Bears, Beets, Battlestar Galactica (and The Hobbit)

Enough time has passed since my last post that I can write a new post without appearing to be actually dedicated to this blog, which I suppose must be the goal of my subconscious. Here are some things that have happened since I last wrote:

1. 2013 started (sans apocalypse)

2. I got halfway through season six of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

3. I learned how to crochet, and then forgot
4. Pokemon profile picture month

5. I didn't get a cat

6. The Hobbit was released in theaters

That pretty much sums it up. I have one more semester of undergrad, which is a little strange. To cope with the emotional stress, I've been replaying Final Fantasy VII and discovering Battlestar Galactica on Netflix. I haven't seen that show before, but I have the soundtrack (for those of you who don't know me, I have the soundtrack to EVERYTHING, regardless of whether or not I've seen it). (EVERYTHING) (seriously, you name it) I've become intrigued by this show; it's not yet riveting, but I am still curious to watch the next few episodes tonight to see where it goes, and I think this could easily become a show that I really enjoy. It probably won't help with my awkwardness/weirdness/nerdiness, but you know. I have my priorities.

In light of Tolkien's birthday yesterday, I will write a quick review of The Hobbit (film) here. Overall, I loved it. It stayed true to the book while keeping in sync with the LOTR movies, a feat which I was fearing would be impossible. I loved the inclusion of Radagast the Brown and the Necromancer- I am glad we are getting a lot out of that, as well as the scenes with Azog and Bolg (for those of you unclear, yes, Azog is in the appendices of LOTR, although he dies outside of Moria). I am not concerned about this movie being stretched out into a trilogy. If you go back and read through the book, you can easily see how much action takes place in a few pages-- Peter Jackson pointed out in an interview with Rolling Stone that the scene with the stone giants is only one sentence in the book, and the riddles game with Gollum is only a couple of pages, despite the fact that it is the most crucial point of the book, in terms of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and I love moments like that being extended. 

By the way, anybody who says that it's not staying true to The Hobbit should keep in mind that Tolkien wrote TH several years before LOTR, and even he changes many things between the two stories; most notably (to me), the elves in Rivendell hang from trees and sing songs as the dwarves and Bilbo walk through the Hidden Valley. These are the first-ever elves we see in Tolkien's writing, and they are certainly not the elves of LOTR. I distinctly remember reading the line "Isn't it delicious!" from one elf to another regarding Bilbo, as they both watch him walk in. 

I have deliberately been avoiding reading spoilers for the future films, so I have no idea where the next one will cut off, and I want to keep it that way-- I will say that as curious as I am on that subject, I have no doubt that it will feel well-made. 

I'm ending this post with a track from the soundtrack of Django, which was absolutely fantastic (both the soundtrack and the film). This is a random track that occurred about halfway through the movie that just stuck out to me, although the whole thing is great. The score part was written by Jerry Goldsmith and Ennio Morricone. 

Cheers, everybody, and Happy New Year's!