The Music of BStarG

Those of you who happen to have the pleasure, or curse, of being personally acquainted with me know that I am a complete and total addict to the re-imagined series of Battlestar Galactica. Following the story of the remnants of humanity fleeing across the universe after their race is completely devastated by a genocidal holocaust perpetrated by robotic beings of their own creation, BStarG (as I like to call it) is both a beautifully crafted character drama and a poignant allegory to our post-9/11 era. Dealing with issues such as suicide bombings, religious fanaticism, military occupation and what it means to be human, this amazing program is at the top of my recommendation list. Voted best show on television two years in a row by three separate reputable editorials, (The New York Times and Time magazine among them) you musn't let the sci-fi premise or cheesy name scare you away from perhaps the greatest television show of this or any decade. Once you begin to watch, the tragically flawed characters and arc-intensive story lines will have you glued to the screen!

But enough with the shameless endorsements, the real focus of this blog is the unsung hero of Battlestar's success, its composer, Bear Mcreary. In a time when most shows simply play the tracks of popular songs beneath their material, Bear brings a fresh and welcome change to the soundtrack line-up, employing original compositions and character themes to bring an entirely new context and emotion to the action playing out on the screen. Take, for example, the Roslin and Adama theme. Created as a tribute to the unrequited love of the two leaders of the rag-tag fleet, (Admiral Adama, played by Edward James Olmos, and Laura Roslin, portrayed by Mary McDonnell) this beautiful score begins mournfully, played on a solo violin, and ends in rapturous joy as the violin is joined by an acoustic guitar, percussion instruments and several other orchestral elements, referencing the conflicted relationship that they share. The effect is truly heartbreaking, leaving not a dry eye in the house of those who have followed these complex and compelling characters from the beginning.

Another surprising aspect of Battlestar's music is that it breaks the war-genre mold on how it portrays military victories. Upon destruction of a key enemy instillation in a recent episode entitled 'The Hub', instead of heralding our "heroes" victory with an uplifting full orchestra, Mcreary instead chose to score the sequence with a moving funeral dirge, giving tribute to the thousands of both 'good' and 'bad' that died to get to where humanity now finds itself and the shockingly-human enemies for whom one can't help but mourn.

In short, I urge all who read this to both tune in to Battlestar Galactica, (new episodes do not air until 2009, but you can find the previous seasons online) and look up the awe-inspiring compositions of Bear Mcreary.

And So Say We All.

Horrible-ness is Next to Godliness!

Joss Whedon has done it again. Once more has the mastermind delivered a wonderfully quirky and, sadly, heartbreaking hit that I just can't help but watch again, and again, and again, and again and agai-

Well, you get the idea.

For those of you not yet inducted into the Whedon fan club, Joss is an incredible writer/director with an array of successful and massively popular projects to fill the space under his deserving belt. From Buffy the Vampire Slayer to the excellent though short-lived Firefly, Monsieur Whedon has proven to be a master crafter of both lovable characters and compelling plots which drive fans bonkers time after time. I highly recommend you watch my personal favorite Joss-show, Firefly, a western-set-in-space that will have you hooked from the first episode... As long as you view them in the correct order (To explain would take volumes of painful exposition, just search for a fansite and you'll get the jist of it).

His most recent musical-internet-webisode-project-thingamajig, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, is of particular mention. Following the tale of lovably conflicted Dr. Horrible's quest to be admitted into the Evil League of Evil while attempting to win the heart of the girl of his dreams, Horrible features a plethora of catchy songs (high praise coming from me, I find most musicals to be abhorrent) a knock-out cast, (including Whedon-alumni, Nathan Fillion) superbly executed plot and a surprise ending that will leave your jaw irreversibly locked in the open position.

To be quite honest, I have NEVER seen an internet-based movie produced in, believe it or not, only six days turn out to be so.... amazing!!! If you haven't yet tuned in to Dr. Horrible, I insist, no, I demand that you drop all that you are doing and proceed there at once! The link is posted below.

http://www.drhorrible.com/

And So Say We All.

The Lost Conundrum

I honestly am not sure what to say. For years now, I have listened to those around me praise Lost as a superbly convoluted drama which glues you to the television week after week. I have endured hearing the numerous Emmy nominations it has received, (and in some cases, won) and the Golden Globe it snagged. I was sick and tired of it.

At last, after persuasion from friends and family, I relented. If so many thought it to be the best show on television, it must at least be passable, right?

Wrong.

What puzzled me most about watching the first several episodes was the lack of quality in just about everything save the visual effects and cinematography. While the locations chosen sold me that they were truly stranded on an island in the Pacific, everything else failed to impress. The characters were tired and overused TV stereotypes we have seen again and again: Jack, the heroic and studly male; Kate, the attractive girl whose past is darkened by a criminal bad-streak; Charlie, the drug-addicted, British base player who views everything as a chance to get laid; Sayid, the tech-obsessed minority who is unjustly prejudiced against; Sawyer, the insensitive redneck; Hurley, the quintessential fat guy; Locke, the mysteriously creepy old man who holds some dark secret; and the list goes on and on.

Perhaps these flat characters could have been tolerable, if it were not for the bland writing that made me cringe more often than I would have liked. Honestly, I can pass the tech-stuff without much problem, (I realize that in TV that is sometimes a necessity), but it was the lack of intelligence and shameless suspense-building-dreck with which they were portrayed that truly drove me mad. Upon realization that a repeating distress call had been broadcasting from the island for over 16 years, one character's response was to wonder, (with some grave and supposedly suspenseful intonation) 'Where are we?' My question was, 'What about the fact that there were others stranded like you is so damn confusing?' It's as if that suddenly makes the island some sort of metaphysical playground, though that is exactly what it eventually turns out to be. How would someone derive that from a message which simply reads, 'Help me, I'm alone'? God only knows. Much of the other dialogue seemed forced and awkward as well. Instead of exploring the characters reactions to being hopelessly doomed to certain death on a foreign hunk of rock in the middle of nowhere, it was almost exclusively devoted to one of four functions: 1) Building suspense (as I have noted countless times, due to the frequency it was employed and my intense frustration as a result), 2) Throwing around cliched adages about fear and heroism, 3) Awkward jokes meant to relieve the non-existent tension, or 4) Recapping events from previous episodes in an intelligence insulting simplicity. I was taken completely out of the story-telling by the sheer absurdity of the afore-mentioned druggy, Charlie, trying to get in the pants of just about every female he came in contact with, or the number of times commercial breaks were heralded by cheesy one-liners, or the fact that at the beginning of each episode, one character would inevitably ask a pointless question to coax an explanatory response from another cast member to fill in new viewers. To make a long tale short, (and bring an even longer paragraph to a close) the writing was horrid. Enough said.

In addition, the sheer stupidity of some of the characters and plot points nearly forced me to scream at the computer screen. A few particular instances are called to mind, one being when Jack was attempting to save a man whose life was obviously forfeit with preciously limited medical supplies. When confronted by Sawyer, and rightfully so, Jack retorts that it is, you guessed it, the 'right thing to do'. Please, if confronted with their situation, the use of necessary medical supplies on a lost cause is ludicrously asinine. The priority should be the survival of those capable, not the squandering of materials! Another supremely ridiculous segment involved the monster which dwelled in the inner sanctum of the island's admittedly beautiful jungle interior. Rather than concoct some new and possibly intriguing menace to ravage the castaways, the producers chose a different direction.

They chose a polar bear.

On a frakking tropical island.

Hard to stomach, I know, but bear with me... Ugh, no pun intended. First of all, how the hell could a creature with immense amounts of stored fat for warmth survive in a tropical climate? What would it sustain itself with on an island with no other obviously apparent wildlife? How would it regulate body temperature? Second of all, our intrepid heroes bring it down with a 9mm handgun. If it is so difficult to take down one of these beasts with a high-caliber hunting rifle, how did they manage it with a pistol? I have no answers, and I'm sure there are none.

Overwhelmed with the logical, dramatic and plot problems inherent in the Lost 'verse, I couldn't make it past the third episode. Perhaps I am jumping the gun and haven't allowed the series to run its course, but I don't think so. In fact, looking back on the experience, it is easy to see why Lost has the fan-base it does. It is simplistic, suspenseful to the less educated among us and caters to the average individuals TV vice, serving up attractive people on a humid and sweaty island without bothering to address truly important or remotely interesting issues, as excellently produced shows like The Shield and Battlestar Galactica have.

To sum it all up, I am no fan of Lost. Hate me, agree with me, do what you will.

And So Say We All.

Here We Frakkin' Go!

The inevitable has finally caught up with me, and who am I to resist fate? The blogging community just couldn't keep its wonderfully grimy paws off of me, and so, here I am. Welcome to my little corner of cyberspace, if you'll excuse the cliche.

Ben Thomas is the name, and, well, whatever the frak I feel like is the game. Hope you'll stick around to find out. Mainly, I plan to review the latest television shows, movies and current events I find interesting, a task for which I am extremely............. Well, I'm looking forward to it.

The supremely under-appreciated and excellently produced series 'Battlestar Galactica' will be a frequent topic; I feel it's time the rest of you are educated about the fine work Ronald D. Moore and Co. are doing!

Other areas of interest include: Flop of the Week (a segment in which I review a disappointing series, film or episode that has caught my eye), Ben's Watch-List (details what I'm currently addicted to, and yes, there are quite a few things these days) and whatever else I come up with as I go along!

So far as a first post goes, not too shabby if I do say so myself.

And 'So Say We All'.