Farewell, Saruman

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Christopher Lee left behind a legacy of iconic film roles and music, having passed on June 7^th, 2015 at ninety three years old.  Lee died at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London after three weeks of treatment for respiratory problems and heart failures.

Born in Belgravia, London on May 27^th, 1922 to one of the oldest families in Europe, Lee was an only child. His parents separated when he was a child and his mother moved with him to Switzerland. He attended Miss Fisher’s Academy in Wegen, followed by Summer Field’s School in London. After this, he received a scholarship at Eton College and Wellington College where he studied Greek and Latin.

In 1939, Lee enlisted in the Royal Air Force during WW2. During this time, he also was assigned to tracking down Nazi war criminals and served as an Intelligence Officer with the Long Range Desert Group in Northern Africa in the Special Forces. He later retired with the rank of Flight Lieutenant. Sworn to secrecy, Lee never spoke of his war days.

Eight years later, Lee entered the film industry and obtained a seven year contract with the Rank Organization. He was enrolled in acting school that groomed young, contracted actors.  From his education, he obtained a role in “Corridor of Mirrors” – a gothic romance movie.  In the fifties and onward, Lee’s acting career blossomed from tackling classic roles such as Fu Manchu and notorious horror icons such as Dracula and The Mummy. The part of Dracula especially shaped him into a master of the macabre and led him to dabble in other horror flicks such as “Gremlin 2”, “The Creeping Flesh”, and “Circus of Fear”.

Lee went on to portray classic villain parts such as Saruman from “The Lord of the Rings”, Count Dooku from the “Star Wars” prequels, Scaramanga from “The Man With the Golden Gun”, and countless other roles. Lee even did an audio performance of Edgar Allen Poe’s works, DiZ from Kingdom Hearts 2, King Haggard from “The Last Unicorn”, and Burton’s iconic “Nightmare Before Christmas” poem . He even collaborated with Tim Burton and appeared in “Sleepy Hollow”, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, “Dark Shadows”, and “Alice in Wonderland”.  Having loved to sing so much, Lee created symphonic metal albums for Christmas and tributes to Charlemagne.

Burton even had the pleasure of awarding Lee with the BAFTA Academy Fellowship award. Lee was graced with other awards throughout his life. He received the International Fantasy Film Award, Bram Stoker’s Lifetime Achievement Award, MTV Movie Award, and was even knighted by the Queen in 2009 for his services to drama and charity.

The world is a less thrilling place without someone as amazing and epic as Christopher Lee.  While we have his metal soundtracks and his countless roles, the world has once more lost a great person. We can only imagine him now up in the sky conversing with Vincent Price and jamming with other metalheads. His presence will no longer grace the Earth, but we will still have Lee in our hearts and minds.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to comment, share, and critique.

So tell me, what was your favorite role that Christopher Lee played?

Hottopic + Thinkgeek = HotGeek?

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Thinkgeek and Hot Topic are two popular stores that sell pop culture items. Thinkgeek, up until this point in time, has only existed on the Internet, but all is about to change. Just recently Hot Topic purchased Thinkgeek.

Hot Topic used to be the central for all goth and punk related apparel in the 90s; a store that made my Catholic parents cringe. For me it was a paradise to try something new in my life from wearing belts laden with skulls, chokers, and wristbands adorned with band logos. Needless to say they weren’t too thrilled about this venture in my life, but what do you do when you’re a teen? You rebel against society and throw the horns and middle finger to the man. Then later on you realize that the man is your boss who pays you to do a service and you need said money to live and buy more chokers.

As the years rolled on Hot Topic slowly changed, starting off by selling anime, Justin Bieber, and Nyan Cat merchandise. Not too long after, Disney crept its way through the doors and soon the store sold all things geeky. Of course there’s nothing wrong with geeky (I’m a geek myself) and naturally, the store changed to fit the times. From its evolution, Hot Topic has lost its gothic and punk roots thus upsetting people everywhere who grew up with store.  It also doesn’t help that Hot Topic has thousands of rumors on Google of stealing other people’s artwork to incorporate into their own merchandise.

Thinkgeek is a site that also radiates geek from its merchandise to its tag line. Over the years it has gained quite a reputation as being the go-to online store for all things geek. It has served as the ultimate proprietor of unique gifts for the pop culture population from Firefly to Star Trek and has definitely helped me for birthdays and Christmas.

People have complained that both stores are going to ruin based on how expensive everything is from mere key chains to t shirts. Shipping prices have escalated, jumping from five dollars to seven and even with discounts that still doesn’t help. Some have even noticed the quality of the items are declining, making them wonder what exactly are they spending so much money on.

Now that these giant geeky stores are merging, who knows what will happen?  Maybe we will finally have a Thinkgeek store or Hot Topic will start selling unicorn meat and Lord of the Rings’ weapon replicas. Maybe we’ll finally have reduced prices or witness the return of the 90s goth and punk paradise. Either way, this merge could be a bright future or distasteful disaster for both outlets.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what do you think of Hot Topic buying Thinkgeek?

Tolkien Tries His Hand at Beowulf

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Show of hands, who likes J.R.R.Tolkien? For those of you who raised their hands, fantastic. For those of you didn’t, dear Hell what is wrong with you? Go out and read his books, your brain will thank you (and so will I).

The famous writer of “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” is long gone, but in his place we have his legacy: his literary works. His books have entered our culture, creating whimsical worlds to entertain us. However, there is another piece of Tolkien literature that very few know of that was just recently published.

Tolkien was an Oxford English professor who often dappled in Old Norse and Old English languages. From these topics, arose “Beowulf” the classic Norse tale that was not only Tolkien’s early love, but was also touched by his hand.

“Beowulf” is a famed Norse epic in which Grendel, a monster, raids Beowulf’s dining hall. Beowulf, one of the strongest men in existence easily smites Grendel and his mother, an evil dragon. This piece attracted the eye of Tolkien as he attempted to translate it from such an ancient language, to a more modern, understandable read. The translation was abandoned for many years so he could pursue “The Lord of the Rings” series. However, he would go back to it every now and then. Picking away a section or a sentence and translating it, as many scholars have done before.

Now Tolkien’s translation of “Beowulf” has been published to the public. People will be able to see how the master of literary language tried his hand at translating a classic epic.

So what are you waiting for? Go out there and enjoy a good read. 

May the 4th Be With You

Goods evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Sunday is a day that might seem like your average day. You rise to a new day and do what you have to do. However, this Sunday is a special day. This Sunday is May the 4^th, which may seem like a typical  date, but to “Star Wars” fans it is far from ordinary. You could say it’s out of this world.

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This blog is a trap for puns. Just like the Sarlacc.

 May the 4^th is a play on words of the famous “Star Wars” quote, ”May the force be with you.” The force is a binding, metaphysical power within the "Star Wars" galaxy. It is a power used by iconic characters from the franchise such as Yoda, Darth Vader, Luke, and pretty much anyone who uses a lightsaber. The force can be used for good or evil.

“Star Wars” fans celebrate this particular day by quoting the movie, possibly throwing a “Star Wars” themed party, engaging in “Star Wars” activities (lightsaber battles, anyone?), and many other fun festivities. This year’s May the 4^th will be more special than ever because we have received a large chunk of news as big as the Death Star.

On April 29th, the cast was confirmed for “Star Wars: Episode VII".Within this confirmed cast, are some of the original “Star Wars” celebrities. Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Kenny Baker (R2D2), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), and Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) have all agreed to return for the latest Star Wars installation. Once again, we will see the iconic six characters take to the screen as their respective parts, and revive the spirit of “Star Wars”.

Joining alongside them will be Adam Driver (Hannah’s boyfriend from “Girls”),  Andy Serkis (Gollum from “Lord of the Rings”), Daisy Ridley (“Casualty”, “Mr.Selfridge”, and “Silent Witness”), Domhnall Gleeson (Bill Weasley from the “Harry Potter” franchise), John Boyega (Chris Tanner “24: Live Another Day), Max von Sydow (“Minority Report”, “Shutter Island”, and “The Tudors”), and Oscar Isaac (“The Bourne Legacy” and “Robin Hood”).

So far, the cast sounds great for the upcoming “Star Wars” movie. Let’s hope the “Star Wars” future is as bright as Alderaan’s explosion and as wonderful as George Lucas.

Feel free to comment and reblog and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed. Tonight I leave you with a simple question:

What are your thoughts on “Star Wars: Episode VII”? 

What Does the Future Hold for Sherlock?

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Sherlock has come and gone and in its wake, it has left some of the best episodes ever to emerge from the series. With Mary pregnant, Moriarty’s abrupt return, and Sherlock reunited with John, the game will be afoot in the future. However, we might not have to wait long until another episode surfaces. A few days ago Martin Freeman (the famous John Watson and Bilbo Baggins) claimed that there might be a one-off special episode of the popular series.

Freeman has claimed that the idea is mouth watering, but they’re unsure of when they would film it due to Freeman and Cumberbatch’s other commitments. This special may or may not see the light of the television screen, but let’s hope it does. In other news regarding this fantastic series, Sherlock has started filming and will possibly debut in Fall 2016. Along with this season, another season has been confirmed for future production.

Prepare to keep your eyes peeled for any clue regarding this one-off special of Sherlock. Until then, let’s make deductions of what this possible tantalizing idea could be, and how it will fit in with the Sherlockian universe. As for myself I’m hoping one of two things: one, a Wholock crossover and two, an episode with a few answers regarding Moriarty’s return – for now, I guess that he is an android or the Moriarty at Reichenbach was a clone/stunt double.

What are your thoughts, fellow readers?