http://www.liquidsilverbooks.com/blog/?p=5638

As if May/June weren’t busy enough (birthdays (count ‘em – 8!), wedding anniversaries (2), daughter’s dance competitions (2 – we’re still in the “slow” season), a vacation and daughter’s dance recitals (2)) I tack on another this year. It’s a strictly personal one, important to only myself and there’s really no exact date other than “last week of May”. It’s been a year since I asked myself one very simple question (after reading, of all books, Twilight) and almost immediately began searching for an answer.

An answer that I’ve, so far, not fully answered to my satisfaction – four books fully finished, book 5 nearly complete, book 6 begun and one idea floating around in space for book 7. That could simply be attributed to the fact that once you ask yourself one question, there are always more questions to be answered.

Nearly a year since I asked that question and I’ve got to say, it’s been a strange trip. One where I learned a lot about myself, both as a person and as a writer.

Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?

Oh! Mother’s Day last week was spent in an IMAX theatre watching Star Trek. After seeing, I decided the goodness (that is both Star Trek and JJ Abrams) must be shared with the daughter. So this Sunday, today, will be spent, again, in an IMAX theatre watching Star Trek.

Geek love – pass it on.

Yes, girls play video games. Violent, gory ones in fact. While I do love my Zelda, Spryo and such – I loved BloodRayne II just as much. Talk about gory violence.

This reminds me of the times when I still frequented comic book stores. There’s too much other stuff going on for me to go anymore (so I am, sadly, about two years behind) but when I did have the time to go, I did. Talk about feeling akward. Geez. It was like I was an alien life form who had landed on another planet. I always used to ask my husand if I had sprouted a third eye and wasn’t aware of it. There was one time, when my husband was with me, where we walked up to the counter and the clerk started talking to him. Hello? I’m the buyer; not him. Then there was another time the clerk started making comments about what I was buying (not bad ones, just offhand storyline stuff) and I started firing stuff back. He seemed surprised and started talking to me; then seemed even more surprised that I could keep up.

Yeah, chicks read comic books and actually know their shit too.

Fancy this – they read comic books, play violent video games and love their action movies – you know, all the things that are labeled “guy” stuff. Sorry, guys, it’s not all your stuff – never really was either. Ya’ll just liked to think it was. I know that’s mind bending and all but we geeky girls are out there. Don’t be scared. I assure you, we don’t bite.

Unless you want us to.

BTW, did see X-Men Origins: Wolverine on Friday morning. Aside from the few issues I had (most of which are relatively minor, the major ones I can overlook, and are all comic book related) I liked the movie.

I wasn’t one that partook, I hate watching movies on my computer, mostly because my laptop is specifically for traveling so it’s a tiny one. Watching rentals on TV really pushes it because I’m one of the opinion that movies should be watched on a big screen. Wolverine being no exception. Let alone, that whole “responsible” part of me that talks damn loud.

I read through a thread on a popular movie review site the other day where someone had said that they’d watched the workprint and saw the final cut just recently. They didn’t say anything spoilerish, so I wasn’t worried about reading through. What caught my attention, however, was the overabundance of posters who kept saying that The Dark Knight was probably the best comic book movie ever made.

Please note, that’s their opinion, not mine. I loved TDK, for reasons that probably no one else did. They just kept going on and on about TDK and such. I really wanted to point out something, but I refrained. But since this is my blog, I shall not.

Sure, TDK was, as far as comic book movies go, exceedingly good. However, everyone seemed to be forgetting the fact that this was the seventh movie in the franchise. Yeah, that’s right seventh. (Batman the Movie (1966), Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992), Batman Forever (1995), Batman & Robin (1997), Batman Begins (2005) & The Dark Knight (2008) – not to mention the spin-offs such as Catwoman (2004)). After seven movies, you’re bound to hit on one or two good ones to offset the misses.

They’ve relauched the franchise twice after the original movie in 1966 (with Adam West). Batman has been played by Adam West, Micheal Keaton (I still say WTF?), Val Kilmer, George Clooney and most recently, Christian Bale. So five different actors have played the character throughout the years.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine is on the fourth movie in the franchise, with who knows how many more (for the franchise overall)? They’ve been lucky enough to keep Hugh Jackman in the role for all four movies, something that the Batman franchise couldn’t even do with it’s lead.

So using TDK as the launching point for comparing X-Men Origins: Wolverine sees unbalanced and unfair. Like comparing apples to oranges (to steal a cliched analogy).

Yes, the movie studios should realize, after making then seeing the results of TDK with critcs and the general audience (and really, TDK had it’s flaws too), that adults deserve to have smart comic book movies that don’t talk to them as if they are a five years old clutching an action figure. But that’s not why movie studios make comic book movies. Movies are made to appeal to a general population of people, not a select group. Comic book fans/followers are that select group (and yes, I’m part of that select group). A movie studio is not going to waste millions of dollars to hit a small core group – that just doesn’t make good business sense. So you dilute the story, make changes that will appeal to the average soccer mom and her family.

Should it be this way? In my opinion, no. However, I know better. I’m not naive enough to think that a movie studio isn’t going to brand themselves by making a movie that will only appeal to the comic books fans. And in reality – they never could anyway. There’s absolutely no way to make a movie, about a character that you either love or hate, that is going to make everyone in the audience ecstatic.

It’s almost impossible to make everyone across the board happy, the movie studios aren’t going to change. So why expect them to? They are a business. You don’t like what they are cranking out?

Stop going to the movies.

Simple.

Those toys!  Where does he get those wonderful toys?

- Joker, Batman 1989

Starting to plan how to work out next week. Sadly, yes, I plan for such a thing as going to the movies. Especially when it’s something that I’ve been waiting to see for over a year. (the Wolverine movie for those of you not in the know) One of the movie theatres around here is advertising a midnight showing next week but with kiddo, hubby and I can’t go. I don’t have anyone else to go with, so right now, we’re planning to get off early on Friday and go. Though, that’s not a change from the previous X-Men movies; that’s what we’ve done. To be honest, I’m going in with really low expectations. I figure that way; even if it sucks – I’ll only be so disappointed. I am expecting nearly two hours of eye candy however, based on the trailers – that should be just fine.

I have started scribbling notes and whole sections of writing for the next thing that I’m working on. A section that I sketched out yesterday actually involved my main character in a scene with a character from the story I’m editing. These books are four books apart from each other and is the first time they’ve met. It was actually a bit odd to sketch out the conversation. Fun – but odd.

I’ve also decided that it’s time to add to the tattoo collection. Have to just work out the design that’s in my head now. I can’t draw to save my life, so I’ll have to be able to articulate it to the artist.

Should be an adventure.

Oh! And today’s WiP offering:

The rich blue sky that had dominated the afternoon was slowly slipping away, succumbing to the fiery wash of sunset. My focus was not on the dazzling display in the sky but instead on the figure that stood out on the balcony, watching the sun set.

My reaction was immediate and I did it without thinking. The events of this past week had been too much and everything had come to a head. No doubt, the past weekend had something to do with the outburst building inside of me. My hand closed over his wrist and I heard him cry out in pain almost immediately. My eyes flashed as I narrowed them at him and I did nothing to temper the energy flowing from me. “Get your ass out of my club.”