Pilot's Log

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The parts that loved Speed Racer and the parts that loved Battle of the Planets are having a lively quarrel at the moment. I'll wait till they quiet down before I get a firm answer.

(Pardon the pun.)

As my brother had paid me a little for my services Saturday, I had money for a shopping trip to Gatlinburg and points north today.

As shopping went, it was rather unproductive. As walking around and geeking out went, it was okay. The weather was too lousy for photography, but it was still pretty busy in G-burg on the Parkway. Traffic was busy just about the whole length of the Parkway from I-40 down through. The hot rod cars were going home from the weekend gathering.

The Star Cars museum now has a Mach 5 from the Speed Racer live-action movie. I didn't go in to see it, but I may take nephew Egan there on his next visit with us.

Being the bibliophile I am, I spent most of my time in the Books Warehouses in G-burg and Pigeon Forge--the latter being a test of my character...they had that horrible Christian pop music on the P.A. system. It took all the will I had to ignore that garbage and look for what I wanted. More on what I ended up buying later.

The public works people are already getting the utility poles ready for the Christmas lights. Yes, they try to make Christmas last six months in Sevier County. Bah.

One of the main shopping centers, the Belz Mall in Pigeon Forge, is beginning a large-scale renovation. So it's rather strange to see shops being forced to move from one location in the mall to another and to see a whole side of the building completely torn out.

I know I'm griping a bit, but I have to go and do this every so often. Remind myself where I am in the world and what it was like working at G-burg and Pigeon Forge.

FP

Found at a Dollar Tree store. I bought it because it resembles my sister's VW "New" Beetle, which is also white. I'll give it to my nephew when I see him at my sister's "official" second wedding next week.

FP

Okay, I saw the trailer that everybody's talking about tonight, when it was included with the ABC broadcast of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

I have NO complaints.

1) This is a live-action cartoon movie. It's supposed to be bright and quick and flashy and colorful. Pops spinning a ninja goon over his head like an unbaked pizza crust? I'm all for that! (I grew up watching live-action Disney and Pink Panther movies. 'Nuff Said.)

2) It's not set in the now, it's not set in the 1960s as set in history--it's set in the 1960s of our fantasies, as the original Speed Racer had been. (The same way that the Dick Tracy movie (which I also kinda liked) was set in the 1930s/1940s of our fantasies.) It's a concept from the Sixties, redone with modern tools and toys. I can dig that.

3) As said before, I'm glad they're showing some imagination, rather than A) be slavish to the slapdash tone of the original; B) go for some parody/camp angle that kids wouldn't understand; C) get dark and gloomy with it, as the fashion has been since the 1989 Batman (which worked for Batman--for a while--and bombed in other adaptations); D) throw raunchiness around, like in too many movies these days.

If I have the money and can get to it then, I'll see it in the theater.

FP

Purloined from kiffie:

First Fandom Ever:
Speed Racer. The show is as old as I am.

Most Recent Fandom:
Battler Britton. Didn't know about it till a friend told me just as the Wildstorm revival came out.

Five Fandoms That Currently Mean a Lot To Me
1. Numb3rs - I hang out on the official forum.

2. Shortpacked! - I fear that this latest Robin/Ethan/Conni storyline is causing the strip to jump the proverbial shark, but I have some faith in Willis' abilities as a 'toonist.

3. Criminal Minds - Well, I am a little annoyed at the fans who perpetually want pretty-boy Dr. Reid to have gay sex with the other male characters...

4. Knights of the Dinner Table/Fuzzy Knights - What can you say? I have a hot streak going for suggesting cover ideas!

5. My Own Fans (for Chillin' Out) - I need their support if I can get the print compilation to launch.

FP