pissed-off-about-being-drowned-in-a-septic-tank. "We were trying to help them," the Cylons say, which gets me every time. It reminds me of the particularly Iraq-ish (among other -Ishes) treatment of Cylon occupation in season three. Aren't we just trying to help the Iraqis? Sometimes, people don't want your help. Especially if you are robots that nearly eliminated the human race.

Then Lead Six macks it with herself (the Platinum Six), stands, moves to Anders, and squeezes his finger on the trigger. Six just killed herself. Or one of herselves. For real. There's no resurrection ship in range. Victory! The TV listens to me, just as the prophecy foretold.

Then she says something like, "Is that enough Human justice for you?" 

Bad ass.

Then we get some lame scenage with the Hybrid spouting nonsense, intercut with poor Gaeta doped up on morphone (I love how this morphine facsimile isn't in any previous episode [that I remember] but plays a large part in multiple storylines in this) begs Helo not to let Doc Cottle take his leg. I have to give it to Gaeta -- for a non-foreground character, he has been through some bad shit in four seasons.

But of course they need to unplug the hybrid to slave the base star to the raptor's FTL drives (yay sci-fi technobabble!), so we get some more lame shit, but the hybrid freaks its out, a centurion (newly sentient -- I bet he's bummed he didn't last so long) offs one of the Boomers, and Starbuck gets some information from the Hybrid that doesn't make any sense now but I'm sure will come together in the future because that's how this show works.

My favorite part of the episode was Athena, unwilling to comfort the alterna-her in death, stepping back, forcing Anders into the spotlight. Because Anders has seen so many die before, just like this, to horrible gunshot wounds back on Caprica in the resistance. He holds the Boomer's hand as she dies, a little part of him sad because he knows that he's part of her, too, that he's a cylon, and he feels, and he's a person, so this cylon dying, they're a person too, they're slowly descending into the light, into the ether, and he's there with them. It's probably one of my favorite beats with Anders ever, which is nice because he was totes lame all season 3.

My second favorite moment was when they're all standing around the hybrid tub, trying to decipher the clues. Starbuck and Six decide that the Final Five cylons know the way to Earth... and there's a cut to Anders where he does shifty "uh-oh" eyes that made me laugh. Cuz he don't know no way to Earf. For reelz.

Subplot with Roslin in chemo was also bad ass. I'm pretty sick of Baltar spouting religious crap, so it was nice to have him reduced to background noise on the radio as Roslin makes buddies with another dying-cancer patient, and comes to think about how maybe Baltar, despite all his crap, stumbled onto something real. My third favorite moment of this episode (are you writing this down, class?) was Roslin coming to, hearing the radio on, Baltar's voice talking slowly, calmly... as she walks over to where her new buddy is... and she pulls back the curtain to reveal: an empty bed, cleaned, sterilized, just the radio on the table that someone forgot to turn off. The look on Roslin's face is great, and I thought this whole storyline really worked. Which is a nice change of pace. It's been a while since the religious-aspect of the show was interesting in the least.

Hopefully they'll keep up with the "No-More-Treading-Water" ethos that this episode displayed, and we can end Battlestar Galactica's run on TV with not a whimper, but an incredible bang.

-RoboNixon

Ultimate

I read a lot of comic books. Not a nerd-amount, but enough nonetheless. I get grief from RoboGirlfriend over it, and the circle of friends that I can talk to about them is extremely small. Which is sad, and lame, because some comics out there are not only great, but are mind-blowing. So I figure I should share with you, dear reader, some of RoboNixon's personal favorites, in the hopes that you too may enjoy the under-appreciated, often overwrought, but occasionally exceptional work being done.

Let's start off slow. For beginners. Which is a perfect tie in to-

The Ultimate Universe.

Marvel Comics has been churning out books of well loved characters for seemingly forever. I'm not going to get into the company's history because quite frankly it's long, mostly boring, not the focus of this post. No, rather, the point you should be taking away that with 40+ years of history for all the well known characters -- Spider Man, Hulk, the X-Men, Captain America, etc -- it becomes awfully intimidating to introduce a new reader to the universe. Who wants to dive into the tail end of hundreds upon hundreds of issues? Not I, said the reader. 

Which leads us to 2001. Reacting to this difficulty in attracting new readers to the books, Marvel launches the Ultimate Marvel imprint with Ultimate Spider-Man, written by Brian Michael Bendis. I am not a Bendis fan. I also think Ultimate Spider-Man is lame. Take this, for example:

The original Amazing Fantasy #15 story [RoboEditor: the origin of Spider-Man] is only 11 pages long, but Bendis retells it as a 180-page, seven-part story arc in which Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man only after issue #5.

Yeah. 

Launched soon after, Ultimate X-Men premiered, written by Mark Millar, with art by Adam Kubert. A more successful outing than Ultimate Spidey, the book is an amusing and interesting take on the X-Men franchise.

Millar's original X-Men consisted of telepath Professor X, Cyclops, whose eyes shoot concussive beams, telepathic/telekinetic Jean Grey, weather-manipulating Storm, simian genius Beast, metal-skinned Colossus, and cryokinetic Iceman. With the exception of Beast and Colossus, these mutants were also featured in the first X-Men movie.

...The first X-Men movie being where Millar got most of his inspiration from. Ultimate X-Men was a step up from Spidey, simply because Millar, whose run on The Authority is brutal (they'll get their own post, eventually), is a better writer than Bendis. It's not perfect, however; story beats are rushed, or skipped over for action, leaving someone with even a hefty-dose of regular Marvel-Universe information confused about what's happening.

I own a handful of Ultimate X-Men trade paperbacks, though, so they're worth some time. I recommend browsing through the earlier issues if you have time and find yourself in a comic-book store. 

Strangely enough, it was a collaboration between Bendis (who I'm not a fan of) and Millar (who I am a fan of) that lead to one of the Ultimate Universe's more successful ventures: Ultimate Fantastic Four. Plotted by Millar and scripted by Bendis, it combines the best aspects of both of their styles, with great art by Adam Kubert.

It may be due to significant changes from the regular Marvel-Universe's Fantastic Four, but Ultimate FF worked right off the bat. The characters were younger, more vulnerable, the scope larger, but the heart was still there. Better yet, after Bendis and Millar left, Warren Ellis, one of the most insane comic-writers around, took over with a fantastic arc. It's a great series, and the first three trade paperbacks are worth a blind-buy. You won't regret it. 

Finally, we get to The Ultimates, the new line's version of the classic superhero team, The Avengers. Except written by Mark Millar. In post-9/11 America. 

It is unbelievable. 

In the regular Marvel Universe, the Avengers are the goody-two-shoes team lead by Captain America, and populated by a rotating cast, with the Hulk, Iron Man, Hawkeye, Thor and others filling in the ranks. This was no Avengers though. These were The Ultimates.

Realizing that the continuous-stream of issues was counter-productive to story arcs, Millar realized that structuring the series like a television show -- with seasons -- was the way to go. Thus, the first season, a twelve-issue story in the series THE ULTIMATES, began (the second story arc is in The Ultimates 2, and The Ultimates 3 is currently running). 

One of many notable differences between Ultimates and many other comics is the edgier and darker elements that Millar has written in to them. This can be especially seen in the characters, which are quite different than their mainstream counterparts. Captain America is more violent and pragmatic, Nick Fury is notably fiercer and scorns oversight of S.H.I.E.L.D., Hank and Janet Pym share an abusive relationship and Tony Stark is a womanizing drunk with a flamboyantly gay butler. Bruce Banner is written as a far more self-conscious, socially-inept individual and Betty Ross as careerist, manipulative and self-indulgent, a source of their frequent relationship woes. The Hulk is frequently depicted as a murderous sociopath whose rage leaves little concern for civilian casualties. Nick Fury and Janet Pym, both previously depicted as Caucasian in mainstream Marvel comics, have their ethnicities adjusted to give the team a more multi-cultural tone (with Fury as an African-American and Janet an Asian-American).

It is awesome. And the art by Bryan Hitch is AMAZING. Seasons 1 and 2 are by Millar and Hitch, and are, without a doubt, the best "super hero team" comics I've ever read. Ever. I cannot encourage enough to go out and get them right now. Hell, here they are over at Amazon (Season 1 pt. 1, pt. 2; Season 2 pt. 1, pt. 2).

So where does that leave us? Well, unfortunately, the quality in the Ultimate Universe could not stay consistent forever. As happens with any comic book that goes on for too long, things get complicated, messy, and quality diminishes. The Ultimates 3, for instance, is nearly unreadable, and later arcs of Ultimate FF begin to fluctuate wildly in quality. But as a whole, the Ultimate line is still the best that Marvel has to offer. It's generally smarter, better, and faster than the originals. It's written for a modern audience. And it's worth it.

-RoboNixon