Guillermo Del Toro no longer to direct The Hobbit

This was the news that greeted me when I woke this morning.

Now comes to the fore just how much Tolkien means to me, because when I say that this has completely offset my entire day, I honestly mean it.

Peter Jackson's LotR trilogy was and remains the most perfect thing that has ever happened in any of my fandoms. Never could I have imagined so faithful an adaptation and for three years (I was in high school, so I had the free time!) I ate, slept and breathed Middle Earth as a result.

I had always adored the books, but here was Tolkien's world; more vivid and more tangible than ever it was in my imagination.

When The Hobbit was announced, I was excited but almost immediately incredibly nervous. Yes, Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens were writing it, yes it was going to be made in NZ and handled by WETA, yes it was going to be two movies... wait, what? Two separate movies. Neither of which would be directed by PJ. There we go; fangirl nausea.

Now I've read and re-read The Hobbit since I was about 7 and there are not two movies in that book. So, ok, they were going to bridge The Hobbit and LotR with some material from the histories of Middle Earth... the jury was still out on that one. I have a level of trust when it comes to Peter and Fran, so I talked myself off the tallest ledge of Minas Morgul and reasoned that life in the LotR fandom was still worth living.

Then came the news that Del Toro was going to direct. It took a long time to sink in, but since PJ ultimately wasn't going to direct, I actually felt that Del Toro was the best possible choice, and obviously everyone creatively involved in the project thought so too. Thus the dust settled and casting rumours could begin to fly happily as everyone settled down to write what I can only imagine is a beast of a script. Of course, the MGM Rights Ownership Battle of Fail™ also raged on. And on. And on some more.

So now, here we are with a 3 year project turned 6 year endurance test; no definable end in sight and now no director. I weep.

I want to say that I'm glad The Professor isn't alive to see this, but actually the whole rights problem would be a non-issue if he was... also I could invite him over for tea!

Do I think PJ will step into the breach? No. Would I die before I see Sam Raimi direct these movies? Well... *starts climbing up Minas Morgul again*

All I want is to see mountains again (mountains, Gandalf!); to walk through the Shire, to meet Beorn, to finally see Mirkwood and a glorious Weta Smaug... *wistful sigh* The Hobbit was the most cherished book of my entire childhood; it was my world. I would rather never see it on the silver screen than see it flung through hoops for the studios until it is unrecognisable. PJ won't let that happen... but the more this project drags on and the more wearied everyone becomes by the process, the more I fear for it.

There is also the growing possibility that I'll be long dead before it is even made!

What do you all think? What does this mean for you as a fan, or just a viewer? Who do you think is likely to direct?

MCM Expo - London - May 29th 2010

Having started with the colossal disorganisation fail that I so fondly remember Expo for, it ended up being a wonderful day. To those unfamiliar with it; MCM Expo is a bit like a badly run, less glamorous English version of Comic Con. To give them fair credit; they have drastically improved since I first attended in 2007. Just don't ever hope that a steward will be able to help you.

The much anticipated Comic Village absolutely lived up to expectations. I had the opportunity to meet a host of wonderful artists, and some really interesting collectives. I'll be posting plenty of reviews and snippets in the next few weeks. There is just so much talent out there, it really is overwhelming.

Having blown all of my current earnings, I dropped in to the Steampunk Panel, run by the lovely VSS. It merits, and will receive, a post of its own but was a wonderful - and far more down to earth than expected - introduction to steampunk.

Next up was the Caprica panel with Ron D. Moore (yes, I had a pronounced fangirl squee moment) and Esai Morales. I confess that Caprica has been on my to-do list for what seems like forever. After yesterday, it's definitely right at the top!

I had anticipated being spoilered for some episodes, but thankfully many of the questions were very vague. Esai Morales is a wonderful guy; very intelligent and with a wonderful sense of humour. He really seems to enjoy his role and be invested in the future of the show.

As Ron described it, Caprica came about not just as a result of the desire to tell the backstory of BSG but also Remi Aubuchon's submission of a completely independent pitch to the network about the development of artificial intelligence. It is something that I have long been interested in, so I am very excited about watching.

The panel did reveal some interesting information...! Esai Morales announced that he is going to be a father! Ron Moore confirmed that they are discussing several possible further BSG spinoffs with the studios. Apparently there are multiple possible directions they could take, and no one in particular has been favoured over the others so far; consequently he was reluctant to discuss them. We will also see at least Gemenon and potentially more of the Twelve Colonies in Caprica.

One of the best aspects of Expo is, of course, the costumes. There is a cosplay competition for animated characters, so many of the costumes do lean in that direction and most of them I don't recognise (if anyone can enlighten me as to what anime/manga/game character has a red, swirly face and a black coat with white trim I would be much indebted to you, as I saw about 10 of him/her and it's been driving me absolutely crazy), but there are still some absolute gems.

I did my very best not to openly fangirl this woman, but it was a disturbingly accurate costume and I was awesomely impressed. She looked completely normal aside from the obvious, and I would never even have noticed anything - as she had her back to me - if some other people hadn't started flailing and asking for photos.

The one part of the day where I truly let myself down was in not getting a photo with Darth Vader and the stormtroopers; but I was reluctant to step out of the queue before getting in and I was, I admit, considerably grumpy as we were having trouble with our tickets and no one seemed to know how to sort it out. Their costumes were so accurate! I've been paying close attention to Vader, as I am designing a costume for myself, and they even had the silk stripe at the bottom of the cape. Amazing!

This Neytiri (wow, Avatar was so memorable that I had to Google her name :S) looked pretty exhausted at this point - which was about 4pm - and we weren't far behind.

Expo is essentially a large floorshow, so passing time between panels can get a bit tedious as the day goes on - and paying £4 for a sandwich doesn't do much to improve matters.

While burning time at a booth, I made the mistake of screaming "OMG it's so sexy. I need one" at the Alienware M11X and the demo guy took it out of the glass case so I could play with it. Let me tell you; I have lusted after these computers for years. YEARS. What I did not need was to hold one in my hands. So, the next time I find myself in posession of £800 *pause for maniacal laughter* I know where that's going. I love my Scully *pets HP Pavilion* but those laptops are just too sexy to be allowed. Therefore - logically - I must own one.

Nobody puts steampunk Alien in a corner! Except apparently whoever owns this one; it was stashed at the back of a stall selling pornographic anime keychains...

The free bag of stuff that I got with my early entry ticket contained mostly shite (and Nanny McPhee stickers! I think they may have gotten their key demographic slightly wrong...) but did come with a free t-shirt. No idea what it's about (and I did misread it as Vital Slut; which I found far more exciting) but I won't say no to free pyjamas!

Detailed below is my comic book haul, and the free stuff that was actually worth keeping (and a little of the glamour of my bedroom floor!). I'll be talking about each of the artists over the course of a couple of posts; so watch this space. Lots more steampunk on the horizon too!

Sci-Fi Underwear: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

So... sci-fi underwear. Not the topic of many in-depth discussions about the nature of science fiction and the portrayal of women, but one that I feel does deserve to be highlighted.

Many of these shows/movies are really just victims of their time, but since I mainly watch sci-fi and it is a genre in which people frequently seem to get semi-naked so they can be hunted by aliens/serial killers with supernatural ability/have their partner check them for mosquito bites, it does seem an obvious choice to dissect.

Since the number of Google image searches I have done for "actor or character name underwear" is probably above average, I expect I am on some kind of government watchlist now.

I would like to highlight at this point that this is not the time or place I have chosen to discuss the objectification of women in the media; that is a far more complex topic than this flippant post merits. My point here has nothing to do with the fact that it is most frequently women who are stripped down for our 'viewing pleasure' (which is something I definitely plan to discuss in the future) but the fact that people used to consent to wear this stuff on television!!!

Exhibit A: Sigourney Weaver as Ripley in Alien

How it is even possible to give someone as incredibly skinny as Sigourney Weaver ACTUAL MUFFIN TOP is just beyond me.

Why? is the question that closely follows.

Also? The bra. It is your friend. It gives you the comfort and support you need while fighting aliens that want to hatch their young in your chest.

Do Lucas and Scott have some sort of "no underwear in space" pact?

Exhibit B: Gillian Anderson as Scully in The X-Files Pilot

Really beautiful woman; hideous, baggy underwear.

Now, enlighten me, was this kind of thing actually kinky in the 90's? Did that off-white, baggy look maybe do it for some people?

I think if you're going to the effort of putting partial nudity in your pilot (the general intention of which, I was led to believe, is to convince a network to pick up your show), why on earth would you dress your actress in this, unless you hate her and/or never want your show to see the light of the post-watershed tv slot??

Of course, they did eventually get the underwear right, with much practice; Battlestar Galactica being a prime example of functional and non-terrifying undergarments.

What about you guys? Where do you think sci-fi has gotten underwear terrifically wrong/right??

Various forces commanded that this be made... it is late at night and therefore an unskilled production....

Wishful Drinking

I have actually been wanting to read this book for almost 2 years. I spotted it when it first came out in hardback, but couldn't afford it.

I snapped up the paperback at work today and, much to my own surprise, got through it during lunchtime.

Wishful Drinking is going to be very difficult to describe as it is part book, part acid trip, but is basically an account of random - sometimes wholly unconnected - parts of Carrie Fisher's life.

If it weren't for Fisher's frank discussion of her recent ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) in the opening pages, even prior knowledge of her biopolar disorder and addiction problems would make the tone of this book difficult to interpret.

As she admits, the treatment has left her with massive gaps in her memory - she wryly describes the voicemail message her friend has made for her, stating "Hello and welcome to Carrie's voice mail. Due to recent Electro Convulsive Therapy, please pay close attention to the following options. Leave your name, number and a brief history as to how Carrie knows you, and she'll get back to you if this jogs what's left of her memory." Littered with photos - mainly of her family - and anecdotes, Wishful Drinking is for the most part an ironically easy read. I found the first two thirds at least to be a little flippant and also confusing - as the book mostly reads like the wildest manic episode you could imagine. Her trains of thought, which are not always humorous, are frequently scattered. The focus is largely on her parents - something it would seem Fisher has been unable to avoid since birth.

There is an abrupt turn towards the end of the book, in which it becomes simultaneously more disturbing, revealing and funny all at once... for all that Fisher gathered her stardom and puns around her earlier in the book, here we begin to see the very serious and disturbing side of her mental illness. There is a glimpse of the true hopelessness of being so lost in oneself that you can't quite see the way out.

The upside to Wishful Drinking - for it cannot be ignored - is Fisher's self deprecating sense of humour. She doesn't have the 'survivor' mentality at all -something which I think would have tended to make the book unbearable. Her frank approach to the problems in her life is very refreshing.

Poking fun at Hollywood royalty and even putting forth Lucas' argument that "there's no underwear in space" [I KNEW there was no bra under that gown!], Fisher dilutes the deeper sadness of her illness with often randomly inserted tales.

Wishful Drinking is, at times, very funny. It is not really a helpful description of Fisher's life. It is definitely not a book to read while tired, stoned, drunk or reading Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? [I made the latter mistake] as Fisher's reality is, she freely admits, not reality at all. It is, above all I think, a sad, sad testament to the trials of living with bipolar disorder. This book may be marketed as humour, as a book for Star Wars fans... it isn't. Yes, those aspects are present, but what Wishful Drinking presents is a person who, despite having finally been diagnosed and received appropriate treatment, is fundamentally not well and that is a sad, sad thing to read.

Do I recommend it? Definitely. Fisher is witty and very endearing at points. There are some priceless moments - Star Wars related and otherwise. It is such a frank account of what it is to be "batshit", that I can't help but love her more for it. What I will say is this; unless you are prepared to take that dive with Fisher as a recent bystander to her world and life from the outside, this book will seem like nothing more than wandering drivel. Take that step, and what you will find will make you laugh, cry and occasionally frown in pleasant confusion.

I don't want to give away the closing paragraph, as it is a wonderful punchline - but I will share this example of precisely the funny/sad/ironic tone with which Fisher manages to lace most of the book.

I tell my younger friends that one day they'll be at a bar playing pool and they'll look up at the television set and there will be a picture of Princess Leia with two dates underneath, and they'll say, 'awww -- she said that would happen.' and go back to playing pool.

Find of the day!

I managed to resist spending money I don't have both in Mega City Comics and when I saw comic strip tights in Camden... but these just broke me. Who among you could honestly resist fully functioning Rubik's cube earrings?? I ask you!!!

More fun and friendly geeky objects - including Lego earrings - are available at Philip's ebay shop: The Happy Shack.

Phoenix Copper Art

It was my very first (sort of) convention. 2007. I had flown to London straight after an exam, and was generally a little confused, stressed and tired. Having roamed the convention hall for several weary laps, Will's stall caught my eye not just because of the stunning array of his work on display, but because it provided a corner in which it looked like I might not be buffeted by any Daleks for a few minutes.

It turned out to be one of the best things I have ever found while hiding from Dr. Who villains!

Will's work is incredibly unique - as far as I am aware there isn't anyone else doing sci-fi related copper art. His work covers almost any show and fandom you can shake a wizard's staff at - from Lord of the Rings to Firefly - and he has made some absolutely amazing pieces. I only wish I had enough photographs to do them justice.

My first purchase from Phoenix Copper Art was an A5 Princess Mononoke journal - each journal has a copper plate cover with a unique design, leather binding and the pages detailed with further images from the relevant fandom. Mine, for example, had the tree spirits inside; which made me squee to no end. Will can supply refill pages, so you can keep on using your favourite journal cover forever!

Will also makes journals on request - although this can take some time as he is very busy - and is very happy to discuss any design ideas you might have. He's not just a fantastic artist but great fun to chat to. I always look out for him at cons and know where to retreat to when I need a break from wandering in circles and perhaps a therapeutic Twilight rant.

The website doesn't even touch on the range of designs available - I highly recommend looking out for Phoenix Copper Art if you are planning to attend any cons in the UK (Will lists the events he plans to attend on the website) or getting in touch if you're looking for the perfect gift for that geek in your life - or you just want to spoil yourself!