They've Been Working on the Railroad, All the Live-Long Day

Well, it looks like I'm running behind again. I should have had this post up nearly two weeks ago last week (I guess I was wrong). I had hoped to get it up this last week, but time seemed to just get away from me again. Well, I have some time now, so let's get this up and me caught up.

Recently I finished watching the first season of Hell on Wheels. All in all, it's pretty much a modern day western. This show, set just after the Civil War, follows the lives of a few people as they work on building the Union Pacific Railroad.

Off to Atlantis!

So, like I said yesterday, I kind of forgot to post last week. To make up for that, yesterday, you received two sets of stories, and now today you will receive another two posts. So here is the first of two posts that you should receive today. This one will take a look into the first season of Stargate: Atlantis.

Stargate SG-1, Season 7

I'm still in the process of watching Stargate SG-1. It's not that the show is better than other shows out there. I think it has more to do with the fact that it's just addictive. But season seven of this series is pretty big. Here are just a couple of the big things that happen:

Stargate, Season 6

I recently finished watching the sixth season of Stargate. I don't know what it is about the show, but there is something about it that keeps sucking me in. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that it's a little campy and the show is able to make fun of itself.

The sixth season felt a little weird to me. And probably to everyone who has watched the series chronologically. The main reason? Daniel Jackson is no longer a part of the team. In fact, after Daniel ascends, Jonas Quinn, the scientist from the world in the fifth season where they were trying to develop something akin to the atom bomb, takes over his spot. It felt kind of wrong, but I understand why they did it. They needed someone who was "book smart " on the team, and he was able to fill that place.

Other than that, the season was pretty decent. It was pretty cool to see Daniel return in a couple of episodes, usually guiding his friends through some form of trouble or another. And the season finale where he battles Anubis is quite spectacular as well.

One Distant Scape

Along with watching Stargate, I've been trying to get myself into Farscape. It's an interesting show. And I will admit that it was a little hard to get into at first because of the puppets and the ridiculous costumes. However, the show is beginning to grow on me, ridiculous costumes and all. When you realize that the creators just wanted to have fun making the show rather than make something serious out of it, you begin to cave in a little bit and start to have fun along with it.

I'm not quite finished with the first season yet. So thus far there has not been much of an overall story line like in Stargate. But I suppose if I keep watching, one will pop up. Keep following me. I will try to post something up here as I finish/begin each season.

To the Stars Through a Little Gate

For the last couple of months, I've been watching Stargate SG1. And within the last couple of days, I entered into season six. This means that I am now halfway through the series. What do I think of it? It's a fun show. It can be somewhat campy at times, but it never outweighs the fun.

The Last "Last Airbender" Post

Are these getting boring to the rest of you? I think this will be the last Avatar: The Last Airbender post that I make. This time, I want to focus on the Avatar, Aang. He grew up with the air nomads, but like the beginning of each episode says, he got frozen in ice and his people were killed. Aang is the last of his kind. When Sokka and Katara find him, he's just an average pre-teen, enjoying the moment and having fun.

One of the best aspects of the entire show is watching Aang grow from that impulsive child into a young adult who carries the weight of the world. He doesn't do it overnight, and there are even some digressions here and there. However, with the help of his friends, he is able to move past that, and ends up reuniting the world and brings it to peace.

One Last Thing
Don't know if you know about this yet, but there is now a new avatar in town. Her name is Korra and her story has just started airing on Nickelodeon. There's a new episode on tonight. I watched a couple of these over at Nick's website, and if you'd like to catch up, you can probably do the same. I don't know if I like Korra as much as I did Aang, but maybe over time she'll start to grow on me. We'll only be able to tell with time.

The Last Avatar: Katara and Sokka

Continuing with the Avatar: The Last Airbender thing that I have going on, this week I will focus on the two members in Aang's gang who hail from the Water Tribe. Those two are the siblings Katara and Sokka.

Katara is one of the only two surviving water-benders from the South Pole, the other being the puppet master who resides in the Fire Nation. She's portrayed as a youth who is more mature than her age lets on. And with her motherly attributes, Katara often holds the group together when things get tough. The only problem that I have with her is that she was a very static character. Her personality remained more or less the same as the series went on. However, I guess there wasn't much of another direction in which she could have gone.

Sokka, on the other hand, I view more as a dynamic character. Yes, he's often portrayed as the series' comic relief, but he managed to grow up from imagining himself as being a fierce warrior in the beginning of the series into a great leader in the ultimate time of crisis. Sokka even helped to lay down plans for the invasion of the Fire Nation. And though not a water-bender, he has to rely on more conventional ways of defending himself, which he often does with his boomerang and some kind of sword, be it a machete or an awesome space sword.

The Last Airbender: Prince Zuko

Last week I said that I would talk more about Avatar: The Last Airbender, and I intend to stand by my word. I did get around to finishing off the series earlier this week, so now I have some words to offer up about it. However, instead of laying everything out right now, perhaps I will give one character at a time. I have a busy schedule, and this way I have something to write up each week without having to read/watch so much.

Prince Zuko, the son of the Fire Lord, is probably my favorite character. The inner conflict that he wrestles with intrigues me. In the beginning of the series, he is so caught up with regaining his honor and impressing his father that he doesn't even see the destruction and mayhem that he causes. However, by the middle of the second season, he starts to see that he is making a mess, and by the beginning of the third begins to hold himself accountable and prepares himself to clean up after himself. In my book, Prince Zuko is the real hero for the complete turnaround he makes. I didn't see it as much in any of the other characters than I did in him.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Pt. 1)

Hey all. Looks like I might have to start posting this one earlier in the day. I don't exactly have too much time after getting home to write this up and post it to the blog.

Anyways, I've been watching quite a bit of Avatar: The Last Airbender lately. This is my second time going through the entire show, and third time for many of the episodes. I'm so glad that my nerdy friends got me into this back in college. Thank you, nerdy friends! I'm sure you all know who you are.

Today I just finished the first season and started watching the second season. By next week, I'm planning on finishing it up with the entire show. However, if I will in fact stick with that plan has yet to be determined.

I don't know why, but my favorite character in Avatar is not any of the protagonists. No, my favorite has got to be Prince Zuko, son of the Fire Lord. In the beginning, he sort of has this defiant personality, but as the show progresses, we, the viewers, begin to see what has happened to him that he acts in that manner. And also, near the middle of season one and onwards into season two and definitely in season three, we start to see a new Zuko. One who is not bent on capturing the Avatar, but rather on restoring balance to the world.

Actually, since I will be finishing up with the show next week, why not come back here and check out what I have to say about it then?