What is the deal with Connor? Just how much of a bad ass is Jeremy? Is Rebekah beyond redeemable at this point?

In the latest edition of The Vampire Diaries Round Table, staff members Matt Richenthal, Dan Forcella, Miranda Wicker and Eric Hochberger gather around to breakdown "The Rager," answering all these questions and more.

Won't you pull up a virtual chair and join them?

-------------------------------------------

What was your favorite scene from the episode?
Matt: Elena's keg stand. That was damn impressive. She's taking the wrong approach to this vampire thing. Forget learning how to subside on human blood in a calm manner. She should be winning state gymnastic titles for the Mystic Falls Timberwolves.

Dan: Damon and Klaus: Vampire Vampire Hunter Hunters. I loved seeing these two team up to take down the big bad hunter. It may not have been as brotastic as Damon and Ric, but it came in a close second.

Miranda: It feels too easy to just say Damon shirtless. But yeah, probably Damon shirtless. Followed closely by, oh yeah, Damon shirtless. And then Damon swooping in just as Elena's about to KILL MATT to save the day. If only he'd been shirtless.

Eric: There was a shirtless Damon? Didn't even notice. I was too busy getting giddy over the return of Phoebe Tonkin. Honestly, could there have been a better werewolf for Tyler for play around with in the Appalachians?

Did Tyler really cheat on Caroline?
Matt: Not to go all Ross and Rachel on you, but weren't they on a break? I'm pretty sure typical dating rules don't apply when one goes into the mountains to break a sire bond.

Dan: Have you seen Phoebe Tonkin? Yeah, he probably did.

Miranda: I feel like there's a joke about animal instincts and urges in here somewhere, but no, I don't think he cheated. I think they have a bond because of what he went through and it makes him uncomfortable, but Caroline is still his number-one girl.

Eric: No man should have to choose between Candice Accola and Phoebe Tonkin. Like Klaus and Dan, I'm going to assume the worst in our boy Tyler. He's a hybrid. Not Superman.

More shocking development: Jeremy actually being a bad ass, Klaus saving Connor's life or April apparently living alone?
Matt: While he official bad ass-ery may still be in question, I'm giving the nod to Jer. I wasn't bored by him for a change! I was surprised he played such a vital role in the Connor sneak attack and especially intrigued by the possibility of him working on his status as a hunter. What's next, TVD? Bonnie smiling?!?

Dan: Jeremy is not a bad ass. Like was mentioned during the episode, him saying that he was made the whole thing null and void. He can put on as much weight as he wants, Jeremy will always be a little twerp.

Miranda: Jeremy stepped into bad ass territory when he chopped the hybrid's head off with a meat cleaver, and the only adults living in Mystic Falls are the Mayor and the Sheriff, so the only possible answer here is Klaus saving Connor's life. Damn Klaus, always having all the answers.

Eric: Damon nailed it. If Jeremy has to label himself a bad ass, he still ain't one. And we all know The Vampire Diaries no longer kills off its bad guys. So clearly the biggest shock belongs to April. But it wasn't April living alone or drinking massively underage at a party. It was the fact the party was in the middle of the day during the week. Pretty sure I didn't discover day drinking until college.

If Stefan were to write a book, what should he title it?
Matt: Salva-BORE: Why Good Guys Rarely Win.

Dan: The Rippaahhhhhhhh.

Miranda: Funsucker: How To Be the Most Boring Vampire Ever in 164 Years or Less.

Eric: Rippah to Boring: In One Season or Less. Honestly, though, I wouldn't waste my time writing it if I were him. Much too small of a target market. New Vampires? Well, if you insist on it Stefan, I'd either start with a blog or go the self-published route on Amazon before I dare faced a publisher.

Do you feel any sympathy for Rebekah?
Matt: Yes, and that's not all I'd like to feel when it comes to Rebekah!!!

Dan: How much sympathy is the better question, and the answer is "loads of it." I don't care how much evil someone has inside of them, when Rebekah puts on the pouty face, I'm a sucker every time. I hope that everyone comes around on her and she becomes part of the gang. Oh, that will never happen? Well, a guy can dream.

Miranda: Not in the least. Sorry, Dan. Can we dagger her - again - and shove her back in a coffin already?

Eric: I'm torn. Pros: Poor girl had quite the scary cray cray for a brother in Klaus. And, let's be honest, who hasn't wanted to kill Matt or Elena once or twice these past few seasons? Cons: She killed Alaric. Okay, you're right. Bitch must die.

Source:
http://www.tvfanatic.com/2012/10/the-vampire-diaries-round-table-the-rager/

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith

How I Met Your Mother is set to stage a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reunion.

The CBS sitcom announced via Twitter today that Seth Green (who appeared on that cult favorite opposite Alyson Hannigan) will guest star on an upcoming episode as Daryl LaCoutre, a college classmate believed back in the day that Lily and Marshall were his best buds.

But when this married couple comes across the character 12 years later, awkwardness ensues when they scarcely recall anything about him.

Hannigan and Green portrayed the on-screen couple Willow and Oz for nearly three seasons on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Source:
http://www.tvfanatic.com/2012/10/seth-green-to-guest-star-on-how-i-met-your-mother/

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith

Beautiful work by Vancouver based graphic designer,  Sophia Ahamed. The first image is from her series titled SKELETAL SYSTEMS that explores the emotional value of human and animal skulls. The second two illustrations are from a similar series titled Of Flesh and Bone—the third image is a self portrait of Sophia. Her explanation of capturing what is under the skin is quite nice:

 The title of the series “Of Flesh & Bone” simply states that no matter who we are or what we are, we as human beings are built the same. We have all gone through moments of happiness, of loss, of despair and of triumph. It is said that what we truly desire in life in happiness. But only through pain can we begin to understand what happiness really is and allow our selves to feel it without hesitation.

Science has given us the ability to understand our own minds and bodies. Art has given us the ability to communicate these findings with others. I hope to create a different kind of healing process, one that stems from the artist and to the viewer. This illustration is a part of a series of several portrait drawings.

View more of the two series on Sophia’s Behance portfolio!

Source:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/streetanatomy/OQuC/~3/G-m1cGb8_58/

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith

My Portrait With Center of Face Gouged Out. 30″ x 22″. Acrylic on 140 lb Arches Watercolor Paper. ©2012.

My Portrait With Left Side of Face Removed. 30″ x 22″. Acrylic on 140 lb Arches Watercolor Paper. ©2012.

My Portrait, Shirtless, With Right Side of Face, Neck, And Chest Area Flesh Removed to Expose My Insides. 30″ x 22″. Acrylic on 140 lb Arches Watercolor Paper. ©2012

At the Edge I, 30″ x 22″, Watercolor on 140 lb Hot Pressed Arches Watercolor Paper. ©2012.

Removal of Portion of Skull to Reveal Brain. 30″ x 22″. Acrylic on 140 lb Arches Watercolor Paper. ©2012.

Gouged is such an intensely fantastic word isn’t it? This is the latest work by Los Angeles based painter Billy Reynolds.

Billy says that his anatomically inspired subjects (most are self portraits),

Captivate, by reverberating between the familiar and the odd, between the beautiful and the perverse.  I present a stark reality, however sexy or unsettling. I look at the beautiful exterior of the body.  And I look deep within the body, reminding you how delicately put together your body is, by taking the body apart and showing you.

I like this quote by Tom Neely who interviewed Billy back in 2007 which pretty much captures the essence of his paintings,

He doesn’t make pretty art to hang over your couch—he makes paintings that would make people wonder about you if you did. But Billy’s paintings are as beautiful as they are disturbing, and you should hang them over your couch because great art should provoke something in you.

Billy works in oil paint which he says offers “unlimited possibilities” and “is always waiting to offer more to you every time you go to it.”  He used to create every piece of work twice, once as a physical 3D model, carefully constructing every detail, and second as an oil painting, meticulously worked up with layers upon layers of oil paint.  Recently he’s switched to digital and no longer sculpts each piece. But he says that he will always paint traditionally.  There’s no replacement for that.

See more of Billy’s incredible anatomical work at billyreynolds.com!

Source:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/streetanatomy/OQuC/~3/Rp_PboqsOdE/

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith

Nike has these beautiful workout tights for women in the two above colors plus a khaki and black option. They are described by the company as tights meant for a woman who,

On the outside, she might be the girl next door, but on the inside, her body has survived grueling workouts, often pushing through pain, broken bones, pulled muscles and harsh tears.  With images of X-Ray bones digitally printed on the outside, the exclusive print tight gives a glimpse of her inner toughness…They are not to be worn by the timid, the weak or the wallflower. They are for the woman who wants to let people know she’s not just an average girl – she’s an athlete.

These are some cool looking tights and I like that they come in different colors, wouldn’t mind seeing more colors in fact.

[via Super Punch and Nike]

Source:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/streetanatomy/OQuC/~3/1jOlrociso4/

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith

For those who live in the New York City area and have not already had too much of Morbid Anatomy this season: I would love to see you this Friday at "Relics of the Weird," a book event for Colin Dickey's wonderful Afterlives of the Saints, wherein he will read from the book, and we will show and discuss artifacts of Catholicism drawn from the Morbid Anatomy Library permanent collection.

Full details follow; hope to see you there!

Relics of the Weird
Colin Dickey and Morbid Anatomy
Saturday October 27, 2012
7:00 pm
Word Book Store (126 Franklin Street, Brooklyn)

Get your creep on early! Colin Dickey (Afterlives of the Saints, Cranioklepty) and Brooklyn's own Morbid Anatomy will host a night in honor of some of the weirder relics in history, complete with slideshow and Halloween candy.

More here.

Image: "Incorruptible Saint" in Milan

Source:
http://morbidanatomy.blogspot.com/2012/10/relics-of-weird-colin-dickey-with.html

Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith