tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post1513768193234417529..comments2023-10-17T02:47:38.574-06:00Comments on In Palinode's Palace: what we talk about when we talk about the living deadpalinodehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029915232895358768noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-55561226150399635212008-04-30T21:45:00.000-06:002008-04-30T21:45:00.000-06:00"The implicit message is: they’re a bunch of undea..."The implicit message is: they’re a bunch of undead creatures with a mindless desire for human flesh – what’s your excuse?"<BR/><BR/>Yeah.<BR/><BR/>The amazing thing to me about zombie movies is what a brilliant invention to watch the murder of human beings over and over and over and over again. It's not horrifying or immoral because they are zombies. They are just bodies! Which says so much about what we think counts, human-wise. <BR/><BR/>That's why Dawn of the Dead was funny because it ridiculed that. Yeah, probably better not to get serious with that. Because it's actually sort of creepy.Ozmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02975578823318395358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-84082770810471709232008-04-30T21:44:00.000-06:002008-04-30T21:44:00.000-06:00"The implicit message is: they’re a bunch of undea..."The implicit message is: they’re a bunch of undead creatures with a mindless desire for human flesh – what’s your excuse?"<BR/><BR/>Yeah.<BR/><BR/>The amazing thing to me about zombie movies is what a brilliant invention to watch the murder of human beings over and over and over and over again. It's not horrifying or immoral because they are zombies. They are just bodies! Which says so much about what we think counts, human-wise. <BR/><BR/>That's why Dawn of the Dead was funny because it ridiculed that. Yeah, probably better not to get serious with that. Because it's actually sort of creepy.Ozmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02975578823318395358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-74006910113036230082008-04-30T17:37:00.000-06:002008-04-30T17:37:00.000-06:00After the first 3 paragraphs I just keep reading, ...After the first 3 paragraphs I just keep reading, 'Blair Witch Project', blah, blah, blah, 'Blair Witch Project', blah, blah....etc.Bruce Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10898228670873232050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-21902757666923618942008-04-30T12:47:00.000-06:002008-04-30T12:47:00.000-06:00With such an excellent answer, you have unwittingl...With such an excellent answer, you have unwittingly doomed yourself to being my go-to guy for future random questions about things great and small. Thank you and I'm sorry.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-27663815642690688892008-04-30T11:03:00.000-06:002008-04-30T11:03:00.000-06:00sir - Actually, the Bay City Rollers happened to b...sir - Actually, the Bay City Rollers happened to be zombies as well.<BR/><BR/>Was/is Buffy worth watching? You're asking a guy who has all the DVDs, so my answer is yes. I think it's pretty much a matter of taste, though - arguments for and against the series won't make much of a dent on whether you enjoy it or not.<BR/><BR/>I remember the first episode of the show I watched from start to finish. I was in a hotel in northern Manitoba with nothing to do, so I basically consumed room service and cable television. The episode was the fourth season ender "Restless," which was played out in the dreams of the main characters. It was a densely coded, kind of pretentious, really funny piece of television. I had no idea who the characters were, but the whole thing was so cleverly put together that I didn't care. Having watched the whole series, I now think that that episode was an excellent starting point - all the weird excesses of the show were on display. Which turned out to be the stuff I enjoyed most.<BR/><BR/>As with any television series, especially when you're dealing with campy horror elements, there are episodes that are pretty bad. For example, watching Buffy drink cursed beer with frat boys and turn into a cavewoman is not fun. For committed Buffy fans, I suspect that it's part of the appeal - the show becomes like a really cool friend who periodically does head-shakingly stupid stuff. Okay, so they got drunk and fell off the roof and puked on your carpet last Friday, but you're still friends.<BR/><BR/>One of the funny things about watching it now is that you can see its stamp on so many shows that followed. People point to Veronica Mars as an inheritor to Buffy, but I think its influence runs deeper. Buffy introduced a particular style of language and characterization which has pretty much colonized television drama since. The show somehow managed to fuse the rhythm and wit of a sitcom with the emotional stakes of a melodrama, then put a Halloween mask on the whole affair. Does that sound awful? Kind of. Somehow it wasn't.palinodehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01029915232895358768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6943519.post-65067387378278579472008-04-30T08:10:00.000-06:002008-04-30T08:10:00.000-06:00That was some good writin', hombre. You're take o...That was some good writin', hombre. You're take on boogie men (not The Bay City Rollers or The BeeGees...wrong boogie) is right on the money. <BR/><BR/>Was Buffy really worth watching? Some say it was the best show ever, others that it was crap. I've never seen an episode and am curious. You seem to know things about stuff, so I figured I'd ask.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com