Sad Day

As a HUGE fan of the Bruce Timm DC animated cartoon series I've been lucky enough to get 10 seasons worth of stuff.

Only one problem with that. Once you've seen all 10 you've seen them all.

Today I finished off the last 4 episodes of Batman Beyond. The last episodes I needed to see of the Timm cartoons.

No more for me. *tear*

One Year Later... Drumheller

Finally here on my return trip I've gotten around to the number one thing on my list to do. Return to Drumheller to check in on the good museum Tyrrell and her crew.

The Town

Setting the stage for the overall trip this quote from David Loyd was pretty telling. "It's Drumheller nothing really changes around here."


I mean apart from a little erosion since my last time here in December 2006 the Badlands remain fairly unchanged (considering the rocks are some 70 million years old that stands to reason).

Due to both the snow of winter and the quickness of my trip I only got preview levels of the badlands and their beautiful layers... Definitely no fossil prospecting in there either :(

On the surface nothing in Drum had really changed. Yet looking closely subtle changes were abound everywhere. All the "Cementosaurs" for example had new paint jobs (resulting in the extinction of my favourite "Funkosaurus Rocks" *tear*).

To be all little frank I didn't care for 90% of the new paint jobs I saw...

Though this new job on the Fast Gas Corythosaur was not only a major improvement, but the best of the lot.

I didn't snap a picture out of disgust, but probably should have, the ground sloth had changed from the logical brown to green?!?!?

The Crew

My main objective of this trip was to catch up with and see all my good friends at the museum.

Though I only managed to make it into town for 1.5 functional days (spread over 3 actual days) I feel I was more than efficient in this regard.

Out of all the people who still live and work in Drum I saw 100% of them. Sadly I only talked to 99% of them with one key person disappearing without managing to say even hello... I guess there's always next time?

Here are the old guard mixed with the new at Rowley. Yes this trip was perfectly timed for Rowley!

The main event was a surprise per-b-day party for my main man Tyler. With him and Kelly expecting their baby around the time of his actual b-day it was decided by the staff to celebrate it now while he definitely could. It also meant this was a real surprise for him...

Funny side story I was nearly the weak link in altering him to this event. People over the net told me about the party, but neglected to inform me that it was a secret. I nearly mentioned in the email to Tyler I was excited to make it to his party, but opted not to mention it as it was a no brainer I would be showing up to it... Dodged a big social responsibility bullet there for sure!

I was sadly not as camera happy as I normally am, and only got a few individual shots. Like this one of Yumi and Kristen (the wonderful hero who gave me the ride out to Drum!). Here we enjoy a breakfast before me and Kristen hit the road for home.

On the first night in Drum a number of us, having just enjoyed the new all museum staff band, returned to Cam and Megan's to hang out further. Here Megan and Luke rejoice in the comfort knowing Spiderman's got them covered.

Chara loving Peter Bond's painting (set piece and prop in the The Hardcore Apocalypse After Next Tuesday) from inside a laundry basket on the second self of Cam's puter room. It was a fun night as you can tell...

Also full of surprises as it turns out Chara is actually just the hidden form of a transformer Buster Primer... 5 geek points for everyone who catches why I gave her this name.

I also met the new member of Cam and Megan's family in the form of Lucy. Cam found her as a stray hanging outside Yavis' (which speaking of which I went to, and you'd never recognize it now that it's smoke free!).

The Royal Tyrrell Museum

My secondary objective of the trip (honestly not first but second!) was to hit the museum.

Cam was nice enough to take an hour out of his one day off this week to come into work so I could check it out.

The one bright spot is that Cam had never had his picture taken with the Allosaur despite it being his favourite Dinosaur. So the hour paid for itself (or so I try to lie to myself).

My main goal of the quick pop into the museum was to see all the displays that were put up and completed RIGHT after my departure for New Zealand

The Ceratopsians

Greeting you to display is an old friend, whose had a bit of a upgrade in the meantime.

It's partner now stands high above as the official greeter to the display area. Breaking their eternal conflict (which to be honest I'll miss as I thought the dueling Chasmosaurs were among the coolest mounts due to the life like nature of their interaction).

This mountain-Chamosaur as it's called is a little controversial with people at the museum. Some think it's a silly place to put the skeleton. I though think it is cool in that it's a unique perspective and point of view you normally don't get of a Dinosaur skeleton.

They also have a very cool section of metal cut outs to give you the sense of scale of the various sorts of ceratopsians.

As an aside with the lovely Cam as my human model in this shot, this is going to be used shortly to make new cast members for Traumador's upcoming adventures. That's a big hint as ALL of these ceratopsian families will make an appearance... with one of them being a new main cast member!!! You'll have to guess which one.

The real fossil mount of the Dinosaur Park Pacyrhinosaur is VERY impressive in person. It's awesome to see the real skeleton in the gallery. It give the public an idea of what palaeontologists call a complete skeleton, and how hard it is to mount real bones as opposed to casts.

The Eotriceratops cast by Mark is awesome to see finally on display... No thanks to me and my near accidentally knocking off the horn in 2005... Not that it was a serious near knocking off, but it sure smartened me up when working in the cast lab!

Part 1 of the museums own Styracosaur.

Part 2 of the the Styracosaur.

Lords of the Land

The revamped Theropod Hall that is for the most part the same idea, but with a nice new decor and atmosphere of an art gallery. Complete with classic music playing softly throughout!

This space was also officially dedicated to late museum director Bruce Naylor which is fitting. So let's go through the new Naylor Hall.

It's a Dromaeosaur the best we've ever seen!!!

A Saurornitholestes.

It is about time there were LOTS of raptors up in the museum. Their crowd pleasers, and frankly are just cool skeletons.

Some more Ornithomimids

New Geo Station

Because they took out the teaky booth by Lillian's corner there was a need for somewhere for the GEOs to do their thing. Complete with real ceratopsian bone in the front for people to interact with, a gallery map on the counter top, and a simulation micro fossil matrix dig station it's pretty awesome.

Cretaceous Alberta

Technically the first display in the museum, but due to my foolish uploading of these photos first and this being my favourite display it's the last. I'll go with saving the best for last.

Though I'd seen the new Albertosaur family just before I left, but their new environment was sway! (in the words of Batman Beyond)

My only compliant is how open it is. The premise of the display is you walking into Alberta 70 million years ago with the pack of Albertosaurs from the Dry Island bonebed. You're surrounded by their prehistoric jungle to the sides, but removing the illusion is open ends into the present. Be nice if even the into the gallery side had a backdrop behind the running Albertosaur.

Otherwise it's a brilliant addition, and a worthy replacement of Lillian's corner. Which brings the museum's restoration back to the cutting edge of science.

New Finds. Fresh Minds.

After being taken down for a year for an Ice Age display (which I sadly missed) the old classic museum concept of show casing the curators and researchers is back. I have to say it is a very impressive upgrade. With such displays as a cast saurpod visitors can stand beside to compare themselves too, and this Francois' current research in theropod bite force and methodology. Very nice.

Off till at least the Spring

Though 1.5 days was hardly enough, it was FUN as! It was awesome catching up with everyone I saw. Equally amazing to see the place I've invested so much into evolve into something better.

With a mere 2 weeks till I head back down under (including the actual down under of Australia!) my last big outstanding to do is get that job at Dinosaur Provincial Park so I can return and visit the museum in its real prime the summer! (Well okay I'd also like to visit Edmonton, but time grows short).

Funny As Palaeo Commercials

Over at Laelaps there are several funny palaeo related commericals. Among my favourite are a series of caveman era themed Cup of Noodle ads like this Moa one below. Laelaps has several more posted (not wanting to steal his thunder from posting them I just advertise ;p )

Blind Music Purchases

So after a year in New Zealand, a place at least 6 months behind the rest of the world entertainment-wise and typically only mainstream, I've been relatively without no music.

Thanks to two relief efforts by Karen and Clare I thankful had some needed injections to my limited library of music. However in preparation for the plunge back down under I ventured out and picked up some new CDs.

I however haven't seen any movies this year really so what was I to get?

Rather than scout out the music in their films first I took gambles on the following. Let's see how I did.

So Seinfield's animated movie. That alone had me avoid this one in theatres.

What attracted it to my attention though was it's by the same people who made Antz, one of my fav soundtracks. The music however was by Rupert Gregson-Williams, brother of Antz composer Harry Gregson-Williams... In the case of Harry I these days buy his stuff without reference due to the overall high quality of his work, and he has yet to sting me (pun intended!) unlike any other artist on that elite list.

Would I cut his brother a break? To be honest no. However my usual review site Film Tracks compared it to not just Antz, but Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, and my all time favourite Chicken Run. Though I disagree with film tracks on some topics (John Williams for example... he hasn't been any good since the 90's... tracks blindly worships the ground he walks on EVEN War of the Worlds' music!?!) they've never led me astray when comparing things to Chicken Run.

So picking up the Bee Movie CD, were they right? Yes indeed. In fact album to album their dead ringers of each other. Both are fun throughout, but have 4 amazing standout silly zany fun tracks. I suspect this will be a Craig classic.

Than I found on film tracks minutes after returning from buying the Bee Movie CD that Water Horse was done by James Newton Howard... oh man

Howard being my favourite of all time, and the first one I ever just picked up at total random without seeing the movie. With no track record established for Howard in 2002 I just grabbed Atlantis for some reason. It was brilliant. Just like SOME of the tracks from Water Horse.

Water Horse has about 4-5 really good tracks in and of itself. Sadly not as consistently good as Atlantis or one of his water themed best Lady in the Water, but still entertaining none the less.

Long Overdue Update

I have been back in Calgary for about 3 weeks now, and the trip with my parents went well.

So far I've caught up with 90% of people in Calgary, and I plan to head up to Drumheller and possibly Edmonton if I can manage it to catch up with all them folks.

I will try to get a post up with my own photos of my trip with the parental units, but my mother has set up a very detailed and complete account of our travels on her own new blog. It's a much better version than I'd be able to give you.

The fictional mirror image of that trip and ALL my others through out New Zealand are currently in progress in Traumador's life (the reason I'll be too busy to give you a good account of the REAL trip) so be sure to check that out as well.

Traumador: The Pack

Over at the Tyrannosaur Chronicles (which I'm sure you're all reading ;p ) Traumador's life has been recently severly disrupted by the Pack of the Primordial Feather. Their official symbol is being unveiled in the next day or two... Just one problem

I'm not sure which to use?

You're thoughts on which looks better/would represent an evil group of meat eating dinosaurs.

The Beginning of the End of the End

Well it's over officially. Yesterday was quite possibly the last university lecture I'll ever have.

I do still have one more posting next year, but as for classes I'm done. Not sure how it feels yet. It still hasn't sunk in.

Of course real life being the ubber and ultimate TV show couldn't see our last day being boring, right in the middle of our getting up and getting ready for class the fire alarm went off. Thing is there are only 7 of us still left living in the hall. Meaning this was no drill...

Lots of firetrucks and firemen showed up. Turns out it was a false alarm, but was entertaining non the less. Somehow we were only 2 minutes late for class too!

There actually was a lot more that happened on the last day, but probably won't be that interesting to someone not in the class.

The next big event which will truly mark the End of the END TM is my parents arrival in 3 days.

I also need to get my butt in gear and get my Dinosaur Provincial Park application put together.

Oh and clean my room, and pack my stuff.

Okay so who ever said life would be slack and fancy free after classes didn't quite get it right. BOO!

Production Website

Due to a hopeful increase in my creative output the next couple months due to classes ending, and the rather encouraging increase in Traumador's blog traffic I've finally hit a point where it makes sense to open a formal blog for Prehistoric Insanity.

Now it won't just be me blogging on this. Peter Bond is already aboard, and will have a bunch of news and posts about his new movie projects in particular the Bluebell Woods. There is also likely to be some Traumador preview stuff coming soon. Most important of all hopefully I get some time in on the year long abandoned delta patrol.

Point is I'll post little notices here when I post something project related, but in future any post substantially about my movies or creative stuff will be on the Prehistoric Insanity Blog.

Cartoon RAGE!

So having a bit of free time this weekend to just let my brain re materialize I poked around on youtube.

Here I made a awful discovery.

As many probably know I'm a HUGE fan of Bruce Timm's animated DC comics cartoons. My movie folder is half full of the complete series of Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond, and Justice League. They are the best depictions of superheroes in any medium in my opinion.

It was a great loss 2 years ago when they cancelled Justice League after 4 amazing seasons (the 3rd be a particular highlight). Leading up to that cancellation a new breed of DC cartoon had been creeping in, and contaminating my beloved Timm series.

In particular "The Batman". Done in blatant anime rip-off style with inferior writing, voice castings, and concepts. Timm's series had something for both kids and adults (I still remember watching his Batman in elementary and loving it). This new breed of DC cartoon is watered down into the kid only zone, and frankly this is a poor move. Kids today recognize this difference and aren't likely to stick with the franchise long term like I and others have with the Timm stuff.

This pains me as instead of giving priority to the long running and still very successful Timm line of cartoons, slowly but steadily these new anime knock offs eroded the Timm series to the point that the network cancelled the Timm line.
Now with the Justice League and Superman off the air for a couple years, this is what we get!!! "The" Batman struggling for ideas (curiously very similarly to Smallville) has had to resort to making their Batman's show into a blatant rip off of Timm's Justice League. With unoriginal watchtower design and everything!

As if that weren't enough this upcoming season their introducing "The" Superman on "The Batman". Due to the inabilities of the writers' of "The" they're trying a new desperation tactic. Rather than mess it up on their own they'd rather leech off Timm's stuff and cast the exact same voice actors for Superman and Lois Lane that Timm had!?!?!

I sit here and wonder in my head why did we have to lose the Timm shows if "The" was just going to rehash them? Rehash them badly!




Now of course I know why my thoughts are silly and invein, in show biz new and shiny is always better than tried tested and true (though new and shiny tends to be exactly the same anyway). It cheeses me off is all!

What next "The Firefly" or "The Star Trek"... oh wait. "The Star Trek" comes out a year from now.

I think I'll just go cry myself to sleep with a Justice League episode playing in the background.

Lemming Ducks

Well finally there is some good news in life. I have one last day left in posting. More importantly, though I apparently did so by the skin of my teeth, I've pasted this posting!

Now it's come at a cost. I'm starting to develop a nasty head cold, and been stressed to the point of less than 5 hours sleep a few times. If not for the turning point of that good news today I'd probably give up on life. To illustrate how I live in Murphyzarro (that's my new term for Murphy's law mixed with Bizarro world) let's look at my walk home from school today (after recieving this good news... the universe needs to remind me whose in charge).

As I approach the Leith (aka aqueduct enclosed stream) bridge I have to cross to get home I see on the other side a elderly woman trying to herd a group of lost Ducklings. As it's spring here in New Zealand we have a lot of cute little Mallard chicks running after their mothers. Well this group has clearly lost their mommy and is desperate to find her...

Seeing how this good willed woman is having trouble with them, and as of such just stressing and freaking them out I step in to help her out. I hope Shannon Helm is reading this little story as it is proof of one of my major beliefs in life.

"No good deed goes unpunished!"

So stepping in with I take charge of the flock of cute little down balls. Armed with the ideal duck herding tool my umbrella I set about my task of trying to get them out of at least harms way, and maybe find mommy.

The problem their up on street level of a major road with no where immediately to go but the sidewalk or the road (to get promptly run over). I opt to herd them back across the bridge's sidewalk and onto a side street running parallel to the Leith. After a few close calls of a duckling or two running away from me sideways into the road I get them on the side street. PHEW! I think...

Here it at first just seems to be a big, but not life threatening problem. We're still 3 metres above the Leith, and the artificial banks here are initially straight up and down walls. I aim to get my little flock down further to where are least the walls slope at a 45 degree angle down to the stream.

About 2 metres down the side street some of my flock suddenly duck (get it) under the fence onto the precipice of the sheer 3 metre wall. They fortunately stop seeing what is for them a 3-4 storey fall straight down. I try to reach my umbrella in front of them, but yet keep my body back so they'll run back under the fence and back onto the sidewalk.

That's when disaster strikes! Mother shows up down below in the river under the bridge (the opposite direction from safe slanted wall section) calling her babies who she realized has a big scary human looming over them...

For a moment I think it's okay my 3 stray wall sitters double take the fall, and hesitate. Just as I'm about to let out the sigh of relief one of them jumps. The other two follow nearly immediately. My heart literally stops.

From behind me the nice lady who got my attention earlier says "oh good their flying down to the river." Just as number 4 leaps off the top to plummet the 10 feet to the ground. I can assure you seeing its fall well from this vantage they didn't fly...

Dashing to my last three who are on the other side of a big flax plant I swore to arrive to watch them all throw themselves over the edge.

Now the tale doesn't have the worst ending it could. Apart from number 4 (who took a running start, and thus fell further out from the wall) I couldn't see their landings making me think I'd just killed a whole family of ducks (not outright dead mind you, but mortally wounded). Thankfully they slowly started walking back into view from the bottom of the wall (which I can't quite see the bottom of due to the fence).

However there was some damage. At least two of them had bad limps, and one of these I'm certain broke its leg based on its stopped every few step to sit down. Most however seemed okay.

There was nothing I could do about it. I still feel terrible. Clare and Rhonwyn on hearing the tale have tried to assure me that I probably saved some of them from being run over. Still my good intentions like a lot lately have become a lot more stressful and intense than it should have.

I just stand by my belief that no good deed goes unpunished. So the question why do I keep doing them?