Pictures!

Okay, I know I've been bad, but here are some long-delayed snapshots of some diverse things. (The kittens absolutely LOVED the tree!)

Hope you like them!

American Gladiators 2.0

Last night was the two-hour premiere of the all-new, retooled American Gladiators on NBC. Given the writers' strike, it seems the Peacock Network has little choice but to fill the void with reality programming, and AG is sure... well, not exactly real but TV-close. Call it on a par with American Idol for authenticity.

The original was a guilty pleasure. Over-the-top posturing by the Glads themselves, the narratives of the various competitors (from scrappy underdog to self-assured amateur athlete to blow-dried pretty boys 'n' girls), the sportscast-like style of Mike Adamle and Larry Csonka--what's not to love?

Not sure if the new, 2008 version will achieve that place in my TV schedule, though not for an abundance of competition in that time slot. The new show features revised competitions, updating several old events (a lot of the ones where contestants are knocked off will leave them in the water, like in The Wall and Joust) while offering some interesting new ones (like the tilting-platform Earthquake and the ball-swingin' Hit and Run). The smash-cut style of filming is exactly the same, with Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali providing plenty of rough charm as the hosts.

My major complaint (so far) is the sound quality. Who is mixing this show? The sound levels are terrible--you can barely hear Hulk, Laila or the contestants unless the insanely stoked mob falls near-silent (which doesn't happen much). Given that they don't identify the Glads with subtitles until halfway through the first show (another big mistake), the muddy sound makes the show overall less enjoyable.

We'll have to see if the new folks--Mayhem, Venom, Siren, Wolf, Toa, Fury, Stealth, et al--win a place in my heart. So far... well, we'll see.

2007 Look Back (Reviews)

2007 was a pretty great year in some ways.
I'm looking over the books I reviewed and feel lucky-- I got to read and write about an awful lot of things that entertained me. Hopefully, a positive review gives something back to the writer in two ways: a boost in sales and a bit of ego gratification for the hard and lonely work that is writing.
And so...
Most Exciting Happening
The relaunch of Wild Cards as an ongoing series. I love the books and am glad to see that there will be a trilogy from TOR, kicking off this month with INSIDE STRAIGHT. (My review of this one is up now.)
Latest Book Across the Finish Line
Not an accomplishment by any means, but I have yet to complete my review of Dennis L. McKiernan's ONCE UPON A DREADFUL TIME. This is no slight to Mr. McKiernan (whom I interviewed and found to be a terrific conversationalist as well as an entertaining writer); it's just that I have the attention span of a fruitfly and was besieged by tons of great books. I hope I can do right by Mr. McK before the paperback comes out!
Friendliest Writers
Boy, there were a LOT of them this year, many found at the World Fantasy Convention this past November.
My short (alphabetized) list for folks I really loved meeting and/or talking with:

• Holly Black (a terrific person and great writer-- WSFA hosted Holly and two others for dinner after the National Book Festival in September; Kat and I had a great night!)
• Cassandra Clare (CITY OF BONES)
• Sara Beth Durst (INTO THE WILD-- don't confuse it with the movie)
• Christopher Golden (whose THE BORDERKIND was second-latest this year *sigh*)
• Charlaine Harris (incredibly gracious lady and amazingly generous with her time; I'm loving her Harper Connolly mysteries!)
• John Levitt (didn't meet him in person but got a nice email about his debut novel DOG DAYS)
• Jeff Mariotte (an old buddy from my long-ago WildStorm days, glad to see he's doing well and looking great, as is his fantastic wife MaryElizabeth Hart)
• George R.R. Martin (enthusiastic about Wild Cards, fun to talk to, all-around pleasure to meet)
• Kim Newman (read his ANNO DRACULA stuff- it's great!)
• Tom Sniegoski (a truly nice guy, met him at San Diego Comic-Con and said hi at WFC- read OWLBOY!)
• Melinda Snodgrass (see GRRM above, 'cause it applies to her too; she's great)
• Harry Turtledove (got to ask him about his latest/possibly last "South Wins the Civil War" alternate history series--very dry sense of humor!)
• F. Paul Wilson (got to say hi at WFC)
• Gene Wolfe (who is really one of the nicest legends in the SF world)

Biggest Regret
That I didn't finish a novel this year as I'd intended. Then again, that's been my ongoing regret since I started writing professionally in 1986, so there's nothing new there.

New Year's Resolutions
Yeah, like you want to know what I'll try to do and give up sometime in January or February... ;)
But seriously- lose weight and finish a novel. One is more likely than the other but if anyone wants to start a gambling pool on which will actually happen...

And that's it. I might have more to post on this later, views on movies and pop culture and stuff. till then...

Grading the Comics Delayed

I was going to post a new installment of GRADING THE COMICS today but found (argh) that New Comics Day is Friday this week. That one-two punch of New Years Eve/New Years Day, I suppose.
Ah well.
Here's what I HOPE to be reading tomorrow...

• All New Atom #19
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer #10
• Countdown to Final Crisis #17
• Countdown to Mystery #4
• Detective Comics #840
• End League #1 (shout out to Mat and Wendy Broome!)
• Justice League Unlimited #41
• Metal Men #5
• Supergirl #25
• Teen Titans Year One #1
• Ultimate Fantastic Four #49 (forgot it last week-- double argh!)
• Ultimate Human #1
• Uncanny X-Men #494
• WildStorm Revelations #1

We'll see how lucky I am getting all these titles.

Happy New Year!

Hey folks! Seems like it's been forever since I last blogged. I know, I thought I would be able to post a bit over the holidays but it just didn't happen (obviously). Between being away from home and getting over "holiday-lag," that vacation hangover that won't go away when you've been gone a week... well, you know the story.

On the good side, 2008 is off to a good start. My review of INSIDE STRAIGHT is up at SFRevu, as is Kat's and my interview with George R.R. Martin and Melinda Snodgrass, plus a number of other reviews that made my December very lively. Now I'm kicking back with Mike Carey's latest Felix Castor novel, DEAD MEN'S BOOTS, and enjoying it greatly. Mike is a great guy, a good friend and a terrific writer--so read his stuff!

Anything else? Oh yeah, we're going to put some long-delayed pix of our now-bygone Christmas tree on the blog tonight (cross those fingers), and maybe a few odds and ends.

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
best from me and Kat,
Drew