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Inspirational Reads

Friday Morning Latin Lesson: Volume XIII

February 27, 2009

Hey all, guess what comes in a week? True, an old man with a hooker, but more importantly, The Watchmen movie will be hitting theaters on March 6th. That's in one week! Huzzah!!! Personally, I don't care...I don't care if it sucks, I'm going. Probably more than once. Bait and switch, babies, bait and switch.

What's that? You're accusing me of being a comic geek? Pfft. You're just now catching on? I've written a damned fantasy novel, of course I'm geeked about this comic movie. I'll say it, too. I'm more fired up for this movie than I was for The Dark Knight. It's probably because The Dark Knight got my juices pumped for not just good comic adaptations but just good movies. I mean, the Star Wars prequels, the third X-Men movie...so much potential there...and Indiana Jones all had me pretty down on the whole movie experience. Prior to The Dark Knight, the best movie I had seen in the theaters had been Veggie Tales: The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. Pretty bad, I know.

I'm re-reading The Watchmen right now. The Buxom and Comely and Easily Terrified Boudicca bought me the hardbound anniversary copy of The Watchmen for my birthday. So, I busted that open tonight and I'm going to re-read it this weekend and next week in anticipation of the movie.

Given all that, today's Latin lesson is topical. This quotation is attributed to Latin poet Juvenal, who was an author of a collection of satirical poems aptly called the Satires or The Satires of Juvenal. He lived around the end of the first century and into the beginning of the second century AD. He was questioning who can be trusted with power when he penned this week's Latin Lesson phrase:

"Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"


Pronounced: "Said kweese coose-toe-dee-ate eep-sohse coose-toe-daise?"

Rohrschach, the most badass ginger out there (sorry, Mrs. Weasley), has stopped by to provide the translation:


Hint: The translation is also in the picture itself!


It's just a week away, people. Throw this around while waiting in line for popcorn, and the lesser geeks will all bow before you, opening your way to a gallon of cherry coke and a bushel basket of popcorn and the best seats in the theater. Don't be ashamed. While you're at it, feel free to get in touch with your inner geek, just don't go blind over it...

27 comments:

Scope said...

If this movie sux...!

Scope said...

I re-read it last fall, and am psyched.

I never see movies.
I never see movies opening weekend.
I never see movies opening night.
I will be getting my tickets to the midnight showing this weekend.

But mjenks, what about "Iron Man"? I like it better than "Dark Knight" actually.

(A few years back, I sold my 15 Rubbermaid long term storage tubs of comics from the 80's and 90's for $500. In case I need to validate my comic cred.)

Candy's daily Dandy said...

I sooo though you'd be more pumped for the Jo Bros movie this weekend.

Go figure..

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

Well, I'm going to be losing a shit ton of geek cred here, Scope, but I haven't seen Iron Man yet. It was tough to try and nail down a babysitter in order to see it in the theatres (the girl kept shifting while I tried to tack her sweater to the floor!).

I have a DVD copy, but we haven't cracked it open yet. That might be a good thing to do tonight since the Buxom and Comely and Easily Terrified and Equally Geeked Boudicca will be home sick from work. Thanks for the suggestion.

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

@ Candy: What is a Jo Bros? Is that some kind of Scandinavian porn actress? Hot damn! Time to start googling.

Mary@Holy Mackerel said...

I have no idea what you're even talking about, but that's ok. Not a rare thing for me to not understand.

I'll take your word for it.

Moooooog35 said...

Oh.

I thought 'Watch Men' was a gay porno.

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

@ Mary Moore: It's one of those comic book thingies. It was actually listed on Time's 100 best novels of the century for the twentieth century. Or, one of those lists.

@ Moooooog35: You're thinking of a film with a similar name: "Watch Men Penetrate Other Men with Their Dicks." Also not to be confused with the documentary piece on hand-held timepiece fabricators: "Watch Men have Tiny Tools"

red said...

I'm in the middle of the book myself and I'm already super excited for the movie. Do you think we'll get to see Billy Crudup's bit as Dr. Manhattan?

Also, Rohrschach is kick ass and all, but no one tops Mrs. Weasley on the badass ginger scale, well, except for me, obvs.

Gwen said...

Hmmmm . . . I'm not familiar with these Watchmen of which you speak but you've never led me astray with your recommendations in the past. I'll give it a read.

And watch Iron Man. It was great.

Sassy Britches said...

I will be letting others have the gallons of coke/bushels of popcorn/best seats for this one, but I WILL concede that saying that in the line would DEFINITELY garner all three of those bennies!

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

@ Red: I don't know. In the previews I've seen, he's got a little like blue speedo on. We'll see--literally--I guess. And, well, I left you off the list because you're not a fictional character. Um...yeah...*shifty-eyed*

@ Gwen: Just bear in mind, dear friend, that you'll be hip deep in nerds. And, if the Buxom and Comely and Easily Terrified and Overly Exhausted Boudicca can stay awake, we might watch it tonight.

Kimizzy said...

New to the blog, and I am going to see Watchmen, so I'm glad I'm not the only dork in this blogosphere.

You haven't seen Iron Man??? Wow, I don't even know you yet, but you are really missing out if you like that shit. It's my favorite. :) But mostly that's because Iron Man's character is soooo not humble like all the other super hero douchebags.

pistols at dawn said...

I've now had at least five people tell me how much they love this, including some hot girl and a friend who never reads anything, but I can't get past it being a comic book. I divided this world into two things long ago, Cool and Uncool, and comics were forever placed in the latter.

Still, that's better than Catullan poetry, which did feature the timeless snap, "Why are you interested in her? She is not your cousin."

Mel O said...

How'd you know I love cherry coke at the movies?!

Jidai said...

Sir! I challenge you to a geek duel!

Mel O said...

Yay!! I feel so official now that I'm back on your elusive "list."

:D

words...words...words... said...

It's a perfect commentary on today's media that I know absolutely nothing about this movie except that I can answer Red's question: Yes, you see his thingy.

I'm sort of embracing my Watchmen ignorance. When I hear too much about something I haven't seen/read/listened to and people fall all over themselves praising it, I automatically start to resent it and assume it sucks no matter its level of quality. I call it the Gwyneth Paltrow Effect. In fact, that might make a good blog entry, so I'm going to stop typing right now.

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

@ Sassy Britches: *sigh* I see all of my double-speak and entrendre-laden writing has fallen on deaf ears.

@ Kimizzy: Hey, welcome to the blog. Thanks for stopping by and commenting! And yes, I still haven't seen it. I own it, but I haven't seen it. Much to my shame.

@ Pistols: Sorry, man, I don't know what to tell you. I'd try to defend this as being not Uncool, but then, I know the sort of people who faithfully read comics, and frankly, I don't want to defend the Jeff Albertsons of the world out there (of which, there are plenty).

@ MelO: Because you're an intelligent person with good taste. That, and I'm stalking you.

@ Jidai: I'm sorry, what? I was over here trying to lower my time from 11 seconds on a quiz naming the 13 dwarves from the Hobbit.

@ MelO: It's not so elusive; it's right there for the taking! However, it is rather exclusive.

@ words^3: See, here is one of the things that happens to me. When I really want to see something, I try to go into sensory deprivation mode. I haven't seen this being overly hyped (but then, they don't advertise during Spongebob for anything other than iCarly and more motherfucking iCarly) though I know the hype machine is ratched up to ludicrous speed. I guess I've just kind of avoided it, even though I know the story, plot, characters and the ending (though it's different from the book). I did the same with the Lord of the Rings movies.

Jidai said...

Oh it's on... "Kailash when it rises."

Lisa-tastrophies said...

I have to apologize and say that I have Zero Geek Credit. I'm a "Chick-lit" reader at the moment and was so psyched that "Confessions of a Shopaholic" opened last weekend that I spent $50 at the two initial and ampersand bookstore buying more chick-lit.
Here's hoping your movie rocks it better than what they did to my movie-based-on-the-book.

Scope said...

I put up a count down clock over at Scope-Tech for the film. Had been thinking about it for weeks, but didn't get off my duff until you dropped this post on me.

coolred38 said...

Ironman...ugh.

All I can say about superhero movies is...Im just not that into you. I dont get the attraction.

Just watched Slumdog Millionaire...lead character acted brave and daring and with honor and integrity...and he couldnt "leap buildings in a single bound" or climb walls or fly or walk through shit or stretch his ass from her to there...or talk with a deeply husky voice that does nothing for the characters likeability....lol.

And yet he was still a "super" hero.

btw everytime I hit your blog now it tries to download something on me (4 days now)...whats up with that?

Anna Russell said...

I swear, if it's not done right, heads are going to roll. My biggest fear is that they're going to try to make it suitable for kids. That would suck monkey balls.

coolred38 said...

"or walk through shit"...

oops...just remembered he did actually walk through shit...literally...lol. my bad!

the iNDefatigable mjenks said...

@ Jidai: You know, a little azithromycin will clear that right up.

@ Lisa: Well, like I said, it has to be better than X-Men 3, and that pretty much took a book I loved and shit all upon it. So...I might have had a point in there somewhere, but it's lost in my disgust over the third X-men movie. *pukes*

@ Scope: It'd be really cool if the clock looked like it was bleeding the closer to the movie's release we get.

@ CoolRed38: It's all because of character identification. Who doesn't wish they can help the good people of Gotham out, or that they can stop a runaway bus from running over a kid? The cool thing about The Watchmen is that it takes these Superhero Archetypes and reduces them down to where they are just people running around in garish costumes and when the masks are removed, the people are no different than you and me. Well, except for Dr. Manhattan, but then again, who isn't a crazed sexually frustrated nuclear engine trapped in a hominoid shell?

As for it trying to download something on you...I have no idea. Was it four days ago that Google started effing with the followers thing?

@ Anna: From what I've heard, you don't need to worry about it being reduced to kiddy fare. The scene with the Comedian and the first Silk Spectre is in it. Snyder himself promised that it wouldn't be kiddified.

@ CoolRed38: I did that once. I was running down the swimmy hole at the Lake, and I stepped in a big pile of dog doo. I can assure you, it doesn't take a superhero to that.

jonnythecomedian said...

Still haven't gotten to see this movie yet but i really want to

http://comedianreviews.blogspot.com/