Dryope

Taps

So I'm retiring the Firefly website.  I can't face Firefly anymore, and I'm done with Jayne hats.  It causes too much anxiety for me to keep up with (partly because of the illness, partly because of my natural tendencies toward anxiety, and partly because Firefly itself causes anxiety now after the movie). 

I'm keeping up the Jayne hat pattern, though, since some people find it useful.  Honestly, though, it's not the best Jayne hat pattern out there.  Still, you can find it here, if you're looking for it (with the comments people posted): http://dryope.typepad.com/grove/2006/02/jayne_cobb_hat_.html

We had some good times. The five year old girl who was obsessed with Jayne (I totally understand), the person from Peru who was upset that I was mocking his culture with the hat.  And all those people who taught themselves to knit just to make one. 

I feel bad, leaving like this, especially by doing it so irresponsibly and abruptly like I have.  But I figure, at best I have a good excuse (every so often being sick has its benefits) and at worst, it's what Jayne Cobb would have done.  Except he'd probably have robbed people and then gone on to shoot them in the back.  But at least he would have acted irresponsibly.

So I'm bowing out, Jayne-style.

Kill your darlings

<p>I just saw &quot;Serenity&quot;.&nbsp; </p> <p>Ugh.&nbsp; </p> <p>I'd write more, but that'd be a spoiler.&nbsp; Anything I said would be a spoiler.&nbsp; So, I just say &quot;ugh&quot;.&nbsp; Plus, it's all I really feel like saying right now.</p> <p>Also: What the hell, Joss?</p>

I'm in! I'm in! I'm in!

<p>I got tickets for the June 23 DC showing.&nbsp; Woo hoo!!!&nbsp; All those years of mouse clicking have finally paid off.</p>

Reevers, Reavers, and the Deadly, Deadly Clan Pringle

So I'm working my way through Finding Serenity and I came across a chapter discussing the Reavers.  The author cites the legend of Sawney Beane as well as other cannabalistic stories (like the Donner Party), and delves into other recesses of Evil, like the Nazis.  These, he says, are the inspirations/precursors/prototypes/whatever for Firefly's Reavers.

All well and good.  But what happened to the Border Reevers?

Ah, the Border Reevers.  You know...the raiding bandit tribes on the borders of civilization in old times in what is now Scotland?  You can come across several pages on them if you do a Google search (and I have a much more colorful article on them two posts down), but here's a good source:

In the early 1600's the border between what is now Scotland and England was in constant turmoil. It was a no-mans land, where no one could live in peace, nor for that matter, maintain any semblence of a normal life. To survive, these occupants of no-mans land became "Border Reevers" (robbers), they turned to cattle, stealing, robbing, kidnapping, protectionism and fraud. This rugged way of life forged them into excellent frontiersman, guerrilla fighters, rogues, and scouts.
The King, however had no use for this type of people along his borders.
The most famous of the rogues or border clans were the Clans Armstrong, Bell, Grahams, and Johnstons. The most dangerous and notorious was the Clan Pringle.

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Troy/3869/Celtic.html

Another likely source, though it's not PC today to talk about it, was the Native Americans on the frontier.  Whether "Indian raiding parties" were really as frequent or as deadly as legend tells is immaterial: they were a constant fear to the settlers (many of the these, ironically, were likely Scots-Irish descended from the ancient Reevers).

Of course, I don't know Joss Whedon's mind.  Heck, this is man who based a thoroughly evil ancient Chinese-eque big bad guy on a Disney character (the great and terrifying Shan Yu).  So who am I to say?  But it seems to me that these two sources--the actual name of "Reever" and legendary villains from the American West--are good best guesses.

Then again, looking on the Internet, "Reavers" and "Reevers" are everywhere in science fiction / fantasy, from role-playing to fanfic.  So do these sources predate "Firefly"?

I think we can all agree, though: watch out for the pringles.  They're gonna spring.  Aaany day now.

(Aren't you glad I went for that over cannibalism?)

P.S.

Incidentally, you have to wonder about Alexander Graham Bell.  How evil were his ancestors?  And Johnston and Johnston?  That's two descendents of evil.  What's my point? Hey, it's my blog and I can be absolutely ridiculous if I want to.  Why are you even humoring me?

Who the hell is Jayne Cobb?

<p>Oh my god, this is hilarious.&nbsp; Some guy posted this comment to the Jayne hat pattern:</p><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><p>Who the hell is Janye Cobb?&nbsp; She doesn't sound Peruvian which is where this hat comes from.&nbsp; Call it a chullo and respect my culture please.</p></blockquote><p dir="ltr">He calls himself &quot;Peru Guy&quot;.</p> <p dir="ltr">Boy, this Jayne guy has a lot to answer for to the country of Peru, doesn't he?</p> <p dir="ltr">Anyway, so apparently we are all mistaken.&nbsp; Everyone in Latin America (excepting Peru, of course) and all of Europe stole this pattern from Peru.&nbsp; Go Peru!</p> <p dir="ltr">And this means that the entire country of Peru is inherently cunning.&nbsp; And possibly evil.&nbsp; But only in the Joss-verse.&nbsp; </p> <p dir="ltr">I wonder if Jayne's mother was Peruvian?&nbsp; Maybe he came from a planet called Peru IV or something...</p>

September?

So there I was, literally surrounded with Jayne hat matter, when some stranger made some comment out of the blue about me being ready for Christmas.

So, of course, I had to set him straight about Firefly and how it's a great show and how it was cancelled before its time and how it's coming out as a movie next April. I was very adamant about that point.

And now I find that it's coming out in September.

Sep-tem-ber.

This is so depressing.

Disney Legend

We all know Mishke's constant reference to an ancient "psychotic dictator" named Shan Yu, who said something to the effect that the best way to make someone's acquaintance is to beat him up a bit. My question is--can we really find this philosopher's writings, and if so, where?

But in this post, I'm operating under the assumption that the real "Shan Yu" is Mike Eisner. This may be true even if the historical figure did exist, but I digress. (That one was for Erin. She was thinking it.)

So, here is the evidence against the case of there being a real historical figure, and for the "Disney made him up" theory.

<strong>Shan Yu: Pixel Sadist</strong>

1. Rumor has it Joss Whedon likes the movie "Mulan"--so reference to Shan Yu could be an homage. (<a href="http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=4&t=1093">http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=4&t=1093</a>)

2. The name "Shan Yu" is apparently a title, not a name (on the other hand, so was "Genghis Khan"):

"The timeline references [in "Mulan"] are all over the place. Disney seems to set it in Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), which may explain the invading Huns (Hsiung Nus in Chinese history). Hsiung Nus, due to infightings and Han's military campaigns, either moved west or assimiliated into China. It's no longer a threat to China's border after Han Dynasty. I checked Chinese history in an attemp to place Shan Yu, the Hun leader in the movie. I finally realize that it should be Chang Yu (as in Mandarin). It's not a name, but the title of Hsiung Nus' leader." (from <a href="http://www.bigscreen.com/ReaderReview.php?movie=Mulan">http://www.bigscreen.com/ReaderReview.php?movie=Mulan</a> and <a href="http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/5082/names.html">http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/5082/names.html</a>)

I checked the claims listed on the websites above. The name is indeed as they present it. The first character is the one normally pronounced "dan" (first tone) meaning "single, simple", although when pronounced "chan" (2nd) it means a leader of the Huns, and when it refers to this meaning, it is properly followed by "yu" (2nd). According to my dictionary, it was "a common term during the Han Dynasty." It is pronounced "shan" (4th), however, only when it is used as a family name.

Implications:

1. Disney messed up. <em>This is likely.</em>
2. Disney changed a letter of the Hun title to make it seem like a real guy. <em>This is also likely.</em>
3. Joss (though we love him) just watched "Mulan" for the fiftieth time and decided to immortalize this Disney creation in another venue. <em>This is really likely.</em>
4. There is a real Shan Yu and both Disney and Joss are really good at researching Chinese history and are both completely aware of him and I'm a ninny. Although I'll concede the last point out of false modesty, I really don't think the rest of this is likely. <em>You've /heard/ of Disney, right?</em>

Anyone with superior knowledge, please set me right if I'm wrong on this. You can comment here or at <a href="http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=2&t=3834">http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=2&t=3834</a>