I’m getting set to head back to the US soon, and into the anxious mess that is the American Covid Response. It’s terrifying, and disheartening to have to go back to all of That (I’m currently in Singapore, which, through a combination of vaccination, tracing, masking, and distancing has kept things under control enough to… Continue reading Returns
Tag: The Lord Of The Rings
The Power of Mordor
My love of The Lord of The Rings is well documented, heck, I just reread the books over the summer (with my glorious hardcovers). There’s a lot I like about them, like how they marry a beautiful world to an epic quest, and how that epic quest is a story of vanquishing evil not through… Continue reading The Power of Mordor
Story Language
A while ago, Merriam Webster (y’know, the dictionary) published an article that I found fascinating. It was about language as it’s used in Star Wars and it’s a short and interesting read. The gist of it is this: In Star Wars, George Lucas used a lot of plain, English words to create his world. There’s… Continue reading Story Language
Endings
Ah, the end of the movie. The bad guy is defeated and the credits roll. If only it were that simple. With NaNoWriMo over (I won! Wrote 50,000 words!), the project in question (with the very exciting name Space Knights [it’s in space, but there’s really only one knight]) is sitting at 140,000 words, which… Continue reading Endings
What Is It Good For?
I’ve logged a really unholy number of hours in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. It’s a fun game, and there’s just so much to do. Plus, I’m easily distracted and so merrily go off assassinating nation leaders and taking part in conquest battles. It was during one of those conquest battles where I was fighting alongside the… Continue reading What Is It Good For?
Adaptational Change
There’s a delightful twist late in Captain Marvel that adds a nice layer of added depth to the narrative. It’s one that I didn’t see coming, but a friend who’s less familiar with the comics thought it was well telegraphed. The reason I didn’t expect it is arguably because of how used I am to… Continue reading Adaptational Change
But For Adults
Dennis Villeneuve is currently attached to the latest adaption of Dune. It's an exciting prospect: Dune is a rich novel and Villeneuve has shown himself to be both a skilled director and excellent at adaptations. Arrival was an excellent adaption of a terrific short story, one that managed to make the feeling of the ephemeral… Continue reading But For Adults
Diversity in Middle-earth
The Lord of The Rings is at once both one of my favorite books and one of my favorite film trilogies. And I don't really feel the need to write another sentence justifying that. In any case, I reacted with some consternation upon finding out the Amazon was, having attained the rights to Tolkien’s world,… Continue reading Diversity in Middle-earth
Of Stories and Hope
I've never been a huge fan of tragedies. Don't get me wrong, I love stories like Othello, Whiplash, and Sicario; but those aren't the ones I count my favorite stories. I sometimes joke that I tell hopeful stories because if I want stories of injustice and despair, I can just read the news. I skim… Continue reading Of Stories and Hope
The Honest Truth
A lot of stories aim to be real. Or as real as you can be while being a, y’know, story. The challenge here, of course, is figuring out what real is. One interpretation of ‘real’ is realistic. No spaceships, because spaceships are far from commercial right now. No superpowers or superheroes, because those aren’t things.… Continue reading The Honest Truth
Essays, Not Rants! 