S.Q. Eries's Blog, page 65

Ancient Olympic Fun Fact 31

Hope all of you have been having fun with the London 2012 Games so far. I am! Though I personally thought Beijing’s opening ceremony was a slightly better show than London’s, I was very impressed by the creativity that went into London’s flame “cauldron.” (I was wondering during the entrance of the athletes what the point of those metal pieces were). I was  also delighted by Rowan Atkinson’s Chariots of Fire bit. I used to watch Atkinson’s Black Adder series (yes, as a teen, I was into historical comedies), so seeing him as part of London’s opening ceremony was an unexpected treat.

Anyway, this will be my final Olympic fun fact as the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators have their LA conference this weekend, and I’ll likely be too scattered to do a post next week. I will try to do a conference write-up though. So here’s our final factoid:

Spartans did not participate in boxing or pankration.

Both these events ended when a competitor got knocked out or admitted defeat, and to lose in either manner would’ve been dishonorable to a Spartan.

The ironic thing is that the Spartans probably invented boxing to toughen their faces. (!!!)

Enjoy the rest of the Games!

Writing Contest Alert: Teen Eyes Editorial

For those of you who are writing YA, new adult, or middle grade, Teen Eyes Editorial is hosting a contest on July 31! Miss Snark’s First Victim,  who is one of the contest hosts, has the details posted on her blog. And the very cool thing is that all the contest judges are teenagers. So get your queries, pitches, and first 250 words polished and ready!

Ancient Olympic Fun Fact 30

I saw my cousin this weekend, the one who’s going to the 2012 London Games. Looks like the events that he and his wife are attending are men’s soccer and volleyball. I didn’t realize this, but tickets for the Olympics are done by lottery. You put in a request for twelve events, and then you get what you get. And apparently, the lottery can choose to completely deny you tickets as well.

So, Cousin N, congrats on being able to witness what most of us can only dream of, and cheer the athletes for the rest of us! Oh, and here’s this week’s fun fact:

An official set of shields was used for the race in armor.

For the race in armor event, participants ran two lengths of the stadium wearing greaves and a helmet and carrying a round shield. Because this was before the time of standardized equipment, officials maintained a set of shields specifically for this race. When not in use, they stayed in the Temple of Zeus.

By the way, this particular event was a noisy affair (think about all that clanging metal), and amusing mishaps, collisions, and shield drops often occurred.

Tune in next week for more about the ancient Olympics!

Manga Review: Oresama Teacher Vol. #09

Mafuyu is a high school delinquent who wants to turn over a new leaf. So when she transfers schools, she thinks she’ll finally be able to live the life of a normal girl. There’s just one problem: her teacher  Mr. Saeki is a bigger delinquent than she is and is out to take advantage of her fighting skills!

Oresama Teacher is a shojo manga that offers humor of the silly variety. Volume 9 has recently been released, and you can read on for the review. (For those who are interested, you can click here for my reviews of earlier volumes).

Back Cover Blurb

The yearly culture festival is coming up fast, and it’s a great chance for Midorigaoka Academy to shine. But disappearing students and rising tensions between the academy and nearby Kiyama High could turn the festival into a full-on disaster! Can a pack of delinquents save the day and the school?

The RevieW

Volume 8 left readers hanging with bits of intrigue: the mysterious circumstances surrounding the last school festival, the restless rumblings of Midorigaoka’s delinquents, the evening disappearances at school. In Volume 9, Tsubaki-sensei connects the seemingly unrelated events, bringing to light the Student Council’s plot to destroy the school. Interestingly enough, even though Takaomi is the one to initiate the return of the school festival, he doesn’t play much of a role in Volume 9. The male character with the lion’s share of action in this installment is Okegawa bancho.

The former bancho displays a wide range of emotion in this arc. He’s sort of shy/sensitive with Mafuyu; exhibits cool leadership skills when Kiyama thugs infiltrate the festival; goes wild taking down his former henchmen; and proves he’s not completely brainless when he explains his reasons for helping the Public Morals Club. If you consider Oresama Teacher a reverse harem manga, then Okegawa’s definitely this volume’s featured male as he plays the unlikely hero, bailing Mafuyu out of trouble, not once but twice.

Mafuyu, for her part, definitely recognizes her shortcomings as Okegawa takes the lead on crushing the Midorigaoka crisis. Still, she’s not a complete damsel in distress and devises a clever way of eliminating Kiyama troublemakers without driving festival-goers into a panic. In the end, Okegawa retakes his bancho position, but even though Mafuyu is clearly no longer “just another girl” to him, it appears his feelings will remain at that frustrating position of attracted-but-not-going-to-act-on-it.

While this arc is rife with conniving, brawling, and backstabbing, Tsubaki-sensei does keep things light with festival-related humor, mostly in the form of the manly maid café. When Class 1 and 2 had their café theme argument in Volume 8, I thought it was just a one-shot laugh. As it turns out, it figures largely in the “evening disappearances” resolution and plays a key role on festival day. Class 2′s guys-who-want-to-wear-skirts come across as more weird than funny, but their ridiculousness does fit the overall feel of this series.

By the way, the final chapter is a kind of lighthearted postscript to the festival, which also reveals the connection between Kosaka and Hanabusa. It’s hardly serious, just a lot of elementary school level humor with a Student Council member who takes things far too seriously.

In Summary

Fans of Okegawa bancho will get their fill, both in lovey-doveyish moments and more serious scenes. There are also back-to-back gang conflicts in this installment for those who enjoy delinquent brawls. But even with all the hard-nosed action going on, Tsubaki-sensei keeps up the humor — though most of it comes in the form of the manly maid café.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Ancient Olympic Fun Fact 29

The 2012 London Games are starting in two weeks, can you believe it?! And I just found out my cousin and his wife are going (I’m jealous), plus they’re staying with my other cousin who’s currently on assignment in London so they don’t have to pay through the nose for lodging (double jealous).

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Here’s this week’s fun fact about the ancient Greek Olympics:

Hand weights were used in the long jump.

The long jump looked very different compared to the modern version. Instead of a running start, jumpers began from a standing position holding weights called halteres. They’d swing these back and forth and then simultaneously jump and throw the weights, coordinating the motion such that it propelled them forward. Often pipers played an accompaniment, possibly to help with the timing of the jump/weight throwing.

Stone halter

Early halteres were flat and made of stone or metal. Over time, the design changed, and jumpers used cylindrical stone weights with finger grooves.

Tune in next week for more about the ancient Olympics!

Book Review: Voltron Force: Shelter From the Storm Vol. #01

In the last few years, several franchises from the 1980s have made a comeback, including Transformers, My Little Pony, and Thundercats. One of the more recent additions to the list is Voltron, now revamped as the Nicktoons Voltron Force series, and Viz Media has recently released the first of a series of companion comics based on the new cartoon.

Back Cover Blurb

Years ago, Voltron mysteriously disappeared, and the five lions were scattered throughout the universe. Over time, the lions were recovered by the original Voltron Force: Lance, Pidge, Hunk, Princess Allura, and Commander Keith. Now, with the help of three new recruits, Voltron rises again to defend the universe once more!

The Review

This full-color book uses glossy stock, and the binding feels pretty durable. The print job’s well done with the luminescence of the cadet’s weapons and the robeast’s electrical charges showing up nicely. Character designs are similar though not an exact match to the cartoon (for instance, Allura’s eyes aren’t quite so pointy). The story assumes you’re already familiar with the Voltron universe, but if you’re not, it includes a four-page introduction with enough information for you to get the gist of it.

This title is rated for ages seven and up, and it’s definitely geared toward younger readers. Although all the adults get lines, the focus is really on Daniel, Larmina, and Vince, the characters whom kids are most likely to identify with. In addition, the way Chabot portrays the three Voltron Force cadets makes them seem somewhat younger and shorter than the way they look in the cartoon.

For those that remember the original series, the typical plot formula consisted of the evil Drule making a robeast, the lions attacking it separately before forming Voltron, and Voltron taking down the enemy with the blazing sword. This story contains all those elements (including the iconic, “AND I’LL FORM THE HEAD!”) but deviates slightly in that the featured robeast isn’t part of a Drule Army onslaught. It’s actually just an experiment reject, albeit a destructive one. At any rate, it conveniently wafts over from Maahox’s space lab to the corner of the universe where the cadets are training with the lions and winds up wreaking as much havoc as an intentional strike. As mentioned earlier, this story highlights the cadets, and when the robeast unleashes its particular brand of psychological attack, you get a glimpse into Daniel’s, Larmina’s, and Vince’s greatest fears and also watch them find their own unique ways to conquer them.

While Vince’s ultimate strategy for defeating the robeast is a stretch of scientific principles (space IS a vacuum, after all), it’s a good story for kids. The plot premise isn’t too complicated or scary, plus the dialogue contains several one-liners of the type you’d find in the cartoon. And though it all wraps up neatly with laughs for the Voltron Force, Maahox’s final scene leaves the door wide open for a continuation.

In Summary

Fans of the Nicktoons cartoon will enjoy this series released by Viz Media. Though it is a standalone series, the characters’ banter and action maintain the feel of the TV show. The focus of this first volume is the three Voltron Force cadets as they struggle to work as a team and ultimately pull together to show the adults a thing or two. If you’re more interested in the original five Voltron pilots, you may be disappointed; Keith, Allura, Pidge, Lance, and Hunk stay mostly in the background, but the conclusion of the robeast battle is very reminiscent of the old series down to the “FORM BLAZING SWORD!” at the end.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Ancient Olympic Fun Fact 28

2012 is significant in that it is a presidential election year, a leap year, and a summer Olympic year! The modern Olympics, of course, were inspired by the ancient Greek Olympics, a subject I’ve been researching for my work in progress. So in these months leading up to the 2012 London Games, I’ll be posting weekly tidbits about the original athletic festival that started it all.

Here’s this week’s fun fact:

A two-day procession preceded the Olympic competition.

Just like the modern Games have their spectacular opening ceremonies, the ancient athletes also entered Olympia in style. The procession began in Elis, where the athletes would have just completed their compulsory training, and after an exhortation by the Judges, the contestants who’d made the cut proceeded to Olympia accompanied by officials and the hundred oxen designated for the festival sacrifice.

The route they used was called the Sacred Way. The procession took two days partly because it was 58 km long. The other reason it took so long was they had to perform rites, including sacrificing a pig, at points along the way. By the time the athletes hit the road, spectators would already be at or en route to Olympia, and their parade almost certainly drew a crowd.

Tune in next week for more about the ancient Olympics!

Book Review: The True Adventures Of The World’s Greatest Stuntman

Living in LA County, I’ve come to have a lot of respect for the folks in the movie industry that don’t often get a lot of attention. You know, the people other than the stars and director without whom great films can’t be made. Stuntmen are part of this group, and if you’ve ever been curious about them, Vic Armstrong’s newly updated autobiography offers a glimpse into their world.

Back Cover Blurb

He’s been a stunt double for James Bond, Indiana Jones and Superman, and he’s directed action scenes for three Bond movies, Mission Impossible 3, Thor, and the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man to name but a few.

The Review

When I first got assigned this book, I thought the title was rather pretentious. After all, it’s an autobiography, and the man’s calling himself “the world’s greatest stuntman.” So I messaged my stuntman friend Ian Eyre (yes, he is a stuntman, and yes, he happens to be my friend), and asked if he’d ever heard of Vic Armstrong. As it turns out, they’d both worked on Charlie’s Angels (Armstrong was the second unit director/stunt coordinator, and Ian was on the Effects crew). Ian went on to say that Armstrong really is a big deal, and that I should go to his IMDb.com page to check out his credits.

Suffice to say, they’re quite extensive. They run the gamut of low-budget never-heard-of-them-films to blockbusters such as Superman, Indiana Jones, and The Amazing Spider-Man film to be released this summer. He’s also got an Oscar, a BAFTA Award, and a World Stunt Lifetime Achievement Award, all of which lends credence to the “world’s greatest stuntman” title.

In terms of the book itself, it’s rather thick, 55 chapters, plus an introduction by Steven Spielberg, a filmography, and an index. Most chapters, though, are short enough to breeze through in 5 minutes. Also interspersed throughout are remarks from celebrities such as Pierce Brosnan, Harrison Ford, Angelina Jolie, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Martin Scorsese, and various black-and-white photographs. Unfortunately, the pictures are kind of muddy; some shots are of very famous personalities, but you wouldn’t know who they were without the captions. In contrast, there are 15 pages of color photos printed on glossy stock that are much nicer to look at.

The book’s tone throughout is casual, not unlike that of an older man sharing his exploits at the local pub. As such, the text includes quite a bit of cussing (though they’re generally quotes) as well as grammatical errors. You’re also never quite sure when anything takes place because Armstrong doesn’t provide many specific dates. I should mention that Armstrong is British, and the book was printed in the UK, meaning that British slang and terms are used throughout. On top of the British English, Armstrong uses a lot of film jargon, and there’s no glossary. So if you’re not familiar with terms such as dailies, AD, and second unit, you’ll be looking them up.

Like most autobiographies, he begins with his early life, which, though it has more to do with the equestrian world than film, is fairly remarkable in of itself. Son of Robert Armstrong, farrier (blacksmith) to the British Olympic team from 1948 to 1964, Vic Armstrong was born in the British countryside, but his childhood included a brief stint in Kenya at the time of the Mau Mau uprising. Horses feature largely in his upbringing, and Armstrong likely would’ve been a jockey if he’d been shorter. However, his ability to ride was his ticket into film. He mentions that although stuntmen are expected to perform a range of stunts, each usually has some specialty that got him into the business, and for Armstrong, it was horses.

The book then moves on his stunt career, which can be divided into three general parts: his early days struggling to break into film; his prime stuntman roles where he doubled actors such as Harrison Ford and Christopher Reeve; and his second unit director work. Because he’s been around so long, he provides an interesting perspective on the changes in the movie business. When he first started, stuntmen were risking their lives for a pittance, and the bad old days where horses routinely got injured or killed during stunts were still fresh in memory. So part of his narrative includes how he performed a particular stunt way back when and how it would be done now. For instance, he used to do fire jobs (where they set him on fire) with Nomex underwear and asbestos; nowadays they use a nifty fire retardant/coolant called Zel Gel. Some of the most engaging parts of the book describe how they performed stunts, such as the Superman flying scenes, without the benefit of CG. In the later chapters, he writes critically about the overuse of CG. Although he does rely on CG himself, he’s adamant that there are certain stunts that cannot be replicated by computer.

Generally speaking, his descriptions of stunt work are straightforward enough for a layperson to follow, but there were a few setups, like the Piccadilly Circus crash for An American Werewolf in London, that I read several times and still didn’t understand. He also describes the conception and design of the fan descender, the device for which he won his Oscar, in great detail, but for some reason, the book doesn’t include a photo. Despite everything he wrote about the fan descender, I had no idea what the thing looked like (I wound up asking my friend Ian to draw a sketch of it for me).

There’s also quite a bit of name-dropping in the book. Armstrong’s rubbed shoulders with a host of producers, directors, and celebrities, and more pages are devoted to his anecdotes about famous and outrageous personalities than actual stunt work. In fact, there’s one chapter entitled “Mrs. Mick Jagger” solely about his brief stint as Bianca Jagger’s bodyguard and how he hung out with the Jaggers in Europe.

As much as he writes about the rich and famous, Armstrong doesn’t include much about his personal life off the set. Family members get brief mentions and only in the context of film projects. The two exceptions are his father and his sister Diana, who passed away last year. But given the fact that his brother, wife, children, and nephews are all in the film industry (and mostly the stunt business) and keep popping up in the pages shows what a huge influence his career has had on the people closest to him.

In Summary

“The world’s greatest stuntman” is a big title to lay claim to, but Vic Armstrong is unarguably one of the most successful men in the business. With a career spanning nearly 50 years, he’s got a lot of crazy stories about the things he’s done on and off the set and the famous personalities he’s encountered. Though the technical and partying aspects get jumbled together, his autobiography is an entertaining read, and the nice thing is that Armstrong’s narrative runs up to the present day, including his work on The Amazing Spider-Man movie coming out this summer.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Ancient Olympic Fun Fact 27

2012 is significant in that it is a presidential election year, a leap year, and a summer Olympic year! The modern Olympics, of course, were inspired by the ancient Greek Olympics, a subject I’ve been researching for my work in progress. So in these months leading up to the 2012 London Games, I’ll be posting weekly tidbits about the original athletic festival that started it all.

Here’s this week’s fun fact:

Despite having no water events, Olympia had a swimming pool.

Olympia’s open-air pool was unique in classical Greece. Built in the fifth century BC, it was 24 m long by 16 m wide and 1.6 m deep, with steps leading down into it from each side. It is uncertain why it was installed, but VIPs and athletes probably used it for recreation.

Tune in next week for more about the ancient Olympics!

Manga Review: Spice and Wolf Vol. #06

Spice and Wolf is a wildly popular light novel series that has spawned off an anime, an Internet radio show, and a manga series. While its European medieval setting is typical of high fantasy, this series has  a unique bent to it. Rather than swordfights and magic, the plot focuses on economics, trade, and peddling in a way that skillfully blends adventure and romance.

Yen Press has recently released the sixth volume of the Spice and Wolf manga, and you can read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

As Lawrence and Holo put the final phase of their plan to extricate themselves from the jaws of financial ruin into motion, they are confronted by an unforeseen obstacle. With the wolves at the door – both figuratively and literally – can the travelers keep their wits about them and come out ahead of the pack?

The Review

Since arriving at Ruvinheigen, Lawrence has played the swindled fool and the desperate man, but now he gets to take more of a heroic role. As it turns out, the greatest threat to him and his friends in their gold smuggling scheme is not the city authorities nor the forest wolves but their co-conspirators. Lawrence and Holo are separated when Holo takes off to deal with the forest pack, and when the Remelio Company turns on him, Lawrence must fight without Holo’s strength. Although the poor young merchant gets the snot beaten out of him, his desperate efforts to save Norah raise him in my eyes as a character.

Holo, of course, returns in time to save the day, and thanks to Lawrence’s excellent bargaining skills, it’s the wolf to rescue the shepherdess from the humans. Koume-sensei’s artwork does an excellent job of conveying Holo’s power and the fear she strikes when her true form bursts onto the scene. Once Norah is rescued, the mood shifts to a more humorous one as Holo “assists” Lawrence in striking a deal with Remelio that, although it’s not perfect for everyone, will rescue them all from the brink.

One thing that is a little disappointing about this arc is the interaction (or lack thereof) between Holo and the head of the forest pack. As it turns out, he’s one of Holo’s kind. Considering the landscape isn’t exactly crawling with giant wolves (I’d assumed they only inhabited Yoitsu), I’m surprised he didn’t make more of an impression on Holo. Instead, their conflict is resolved in no time at all, and Holo has little to say about the encounter other than to criticize his immaturity.

Included with this volume’s extras are two cute bonus manga about Lawrence nursing a sick and slightly jealous Holo back to health.

In Summary

Danger strikes in the forest! But treacherous humans pose a greater threat than the wolves. The gold-smuggling arc comes to an action-packed end in this volume of Spice and Wolf.

First published at the Fandom Post.