See the Best Superman Sites on the Web.
Pop Culture Roundup May 30, 2006
According to the Los Angeles Times: Digital scanning and sharing of comic books have begun to make a dent in the business, driven by easy-to-use file-sharing tools and a culture in which enthusiasts eagerly pass along their copies to one another.
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Dial B for Blog presents a nice collection of vintage DC Comics subscription ads.
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This year will be a "banner year for diversity" in comic books, according to The New York Times.
At DC Comics, an effort is under way to introduce heroes who are not cut from the usual straight white male supercloth. A mix of new concepts, dusted-off code names and existing characters, the new heroes include Blue Beetle, a Mexican teenager powered by a mystical scarab; Batwoman, a lesbian socialite by night and a crime fighter by later in the night; and the Great Ten, a government-sponsored Chinese team.
Over at Marvel Comics, Black Panther, king of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, will soon marry Storm, the weather-controlling mutant and X-Man. Luke Cage, a strong-as-steel black street fighter who married his white girlfriend in April, plays a key role in "New Avengers," the company's best-selling book.
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The official "Lost" podcast recaps the season ender.
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British jazz violinist Jack Fallon, heard fiddling on the Beatles' "Don't Pass Me By," died yesterday.
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Dial B for Blog presents a nice collection of vintage DC Comics subscription ads.
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This year will be a "banner year for diversity" in comic books, according to The New York Times.
At DC Comics, an effort is under way to introduce heroes who are not cut from the usual straight white male supercloth. A mix of new concepts, dusted-off code names and existing characters, the new heroes include Blue Beetle, a Mexican teenager powered by a mystical scarab; Batwoman, a lesbian socialite by night and a crime fighter by later in the night; and the Great Ten, a government-sponsored Chinese team.
Over at Marvel Comics, Black Panther, king of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, will soon marry Storm, the weather-controlling mutant and X-Man. Luke Cage, a strong-as-steel black street fighter who married his white girlfriend in April, plays a key role in "New Avengers," the company's best-selling book.
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The official "Lost" podcast recaps the season ender.
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British jazz violinist Jack Fallon, heard fiddling on the Beatles' "Don't Pass Me By," died yesterday.
Remembering Alex Toth
The artist/animator/designer extraordinaire passed away May 27, his son Eric reports.
Toth was one of the greats: Starting out in comics' golden age and helping to revolutionize visual story telling. He did excellent work in pretty much every genre: superheroes, sci-fi, romance, horror and Westerns. As a pioneer, he was right up there with Will Eisner and Jack Kirby. His page design, use of blacks and lettering were all things of beauty. Later, he went on to do animation work, coming up with character designs for the Herculoids, Super Friends and many more. Whether we knew it or not, a lot of us grew up on images that came out of Toth's pen.
More about Toth:
Official Site
Comicville Art Gallery
Wikipedia
Toth was one of the greats: Starting out in comics' golden age and helping to revolutionize visual story telling. He did excellent work in pretty much every genre: superheroes, sci-fi, romance, horror and Westerns. As a pioneer, he was right up there with Will Eisner and Jack Kirby. His page design, use of blacks and lettering were all things of beauty. Later, he went on to do animation work, coming up with character designs for the Herculoids, Super Friends and many more. Whether we knew it or not, a lot of us grew up on images that came out of Toth's pen.
More about Toth:
Official Site
Comicville Art Gallery
Wikipedia
Cult and Classic Soundtracks
007 Classics
100 Greatest TV Themes [BOX SET]
2001: A Space Odyssey - Original Motion Picture Sountrack (1996 Reissue) [SOUNDTRACK]
The Adventures of Superman: Original Television Soundtrack (1950s TV Series) [SOUNDTRACK]
Akira: Original Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK] [IMPORT]
Aladdin [1992 Original Soundtrack] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED] [SOUNDTRACK]
The Album Of The Soundtrack Of The Trailer Of The Film Of Monty Python And The Holy Grail [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED] [SOUNDTRACK]
The Alien Trilogy (1996 Studio Recording) [SOUNDTRACK]
American Graffiti [SOUNDTRACK]
The Andy Griffith Show [SOUNDTRACK]
Animal House (20th Anniversary) [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED][SOUNDTRACK]
Animatrix [SOUNDTRACK]
Apocalypse Now Redux [SOUNDTRACK]
Apollo 11 Moon Landing (1969 BBC Television Coverage) [SOUNDTRACK] [LIVE]
Army Of Darkness: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
As Seen on TV: Songs from Commercials
Asterix Au Cinema (Soundtrack) [IMPORT] [SOUNDTRACK]
Asterix: Chez Les Bretons & Surprise De [IMPORT]
Astro Boy [IMPORT]
Austin Powers [SOUNDTRACK]
Austin Powers - The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999 Film)
Austin Powers in Goldmember [SOUNDTRACK]
The Avengers & other 60's TV Themes
Batman
Batman Returns
Batman and Robin
Batman Forever
Batman: Batman Theme And 19 Other Bat Songs (1966 TV Series) [SOUNDTRACK]
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm [SOUNDTRACK]
Battlestar Galactica (1978 Television Film) [SOUNDTRACK]
Beat At Cinecitta (Italian Film Score Anthology) [SOUNDTRACK]
Beat At Cinecitta, Volume 2 (Italian Film Score Anthology) [SOUNDTRACK]
Beat at Cinecitta, Vol. 3 [SOUNDTRACK]
Ben-Hur - A Tale Of The Christ: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1959 Version) [SOUNDTRACK]
Bernard Herrmann At Fox, Vol. 1 - Tender Is The Night / The Man In The Gray Flannel Suit / A Hatful Of Rain: Original Motion Picture Soundtracks [SOUNDTRACK]
Bernard Herrmann At Fox, Vol. 2 - Garden of Evil / Prince of Players / King of the Khyber Rifles: Original Motion Picture Soundtracks [3 on 1] [SOUNDTRACK]
Bernard Herrmann at Fox Vol. 3: Anna and the King of Siam [SOUNDTRACK]
The Best Of Godzilla 1954-1975: Original Film Soundtracks [SOUNDTRACK]
The Best of John Barry: Themeology [IMPORT]
Best of TV Quiz & Game Show Themes [SOUNDTRACK]
Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro): The Original Sound Track From The Film [SOUNDTRACK]
Blacula: Deadlier Than Dracula - Music From The Original Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Blow-Up: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Blue Velvet: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Bonanza: Ponderosa Party Time - TV's Original Cast (1959 - 1973 Television Series) [CAST RECORDING]
A Boy Named Charlie Brown: The Original Sound Track Recording Of The CBS Television Special [SOUNDTRACK]
Brain in a Box: The Science Fiction Collection [BOX SET] [SOUNDTRACK]
Bullitt (1968 Film) [SOUNDTRACK]
Cabin in the Sky
Canto Morricone - The Ennio Morricone Songbook, Vol. 1: The 60's [SOUNDTRACK]
Canto Morricone - The Ennio Morricone Songbook, Vol. 2: Western Songs & Ballads [SOUNDTRACK]
Canto Morricone - The Ennio Morricone Songbook, Vol. 3: The 70's [IMPORT]
Canto Morricone - The Ennio Morricone Songbook, Vol. 4: The 80's & 90's [IMPORT]
Carnival Of Souls (1962 Film) [SOUNDTRACK]
Casablanca: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Charade [SOUNDTRACK]
Cinderella - An Original Walt Disney Records Sountrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Cliffhangers/thisispop-20 Music From The Classic Republic Serials [SOUNDTRACK]
A Clockwork Orange: Wendy Carlos's Complete Original Score [SOUNDTRACK]
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind: The Collector's Edition Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Coffy (Score) [SOUNDTRACK]
Crime Stoppers: TV's Greatest Cop Themes [SOUNDTRACK]
Crime Stoppers: Tv's Greatest P.I. Themes [SOUNDTRACK]
The Day The Earth Stood Still: 20th Century Fox Film Scores - The Classic Series [SOUNDTRACK]
1361.
Der Blau Engel: The Blue Angel [SOUNDTRACK]
The Diamond Collection [SOUNDTRACK]: Marilyn Monroe
Dirty Music: Music from Adult Films
Diva
Dr. Zhivago Deluxe edition
Duck Soup
Empire Strikes Back Special Edition
An Ennio Morricone Anthology-box set
Erich Wolfgang Korngold: The Warner Bros Years - Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology [SOUNDTRACK]
Exorcist
The Fantastic World of Spaghetti Westerns
Fellini & Rota: Anthology
A Fistful Of Dollars: An Original Soundtrack Recording [SOUNDTRACK]
Forbidden Planet: Original MGM Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers At RKO: Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology
Fritz the Cat/Heavy Traffic
The Ghost And Mrs. Muir: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
The Godfather
Godzilla Vs. Megaguirus: Original Motion Picture Score [SOUNDTRACK]
Gone With the Wind
H. G. Wells' The Time Machine: Original Motion Picture Score [SOUNDTRACK]
Herrmann / Hitchcock: A Partnership In Terror (Film Score Anthology) [SOUNDTRACK]
Hollywood’s Best: The 1930s
Hollywood’s Best: The 1940s
Hollywood’s Best: the 1950s
Hollywood’s Best: The 1960s
House Of Dark Shadows (1970 Film) / Night Of Dark Shadows (1971 Film): Original Motion Picture Soundtracks [SOUNDTRACK]
Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK]
The Iron Giant
Jackie Brown
Jaws
John Barry: The Collection
Journey to the Center of the Earth
King Kong
Lolita
Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
Lost in Space: The Original TV Series Soundtrack Vol. 1
Lost in Space: The Original TV Series Soundtrack Vol. 2
Lost in Space: The Original TV Series Soundtrack Vol. 3
Marx Brothers: Horse Feathers/Animal Crackers
Midnight Cowboy
Miklos Rozsa at M-G-M: Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology
Mulholland Drive: Original Motion Picture Score
Murder Is My Beat: Classic Film Noir Themes And Scenes - Motion Picture Soundtrack Collection
Music From Mission: Impossible (1966-1973 Television Series)
North By Northwest: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Not Of This Earth/thisispop-20 The Film Music Of Ronald Stein
Plan 9 From Outer Space (1958 Film)
Planet Of The Apes: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - Also Featuring Music From Escape From The Planet Of The Apes
Psycho [SOUNDTRACK]
by Bernard Herrmann
Pulp Fiction: Music From The Motion Picture
Reservoir Dogs: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Return of the Jedi: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Special Edition)
The Rocky Horror Collection (Film Soundtrack, Cast Album, Event Album, Karaoke)
Russ Meyer's Lorna/Vixen./Faster, Pussycat/thisispop-20 Kill/thisispop-20 Kill/thisispop-20
Russ Meyer's Mudhoney/Finders Keepers Lovers Weepers/Motorpsycho
Sci-Fi Channel - Sci-Fi's Greatest Hits, Vol. 1: Final Frontiers
Sci-Fi Channel - Sci-Fi's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2: The Dark Side
Sci-Fi Channel - Sci-Fi's Greatest Hits, Vol. 3: The Uninvited
Sci-Fi Channel - Sci-Fi's Greatest Hits, Vol. 4: Defenders Of Justice
The Story & Songs Of The Wizard Of Oz - Special Edition: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Superfly
Superman - The Movie: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
The Third Man: 50th Anniversary Edition (2000 Re-recording of 1949 Film)
Tommy (1975 Film) [SOUNDTRACK]
Touch Of Evil: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Turn on Tune in Drop out
Vampyros Lesbos Sexadelic Dance Party
Vertigo: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1958 Film)
Walt Disney's Fantasia: Remastered Original Soundtrack Edition [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory: Music From The Original Soundtrack Of The Paramount Picture
Zabriskie Point: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Charlie's Angels DVDs
Charlie's Angels on DVD complete list:
Complete First Season
Complete Second Season
Complete Third Season
Complete First Season
Complete Second Season
Complete Third Season
Review roundup: "X-Men: The Last Stand"
Here's what folks are saying:
Christian Science Monitor: ...I think one reason the film series, as well as the "X-Men" Marvel Comics, are so popular with young people is because of its central metaphor. From Superman and Batman on down, quite a few superhero or antihero comic figures have led double lives, and this split appeals particularly to teenagers still experimenting with who they are. The mutants in "X-Men" are an exaggerated version of this split: Not only do they have superhuman powers, but they are vilified by humans for having them.
... suppose it's asking too much of Ratner to impart some kind of visionary flourish to the proceedings. But without it, these comic-book movies all tend to look the same. The "heart" of the story - the choice these mutants must make about their mutancy - rarely comes into play.
Miami Herald: The Last Stand doesn't play out as a grand final adventure (although, much like a Rolling Stones farewell tour, there's some doubt as to whether this really is the end). Instead, it's a disappointing chapter in what until now has been a highly entertaining, even thought-provoking series.
...Ratner seems incapable of infusing his overly busy story with nuance, depth or the wonderful wry humor that connected us so thoroughly to these characters in the first place, and so their sacrifices never register. Singer's films were peppered with small moments that felt epic. Ratner's film just feels awfully small.
Detroit Free Press: ...the rich theme gets lost in a mass of new characters and director Brett Ratner's preference for the visceral over the emotional.
Belfast Telegraph: X marks the spot... where director Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) reduces the X-Men to a soulless, brainless clatter.
The third and final film in the series reduces the epic battle between good and evil to a barrage of computer-generated special effects and slow-motion trickery.
Washinton Post: Displaying none of Singer's finesse or judgment, the new director, Brett, aka "Ratner," makes a hash of the story and characters his predecessor brought to such complex, sympathetic life, delivering a pumped-up exercise in mayhem, carnage and blunt-force trauma.
The Guardian: Against the odds, this third X-Men movie (inevitably referred to as the last in the "trilogy", to torture completist-geeks into buying the DVD) turns out to be a lively and likeable picture - a fun summer blockbuster, which is capable of being scary and even rather affecting.
Knight Ridder: ...die-hard fans of the popular series...can forget the chat-room anxiety generated when their hero, Bryan Singer, director of the two previous ``X-Men'' movies, handed over the reins of the popular franchise to the more paint-by-numbers Brett Ratner (``Rush Hour''). (Singer moved on to just one lone guy in tights, directing ``Superman Returns.'')
True, Ratner is no Singer, but in ``The Last Stand'' he delivers the goods with gusto.
See the Best X-Men Sites on the Web.
Christian Science Monitor: ...I think one reason the film series, as well as the "X-Men" Marvel Comics, are so popular with young people is because of its central metaphor. From Superman and Batman on down, quite a few superhero or antihero comic figures have led double lives, and this split appeals particularly to teenagers still experimenting with who they are. The mutants in "X-Men" are an exaggerated version of this split: Not only do they have superhuman powers, but they are vilified by humans for having them.
... suppose it's asking too much of Ratner to impart some kind of visionary flourish to the proceedings. But without it, these comic-book movies all tend to look the same. The "heart" of the story - the choice these mutants must make about their mutancy - rarely comes into play.
Miami Herald: The Last Stand doesn't play out as a grand final adventure (although, much like a Rolling Stones farewell tour, there's some doubt as to whether this really is the end). Instead, it's a disappointing chapter in what until now has been a highly entertaining, even thought-provoking series.
...Ratner seems incapable of infusing his overly busy story with nuance, depth or the wonderful wry humor that connected us so thoroughly to these characters in the first place, and so their sacrifices never register. Singer's films were peppered with small moments that felt epic. Ratner's film just feels awfully small.
Detroit Free Press: ...the rich theme gets lost in a mass of new characters and director Brett Ratner's preference for the visceral over the emotional.
Belfast Telegraph: X marks the spot... where director Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) reduces the X-Men to a soulless, brainless clatter.
The third and final film in the series reduces the epic battle between good and evil to a barrage of computer-generated special effects and slow-motion trickery.
Washinton Post: Displaying none of Singer's finesse or judgment, the new director, Brett, aka "Ratner," makes a hash of the story and characters his predecessor brought to such complex, sympathetic life, delivering a pumped-up exercise in mayhem, carnage and blunt-force trauma.
The Guardian: Against the odds, this third X-Men movie (inevitably referred to as the last in the "trilogy", to torture completist-geeks into buying the DVD) turns out to be a lively and likeable picture - a fun summer blockbuster, which is capable of being scary and even rather affecting.
Knight Ridder: ...die-hard fans of the popular series...can forget the chat-room anxiety generated when their hero, Bryan Singer, director of the two previous ``X-Men'' movies, handed over the reins of the popular franchise to the more paint-by-numbers Brett Ratner (``Rush Hour''). (Singer moved on to just one lone guy in tights, directing ``Superman Returns.'')
True, Ratner is no Singer, but in ``The Last Stand'' he delivers the goods with gusto.
See the Best X-Men Sites on the Web.
Lost: Is this Jack?
Making a big hubbub on the "Lost" message board over the past 24 hours: Is this guy--one of the two Portuguese-speaking guys in a snowbound electromagnetic anomaly monitoring station depicted at the end of the season finale--Matthew Fox, the same actor who plays series regular Jack?
Looks a lot like him, but the part is credited to an actor named Len Cordova.
There's a nice comparison/contrast post here.
See the Best Lost Sites on the Web.
Looks a lot like him, but the part is credited to an actor named Len Cordova.
There's a nice comparison/contrast post here.
See the Best Lost Sites on the Web.
Pop Culture Roundup May 26, 2006
Deal alert: Amazon has 42 percent off sale on "Futurama" and "Simpsons" DVD box sets.
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Reggae/ska pioneer Desmond Dekker has passed away.
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Papercutz "Nancy Drew" graphic novels are selling like hot cakes in book stores and are set to become even more widely available soon.
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A 17-cut CD of songs inspired by the works of writer Neil Gaimin is set for release soon. It includes tunes by Tori Amos, Thea Gilmore and others.
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Sci.com teases the next season of "Lost."
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Reggae/ska pioneer Desmond Dekker has passed away.
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Papercutz "Nancy Drew" graphic novels are selling like hot cakes in book stores and are set to become even more widely available soon.
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A 17-cut CD of songs inspired by the works of writer Neil Gaimin is set for release soon. It includes tunes by Tori Amos, Thea Gilmore and others.
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Sci.com teases the next season of "Lost."
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DVD: Perry Mason Season 1, Vol. 1 due July 11
This set features the first 19 episodes from season 1 (1957-58) on five discs. No word on extras.
It's available pre-order from Amazon now.
It's available pre-order from Amazon now.
DVD: Amazing Stories: Complete First Season due July 18
This set will include all 24 episodes of the Steven Spielberg produced-anthology show,which aired from 1985-87. No details, yet, on extras.
It's available for pre-order from Amazon now.
It's available for pre-order from Amazon now.
Top 10 comics, DVDs, CDs, action figure May 26, 2006
Via Amazon:
Comics - Graphic Novels:
1. V for Vendetta
2. Y: The Last Man Vol. 7: Paper Dolls
3. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
4. The Complete Peanuts 1959-1960
5. Watchmen
6. Serenity: Those Left Behind (Serenity)
7. Hell in a Handbasket
8. Superman Returns
9. X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 2
10. X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 3
DVDs
1. High School Musical
2. Deadwood - The Complete Second Season
3. Kingdom of Heaven (4-Disc Director's Cut)
4. Boston Legal - Season 1
5. Underworld - Evolution (Widescreen Special Edition)
6. The 4400 - The Complete Second Season
7. M*A*S*H - Season Ten (Collector's Edition)
8. Final Fantasy VII - Advent Children (2-Disc Special Edition)
9. The Boondock Saints (Unrated Special Edition)
10. The West Wing - The Complete Sixth Season
CDs
1. Taking The Long Way - Dixie Chicks
2. All the Roadrunning - Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris
3. Stadium Arcadium - Red Hot Chili Peppers
4. We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions - Bruce Springsteen
5. Living With War - Neil Young
6. Surprise - Paul Simon
7. Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
8. Home - Dixie Chicks
9. 10,000 Days - Tool
10. St. Elsewhere - Gnarls Barkley
Action Figures
1. South Park Figure: Cartman
2. South Park Figure: Hip Hop Cartman
3. South Park Figure: Kenny
4. South Park Figure: Big Gay Al
5. Marvel Legends Gift Pack Spider-Man classic Feasome Foes Gift Pack
6. The Corpse Bride 12" Fashion Doll
7. South Park Figure: Officer Barbrady
8. Batman Begins Action Cape Batman Figure
9. 12" Robocop Battle Damage
10. GI Joe Valor vs. Venom Ninja Cobra Imperial Procession
Comics - Graphic Novels:
1. V for Vendetta
2. Y: The Last Man Vol. 7: Paper Dolls
3. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
4. The Complete Peanuts 1959-1960
5. Watchmen
6. Serenity: Those Left Behind (Serenity)
7. Hell in a Handbasket
8. Superman Returns
9. X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 2
10. X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 3
DVDs
1. High School Musical
2. Deadwood - The Complete Second Season
3. Kingdom of Heaven (4-Disc Director's Cut)
4. Boston Legal - Season 1
5. Underworld - Evolution (Widescreen Special Edition)
6. The 4400 - The Complete Second Season
7. M*A*S*H - Season Ten (Collector's Edition)
8. Final Fantasy VII - Advent Children (2-Disc Special Edition)
9. The Boondock Saints (Unrated Special Edition)
10. The West Wing - The Complete Sixth Season
CDs
1. Taking The Long Way - Dixie Chicks
2. All the Roadrunning - Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris
3. Stadium Arcadium - Red Hot Chili Peppers
4. We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions - Bruce Springsteen
5. Living With War - Neil Young
6. Surprise - Paul Simon
7. Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
8. Home - Dixie Chicks
9. 10,000 Days - Tool
10. St. Elsewhere - Gnarls Barkley
Action Figures
1. South Park Figure: Cartman
2. South Park Figure: Hip Hop Cartman
3. South Park Figure: Kenny
4. South Park Figure: Big Gay Al
5. Marvel Legends Gift Pack Spider-Man classic Feasome Foes Gift Pack
6. The Corpse Bride 12" Fashion Doll
7. South Park Figure: Officer Barbrady
8. Batman Begins Action Cape Batman Figure
9. 12" Robocop Battle Damage
10. GI Joe Valor vs. Venom Ninja Cobra Imperial Procession
DVD: Incredible Hulk Complete First Season out July 18
Here are the details:
"...Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Mild-mannered research scientist David Banner (Emmy nominee Bill Bixby) finds he must offer this heroic warning after exposure to gamma radiation transforms him into the terrifying and enraged Hulk (Lou Ferrigno). Bursting from comic book pages into this 4-disc DVD set, the Complete First Season of The Incredible Hulk boasts all ten heart-pounding episodes, plus a preview episode from Season Two. Must-see bonus materials include the two original feature-length films, an introduction from The Hulk himself (Ferrigno), and in-depth commentary from producer Kenneth Johnson. Intense. Immense. Incredible!
The set is available for pre-order from Amazon now.
"...Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Mild-mannered research scientist David Banner (Emmy nominee Bill Bixby) finds he must offer this heroic warning after exposure to gamma radiation transforms him into the terrifying and enraged Hulk (Lou Ferrigno). Bursting from comic book pages into this 4-disc DVD set, the Complete First Season of The Incredible Hulk boasts all ten heart-pounding episodes, plus a preview episode from Season Two. Must-see bonus materials include the two original feature-length films, an introduction from The Hulk himself (Ferrigno), and in-depth commentary from producer Kenneth Johnson. Intense. Immense. Incredible!
The set is available for pre-order from Amazon now.
Pop Culture Roundup May 25, 2006
Download a new Beatles beatleg podcast.
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Booksteve remembers the 1970s "World's Greatest Superheroes" comic strip.
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PCL Linkdump celebrates the Hip Hypnotist.
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Hembeck remembers Freddie (and the Dreamers).
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Booksteve remembers the 1970s "World's Greatest Superheroes" comic strip.
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PCL Linkdump celebrates the Hip Hypnotist.
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Hembeck remembers Freddie (and the Dreamers).
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Lost Clues: Season 2 Summary
If you haven't been watching reruns or DVDs, here's a brief refresher on what happened last season.
Key events:
* A group of passengers on Oceanic Flight 815 crashed on a seemingly deserted island. They can't contact the outside world and nobody has come to rescue them.
* The island is inhabited--by a group of ragged-looking folks called the Others and a lone Frenchwoman named Danielle who claims the Others abducted her daughter, Alex, many years ago. Alex, now an adult, is an Other but is sympathetic to the crash survivors.
* The Others abducted three children and several adults from Flight 815 and are responsible for killing several survivors. They briefly kidnapped crash survivor Claire, who was pregnant at the time, but she was able to escape.
* The crash survivors discover an underground "hatch" on the island, which is inhabited by another lone person, Desmond.
* This hatch, and others like it discovered later, are part of the Dharma Initiative, a mysterious research project created by the Hanso Foundation--an organization set up by a Danish industrialist. The crash survivors learn all this via a sketchy "orientation" film and another orientation video found inside separate hatches.
* Inside the first hatch is a button connected to a large computer complex. Apparently, this button must be pushed every 108 minutes to keep huge electromagnetic forces in check. Briefly unleashed, these forces are what caused the crash of Flight 815. Or that's what Desmond believes.
* Desmond has been pressing the button for three years. He was on a round-the-world boat race when a storm brought him to the island.
* Desmond was rescued by a man named Kelvin, who was then manning the hatch and pressing the button. Kelvin orients Desmond to the hatch and button, convincing him of its importance to humanity.
* Having found a new person to press the button, Kelvin plans to abandon the hatch and leaves on Desmond's sailboat, which he'd secretly been repairing. Desmond finds out about the plan and accidentally kills Kelvin in an angry struggle. But he goes back to the hatch and continues pressing the button, convinced it's necessary in order to keep the world safe.
* Before his sailing trip, Desmond was a member of the British military and he'd been imprisoned for "not following orders." He also was estranged from his girlfriend, Penelope Widmore. Penelope's father, apparently a very wealthy and influential person, pays Desmond off to stay away from his daughter. Desmond enters the sailing race, which is sponsored by Widmore, wanting to win and show up the elder Widmore.
* Once the crash survivors discover the hatch, Desmond also abandons it. He's missing for some time but eventually we learn he tried to leave on his sailboat. However, he was unable to sail away from the island. All his attempts at navigating away just brought him back.
* At the end of season 2, the button isn't pushed and the interior of the hatch starts to warp and destruct due to the electromagnetic forces. Desmond inserts a key into a switch designed to "terminate" the hatch station/project. There's a huge white out and, we're led to believe, the hatch and all those inside (Desmond and crash survivors Locke and Eko) vanish or are destroyed.
* The Others force Michael, the father of one of the kids they've abducted, to deliver them four more of the crash survivors: Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley. Michael also must free one of the Others, "Henry Gale," who the crash survivors are keeping in captivity. Michael frees Henry, killing two crash survivors in the process, and brings the four requested survivors to the Others. In exchange, the Others give Michael his son, Walt, and a boat with directions on how to leave the island.
* Michael and Walt leave in their boat. The Others send Hurley back to the rest of the crash survivors with a message: Don't try to retrieve Jack, Kate and Sawyer and stay away from the Others' part of the island.
* The Others plan to take Jack, Kate and Sawyer "home" with them. Where/what that means we don't know. We also don't know why they chose these three specifically.
* At the very end of the season, we see a pair of men stationed in a place that's very, very cold (one of the poles?) using equipment to monitor electromagnetic disturbances. They speak Portuguese. A piece of equipment registers something--most likely the destruction of the hatch--and they pick up a phone calling... Penelope Widmore. Finally, they tell her, they've pinpointed the location she's been looking for. So, does she somehow know Desmond was in the hatch and about the Dharma Initiative?
Other key points:
* There's a mysterious web of connections connecting several of the crash survivors. Many seem to have been "fated" to be on board Flight 815.
* Several 815 passengers have killed people in the past.
* Numerous strange phenomena take place on the island: People have visions, prophetic dreams, encounter things that shouldn't be there.
* A "monster" made of black smoke has been seen a number of times. It's been called a "security system" and seems to somehow evaluate whether people are a threat or not.
* The name Widmore pops up a few times. The pregnancy test Sun uses was manufactured by the company. There's also a building with a Widmore sign during a scene in London during one of Charlie's flashbacks. And Henry Gale's balloon was manufactured or sponsored by Widmore.
What we learned about the Others:
* They are wearing disguises to give themselves a "desert island" look--false beards, raggy clothing, etc.
* Henry Gale is evidently their leader, or a leader.
* They seem somehow part of or related to the Dharma Initiative but we're not certain how.
* They studied Walt, who seems to have some sort of psychic powers, and subjected him to "tests." When handing Walt over to Michael, Henry said they "got" more than they'd ever imagined or hoped from Walt. What they were after isn't known.
* They know the full and "real" names of those on Flight 815. And they have a particular interest in Jack, Sawyer, Kate and Hurley.
* They characterize themselves as "good." In the past, they've abducted crash survivors because those survivors were "good people." Other survivors, they feel, aren't as good.
* Desmond and the Kelvin refer to the Others as "hostiles."
What we learned about the Dharma Initiative hatches/facilities:
* The plane crash survivors find the Swan, where Desmond has been holed up.
* Ana Lucia's group of tail section survirors find a hatch called the Arrow station.
* Eko and Lock find the Pearl station, which evidently has been set up to spy on the other hatches.
* Claire was kept in a medical hatch by the Others. Later she, Kate and Danielle find it.
* The Others have what appears to be a fake hatch. Just a door with a rock wall behind it.
* Locke sees several hatches depicted on a map on the interior of the blast door.
* The Other's also have a dock with a sign on it reading Pala Ferry.
* The pneumatic tubes used by those stationed in the Pearl hatch just pop up in the middle of nowhere in the island, the notebooks inside unread.
Character connections:
* Hurley owns the box company Locke worked for.
* Hurley and Locke both worked for Randy (at the Mr. Cluck's and the box company, respectively)
* Hurley, Libby and Locke's mother all were patients in the same mental ward.
* Jack meets Desmond as a doctor and later on the island.
* Shannon and Boone's father was killed in the car accident that injured Jack's future wife, Sarah.
* Sawyer is waited on my Kate's mother at a restaurant.
* During the first Gulf War, Sayid is apprehended by U.S. troops under the direction of Kate's step-father.
* Ana Lucia worked for Jack's disgraced doctor dad, Christian.
* Sawyer and Jack's dad drank together.
* Locke did a home inspection for Sayid's love, Nadia.
* Eko meets a psychic who is the father of a girl who allegedly drowned but came back from the dead. The psychic is the same man Claire met with in season 1, and who gave her a ticket for flight 815, saying it was vital that she take the flight.
* The Other, Alex, is the daughter of crazy French lady Danielle.
* Libby gave Desmond the boat he was on.
* Kelvin Inman, the hatch man who rescues Desmond, looks exactly like a CIA agent Sayid met during the first Iraq war. However, the man Sayid met was named Joe Inman. Twins? Same guy?
Repeated lines:
* "See you in another life." Said by Desmond to Jack in episode 2.1 and said by Dave (Hurley's imaginary mental ward fried) to Hurley in episode 2.18. Said by Desmond to Locke at the end of season 2.
* Both Desmond and Henry Gale claim they were on trips "around the world" when they ended up on the island.
* An attorney representing Micheal's ex-wife tells him "For someone who wants his son back so badly, you don't seem to know much about him." The Others' Miss Clue/Klugh later tells him essentially the same thing.
* Many, many times throughout the series, characters say "don't tell me what I can't do." In the season 2 finale, Eko tells Locke "don't tell me what I can do."
Strange experiences:
* Kate sees a black horse on the Island. Sawyer sees it with her.
* Shannon and Sayid have visions of Walt.
* Eko and Locke exchange dreams.
* Hurley has visions of his mental ward pal Dave.
Outside references:
* In "The Wizard of Oz," Henry Gale is the name of Dorothy's uncle. At the end that story, the Wizard flies off in a balloon.
* Uluru/Ayer's Rock: Locale of the psychic Rose visits in episode 2.19.
More info:
Ayers Rock is a large magnetic mound large not unlike Silbury Hill in England. It is located on a major planetary grid point much like the Great Pyramid in Egypt.
...The Aborigines believe that there it is hollow area below the ground, and that there is an energy source that they call 'Tjukurpa' the dream time. The term Tjukurpa is also used to refer to the record of all activities of a particular ancestral being from the very beginning of his or her travels to their end. Anangu know that the area around Ayers Rock (Mount Uluru) is inhabited by dozens of ancestral 'beings' whose activities are recorded at many other sites. At each site, the events that took place can be recounted, whether those events were of significance or whether the ancestral being just rested at a certain place before going on.
* Pala Ferry. According to this message board posting, Pala is a fictional place created by Aldous Huxley. More from Wikipedia: "Island" is a novel by Aldous Huxley that was first published in 1962. It is the account of Will Farnaby, a cynical journalist and would-be poet who is shipwrecked on the fictional island of Pala. Island is Huxley's utopian foil to his dystopian "Brave New World." Is the "ferry" a boat, a helicopter, plane, some mode of inter-dimensional transport? Where the hell does it go?
* Hurley discovers and Sawyer reads "Bad Twin," a novel-in-manuscript by "Gary Troup," a passenger who died in the plane crash. This novel has actually been published and is commercially available in the "real world." It contains references/characters that may provide hints about events on the show.
* Other books shown: "A Wrinkle in Time," "Watership Down," "Turn of the Screw," "Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret," "The Brothers Karamozov," "The Third Policeman," "Lancelot," "A Hood Crow," "High Hand," Rainbow Six," "An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge" and "Dirty Work," "Our Mutual Friend." Many of these books contain themes similar to those explored on the show and may provide hints, or at least extra flavoring, to what's going on in the series.
* The Lost Experience was an ongoing multi-media promotion/game including Web sites, TV ads, etc., that provided hints re: the Hanso/Widmore aspects of the show during this past summer. More info on this front here.
Songs played during season 2:
Mama Cass Elliot - "Make Your Own Kind Of Music"
The Uniques - "My Conversation"
Drifters - "Up On The Roof"
Billy Joel - "Easy Money"
Dave Matthews Band - "Stay"
Staind - "Outside"
Skeeter Davis - "The End of the World"
Patsy Cline and Lorreta Lynn - "Walking After Midnight"
Pousette-Dart Band - "Fall on Me"
The Kinks - "He's Evil"
Perry Como - "Papa Loves Mambo"
Glenn Miller - "Moonlight Serenade"
The Duke Ellington Orchestra - "Just A-Settin' and A-Rockin"
Perry Como - "Catch A Falling Star" - [Plays on Claire's mobile]
Seeds - "Pushin' Too Hard"
Les McCann - "Compared to What"
Otis Redding - "These Arms of Mine"
People killed by crash survivors:
* Jack shot the U.S. Marshall to put him out of his misery.
* Kate killed her abusive step dad.
* Sayid killed his commanding officer and perhaps others as a soldier/interrogator.
* Sawyer killed the man he mistakenly thought was responsible for destroying his family.
* Ana Lucia killed the man who earlier shot her, Shannon and the Other, Goodman.
* Eko killed two Others and, during his drug-dealing days, many more.
* Jin may've killed people for Sun's father. He at least beat people up.
* Michael killed Ana Lucia and Libby.
* Charlie killed the Other, Ethan Rom.
Unanswered questions:
* What's up with the illness the Others, Desmond and Danielle all mention and the vaccine meant to prevent it?
* Why was Libby in the mental ward with Hurley and why did she conceal this fact from him? Was she really a clinical psychologist? Was it arranged that she give the boat to Desmond?
* On the "orientation" film, the speaker introduces himself Dr. Marvin Candle. In a separate orientation video Lock and Eko later discover, the same man calls himself Dr. Mark Wickmund. What's up with the name change?
* Did Jin father the baby Sun is carrying?
* What are we to think of the enormous bird that swooped down and seemed to say Hurley's name?
* What is the brick structure on the hill above the Other's camp? It looks like a battlement of some type.
* And what about the enormous four-toed foot statue Sayid, Jin and Sun see?
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