Does James Marsters...

...have some clause in his contracts that stipulates that, when he guest stars on a fantasy TV show, he has to be A) an exceptionally long-lived character and/or B) one that explicitly tells our protagonists that vampires are bullshit?

In Smallville's Thirst, he played Milton Fine/Brainiac, who fulfilled the B role.

In Supernatural's Shut Up, Dr. Phil, he played Don Stark, a witch with a greatly extended lifespan.

In Warehouse 13's The Living and the Dead, he played Professor Sutton/the Count of St. Germain, a 500-year-old charlatan who, he emphasized, was not a vampire. A + B!

I must say, though, that it's always a pleasure to see him guest star, especially when he plays a charming rogue, which he does with relish [mmmmmm, relish!] and playfulness.

Also he is hot.

Warehouse 13 continues to hate characters of color.

In The Ones You Love, Artie, while split into Good and Evil Artie, kills Leena, a WOC and series regular who, though having been around for 3.5 seasons, has yet to receive a last name or any other characterization beyond "B&B owner" and "tool of McPherson." 

Two episodes later, in The Living and the Dead, despite the existence of multiple artifacts that can bring people back to life, Leena is still dead. However, no one gives a shit, except insofar as her death causes angst to a white man [Artie]. In fact, she appears in Artie's subconscious as an essentially vacuous prop to demonstrate the painful reality from which he's shielding himself. Claudia and Steve exercise themselves mightily over drawing Artie out from his subconscious, paying no attention to Leena except as a tragic figment of his imagination. Who cares about the black woman?

In the next episode, Parks and Rehabilitation, Artie stands on tribunal in front of the Regents, who decide to reinstate him as head of Warehouse 13 because Saul Rubinek has an ongoing contract with the SyFy network the plot must go on. The head Regent explains that Artie was kind of possessed by an evil version of himself, so he's morally blameless. He also says that "Leena was a valued member of the team" and that "she knew the risks." 

I buy neither statement. First, Evil Artie was in fact Artie, just a concentrated version of those thoughts and feelings that he censors in his attempt to be a good, kind person. As a part of Artie, Evil Artie is indeed under Artie's jurisdiction and part of his responsibility. No matter what the show wants me to believe, Artie willingly, knowingly and with malice aforethought murdered Leena.

Second, if Leena was such a "valued member of the team," why the hell do we never see her doing anything but being victimized and keeping house in the background? And why the hell couldn't the Regents refer to her by her full name?

Oh right, it's because she's a cardboard Mammy. :[

Proof of concept and the challenge of scratch-built 1:6 scale stuff

I have recently developed the useful and somewhat surprising facility for making my own serviceable 1:6 scale stuff. I go through the following process, demonstrated for example's sake with an electric wheelchair:

1. I want a 1:6 scale electric wheelchair.
2. Let me search for a commercially produced one.
3. There are no commercially produced ones, or they are too expensive.
4. I'll have to make one.
5. Let's break down the electric wheelchair into its simplest components, which I may be more likely to find in 1:6 scale.
6. An electric wheelchair looks like an office chair on top of a lawn mower.
7. I have procured an office chair, but I can't find a lawn mower.
8. I will have to use a 1:18 scale ForTwo Smart Car instead.
9. [Construction ensues.]

The key steps, I think, are 5 and 6. I'm currently planning to scratch-build two 1:6 scale things, not necessarily because I need them, but because I want to see if I can.

The first is a tape dispenser, which is basically a block with a channel down the center and a roll of tape half-submerged in the channel. I know exactly how I want to make this; I just need to sit down and actually do it.

The second is a grandfather clock. I started coveting a functioning 1:6 scale grandfather clock on the Doll Page Show and Sell site, but $33.00 for something I don't really neeeeeeed seemed too rich to me. Even when I got the idea that the dead version of Isabel could come and go in Isabel's room through the door in the clock, I still couldn't bring myself to spend north of $30.00 for one.

I'm perfectly willing to make one, however. A grandfather clock is basically a clock face on top of a locker, so, once I find the appropriate 1:6 scale locker/narrow cupboard with working door, I have the base for a modern grandfather clock!

Whoa! A fashion doll collector/seller in Vermont!

Just a few towns over!

Carter now has the right hat

His shirt and vest do not fit well, but they do represent the type of clothes he should be wearing. Why do I get the feeling that Isabel is snickering to herself over Carter's style choices?
( Read more... )

Isabel: the quick and the dead

Just a comparison shot.( Read more... )