Saturday, February 10, 2007

Words of Wisdom from C-3PO

Surfing channels can lead to the most curious finds. The other day I stumbled across a series entitled, When (blank) Ruled the World, that was reviewing the popularity of Star Wars as a cultural phenomenon. All of the original cast members (still living) and a number of fans were interviewed. The three performers most central to the original run, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford, were understandably practiced, even jaded, after decades of discussing what was, ultimately, just a phase of their younger days. There was a definite bit of cynicism in the midst of an informed appreciation of the effects of their early work on both their later careers and on society at large. A sense of resentment and/or resignation is inevitable amidst the almost requisite awe that comes with what media hoopla has inspired. The fact that time has only heightened the mania, rather than decreasing it, is likewise impressive. What I liked best about the whole show, however, was a comment by Anthony Daniels, the British actor who has informed the etiquette droid, C-3PO, through all six films. He quipped, "Now that I'm a Pez and a Lego, I can die happy." That really does have to sum things up beautifully, encompassing the heights and depths of the effects of this juggernaut that has so completely insinuated itself into every aspect of modern society, from crass commerce to the halls of academia to techno inspiration and all the nooks and crannies in between.

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

Sound Fest End

Just got through listening to the first six Harry Potter audiobooks and I have to say that doing so has been a bit of a preview for reading the soon to be released seventh volume. There's a sense of loss and displacement as it all comes to an end. Now, the author has promised that there will still be much to ponder and discuss once the final volume is published. I have to assume that she hopes to join the ranks of authors acclaimed for literary merit as well as commercial viability, a group too often mutually exclusive. Whether or not her hopes are fulfilled will, in the long run, be determined by how well her intended thematic threads come together and stand up under the scrutiny of time and scholarship. Thus far she has demonstrated excellent skill with pacing, dialogue, and seeding her works with scavenger hunt-style clues. She is wrestling with weighty themes, but whether or not she works them out with sufficient ingenuity remains to be seen. She sound satisfied, however, so I am hopeful. I only wish I could go back and start listening all over again, but life has been neglected long enough and going back right now would be despairingly tedious. Ah well...

Pharm Ad

Been seeing an ostensibly anti-drug abuse ad lately that features four teens in a car cruising for free pharmaceuticals in their parents' medicine cabinets. When I first saw it, I thought the kids looked dweebie. The more I see it, however, the more it looks like they're having a really good time and like what they're doing might be a fun thing to try, besides being extremely cost effective for a budget-conscious teen. Somehow, that seems antithetical to the purported intent of the ad. Now why do you suppose pharmaceutical companies would provide funding to a nonprofit organization to run ads condemning the misuse of pharmaceuticals by teens? The ad even touts pharms as having surpassed meth in popularity for abuse in recent years. Mixed message, indeed!