Some thought-provoking links you will surely like

Since I stumble across a number of interesting links and articles, I figure I’ll keep sharing them in little round-up posts like this.

Controversial Star Wars opinion: Jar Jar Binks is good

I realize if I’m going to keep doing links posts, I may have to just admit many (most? all?) of them are going to feature some discussion of Star Wars. Here’s an article by Bryan Young, who’s had some very smart things to say about the movies on Twitter, about why Jar Jar Binks is not only important, but a crucial character. Not just to The Phantom Menace (and I’ll admit, my dislike for Jar Jar is why I rarely re-watch that movie), but to the entire original trilogy as well. Yes, it’s a stretch. And I’m not entirely convinced by his argument! But it does show that Lucas may have been going for more than a mere gimmick with Jar Jar. Read why Jar Jar Binks is secretly one of Star Wars’ most important characters.

Werewolf Wednesday: David Wellington’s Frostbite

Cover of "Frostbite: A Werewolf Tale"

If revenge is a dish best served cold, then what better place for it than the Canadian North? In the bizarre landscape of the Arctic’s “drunken forest” and forsaken settlements such as Port Radium, David Wellington crafts an intriguing, original take on the werewolf mythos in Frostbite.

Wellington had already shown his taste for revamping classic monsters, in novels such as Vampire Zero and 13 Bullets.  In Frostbite, he makes the rules for his lycanthropes all the more strict and frightening, while at the same time presenting a very human story.