Babylon 5: "A Day in the Strife"

In the third episode of Babylon 5's third season: an alien probe threatens to destroy the station, G'Kar struggles to control the Narn community when his Centauri-appointed replacement arrives, Londo finds Vir a new role to perform, and Garibaldi challenges Dr Franklin about his growing stim addiction. Before anything else, it's important to mention that this episode has a horrible pun in its title.

It's easy to notice a general trend in Babylon 5: the storylines based around the humans are generally trite and unconvincing, while the storylines based around the non-humans are generally intriguing and dramatic. I'm trying to work out why that is. Are the actors (Mira Furlan, Peter Jurasik, Andreas Katsulas, et al) simply better performers? Does Straczynski simply write them more effectively? Or is it something so simple as the weird alien makeup making simplistic characterisation and stereotypical plots seem fresher and more interesting? I'm not certain of the reason, but what I do know is that in this episode - as in many others - the episode drags when it's focused on the humans and it sings when it's focused on the alien ambassadors.

The Last Exorcism: Part II (2013)

I should probably admit from the outset that I am an absolute sucker for movies about demonic possession and exorcists. Whether it's The Exorcist, or The Exorcist of Emily Rose, or indeed The Last Exorcism, there's something about the blend of drama, horror and Christian theology that is very addictive. It seems to generate atmosphere, tension and drama.

I really enjoyed The Last Exorcism, a faux documentary-come-found footage thriller in which a disillusioned Catholic priest brings a camera crew along to expose the rites of exorcism as fake - only to find himself having to conduct a real one. Some of the film didn't work, particularly in its conclusion, but overall it was a nicely entertaining and regularly scary little horror movie. It was also a pretty healthy box office hit, leading inevitably to a sequel: The Last Exorcism: Part II.

Of course that's a hilariously stupid title, but then it probably sits quite well in a genre where Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter was the fourth of ten films. As for the film itself? It's probably not a surprise to say that it's nowhere near as good as The Last Exorcism. I'm not sure it's even as good as Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.

The Pull List: 30 October 2013

American comic books work to a four-week schedule. This means that any month that has five Wednesdays will inevitably wind up without the usual pile of regular superhero comics flooding the shelves. The highest-profile release this was almost certainly Neil Gaiman and J.H. Williams III's The Sandman Overture, the first of six issues telling the back story that leads up to The Sandman's debut issue way back in January 1989.

I didn't wind up buying The Sandman Overture: a combination of a higher cover price (US$4.99) and an unconvincing quick flick through scared me away. It certainly looks gorgeous, but it also looks uncharacteristically wordy - as if Gaiman has forgotten how to writer comic books and instead delivered a sort of illustrated novel with occasional bits of dialogue. I also dislike prequels on principle. I read The Sandman's original storyline, and never once felt a burning need to know what happened to its titular immortal to place him the unfortunate position in which we first meet him. Some stories are better left unknown: a fact Star Wars fans learned to their despair in 1999.

Even with the reduced number of books, there were still quite a few things I found to purchase. Under the cut: reviews of Saga, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Thor: Crown of Fools, True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, Wild Blue Yonder and X-Men: Battle of the Atom. Apologies for the delay in posting this edition of the Pull List: a statewide delay saw all of Melbourne's comics arrive two days later than expected.

The Cabin in the Woods (2012)

Five American college students drive out to an isolated forest cabin for the weekend - only to find themselves hunted down by the undead family that lived in the cabin a century earlier. As they run for their lives, they begin to realise something more disturbing is at work: the entire situation has been artificially stage-managed by a team of technicians from an underground facility beneath them.

The Cabin in the Woods was, by their own admission, written by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard in three days. It shows. It's a film with a fairly neat central concept, and a bug-eyed over-the-top climax, but which flounders for more than an hour before reaching the fun bits. It's a dreadful case of a nice idea being ruined by a sloppy execution. Elements that should be jaw-dropping twists are openly revealed much too early, and weak characterisation makes key plot developments murky and ineffective. The writers are clearly more in love with some of the characters than they are with a tight narrative, which is pretty much the kiss of death for a horror movie.

AKB0048 #4: "Your Efforts Aren't in Vain"

It's been quite a while since my last review of this anime, so let's briefly recap: AKB0048 is a Japanese animated series based on the hugely popular and massive commercial pop outfit AKB48. I watched the first episode anticipated (indeed somewhat desiring) an enormous train wreck, and instead discovering a ridiculously silly and charming science fiction drama about pop music, interplanetary rebellions, alien creatures, ancient prophecies, lightsabers, robot suits and dance. Episode #4, "Your Efforts Aren't in Vain", settles down a lot from the crazier first three episodes, but it's still unexpectedly enjoyable stuff.

Now that they have arrived on the planet Akibastar, the new AKB0048 recruits settle into their new accommodation and begin training as singers and dancers. For young Sonata it's a chance to reunite with her older sister Kanata, although her joy at seeing her is not reciprocated.

Star Trek Voyager: "The 37s"

When the Voyager investigates an automatic distress beacon, they discover an early 20th century truck floating in space - and a nearby planet where a group of abducted humans have been cryogenically frozen for several hundred years. For Captain Janeway it's an opportunity to meet one of her idols face-to-face, but for these abducted and displaced humans there's a bigger problem. Do they stay in the Delta Quadrant or join the Voyager on its journey back to Earth?

I've been reviewing episodes of Enterprise and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and the other night - pretty much on a whim - I watched an episode of the series that came between them: Star Trek: Voyager. I'm actually pretty fond of Voyager. It's probably the most superficial and breezy Star Trek series, but it's amiable fun and when it works well it's pretty entertaining stuff. "The 37s", the first episode of Voyager's second season, does not work well. It does not work well at all.

Popular Posts: October 2013

Illness along with interstate travel saw the number of new posts on The Angriest decline a bit in October, so it's no surprise that three of the five most popular posts this month were from earlier times. It's also not a surprise, given the impending anniversary, that three of the five most popular posts were about Doctor Who.

• Fun with Stats: Who's the longest-running Doctor? (link)
• Fun with Stats: Doctor Who viewing figures (link)
• The Lone Ranger (2013) (link)
• Animated women: Frozen in context (link)
• Who50 #3: "The Curse of Fenric" (link)

As for the most popular posts published in October, the top five are:

• The Lone Ranger (2013) (link)
• Who50 #3: "The Curse of Fenric" (link)
• The Pull List: 16 October 2013 (link)
• Who50 #4: "The Aztecs" (link)
• Game of Thrones: "The Ghost of Harrenhal" (link)

Ghostbusters (1984)

For a while now I've been toying with the idea of the "perfect" film. There are films that I like, but which I will also openly admit are not actually very good on a semi-objective level. There are other films that I really like, but which are critically flawed and suffer problems that the better aspects manage to overcome. Then I've been thinking about the "perfect" films: they are structurally and technically flawless, and run across the screen like a well-oiled machine. An example of the first kind of film might be, say, Masters of the Universe, which I've loved since childhood but which is a messy live-action adaptation of a toy-based cartoon. An example of the second kind of film might be Alien 3, which is a glorious and mournful masterpiece almost crippled by studio interference. A good example of the third kind, the "perfect" kind, is Ghostbusters.

This comedy horror film, released in 1984 to great commercial success, simply doesn't put a foot wrong. The funny bits are funny. Every character is distinctive and entertaining. The horror elements provide a good number of high-quality scares. Most importantly the narrative is whip-smart and cleanly structured. There may be better films in existence, but I have no problem describing Ghostbusters as perfect: perfect in construction, and perfect in execution.