The Whimsy of Creation: The Blog of Tieryas

Hannibal Episode 8 Fromage Thoughts (with spoilers)

Tieryas — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:23:50 +0000

I think this was my favorite episode of Hannibal yet and a big part of it is we get to see Hannibal get down and dirty. By that, I mean he actually fights someone and it’s a visceral fight, one of the rare times we see Hannibal’s elegance shed like skin. The fight is brutal, violent, and at one point, it almost seems like Hannibal is going to lose. His knowledge of human anatomy gets him out of trouble and the best part is that when the fight wraps up, he starts playing the piano, cold as ice.

In fact, the two motifs that run through the series, aside from murder and death, are food and music. The killer is using the victim’s vocal chords, a trombonist, to serenade a mysterious audience (before this episode, I hadn’t known cat gut was used for cello strings). Will Graham can’t figure out who the killer wants to impress. Hannibal, through his patient, Franklin, figures out that his friend Tobias is the killer. Even more disturbing, Tobias knows Hannibal’s secret, having secretly tracked him during the events of last week’s episode. They seem to share many traits and for a while, there’s almost the hint that Tobias could be the friend that Hannibal longs for. But he’s not. Instead, it’s Will, a revelation Hannibal makes to his psychiatrist.

The twists and turns of this episode rely on the psychological, as do the episodes themselves. Finding out the killer for each episode is less important than the way Graham, Hannibal, and company react to each other and develop their relationships. Jack Crawford takes a back seat in this episode, and Alana Bloom fills in as a budding love interest for Graham, all while we slowly start seeing Graham’s mental state fall apart. This is a younger Hannibal we see. Knowing what awaits them doesn’t make the events any less tense.

Review of Matthew Salesses’s I’m Not Saying, I’m Just Saying at HTMLGiant

Tieryas — Mon, 20 May 2013 18:32:06 +0000

I reviewed Matthew Salesses’s I’m Not Saying, I’m Just Saying, at HTMLGiant. It’s comprised of 115 flash fictions and I loved how beautifully written each of the pieces was. There’s an organic flow to the works as they built up to a bigger assemblage.

Koi fish have hundreds of scales that form a protective armor around them. Matthew Salesses’s I’m Not Saying, I’m Just Saying is a collection of 115 flash fictions that, like those scales, explore the spoken and unspoken nuances that connect and glue relationships in all their misfit forms.

The New Star Trek Into Darkness is AWESOME!!! My Initial Thoughts Full of Spoilers

Tieryas — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:01:45 +0000

I loved the new Star Trek Into Darkness and I’m going to list some of quick thoughts I had so this is less a review and more me talking about my likes and dislikes. Just to sum it up: it was awesome, the most entertaining movie I’ve seen this year by far. There are lots of SPOILERS!!! so don’t read if you don’t want the story ruined for you.

Now to tell you a little about my Star Trek background, I have watched every series and almost every episode. The only series from which I have not watched every episode is Voyager and Enterprise, though I have seen most of the episodes from both series. My favorite Star Trek movie is Star Trek VI, Undiscovered Country, which IV and II close behind. From Next Gen, I enjoyed First Contact and some elements of Insurrection. I also enjoyed the reboot and thought it was really well cast. My favorite TOS episode is Space Seed, which as many know, is the episode that introduced (again, SPOILER alert) Khan who was one of my favorite villains from the series. Everyone loves a good villain.

Star Trek Into Darkness begins with a bang. While I enjoyed the first one, one of my complaints was that Dr. McCoy doesn’t do much. In the sequel, he is heavily involved as they try to save a civilization from being destroyed by a volcano. In the process, Spock’s life gets endangered and Kirk rescues him by violating the prime directive. Spock tells Kirk: “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.” There are many nods like this to Star Trek II and for good reason. This is a reimagining of both Star Trek II and the Space Seed episode.

It’s a damn good reimagining. The relationship between Pike and Kirk is really nicely done with Admiral Pike becoming a father figure to Kirk, even helping reinstate him to command after he is sent back to the Academy for consistently defying Star Fleet authorities. After “John Harrison” blows up a secret facility that is developing weapons to fight the Klingons and then attacks Star Fleet Command directly, killing Pike in the process, Kirk is driven to chase after John Harrison. The movie could have had the subtitle “Wrath of Kirk” for how driven he is and how willing he is to do whatever it takes to bring Harrison to justice. Of course Spock and Scottie are both there to remind him that what he’s doing is morally wrong.

I work in VFX so I am very picky about VFX and I was blown away in this movie. The space sequences were incredible. The action was also superb. I have to say, it has been a LONG LONG time since I have been this amazed by an action scene. The sequence where the Enterprise goes into warp to escape the USS Vengeance, which then catches up with them and blows them out of space was one of the most riveting space battles I have seen. That Dreadnought class is freaking awesome.

I was on the edge of my seat for almost the entire movie. Even though it was 2 hours and 10 minutes along, honestly, it felt like it was half that and I didn’t want the movie to end. The key to that was that the relationships between all the characters was handled really well. I really liked and cared about the crew. In fact, I think the only character who didn’t really do as much this time around was Chekov, who was for the most part running around the engine room trying to fix everything. Sulu gets a shot in the chair, Scottie does his magic, McCoy is both conscience and life-saver, Spock brilliantly runs the Enterprise in Kirk’s absence, and Kirk is his brash self, saving the day. Of course, Uhura’s linguistic abilities come into play and her relationship with Spock leads to one of the most touching dialogue exchanges in the whole movie, even if the timing couldn’t have been worse.

This may not be the old Star Trek that I grew up with, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Swash-buckling space drama with laser beams flying everywhere, explosions, and a whole lot of twists and turns. The stakes are higher and the villains are more compelling. Anyone who watches Star Trek knows that in TOS, Klingons are a formidable enemy. Peter Weller reprises a role similar to the one he played in the Enterprise show, John Paxton, in which he was afraid of the threat of aliens who might be coming to attack Earth. Now, Robocop as Admiral Marcus wants to prepare for war with the Klingons, which is why he enlists the aid of JH. No surprise, he got more than he bargained for. JH pulls on Kirk’s consicence to get him to help against Admiral Marcus. Peter Weller played the role perfectly; he has that great mix of stiffness and passion that comes across as ruthless and yet convicted that he is fighting for a greater good.

Which brings us to JH. He is deadly, superhuman, and it’s great seeing more of him in action as his presence in TOS was limited to that one episode and the old film. He is pulsing with rage and is a total badass. The dialogue exchanges between him and Kirk are fantastic. He’s an intriguing take on an old character and his concern for his crew from the Botany Bay is touching. Benedict Cumberbath did an amazing job. If there’s one thing I missed, it’s that the original JH had a certain charm and grace about him, a Napoleonesque grandeur befitting of someone who was nearly ruled the planet. Even when he was defeated in the original Space Seed, he accepted his defeat with grace, looking forward to the challenge of taming a new planet. Of course, it’s important the creators take a new direction with the character so I appreciated how driven he was.

Some things I really loved: The New Klingon design was awesome. The launch scene where Kirk and JH go from the Enterprise to the Vengeance was brilliant. The dialogue was snappy and fun while revealing little bits about every character. The inverted ending for Into Darkness versus Star Trek II was also really well done. It really brought to the forefront the idea that everything has been distorted in this alternative reality. Also, Spock undergoes a character shift/change that was interesting to see. I did think at times, it could have been played more subtly. But as Spock himself says, things changed immensely with the destruction of his planet and he is a different Spock than the one from TOS (btw, nice to see OG Spock make a cameo).

Two questions I had and if anyone knows them, let me know: I know transwarp was established in the first Star Trek movie, but I didn’t know it would allow someone to warp all the way from Earth to Kronos. That’s a really long distance and at first, I was confused by his beaming so far away.

If the Enterprise was battling the Vengeance right outside of Earth’s atmosphere, wouldn’t other ships have at least tried to enter the foray or figure out what in the world was going on?

These are just my initial thoughts: I’ll continue with some more later!

Castle’s Elisa Lam Episode and Small Updates

Tieryas — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:59:57 +0000

I haven’t watched any Castle episodes, but when I heard there was an episode based on the Elisa Lam case, I wanted to check it out. I didn’t know much about Castle, aside from the fact that it starred Nathan Fillion who I really enjoyed from the Firefly series. The premise, gathered from Wikipedia, is that Richard Castle (NF) is a mystery writer who gets writers block and works with the police to solve mystery. The officer that he is shadowing, Kate Beckett, is initially annoyed but the two develop a relationship as they solve a string of mysteries. That’s all I knew going into the episode. As for the episode itself, it’s the season finale and is called “Watershed.” (just FYI that there will be some spoilers though I’ll try to limit myself) In the opening scene, a woman is taking a shower in a hotel (called Cedric, similar to the Cecil) when blood starts pouring out. A janitor goes up to the watershed and finds a body of a young woman. While initially, neighbors in the hotel think she’s a prostitute, it turns out she’s a Harvard student studying computer science masquerading as a prostitute. Her name is Erika Albrook and the similarities to Elisa Lam are pretty obvious, although she’s not Asian. (Thank you becklebee9nfsk3 who posted YouTube clips from which I got this image)

There’s even camera footage from the elevator where Erika pokes her head out, making sure no one is around. This is where the similarities end to the Elisa Lam case. The episode branches out into a conspiracy involving a political figure and a law firm, all the while focusing on the relationship between Castle and Beckett. That actually becomes the main focus and I enjoyed seeing the tension between the two, Beckett torn between love and ambition, and Castle also confused about what he wants. The Elisa Lam case may have inspired the opening, but from there, the writers took it in a completely different direction. They also succeeded in getting a new fan as I really enjoyed the episode and probably never would have watched it had I not heard about the similarities. At one point, Castle does make a joke about the state of their case being “dead in the water,” and another police men does not laugh in response, making him ask, “Too soon?” It’s an excellent question and brings up a point, when is it too soon to base a story off a real-life event? As the Elisa Lam case has not been solved, I know how it might indeed come across as being ‘too soon.’ I wasn’t bothered by the episode personally, though I can understand why others might be.

Some additional updates

First off, thanks to everyone who’s PM’d me, tweeted me, and just reached out to me about the case with various info. I had gotten a tweet mentioning that the toxicology results would be out last week. I still have not heard anything yet so like others, am curious what is going on. I will update if I hear anything, though by the time I hear anything, I’m sure it will be all over the internet.

An interesting but chilling fact: There is a test for Tuberculosis that is called Lam Elisa. Here is some info from this link:

The development of new diagnostic methods for the detection of active-TB, particularly for populations in which HIV/TB co-infection is high, has proved challenging. However, new commercially available Lipoarabinomannan (LAM) antigen tests, such as Clearview TB ELISA (Inverness Medical Inc.), have proved very useful as diagnostic tools for the detection of TB in those co-infected with HIV. With the availability of ELISA-based LAM antigen detection assays, researchers have sought to establish the effectiveness of the diagnostic test in people suspected of having TB. Increasingly, studies have revealed that when used as a general screening tool, the LAM-ELISA test sensitivity is significantly lower in subjects who are HIV- when compared to HIV+ subjects. (click the link below for more info)

http://www.cli-online.com/featured-articles/lam-antigen-testing-an-effective-rule-in-test-for-tbhiv-co-infection/

Energy Weapons?:

There’s been some links and tweets about an energy weapon and some conspiracy theories related to Elisa Lam. From all the people who asked about it, I’ve found it’s just spam completely unrelated to the case. (if I’m wrong though, please feel free to ping me or message with contrary information)

Who is Elisa Lam?

I’ve read more and more from Elisa Lam’s blog called Ether Fields and I thought Emerald’s Eyes did a really insightful blog post on her thoughts about her blog which you can view here. I’ve also been heard about a ‘morbid crush’ and some stranger she was meeting up with, though I have been unable to find anything on her tumblr or blog to corroborate that.

Hopefully, there will be more results from the case soon. I’ll leave off with some words from her blog which were tragic and haunting:

I spent about two days in bed hating myself.

Why don’t I simply do the things that I know will make me feel better?

It isn’t rocket science. It isn’t that difficult. Get out of bed. Eat. See people. Talk to people. Exercise. Write. Read.

If you want to do something with your life, well ok just go ahead and do something.

Ugh it’s too much work and I don’t even know where to start. I don’t know how to do anything and it’ll never work. I’ll be judged. I can’t do it. I can’t do it alone. I don’t know anybody It will be a complete utter disaster and no one will care about it and of course the point of doing everything is to get attention and praise from other people. Yeah I need to get the most followers and the most views. And by doing that I have to promote myself and become a phony and pander like hell. Good job you’re really following all the ideals you hold so dearly.

Hannibal Episode 7 Sorbet Thoughts (with spoilers)

Tieryas — Tue, 14 May 2013 20:07:28 +0000

There’s two main shows I’ve been following on a weekly basis. The first is Mad Men and the second is Hannibal. I thought the recent episode, Sorbet, explored Hannibal and humanized him in a surprising way that I enjoyed and brought depth to his character. Mozart plays a musical motif/theme throughout the episode and the show continues with its stylistic canvas in a way that defies the typical killer series (you know, there’s a murder, investigate the murder, catch the killer). In fact, the resolution of the crime is almost anti-climactic as it turns out to be a med student performing underground surgeries. What steals the spotlight is, oddly enough, Hannibal’s loneliness. The closest thing he has to a friend is Will Graham and in a surprising revelation, his own shrink played by Gillian Anderson. I had some reservations when I heard she was going to be on the show because I (like many others) identify her with being a FBI agent (from X-Files), but she did a great job as Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier. She was pushing Hannibal in ways that made both him and us as the audience feel uncomfortable, especially with reference to the human suit (a flash of the human suit he wore in Silence of the Lambs came chillingly to mind). On the inverse, one of Hannibal’s patients wants to be his ‘friend’ and you know something horrible awaits him in a future episode as he annoyingly insists on their similarities. The preparation of the meals, the dream sequence with Will Graham, and Jack Crawford’s haunting dreams of Miriam round out another great episode. I like the fact that there’s an almost artistic sensibility to the series. If there was one point I would question or was confused by, it was this: If Hannibal, as the Chesapeake Ripper, had killed all those people, only harvesting one organ (to be served), wouldn’t there be a media frenzy and intense pressure on the police to track him down along with blockades everywhere? The killings happen very casually, almost with too much ease, and for a show that seems very realistic, that was one aspect that pushed my suspension of belief. It’s a minor point, and again, really enjoyed the way the episode played out, a great mix of nods to the movies and books, while charting out its own path and identity. I especially liked how Hannibal seemed to get upset that Will was late to their appointment, suggesting one of the oddest friendships depicted on television.

Chronology of an Egg Free E-book and Giveaway at Goodreads

Tieryas — Wed, 08 May 2013 18:29:26 +0000

My publisher made a free e-book as a sampler for Watering Heaven called Chronology of an Egg that is comprised of five stories. It can be downloaded for free and I’m also doing a limited print run for which I’m holding a giveaway on Goodreads. If you’ve been curious about Watering Heaven and want to get a little taste of it, you can download for free at Smashwords and Omnilit. Also, you can enter the giveaway listed below at Goodreads.

Here’s a brief summary and if you do download, I would love to hear your thoughts in the review section on Goodreads.

Peter Tieryas Liu’s Chronology of an Egg is a companion to his debut Watering Heaven, published in October 2012 by Signal 8 Press in Hong Kong. Chronology of an Egg is a mini-collection containing five short stories — two from Watering Heaven (“Gradients” and the title story) and three others. Here we have the tale of the man who can fly, a baby about to be born with four arms, bank robbers who steal precious memories, and the end of the world coming in the form of a black hole. Liu’s fiction is a blend of the surreal and the fabulous, exploring the human condition in all its twisted glory

Thanks everyone and thanks to my publisher, Signal 8 Press, for doing this free sampler, as well as designer Cristian Checcanin who did this fantastic cover!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Chronology of an Egg

by Peter Tieryas Liu

Giveaway ends May 23, 2013.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Murder and Greed in Taiwan: Chen Chia-fu and Hsieh Yi-han

Tieryas — Wed, 08 May 2013 00:42:02 +0000

I covered a pair of really disturbing murders for Punchnel’s that took place in Taiwan and for a while were all over the media stations. Both read like something straight from that old horror show, Tales from the Crypt. In the first case Chen Chia-fu (37) murdered his sister, Chen Wan-ting (36). In the second, Chen Chin-fu and his wife, Chang Tsui-ping were killed. The motive in both cases: greed.

“Two murder cases have run rampant over Taiwanese media, both seemingly straight out of a Tales from the Crypt episode. There are chilling facts involved and a lurid sensationalism that has seized the Taiwanese public. Reports here in the States have been minimal regarding the cases, so the following information is based on culling what I could gather from various sources, much of it translated from Mandarin.”

Thailand Temples

Tieryas — Tue, 07 May 2013 17:11:21 +0000

We captured so many beautiful sights from Thailand, especially their marvelous temples. Here’s one of my favorite images by Angela from our time in Bangkok.

My Thoughts on the New Star Trek Villain

Tieryas — Mon, 06 May 2013 19:48:59 +0000

First off, if you don’t know who the new Star Trek villain is, stop reading this. Second, I don’t know for a fact who the Star Trek villain is, but a basic google search has led me to reviews that confirm it is who everyone thought it was going to be. Third, in the trailer, ‘John Harrison’ mentions 72 reasons to convince Kirk to go where he wants him to. For those familiar with a certain episode from the The Original Series, you will know what the reference is.

So now that it seems that the new villain is the old villain reimagined, what do I think? I think it’ll be fantastic. This goes back to my initial reaction when I heard Christopher Nolan and company were recreating Joker for the Dark Knight. I had some doubts, but I loved Nolan’s previous work and couldn’t wait to see what he would do with this new take. The results were phenomenal and The Dark Knight remains one of my favorite movies of all time. Now that JJ Abrams is taking on this classic villain, I can’t wait to see how he revamps him. Truth is, I miss that ‘villain’ as his appearances were limited to only that one episode and a certain movie. Any chance to explore and delve more into that character is welcome, especially when it’s directed by someone whose films I enjoy so much.

Let me also ask a question for the gamers who visit my site. Do you mind that Link is revamped in every iteration of Zelda? The same for Gannon. Yes, they fall into a timeline, but the key is that if the execution is brilliant, it doesn’t matter the who or the what. I for one will be awaiting Star Trek Into Darkness eagerly. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve been this excited for a movie since I awaited Dark Knight Rises.

I’ve been watching the old Star Trek movies with my wife in preparation. Just saw Undiscovered Country the other night. Still awesome, still moving, and the score- the score is just a thing of beauty.

Trailer link below:

Big Ray Review at the LitPub

Tieryas — Mon, 06 May 2013 19:32:18 +0000

I reviewed Big Ray at the LitPub, one of my favorite review sites. What an incredibly powerful book. Thanks again Editor Joseph Michael Owens:

In some ways, Michael Kimball’s Big Ray felt like I was reading from a dirge, a long melancholy hymn fractured into broken pieces, unified by Kimball’s troubled melody. There were too many parallels I identified with, too many details I understood too well to read this without a conflicted sense of empathy.