Nerd Alert #7 - 1/11/11 Edition. 11 Favorite Issue 1 Covers.

   

 

 

The Jukebox #14 - Countdown to TPC, TDCC AND SSLYBY Show Edition: Tokyo Police Club. One Best Things Going Right Now.

Discography (Albums I own)

A Lesson in Crime
Elephant Shell
Champ

Tokyo Police Club are one of the best new bands to come out in awhile. Listening to their first full length album, Elephant Shell, was like a breath of fresh air with it's up beat sound and their marriage of  guitars and keyboards that create a sound all of their own while still being able to hear hints of their influences. Dave Monks vocals remind me of Ben Gibbard. Other than that I think they take a sound that might be common place in today's indie rock scene, but they tweak and add a new sensibility to it that's makes some truly wonderful albums. Their new album Champ is fantastic from beginning to end. With stand out tracks "Bambi", "Favourite Colour", and "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" to name a few. The entire album is great and promises more greatness from this band just like Elephant Shell did when it first came out. 

Nerd Alert #6 - Why the hell can't Warner Bros. and DC Comics get Wonder Woman right?

Wonder Woman, created in December 1941 debuting in All Star Comics #8. Like Superman and Batman she quickly became one of DC's most popular characters. For those of you living in a cave or completely ignorant to pop culture, Wonder Woman, Diana Prince (her secret identity), is an Amazon Princess from the island of Themyscira where her mother Hippolyta leads as Queen.  As the story goes, Steve Trevor crashes on the island, a Contest is started to choose a representative for the island to return him to the states. Diana disquised herself and won and was named the new champion to represent Themyscira. Diana comes to America and establishes herself as a champion for the world, co-founds the Justice League, fights some Greek Gods and other villains, and overcomes costume changes. There's more to her story, but that's not what were here to talk about. What were here to talk about is how one of the most storied characters in comics can't seem to catch a break in comic sales, movies and just recently being denied a new television series. I'm making this argument because Wonder Woman gets a bad rap especially from the male population who thinks she's just a character women can enjoy. Which is far from the truth. Wonder Woman, for one, has one of the most fascinating origins of any superhero mainly because of the strong ties to Greek Mythology. To quote Mercedes Lackey from her introduction in Wonder Woman: The Circle. "When you need to stop an asteroid, you get Superman. When you need to solve a mystery, you call in Batman. When you need to end a war, you get Wonder Woman." Wonder Woman is a Princess, Warrior, Diplomat, and Goddess. How can you not make this concept work?!
Whether she's dealing with Zeus and Ares or looking for guidance and honoring her mission for Athena, the Greek Mythology ties (plus other mythical characters she's interacted with, check Gail Simone's run on the book) is what makes Wonder Woman a truly unique superhero compared to her counterparts. Which is what boggles my mind why we don't have a movie yet! First off, Wonder Woman's costume is a staple of the women's wardrobe options for Halloween. You can't find me a guy out there that doesn't think about or want to have his wife or girlfriend walk into the bedroom with that costume on. The point I'm making here is a Wonder Woman movie will bring you money if you get a hot actress to play her wearing one of the most sexy outfits out there. Now I'm not saying make this a T&A cheesecake movie. Sex sells we all know this. You can still keep the sexy mystique of Wonder Woman in the movie while following in the footsteps of The Dark Knight and Watchmen and staying true to the character and story material and make a gripping, relatable and relevant movie.
Hell, you could use the new costume DC has debuted in last couple months. Just get rid of the leather jacket, which is a horrible addition to her costume.  Here it is.

Which as much as I have a soap box about Warner Bros. inability to make a Wonder Woman movie or television series, I have just as much of a soap box about DC and there inability to make her comic a top ten selling book. Much as I love Gail Simone's take on the character, towards the end of her run left a since of disappointment after a strong beginning. Maybe, it's because DC might of cut her run short because J. Michael Straczynski came up with a brand new radical take on the character that supposedly retcons her origin and give her a new costume that will probably last maybe a year longer than the hair cut she had couple years ago. The problem with this is this isn't really good storytelling. It's laziness on the writer and editors part because they can't figure out how tell an engaging epic story with all her continuity and great characters while putting a new twist on it. What's even more ridiculous is that if DC would just look at what Geoff Johns (Green Lantern, Flash) and Grant Morrison (Batman) are doing with there books they can apply the same strategy to Wonder Woman.

First off, Geoff Johns is DC's go to writer and one of the main architects of their universe. Why this is is because he knows how to tap into the best qualities of his characters and find their voice. Also he finds ways to honor the stories of the past while offering new ideas to help the mythology grow. Grant Morrison does this also, but with a way more imaginative take that takes characters on new adventures that you never would of thought plausible. Look at his current run on Batman, Batman & Robin, and now Batman Inc. and you'll see what I'm talking about. Which in my opinion, Grant Morrison would be my choice to take over Wonder Woman and just have free reign on her book and unlock all that untapped potential. Give him an artist like Ivan Reis, Nicola Scott or bring Phil Jimenez back on the book. Sales juggernaut trust me. If you don't believe me check out Morrison's JLA Deluxe Editions and see how awesome he makes Wonder Woman. The fact that Wonder Woman, out of all the major superheroes, has only had one main book in her existence boggles my mind. Green Lantern has 3 books and the Flash will eventually have 2, yet the one member of DC's trinity (Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman) has never had more than one book is shameful. 

So to conclude my rant about this, Warner Bros. meet me at camera 3. Thank You. Buddy, listen, I love the movies you come out with (most of them), but you're being a real douche about this movie. Fuck the television series. This isn't The Hulk. This is Wonder Woman. The first female superhero. TV's been done already. You are missing tons of money that will be thrown at you if you make this. Find an unknown or a popular attractive actress that can convey the beauty, strength of character and the overall presence that Wonder Woman brings, add in a good script that follows in the example of Batman Begins and Dark Knight, hell, I haven't seen it, but add in Green Lantern too, and you have the makings of a successful movie. Even a franchise if you don't fuck it up.
DC comics all you need to do is stop worrying about making drastic changes and getting media attention. What I'm trying to say is don't be the media whores that Marvel can be more times than I like. Just follow my suggestion and get Grant Morrison and one of the artists I mentioned and get him on her book ASAP! If not her regular monthly book, then give him the chance to write a Wonder Woman Earth One graphic novel. Hey, it worked for Superman.

Movie Box #2: High Fidelity. A Must See of every sense of the word..

High Fidelity came out in March of 2000. It stars John Cusack as Rob Gordon. He's a record store owner who at the beginning of the movie has his girlfriend break up with him. Then this leads to Rob going through his Top 5 Break ups of all time. Each story chronicling how in Rob's mind he was screwed over by each of the women in his list. What's great about this movie is that John Cusack still comes off as likable heartbroken guy looking for love character that he always plays in his movies (which he always does well), but in High Fidelity they add the fact that Rob Gordon is also a complete asshole. In some of the Top 5 stories, in the segment of the movie where he starts revisiting his old ex's, you come to find out that it was Rob that was the problem for his break ups. Also, as the movie starts moving towards the point where Rob starts getting his priorities straight and maturing as current ex Laura has been waiting for him to do, you start to really pull for Rob even though he does some of the hypocritical things in between. What also makes this an amazing movie, outside the main story, is the supporting cast. Jack Black was relatively new when this movie came out playing one of his best supporting characters, which I think we can all agree on is where he's strongest instead of being the star of the movie. Jack's character Barry and Todd Louiso's character Dick are two polar opposites, but work brilliantly together as Rob's two employees he "hired for three days a week and they just started showing up everyday. That was four years ago."
Which leads to the scenes in the record store, which showcase the elite atmosphere that accompanies owners and employees in a record store. Whether the guys are sharing there special monday morning mix, Top 5 lists, or just being rude to customers that come in with their taste or lack there of of music. Which bring laughs threw out. Add Cusack's sister Joan, Tim Robbins (who plays Laura's New Agey creepy rebound), Lisa Bonet (who I think is just playing herself it looks like, also her character enjoys getting lost in the fuck) and some other surprise appearances that I won't spoil here, you have just a throughly enjoyable movie. Overall, High Fidelity is about showcasing a certain scene in society that people know very little about and a guy that's coming to the point in his life that he's found the one woman for him and coming to the fact that in order to be with her and to make himself more happy, not just for the sake of being with Laura but also to himself, that he has to change of little bit of himself, but still staying who he is and finding that balance. This movie has something for everyone to enjoy whether it's dealing with heartbreak, fighting for the one you love, finding your path in life, or trying to get everyone to except the fact that you know more about music and they just need to except that, High Fidelity has it all.

The Jukebox #13 - Countdown to TPC, TDCC AND SSLYBY Show Edition: Two Door Cinema Club. Will Dance your ass off!

Discography (What I own)

Four Words to Stand On EP
Tourist History

Two Door Cinema Club is one of those fun bands you put on at a party and just rock out and dance your ass off. They're the result of Vampire Weekend and Bloc Party fucking and having a baby. Which is probably impossible since all the members in both bands are guys, but Schwarzenegger and DeVito pulled it off in Twins so anything's possible. Anyway, their debut album is one of the best I've listened to and every song is fantastic. Just listening to the record you tell that their live show is going to be a blast.

Stupid People. A Universal Dilemma...

Stupid People. We see them everyday. On television, on the road, in the grocery store, you know EVERYWHERE! You see them and at some point every day they do something to just fuck your day up somehow. It ranges from just a few minutes, maybe a couple hours, or just your entire day. Hell, maybe a week or longer. You have to deal with their idiotic questions, which usually involve giving them an answer  that anyone with common sense would of known the answer to before asking the damn thing and wasting your time. Then you got the classic stupid person. The stupid sports guy. You all know the stupid sports guy, he's the moron who's so desperate to be one of the guys that he jumps into any conversation that involves whatever game was on the night before or during the weekend. What makes him stupid is that he never knows what he's talking about, easiest example (which I was actually witnessed to) this one guy is talking about the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Duke won the national title the night before and this jackass starts talking about the game and asks us who we think is going to win the national title. What did we do? What else would you do in this situation? Fuck with the guy and make him look dumber for the next hour and a half until you get bored and tell him Duke already won that's what you do! I would delve into the stupid driver part of this rant, but I could go on all day about how much I hate the stupid driver. The stupid driver must be destroyed and vanquished for my life forever. Annihilated like Milli Vanilli's career. The biggest offender though, other than the before mentioned stupid driver, is the stupid person in line.
The stupid person in line is by far the most frustrating motherfucker of them all. Why? Because, the stupid person in line is actually seen and heard in plain view. Unlike the stupid driver, where you don't have to actually interact with the person or here his/her voice, you have to listen to the stupid person in line and their stupid argument or whatever waste of time bitching that they're doing. What makes them suck at life so much is the fact that you don't get to sit in driver seat while dealing with this, no, you are fucking standing while this is going on! You have to stand there, for what feels like forever, listening to the stupidest argument or conversation that's going on and getting uncomfortable to the point that you start rearranging your stance to the point that you look like a pop singer that's singing with attitude at guy that did her wrong and she's just not going to take it anymore. What we need to do is take all the stupid people, all of them (except the mentally challenged people since they can't help it and are usually smarter than the people I've mentioned), and ship them off to the worst place on earth. Like Antarctica, Wyoming, Delaware, Canada or Finland. Then make them watch rerun upon reruns of Power Rangers, Fraiser, Mad About You and worst of all Saved by the Bell: The New Class! No mercy to these offenders of common sense and normal brain function.

The Jukebox #12 - Countdown to TPC, TDCC AND SSLYBY Show Edition: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. F@CKING Awesome!

Discography (Well, Albums that I own)

Broom
Pershing
Let it Sway

First off this bands name is probably the most incredible name I've ever seen. When my friends Jeff and Maria told me about this band I think I had a mind explosion over the awesomeness of this bands' name. Then when I finally listened to there music? Holy Shit It's amazing! All three albums don't have a bad song on them, which is saying something in this day and age. They have a great indie rock sound that's melodic and chill, then they bring on a catchy, just plain fun rockin' sound. The lyrics are fantastic and the chorus' are unbelievably catchy to, after the second or third listen you're already singing along. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin is just one of those bands that put you in a good mood when you pop in one of their albums. It will wake you up in the morning or put you in better mood at the end of the day. Just all around good times when listening to either of SSLYBY's albums.

I thought this was a clever idea.

Company Name Watching.... yeah.

So does anyone else enjoy laughing at company names that people come up with? No one? Is that crickets I hear? Well if you're looking for an alternative to people watching while in your car than Company name watching is the next best thing! Why? Because they're are truly tons random names out there. Like today on my way home from work. I'm just driving and all of the sudden I see on some guys van Motivated Movers. Probably not the funniest thing ever, but if you think about it's a pretty random name. How is it a random name? Think dumb ass! Has anyone in the history of the world ever been motivated to move shit? The answer is no. Like the caveman who invented the wheel, he created the wheel because he wasn't motivated to move whatever caveman had to move back then. I mean I don't think it's possible to hire someone who could be motivated to move stuff. They might come in to the situation with good intentions and wanting to earn their check, but all those factors quickly leave when the see the asshole who wants you to move some worthless China set cabinets (Don't get me started on this worthless purchase). Those things immediately kill your soul. Also, do you think they might have some type of pep rally morning meeting. Maybe start the meeting with the Rocky IV Soundtrack and reenact some montages? Or maybe this is wishful thinking on my part, but maybe the most motivating thing they can do is play Ace of Base's Beautiful Life. Huh? You ask? If you don't immediately get pumped up when that first piano note comes at you at the beginning of the song than you have no soul. You are Scrooge before the ghost and Tiny Tim. You're the asshole that laughed when Mufasa died. So....... there. Whew! Anyway, then I saw a place called The Hot Nails. Now I need to do more research on this, but I'm pretty sure that all nail salons have some funny random names. For some reason The Hot Nails stuck with me. I mean a name like that they have to be the greatest nail salon on earth! Better than Queen Latifah's place in Barbershop 2 at least. I mean there either the best or there incredibly bad. Like the type of bad when Tisha Campbell-Martin guest stared on Fresh Prince of Bel Air and everything on her was fake. Nails, hair and everything. Then Will Smith did that hilarious song (yes, the clip is provided below). So this is just a taste of company name watching and all the pop culture references you can put into it. Plus it makes dealing with traffic more enjoyable.