Geek Media: les miserables -- and the song every girl wants to sing

Susan Boyle may have turned Les Miserables "I Dreamed a Dream" into the most successful song from the musical when she took it and stole the heart of the world with it.

But ask any girl that loves musicals, performs in musicals or wishes to perform in musicals. It is nothing compared to the other tragic anthem of the international renowned stage show.

Because when it comes to a heart-breakingly beautiful and haunting melodies of lost dreams and shattered hopes, On My Own truly is in a class of its own.

On My Own is a song that every individual can relate to. It is a song of unrequited love, of a lost and lonely heart, of being ignored. It is a song of heartache, of the bitter pains of finding love and realizing that it is one unrealized in full.

Every word is a tragedy in colour. Every verse is another tear. In the rainfalls of a Paris street, a waif of no significance cries out against her own fate of irrelevance.

In so many ways, it is one of the musical's most powerful number, sung to a powerful tune in a powerful voice that rings out its injustice, its pain. It can make or break the character of Eponine. For it is this tune that makes her one of the most beloved and most desired of all characters in Les Miserables.

Small wonder that when the movie version of the musical was announced, every sort of actress or pop star - from Scarlet Johansson to Taylor Swift - scrambled to try and grab the coveted role, and by extension, the opportunity to be immortalized by immortalizing this song.

However, once it was not so popular a part with fans.

One only has to look back and see. In its original incantation, it didn't have that same strength, that same tragic beauty. Instead, it was far more insipid, whiny even (no fault to the original performer may I add).

In truth, perhaps that was how it was supposed to be. One only has to read the books to understand that for Eponine while tragic in the books was not a really likable character based on the personality she truly had.

And so it was, until the day Lea Salonga seized the role.

Her loneliness was palpable. And so her powerful eulogy to a lost love echoed through the auditorium, every feeling wretched from the song. She sang it with power, with bitterness.

And that was when the world began to care, began to relate and so began to love. Suddenly Eponine had a soul, she had depth and she had life.

Salonga re-invented the character not just in a song, but in how the song was sung.

And has been sung ever since.

 No other song in the musical realm has come close to truly matching the feelings or power that this song creates. Nor is there a song that so easily overwhelms and imposes a truly secondary character into one of the story's most beloved and most desired.

Geek Media: failing to not like thorin oakenshield

So, how awesome was Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey? Seriously, I never in a million years would have thought I'd be able to call a dwarf sexy.

And yet, he managed that in spades (frankly though, so did Kili, which I have already discussed) So much kudos to Richard Armitage for the solid acting and really creating a solid character.

Because honestly, I tried my damndest to hate that character.

(WARNING: Major spoilers from this point onward for the Hobbit. If you have not read the books, proceed at your own risk!)

Now don't get me wrong, he is everything and more that Armitage depicted Thorin in the movie - strong, steadfast, loyal, a great and immense warrior and a legend in his own right, intelligent and thoughtful.

But by the time he arrived in the Hobbit, he really was more the other guy that you saw of Thorin as well from time-to-time in the movies - bitter, world-weary, proud and even a little hateful. But really, way more of the bitterness.

Perhaps it was the style of writing that the Hobbit has, or perhaps it is simply because Tolkien wrote it from Bilbo's perspective, but Thorin was not a likable character in the book. He felt distant, rude and ... well, like a dwarf with little respect for anything at all. None of the more admirable qualities of him was all that self-evident. Certainly it was there based on the loyalty his fellow dwarf companions had for him, but it wasn't outright stated and so somewhat got lost in his stubborn, obstinate behaviour.

What ultimately ruins the whole character for me was that by about page 250, he gets downright insufferable. That base and totally illogical greed of his (illogical because he never ever bore a Ring of Power - according to lore, the Seven increased a dwarf's greed and reliance on defining one's worth by their wealth) takes over upon seeing the vast treasuries of gold in the Lonely Mountain.

For no other reason than that is why he nearly caused a war against Men and Elves! Illogical, stupid, self-absorbed, baseless greed!

In that moment, he goes from being just a mean dude to an evil one ala Boromir from the Lord of the Rings.

Granted, he redeemed himself much like Boromir does at the very end by dying in the Battle of Five Armies defending the Lonely Mountain itself as well as all those that fought in it, but his death simply wasn't as tragic feeling in the book as Boromir's was.

He never did redeem himself into a likable character in the book in my eyes. In some ways, the grudge over his greed and stupidity never faded in my eyes.

Granted, it has been some times since I read the Hobbit and I haven't exactly given it a deeper look in order to thoroughly break down Thorin's psyche from within the narrative or anything... but the countless times I have read that novel, I never walked away from it having liked the dwarf.

And yet, here I was, after movie one-of-three, really, really respecting Thorin and his loyalty. Even his grump and stubborn streak appealed to me in that it simply demonstrated another part of his strength.

All of a sudden, his fallible nature that so repelled me in the books made him someone that I wanted to embrace and to accept. I loved the character and the personal struggles and demons he dealt with. And it actually made me sad, knowing that his end is only two more movies away and that I would actually be very upset at seeing it.

I tried really hard to dislike him, in order to make his passing less tragic. And it won't be so...

Either Richard Armitage is a genius, or I've been duped by Peter Jackson.

Geek Media: kili has - sadly - made me succumb to my inner fangirl

There are any number of things I can and will eventually talk about when it comes to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Or as I call it, Hobbit Pt. 1).

But the first that I write with some immediacy, mostly because I give fandom about a 48 hour turnover rate before FFN and many many MANY other fanfiction websites becomes overloaded, overrun even, with Kili/Mary Sue tale.

Yes... Kili/OC. That will be explained... eventually.

And before I go much further... let it be known that any and ALL Hobbit-related tales, critiques, analysis and stories... WILL include all manner of spoilers from both the Book-verse and the Movie-verse.

And I can't even say you're safe from LOTR spoilers here... because you won't be. Frankly speaking.

Okay... so Gimli from The Lord of the Rings was (and in some ways still is) how I mostly envisioned dwarves to look like as a general principle. That is to say, they're stocky, thick, round-faced and all forms of battered and beat up.

So when they announced that they were doing The Hobbit, I had essentially envisioned the 13 dwarves in the movie... to look like this in some form or fashion.

(Please note this was me randomly colouring the dwarves hair for the most part outside of Gloin, Balin and Thorin as it relates to the movies. Otherwise, no form of canon was consulted in the making of this)

 Boy... was I ever wrong about that...

Now, Thorin Oakenshield will have his discussion both in terms of appearance and personality in a comparable "how does he differ book to movie" for me... but let's get back to the crux of the situation here.

So this past summer, they released all of the above character portraits of the 13 dwarves of Erebor. And one in particular caught my eye.

Oh, what? Who's this? was my precise reaction. I mean, no way this guy is a dwarf, much less one of the 13. 

Firstly, he carries bows and arrows. BOWS AND ARROWS. Like some pretty little elf this side of the Misty Mountains for heaven's sakes.

What self respecting dwarf doesn't go for face to face combat? 

Not this one apparently.

Also... none of the chubby cheeks and sturdy build for this dude, nor ugly, stringy hair. No he's slim, he's sexy and he has that angry, don't-give-a-damn look of his down pat. Oh and the hair... very pet-able. XD

Basically, he looks less like a dwarf and more like some other dude I know all too well from the LOTR-verse that follows the events of the Hobbit, and that I have spent many a day obsessing over as a teenager and even now.

Yeaaaaaah... I definitely get more the ranger-y feel from this dwarf.

But I digress. The question here is "who is he?"

To speak in the grandiose nature of Gandalf the Grey, why he is Kili, brother to Fili and nephew of Thorin Oakenshield, bourne of Thorin's own sister. He and his brother are the youngest to take part in the expedition to take back Erebor and is perhaps part of the reason why they both look... well, less like dwarves, more like young men perhaps.

Or in Kili's case, stands as a reasonable excuse as to why his "dwarf beard" amounts to little more than the length of ass-hairs. Seriously, dwarves have beards. What Kili had was too many days without his razor.

Also, the fact that movie!Thorin himself is rather human-like - and good looking to boot - in appearance (although if as much was ever said to the book-canon Thorin he would have strangled you with his bare hands) and the whole family relation thing probably justifies it.


Actually, now that I think of it, Thorin himself has a beard that amounts to little more than nothing in dwarf terms. That stubble ain't a true dwarf beard...

Jesus the things P.J. does to canon - presumed canon anyway - to keep these dwarf men attractive...

Here's the thing though: Kili (and Fili) are about as insignificant a dwarf character as they came in The Hobbit. They rarely spoke, and they didn't really do much of note for the company besides just... was there.

No that's a lie. Their most notable feat was that THEY DIED during the Battle of the Five Armies.

So it is for that reason that I sat their and said, "Well he's cute, but I'm not going to crush on him, he has no real character background, he's insignificant... no no no no no no..."

All summer it was like that.

Little did I know, Peter Jackson gave him the "Legolas" treatment.

That is to say, raised the profile of the pretty faced, minor character to give someone (other than Figwit - who yes, WAS in the movie) for fangirls to swoon over and pine for. He was front and centre for so many major events... most prominently the Trollshaws and then the reindeer bunnies part (don't ask).

And as much as I hate to admit it... I swooned. Hard.

I tried, I really did. But I couldn't help it, my eyes betrayed me, drawn to the nice looking dwarf that reminds me so much of my beloved Aragorn in appearance (in character nature he was far closer to a Merry or Pippin though)

Part of me just didn't want to fall for him for his looks. The other part is that I wanted a character with meaning too, like in the case of Aragorn over Legolas in the original trilogy.

And yet another part of me just simply didn't want to end up in tears after the end of the Battle of Five Armies. (Although to be frank, I will be in tears at the end of Five Armies. Because unlike in The Lord of the Rings... major, important and much loved characters WILL DIE... and not just Kili)

But while watching the film, a character appeared that I adored: a mischievous, playful but tough little dwarf who grew up as bit of an idealistic adventure-lover in the Blue Mountains. He's rash though, a bit careless and somewhat silly but a loyal dwarf unlike any other who will risk life and limb for those he cares for, like Bilbo. He loves to smile and laugh, but in the midst of battle he can take on a bit of a battle rage not unlike his uncle... though certainly not as intense.

What really separates him from the others is that he of all of them truly expressed the fact that he was eager to live, and has yet to feed from the same bitter trough that had hardened and hurt the heart of his uncle Thorin.

Look at that grin. HOW CAN YOU NOT ADORE THAT???

Crap. I think writing this has led to me being bitten by a plot-bunny. Something to do with Fili. And Kili. And origins.

Geek Media: the new hobbit trailer

Have you seen the newest and latest Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey trailer yet?

If your answer to that is "No"... WATCH IT. NOW.

The shiny, new Hobbit trailer has a whole boatload more action and excitement than its predecessor as fans really get a chance for more than a Gandalf soliloquy to tell us what happened.

It opens with some great lines from Bilbo, played by the fabulous Martin Freeman, the best of course being as he runs past a fellow hobbit in pursuit of his company, "I'm going on an adventure!"

Fans of the books have a chance to see many scenes they're familiar with in the story, such as the start of the Riddle game with Gollum, and the Trolls in the Trollshaw. And if you look carefully, you'll even see the characters perched on top of the trees that the goblins set on fire. (Which by looks may also be the final scene or even in this first of three movies)

It also throws in a few unexpected loops in as well - scenes involving events that never happened or were never even hinted at in the book itself. Such as the scene with the flying rocks and disintegrating cliffs... no it is not in the book! Whatmore, I cannot even fathom where this scene would take place, before or after they go inside the Misty Mountains and battle the Goblin King.

You can already tell the dialogue is epic, and the scenes are going to look amazing in 3D.

The whole thing makes me excited for December 14th to come already!

Geek Media: arrow

There was a panel and screening that took place at this year's FANeXpo that I missed and kind of wish I didn't. And yet I don't quite regret it either, for the sake of having to wait hours and hours in line to attend both.

CTV was promoting The CW's new show Arrow by bringing in the cast of the show. It is a show that the channel's secondary CTV2 will simulcast when it premiers on Wednesday October 10, 2012 at 8PM ET and is a series loosely based on DC Comic's Green Arrow. And I say loosely, because it really has been modernized and re-imagined in order to create the necessary realism and story-telling for the show.

Here is the trailer.

I readily admit I don't really have the patience or the funds to be a really big comic book fan, so I can't really tell you what changed from the DC Universe to the one they're presenting here. But based mostly on the trailer, it looks like a cross between an action thriller and a dark mystery of sorts. It revolves around how the title character Oliver Queen, portrayed by Canadian actor and former Rent-a-Goalie actor Stephen Amell,  had changed after being stranded on an island for five years. No one knows what went on on that island or why, simply that the wealthy heir had come back... different.

Kinda like what happened with Tony Stark in Iron Man, but different.

Suddenly, it has become his personal mission to "destroy evil." But why? Why has he taken on this monument task, and by himself? What happened that made him decide that that is his life's work?

It looks great from the trailer, but everything seems great from a trailer. The question is really how do they plan to build the character and the story. How well will or can Amell capture the torment and yet still try to exude as if "nothing had happened or changed" with this rich boy? I haven't much doubts with the casting either way (I think Amell looks brilliant) but there are certainly a lot of questions.

I look forward to see where they take this and how this will develop. Though if you ask me, it looks like something that can be brilliant for one season before it crashes and slides into oblivion.

Geek Media: the les miserables movie

Do you hear the people sing?

It is the music of a people who are awaiting with baited breath - myself among them - for Les Miserables, Sir Cameron Mackintosh's incredible musical based on the classic novel by Victor Hugo to finally come to theatres after breaking records and breaking hearts on the stage for the last 25 years.

It's to debut around Christmas of this year, thereby making it Oscar eligible and with a star-studded cast led by Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, Russell Crowe as Javert and Anne Hathaway as Fantine, it is expected to be one of the top contenders.

I love this musical. I saw it live 5 years ago and would love to see it again. The music is beautiful, with an impact that stays in your mind long after the last note fades from the speakers you heard it on - whether it be in the theatre or at home. It is an impact that Susan Boyle was able to get the whole world to realize when she sang one of its iconic songs  on Britain's Got Talent. 

But the trailer has me asking a few questions.

You'll notice in the trailer that Fantine is singing her (and Susan Boyle's) iconic song "I Dreamed a Dream" in what looks like an alleyway. Her hair is short and she is disheveled, indicating that she has already fallen into prostitution at the point she sings the song.

But in the musical, she actually sings "I Dreamed a Dream" right after she is fired from her factory job at the end of "At the End of the Day." At that point, she still had all her pride and joy, her long, beautiful hair. She still had her decent clothing and her pride, so to speak. It wasn't until the song after she sang "I Dreamed a Dream" did she have her hair cut and she resorted to prostitution to survive, during the song "Lovely Ladies".

Now, given the importance of "Lovely Ladies" to driving the story (and based on scenes in the trailer) it probably wasn't removed.

So then, what's the deal? Did Mackintosh and the director decide to move "I Dreamed a Dream" until after her "fall from grace" (which was somewhere in the middle of "Lovely Ladies") Did they re-enact the song as a reprise? 

That has me a bit worried.

And yet still, I have faith.

As a side note to Fantine's fall from grace, they did leave out the fact that Fantine also lost her two front teeth. It wasn't mentioned at all in the original musical (though they did depict it on the stage) but in the book, that was another thing she sold for francs before becoming a prostitute. 

And you thought the hair cutting was drastic.

Geek Media: j.j. abram's revolution

A couple of months ago, I was mucking around the internets when I saw this trailer from NBC.

And I have to admit, it looks absolutely epic.

It's a fascinating concept - what would the world be like if everything electronic were to suddenly stop working?

In 15 years, the modern world has ceased to exist as we know it. The world governments have deteriorated as public order collapsed to make way for militias or warlords. But humanity is resilient as people attempt to adapt to their new existence.

Little do most people know however, there exists a mysterious key to the secret as to why the power went out. It may also hold the key to bringing the power back. And in the wrong hands, it is a key to terrible power.

It is a powerful premise drawn from the mind of Lost creator and television sci-fi genius J.J. Abrams as well as Bryan Burk. The pilot episode was directed by Iron Man director Jon Favreau to add to the pedigree of this show.

I may not have really got into Lost or Fringe, but  I was a big fan of the first season of Heroes (too bad that Writer's strike essentially generated it's death) and I was an even bigger fan of Abram's reboot of Star Trek. But even without all that, I know to expect mind-blowing twists and intriguing bits of lore relating to this post-apocalyptic world.

And plus, what isn't to love about watching people use swords, bows, crossbows and what have you in ancient-styled weapons?

All of this essentially plays quite well into my love of fantasy and I look forward to how Abrams chooses to develop the story.

Here's also hoping that it fares better than Season 2 or 3 of Heroes did.

Although predicting (probably jokingly) that the Chicago Cubs would be the 2012 World Series Champion is not the most magical start, but the sports nut in me loved the reference and the (sarcastic?) humour behind it.

(Given how badly the the Cubs have done this year, it has since been edited out of the trailer)

The series is set to debut on Monday, September 17, 2012, at 10 pm on NBC and CityTV in Canada.

Geek Media: recrimations of a multimedia monopoly

At least they live up to their company
line. They simply won't stop...

The other day, on my way to work, I received a phone call.

It was Rogers. Again.

Once upon a time, I had three Rogers prescriptions - cable, internet and cell. Or at least I did through my parents.

Since I've flown the coup and is now on my own, I've gone elsewhere for internet and cell phone services.

Now I only get cable through Rogers.

Somehow, that alone gives them the right to call me.

And not once in awhile. Not a few times a year.

Try several times every time they decide to survey me. Which is once every two months.

Now let me make this clear...  in my humble opinion, the worst job in the world isn't the janitor who cleans toilets, or even a land-mine inspector. After spending years listening to my dad screaming at many of these over the phone, my belief is that the worst job is call centre representative. No one has to put up with the kind of verbal abuse they do and still have to remain polite throughout (at least, sound it) than these guys.

And because of that, I generally try to be polite with call reps. I won't say no to doing surveys (time permitted and depending on relevance) and I generally try to keep my tone modest.


But this was the fourth time so far this year they've called me, and about pretty much the same thing - "How can we improve your experience?"

And this isn't a one-off "If she answers, we'll ask her, if she doesn't she's off the list."

No.

They keep calling. It's four times, or five times a day, until I bloody well pick up the phone only to hear, "Hi this is so-and-so from Rogers and we'd like to ask you how we can improve your services today."

I mean, the first time they called, I answered their questions politely and no, the service I had was more than satisfactory and fine. I don't need more channels for an additional $11 dollars, or a home phone, or a cell phone service.

The third time, it was "Well, we see you don't have an internet service and... "

No, thank you. I use Teksavvy to supply my internet needs, and unless you guys can get me better than 500GB of bandwidth a month for $45 dollars, it's not worth talking to me about.

(Note: The equivalent internet coverage via Rogers is nearly $100 dollars)

This time around, I didn't even let the poor woman finish. It was "No, I don't need any improvements or promotions. My service is fine, this constant need to call me is not however!"

I'm sorry. Once a year, twice a year I can deal with. But once every two months makes me want to cancel my one and only Roger's subscription.


I've consciously made my decision to avoid Rogers for the essentials (cell and internet) in my own home for many reasons.

Mostly because after spending a good number of years getting ripped off on my cellphone bills and watching my poor, hapless mother get ripped apart with the cable and internet bill, I had enough.

I mean, I was paying close to $40 dollars for a bare minimum service, which later ballooned to over $100 dollars over a three month period, at which point I threw a hissy fit at them for them to fix the problem.

I finally booted myself out over to Virgin once my 3-year contract came to an end, I had had enough of them and the headache they gave me.

As for the internet, I simply couldn't stomach paying $50 dollars a month for a third-world quality internet service when Teksavvy provided much better for an equivalent price when I got my new apartment.

It's not like I need Cable television or anything. It's a luxury for me, a plus for working stupid hours some days.

And frankly, if they call me one more time this year, I may just tell them I don't need it anymore.

Or I can switch to Bell. There's always that option...

So...

Dear Rogers,

Stop calling me. I've had enough of you and your "ways to improve my service." If I want more, I'll go looking for them. On my own and in my own time.

No love,

Grace Im

Geek Media: it's a hobbit trilogy revelation

It's official. The Hobbit duology has become a trilogy.

And while 12,000 people on the internets seemed to "Like" this announcement (at least, on Facebook they did, which was where Peter Jackson made the announcement of his decision) I'm not one of them.

Now don't get me wrong, I LOVED the Lord of the Ring trilogy. As far as I'm concerned, Peter Jackson handled that classic brilliantly. So much so did I love it that I have all three extended editions and they get pretty frequent use when I'm of a mind to write or be creative.

Don't ask me why, but it really does get my artistic juices flowing.

But I'm a Tolkienite, and a purist to boot. Even when I write LOTR fanfiction, I keep things canon.

And I accept and totally agree with the idea that the Lord of the Rings movie could not have been done unless each of the three books was an individual movie. It was over 1000 pages long. So relatively speaking, 333 pages per movie.

And even with 3 movies, it was unable to incorporate many events that occurred in the books, such as the meeting of Tom Bombadil and the scuffle at the Barrow Downs, not to mention the Scouring of the Shire.

But the 310 page (more or less, depending on the edition and the font size) Hobbit? Compared to the LOTR movies, in page terms it can't be longer than one standard 3-hour movie. So even the duology was a bit of stretch for me.

But I was able to accept it. Mostly because I figured the second movie would be 50% Battle of the Five Armies, which anyone who have read said book knows, that battle was all of around 10 pages worth, and that was because it was told from Bilbo's point of view, who was knocked out at the beginning of it. And having seen what Jackson did with the Battle at Helm's Deep (turned a one chapter narrative to a 1.5 hour odessey in the Two Towers) and knowing his love for those huge, epic battles (and the Battle of Five Armies is one of the bigger and badder battles in the Third Age of Middle-earth) he wasn't going to settle for 10 minutes of that fight.

But now it's a trilogy, and it has me throwing a bit of a fit.

Yes Peter Jackson states without doubt that they plan to use that extra time to incorporate more material spoken about in the Appendices of the Lord of the Rings that does touch upon a number of things that occurred during the these events.

But it's not enough to fill a trilogy. A duology yes, but not a trilogy.

Which has me wondering if this may be Jackson's (and the studio's) attempt at a cash grab. I mean, they already have a dedicated audience in Tolkien fans from around the world, but even those who could care less about Tolkien or Middle-earth would probably go out to watch this movie. And because once people watch and enjoy one, they tend to want to finish what they started irregardless of how crappy the rest of the movies are. One only has to look the the Toby Maguire-led Spiderman trilogy in addition to the Matrix to know this to be true.

Why not increase your profit by another half by extending the series into a third movie? Even if by the end of it people are frothing at the mouth?

Which brings up another issue for me. Precisely how much artistic licensing Jackson will be taking with these movies as a result?

And then I get worried.

I will probably still go out to watch the first movie this Christmas. But I may choose to watch Les Miserables first as a result all the same.

No that's a lie. I still like my Tolkien. Even if it becomes bastardized. But then, who knows, maybe Jackson is a genius and he'll find a way for this to work?

Geek Media: geek and sundry is my new obsession

So recently while re-discovering and catching up on Felicia Day's "The Guild", inevitably led me to her new YouTube Channel, called "Geek and Sundry".

It's genius.

Geek and Sundry launched in April 2012 and is the brainchild of "new media and geek guru" Felicia Day. It is a premium YouTube channel with several independent shows produced by the group.

It really does cater to a niche community that likely wouldn't otherwise get much play-time in the mainstream world with fantasy and sci-fi book club show "Swords and Lasers" or celebrity board game show ran by Wil Wheaton of Star Trek fame called "TableTop".

Granted though, with the incredible popularity of The Big Bang Theory and Glee which seems to largely embrace, even celebrate, the geek-dom that it represents, it likely won't be long before such shows as the above mentioned will become mainstream in our minds and hearts.

Suddenly it's cool to be a geek.

Anyway, I spent entirely too much time this week wasting my life watching various episodes of all the shows. Episode 6 of Swords and Lasers interviewed George R.R. Martin and went chest-deep into the topic of his books series A Song of Ice and Fire and there was so much there worth absorbing.

But Wil Wheaton's TableTop is just downright entertaining and I can't help but feel I'm taking way more away from it than I probably should. Not only is it giving me a terrible urge to go down to Snakes & Lattes downtown, but it's introducing me to games I'd never have considered. The first episode, where they played "Small World" was amazing if only because of how easy and often you can screw over your opponent in just 9 moves. It was probably their most entertaining episode.

And of course, "Settlers of Catan" ... always entertaining to watch people scream in horror as they steal their precious ore or wood.


Anyway I sign off this little geeky discovery with this equally geeky thought: It is amazing how often the British Top Gear uses music from the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

They used the last 30 seconds of "Forth Eorlingas" (heard and pictured below) and then "The Treason of Isengard" (the drum beat and male soprano part) during a segment just a half an hour ago and I couldn't help but look up from writing when I heard it.

I'm bad like that. I've watched the movies and listened to the soundtrack to the point that I probably have the majority of those notes from the music memorized and can also name the scene that corresponds with the song without even knowing the exact name of the tune (which largely gives away what part of the movie the song is attached to). But then again, the music is just that epic, and just that good.