Debunking Liars Who Didn’t Bother Watching the Show They Criticize: A Babylon 5 Fisk (Part One)

Posted on June 15, 2019 by

I know, it’s been a while.  Life happened, and the blog got buried under things like getting married, moving, getting a new job, and getting pregnant.

Again

Yeah.

But then my dear husband read this blog post to me this morning, and I was so furious that suddenly, I had to move fisking from the back burner to the front burner.  And then he kept reading, and I had to move it out to the grill, and THEN into the blazing crucible out back.

Okay, I’m speaking figuratively, but that’s how bad this “critique” of Babylon 5 really is.  It’s so horrifically stupid, I had to sit down at my computer and put on some opera to keep me from going insane while reading it.

Mady

Yes, it was so bad, I had to turn to Mady Mesplé to keep my brain from disintegrating and dribbling out my ears.

I suppose the author should be proud of herself; her style and content are both so disgustingly awful, it essentially forced me out of retirement.

So, who wrote this piece of tripe that wins the Most Asinine Garbage of the Internet Award . . . today, at least?

Introducing Jennifer Gesundheit . . . I mean Jennifer Giesbrecht (bless you) from that cesspool of scum and mediocrity, Tor.com.  She asserts that Babylon 5 Is the Greatest, Most Terrible SF Series.  Now, I’m not disputing her right to have an opinion on the show; she can think whatever she wants to about it.  But when she lies about the content to further her own little agenda . . . well, she’s awakened the sleeping, (pregnant) angry blogger, and filled her with a terrible resolve.

This is going to be a very long one, because Gesundheit is very long winded, but as usual, the original content is in italics, and my response is in bold.

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Fate RPG Alternate Rules: Health

Posted on May 24, 2019 by

I’ve been a tabletop RPG gamer for decades. No, I’m not going to toss out how, gosh, I’m so old-school ’cause I know how to calculate THAC0, and that makes me better than you. I mean, I do know how to calculate THAC0, but I never played 2e D&D.

Wait. Actually, if I never played it, but I still know how to work THAC0 . . . I can’t figure out if that makes me a better nerd, or a more pathetic one. You know what, I’m not going to think about that one too deeply. Moving on.

The point is, I’ve been gaming for a while, and most of that time has been as the GM. I liked running narrative games; games with a high degree of story, where exploring the world and its issues through the eyes of the characters was more important than loot or monster stats. I actually got pretty well-known in the DC area as someone who could craft Dungeons & Dragons, a game built around kicking in doors and boosting stats, into a game where players cared more about the NPCs they would meet than their next magic weapon.

Then I switched to the Fate RPG, a game built around narrative play, and I’ve never gone back. I have, however, tweaked it a lot over my seven years of play. Continue reading →

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2019 Dragon Awards Discussion

Posted on May 22, 2019 by
The Dragon Awards are open for voting … and we’re getting close to the cut off date for the nominees. Let the discussion begin.

And yes, I said discussion. I’d like people to come on, and tell me what you want to see nominated. Hell, I’ve already made adjustments to the list below. I haven’t changed who I’m voting for yet, since something would need to blow my socks off to change my mind. But I want to make certain that this become a DISCUSSION.

Now, again, please remember the eligibility is from the start of July 2018 to the end of June 2019.

So, let’s continue.

Yeah, it’s been a fast month. Hell, I feel like I just did this blog.

Though trust me, you have no idea how much I wanted to title this post “Sad Puppies 6, Zombie Puppies Bite Back,” but my click bait instinct has a filter.

Anyway, let the discussion begin. And yes, I’ve got additional suggestions kicking around from you folks who came to play

And yes, I said discussion. I’d like people to come on, and tell me what you want to see nominated. Hell, I’ve already made adjustments to the list below. I haven’t changed who I’m voting for yet, since something would need to blow my socks off to change my mind. But I want to make certain that this become a DISCUSSION.

Now, again, please remember the eligibility is from the start of July 2018 to the end of June 2019.

So, let’s continue.

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Just a Girl: a Captain Marvel Review

Posted on March 12, 2019 by

The stage is set. Avengers: Endgame looms on the horizon, its plot shrouded in mystery, following on the heels of Infinity War, a gargantuan (or, some would say, titanic) crossover epic. In between the two films, the Marvel Cinematic Universe gave us nothing but a solitary pair of movies: The Ant-Man and the Wasp and Captain Marvel. One a sequel to a goofy light-hearted superhero heist, the other a complete unknown to moviegoers. Many of us wondered who this woman was, and even comics readers puzzled over what role her film would play in the larger movieverse.

Well, we have our answer, and I won’t hold you in too much suspense: Captain Marvel was some of the most fun I had with an MCU movie in a while (not counting Into the Spider-Verse because technically, it’s not an MCU movie). There’s been some smashing successes in the MCU lately, but for the most part, they’ve had some pretty heavy stuff alongside the jokes and smiles, even the Ant-Man sequel. Captain Marvel almost feels like the opposite: even though it tackles some pretty hefty themes and plot points, it’s bound and determined to exult in its sky-high superheroics.

This review will be spoiler-free and contain a content advisory at the end. Continue reading →

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On the Authority of the Pope

Posted on January 29, 2019 by

I think I know what the problem is.stupid things the Catholic church has done

Ever since Pope Francis was elected, all of us Catholics have suffered other people trying to tell us what we believe, largely based off of off-hand comments by Pope Francis in an interview. Or in a rambling, nigh-incoherent speech, even when translated by the Vatican.

As such, we’ve been lectured on guns, on communism, on the environment, and we here at the Catholic geeks have spent a ton of time refuting it. We have an entire section dedicated to it.

But I think I may have hit on the problem. Everyone thinks that the Pope is some sort of monarch. That the whims of the Pope are the dictates of the church.

WRONG!

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Remembering the Challengers

Posted on January 28, 2019 by
On January 28th, 1986, the United States manned space program ground to a sudden halt with the deaths of seven people. Their names were Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judy Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe.
space-shuttle-challenger-crew.jpg

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Elevate: an Into the Spider-Verse Review

Posted on January 23, 2019 by

Screenshot from Into the Spiderverse; Miles Morales lands in an action pose in front of a green taxicab

Originally, I was going to write a piece talking about how different my experiences were when I saw Aquaman and Into the Spider-Verse within days of one another over the holidays. Then, on a whim, I went on my own to see Spider-Verse a third time in the theater, and changed my mind completely. Spider-Verse shouldn’t share a blog post with a superhero film that rates approximately at “the first Thor, but with Jason Momoa and way better CGI” (and that’s exactly as much as you need to know about it). It deserves its own post, because boy howdy did it leave an impression.

“Alright, let’s do this one last time. My name is Peter Parker. I was bitten by a radioactive spider and for ten years I’ve been the one and only Spider-Man. I’m pretty sure you know the rest.”

I’ll be avoiding spoilers and plot details in general about this film, probably telling you less than you know from the trailer.

Content Advisory: bloodless violence and a couple of deaths; color-intensive and dynamic visuals that could be distracting or problematic for some individuals Continue reading →

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