MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR

FROM THE RANDOM NERDNESS BLOG I WOULD LIKE TO WISH EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND ALL THE BEST FOR 2019!!

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR! :)

- CHRIS LOCKHART

**Side Notes**

- This year marks the first time in 7 years I have not done a podcast episode of 'The Chris Lockhart Christmas Special'. Kinda makes me sad as it became an annual tradition I loved to do. But when you retire from podcasting you can only do what others will allow you to do on their shows. I've done one guest appearance on episode 6 of 'The Cave of Cool' podcast since 'retiring'. Be sure to give that a listen as it was a fun discussion on Stan Lee.

- 2019 I will be staying retired from podcasting except for the occasional guest appearance that might come my way. I plan on focusing on my writing and I am currently working on a book of short stories and essays so stay tuned!

- And I do intend to keep doing this blog, with posts at least twice or more a month.

Here's hoping 2019 will be a better year than 2018!

My thoughts on the Alberta Oil Economic Crisis

 

 

Not my cup of tea

As a Star Trek fan I have been asked a lot lately if I like the new TV series: Star Trek Discovery. And being an honest person I answer honestly: Not really. Now there are definitely some things I do like about it such as the characters of Commander Saru and Cadet Tilley, but other than that I just am not a fan of this series. It seems some are under the mistaken impression that as a ‘Star Trek Fan’ you must like all things Star Trek. This is simply not true. You can like a franchise but doesn’t mean you must like everything in that franchise. For example you can like Coca Cola and not like New Coke (80’s kids will get that reference) or you can like Pepsi but not like Crystal Pepsi (90’s reference). When people ask me to go into detail why I don’t like the new series I have some main points I share:

-          When the producers pitched this series they said it would tie into established continuity and not change things. This simply did not happen. For example the Klingon look, language and culture seemed to be completely different than in previous continuity. If they had just said “This is a reboot of the franchise” I’d have been alright with that. Reboot it and do what you like, but when you go out of your way to say nothing will be changed then it is…I have a problem with that.

 

-          The previous Trek series were about the crew and being a team/family. Granted in the original 60’s series it originally was all about Kirk, and then as the popularity of Spock and McCoy grew it became more about the three of them. But the supporting cast all contributed in some way to give the viewer a sense of comradery, but this new series is about Michael Burnham, Saru, Tilley, Engineer guy…there’s no real sense of team/family here.  Most of the bridge crew has so far remained nameless

 

 

-          Lens flares, Admirals hiding in shadows as they speak, focus on ship redesigns and special effects…this new show has the look and feel of the JJ Abrams ‘Star Trek’ films (2009-2016) and not the previous Star Trek TV series.

 

I could go on but I’ve said my peace. I’m not saying YOU will not like this show, YOU just might. This could be the Trek series you have been waiting for. But for me it’s just not my cup of tea. I’ll watch season 2 (coming in January 2019) and I am holding out hope that the new Captain Picard series will be good (coming out in late 2019)

This & That

I really am a bit of a 'grumpy old man' as I get older. You say or do something stupid I'll tell you.

Facebook Stuffing

The following are some posts I've posted to Facebook with some commentary:

This really is my third favorite film of the year. Infinity War is number one, Black Panther is number two then Bohemian Rhapsody at three. So in actuality it is my favorite non-comic book movie of 2018! 

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Then I got this response...

Again I really like that song, and it would be a fitting tribute for someone like Johnny Cash himself who had issues with drugs and addictions. Stan Lee had none of those issues so to use it in a tribute video is not appropriate in my view. ALSO Stan Lee did not create or write for the character Wolverine, and this video had more images of that character than any other. DO YOUR RESEARCH PEOPLE. 
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Stan Lee: Rest in Peace

Today the world lost comic book legend Stan 'The Man' Lee. He was 95 years old. He created and co-created some of the most iconic comic book characters since the 1940's including: Spiderman, The X-Men, The Avengers, The Fantastic Four, Silver Surfer, Black Panther, Ant Man, Iron Man, The Hulk...and many more. He was also famous for writing 'Captain America' prior and during World War II  (Captain America was created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon).

Aside from writing and creating for comic books he was a veteran of World War II. He also has made cameos in every MCU film and many other cameos in other Marvel films (that were not created by MCU). He appeared as himself in the Kevin Smith film 'Mall Rats' and in an episode of 'The Simpsons'. He also did a lot of voice work in the Marvel cartoons over the years.

On a personal note I have always considered him one of my heroes because I have always wanted to be a comic book writer and creator. I had a chance to meet him in 2012 at the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo. I got a pic taken with him and my son Bailey. When we were done the photo and the ushers were moving us along to make way for other fans getting their pictures taken with him I quickly turned to him and said "Thanks for everything Stan". He didn't reply as we were being ushered out of the photo area but I am forever grateful I was able to tell him that.

 

Rest in Peace Stan.

Remember to Remember

Today we remember the veterans who fought and at times died for our freedom; the freedom that we all take for granted. So today wear a poppy, take some time to reflect on their sacrifices and if possible attend a Remembrance Day service.