First, there’s this gem:

Let’s see… can you spot the issue here? All the dudes are looking [...]]]> This will be a short post since I’ve thrown my neck out or something. But I had to take a moment to register my irritation with the promo material for the upcoming Marvel Studios film The Avengers.

First, there’s this gem:

Let’s see… can you spot the issue here? All the dudes are looking all dudely and superheroish, and Black Widow is giving us an ass shot. Because it doesn’t matter that Natasha is a highly trained assassin who could give any of the other Avengers a run for their money. It matters that Scarlett Johansson has a nice backside.

And she does. I’ll give credit where credit is due. She has a great ass. But why is hers the only nice ass featured in these promo pieces? I mean, Jeremy Renner has a gorgeous ass. So do Chris Hemsworth and Robert Downey, Jr, and Chris Evans. I’ve never seen Mark Ruffalo’s ass, but I’m sure it’s pretty tasty, too.

My point in all this ass ranting is that Marvel is catering to the lowest common denominator here. Oh look! There’s a chick in this movie! Quick, put her in a skintight suit and show off her ass! What, is she going to scare off the 13-30 year old males in the audience otherwise? Can’t have a tough heroine without making her into wank bank material?

To be clear, I have no problem with female characters being sexy. It’s when things take a turn for the exploitative that I get annoyed. C’mon, Marvel. Either present Black Widow as a member of the team who doesn’t have to show off her ass to be a valuable character, or show off everyone’s asses.

This little gem is “Avengers Booty Ass-emble” by kevinbolk on DeviantArt. If we can’t trust Marvel to not exploit the lovely asses of its female characters, at least we can make fun of them with fan art.

This has always struck me as being kind of weird, considering my reading quirks. I read paranormal romances, but I’m extremely picky about them. I don’t care for many romance (note the lowercase r) tropes. [...]]]> I have a confession, a confession that I’m not guilty about at all. I love Romance (note the capital R).

This has always struck me as being kind of weird, considering my reading quirks. I read paranormal romances, but I’m extremely picky about them. I don’t care for many romance (note the lowercase r) tropes. I can’t buy into love at first sight or soulmate stories. That just seems like the easy way out for most fictional relationships, and I prefer the characters to fall in love in a more realistic way. I don’t necessarily need a Happily Ever After, though it (or at least a Happily For Now) would be nice.

I generally can’t stand romantic comedy movies. I think most of them are carbon copies of every other romantic comedy out there, rife with gender stereotypes and silly plot contrivances. The only rom-coms I really dig are the quirky ones, like Penelope.

But man, I love Romance.

Allow me to explain. If I read a book that doesn’t involve some sort of love interest or relationship, I’m kind of disappointed. I mean, I can appreciate that book for what it is, of course, but I really love reading about the complexities of relationships. I love watching characters get to know each other and fall for each other. I love it when it happens alongside the story, and I also love it when it’s the focus of the story. I love Romances when the characters slowly realize that they feel more than friendship/partnership/etc for each other (see Mulder & Scully). I love it when it either takes forever for them to act on it, or when they actively pretend that they don’t feel more than friendship/partnership/etc for each other (see John & Aeryn or Castle & Beckett). I love it when the Romance is hinted at, when the audience is teased with it until we’re as sexually frustrated as the characters.

Mulder/Scully, John/Aeryn, Castle/Beckett

I also love sweeping, costume-drama Romances. I adore Jane Austen’s Pride And Prejudice, and I love the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice, starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle with all my heart. For some reason, I always balked at classic romantic novels, and so I just read Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. I know, I know. I don’t know how I managed to get a Master’s degree in English without reading that book, either. But I loved the slow, subtle Romance in the book, the heartbreak when Rochester’s dark secret is revealed, the bittersweet joy in the ending. The recent film version was gorgeously romantic, helped along by Michael Fassbender’s perfectly brooding (if a bit too good-looking) Rochester.

Jane Eyre

Most of the books I pick up deal with Romance in some way or another. I’ll read and enjoy books that don’t deal with Romance, but I really love the ones that feature two people falling in love. I love it even more when that Romance is scattered throughout a series, like in Seanan McGuire’s October Day series. We’re coming up on book five, and there are still just tiny hints of upcoming Romance. Aside from the fact that the series is amazing, that burgeoning relationship is keeping me on the edge of my seat.

And I will happily admit it: I love really good sex scenes in books. I love it when those characters finally come together (*snicker*), and I love it when an author can make my toes curl with words alone.

So, I love Romance. How about you? Do you prefer your fiction with added romantic spice? Or do you dig those romance tropes that bug me? Let’s talk Romance, fangirls.

“Game of Thrones” is popular now that it’s a successful TV series, and I’ve seen that a lot of fans have questions about the backstory. The problem is that going onto the A Song of Ice and Fire websites risks spoiling the many twists and turns of the plot. Since I’ve [...]]]>

“Game of Thrones” is popular now that it’s a successful TV series, and I’ve seen that a lot of fans have questions about the backstory. The problem is that going onto the A Song of Ice and Fire websites risks spoiling the many twists and turns of the plot. Since I’ve been been a fan of the series for mumblemumble years, I’m going to do my best to answer!

[Editor: While we're trying to avoiding spoiling anyone, beware that these answers might spoil you if you're not up to date on the series! Proceed with caution. -Pamela]

[spoiler]What happened to Ned Stark’s brother and father?
Bad stuff. The “Mad King” (father to Viserys and Daenerys, the blond ones) killed them. He burned them as traitors, but I won’t give specifics until Jaime says more about it on the show.

What happened to Ned Stark’s sister, Lyanna? Why does Robert mope over her?
Robert was supposed to marry Lyanna. She disappeared, presumably abducted by Prince Rheagar Targaryen (Viserys and Daenerys’s older brother). Robert fought a war over her, killed the crown prince, but she died. Then he had to marry Cersei instead, so you can see it’s a downgrade.

Did Jaime Lannister kill the previous king?
Yes, Jaime Lannister killed the “Mad King.” Since he’s in the Kingsguard–a group of knights devoted to protecting the king–this was viewed as a particularly heinous oath-breaking (something Ned Stark can’t abide). It earned him the nickname “Kingslayer.”

So… how did Viserys and Daenerys escape the fate of their brother and father?
The “Mad King” was very suspicious of everyone. His pregnant wife and younger son were held at a different Targaryen stronghold. The Queen gave birth (and died doing so), then Viserys and his infant sister were spirited away into exile by Targaryen loyalists. Poor Daenerys was left to be raised by Viserys alone; sucks for her.

Umm… The incest thing? Is that normal?
Much like some real-life dynasties the Targaryens often intermarried. Daenerys expected she would wed Viserys. Among “normal” people it is not; the Faith of the Seven views it as a sin. It would be very bad if Jaime and Cersei’s relationship got out, hence the need to push little boys out of windows.

Did Catelyn say she worshiped different gods than the Starks?
Yes. There were three “invasions” of Westeros. The first was by the aptly named “First Men” who integrated with the natives. They worship the “Old Gods” and pray in “godswoods.” The second invasion was by the Andals, who worship deities called “The Seven.” (Seven aspects of one god: Father, Mother, Maiden, Crone, Warrior, Smith/worker and Stranger/death.) The Old Gods are sort of pagan-like and the Faith of Seven is more like the Catholic Church–except that the “High Septon” doesn’t have the power of a medieval Pope. The third would be the invasion of the Targaryens, who made the Seven Kingdoms into one realm. They are outsiders to both faiths.

Of course, not everyone is faithful to their gods. I think that goes almost without saying.

What does “Winter” mean in the context of the series?
Seasons are not “regularly scheduled” in Westeros. For example, on the show, they have said that this Summer has lasted nine years. No one knows how long they will last. This is obviously bad for planning your harvest, but there is an added “magical” danger in the “White Walkers” (also known as “The Others” in the book series). It’s unclear if Winter brings the Others or if the Others bring Winter, but they come together. And the longer the Winter, the stronger the supernatural threat.

What are the “White Walkers”? Zombies?
Yes and no. The White Walkers themselves are some unknown mystical evil force. They have the power to raise cold, dead things (human and animal, called “Wights”) to their cause. (This was seen in the first episode when the young Wildling girl was zombiefied.) They are the true reason the First Men built the Wall and started the Night’s Watch, but the White Walkers have not been seen for centuries–the Winters have not been long enough–and the Watch has fallen into disrepair.

What are “Wildlings”?
Wildlings is the name Westerosi people have given to the people who live beyond the Wall. (They call themselves the “Free Folk” since they don’t swear allegiance to any king.)

Changing the name of “The Others” to “The White Walkers” (presumably due to Lost) has the unfortunate side effect of making it easy to confuse the two Ws. But the Wildlings are just people. And like all people, they can be either good or bad. Or both.

Who is Jon Snow’s mother?
HA! The internet will supply you with plenty of answers to this question, but they are all speculation. For now it is Ned’s secret. [/spoiler]

Have a question? Ask it in the comments!

Let’s take a little trip down memory lane on this, the geekiest of days.

I was but a glint in my parents’ eyes when Star Wars came out. I was, however, 6 months and 26 days old when The Empire Strikes Back came out. So… still a bit too young [...]]]> Happy Star Wars Day, everyone!

Let’s take a little trip down memory lane on this, the geekiest of days.

I was but a glint in my parents’ eyes when Star Wars came out. I was, however, 6 months and 26 days old when The Empire Strikes Back came out. So… still a bit too young to be properly introduced to the fandom that my parents loved and that would be a huge part of my life. My mom bought ESB toys for me, though, because as soon as I was old enough to not eat them, I remember playing with Princess Leia in that burgundy getup from Bespin, and I had a Chewbacca action figure that came with a mesh bag for a C3PO that came apart at the joints.

I’m sure I went to see Return of the Jedi in the theatre, but seeing as I wasn’t yet four, I don’t remember it. Actually, I can’t remember the first time I actually saw any of the original trilogy. I just grew up with them. My parents recorded the movies off of HBO, and we nearly wore out those VHS tapes (if you’re too young to remember VHS tapes, please don’t tell me). I watched the movies all the time, and I really can’t remember a point in my life when I didn’t love the series. I had a little Ewok village playset and a speeder bike that blew apart when you pushed a button (I sadly lost the seat). I’m an only child, so I spent a good deal of my childhood pretending I was Princess Leia, kicking Imperial ass all over the galaxy, hanging out with my imaginary friends Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. I still have my stuffed Ewok (Wicket, to be exact). My teen years were filled with Extended Universe books and Star Wars folders that got me teased in school. Did I care? Hell no. I loved Star Wars.

Fangirl with Ewok

My feelings about the new trilogy are ambivalent at best (except for Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi; that was some brilliant casting). I absolutely refuse to watch the re-released versions of the original trilogy (Han shot first, damn it!). But despite my grumpiness about those changes and my disappointment with the new trilogy, I still really love Star Wars. It’s not without its problems, from social and storytelling standpoints, but it’s a damn good story. Princess Leia is still one of my favorite characters ever, and rewatching the series a couple of weeks ago reinforced that. Time spent frolicking with Ewoks notwithstanding, she’s an assertive, intelligent woman who likes to be in charge and who is a hell of a shot. She spends more time saving the guys’ asses than they spend saving hers. She speaks her mind, won’t take crap, and is one of my heroes.

Keep on kicking ass, your worshipfulness.

Let’s talk Star Wars, fangirls and fanboys. Do you remember the first time you saw it? Who’s your favorite character?

“Winter is Coming” are the words of House Stark. Winter is here, y’all! I’m so excited about the arrival of Game of Thrones that I can’t make a coherent review. So I shall post a lot of random thoughts!

[spoiler]I already saw the first fifteen minutes about a dozen times. But [...]]]>

“Winter is Coming” are the words of House Stark. Winter is here, y’all! I’m so excited about the arrival of Game of Thrones that I can’t make a coherent review. So I shall post a lot of random thoughts!

[spoiler]I already saw the first fifteen minutes about a dozen times. But how about those credits, huh? I liked the weirwood growing in Winterfell.

17 Minutes In: Direwolves! Puppies! Snuggly! I hate Theon for wanting to kill them. (That’s Theon, by the way, no one said his name all night.)

21 Minutes In: Catelyn and Ned speak in the godswood. I’m impressed by how much the set looks like Michael Kormack’s calendar art. Way to go, set people!

23 Minutes In: Robb, Jon and Theon are all shirtless for no reason. This must be why I want to watch. Since I’m a girl. And only care about such things.

24 Minutes In: Anvil alert! Bran, stop with the climbing already!

25 Minutes In: The King, et al, arrive. Arya is too cute wearing her too-big helmet to get a better look. And I love Sansa’s shrug as answer to the question where Arya is. HOW SHOULD SHE KNOW?

27 Minutes In: “Where’s the Imp?” asks Arya. I know right?

28 Minutes In: “Where’s the Imp?” asks Arya, again. “Where is our brother?” asks Queen Cersei. But do we get to see him? No, we get Robert angsting over Lyanna which isn’t nearly as fun.

30 Minutes In: There he is! Dinklage’s blonde wig is kind of bad, but not nearly so bad as some we’ll see coming up, so I’ll let it slide. Oh and look, Jaime brought him whores, whores, whores! He must’ve read my cheat sheet!

33 Minutes In: Speaking of bad wigs, it’s time to meet the Targaryen siblings: poor scared Daenerys, and whacked-out crazy Viserys. I have to give Harry Lloyd props for making Viserys even more crazy-like than he reads in the book. I didn’t think it was possible. That takes serious skill.

39 Minutes In: Dany finally gets the power of speech. “I don’t want to be his Queen.” Oh, Dany, no one cares what you want. Meanwhile, just a minute later, Sansa wants handsome, lovely Prince Joffrey to like her. Oh, Sansa, no one cares what you want.

44 Minutes In: The Feast. Stay classy, Robert. Ned and Benjen both say “Winter is Coming.” Sean Bean is way better at it. I don’t know. Something about how he says it just makes you go, “Winter!? Fuck! That sounds bad!” and when other people say it you’re like “Tee hee, what a stupid motto.” Awkward conversation time for Cat, Cersei and Sansa. Menstruation is a good topic for a feast.

45 Minutes In: Jaime and Ned don’t like each other, did you guys catch that? Subtle. Also I’m sort of sad Robert didn’t see Arya throwing food and be like, “That’s an awesome idea!”

48 Minutes In: Ned and Cat are in bed together. In the book, they are doin’ it, but HBO apparently decided they didn’t want any sex that wasn’t icky in this episode. (You know, for the ladies.)

50 Minutes In: Apparently at Dothraki weddings, a box of snakes is an appropriate gift. Someone tell Emily Post. Also, apparently Dothraki men can still hump women from behind with their pants on. Impressive.

53 Minutes In: Dany gets her eggs, so it’s time for sex-in’. In the books, Drogo manages to win Dany over before riding her, but again we can’t have sex that is not icky. (What would the women think!?)

58 Minutes In: Everyone leaves Winterfell for a hunt. And the scene that everyone knew was going to be the end of this episode begins. Bran goes climbing, with his tiny direwolf protesting from the ground (direwolves are smarter than people).

… and he discovers the Lannister twins going at it. Could this be what Jon Arryn discovered before he so mysteriously died? You bet your ass. Now, Bran might meet the same fate.

I think Isaac Hempstead-Wright and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau are pretty good in this scene. We all knew it was coming, but they manage to make it still surprising. [/spoiler]

See you next week!

I possess an enduring love of Star Trek. I have no memory of life without it. As a little girl in the 1970s I watched reruns of the Original Series with rapturous pleasure. What girl could [...]]]> [Ed: Thanks to Tracy Falbe for this awesome guest post! Uhura is one of TDF's favorite fangirl role models.]

I possess an enduring love of Star Trek. I have no memory of life without it. As a little girl in the 1970s I watched reruns of the Original Series with rapturous pleasure. What girl could fail to love its vision of social and gender equality? And to make it even better: It was in space!

Nichelle Nichols as Uhura

Star Trek: the Original Series is famous for its parade of hotties who added beauty and intrigue to many episodes. But Lieutenant Uhura, originally played by Nichelle Nichols, meant the most to me. Competent, professional, beautiful, Uhura was a bridge officer who sometimes jumped in to take the helm in a pinch. Of course the poor woman still had to answer the phone, and I wondered why I could see her knickers, but at least she was spared the humiliation of fetching the Captain coffee.

This imperfect attempt in the 1960s to portray a professional female has thankfully been updated in the new Star Trek movie franchise headed by J.J. Abrams. Played by actress Zoe Saldana, the new Lieutenant Uhura is a high achieving aggressive woman who performs with confidence and demands respect. In the 2009 Star Trek movie I admire her confrontation scene with Spock, played by Zachary Quinto, when she demands a bridge position on the Enterprise. Her friend Spock, with his rigorous sense of propriety, had assigned her to another vessel to avoid any perception of favoritism. Uhura trashes his reasoning. She has the high grades. She deserves the position on the Enterprise. She earned it and will not yield to any lame excuses. Spock rightly submits to her logical demands because he needs her dedication and expertise upon which he knows he can rely.

Zoe Saldana as Uhura

And how about the flagrant emotional relationship between Uhura and Spock in the new Star Trek? I totally love it. The supportive and close relationship brings a very modern update to Uhura’s place as a fictional female icon. Like any good modern geeky girl, the new Uhura is attracted to the highly educated, respected, geeky male, the emerging archetypal hero of the computer science age. The maverick fratboyesque Kirk does not light up her switchboard. She wants a man who can admire her intellectual and technical skills and not just peer longingly at her underwear. Of course, deep down most any woman wants the potent sexuality of Kirk, but an ambitious and disciplined woman like Uhura is not going to be stimulated by his meaty manliness alone. The ultimate too-tough-for-emotions man that is Spock beckons her feelings with the gravitational pull of a black hole.

With a Star Trek sequel planned for a 2012 release, I hope to see more development in this complex relationship between Uhura and Spock. It is compelling, intellectually appealing, and a wonderful expansion on the background vibe of the Original Series that quietly portrayed Spock and Uhura as respectful colleagues who contentedly shared activities off duty as well.

Trekmovie.com has reported that co-writers Robert Orci and Damon Lindelof are expecting to complete the Star Trek 2012 script in March 2011. May they continue to keep Kirk frustrated by the unreachable shining star of Uhura’s high achiever glory. She is my Queen of Sci Fi and her character past and present has always been a good role model for fangirls.

So when I got an email saying [...]]]> I wasn’t expecting to try to get San Diego Comic Con passes this morning. I was kinda broke, so I just gave up and figured I’d try for a couple of day passes later. Nevermind that I was fully expecting the servers to crash and burn once again.

So when I got an email saying that my tax refund had dropped, I decided to throw caution to the wind and try to pick up those day passes today. This is despite all of the agony and gnashing of teeth I saw by following the #sdcc hashtag on Twitter this morning.

Registration has been open for an hour and twenty minutes. I’m sure you can guess what I’m looking at right now.

I know that the registration company says to keep trying. I’m refreshing every minute or so. But at this point, I’m beginning to wonder if the frustration is worth it.

Sure, SDCC is a lot of fun. The exhibit hall is by far my favorite part, getting to see all of the awesome stuff, meet artists, buy cool swag, and see people in awesome costumes. On the other hand, I’m so frustrated at the fact that Comic Con’s management seemingly won’t shell out for a ticketing/registration system that can handle the number of requests they’re inevitably going to get. Maybe it’s just me, but I’d rather pay a little bit more and NOT waste a morning refreshing obsessively.

So. If I get passes in the next few minutes, awesome. If…

Oh my god, it worked. I just got my day passes.

Uh… See you guys at Comic Con! :D