Mod Post: Off-Topic Tuesday

[icon_uk]

In the comments to these weekly posts (and only these posts), it's your chance to go as off topic as you like. Talk about non-comics stuff, thread derail, and just generally chat amongst yourselves.

A charming short film called In a Heartbeat was released online and, in dark and dreary world, it was a nicely upbeat reminder of what your first crush is like, and how awkward it can be when it's a same sex thing. (If the creators aren't working for Pixar within a year or two, I'll be surprised)

Speaking of dark and dreary, Brexit shambles on like the abomination it is, with more (but not yet enough) exiters starting to realise what the implications are. Honestly it's like watching the school bully realise that there might be consequences for their actions.)

Speaking of school bullies and consequences, the Trump Presidency festers on like the abomination it is. After details of a phone call with the Australian Prime Minister were released it became obvious that one side had no clue what they were talking about, and the other was having trouble believing that the person they were talking to could be quite THAT clueless about pretty much everything.

This weeks special project has been attempting to single out journalists... en masse it would seem, as being enemies of all that is free and decent, and they probably kick puppies too when they're not leaking top secret bits of information about possible abuses of powers. (It's like JJJ endlessly railing on about Spider-Man... except even Stan Lee on the best day of his life couldn't make this shit up). (And there are some disquieting suggestions about what a post-Trump WH would be like too)

About the only good thing I could find is that the military chiefs seem to have no intention of doing anything about the military transgender ban, partly (and hopefully mostly) because they find it not right, and partly because it was sprung on them with no warning.

President Macron of France has backed down from a plan to give his wife a sort of First Lady role (not something that exists in the French political system) after a negative public reaction.

Season 3 of Voltron Legendary Defender dropped, only seven episodes for some reason and yet it feels that not a lot happened other than introducing Lothor and his all-girl gang and some playing of Musical Lions with the remaining Paladins. Have to say that whilst it's still an excellent series it needs to focus more on a few of it's core cast (Hunk hasn't done anything of note in ages, and Pidge hasn't done much better)

In slightly ON topic news, Netflix confirm that they will be broadcasting the new CGI remake of classic 80's manga/anime/toyline "Saint Seiya", a personal favourite of mine. Considering the bloody awful job that Cartoon Network made of launching the original, and otherwise globally successful, series, Netflix have a low bar to clear, but here's hoping it's a success!

Oh, and the world of cinema mourns Haruo Nakajima who has died at the age of 88.You've probably never heard of but he was pivotal to many kaiju films, since he was the man INSIDE the Godzilla suit in all the Godzilla movies from the original "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" in 1954, until "Godzilla Vs Gigan" in 1972. He also played Mothra and King Kong in other Toho Studio movies.

Comments

[superboyprime]

A question about X-Men fanfic, for those of you who know about that stuff:
I don't pay attention to that world, outside a brief period when I was first getting into online fandom in the late 90s. Recently though, I was thinking back on it and I recall how the majority of the fanfic at the time was based on the contemporary status quo, with stuff like Cannonball and Bishop being on the team and Generation X being around.

I didn't think much of this at the time but looking back now, isn't this kind of strange? I mean, the late 90s were hardly a high point for X-books. Back then, everywhere you went online, you'd see fans saying the line was in the dumps. Wouldn't you expect more fanfic about fan favorite eras instead?

So two questions:
1. Why was the X-Men fanfic at the time so dominated by takes on the contemporary status quo?
2. Has that continued to the present day? Are most stories now about the current status quo, with the original 5's time-hopping younger selves running around and rival X-Men teams and stuff like that? For some reason, I have a hard time picturing that.

[lilacsigil]

I was also in fandom around that time and while there was definitely a lot of fic about the status quo, there was also a ton of stuff from throughout the Claremont era, particularly as influenced by the 90s cartoon. Generation X was very popular in its own right (and considered a good comic at the time, which I think it was in parts). There didn't seem to be much original five fic and of course the Erik/Charles deluge of the movies was yet to come.

The vast, vast majority of the fic at the moment is based on the movies, and there's not a whole lot based on the current comics, though there's a few "reaction" type fics whenever something big happens, and various comics X-Men popping up in the movie fics. A lot of the fic, including mine, seems to be from classic eras like you say.

[zachbeacon]

Voltron is driving me nuts. It's good but they keep ending seasons on cliffhangers. Of course, calling this a season is pretty generous. We're getting a forth season in October so it seems like they're giving us smaller seasons with less time between them.

I actually think a lot happened in the short season but I agree that our heroes have mostly been sidelined in favor of fleshing out the villians. Shiro just kinda randomly showed up again so we could see him, Keith, and Lance struggle to figure out their place on the team. Pidge was barely there even though she's the most interesting one. Hunk never had much going for him character-wise but I admit the variations on "I'm a leg!" always make me smile.

[icon_uk]

The question being, of course, is this Shiro?

Hunk and Pidge had one cute moment where the tech-geek each other about enhancing sensors to the bafflement of everyone in earshot, but that was about it.

Mod Note!

[icon_uk]

Whilst this is not creator bashing per se, it is never appropriate on scans_daily to comment on the private lives of real people like that. Please do not do so again.

[spider_man6]

Hey, guys. so a week or two ago, I said I was going to art school, and one person said I should post some of my art. Can I do a post soon with my artwork so people can see it, or is that banned?

[speedingtortoise]

I'm assuming you could do a post if it was comic related, or you could put a few up on a comment in an off-topic-Tuesday post.

(but you should probably double check with a mod)

[icon_uk]

We try to be accommodating on this.

If it's comics related, you can post it as a Fanart Thursday post (We call it that, but we're flexible as to the day of the week, I've been meaning to post one for a couple of weeks myself, though not of my own artwork, which is just as well, as that would be... not good).

If you have a DeviantArt Account, or a tumblr, or Instagram, or other place where you art is, you could share the link in an Off Topic Tuesday post.

[nightauditguy]

I'm taking a much deserved break from Lego Dimensions until the remaining expansion packs come out. The last few gold bricks were a pain to get because the racing challenges in the Sonic world were damn near impossible and then you had to get 20,000 points in Spy Hunter in the Lego Batman movie world.

[icon_uk]

I've given up on getting all the Sonic Race bricks, I can't even work out how to complete the level in the time limit to allow me to get the 10th minikit piece. Only Sonic can move fast enough to do it (so I can't fly Supergirl or Voldemort as I might otherwise do) but my reactions aren't good enough to cope with all the wierdnesses of a Sonic game that fast.

[informationgeek]

I know people here have checked out Welcome to Nightvale, but has anyone else tried their other podcast series? You know, Alice Isn't Dead, Within the Wires, and The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air)?

I like Alice Isn't Dead the most. Some good humor, but so creepy, horrifying, and unsettling. The Factory by the Sea and Go Home Again are my favorite episodes, though if you haven't listen to it before, at least listen to the first episode: Omelet.

Also, anyone listen to The Bright Sessions yet? Worth a look?

[icon_uk]

I tried Alice isn't Dead and couldn't get into it, though it's very well made. Ditto Within the Wires and I haven't heard of the other, but I haven't listened to WtNV in a long time now.

I'm an avid fan of The Bright Sessions, nice idea and hook for a series, some excellent characters, with very creative use of abilities and characters whose powers have influenced how they look at the world. (It's also just been optioned as a TV series apparently).

Oh, and Jay and Miles X-plain the X-Men restarted this week after it's three month hiatus.

[zachbeacon]

I've only listened to the stuff they previewed on the Nightvale feed. I keep meaning to go back to Circus (and maybe Conversations with People that hate me) but none of the others grabbed me

[owlbrigade1]

Also this week is the "glorious" 12th in the UK, where tens, if not hundreds, of rich assholes in tweed suits will get very drunk then grab shotguns and try to shoot some grouse. People will be forbidden to walk on common land while these idiots do that for this season, and to ensure that even the most drunk and chinless of them have a chance, the gamekeepers have been busy burning the moors, draining environmentally sensitive peatbogs, poisoning (which releases lots and lots of sequestered carbon, plus all the soot from the burning), snaring, and shooting every other bird, mammal, and occasional household pet which even looks at a driven grouse moor in a funny way (this includes many rare and/or iconic species in the UK), and leaving medicated feed on the moors -whose health effects are not fully documented-, and of course the refusal to use leadshot substitutes because their antique guns are worth more than scattering poisonous lead over already environmentally compromised countryside.

The latter is pretty bad, to the point when the shooters tried to pretend to be community sensitive (hah!) and donate shot carcasses to a foodbank for the poor, they were told that the amount of leadshot fragments (let fragments vary from almost fullshot down to the microscopic that you cannot see except with a microscope) put the meat in the unsafe for human consumption bracket. The shooters, including former England cricketer and famous sufferer of poor circulation Ian Botham, then responded by saying they'd eat them themselves then. Poor circulation and heart problems are a symptom of lead poisoning.

If you are in the UK, and Scotland in particular, can you please drop your MSP and MP a line asking them to tackle the problems found on grouse moors and maybe ask that intensive rearing (not captive rearing, captive rearing of grouse is very difficult, but you can intensively rear them outdoors, if you kill all the predators, burn all the other plants to force heather tips, overdose medicated food, drain all the damp ground...well you get the idea) be banned and that the grouse industry move to "walk up" shooting rather than driven. Walk up being far less environmentally damaging, and you don't need to close common ground to do it. The tens or low hundreds of people who go grouse shooting can still kill a small bird, but without all the negative effects.

Please.

Even, if in Scotland, asking the Scottish Government to introduce licenses for grouse shooting and introducing stronger wildlife crime measures to cut down on the snaring and poisoning would be a massive step forward in bringing the Victorian sport into the 21st century. Please.

[full_metal_ox]

Also this week is the "glorious" 12th in the UK, where tens, if not hundreds, of rich assholes in tweed suits will get very drunk then grab shotguns and try to shoot some grouse.

I assume this is part of the traditional festivities?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqObJtGrKaA

Madagascar?

[owlbrigade1]

Double post, sorry.

I've been playing pandemic 2, and does anyone know how to infect Madagascar on it? Even with zero lethality and zero visibility, it still closes its only point of entry long before any other nation and long before an infected boat can get there. It is driving me nuts. That and the background music, so annoying. But why cannot I kill Madagascar?

SHUT. DOWN. EVERYTHING.

[deh_tommy]

I think we both know the answer to that.

Jokes aside, I think that's become a joke amongst fans of the game that Madagascar is notoriously difficult to infect or for your ailment to survive long enough to kill everyone. Have you tried going for low infection in addition to low visibility and/or lethality rates, then mutating the illness?

[deh_tommy]

Has anyone here ever liked or enjoyed an adaptation just as much if not moreso than the source material (like a film over a book, or an anime over manga, etc.)?

[lego_joker]

There's always the usual suspects, where the adaptation is so popular people forget there was a book... The Wizard of Oz, Jaws, The Godfather...

On a more community-related note, I tentatively agree that BTAS' "The Laughing Fish" is better than either of the two comics it was based on ("The Laughing Fish" as well as "The Joker's Five-Way Revenge!")

[leoboiko]

Fans of Final Fantasy 7 who haven't seen it: I've stumbled upon this character analysis. While decidedly verbose and sometimes stretching it a bit too much, I find it still has a lot of good points, and made me reconsider the way I see the characters.

To summarize it, some of his arguments include that:

• The main theme of FF7 is "survival"; its relationship to loss, trauma, and identity. Most characters (heroes and villains both) have lost something important in their past; have had a near-death experience (a loss of identity); and now have identity issues related to all this baggage.
• Needless to say, the problems of loss, identity and survival are amped up to 11 for the protagonist Cloud.
• This is also reflected in game mechanics, in the form of the Limit Break system. The Limit gauge increases with damage, but empties with death. In other words, it's not just a compensation for damage; it's a reward for surviving.
• And it's also reflected in the Materia mechanic, and how it overtakes the previous games' "character class" systems. Aeris in particular can be seen as the last remnant of character classes. This plays in all of game mechanics, backstory, and, naturally, that one plot event.

[owlbrigade1]

I know, I know, a third post, sorry.
I just, was thinking, I went to reread a book (David Gemmell's "Legend") I loved a long time ago and suddenly someone has stuffed it full of really blatant racism, horrible political opinions, and a lot of sexism. I'm scared to reread the rest of the series too in case the Suck Fairy has visited them too and sprinkled its Suck Dust all over them.

Anyone else had that recently?

[leoboiko]

I loved Marion Zimmer Bradley. Loved her, loved her my entire adolescence. The underlying message of love in her fantasy books, the undercurrent of happy sexual diversity, of feminism, polyamory, spoke so deeply to a confused queer teen like me. I didn't reread her after becoming an adult, but I was looking forward to revisit the Mists of Avalon now that I know more about Arthurian lore…

Then her daughter told us the truth.

I'm not even afraid of finding awful stuff in the books themselves. The horror of her actions challenged my long-held ideal of "you can separate the author from the work". Not in this case I can't. The books feel nauseating by sheer association. I feel kind of nauseated at myself for having liked them!

[stubbleupdate]

"If the creators are working for Pixar within a year or two, I'll be surprised"

Do you actually mean the opposite?

[icon_uk]

Indeed I did, many thanks. :)

Now corrected!

[skjam]

First apartment I viewed was a hard no; the building was nice, but the room was tiny! For $750 a month I expect at least to be able to walk around my twin size mattress without having to step over it. Still need to move by Sept 30 though. Management of my building is showing my current apartment tomorrow!

And more reviews at my blog, including this older horror anthology: http://www.skjam.com/2017/08/06/book-review-stories-from-sleep-no-more/

[salad_barbarian]

So after far too long I finally gave up on using this as a substrate:

Too many fish have died and the only thing I can think of that could be a cause is this stuff. I still don't know why it was so deadly but I took the entire tank down and switched back to the gravel I was using before.

In the 4 months I was using it I lost 5 cory catfish, 18 ghost shrimp, 5 guppies, 2 female bettas, 1 zebra fish, and 1 clown loach. Also a few plants didn't survive either.

[starwolf_oakley]

I don't know much about Glenn Campbell, but I can respect someone who bridged country and pop even though he never learned to read music.

I once quoted "Wichita Lineman" for a post about Electro. Max Dillion was a lineman (for the county?) when he got his powers.

http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/4703783.html

[spider_man6]

I just got the first trade volumes for Monstress and the Wicked + The Divine (my first image books ever).
Honestly, they are AWESOME. They are really cool ideas with tons of shocker moments. It's different, it's violent, it's creative, and I love it.