Month: December 2008

Dollhouse of cards

There is so much wrong with this Sci-Fi Wire article that it’s not even funny. Are they seriously quoting anonymous and random YouTube users as a credible source of information? But that sort of thing is pretty much par for the course with Sci-Fi Wire lately. What used to be a halfway decent (if not exactly cutting-edge) source for genre news is turning into another annoying io9-like blog. Which is not to rag unduly on io9, which has its share of good points and good posts. I just think Neil Gaiman wasn’t wrong when he said that each of its articles read “like someone was assigned it, and sort of blogged it out in a bit of a hurry without any research or real thought.” That might be the popular model right now, but it’s not really a good model to use.

I also think it’s maybe worth noting that the last Whedon project to be hyped as much as Dollhouse was Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and that succeeded like gangbusters. And before that, Wonder Woman — which Joss had in development for a long while, and which internet hype had pegged as the second coming — fizzled out.

So don’t believe the hype. I don’t know if the new show will succeed, or even if it will deserve to. But it’s better to wait and see than trust to the judgment of anonymous YouTube users. (Who saw the same trailer as the rest of us.) Whedon and company have earned that much, don’t you think?

Random 10 12/5

Last week. This week:

  1. “Every State Line” by Ani DiFranco
    I said, yes sir, so far
  2. “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley, guessed by Kim
    Drink my liquor from an old fruit jar
  3. “Gratitude” by Ani DiFranco
    I don’t know what you and your sisters do
  4. “Cubs in Five” by the Mountain Goats
    And the Canterbury Tales will shoot up to the top of the bestseller list
  5. “Forgiven” by Alanis Morissette, guessed by Occupant
    You know how us Catholic girls can be
  6. “Poison Arrow” by ABC
    Blame Cupid, Cupid
  7. “Fishin’ Blues” by the Lovin’ Spoonful, guessed by Occupant
    Well I went down the hill about twelve o’clock
  8. “Love My Way” by the Psychedelic Furs, guessed by Kim
    There’s an army on the dance floor
  9. “Rainbows in the Dark” by Tilly and the Wall
    So my sister went kissing a maple-skinned boy
  10. “Selling the Drama” by Live, guessed by Kim
    I’ve often tried to hold the sea

Round and round we go. Good luck!

Oh, it’s a trial

I received a jury summons in the mail today, even though I served back in May and was told that, under New York State law, I could not be called again for another six years. I thought I’d already explained this to the state when they sent me a jury questionnaire a few months back, but apparently there’s still some confusion.

Now I need to find the letter that confirms my service (again) — which, because I am exceptionally disorganized, might prove a little time-consuming. I honestly have no idea where I put it. And then I need to call the phone number on the summons to explain (again) why I’m ineligible this time around. It’s not that I can’t serve or won’t. This is a telephone standby summons for mid-January, so there’s no guarantee I’d actually have to present myself in court. But I’m just trying to follow their rules. And their rules say I can’t serve because I already have.