The Secret Sun Best of the Zer0's: TV

    

OK, here's the TV list, in no particular order. There certainly was a lot to pick from in the past ten years- in many ways the Zeros were to TV what the 70s were to movies. I've had high hopes for TV rescuing the concept of authorship as well as thoughtful sci-fi. In some ways it's done just that, but the economic iceberg is looming in the distance. 

As the Internet and video games take up more of our time, less money is available for quality TV. Certainly the glory days of actors in last-rated series living like pashas is long gone. But there are a lot of encouraging signs, so keep your fingers crossed for the Teens. 

Secret Sun Best of the Zeros: The Movies

The Zeros were a decade in which memes from the underground bubbled up into the mass media and took over the mainstream in a way I would never thought possible. Twenty years ago topics like secret societies and sacred symbolism were purely fringe stuff. Today, they're literally kids' stuff. 

Stairway to Sirius, Revisited: Bonus Picture Parade

Well, it's been quite a week here on The Secret Sun. The Stairway to Sirius, Revisited series looked at the reemergence of symbols familiar to longtime readers, starting with the weird Norwegian aerial event, and ending with the retrieval of a pylon from the gateway of the ancient Alexandrian temple of Isis, herself identified with the star Sirius. 

In between we looked at a whole host of topics- Will Smith, Barackobamun, Indiana Jones, Masonic tracing boards and of course, the 17 meme.

The Deathbed of Corporate Media

Dark, quiet, haunting- the REAL Hellboy

I turned off Hellboy Potter Hellboy II: The Golden Army just around the point they left Diagon Alley. Now, it may be a fine film if you're into Willow or Labyrinth-type fantasy movies but has less than zero to do with the dark, moody Hellboy comics I love so dearly. 

Breaking Open the Pinchbeck

All of the recent talk about 2012 kicked loose a connection I'd been processing subconsciously but hadn't yet been able to nail down. When researching a recent post on the 2012 film, I came across a documentary in which Daniel Pinchbeck appears...

Three Men and a Smokin' Synchronicity

There's a new book coming out in February with the backbreaking title The Politician: An Insider's Account of John Edwards's Pursuit of the Presidency and the Scandal That Brought Him Down. 

The book promises to blow the lid off the John Edwards scandal, something we've not seen too much of lately, but seems to have resurfaced in the wake of the Tiger Woods scandal. 

When Mythworlds Collide: Doctor Who goes 2012

 

 ...well, almost.  

The Fourth Doctor and his companions come across an ark sent into space to avoid an oncoming solar storm set to wipe out all life on Earth. Oddly prophetic; We're hearing some rumblings in the underground that the current space craze is in fact in preparation for the solar apocalypse in 2012, and that the elite will all be whisked off to Mars to sit out the cinderization of the planet.

 

Secret Sun Picture Parade: Clowns in Space

Well, another week, another batch of seemingly unrelated images grabbed from the memestream and stitched together with a fistful of snark from yours truly...

Readers have noticed this new Rolling Stone cover, which should be no surprise to Secret Sun readers. Space colonization is where its at for the moneyed classes these days, so of course U2 are going to promote it. Note Saturn up top there.

Secret Sun Picture Parade: Taylor Stardust

Taylor Swift continues to fascinate- we saw her Astral Anointing recently and here we see her wielding stardust in the palm of her hand.

The Astral Annointing of Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift and Michael Jackson were the big winners at tonight’s American Music Awards ceremony, with the former picking up five awards, including Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Artist in the pop/rock and country categories, and Favorite Adult-Contemporary Artist (the teen accepted her awards live via satellite from London) - Wall St. Journal

Silent Bob Enters the Widening Gyre

I have a lot of LA and SoCal readers- I wonder how many of them are in the film industry. And I wonder if one of them is Clerks director Kevin Smith. 

Apocalyporn: 2012 or 6 to 4

Seeing that Nineties were the Sixties in reverse, it's strange how much the Naughties feel like the Seventies. 

We have a deep recession, an President more interested in platitudes than policy, a mass culture obsessed with sports and celebrity and a fashion culture fixated on decadence and 'transgression'. American politics is still fixated on the same old social wedge issues.

Hey: Remember that Dark Knight Movie?

Let's change the subject - that warning from the board mods is a joke. 

Hey, remember that movie The Dark Knight? You know the movie that everyone saw but no one seems able to recall? The one whose IMDB board is filled with chatter having to do with everything but the movie?

AstroGnostic: You're a Nine

SPOILER ALERT- this post contains spoilers

I'm one of those weirdos who likes to listen to director's commentaries on DVDs. I've listened to all of the X-Files commentaries, which usually seem to be focused on the technical aspects of production and not so much the stories, which can be a bit frustrating.

The Last Days of Selfosophy?

There seems to be a flood of damaging material about Scientology appearing in the press, after years of the media adopting a hands-off policy. The St. Petersburg Times is going after the CoS hammer-and-tongs in a massive series called 'The Truth Rundown.'

Wham-Bam, Thank You, Elam

Having recently discussed Hercules and shamanism and voyages to the underworld, I was flipping through one of my Essential Thor's, where I can upon this splash-page from one of the crucial comics of my early days. 

I was quite chuffed to see 'The coming of Hercules' plastered on a picture of Thor wrestling a 'witch-doctor' who found Thor's 'Norn-stone' and developed the powers of a 'demon'. I figure Kirby was plotting these stories by this time and Stan was scripting them. The connections then make perfect sense, given whatever Jack had tapped into. 

Then there was the Eleusinian bit with Thor descending into the underworld to rescue Hercules, who'd unwittingly signed on as king of Hell. Interesting spin, there.

 

Journey to the Underworld- Cover dated July 1966

Which brings us to this story, that still boggles my mind: Falcons’ Elam has a ‘frustrating day’

Jason Elam left it in the bullpen on Sunday. After what he said was his best practice week of the preseason and a good pre-game warm-up, the Falcons kicker had one of the worst days of his 17-year career. Seven points went missing.

Falcons? Elam? This is a joke, right? The great Egyptologist Flinders-Petrie wrote that the Falcon tribe - who brought Horus into Egypt - came from the land of Elam:

The distinctive character of the 1st dynasty, which separates it from all that went before, is the conquest and union of the whole land of Egypt. It became thus subject to the falcon-bearing tribe of Horus, which was the natural enemy of the Aunu, the Set-bearing tribe. This falcon tribe had certainly originated in Elam (modern -day Iran), as indicated by the hero and lions on the "Araq knife handle". They went down the Persian Gulf and settled in the "horn of Africa."

Iran, the Persian Gulf, the Horn of Africa? Why, this Horus tribe seems to have hit all of the hotspots circulating in the news these days, no? Finally, speaking of Horus, there's this story:

Nev. man accused of DUI for 3rd time in 17 days RENO, Nev. – A 50-year-old Reno man has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving for the third time in less than three weeks. Reno Police Sgt. Tom Robinson said the man was stopped Monday afternoon on a U.S. Highway 395 off-ramp...

Oh Synchronicity, such a saucy maiden... 

 UPDATE: This just in from Dubai... 

 UPDATE: Actually, this just in from Dubai. Seven stars for synch-searching SoapFan. 

 UPDATE: I'm sorry, this is f***ed.

The 43-year-old told the AP in a series of interviews this week that by the time the sweat lodge ceremony began, the participants had undergone days of physically and mentally strenuous events that included fasting. In one game, guru James Arthur Ray even played God.

At one point, someone lifted up the back of the tent, shining light in the otherwise pitch-black enclosure. Ray demanded to know who was letting the light in and committing a "sacrilegious act," Bunn said.

The account marks a significant revelation in the investigation because it portrays Ray as driving participants to stay in the lodge despite signs all around him that the situation had gone horribly awry. Until now, few details had surfaced about Ray's actions inside in the sweat lodge.

Interesting timing, given that Elizabeth Clare Prophet just passed away. Prophet's apocalyptic, authoritarian, neo-Theosophist, Christo-Buddhist cult was big in the late 80s but her predicted Apocalypse never came, as is so often the case with those stubborn ol' Armageddons. 

The problem was is that her followers quit their jobs and holed up in Montana with guns and such for the occasion. Speaking of the Gyre, Prophet's Church Universal and Triumphant was most likely a model for the 'Church of the Red Museum' from The X-Files. Prophet was stricken with Alzheimer's for the last decade or so. 

 Here's an MP3 of Prophet's 'Invocation for the judgement against and destruction of rock music'. Enjoy! 

 UPDATE: Can some explain to me what this woman is saying? Does she think the sweatlodge deaths were a blessing? 

 UPDATE: From luxury to heartache:

VALHALLA, N.Y. — Former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik is now just another number in the county jail. Westchester County jail spokesman Justin Pruyne says Kerik was given the number 210717 and a single-bed cell when he arrived Tuesday afternoon.

And of course Valhalla ties back to the Thorniverse, doesn't it?

Lost in Spacemen in Black

Being a hopeless geek, I watch a lot of old sci-fi stuff. Not only out of nostalgia but also keeping my open for little bits of semiotic insanity or hints of high weirdness and parapolitical mayhem. I'm building a little sub-file of obscure anecdotes from UFO history that have worked their way into old sci-fi shows, 

Yahooccultism: The Magick Number 9. Also, 17.

The big event of 9/9/9 was Barack Siskobama's health care speech, which may or may not signal his political resurrection. He let his worst opponents run wild over the summer which severely dampened the morale of his base. But he's been known to use playin' possum as a political technique, so it will be interesting to see if apparent return to form is all part of some ritual cycle. In that light, the photo credit there is certainly interesting. 

 The first numbers we heard from the New Tut were 700,000 and 1943 (=17). 17 is the 7th prime number.

Astronaut Theology: Invasion

I picked up a DVD of Invasion, a 1997 TV miniseries based on the novel, written the same year by Robin Cook. I didn't hold much hope for it- the cast wasn't filled with heavy hitters (Luke Perry, Kim Catrall and Rebecca Gayheart are the leads) and the production values on these sorts of things were rarely cinematic, to put it mildly.

Touched by an Alien

When I began working on my analysis of The X-Files: I Want to Believe, I was a bit hesitant. What I was writing about dealt with abduction phenomenon, something I am resolutely agnostic about, and also something that hasn't had much resonance in the Memestream lately. 

But since I posted the first part of the X-Files article last Monday, abductions are suddenly in the media again.  

Dr. Steven Greer and the New UFO Religion

Aside from the re-emergence of the abductee material in the media, the big news in the world of UFOlogy recently was the heated debate between Dr. Steven Greer and Kerry Cassidy of Project Camelot over Greer's remarks to the Barcelona Disclosure conference that all alien races in contact with Earth were benevolent. 

Yahooccultism: Dollar Bore

I guess this is in anticipation of the new Dan Brown novel, but it hardly qualifies as news. Unless the 17 has something to do with it.

The Week in 17: Et Tu, Yahoo?

From Space.com, via Yahoo:

Planets orbit stars in the same direction that the stars rotate. They all do. Except one.

 

The 17th Hole

ITEM: Reader Daniel turned us on to this bizarre photo. A little green man with 17 emblazoned on his chest? Yep, sounds like 2009 to me. 

PostGnosis: GI Joe vs. Apophis

So GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra makes its debut today, and the critics have their knives out for it. Doubly so since Paramount didn't offer screenings for them.

Yahooccultism: Meresamun Jackson

Front-page news:

The Pharaoh of Pop doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as King of Pop, but visitors to Chicago’s Field Museum could swear that’s Jacko’s face on a 3,000-year-old Egyptian bust.

The spitting image limestone sculpture has been on display at the museum since 1988, but recently started drawing attention because of its likeness to Jacko --- complete with disfigured nose. -Yahoo

 

Happy Birthday, Sweet 17

You've all read about the "Birther" brouhaha. All I can add is that no one seems to have learned anything from the Bush AWOL fiasco. No one except Barackobamun's handlers, that is. The whole birth certificate thing was a masterstroke- even Joseph Farah is back-peddling now. 

By now, you've probably seen the Birther lawyer's meltdown on MSNBC, which is fascinating in that this lawyer felt compelled to leave the country soon after circulating the alleged document.

Dracula's New World Order

The great Bruce Timm created 

his own poster for the film

A secret occult society made of powerful figures from government, industry and the military? Unspeakable rites of blood sacrifice, death and resurrection?

Hollywood's New Alien Blitz

One thing about the entertainment press- they love to spot trends. They love to take a few scattered films or books or records and lump them together as some new sort of cultural phenomenon. 

Transformers: The Eternals by Any Other Name...

OK, I finally saw it. In optimal conditions, no pun intended. It was the 10 PM showing on July 4th, so we literally had the theater all to ourselves. Got a parking spot right outside the front door. The environment is usually very important to me when I'm watching a movie - and this was definitely a movie where I wanted to pay close attention - so the absence of NJ knuckleheads was appreciated.

Ritual Olympics: We'll Make Great Pets

When you start to look for evidence of a subliminal alien agenda at work in the media, you begin to find it in the most unlikely places. 

Last year we looked at the "UFO" that landed at the closing ceremonies of the 1984 Olympics. I'm not exactly sure what the point of it all was, and I'm not sure a lot of the visiting athletes- many of whom come from extremely conservative traditional societies- appreciated it either. 

John Cusack, Superstar: Pushing Tin

 

  Well, the full trailer for 2012 is here. And as to be expected from a Roland Emmerich film, it's chock-full of mass destruction and genocide. The guy certainly has a knack for it, doesn't he? 

Apocalyptic film seems to have an added appeal during times of malaise like this one- it's the ultimate fantasy of the global reset button. Of course, no one watching pictures themselves amongst the piles of dead the dogs are picking at, they see the blood and fire through the eyes of the stars (John Cusack in this case, re-teamed with Martian Child co-star Amanda Peet) reaching that brand new day on the other side of it- the "Morning After" Maureen McGovern warbled about all those years ago. 

Speaking of Neuromancy...

 

    OK, let's backtrack. We have this technology that's straight out of the Sprawl Trilogy (or other, more unearthly sci-fi, perhaps), which "Neuromancy" refers to. It's called "Project Natal," meaning "Project Birth." The character here is Milo (who is actually an androgyne) and his/her dog Kate. 

First, let's do Milo. From wiki:

In Hebrew context, Milo is an abbreviation of the Hebrew name MI "who" KHA "like" IL "god", alias Michael meaning "who resembles God".

OK, "the project of the birth of he/she who is like god." Fair enough. Back to wiki:

Milo and Kate - a game in development by Lionhead Studios in which the player interacts with a young child (Milo or Milly, selected by the user at the start) and his/her dog Kate, using items and passing him virtual items from real life actions. In an interview after the demonstration, Lionhead founder Peter Molyneux confirmed that the demo was in fact the long running Project Dimitri. In the demonstration available at E3 2009, only Milo was available to interact with.

OK, Kate is a no-brainer for longtime Secret Sun readers. Kate is the diminutive of Katherine, which around here we interpret as Ka-Hathor-Ein- "to have the Ka (spirit) of Hathor." And the dog is Sirius, reminding us of the conjunctions between Hathor and Isis.

But who is the he/she that is like God? Adam Kadmon. We find that Milo grew out of another project:

The Dimitri Project was the codename for a video game by Lionhead Studios that for many years had an unknown status, before surfacing in 2009 as the technology demo "Milo" for Microsoft's Project Natal.

The Dimitri Project! And where does that name come from?

Demeter. 

 And created by Lionhead Studios- all of you Jungians out there just spit your second cup of coffee at the screen. Who is the Lionhead?

Aion, companion of Mithras, brother of Harpocrates. So, the birth of Milo/Milly who is like god and whose companion is Hathor-Isis, who grew out of Project Demeter who was created by Aion. These are not random bits culled from here and there in mythology, we're hitting the core archetypes here- the very apex of the Mystery pantheon. 

Ancient mythology meets futuristic- almost alien- science, again. You can't keep them separated anymore these days, can you? Now go look at that video again and feel the Secret Sun on your face.

"Mr. President, You Look Like King Tut"

So many strands coming together here- Barackobamun as the avatar of restoration, compared to King Tut by none other than Zahi Hawass himself. This is no surprise to attentive readers of this blog, but it's still quite remarkable to see that CNN is now pushing this meme.

 

Twilight of the (Teen) Idols

When I look for the number 17, I'm usually doing so in a particular context. I'm looking for the number to tie into an overarching narrative, linking to themes of restoration. Osiris died on the 17th, and Horus represented the restoration of his father's rightful throne. Horus himself was the last god to rule Egypt, so in my eyes he represents the restoration of that order of things. 

Souls Traveling in Starlight

In that Kirby 2001/mushroom/star travel story, the astronauts are transformed into light for the journey through the furthest reaches of space. Which is fascinating to me, since that concept is at the core of the X-Files Mythology's cosmology- the transformation of souls into energy.

Secret Star Trek: Dawson's Trek

 

 Well, I almost hate to say it, but this Onion video pretty much nails my reaction to the new Star Trek. 

I thought it was great fun - a highly entertaining and extremely well-produced thrill ride. Visually, this may be the best space opera to date. All the creatives involved seem to be die-hard fans trying to bring the concept back to basics and make it appealing for today's audiences. 

 But therein lies the rub, as some obscure Trek villain might say. 

Sun Gods and Forever People

Do you ever get the feeling that you're playing a part in some incredibly elaborate staged drama, that all falls together like a too-clever detective novel? 

Folk Horror: Harvesting Humanity

This is episode 3 of the 1979 series The Quatermass Conclusion (released full-length as simply Quatermass), and I can't seem to find the other parts online quite yet. But there's enough to chew on as Quatermass discovers a UFO cult in the British countryside that's being manipulated for sinister purposes. 

I'm stunned - again - by Kneale's meticulous attention to detail, keen understanding of human behavior, and most of all- his prescience. 

Secret Star Trek: Charlie is 17

For a concept created by a self-confessed atheist, there are a hell of a lot of gods in Star Trek. I've been watching selected episodes of Deep Space Nine in a state of utter disbelief (the show is unvarnished religious drama of a very strange variety) but the very same themes we see in that show are abundant in the original series as well. 

Secret Cinema: Quatermass and the Pit

Before Chariots of the Gods, before The 12th Planet, before Gods of Eden, before The X-Files, before Stargate, before Battlestar Galactica, before Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, before Transformers 2 ,there was Quatermass and the Pit. 

 Although popularized in the US with the Hammer version (see video above, retitled Five Million Years to Earth), Quatermass originally aired on the BBC in the late 50s as a serial. 

Masonic Manhattan: Golden Lady

Synchronicity is a funny old thing. I've been knee deep in research this past week for my next book, reading about Cybele and her mind-bogglingly crazy cult. On Friday I had to drag my tired, old, aching carcass into Masonic Manhattan for a documentary interview. The location for the shoot was up in the air, but finally I was called up to the Empire Hotel near Columbus Circle.

Watchmen and the Digital Apotheosis

OK, I finally watched Watchmen. 

When it came out I was super busy, and was admittedly a little put off by some of the bad buzz. And since I've been busy since the DVD came out, I haven't had time to watch a two and half hour movie, which translates into a four hour experience with all the pausing and snack-fetching around here.

 

ISiS Spreads Her Wings on the Equinox

    OK, let's hit the bases- Discovery is supposed to launch on Lincoln's birthday, is delayed until the Ides of March, when Caesar became Osiris. It then reaches ISiS on 3/17, accompanied by a strange, glowing orb. 

And what does ISiS do on the Equinox?

The Eternals: Jacob Wrestles the Angels

As uncomfortable as it is for some of his fans and friends to admit, Jack Kirby was a true believer in AAT and intervention theory. The scope of his comics work from the early 70s to his retirement is unequivocal in this regard - the man was obsessed with gods from space.

Lily Cole... or Indrid Cold?

"It depends on who is looking."- Indrid Cold 

responding to question about his appearance, 

in the Mothman Prophecies film

I'm not much of a UFO expert, in fact I merely poke around the fringes of UFOlogy to feed into my symbolic studies. My main concern is determining whether the evidence is compelling enough to possibly inspire serious interest in the topic by certain individuals and groups. 

And I think I can answer that question with a qualified yes.

The 17th Floor

Of course the big news in the soul-crushing world of consensus reality is the expected guilty plea of Bernie Madoff. I've been watching this story with great puzzlement. Though the suffering of his victims is certainly real, there's a carnival aspect to the story, as if it is all part of some larger agenda.

Slave to the Gods

 

When I was writing Our Gods Wear Spandex I kept an 8x10 photo of Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman on my wall to act as my muse. I think she did a marvelous job of it. And sure enough Lynda Carter was on the front page of Yahoo! today.

Seen From Space: Flying Phalli

The Skylon flying vibrator Spaceplane

Reaction Engines Ltd. is yet another of the constellation of corporations popping up seemingly out of nowhere and producing science fiction spacecraft. 

T & A-liens

Continuing the magazine meme, I stumbled on a site that I'm not sure if I didn't hallucinate into existence, a la The Lathe of Heaven.

Celebrating the 17th

Don't you think the blue and gold chairs go well with the rug?

Today is February 17th and today Barack Obama will be in Denver signing the "Stimulus Package" into law. He's chosen a very strange venue to do so:

The bill-signing, an unusual event outside of Washington, will be Tuesday at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science in City Park... "This is like a dream," said George Sparks, director of the museum." - Denver Post

 

The Powerful Secret Society No One Ever Thinks About

Want to see a who's-who list of the most powerful people in American history? Check out the list of members in the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity. Five out of the past six Presidents are either PBK initiates or sons of one (including Obama). 

 And yes, PBK is a very high step in the Masonic pyramid, far above the Freemies. 

A Friday the 13th Scenario

 

  Is it just me or does it seem as if there is a massive and well-coordinated propaganda war being waged on the entire global banking system? Even The New York Times is calling the biggest banks "Dead Men Walking," and Arianna Huffington is screaming that the banks are "zombies" that should be "killed off." 

And we just saw the nation's top bankers getting called in for a spanking in Congress. 

Yahooccultism: Dark Sun Rising

Interesting timing on this particular story, considering the event in question isn't even due to occur for another two years. Interesting that it appears following a suspicious murder/suicide in LA (with a possible Masonic subplot), and the 22 killed in the continuing anarchy in Mexico.

Super Bowl Shape-Shifters

 

 I thought they looked familiar- this Sobe ad with the shape-shifting reptilians features characters from the upcoming DreamWorks film, Monsters vs Aliens.

 

Super Bowl XLWhatever Semiotics

Two stars, and vaguely familiar stripes...

Well, today's the day of the "Big Game." The Pittsburgh Steelers will face off against the Arizona Cardinals in Tampa. The game will be aired on NBC, the "Peacock Network."* I find it especially interesting that the game is on NBC this year, since last Sunday they aired the excruciating TV mini-series adaptation of Raymond Khoury's The Last Templar, which starred New Jersey's own Mira Sorvino (who won an Ausur® for Mighty Aphrodite).

Maybe this is part three of the story.

The 17 President

UPDATE: Here Comes the Sun!

Transformers: Revenge of the Nephilim

I don't know much about The Transformers, but it seems the new film is going to head into familiar territory.

The Day the Earth Stood Still, or The Tedium of Propaganda

"Wounded Eye of Horus" in promo poster outside theater

and the dumbest tagline ever.

WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS 

 Well, me and the missus and I trekked up to the frozen gateway of the New Jersey Skylands to see The Day the Earth Stood Still (finally). 

We caught a matinee while I was catching a breather from work. If you want to know why I don't write much about all of the latest movies, maybe the fact that it cost 17 bucks for two tickets to a matinee showing of a month-old movie will explain that. 

The Great Goddess and the Golden Globes

Tonight we have the poor man's Oscars, the 66th Annual Golden Globes. Fascinating art in light of recent events: an uber-phallic illuminated obelisk flanked by a gauntlet of Phoenix palm trees.

The Alien Gnosis of Race to Witch Mountain

 

Note sunrise and Heavenly Beam

Abstract: Is Witch Mountain simply mindless entertainment or a subversive Astro-Gnostic parable pointing us to deeper truths about our own origins?

In our last installment we looked at the new Witch Mountain film (premiering 3/13/09), which semiotically places "Horus Scorpion" in the role of the alien children's protector. The children are named Sara and Seth, strangely enough, seeing that Seth is a variant spelling of Set, Horus' uncle and rival.

Atalante Rising

Sometimes you have to wonder if news items aren't sometimes made up of whole cloth and planted in the media to follow some weird ritual cycle, unknown to the general reading public. 

This is one of those stories that seems more Morals & Dogma than Christian Science Monitor...

The Killing Joke of The Dark Knight

"The Killing Joke was the (comic) that was handed to me. 

I think it’s going to be the beginning of The Joker." - Heath Ledger

Even if it ended with a resounding thud in the form of Frank Miller's adaptation of The Spirit, 2008 was quite a banner year for comic book movies; Iron Man ($330M), The Incredible Hulk ($134M) and The Dark Knight ($530M) all cleaned up at the box office, and superhero/related flicks Wanted ($134M), Bolt ($103M) and Hancock ($227M) were major hits as well. 

The New Pyramid Power: Addendum

PYONGYANG: North Korea's phantom hotel is stirring back to life. Once dubbed by Esquire magazine as "the worst building in the history of mankind," the 105-storey Ryugyong Hotel is back under construction after a 16-year lull in the capital of one of the world's most reclusive and destitute countries.

According to foreign residents in Pyongyang, Egypt's Orascom group has recently begun refurbishing the top floors of the three-sided pyramid-shaped hotel whose 330-metre (1,083 ft) frame dominates the Pyongyang skyline.- Canada.com