Birthday!

Yep, birthday! More on that and various other stuff later.

Birthday Blockbuster Boogie...

In Today's Episode... The Cursed count the cost of their actions, and consider even greater risks, whilst Mane-of-Night looks back on her past, who she used to be - and the challenge of not back-tracking...

Development News... Still my birthday. Try me again tomorrow. Got a few thoughts for the future down on paper, but nothing imminently relevant. Meanwhile...

At The Movies: X-Men Origins: Wolverine Okay, so this is Blockbuster Season 2009 kicking off, and the Wolverine origin movie is at last upon us. I better start by saying that I'm not that much of a Wolverine fan, and I haven't followed his most recent appearances that much, except for his contributions to New Avengers, so his not-so-recently revealed past isn't something I know that much about, although I have read a few online sources that have enlightened me, in particular UncannyXmen.net. That laid out in the open, I shall continue.

Hugh Jackman once again nails the character from the start, as his past unfurls in the first half-hour or so, and he gets a chance to be a "real boy" rather than a living weapon, showing a conscience AND a softer side before it all goes south, along comes the adamantium - and hello Wolverine, as we know him...

What works... The "wars through the ages" opening... Liev Schreiber as Sabretooth... Wade Wilson's sword-play... *gasp* Gambit (NOT a favourite character of mine!)... the explanation of Logan's amnesia!

What doesn't... Several of the FX scenes are simply NOT up to scratch. Some backgrounds are "misty" - the scene outside the "island", with the special guest appearance, being a classic example - and that lack of realism definitely hurts the final battle scene. Too many cameos will have viewers play "spot the mutant" when they should be watching the damn movie...

The Verdict... This movie doesn't quite reach the heights of the first two X-Men movies, but it certainly beats The Last Stand. I could be brutal about the FX weaknesses, especially when there was such a stink about the leaked version on the 'net, but I'm thinking there's potential for further movies that can build on what's on show here. For now, my score is a "hanging on by its fingernails" 8/10 - just don't expect any favours if it comes to tie-breakers!

Also today... Listening to my present from BB and SiL, "The Ballad Of John Henry" by Joe Bonamassa, which is pretty damn good. Bought myself Volume 1 of "The Complete Nemesis The Warlock" - the collected edition of probably my all-time favourite strip from 2000AD - before it went all studenty and pseudo-political (all "Billy Bragg", in other words), and lost this reader.

Gonna wind down from here, and look forward to next Friday, and the next blockbuster - possibly THE blockbuster of '09; Star Trek. My VIP seat is booked for opening night, and Hannah frickin' Montana is NOT going to deprive me of my refreshments this time!