Author Archives: David Crampton

Shaun of the Dead

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I had a really hard time deciding between three stars (Liked It) and four stars (Really Liked It) on this one.

There were some seriously funny moments and lines, and there were some seriously emotional moments. Since it had been billed as a comedy, and a laugh riot, I was pretty surprised at the actual heart-string moments. Either that or they were some sort of humor that flew right over my head. Because that never happens. My favorite moment had to be when the main character was studiously ignoring the zombie apocalypse all around him (don’t use that word!), and slipped in the puddle of *something*.

The movie, the company, and the popcorn gets four stars. The movie by itself gets three.

Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society

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And then this one goes and totally redeems the franchise. Solid State Society is a follow-up movie to the Stand Alone Complex series, and takes place after the 2nd Gig. It looks like it’s a buildup, in the time line, for the first movie.

It was packed with action, intrigue, hacking, multiple cyber-bodies being controlled by one cyberbrain (Puppeteer FTW, especially as a precursor for the Puppetmaster), kidnapping and cyberization of wee children (tug those heartstrings!), and the Major kicking all kinds of arse. It was kind of strange to see Togusa in a leadership position, and my heart went out to his wife, but they did it well. I really can’t reveal any more about what I liked without giving away spoilers, so I won’t.

I enjoyed this movie so much, I gave it five stars. If you’re a fan of Ghost in the Shell, you’ll dig this.

Lakotah Nation severs ties with USA

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Yoinked from :

i’ve been meaning to make this announcement since late December, but i got caught up in travel plans for the holidays, work, and preparation for school. However, this is such important and exciting news that i had to make sure i came back here and let everybody know about it. In mid-December, the Lakotah People withdrew all of their treaties from the United States. This makes them an autonomous entity within our borders (awesome!), and rumor has it that the entire Sioux Nation is planning on doing the same…

Now, all of this hasn’t made big headlines, and i imagine there is some sort of media blackout regarding the People’s withdrawal. However, news of this is big amongst indy media sources. If, indeed, the lack of attention to the Lakotah’s withdrawal is from some government plan to go in there and quash their independence, i (for one) plan to move to stand in solidarity with the Nation. Please inform your friends and please keep informed.

i’ve included a link straight to the Republic of Lakotah website. Click HERE.

Weekly Word Count w/Excerpt

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Progress! The prologue has begun to bleed from my brain onto the paper, and it’s even mildly coherent! As proof, I have included the excerpt below. I mean, c’mon. Every time I say I’m starting to write, I have a nice little stall. So, I think you guys deserve a bit of the meaty goodness.

The clouds to the south and west of the city seemed to boil as something big descended through them. In moments, they parted, giving birth to a massive scaled beast with arced, wide wings and a long neck tipped by a wedge-shaped head. Its scales were the shifting greens of the Remembrance, and its jaws trailed thick, black smoke. Leif’s eyes grew wide as he understood what this meant, and filled his lungs to shout.


“Hide! Everyone, hide now! For the sake of your lives, hide!” He ran as fast as his legs would carry him to where the alarm bell stood.

So, here’s where I’m at with The Glass Crown:

In other news, one of the three novels left over from ConFusion is already spoken for. Hey, , did you want it just signed, or personalized, too? If you’re jonesing for a copy (because who isn’t?), and are bummed about the cheaper copies being sold out at Everybody Reads, you can find inexpensive copies through http://www.alibris.com, which will link you to all kinds of small booksellers. Way Station Books & Stuff has a few copies available for $19.95. As always, a search for “David Crampton” is the most efficient way to bring it up.

Ghost in the Shell: SAC, 2nd Gig

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Let me start off by saying that I am a huge fan of the original Ghost in the Shell movie. I’ve watched it countless times, and probably contributed an undue amount to the wear and tear of ‘s VHS copy of it while I was living in the TWP and working for Comcast. This drove me to rent Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex from Video to Go. This was, maybe, a month or two before I went to San Francisco. I soaked up that mind-bending wonderfulness as I listened to the Japanese cadence (not to mention the different levels of keigo used by the different characters). I wondered how the Tachikomas didn’t end up making it silly, despite their child-like voices and enthusiasm.

I loved 90% of the second series. After wrapping my mind around the idea of a Stand Alone Complex last season, and the subtle differences between direct manipulation and purposeful creation of copycat events through subtle changes in cultural cues and political shifts, I thought I was on pretty good footing. The second series, which held my attention with the usual crazy-awesome action scenes, political backstabbery, and angry Batou, broke my mind at the end. I was left, jaw open, stamerring out “what?” like the first time I saw Serial Experiments: Lain. I’m still fairly certain that I haven’t missed anything, but I have to admit to be disappointed in the seeming simplicity and directness of the reveal and closure.

I have to admit that I’m still trying to figure out who the guy is that was offering Gouda asylum. I know I’d seen him before, and I think he had shown up in regard to the treaty with the American Empire, but I’m not sure.

All in all, I gave it four out of five stars, because I loved everything except the ending. They were well-earned.