Happy New Year!

It's New Year's Eve. Lots of single people are spending it alone. Some by choice and others (like me when I was single) through no choice of their own. I remember one new year's where I was stood up, so I rang it in by being in an Internet chat room with people who I "knew" from there, drinking...something that I don't recall. I do recall that it was pretty good though.

It's also the only time I've ever gotten sick from drinking. Coincidence? You be the judge.

They were nice people, though, so that was a good thing.

Hell, even some married people are spending it alone. And that's truly sad.

Wow, how uplifting this post has been so far! Let's rectify that.

Many of you around the world have already hit midnight, but there's still a few hours to go here in North America. I want to wish you the happiest new year's possible, no matter how you choose to celebrate it. We do a quiet night at home, and that's all we need.

New Year's is a time of renewal. It's a time where we really think about the future. When you really look at it closely, it's just turning the page on the calendar and having to write a different year on your cheques (do people still write cheques?).

But in actuality it's much more than that. It's an acknowledgement of the passage of time, of the inevitable creep of the future. It's a milestone in a sense. Sure, day by day the calendar turns, but a new year resets everything. You're going to get another Monday next week. But another August 31? Or any of the other dates that you've lived through this year? When the new year hits is the only time that you'll experience that date again.

This sense of a restart is why I think new year's resolutions are so prevalent.

Day-to-day life isn't going to change much. There will be new activities of course, and a major change can happen at any time. But it's at the beginning of this much-bigger time unit called a "year" that we think more long-term. We start making plans for the coming year, how we're going to improve ourselves, or live a better life or whatever.

I don't do resolutions because too many of them have fallen by the wayside. I think when you finally make the decision to do something about something in your life, it doesn't matter whether it's the beginning of the new year or the middle of Summer. You just do it. Making it a "New Year's Resolution" just puts that much more pressure on yourself to actually get it done. Which makes the feeling of failure when you don't follow through on it that much worse.

Just make renewal part of your every day life. Changes will come no matter what the date is. You don't need that calendar to turn over. Renew yourself now. Is it December 27th? Don't wait until New Year's. Start now!

Still, it's silly to ignore the milestone of a new year happening. As that number slowly builds year after year, that feel of time marching on regardless of what we do, we do feel the pressure of that a little bit.

So for that reason, I want to wish all of my readers all the best in the upcoming year. Make it a year to remember. Make something of yourself, some small improvement on something that has been bothering you, or whatever you want to do. Live it, enjoy what you're doing. Embrace life and it will embrace you back.

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 14 - Progress

We all feel for the underdog. When you're watching a fight, or a game, and you don't particularly care who's going to win, you usually root for the underdog. You want to see an upset. David vs Goliath. The little guy against the giant corporation. What if you're that underdog, though? And what if, after winning, you become Goliath? How do you adapt, or do you even want to adapt?

Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) has spent her entire life fighting for a cause. Fighting against oppression. Fighting against people in uniform trying to impose their will on others. Now, however, her home planet Bajor is free, and she finds things aren't quite so cut and dried anymore. "Progress" tells that story in a wonderful fashion. With a powerful script and wonderful acting from both Visitor and guest star Brian Keith as Mullibok. "Progress" is another great character piece for Kira, and continues a string of great episodes in Deep Space Nine's first season.

Bajor is preparing for its first large scale energy transfer project to give aid to hundreds of thousands of Bajorans. To do so will involve tapping the resources on its fifth moon, and they have had to evacuate all forty-four inhabitants of the moon to do it. However, during a routine check to make sure everybody's gone, Kira and Dax (Terry Farrell) discover that there were actually forty-seven inhabitants. Kira beams down to get them moving. She finds a cantankerous old man, Mullibok, and his two friends who help him on the farm. This is Mullibok's home, and he refuses to leave.

He tells her wild stories about how he overpowered six Cardassians on the ship that was transporting him, came to this moon, and conquered the land, carving out a life for himself. He resists every attempt to move him, saying that he will die if he leaves, so he might as well die here. Kira sees a lot of herself in Mullibok, especially as he points out that he's doing exactly what the Bajorans did against the Cardassians: fighting against impossible odds to live his life the way he wants to. But Kira's not a rebel anymore. She can't afford the luxury of allowing him to stay. When things get ugly, Kira finds herself torn between a man who she has come to respect, and doing her duty to Bajor.

I've never really thought much about Brian Keith. He was good in Family Affair, but I've never classified him as "a good actor." However, he is outstanding in "Progress." He plays off of Visitor flawlessly, just hugging the line between lovable old coot and annoying old guy. He's softly passionate, using old stories and quiet determination to demonstrate what others would loudly proclaim. He's not moving, and nothing Kira can do or say will convince him.

While Keith does very well, Visitor is just as good. At first she's annoyed that this old man is standing in the way of something that she knows is being done for the good of Bajor. But the more Mullibok goes on about "uniforms" and draws parallels between how he's fighting for his livelihood and how Kira fought for Bajor, she sees more and more of herself in him. It hits her very hard that she's now on the side of the "oppressors" and she doesn't like it.

When the fracas breaks out and one of the Bajoran security forces shoots Mullibok, it puts her over the edge. You can see the agony on Visitor's face as this man who she greatly respects lies dying. When Bashir (Siddig El Fadil) tells her that he has to be moved to a medical facility, Kira quietly takes off her jacket (her "uniform") and becomes one with him. At the end, when she puts that jacket back on, you know she's come to a decision that she knows she has to make, no matter how much it pains her.

The B-story doesn't have anything to do with this. Nog (Aron Eisenberg) and Jake (Cirroc Lofton) overhear Quark (Armin Shimmerman) yelling at Rom (Max Grodenchek) for buying a huge supply of Cardassian yamuk sauce. Nog feels his lobes tingle, which is the Ferengi sign of opportunity. Nog thinks only of the latinum that he wants, but nobody seems to have any to give them. They go on a series of trades until things finally work out for them in a good way.

While the story is predictable, Eisenberg and Lofton play it well, and it is kind of funny. The scene where they meet O'Brien (Colm Meaney) and try to get him to tell them what "self-sealing stembolts" are is priceless. I did think the story was a little too light-hearted and took away a bit of the drama of the Kira story, but overall it was quite harmless. Dramatic stories need comic relief, but this one may have been a bit too much. Again, Rene Auberjonois has to get made up as Odo for one little scene, so I hope the catered lunch was good that day.

Overall, the acting ranged from very good (Visitor & Keith) to pretty good (everybody else). The only minor slip-up was Michael Bofshever as the Bajoran official in charge of the mining operation. He was almost comatose at times and his one attempt at emotion (when Kira tells him that if they forcibly remove Mullibok, they'd be "no better then Cardassians") falls very flat. That accusation should cause righteous indignation, and Bofshever misses it.

Brooks and El Fadil have one classic scene where Sisko has to tell Bashir to recommend that Kira stay down on the moon in order to give her some time. Bashir's confusion is written all over his face until he realizes what Sisko is doing. It's even better when Sisko, after hearing the recommendation he asked Bashir to give him, says "Thank you, doctor. I'll consider it."

"Progress" is a powerful episode, and continues Kira's growth as a character. In "Battle Lines", Kira learns to deal with the violence that she has lived with for years. Now, she has to learn that there are other ways to deal with things than fighting. She also learns that there are some things that aren't worth fighting for, no matter how much the odds are stacked against you. She goes far enough to help Mullibok complete the task that he had set out for himself (building the kiln he's been working on), but then she realizes it's time to stop.

The final scene is powerful. While it's unclear what will eventually happen to Mullibok (he says he'll die if he leaves), we know what will happen to Kira. She'll continue to grow, and know that sometimes what's best for Bajor isn't fighting.

Memorable Quote:

"But you have to realize something, Major. You're on the other side now." - Sisko

5 Stars

Those of you expecting to see "The Storyteller," don't panic. The episode doesn't work on my disc, so I didn't do a full episode review. Instead, look to my Season 1 wrap-up in January

Uh-oh! Missed a few days, so here's some random stuff

Not my family, but aren't they a lovely bunch of people anyway?
Hey, kid! Don't eat when you're picture's being taken!

Surprisingly, the blog didn't fall apart! Yes, after almost two months of getting a post per day up on the blog, I haven't done that the past couple of weeks.

For one thing, I didn't want to pressure myself while I was in Iowa. If something occurred to me to write about, I would. But otherwise, I didn't want to be sitting there in the morning saying "come on! Get something down so you can go continue your day!"

That's one of the benefits, I think, of my three regularly-scheduled posts per week. The blog didn't disappear while I was gone. I also scheduled the Christmas posts in advance so I didn't have to worry about them.

The ability to schedule posts has been a godsend for me, as I already have Star Trek and book review posts scheduled through mid-January. I hope you've been enjoying them.

I did have a good trip to Iowa. The travel itself was uneventful both ways, except for having a pack of 20 children (8-10 years of age) on the bus ride home from Seattle. That got a bit loud. Thankfully, they got off the bus at the first Canadian stop right on the other side of the border. It was a packed bus, so I did have somebody sit next to me for most of the trip. That's a first for me in my 10+ years of doing this.

It was great seeing everybody at home. Had a lovely (and wonderfully-long) get-together with some really good friends. It's always good to see them. It was nice to spend time with the family as well, and Christmas was really great.

Just as an aside, speaking of my friends above, it's amazing what power the Internet has. Back when I was doing my Livejournal blog, one night I got nostalgic and did a post naming some names of high school friends that I was wondering what had happened to them. One of those people responded, and I've been seeing her and her husband (who was also named in that post, as they were together when I knew them in high school) every time I'm back home since.

Maybe she can remind me of how she found that post. :)

Anyway, it doesn't always work (Jerry Miller and Melissa Stewart, where are you???), but if you're interested in looking up old friends, just post their name on your blog! They might find you.

Or, I guess you could do Facebook too (which wasn't around, or at least nearly so popular, back when this happened).

Anyway, a couple of other things. I'm really enjoying my Kindle Fire e-reader from Amazon. Nice to have something back-lit so I can read in the dark. It's a bit heavier than the basic Kindle that I had been using, but it's worth it. Have read two books on it, and now I'm a subscriber to the excellent e-magazine of fantasy and science fiction, Lightspeed! Didn't want to mess with it on my old Kindle because I wasn't sure if there would be images and all of that (which the Fire handles brilliantly).

I highly recommend it.

The wife loves her Nook, so you might want to give that a try too. If you're not dead-set against e-readers, of course (as I know some of you are!)

It's nice to be back. I'm going to try and keep up my post-per-day pace again now that I'm back and raring to go. But it's nice to know that if I don't, this blog won't be starved for content.

It's made things a lot easier.

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 13 - Battle Lines

Violence lurks inside all of us. In some, it’s buried so deep that it will never come out. For others, it’s just below the surface. Part of whether it comes out or not depends on our circumstances or our upbringing. It can become a way of life for some people. Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) is trying to put that past behind her. While she thinks she’s succeeded, deep down she hasn’t allowed herself to do so. That's one of the major issues of "Battle Lines." We’re mid-way through the first season, and we've had a series of fluff episodes leading up to this point. This episode, however, digs a little deeper, and it’s all the better for it. While it’s certainly not a perfect episode, it is intelligent and features some wonderful character development for Kira.

Kai Opaka (Camille Saviola), the religious leader of the Bajorans, unexpectedly comes to the station. Sisko and Kira go to meet her, but she seems distracted. She gazes out to where the wormhole is, but no traffic is due to go through today. Sisko (Avery Brooks) offers to take her on a ride through the wormhole. Bashir (Siddig el Fadil) tags along (he’s got nothing better to do) with Kira as the pilot. As they are leaving, Opaka gives O’brien (Colm Meaney) her necklace to give to his daughter, a sign to the viewer that Opaka knows her destiny is waiting for her on the other side of the wormhole.

They go to investigate a moon where they find strange sensor readings. Sisko wants to leave a marker and go back to the station, but Opaka insists on investigating. The satellite defense systems around moon knock the runabout out of the sky and it crashes, killing Opaka. Or is she dead? Sisko and the crew get caught in the middle of a never-ending battle, where death is not an option or a release. Has Opaka found her destiny? And will this war bring peace to Kira’s soul?

“Battle Lines” has a wonderful guest cast in Saviola and Jonathan Banks (who plays the Ennis leader, Shel-La). I’ve always loved Banks as he always comes very close to chewing the scenery, but not close enough to criticize him for it. He plays a tortured man, a man who has already died many times and has resigned himself to dying many more times. Their situation, in constant battle with the Nol Ennis and never able to leave the moon, has hardened him to a point where he doesn’t care any more.
When Bashir offers them a possible way out, he can’t think of it as a way to save his people from their eternal damnation, but instead thinks of it as a way to wipe out the Nols for good.

Saviola brings a marvelous sense of peace and serenity to Opaka that is a marvel to witness. Her discussions with Kira about Kira’s terrorist past, and how Kira has to accept the violence within her before she can move on are simply wonderful. (“The Prophets are waiting for you to forgive yourself, Kira.”) The other guest star is Paul Collins as the Nol Ennis leader, Zlangco. Unfortunately, he doesn’t fare as well. He only has one scene, but he doesn’t do very well with it. He tries to pull off the same hardened man as Banks does, but he goes a bit too far over the top. His lines are delivered with an attempted cynicism that just doesn’t work.

Visitor, Brooks, and el Fadil are wonderful in this episode. When Bashir makes a light-hearted statement about Sisko’s plan to offer both sides a way off the planet (“sounds more like a jailbreak, sir”), Sisko quickly shoots him down with a curt “Don’t quote the Prime Directive to me, Doctor.” He really feels for these people who have been trapped here for years, continually killing each other and then having to do it again. He feels that they’ve suffered enough.

Bashir is a perfect mixture of arrogance and naiveté (he congratulates himself for fixing the computer), but he’s also intelligent, figuring out what’s going on and discovering just in time that what the secret of the microbes keeping everybody alive is. Visitor does an excellent job as the tortured Kira (though she goes a little bit over the top with the crying when Opaka dies in the crash). She handles herself very well in the above-mentioned scenes with Opaka.

O’brien and Dax (Terry Farrell) don’t have much to do (though they do have more then Rene Auberjonois does as Odo…he got all made up for that ONE scene?). Most of their lines are technobabble as they are trying to rescue their trapped people. O’brien even makes a joke about having to invent the techie-device he thinks will solve the problem. Their scenes do nothing but drag the episode to a screeching halt when the much more interesting stuff is happening down on the planet. It was filler and unnecessary.

There are a couple of minor plot holes that brings the episode down as well. If the Ennis and the Nol Ennis are truly interested in wiping out the other side, they don’t seem to be very inventive about it. Nothing in what Bashir says about what’s happening on the planet indicates that somebody will grow a new head if you cut off the old one. The machines that keep the body’s processes going have some sort of regenerative function (wounds are healed), but entire limbs? The fact that Shel-La’s face is so burned that one eye appears to be almost useless is another indication that some kind of permanent damage can be done, so why not try for the ultimate?

Secondly, seconds after Shel-La tells Sisko and company that they gave up on energy weapons because they were too clean, they get attacked by….yep, you guessed it. Energy weapons. Later battles use melee weapons, so you have to wonder why they used energy weapons in this particular case. To show that Shel-La is an idiot?

While “Battle Lines” isn’t a classic Deep Space Nine episode, it is one of the better first-season ones. We have had a lot of filler lately with little bits of character development for Odo and Quark, but it’s been a while since we’ve seen a meaty episode with themes and issues that we can sink our teeth in to. “Battle Lines” is one of those episodes, and it’s a welcome change. It shows that we all have a little bit of violence in us. Controlled, it’s not a bad thing. When let loose because there are no longer any consequences, because there is nothing left in your heart but hatred, it’s a truly miserable life.

Memorable Quotes:

“Major, when you’re through feeling under-appreciated, perhaps you’d care to join me in welcoming the Kai?” - Sisko

“When you cease to fear death, the rules of war change.” - Shel-La

4 Stars

Book Review - The Battle of Britain by James Holland

Many thought Great Britain would fall to the Nazi onslaught during that fateful Summer of 1940. The country stood alone against the German juggernaut. France had just fallen; the Soviet Union was still ostensibly allied with Hitler's regime; the United States was still "neutral," though they did help the British out in a few capacities.

Adolf Hitler wanted to get Britain to sue for peace so he could concentrate on the Soviets. If that took an invasion, so be it. If Germany could pound Britain into submission via bombing, that would work too. Either way, the British Air Force must be destroyed.

I've read a few books on the months-long air battle known as "The Battle of Britain," but nothing as comprehensive as James Holland's book, also called The Battle of Britain: Five Months that Changed History. For one thing, it does what most other books on the battle don't do: it goes in-depth into the battle for France, and shows us just what that invasion did to both the British and Germans in preparation for the coming battle.

My review of the book is up on Curled Up With a Good Book, and it posted during my blogging hiatus, which is why you've never seen it.

From the review:

"The trick Holland uses is the ability to bring the battles home to the reader with intimate accounts of the war efforts, both in their planning and execution. Holland does spend considerable time on the pilots and the air force tactics, both in the traditional sense and as it pertains to the French invasion and the evacuation of the British forces at Dunkirk. He also covers the invasion of France itself, the strategy and tactics used by the Germans to gain surprise and cut the Allied forces in two. He discusses the big picture but also zooms in on individual pilots and soldiers, taking the reader down into the heart of the fighting.

Holland is able to do this because many of his sources are journals by or actual interviews with those who were involved in the day-to-day terror and bravery of the effort. The Battle of Britain is full of anecdotes and memories from those who were actually involved, some of whom died between Holland's interviews and the actual publication of this book. The richness of the history by those who lived it adds an immediate quality to the book that raises it above any other chronicle of the battle that I have read."

I loved that aspect of the book. It really made me feel like I was sitting in a bar across from these men, having a beer and listening to them tell me stories.

The book is very well-written and is a joy to read. There's just so much information there, and it's all interesting. I had trouble putting it down.

Check out the review and let me know what you think.

Merry Christmas Everybody

I want to wish everybody a truly wonderful Christmas, those of you who celebrate it. And if you don't, may the good spirit of the season affect you anyway.

It's been almost two months since I've re-started this blog, and I've been fairly regular with it. I have you readers to thank for some of that, as you've made it worthwhile. I do plan on continuing it well into the new year and beyond.

Thank you for your love and support, and just your comments if nothing else. I'm always happy to hear from you.

In the meantime, regular programming returns tomorrow with the weekly book review. I hope you enjoy it.

For now, you can enjoy two hours of a Yule log burning!



Ok, it's just a log in a fireplace, but I think it works the same.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

A Star Trek Christmas

Since I doubt anybody will wanting to read Star Trek: DS9 reviews on Christmas Eve, this week I leave you with a couple of hilarious Star Trek videos.

The first is a blooper reel of DS9 outtakes that are pretty hilarious. It's also, sadly, pretty scant. Where are all the bloopers? There are tons of TNG and TOS ones.



Secondly, a hilarious mix of Original Series and Monty Python, with the immortal Python song from Monty Python & the Holy Grail, "Knights of the Round Table."



Finally, in searching for the above video, I found this hilarious mix, also of Python and Trek. It's almost uncanny how well this one is done, and it's one of my favourite Python scenes.



Regular Trek programming resumes Friday, of course.

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, and the above videos bring a little humour to your festivities.

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 11 - Vortex

One of the big mysteries as Star Trek: Deep Space Nine began was: who is Odo (Rene Auberjonois)? He's a shape-shifter who knows nothing about where he came from or who his people are. He's alone on a station full of species who can't do what he can do. When he was introduced, we figured we'd find out over the course of the series just who and what he is. "Vortex" takes a small step in that direction. We don't find out much concrete information about Odo, but we are given some tantalizing hints. We're also given a great episode with some good acting and wonderful dialogue.

Odo is ever watchful of Quark (Armin Shimmerman), the Ferengi bartender who always seems to have a scheme on the side. Today, he's sitting in the bar talking to Quark about the Miradorn freighter that had just docked, wondering if Quark knows anything about it. He also notices a strange man sitting in the corner looking away every time Odo looks at him. Quark claims innocence on both counts, but Odo is suspicious when the two Miradorn, Ah-Kel and Ro-Kel (Randy Oglesby) come into the bar, nod at Quark, and then head to a holosuite, so he changes into a nondescript form and infiltrates the meeting. Unfortunately, it's also crashed by Crodon (Cliff De Young), the quiet man in the corner. In the resulting incident, Crodon kills Ro-Kel and Ah-kel vows revenge, as Miradorns are symbiotic twins and can barely exist by themselves. Sisko (Avery Brooks) prepares to extradite Crodon back to his home planet in the Gamma Quadrant, but they have to get past the Miradorn ship first, as it's preparing to assault any ship that goes through the wormhole with Krodon on it. Odo volunteers to take him.

Crodon is trying desperately to get Odo to let him go, and keeps talking about the Changelings, paranoid and persecuted shape-shifters that he met while he was on the run from his people. He even has a token from them, a pendent that has a small piece of material similar to Odo's genetic make-up inside it. This is the first clue to his origins that he's ever had, and he's torn. But the Miradorn may make it all moot, as they discover where Krodon has gone and come charging after him.

Auberjonois takes this episode and runs with it. I have not seen a bad performance by him yet, and he again excels in his role as Odo. His scenes with Quark at the beginning of the episode are classic ("What can I get you Odo, the usual?" "Nothing, Quark." "Ah yes, the usual."), and the scenes between Odo and Crodon crackle with intensity. Odo so clearly wants every scrap of information he can get on his people, but Crodon is a proven liar ("there's that hard word again") and a thief. How can he take Crodon's word for any of this? The indecision is written painfully on Odo's face, as his sense of justice wars with his desire. The make-up for Odo is so bland (it's an expressionless face without wrinkles, marks, or anything else), I don't know how Auberjonois emotes through it, but he does a superb job. The brief, beatific smile on his face at the end of the episode as he realizes that he has obtained an admittedly small part of the whole puzzle is a delight to see.

Three more performances that are noteworthy (everybody else did fine, but unremarkable jobs) are guest appearances. Cliff De Young plays the sly trickster very well, with a mix of sarcasm and weary resignation that is great. One thing he doesn't do well, however, is intensity. While the scenes between Odo and Crodon are electrifying, it's mostly due to Auberjonois' intensity and De Young's cynicism. When it's time for De Young to get intense himself, he overplays it badly and the lines fall flat. The other guest stars overplay their roles, too. Oglesby tries too hard to be intense and in pain, and looks constipated instead. He chews off the end of his lines like he's starving. Gordon Clapp as Hadran also overacts dreadfully. While Clapp's performance is mercifully short, Oglesby's problem really lessens the threat of the episode, as you're laughing more then anything else.

On the plot front, there were a few problems that bring this down to a 4-star episode. These are all things that reasonably intelligent people would do, but there wouldn't be an episode if they were done.

1) The trip into the Gamma Quadrant to take Crodon back to his people is a dangerous one. The Miradorn ship can outrun any runabout that the station has. So why send Odo, a known technophobe and definitely not a pilot, alone with Crodon? Couldn’t they have also sent O'brien or another trained pilot? Of course, that would defeat the purpose of the Odo-Crodon bonding going on.

2) When the Miradorn attack the runabout, the first notice of it is when the ship shakes. Odo asks the computer what that was, and is told that it's a burst of energy consistent with weapons fire (I forget exactly what it said). Odo says "We're under attack?" and the computer confirms it. Isn't that just a little bit too coy for a computer? Shouldn't the sensors have picked up the ship before that and given the pilot a warning?

3) It seems odd that a changeling who's knocked unconscious doesn't turn into a puddle of goop. That one's not a deal-breaker, but it just seemed odd to me.

Overall, though, the plot was very interesting. It was nice to have Quark be the instigator for all of this, and the Crodon-Odo scenes are wonderful. When we find out what Crodon's real story is, it's quite touching. Odo makes a decision that doesn't quite jibe with his personality, but it's close enough that you can say that he's learning from his Starfleet companions.

All in all, an excellent episode, and definitely worth checking out if you happen upon it. It's one of my favourite 1st season episodes.

Memorable Quote:

"If you don't stop talking, I can sedate you for the rest of the trip" Odo

4 Stars

Book Review - Cataclysm: The First World War as Political Tragedy by David Stevenson

I've always been a military history guy, even dating back to third grade (that's the last memory I have of it, anyway). I used to read and collect these World War II cards (about 3 inches square, so not something like a trading card) that explained many aspects of World War II. I had read every World War II book at the Wilson Elementary School library by the time I finished 6th grade.

That has never changed. So when I had the chance to pick up Cataclysm, David Stevenson, I jumped at the chance (one of the great perks of reviewing for Curled Up With a Good Book). I had read a few things about World War I, but not anything comprehensive. This book looked seriously intriguing when I picked it off the "books to review" list back in 2005.

I wasn't disappointed. This book is very dense, which makes it extremely comprehensive for a 500-page book with a ton of end notes. If you have any interest in World War I, or just military history in general, this is the book for you.

From my review on Curled Up With a Good Book:

"It has been a while since I've really gushed about a book, but I won't be able to help myself with this one. Cataclysm: The First World War as Political Tragedy by David Stevenson has to be one of the best books I have ever read on World War I, and one of the most compact yet comprehensive history books I've seen. It is less than 500 pages, but it covers every aspect of the war, from the strategy involved to the politics of starting, running, and, most importantly, ending the war. It goes beyond even that, though, by discussing the impact the war had on the post-war years, analyzing the years between the two world wars and even how memories of the war affected how the second one was fought. As a final thought, the conclusion discusses how the war has been looked at over time, how perceptions have changed, not only of who started the war, but also how it was fought."

The only problem that I saw in the book was the really weird use (or lack thereof) of commas. It made it confusing at times, requiring me to reread a sentence or two to make sure I wasn't misunderstanding something.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. If you'd like to see why, go check out the review.

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 10 - The Nagus

When Quark (Armin Shimmerman) was first named as a character on the new Star Trek: Deep Space Nine series, I was a little apprehensive. Everything I had seen of the Ferengi, greedy business-only types who have annoying voices and mannerisms, in Next Generation had not given me the desire to see one of them every week. However, when the show debuted, Quark was one of its better characters. I was somewhat relieved. I was then apprehensive again when I heard there was going to be an episode full of Ferengi. Would my annoyance-meter need to be replaced after it exploded?

Thankfully, no. "The Nagus" is the first Ferengi-centered episode that Deep Space Nine had and it is still the best, even on repeat-viewing. While Ira Steven Behr, the producer of the show, would go on to produce many cringe-inducing Ferengi episodes in subsequent seasons, I can't hold that against this one. "The Nagus" is just a treat from start to finish. Even the B-plot of Jake (Cirroc Lofton) and Nog (Aron Eisenberg) staying friends despite their parents' wishes has some wonderful moments.

Grand Nagus Zek (Wallace Shawn) of the Ferengi has come to Deep Space Nine to see Quark, sample his holo-programs and hold a meeting on extending the Ferengi influence (though certainly not the reputation!) through the wormhole and into the Gamma Quadrant. Zek has decided that he's too old to take charge of these new opportunities so he wants to appoint a successor. All of the Ferengi in the room are waiting with bated breath, but it blows out explosively when Zek names Quark. Everybody is outraged, but they soon drop back into the familiar Ferengi pattern of sucking up to the boss. Others may be doing more than sucking up, though, and Zek is surprised that the first threat took so long to materialize. Things get worse when Zek dies right in front of Quark! How will Quark handle all this? Or will he survive to even have to worry about it?

Armin Shimmerman carries this episode, with help from Wallace Shawn (who I loved greatly in The Princess Bride). While "Move Along Home" was a Quark episode, it also featured pretty much everybody. This time, it's all Quark, with the other characters making token appearances or relegated to the B-plot. Shimmerman does a great job with the responsibility. He plays everything perfectly, except the begging for his life. It just goes too over the top and becomes really annoying, rather than funny. Everything else works like a charm, though. He tries really hard to suck up to Zek, he makes some wry side comments to his brother Rom (Max Grodenchik). When Quark becomes Nagus, the power just goes to his head and he's hilarious to watch.

Shawn plays Zek perfectly, just slightly over the top with a sort of shrill voice. It comes *this* close to being annoying, but it doesn't quite reach there (subsequent episodes are good at that). Grodenchik is perfect as the hopeless Rom, removing Nog from school at the first sign that the Nagus disagrees with the notion of a Ferengi being taught by a "Hu-mon female." He does even better when Quark becomes Nagus and enlists him as a bodyguard because he's the only one Quark can trust. The thought of Rom as a bodyguard is enough to initiate chuckles all by itself. Rene Auberjonois plays Odo in another wonderful performance with a mix of cynicism and sarcasm. His scenes with Quark as they try to figure out who tried to kill the new Nagus are priceless.

I have to mention the B-plot in this review as well. Nog gets pulled out of school and both his and Jake's parents have told them that Ferengi and humans have nothing in common and shouldn't be friends. I really love Eisenberg and Lofton's acting in this story. They are quite touching and effective. Sisko (Avery Brooks) doesn't want to try and separate them, despite O'Brien's (Colm Meaney) suggestions, but Jake seems to be misbehaving all the more. The final revelation of what's going on is quite sweet. Lofton and Brooks play the perfect father-son pair, as Jake wants to grow up and Sisko doesn't want to let him. Lofton is the antithesis of Wesley from Next Generation: a typical 14 year old. It was nice to see that Star Trek could actually handle a kid as a character.

There really is nothing wrong with this episode except for the annoying Ferengi laugh. Both Shimmerman and Shawn do it, and it is so forced that it's unreal. I know it's *supposed* to be somewhat annoying, but I found it irritating beyond belief. While I know these two can act, it sounds like somebody who *can't* act trying very hard to make it sound real. It's obviously designed to be a Ferengi mannerism, but I could have done without it. In future episodes, it just adds to the cringing.

This is Deep Space Nine's first attempt at a comedy episode, and it works wonders. As long as they don't overdo it, more of this would be greatly appreciated.

Memorable Quotes:

"You're saying 'Vulcans stole your homework?'" - O'Brien

"All this benevolence wearies me" - Quark

5 Stars

Is Customer Service Getting Better?

Not a Fido rep, or if he is, that would be quite the coincidence

I had an interesting experience with Fido yesterday. Fido is our cell phone provider, and we've been with them for just over three years, since we first bought our iPhones. Over those years, I've had to make numerous calls to their customer support line, mainly to sort out billing issues as well as to do things like add features to our account and so on. There have been a number of times where I've had to call back at a later date because something that I had called about had been mishandled on their end.

However, like the situation yesterday, it has always eventually been resolved to our satisfaction.

I bought a new phone yesterday with a new number, and in the process of setting it up, discovered that I had somehow been put on another 3-year contract in November when I had changed my plan (my contract had expired so I was month-to-month). I spoke to a manager (Kristin) who was very quick to sort things out and get me up and running. I wasn't looking forward to the fight, and thankfully she didn't give me one. She was calm, pleasant, and very efficient.

Unfortunately, the fact that my earlier call back in November had resulted in this fiasco is a strike against their customer service. That kind of thing has happened a few times, some really good customer service coming out of some really bad earlier service. Because the good and the bad balance out, I would have to give Fido a "fair" rating on their customer service.

It appears I'm not alone, and not just regarding Fido, but customer service in general.

According to Time (h/t: Instapundit), supposedly people around the world feel that customer service is getting better overall. It's not great, but maybe (as Glenn Reynolds says) it had just hit rock bottom.

Brad Tuttle at Time quotes an Accenture study that says:

"In mature markets, switching due to poor service is also on the decline, dropping from 60 percent to 49 percent (the first time below 50 percent) during the same period. Furthermore, in conjunction with this global decline in switching due to poor service, consumers are generally somewhat more satisfied with many aspects of customer service this year, with three general service satisfaction characteristics measured increasing by at least 5 percentage points from last year."

Yet Tuttle notes that people are increasingly willing to switch providers for things like cell phones, Internet, and the like.

My experiences go along with what Tuttle gives as a possible explanation for this seeming contradiction:

"If bad customer service is less of a problem, why are more people switching providers? Well, the absence of good customer service may have something to do with it. In the survey, 85% of consumers who had switched providers said that the company could have retained their business by doing something differently—resolving the problem during the first contact (rather than requiring multiple phone calls and follow-ups), for instance, or giving them some kind of reward or special treatment as thanks for being a loyal customer."

That seems to be the case, at least from what I've seen. The bad stuff has lessened, but the good stuff hasn't moved in to take its place. In Fido's case, it's also a problem that every good experience has been in the clean-up of a bad situation that was also caused by poor customer service. I suppose it could be worse. We left Telus and will never go back to them because they had horrible customer service in our experience with very few positive outcomes.

Customers are more willing to move on because they don't feel any loyalty from the company itself. It's like what we often say about sports and how players used to be on the same team for their entire careers. Now, it's not uncommon for superstars to play for multiple teams. The teams don't show loyalty to the players and the players don't show loyalty to the teams or the fans.

Companies are doing much the same thing, and it's often about money but it's not always. Good companies with good customer service work to keep their customers happy. They realize that, if you've been with them for ten years, you may deserve a little something as a reward, even if it's just not fighting them when some asinine policy rears its ugly head and confronts the customer. I have to admit that Fido has done that before, and I've always appreciated it.

But look at what happened yesterday (and it's not just Fido, they all do this). I had to buy a phone and get a new phone number in order to save almost $150. That's because new sign-ups had a really low price to buy the phone, while renewals were much higher (not as high as just buying the phone without extending your contract, but still much higher than the new customer price).

How is that showing any customer loyalty? I could have gone to any other provider since I was month-to-month. In fact, they even offered it to me. I decided to stick with Fido for a number of reasons. So because I want to stay with you as a company, I get penalized?

Or as Tuttle says:

"Consumers are likely to feel no loyalty whatsoever to their providers nowadays because, in a way, loyalty is punished. What with special introductory rates and promotions aimed at attracting new customers, the structure of many provider business models results in longstanding customers paying far more than the folks who just started doing business with the company. The reward for being a blindly loyal customer, then, is the insult of higher and higher monthly bills."

That's it exactly.

So good customer service isn't enough any more. But it can certainly help keep some loyalty. It is another addition to the "plus" column when you're weighing the pluses and minuses of switching providers, and makes the decision to switch a bit harder. If they've taken care of you, it's sometimes not a good thing to move on into the unknown.

Do you have any good or bad customer service experiences to relate? Or do you work in a call center dealing with the customers? I'd love to hear your story.

Ascension - Come Play with me on Apple's Gamecenter!

Ascension: Chronicles of the Godslayer is now free on all iOS systems. I downloaded it to my iPad on Thursday.

I don't know how long it will stay free, but you should jump on it while you have the chance. And then friend me on Apple's Gamecenter (username: histerin) and play it with me.

Why? Because I said so!

Oh, and because it is a seriously awesome game. It's a deck-building fantasy game where you are playing for the most "honor."

The game is for up to four players, but you can play against AI opponents.

The rules of the game are actually quite simple. Each player starts out with ten cards. Dealt across the center are six cards dealt from a separate deck, a combination of heroes and constructs that you can buy (with "runes" that the cards in your hand produce) or monsters to kill to gain honor (with "strength" that the cards in your hand have). As you buy cards, your deck will grow and you are able to do more. Heroes can give you more runes to use to buy more stuff, or strength to kill more monsters. They may also give you the ability to draw extra cards that turn, or things like that.

(Click images to see a bigger version)

Here's one of the heroes you can buy. At the top right corner is the rune cost to buy the hero. From the description, you see that he gives you four strength.

Here's the starting board configuration, with the center row laid out and your beginning hand.

Every time you buy something, it goes into your discard pile. You also discard all five cards (or more if you've been able to draw more) at the end of each turn. As you can see, you go through your deck fairly fast, but it continues to grow. The only cards that stay on the board are "constructs" that can help you each turn by giving you runes or strength.

You start out with fairly weak cards, eight "apprentice" and two "militia" cards, but will quickly build that up over time.

Once all of the available honor chits are gone (there's a limited number, based on how many people are playing), each player gets one more turn and then the game ends. Total honor is added up (most cards have an honor value at the bottom left which will tell you how much they give at the end of the game) and the one with the most honor wins!

I played this game at V-Con this year, and had a lot of fun. When I heard it was also on the iOS systems, I knew I had to have it. It's normally $5.00, but right now it's free! So you should pick it up even if you're not sure if you'd like it. What's the worst that can happen? You take it off your phone/iPad. You're not out anything.

The iOS presentation is beautiful on the iPad (I assume it's similar on the iPhone, though maybe not truly gorgeous except on the iPhone 5).

It also has a wonderful tutorial that walks you through the opening of the game. Even better, though, once it has taught you what you need to know, it will let you finish that game on your own.

You can play against the AI or you can play "hand the iPad to the next person" multiplayer, but you can also play online multiplayer through Gamecenter. I haven't had the opportunity yet, but I'm chomping at the bit to do so.

So what do you say? Download the free game (did I mention it's free?) and get in the game today! Then hit me up on Gamecenter.

As I said, I don't know when the game will go back up in price, so you should download it today, even if you don't have time to play right now. You may never get this chance again.

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 9 - Move Along Home

One of the great joys in life is a game, a competition between two people to see who can come out on top. Hopefully, it’s not a violent game, but a contest of equals that will allow the person with the most skill to win nine times out of ten. Then there are the games of chance, where you play alone against the odds. Things like roulette, for example. Or, in the Star Trek universe, Dabo.

“Move Along Home" is a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode about games. In fact, it introduces a culture full of people who live for games. It’s an utterly bland, completely inoffensive game of an episode that doesn’t have much payoff, much characterization, or much fun, despite it being about a game. In fact, the payoff is a cheat, which really cheapens what’s already a lackluster episode.

The Vulcans have initiated contact with a new species in the Gamma Quadrant, called the Wadi. They have been invited back to Deep Space Nine in order to have a real first contact with the Federation. Sisko (Avery Brooks), Dax (Terry Farrell), Kira (Nana Visitor) and Dr. Bashir (Siddig El Fadil) arrive at the airlock to meet the Wadi representatives and initiate first contact procedures, but the Wadi aren’t interested. They’ve heard about Quark’s (Armin Shimmerman) bar and the games that are in it, and insist on going there to play Dabo.

They go for six hours straight, before Sisko finally decides to head for his quarters. Quark, on the other hand, is getting very upset that the Wadi keep winning (implying that they’re either cheating or unnaturally lucky, but it’s never explained) so he gets the Dabo wheel spinner to start cheating. Falow (Joel Brooks), the head Wadi, catches him, and forces him to play a Wadi game. Unbeknownst to Quark, the other four crew members have disappeared, and they appear to be inside the Wadi game. Once Quark realizes what’s happened, he has to try and win the game and save the crew.

I called this episode inoffensive, and that’s the best word to describe it. It’s not especially interesting, it’s sort of clichéd, we don’t learn anything about the characters and the actors themselves seem to be going through the motions. Kira has a wonderful line (played beautifully by Visitor) where she starts to panic because of the new situation they’re in. She says that the Starfleet types are probably finding this fascinating, but she’s just an administrator and she didn’t sign up for this. It really shows the difference between the different crewmembers, and how the Bajorans (at least Kira) aren’t really interested in exploring all over the place, but more concerned with internal matters. It’s completely out of Kira’s realm of expertise, and the note of panic in Visitor’s voice is delicious.

On the other hand, a major strike against the episode is that even the Quark/Odo exchanges don’t really work that well. Oh, sure, Rene Auberjonois and Shimmerman play them with the usual gusto, but they just don’t really have a lot of meat to them. Surprisingly, the best scenes are between Odo and Primmin (James Lashley). In my review of "The Passenger," Lashley was largely uninteresting (I believe the word I used was “square”). This time, the two scenes crackle as Auberjonois gives them everything he’s got (“Is it against Starfleet regulations to push a few buttons?” when Primmin tries to tell him that he can’t board the Wadi ship). The only problem in this case is that Lashley plays Primmin almost like an incompetent rather then a 6-year veteran.

The other major guest star, Joel Brooks, is decent, though he does overact at times. His evil laugh during the game goes a bit over the top, but something about his delivery of the lines “double their peril, double your winnings” just made me shiver. He puts a wonderful tone of menace into it. He swings from the good to the bad with annoying regularity, so he ends up being just an average guest.

The main problem in terms of the plot is just Quark’s obviousness. Somebody that skilled at cheating should be much more subtle. It’s completely obvious when he’s pushing a button to make the Dabo table go his way. I understand that it has to be a bit obvious to the audience, but a much better way would have been to do some cutaways and then have the Wadi discover him with his hand on the button so we discover it along with the Wadi.

Another problem pertaining to Quark is when he has to grovel to the Wadi because he can’t decide which crew member to eliminate. Shimmerman plays it way too broadly and it really lowers Quark’s personality. It happens a few more times in DS9, and Shimmerman never really pulls it off.

And then, finally, there’s the ending. The drama of the episode completely disappears with the revelation that there really was no threat. Having the entire thing be for nothing is a cheat, and should only be used for a comic pay-off. In a dramatic story, it robs the episode of any meaning whatsoever. Nobody’s changed, nobody appears to have learned anything (Quark goes back to his greedy self afterward) and life goes on. It’s ridiculous.

I know this is one of my shorter DS9 reviews, but “Move Along Home” really doesn’t lend itself to much of an analysis. It is what it is: a way to waste 45 minutes (without commercials) with some characters that you love doing some things and then have everything work out. There are better ways to spend your time, however. But hey. At least it’s not Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle.

Memorable Quote:

“If you were hurt, I’d leave you behind.” “Then it’s a good thing I’m not the one who’s hurt.” Dax & Sisko

2 Stars

Another Look at Chivalry

I know it seems that I've beaten this topic to death (namely here, here, and here), but how about one more for the road? I promise it won't get you drunk.

Well, not *too* drunk, anyway.

The reason I'm re-visiting this so close to the last time (just over a week ago) is because Emily Esfahani Smith has a terrific article in the Atlantic called "Let's Give Chivalry Another Chance."

In the article, she brings up something that I hadn't really touched on in all of my posts about chivalry and "benevolent sexism" and all that. I have talked about the wonderful effects of this behaviour and questioned why people would want to get rid of it or be offended by it.

Emily mentions the Titanic disaster in 1912, and how 75% of the men died while 75% of the women and children survived, mainly because of the "women and children first" policy that they all followed. To them, it was important that the women survived, and for a man to survive at the expense of a woman was just unheard of.

Fast forward to earlier this year:

"About a year ago, a group of today's men were tested the way that the men on board the Titanic were. When the cruise ship Costa Concordia hit a rock and capsized off the coast of Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, last January, men pushed women and children out of the way to save themselves. One Australian woman on board reported at the time:

'The people that pushed their way on to the boat were then trying to tell them to shut the door, not to let any more people on the [life] boat after they had pushed their way on...We just couldn't believe it—especially the men, they were worse than the women.'"

What can you attribute this type of behaviour to? I would think it would be obvious. When men start feeling less chivalrous toward women (and you can call it whatever you want if you don't want to go chivalry whole hog), you get men being boorish toward women instead.

But isn't that what these women want? To be treated as totally equal? Not "equal with acknowledged differences," but completely? They should be happy that the men pushed ahead of them to get on the lifeboats first, because they would have done that if it had been a man instead of a woman!

Those who say that "benevolent sexism" is mainly a way to put down women and keep them in their place don't seem to acknowledge that this isn't what being chivalrous is about.

"Chivalry is about respect. It is about not harming or hurting others, especially those who are more vulnerable than you. It is about putting other people first and serving others often in a heroic or courageous manner. It is about being polite and courteous. In other words, chivalry in the age of post-feminism is another name we give to civility. When we give up on civility, understood in this way, we can never have relationships that are as meaningful as they could be."

When that respect is gone, you get cases like the Costa Concordia. You get men who don't know how to behave because they don't know whether the woman they're with goes along with the radical feminists or whether they would actually appreciate being treated with respect. This confusion, Smith says, is killing dating.

Another area I hadn't been aware of, so I'm glad Smith brought this up, is that some women are trying to bring chivalry back.

"Some women are trying to bring back chivalry. Since 2009, for instance, a group of women at Arizona State University have devoted themselves to resuscitating gentlemanly behavior and chivalry on a campus whose social life is overwhelmingly defined by partying, frat life, and casual sex. Every spring for the past three years, these women have gathered for the "Gentlemen's Showcase" to honor men who have acted chivalrously by, for example, opening the door for a woman or digging a woman's car out of several feet of snow."

It's spreading across the country, too.

Who knows? Maybe those who value respect, those who realize that the sexes can be equal and still be different, they will be the ones who ultimately win out.

I encourage you to read the whole article. It's beautifully written and says it a lot better than I can.

Port Mann Bridge - Toll Stupidity

There has been a lot of road construction over the last couple years here in the Lower Mainland. I'm sure many of you elsewhere can empathize with what drivers here have had to deal with.

One of the major projects was the expansion of the Port Mann bridge spanning the Fraser river, taking Highway 1 (the Trans-Canada Highway) from the Vancouver area all the way across to the Atlantic Ocean. Before it was a 4-lane bridge, but it's been expanded to eight lanes now.

To help pay for the monumental costs of the expansion, they've decided to implement a toll. Until March, it will cost you $1.50 to cross the bridge. If you sign up for the automatic TReO tolling, then that rate will go until December 2013. Otherwise, you'll be charged $3 every time you cross the bridge.

That's going to be hell on commuters who have to cross that bridge every day. Tolls of $6 a day? That's going to put a major crimp in the budget, isn't it?

Not so fast, you must be thinking! Surely they're going to take care of those people who use it every day, aren't they? Make the hit a little easier to take? After all, in Illinois, those who have signed up for the automatic toll withdrawals pay half the price that those who have to stop at the tollbooths do. That's taking care of your regular customers! (On the backs of visitors, I might add)

Yes, Vancouver does have something in place for regular users.

For only $150/month, you can get a monthly pass instead of one that dings you every time you cross the bridge. Wow, what an accommodation. How thoughtful! I've never seen government work so hard for its people.

Hey, wait a minute...

At $3/crossing, that monthly pass will pay for itself after 50 crossings. If you take the bridge both ways on your trip, once a day, that's 25 days. Just to make it pay for itself.

A normal work week is five days a week, typically 4 weeks in a month (give or take)...that's only 20 days.

HOLY SHIT! Unless you use the bridge for more than work (or unless you work a *lot* of overtime), the monthly pass actually screws you!

That can't be right.

But it appears to be.

Just how many people will be getting that monthly pass? The only ones who I can see doing it are those who make multiple trips back and forth over the bridge in a day.

I thought monthly passes were supposed to be more economical?

I guess not!

Am I doing the math wrong or missing something? Because this makes no sense to me.

As a side note, a Vancouver Sun article today shows that over a third of regular bridge users are going to try and find another way across the river rather than pay the tolls. That's not surprising at all. What's even less surprising is that a majority of regular users disapprove of the tolls and a majority of people who don't use the bridge that much support the tolls.

I know I'll be finding another way across the river if I can.

How about you? Any weird toll or road stories in your neck of the woods? I'd love to hear them.

Book Review - Allie Beckstrom Series by Devon Monk

I've been a big fan of Devon Monk's "Allie Beckstrom" series since book #3. It's an urban fantasy series set in Portland, Oregon, where magic is real and is governed by a group called The Authority, which has branches all over the country (and world, I believe). Things have been going from bad to worse for Beckstrom, her lover Zayvion Jones, and the rest of her friends, as there are those in the magic-wielding community who will stop at nothing to use magic to lord their power over the rest of the world.

It doesn't help that Allie's father was trying to merge technology and magic to make its use even more efficient and powerful, and he died for what he did. But his psyche lives on in Allie's mind, interacting with her (much to her chagrin).

I've posted previous reviews on this blog before, both for Magic at the Gate and then a double-post for Magic in the Shadows and Magic on the Storm. For this week's book entry, I realize that I've done three reviews since I last posted anything here, so you get a triple shot!

Magic on the Hunt is the sixth book in the series, with Magic on the Line being seventh and Magic Without Mercy being the latest book I've read (I think the conclusion is finally out, but we'll see if it's really the conclusion).

From the review of Magic on the Hunt:

"In the aftermath of the battle that may have ripped the Authority apart, Allie and her lover, Zayvion Jones, are looking for a little rest. Zayvion is still recovering from his time in Death's realm, saved only by Allie's jumping through the gate to save him and giving up a part of her natural magic. Unfortunately, rest is not what they’re going to get. The leader of the Portland chapter of the Authority is being held hostage, and the search for her leads Allie, Zayvion, and their friends to a prison where only the worst and most powerful wizards are held. There, they find one of the prisoners possessed by a powerful undead wizard who wants to unleash all manner of chaos on the world. In trying to prevent that, Allie and the rest discover some unpleasant truths about the state of magic use and those who control it. The Authority may be coming apart at the seams."

There are only a couple of minor issues with this one. Otherwise, it's a book that I couldn't put down.

Then there's the Magic on the Line review:

"Things are getting hairy in Portland, Oregon. The Authority (the organization that regulates the use of magic in a city) is in disarray. Some members have gone over to the other side, others have been killed or wounded. The head office in the Northwest is not happy with the way this particular chapter has been run and has sent Bartholomew Wray down to put things right. His method of doing things rubs Allie, her lover, Zayvion Jones, and many other members the wrong way. It doesn't help that dark magic is spreading and leaking all over the city, dead magic users are rising from their graves, and Allie's powers are making her sick every time she uses them. Something's got to give; in this novel, something finally does."

This one has a huge red flag at the beginning that telegraphed the major revelation at the end, which I found kind of sad. But otherwise it's another great entry.

And finally, the review for Magic Without Mercy:

"Things look bleak for Allie Beckstrom and her friends, who are on the run from the Authority (the organization that governs all magic use in the world). Allie is wanted for criminal embezzlement and murder, so the police are after her, as well. Meanwhile, the wells of magic scattered around Portland, Oregon, have been poisoned. Any time Allie tries to use magic, she gets violently ill. The only person who may be able to figure out what's going on is Allie's dead father, whose psyche resides inside Allie's head (much to her annoyance). Will they be able to fix things before a user of death magic is able to destroy the antidote?"

This book actually wraps up one of the two major storylines, which tells me that the next book is going to be the final one. Considering that Monk has a new series out, it wouldn't surprise me. Almost ten books is a long series, but Monk's been able to string it along with a sequence of great books and character development that hasn't felt like she was standing still and revving her engine. This is one that I couldn't put down.

That's the beauty of these books: great characters. There's plenty of magical action, but it's the interplay between the characters that Monk excels at. It really makes the series easy to read and enjoy. Even as you want to know what's happening next.

That's the sign of a great writer.

You Don't Know Jack

A "Dis or Dat" answer

No, I'm not insulting you.

Instead, I'm introducing you to a really fun trivia game that's currently on Facebook and is on its way to Android and iOS devices.

You Don't Know Jack is a long and storied trivia franchise on the PC, but I never played it until the last version came out on consoles. It was really nicely-priced at $30, but I guess it didn't do very well.

Then Jellyvision Games hit the mother lode: Facebook!!!

Now You Don't Know Jack is one of the few Facebook games I play every day.

The game is hosted by a character named Cookie Masterson, and his jokes are usually pretty funny. Or at least amusing if nothing else. He welcomes you to the show with things like this one that I heard on the game I played today (paraphrased from memory):

"Hi, this is Cookie, and I'll be with you after I file a complaint about this truck driver. Let's see, 1-800.....E....A....T...S...H...Hey!!!!"

Each game consists of five questions, which can either be straight trivia questions, a Dis or Dat (where he gives you seven things and you tell him which of two choices each thing is a member of), a gibberish question (where you are given a gibberish phrase and you say what TV show, saying, or something else that it rhymes with), or several other ideas. The fifth question is the Jack Attack, where you have to make the best match possible.

A basic question asked in Cookie's unusual way

Even the straight trivia questions are asked in a rather unique way, which occasionally (though not too often) masks what exactly Cookie was asking. For example, one of today's questions was asking how you could text your friend that you're at a KISS concert, and the answer was the emoticon for a kiss. For some reason, I wasn't making the connection.

Most of the time, it makes sense with a little thought. But that doesn't mean you'll know the answer.

One strike against the game for some people (at least one of my friends for example) is that the game insults you when you get a question wrong. If you find humour in that sort of thing, you'll love the game. If you find it condescending and annoying, then you should probably stay far away from the game. Personally, I can take it and I find it hilarious, especially the play on words that's often involved. In the "Elephant, Mustard, Teddy Roosevelt or Dracula" questions (where one of the answers is always one of those things), if you choose Dracula and it's wrong, Cookie will say "That answer sucks!" Get it? Dracula sucks your blood?

Ah, never mind.

Anyway, the Facebook game (and I assume the mobile device ones too, when they come out)gives a nice feeling of playing opponents online even though you're really not. The game will randomly assign you five "opponents" who have already played the round you're playing. They're scores and answers are recorded, so you're playing against them. You don't get to see their answers (except in the Jack Attack and Gibberish questions), but you do see their scores.

No matter where you place (1st through 6th), you will always receive a certain number of tokens. You can play the game once a day for free, and then each play after that is 200 tokens. You can buy more tokens to play more often, or you can earn tokens doing various things that the game will tell you about. I play when I can, at least once a day, and earn tokens to play more games. I have never purchased anything.

Thus, if you're against having to pay for your games, you certainly don't have to. But you can if you wish to play more often. It's a win-win as far as I'm concerned.

You have to have a certain sense of humour, but if you do, You Don't Know Jack is an awesome trivia game. It's funny, and I for one have never had so much fun feeling stupid at times.

Really, who knows the three "official" types of hail descriptions anyway?

(not meatball, just so you know)

Star Trek: DS9 - Ep 8 - The Passenger

Warning: While I usually reveal major details about the episode's plot, I generally try to avoid the ending. This time, I can’t really do that. Some major twists have to be talked about. So for this review, major spoilers ahead.

When one sees arrogance, especially in somebody young and inexperienced, we want to bring it down as hard as possible. What business does this young pup have thinking so highly of himself when he hasn’t proven anything? It really rubs us the wrong way. In “The Passenger,” Dr. Bashir (Siddig El Fadil) experiences this in the worst possible way. He goes from the height of saving somebody who everybody else assumed was dead, to the low of having his body used for the basest murder. It’s funny how, while he’s been arrogant before, they ratchet it up a notch in the teaser to this episode to make the fall so much worse.

Major Kira (Nana Visitor) and Bashir are headed back to the station after dealing with some emergency. Bashir is breaking his arm congratulating himself for saving a man who everybody else thought was dead. Kira, for once, is impressed with him, but quickly cools off when Bashir won’t let the compliment stand and continues to talk about it. Thankfully, they’re interrupted by a distress call. It seems there’s a major fire on board a ship, the pilot is dead, and Kajada (Caitlin Brown) is calling for assistance. She’s transporting a dangerous prisoner, and when Bashir tries to save his life as well, she resists him. This one, however, he’s unable to save.

They take the body back to DS9, where Kajada continues to insist that scans be made to ensure that her prisoner, Rao Vantika (James Harper) is dead. Meanwhile, a Deuridium shipment from the Gamma Quadrant is coming through DS9, and Odo (Rene Auberjonois) is in charge of security for it. It seems that Vantika was coming here in an attempt to hijack it. Lt. Primmin (James Lashly) has been assigned as Starfleet security liaison, something that makes Odo bristle. The two spar and Odo threatens to quit. However, they have bigger fish to fry, as it’s soon revealed that Vantika is still alive somehow, trying to get that shipment hijacked. The crew of the station have to figure out how he’s still alive and what mechanism Vantika’s going to use. It becomes extra personal for Bashir, however.

Funnily enough, much like "Dax," I found myself dreading this episode, but when I actually watched it, it wasn’t as bad as I’d remembered it. I’m not quite sure why that is. The premise is inherently silly and cliched (transfer of consciousness from one body to another) explained with giant reams of technobabble (the solution even more so) and some of the guest acting is horrendous. When I actually sat down to watch it, however, I found myself watching some good stuff.

Unfortunately, the ending drags the episode to a screeching halt, with some of the worst acting I’ve seen on the show so far. El Fadil and Christopher Collins (playing a mercenary) try to out-Steven Wright each other, to the episode’s detriment. I swear I was watching an audition from the 250th respondent to the casting call. El Fadil seems to think that saying his lines like he’s learning to read makes him sound evil. Collins sounds like he’s trying to outdo El Fadil in a race to the laughably bad line. It’s just horrendous, and completely overshadows some earlier good work on El Fadil’s part (Collins never reaches above adequate, but he’s not given much to do before the end).

Harper as Primmin does some good work playing off Odo, but he just sounds so square (then again, that’s Starfleet for you). His dressing down scene by Sisko (Avery Brooks) just kind of lies there, but not because of Brooks, but because of Harper. Balancing out the guest acting so it gets back to “average” is Caitlin Brown. She is wonderful as Kajada, obsessed with Vantika, just strange enough to be credible as the possible host to Vantika’s consciousness, understandably irate when she’s shut out of the security loop, and all around wonderful. The only scene that really fails is her falling off the balcony in Quark’s, just because there’s no indication of how that happened and it’s played a little too loosely. Otherwise, though, she’s great.

As far as the regulars go, they were hit and miss. Most of them didn’t have much to do (Terry Farrell got to do a lot of technobabble, but no real character work), but there were three who did. First, Auberjonois was wonderful as usual. Primmin’s muscling in on Odo’s turf, and Auberjonois plays him perfectly. Affronted that somebody is being assigned to “assist” him and unsure where this puts him in the eyes of Sisko, Odo has it out with him in a very effective scene. (“No Starfleet officer can do the job that you do.” “You got that straight.”).

He also has a very effective scene with Quark (Armin Shimmerman) where they discuss the human need for companionship, as Odo subtly chides him for chasing the unattainable Dax. I have yet to see an Odo/Quark scene I haven’t liked, even in the worst episodes. This one’s another keeper. Shimmerman also does well with the other scenes, with some humorous moments to boot (crawling on the floor of the empty bar looking for dropped valuables, or being outraged at Kajada’s presence in his empty bar, even though she interrupted a meeting between him and some mercenaries).

The weak link, however, was El Fadil. This was his episode, and he tried to run with it. Unfortunately, he got 10 yards down the field and then fumbled the ball and the other team returned it for a touchdown. While he overplayed the arrogance a little bit at the beginning, his “this one I couldn’t save” at the end of the teaser was well done. He’s pretty good throughout the rest of the episode too. And then there’s the ending, discussed above. It really soured me on him, when my admiration was starting to grow.

Plot-wise, there isn’t a whole lot to say. It’s the standard “possession” Trek plot, giving the chosen actor a chance to act evil. It’s the first time this happened in Deep Space Nine, and if this is any indication, it really should be the last. The red herrings are too obvious (hmm…Kajada spent the night in her room asleep, eh? Or so she says!), even using Primmin for one near the end. Unfortunately, El Fadil’s voice gives him away in the scene where he meets with Quark (by strangling him from behind so he doesn’t get a good look at Bashir). It’s completely obvious that it’s Bashir, but I wish I could tell whether that’s because I already knew it or because his voice really was that distinctive. Unfortunately, one can’t go back to not knowing anything about an episode, so I can’t tell. Even without the voice giveaway, though, it’s a pretty safe bet that the culprit is Bashir.

The crew does have one brutal logical failing that could have solved this before the episode started. When they finally figure out that Vantika has been able to transfer his mind, they automatically jump to the conclusion that he jumped to Kajada. However, when Bashir was trying to save Vantika’s life at the beginning, Vantika reached up and grabbed Bashir by the throat. Kira had to forcibly remove his hand. Obviously, Vantika still inhabited his body at that time, so why didn’t Bashir fall under suspicion? He had more contact with Vantika than Kajada did. C’mon, Kira’s smarter than that.

Finally, an ongoing joke begins in this episode, as we have the first reference to waste extraction (though in this episode, it’s waste reclamation). I’m going to be making a note of this whenever it happens, because, for awhile there, it seemed there was a reference in almost every episode. It doesn’t detract from the episode. It’s just a bit of fun.

All in all, this wasn’t as bad as I remembered it. Without the horrid ending, it would be about a 3-star episode. The ending brings it down a bit, but rounding up still makes it a 3. It’s just a low 3 instead of a high one. While I can’t say I recommend it, I would recommend that you don’t run screaming in terror if you happen upon it.

Memorable Quote:

“What kind of fool are you?” “My own special variety.” Kajada & Odo

3 Stars