The end of Newhart

Ever notice how most series finales are kind of disappointing? I think it's because expectations of said endings are far too high and most shows just don't know how to send off beloved characters. I can think of two shows that did it in an amazing way- MASH and this show- Newhart.

Star Wars 4.5 "We Should Have Known"

Imagine being a kid in 1978 and waiting very impatiently for the sequel to Star Wars to be released.  Characters from the film have been everywhere, from Mark Hamill hosting the Muppet Show (excellent, I mean, Darth Gonzo rules) to Darth Vader showing up on two different Saturday morning preview shows the same night.  For younger viewers, those were specials the networks aired so you would know which cartoons to avoid the following Saturday morning.  There really was nothing like this phenomenon that had been seen since the Beatles.

This Is Radio Clash

The first time I heard this song I really didn't care much for it. It was only years later that I realized how brilliant it actually was. Of course, once I read up more about the Clash I was even more impressed with "The Only Band That Matters" and what they accomplished in their short time together.

Rage of the Master (197x)

So far this is the best movie I've seen from that pack of "Bruce Lee" movies.  It's a Wang Yu vehicle, and since I like almost all of his movies that I've seen, it should come as no surprise that I quite enjoyed this one as well.  I'm not exactly sure when this movie was made, as I've seen several years listed, mostly 1972 or 1975, so I'll leave it for people who know more than I to figure it out.  It looks like it was a mid-70s film to me, and the dub sounds a bit different than earlier movies.  It's a pretty good dub, with the actor voicing Wang Yu's character Tiger actually sounding pretty emotional at times.

GAMERA: Guardian of The Universe

I recently watched the first two movies in the new Gamera series and it dawns on me I've never reviewed them. Mostly because they've been reviewed by plenty of people already, most gushing praise all over them. But since my writing career has inexplicably become entwined with the titanic terrapin, I'll review them in the near future.

Consume Star Wars, OBEY

I saw this online somewhere.  I have no idea who created it, but it sure is a clever and pointed crossing of two movie worlds.  I'm not a huge fan of the movie They Live, but I did enjoy it quite a bit.  It's one of those movies that actually deserves the cult label attached to it, since it still isn't that well known beyond fan circles.  I do recommend seeing it, it's very good and still has a sharp point to make especially in these times.  Plus you get to see the late Roddy Piper in action.  He gets the best lines and delivers them well.  Most people know the famous "bubble gum" line by heart, even if they don't know where it comes from.

"Kolchak: The Night Stalker"

I'm watching this show again, after having the DVD set for about 8 years and watching them once before. There are only 20 episodes, which is a shame, since it's quite a good show. I watched most of the episodes when it was first run and they were really scary then.

Ultra Seven vs a Face Hugger

 Tell me that alien doesn't look like one of the "facehuggers" from the Alien franchise of movies.  This is from the fifth episode of Ultra Seven called "The Lost Hours" (or "The Stolen Hours") and it was the first episode of this excellent show I ever saw.  I got it on a VHS tape that had a variety of several other Ultra shows on it.  It wasn't subbed and it's not one of the more exciting episodes that way, but seeing it with subs is pretty cool.  I thought even in 1989 that the Villa aliens looked like the early stage Alien creatures, but trying to get the tape cued up to the right spot could be a pain back then.

7 Faces of Dr. Lao

Now that I'm back online I have some things to catch up on. I got to watch a lot of TCM movies while I was in the hospital last year, and this is one of the movies that was on. Of course, I didn't see every minute of each movie, since I'd drift in and out of consciousness. Still, I'm going to be posting a few of the trailers that I remember from that time period.

what's this?

Whilst perusing a certain DVD for a rewrite for the next issue of Xenorama I saw this page from the book used in Equinox.  It's the page that tells our heroes how to protect themselves from the demons that can be conjured up from the book.  I remembered it even from the first time I saw the movie and thought it looked really cool with all various symbols (my love of the ankh started with Doctor Fate, and he could have easily handled this book and the demons had he been around) but I never really noticed the characters.

RIP Nick Bockwinkel

Nick passed away earlier today.  As I was in the AWA territory until it passed away, I saw a lot of Nick on TV, though I only ever saw him wrestle once or twice, and that was after his face turn against Larry Zbyszco, which led to one of the most memorable little old lady quotes I've ever heard "I hope that Zbyszco gets the shit stomped out of him!".  I never realized how great Nick was back then, which makes me sad, as I would have gone to loads more matches back then.

Mask of the Phantasm

Is this Batman cartoon movie considered canon?  I've never seen it referenced in the series at all, but that doesn't mean much.  Besides, if Diana of Themyscaria is after you, you really don't have a chance.  I hadn't watched this movie in years, but while I was without internets and going through my movies I thought I should.  It's quite good, but I sure have some questions and comments about the story and the negligible effect it actually had on the DC Cartoon Universe.

Spectre (1977)

This is one of several pilots from Gene Roddenberry that never made it to series stage. I've enjoyed most of them, but this one holds up really well.

61 years of Godzilla

This really does happen every year, and it's always something to remember for me.  Godzilla has been in my life since about 1970 or so, and even when there have been no new movies or even useless American remakes he's always been there, in some form.  Godzilla vs Megalon was the first Godzilla movie I ever bought on VHS, even though it was a really bad edit and not a great picture I was happy to have it, since it was a movie I loved so much.   

Snake-Crane Secret

That Tan Tao-liang sure can kick.  I'm always impressed at how great his legwork looks in every movie I've seen him in.  There's speed, precision and power all at once.  By all rights he should have been a major star world wide, not just in Asia.  He's also a pretty good actor as well, to help out with his roles.  He also has some great charisma, knowing exactly what to do and when to do it to get a good reaction from his audience.  This certainly isn't his best movie, but he does get to play a hero here which is always fun to see.