Excellent short story by Robin Sloan: books, data, romance, and general weirdness. Click on the cover below to check it out.

I hope you didn’t think Walken was the weirdest celebrity stuff I had. Oh no. We start light, with William Shatner reading the disjunctive poetry that was Sarah Palin’s farewell address.

Then… this video, which explores the burning question: Why is Captain Kirk climbing a mountain?

Hahaha. I love that shit.

11.12.09, originally uploaded by zoetica.

Zoetica Ebb posted this up on Flickr the other day. I love the mask makeup, sure, but even more the way it combines an element of fantasy with a sense of urban dislocation.

*chuckling to self at terrible pun* Oh, hello! I didn’t see you there. Today on the Supercontinental Picture Show we’ve got you sorted when it comes to Walken-related randomness.

First, Walken’s bizarre reading of the lyrics to Lady Gaga on BBC’s Jonathan Ross.

Then there’s this great Kevin Pollak impersonation. Hilarious shit, just watch it.

And we close with the man himself, very gracious and self-aware, being interviewed by Henry Rollins about “The Walken Thing”.

Tony Gilroy, you’re a very smart director. Is that what you wanted me to say? OK, you’re a very very smart director (*ruffling his hair*).  There. 

Next time can you make a heist movie where great scenes and sharp performances aren’t hamstrung by poor pacing, whiny main characters, and a romance that we can’t be bothered investing in because you apparently couldn’t be either? 

And can it have more of Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson beating the holy hell out of each other?

Patton Oswalt -- KFC Famous Bowl -- not only funny, but a couple moments of pure poetry in about three minutes.

Gotye -- Hearts a Mess -- Haunting, beautiful, surreal.

Royksopp -- Remind Me. Came out a few years back, still amazes me. I love infographics anyways, so this is just the sauce of awesome.

Cheburashka -- This stop-motion animation contains a Soviet crocodile playing the concertina. That is all you need know.

Bonus Track:The BPA (aka Norman Cook fka Fatboy Slim) featuring David Byrne and Dizzie Rascal - Toe Jam. Infectious song, the video’s pretty clever as well.

Battle For The Cowl, if you don’t know, is a current DC Comics storyline about bunch of Gotham City vigilantes  (and maybe Alfred, and Commissioner Gordon), fighting over who will be the next Batman now that Bruce Wayne is dead/sent back in time (I don’t know; ask Grant Morrison).  This ramble was sparked off by a blog post (savblog? find, link) pointing out that with Huntress, Robin, Nightwing, Azrael etc all in the city, that the idea that Gotham would degenerate after one guy is gone doesn’t really hold water.

But maybe it does if you think about it in more illogical, more human terms: we’re talking about the mythology of The Bat, the force of order, like Hobbes’ Leviathan, holding sway to prevent Gotham from reverting to its natural state of chaos.  As much as, or much more than, a person, The Bat is a socially engineered boogyman, a narrative that keeps order in the minds of Gotham’s populace.

(continue reading…)