Earlier today, Crist appeared on CNN’s Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer and probably did little to boost his chances in McCain’s veep-stakes. Right out of the gate, when Blitzer asked Crist if he’d been through the vetting process for vice president, the governor said he was unable to comment. Blitzer then said, “I’ll take that as a ‘yes.’”

After a brief, awkward pause, Crist responded, “You can take that anyway you want to.”

The balance of the interview consisted of Crist giving his support to McCain, calling him a “maverick” (where have we heard that before?) who opposed President Bush’s 2005 energy policy while Barack Obama voted for it. As he spoke, Crist looked and sounded like he was on autopilot.

When the topic of nuclear energy and Crist’s support for it came up, the guv smarmily pointed out that Blitzer’s mother is a Florida resident. It was a meaningless, patronizing reference (and one that Blitzer quickly moved past) in an otherwise Stepford Wives-like performance. Crist didn’t embarrass himself, but he also didn’t do anything to steal the limelight from Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.

Aside from that, the whole situation is more than a bit murky. The Buccaneers and Jets have been named in news reports as teams Favre might get traded to. And perhaps by the time you read this blog, a trade will have already been completed.

But for now, it’s all just talk. In a press conference this afternoon, Packers coach Mike McCarthy had this to say on his talks with Favre over the past two days:

We agreed to disagree. … The train has left the station, whatever analogy you want.

Apparently, not a single reporter could get clarification on the issue, as the report cited above quoted McCarthy as saying that Favre was not in the “proper mindset” to lead the team. I can only assume that means Favre’s feelings were sufficiently hurt that the Packers did not immediately welcome him back as their starting quarterback once he announced his desire to return to football, and that his appearance at the Packers’ training facility on Monday was little more than a formality in order to expedite a trade. Or perhaps it means that the Packers were not willing to give him his job back without competing for it against Aaron Rodgers, something Favre might not have been willing to do.

Regardless of who is being more intractable, it seems that Packers fans are on Brett’s side and holding the Packers’ brass accountable, if the comments on the Green Bay Press-Gazette are any indication.

Venomous: As if Spider-Man 3 weren’t bad enough.

Does this mean the next Austin Powers won’t be shag-a-delic?

Mighty shield, yeah, sure: But who will wear that ridiculous costume?

The votes are in: Dark Knight is the greatest movie ever!

More to meet the eye: Superbabe Megan Fox ordered to gain weight for Transformers sequel.

I said yes, as I wasn’t going to disappoint a friend, even if it meant (as I thought it might) having to suffer through self-absorbed poseurs with limited knowledge ranting about how fucked up the world is while having little in the way of honest answers or solutions. But because I’d never been to a poetry slam – or any other kind of reading – before, I was honestly intrigued.

When we arrived at Studio@620 a little after 8 p.m. last night, only two or three people were in the audience, sitting patiently in front of a stage bearing two microphone stands. The host for the evening, David, didn’t bother using either mic as he circled the chairs and delivered a brief history of poetry slams (they apparently emerged as a response to the academic beats like Kerouac). He then warmed up those in attendance with a poem titled “Fuck a Poet,” which brought a smile to my face as it addressed all of the unspoken prejudices I harbored about spoken-word artists — self-styled tortured artists articulating their unfathomable ennui. As I listened, the thought crossed my mind, “Was this just irony designed to pander to close-minded first-timers?” No, I decided. David had admitted that spoken-word poets are, by the nature of what they do, egotistical. And so his words rang sincere as he knocked himself and his fellow artists down a few notches with an honest reality check.

And yet …

While the topics from the seven poets who took the stage over the course of two hours hit upon subjects I might have expected — the Iraq war, religious hypocrisy, former lovers — the quality of their work far exceeded my expectations. I could tell the performers had spent considerable time honing their prose, and I was left admiring this rather unassuming, brave and decidedly unpretentious group I never would have pegged as “artists” had I met them under different circumstances.

So to David, Brian, Patrick, Jimmy, Emma and Ozell (hope I spelled that right) — thank you for an enjoyable, intimate, mind-opening and artistically satisfying evening. While I’m not a poet, I felt I was among friends. Something tells me I’ll be back next month.

Meanwhile, Mulder and Scully are together again after a 10-year layoff in The X-Files: I Want to Believe. If the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes are any indication, this may be the last go-round for the FBI agents with a penchant for investigating the supernatural.

Joe’s Picks:
1. Batman Begins/The Dark Knight: The new kings of the comic-book castle. Begins sets the table, and then The Dark Knight redefines the genre for the 21st century. I don’t see how anyone — not even director Christopher Nolan and his team — will top Knight for a long, long time.
2. The Matrix: Though not based on original graphic novel source material, there is no denying that The Matrix set the standard for all the modern comic book/superhero franchises. There is no Dark Knight without Keanu and Co’s reality-bending excursion into virtual reality.
3. Die Hard: Sure, Die Hard might seem out of place on a list of flicks about guys dressed as insects and flying rodents. Still, how can a list of superhero movies not include NYC cop/terrorist-killer John McClaine? In the original Die Hard, Bruce Willis tries his best to make McClain an everyman, and winds up creating one of the quintessential superheroes of the 1980s.
4. Superman/Superman 2: Really more of one big movie than two individual films. Superman and Superman II were both the babies of Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon, Goonies). After Donner had completed Superman and was halfway through shooting Superman II, the studio replaced him with A Hard Day’s Night director Richard Lester, causing Superman II to suffer a bit from the lack of consistency at the helm. Still, I find the sequel more fun to watch than the original.
5. Iron Man: 2008’s other excellent comic-book movie, and the first one from Marvel’s new production company. Iron Man manages to combine a terrific performance by Robert Downey Jr. with a plot that carries weight in these over-militarized times. It’s also damn funny.
6. The Incredibles: A Pixar animated feature about a family of superheroes, The Incredibles manages the difficult task of satirizing the superhero flick while delivering an excellent take on the genre that appeals to the whole family. Can’t wait for the sequel.
7. Spider-Man 2: I was never a huge Spider-Man fan, though I do appreciate what director Sam Raimi brought to the web-crawling franchise. Spider-Man 2 is easily the best of the Spidey flicks, primarily because of the villainous Doc Ock and his amazing tentacles.
8. Batman: The Tim Burton/Michael Keaton original holds up today largely on the back of the amazing production design and Jack Nicholson’s inspired performance as The Joker. I’m partial to Batman Returns, actually, as I find it a much more entertaining experience than this brooding original, but I fear villagers with pitchforks might show up at the Loaf office if I rank Returns over Batman. So I won’t — but you’re all wrong!

Sal’s Picks

10. Batman (1989). Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson square off in Tim Burton’s gothic take on DC Comic’s famed superhero. More than a bit silly at times and often draggy, it benefits from stylish production design, winning performances and Burton’s quirky sensibility.
9. X-Men: The Last Stand. More exciting than its predecessors, this entry, helmed by Brett Ratner, is disturbing (Jean Grey destroying Professor Xavier with her mind remains a chilling sequence), action-packed and loaded with colorful characters and snappy pacing.
8. Hulk (2003). Ang Lee’s version of the Big Green Guy’s story has been much maligned, but his poetic, character-driven film combines ingenious editing and slam-bang battle sequences with top-notch performances by Sam Elliott, Jennifer Connelly, Nick Nolte and Eric Bana.
7. Batman Begins. After suffering through the Joel Schumacher-directed debacles of the 1990s (Batman Forever, Batman & Robin), the Caped Crusader got the film he (and fans) truly deserved in 2005. Christian Bale stars in Christopher Nolan’s moody, very serious take on Batman’s origins and his attempts to thwart Gotham’s underworld. Not a whole lot of “fun” per se, but a fine character study with quality supporting work by Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson and Tom Wilkinson.
6. Superman II. Not as good as its predecessor, this sequel suffers from a few too many corny moments and the fact that Richard Lester had to reshoot a good portion of the film in order to receive director’s credit after Richard Donner was given his walking papers. Lester’s trademark comic touch is a little too evident, but he still manages to craft engagingly silly popcorn entertainment.
5. Spider-Man. I was a devoted reader of the Spidey comics as a kid, and Sam Raimi’s big-screen version didn’t disappoint. Doe-eyed Tobey MacGuire is perfectly cast as Peter Parker, the awkward teen who is bitten by a radioactive spider and gains super-human strength (and a way-cool costume, too).
4. The Incredibles. Brad Bird’s (Iron Giant, Ratatouille) witty, stylish animated feature is giddy fun from beginning to end and owes more than a little to the James Bond flicks of the 1960s. In fact, trailers for the film used John Barry’s score from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
3. Spider-Man II. In this, the best of the series, Spider-Man squares off against the formidable Doctor Octopus, and New York’s cityscape is much the worse for their battles.
2. The Dark Knight. Nolan’s sequel to Batman Begins is a thought-provoking, white-knuckled affair with thrilling action and, in Heath Ledger’s anarchic Joker, one of the most deeply frightening villains ever to appear on the big screen. Moral ambiguity has rarely been this compelling.
1. Superman. Cinema’s landmark superhero film is still the best and set the standard by which all others should be judged. Yes, critics everywhere are putting The Dark Knight at the top of their all-time lists, but let’s see how everything plays out in a few years. Richard Donner’s take on The Man of Steel is masterfully paced, epic entertainment, with an assured, star-making turn in the lead role by Christopher Reeve and stellar support by the entire cast, most notably Gene Hackman as the sarcastic but deadly Lex Luthor. Humor, Americana, spectacle and Donner’s devotion to “verisimilitude” blend to create the grandest superhero film of them all.

Based on some Internet surfing and my own personal preferences, here’s my list of the top 10 candidates for becoming a part of 007 trivia and lore:

In no particular order:

1. Chrissie Hynde (a personal favorite of mine, she performed a track for the 1987 Bond film, The Living Daylights, but it was not the title song (that honor belongs to A-ha)

2. David Bowie (How Bowie hasn’t recorded a Bond theme thus far is a mystery to me; his voice is tailor-made for it)

3. Scissor Sisters (came at the suggestion of a poster on commanderbond.net. After listening to a couple of their tracks, I can hear why).

4. The Killers

5. Gnarls Barkley (they probably don’t have chance, but it would be a bold choice)

6. Neko Case (yes, she specializes in gothic noir, but wouldn’t her dark, rich voice fit perfectly with this vengeance-based Bond entry?)

7. Coldplay

8. U2 (Bono and The Edge wrote the theme for Goldeneye, sung by Tina Turner)

9. Aimee Mann (she’s got the voice and the songwriting chops)

10. Goldfrapp

And here’s my top 10 list (again, in no particular order) of those who shouldn’t be allowed within the firing range of a Walther PPK to a Bond theme:

1. Neil Diamond (because he’s Neil Diamond)

2. Elton John (unless Disney is producing the film)

3. Any hair metal band

4. Frank Stallone

5. Kenny Loggins (unless the principal bad guy in Quantum of Solace is a gopher bent on world domination)

6. Phil Collins (see #2)

7. Fountain of Wayne (unless Tom Hanks replaces Daniel Craig as Bond)

8. Anyone from American Idol

9. Celine Dion

10. Randy Newman (see #’s 2 and 6)

Well, they’re sure acting like Canadians: Paul McCartney to give free concert; apparently “free” isn’t good enough for Quebec sovereigntists.

Time heals all wounds? Former Beatles drummer Pete Best to release first solo album, chronicling his dismissal from the band over 40 years ago.

Just know this, Benny: Pierce Brosnan was never in ABBA.

They’ve got an Axl to grind: Chinese Democracy track to be featured in Rock Band 2