lyore

I return to LJ after my brief flirtation with Real Life - but alas, our time together might be short, for I fear RL shall soon raise its ugly head once again.

Or, in other words, I'll be around for the rest of this week, but may be internet-less for the week after that.

Once again, I have given up on my foolish fantasy of catching up on my flist - I think I caught the main points on my (very) quick skim through, but if I've missed anything let me know.

What I did find in my meanderings was confirmation from Joss himself that the Ripper spinoff is still on the cards, in a TV-movie format. This is brilliant news - of all the spinoffs I would have liked to have seen in the Buffyverse, this was always number one.

Also: anyone on my flist got any good links to either a) HP AU fics where Harry is raised by Sirius (yeah, I know, but I'm on a HP AU kick at the moment) or b) any good John H/C stuff (Farscape), light on the smarm? I know it's probably an odd combination to be craving at once, but I am.

Just finished.

It is... surprisingly good. I'm sure you all know about the my opinions of the last two (especially OotP), so my expectations were exceedingly low, but overall I liked it.


( Spoilery thoughts under the cut )

OK guys, what are your thoughts?

No, I haven't read them. Not because I'm particularly trying not to be spoiled, I just haven't gotten around to tracking them down. But all the reactions I've been seeing on my flist have prompted a thought or two, which I thought I'd share.

If, for the time being, we consider the spoilers genuine (and again, I haven't read them, so have no opinion either way), I'm interested in the reactions of the fans. Are people more likely to be honest about their opinions when it is possible (or even likely) that this isn't the 'real' Harry Potter?

Every single reaction I've seen has been negative, profoundly so in some cases. And this is coming from a wide cros-section of my flist (as well as random people on LJ/the internet), people I wouldn't be able to get to agree the sky was blue in normal circumstances. And yet they all agree on this. I've certainly never seen such uniformity of opinion on any of the actual books (For instance, IMO, OotP was mostly unmitigated rubbish, and yet I know some people think it was OK, and some who think it was the best in the series).

If these spoilers do turn out to be accurate, I'd be very interested in a comparison of the reactions posted before and after the spoilers were authenticated. This seems to me to be the best chance of get a reaction to the book uncluttered by the automatic canon/creator defense mechanism of many fans (not throwing stones here - I've been guilty of it too).

Of course, in this instance there are other issues to be cosidered- people being more critical because they suspect the information is faked, annoyance over spoilers, etc. Still, I think it would be interesting to look at, if they turn out to be real.

I also think this has some interesting insights into the different ways fans react to official sources versus unofficial (and specifically fan-created) work, but that may have to wait until I am fully awake to articulate properly.

ETA Have had a quick flick through the spoilers, since I figured this was a win/win situation. Either a) they are accurate and DH really is as bad as it looks, in which case I am forwarned, or b) they aren't accurate, and therefore the book almost has to be an improvement, and the exceeding of my expectations makes me happy. (That said, there are some parts which look good/interesting, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see.)

ETA the 2nd Have done a slightly more intensive flick through the spoiler comms, and there are people who like it, so I stand corrected. I still think a comparison of reactions would be interesting.

You know, it's weird how I look for different things in different fandoms. Am I the only one who does this?

I mean, I'm into the Stargate SG-1 fandom purely for the fic, but I'm a sucker for Star Wars meta (although well written (OT, gen) fic is always good). Harry Potter was about half-and-half meta and fic, back when I was a big-time fan. Dr Who is great for the general squee! ness, but I don't really want to read fic for it, and Supernatural is all about the visual candy (OK, partly this is out of an attempt to stay unspoiled).

Thinking about it, I guess it mostly has to do with the way I relate to the source material. Stargate, for instance - Don't get me wrong, I love that show to pieces, but for it's potential, as well as what it is. When you combine the gaping plot holes, the inconsistent characterisation and character development, and the complete lack of resolution to most of the episodes, it's crying out for decent fanfic to fill in the gaps. Whereas Star Wars, prequels and all, doesn't have that feeling of incompleteness to me. I still love good 'missing moment' fics, but I don't really need them to get a sense of what the movies are saying (OK, maybe for the prequels...). On the other hand, I will go hunting for good meta concerning any of the characters, even the ones I don't particularly like, just to see other peoples interpretations.

I don't even know if that makes sense, but it's after midnight, and I have to be up in 6 hours.

Happy Birthday to cloverfizz!

You know, there are times when I love living in Canberra. And Canberra Day is definitely on top of the list. Ahh, extra public holidays for us...

Of course, the downside of this is that tuesday is Harmony Day. And we can all guess how the Harmonians are reacting to this *sigh* People should really stop encouraging them. On the other hand, monday is also Navy day. Perhaps we could crash a Seahawk on them?

Speaking of Canberra, I also love the way that everyone here expects the NSW to sneak across the border and try and steal their stuff. You can't even join the video store without proof that you live in the ACT, instead of, say Queenbeyan. The fact that Woden is closer to Queebeyan than a hell of a lot of the rest of the ACT doesn't matter to them. No, NSW is just filled with devious Video!Ninjas, bent on borrowing all the DVD's in the ACT as part of their Plot for World Domination. First Blockbuster's and Tomorrow The World!

Actually, now that I think about it, the fact that Harmony day is being promoted in Canberra is making a lot more sense. The Canberrans can be all paranoid and whine about persecuted by the New South Welshmen and to a lesser extent the rest of Australia, and the Harmonians can be all paranoid and whine about being persecuted by the Herons, JKR, and the sane portion of fandom.

But hey, 3 day weekend *shrug*

*Stands triumphantly on top of pile of massacred assessment, yodeling 'We Are The Champions'*

Yes, folks, Lyore is officially back. Handed in my last piece of assessment this morning. Last Ever Piece of Undergraduate Assessment (excluding exams - touch wood).

Though, failing would be good from the point of view of having another year of high speed internet access and the uni network. Unfortunately, failing would be bad due to the slightly more hazardous fact that my parents would shoot me before I could use my high speed internet access. *sigh*

Hmm, Makybe Diva just won the Melbourne Cup, AKA 'The-race-that-stops-a-nation-except-for-Lyore's-semiconductor-tute' *growls*. I like watching it, even when I haven't backed anyone. AND this year I picked the winner - well, me and the rest of the country. I think I can hear the screams of anguish from the Bookies now.


Other random things which have landed in my inbox and I thought I might share
( HP Flying car stolen )

You know, just cause the car couldn't be DRIVEN away...


( On a more sinister note... EM mind control )

That's so wrong. What's worse is that I could kinda get behind the whole defense ideas - subduing someone temporarily is infinitely preferable to shooting them, IMO. But something which can actually control your actions? No thanks. *glares suspiciously at iPod*



Revenge of the Sith is released here tomorrow, but I will... not... buy... it... *closes eyes and thinks of Boxsets. Expensive, entire saga Boxsets* Someone grab one of those mind control thingys and steer me AWAY from the DVD stores, please.


Random Observation of the Day - In regards to the 'pick the horse with the interesting colours' system of betting, this was moderately successful - red and white checks plus the southern cross. Not too bad. You know, someone should find out if horses with two names do better in the Melbourne cup than horses with one (Makybe Diva, Phar Lap... )


( EDIT - cause I was bored... )

EDIT again - to fix MDs colours and to let you all know - in NSW, people bet $59 million on the TAB alone for the Melbourne cup. Wow.