Cover: Huffing and Buffing
Surgery, silicone and steroids are enabling modern males to feel as women have felt for years: highly imperfect and in need of bod mods.

Mythter California: Gut reactions of a midlife muscle seeker who has pumped up with no regrets.

News: Fear and Gloating
An onslaught of online deathwatchers cheers on the slave-driving startups that are fading fast.

Metropolis News Extras

• Cupertino: Los Gatos is lovely... and people are noticing.
  
• Sunnyvale: Alano Club exits with no new home.
  
• Willow Glen: Suspect stopped breathing while police used new restraining device called a 'wrap.'

It's a Mall World: What a girl wants, what a girl needs... food courts with atmosphere.

Public Eye: Gonzo says no to Bay 101 deal of the decade. No one jumps for Quack's job. Merc dings retirees.

Work: Don't be fooled for a nanosecond by promises of personalization.

Punk Marches Onward: Youth Brigade still cares about the music and the message.

The Blues (And Funk) Of Jazz: Everything sax man Lou Donaldson does is funky.

Limp Bizness: Can the free Limp Bizkit tour reverse the all pay, no go trend of today's rock concerts.

Aural Fixation: Stuart Davis treated Espresso Garden to an evening of intellectual lyricism.

Audiofile: Reviews of new CDs by Nashville Pussy and Hans Zimmer.

Labored 'Labour': Kenneth Branagh works too hard to revive the musical on the back of Shakespeare's 'Love's Labour's Lost.'

Seventies High: 'Jesus' Son' floats lightly through an addict's haze thanks to a star-making performance by Billy Crudup.

Thin Line: Emily Watson crosses over from cute to excruciating in Alan Rudolph's 'Trixie.'

Family Values: In his memoir, 'Sunnyvale,' author Jeff Goodell sees a link between a family's division and the rise of Silicon Valley.

Earthy Drama: 'Bernabé' loves his land in Teatro Campesino's new play.

Lip-Smacking Affair: At Soleil in the Westin Palo Alto, chef Phillip Kaufman concocts one gourmet treat after another.

A La Carte: Bastille Day is coming... as well as a bunch of other things worth celebrating this month.