Todd, Author at On the Go in MCO

Marvel Review: Planet Hulk

Incredible_Hulk_Vol_2_94

Whether you look at him as being a superhero or a monster, the Hulk is quite a compelling character to read about. In modern culture, the comic book portrayal of the Hulk tends to take a back seat to either fond memories of Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby and the never forgotten phrase of, “You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.” Or the more recent portrayal in The Avengers movie and the defining phrase of, “That’s my secret, Captain. I’m always angry.” Suddenly many realized, hey there’s a lot more to this character than simply, “Hulk Smash!”

That’s where reading about him in comic books is so much different. The character is constantly changing, constantly evolving, but always breaks down into a question of what makes a man a hero or a monster. When written well, it truly makes you wonder is it Bruce Banner who turns into the Hulk, or is it the Hulk who turns into Bruce Banner. But one simple thing about the Hulk always carries the story, the madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets. What if his anger became so focused that there became no stopping him. That’s where Planet Hulk comes in, it is a story about pushing the Hulk to that brink.

It all starts with the Fantastic Four stopping a rampaging Hulk and calming him down for umpteenth time. The Thing makes an offhand, joking remark to Mister Fantastic about rocketing the Hulk into space that sets the wheels in motion. At this time in the Marvel Universe a group had formed behind the scenes calling themselves the Illuminati. Comprised of Iron Man, Mister Fantastic, Doctor Strange, Black Bolt, Namor, and Professor X, this team voted to send launch the Hulk into space to land on a deserted planet to protect the Earth. (note: Professor X was absent, and Namor voted against the plan and quit the group) And they go through with it launching the Hulk into space.

From there their plan both works and fails. The Hulk is off Earth, with S.H.I.E.L.D. training the She-Hulk as a stand in, though with an ulterior motive. However the ship they sent him in is thrown off course by a wormhole and the Hulk ends up not on a deserted planet, but rather the planet Sakaar, a planet that has a society that is a conglomeration of other races that have been pulled through the same wormhole. He is weakened from the journey, able to be injured, and easily subjugated by the natives with an obedience disc and made to become a Gladiator for the Red King. One thing drives him through the storyline, his anger.

After all his friends have betrayed him, and stranded him in a place where he could be killed. He has no knowledge that they did not intend for him to be on Sakaar, and thus his driving motivation throughout the story becomes a quest for revenge. Along the way he makes a pact with other fellow gladiators, and together over the slain body of one of their fallen they make a pact to become Warbound to each other. Each is in their own way as strong as the Hulk himself prior to departing Earth.

The Red King takes an immediate dislike to Hulk and the Warbound are sent off to die multiple times. Eventually this all leads to a rebellion, led by the Hulk to defeat the Red King, free the slaves and free Sakaar. Now that really leaves out a lot of details I know, but to find those out I’ll suggest that you take the time to read the story. Though I promise there’s at least one cosmic surprise inside.

When all is said and done the Hulk – having defeated the Red King, and brought peace to the planet by uniting it’s cornucopia of inhabitants – is made the king of Sakaar. And throughout the story as he’s constantly challenged throughout he becomes steadily stronger and more angry. Then he takes a wife and she becomes pregnant. He starts to calm down and accept his new home and his new position as its leader. That is until the ship he crash landed in is paraded through the capital city of Sakaar where it has a warp core breach.

The ship explodes killing everyone in the city, including his wife and unborn child, and damaging much of Sakaar. At this point the Hulk becomes pure rage and anger and all he wants is revenge. A revenge that is targeted against the four members of the Illuminati that were responsible for sending him into space. Together with his Warbound they take their stone starship and head for Earth.

It’d been a very long time since I’d read a comic book from a Hulk title. It’s hard when one of your fondest comic reading memories looking back is that of Doc Sampson breaking his hand and arm to knock out the Hulk. But really it was like riding a bicycle to read, and a great way to jump back into the standard character from a comic book perspective (with prior recent experiences being the Ultimate Hulk and Zombie Hulk). Hulk fans who maybe don’t have as much comic book experience may struggle some with this story, but the payoff is grand for what it leads to later (see below). This is pure raw, raging Hulk, and it’s a great story that delivers.

Reading List (approximate reading order):

Fantastic Four: 533 to 535
Amazing Fantasy (vol 2): 15
New Avengers Illuminati Special
The Incredible Hulk (vol 3): 88 to 105
Additional: Planet Hulk Gladiator Guidebook

Next time: World War Hulk

Wordless Wednesday – Happy New Year

Wordless Wednesday – January 1, 2014

A Spoonful Review Of Saving Mr. Banks

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For the past few years Disney and Mary Poppins fans have been anticipating the arrival of the movie Saving Mr. Banks. There is a tremendous amount of words being set to page about this movie right now, and it is generally well liked – though it does have its detractors. I can’t begin to tell you how good that is for a film like this. I’ve seen Mary Poppins countless times (Star Wars: A New Hope being the only movie I’ve seen more), read the book (though not in some time, that needs to change), and even read some works about P. L. Travers herself. That said, this isn’t a movie about Mary Poppins and if you think it is before having seen it, then you’re going to see quite a different movie then you’re expecting.

This is not a subtle movie in any way. It will beat you senseless with its message while trying to mask itself with the appearance of subtlety. Don’t get me wrong that doesn’t make it a bad movie at all. In fact, I think it’s a fantastic movie. One third of the movie is told in flashbacks to the life of P. L. Travers growing up as Helen Goff in Australia. They are portrayed as wispy and almost dreamlike – thanks in part to the filter used on the camera. Much like a dream. Combine that with the way the relationship between Walt Disney and Travers is told and you can begin to see the magic of this film.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nijccxWvyXU&feature=share&list=PLTnR43JTLNs97g-zsOTqyBczgqxzuzxnt

As my brain groked what I’ve seen on the screen I realized that the story itself is an illusion. It’s a dream. And, as with most dreams, the roles that you see people portraying are not necessarily the people they represent. Shift around the roles of the players a bit and you’ll realize that the more correct title for this film is Saving Mrs. Travers.

Getting two actors who are well known character actors and setting them against each other was a stroke of genius. Tom Hanks as Walt Disney is by no means perfect, but his mannerisms, stance, and appeal are all captured and I do not think another actor could have done as well a job with such a beloved individual. Emma Thompson does an amazing job as Travers. Having spent numerous hours listening to the archival studio session tapes of meetings between Travers and various Disney employees, she tried to capture the emotional distress of Travers. She even had her own hair styled to match Travers rather than using a wig.

What really brought it all home for me though was listening to an interview with Jason Schwartzman and Richard Sherman. Unlike Hanks and Thompson who had to study their roles by studying the past, Schwartzman was able to sit down and talk with the man he’d be portraying. The two had spent countless hours together throughout the making of this film. In the studio, Sherman was a consultant for all the “script room” scenes in the movie. He has talked about how surreal and emotional many of the scenes were for him – seeing moments from his own life recreated.

Like is so often true for movies about topics and historical moments that have already been picked to pieces extensively, this film will not be for everyone. In fact, it’s probably not a movie for the most hard core of fans – they’re not even the target audience. Saving Mr. Banks is meant to tell the tale of how Mary Poppins almost didn’t get made in a way that is meant to appeal to the most general of audiences. Keep in mind that this is not a family movie by any means, and you probably do not want to bring your small children to see it as there’s little in it for them – hence the PG-13 rating.

In addition to doing the web design and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can join him and his fellow hosts for Episode 156 where they will discuss the movie Saving Mr. Banks.

A Warm Look At Frozen

Disney-Frozen

Currently in theaters, Frozen is the tale of two sisters separated by magic, but joined by their love for each other. Bearing almost no resemblance to it source work, “The Snow Queen” by Hans Christian Andersen, Frozen becomes a new, different, and original story by Disney. In keeping with the current trend, this movie is completely computer animated, and at some very key moments in the movie it’s clear that this technology has advanced to such a point as to make magic take on a very real feel.

There are some interesting characters thrown into the film like the comedic sidekick Olaf the Snowman – a character I honestly found annoying from the original trailer – that I really enjoyed in the context of the full movie. Drawing from something that worked really well in the movie Tangled, we get a second sidekick in the form of a carrot loving reindeer named Sven. Since they were young Sven has been the companion of the ice trader Kristoff – together they have a relationship that reminds me of myself and my dog Jasper (yes including the talking).

Arendelle is a very beautiful land that is in many ways made more beautiful when covered in snow and ice. There are moments where that snow and ice are used to convey the emotion of the characters and the moment that just work so fantastically well, that you’re reminded of that magical element to winter from your childhood. This coming from someone who can’t stand snow.

The music in the movie is really strong, and does a fantastic job in helping to broaden the definition of the characters singing them. One clever element is that instead of having the manly mountain man Kristoff sing a song about his feelings, his “family” of rock trolls sings it for him. Anna’s entire drive for the movie is defined in the song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” which is an ode to her longing for the companionship of her sister. “Let It Go” is that moment when Elsa is finally able to be herself while at the same time letting us know that she too is lonely.

httpv://youtu.be/kHue-HaXXzg

For 70 years Disney has been looking for a way to bring the story of “The Snow Queen” to movie audiences, and it’s clear that they have succeeded. It’s nice to have a story where the core, classic elements of what people perceive to be a “Disney Movie” can be turned on their side some and bring about the sort of depth of to characters that modern audiences crave. Do I think everyone will like this movie? No. Do I think that Disney fans should go see this movie? Absolutely. Frozen is a very good movie that tells a strong story using well defined characters that is very enjoyable to watch.

httpv://youtu.be/TbQm5doF_Uc

A 10,000 Foot Review of Planes

After years of bouncing back and forth between plans to release in theaters and other plans for a direct to video release, Planes is finally here. It is, very obviously, a spin-off from the highly successful Cars franchise from Pixar. However, despite the Pixar-like 3D computer animation, don’t think that this movie comes to us from Pixar. Instead, it comes to us from DisneyToon Studios – makers of Disney animated sequels like Cinderella II: Dreams Come True and DuckTales: The Movie (recently discussed on the Disney Film Project Podcast). Despite not being from Pixar, Cars creator John Lasseter, being in charge of animation at Disney, was the movie’s Executive Producer.

The movie is about a cropduster named Dusty Crophopper that has dreams of becoming a world famous race plane. As you might expect, there are several obstacles to his achieving this goal as on top of not being a plane built for racing he’s also used to flying low to the ground and therefore afraid of heights. Unfortunately, despite the buildup of this internal conflict in the movie it doesn’t even really play into the plot at all and is more of a throwaway moment. The most enjoyable part of the film for me was his training for the race and the metaphor of “chasing shadows” being used to represent the main character chasing his dreams.

My biggest problem with the movie is the main character himself. As opposed to Cars, where Lightning McQueen is clearly the main character of the movie, Dusty gets lost in the vast array of other racers and characters in the movie who are simply more interesting than he is. I don’t really find this that surprising considering other characters played by Dane Cook tend to have the same problem. There was a lot of missed opportunity to build this character into something stronger and it just never happens in the film.

After that the movie suffers from the fact that few, if any, people go into the movie understanding what Plane racing even is. And I still question if it’s even a thing outside of military time trials and air shows. Not to compare it to Cars again, but people generally understood what car racing is before going to see Cars. It played off a familiar theme and a passing knowledge of how the core of the story operates, and it did a fantastic job of capturing similar themes from movies like Rocky. At that same feeling, Planes fails.

The movie itself was enjoyable, but it’s not great, and good is debatable. I feel that I enjoyed the snail racing movie Turbo more than I enjoyed planes. Parents however should be prepared to take children to see this movie. They too won’t like it as much as Cars, but all the advertising mentions Cars, so your kids will be clamoring to see it.

In addition to doing the web designer and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can listen to him and his fellow hosts discuss Planes in an upcoming episode.

A Silver Bullet Review of The Lone Ranger

Yesterday was July 4th, and I found it or that while I was standing in the middle of the Magic Kingdom that my only goal was to head over to Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe and get myself a root beer slush. Admittedly it was a fairly hot day, but that wasn’t why I was getting the drink. What I wanted was the mug that it came in, shaped like a boot, and stamped with the logo for the newly released Disney film The Lone Ranger and the image of a Texas Ranger badge. For the longest time, I’ve been a fan of the character, and his history. As a child I had a spray-painted silver bullet on my desk, had made myself my own Halloween costume (that got worn more often), and was even a Texas Rangers fan. So I’ll just apologize upfront if this seems biased.

The legend of the Lone Ranger goes back to a 1933 radio show which was one of the most popular of all time. It has since gone on to produce a highly successful television program, a series of books, comic books, other movie treatments, merchandising, etc. It’s safe to say that for 80 years this character has never not made money in some capacity. And in 2007 the Weinstein brothers, after having left Disney, found themselves planning to buy the rights to the Lone Ranger for use in the home video market – only to see the company that was selling it to them snatched up by Dreamworks before this could happen.

Eventually, with the help of Jerry Bruckheimer, the movie was set up at Disney. The first script treatment had had an extreme supernatural overtone, trying to play off the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I’m not kidding, there were werewolves. Elements of this original script were brought forward into the final product and can be found very obviously imbued into nature of the characters of Tonto and Butch Cavendish primarily, and to a lesser extent that of the main character John Reid. In 2010, after the idea was on the verge of being scrapped, Gore Verbinski steps into the picture, and production kicked into high gear. While Johnny Depp had been signed to the project back in 2008, they needed their Ranger, and Armie Hammer was signed to do so.

In my time as a fan I’ve read, watched, or listened to more than a dozen different version of the origin story of the Lone Ranger, and I have to say that this movie, The Lone Ranger, is a very fresh adaptation. If you look closely it has so much of what has been brought before in it. The Ranger is the lawman seeking justice, more literally as a lawyer. Tonto is still the guide, taking a more spiritual bent. And Butch Cavendish is as vile, rotten, and disgusting as he should be, adding a new bent that wasn’t too hard to… swallow (do you see what I did there). A few of the twists in the movie are nicely done, especially the reveal – which is only lightly telegraphed. There are still mines of silver and even nephew Dan as a future sidekick is alluded to.

For 22 (or more) minutes of the film I was on the verge of tears. Why? Because on the screen is something I feel no filmed treatment has gotten right since the television series use of the William Tell Overture. The full treatment, overlaid on the end game of the movie is one of the most enjoyable on screen moments I’ve experienced. The timing of every note to the action, movement, and feeling of the moment rounded this movie out fully and really brought it home for me. It said to me, “Yes, this is the Lone Ranger.”

Right now you’re seeing a lot of negative criticism about the movie, but really audience reviews of the movie are great. Try to ignore the professional critics and go watch this movie and make your own decision about it. There are some gruesome moments in the movie, that if you’re bringing your children you may get questions about. Up front, I’ll warn you that Westerns aren’t for everyone, but we seldom get good ones that have the right feel to them anymore. This however is one. And if you’re a fan of the genre I feel you’re going to enjoy it.

In addition to doing the web designer and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can join him and his fellow hosts for a Live Review of The Lone Ranger on Thursday, July 18, 2013.

A Look At Monsters University

It was 12 years ago that we first met Mike Wazowski and Sulley in what is now the 5th highest grossing Pixar film of all time, Monsters, Inc. – reviewed in Episode 49 of the Disney Film Project Podcast. In it we get introduced to these friendly monsters that are in a lot of ways just like us. Only, with the exception that they’re monsters, living in a city populated by monsters, in world of monsters, all of whom were brought up to think that humans and especially children are toxic. This Top Scarer team quickly learns that the world around them isn’t quite what it appears to be, and the quickly watch the house of cards tumble around them.

Now, on June 21st we get to learn how they met, in the long awaited… not sequel, but rather prequel, Monsters University. Abandoning the idea that they met way back in the 4th grade as implied by a line in the original movie, but explained away by director Dan Scanlon, Pixar chose to go with the characters meeting in college. Twelve years is a long time, and it would never work for live actors because they don’t age in reverse, but fortunately these characters have all been sitting on computers at Pixar waiting all this time to once more stretch their legs.

The principal voice actors Billy Crystal and John Goodman return as Mike and Sulley. And along with them come a new cast of characters played by a wide array of voice and acting talents: Helen Mirren, Dave Foley, Alfred Molina, and Nathan Fillion among them. Together they help to bring to life a movie that reflects a much different world than that of the energy crisis ridden city of Monstropolis.

What we instead get is the journey of two younger monsters both learning to survive in the world around them. One trying to live his dream, and the other trying to live up to his family’s expectations. Two monsters who couldn’t be more different, on a journey to become the great friends we know them to be from Monsters, Inc. And the most important aspect of the original movie is carried forward into this one: heart.

The view of college life in the movie does fall into the typical movie trope that everything that matters in college is decided and defined by fraternities and sororities. But that hardly detracts from the points the movie is trying to make – it’s just the easier and more familiar path to take when making a college movie. With all that said the portrayal of “the greek life” is minimal, and at times mocking. The classroom scenes range from being reminiscent of both Harry Potter and Sky High.

Overall, I really think fans of the original won’t be disappointed with Monsters University. It’s not nearly as new and fresh as Monsters, Inc. was when it came out, nor is it as good. But it is a solid movie that makes it’s points, teaches us some lessons, tells us what we want to know going in, and even answers some questions we’d maybe been wondering along the way. It was both fun and funny to watch, and I look forward to seeing it again this weekend.

httpv://youtu.be/xBzPioph8CI

A Spoiler Free Look At Iron Man 3

As you know from my podcast the Disney Film Project Podcast, that I’m quite a geek when it comes to anything comic books, superheroes, Star Wars, etc. Just 5 short years ago, superhero movies, while popular, were considered by general audiences to be below the bar. Sufficient in making money for studios, few great successes, and many outright failures. Then in 2008 everything changed, because the bar was raised when the first Iron Man movie came out. For many years, even before the movie project was announced, fans had asked for actor Robert Downey Jr. (RDJ) to take on the role of Tony Stark. Fans saw his own addiction to narcotics and recovery as a strong bond between him and the character whose own past includes an addiction to alcohol. The industry listened to the fans. The actor was completely on board. And the movie was a huge success.

Now, almost 5 years to the day, many people are going to be heading out to their local movie theater to go see the movie Iron Man 3. It’s hard to think that this may be one of the last times that RDJ might be playing the character though there’s a good chance that he’ll renegotiate his contract as long as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) continues to be the blockbuster success that it has been. Which would be good news for fans like myself, the thought of anyone else playing the role is almost painful.

The first Iron Man movie was about how Tony Stark becomes Iron Man, whereas the second one was about the price of having that power, and the mortality of the man inside the armor. Iron Man 3 carries this theme that is very common in the Iron Man comic books forward quite a bit. Now Tony Stark isn’t just a guy in a suit of high tech armor doing his own thing, he’s a hero the world over. He’s a survivor of the “Battle of Manhattan” from The Avengers, he’s had his shawarma, and he’s at a loss of what to do next.

And he wanders through much of this movie in the same way many other victims of war do. Wrought with regret and anxiety for what he experienced, and how it changes his future. He can’t sleep, he’s angry, and he’s having anxiety attacks. And this has been going on for some time. The only real indication we have about how much time has passed is that at the end of The Avengers, Tony dons his Mark VII (7) armor. In Iron Man 3 he’s wearing a prototype suit of armor dubbed Mark XLII (42) – making this as little as 6 weeks later.

I’ll be honest, I loved this movie, but as you can see from everything above, I’m a bit biased. It has a feeling about it that is just the right way to go for what is essentially a downtime piece between Avengers movies more than it is the third part of a trilogy. It missed the mark for me on exactly one point where I thought to myself that I don’t care how riddled with crazy Tony’s head is, at this point I want to see him do *this* and he didn’t. But there is just an amazing amount of both heart and humor that will endear people to this character even more than he was before.

It paves the way for some of my MCU predictions like the now ever popular Coulson Lives in a way that is really going to prove more interesting than such a thing was ever depicted in comic books. But we’re talking about a series of movies that made the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier believable – a movie moment that I’d wanted to see my entire life and literally made me cry tears of joy. That said, this movie didn’t have a moment like that for me. But that didn’t lessen it for me – as I said, it’s a downtime piece. And I very much enjoyed seeing Tony be more than just a man outside the armor, yet still need the armor to be the whole set piece of the character.

Be forewarned, once you see this movie you will realize that you have been played. I won’t say how or why, but know that this movie does something that I feel that no one could have foreseen or predicted from any of the advertising material (posters, trailers, etc.). And it’s totally awesome on so many levels. To the point where I feel it changes movie advertising quite a bit.

As has been the case with all of the previous MCU movies, it’s important for the viewer to stay past the credits for the “bonus scene”. This one is cute and clever and is more like a “bookend” for the movie as a whole then an “extra moment”. The end credits are simply amazing. They will have you leaving Iron Man 3 and wanting to go watch old television shows like Magnum P.I., Charlies Angels, and the original Hawaii Five-0.

Overall every fan of Iron Man will definitely want to rush out to see this movie as planned. Non-fans may not like it so much, mostly because they’ll be watching for it to be a typical action/adventure movie, which it clearly is not. If you’re somewhere in between the two, then YMMV (your mileage may vary).

In addition to doing the web design and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can join him and his fellow hosts for a Live Review of Iron Man 3 on Thursday, May 9, 2013.

Coming Soon: MegaCon 2013

In a bit more than a week from now I’ll be attending MegaCon – one of the more popular Science Fiction and Fantasy conventions to regularly visit the Orlando, Florida area – will start. It will be held in Hall D of the Orange County Convention Center (directions). It will be held on March 15th through 17th and the hours are as follows:

Fri Mar 15th : 1pm – 7pm
Sat Mar 16th : 10am – 6pm
Sun Mar 17th : 10am – 5pm

Adult ticket prices at the door will be $30 for a single day or $60 for all three days, and children 10 and under get in for free with an adult. Advance tickets can be purchased online or over the phone. Parking will be $9 per day ($15 for oversized vehicles).

There are numerous Media Guests attending this years convention, but the big draw this year is a special Star Trek: The Next Generation reunion event. There is an additional cost for this event, but there is still seating available. Additionally there will be numerous chances to get signatures from various celebrity attendees. To guarantee a signature you can pre-buy tickets.

This isn’t just a convention about Star Trek, television, or movie guests. It’s also a comic book convention, and as a result many comic book guests will be available to meet as well. The most famous of which is the renowned Neal Adams. The convention will also have Anime Guests, Video Gaming, other Gaming, and numerous panels to choose from throughout the day. And don’t forget the ever popular convention exclusives and the showroom floor exhibitors.

I’m excited to attend. My favorite part of conventions is always the showroom floor. Checking out the myriad items of memorabilia, and trinkets you can find while wandering around. I find it fun to see them, and very often unique one of a kind items can be found. It’s like hunting for treasure. Not to mention the costumes. There are some very creative people in this world who are capable of amazing costumes and conventions are their only outlet for showing them off. If you see me there don’t hesitate to say, “Hi.”

Cheering for a runDisney Event

My addiction to running didn’t start with the running itself, it started with the cheering. Back in 2009 I made some friends, and not long after I learned that they were running in a race. A race at Walt Disney World. I honestly had no real concept of what this meant, but I had always had it in the back of my head that running was something I wanted to try. So I made a decision to seek a little inspiration, and go cheer for them. That day I learned one solid thing: cheering for a race isn’t easy. Now that’s not to say that it can’t be, like anything else it’s all about how much, or how little you want to throw yourself into it.

This upcoming weekend, February 22-February 24, 2013, runDisney is hosting Disney’s Princess Half Marathon Weekend. There are two races that you could be cheering for, the Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Royal Family 5K, and the Disney’s Princess Half Marathon.

Some Fun RunDisney Facts about Disney’s Princess Half Marathon Weekend:

More than 26,000 runners in the half; 8,000 in the 5K and 1,700 in Kids Races; many from throughout Central Florida
The half marathon includes more than 24,500 female runners and 1,700 male runners
Runners represent all 50 states and 32 countries
The youngest participant is 14 and the oldest woman is 78
There are 98 RunDisney runners celebrating their Birthday during the race

If you have runners running either of these races you should sit down with them and talk with them to find out some information that will make cheering for them easier:

What corral are they starting in? For each race, runners are split up into corrals that have staggered starting times. These corrals are typically lettered. Runners in B will start the race before runners in C.

What is their pace per minute? Runners don’t all run at the same speed. You’ll need this knowledge for longer races if you’re going to travel between points to cheer.

Will they be stopping? Disney races are designed for fun. Along the course there will be various special areas, characters, and photo opportunities for runners to participate in. This means that despite their pace, your runner can take longer if they’re planning to stop to take a picture and have to wait in a line. If you didn’t expect your runner to be stopping you might find yourself getting worried when they don’t show after an expected period of time.

What will they be wearing? In case you’re not going to see your runner before they enter the corral in the morning, they should definitely send you a photo of what they will be wearing so you can easily spot them on the course.

Regardless of which race you’re cheering for, I can’t stress enough that the right time to head out to cheer is when the runners head out to run. The 5K starts at 6:30 am on Saturday, and I recommend getting to the starting line of the race no later than 5:45 am. This will give you time to meet up with friends, watch your runner head to their corral, and find a good place to cheer from at the Start. By contrast, the Half starts at 5:30 am, though depending on where you’re cheering from (more on that below), you might have some wiggle room. Transportation options are explained in the Official Race Program. Whether you’re busing, taking the monorail, or driving yourself – everything you’ll need to know is in there. Just turn to page 42.

Cheering for the 5K itself is fairly easy. If you look at the course map you’ll see that the race starts and ends in Epcot. In fact, it starts and ends in the parking lot of Epcot. Spectators will not be allowed into Epcot during the race, this means you will only be able to see your runners at the start and end of the race. Knowing their pace is important here. A 5K race is approximately 3.1 miles. This means that when you see your runner at the start of the race, and their pace is 10 minutes per mile, that you can expect them to reach the finish line in about 30 minutes. If they’re planning to stop, even one photo opportunity can increase their time by 5 minutes or even more.

For the Half Marathon, cheering can be a bit more involved, or relatively the same. The Starting line for the race is out on Epcot Center Drive, you can actually walk out to the road from the parking lot through the woods. Just look for the signs when you’re there. The Finish line is in the Epcot parking lot. Many people never go out to the starting line, because it is extremely difficult to spot runners at this point. The Platinum level ChEAR Squad Race Retreat spectator package might be a good, albeit expensive, option. You can relax in luxury while your runner is rounding the corner in Tomorrowland.

If you want to be more active you’ll need to consider using the Online Spectator Tool. With this tool you can try to determine the best places to watch your runner along the path. There are many options to choose from. But my preferred choices are: Mile 0 at the Starting Line, Mile 5.3 on Main Street, USA in Magic Kingdom, Mile 12 at the bus depot in Epcot, and Mile 13 which is just before the Finish. Other popular places to cheer from are at the TTC, at the Contemporary across from the Magic Kingdom bus depot, and on the Western side of Polynesian Resort. The runners will run by (or through in the case of the TTC) all three of these. You can find this information on page 43 in the program.

In this era of high tech, you’ll want to consider one of a few options for tracking your runners. For starters, each runner is tagged, and runDisney provides a means to track your runners via this tag using the Runner Tracking tool for the event (tool changes per event, but your account will remain between events, and be good at all future races). Here you can receive alerts via text or email and auto-post updates to Facebook or Twitter. I will be honest, this tool is not the most reliable of systems, but it has gotten better than it used to be.

There are plenty of other ways you can track your runner. For example, if they take walk intervals, and have their phone with them, a simple text message stating where they are can work wonders. If you and your runner both have an iPhone I suggest using the Find My Friends app that Apple puts out. You’ll want to set it up before the race, but with it you’ll be able to use the mapping features of your iPhone to locate your runner. If a runner wants to broadcast their location to multiple people across multiple devices, I suggest using a WhatsApp group to do so as it’s available across multiple phone types. Applications like RunKeeper are very popular with runners for tracking their runs also have additional functionality that lets others track the runner on their phone.

The last, and most important thing, is that the person you’re there to cheer for isn’t the only person out there running that day. While you’re out on the course waiting for your runner, you might notice that most bibs will have a name on them. If you can read a name, shout it out and cheer for that person too. I can not begin to tell you how much it will mean to that person. There are plenty of people out on the course who otherwise have no one to cheer for them. And who knows, you might end up cheering for one of us here.

* SPOILER FREE * Review of The Odd Life of Timothy Green

Having seen The Odd Life of Timothy Green just a few days ago, I’ve been trying to put my finger on the pulse of the movie. There is so much wrapped into this compact, sweet, lovable, and quirky movie that I don’t feel that simple labels like “comedy” or “drama” are enough, though it clearly has elements of both. What shines through most in this movie though is its tremendous heart. There are in this movie no good guys, and no bad guys – there are just people behaving like… people, and yet their lives are all simply transformed by Timothy.

The story was conceived by Ahmet Zappa son of the singer, songwriter, and musician Frank Zappa. For Disney to put this out under their own brand rather than one of their subsidiaries says a lot about their trust for the material and Zappa. This trust goes back a few yeas to the creation of Kingdom Comics in 2008 which included a multi-year contract to create new films and rejuvenate old live-action Disney films by first releasing them in graphic novel form. This is the first new film to be released through this venture.

You are going to cry at this movie. There is no doubt. Some of those tears will be from laughing, some will be from sorrow. But many will come from that place you enter when you let yourself go in the magic of a moment and realize how amazing the world would be if things always could just work this way. To be able to put our wishes, our hopes and our dreams into a box and have them come true… even if only for a short while.

Those who love the art of storytelling will almost immediately pick up on the O. Henry styling of the story. There is a twist to the tale, it’s not hidden – the trailers for the movie already give it away. But the twist is designed to deliver a message and that’s what’s important. Life is fleeting. We are here for a moment, and then we’re gone. But it’s what we do with that moment. The way in which the lives of those whose lives intertwine with our own are affected by that which we do and the choices that we make. In the end, this is what matters – so make them count.

The moments of impact Timothy gets to make, are not ones that are chosen for him. But when they come he accepts them and embraces them all. Makes the best of the moment for good or for ill. And with that he transforms the lives of those around him in a way that has no other description than magic. But it’s not in your face magic. No, rather it’s the sort of subtle magic that is administered by Mary Poppins or comes riding in on a tornado from Oz. Right down to magical storms and whimsical winds.

Despite being a family movie, I can’t say that this movie is for everyone. Some of the themes that run through this are deep and may require explanation to your children. The emotions in this movie are strong – it could be as much as a two box movie depending on the viewer. And many people like to avoid that sort of thing. This movie is also not without its flaws, but at the same time few are worth nitpicking. However, if you can be accepting of a little magic running its course, then I highly recommend seeing this movie.

As much as I’d like to give a star rating for this movie now, you will have to wait until August 27th when I release Episode 86 of the Disney Film Project Podcast for that and a more thorough review.