CATS ON THE INTERNET 2!

From the catless cat lady who brought you Cats on the Internet 1, which featured superior beings Maru, Meme, Winston, and Luna. Here are four more of the excellent kitties that rule the internet:

LIL BUB!

It was hard to pick a photo of LIL BUB for this, because any photo of Bub is automatically amazing. Famously odd-looking Bub is not a tragic case of over-breeding, as many who first see her often assume. She was the sole kitten with dwarfism in a litter to a stay cat. Along with dwarfism, Bub has no teeth and some other issues. Fortunately, she found a loving home! Bub is fun and fearless, traveling Times Square like it ain't no thang for a Good Morning America segment, going for outings in the park, and working as a paleontologist. In my mind, she and Luna the Fashion Kitty would be perfect for a cat buddy comedy. Luna's all about fashion, frills, pink bows, and diva-like behavior. Bub's laid-back, gregarious, and unconcerned about peeing on herself. After some Odd Couple hijinks, they could bond over their passion for supporting animal adoption. This show can go in the time slot after the Vautrin and Javert buddy cop series.

Well, if it isn't this guy again...

Oh, le grand ennui du chat noir Henri. It is totally possible I identify way too much with Henri. Squidward is my spirit animal, after all. You think your cat is having a relaxing day, just lounging around? Pah. Not if that cat is anything like Henri. And if it is, it is a cat and can't email Henri to commiserate, leaving Henri alone in a world devoid of a kindred spirit once more.

The cats of Big Cat Rescue!

These cats are many, and big (and not so big)! Big Cat Rescue, located in Florida, provides rescued cats with large, engaging habitats and minimal human contact. It's as close to the wild as most of these cats - rescued from illegal zoos/sideshows, backyard breeding, car accidents, etc. - can get. I think my favorites are Cameron and Zabu, the lion/white tiger "married couple" rescued from a roadside zoo. Even though lions and tigers would never be together in the wild, these two were so bonded that Big Cat Rescue kept them together, giving Cameron a vasectomy so that they wouldn't breed and have "ligers." The folks at Big Cat Rescue are staunchly dedicated to giving these wild animals the best quality of life possible, as their plethora of hilarious enrichment videos shows.

Pusheen!

So here's the first cat in this epic series that is not a "real" cat. Yes, do not be fulled by the photorealistic image; Pusheen is an animated gif! And an incredibly cute one at that. Whether celebrating the Curiosity Mars rover landing or exploring uses for marshmallows, Pusheen does it adorably.

Steam Punk Huck

Diani and Devine's re-imagining.

Back in March, I wrote about my desire for a good Huckleberry Finn adaptation. One that went beyond "white boy has adventures!" In the comments, fine fellow Edward Nickelson pointed me to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Robotic Edition) by Gabriel Diani and Etta Devine.

It's quite a few months later, and apparently a Huck Finn/Tom Sawyer TV series is in the works, and while it does have (presumably) robots, it doesn't sound like it goes beyond "white boy(s) ha(s)(ve) adventures!" The official press describes it "as an adventure-themed reinvention that revolves around the two famed literary characters who re-meet as young men in their 20s and form an investigative firm in a bustling and steampunk New Orleans."

Now, I wouldn't mind watching a show created by suddenly sentient Tumblr (and let's face it, bromance + detectives + steampunk is just the sort of thing Tumblr would pen after gaining HAL-like awareness) because I enjoy cupcakes and manly cuddles. And Huck and Tom as detectives isn't totally out of left field. It's canon in one of of the dumb sequels Twain wrote.

This happened.

Honestly, I don't know why this is bothering me so much. Is it because it seems so cynically crafted? Is it because Tom is kind of a dick? Because I'm anxious about how the series will handle race? Because I'm overly possessive of the dark genius that is Huckleberry Finn? Because I'm bitter no one wants to publish my 83-line blank verse poem/thesis on Huckleberry Finn?

I guess it's hard for me to reconcile the Huckleberry Finn that inspired this California College of the Arts show with the blinders-on, old-timey fun so often inspired by Tom Sawyer.

Hypocritically, I totally make exceptions for 1995's Tom and Huck, the Fifty Shades of Grey for tween girls in the 90s.

I was going to marry you, Brad. :( Thanks, this Tumblr.

Maybe this will be totally awesome. I mean, it's New Orleans, steampunk, bros. But why bring Tom and Huck into that? But I'm delving into my douchey fangirl whining default mode again. It's totally possible Jason Richman and David Zabel will bring the life and nuance to these characters that other adaptations have sorely lacked.

Movie News Musings: Jay Gatsby & the Avengers

I need a reassuring cuddle from Leo as well.

Still reeling from the news that 3D Art Deco Bootlegger Explosion Orgy is being pushed back to summer 2013. Apparently I was more reliant on the promise of a December spent watching both Les Miserables and The Great Gatsby than I should probably admit. Much has been made of the odd statements from the studio insisting that a story that ends with SPOILER ALERT a guy who's just turned thirty and seen the American Dream destroyed musing, "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past" is an obvious summer blockbuster. Yeah, it's Baz Luhrmann and flashy as fuck, but really? Is the car going to turn into an evil Transformer and battle Myrtle? Maybe Gatsby's swimming pool is full of gasoline and explodes? This is especially stunning since the movie has been so anticipated. Hello, this happened:




Now Great Gatsby will be battling more traditional blockbusters like Iron Man 3. At least that means that maybe in summer 2013 we'll be treated to a Tumblr cartoon of Gatsby and Stark having a rich man fight involving silk shirts. This hope will tide me over.

In better news, it was announced today that Joss Whedon will be doing the Avengers sequel when it films in 2067 or whenever. This is a huge relief for me, because after seeing how well Whedon handled the layered characters of Avengers, it made me wince to imagine someone else handling the next installment (yeah, it fails the Bechdel test, but Black Widow and Maria Hill are kickass and don't have to get naked). Plus, you know Loki fanboy/actor Tom Hiddleston would have been sad if Loki were written poorly, and a sad Tom Hiddleston would be like all the world's kittens and puppies crying.

But speaking of kittens and puppies crying, the one worry this gives me is...who's Whedon going to kill off, since he can't get through even a damn musical comedy web miniseries without that? Maybe Clint or Natasha after they declare their love for each other? Adorable Bruce? The most obvious choice is probably Loki with some sort of redemption death and Thor crying. I'll cry too if this happens, but I'll be consoled by the fact that to Loki, death ain't no thang and he can always come back as a plucky teen.

Loki does what he wants.

Loki image from Journey Into Mystery: Fear Itself cover.