17569--Entertainment is for Enjoying

If you're a long-time comic book aficionado and you were watching ARROW this week(11/12/14 "Guilty"), then you likely caught a glimpse of the return of the classic boxing glove arrow, subject of long-running debate.  It gave me a laugh, but I'm still among those who think its unwieldy nature should prohibit its presence in the quiver.  Still, where better to use it than in a story featuring the boxing hero Ted "Wildcat" Grant?

 

Also good for some laughs was BIG HERO 6.  I haven't read the source material, but the film was fun.  The plot was simple enough to be predictable.  While that doesn't leave you with a lot of surprises, it's still entertaining.  And even though the hero, Jiro, could've and should've used a far more elegant and obvious solution to their supervillain problem (easily cutting down the run time by a third...which also means having to listen to my tactical analysis if you've gone to watch it with me, but if you know me, then you know that's the risk you take in dragging me to a superhero movie), it was still really entertaining.

 

Don't worry about it.  A lot of people finally started realizing that Indiana Jones serves little purpose in Raiders of the Lost Ark but it's still a very enjoyable film.  Like The Incredibles, you just don't want to go tugging at threads.

 

17513--You Didn't See Anything

And even if you had...

Do you hear anything?  Is it...too quiet?

Several years ago, I enjoyed a comic book series you probably never heard of called Whisper.  She was a ninja.  More accurately, in her world, she was the ninja.  By that, I don't mean she was the most bad-ass ninja.  She was the only ninja in the world.

You see, in the history of Whisper's world, the adult Alexis Devin put on a ninja costume to investigate the death of her adoptive father.  She learned that he had been not only a businessman, but a ninja in the employ of the Yakuza.  Ultimately, the organization's head explained to her that ninjas were a myth, fabricated centuries ago to use the idea of them as a deterrent of fear.  Alexis' father had been so enamored of the legend that he had trained to become a ninja, not realizing he was making himself into the only one to actually exist.  After his murder, by using the training he had given her, Alexis had also unwittingly taken on the mantle and power of a weapon designed for intimidation.  Embracing the idea, she was able to exploit the fear that ninjas inspired against criminals and government agents alike.

Did you know that the United States has over a dozen different members of the alphabet soup club that report to the DNI (Director of National Intelligence) operating under immense secret budgets?  Espionage is a big deal.  Governments and their militaries have long-relied upon the power of gathering hidden information with invisible eyes.  Properly utilized, spies can change the course of a war or make war unnecessary, a single agent accomplishing what ten thousand soldiers might not.  It was the serendipitous arrest of British spy John Andre that helped reveal the betrayal of Benedict Arnold and save West Point from being handed to the British.  Yeah, that catch was all luck, despite the American military having its own intelligence network.  Nowadays, they seem to be working overtime to know...pretty much everything, it seems.

In fiction, we have all manner of intelligence options showing up.  We have Bond and Bourne, the IMF, SHIELD, Task Force X (the Suicide Squad), and Checkmate.  Star Trek alone has produced the Romulan Tal'shiar, Kardassia's Obsidian Order, and the Federation's Section 31 (which they'll be quick to disavow even exists).  Covert manipulation and intelligence gathering is so important a part of governmental and military events that I've had to make sure they were represented in my own world building.  In the Theobroma books, the world of Tarakk plays host to the secret activities of the Scales of Justice and smoke agents, the operatives of both being magic-savvy, metamorphing dragons; the infiltrations and espionage of Clan Isharien, rumored to be ruthless practitioners of martial arts and magic; the various government Ministries that vie to influence the Republic of Zadiasam and the lives of its people; and the aloof warlords whose mastery of nanotech and space folding have given them reputations of limitless reach and knowledge.

Conflicts between secret players with access to huge resources can have far-reaching consequences, limited only by the imaginations and ambitions of those pulling the strings from the shadows.  Who will determine the outcomes of the wars we see unfolding on the nightly news?  Probably the same people who put the figureheads at the forefront of their governments and factions.  That is to say, no one most of us have probably heard of.  That's just the way they like it.  Out of the public eye, the power behind a throne acts freely.

17066--Cheap Fun with Children

I've been told many times that night court is some of the best free entertainment in town.  Admittedly, I've dragged myself down to the audience benches more than once to get giggles watching the judge and a parade of police try to bring forth coherence from the drunk and disorderly.

Now, for those of us blessed (for lack of brutal honesty) with children, another amusing diversion is to push them to work their brains when they have little interest in doing so.  Oh, such a fuss.  Hey, they need to earn their keep.  Entertaining you is the least they can do in your honor.

There are lots of ways to get those brain juices pumping and you may already have your favorites.  What I propose here is to engage their critical processes to productive end.  Whether using stories they're reading or movies they're seeing, get your brood to show off what they've got by articulating what they do and don't like about the work.  Add to that by having them go into detail about specific elements that do or do not serve the story well.  Push their imaginations by having them share anything they might have done to improve the story.

There are many things you can do with that, taking it from directed conversation, to an organized game, to full-on home schooling if you like.  The important thing is that you have fun with it.  Oh, and get those brains active, too.

16762--Reality From A Certain POV

I'm pretty sure I'm not looking at things like the majority of people, what you might be inclined to call a "normal" person.

I remember it used to be limited to things I was writing.  That was fine.  I would analyze my writing as I constructed it.  That seemed to be quite practical, allowing me to assess whether or not I was moving things in a proper direction.  If it wasn't making me happy, I could change it.  "Oh, I'm building a cliched story, or at least something I've seen done before.  Looks like I need to do something else."

Now--and though I say now, it's something I've seen building over several years--I can't just sit and watch a movie or a TV show or enjoy reading a story.  As I take them in for processing, my mind is analyzing them.  This isn't to say that I can no longer be entertained, but I've got a whole other nerd processor running simultaneously.  I guess that means they're not doing enough to engage my brain.  Yeah, I was that kid in school, with mom exchanging pages of notes with teachers about giving me extra work in class.

When it's entertainment time, I'm trying not to be spoiler guy for anyone else in the room.  Fortunately, working out the mystery set-up of TV shows or movies ten minutes in doesn't mean I can't enjoy a good story and entertaining characters with well-written dialogue.  In fact, it makes me look harder for them.  It also makes me look for more news and read more non-fiction to give the Nerd a rest, but that's OK, too.  I like learning.  The Nerd loves Jeopardy!



With fiction, though, I'm looking for something that's not wasting my time.  I want something that's well-written, whether comedy or adventure or drama, because while I'm immersing myself in the alternate reality the Nerd is at work.  "Ah, here's the conflict character," he says.  "Here comes the climax," he tells me.  "This would've been better if--" or "Oh, they still need to do ______ because they still need the plot element of this character to ______ in order to justify the others doing ________."  "Remember how all this started?" he asks.  "Look at these changes _______ has gone through."  "Oh, this is going to work out to be ________."  "Needs more cowbell."

The Nerd isn't so much a critic as a clinician, breaking written works down into analytical elements.  I suppose that means it lives in the left brain, being all logical in there.  I know it's tied into the writing part because, as mentioned earlier, it does it to me, too--analyzing my writing as I'm writing, figuring out story formulas, story needs and such.  Sometimes, it's almost like having a co-writer, I imagine, but with smoother communication.  "Look, irony!  Call Alanis Morrisette."

"What're you doing?" she asked as I backed up the movie for the fourth time to replay a single line of dialogue.  "Is something wrong?"
"No, I just love the way he says that line," I explained.  "It's this perfect inflection where you can tell he's in pain after being tortured, but sounding surprised that it hurt.  It's just enough to make it sad and funny."
"You're such a nerd."
"It's a great delivery," I said, pushing PLAY.  "Sorry."  Sometimes it gets out in the open.

Eyes aren't just the windows to the soul, they feed your brain a tremendous amount of information you're not even fully aware is there.  So what's that brain of yours doing with it?  How is it affecting the way you interact with what, in effect, is your particular world?  Something tells me that other writers must go through this sort of internal interaction much as I do, watching people as character studies and absorbing entertainments as analytical examples as well.  You tell me, though.  How does the world look from your POV and does your reality have enough cowbell?

16546--The Peer Pressure Your Parents Warned You About

No, I'm not the peer pressure.  I'm on your side. 
I’m the guy who encourages you to be yourself.   I’m sure you’ve heard this bold advice before, but I’m going to throw it out into the ether again.

There are many who will tell you to do as they do or to follow the footsteps of others because their success is something that can be replicated by simply doing whatever they did.   That may work well in certain non-creative areas where an individual’s flair doesn’t show through, but that will only take you to certain places.

In movies and television, this sort of imitation is often attempted to try to capitalize on popular trends.   It’s the allure of the dollars, but that’s what studios are in business for, isn’t it?   I’m not going to fault them for that.   Creative people, in contrast, bear an artistic responsibility to themselves.   If you’re one of them, and you’re the only one who should be making that decision, you need to channel your energies into the directions that are your own.

My family recently attended the Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus.   For some of us it was the first time.   For me, it was my fourth “greatest show on Earth.”   My first was when I was seven or maybe eight.   My latest was with a family in-tow, which included two boys I was considering encouraging to runaway with the circus.   I warned my wife I was also open to making a trade arrangement: the boys' weight in peanuts and popcorn in exchange for their shoveling an equivalent amount of elephant droppings, for example.   Once he got wind of this, our youngest was quick to assure us that he had no knowledge of shoveling techniques, ironically demonstrating an innate talent for shoveling crap.

Anyway, what I was getting at was that while we enjoyed the show, it was missing something.   I don’t want to be so harsh as to say it was missing heart, because at least some of the performers did seem to be genuinely enjoying themselves.   The circus has lost its way, though, straying from its particular path.   It seems to be trying to merge itself with elements of Cirque du Soleil.   I enjoy Cirque du Soleil.   I’ve seen several of their shows, also, but it’s a different sort of show.   Little boys don’t runaway to join le cirque.   They’re drawn to the greatest show on Earth.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a good show.  It certainly entertained and even had a moment or two of getting a genuine, unprompted rise out of the audience.  The clowns, though, were definitely more cirque than circus and there was no trapeze.  Filling three rings with rope climbers and having a couple of them swing around as though in flight isn’t the same as a free-flying triple back somersault executed thirty feet up and ending in a last-second catch.  They’ve offered busy, diffuse and safe activity over risky, death-defying and dramatic acts.  There were three rings of dancing horses and ponies, but not a single one at full gallop with a rider standing on bareback.   There was playing with tigers, but no leaps through rings of fire.

I really would’ve enjoyed seeing a trio of motorcycle riders racing around each other at top speed inside a steel cage.  That’s alright…I enjoy tumbling gymnasts, too.

I understand.  I do.  It’s a new age and Ringling Brothers, etc. has some serious competition that they didn’t have years ago.  To keep pace with what the audiences have shown they enjoy, the circus has changed its product to chase dollars rather than boldly being all the CIRCUS! it can be and drawing audience dollars to the greatest show.

If you’re a singer, don’t try to sound like whoever is topping the Billboard charts.  If you’re a painter, don’t try to copy Leonardo da Vinci.  If you’re a writer, don’t aim at writing another Harry Potter.  Don’t play to trends that appear to be selling.  That’s pandering.  I think it’s still illegal in most places.

It’s fine to learn the essentials of your craft from those who are already accomplished at it, but you must also find your own style of engaging in that craft or your work will never ring true.  You may find an audience that likes you, but the audience that could love what you do and rave about it will never find you.  Don't blunt your own edge.  Put on your own greatest show.

16353--A Fire Goes Out

Sherwood Charles Schwartz (November 14, 1916 – July 12, 2011) died peacefully in his sleep a few days ago, survived by a wife of sixty-nine years and four children.

I did not know the man and wouldn't even have recognized him if I passed him on the street.  Still, through his work in American television, Mr. Schwartz made an impact the size of Crater Lake on popular culture.

Love them or hate them, he's the man who created the television series Gilligan's Island and The Brady Bunch.  The two series went on to spin-off music, cartoon series, other television series, TV movies, feature films and who knows how many trivia questions and other pop culture references.  By no means will I ever tout the two simplistic sitcoms as approaching anywhere near the pinnacle of TV production achievements, but there can be no argument that they've left their marks.

Those two simple sitcoms will probably be the best known portions of Schwartz's legacy.  I have no idea how he felt about the shows, but I'd like to think that he was always able to hold his head up and enjoy his accomplishment.  A lot of creators don't live long enough to see their works appreciated.  Some who do don't enjoy them even then.  Strange as it may seem to some, Tschaikovsky hated "The Nutcracker Suite", but it has been his most popular composition.

Sherwood Schwartz won't be remembered for bringing us fine art, but he did bring us entertainment.  We can't deny being entertained because a lot of people kept watching no matter how many others badmouthed the shows or were indifferent to them.  His best known works might not be well-respected, but he entertained us and he avoided the tabloid scandal nonsense that seemed to become quite common in the years following his work.

Mr. Schwartz can at least be well-remembered for that.