True Blood, The Vampire Diaries or Twilight?

OK so I read the Twilight series a few years ago and the 13 year old in me really liked them.  I read them all in about a week and then watched all the movies (at the matinee with all the other women that were really too old to be obsessed with this tween romance).  I liked the books, tolerated the movies, but knew deep down that this was a silly series.  Just the fact that Bella felt the need to dwell on the fact that she was so mature and kept trying to be turned before she became “old” was a constant reminder that this series was meant for high schoolers.

So when I saw previews for shows like “The Vampire Diaries” and “True Blood” I had no desire to add to my repertoire of cheesy vampire stories. However, about a year ago I made a deal with a friend that I would watch “The Vampire Diaries” if she gave “Doctor Who” a chance.  The result? I watched all of TVD in record time and she watched about a half of a season of DW before giving up (you’re missing out Kaila).

Then two weeks ago I was convinced by another friend that obsesses over “Game of Thrones” with me to try “True Blood.” Yeah. . .I watched the second episode of Season 6 last night.

My thoughts on all these series?

Seriously, is there a formula for vampire stories that I’m unaware of?  Insert one human that smells amazing, is beautiful, and slightly mentally or emotionally handicapped (come on Elena (Nina Dobrev) makes some seriously stupid decisions and Bella falls apart without a man), add one nice vampire, and one vampire that is bad on the surface, but good at heart, then a dash of werewolf to increase the amount of bare skin and sexual tension.  TA DA!

Obviously something keeps me watching.  Maybe it’s the lovely way Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) says Sookie (which makes up for the horrible name in the first place).  Or maybe it’s loveliness of the vampires themselves (OK the “Twilight” vampires aren’t as pretty as TVD or TB vampires, but all of them got something going on).  It is most definitely Alcide Herveaux.  I mean come on Joe Manganiello can do pretty much anything and as long as he’s shirtless I’m cool with it.  And Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis) has carried “True Blood” in the episodes that consisted of some plot line that drug out too long (I can even over look all the witch crap just because it just meant more Lafayette).  Both Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten) and Jeremy Gilbert (Steven R, McQueen) are great supporting brothers.  Jason is delightfully brave and stupid and Jeremy is strong and level headed when it’s most needed.

The Vampire Diaries has had an amazing group of supporting characters with Alaric Saltzman (Matthew Davis), Klaus (Joseph Morgan), Jenna (Sara Canning),  and so many more people have added a lot depth and spice to what could have been a fluff show. Damon’s (Ian Somerhalder) snarkiness has definitely kept me coming back for more even though that meant I had to watch Bonnie (Kat Graham) or Elena running around messing up everything that Damon and Stefan (Paul Wesley) were trying to accomplish.  At least Sookie (Anna Paquin) seems to actually be able to handle herself and although she is a pretty big idiot a lot of times she’s not the whiny weak person that Elena is. There have been many times I wished that Caroline (Candice Accola) was the heroine in TVD instead of Elena. She can adapt and for the most part isn’t an idiot (at least not after she become a vampire). Twilight did have Alice and Jacob to help it out.  Some of the best chapters in the Twilight series were written from Jacob’s perspective.  He was so much more down to earth than Bella and thankfully had some sense. Bella though. . .well lets not talk about her too much, we might make her cry, blush or jump off a cliff.

So if you are 13 read/watch “Twilight”, revel in the teenage angst, ignore the poor writing, and know it’s OK (I won’t talk much more smack here since I have read them more than once—OK more than twice).  If you are looking for a more adult version of a vampire love story by all means check out “The Vampire Diaries.”  Wade through the first season (it really takes some effort early on), try to figure out how high school children get their hands on so much alcohol, also how they are actually passing high school considering the number of days they skip.  The character development is good (except for Bonnie) and even though Elena gets on my last nerve, Nina Dobrev is amazing as Katherine Pierce (it amazes me how I can love Katherine and hate Elena).  The show isn’t afraid to kill off popular characters which I think always helps keep a show new and fresh.

Now we come to True Blood.  I do think they mixed it up with the premise a little in that vampires are out in the open and are trying to “mainstream” within society.  I see this show as a pretty good show, but since it’s on HBO they throw in a soft-core porn scene anytime the plot slows down or every 20 minutes, whichever comes first.  They do a great job developing characters and plot development is pretty good (although I’m not super crazy with where things are going now with Bill or Sam), but it is not for people who don’t like crazy amounts of sex and violence.

I’m a little ashamed that I know so much about all of these series, but no so ashamed that I didn’t pay money to meet Ian Somerhaulder and get this embarrassing photo made at DragonCon last year:

Haha I think I was one of the only women that day that didn’t feel him up (all I could think about was how much it must suck to get rubbed on my hundreds of crazy fans all day). The result though was this creepy photo.  Totally worth it.  No go off and enjoy some teenage angst or hot sexy vampire love and try to wipe the image of that photo away.

But first take my poll!

 

Rainbow Dash Dress Tutorial!

So at DragonCon last year I got my daughter some Rainbow Dash ears and wings from this lady so of course she needs a dress to go with them right? I kept thinking about how I should do this and decided on a tutu dress, but since it’s Rainbow Dash it needed to be huge and fabulous!

Here is how I did it:

Supplies:

5 yards of Rainbow Dash blue tulle (aka baby blue) OK I used tulle on this but I highly recommend using netting or chiffon because tulle wads up when your walking (running, rolling around, jumping etc).  I am going to redo this skirt before she wears it again.  All steps will be the same though. 

1 yard each of the other colors

1 package of elastic

1/2 yard baby blue fabric (I used a stretchy knit that was on clearance)

Fleece or Felt to make cutie mark (I used felt, but I think fleece would have worked better)

Step one:

I measured around her chest and then added an inch (I have $40 in ears and wings and $30 in fabric so I want this to last as long as possible).  Cut and surge the elastic together. (Hand or regular machine stitches work as well)

Step two:

Measure how long the skirt needs to be then double it and add an inch (hint: fold fabric in half and it helps with cutting OR buy the tulle in spool form and you don’t have to cut near as much.  You will use A LOT more than 5 yards that way though, just because it’s measured differently).  Cut fabric into 3 inch wide strips or if you purchased by the spool, just cut it to the length needed.

Obviously they don’t have to look perfect.  Any uneven lines will not be noticed at all.

Step three:

Tie the tulle in knots around the elastic like so:

Yes that is a Captain America Shield– I use what I have.  It does make it easier to have the elastic around something.  If you don’t have a Captain America Shield a lamp shade or bucket would work.  However if you don’t have a Captain America Shield you just lost some cool points. (You can buy one here.)

Tie the baby blue tulle around the part that will be the front of the skirt.  I used 4 strips of tulle together for each knot to make it very full.  You could do less if desired, but I wouldn’t recommend doing much more.

Step four:

Do the same for the rest of the colors.  Tie like a maniac.  I recommend watching TV while preforming this mindless task.  I rewatched some Supernatural episodes while doing this and the two hours flew by!  Well at least they went by easier than otherwise.

The final product should look something like this:

We took this moment to try on the “RAINBOW DASH TUTU!!!” My daughter was very excited.

Now on to the top of the dress:

Step six:

Like I said I bought some baby blue fabric on clearance.  I folded it in half and used my serger to make a blue tube-like top:

Here is where I fail as a someone writing a tutorial.  I totally just eyeballed this.  I made it the same size as the elastic, and make it longer than I thought I’d need it just to be safe.  Then I serged it all together.  DONE!  Easy right?  OK it really is, so I’m going to assume you followed all that and am moving on.

Step seven:

Cutie Mark time!! I Googled images of her cutie mark and then drew the mark piece by piece on the felt.

Then I used fabric glue to secure onto another piece of felt.  HOWEVER!!! I do not recommend using fabric glue, or at lease use a lot less than I did.  You’ll find out why in a minute.

I cut out the mark again, leaving a little around the edges then used a button hole stitch in baby blue around the cloud and onto the detail on the cloud.  I also stitched around the lightening bolts in thread that matched each bolt.  Once this is done cut as close to the mark as you can so the back piece of felt is not seen.

This is why I am against the use of glue.  It seeped through and made the stitches look dark.  It’s not noticeable in the final product, but I wasn’t happy with it here.  However not so unhappy that I was going to go to the fabric store again to make a third attempt (oh I didn’t mention the one I made way too big?? Oh well, moving on.)

Step eight:

Sew the cutie mark on the top.  Make sure you try the skirt and the top together first so you don’t sew the mark too high or too low.

Step nine:

Straps– Ok I was going to do four straps that would be tied in bows on the shoulders, but at the last minute changed my mind.  Instead I made a halter which I pulled down in the back to make a semi racer back top.  I like this because as she gets bigger I can untack the back part and make it just a halter top.  Also with the wings it was going to be too much around her face.

If you make the straps yourself remember that you have to cut them a lot wider than you would think.  Whenever you turn something, it shrinks a lot.

My straps.  One preturn and one post.  I also serged one end before turning, but since I made it a halter I really didn’t need to do that.

Then I sewed the strap into the top, only sewing down one layer so the stitches wouldn’t show through. (I did this by hand, the fabric I chose does not do well on a regular machine and the serge stitch would have been too much).

I put the top on her and then sewed the back part of the strap down while it was on her to make sure that I sewed it up high enough.

Here is the back finished:

If you are lazy you can just use ribbon for this step.

Step nine:

Try the top and bottom on together and mark where it needs to meet.  I made the back higher than the front to make a big fluffy rear end.  Also my skirt had more volume in the back. She enjoyed the try on steps.

Step ten:

Whip-stitch the skirt to the top. This is another good chance to catch up on your favorite TV show.

You are DONE!

Here is the finished product with ears and wings:

Pinky Pie!! (Cake)

So I was in charge of making my mother-in-law’s birthday cake this year and when I asked my kids what kind of cake we should make her, the answer was overwhelmingly PINKIE PIE!! (You have to scream it when you say it, but not as loud as you have to scream RAINBOW DASH! when talking about that amazing pony). So of course I listened to my 2 and 5 year old and made this:

You know, just what every 57 year old needs for their birthday. Too bad she didn’t know who Pinkie Pie was or that I had done a perfect cutie mark on the top of the cake.

Why Game of Thrones should have had 2 more Episodes

Last week’s episode “The Rains of Castamere” was amazing.  You know when you read a book and then watch the movie and are so disappointed  in the results?  Yeah this was the opposite.  HBO did an amazing job bringing the Red Wedding to life.  Don’t get me wrong even though I knew what was coming it was still painful to watch, but painful in that, “holy crap I can’t believe this is harder to watch than it was to read” kind of way.  I really felt for everyone that was surprised by the wedding results, but I also was glad they were finally filling the deep sadness I had felt when I had initially read that scene.  

Jump to this week and the season finale.  (Some spoilers from this point on if you haven’t watched yet).

Why Grimm is worth the watch

Grimm is Worth a Second Look

“Grimm” is one of those shows that I started watching and just kept on even though I wasn’t sure where it was going.  Was it going to be a straight up drama with a touch of the supernatural or a show that relied heavily on the supernatural to drive the plot?  I have to admit that towards the end of season one I still wasn’t 100% sold on this series, but I stuck with it.  A show has to take a serious dive for me to give up on it after I’ve invested a lot of time on it (“Once Upon a Time” managed to achieve this goal  halfway through season two).  Many shows start out with a great premise (“Heroes,” “Once Upon a Time”) but when season two rolls around they can’t develop it farther so instead make it into something ridiculous.

I feel that “Grimm” has done just the opposite.  I feel that it started with an  “OK” premise and built on it.  It very easily could have become silly (and there are a few times that it has flirted with the comical), but it built its world and allowed there to be a “bad” that isn’t always bad and will never truly go away (the worst mistake a show can make is to get rid of the bad guy and not have a believable evil replacement).  It doesn’t have the reality that shows like “The Walking Dead” have, but it does often pull off the cop drama with a twist.  A really odd twist. 

The Wheel of Time on Supernatural

Did anyone else catch the Wheel of Time references in Supernatural?

First was the symbol for Metatron, which is just reminiscent of the WoT symbol, but then they brought it home with this:

Which made me rewind to verify that it actually said that.  Finally they had Metatron question Dean about whether shutting the gates of Hell was really the way to go.  Therefore I’m figuring that they will come to the same conclusion that Rand did that Hell/evil needs to be present in the world so that the world has balance and that too much of either side is bad.  This seemed like it was screamed at us last night so surely I’m not the only person who noticed.  Thoughts?

http://instagram.com/p/aN-U9qjYPM/

http://instagram.com/p/aN-U9qjYPM/

I’m working on a Steampunk Supernatural cosplay for Dragon*Con.  This is the shoulder holster back I have finished and the straps.  I just need to finish the buckles and the holster itself!

Review of Season 8 “Supernatural” finale “Sacrifice”

I am a hardcore fan of “Supernatural .” I’ve watched all seasons numerous times and heaven help you if I find out you’ve never seen this show because I will seriously hound you until you become as addicted as I am.  So when I say that season Gr8 of “Supernatural” (as it has been dubbed) hasn’t always lived up to the hype know that it is hard for me to say. However the episodes from “LARP and the Real Girl” (who doesn’t love Felicia Day?) to the finale episode “Sacrifice”  went a long way to redeem the season.  These episodes got the brothers back on track to what they needed to be doing which is of course supporting each other with an insane amount of trust and devotion while risking everything  to save people’s lives.

Last week’s episode “Clip Show” ended with Crowley (Mark Sheppard) threatening to undo all the good that Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) had ever accomplished unless they gave up the Trials to close the gates of Hell.  The viewer was left to wonder how they will get out of this quandary.  The Trials are killing Sam, but if the gates of Hell can be closed then Crowley can’t hurt anyone.  However, who will they lose before they can complete the third trial.

This looked to be a way out for the boys.  There is no way that they would be able to close the gates of Hell.  If they did there would be very few bad guys left and people need Hell.  There was also a ton of foreshadowing in “The Great Escapist” a few weeks ago if you knew what to look for.  I talk about that more here.

“Sacrifice” doesn’t feel rushed at the beginning of the episode, but a lot definitely happens in the first half of the show.  The boys save Sherriff Jody Mills (Kim Rhodes), who we haven’t seen much since Bobby Singer  (Jim Beaver) died, from Crowley by coming to an agreement to end the trials and give up the demon tablet.  They have a meeting with Crowley at Bobby’s place and Dean manages to pack so much emotion into his face in those few moments looking around at the shells of cars that all the pain the boys felt over losing their father figure come rushing back.  The boys look defeated.  Trapped.  They have to give up to save everyone.  Right?

Well Crowley should have realized by now that nobody puts Dean in a corner.

The boys always do their best when all seems hopeless and they prove it again by tricking Crowley int a pair of Devil’s Trap cuffs.  I love that Crowley thought that he could intimidate Dean by punching him and the look on Crowley’s face when Dean punched him back was great.  This is what I have loved about the second half of the season.  The boys are working together.

Sam and Dean seem to have taken all the precautions this time around.  Crowley’s chained up in an abandoned church with devil traps everywhere and it looks like they will actually pull it off.  The third trial: curing a demon.  They are going to win and will bring Crowley to his knees.  So of course enter Castiel (Misha Collins) stage left.

I’m actually really excited that Cas actually came to Dean for help.  He’s been working with Metatron  (Curtis Armstrong) in the subplot since “Clip Show” which has seemed off from the get-go.  He just seems like a creeper.  You know that one teacher or professor that you had that you never went to during office hours no matter how confused you were in class.  That’s Metatron.  Just off.  Even though Castiel should have run Metatron’s plan past Dean after all the horrible decisions he’s made in the past (Purgatory, Leviathan, Naomi) at least they were able to stop everything on Sam’s end before he died.  Poor Castiel is so confused though and just wants to fix his mistakes so of course keeps making a bigger mess.

Dean, of course, goes off to help Castiel with Metatron’s plan leaving Sam to take care of Crowley alone.  Sam who is having trouble walking and looks like death.  In charge of the King of Hell.  Yeah that sounds like a good idea.

While Dean and Cas are trying to figure out what they need to do Naomi  (Amanda Tapping) tries to redeem herself by giving Dean and Cas a heads up that Metatron is lying and that Sam will die if he completes the trials  (which really?? Of course Sam is going to die).  Not that it saved her (although I don’t know that a spike to the brain would kill an angel so she might show up again next season).

It did allow Dean to stop Sam before he cured Crowley which would have ended in Sam’s death.  My only grief here is that obviously Sam was going to die.  I can’t believe that Dean just gave his “we got this ” speech now!

Now about that speech.  It was what I have been waiting for all season.  Dean finally told Sam how much he depends on him and how much he loves his little brother.  Sam has always just wanted to be good enough to make Dean proud and Dean usually only expresses those feelings when Sam is dead (making it kind of hard for Sam to know about them).  The feels in the last few minutes were overwhelming.  I was crying and my heart hurt with love for the boys.

The episode ended with Crowley chained up begging for forgiveness, Sam collapsed and in really bad shape and all the angels cast down to earth stripped of their graces.

“Sacrifice” was about so many other sacrifices than the ones I expected.  This whole season has really been about sacrifice.  Sam sacrificed his dream of redeeming himself through the trials.  I really felt his pain in giving up this dream and his confusion when Dean told him to stop before he died.  He sacrificed his life with Amelia (Liane Balaban) that he had been able to carve out while Dean was in Purgatory.

Dean sacrificed control over the trials.  He sacrificed his friendship with Benny (Ty Olsson) who I personally wanted to see more of.  He sacrificed any normalcy years ago.  Castiel sacrificed his grace.  Well really it was stolen, but he lost it while trying to correct all his mistakes.  Kevin (Osric Chau), who by the way is one of my favorite character ever, sacrificed his amazing, if albeit pressure filled, life. He lost his mother, his friends,  his girlfriend and all chances of his Ivy League education.

“Sacrifice” was great and had all the things a season finale needs: love, pain, humor and a cliffhanger.  There are so many things that were left unanswered that will hopefully be covered next season.  Can Dean finish the exorcism on Crowley there by curing him, but not finishing the trial?  Why didn’t Sam look for Dean while he was in Purgatory?  Season 9 can’t get here soon enough.  What are your thoughts or predictions?

Yes, I am just now starting to watch Arrow

 

OK so I’m a little late on this bandwagon, but I’m finally trying “Arrow.”  After giving “The Cape” a chance in 2011 and being disappointed I didn’t immediately give “Arrow” a chance.  Then I found out that John Barrowman was in it.  Yeah so then I had a nerd obligation to try it.  However it was seven episodes in before I set my DVR to record it.  I figured I’d record them anyway and surely there would be a marathon soon so that I could catch up.  Well there wasn’t.  However this week the network aired the pilot again so I was finally able to give it a chance.

My verdict? WARNING: Some light spoilers beyond this point

It has a lot of potential.  I like the set up for the hero character.  What I have seen so far makes it believable (in that “someone could actually be a superhero” kind of way) that Oliver (Stephen Amell) would have the skills, motivation, and cover to assume this role.  The flashbacks did a good job showing how big of a douche he was pre-shipwreck  and I’m sure that future episodes will begin to explain his ninja skills.  Just surviving five years on an island though would give you mad survival skills and also some insanity (which would help with that whole thinking that becoming a superhero is a sane thing to do idea).  He obviously knows some really bad crap on a huge list of people in charge back in civilization which has given him motivation to right the wrongs that his father felt responsible for.

I found the montage of the stuff that Oliver gets done setting up his bat cave (oh wait— wrong billionaire) to be unbelievable.  Did he have all those supplies in the two bags he carried into the warehouse?  Yeah I don’t think so.  Maybe there was a Home Depot close by… and a Best Buy.  Plus there was time left over to workout (not saying I didn’t appreciate watching that) and do some target practice.  Dude, I have trouble having time to work out if I have to add a trip to Wal-Mart to my schedule.  Then in his spare time he went to threaten the bad guy of the week.

Also on the unbelievable list is the fact that Oliver has had so much contact with  Detective Quentin Lance (Paul Blackthorne) who just so happens to be the girl that died during the shipwreck’s father.  Yeah I don’t see any police department allowing someone with that history to help with the investigation of Oliver’s kidnapping attempt.  Surely there was someone else to send, but it did set up the precedent that Detective Lance would get to run point on all cases having anything to do with the Guy in the Green Hood.

Other than all that though (it was just a little rushed— maybe if he’d only accomplished half of those tasks in one day I’d have bought it) I like the characters.  The spoiled friend gets on my nerves, but I think he will develop into a character with more depth.  He has a good unrequited love story which as I’ve said before is needed in any show.   The body guard Diggle (David Ramsey) is great.  He seems like an honest upfront guy that I’m assuming will become Oliver’s assistant (I’m trying to avoid the word “sidekick”) in the future.  The sister Thea (Willa Holland) is a convincing troubled spoiled rich teen that isn’t so far gone that she can’t be saved by a great older brother or driven away by a judging controlling brother— we’ll see which route they take.

I hope that they explore the mental issues that Oliver would have after seeing and experiencing what he went through.  I’m interested to see how they handle the brother/sister relationship and the friend that obviously knows something is up.  Oh and I really enjoyed the surprise twist at the end.

I’m bummed that I have to wait until next Wednesday to see the next episode, but at least once I get to the seventh episode I can marathon it.