Tuesday...

It was a Vorkosigan sort of day, since I was listening to Komarr when I was walking today.

At suppertime, random, fairestcat, auriaephialia and deakat came over and we ate chicken, cheese, salad, and some amazing fruit, and watched Leverage episode 4x13, "The Girl's Night Out Job", which I thought was loads of fun.

Then afterwards we sat and talked about Captain Vorpatril's Alliance. I made my ( own list )

Comics of the day..

Browsing Comic Book Resources today, I came across something that amused me: a panel by Joe Quesada from Daredevil #6:



The setting is Ennis Tavern (you can see the name backwards in the window). Garth Ennis wrote Preacher; the lead character of Preacher, Jesse Custer, is sitting at the bar. The sign Drink Dillon Ale! is a reference to Steve Dillon, who drew Preacher. Marv from Frank Miller's Sin City is to his right, along with one of the girls from the same comic.

That sort of thing is fun.

Speaking of comics that are fun, I thought the comics that came out today were particularly good. These were:

1. The Avengers vs the X-Men: For a story that advertises itself as a fight-fest (plot, what plot?) this has an incredible wallop when it comes to characterization. First Daredevil vs. Psylocke - not a pairing I ever thought of, but hey, they've both had Ninja training. The second story (Thor vs. Emma Frost) is both written and drawn by Kaare Andrews, with a style all his own, and a spiy edge. "Emma Frost has made a life out of being underestimated. Taking men of power and bending them to her will. No man ever stood between her wants and her needs. This one will be no exception."
   
   
2. Avengers Assemble brings back the Guardians of the Galaxy, a team I always thought so lame I'd mostly forgotten them. But, but... Brian Michael Bendis proves again that he can make gold out of straw, and we get a nice kiss between Hawkeye and Black Widow. I'm never a big fan of Mark Bagley's art, but it looks better than usual here. Who knows, I might come to like it.
   
   
3. Avenging Spider-Man, the much-anticipated first appearance of the new Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers) in a story that is funny and smart. Written by Kelly Sue DeConnick (whose work I love), and Terry Dodson, who seldom disappoints.
   
   
4. The Defenders #8 by Matt Fraction and Jamie McKelvie. Not Matt Fraction's best writing - I've been finding the whole "Concordence Engine" storyline someone disjointed - but he writes a fine Black Cat.
   
   
5. The New Avengers #28, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato, which I thought was absolutely brilliant - moving, surprising, exciting, funny, chilling... and what great characterization. Part of the A vs X, which is getting more interesting all the time.
   

The best of the pile: The New Avengers #28, hands down. A 5-star comic.

Magic Mike...

I went to see Magic Mike this evening.

I thought it was great to see a movie that had sex in it - it's been a long time. At least, it had a sexual awareness, though there were no actual sex scenes. There was simulated sex, and numerous scenes of naked people in bed together, asleep or passed out.

The most interesting character was played by Matt Bohmer - who had almost no dialogue, and I couldn't even tell you his name. But Matt Bohmer has personality and to spare, and that made him more interesting than all the other rather inarticulate characters put together.

Alex Pettyfer was a disappointment. I'd heard him suggested as an actor who could play Lymond, and in some still photos it looked possible. In this movie, I couldn't see it at all.

I thought the plot was very similar to that of Saturday Night Fever - young man with nothing going for him finds success in disco dancing (or in this case, stripping); and in the end, sees the shallowness of the lifestyle and leaves it for love and, presumably, something better. Except in this movie, the protagonist role is shared between Mike and Adam - Adam slips into the role that Mike has been playing.

I would have had more sympathy for Magic Mike's aspirations of designing and selling handcrafted furniture, if I hadn't thought the furniture he made was horribly ugly.

Cody Horn as the female lead made a nice contrast to the various drunken and sleazy women populating the rest of the movie, but I don't think I've ever seen an actress or a lead character with so little personality or animation. This made it a rather unromantic romance - which was okay, but there should have been some spark, some subtext, some chemistry.

Matthew McConaughey as the owner of the strip club (and lead stripper) was fascinating, and borderline creepy.

What this movie really needed (besides a better writer) was more Matt Bohmer.