A late blog entry today as I’ve been on the phone all day talking to everyone dealing with everything. And, ultimately, settling nothing. However, I did take a break to allow my phone to recharge – and check my yahoo accounts.
I came across an email to Baron Destructo from poor Lady Jenny Peters who only has two weeks to live and is looking to bequeath her sizable fortune to, as she put it: “you/church”. Bless her heart. The Baron wrote back:
“Dearest Lady Peters,
Sad is the news that you only have two weeks to live. Even sadder, then, that your email languished in my inbox for three weeks before I happened to notice it. Sorry about that.
Hopefully, this little note finds you well and, specifically, well enough to sign over your $2.5 million dollar fortune to me. Given the fact that you narrowed your choices of possible benefactors down to either myself or the church, I applaud your decision to send the funds my way. In truth, it inevitably amounts to the same thing as our respective goals or not all that dissimilar. While the church is interested in saving souls, my associates and I are interested in freeing souls from their earthly shackles and sending them on their way to whatever afterlife awaits them be it Heaven, Valhalla, or another kick at the can as a dung beetle or morning radio host. So, you see, it all amounts to the same thing: tomato – tomahto, potato – potahto, salvation – enslavement of the entire human race on our way to world domination.
Also, at the end of the day, the church would have probably blown it all on stained glass and HBO.
Insidiously yours,
Baron Destructo
Cc: Calamitous Jane, Glaxnor the Miscreant, Sinderella Washington, Xxxaptak’qul, Dr. Catastro, Dr. Disastro, Dr. Quinn Meddlesome Woman, Ray Mephistopheles, Archfiend Animus, Brutus Badly, the Plague Zombies, Vorzik the Planet Squisher, the Malevolater, Count Sinister, Kugal Baruth, Death Knell, Star Father Celestio, Shatterdam, Princess Arcana, the Mystifier, the Procrastinator, the Soul Emancipator, Quickstrike, Professor Frosty, Flamer the Flaming Man, the Pummeler, the Purple Lamprey, and John Tesh.”
Book Club Results. It was The Princess Bride of The Crooked Letter in the fantasy category, and The Time Traveler’s Wife nudging past Alas, Babylon in the scifi category. You’ll all have an extra week to read the selections as I’ve pushed back discussion to the first week of January.
As in previous months, I’m going to go ahead and read the other titles nevertheless – Alas, Babylon which was recommended to me by Claire at Scifi, and The Crooked Letter whose writer, Sean Williams, is apparently a fan of the show and I think it would be great to show him some support. Who’s with me?!
This week, I finished two books: Isaac Asimov’s Foundation (a masterpiece of science fiction) and Dan Simmons’ Summer of Night (the creepiest horror novel I’ve read in recent memory). With the Golden Compass movie set to premiere next week, I thought I would give the first book of His Dark Materials Trilogy another try. But before I do, I’ve decided to take a little break and entertain myself with a little light reading from my youth: Goscinny and Uderzo’s La Serpe D’Or (in the original French, natch).
Let’s squeeze in some questions and comments:
Thornyrose writes: “Is there any point in the year where the entire production staff is truly on hiatus?”
Answer: Nope. Our Visual Effects department will be working into early next year and by when the time comes for their hiatus, we’ll be back in the offices prepping season 5.
Ploker writes: “Is that a pic of your waiter…”
Answer: That is Fuel owner Tom Doughty (who tirelessly works the room while Chef/owner Rob Belcham works the kitchen).
Anonymous #1 writes: “Hi, does any of the story ideas you have for season 5 include Ford or any chance of seeing him at all during season 5???”
Answer: As things stand, it is unlikely we’ll see Ford in season 5.
Morgia a ecrit: “Est-ce que votre équipe a carte blanche dans la création des personnages et des histoires ou faut-il que vous suiviez des critères déjà établis ?”
Reponse: Nous avons carte blanche.
Elizabeth writes: “Do you think the fans will like the change in the timeline that happens at the end of Continuum (the thing where something is different but they remember the old timeline)?”
Answer: Fans are making a HUUUUGE deal out of this change to the timeline that, at the end of the day, is a very tiny alteration.
Indy-D writes: “ This may have already been asked and answered, but will Sheppard eventually get a bed that fits his body?”
Answer: Actually, the beds are bigger but Sheppard actually prefers the smaller versions because he doesn’t like his feet tucked in at night. Go figure.
Anonymous #2 writes: “Do you think the fans will like the change in the timeline that happens at the end of Continuum (the thing where something is different but they remember the old timeline)?”
Answer: I think the fans will be livid that they spent so much time agonizing over such a small thing.
Twolly writes: “In my dream, you and Martin were my neighbors […] you suggested I put on a party hat […] . Then we proceeded to go to the laundry mat and eat hamburgers that were hanging from the ceiling by strings. Weird huh?”
Answer: Everything except the part where we have the hamburgers suspended from the ceiling by strings. Martin and I have actually eaten there.
Waffle writes: “This might be an odd question for your blog, but do you know what Peter Deluise is up to these days?”
Answer: Alas, I do not.