Art wars: who should get credit?
The latest controversy rumbling through the art world is the question of who should get credit, and when, and how. When a movie is made, at the end of the movie, every single person who had a hand in the production is listed. The same goes for television shows. Even the lousiest, most short-lived, low-budget sitcom will list the names of everyone in the credits.
Unicorn lair found in North Korea
Turns out North Korea is not just one of the most repressive regimes on Earth. And they don't just have nuclear missiles. They also have unicorns, or at least have found proof that a unicorn once existed there.
Cash mobs: A HELPFUL Internet sensation, for once!
Sometimes it seems like the Internet is nothing but an endless cycle of memes and dumb image macros. You have probably heard of "flash mobs," where a large group of people conspires to meet somewhere public and do something ostensibly wacky, like have a giant pillow fight in downtown Toronto, or dance Gangnam Style.
NFL Status Report: NFC East
New York Giants (7-4)
The Giants always make a run at the end of the season, right? And Eli Manning and the guys always show up on your TV screen in January and even February. Well, this year should be no exception.
The usual Giant combo of solid play from Eli, tough running game and ferocious pass rush is all there. But the December schedule is very tough (except for the free-falling Eagles) and there’s not much chance of a first-round bye, so the Giants will have to take the long way. But that’s been their approach before and they have a couple of rings to show for it.
Playoff Snapshot: The division title looks like it’s in the bag, but no first-round bye with Atlanta and San Francisco running ahead. Nevertheless, you can’t ever count New York out.
Washington Redskins (5-6)
Robert Griffin III and his mates have made the occasional splash, and certainly separated themselves a bit from the bottom of the division with wins over Dallas and Philadelphia in the last two weeks.
And 5-foot-9 sixth-round pick Alfred Morris (Florida Atlantic) has been a breakout star himself, with 982 yards on the ground. Morris and Griffin have Washington in first place in the league in rushing.
But the pass defense has been leaky (giving up more yards per game than any team except Tampa Bay), and the team’s best win is over that fellow “team-on-the-rise,” the Bucs.
Playoff Snapshot: Washington still has a chance to grab a wild card, but it has a ways to go before being much of a playoff threat.
Dallas Cowboys (5-6)
The Cowboys season isn’t all that bad: Tony Romo has two excellent targets in Dez Bryant and Miles Austin, and the defense has been solid. But the Cowboys have no real running game.
Their biggest problem has been a schedule that sent them up against some of the top teams in the league … and they didn’t win a single one. They went up against the Bears, Ravens, Giants and Falcons in a five-game stretch and lost all four.
Their home stretch is a bit easier (although they have to face the Steelers), and their season-ender with Washington could have a playoff berth on the line.
Playoff Snapshot: The Cowboys can beat the lesser teams, but don’t look like any sort of real playoff threat.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-8)
Ouch. What a mess. After a 3-1 start, the Eagles have lost seven in a row.
Thing is, the team hasn’t really been that bad statistically, and it still has some weapons in LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson and, when he’s healthy, Michael Vick. But Vick’s health situation, and now even more mess related to it (Vick seems to think the team is using his concussion as an excuse to move him out of the lineup permanently), plus the lingering coaching issues surrounding Andy Reid, make the season-ending stretch difficult to watch.
Playoff Snapshot: Playoffs, no. House-cleaning among coaches and roster, yes.
Reading Pile: 12/1/12
FF #1- It didn’t suck, and that completely shocks the hell out of me. I was totally bracing for a painful whiplash from the switchover of Hickman to Fraction, and looking at this cover from the solicits I was like noooooooooope. But after reading the Fantastic Four #1 relaunch, I was like, well, maybe this won’t be too painful. Then I read this and it was actually charming. Some of Allred’s artwork doesn’t quite work with some of the characters (or maybe that’s the coloring?), but then on other pages it works perfectly well. The important thing is they kept the children of the Future Foundation, because it seems Marvel realized that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Plus hey, at least they didn’t charge more than $2.99 for the deal. B+
Bedlam #2- I just kinda like the idea that there’s an insane doctor who thinks that lobotomizing serial killers and re-releasing them into society to better improve the world is a good idea, and seems like a generally nice guy too. Who employs some very alarming nurses as well, but we can probably assume that’s because he’s such a nice guy. I can’t wait for that to actually be a focus of the story, because even though it’s sort of there the main plots seem to be about the reformed serial killer and the police going after a new serial killer. This just means there are plenty of sub-plots to mine over time, and it’s developing kind of like a good tv series. Think Dexter meets Arrow. Thirty pages for $3.50 is decent as well as it’s a fairly dense read. B+
Batman Incorporated #5- I’m really happy that Chris Burnham is the core artist for this entire series. It’s nice to have the strong lead of one artist on the title to give it a personality. I’m intrigued by the depiction of a Joker plague in the future that kind of resembles Garth Ennis’ Crossed, and I have to wonder if that developed as an idea in its own right or was this a tip of the hat to Ennis. Plus, a super-villain molecular biologist gorilla named Jackanapes sort of wins everything. A-
Planetoid #4- A little bit of a wait for this issue, but it totally delivers on some epic sci-fi with some great art. Also, thirty-two pages of pure well-paced story for $2.99? Why yes Marvel and DC, Image and Ken Garing are showing you exactly how it is done. Something I didn’t notice on the early issues; Ken Garing did the writing, the art, and the lettering. That’s…….why are we not throwing a comic parade for this man? A
Under the Microscope: Heart
My kiddo has always been very interested in the human body and how it works, and now that she’s taking an anatomy class in our co-op she’s more into learning about body systems than ever. She found a book at the library yesterday that I think will help feed her constant interest as well as further her knowledge. It’s called Under the Microscope: Heart—How the Blood Gets Around the Body. Written by Richard Walker, it’s one of the most fully-illustrated, interesting books about the body I have ever seen and I think many children would enjoy it.
The book is only 48 pages long including its index, but between its illustrations and content, it is an absolutely fantastic, child-comprehensive guide to the heart and how it works. Topics covered within the book include blood vessels, the heartbeat cycle, immunization, white and red blood cells, clotting, healing and much, much more.
My child is only seven, so the text-heavy portions of the book aren’t going to interest her in their entirety yet; that said, the illustrations, their captions, and some of the text is perfect for her. For older children, the book might be a great resource for writing reports or learning more about the subject whenever it’s brought up at school or home.
I particularly like how the photos are labeled and explained for children. The blood vessels, for example, are depicted in huge magnifications and labeled so children can see arteries and valves. Many of these are cartoonish in nature, though there are photos as well—such as the inside of a vein or artery. There are also associations to show where these vessels are within the body itself.
So far, my daughter’s favorite photo is of the heart’s structure. It’s labeled in a very child-friendly way, depicting the most major elements such as the chambers of the heart. There is also a photo of the heartstrings that looks like it’s glowing rather than bloody, which is fascinating for my daughter. I really like that none of the photos are scary or gory; instead, they are really pretty and absorbing, depicting the beauty of the human body.
There are many other colorful photos and diagrams within the book that many children will find interesting as well. If you are explaining how the heart works to children or simply furthering what your child has already learned, this book would certainly be helpful.
All I See is Part of Me
Several years ago, I read Chara M. Curtis’s book All I See is Part of Me to my little girl. She picked it out to read again this week, not having remembered it at all. As we read the gorgeous story together and looked at the beautiful pictures, it reminded me how much I love this meaningful little picture book and how I would love to get a copy of it for my daughter.
The story starts out as a child—who could be a girl or a boy; my daughter assumed the child is a girl—explains how she is part of everything she sees, from her community to her puppy, the moon to the stars. The child used to think that she was small, nothing more than a little body; but after the universe—the sun and stars—explained that she is a part of everything, and everything is a part of her, she now feels so much bigger, a part of all that was, is and ever will be.
Mr. Sun and Sister Star not only tell the child, “We are one,” but they also explain that everything we ever need to really know is already in our bodies; we just have to find the answers and listen to ourselves. There is even a lovely illustration of questions going into the body, with the answers inside the outline.
In addition to the lovely gentle text, the illustrations are also lovely. They are completed with layers of colored pencil, and my daughter found them absolutely breathtaking. “They look real!” she told me as she snuggled into my side. Completely calm and enamored with the book, she murmured, “Can we get a copy of this one to keep?”
Of course, I said, “Of course.”
The book goes on to show not only the light within your body and all of the amazing energy and cosmos within, but also the connection of you to everything else in the world—including a gorgeous drawing of various people and animals of the world, which is my daughter’s favorite page. In addition to people of every shape and color, there are all kinds of farm and wild animals—from a bear to a giraffe to a tiny mouse—all drawn in the two-page spread.
If you purchase one picture book this year, I would recommend this one—especially since it’s a harder-to-find book on top of its loveliness.
NFL Status Report: NFC North
Chicago Bears (8-3)
The Bears aren’t that different from the 49ers … built on tough defense and running game, and hoping for the best at quarterback. Reuniting Jay Cutler with his old Denver mate Brandon Marshall was supposed to provide the needed jolt to the passing game, and, most weeks, it has.
But Cutler has been injured and sometimes inconsistent (not all that different from his entire career). Nevertheless, when things are clicking – as in last week’s 28-10 win over the Vikings – the Bears look like a team that can make a deep playoff run.
Brian Urlacher still leads the aging, but still effective, defense.
Playoff Snapshot: The Bears will make the playoffs and are a good bet to make the NFC championship, so a Super Bowl is not out of the question.
Green Bay Packers (7-4)
No one means more to his team than Aaron Rodgers, and, if the Packers quarterback gets hot in the playoffs, there’s no telling what could happen. But his running game and defense are lukewarm, making it a rough path for Green Bay.
That being said, the Pack is one “simultaneous catch” (remember the whole “replacement referee" controversy way back when?) from being 8-3 and leading the division.
Moreover, they play the Bears on Dec. 16 and could certainly wrest the lead away from Chicago on that day. (The Packers already have one win over the Bears.)
Playoff Snapshot: It’s all up to Rodgers. No one else on the team is likely to step up. But if he gets red hot, then watch out.
Minnesota Vikings (6-5)
Right behind Rodgers on that “no one means more to his team” list is Adrian Peterson, whose reemergence from knee surgery has been one of the top stories of the year. Peterson is right back leading the NFL in rushing with 1,236 yards, which is all the more remarkable when one considers that he only went over the 100-yard mark once in his first six games. But the five games since he’s been a monster.
Unfortunately, the Vikings are only 2-3 in those games, and quarterback Christian Ponder hasn’t given them much of a passing offense … ranking 24th in the league in passing rating.
Playoff Snapshot: The Vikes play the Packers twice, and could easily flip their standing. But Ponder isn’t looking like a passer who would lead a deep playoff run.
Detroit Lions (4-7)
The Lions were the hot team last year, but this year they haven’t been up to the rigors of the NFC North … going 0-4 so far against their division rivals. The Matthew Stafford-to-Calvin Johnson passing combo has been as strong as expected (the Lions lead the NFL in passing yards), but the rest of the team has taken a step back, with no consistent running game and a mediocre defense.
Playoff Snapshot: They would need to upset Green Bay, Atlanta and Chicago just to have a chance at getting in. Not very likely.