Film/TV/Animation « Ethereality News & Weblog

March 18, 2013

Another Taiwan trip + Worst bedside manner ever

Filed under: Books,Film/TV/Animation,Food,Latest Works,My Life/Musings,Photography,Site News,Travel — Rob @ 4:21 am

SITE NEWS:
Kitty cat Diary’s been updated to August 2012:

WEBLOG:
A few months ago, Elena and I went to Taiwan for a few days. I always enjoy my time in Taiwan, because it’s a cozy mix of quaint hospitality and modernity. The quality of service across all industries in Taiwan is incredible, and beats even Japan. While Japan is extremely polite, that politeness comes off as artificial, while Taiwan feels more down-to-earth.

This time, I finally went to the famous 101 shopping mall:

It was a very posh mall, but it seemed to lack the kind of cozy warmth that some malls have, and when I searched Google Images, I realized that we probably went during slow season when none of the cool decorations were up. There are much better photos of the 101 shopping mall on the web that show how nice it can look during the busy holiday seasons.

On this trip, we didn’t really try to go out of our way for good food. For some reason, we no longer find food in Taiwan all that enticing; once the novelty wore off (this was our fourth visit in the last few years), it’s really just like any other place, where you’d have to hunt down the really great food, and the common food you find in most places is just that–common. The days of being excited by going to the famous night markets are gone. Elena enjoyed the tofu pudding desert though, and of course, ice cream is always going to put a smile on my face:

As for proper meals, none were particularly notable. It’s been a while since we had Indian food, so I was happy to see it in the food court of the 101 shopping mall:

I think our loss of interest in chasing after great food isn’t limited to Taiwan, but in general. We both share this feeling that when you’ve lived long enough and tried enough different food from various cultures, nothing is really that exotic or exciting anymore, because you have gotten familiar with all the different types of ingredients and spices, and know what they can do in various combinations. So unless it’s something very unique, we’re no longer easily impressed–which kinda sucks for us, but is a good thing for our health, because we’re now able to eat healthier and not crave unhealthy foods as much. Or, we’d just have to get even more adventurous and search out the really unique restaurants out there. But the truth is, we really couldn’t be bothered any more–there are so many other things in life we’d rather spend energy on.

But I have to say, I was pretty damn excited to find truffle salsa/paste at the 101′s supermarket. They even had the same one that got me hooked on the stuff years ago:

To me, a good truffle salsa/paste is the most amazing thing to spread on crackers and bread. Nothing else even comes close.

…

I went to the dentist while in Taiwan to take care of what the dentists in China couldn’t take care of properly when they pulled out my wisdom tooth. The skill, service, bedside manner, technology was like night and day between Taiwan and China. To give you an idea of how dramatic the differences are, let me briefly describe what I experienced in both countries.

In China, I went to a local dentist that came highly recommended, and I had been going to him for years, despite him being mediocre at his job compared to all the dentists I’ve been to in my lifetime (though he was probably the best in the city of Fuzhou). He didn’t even bother taking X-Rays of my wisdom tooth, and just starting working on pulling it out. I told him he probably should take X-Rays to make sure nothing unexpected is happening under the gum line, and he said he could tell just by looking that it’s a very normal tooth, and it’ll be a straightforward process. It’s only until an hour later when he was totally stuck, did he admit something’s wrong, and we had to take a taxi to a nearby hospital to get X-Rays because his machine was broken (that’s probably why he didn’t want to take an X-Ray in the first place–he was too cheap to fix his X-Ray machine).

When we got to the nearby hospital, they were in the middle of remodeling–there were construction debris everywhere right inside the hospital, even in the rooms–saw dust, plaster dust, paint cans–you name it. The hospital continued to operate as if it was just another normal day; I couldn’t believe my eyes. But then again, all the hospitals I’ve ever been to in China did not have any kind of air filtration system in place at all–they just kept all the windows open, and the only time they closed them was when it was crazy hot outside–that’s when they run the air conditioning. Imagine all the contaminants in the air, because they wanted to save money on electricity instead of running the HVAC system.

After getting one X-Ray, we took the taxi back to the local dentist’s office, and he then proceeded to spend another five hours trying to get my wisdom tooth out. Turned out the root was way too big to fit through the opening, so it had to be broken into pieces. If the damn dentist had taken a X-Ray first, he’d have known this right away and planned for it. To make things worse, he completely tore up the corner of my mouth by applying so much pressure with his instruments. The corner of my mouth was bleeding the whole time, because he had nothing in his office that could protect my mouth from getting ripped up. Seriously? I’m pretty sure modern dentists have tools they can use to protect the corner of their patient’s mouth from being torn up by their instruments. Hell, even improvised solutions could work.

I seemed to be okay after going home (the painkillers helped), but a few days later, I was in pain, and I went to another hospital to see the head dentist there.

This guy ended up insulting me to my face.

I basically told him what the situation was with my wisdom tooth extraction, and he preceded to rough-handle me. When I told him I was concerned there’s bone exposed on the side of the extraction site and asked whether we need to file it down or just leave it, he asked in a demeaning tone, “Does the exposed bone cause you emotional anguish? Does it hurt your feelings?”

I couldn’t believe my ears.

When I asked him about the common procedures for treating exposed bones I’d read about on dentistry websites, he scoffed and told me to stay off the internet. He then starts quizzing me on advanced medical knowledge in a hostile tone, and sneered at me when I didn’t know the answers. “Didn’t you say you did research online? Looks like you don’t know diddly squat.”

I wanted to slap that smug and spiteful look off of his face.

Yep, that is how doctors in China often behave–by far the worst bedside manner I’ve ever seen in my life. I have witnessed this kind of condescending and antagonistic behavior many times during the years I lived in China. The doctors treat the patients the way they would treat farm animals–man-handle them and talk down to them as if they were uneducated imbeciles.

The level of God-complex these doctors have is astounding, and to make it worse, they are bribed left and right by the patients, for these patients fear that if they don’t bribe the doctors, they’ll end up paying for it with their health or even their lives. You know who get bribed the most at the hospital in China? Anesthesiologists. It is one of the most common bribes, and has become customary at this point. If you don’t bribe them, there’s no telling what might happen to you. If you think I’m exaggerating, then just google “anesthesiologists bribed in China.” Hell, google “hospital bribery in China” and read the hits you get.

Aren’t you glad you’re only reading about this stuff instead of having to live through it? I sure am glad I got the hell out of China and have zero interest in ever going back.

…

I got to spend time with some family members (step-mom and half-siblings on that side) while in Taiwan, including my birth father, who I haven’t seen since 1984 (I was eleven when I left Taiwan). Part of me wishes that I lived in Taiwan so I can spend more time with them, since I missed out on many years of quality time.

It’s a little better now with social media, but nothing beats the physical presence of being near someone. I think social media is great for keeping in touch with people you already know well, but trying to get to know people you don’t know well in real life via social media always feels like there’s a layer between you–that lack of verity and precious memories of time spent together.

If real estate wasn’t so expensive there, it might be a possibility, but Elena prefers the quieter life in the States, so even if we lived in Taiwan, we’d have to pick the more rural areas (city life in most of Asia is insanely crowded and busy), and that sort of defeats the purpose, since most people we know in Taiwan all live in Taipei.

…

I finished reading Ender’s Game and The Great Gatsby a few months ago. Both were good books I enjoyed.

As much as I enjoyed Ender’s Game for it depiction of military strategy and the psychological toll of a child being manipulated into being an effective killer, the one thing that I couldn’t get over was the children being portrayed as far too advanced emotionally and intellectually for their ages. I was a precocious child myself, and I know there are some very intelligent and talented children out there–child prodigies and geniuses–but what Orson Scott Card wrote was too unrealistic, stretching far beyond the limits of suspension of disbelief. To have children secretly write political columns that influence the entire human race is just ludicrous. No matter how high the I.Q of a child may be, it is not the same thing as intellectual maturity. Children simply cannot formulate the kind of complex intellectual gymnastics required for political debates at the highest level, no matter how smart they are, for they lack the experience necessary to be convincing in their arguments.

***SPOILER AHEAD*** (Skip the next paragraph if you haven’t read the book and plan to.)

Another issue I had with the book was Ender’s sudden empathy for the buggers after the war had been won. His feelings about the aliens was never adequately explored in the book, and at the end, his distress for having annihilated the enemy just came out of nowhere. It’s not as if he didn’t know all along the plan was to wipe out the enemy, and all the training he went through was for that singular purpose. There should have been at least some mention of his empathy for the enemy, and how he felt about xenocide as a possible outcome of the war. While Ender was always depicted as a sensitive child that didn’t want to harm others, that doesn’t automatically mean he extended the same level of empathy towards insect-like aliens that wanted to destroy the human race.

***SPOILER ENDS***

Other than those two issues, I enjoyed Ender’s Game, and I can see why it won the awards it did (Nebula and Hugo), or why is on the required reading list for many military organizations.

The Great Gatsby is a book I should have read in high school, except the required reading list was probably flexible, and my English teacher chose a lineup that didn’t have The Great Gatsby (our reading list included books like The Stranger, The Catcher In the Rye, a couple of Salinger’s short stories, Les Misérables, a handful of Shakespeare, and probably others I can’t remember). I’m not sure what I would’ve thought of the book if I had read it as a teenager. Perhaps it would’ve only deepened my strong dislike of mindless materialism and the blind pursuit for money and social status.

As a writer, I admire the prose styling of Fitzgerald. I read the book via Kindle, and there were passages I highlighted because of how well-written they were. The creative use of syntax was particularly impressive.

The story itself was fairly simplistic, and the overall theme was clear and easy to grasp. For a book that’s often named the best American novel ever written, it’s a bit light in terms of plot, conflict, and theme, but perhaps it’s because of the simplicity that it has endured as a classic.

…

Quickie movie/TV reviews:

Sons of Anarchy (season five) I was starting to lose interest a bit last season, but this season had a lot of major plot progressions that altered the dynamics of the relationship and power balance between the characters, and Juice’s storyline was very intriguing. I can’t imagine this series continuing for more than another season though, since we’ve now reached the point of no return. I suspect season six will be the final season that ties up all the loose ends.

Dexter (season six) – I’m starting to get tired of Dexter at this point. The plot progression feels too sluggish, and the stakes not interesting enough. The main antagonist this time around was kind of a bore, and the plot twist didn’t have the impact it should have had. The odd incest plot twist also felt almost like jumping the shark. They need to wrap up this series with a bang next season, because at this point, the premise is all played out, and there isn’t much to do but to tie up the loose ends.

Community (season 1-3) – This is now my favorite comedy TV show (previously, it was The Office, but ever since Steve Carrel left, it just hasn’t been the same). I love the characters, the meta humor, and the pop culture references (I usually hate them, but the writers on this show managed to make them integral to the narrative as opposed to being merely gimmicks). The three youngsters (Annie, Abed, and Troy) are definitely my favorites by far.

When I realized I had fallen in love with this show (after about three episodes in), I asked myself why this show and not other shows with similar kinds of wacky humor–say, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. The reason is simple–I prefer shows that have a heart, and the characters have redeemable qualities. The characters in The Community all have lovable qualities in their own ways, while the characters in IASIP are a bunch of petty sociopaths without any redeeming qualities, and even with the unrelenting pace of jokes, it leaves me cold.

Homeland (season two) – Just as enjoyable as the first season, and takes the stakes up a notch. By the end of the season, you’re left breathless and wondering how season three is going to play out. Carrie and Brody’s relationship strains the suspension of disbelief at times, just because it’s hard to accept the really bad judgement from someone who should know better. But I’m okay with how it turned out.

The Artist – It’s an enjoyable film that’s charming the way classic silent films are, and mostly because it followed the same formula in both tone and execution. The uniqueness afforded of its hindsight on the progression of the film medium in history, and how it is weaved into the execution of the film, was probably the reason why the film critics all went gaga over the film. I thought it was clever, but it didn’t add anything more to the emotional resonance, and at times bordered on being a little bit gimmicky.

Brave – Formulaic and lacking the kind of inventiveness that we’ve come to expect from Pixar. There was a time when Pixar could do no wrong, and perhaps those days are behind us.

[Rec] 3 – Very disappointing. The first two were pretty good, but this third one totally jumped the shark in the overall tone and style, having chosen a campy approach.

The Kids Are All Right – An enjoyable indie fare that looks at the dynamics of family from a slightly skewed angle.

Looper – It had some nice moments, but it’s hard not to overlook the flawed logic that the entire movie is based on. But then again, how much do we really know about the universe and time travel? The ending felt a little forced, but overall it was an entertaining movie.

Bourne Legacy – I don’t know why they bothered making this one. It’s just rehashing the same ingredients and brings nothing new to the table, and it’s not as enjoyable as the Jason Bourne trilogy.

God Bless America – The trailer had me jumping up and down with excitement, as it expressed the same pent up rage I feel about the shallow end of our civilization, and while I knew the movie was just preaching to the choir, at least it would be a cathartic experience to see the protagonist do all those things we wished we could do. Unfortunately, the best bits in the movie were all used up in the trailer–the rest of movie was meandering and pointless. I was very disappointed.

Prometheus – From all the hateful reviews of this movie out there, you’d think it’s probably one of the worst films ever made in the history of mankind, but alas, it’s only the immature and skewed hyperbole of the internet trolls. It’s no masterpiece, but it is certainly better than majority of the sci-fi movies out there, which puts it at above average at the very least.

I follow Ridley Scott’s career and watch everything he directs, and for those of you who do the same, we know we can expect a skillfully made film that looks gorgeous. The story may leave some scratching their heads, and it doesn’t quite have the same impact as I had hoped, it’s nonetheless very entertaining. I have a feeling that this is only an introduction to something much bigger to come, and the sequel is what will blow our minds.

The Assault – It can’t be easy to take an exciting premise such as a terrorist hijacking and turn it into a boring film, but that’s what the French crew behind this movie managed to do. For all the criticism that people sling towards Hollywood, at least it knows how to make exciting and entertaining movies when called to do so.

Wrath of the Titans – Another mindless special-effects movie, and this one’s worse than the previous one.

Snow White and the Huntsman – I have no idea why this movie’s got mostly positive reviews. It’s really just another pointless reimagining that has no compelling reason for existing in the first place.

Conan the Barbarian – So forgettable that I can’t remember what the hell the story was about.

Underworld: Awakening – I’ll take this series over that Twilight crap any day. While none of the entries in the Underworld series can be considered great movies, they have a kind of slickness and ultra-cool vibe that you’ll never get from any of the teenage vampire romance franchises.

The Cabin in the Woods – It’s co-written by Joss Whedon, and if you are a fan like me, you’ll watch anything he worked on. It’s got a very clever premise that turns the slasher genre on its ear, but I had hoped for a bit more background story that explained the lore better.

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September 2, 2012

Home shopping adventures

Filed under: Film/TV/Animation,My Life/Musings,News — Rob @ 5:40 pm

Elena and I recently bought a house in Lincoln, California (Placer County). We also looked at homes in the Sacramento County and El Dorado County, but we keep going back to Lincoln because the homes there are newer, bigger, the neighborhoods safer, and prices cheaper.

Here are some photos of the house:

It’s 2 stories, 2,436 square feet, has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, and the house was built in 2005, so it’s fairly new.

The house was a model home originally, so it’s a bit fancier than other houses with similar layouts. Unfortunately, Elena and I don’t agree with the original designer’s taste, so we’ll have to do some remodeling. We’d have to do some remodeling regardless, since there are no rooms that are big enough for my studio space, and the only way is to seal off the living room/dining room area, which happens to be similar in dimension and size to my current studio space, and turn it into my studio.

Lincoln is an odd city. Most of it looks very new, and there are barely any people on the streets. Even the parking lots are mostly empty. Elena and I nicknamed it “Prop City,” as in, it looks like a fake city built on the shooting lot of a film production studio. Lincoln used to be the fastest growing city in the United States, but when the economy took a dive, all development stopped.

Our new home is in the Lincoln Crossing area, and it’s a pretty standard looking suburb. There aren’t any really big trees due to how new the houses are. We have big shopping centers within a mile of us (Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target, Safeway, Raley’s, Staples, etc), so it’s very convenient, and whatever we can’t find in Lincoln, it’s only ten minutes away from Roseville and Rocklin, and about thirty minutes away from Sacramento.

The hardest thing to get used to is the weather. The Sacramento area is on average about twenty degrees hotter than the Bay Area during the summer, and having been spoiled by growing up in Foster City, Lincoln feels like an oven during the summer. Elena thinks it’s far better than Fuzhou, since Fuzhou is very humid. So basically, it’s the choice between a sauna or an oven. Personally, I think both are bad. Dry heat scorches, while humid heat suffocates–neither are comfortable. But that’s the compromise you make if you want affordable homes. The same house in the Bay Area would easily cost a million dollars, and that’s a bit too much to pay for the mild summer weather.

It’s kind of crazy how fast the real estate market has started to heat up again after the crash not that long ago. Around January this year is when things started to heat up, and at this point, people are trying to outbid each other with all-cash offers, often adding anywhere from a few thousand dollars to $20K on top of the listing price.

In a buyer’s market, competing with other buyers’ offers is a real pain in the ass, because it’s no longer a straightforward process. Now you have to play the guessing game of how much the other offers are, and how much you should add to the listing price to ensure your offer gets accepted, while trying not to pay out stupid amount of money. You also have to use other tactics like waiving appraisal contingencies, pushing for a faster inspection, and so on.

I’ve never been the business type–legalese makes my head hurt, and I suck at math (flunked it twice in school–probably the only Asian kid to ever have done that. I was always the kid that drew pictures and wrote screenplays in class instead of paying attention). But the older you get, the more you are forced to grow up and think/act like an adult. I’m almost forty and I still feel like a teenager most of the time, so me staring at a thick stack of contracts and signing a bunch of paperwork just feels so surreal–and it always had, for as long as I’ve been an adult.

We looked at a bunch of houses and made offers. We lost the first one to an all-cash offer, and we changed our mind on our second offer since we realized there was a big noise problem with the house (there’s fire station nearby, and the bedroom faces a main street). We eventually found a house in Lincoln that we really liked. It was an REO (Federal Bank-owned), and our agent used a strategy where we bid as high as we can stomach, and then negotiate later by getting a lower appraisal price. It’s not a strategy you can use in most situations, and it’s more specific to bank-owned properties. We ended up getting the house for $255K, which was $3K over the listing price.

Our agent, Dave Silva, was awesome (if any of you are thinking of buying a home in the Sacramento and Placer counties, I highly recommend Dave). He’s got lots of experience, pleasant to be around, energetic, polite, respectful, proactive, creative, and attentive. He made a great first impression by recording a personalize video introducing himself to us, and addressing some of our questions, when we were still just shopping for agents online while we were still in China. There are lots of agents out there, but how many of them do that?

We used another agent before Dave, and that guys was nowhere near as good. While both were very nice, there were huge differences in experience, communication, attitude, confidence, tech savvy, creativity, and negotiation strategy. In comparison, the first guy seemed really green, lacked creative thinking, clueless about technology and how to do everything on the computer and internet (he didn’t even know how to do digital document signing, and made us print out stuff to sign, and then rescan the signed documents) and had no effective game-plans when dealing with the seller. He also got indignant and defensive whenever we asked questions he didn’t like–which was quite unprofessional. Elena and I actually felt bad for him, and I wanted to call him up after we had bought the house, to give him some friendly advice on how he could do better. But then I changed my mind, because chances are, he’ll probably just get defensive and claim we didn’t give him another chance to prove himself.

Anyway, Dave got us the house we wanted, and we highly recommend him.

Now, we’re just wrapping up loose ends in China, and then I’ll need to swing by Taiwan for a week or two for my big 40 physical (yep, middle-age, here I come). After that, we’ll be packing up everything and shipping them to our new home in Lincoln.

I’ll be tearing out all the acoustic treatments in my music studio and try to cannibalize as much of it as I can for the new studio in the new home. One up side is that the new studio will be roughly the same size as the current one, so I can just keep the layout the same in general.

I hate moving with a passion, and I just want to get it over with. I hope everything will go smoothly–no broken furniture or appliances, no trouble with customs, and no stolen items (last time we did an international move from China to California, the moving/shipping company in China stole my Takamine acoustic guitar and my Xbox). Whenever we have to deal with a big move, I just wish time would fast-forward to when we’ve already finished unpacking and settling in. Same with long international flights. Some things in life just aren’t worth savoring the experience.

…

Quickie movie/TV reviews:

Mad Men (season five) - Maybe the best season yet. Every time I sit down to watch an episode, I’m overwhelmed by how
good the writing is, and how masterfully it is directed, acted, art directed, and edited. It is the best show on television, and I think even the people who work on other excellent shows would agree. Mad Men is just that much more sophisticated and intelligent, striking the perfect note between art and commerce, while achieving the kind of profound impact that was previously only attained by the Great American Novels and cinematic masterpieces.

The theme in season five, and perhaps of the entire series, is the search for fulfillment and the failure to achieve it. These characters trip and fall and make mistake after mistake, all for the sake of finding the intangible something that will make them feel whole and content. But they can never achieve it, even though at times, it seemed like they had what they longed for right there in the grasp of their hands, only to have it slip away, turn sour, or crumble under the weight of their own personality defects.

Many in the media have commented on the fact that today’s best television shows are better written and directed than most movies, and Mad Men is one of the shiny stars among the slew of excellent TV shows produced today.

The Vampire Diaries (season three) - I watch shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, The Wire, and Game of Thrones to be awed by masterful storytelling, acting, directing, and production, and in comparison, shows like The Vampire Diaries or True Blood are merely guilty pleasures. Shows like these can’t hold a candle to truly masterful storytelling, but they provide ephemeral, cheap thrills. Truth is, if it wasn’t for the lovely Nina Dobrev, I probably wouldn’t bother with this show. It wishes it had the emotional poignancy of Joss Whedon’s revered Buffy series, but no amount of referencing Buffy in the show by Damian will make that happen. Kevin Williamson is not, and never will be Joss Whedon.

The Secret Circle (season one) – I was curious about this show because I created a graphic novel series about young mages back in the 90′s called Enchanted, and I’ve always felt that most fiction about magic and witchcraft are woefully lacking in inventiveness and a sense of dramatic gravity. I had low expectations going in, knowing that it’ll be a typical CW styled production, with a bunch of good-looking teenagers wallowing in their irrelevant love triangles and immature spats. I had hoped that there will at least be some excitement with the supernatural elements.

I was wrong. The show dragged on, retreading the same cliches that we all already know from other movies, TV shows, and books. I just couldn’t force myself to watch the whole season (I got to around episode eleven, I think). I had to stop before I wasted any more time on it, especially there are so many critically acclaimed shows out there I have yet to try. This is perhaps the worst show Kevin Williamson has ever created.

And hilariously, it even referenced The Craft in an episode–a far more entertaining take on a similar premise. This must be a Kevin Williamson thing, because I remember way back when he was doing Dawson’s Creek, he referenced The Breakfast Club in an episode when a character derided it as a movie that “stunk.”

So let’s see here:

-Dawson’s Creek referenced The Breakfast Club
-The Vampire Diaries referenced Buffy
-The Secret Circle referenced The Craft

All three referenced other people’s creations that are superior in every way. I don’t know what to think of this. Was Kevin Williamson just wearing his influences on his sleeves, or was he simply trying to make his characters seem like they are media savvy? It’s a little embarrassing that whatever the characters referenced is always superior to your own work in the same genre though.

This Film Has Not Been Rated – It boggles the mind that we give so much power to an institution that actually has no power at all by definition of the law. I’m actually shocked that the most powerful people in Hollywood haven’t done something about it by now.

The Avengers – As a Joss Whedon fanboy, there was no way in hell I’d miss this. While I enjoyed it, I was disappointed that it didn’t have the same kind of character chemistry as in his own creations. I guess there’s only so much you can do with other people’s source material. I’m very happy for his success with this movie though, because he really needed a hit, after getting Firefly and Dollhouse cancelled and losing money on Serenity. I’m hoping that with this latest success, he’ll have more freedom to do his own thing (bring Firefly back, perhaps?).

It’s a Wonderful Life – I’ve never sat down to watch this entire movie from beginning to end. Now that I have, I can see why it’s always listed as one of the most inspirational movies of all time, and always shown during the holiday season.

The Hunger Games – I read the books first, so I already knew the story. I think the fact Suzanne Collins worked on the screenplay herself helped a lot, as she’s not just the one who wrote the books, but also a seasoned writer for the screen.

The movie is pretty good adaptation of the book, and there were no rude surprises such as deviations from the book. All the critical scenes were included, and the gist of the story was well covered. I liked the casting, and I thought the direction was fitting. Overall, it was a good movie, but probably not something I’d watch again.

When I read the book, I just couldn’t picture the cornucopia the way it was described, so I really wanted to see how it was designed in the movie. It looked totally different from what I imagined (I imagined a much larger, looming structure).

I actually really dislike watching movies after having read the books, because it’s much harder to enjoy the movie when you know far more details from the books that will never make it into the movies. It’s a lot better the other way around, because the books always contain a lot more details that wasn’t included in the movies, and you can still have a somewhat new experience.

Casualties of War – I saw this movie on HBO with my brother Michael when it first came out, and we both thought it was trying to hard with the over-acting, and Michael J. Fox was just a terrible choice for the role. I recently decided to give it another chance, and I liked it a lot more this time around, although the over-acting was still a bit grating, and Michael J. Fox still looked like he should be on the set of Back to the Future instead of doing any kind of serious dramatic role.

As a whole, I’m not really a fan of De Palma. I think he’s made a few good movies, but his sensibility is in general a bit too melodramatic for my taste.

Battleship – Watched this on the plane. Let’s just say there shouldn’t be any surprise at all why this movie failed critically. It just couldn’t possibly be more cliched and mainstream, regurgitating all the same tired crap we’ve seen countless times before, including the young and rebellious hothead who started out being self-centered and undisciplined, but then learns responsibility and to work well with others. The only reason Peter Berg did this movie is because of the money–there is no other explanation.

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June 29, 2012

GPS and used car

Filed under: Art & CG,Computers & Gadgets,Film/TV/Animation,My Life/Musings,News,Video Games — Rob @ 1:35 pm

NEWS:
The next run of the Becoming A Better Artist workshop has sold out again, and we’re going to allow five more students to squeeze in before we cut off enrollment, so hurry if you want to make it to the July run of the workshop.

WEBLOG:
Ever since I started using a GPS back around 2005, I couldn’t live without one. I’ve become completely dependent on the GPS–not just for driving direction, but to search for nearby shops, parking, gas station, etc, or even to mark where I parked my car so I could find it later if I forget where I parked.

The previous unit we used was a Magellan RoadMate 860T, and it was nicknamed affectionately as our “Guide Dog.” It wasn’t the best GPS–it had trouble tracking whenever we were in a city with large trees or tall buildings blocking it’s direct line-of-sight to the GPS satellites up in orbit. Now in 2012, the seven year-old 860T has been discontinued, and I can’t even buy an updated map for it, so I decided to upgrade.

After doing much research (reading online reviews, and watching Youtube videos demonstrating/comparing different models), I ended up using my iPhone as an GPS, and I have to say, despite my initial skepticism, the iPhone turned out to be an excellent GPS–much better than the RoadMate 860T we used previously.

The top three GPS apps on the iPhone seems to be Tom Tom:

Navigon (now owned by Garmin):

and Magellan:

All three happen to be the three biggest hardware GPS companies on the market. Garmin has its own GPS app called StreetPilot, but since Garmin bought Navigon, I would have to assume Garmin wasn’t feeling very secure in the quality of their own GPS app.

After trying out all three, I settled on Magellan’s app, because it has the features I preferred, such as the audio signal for when you should be making turns, the fast one-touch menu, and more updated POI (Points-Of-Interest) when I tried searching for restaurants and stores nearby.

I used to rely on the audio direction a lot, but now that I’m also using my iPhone as a jukebox while driving, the constant automatic raising and lowering of the music’s volume whenever audio directions are given, got a bit annoying. After trying the GPS without the voice/audio guidance, I realized I really didn’t need it. The visual cues are more than clear enough, and if I was paying attention while driving like I should, there’s no reason to need to voice/audio guidance.

The Tom Tom app is also very good, although at the time when I tested it, the POI search wasn’t as up-to-date as the Magellan app.

Navigon is actually my favorite in terms of GUI design, but it takes forever to bootup every time, so I won’t even consider it.

The amount of data these GPS apps use while navigating is very little, because they come with the maps already installed, so you don’t have to stream the map like some of the cheaper or free GPS apps do. I think a solid month’s of usage only added up to a couple hundred megabytes of data. The Magellan app also allows you to navigate even if cellular data is turned off, while Tom Tom and Navigon both require that you have cellular data turned on.

I got the iOttie One-Touch Dashboard Car Mount for the iPhone, and it works perfectly.

It even has a gel-type suction cup that works on the textured surface of the dashboard, instead of only on the smooth surface of the glass.

I especially like how all the GPS apps I mentioned have iPod integration, allowing you to control the iPod app right from within the GPS app. This makes it easy to skip and pause the music without having to switch to the iPod app. These apps also have pedestrian mode, so you use them while walking instead of driving. I also really like how I can search a POI and then can just call up the place right from inside the GPS app–very convenient. If someone calls you while you’re using the GPS app, it’ll allow you to accept or decline the call, and you can even keep the GPS app running while talking (of course, using a Bluetooth headset is highly recommend, or at least use the stock earbud with the microphone and volume button built right into the earbud wire).

There’s no way I’m going back to dedicated GPS apps, or the criminally expensive in-dash GPS that comes as options for cars. Spend less, get more, and have a GPS like right in your iOS device. An easy choice if you ask me.

…

If you’ve ever dealt with used car salesmen, you know just how rare it is to find one that didn’t reek of the sleazy “Hey, TRUST ME, I won’t lie to ya!” aura. Well, I had the pleasure of meeting the very first used car saleman who didn’t give off that vibe (and I’ve met many). In fact, he was such a pleasure to do business with because he was honest, sincere, courteous, and not pushy. It helps that he was quite young–only twenty years-old, and was studying at the university when his family business needed his help.

The kid’s name is Alex, and the fact he didn’t naturally gravitate towards selling cars as a vocation (he tried to avoid it) was probably a factor. He also had his own personal moral code that he brought with him to the used car sales business, and it’s very obvious when you talk to him. I felt like I was talking to an enthusiastic, friendly, and honest college kid instead of a jaded, slick, veteran jackal what was just waiting to empty my wallet. I also had a chat with his uncle while there (it’s a family business), and he seemed like a nice fellow too.

If you are looking for a used car and live in the Sacramento area, I highly recommend you talk to Alex, at Sacramento Auto Sales Center Inc.

Oh, and I ended up buying a 1997 Lexus ES300 from him. It’s going to be our temporary ride until our new home closes ESCROW, and my lender allows me to finance a new car (we’re buying a house in Lincoln, California). I put a new Pioneer CD Receiver in the Lexus (the stock CD changer was broken), and with the auxiliary audio input and my iPhone as the jukebox, I think this 15-year old Lexus is actually a pretty comfortable ride. I might even hold off on getting a new car if the Lexus remains problem-free for a few more years.

…

I finally finished Mass Effect 3, and overall, it was my least favorite of the trilogy. It was the least satisfying in many ways, and had the most WTF moments where you wanted to reach out and smack the game designers/writers. Along with Dragon Age II, I keep feeling like these two games marked the downward spiral of the Bioware we’ve known and loved. It’s very easy to just point a finger at EA and say it’s their fault, and why shouldn’t we? After all, it was after EA acquired Bioware that these recent problems with Bioware games began.

My main issues with ME3 were:

-The Geth and Quarian dilemma felt contrived, as if the writers forced a situation that didn’t feel logical or natural, just to create some kind of dramatic tension.

-The bad voice acting of Jessica Chobot and the old man after the credits really stuck out among the much better voice acting of the rest of the cast. In fact, that reporter character was completely unnecessary and probably shoved into the game as some kind of marketing gimmick.

- The ending sucked. There are countless discussions and articles about this on the web already, so I’m not going to say more–other than that I agree with the people who were pissed off about the ending.

- The Allusive Man’s entire storyline was predictable from the first moment to the last. Was it ever a mystery to anyone that he was indoctrinated? (No, I’m not going to make a spoiler warning about this–if you have half a brain then you’d already guessed from the very beginning that’s what’s happening with the whole Ceberus situation.)

So did I like anything about ME3? Sure. I thought EDI’s storyline was great, and the budding romance with Joker was cute. I enjoyed the combat, and some of the bantering between characters, like when Garrus and James were having their combat experience pissing contest, or when Garrus got me onto the roof of the Citadel and we had our own sharpshooting pissing contest. There were other storylines that I enjoyed. If only the overall framework of ME3′s narrative didn’t have glaring problems, it would have been a solid conclusion to the trilogy.

BTW, this is what my Shepard looked like this time around:

…

Quickie movie reviews:

Game of Thrones (season 2) One of my favorite shows on TV currently (along with Madmen, The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, and The Office). I had decided after watching season one that I wasn’t going to read the books and ruin my enjoyment of the TV show. There are tons of other fantasy series I could read that don’t have TV shows or movies being made for them, and I don’t see why I can’t go on enjoying the TV show without any preconceived notions, and read other fantasy series in the meantime.

Season two was just as intriguing as season one, and ended on one hell of a cliffhanger–especially for a huge zombie fan like me.

What I love about Game of Thrones is that you like all the characters, regardless if they are villains or heroes, kind or cruel, smart or stupid. The only character that’s so impossible to like for me is Joffrey–God I want to rip his head off his neck and drop kick it into a pool of lava.

While watching an episode, Elena, who’s been working hard on learning English, suddenly turned to me with a pout and said, “I just want my dragons back.” I was so proud.

Capitalism: A Love Story – There’s nothing in this film you don’t already know if you are educated about modern global economics. If you’ve seen a Michael Moore documentary, then you already know there’s always going to be emotionally manipulative scenes involving one of his predictable, mawkish antics. His messages are never bad–but how he delivers them is what irritates his critics.

Cop Out – This kevin Smith-directed cop buddy comedy had some surprisingly funny scenes, and it’s actually surprising how he finally got a handle on directing after all these years (whereas previously, he was more like a funny writer who did an half-ass job on directing). Red State, the movie he made after Cop Out, also displayed far better directing chops compared to his previous movies.

Baraka – Visually stunning, and there’s a sort of vague visual narrative involving various aspects of our civilization and our relationship with Mother Nature. It’s not the kind of movie you watch for a plot–it’s more like images and sound that form an abstract emotional response that has a defined theme. Definitely not for people who must have explosions in their movies, or don’t have the mental capacity to observe and contemplate on a philosophical level.

Bridesmaids – Hilarious, gross-out bromance movie, but with female characters instead.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (David Fincher remake) – I have seen the original Swedish version, and thought it was pretty good. although the plot-twist was already spoiled for me, I wanted to see how Fincher would tell the same story. Despite the inconsistent tone of the opening credits that has almost nothing to do with the actual movie stylistically, I enjoyed Fincher’s version. I think Rooney Mara is a better Lisbeth than Noomi Rapace, and I actually enjoyed the fact that Fincher humanized her more in his version, which is more in-tune with the book, whereas in the Swedish version of the movie, Lisbeth was colder and less relatable.

Columbiana – The critics ripped this movie apart, and I didn’t think it was that bad. There are plenty of really idiotic and badly made movies that critics have given higher scores to. Those of you who liked The Professonal/Leon and La Femme Nikita might enjoy this, although it’s not on the same level.

Act of Valor – It’s not a very good movie at all, with wooden acting (by real SEAL operators) and mediocre screenplay, but if you are a fan of special forces and want something that’s realistic and true to how the operators really do their thing in the field, then this is for you.

John Carter – Very disappointing. The story was so compressed, that the characters were switching motivations with lightening speed, instead of actually portraying a credible, logical arc that’s shaped by events and internal struggles. The premise itself is also very dated by today’s standards–sci-fi/fantasy has marched on miles ahead by now, with far more sophistication and inventiveness. The John Carter legacy should have been left in the realm of classic pulp novels. The fact that the literary superstar, Michael Chabon wrote the screenplay, only makes it even more depressing. I honestly expected far more from a Pulitzer and Hugo award winning writer.

Space Battleship Yamato – Another disappointment. It was juvenile, simple-minded, illogical, and stuffed to the brim with insufferable, maudlin melodrama. Compared to the recent reboot and reimaginings by Hollywood, it’s very primitive in every way–be it storytelling, special effects, acting, or directing.

Gantz / Gantz: Perfect Answer – I hate to sound like such a sourpuss, but these were yet another disappointment. Over the years I’ve gotten very disappointed by how shallow and juvenile the whole anime/manga world has become–it’s nothing like the stuff I grew up with. Gantz and its sequel, Perfect Answer, are basically just another situation where a mangaka with no real understanding of storytelling foundations lucks out and makes it big because of the juvenile action and gratuitous nudity he includes in his manga, then the manga is adapted into anime and live-action movies. Like so many other Japanese sci-fi movies, it’s mainly just an exercise in style-over-substance, and whatever little substance it has, is quite simplistic and shallow.

21 Jump Street – Although the comedic take on the famed TV series is a refreshing reimagining, the movie itself was just okay. It’s got a few good laughs but nothing near the level of an “instant classic” like some of better comedies in recent years.

Safe House On its own, it’s a decent action/thriller, although you can’t help but compare it to the Bourne trilogy. As soon as you do that, Safe House becomes just an inferior imitator. The acting is really good though, and that’s to be expected from the caliber of the two leads.

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April 19, 2012

Leaving China soon

Filed under: Books,Computers & Gadgets,Film/TV/Animation,Latest Works,My Life/Musings,Photography,Site News — Rob @ 9:15 pm

NEWS:
Elena and I are currently making plans to move back to The States. China’s gotten too toxic for us. There’s new toxic food scandals in the news in increasing frequency, and it’s far too scary to stay here, unable to tell which of the foods we buy are safe.

Just recently, even medicine have been tested as being toxic, containing poisonous heavy metals. The capsules used for thirteen over-the-counter medicine products have been flagged as having the poisonous capsules. The toxic capsules are made from processed old leather scraps (such as old shoes, hand bags). The immoral manufacturers try to cut costs that way instead of using food-grade gelatin.

It boggles my mind how short-sighted and stupid these people are. It’s not as if there’s an underground criminal network where they all know each other and can avoid the poisons that each other produces. So essentially, they are all just ingesting the poisons produced by fellow black-hearted food and medicine manufacturers from all over the country, and happily participating in this massive, slow suicide. For a country that’s notorious for being arrogant about how clever its people are, this is idiocy on a massive level that could only be described as the epic fail of an entire country.

Anyway, we’ll be flying back to The States sometime in May to look for a new home. We’re currently considering the Solano and Sacramento counties (closer to our price range, but still California). If any of you live in those areas and want to share some opinions on where best to live (safe, nice neighborhoods), or want hang out when we get there, just drop me a line.

SITE NEWS:
There’s now a The Best of Kitty Cat Diary section:

It’s been over ten years since I started posting Kitty Cat Diary entries, and by now, there are over 1,260 photos, so I decided to select my favorite ones and put them into a separate section.

WEBLOG:
After putting up with painfully slow bootup times (between five to ten minutes) for a few months on my main computer, I had enough and decided to upgrade to a solid state drive for the OS (Windows 7, 64-bit). The culprit for the exasperating slow speed was the old 80 GB SATA drive I was using, which was performing far below typical hard drives of similar specs. I ran some benchmarks, and the numbers told me just how slow the old drive was running:

No wonder it took forever to bootup and load all the startup apps. Those numbers are shameful.

Here’s an old IDE drive that’s out-performing it:

This is what typical SATA drives are supposed be like:

I had no idea why the old 80 GB SATA drive was performing so badly, but it was the perfect excuse to finally experience SSD for myself, after having read so much about its legendary speed.

I hopped over to tomshardware.com to see some benchmarks for current SSD’s, and then to newegg.com to checked out the ratings and customer feedback. I ended up getting the Intel SSDSA2CW120G3 120 GB–modestly priced and with good performance. It came with a data migration software (technically, a lite version of Acronis True Image Home 2010), and it moved my OS to the SSD just fine, but I was getting odd error messages during bootup like missing language packs, or can’t boot from the CD, and other persistent weirdness. Eventually I got the sucker to bootup my migrated OS, but only after scouring the web for solutions, trying various tricks, and an endless string of expletives.

And HOLY COW, the legendary speed of running the OS on a SSD drive is no joke! Check out how fast the SSD performs in comparison:

I bet my neighbors heard the victory grunt I voiced when the OS booted up on the new SSD for the first time.

It used to take anywhere from five to ten minutes to bootup the OS and load all the startup apps, but now it only takes about a minute and ten seconds. It’s still not as fast as it could be though. My other computer that’s four-years old (also running Windows 7, 64-bit) boots up in under half of that time, and it’s running the OS off of a typical 7,200 rpm SATA hard drive (but that computer isn’t loading as many different drivers and apps during startup, being a dedicated DAW machine). I could probably do more tweaking and shorten the bootup time even more, but it’s already such a huge improvement compared to before that I’m not interested in sinking any more time into the matter. I’m just enjoying the upgrade and how fast all the apps bootup. Even a slow booting app like Photoshop now only takes about four seconds.

All in all, I would say the speed is worth the expensive asking price of SSD technology, but only for the OS drive. For typical storage, SATA hard drives are still much more cost efficient (especially now we have terabyte drives costing the same as the gigabyte drives from just a few years ago). I hear that hybrid drives (using SSD only as the cache) are also a good choice, having the best of both worlds. Maybe I’ll look into that next, but for now, my rig is running smoothly, and that’s the best I dare to hope for, having been through some maddening computer-related problems in the past.

…

I finished reading The Hunger Games trilogy recently (haven’t seen the movie yet though). The books were briskly paced and the plot entertaining, but the premise was too far-fetched for me.

I didn’t for one minute believe that the characters in such a world wouldn’t have on-going conversations about, or attempts to find out what might be happening outside of Panem, or what the world was like before Panem and how they could have regressed so much. Even the fact that such a thing as The Hunger Games would even exist at all, was completely beyond my ability for suspension of disbelief. I didn’t believe it in Battle Royale‘s premise either, but at least that story had a somewhat delirious, surreal tone that’s meant to be kind of tongue-in-cheek.

Suspension of disbelief issues aside, I enjoyed the story, and finished all three books. That is a compliment, since I can’t remember the last time I actually read a trilogy from beginning to end without interruption. I think Suzanne Collins’ background as a television writer really honed her ability to craft engaging pacing and plot that’s all muscle and no flab.

I liked most of the characters in the books (especially Cinna and Finnick), but I’m not a fan of Katniss. This is a common problem in first-person narratives, where all the supporting characters are actually more interesting than the main character, yet you have to experience the story through the most boring character in the cast (I had the same problem with Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb). Well, at least Katniss is still more interesting than Bella Swan could ever hope to be.

Speaking of which, I tried to force myself to read Twilight a few days ago as a form of research, to see why it became such a phenomenal success, and I just couldn’t get through the first few chapters. I had to stop because the writing was just abysmal (I dislike trashing another writer like this–I usually try to show some restraint and be diplomatic, but in this case, just…wow).

The writing was essentially at the level of bad fan fiction, with awkward syntax, self-conscious diction, terrible grammar (and I’m not talking about creative usage, but simply ignorance), and a main character that I couldn’t stand to be around because she’s so incredibly dull, insecure, ungrateful, and shallow. It was a torture to read what’s essentially the angst-ridden diary of such a drab, unremarkable person.

And then it hits me. Bella is the fictional representation of typical Twilight readers, sharing similar traits with them, and these readers are simply living vicariously through her. They get to have a romance with an impossibly pretty boy that they can’t have sex with, while inexplicably attracting various other boys without ever having shown any traits that deserve such attention. What girl wouldn’t kill to be able to attract males without any effort at all, and no amount of clumsy shyness will diminish her allure? Is it any wonder that Twilight is so damn popular? It’s feeding the shallow vanity and wish-fulfillment of girls everywhere, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if these girls grow up and read an unhealthy number of trashy romance novels as their main literary diet.

Another thing that irritated me was Bella’s fake modesty. She won’t even acknowledge the fact that maybe those boys simply think she’s hot. I’m sorry, but every single attractive female I know is aware of her own beauty in some way, regardless of how insecure she might be or if she ever admits to it. There’s no way in hell a girl who moves into town and immediately gains a loyal male fan-base that follows her around like puppy dogs, isn’t in some way aware of her own physical beauty or is glad to be pretty–even if it’s just in secret. So not only is Bella a boring and unremarkable character, she’s also unrealistic because the author has no idea how to write believable characters (if you search the web, you’ll find lots of people accusing Bella Swan to be a Mary Sue).

The entire story of Twilight hinges on shallow physical attraction and nothing else (he’s so pretty, and she smells good. Seriously?). Romeo and Juliet had a shallow romance too, but at least the story had enjoyable prose propping up the love affair, and the tragic romance itself isn’t the ultimate point of the story–it merely served as a lens in which to examine the blind hatred between two aristocratic families, conveying how absurd and petty most human conflicts are. Without that crucial component, Romeo and Juiet would never have endured all these centuries.

Let’s hope that something else much better comes along to capture the hearts of young readers everywhere, gets adapted into popular movies, and ends up as a household name.

Oh wait, it’s already happened. Harry Potter and The Hunger Games.

…

Quickie TV and Movie reviews:

The Walking Dead (Season Two) The firing of Frank Darabont was a big surprise, since he’s such a revered director, and the one who brought the whole thing together. But I suppose because it’s an adaptation, the studio felt safer to fire Darabont than if it was an original series that was created and written by him. As an adaptation, they at least already have a road map to reference, so as long as they don’t veer too far from the general vibe, it’s really more of a matter of logistics (considering the reasons why Darabont was fired).

Season two dragged on for a while, and then finally picked up pace with the barn plot twist. The tone of the episodes after the long hiatus between episode seven and eight were distinctly different. The new direction was less introspective and more straightforward action, and I have mixed feelings about the change; the quicker pace was more exciting, but it sometimes bordered on cheap sensationalism and soap-opera-like manipulation. If this continues, the series would be in danger of becoming too campy.

I’m still looking forward to season three though. Glen Mazzara (who replaced Frank Darabont) would have to really screw the pooch for me to give up on this series.

Ink – Ink is an indie sci-fi movie made with shoe-string budget, and has gained a cult following, but actually not very good. There’s cheap-looking, and then there’s Ink–which has that homemade video trying to look cinematic instead of just embracing what it really is. The director seemed to do action sequences best, but as a storyteller in general, he’s just not very good. The premise was interesting, but the world-building and the characters were so convoluted and one-dimensional that the whole thing amounts to not much more than an exercise in style over substance. The emotional core of the story that is the plot twist, was so predictable and unoriginal that enduring the movie all the way to the ending didn’t seem worth it.

I’m generally not a fan of the whole one-man production approach. I’ve seen too many examples of that over the years, and 99% of them were disappointing. Why choose to expressive your creative vision in a medium where you are handicapped and penalized for being a lone artist, and will be compared to much bigger productions? Why not tell your story in a medium where the playing field is completely flat, while budget and manpower has no bearing on how good of a story you can tell–mediums such as novels and graphic novels?

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol – I was really looking forward to Brad Bird’s first live action feature film, curious to see if his directorial voice carries over from animation. After seeing the movie, I was neither disappointed or impressed. Maybe it’s because he didn’t write it, but the movie didn’t have a distinct vision–any number of today’s working directors could’ve directed it. In other words, I didn’t really sense any of Brad’s uniqueness in the direction–it was just another blockbuster action movie.

Léa Seydoux was really something though. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Her countenance reminded me of the kind of sensual, sweet allure that Kate Moss showed in her 1996 L’Oreal audition tape. Some women just have it, and it’s not due to looks, but how a woman feels on the inside and carries herself.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy – A spy thriller that’s all about the psychological and emotional conflicts–basically what spycraft is like in real life, as opposed to how it’s usually depicted in most movies.

I had totally forgotten that Gary Oldman is actually an English actor, due to all the American roles he’s played over the years. He was very good in the movie, playing someone with so much self-control, which is opposite of the kind of explosive characters he often plays.

Buried – One guy, locked inside a coffin, for the entire movie. It was pretty clever, and kept me interested enough to want to see the ending, but it was also really boring to watch once I got over the novelty of the concept in the first twenty minutes. When you realize the entire movie is going to be just one guy in a dark coffin, you’ll be tempted to do something else while the movie plays, because you figure you won’t miss much if you just listened to the dialogues. I ended up doing other things on the computer while letting the movie play, and I didn’t miss a thing.

The Adventures of Tintin – This was probably the most disappointing film from Spielberg I’ve seen in decades. It lacked the charm of the source material, and on its own, didn’t have enough emotional resonance to compliment the action/adventure elements. I can’t help but feel that adding an interesting female protagonist to the Tintin and Haddock duo (well, trio, if you count Snowy) would have made the story a bit more well-rounded.

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March 21, 2012

Writing relatable Mary Sues with depth

Filed under: Film/TV/Animation,Food,My Life/Musings,Video Games,Writing — Rob @ 9:48 pm

WEBLOG:

While researching for the book I’m currently writing, I came across the Kids React videos on Youtube. I really enjoyed all the videos, although I don’t think I gained any new insights into the minds of today’s children. There will always be children who are quite “normal,” and there will always be those who are precociously mature and impressively articulate for their age. The latter are the ones I tend to write about, because they inspire both adults and other children, and I was a precocious kid myself, so that’s what I relate to. Someone like Severn Suzuki would be a prime example of the kind of children I prefer to write about. I like the idea that that children can be so intelligent, noble, wise, and courageous that they make many adults feel ashamed of themselves for not trying harder.

The downside to writing about impressive children is the whole “Mary Sue” problem (or “Gary Stu,” for male characters), so as a writer, I have to be careful and portray realistic people who despite how impressive they might be, are still human beings we can relate to. Personally, I don’t have a problem with the fact that Mary Sue characters tend to be very talented and capable, since I’ve met plenty of people like that. What raises eyebrows when it comes to Mary Sue characters for me, is the fact that they are often portrayed as perfect on the inside too.

So what happens if you have to write someone who is genuinely well-loved, noble, and with so few flaws that we almost can’t relate to how perfect they are? Today’s readers and writers are so savvy and picky that if they catch even a faint whiff of Mary Sue-like characteristics, they’ll jump on the author and proclaim him incompetent. So the question is, how do you write a lovable character who is inspirational and impressive in general, but not a Mary Sue?

I think in most cases, the so-called “perfect” people do most of their struggling on the inside. They have might have selfish and evil thoughts like the rest of us, but they have immense self-control, and they can overcome those dark thoughts and do the right thing. I’m not saying they don’t necessarily have more compassion and nobility than the rest of us, because often they do. What I’m saying is that they tend to have the self-control and tenacity to stick to being kind and compassionate towards others, even when they really don’t feel like it. I do know people in my life who always try to put on a smile, show kindness, and go out of their way to help others, even when they feel exactly the opposite–it’s as if they feel it’s their duty to make this world a better place. For the rest of us, all we see is a lovable, selfless, intelligent, and charismatic person, but we’ll never see the struggle that goes on inside of them–how they triumph over their inner demons.

As a writer, I think the way to make Mary Sues interesting is to write about that inner conflict. Novels have the freedom to explore the inner world of characters in ways that would be very hard or awkward to do in other storytelling mediums, so I feel as novelists, we should take advantage of that freedom. It doesn’t matter if your character acts like a Mary Sue–as long as she doesn’t also think like one, you should be able to write a relatable Mary Sue-like character with depth and complexity.

…

Living in a city like Fuzhou, it’s extremely hard to find decent cheese anywhere. (People in China generally dislike cheese–many find it disgusting and foul tasting, except maybe on a pizza. Hong Kong and Taiwan are far more accepting, since they are a lot more westernized.) Even the import supermarket we go to have dubious selection that’s inconsistent at best. Recently, We tried ordering imported cheese from taobao.com (the largest online shopping portal in China), and because the weather was still cold enough, the cheese products arrived in good shape.

We got some gouda and gruyere that are excellent, and we also got white truffle salsa, truffle oil, and Foie Gra that were very good:

To be able to enjoy food like this in our own home, while living in a relatively backwards city like Fuzhou, is really something, but they are so expensive since they are imported. I was excited like a little boy as we sampled each purchase. I guess it’s a good thing luxury food like these are so hard to find in Fuzhou, otherwise I’d stuff myself with them and eat a big chunk out of our savings.

…

I finished Dead Space 2, and I think in general, I liked it almost as much as the first game (which is one of my all-time favorite games). Some of the freshness and surprise isn’t there anymore, because I’m already familiar with the premise, the gameplay, the general mood, and narrative style, but the new location does provide some interesting levels and enemies, such as the babies and children, the childcare center, the shopping district, the residential areas, and so on. It’s hard to screw up a sequel when the first one already laid down the most important foundation to build upon though.

I’m totally looking forward to the next sequel, and I hope it will have a long life as a franchise like the Resident Evil series.

I finally found the time to play some Skyrim, and it’s been pretty okay so far. There’s no dramatic intensity to speak of, since unlike most RPG’s, the sandbox approach allows you just roam around, and random encounters have no carefully crafted dramatic structure that creates strong emotional resonance. Sandbox games all have this problem, and no matter how the developers try to put a main plot in the game, it doesn’t fix the problem because the game doesn’t force the player to follow the main plot, and when you can’t control the story progression as a writer, is when you lose the ability to craft a dramatic structure/pacing that only a good writer could.

I also started playing Mass Effect 3, and so far the premise feels a a bit like Bioware had jumped the shark regarding the whole Reapers and earth situation. I’m sure I’ll really enjoy the game anyway though–it’s Bioware, after all.

Other than the unlikely premise, I was really put off by this James character, who has no background and apparently is pals with Shepard. Bioware did nothing to tell the player who this James is–I had to find out by searching the internet. Apparently, he appeared in one of the other products related to the Mass Effect franchise. It’s unforgivable that Bioware expects the player to just know who this James is, as if they expect people to buy and experience all of their other Mass Effect related products.

Then there’s that Diana Allers reporter character, played by Jessica Chobot. Seriously, how the hell did that happen? It feels tacked on, like some kind of fan-service for the horny nerds. Chobot is nowhere near the caliber of a good voice actress–the whole thing was a marketing gimmick.

I can’t help but think all of the recent negatives I’ve experienced with Bioware games (including Dragon Age II) is directly related to the fact they are now owned by EA. Before EA, Bioware had a far better track record. Although in interviews, the Bioware guys deny that EA has any influence, but nobody believes it, by the simple fact that Dragon Age II was so rushed and many levels were obviously recycled. The Bioware before EA would never have done such a thing.

…

Quickie TV and movie reviews:

Girls’ Generation and the Dangerous Boys – This was probably one of the more interesting SNSD reality shows, having the girls mentor five troubled teenage delinquent boys. Since Korean teenagers are in general much more polite and better behaved than western ones, the boys might seem perfectly normal by western standards.

Reality shows are by nature manipulative, and this is no exception. There were some genuine moments of emotions and conflicts, but so much it just felt too contrived (in this regard, Asian countries are far worse than western ones). I would say the show had a positive impact on the boys though, because at the very least, it showed them what it takes to work hard towards a goal, what kind of behavior is favored by society at large, and the dynamic between those behind the camera, in front of the camera, and the audience. If nothing else, it taught them to never trust the media ever again.

The Limey – It’s a little dated looking, and it doesn’t necessarily feel like a Soderbergh film, but it’s a decent thriller.

The Ides of March – An entertaining political thriller, although I think Ryan Gosling is too young for the role. I don’t know if the character was meant to be that young in the original screenplay, or they wrote/rewrote it for Gosling.

Friends with Benefits – Fairly standard Hollywood romantic comedy. If you like the main leads, then watch it I guess.

The Flowers of War (金陵十三釵) – A bit melodramatic, but a film with its heart in the right place. If the writing was more objective and less sensational, then it would’ve been a lot stronger.

Hugo – I was bored by the first half of the movie–it felt like a meandering movie for children without any interesting conflicts, and I didn’t like Chloe Moretz in this film. I have enjoyed seeing her in past movies, but she just seemed like the wrong actress for the role. Also, as she gets older, she enters the awkward phase, where her precious child charm no longer works–in fact, feels contrived–and she’s not quite developed the depth an adult actress needs. The second half of the movie dealing with the real story, is much more interesting, but by then, it was too late. I think it was a bad idea for Scorsese to tread into Spielberg territory, because his sensibility just isn’t built for it, IMO.

Fast Five – Crazy stunts. Attractive people. Fast cars. Pounding music. A bit smarter than typical action movies.

Brothers – Probably the best acting I’ve seen from Toby Maguire to date. The rest of the cast are all very high caliber actors, so in a way, Maguire really had to bring it in order to not look like the odd man out. The ending wasn’t very satisfying, but the dramatic tension up to the ending was quite good.

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