TV

Story doesn’t matter.

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Some filmmaker friends are tearing into the quotes from a Disney exec in this article. Essentially, he’s saying that Disney is going to pull back and focus on big, expensive tent-pole movies. It’s the only kind of film that makes sense with the marketing budget they need to bring in really huge numbers of people. (Added later: this particular exec doesn’t actually greenlight films, so here’s a grain of salt.)

He’s also saying that, for this kind of movie, audiences don’t care that much about the story. They like the big budget spectacle, and if the story doesn’t hold together, well, that’s a secondary consideration.

Frankly, I find it hard to refute him. He points to ALICE IN WONDERLAND (which made a billion dollars?? Really?) and I point to TRANSFORMERS. The writer of the article brings up TRON: LEGACY, which had lots of spectacle, a crappy story, and which failed at the box office, but honestly, we can all point to the reasons any individual movies drew (or failed to draw) a big audience after the fact. Everyone thinks they can Monday morning quarterback surprise hits and flops, but no one can predict it reliably.

Personally, I’d love to know what’s driving the success of those movies, but I haven’t seen them. I watch some of them on DVD when they hit the library, but in the theater? Not so much.

However! There is an ongoing TV series that a lot of people really enjoy with plenty of spectacle (on a TV budget), a large and enthusiastic fanbase, and really awful stories. I mean, dumb stories that don’t make any sense at all, or that seem spackled together with bullshit and “Hurry past, don’t pay attention here”. And that’s DOCTOR WHO.

I quit the show when I realized that too often the “stories” were an arrangement of emotion-tugging moments with only the most spurious connection to each other. A really good story will evoke powerful emotions, but if that can’t be managed, the moments themselves can be strung together (“My friend is in danger!” “This is worse that I thought!” “You don’t scare me, Villain Of This Episode!” “Thank goodness you have been safely rescued, Friend!” “Oh, I stare stonily at the terrible cost of battling evil!”). Even without the context of a sensible, well-crafted story, those moments can force emotional responses from our well-trained brains.

Isn’t that what these big “tentpole” movies are doing? They mix spectacle with specific emotion-tugging moments (cue long-withheld hug from father), and if the story makes sense, well, that’s just a little extra gravy.

That’s how it seems to me, and as a person who creates (and tries to sell) stories, this is something I need to figure out.

Randomness for 8/12

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1) Obscure names for 25 Everyday Things.

2) Ten things you didn’t know about the original Star Trek.

3) How Terry Gilliam did his cut out animations. Video.

4) The 16-bit Game of Thrones RPG (not really, but hilarious) Video.

5) How nightclub bouncers decide who to let in with only a glance.

6) Looking for a new status purchase to impress the gold-diggers in your life? Why not diamond-encrusted contact lenses?

7) JAWS done in the style of Peanuts.

Randomness for 7/30

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1) The largest Hot Wheels track ever. Four years in the making and it’s already sold for millions.

2) The 50 most delicious foods in the world. Points off for “Texas Barbecue Pork.”

3) More on joke Amazon.com reviews.

4) Spock is not impressed.

5) The Wesley Crusher Pullover Collection.

6) Dr. Strange villains reimagined.

7) Six pieces of technology SF movies forget about.

Randomness for 6/30

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1) Weird things customers say in bookshops.

2) “Well, at least it’s not towels!“

3) A Game of Thrones of Muppets

4) Han Solo and Greedo bookends.

5) How to have a well-behaved child.

6) His Girl Friday… with all that wonderful dialog edited out! A feature length movie gets trimmed down to under eight and a half minutes. Video.

7) Dear Photograph

(Re yesterday’s post: You guys know I generally don’t reply to hypothetical comments, yes? I don’t want to control or direct those conversations.)

Five things make a Friday post, even though it’s Sunday

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1. Congratulations to the residents of New York state! A while ago someone asked, if someone from the mid-1960s were transported to today, what would be the most surprised change, and I suggested the gay rights movement. Marriage Equality in New York and in other countries and states is the result of focused, dedicated political action; I admire the hell out of the work they’ve done and wish their work was finished already. It’s sad that they have to keep fighting.

2. R.I.P. Martin Greenburg. Thanks for all the stories.

3. R.I.P. Peter Falk. I never understood the appeal of Columbo when I was a kid–they always showed the killer at the start of the show! It was only later that recognized the class aspect of the show (like Kolchak) and started to get into it. Yes, he was wonderful in THE PRINCESS BRIDE, but I was honestly startled (pleasantly) by his turn in WINGS OF DESIRE. That role could have been smug and tedious, but he rocked it.

4. The Locus Awards have been announced. (no link) Like the Nebulas, they only reinforce my decision to ignore awards entirely.

5. Have I mentioned here that I’m working on getting my short fiction for sale on the Kindle, et al? I am. The rights to most of my Black Gate stories (except the one that’s out right now) have reverted, plus I have a number of Pald stories that I never sold or even submitted anywhere. They go further into the setting and background than earlier books did, especially how the city is run. I’m hoping to convince my wife and son to whip up cover art for them as a homeschool project. We’ll see.

Bonus, secret sixth thing: Because of travel, we didn’t celebrate Father’s Day last week. Instead we’re celebrating today. I get brunch at a really nice restaurant (Portage Bay Cafe in Ballard) then library/bookstore, and finally, after my wife has gone to work, a movie with my son. Yay!

Loving Superman and *Loving* Superman

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A discussion popped up recently over this video:

For those who don’t want to click, (and you probably don’t because that video is equal parts hilarious and creepy) it’s a clip from the series finale of Smallville, in which Clark Kent finally gets his Superman suit, flies, saves Lois, and saves the world. And while that plays, the guy watching offers his quite vocal… “enthusiasm” for the show.

Actually, it sounds like he’s masturbating, shouting “YES! YES! YES!” several times, and “Do it right! Do it right!” and “AMERICA!” and generally having a really, really intense sexual experience. I suspect that, if the camera had been pointed the other way, he would have had to post the video on YouP*rn instead of YouTube.

I linked to it in a “Boy, people sure can be creepy!” sort of way, but several people responded by saying stuff like “What’s wrong with a little extra happiness in the world?” and “I think it’s great that he’s enjoying the show, and what’s wrong with that?” I haven’t quite figured out if it doesn’t register as a stroke video to them, or if they think audible orgasms to shitty TV shows are part of the wonder and joy of the human existence, or what.

Still, I think it’s creepy and a little funny. I hope the actors never see it. I do wonder if the guy taped this with his pants pulled up and zipped tight, not realizing how it would sound. His bio says he’s a devout Christian, so maybe he…

Ah, who knows. Anyway, I think it’s pathetic and funny and extremely creepy to post “fan love” audio online.

Randomness for 5/18

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1) Better book titles, Strunk and White ed.

2) Brilliant street fliers.

3) Why SyFy cancelled SGU, in numbers.

4) Angry comic book fans are good for sales, apparently.

5) U.S. cities where women (childless, between 22-30 years old) earn more than men.

6) Mysterious “Surfing Madonna” mosaic appears in Encinitas, but city mayor calls it “graffiti”.

7) My son calls this the guy-cycle. Video.

Randomness for 5/12

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1) Sci-fi IKEA manuals.

2) The first five Harry Potter novels abbreviated in comic form.

3) Since when did diligence become a psychiatric disorder?

4) Japanese TV show pranks a man with a haunted mirror. Video. I’m a bad person for laughing as hard as I did, especially after things got crazy. Be sure to watch the whole thing.

5) TV writer Doris Egan on The Moment They Figure It Out: open and closed plot structures, realization, and turning points, with a little Doctor Who thrown in for good measure.

6) “I will tell you a secret to make you stand out.”

7) “Obi-Wan Kenobi Is Dead, Vader Says” Oh god, for once, read the comments on this “article.” Let’s be CLEAR this is not a VADER victory but a victory of our boys in white, not to mention the leadership of Lord Tyrannus the Count Dooku who started the manhunt in the first place. LOL via Jay Lake

N Things Make a Post

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n-6 ) I want to say thanks to everyone who answers my hypothetical posts. I don’t always respond to every comment mainly because I don’t want to do a bunch of “Cool!” or “That’s a great idea!” replies, but that’s pretty much what I’m thinking. However, my filmmaker friend Steve Barr left this comment, which probably deserves its own story seed spot.

n-5 ) “Then you are prejudiced, Timmy, because Steve is your filmmaker friend, and not your friend.” (I suspect that the only people who’ll get that reference are readers Of A Certain Age.

n-4) According to Twitter, ARCs of Circle of Enemies have been spotted in the wild. Yay! (gulp!)

n-3 ) Norwescon starts today but I’m not going. I have some stuff to do, and I have other plans for tonight. Here’s my schedule for the rest of the day: 1. Finish this post. 2. Email agent to let her know Twenty Palaces is on the way. 3. Walk to the post office on this chilly, sunny day to mail said book. 4. Go to library to drop off books and write a few pages of A Key, An Egg, An Unfortunate Remark. 5. Return home to have dinner (burger salad tonight!) 6. Kick back with a book and read for most of the evening. God, I’m so looking forward to reading again.

n-2 ) This deserves its own post, but R.I.P. Elisabeth Sladen. She was the costar of the first Dr. Who I ever saw, and every costar since has had to measure themselves against her. She was wonderful in the role, and I hope that she had good, happy, satisfying life. Too soon.

n-1 ) I’ve talked before about the Bookscan numbers Amazon.com shares with authors, and the fact that the numbers for my books were improving after I guest-posted at Charles Stross’s blog. Well, last week the numbers had nearly returned to the levels they were during my stint at antipope.org, and I wondered over it. This week, the numbers have jumped even higher. Like, much higher, about triple what they were before my guest blog. At this point, I don’t much care why. I just want it to keep going on.

n) I haven’t seen GAME OF THRONES and I’m not planning to. The problem with having a kid who’s a night owl is that I can’t spend late evenings watching grownup shows with the volume down while he sleeps. Instead, I spend them sitting beside him, gently suggesting he shut his damn eyes and lie back down. I’m seriously excited for the next book, though.

Hey, is HBO premiering a new show tonight?

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I think I might have heard something about it.