[Comic Conventions]

I go to the Con in San Diego every year and I have a blast each time.  It's the one time of year I get encouraged to fangirl in public.  I'm all about the freebies, so I start with the movie studio booths at one end of the room and work my way back to the cheap comics at the other.  

 

What I love most about it is meeting people.  I make at least a couple friends every year and casually chat with others while standing in line.  For the cliched socially awkward geeks, Comic Cons are a great place to try and overcome said awkwardness, though the vast majority of people I talk to a perfectly comfortable in huge social settings.  I always try to meet at least a couple big names and am usually successful.  I've met Henry Cavill (swoon), the pre-season 1 cast of Arrow, the cast of Nikita, the Kristen Bell-less cast of Veronica Mars, Jim Lee, and Aaron Eckhart at the big booths.  The most fun, though, are meeting actors, writers and directors who are recognizable but not getting hounded by the other attendees.  I've met Rafael Albuquerque, Navid Negahban, Sean Gunn, John Cabrera, Richard Speight Jr, and Mark Christopher Lawrence.  I've met Albuquerque a few times, as I try to buy a signed copy of the latest American Vampire graphic novel while I'm in town.  Navid Negahban was the most fun.  We were in the same hallway at the Marriott and he asked me if I knew where the Con's film festival was.  I did and told him, but I also fangirled HARD since I've seen a lot of his movies.  He was delighted, as most people apparently don't recognize him, and we chatted for a few minutes while his increasingly annoyed publicist tried to get him to the film festival.  

 

I've also had bad luck at my last two Cons, healthwise, and am letting my imagination run wild in anticipation of the next one.  First, I got food poisoning, which was lovely, and last year I sprained my ankle.  Neither happened at the Convention Center, and I basically forced myself to still attend despite the respective dehydration and pain (and walking that huge ass room with only one good leg requires major dedication).  I can only imagine the health horror awaiting me this year.  I'm still super excited about going.

 

I'll also try to post my experience in as many relevant forums as possible so, hopefully, that will translate well.

[Unpopular Opinions]

I actually like The Dark Knight Rises but I do think Bane was overused.  Nolan should have let the women run the show.  Focus on both the dynamic between Bruce and Selina as well as go into way more detail on the business side with Miranda.  No one who ever read a Batman comic expected Miranda to NOT reveal herself as Talia, so we should have seen more of her professional and personal relationships with Bruce (they could even bond over their lingering grief over their dead fathers), to make her betrayal more devastating for him.  That would contrast Bruce's relationship with Selina, the fact that she got the better of him more than once (which is always my favorite part of their interactions in the comics), and the fact that he's attracted to, and genuinely likes, her in spite of himself.  

 

Bane should have been the threat in the shadows.  His opening scene, the stock market manipulation, breaking Bats' back*, cutting Gotham off from the rest of the world, and his role in the final battle are fine but that should have been it.  No speeches, no participating in Crane's "trials", nothing that put him front and center as the face of the anarchy.  He shows up, causes destruction, and retreats until Talia needs him again.  Then we aren't being asked to see him as the Big Bad until time for the twist.  We'd assume that, because he was the one we were seeing cause destruction, but not in any actual leadership role.  I didn't hate the reveal that he's devoted to Talia, but I wouldn't have done that emotional scene between them when he died.  I'd have Bane get killed instantly in front of her, she gets super pissed, and flips the switch on the Exterminate Gotham bombs (which would not be nuclear by the way).  I'd give Gordon the win with this one, letting him discover and deactivate all of them while Bats and Selina were battling Bane and Talia.  

 

How any of this would work with Bruce faking his death I don't know, unless there's a simple "Here are the dead" announcement and memorial following the battle and Gordon makes sure to add his name so that he can leave.  Then Alfred could be let in on the faking but not know his whereabouts until that scene at the restaurant with Selina.

 

If anyone is going to be making speeches in the wake of Gotham being taken hostage, it really should have been Crane.  Murphy just has too much fun with that role and he ended up serving as judge and jury anyway, so let him go all out.  

 

*I am so in love with that scene.  That was such an epic moment in the comics and I actually cheered in the theater when it happened.

[S01.E21: A Trip to the Dentist]

I think it's because Logan gave a genuine apology.  He was the only character involved who did.  A genuine apology goes a long way with a lot of people, so I easily buy Veronica's forgiveness.  Had he not apologized, or made it clear that he only did it to get back in her good graces, I don't think Veronica would have been so willing to maintain their relationship.

 

When I first saw the episode, I thought the cameras reminded her of something that would get the ball rolling on catching Lilly's killer, but I guess they just freaked her out too much after such a crazy emotional couple of days.  

[Favorite Quotes: "What the hell goes on at night in this house?!"]

Dorothy, Dorothy bo-Borothy

Banana fanna fo Forothy

Me my mo Morothy

Dorothy!

 

::tires screech::

 

Get out, Rose.

 

Perfect emotion booster in the wake of TWOP's demise.

[Speculation With Spoilers]

I hope the show doesn't try to make Emzo a love interest for Caroline. I agree that it would be another Klaus situation (though without the all-powerful angle) and I also agree that there have been parallels put in place. Like with Klaus, Caro was shown to not give a shit about Enzo-including no upset upon learning of his death, and characters have told her that she's got a thing for him even though she hasn't demonstrated it. All we need now is for Enzo to manipulate her into sex and the parallel will be complete. At least Enzo can't turn Tyler into his slave, and one quick nip will kill him (Tyler will absolutely become a werewolf again as the show likes seeing him in full tragedy mode) so, in theory, Enzo won't be fucking with his life the way Klaus likes to. Even so, Enzo should not be a love interest for Caro. Accola will no doubt be leaving after this season if the show goes beyond 6 and Enzo will likely be staying so the show needs to set him up as a character we're supposed to give a damn about instead of a lame love interest.

[Vampire Diaries In The Media]

Plec always seems like she's a twelve year old girl. She squees at the attractiveness of the male actors on her shows and it's so off putting. I wish this were just a byproduct of the print interview format but she does it at Comic Con too so I must conclude that she's always like this. She does herself a disservice when she plays up her inner twelve year old.

[Wishing On A Star: What We Want To Happen]

Now that the finale has aired, and we got our first glimpse of Elsa, here's what I want next season: Elsa revealed as NOT the Big Bad.

 

I want her to be angry and powerful.  I want her to be looking for her little sister, who was taken from her years ago just before she (Elsa) was imprisoned in that urn.  I want Rumpel to be the one behind it (and not because she actually wronged him, but because she refused to help/ally with him and he was just being an asshole in return) and I want her story to parallel Emma's with her new baby brother (I refuse to call him...that name and I hope the premiere episode reveals his middle name and that's what he goes by).  Emma will love that baby deeply, as much as Elsa loves Anna, so what better way to incorporate the inevitable flashbacks than by showing their similarities?  

 

This would also provide great story potential for Rumpel.  Imagine, the big threat of the first half of the season is not truly a Big Bad but someone with a completely justified reaction to Rumpelstiltskin's evil.  Imagine Belle jumping to his defense like she always does, refusing to believe that Rumpel could have done something without a "good reason", only to learn of his personal betrayal with the dagger.  I'd love to see Belle finally be confronted with Rumpel's true nature and for the blinders to come off for good.  She'll end up forgiving him, of course, but it would be nice for him to actually work for it and for her to forgive without ignoring.