In Lieu of Geekery...

In lieu of Benjamin Loong's eagerly anticipated essay on the comic book industry, I've decided to pay homage to secret nerds paying tribute to not-so-secret-nerds. First on the list is Bill Simmons of ESPN, who unveils his hidden nerditude in his latest article for ESPN The Magazine:

A few weeks ago, I spent a Saturday at MIT's Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, or as I dubbed it, Dorkapalooza 2009! A slew of statistical rock stars showed up: Dean Oliver, Aaron Schatz, John Hollinger. Panels argued topics like "Where are basketball analytics headed?" and "What's more important, coming up with a cool formula or kissing a girl?" The hottest celeb? My friend Daryl Morey, the Rockets GM, who was hounded by MIT students as if he were Britney among the paparazzi. I dubbed him Dork Elvis. Even he admitted that was funny. Begrudgingly.

That's the thing about stat geeks: They have a sense of humor about themselves. And yes, I count myself among them. I played entire Microleague baseball seasons on my 1984 Apple and kept handwritten stats. I've played fantasy baseball since 1982. I frequent the Prospectus sites and devour their books. I try to hide my inner geek, but believe me, it lurks. Remember, I'm the guy who figured out Hickory High's title-game box score.

Lastly, let me pay tribute to the granddaddy of all guilty nerd pleasures (which is concluding its television run this season), the precursor to my current favorite, Chuck. Click on the video. You know you want to.

Milestones

Last week, I tried on a pair of my old work pants (the ones that I used when I was still teaching in the University) and discovered, to my horror, that I could barely fit into them. My waist size, which used to be as fixed and constant as the Northern Star, went all crazy on me. I suppose life with a 28-inch waist does augur well for things to come, but I can't help but pine for the good old days when I could joyfully claim a 26-inch waistline. Oh well.

In the meantime, allow me to share some positive milestones in my life. True to form, these milestones are all centered on my family. Comic book geeks who can't wait for another article from Benjamin Loong will have to wait till the end of the week.

Please check out the pictures from Juan and Manuel's Culminating Activity at Teacher Marlene J. Villegas Preschool here and here. Enjoy!

Acquired Tastes: Benjamin Loong II on The Watchmen Movie

While I haven't found the time to see The Watchmen on the big screen, therefore putting my already precarious "uber-nerd" status in peril, fellow comic book fan and cineaste Benjamin Loong graciously provided me with his quick review of the big screen adaptation of one of Alan Moore's most influential works. Enjoy!

Watchmen movie review
By Benjamin G. Loong II

This review will be brief and not so detailed since I've only seen the movie once, on Thurday.

First of all the introductory scene featuring the murder of Edward Blake was just beautifully done. It was a brutal, well-choreographed fight scene that, I found, was a welcome addition. This was followed by an Easter egg-laden montage set to Bob Dylan's "The Times are a Changin'," which was used to set-up the alternate timeline of the world of Watchmen. It did so rather well in my opinion.

What follows is a faithful adaptation of the original story with some minor changes that were necessary for translation into film. The first half of the film rather excellent, in my opinion, but in the latter half the time constraints of the theatre release were quite noticeable: the film would jump from scene to scene while lacking any subtle transition at all.

The time constraints were possibly the cause for the film's other major shortcoming, which involved failing to develop several characters adequately, namely: Rorschach, Ozymandias, Bubastis, and the various minor characters who died in New York. With Rorschach I felt that the interrogation scene in the film did not adequately convey the character's psyche nor his philosophy. It managed to give hints of characterization, but not enough for people who never read the book to sympathize with the character. With Ozymandias the problem is similar as the film barely touched upon his origins, and while it does partially explain his motivation, other aspects of the character are not touched upon. As for Bubastis, no explanation is given for her existence and she just appears as soon as the story gets to Veidt's arctic reseacrch facility, Karnak. The minor characters were not given any characterization at all, leading to less sympathy for their deaths than what one would feel reading the comic. This omission was not as necessary to the story as the characterization of the main characters, but I felt it noteworthy. I mention these because the original story was essentially a character piece. It's central theme was the deconstruction of the idea of the superhero through and examination of the story's major characters. The main plot was just the framework around which this happened and failing to do so for any of the characters is a major shortcoming.

Another notable omission was that of the scene of Hollis Mason's murder, which had been filmed, but ended up on the cutting room floor due to time constrains.

Despite these shortcomings in the characterization of some of the characters, the acting by the cast for all of the characters was excellent. To borrow another reviewer's description, Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach was “sublime.” Jeffrey Dean Morgan managed portray the Comedian in an incredibly sympathetic manner. And Matthew Goode, despite the reservation of some fans, managed to pull off Adrian Veidt so well that I barely noticed when his dialogue deviated from that in the novel. This was particularly true during the movie's climactic scene in Karnak. But perhaps the most impressive of all was Billy Crudup's portrayal of Dr. Manhattan. Perhaps this was because his was the character that had the most development, and thus gained the audience's sympathy the most.

Overall, I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10, and suggest waiting for the director's cut to come out.

Photo Credits:

Picture of the Watchmen Babies comes courtesy of The NERD of HER!

Acquired Tastes: Marbury as Othello

Every morning, before I head off to work, I read my daughter Lucia one of Shakespeare's sonnets. While some might accuse me of intentionally setting my little princess up to be an intellectual snob of frightening proportions, let me assure one and all that it's true: I am intentionally steeping my lovely Lucia into some of the finest verses ever minted in the English language. While she might never develop a taste for Shakespearean literature in particular, it is my fondest hope that she will always find herself drawn to good literature in general.

We just finished Sonnet 28. Fantastic stuff!

Equally good is The Onion's article on Stephon Marbury. Like most attempts to use the Bard in a contemporary comedic situation, there's little that can be excerpted as one-liners, but much can be mined from a thorough reading of the entire piece.

Enjoy!

Photo Credits:

Picture of Stephon Marbury as Othello comes courtesy of The Onion.

A Heap of Thanks!

I am sorry for the lack of activity in this blog of late. I just completed a wonderful trip to Mindanao, where we conducted Worship Central seminars in Bukidnon and Cagayan de Oro and a medical mission in Barangay 23, Cagayan de Oro. Many thanks to Dr. Benie A. Sy, Atty. Olet Cabrera, the Regional Alpha Office, the ever-enthusiastic Alpha volunteers from Bukidnon, and the indefatigable Bgy. Captain Joshua James Frias. Don't worry, I'll be able to detail our adventures online once I've dealt with the work that has piled up in my absence.

In the meantime, allow me to share one of the fruits of my Mindanao trip, via my ministry buddies:



More often than not, the clarity of the message, the purity of the intention, and sheer beauty of the execution of great art helps me understand how all things on God's green earth can be an opportunity for sanctity. Thanks guys!