Thursday, December 31, 2015

So I finally saw "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"...

I don't know if I will make it a habit of putting out reviews of stuff I see, but it just had to be said...

Two days ago (December 29, 2015), I finally saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens... not only that, I ended up seeing it twice!  (Long story, but basically, first I saw it on my own at the local theater because it was relatively dull at 10 AM, and then my friend had already gotten IMAX 3D tickets for another theater in another city, so I went along for that too.)

And my final opinion?  AWESOME!

My further thoughts on the matter... WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD!

Well, for starters, let's get the bantha out of the room here: There was a lot of concern as to how the franchise's new owners would be able to pull it off, and luckily, they did.  Disney has been doing an excellent job with handling the Marvel cinematic universe, so there's no reason they couldn't do the same with Star Wars.  (And between this and the last Avengers movie, it seems that 2015 was quite the profitable year for them.)

So, as for the breakdown of the movie itself...

PLOT: It was a solid plot, a good intro to what will now be the "Sequel Trilogy"... the Galactic Empire has been replaced by the First Order, and now they're the new troublemakers.  Otherwise, it was solid and action-packed.  A little additional backstory about the new villains (namely Kylo Ren and Supreme Leader Snoke) would have been nice, but I guess that will be saved for what comes next.  And speaking of the characters...

CAST: One way or another, all six of the original heroes (Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2) returned to the big screen, but the new characters (Rey, Finn, Poe, BB-8, Kylo Ren and Supreme Leader Snoke, etc... sorry if I missed anyone there) also make quite an impression.  The new heroes are rather endearing, and the new villains are rather intriguing.

MUSIC: John Williams didn't just rehash all of the old music from the previous movies, but he did leave a few familiar cues and themes in there.  Nice new music, although I wish there had been something really strong and epic, like Darth Vader's Theme or Duel of the Fates.

(IMPORTANT NOTE: One thing which I noticed in this movie was all the callbacks to the original classic trilogy, Episodes IV, V and VI.  Ranging from scrounging for junk on a desert planet to destroying a planet-sized superweapon via flying down a trench and/or flying inside to shoot it up, this did quite a lot of that.  Quite a lot of this sense like "been there, done that."  But I'm not particularly annoyed; if anything, I think it was quite clever, because Star Wars is about the Force which guides people's destinies.  And as a certain saying goes: History doesn't repeat, but it often rhymes.)

Oh, and be wary of significant character death.

...I was going to say more, but now I forgot what.  Oh well.

So, it's not a perfect movie, but still a great first attempt by the new owners of the franchise.  Between the first attempt and my few complaints (excessive callbacks, lack of exciting new music, characters being a tad overpowered)... I give it an 8/10.  Looking forward to Episodes VIII and IX now!

May the Force be with you!

Monday, December 21, 2015

HOORAY! 3 years since the 2012 Apocalypse!

Maybe I should do my part to make this a new winter solstice tradition: celebrate a much-anticipated apocalypse or doomsday which never happened.

Happy 3rd Anniversary of the 2012 Apocalypse, everyone!

-Seth Shirer (a.k.a. StellarStylus)

Thursday, December 17, 2015

'Twas the night before the new Star Wars movie...

So, I just can't let this historic event go by without proper commentary...

I remember, well over a year ago, when we got a two-fold surprise: not only had Disney acquired the rights to Star Wars, but now a new sequel trilogy was in the works.

People started having their doubts at first, but as time went on, things looked more and more promising.  And now, with the critics' reviews coming out, it looks like they just might have pulled it off.

...I guess what I'm trying to say is, I'm glad Disney and all those involved managed to do it right and make something great.  Soon enough, everyone (including yours truly) will be able to find out for themselves.  (One of my mottoes in life: "If you're going to do something, then do it right.")

And yes, I did make this blog post with its title playing on the classic poem "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," because why the heck not?  It's not like I made the decision to release the new film so close to Christmas...  But since I did that anyway, I might as well write a like ditty for the occasion...

"'Twas the Night Before the New Star Wars Movie"
by Seth Shirer

'Twas the night before the new Star Wars movie, and all 'round the world,
everyone got ready as the theaters' red carpets unfurled.

For countless many, Real Life concerns were forsaken,
As they all wanted to see when the Force would "awaken."

It's finally here, ready to go, this brand-new "Episode Seven,"
And for the die-hard fans, this ought to be like Heaven.

It's the usual fare, with plenty of humans, aliens and droids,
and some space battles too, maybe even a few asteroids!

A franchise forty years old but still going strong,
No one wanted to see this new movie go wrong.

Never before had one of these films been released in December,
And this was a big event which they all wanted to remember.

Undoubtedly many parents will take the kids to see this flick,
To keep them busy as their young wait for gifts from St. Nick.

...Now the author wants to stop this poem before it gets lousy,
Especially before it wears on and he gets too drowsy.

Still, a final message for the fans who stay good and true:
Enjoy the movie, and may the Force be with you!

Monday, September 28, 2015

A haiku for the blood moon

Well, the blood moon came and went, and we won't see another like it for another 30 years or so, and it was a wonderful event, to be sure.  But since I'm also on a roll with the haiku at the moment, it occurred to me to write something for the occasion...

Blood moon in night sky-
Wait another thirty years,
Always great to see.

As always, feedback is welcome.

Friday, September 18, 2015

Another haiku, this time for MIRACLE OF SOUND!

As I've mentioned elsewhere before, I'm a big fan of the music project Miracle of Sound, which simply cannot exist without the great and unbelievably talented Gavin Dunne.

And since I'm already on a roll with the haiku stuff, I quickly composed this one in my mind and put it down into writing...

Miracle of Sound,
I just can't stop listening;
Gavin Dunne, rock on!

This one's for you, Gav!

Thursday, September 17, 2015

My first English haiku in a long time ("I too like haiku...")

Believe it or not, folks, I am also something of a poet, even if I've been doing my own personal poetry on and off for, well, my entire life thus far...

And here's my first English haiku in a long time!

I too like haiku,
brief Japanese poetry,
works well in English.

Enjoy!

Monday, August 31, 2015

The end of summer, the start of something new...

Well, today is the last day of August, 2015, and gosh darn close to the end of summer itself (well, for those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere, anyway).

I enjoyed my summer break as much as I could, but I also got more writing done.  I wrote some more short stories, and I'll write even more short stories, and soon enough, some or all of them will become full-length novels...

Hang in there, stories are coming!

Monday, May 4, 2015

Happy Star Wars Day, 2015 - May the Fourth Be With You

Well, it's Star Wars Day for 2015, and here's what I've been working on... a song parody!

This particular piece is a parody of the song "Goodbye Black Ops" by Miracle of Sound, so maybe it would be best to listen to that first.  But otherwise, here we go...!

"Goodbye Star Wars Legends" (by Seth Shirer)
(Much gratitude to Gavin Dunne (“Miracle of Sound”), whose song “Goodbye Black Ops” helped inspire parody for the novels of the Star Wars Expanded Universe Timeline now known as the “Legends” Timeline.)
It’s been a year or so since Star Wars got bought out by “The Mouse”
And I’m looking through all the novels lying around the house
We got to enjoy the galaxy far, far away beyond the actual movies
And now it seems we’re at their mercy as they do whatever they please
Now it’s time to say
Goodbye lovely Mara Jade, goodbye smart Grand Admiral Thrawn
Goodbye heroic Dash Rendar, goodbye fan fave Kyle Katarn
Sure I can still crack open these books and there you’ll always be
But according to Disney it’s goodbye, farewell to thee
Goodbye
Goodbye
I wanted to rant and rave and hurl a hydrospanner
When I saw the brand-new golden “LEGENDS” banner
Then again, maybe that alternate timeline did go somewhere wrong
In the later years, starting with those fearsome Yuuzhan Vong
Now it’s time to say
Goodbye lovely Mara Jade, goodbye smart Grand Admiral Thrawn
Goodbye heroic Dash Rendar, goodbye fan fave Kyle Katarn
Sure I can still crack open these books and there you’ll always be
But according to Disney it’s goodbye, farewell to thee
Goodbye
Goodbye
So in us fans’ tender care, all these older books will survive
But then again, on the plus side, this means Chewbacca is still alive!
Goodbye lovely Mara Jade, goodbye smart Grand Admiral Thrawn
Goodbye heroic Dash Rendar, goodbye fan fave Kyle Katarn
Now it’s time to say
Goodbye lovely Mara Jade, goodbye smart Grand Admiral Thrawn
Goodbye heroic Dash Rendar, goodbye fan fave Kyle Katarn
Sure I can still crack open these books and there you’ll always be
But according to Disney it’s goodbye, farewell to thee
Goodbye
Goodbye
Goodbye

Thursday, April 30, 2015

I really need to update this thing more often...

Is it just me, or am I now just updating this blog at least once per calendar month just for the sake of doing so?  Goodbye April, hello May...

Saturday, February 28, 2015

"Animorphs: The Animated Series"?

So, one idea which has been bouncing around my head...

Sometimes, I like to play this game with friends: What if you had to make an adaptation of ___?  And recently I've been playing such a little game with other friends of mine, and the topic: Envision an animated version of the cult favorite book series Animorphs by K.A. Applegate.

Yes, yes, it already had that live-action TV version on Nickelodeon (and here nearly the entire fanbase groans of the thought of that) but what if it was an animated series?  For one thing, think of how much that would save on the special effects budget alone...

Even after all this time, nearly 20 years after the books first appeared and nearly 15 years after the book series ended, there's still a small yet devoted fanbase which loves it and would like to see it continue or come back.  Jump back into the saga where a group of youths with the power to transform into any animal they touch use that power to fight evil alien invaders...

And considering how, at least the last time I checked, someone owns quite a few online domain names with the word "Animorphs" in them, maybe we'll get a movie someday.  Who knows...

1. Setting

The original book series ran from spring/summer of 1996 for five years until spring/summer of 2001, but the adventures of the Animorphs themselves fought for three Earth years, so let's assume that they started fighting in 1996 and stopped in 1999 or 2000 or so.  Maybe it would be best if it took place during that era. (I know that Scholastic has been reprinting the series with "updated" cultural references, but in my honest opinion, maybe it would be best if it stayed in that era; for one thing, can you imagine how much harder it would be for them to keep their secret with the Internet and cameras everywhere?)

This would also mean that the song list could or should comprise of songs from no later than that time (and personally, I think Pat Benatar's hit "Invincible" would be fitting for the Animorphs series, despite it technically being a song from the 1980s and not "contemporary" to the kids themselves).  Oh, and I remember how the song "Fly Away" by Lenny Kravitz came out around the same time as the books; wouldn't that be a perfect song for a character like Tobias, who likes being a hawk?  But lately I've been listening to the extremely talented and awesome Gavin Dunne and his music project Miracle of Sound, and his song "Kickback" seems eerily fitting for Animorphs, especially with lines like "the prying eyes of the parasite" and "breaking through the cages" and "all the abuse you took buried in your head" and "won't be controlled!!"  (And ironically, his song "Kickback" is one of his few songs so far not based on any other IP or meant as a tribute to such.)

Yes, folks, please follow Miracle of Sound on Bandcamp and Miracle of Sound on YouTube and enjoy it.  And now that I've plugged an endorsement for my new favorite musical act, back to this blog post...

2. Atmosphere

I've been looking at some animated series, and when I see Death Note or Attack on Titan or even Naoki Urasawa's Monster, I think that such a mood would be perfect for an animated version of Animorphs, because even in broad daylight, it still looks grim, gloomy and oppressive, and that would suit the paranoid mood of the Animorphs perfectly.  (That doesn't mean that it needs to be in the Japanese anime style, but I'm just comparing it to those series for the sake of the atmosphere and mood.)

3. The Cast

Alright, now we're getting to the fun part: Who to cast as which character?  Assuming that you had an infinite budget and could hire whoever you wanted to make up your fantasy cast, who would you choose?

Now, as for the six Animorphs themselves (and I'm counting Aximili as one of them, even if he's the Andalite and not one of the humans)...

Jake: ???
Rachel: ???
Tobias: ???
Cassie: ???
Marco: ???
Ax: ???

Well, ain't that a shame?  The six main characters, the heroes themselves, and I really can't think of who should voice them.  Well, fine, I can imagine Cree Summer doing Cassie (she did the voices of Susie from Rugrats, Max from Batman Beyond, and one of those kids from Kids Next Door), but beyond that, I'm stumped.

But for some secondary characters, I can think of quite a few ideas...
Kevin Conroy as Elfangor
Seth Green as Erek the Chee
Bryan Cranston as Ellimist
Keith Szarabajka as Crayak
Mark Hamill as Vice Principal Chapman and/or Drode
Morena Baccarin as Edriss 562, a.k.a. Visser One (and her human host, Eva)
Jeremy Irons as Esplin 9466, a.k.a. Visser Three (and his Andalite host, Alloran)

(Oh, and by the way, now that I'm looking over that list again, and I realize a certain irony: The thought of the cosmic rival entities Ellimist and Crayak being voiced by Bryan Cranston and Keith Szarabajka respectively, considering how both actors were also in that movie Argo.  Only I can make these mental connections with that strange little mind of mine...)

So, anyone have any thoughts about it?

And here I leave you with one last tidbit, something to help prove my case of how awesome something like that could be: The original inside cover to #26, The Attack...



Can't you just feel the awesome?  Look at that and tell me it wouldn't be awesome.  (DISCLAIMER: The above illustration was done by David B. Mattingly and belongs to Scholastic and any and all other properties who own Animorphs.)

Obligatory "Leonard Nimoy, RIP" Post

I just couldn't let this go by...

As everyone knows, Leonard Nimoy, best known for his role as Spock in Star Trek, passed away yesterday.

I never really watched the original Star Trek or any of the series (blasphemous, I know) and aside from the reboot movies Star Trek from 2009 and Star Trek Into Darkness from 2011, I never really saw Leonard Nimoy in it (shocking, I know), but of course I value and appreciate his contribution to it just as much as anyone else.  (And, of course, he did the occasional thing for Transformers; the voice of Galvatron in the animated movie from 1986 and Sentinel Prime from the live-action Dark of the Moon from 2011.)

His classic line was to "live long and prosper"... but what does one do when one has already done that?  "Live on and be remembered"?  I guess that works...

Leonard Nimoy, RIP.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Monty Oum: An Inspiration for All

Alright, I know I'm rather late on this one (blame it on Real Life, as well as the since of shock which I've been feeling ever since), but I still need to get it out of my own system...

At the beginning of this month (February 2015), the highly talented and beloved animator Monty Oum suddenly and sadly passed away.  He was only 33 years old.

He first burst onto the Internet scene nearly a decade ago with his fan videos in which he pitted different video game characters against each other, such as Haloid (featuring a Spartan like the Master Chief from Halo and Samus Aran from Metroid fighting each other) and Dead Fantasy (featuring various characters from Dead or Alive and Final Fantasy fighting each other).  More recently, he had contributed to some of the fight scenes in the machinima series Red vs. Blue, and also created and contributed to the original animated series RWBY (where he also provided the voice of the character Lie Ren).

(Obviously, he was a master at choreographing fight scenes.)

Alright, that obviously sounds too much like your run-of-the-mill obituary, but please allow me, Seth Shirer, a.k.a. "StellarStylus" to say something of my own.

To the spirit of the late and great Monty Oum, as well as all of his family, friends, co-workers and all other forms of loved ones...

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry for your loss of such a great person who was so integral to your lives... but that's not all I feel sorry for.

I'm sorry in that I wasn't able to get the chance to contact him and tell him how much I admired him and his work, and I'm sorry that I didn't take the time to do it.  Just the sheer creative talent which he possessed blew me away.

This isn't actually the first time where I just barely missed the chance to tell a great and talented person how much I loved and admired his or her work.  True, in those few other instances where it did happen and I just barely got to heap some praise onto a storyteller, it was because the person in question was an older person who was suffering from the kind of health problems which typically come with old age.  But just like everyone else, I certainly didn't expect Monty to suddenly pass away at the still-relatively-young age of 33 because of some allergic reaction which put him into a coma.

From his fan videos like Haloid and Dead Fantasy to the original series RWBY (the last of which is a favorite of yours truly), he never ceased to amaze me.  I especially like RWBY for its creative world and how all of the characters are pastiches of and homages to real-world characters from history and legend alike.  Oh, and the fight scenes, of course.

Like so many other people, I had also donated a nice chunk of change to the fundraiser which would have gone into paying his medical bills... but since that never happened, then let his family and kin make good use of the money for their own support in life.

After his sudden passing, his friends over at Rooster Teeth suggested that the best way to honor his memory would be to be creative and create something.  I would be more than happy to fulfill such a simple request; not that I'm not already a creative person working on my own thing, and not that he hasn't already been an inspiration, but I would be more than happy to go about it with his wonderful example in mind.

...And that's just about all which I want to say for now.

Monty Oum: An Inspiration for All.

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Good-bye January, hello February

Wow, where did the time go?  Looks like this still relatively New Year is well underway.

Time certainly flew by; at least I finished the first draft of my giant robot story (woo-hoo!).