https://www.feanorsworkshop.com/blog/logorss.jpg An online journal... of DOOM! Mon, 01 Jul 2013 09:08:00 +0000  by Fëanor

I just finished listening to the audio book of A Game of Thrones. I think it's probably my third or fourth time "reading" the book. I wasn't too far into it this time when I almost gave up on it. It was right around the scene when Ned has to kill the wolf. It was so brutal, and it made me remember all the other brutal and awful things to come for all these poor characters, and I just wasn't sure I could face it. These books are rough. Every time a character prays desperately for something not to happen, it happens, and vice versa. As soon as Martin establishes that a character loves something with all their heart - boom, he takes that away from them.

But I stuck with the book, and I'm glad I did. It really is excellent. I feel like later on in the series, things begin to get a bit tired and plodding, but this is a fantastic first book. I tried to focus this time on the structure and the form, on the way Martin builds the world and its people. He carefully and skillfully introduces you to a huge number of characters and a huge, complex world, giving you pieces at a time, slowly adding more, repeating things so they stick, slipping you hints of what's to come. Because I'd read it all before and knew what was coming, it was easier to notice those hints, and I was able to recognize a lot of subtle foreshadowing. He slowly begins to grow these characters, and teach them and mold them and change them. Each chapter is from a single character's perspective, and each one is a complete scene, with its own little arc. I feel like every Jon chapter he learns a little more, becomes more of a man, becomes more of a leader - the same with the Dany chapters. And everything slowly builds to those last two chapters, which are absolutely amazing - so powerful and triumphant and exhilarating. The King in the North! Mother of Dragons! This book is an impressive achievement. I'm going to try to listen to the rest of the series in audio book format, too. Hopefully by the time I get through them all, there will be a new one available...

Thumbs Up? (4)

Tagged: Book Report, Books, Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin, Song of Ice and Fire]]> Book Report Books Game of Thrones George R.R. Martin Song of Ice and Fire Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:46:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• I enjoy my friend's Tumblr and its many gifs. Celebrating Ian McKellen, cat being funny, one of the greatest scenes from Clue, a hedgehog, George R.R. Martin being a dick, a statement of principles, and the cutest thing ever.


• I also am a big fan of io9. They've got clips from the special features on the Princess Bride 25th Anniversary release, an essay on the good and bad and in between of time travel stories; and a weird set photo from what will no doubt be a very weird movie, Darren Aronofsky's Noah.


• I guess the all-woman Expendables is going to be a real thing, because Gina Carano just got cast in the lead role.


• A wonderful new Wondermark.


• Twitter repostings! The toaster that burns the weather into your bread (conceptual only, sadly), and clips of David Lynch's guest appearance on Louie.

Thumbs Up? (5)

Tagged: Animals, Animated GIFs, Books, Celebrities, Comedy, Gadgets, Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin, Language, Links, Movies, News, Photography, Recyclotron, Song of Ice and Fire, Technology, TV, Video, Web comics]]> Animals Animated GIFs Books Celebrities Comedy Gadgets Game of Thrones George R.R. Martin Language Links Movies News Photography Recyclotron Song of Ice and Fire Technology TV Video Web comics Wed, 04 Apr 2012 11:05:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Man, it's been a while, huh? Let's fire up the old Recyclotron again for old time's sake and see what comes out.

—

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• I really enjoyed this most recent entry on ANIMALS TALKING IN ALL CAPS. I had a feeling my friend Blue would have reblogged it, and indeed I was right.


• Speaking of Game of Thrones, here's a fun illustration of Sam Tarly. And here's more related pieces.


• Key guns! Awesome.


• Stupid but hilarious Lord of the Rings humor.


• A rather naughty outtake from an Empire Strikes Back publicity photo shoot.


• Amazing poster for Psycho.


• This is pretty much the best picture.


• Here's a great Tumblr where a dude is turning old Library of Congress photos into creepy and funny animated GIFs, borrowing a bit from Terry Gilliam's work from his Monty Python days.


• They're making a third episode in that series of Penny Arcade video games! Some day I should get around to trying the first two...


• Speaking of Penny Arcade, I have a feeling I will have a similar experience some day to the one Gabe is having in the latest comic.


• A great Alice in Wonderland/Star Wars mashup.

Thumbs Up? (4)

Tagged: Animals, Animated GIFs, Art, Books, Celebrities, Comedy, Craft, Game of Thrones, Links, Mashups, Monty Python, Movies, Obama, Photography, Recyclotron, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Trek, Star Wars, Technology, Tolkien, TV, Video games, Web comics, Wonderland]]> Animals Animated GIFs Art Books Celebrities Comedy Craft Game of Thrones Links Mashups Monty Python Movies Obama Photography Recyclotron Song of Ice and Fire Star Trek Star Wars Technology Tolkien TV Video games Web comics Wonderland Wed, 07 Mar 2012 11:06:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• Dude, my friends wrote a book! You can buy it! You should buy it. Buy it now!


• One of my favorite of the recent posts on Reproductive Ryan Gosling. My very own poppy is a co-founder and contributor!


• Awww, look at the tiny Avengers! So tiny!


• A little goat! Hopping! On a bed!


• I love Marion, and I love Raiders of the Lost Ark, but... yeah. Baskets. *facepalm*


• Female Holmes and Watson.


• Blue And Bluer celebrates one of the great film classics, Grosse Pointe Blank.


• Some Game of Thrones humor.


• A little Daily Show for you.


• Heh. Poor Michelle.


• SANDWICH POLICE. That is all.


• Now here's something you can base a system of government on!


• Can't remember if I posted this before, but it's worth a repost if I didn't: Elmo and Grover as Street Fighters.


• An old script for an episode of the original Star Trek that was never filmed is going to get turned into a webisode by the New Voyages crew. Nice!


• There are birthday cake Oreos? Where can I get them?!


• Oh hey, it's that time of year again! March M.O.D.O.K. Madness!


• I kind of want this bird nest bed.


• Some pics from, and a new trailer for, Men in Black 3. I want to like this, because the original Men in Black is such a great movie, but... I just don't know.


• Another movie I want to like is John Carter. You can watch ten minutes of it right here. I was hoping to be really impressed by this, but despite some clever moments (and an inspired choice of when to cut short the clip), I could take or leave this movie.


• Some really cool props from Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor are up for auction.


• Cool Star Wars crayons.


• Cute Saruman figurine. All right, maybe cute isn't the right word, but whatever, I like it, is the point.


• Wow. Mike Mignola did a book cover for Heart of Darkness. Two great tastes that taste great together!


• I've mostly soured on the whole Simpson-izing thing, but these Simpsons versions of Scooby and Shaggy are fun.


• Look out! Tiger Batman!

Thumbs Up? (4)

Tagged: Animals, Animated GIFs, Art, Avengers, Batman, Books, Captain America, Cartoons, Celebrities, Comedy, Comic books, Craft, Food, Game of Thrones, Iron Man, Links, Mike Mignola, Monty Python, Movies, Muppets, Photography, Politics, Products, Recyclotron, Scooby-Doo, Sherlock Holmes, Simpsons, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Trek, Star Wars, Street Fighter, Thor, Toys, TV, Video]]> Animals Animated GIFs Art Avengers Batman Books Captain America Cartoons Celebrities Comedy Comic books Craft Food Game of Thrones Iron Man Links Mike Mignola Monty Python Movies Muppets Photography Politics Products Recyclotron Scooby-Doo Sherlock Holmes Simpsons Song of Ice and Fire Star Trek Star Wars Street Fighter Thor Toys TV Video Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:39:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• Piggie!


• I'm a big fan of early filmmaker Georges Méliès, especially his celebrated Le Voyage Dans La Lune. Well, that film has been restored with a new soundtrack by French pop duo Air! Here's a clip.


• I feel like I've seen this before... but anyway, it's still cool: 48 years of Doctor Who in about 10 minutes.


• You can download a free copy of the game they played in The Last Starfighter right here! It's a PC-only exe, by the way; sorry, Mac-users. I haven't played it yet, but I will! (Via)


• Well, Liam Neeson was at least on the set of The Dark Knight Rises. And he may have a cameo reprising his role as Ra's al Ghul. Which would be AWESOME.


• You can now purchase this great Hellboy/Peanuts mashup.


• I enjoy this Adopt a Dire Wolf T-shirt. It supports a good cause!


• Via Warren Ellis, "Indonesian man arrested for kicking woman he thought was a ghost." And really, from the way he describes it, I might have kicked her, too. But more likely I probably would have just run screaming.

Thumbs Up? (1)

Tagged: Animals, Art, Batman, Celebrities, Clothing, Doctor Who, Hellboy, Links, Mashups, Movies, Music, News, Photography, Recyclotron, Shirts, Song of Ice and Fire, TV, Video, Video games, Warren Ellis]]> Animals Art Batman Celebrities Clothing Doctor Who Hellboy Links Mashups Movies Music News Photography Recyclotron Shirts Song of Ice and Fire TV Video Video games Warren Ellis Mon, 19 Dec 2011 12:21:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Hey, remember when I used to post things like this to this here blog?? Thought I'd try it again, just to see how it goes. Enjoy!

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• Some fun recent posters on Reelizer: My Neighbor Totoro, Blade Runner, and Seven Samurai.


• Speaking of Blade Runner and My Neighbor Totoro... And here's another amusing mashup.


• Make your own chocolate D&D dice. (Via)


• This bootleg copy of the Dark Knight Rises trailer is crazy exciting. (UPDATE: Here's the official trailer.)


• A holiday-themed Wondermark! And here's one that's far too accurate to my experience.


• Dude! Officially licensed Lord of the Rings LEGO toys?? There goes all my money.


• Commercials are now legally obligated to not be so damn loud, which makes the fist-waving old man inside me very happy.


• The house banners from A Song of Ice and Fire, redone in super-cute, chibi style.


• The trailer for Expendables 2. Just a teaser, really, but how about that cast!


• I was surprised that Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol was getting such good reviews until I remembered it's directed by Pixar genius Brad Bird. Yeah, I might have to see that.


• The Avengers trailer! You think you've seen it already, but have you seen this version?? It has extra scenes, and it's in German!


• So even though Ridley Scott's Prometheus is essentially a prequel to his Alien film, it will not actually feature the alien, or xenomorph, at all. Huh. Okay then.


• Every year Matthew "defective yeti" Baldwin writes a guide to the best new board games. Always fun! Here's this year's.

Thumbs Up? (2)

Tagged: Advertising, Aliens, Art, Avengers, Batman, Boardgames, Comedy, Commercials, Craft, Food, Gaming, Holiday, LEGO, Links, Lists, Mashups, Movies, News, Recyclotron, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Wars, Tolkien, Toys, TV, Video, Web comics]]> Advertising Aliens Art Avengers Batman Boardgames Comedy Commercials Craft Food Gaming Holiday LEGO Links Lists Mashups Movies News Recyclotron Song of Ice and Fire Star Wars Tolkien Toys TV Video Web comics Fri, 08 Jul 2011 09:56:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• I've got a bunch of Song of Ice and Fire links for you today! First up is a list of ten characters io9 suspects they will leave out of season 2 of Game of Thrones. I'd be happy if they left out the rather horrendous story of poor Lollys, but I'd be really sad to lose Vargo Hoat, Aeron Greyjoy, and Craster. Next is a huge, amazing map of Westeros (via). Then we've got 11 versions of the excellent theme song from Game of Thrones. Finally, a few photos of the actress who will play Brienne in the series. She seems a little too pretty for the role, but George R.R. Martin says she looked the part when she came in to audition, so...


• If you haven't already seen it, here's our first look at Dori, Nori, and Ori from The Hobbit.


• A shirt that gives us a map of the Earth, if the Earth were reimagined as Super Mario World.


• A cool illustration blog, featuring covers for books from video game worlds. (Via)

UPDATE:

• The dude from Let's Be Friends Again draws Ben, that crazy old guy who lives out in the Dune Sea. (I don't think I had any Star Wars links today, so it's a good thing I added this one.)


• Muppets as members of the various Lantern Corps.

Thumbs Up? (2)

Tagged: Art, Clothing, Comic books, Craft, Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin, Green Lantern, Links, Mario, Movies, Muppets, Photography, Recyclotron, Shirts, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Wars, The Hobbit, Tolkien, TV, Video games]]> Art Clothing Comic books Craft Game of Thrones George R.R. Martin Green Lantern Links Mario Movies Muppets Photography Recyclotron Shirts Song of Ice and Fire Star Wars The Hobbit Tolkien TV Video games Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:10:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• Empire Online lists the 22 most bad-ass beards in cinema. Nice picks!


• That is one fine teacup. Ia! Ia!


• Know those decals some people have in their car windows, featuring a cartoon depiction of each member of the family? Kinda cheesy, right? Here's a funnier, less cheesy spin on it.


• Mr. Dan Hipp celebrates the Green Lantern, and other green heroes and villains from throughout pop culture history. Speaking of Green Lantern, here's the Onion A.V. Club review of the new animated movie, and Ebert's review of the new live-action movie. Sounds like neither movie is all that great, but I still might have to watch them eventually, just because.


• Loving this Godzilla animated gif. (Via)


• Quentin Tarantino's western, Django Unchained, has a release date! It's December 25, 2012. Merry Christmas!


• The Academy is changing the Best Picture nomination process yet again so that there can now be anywhere from 5 to 10 nominees each year, depending on how many movies receive first place votes on 5 percent of total ballots cast. Wha? Why don't we just go back to 5, guys? That was working fine for a long time.


• Check out Sam Bosma's site - he's been doing sketches of characters from the Song of Ice and Fire books lately.


• This ad for the new Legend of Zelda game featuring Robin Williams and his daughter Zelda (who apparently was actually named after the princess) is pretty darn cute.


• A Pontiac built with an entirely transparent, Plexiglass exterior for the 1939 New York World's Fair is going up for auction and has been appraised at a price between $275,000 and $475,000. Click through for some awesome pictures.


• I'm mostly over impressive replicas of things in cake form, but this Millennium Falcon cake has working lights!!


• The Wolverine has a new director and it is James "Not Darren Aronofsky" Mangold. Hmm. I've seen a handful of Mangold's films. Of those, Cop Land was the only really good one. Identity and 3:10 to Yuma were both well done but had disappointing endings. So I guess we'll see!


• Watch the red band trailer for Attack the Block, which is a sci-fi/action/comedy featuring Nick Frost and South London hoodlums versus aliens. Fun! (Via Blastr, a site that cleverly got the movie's title wrong in its headline. Sigh.)


• The most bad-ass way to chop lettuce ever.


• The rotary mechanical smartphone.


• Another fun Super Punch image roundup. My favorite is the hipster Jesus sign. The whale shark thing is just horrifying.


• Amazing photograph of an Irish castle.


• In case you missed it when I posted it to Twitter, a gallery of amazing illustrations by Blade Runner concept artist Syd Mead. (Via)


• So what's all this Pottermore stuff about? It appears to be official, from J.K. Rowling herself, and the obvious implication is that we can expect more Harry Potter. Possibly it's just referring to an encyclopedia, which isn't all that exciting. But still... squee? Anyway, while we're talking Harry Potter, check out the latest trailer for the last movie. It is mighty exciting, and the emotional opening nearly made me break down at my desk here.


• I enjoyed this latest post from the mostly-quiet-lately defective yeti.


• Hee hee. More amusing (and not-so-safe-for-work) sketches from the mighty Kate Beaton.


• Did you see that Comic Twart is doing Princess Bride? Anybody want a peanut?


• Ooh, they've cast Bard and Smaug in The Hobbit! Benedict Cumberbatch, who made a very fine Sherlock Holmes in the recent BBC TV series, will play the part of the dragon. I'm not familiar with the dude playing Bard (Luke Evans), but he certainly looks the part.

Thumbs Up? (2)

Tagged: Advertising, Animals, Art, Automobiles, Awards, Books, Celebrities, Comedy, Comic books, Commercials, Craft, Food, Gadgets, Godzilla, Green Lantern, Harry Potter, Kaiju, Links, Lists, Monsters, Movies, News, Oscars, Phones, Photography, Products, Recyclotron, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Wars, Technology, The Hobbit, Tolkien, Twitter, Video, Video games, Web comics, Wolverine, Zelda]]> Advertising Animals Art Automobiles Awards Books Celebrities Comedy Comic books Commercials Craft Food Gadgets Godzilla Green Lantern Harry Potter Kaiju Links Lists Monsters Movies News Oscars Phones Photography Products Recyclotron Song of Ice and Fire Star Wars Technology The Hobbit Tolkien Twitter Video Video games Web comics Wolverine Zelda Thu, 28 Apr 2011 13:25:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• I recently discovered that my friend Cyn has a Tumblr. Here are a couple of nice recent posts.


• This new trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is thrilling, but a little upsetting to me. I don't remember a scene in the book when Harry grabbed Voldemort and jumped over a cliff with him. They're not trying to turn this into some typical action movie finale, are they? Because that would be very, very wrong.


• Dude, check it out. George finished the book! Of course, this had to happen pretty soon, what with the publication date already announced and stuff, but still. It's finally really done! (Via)


• io9 put together a gallery of some fantastic-looking Yugoslavian monuments.


• A wonderful set of cover illustrations for a pulp magazine that doesn't exist. (At least, I don't think it does.)


• So apparently the European Commission has approved the construction of an ultra-superlaser capable of tearing apart space-time. What could go wrong??


• A clothes hanger inspired by Magritte.


• Amusing video of Mario using the gun from Portal to make his life easier - and play pranks on his brother.


• Here's a tapir getting a massage.


• A couple of cute illustrations set on the planet Hoth.


• Check out some photos of an amazing Alice in Wonderland-themed restaurant in Japan.


• Beautiful poster for an episode of the original Star Trek.


• Chris Sims picks the 25 most awesome Action Comics covers of all time for Comics Alliance.


• Eeww. The average steering wheel is filthier than the average public toilet seat.


• An interviewer makes Mark Ruffalo put on Hulk hands, which is hilarious, and also gets him to reveal that his Hulk will have a couple of lines in The Avengers.

Thumbs Up? (5)

Tagged: Animals, Art, Avengers, Books, Celebrities, Comedy, Comic books, Harry Potter, Hulk, Internet, Links, Lists, Mario, Mashups, Movies, News, Photography, Products, Recyclotron, Religion, Science, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Trek, Star Wars, Technology, TV, Video, Video games, Wonderland]]> Animals Art Avengers Books Celebrities Comedy Comic books Harry Potter Hulk Internet Links Lists Mario Mashups Movies News Photography Products Recyclotron Religion Science Song of Ice and Fire Star Trek Star Wars Technology TV Video Video games Wonderland Thu, 21 Apr 2011 11:51:00 +0000  by Fëanor

Fëanor pours the entire internet into the Recyclotron, and only the best links come out the other end for you to enjoy.

• Fight for Your Right Revisited, a 22-minute short film directed by the Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch, featuring tons of celebrity cameos.


• How about a couple of Super Punch illustration roundups? I particularly like the posters for Pan's Labyrinth and X-Men: First Class, and John Allison's She-Hulk.


• Pretty sweet secret garage door.


• Penny Arcade reenacts what often happens when you're trying to show off your cool move in Mortal Kombat.


• I like the first item in this image roundup.


• Do you, like Ebert, truly hate 3D in movies? Try a pair of these 2D glasses!


• Eeww. A Targaryen family photo, perhaps?

Thumbs Up? (2)

Tagged: Art, Celebrities, Comedy, Comic books, Craft, Gadgets, Links, Mortal Kombat, Movies, Music, Photography, Recyclotron, Song of Ice and Fire, Star Wars, Video, Video games, Web comics, X-Men]]> Art Celebrities Comedy Comic books Craft Gadgets Links Mortal Kombat Movies Music Photography Recyclotron Song of Ice and Fire Star Wars Video Video games Web comics X-Men