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111 h GAMECOCK ♦ Monday, November 25, 2002 5 HF MTY Story ideas? Questions? Comments? I I I A I W I I / SCOTT HAMILTON: “The only disability E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor(^hotmail.com —* ■ ™ ~ ^ in life is a bad attitude.” ' _____ PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY SHAWN ROURK/THE GAMECOCK Invader Zim, right, and his robot servant, GIR, planned to take over the world until Nickelodeon announced in January it plans to cancel their show. Nickelodeon channel plans to cancel ‘Invader Zim, ’ a cartoon with adult appeal BY JOHN RABON TIIK (jAMKCOCK “OK, GIR! Our mission starts now! Let us rain some doom down upon the filthy heads of our doomed enemies!” “I’m gonna sing the doom song now! Doom doom doom doom doom doom dooooooom.” And so goes the first dialogue between Invader Zim and his robot servant, GIR. Unfortunately, Zim’s plans of doom ^ will be cut short by something other than his own overzeal * ousness. Earlier this year, the children’s television net work Nickelodeon chose to cancel “Invader Zim,” a car toon created by Jhonen Vasquez that has a large cult fol lowing with mostly high school and college students. While new episodes are currently airing, the network announced in January it will cancel the show after this season. The network said that while the show is entertaining, “it isn’t picking up high enough rat ings to continue having new episodes made.” 4^ This disappointed Zim’s fans, who have started many cam jpap paigns and online petitions to bring it back. The show, which began in 2001, stars a young alien from the planet Irk named Zim and rthe insanely silly GIR. In the show’s premiere, Zim takes himself out of exile, which he imposed on himself after he went on a destructive rampage on his own planet, because he “didn’t feel like being exiled anymore.” He then crashes the invasion-assigning ceremony. In order to get him out of their hair, the Almighty Tallests, who are in charge of the assigning, give Zim a “se cret mission” to an “unknown planet.” With this, Zim takes off, journeys through space and lands on Earth, where he tries to blend in. This brings him in contact with the other characters in the series: his teacher Miss Bitters; his arch enemy, Dib; Dib’s antisocial sister, Gaz; and Dib’s father, Professor Membrane. Most of the program’s hilarity lies in Zim’s at tempts to take over Earth and his constant conflicts with Dib, the only human who knows Zim’s secret, and who tries to stop Zim’s plans for domination and expose him as an alien. During one episode, Dib gets video evidence that zim is an alien, torcing Zim to enter Dib s brain to make him forget about the tape. In another episode, Zim tries to get rid of his adversary by using a time machine to replace important things in Dib’s life, such as his tricycle and camera, with “piggies.” It is this type of twisted, freaky humor that tends to ap peal more to Generations X and Y, which comprise a large percentage of Invader Zim’s fan base. “It’s a show that’s designed for kids but can also be geared for adults, as well as some of the humor is not ex “It’s a show that’s designed for kids but can also be geared for adults, as well as some of the humor is not exactly children oriented.” MARCl CARPER FIRST-YEAR LIBERAL-ARTS STUDENT actly children-oriented,” first-year liberal-arts student Marci Carper said. “There are quite a few 18- to 24-year oias wno waicn u. Nick Wilson, a first-year computer-sci ence student, said the cartoon appeals more to an adult population because “the come dy is sort of satirical and dry—and the hu mor of it.” Eric Hampshire, who runs the “Invader Zim” fan Web site www.roomwith amoose.com, said: “The loudest people on my message board are in the 16-21 range, but there’s quite a few in their 20s. The show has a little something for everyone, but has a kind of dark humor about it that not everyone understands.” Dark comedy is typical of Jhonen Vasquez’s background. The cartoon’s cre ator initially gained his fame as a comic book writer and illustrator for publisher Slave Labor Graphics, where he created such titles as “Johnny the Homicidal Maniac,” “The Fillerbunny” and the Eisner Award-nom inated “Squee.” These comics reflect Vasquez’s demented sense of humor as Johnny kills people in “Johnny the Homicidal Maniac” and uses their blood to paint his wall so that a monster can’t get through. “Squee” was also a minor character in “Johnny the Homicidal Maniac.” “The Fillerbunny” is a rabbit en gineered to entertain, but all he wants to do is die because his whole life is torture and suffering. Of course, for “Zim,” Vasquez takes his morbid wit and waters it down to engage a younger group. Perhaps “Invader Zim” would have done better on an other network. Viacom, Nickelodeon’s parent company, also owns MTV, which captures! much of the culture as sociated with Zim’s fans. Alas, it does not seem that this is going to happen, and the warped comedy of Zim is all but lost. Of this, we can only say, as GIR emotionally put it: “Why? Why, my piggy? I loveded you, my piggy! I loveded you!” --- Commentson this story? E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Jhonen Vasquez, creator of ‘Invader Zim’, still plans to continue hfs comic book career. USC gets sampling of Indian sounds BY JULIA KNETZER THE (JAMECOCK As people filed into seats Sunday at the Gambrell Hall au ditorium, two Indian classical-mu sic performers sat on the floor with their legs crossed and tuned their instruments. The concert, organized by the Society for Indian Performing Arts in South Carolina (SIPA), fea tured Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta on sarod, a 17-stringed pendulum shaped instrument. Buddhadev was, accompanied by Pandit Debendrakanti Chakraborty on tabla, an Indian percussion in strument. “Pandit” is the Hindi title for a master of an instrument, said Viraj Patel, a MUSC student and tabla player. Before the performance for mally started, Buddhadev invited the audience closer to create a more intimate atmosphere. “The first row should be a little fuller,” he said. Pradeep Talwani, one of the eight founding members of SIPA and a geology professor at USC, introduced Buddhadev and Debendrakanti as renowned Indian musicians. He explained to the audience what an honor it was to have artists of such high caliber performing for SIPA’s inaugural concert. Before turning the stage over to Buddhadev, Talwani told the audience, “You’re in for a re ally enchanting evening.” The nearly three-hour-long con cert began with commentary from Buddhadev, who explained to the audience the differences between Western music and the music he ♦ INDIAN MUSIC, SEE PAGE 6 MOVIE REVIEWS Latest 007 installment is sure to please gadget, action fans ' PHOTO COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS k Pierce Brosnan takes his fourth turn as James Bond in “Die Another Day.” In the latest film In the series, the agent must recover his reputation after he lands in a North Korean prison. “DIE ANOTHER DAY” Starring Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry and Rick Yune ★★★•*■ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY KRISTIN CHANDLER TIIKCAMKCOCK Gun chases, invisible cars, DNA replacement, hot Bond girls — “Die Another Day” has every thing a 007 fan could want. The newest James Bond movie, with Pierce Brosnan in the feature role, offers plenty of the fast-paced, adrenaline-boosting action se quences that moviegoers expect. With Brosnan’s slick and suave Bond and Halle Berry’s illustrious Jinx, as well as intriguing tech i nology and plenty of new high tech gadgets, it’s safe to say that “Die Another Day” will have ac tion and technology junkies run ning for the theater. Bond’s objective this time is to find the nemesis who caused him to be imprisoned in North Korea for 14 months. Bond also combats the suspiciously power-hungry Gustav Graves (played by Toby Stephens), the man Bond is ac cused of having killed. The trouble begins when Bond is pleased in a prisoner exchange that includes England s release of Zao, a menacing and scar-faced criminal played by Rick Yune. Bond sets out for Cuba to track down the criminal and comes across a suspicious DNA-replace ment hospital, which is giving criminals second chances at life. It is on the beautiful, pic turesque beaches of Cuba that Bond meets Jinx, who is spying for the National Security Agency. After Bond tells her he is a bird watcher on vacation, they share a night of passion. The next time Bond sees Jinx, she has blown the DNA hospital sky high and is es caping by boat, almost as slick as Bond himself. After connecting the DNA hos pital to Graves through a handful of his signature Iceland diamonds, which share the same composition as illegal African conflict dia monds, Bond seeks out Graves at an elite fencing club. Madonna has a fun cameo appearance as Graves' fencing instructor, and a violent fencing sequence ensues after Graves challenges Bond to a match. Bond later learns that Graves’ publicist, Miranda Frost, played by Rosamund Pike, is an undercover agent. From there, it’s on to Graves’ ice palace in Iceland, where most of the film’s action sequences take place. Graves has invented a faux sun, Icarus, that he can use for good or for evil, and the ensuing conflict between him and Bond proves that he intends to use it malevolently. Both Bond and Jinx defy death a number of times, though Jinx has a close call and is ultimately rescued by Bond. The ice palace offers Bond numerous chances to use his fun new gad gets, such as a car that can become invisible and a ring with enough power to cut through bulletproof glass. Overall, the film is fun to watch and the technology is intriguing. The plot is typical 007 fare — in ternational conflict, double-cross ing betrayal and globe-circling ac tion. It occasionally seems as if the gadgets were thought up first and the plot written around them, but the overall effect is so smooth and adrenaline-packed that it doesn’t matter. “Die Another Day” is a fun movie that most guys will love and most girls will be able to appreci ate as well. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockmueditor@hotmail.com Feel-good ‘Emperor’s Club’ delivers the same old story “THE EMPEROR'S 0108" Starring Kevin Kline and Emile Hirsch out of *•☆☆☆☆ BY PAT CAULEY THE GAMECOCK “The Emperor’s Club” has trouble living up to the expecta tions encouraged by its pre views. After films such as “School Ties” and “The Dead Poet’s Society,” this type of movie with the high moral mes sage is almost too repetitive and familiar. “The Emperor’s Club” tells the tale of a history teacher, William Hundert (Oscar-winner Kevin Kline), at the St. Benedict’s Academy for Boys. His goal is to mold young men into the well-educated leaders of the future. Hundert meets a bump in the road when Sedgewick Bell, played by Emile Hirsch, arrives at the school. This boy, the son of a West Virginia senator, chal lenges Hundert’s authority and will power as a teacher and role model. Hundert tries diligently to mo tivate Sedgewick and make him study. When the school starts the annual Mr. Julius Caesar quiz bowl, Sedgewick tries to prove his knowledge to Hundert. In the final round, Sedgewick loses af ter a controversy arises. Years later, Bell calls on the class to commence for a reunion and a rematch of the Mr. Julius Caesar contest. The film is about as pre dictable as a bad horror movie. A true shock does come into play toward the film’s end, but it lasts only a second. For the most part, though, the acting and direction are out standing. Director Michael Hoffman is aware throughout the film of the story he is trying to convey and builds up each scene effectively. Hirsch, who also starred in “The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys,” delivers an uncanny performance as Bell. Kevin Kline, however, is a dis appointment. His performance is awkward; it is unrealistic how much of an interest Hundert takes in his students. The rela tionship between Hundert and fellow teacher Elizabeth (Embeth Davidtz) is unclear as well. Also, the film’s preview is a slight cheat: It appears to claim that Steven Culp and Patrick Dempsey are the film’s stars. That assumption is proved false when their combined screen time adds up to about 10 min utes. Still, despite the familiarity problems, it is encouraging to see a feel-good movie every now and again. “The Emperor’s Club” holds a good message about what is important in life and how to succeed with dignity, not cheat ing. “The Emperor’s Club” is something we have seen before, but could always see again. Look for up-and-coming actor Hirsch in the future. Comments on this story?E-mail ?amecockmixeditor@hotmail.com PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Teacher William Hundert, right, played by Kevin Klipe, asks the school's librarian to bend the rules for Sedgewick Bell, center, played by Emile Hirsch, in “Emperor’s Club.” «