We saw Toy Story 3

Omaha and I took the kids to see Toy Story 3. It was simply amazing. They did a great job of carrying the story forward and making it worthwhile. The animation has significantly improved, and there are moments that are truly terrifying. This is not a movie to which you should bring children under 5. This is a movie for kids who were kids when the first film came out.

But, amazing.

Toy Story 3, from an SFnal perspective...

On the other hand, as much as I enjoyed Toy Story 3, I couldn't help but wince at the entire premise. As someone who has spent a lot of time thinking about the consequences of free will, agency, and creatures with different goals from those of we evolved, the story comes across as more of a horror story and a cautionary tale.

That's not te say that I didn't suspend my critical facilities sufficiently to enjoy it, and like the rest of my family I cried at the end. But after I turned my critical thinking facilities back on, I started to see the movie in a different light.

( Here be spoilers. )

Another tragedy of technology...

The J. Giles band song, My Angel is a Centerfold, is about as relevant to a 17 year-old's existence as a song about blacksmithing.