Ah, Happy Halloween, my friends. We return after our usual 2 week hiatus to rock it out with another edition of News Watch. Take a break from bobbing for apples and grab a handful of "fun size" snickers, because we've got your news fix right here.

Before we get down to business at hand, we have a blockbuster announcement from the offices of binnallofamerica.com. Coming tomorrow to BoA, a creation of necessity, it is ... BoA : Audio, Special Session. Given that we have arrived at the first indictment in the Plame Scandal, BoA : Audio turned to the only man we know of who could bring us the goods regarding what it might all mean : acclaimed geopolitical researcher and terrorism expert Webster Griffin Tarpley. Tarpley insisted that time is of the essence and broke down what the Scooter Libby indictment might mean both long term and short term in America and throughout the world. This will be premiering tomorrow @ BoA under the banner of BoA : Audio, Special Session. Be there @ binnallofamerica.com tomorrow evening for that one.

And now, this week's News Watch ... In the Hot 5, small time inventors get screwed by big business again, Big Cats in London, SETI propaganda, Nostradamus not so special, and ancient Toe Bones. Future News Now looks at recent advancement in remote controlling humans. Khyron reviews the film Serenity in That's Entertainment !. My Fandom : Year 2.5 kicks off the Hot Stove period for the Red Sox. Noory Story Showdown Scores and an editorial on Halloween's usual suspects.

Posted @ Khyron.net, 10.20.5

Acclaimed by critics and loved by fans, Joss Whedon's love it or hate it sci-fi epic, Firefly, gets a second chance at life. In his big-screen, directorial debut, Whedon tries to stake a claim in the post Star Wars market.

In Serenity, Captain Mal (Nathan Fillion) and crew run guns and steal goods in order to keep their prized vessel, the Serenity, in flight. Set in a future dominated by an oppressive government, the crew finds itself the target of a mysterious assassin. Meanwhile, River (Summer Glau) begins to understand her purpose, prompting Mal to make a choice that will decide the fate of the Serenity.

Joss Whedon is obviously quite skilled at two things: casting and dialogue.

First of all, the cast assembled ranks among one of the most homely and believable in recent sci-fi memory. There's no external baggage to bring you out of Serenity's fantasy universe. And except for a few excusably hokey lines, the essentially unknown cast performs fine in this expanded medium.

Though such fine performances are helped to be made possible by a very well written script. About as far from the debatable dialogue in this year's hit, Revenge of the Sith, as possible, Serenity features honest and believable character interaction. Which is good, too, because despite the action extravaganza appearance given in the trailers, Serenity is very much a talkative, thinking-man's sci-fi. That's not to say that it's boring--far from it--but I feel that much of its success is due to the crafted interaction between characters.

As long as I'm making parallels to Star Wars, I think a big point to raise is in special effects. Again, choosing the opposite path, Serenity takes a minimalist approach to CGI. As opposed to the increased dependence on green-screens, it was good to see real sets, props, and stunts. And of the computer animation used, it focuses mainly on space battles--an aspect well suited to CGI. A giant battle sequence near the end stands out as not only a fine example of computer animation done right, but also as evidence of the high production value of Serenity.

When a TV show is adapted to movie format, it's a challenge to give it the refined appearance of cinema. But as with other show-turned-movies franchises like The X-Files and Star Trek, Serenity stays true to its television roots, while still providing the aesthetic charm expected in a full-length film.

My biggest quarrel with the film is with it's ending. Either Whedon holds out hope for sequels or he just doesn't want to see his brain child forever altered, but a very tacked on scene basically admits the entire film had little impact on its fictional universe. There are some risks taken (perhaps too many for seriously die-hard fans), but personally, I would have liked to have seen the movie format be a means to really try out some new things.

A touching mix of great characters, exciting action, and a unique setting, Serenity is every bit as good as the beloved Firefly. Although it may not be enough to warrant a series comeback, it is certainly a fine piece of science fiction. For those turned-off or disappointed in the latest Star Wars, Serenity makes a fine alternative.

Rating: 4/5

Contact Khyron here : mjbrun@gmail.com

After much consternation, we've decided to keep going with "My Fandom", at least for the time being, as the baseball off-season (known as the "Hot Stove Period") often produces as much interesting news as when the season is in session. As predicted in the last edition of News Watch, the Chicago White Sox won the World Series this past week, making the sting of their sweeping the Red Sox a little less potent.

The Chi Sox went a stunning 9 and 1 in the playoffs, which is an outstanding record. It may be the best record since the inception of the wildcard, but I'm not one of those stat junkies and I've not seen it pointed out anywhere yet. While I wasn't a huge fan of nutty Ozzie Guillen throughout the season, he won me over during the playoffs with some top notch managing and nice theatrics. Be that as it may, the "cursed" White Sox winning the World Series just isn't as awesome or impressive as last year's feat performed by the beloved Boston Red Sox.

Speaking of the Red Sox, there's plenty to talk about going on here on the homefront. The main issue that everyone's talking about is what will be the fate of Red Sox GM Theo Epstein. Apparently, he's been haggling with the Sox front office over a new contract and his present one expires, you guessed it, today. By the time this edition of NW is out, we will have answers. I'm hoping that they will keep Theo around, as he's got good chemistry with many of the players and has assembled not just a great team for the past 3 years, but also a very strong farm system that will help the Sox in years to come.

Meanwhile, now that the season is over, it is time for the year-end awards. The most important around here will be the American League MVP. Throughout September the debate was Alex Rodriguez of the hated Yankees against the beloved David "Big Papi" Ortiz. Everyone seemed to agree, even the know-it-all TV pundits, that Ortiz was far better in the clutch and literally more valuable as a player than A-Rod. However, a good percentage of them harped on how A-Rod plays a position and Ortiz is "only" a DH (Designated Hitter). No DH has ever won MVP, but it is time for that to change. Ortiz managed an insane number of game tying or game winning hits this year and probably was the reason behind at least 20 wins for the Red Sox. The Yankees have guys who are more valuable than A-Rod, who seems to only be in contention because of the big numbers for home runs and RBIs he has. We'll find out who wins that award within the next few weeks.

And, breaking just before the weekend, Manny Ramirez has apparently asked the Red Sox for a trade, yet again. This is like the 5th time, at least, that this has happened and both sides have tried to separate after each season for several years. Despite all that Ramirez has been awesome on the field, save for some less than stellar moments this season in particular. Be that as it may, I'll probably never forget that Sunday afternoon game after the trade deadline when it was certain Ramirez was staying. It was simply awesome.

Part of me hopes that this is part of the continuing cycle of Ramirez almost leaving, then staying. However, I'm afraid one of these times it will stick and I'm dreading this off-season will be when it happens. Should it happen, it will be an awful turn of events. The Sox would be crazy to split up the duo of Manny and Ortiz. If Manny leaves, they'll have to get a top notch hitter to hit behind "Big Papi" or the Sox will have big problems in '06.

The next few weeks will probably see a lot of answers regarding where some of the "minor" characters of the Red Sox end up. Hopefully, we'll see the return of Bill Mueller and Mike Timlin. I'm afraid it will be awhile before we know where Johnny Damon will end up. And, one assumes, that the Sox will work out a deal with often put upon manager Terry Francona. The good news is that maligned third base coach Dale Sveum will not be returning next year.