One week 'til Halloween

So, one week until Halloween.

Let's talk sequels.

We all remember the scene in Scream 2, when the film class talks about how sequels are never better than the original (ooh, irony!)? Yeah, Horror flicks are plagued by that worse than almost any genre.

Sometimes, as with the Scream series, it's simply a matter of each film not being as good as the one before it.

Sometimes, as with Warlock and Urban Legend, the sequels are almost completely unrelated, with only a common cast member (at best) tying the plotlines together.

And sometimes, the series just takes the original concept, and waters it down to the point of no return. The original Nightmare on Elm Street, for example, was a nasty, scary movie, in which Freddy had a sense of humor, but was always trying to amuse himself, not his audience. In the later films, he became a jokester, setting up elaborate pranks that only someone watching the movie could appreciate.

So, what are your favorite horror sequels, and your least favorite?

My faves: The aforementioned Scream 2, which, if not exactly a great flick, is actually pretty nifty in a lot of ways, and feels like a natural extension of the characters. I also enjoyed many of the later Friday the Thirteenth movies better than the original, which just doesn't hold up all that well. And, much as I admire the first movie, Evil Dead 2 was the best thing Sam Raimi ever did. There are a few more (Dawn of the Dead is every bit as good as the original NotLD, although I wouldn't necessarily say it's better -- each is a masterpiece), but I'm sure you have some of your own to name.

Worst: Aside from Urban Legends - Final Cut, there's American Psycho 2 ("The Film so bad, we just had to get Shatner for it"), and Cube 2 (Hypercube), proof that when people want a bad sequel, they call Nick Knight.

Again, there are plenty of other bad sequels (anyone else remember the fucking dog having a flashback in The Hills Have Eyes 2), but again, let me know some of the ones that come immediate to mind for you.

Cold hands just ain't natural

Last night, as often happened, Shadesong decided to torture me by touching me, which, since her hands manage to get colder than an ice cube for no good reason, is effective (although on hot days it can be very nice).

I realized that it was less the cold itself that bothered me (I tend to like cold temperatures), than the fact that any human could get that cold. As I explained to her, it's the same problem that all the people in the Lovecraft stories have when they encounter the fifth-dimensional geometry. Things like that just should not be.

Ooookay.

So, talking to co-worker S today about a big lunch meeting, which co-worker S1 is also attending.

S: Since no one else responded to my email, we get to pick the pizza toppings.
me: Where are we ordering from.
S: Savage.
me: Oh, they've got that great chicken florentine one.
S: Yeah, but [S1] doesn't eat any meat but ham.
Me: [blinks]

Seriously, who the fuck only eats ham?

Anyway, we decided that since she hadn't responded, and since we were also getting a vegetarian piazza (the sundried tomato one), that we just didn't care.