I’m in the process of wrapping up The First Circle, re-reading Sandman’s Brief Lives for the umpteenth time, and watching Babylon 5.
Just like, oh, half of our readership here. Which, on one level, is awesome… but, on another, it means that I have very little to talk about.
So… what are you reading and/or watching?
Nothing new…Orphan Black, as a show, remains solidly in B territory. Entertaining, not perfect, more than slightly unbelievable plot-wise on occasion…but good gravy, can they figure out a way to just give Tatiana Maslany ALL the Emmys?
She deserves them all, for playing multiple characters (all very different), expertly layering them over each other whenever they impersonate each other (this is character X, this is character Y, and THIS is how Character X THINKS Character Y would act in this situation) .
She also somehow plays so well AGAINST herself – there’s scenes where you completely forget this is the exact same actress facing herself across a table, because the characters on either side have different speech patterns, body language, etc.
It’s really astonishing. It must be exhausting.
I’m still a few episodes behind (I’m through 4), though I put it in B+ (maybe A-) territory so far. The acting is across-the-board good. I suspect that it’s one of those shows that is going to get a lot better or a lot worse, depending on how competently they handle everything.
I don’t care for Art. He just has the same pained scowl all the time. And I was having trouble with Paul, but I am starting to think that may be intentional, since they are still revealing what he is all about, so it’s not very clear where he is coming from.
I like the show, don’t get me wrong. I still think it has the potential to be what Dollhouse wanted to be. I just think that it’s not quite there yet.
Plot-wise it’s a bit much to swallow at times. I mean, start from the top (rot13’d not for you – I know you’ve seen this much – but for others who haven’t):
Fnenu fgrnyf Orgu’f vqragvgl va Rc. 1. Jr ner rkcrpgrq gb npprcg abg whfg gur pbvapvqrapr gung Fnenu ehaf enaqbzyl vagb ure fhvpvqny qbccrytnatre ng whfg gur evtug vafgnag, ohg jr gura yrnea gung abg bayl jnf Orgu n pbc, fur jnf vaibyirq va n pbagebirefvny (naq gurersber cerfhznoyl uvtuyl-choyvpvmrq) pvivyvna fubbgvat.
Fb V unir gb nffhzr Orgu’f snpr vf xabja abg bayl gb bgure pbcf, ohg nyfb gb nyy xvaqf bs crbcyr. Orgu’f obql vf ABG fb znatyrq nf gb or haerpbtavmnoyr, fvapr gur erfrzoynapr fgnegyrf Sryvk jura ur tbrf gb “vqragvsl” Fnenu, naq gurl hfr Orgu’f pbecfr va n ehfr gb sbby Ivp vagb guvaxvat Fnenu’f qrnq.
Vg orttnef oryvrs gung Fnenu’f ehfr jbhyq rire unir tbggra guvf sne. Gurer jrer pbcf ba gur fprar bs Orgu’f fhvpvqr – fbzrbar gurer be ng gur zbethr jbhyq unir ybbxrq ng gur obql naq fnvq, “url, guvf vf gung pbc jub fubg gung pvivyvna!”
I guess with Art, it’s sort of how you see the character. I see him as being somewhat cardboard, and not in a bad way. With that look and that tone, the actor could walk on to any show and you’d know almost exactly who he was. I consider that a talent rather than a defect. I understand how you would see it differently. Paul’s character thus far is week. I kind of forgot about him.
V guvax lbh zvtug or birerfgvzngvat ubj uvtu-cebsvyr Orgu naq gung xvyyvat jnf. V nyjnlf guvax vg’f gbb bsgra qbar va gryrivfvba jurer lbh trg na bayl zbfgyl uvtu-cebsvyr vaqvivqhny gung crbcyr erpbtavmr zber rnfvyl guna gurl qb. Rfcrpvnyyl jura vg’f fbzrguvat irel zhpu bhg bs cynpr. Fbegn gur pbairefr bs “Jr frr jung jr rkcrpg gb frr”… “Jr bireybbx jung ybbxf bhg bs cynpr.”
Lrnu, guvf vf pybfr gb rkphfr-znxvat. Ohg V’q gubhtug bs gung, naq gung jnf gur pbapyhfvba V pnzr gb. Orgu jnf fbzrbar jubfr snpr zbfg crbcyr jbhyq erpbtavmr bayl vs vg jnf cbvagrq bhg gb gurz, hayrff gurl npghnyyl xarj ure. Bgurejvfr, fur whfg ybbxf xvaqn snzvyvne.
Despite the fact that TV shows are winding down for the season, I’ve been taking a lot of detours lately. I watched Dr. Strangelove, a third of Argo (which I’ve already seen), and Reefer Madness yesterday (I skipped through portions of it).
I hope to finish the season of Scandal today. Arrow, too.
The Original 1936 Reefer Madness?
Or the Musical from 2005?
1936.
If you appreciate musicals at all, check out the Reefer Madness Musical. It’s pretty wonderful. And I say this as someone who has never smoked a joint in his life.
I’m between books right now and debating what to pick up. I just finished Periodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements. Lots of stuff on the shelves. I have a tendency to pick up a book, fail to get into it, try again, until I find one that captivates me.
Still pondering the conclusion to the new season of Doctor Who. I found it overall unsatisfactory even though I do like Clara as a companion. The problems with the character are the faults of the writers not the actress.
Currently I am avoiding Bay to Breakers. This is an annual race in San Francisco that tends to invade my neighborhood in a large party. The partiers tend to be the most stereotypical residents of the Marina District. The Marina has the reputation of being the neighborhood in San Francisco where the ne plus ultra of brodudes (and their female counterpart) choose to reside and party. It must be like a mini Greek weekend revival for them.*
*No Greek system was one of the great selling points of my undergrad among many.
That’s unfair to the Marina kids.
Most of the people who stick around my neighborhood after the race and get really drunk are not even from the city.
I’ve lost track. Who’s arguing with whom?
Either way people need to get off my lawn and stop using Bud Light cans as projectiles.
Damn right they’re not from The City, or they’d be throwing craft brew bottles.
Please!
We know how to recycle responsibly!
I liked the Dr Who finale. I agree Clara has been underwritten but on the whole it was good. It didn’t feel like 70 minutes of plot jammed into 48 minutes which is what i was expecting. Most of the stuff made enough sense, which is all we can hope for in Who. The John Hurt cliffhanger was very good. It ended the season on a high note and set up the 50th aniv special well. John Hurt v Matt Smith has potential to be epically good. I’ve been reading up on the theories about who exactly the Hurt Dr. will be. Lot’s of good potential.
The episodes were fine but all stand-alone. The mystery as it were was not much of one. All they did was keep repeating that Clara was an “impossible girl” without really providing clues about why this was so except what we already knew. The reveal was okay but not great.
I know that Smith and Coleman are back for Season 8 so Hurt will probably appear in the 50th Anniversary episode only or be the really big villain in the next season. I know that there are lot of theories that he will be the Valeyard. However people also thought that Coleman would be a Time Lord, possibly the Rani.*
*Now having the big reveal be that Coleman is a Time Lord especially the Rani or Ramoa would have been a good reveal especially with the timid nature of her character. It could have been like the episode where the Doctor hides himself from the Family of the Blood.
I too was disapointed with the conclusion of Dr. Who, and really the whole demi-season. It’s true the writing hasn’t been quite as sharp, but I really blame the directing. The pacing for most episodes has been widely uneven, when it’s not been outright wrong.
I spent the day at MOMA. Now I’m doing laundry. Its very rainy in New York and its kind of depressing and grey.
Finished the original Battlestar Galactica. It was really picking up steam toward the end, so it was disappointing that there were no more episodes to follow. Having finished that, I also started Series 6 of Dr. Who. I finally get to see “The Doctor’s Wife,” which I have been anticipating since I started watching the show.