10) Adults and children adore it.

9) Well-crafted writing, character development, mixed with a healthy dose of action make for great television in general and not just animation.

8) A movie with a director has only been announced, announced mind you, and already there are endless discussions and blog entries about what should be done about the movie.

7) Great, big-name actors for voice-overs for just minor characters!

6) Who doesn't want to see a kid try to save the world?  We all tried that when we were teenagers!

5) Blends many cultures together to show us our own global environment and how we can make it better.

4) Teaches children and sometimes adults life lessons about love, duty, power, sacrifice, honor, parents, and being true to oneself.

3) Big fluffy flying bison... where else would you see THAT?

2) Makes you laugh, cry, shout, giggle, and curse all in one episode!

1) Is a cool thing to talk about with your significant other and children for hours and hours to make enjoying their company even more agreeable.

Well, I'm back after a brief hiatus.  My wife and I love tv.com for getting our Avatar info.  (Nerd alert, nerd alert.)

Anyhow, the avatarescape comics are giving us a great distraction from our angst over the coming season 3 premiere sometime this spring... the sooner the better!

I can't pick a favorite of the comics so far.  You tube has three of them... I'm not sure HOW someone got a hold of Avatar Kuruk's comic, but it's pretty good.

Does anyone else think that the Avatar live action movie announcement with M. Night Shyamalan was more pomp and circumstance than substance?  Sheesh.  Can't wait to see how that unfolds, for better or worse.

Ah well, back to the submissions.

10) He learns to spell things based upon the context of the situation.  We swear he has psychic powers!

9) He whizzes around on a computer just as well as me.

Eight ) He knows what shows are on what stations every single night.

7) He uses more adult words in the privacy of our own home such as: sex, bad *ss, make out, etc.

6) He cooks better pumpkin pie than his mother.

5) He burps louder than his father.

4) He quotes his cartoon shows he's seen over and over and over better than me and often corrects me.

3) He knows which commercials are "bad" and  appropriately mutes them with the remote.

2) He knows when his parents are trying to keep something from him a secret for his own good.

and, 1) He suspects that Santa is really Mom and Dad, but he hasn't QUITE made the leap yet... we have another year for that!  wooohooo!

Today it was announced that M. Night Shyamalan will direct one to possibly three live-action Avatar the Last Airbender films.

Well, I am trepidated that Shyamalan's movies have fared progressively worse.  However, I am encouraged that this will be first movie he directs on something other than his own source material.

I hope for several things.

1)  Michael D. and Brian K. have input in the movie.  Co-writers or story consultants or producers or something aside from "story based upon characters created by" credit.

2)  Some of the original voice actors have roles since they already know their characters.

3)  Some big-name Hollywood actors also have roles.  Jet Li. Ian MacKellen.  Keira Knightly. 

4)  That Shyamalan's kids watch the show religiously and they begged him to beg Paramount to do the movie.  Hence, hopefully, Shyamalan will have a reason to do the movie well.

5)  That Paramount execs do whatever it takes to keep the movie true to the story.

6) That the movie is good enough that my wife and children will see EVERY showing of EVERY day possible until the movie leaves the  theaters.

7) I hope it comes out during the summer blockbuster run.

Kudos to Paramount to green-lighting the project even before the entire animated series airs.  Hopefully Shyamalan will do this show justice and  do it correctly.  It can be such a HUGE franchise for Nick a la Spongebob if done correctly.

This is both my greatest dream for Avatar and also my worst nightmare if they do it horribly wrong.  Bring on 2009!!

Happy New Year, at least on the Julian calendar.  Let us not forget that other faiths such as Jewish, Muslim, Wicca, Hindi, and Chinese celebrate the  New Year at different times based upon mostly lunar cycles. 

New year celebrations are typically a time to cast away the old and begin the new. One old story has old Father Time with his long flowing beard and walking staff handing over a new baby for the next year.  Just as the ancients observed cycles in nature, many of those same traditions happen today.

Making resolutions?  Most resolutions are fogotten very early in the new cycle due probably to the fact we see a year as a very long and insurmountable time. 

Consider this story. One Buddhist master was in training at a monastery and the exercise for the week was to stay awake for an entire week.  After it was over, the master-in-training realized what he needed to do.  Do not see it as staying awake for a week, but for another breath.  String enough breaths together, and you have an hour.  Then a day.  Then a week.

Instead of a New YEAR resolution, try making a New DAY resolution. If you string enough days together, you have a week, then a month, and suddenly a year has gone by.  Say to yourself every morning, "Today is a new day. I will get this done today. Yesterday is gone, I can do nothing from yesterday except to learn for today.  Today and this very moment is new and I will accomplish this in this moment."

Try this and see what happens.  Suddenly that long drawn out project doesn't seem so hard, or that long-sought after goal gets closer and closer within reach.

Have a prosperous and joyous New Year everyone!

Well, today was an adventure, to be sure.  My wife did all, and I mean ALL of the holiday shopping tooooo-day.  Along with every other frickin' person on the planet.  Her mother dragged her along for seven hours of frenzied panic.  Three foot massages later and my wife is still trying to relax!

Luckily, my son and I saw Night at the Museum whilst the other chaos ensued.  For a kids movie it was decently funny.  My favorite moments were when the wild west railroad boys sparred with their next door neighbors, the miniature Roman legion led by Emperor Octavius.  The Egyptian Pharaoh's resurrection towards the end was also hilarious when he proclaimed "I studied English at Cambridge University where I was interred for several decades."  Funny stuff!

Note to Nick:  Avatar Christmas Special?  Aang rides in on Appa delivering presents to the good Earth Kingdom children?  Please read my "Night of the Guru" post on the Avatar forum.

I hope everyone has a Happy Holiday!

Yay, I'm finally a Sweat Hog!  Now I can post quotes and trivia on my favorite shows!  I've discovered that writing  reviews boosted my level infinitely faster than posting ten million times in the Avatar forum. 

Today's the winter solstice, so light a fire or a candle to keep the daylight coming on the shortest day of the year!  For those above 23.5 degrees north, today is the day of 24 hours of darkness.  Can you imagine that?  Being totally dark for a day!  Too bad the Fire Nation can't be like that regularly... Hmmmm.  Maybe all the earthbenders can get together and change the rotation of the earth and make it so....

Well this is my first ever blog entry.  Really it's just a shameless attempt to up my level on the tv.com boards, but ok.  Avatar: The Last Airbender is the best show on television right now... even if it weren't animation, it would make a great live-action show.  The same can be said of the Disney/Pixar movie the Incredibles.  Star Trek: the Next Generation is my other favorite show, though it's been in reruns for 12 years now.  Avatar rises above the rest in the fact that the writing is great, animation top-notch, and has the perfect mix of character development and action.  Althought Avatar is written for boys ages 8-14, I am one of several (million) adults who avidly watch the show and post in the tv.com forum.  If you have a chance, vote for Avatar as the best animated show on the tv.com poll.  At last check, we were 300 votes ahead of the Simpsons.

I've written (or will write) several reviews of episodes for both Avatar and TNG, and I post mainly in the Avatar forum.  The forum is nice in that it's a party with you and dozens of your closest Avatar friends!

TTFN.