Stavros

I love Pacey from Dawson's Creek.

He's actually great as Angelus. A lot of it is great writing but when you come to it you'll really enjoy that character.

Even over Doctor Who? Meh, I'm big Who fan but Buffy launched a lot of newer concept series that led to the popularity of modern sci-fi/fantasy shows like Lost and Heroes. Who is a very significant show but large portions of its later runs were godawful. Let us not forget that it was cancelled and off TV for over 16 years, which has led to a slightly less objective analysis of the show as a whole by many old fans. I mean, I spend much of my childhood watching the Sunday re-runs and Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker are icons to me, but from the 5th doctor on it was a bit naff. Eccleston was fantastic when it was first revived but the last couple of seasons have been very hit or miss. Buffy was also a catalyst for the Dr Who revival along with the X-files, the new series being a response to the increasing number of hybrid US sci-fi/fantasy shows. New Dr Who showrunner has even stated that the new companion should be a "Buffy-style female sidekick…a ‘modern action heroine.’" Plus Torchwood is a blatant rip-off. I just think that Buffy influenced a huge amount of what modern sci-fi/fantasy TV is, wheras once Who died it pretty much took all TV based british Sci-fi down with it. I can't speak on the Twilight Zone because I'm not too familiar with much of it, but I tend to regard that as more of a precursor to later sci-fi series than one itself due to the self-contained nature of the stories. It might well be fine stuff but its not a traditional show because its not built around a core cast that it develops over time.

You'd like Spike because of everything you see in his first episode "School Hard" and more. He's anti-authority, hilarious, straight-up bad-ass and scary and yet when he's paired with Dru he's also quite sweet in a sadistic evil kind of way. Those two are the best thing about the show right up until... well, that would be telling. Not that I don't love Season 1's big bad but Season two takes it up like, all the notches. It makes new notches and goes straight up them. I don't think its an exaggeration to call Buffy the most significant sci-fi/fantasy tv series thats not Star Trek.

That was superb. I really liked the commentary at the end as well, a lot of that was just as funny as the script, plus is gave me some background on the potential of the channel as opposed to its current form. This needed to be in there because its easy to bash something without offering solutions of your own. God damn I hate the new Flash Gordon.

Buffy is one of those shows that starts out quite formulaic with its monster of the week deal, but it really builds your affection for the characters so that by the time season two is rolling you are really invested. As for season one, be prepared for bad hairdos and the frankly hilarious lack of reaction when supposedly significant characters get bumped off. Its fun and short because its only a half season, and the big bad is great fun, but bear in mind that its a precursor to a lot of modern shows and as such its a little rough initially. Season two is when the real development happens. As for Firefly- Fucking watch it. Seriously, the episode Out of Gas might be one of the finest things ever put on TV. Edit: Did I say Out of Gas? I meant Objects in Space. Although I just watched Out of Gas and thats awesome too. Seriously, the more time goes by the more pissed I get that we arn't watching the 4th or 5th season of Firefly right now. This had more potential than ANYTHING I've ever watched.

Overall I really enjoyed the film, but I felt there were a couple of things taking aawy from it. Firstly, some of the character models didn't feel fully realised. The Martian Manhunter was amazing, as was Flash, but neither Wonder Woman or Superman felt like they were complete creatoins on par with thier previous JLU incarnations. Wonder Woman in particular seemed slightly stiff. Secondly, David Boreanaz. I'll preface this by saying I'm a huge Buffy fan, I'm a huge Angel fan, I've watched the first season of Bones just because he's in it and I even own the DVD of sub-sub-par slasher flick Valentine, although that might have had more to do with a post Wild Things thing for Denise Richards. All that being said, as fond as I am of Boreanaz he really only plays a limited range. He's good at it, but his Hal Jordan didn't feel any different to his Angel or his FBI guy. It was distracting that the main character in this film was essentially exactly the same as he always plays. For people unfamiliar with his work I'm sure he was great, but it hurt the film for me. Mike, you've really never watched Buffy? That strikes me as just crazy. Has your only exposure to Whedon come through Astonishing X-men?

Heh, he could get his claws manicured & painted.

Wait... what? Did he say 100 years exactly or is he estimating? Shit... there goes my 175 year plan... Yeah, it was like "Scientists know this" kind of smarm. No estimating, just flat out BS.

I overheard a boy of 12 or so tell his friends in a smug "I know this and you don't" way that the earth will spiral into the sun in 100 years. He was serious.

No garages around where I live unforunatly, its all very old terreced housing. I've no clue who it might be either, the pub around the corner fills up with the scum of the earth on a regular basis (its been shut down by police order over half the time I've lived here). I've always know I live in a bad area but rising house prices and the fact that nothing really bad happened convinced me it was on its way up. So much for that. I'd fucking buy that Magna-volt. Its advertised by Lionel Luthor for crying out loud! Theres a man who'd know some effective super-criminalesque way of taking my revenge. At the moment I'm considering some sort of device that spits stinging acidic venom at anyone who touches the door. I'm actually filling a giant chunky deadlock on the back now, mostly as a deterrent. For the front I have no ideas but its totally clear that theres nothing of value in there unless these people want the tape player/radio.

OK, for the second time this month fucking dipshit crackheads have taken crowbars or something to my van locks. The first time it was subtle, and all the doors still locked and unlocked properly and there were just a few little bits of bent metal and removed paint. They got in the back and nicked my grinder, but the company has about 6 of those so it wasn't a big deal. They couldn't even get in the front. We didn't even bother getting it fixed. This time they went to town on the front locks, practically levering the door locks out of place and making huge dents in the metal, and they STILL couldn't get in. The downside is now that the passenger door doesn't unlock from the outside. One more little visit from the neighbourhood vandals and I might not even be able to get into the damn vehicle. It just pisses me off that I travel from one end of the country to the other working hard and some little shit decides to try and make easy money and in the process they wreck my only means of doing my damn job. Its not like I leave ANYTHING valuable in my van, that grinder was the only thing. Not only that, its a brand new van, I only got it last year. In 4 years living there I've not had a problem and just now this starts up. Just pisses me off...

It does look more like the balls out action film the first should have been to be a success, but I don't see anything there to compare with Hulk vs the Army in the desert from the original. I'm still very excited for this. I do wish they'ed retained the more reptilian Abomination.

The first BTTF is probably the best overall, its a superb adventure film and its so much fun. However I prefer the second installment just because theress a little extra geek joy in Marty visiting possible futures and presents whilst mingling all that with all the stuff he did in the first film. I admit a lot of people don't share my joy over II and it can be confusing and a little daft, but its that childhood film I always liked.

Oh god, who thought you could skewer the Waynes brothers with high-concept comedy? This looks awesome. Downey looks totally authentic.

The best Wolverine story ever is the mini-series by Chris Claremont, and Frank Miller. 'Nuff said. You're not going to get an argument from me on that score, but I haven't read Millar's story. Someone recently told me "Have you read The Twelve? It's the new Watchmen!" That was the most ludicrous thing I ever heard, until I actually read it and realized he might not be wrong. Someone someday is going to write the Wolverine story that blows Claremont/Miller away. It'll happen. The Twelve is one of my current favorites but its no Watchmen. The themes are similar, but its not THAT good.

I have heard good things about this, and plan on checking it out one day. I am sure it isn't the best Wolverine story ever though. Hilarious. I can't even name a Wolverine story that matches Enemy of the State. Maybe I havn't read enough to declare this the best ever, but if you can't say is wasn't if you havn't even picked it up. And much of Civil war was editorially mandated. He did a very good job considering what a convoluted mess CW became. Plus the first 4 Authority trades are excellent.

Mark Millar's one of those very hit or miss writers, like Jeph Loeb. He's either awesome or he just goes too far.

BOOM! "Why I'd love to be an instructor at this Tamaranian nubile slave princess acadamy" BOOM! "DAMN YOU MEPHISTO BRING THEM BACK!"

Just completed Assasins creed. Good fun, probably the best interpretation of the old 2-D Prince of Persia style of play that I was loving 15 years ago.

Have a good one, it may be your last....

Oh god this was bad. Bad bad bad. I think I expected TV to have evolved somewhat since the 80's but no, this seemed firmly stuck in the 90's with a modern hedonistic twist. It was just so cheesy. I can sit back and watch the old show without any complaints but this was just so utterly bleh. So much playing directly to the camera, like half of it was shot in front of a live studio audiance. And all the Ford and Volvo car-porn! The quickest way to liver disease would be the Knight Rider drinking game, chug every time you see a close-up of that damn cobra on the Mustang. I'm only interested in this now if the original KITT returns. At least he had freakin' lasers.

Stick him on next years countdown-style book.

This made me feel like Picard in the "Darmok" episode of TNG... A statement that in itself would make most people feel like Picard in the "Darmok" episode of TNG... Brain...eating...own...brain... I'm proud to say that I've been buying every issue of Cable & Deadpool for years now and I'm pretty sad that its over. I'd have loved to have seen 'Pool doing team-ups with loads of Marvel characters. I've always thought Moon Knight could stand to be taken down a peg, plus imagine the fun that could be had if he visited X-Factor. Whatever one-liner he would have had for Layla Miller will be sorely missed. Plus theres that whole past relationship with Siryn... If the cancellation of Cable & Deadpool leads to the loss of Bob: Agent of Hydra then all my marvel related funds will be spent on Countdown tie-ins. If you want to know more about Deadpool's assorted chums check out his solo series as well as the Taskmaster and Agent X miniseries. The miniseries alone are fantastic.