The second part of The Hobbit movie trilogy is much more fast paced than the first. Unlike the Lord of the Rings, where the second movie was also the best, I felt this installment lacked a little something compared to the first. Characters got a little short shrift throughout; I felt we hardly heard from Bilbo, the titular Hobbit, at all!

And here is where the addition of new material, not in the book, really shows through. I don’t mind, but it also reminded me of what a perfect little gem the novel is. The movie, unlike the book, is burdened with the history of the later/earlier movies. It must match up with story told in the Lord of the Rings movies, whereas the novel, while taking place in Middle Earth, was content to be a fun adventure for children (and for adults to read to remind themselves of childhood). The ring could just be a magic ring that made the wearer invisible, but this movie cannot escape the knowledge of what the ring will in the future continuity of the story and, more importantly, already was in movies that were released a decade ago.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug is too restrained by the technology that modifies his voice for him to really be the villain I know he is capable of being.

But it’s an exciting ride, nonetheless, and it’ll be a long wait until next Christmas to see the final installment. And I more eager than ever to re-read The Hobbit, which was first read to me by my mother when I was seven years old.

Futurama is gone. And I’m sad.

I didn’t watch it religiously, but I always liked. And I remember my friend McBride expounding upon how it was the best show on television, better even than it’s older sibling, The Simpsons. This was during its first incarnation and I was rather dismissive of this particular opinion, but I respect him a lot, so I did, consciously or not, start watching the reruns on Comedy Central.

And then it came back.

And I realize why it is better, at least for me. I don’t have a traditional family. I have a better half, good friends, and random extended family in my home and my life. My relationships, oddly, are much more like those in Futurama than the traditional, nuclear family of The Simpsons.

And the finale was so sweet. Leela and Fry spending a life together, just the two of them. And Leela saying that she wasn’t lonely once. I had to go hug my better half after that. And then following the finale up with the pilot episode, because they (Fry and Leela) were ready to do it all over again.

So. TIme to start watching all of Futurama again.

As frequent readers of this blog (a set people consisting exclusively of relatives) will know, I love Edgar Rice Burroughs’ planetary romances. I need to get around to reading the fourth book of his Barsoom novels (Thuvia, Maid of Mars, for you completists out there). But I have never read, nor have I ever been much interested in his Tarzan stories. I remember, when we lived in Norfolk, Virginia, one of our rooms was designated as the library and on the shelves was a Tarzan novel. I think it was The Beasts of Tarzan, but don’t quote me on that. All I remember was a wonderfully lurid, pulpy cover featuring an alligator. My mother, while never actively discouraging from reading it (she never discouraged me from reading anything), did let me know that she felt the stories were racist. So I never read it, despite not infrequently pulling it down from the shelf and looking at its exciting cover. She also told me about Johnny Weismuller and the Tarzan movies, which were sometimes on television on Saturday afternoons.

So, anyway… here’s to you, Mr. Burroughs. Happy birthday.

Also, they showed Land That Time Forgot on tv today. Loved that movie as a kid. The source material? ERB, of course!