September 8, 2002 – Petroglyphs

She Spies Monk at the Lathe of Heaven

I mentioned a couple of days ago that I’ve been watching Monk, Tony Shalhoub’s new show. Having given it a reasonable chance (three episodes), and as much as I like him and the character, I think I’m going to give it a pass. The whole show feels somehow forced, and the performances phoned in, not to mention the transparent plotlines.

Much as I hate to admit it, I liked the episodes of She Spies that NBC showed in July. I take that back: I don’t hate to admit it, because I really enjoyed the show. It bears a lot of similarity to Once a Thief, a Canadian TV favourite from a couple of years ago. (I was about to write that that isn’t surprising given Jeff Reno and Ron Osborn’s involvement, but in looking up the link for Once a Thief I discovered I’d misremembered, and they had nothing to do with that series. They are associated with The West Wing as writers, though, which would explain the snappy dialogue in She Spies. Weird.)

Also caught the last 15 minutes of A&E’s Lathe of Heaven tonight (note no The). I was surprised not to see any Aldebaranians, which makes me curious what else was cut; Haber’s Alzheimer-like condition was toned down from his demise in the novel, and I’m concerned that things like the solution to racial harmony (turning everyone grey, and thus causing Heather Lelache’s entire existence to disappear) will have been treated similarly. But I’ve got it on tape, and will check it out… after tomorrow night’s premiere of Jeremiah on TMN. (Hey! Ingrid Kavelaars, who’s from Glencoe, is in Jeremiah. Why didn’t I know that until now‽)

Ricochet Rabbit

I looked up the word cranky. It said grouchy. I looked up grouchy. It said crotchety. No wonder you have such an eccentric culture: none of your words have their own meanings. You have to look up one word to understand another. It never ends.

J. Michael Straczynski, Babylon 5, And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place

It’s been pointed out to me, most recently by my parents (of all people), that I tend to communicate in allusions. (D’oh!) I don’t think this is particularly unique: many of my friends have similar reference points and refer to them often. This isn’t a huge issue most of the time, but it does wind up excluding others from conversations… and some people get a little cranky because we do it so much.

Credit where it’s due

She likes chicken pot pie, just like me.

Andrew Niccol, S1m0ne

I’d estimate that only about ten people in this city have heard that line and understand why it’s one of the funniest in the entire movie. In fact, my guess is that over 99% of the people who have seen the movie wouldn’t recognize it… because it shows up after the credits have rolled. This is why directors can get away with the vanity a film by credit–not only don’t people acknowledge the fact that there are talented people other than actors and a director involved in a movie, they actively ignore it by walking out.

Also note that the source of the quote above is the writer of the film, not the character or actor (even though Pruitt Taylor Vince nails the line as Max Sayer).