Since a few people have asked recently (surreal, I know... people, out there on the internet, paying attention to what I'm doing), you can post comments on any review you like on here, but you will have to log into PBWiki to do so.  The registration's free and fairly quick and painless, so if you have a serious hankering to tell me how full of shit I am, feel free to comment away!  Sadly, the comments don't show up for non-logged-in users, either, which makes me wonder if I need to set up some kind of comment forum elsewhere.  Something to consider for later, if I end up having more than a couple of people who want to discuss.

Non-logged-in people can still send me email via the "Contact Wiki Owner" link at the bottom of each page, so even if you don't feel like registering, you can harass me to your heart's content.

In other news, despite recent events outside my control, I finally finished viewing the Markowitz/Schnell movie today, and will start on that review tomorrow.  Alas, it turned out that my freshly-imported copy of Ye Bang ge Sheng was faulty, so the wonders of classic Chinese cinema will remain a mystery to me until I can replace it.

So instead of that, I'll be doing the movie with Pauly Shore next.  Lucky me!

The Fisher/Lom review is up, and it only took... um... five days.  Hands up, anyone who is surprised.  I'm definitely not a film student, so my amateur film reviews are much more difficult and take me much longer to churn out.  Sorry to all of you (Google tells me that people only come here looking for books I haven't yet reviewed, anyway, so that's probably not very many) who were waiting in unbearable suspense.

The suspense will probably continue, because it's looking like I've got several more films to go before I can settle down with a nice book again.  As I'm writing this, I'm not yet sure if I'll go with the schmaltzy 80's versions next or backtrack and pick up the original Ye bang ge sheng, but either way, look for probably at least a few more days before I get another one processed.

I'm learning as I go.  This is all kinds of fun.

This film also marks the point at which the notebook I started taking notes in at the beginning of this project ran out of pages.  Off to the corner supply store with me!

For those looking for more information on the authors represented (or lauded, or lampooned, or unjustly criticized) around here, I've added a tasty Links page.  In addition to a few pages that may have more information for the wanderer looking to bone up on the Phantom mythos, there are also links to the websites of the authors of works I've discussed, or links to informational sources about them if an official website isn't available.

In particular, check out Jennifer Linforth, author of what looks like a seriously interesting upcoming Phantom novel, who stopped by to look around the place today, and Steve Rasnic Tem, who is not only an awesome writer but was also nice enough to link to my review from his website.

I'm in awesome-author overload from these guys.  Leave them some love while I go figure out how to watch a Chinese film three times without driving my poor boyfriend completely out of his mind.

Holy crap, the Hill review is up!  Look at me make up for lost time, guys!  Look at me go!  I also cleaned a few things up around here and added some navigational aids for the reviews.  In case anyone is, you know.  Navigating.

Moving on to the Fisher/Lom film now, because that should have been out there long, long ago.  I love it when I finally find versions I've been missing!  It's excellent!

Stay tuned for further developments.  I will be a film-viewing fiend for a while here as I catch up.

Ladies, and gentlemen, the Braunbeck review is up.  Do you know what that means?

It means the Greenberg anthology is over and done with.  Everyone do the dance with me!  You know you want to!

I'm probably going to hit the original Hill musical next, possibly followed up by some movies, because I think we all need a change of pace (and by "we all", I mean "me").  La dee da, look at me go!

Holy gravycakes.

Some of you may recall the recent, extremely snarky, and overabundantly capitalized review I posted of Gary Alan Ruse's "Dark Angel".  Those of you who read it know that I completely laid into that story. I was profane; I was critical; I was sarcastic; I was ranty. In short, I was a total bitch, as I often am when reviewing. Then, this evening, to my vast and eternal surprise, the author actually responded to my review.

Mr. Ruse left a very polite, informative comment on my review, which I have added at the end of the article for anyone interested in reading it. Not only was he far more cordial than I suspect I would be if someone was so unabashedly critical of my work, but he had some very interesting points to make about his story, and some background information to boot. I feel enlightened, not to mention incredibly flattered that he took the time out of his busy schedule of being way more productive and published than I am to comment on an amateur reviewer's opinion of his story.

Whatever I might think about the story, Ruse is one classy dude. If you've got the time, check out his website, or maybe even his books. I know I will.

(A professional writer randomly found and commented on my review. This might be the most awesome thing ever to happen to me.)

Millstead review is up!

One more short story!  Onnnnnnne morrrrrrrre!

The Tem review is up.  Go me!

Sadly, I have to send back my mistaken copy of Leroux tomorrow and cry into my beer or something because I still don't have the graphic novel.  Alas.  However, with the refund I can grab some new texts--so hooray!

The good news: the Ruse review is up, and I never have to read the Ruse again.

The bad news: my copy of the Leroux graphic novel arrived today, but upon opening it turned out to be another copy of Leroux's original novel text.  I emailed the seller and await appeasement, but I am sad and disappointed.  I hate it when my presents turn out to be wrong.

Hmm.  Now, this is interesting.

I'm hearing some scuttlebutt that the Julian/Chaney film that we've all seen may not, in fact, be the original.  According to sources (unconfirmed and on the internet, so take it all with a grain of salt, yeah?), the widely released version of the film is a recut and redited version of the 1929 "talkie" re-release.  The original silent movie from 1925 supposedly includes several more scenes, including the scene in the graveyard and some flashbacks to flesh out the relationship between Erik and Christine a little more.  I'm not entirely sure if this is true, but if it is... goddammit, I'll have to buy another DVD, won't I?  Like I don't have enough of them yet.

I know that Amazon is selling a collector's edition with two versions of the film, so I'll have to investigate.  If this is true, I'd be really interested to see how that changes the film's impact (and who can resist the chance to watch a carriage chase again?  Not me!).

Not a new review today, but an addition to an old one.  I just added an important note to the end of the Malzberg review, after being hit by the hammer of realization this morning.  If you missed it (yeah, you, one person who read that review), check out the change.  I feel so much less like a complete idiot now.

Holy socks in the dryer, Batman.  Two reviews in two days?  This is madness!  (No!  But it is probably not Sparta, either.)  The Malzberg review is up in all its glorious overexcitement.

And speaking of overexcitement--only four stories left in this anthology!  Everybody shout with me--YAHOO!

Oh, snap, look.  I'm getting faster!  The Haber review is up with its many boatloads of hateration.  Go me!