Somehow, despite being a sci-fi geek, I never managed to see Escape from New York and the glory that is Kurt Russell's hair.

This weekend, all that changed...

[More]

Although I am notoriously negligent in watching the movies I get with NetFlix, I did manage to plow through a few of them over the weekend.

Let's review, shall we?

[More]

It's Saturday morning, 6:20am.

I am 11 years old and the rest of the house is asleep.

I myself should be snugly tucked inside my bed, but in this pre-TiVO era, you couldn't afford to miss the good cartoons when they came on. And for this young boy, appointment viewing began at 6:30am Saturday, Channel 4: The Adventures of Jonny Quest.

I didn't know the show was a relic of 60s Cold War/Space Race bravado.

I just knew it was awesome.

Recently -- thanks to my friends Liz and Burk who loaned me the complete series on DVD -- I found out why.

[More]

Hide the Nintendo DS and put your iPhone on vibrate, young 'uns!

Granpa Tom woke up on the wrong side of teh Internets today!

[More]

Internet advertising really hasn't come into its own just yet. The best stuff is targeted, direct, and simple - like Google text ads. (Yeah, Google, I DO wanna buy the Bladerunner Super Deluxe Suitcase Collectors' Edition for cheap, how did you know?!)

The worst stuff is untargeted, blunt, and stupid. (BOOBS! Did you see them? Look, BOOBS! WE WILL HELP YOU FIND BOOBS!)

And then sometimes -- generally when you least expect it -- the internet is just creepy.

And not in that, ick-those-people-are-sick kind of way, but more in that mmm-this-burrito-tastes-great-HOLY-CRAP-I'M-CHEWING-ON-TINFOIL kind of way.

Take this ad which keeps popping up at me:

[More]

I promise, my post Gen Con recap is on its way. (There's the little matter of a certain comedy showcase that opens tonight.) But I couldn't leave the computer without bringing up this little comment Michael Goldfarb laid down on johnmccain.com. To quote:

"It may be typical of the pro-Obama Dungeons & Dragons crowd to disparage a fellow countryman's memory of war from the comfort of mom's basement, but most Americans have the humility and gratitude to respect and learn from the memories of men who suffered on behalf of others."

I've gamed with a lot of people. Just this past weekend I hung out with about 25,000 of them. Their political ideology runs ACROSS the board.

And none that I know demonstrates a lack of gratitude or humility any moreso than, say, an editor of The Weekly Standard.

So my advice to Michael Goldfarb: Don't dredge up the "jocks vs nerds" argument, sir.

As has been well documented: NERDS WIN.

-Tom, who usually keeps his mouth shut, but really.

I am not much of a sports guy, but somehow I got sucked into watching some of the Olympics this weekend.

This is what I learned:

[More]

I realize I am going to be stoned upon the Altar of Geekdom for the sacrilege I am about to say, but:

I really didn't like The Dark Knight.

Heath Ledger was brilliant, so let me get that out of the way before the hating begins, and if you really feel compelled to go see the Biggest Movie Of All Time, go for his performance.

But everything else? Not so much.

My two-word review of Iron Man: Almost perfect.
My two-word review of The Dark Knight: Almost good.

Spoilers sure to follow, along with a comments section full of outrage and disagreement...

[More]

I'm certain the list is far longer -- in fact give me a chance to warm up and I'm sure I'll come up with more -- but here's a couple things that I just don't get.

[More]

Inspired by my young friend Mr. Miles, I decided to go back and watch Episode IV again.

There are a few things that struck me:

[More]