Finally, after a week of sameness I have something to ramble about! Firstly though, I just want to recognize the last two days for how great they’ve been, even today coming off of last night kept up the rarefied aura of the week. I swear, everything I want to happen is working out like I just drank a draught of liquid luck. I was able to sing Beautiful Day without missing any notes, and I got a pretty nice cheer at the end. I got the magazine I’ve been looking for for the past week from a couple of awesome librarians (laugh all you want, they’re the best). And yeah, there’s six days left of school! What’s not to love?
Also today I finished the first book in probably the most-well known trilogy ever outside of Star Wars. I’ve been reading The Bourne Identity since about the time I started this blog, and the book did not disappoint. The book itself was the best spy/action book by a long shot I’ve ever read (and yeah, I read Casino Royale). The plot was twisted and dark like the jungles of Tam Quan. The style was just the way I liked it, not overly descriptive but still giving great settings. The antagonist, almost always the best part of a book, was everything an antagonist should be. Even Jason Bourne himself was, while not the best character, was almost definitely the best ‘spy’ character I’ve ever seen in a book. The woman (who when I picked up the book I didn’t even know existed), Marie St. Jacques, was also a great character, probably the strongest character in the book whom saves Jason on more than one occasion. Although, the love story between the two of them was a little unbelievable… but if that’s the worst thing I can say then you can tell it was a pretty damn good book. All in all, I would have loved it anyway, but I think the best part for me was that it was the polar opposite of James Bond (the books at least), in the way that the spy is unsure of himself, the woman is the strongest character, and the writing is actually exciting. This is a trilogy I will definitely finish… and after that I’ll probably watch the apparently excellent movies as well.
The second trilogy I finished back in the fall or winter, and when I heard they were making a movie out of it I was understandably depressed. The Hunger Games was one of the best teen books I’ve read in a long time, and I didn’t want to see it destroyed as a movie. Still, after seeing the casting I was actually pleasantly surprised. There is not a single famous actor (besides maybe Woody Harrelson), and even though Jennifer Lawrence is a little old they couldn’t have cast Katniss any better. Really, they’re following the same formula a crazily successful and amazingly good series of movies followed… which was start with a bunch of relative nobodies and by the end they will be somebodies. Harry Potter followed that formula, and somehow Warner Brothers managed to turn easily the greatest young adult series of the 21st century into an equally great sequence of movies. I’m not sure if that can be pulled off twice, but it looks like Lionsgate may just manage it with Hunger Games (which in my mind is easily Harry Potter’s successor). As for those who are saying that you hate Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss simply because she’s either too old or too curvy or whatever… just read this: http://thehungergamesnation.weebly.com/1/post/2011/05/hq-scans-full-transcript-from-the-entertainment-weekly-hunger-games-issue.html. Personally, I’d rather have someone who both loves the character and understands the character (and who also happens to be a pretty damn good actress) than someone who just looks the part. But if you’d rather have Hailee Steinfeld or Emma Roberts… go right ahead. Not to say they wouldn’t be good… but this is the best you could possibly get.
Alright. There’s my spiel on the two trilogies. There’s a thing about trilogies too, they always seem to be decent no matter what they’re about. But there is a sure way to ruin one… and that is to extend it. If something is meant to be a trilogy… it should stay a trilogy. I realize there are about eight Bourne books in all, but I will only read the first three. I will only ever watch the first (chronologically) three Star Wars movies. And as for Maximum Ride… I wish I’d only read the first three. But anyway you’ve listened to my incessant rambling (or, if you’re smart, you’ve skipped right past it), so it’s time for the reward.
SONG OF THE DAY: MISERY
Even though this song is the exact opposite of how I feel today… it’s perfect in an odd way. And I swear, Adam Levine has one of the best tenor voices on a guy I’ve ever heard. מאושר לאומללות
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