The Confectionery - 7

These are the things that I think are great.  So great that I want to sing about them.

MEGHAN TONJES

Meghan Tonjes is a singer who has been posting her videos on YouTube for years.  As she is a woman who is not a size 0, or hyper-sexualized for your viewing pleasure, she gets occasional comments about her size.  This is her response, & it is amazing & inspiring.

"Why does it hurt you if I don't hate myself?"  Love it.

LEGO BRIDGE ART

A street artist has painted a bridge in Wuppertal, Germany, so it now looks like it was constructed out of LEGO.  How cool is this?

Is it just me, or would you feel safer driving under a LEGO bridge, too?  To see more photos of the bridge, go here.  To see more art by Megx, go here.



 

MAKE A WISH FOR HELLBOY

A boy named Zachary recently made a request to the Make a Wish Foundation. Here's what special effects company Spectral Motion had to say about it: "It was Zachary's wish to meet Hellboy and also to become Hellboy. When the Make-A-Wish Foundation contacted Spectral Motion with this request, Mike thought it would be fantastic to have Ron Perlman reprise his role for the day. Ron loved the idea and donned the makeup once more (with the assistance of Lufeng Qu and Eden Elizalde) and also ordered a Hellboy sized meal of burgers, shakes, and fries for Zachary and his family and the entire Spectral crew to enjoy. Later in the day, Zachary was transformed into Hellboy with the assistance of makeup artists Lufeng Qu and Neil Winn."  That's gotta make you smile.

To see more photos, go here.

WRITE LIKE THE WIND

Geek & Sundry recently posted this song by comedy duo Paul & Storm.  Directed at Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin, the song is a plea for him to write faster.  His recent span of 6 years between books 4 & 5 has left many fans frustrated...& hungry.  "We need 6-paged descriptions of every last meal."

I love the HBO GoT theme that storms in at the 2:08 mark.   Also, my Mom saw this video before I did.  My Mom is cooler than your Mom.

ROBOCOP 2013 TEASER

Set to begin filming in Toronto in the Fall, the Robocop reboot starring Joel Kinnaman is getting lots of buzz.  Now, we get our first look at the updated ED-209 in this teaser, meant to be an ad for OmniCorp.

Read about my first ever viewing of Robocop - last month - here.

STAR WARS LATTE ART

I recently saw this photo of latte art featuring the Death Star & Tie-Fighters.  The most artistic thing I can do with my lattes is spoon foam on top - I am now calling that "The Wampa".

After marveling at this, I searched to see if more Star Wars Latte Art existed, & it does!  Or did, since these lattes were presumably very yummy & disappeared shortly after these photos were taken.

Boba Fett

Yoda

Stormtrooper

Talented, these baristas are.




Those were my favourite internet sweets of the past week.  Come back next week for more goodies!


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Missed Movie: Robocop

When Robocop came out in 1987, I was 9 years old: too young to watch or care about anything that didn't feature pink ponies.  Robocop became one of those movies - the movies you just never get around to watching, even thought you know you should.

With a remake in the works starring The Killing's Joel Kinnaman, I decided to finally watch the original to justify my excitement for the version where this man's face gets a clear helmet/visor:

I'd buy that for a dollar.

With a reason, Netflix, & a willing husband for company, I sat down to watch Robocop for the first time on Friday night.  Instead, we ended up watching Transformers: Dark of the Moon, a choice which I deeply, deeply regret.  We sat down to try again last night, vowing not to be seduced by a younger movie.  Dead or alive, Robocop was coming with me.  Into my living room.

...it sounded clever in my head.



[Spoilers Ahead] 

[...if a 25 year old movie needs a spoiler alert...]



First of all, this movie was nothing like I expected it to be.  I have to admit that I always thought Robocop was just a cop in a metal suit...like an Officer Ironman.  I had no idea this was R rated until the scene with ED-209 made it abundantly clear.  I had assumed Robocop was PG-13 because the fake premise I had in my head seemed tailor-made for teenaged boys.  I was WRONG.  It was seriously graphically violent (which I approve of, in the context).  When Murphy was horrifically & repeatedly shot by Red Forman & his hyena crew, I was genuinely stunned by:
a) the amount of blood Paul Verhoeven thinks is in an arm (that can't be right, can it?).
b) that Murphy actually died.  Like I said, I thought he just put a suit on & arrested bad guys.

I already knew Peter Weller played Robocop, because when he showed up in season 5 of Dexter, my husband said "Hey, it's Robocop!"  So when Murphy showed up in Robocop, I thought, "Hey! Vacation shirt shady guy!"

Maybe I've been spoiled because I've read so many convincing stories that explore humanity*, but I found the "journey" of Robocop a little dull.  Here are the main points leading to his "transformation":
-he still does the gun twirl thing he learned for his son.
-the name Murphy seems familiar.
-he dreams of his death.

Seeing Emil at the gas station triggers something more, but it's not really clear if it's just memories or actual feelings, a distinction Robocop makes when speaking of his family.  Sure, the helmet coming off symbolizes the return of a humanity of sorts, but is it Murphy's humanity, or just human-like qualities left over from brain damage because he was, you know, dead?  (Also, I didn't cry, & I cry at everything.  I should feel something when a robot realizes that he used to have a human life, with a wife & son, until he was brutally murdered & turned into a machine with big guns, right?)  The dude is badass, yes.  Is he the same guy he was before he became Robocop?  I don't buy it - he never even tries to find his family.  "Where are they?"  "They've moved on."  "Ok.  Let's get some revenge."  That is a robot speaking, not a man.  Remind me to find Johnny Number 5 when I want some robot pathos.

Note to my husband: If you ever become a robot killing-machine, I still want you in my life, K?  I promise to make your food-substance paste, charge your battery & clean your gears ifyouknowwhatimean.

The future that Robocop predicts doesn't look too far off from reality.**  Future dystopian Detroit looks a lot like 2012 Detroit, but with less Kwame Kilpatrick drama.  We have ridiculous commercials & sensationalist journalism, & even some of the same gadgets. 

iPods!

Overall, I think the movie ages extremely well.  Aside from the dated hair/wardrobe on half the characters, it's all very well done.  The makeup & prosthetics on Toxic Waste Guy were incredible.

Toxic Waste: that shit works fast.

And although it made me giggle, the stop-motion robot ED-209 was quite the feat in 1987.  To me, it looks like a Robot Chicken bit, but listening to these guys discuss it, I get that it was a big deal, & rightly so.

I will leave you with this compilation of all the times someone is thrown through a glass window or door in Robocop.  Very entertaining, AND it includes the one rewind-&-rewatch moment for me: Dick's fall to his death.

*Two of my favourite novels by Robert J Sawyer explore the human condition exceptionally well, from different angles: Mindscan, taking place in a future where minds (thoughts, memories, your very being) could be uploaded into an android (handy if your body is failing you, but raising questions of legality & rights), & The Terminal Experiment, in which a man creates 3 copies of his mind - 1 an exact replica, & 2 that are modified to simulate life after death & immortality, & the consequences of their choices & actions.  Both excellent novels that dive into what it means to be human.

**Again with the Robert J Sawyer, check out his cool list of science fiction predictions that came true.



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The Confectionery - 1

The internet is a wondrous beast.  The home of trolling & lurking is also home to creativity, art, & fun.  When you find something cool, there's nothing better than sharing it, & this is when the internet is at its best.  So, I thought I'd start gathering up my favourite things of the week...basically, I have to do something with this candy-coated knowledge I collect.

These are the things that I think are great.  So great that I want to sing about them.

 STEVE MILLER VENN DIAGRAM

This is passing around the internet faster than Willie Nelson can pass his joint to Snoop Dogg.  And rightfully so.

Yes, Jack Nicholson should be a Joker, but it doesn't make this any less wonderful.

8-BIT GAME OF THRONES

I recently discovered this video of Game of Thrones as an 8-bit RPG game.  It's a little old, but I just found it, so it's new to me, damnit.  DO NOT WATCH if you haven't read/watched Game of Thrones.  If you haven't, what's your problem?  Don't like awesomeness?

 #JUNKRAVENS

Another one for Game of Thrones fans, this hashtag on twitter is what makes twitter so wonderful.  On Thursday, the very funny @bazecraze tweeted: "Game of Thrones would be more realistic if people were constantly throwing out junk ravens."  By the afternoon, that tweet had spawned the hashtag #JunkRavens, which when searched, led you to the kind of junk mail that Westeros would be plagued with.  My favourite is from @mariancall: "I am a queen in exile in the East I am owed a kingdom but need some cash & ships up front dear friend can you help".  If you're a fan, check it out.  Lots of clever people out there.

JOEL KINNAMAN

My husband & I say one thing after every episode of AMC's The Killing: Holder is the best part.  I kind of hope they never find out who murdered Rosie Larson, because I want to keep watching him.  Swedish actor Joel Kinnaman plays the greasy Detective Stephen Holder, struggling with an addiction to hoodies among other things.  He is all gangsta talk with a heart of gold, & provides a tiny bit of comic relief to this dark, depressing show.  After last Sunday's episode, I wanted to find out more about him & I was shocked.  He went from this guy:

to this guy:

It could be that he's calling for all kids to drop out of school & shoot up in the streets.  I don't know, but when I stop swooning, I'm going to agree with whatever he said.  100%.  He is going to be the next Robocop in the upcoming remake, & yes, I will be there.

CHILD'S OWN STUDIO

This is so crazy cool, I can't help but be very, very excited about it.  Child's Own Studio is a place where you can have your child's drawing turned into a stuffed animal.  Check out these amazing examples: 

I'm going through my son's drawings to choose which one to immortalize in fabric & stuffing:

His interpretation of Garfield, perhaps?

A giant cross-eyed robot with braces?

EVERY SINGLE GUY IN THIS DRAWING?

FLOG

This is actually my favourite thing of the past month, & it is what inspired me to start this Confectionery series of blogs: Felicia Day's YouTube show, FLOG.  Felicia Day is a heroine for many a nerdy girl.  She is a smart, sexy gamer chick.  Bonus points for being a redhead!  And she was in Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog, for Joss-sakes!  If anyone ever plays a hotter, less-socially awkward version of myself in a movie, please let it be her.

My son just walked by & thought this was me.  He gets ice cream.

New FLOGs come out every Monday, & they are delightful.  Felicia shares her favourite things of the week, goes on a learning adventure/excursion of some sort (sometimes she just plays a retro video game, & yes, it is as awesome as it sounds), & answers fan letters.

Felicia presents her Fave Five list in her show, but I will most likely be keeping this in written form...I've only made this one vlog, for an assignment.  Hopefully, you'll find it charming, but I think we can all agree that the best parts involved Kai.

...so, yeah...not quite as professional as my favourite episode of FLOG so far, where Felicia learns about Steampunk, & creates backstories for each costume she tries on:

She is adorable & I love her, so watch the show, & subscribe to her YouTube channel, Geek & Sundry.

SOMEBODY THAT I USED TO KNOW

Wait!  I know you're sick of this song, but just in case you missed the kick-ass a capella version posted a few months ago by the ridiculously-talented group Pentatonix, I had to share it.  It is my favourite version of this song, over the original AND the 1 guitar version, & the hundreds of other times this song has been covered.  Yes, I'm sick of the song, but I'm not sick of watching these guys sing it.  I still listen to it a few times a week, & like to watch it several times, to give my attention to each part individually.  Because I'm a music nerd who likes to have my mind blown by awesomeness.

Those were my favourite internet sweets of the past week.  Come back next week for more goodies!

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