tafadhali

My sister and I have been watching a lot of Star Trek together this week (and reading too much HP fanfiction), and sometimes our conversation descends into madness. Still, I think this is a valid observation:

[Another scantily-clad alien woman walks by.]

Me: Um. So. Do you ever wonder why all alien women have breasts?
Her: OH MY GOD YES. I was just thinking that.
Me: I mean. Not all of them can be mammals, right?
Her: That one looks pretty reptilian.

[And then we sit in quiet contemplation of the unlikely silver jumpsuit.]


And then these Klingon ladies appeared and all we could do was goggle.

So, I've moved my Star Trek watching recaps over here, so that I can be even more long-winded and self-indulgent and you all won't be subjected to it unless you want to, and I am in the process of getting up to date with my entries.

So this is not an update to give detailed goings on in TNG. It is merely to say that I watched "The Measure of a Man" and -- forget best episode of TNG, that was one of the best episodes of Star Trek I've ever watched. It's no secret that Data is my favorite, and that I have a low tolerance for people questioning his sentience, but that blew me away. I am going to sit here crying now, thanks.

I cannot wait until I get Photoshop back and can make 100,000,000 Data icons.

In the absence of new Daily Shows, I am watching episodes from early May and DENIS LEARY IS BACK.

NOTHING IS CUTER THAN DENIS LEARY AND JON STEWART INTERACTING.

NOTHING. I have haven't even seen that clip and I am willing to vouch for it.

They're friends from way back and they basically just swear a lot and goof off and giggle like children.

Plus, Denis Leary is one of those men who are like my Kryptonite and will never not be hot to me.

What a good start to the day.

I really need to upload Photoshop onto my new laptop, because without it my tragic!alcoholic!enthusiastic!champagne icon just looks tragic.


My life, it is hard.



(P.S. WE HAVE GOOD WEATHER TODAY. HAPPY INNAPENNANCE DAY! WHEE! itisnotrainingfinallyomg)

I drugged myself into sleeping before three yesterday and set my alarm and had plans, but now I really don't feel like doing anything but lying in my darkened room and continuing to read the Comics Curmudgeon (I'm 100+ pages back in the archives).

Either I need to get off my ass and get some work done, or I need to make a day of it at the library like I was planning.

Uggggggh, life.

Aside from having CLEA DUVALL and GAYS (both RUSSIAN AND HISPANIC) and CUTE MARRIED COUPLES, Virtuality also just became one of the few shoes I watch that dealt with rape in a way that didn't make me cringe.

Why couldn't this have been picked up?




(...Slightly jarring was going from two women discussing their sexual assaults and how men are asses and do not understand, to the commercial break: THERE WAS A TIME WHEN MEN WERE MEN AND DRANK VODKA AND WERE MANLY.)

I am completely devastated to hear the news about Michael Jackson. I worshiped him when I was a child -- I listed to Thriller every day on the way to school. I had a poster of him in my room. My brother took dance classes to be like him. He inspired me. I remember reading The Autobiography of Ryan White when I was nine or so, and, though of course I was mostly impressed with Ryan's bravery, I was enchanted by his friendship with Michael Jackson and wanted that.

I know that in many ways he has become a self-parody in recent years, and that his reputation has taken serious and probably deserved hits (I certainly wouldn't be so enchanted by a depiction of his friendship with a twelve-year-old boy any longer), but I never stopped loving who he was and his music, and this news breaks my heart. I hope he has some peace now.



(I was also very sad to hear about Farrah Fawcett, but then the news about Michael came and I was too distraught to think about that.)

Buffy knows just what to do with Edward Cullen:




I laughed, I cried, I felt vindicated...

Aside from having delicious lunch with Abby (hummus and falafel and baklava gelato, oh my!), today has been mostly devoted to the Google Wave demo.

About which all I can say is:

YES YES OH GOD YES A THOUSAND TIMES YESSSSSSS


You can create joint albums! And it integrates Google docs! And, and! I can't even! I just want to make out with it.


Waaaaavegasm.

Um, and some more TNG commentary. Because apparently I'm some how not asleep.

( Angel One (1x14) )

( 11001001 (1x15) )

( Too Short a Season (1x16) )

( When the Bough Breaks (1x17) )

( Home Soil (1x18) )

( Coming of Age (1x19) )

( Heart of Glory (1x20) )

( The Arsenal of Freedom (1x21) )


So, a moment on Tasha Yar. My thirteen-year-old sister's best friend likes her best, except for in "The Naked Now," which, according to A., reveals that "she secretly just wants to be a big slut." Internally, I was torn between horror and total hilarity when I heard this solemn pronouncement, but it made me think about that episode and about some of my issues with Yar. I do not give a flying fuck about what kind of sex Yar wants to be having, but, despite enjoying her scenes in that episode, they compounded my feelings that she is...immature. She reads as extremely adolescent to me, especially there: she seems so basically insecure about her femininity and sexuality, just slightly awkward. Her not-intoxicated approach to sex seems to be a sort of gruffness or feigned disinterest over thinly veiled curiosity. (Not always, but often enough -- for both examples and counterexamples see "Justice.")

In her approach to her job, she is, okay, more competent than I allowed above (I am just so amused by her complete lack of anything resembling tact), but she is so brash and unthinking, having to be reprimanded by the Captain when she's blatantly out of line or, bizarrely, just being given free rein to EXPRESS HER UTTER LACK OF TACT. "You eat that?" "You're secure enough to wear a robe?" It's like being saddled with a -- extremely fit and tactically intelligent -- sixteen-year-old. Maybe the rape gangs (oh god that expression again) made her grow up more quickly, but I think living on the streets also stunted her emotional growth.

Anyway. I am entertained by Yar's diplomatic fail, I am impressed by her martial skills, and I would like to like her, but in a show where the fifteen-year-old routinely saves the day, I am frustrated by her lack of maturity.

Wait, what the flipping fuck. Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer are dating?




I find this strangely unsettling and I don't know why.

Huh.

I have had a lot of company, and been a lot of places, and done a lot of things (well, you know, toured historic houses and gardens and agreed to sell my dad's stuff on eBay and seen Angela Lansbury and stuff), and could post about any of those super fun things. But I am very tired.

So all I am posting for is to say this:

HOW DID I NOT KNOW THIS MOVIE EXISTED, AND HOW CAN I ACQUIRE IT.

It's bizarre to be home, with my parents and my siblings and my extended family. I went to the Winsor graduation yesterday, to see the last batch of girls that I still know graduate.

It was pretty weird being back.

Pretty much all I'm doing now is watching TV, playing the Sims 3 (♥), and enjoying the wealth of food opportunities before me. So if I'm not too around, that would be why.



(STILL WATCHING TNG OH GOD. There will probably be updates on that..)

Yeah, so I've been clearly doing nothing but tanning, drinking, and watching Star Trek: The Next Generation. SO HERE ARE SOME MORE BRIEF THOUGHTS.

( Lonely Among Us (1x07) )

( Justice (1x08) )

( The Battle (1x09) )

( Hide and Q (1x10) )

( Haven (1x11) )

( The Big Goodbye (1x12) )

( Datalore (1x13) )


Yeah. That's right. Now I need some food.

So, I have, in true summer vacation fashion, begun the EPIC AND VERY IMPORTANT project of watching (mostly for the first time) the Star Trek spin-offs. (I'm pretty much promising that Enterprise won't feature, but if anyone has an episode they think I have to watch, just for a sense of the series, I might be open to that.)

Thus, also in true summer vacation fashion, I streamed the first six episodes (counting the first two-parter as two?) yesterday and now I have THOUGHTS.

( General reactions. )

( Characters. )

( Some episode specific notes. )



SO THERE YOU HAVE IT, RIGHT.

Future posts probably won't be so long-winded. Until I get to DS9.

It's possible I only like reboot!Trek fic when it's about the mind-meld between Kirk and real!Spock and the confusion created by his memories of real!Kirk and real!Spock's beautiful love.

Just sayin'.



ETA: One other good? thing about this whole Trek revival thing is that I think it's prompting me to watch TNG, VOY, and DS9. I might make it a summer project. And possibly, out of curiosity, the animated series. For the sake of thoroughness.

(Enterprise has no place in my world. I'll just watch Quantum Leap when I feel the need for some Scott Bakula.)


ETA2: P.S. Bruce Greenwood is BY FAR the hottest member of the new Trek cast. Hi there, sailor.

I know I just updated thirteen seconds ago, but:

Ahahahahahahahaha Zachary Quinto attempting to look hip while having to rock the Spock haircut.

Oh god, I think I can die happy now. THE GREEN SWEATER. I THINK THE HILARITY HAS CURED MY HANGOVER.




Also, I am shamelessly trawling that community for Patrick Stewart clips, because I simply adore that man. To the point that I nearly want to watch TNG, even!

It's possible I just watched my first half an episode of American Idol since season one, because -- even though I think the show is wretched -- I have been vaguely enticed by Kris Allen and Adam Lambert and how chill and pleasant and BFFy they seem to be. Especially Adam, who is mildly fabulous, despite the fact that I'm not completely crazy about his performance style.

I'm not actually watching. Just ... browsing. It's summer break, this is much less embarrassing than my HSM2-fueled Chad/Ryan obsession in '07.

But I did have three things to say:

1) Um, Adam Lambert's cover of "Ring of Fire" is actually kind of sexy. I dig it.

2) Wait, why are people acting like there's some sort of is-he-or-isn't-he going on? He makes gay jokes, he's from West Hollywood, there are photos of him kissing a man, and his brother has said he is gay. People. This is not a secret. (For which, kudos to him.)

3) Wow, Paula Abdul, could you be more of a druggie?



Okay, now I think I'm done with the show.

I just uploaded a lot of new icons. Like, fifty.

A very sad number of them were of people grinning goofily or Star Trek.

Sometimes even both.



Is time for icon meme now?

( But of course. )

This recap made me like the new ST movie in retrospect.

Wow, I got home late today.


Maybe I should sleep.