You're Probably in a Fandom.

Think really hard. What's you favorite show? Movie? Book? Video game? Anything. There are so many things that are fandoms. It's not just for specifically geeky things. Sure, geeks are more likely to be in a fandom, and we have bigger and more connected fandoms, but that's only because geeks are incredibly enthusiastic about everything. We watch shows, and rather than just discuss with our friends, we have to go online and read everything about the show, draw pictures of the characters, make up stories about them, etc. I'm under the impression that normal people don't do this, but I wouldn't really know. But anyway, when you watch a show (or read a book, or watch a movie, or do almost anything else that involves human consciousness), just know that there are people out there who love the same thing that you do. That's what a fandom is: being part of something bigger, with people like yourself. Just because you don't know it's there doesn't mean that there isn't a fandom for what you love. 

So what fandoms are you in? Because I bet that you're in at least one. Shows like Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, Dexter, Downton Abbey... Books like The Hunger Games, Harry Potter, Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars... Even if there's a band or a YouTuber you really like. The lists go on and on. It's all about what you love, and finding connections with other people who love the same things.

Movie Reveiw: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

       

What's better than Neil Patrick Harris? When he sings. Which is (partially) why I love Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Created by Joss Whedon and starring Harris alongside Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day, this is less of a movie and more of a miniseries in three acts, but they run together. The whole thing is only 42 minutes but is labeled as a TV season on iTunes, where it was #1 for five weeks in a row. What makes it even more ironic is that is only appeared on the internet; it was created specifically as a web series and didn't air on TV. It's available on Netflix. And did I mention, it's a musical? That's right, everyone break into song for no apparent reason!

The story is about Billy, an aspiring super villain (alter ego: Dr. Horrible) trying to join the Evil League of Evil, while also trying to win over his laundry buddy Penny and fighting his nemesis Captain Hammer. He narrates the story through his video blog at the beginning of each act. Billy inadvertently introduces Penny to Captain Hammer, who recognizes his nemesis. (Penny doesn't know that Billy is actually evil.) And of course, Captain Hammer and Penny start dating, which leads Dr. horrible to create a scheme to get rid of him and steal Penny back. Video blog posts, montages, and evilness ensue. 

 Like anything Joss Whedon makes, Dr. Horrible is hilarious and sad at the same time. He is notorious for killing off main characters. Consider yourself warned. The character development is amazing; by the end Dr. Horrible gets what he wants, but you have to ask yourself if Billy really does. Captain Hammer and Penny are both deeply changed by the end as well. In fact, the ending is rather painful and abrupt, but that's Whedon for you. He was actually slated to write Dr. Horrible 2, but he was pulled into directing The Avengers, and the project was dropped. 

Despite how sad it is, the ending is actually my favorite part. All the action has built up, and now you get to see how Dr. Horrible's plan turns out, what will happen to Captain Hammer, and who will win over Penny's love. When all's said and done, I felt closer to Billy at the very end. The very last scene/song is so haunting. It ends so abruptly, almost mid-song, and you can clearly see how Billy feels about what he's done. I especially love the line "So you think justice has a voice, and we all have a choice" from the last song, because, in the end, Billy didn't get a choice. 

Although it's a sad ending, it is a very good ending. I highly recommend seeing this short film. I honestly love everything about it. It is a pile of happy contradictions. It is whimsical and serious; painful and hilarious; musical, but not corny. Even the characters contradict tradition: it is from the 'villain's' point of view, and the 'hero' is made out to be the bad guy. So go watch Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, because yes, there will be sadness, but there will also be joy, laughter, singing, and a lot of fun.

Series Three, OMG!

Oh my god guys, I can't even right now. I'm barely containing myself here. It's currently  taking all my self control to not flip out and start bashing my fingers on the keyboard. Excessive fangirling! aaaaahahhhhhhhhahhhhhhahahhahah he jko wqijoAW23 PREMNKL C3 ORK

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         Sorry about that. If you can't tell, I'm a bit excited. Series Three of Sherlock is finally here! If you don't know (you probably don't), the Sherlock fandom is widely regarded as the craziest one out there. The show is amazing, but the tragedy is that it has two series (British speak for seasons), each of which are three episodes long. That's right; the whole show is only six episodes. (And to be fair, they are 88 min each, but still, it's only SIX EPISODES!) To make matters worse, the show is written by the biggest trolls in the world, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss. Moffat also writes Doctor Who, and he has a habit of killing main caracters only to bring them back. He is known for making us afraid of ordinary objects such as a crack in the wall or a stone statue, and fans have been known to shout his name in distress when bad things happen. 
          But I digress. As I was saying, these trolls have tortured the entire fandom by ending Series Two with and insane cliffhanger. (Spoiler) In a battle of wits with Moriarty, Sherlock was forced to kill himself in order to save the lives of everyone he loves (admittedly, not many people.) So he jumps off a building, in front of his best friend John Watson. The final scene was John, in the graveyard, pleading with Sherlock's grave. ("Please, there's just one more thing. One more thing. One more miracle, Sherlock, for me. Don't be... dead.") At which point, everyone everywhere is not crying, we just have something in our eye, and we feel so bad for poor John Watson because of reasons. That is, until the camera pans around to show Sherlock, standing all mysterious with his cheekbones and his coat collar popped up, watching John from a distance and very much alive. Which is precisely when the entire fandom exploded, and when those great trolls decided it would be a perfect time for a two year hiatus. 
           So there have been no new episodes of Sherlock for two years, and in that time the fandom has been trying to figure out how Sherlock managed to fake his own death, creating gifs, analyzing every single detail of the show, drawing amazing fanart, and collectively losing their minds. But it's back now, and hopefully the fandom will regain some of it's sanity! Hopefully...

Freeman and Cumberbatch

          The show really is amazing. In case you hadn't deduced it, it's based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, but it takes place in modern-day London. It stars Benedict Cumberbatch (the most British and ridiculous name, though the actor himself is amazing) as Sherlock and Martin Freeman (also amazing) as John. Now, I feel like I'm overusing the word amazing, but that's the only way I can describe the acting on this show. Cumberbatch and Freeman really bring these characters to life in such a creative way that makes them both (at least in my opinion) much more interesting than in the original books. Their offscreen friendship mirrors Sherlock and John's friendship, and you truly get the sense that they're are a perfect team. The writing on the show is spectacular, and the cinematography is breathtaking. (There. I found some other adjectives.) The way it is filmed, there are times when it feels like you are looking into Sherlock's brilliant mind as he solves the case. 
          Currently, as I write this, the second episode of Series Three is airing in the UK. Because of reasons, I have to wait to see it online, but it's better than waiting until the 19th for episode one to air on TV in the US. The first episode was completely crazy, and the fandom all agrees that the writers spent the last two years on Tumblr, reading fanfics and theories about how Sherlock faked his death and incorporating them into the show. The sad news is that by tomorrow Series Three will be 2/3 over, and soon we'll be back to waiting. Whatever is left in store for Series Three, I'm sure it will be awesome, just as I'm sure it will end in another cliffhanger and year-and-a-half hiatus.

We're Not Pirates. I Swear.

You'll probably hear me talk a lot about ships and cannons. I just wanted to let you know that fangirls are not, indeed, pirates. A ship is two characters who you want to be in a relationship. (It is used as both a verb and a noun) e.g. I totally ship Destiel. (The names Dean and Castiel, characters from supernatural, combined.) or I have way too many ships for my own good. Cannon just means what actually happens on the show/book/whatever. So if a ship is cannon, then those characters actually do get together. e.g. Destiel is not a cannon ship, because they don't actually have a relationship on the show. What makes ships sink? When other ships have cannon! (ha ha ha) Also I should mention that OTP just stands for One True Pairing- basically just your favorite ship in a fandom. I ship a lot of things, that I won't mention right now.

Welcome to Night Vale

"WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE is a twice-monthly podcast in the style of community updates for the small desert town of Night Vale, featuring local weather, news, announcements from the Sheriff's Secret Police, mysterious lights in the night sky, dark hooded figures with unknowable powers, and cultural events. Turn on your radio and hide."

       What's crazy and creepy and beautiful all at the same time? This podcast. Welcome to Night Vale is a news cast from the fictional town of, you guessed it, Night Vale. This fandom is rather unique to all my other fandoms, in that it is purely audio- no written words or pictures. This is a nice change from the norm, because I'm used to watching or reading. With WtNV, I can sit back and enjoy the strangeness and the beauty. And it is just that. This podcast will seriously make you rethink certain things, while simultaneously terrifying and/or creeping you out. There are so many amazing quotes that I'm having a hard time choosing some to share. Seriously, it's so quotable, both for the profound thoughts and the weird ones. You have this: "The universe is vast. You are also vast. So is an ant. There are different sizes of infinity." and this: "There is a thin semantic line separating weird and beautiful. And that line is covered in jellyfish." If you don't believe me, check out their twitter page, (@nightvaleradio) which is full of crazy, weird, and surprisingly profound tweets.
The podcast is narrated by Cecil Baldwin, with his smooth-as-caramel voice. I have found that Cecil speaks more formally in first few episodes, and becomes more familiar with the listeners as time goes by.  (But what is time, really?) In later episodes Cecil tells us a little about his personal life, and his relationship with Carlos. The pilot introduces us to Carlos, the scientist, with his perfect hair and his perfect smile. (Perfect, beautiful Carlos) Perhaps the best thing about this fandom is that it has exactly one ship, and it is completely cannon! Not only that, but Cecilos is a homosexual and biracial ship. It's pretty much a fangirl's dream OTP. Seriously, they're so cute! Their first date was precious!

Because there is no visual to this fandom, the amount of fanart is incredible. The beauty is that you can draw Cecil and Carlos in any way, however you picture them. The possibilities are endless. Plus, there are some really cool drawings out there of the crazy-creepy things in Night Vale. Amazing drawings of the hooded figures in the dog park (Do Not Approach!) the angels at Old Woman Josie's house (which don't exist, of course) the glow cloud (all hail) and so much more. A lot of people draw Cecil as tall, skinny, and blond, with moving tatoos on his arms and a third eye on his forehead; but like I said, no one really knows what he looks like. 
       What I love most about this fandom is just being able to listen. The writing is incredible, as is the narration. Some of it sounds like spoken word poetry: "I took a walk on the cool sand dunes, brittle grass overgrown, and above me in the night sky, above me, I saw. Bitter taste of unripe peaches, and a smell I could not place, nor could I escape. I remembered other times that I could not escape. I remembered other smells. The moon slunk like a wounded animal. The world spun like it had lost control. Concentrate only on breathing, and let go of ideas you had about nutrition and alarm clocks. I took a walk on the cool sand dunes, brittle grass overgrown, and above me, in the night sky above me, I saw." And other parts will make you laugh out loud: "I think the best way to die would be swallowed by a giant snake. Going feet first and whole into a slimy maw would give your life perfect symmetry." WtNV has made me laugh, (almost) cry, smile, gasp, raise my eyebrows, and so much more. The background music is perfect, highlighting both the beautiful and strange in equal measure. I love listening before bed, because it has the ability to calm me down and put me to sleep, even when Cecil is talking about something incredibly disturbing. Each episode features a weather report with a song from an indie artist. These weather reports are great, because you never know what to expect; sometimes you love it, sometimes you hate it, but you always appreciate it. And I can always find some deep metaphor for life in the episodes, some great lessons, all wrapped in a bundle of crazy. I'm hooked on Night Vale, and I'm always waiting for the first and fifteenth of every month. 
       I have one disclaimer about this fandom: it must be approached with a very open mind. It is definitely not for everyone. You have to just take everything at face value. For instance, there is nothing abnormal about the fact that Hiram McDaniels is a) a five headed draggon, who was b) a wanted criminal, c) suspected of insurance fraud, and is d) now running for mayor of Night Vale against e) the faceless old woman who secretly lives in your house. If you find anything wrong with those statements, WtNV is probably not for you. Just know that it is sometimes weird, sometimes gross, sometimes creepy, but I think the abstract thinking and profound thoughts are so worth listening. They keep my coming back for more, and it is the reason this will always be one of my favorite things to listen to.
Welcome To Night Vale can be downloaded for free from itunes. There are 37 episodes ranging from 19-32 minutes each. You can find out more at commonplacebooks.com 

Good night, followers. Good night.

Random Fandom

Just a small nerdy thing that happened to me today (something only I find funny, but I'll share with you anyway):

As we all sat down for Thanksgiving dinner, my mom insisted on playing Christmas music in the background. My sister complained about this, saying that Thanksgiving hadn't even passed, and we should enjoy it while it's here. To this I responded "Thanksgiving is the gateway to Christmas. They are directly liked. Neither can live while the other survives." (I just had to throw in a Harry Potter reference!)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The 50th Anniversary! Or, The Day of the Doctor

*Spoilers if you want to watch the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary*

(From the left: Jenna Coleman, Matt Smith, David Tennant, and Billie Piper)

This past weekend was the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary. For those of you who have never heard of it, Doctor Who is a British sci-fi show about a time traveler from space. Yeah, it can't really be described without making me sound completely mental. The Doctor can travel anywhere through space and time in his TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimension In Space). It looks like a 1960s police box, and is bigger on the inside:

He is over 1,000 years old, due to regeneration- he changes bodies when he is about to die, as a way of saving himself. Because of this, the Doctor has been played by 11 different actors since it began in 1963. This is also the reason the show has been able to continue for so long; it is the longest running sci-fi show ever!
The Doctor generally travels with a companion, who is more often than not a young British girl, but he has had companions that are males, aliens, or both. The Day of the Doctor brought back former actors David Tennant and Billie Piper, alongside current actors Matt Smith and Jenna Louise Coleman, and featuring cameos from other Doctors, both past and future. (Fourth Doctor Tom Baker made a surprise appearance, as well as Peter Capaldi, who is set to become the Twelfth Doctor when Matt Smith regenerates next month. More on Smith's regeneration to come.) David Tennant was my personal favorite incarnation of the Doctor, and Rose Tyler (played by Billie Piper) was my favorite companion, so I was very excited that they were coming back for the special. Although I was somewhat disappointed at the way Piper came back to the show, (she was not exactly playing Rose Tyler, but rather an interface of the TARDIS) I liked the way she was tied into the story. It made sense with everything that has happened with her character. The Tenth Doctor was a huge treat, especially when placed next to the Eleventh. Together they made the 50th Anniversary amazing.

The plot of the special was great; it was funny, serious, and totally changed the course of the show- past, present, and future. The Doctor managed to get married to Queen Elizabeth the First, defeat the aliens trying to take over the Earth, and save his home planet of Gallifrey, all in 76 minutes. Plus, there were lots of Easter eggs hinting at the show's 50 year history. The episode also won a Guinness World Record for the world's longest simulcast of a tv show! 

Doctor Who is a wonderful show, if you like British people, time/space travel, and or aliens. I know people who hate it and people who adore it. I guess it's a matter of opinion. I like this show because it's interesting; it really makes you think. Every episode is something different. One day the Doctor could be on the distant planet of Raxacoricofallapatorious, and the next day the Titanic could crash into the TARDIS. There are silly episodes, scary episodes, and serious episodes. Sometimes it makes you question past events, and other times you'll be scratching your head, wondering about quantum physics. But it's always a great adventure, and The Day of the Doctor was no exception. It was, in the words of the Ninth Doctor, fantastic!

You can find Doctor Who on Netflix and on BBC America (although it's currently on hiatus.)