tashaloulou

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Alex Horne: How often do you think about food? Ray Peacock: Surprisingly little. Alex Horne: How often do you think about death? Ray Peacock: Surprisingly lots. Alex Horne: And how often do you look at Chortle, the website? Ray Peacock: Every other day, maybe? Alex Horne: Okay, so it’s death, then Chortle, then food. Ray Peacock: Yeah, pretty much. - Alex Horne Breaks the News podcast, quickfire quiz, June 2014

Most relatable Ray Peacock has ever been, and I've heard him be pretty fucking relatable on a lot of topics. But this might do it more than any of them. I have the exact same answers to all three questions. That is the order that those topics enter my day-to-day thoughts. And people are frequently surprised by how much I don't like turning food into a whole big thing to think about a lot. This is why I refuse to listen to Off Menu (for other reasons, I'm going to guess there's a chance I might share that with Ray Peacock as well).

Having said that, listening to this podcast episode reminded me that I used to do Chortle headline roundup posts on this blog, haven't done one of those in a while. And there are some fun ones right now. So here, have some Chortle headlines.

I am surprisingly excited for season 2 of this - surprising given that I found season 1 sort of strangely uneven and disappointing in parts. But it was uneven in a way that had potential. The good bits I liked a lot and the ideas I found intriguing. I'm pleased we get a chance to see if it can find its feet.

I watched this pilot many years ago, and then forgot about it until I saw this headline. It was fucking terrible. It took me a moment to even remember it, I briefly thought Iannucci had suddenly decided to start slagging off Veep. But nope, he's talking about this other weird American thing from far earlier.

I have had cause to think about The Thick of It a bit more in the last couple of years, possibly re-vist the stance I've held unwaveringly since I first saw it in 2009, that it's the greatest television show ever made. It seems more complicated now, as I consider the effects that many political comedy shows I love, including that one, may have had on real-life politics, some effects being not great even if the shows went in with the best intentions. On the other hand, the episode titled Spinners and Losers is an absolute masterpiece of cinematic storytelling, more righteous anger has never been committed to television than Jamie MacDonald being betrayed in the final hours. Veep is also very good. That other American pilot was very bad. This one headline has reminded me of all those things.

I clicked the link to see what the hell a cost-of-living romcom is. It's a couple who break up and can't move out due to a rental contract. Okay. Well good for Lara Ricote, anyway.

I continue to be quite pleased for Joe Lycett that he got a TV vehicle that seems utterly perfect for him, even though I could not get past the first couple of episodes when I tried to watch it myself. Good for him. Hope he wins an award.

Oh good! I'd read that he was better, but there are varying degrees of "better", and I wasn't sure which one he was. If he's traveling around to various towns for Radio 4 again, that suggests he's genuinely better. The "comedian writes a stand-up show about their recent bout of cancer" is surprisingly saturated at the moment, but I hope he gets one in next year anyway.

On the subject of the saturated market, I liked this show far more than I'd expected to, given my general aversion to hearing medical details of anything. A show with that many medical details that I still enjoyed probably deserves at least 4 stars.

I'm going to this! I'm going to this I'm going to this I'm going to this!!! I always enjoy the biannual-ish even called "Chortle publishes the contents of Daniel Kitson's mailing list." Always accompanied by the same picture. Steve Bennett definitely only has one picture of Daniel Kitson.

I used to love that show so much. But on the subject of me having re-evaluated the responsibility of various political comedies, my view on this is now that everyone should just listen to The Bugle's election special instead, get it from people who are not centrist monarchists. Actually, Last Week Tonight did quite a good UK election special this week too. I still believe in political comedy as a concept. I just have higher standards than I used to for what level of apologism and comedy washing I'll overlook in it.

He did that when I was in high school! My dad traveled to the States to see him, I couldn't go because I guess I was a kid and in school, but my dad brought me back a t-shirt that said "Eric Idle Greedy Bastard Tour" on it, that he'd got signed by Eric Idle after the show, and I wore it as a night shirt. Wore it several nights a week for nearly 10 years, until it got peed on by our mice infestation and I had to throw it away.

I watched this and quite enjoyed it! I'm not sure Comedy Blaps have a particularly high rate of getting picked up for a larger series so I don't have my hopes up for more, but I'd definitely watch it if they made this. Surely it's only a matter of time before Amy Gledhill gets some major TV role or other.

A few things going on here. That Canadian article was written by a guy my brother sort of knows, which is more crossover than I'd like there to be between my real life and Chortle (he's also kind of a dick, I wouldn't need to know anything else about him to know that, you can tell by the dig at the Kim's Convenience people as though working in shitty conditions should preclude people from speaking up about those shitty conditions). That Guardian article on political comedy is interesting, contrasting Nish Kumar and Emma Sidi with Matt Forde, I think, in terms of political comedians who can view the political situation as purely material and ones who have something more interesting to say about it. I read that stand-up round table thing, I don't follow American comedy all that much but there were several comedians whose work I know and like in there, and I had to stop reading it because it was making me like them less. Except Edelman, about whom my opinion didn't change because I've never much liked him.

[makarovni]

WIP Wednesday!!!

Tagged by @adelaidedrubman to share some shit I've been working on. Right now I'm really trying to finish this one, the first Nonia and Kent thing I'm writing!! I'm also having a lot of fun with it, and writing the Veep characters is really fun. I debated sharing part of Got You Where I Want You chapter 2, but decided I liked this better bc you guys are getting this finished product sooner than GYWIWY since it's not even halfway done.

"So…" Nonia said on an exhale, still shivering just a bit from the winter air, "everyone's off doing their own thing. What should we do?"

Kent looked around, squinting at his surroundings as he so often did. "I was assuming we'd just go up to the room and continue working."

Nonia looked a bit annoyed by this. "Oh, c'mon, there's more to do in this hotel than just work in the room. Look, there's an area to watch TV, a seating area by the fire, a bar, a restaurant…there's gotta be something else we can do besides work."

He sighed and nodded, leaving his head bent down for a moment. "I'll admit, I am kind of hungry. We could go eat. But after that, it's right to work."

"Hey, if it gets you to have at least a little bit of fun, we'll go eat," Nonia replied, getting a head start in front of Kent walking to the restaurant. 

Kent caught up in only a second, due to the height difference between the two, and the fact that Nonia took two steps for every one step he took. Upon arriving at the entrance to the hotel's restaurant, they noticed a line and a busy hostess trying to tend to it. 

"Looks like they're busy," Kent observed. "You know I don't like waiting. We should head up and–"

A gloved fingertip pressed into Kent's lips as he spoke, and Nonia looked up at him with a look that he knew would lead to her trying to boss him around.

"Do not say work, Mr Davison, or I will throw my laptop in the fireplace," Nonia said playfully, taking her finger away from his face right after. "We can wait. It's only a small line."

Kent groaned in annoyance and threw his head back, knowing that Nonia wasn't going to budge on this one. 

"Fine. Let's go wait in the seating area, I don't like standing in lines that aren't necessary for my job."

Nonia patted him on the back as they walked over to the seating area. "I know you don't, Kenny. I know."

Kent glared at her for a moment, since she'd used that annoying nickname, but the pair went to sit down on one of the loveseats in front of the fireplace. As they did, Nonia noticed something that made her eyes light up. 

"Hey, look," she said excitedly, pulling Kent over with her to look at that very thing– a baby grand piano. A sleek ebony body with keys so clean it seemed no one had ever played. "You should play a song."

Kent scoffed at her as if she'd suggested something ridiculous. "I don't play piano, Nonia. How can I play a song if I don't know how?"

Nonia sat on the bench and looked up at him through flirtatious, long lashes. "I know for a fact that you play piano, Mr Davison. From one musician to another, I see the way your fingers work on a computer keyboard. They work the same on an instrument. I can tell. Plus, you told me one time that you play."

He began getting flustered, and squinted at her. "I never told you that. I would remember if I told you that."

Nonia shrugged and grabbed the lapels of his coat. "Then I guess your memory isn't as good as you think, Mr Robot. You did tell me. So show me."

As she said this, Nonia pulled him to her level so he would sit. Kent sat down beside Nonia on the bench and sighed as he took off his coat and gloves, leaving his top half in a dark brown blazer above a cream button down with a gold and red striped tie. Nonia liked these colors on him.

"I cannot believe I'm doing this…" He muttered, stretching his hands and then ghosting his fingers over the keys to practice a scale. 

Nonia looked over at him in pure admiration, beaming at him and knowing he was going to impress her. But Kent shocked her out of this trance when he said, 

"If I'm going to play, then I want you to sing. Do not try to tell me you can't, because I know you can." He said the last part almost in a mocking tone.

Scoffing, Nonia shrugged out of her own coat and pulled off her gloves, placing them over Kent's on the bench. Beneath, she was wearing a ribbed turtleneck dress in a beige color, with dark but sheer pantyhose and a pair of plain dark brown heeled boots, knee high. Understated, but sexy in a way.

"Fine by me," Nonia replied, leaning on the side of the piano. "Go ahead, play me a song, piano man."

[always-aqua]

Just a vent… feel free to move along.

I’ve been in the fandom for nearly 8 years. I have followed the “big” accounts, the update accounts, the smaller accts. I have tried time and again to connect with others. I have written fic, I helped organize a meet up before one of H’s shows. I have sponsored singles, albums, and veeps tickets. I reblog fan work, fics, play the writing and general meme games even when no one tags me. I have tried to be present in this fandom. For eight years. Sure. I’m not an OG. I have a career that ebbs and flows my time so I am not 100% available or online 24/7. But I am here. A lot. I try and watch livestreams for all shows I am able and be active online reblogging and posting in reaction to the shows.

My point is…I’m here. I’ve tried. I’m trying.

And yet…it feels like this is not a space that cares. I’ve felt this pretty much my entire time in this fandom. I am not trying to be negative about everything because I firmly believe you cultivate your own experience. At the same time, I can post something one minute and never receive a note and see the same thing almost verbatim posted by someone else a few minutes later and jump immediately to 20+ notes. Cultivating my experience only goes so far when no one else wants to buy into it. So what then?

I’m not saying I’m a great writer by any means. I am lucky to have had one fic actually “take off” but the rest? Hardly anything. My posts rarely get notes. (shout out to the the three people that actually interact with me!! It means the world to me!) and last night I went to L’s show. I have posted pics and vids and my thoughts. Extremely limited interaction.

I don’t live my fandom experience for other people, but think of it this way. I spend all day baking cookies to bring to a party. Actually, many days. Deciding which recipe I want to use. Then I go to the shops for ingredients. I decide to splurge on the expensive salted cashews, the extra right chocolate and cage free eggs. I even decide to bake two batches to be cognizant of potential nut allergies. So I double my ingredients and time. Now, it’s the night of the party, my two batches came out perfect (the second time around because the butter was too soft the first batch and the cookies spread more than what I wanted.) I put the cookies in two different serving baskets and hand-write little signs for each kind to explain nuts/no nuts. Then at the end of the night, I go to collect my containers and realize that only like 3 cookies are gone and I find half of one in a garbage. A few thoughts go through my head: well that sucks people didn’t like my cookies. They didn’t even try them to know if they might have liked them or not. / nice! I still like cookies now get to have more for myself. The next party rolls around and I try again thinking maybe it was just the people at the first party were not in a cookie mood. And the same thing happens at the end of party number two. A third party rolls around and begrudgingly I go through the whole process with very little hope anyone is gonna eat the damn cookies. They don’t. So you know what? I’m not making cookies anymore since it doesn’t feel worth it. Doesn’t mean I don’t like baking.

I love it here. I love supporting L&H. For eight years, this has been my oasis from real life when I’ve needed it, and I have made one or two genuine connections. I love when something dumb happens and memes fly out of people faster than I can blink. I love show days where the excitement is palpable. I love seeing people organize fan projects and the audience following along. It truly is a happy place.

But goodness can it feel lonely when no one else cares about your excitement.

[micahdotgov]

obviously rtd era doctor who is my always and forever favourite show and ultimate special interest but i cannot claim to know every single thing about it i think in universe i know pretty much everything but behind the scenes stuff i'm not completely confident in but i don't think im exaggerating when i say i know every single thing about the thick of it like i have seen every bit of content that exists multiple times i watched it all three times in the past two months (not including rewatches with commentary) i used to say i didn't know enough about one subject to go on mastermind but i could take ttoi on mastermind i know that show (and in the loop) inside out i have all this knowledge inside me and nowhere to put it i just keep little infodumps in my notes app. i don't know what this post is i just feel like im going to explode

[waltongoggins]

much to process about the finale. too much. still working through it in fact.

becca was wasted so bad man, but i just. didn’t trust them to keep her alive so i’ve been anticipating her death since she showed up basically and knew it was a near certainty she wouldn’t make it past this finale. but it was still a waste of a character and a waste of what they could have done and almost what they were trying to do. they were really on to something when they decided to reveal she was not only alive, but deliberately refusing butcher’s help bc she knew she never really saved him (but maybe she did!!! regardless--), only to continue leveraging the story on her rape and the ultimately her fridging, after intially choosing to subvert that. at the end of the day she still only existed for butcher and for now, ryan, but it’s still not much better than it would have been had they killed her from the get go? don’t get me wrong, i still am glad they didn’t, and i appreciate her addition into the story and i still enjoyed it on a baseline level, but the way this show started off so aware of what they were doing, only to fall into the same trap? i was HOPING for better. i didn’t expect it, mind you, but i was hoping and im still disappointed that they didn’t.

that being said im glad i was wrong about butcher going off the rails and killing ryan, though there was a moment there when i really thought he’d try to do it. becca’s impact is that she did manage to make a difference in butcher’s violence and anger and she (hopefully) saved her son from inheriting both his and homelander’s issues.

the church of the collective does seem to have been relatively pointless in the long run. we know stormfront kept all her n*zi memoriabillia so they could have found that information through other means, than to waste a good chunk of screen time that would have been more useful going to other characters on this shoe-horned scientology bit though i will cede that it was so satisfying watching the deep completely fail once more.

and the last bit that i can’t wrap my head around entirely is the neuman reveal. i can’t believe it didn’t occur to me that she might be a play on vic the veep from the comics, but she really bares no resemblance in any way that i can recall, unless there are some more massive reveals to change her role up entirely next season. she’s even more recreated than stillwell was. i’m not necessarily mad at THAT part. but i’m a little disappointed they couldn’t give us just, one public person who isn’t a complete scumbag, working to actually better the world. the show could use at least one figure like that. i think her addition this season was something that brought a lot of hope to the story, and definitely resonated with real-world context, so to have, once agian, that be steeped in ~hidden agendas~ is almost exhausting.

but i did enjoy the trajectory of the finale. i can’t recall being that physically tense for an hour of tv in a long time. the kimiko and frenchie stuff was appropriately moving, maeve saving the day TWICE and choosing to fight the fight was a great pay off, the scene where they all beat on stormfront was wildly enjoyable, butcher leaning into his better nature and being a father figure if only for 5 mintues made me incredibly emo, mm finally getting to see his daughter, addressing hughie’s issues with attaching himself to others and trying to forge his own way....all very good and well earned payoffs as a viewer imo.

[goodticklebrain]

Q&A August: Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company

They say you should never meet your heroes, but obviously “they” were never enlightened enough to consider Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company a hero. Like many Shakespeare geeks, I was exposed to Reduced Shakespeare Company’s performance of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) at an impressionable young age. Once the DVD came out, I watched it over and over again, soaking up the irreverence and affection for Shakespeare like a sponge. It never occurred to me that I would one day meet the curly-haired pompous idiot in the black pants whose antics had entertained me so much, let alone be lucky enough to call him a friend, but that’s exactly what has happened.

I first met Austin (after exchanging mutually admiring tweets with him) in April of 2016, during their world premiere of William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) at the Folger Library. I was prepared to be utterly starstruck, but Austin was so wonderfully down-to-earth that within minutes I felt like I’d known him forever. Totally lacking the pomposity and idiocy of his stage persona, Austin was overwhelmingly encouraging and supportive of my work, immediately welcoming me to play with him in the Shakespeare comedy sandbox. I had literally just started working full-time on Good Tickle Brain, so his enthusiasm meant the world to me.

I could gush about Austin for many more paragraphs, but I’m sure you’d rather hear from him, so here he is, my Comedy Fairy Godfather, in his own words!

1. Who are you? Why Shakespeare?

I’m Austin Tichenor, a playwright, director, and actor. I'm the co-artistic director of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, a three-person comic theatre troupe that reduces long serious topics into short silly comedies.

My first exposure to Shakespeare was undoubtedly in the original series of Star Trek! I read Shakespeare in high school English classes and got to see fantastic productions of Shakespeare at American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and the Berkeley Reprtory Theatre, but I didn’t get to actually WORK on Shakespeare until grad school where I both played Claudius in a production of Hamlet and reduced my first Shakespeare (it was a directorial exercise: a five minute reduction of Much Ado About Nothing). My first professional theatre job was creating plays for young people so I went to Shakespeare immediately, creating 45 minute cuttings of Much Ado, Midsummer, and The Tempest.

So the opportunity to join the RSC in 1992 and perform its signature work The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) (written by the RSC’s founders) in London’s West End for eight months combined all my theatrical loves: smart silly comedy, non-realistic theatricality, and Shakespeare — which is kinda redundant, now that I think about it

2. What moment(s) in Shakespeare always make you laugh?

My favorite moments are typically when characters make incredible discoveries about themselves, and these are usually comic. Malvolio’s “I am…happy!” Terrible actor Francis Flute fully committing to the moment on “Dead, my dove?” Benedick’s “There’s a double meaning in that.” Hamlet toying with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, or telling Claudius he “shall nose” the dead Polonius as he goes upstairs. Olivia’s “Most wonderful!” when the penny drops and she realizes “Cesario” is actually Viola (and Sebastian’s twin).

3. What's a favorite Shakespearean performance anecdote?

I have two!

1) We were performing William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) for the Shakespeare Theatre Association conference — the savviest and most knowledgeable group of people I’ll probably ever perform for, ever. I was playing Richard III and limping downstage to say my first line, one of the most famous first lines in all of Shakespeare. But I was distracted because I saw there were people sitting on the sides and I didn’t want to limp too far downstage for them to see — and in my distraction I said, “Now is the moment of our...” As soon as the word was out of my mouth, I knew I’d blown the line (it’s supposed to be “Now is the winter of our discontent”) and I knew I couldn’t pretend that it hadn’t happened; not in front of that crowd, not in our style of show. So I quite audibly said, “Oh f&$# me,” and limped back offstage to come in again. This time I said the line right and emphasized the first word: “Now is the winter of our discontent!” It brought down the house and everyone asked whether I’d planned it. Sigh…no, I hadn’t.

Mya interjects: I was in the house for this performance and this moment remains one of the highlights of my theatre-going career. What Austin neglects to mention here is that Reed, who had been left alone onstage after Austin had retreated, went over to the wings as if to confer with Austin, and said, sotto voce, “No, I don’t think anybody noticed.”

2) We were performing The Complete Works on a stage that had a little runway that circled the orchestra pit. In one of the scenes, Adam Long (one of the RSC’s founding members) decided to hop over the pit, from the stage to the runway, and he ended breaking the runway floor and falling through the boards. Thankfully uninjured, and delighted that he had this opportunity, he immediately uttered the immortal words, “Don’t worry, it’s just a stage I’m going through."

4. What's one of the more unusual Shakespearean interpretations you've either seen or would like to see?

I’m glad that nowhere in here have you asked what my favorite play is. I don’t have favorite Shakespeare plays, but I do have favorite productions. Here are two:

1) The Folger Theatre at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC’s production of Love’s Labor’s Lost was delightful from start to finish: Incredibly smart, wildly funny, and wonderfully charming. The director and her team made the King’s desire for “a little academe” quite literal by re-creating the Folger Library’s handsome reading room onstage. (I wrote about this terrific production here.)

2) The Chicago Shakespeare Company production of The Tempest, co-directed by Aaron Posner and the magician Teller, turned Prospero into an actual wizard and filled the production with literal magic. (There must have been magic in Shakespeare’s original production as the First Folio has a stage direction that mentions that characters disappear by means of “a quaint device”. Teller filled his production with many quaint magic tricks and devices!) With music by Tom Waits and great comedy from its clowns, it was the most entertaining and completely realized production of The Tempest I've ever seen.

Favorite moments?

When Henry IV (Jeremy Irons) slaps his snotty son Prince Hal (Tom Hiddleston) in The Hollow Crown adaptation of Henry IV, Part 1 taking him (and the audience) by total surprise.

When Francis Flute’s (Sam Rockwell) emotions bubble to the surface unexpectedly in the ridiculous “Pyramus and Thisbe” in the film version of Midsummer.

When Juliet (Claire Danes) stirs and almost wakes up in time to prevent Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) from killing himself in Baz Lurhmann’s Romeo + Juliet.

When Antigonus (Gregory Linington) distracted the Bear, dooming himself but preventing the death of Perdita, in the Goodman Theatre production of one of my least favorite plays The Winter’s Tale.

5. What's one of your favorite Shakespearean "hidden gems”?

The hidden gem of Shakespeare is actually right out in the open: He’s written incredibly theatrical plays, filled with rich and elusive characters that still fascinate us 400 years later, and even the most serious of his plays (including his Histories and especially his Tragedies) contain more comedy than is generally realized (or pulled off). Shakespeare was a showman whose livelihood depended on entertaining his audiences, so he created plays filled with music, devices, comic bits, fascinating characters, time jumps, changing perspectives, and shifting tones that are always serious (especially his Comedies) but never solemn.

(You don’t ask what my Shakespearean pet peeve but here it is: Productions that lack urgency and ignore the above, as in: Comedies that are beautiful-looking and melancholy but not funny. Histories that ignore the comic chaos that Shakespeare layers in. Tragedies that are one-note, over-the-top, and not in any way believable. Romances that equate pastoral with languid and not compelling. Argh.)

6. What passages from Shakespeare have stayed with you?

Oh so many...

Beatrice’s “Kill Claudio,” which comes seemingly out of the blue and yet is so right.

Falstaff’s honor speech, when done right, in front of a live audience.

And I find Miranda’s “O brave new world that hath such people in’t” just incredibly moving. (I’m always moved by Joy. Tragedy can suck it.)

Mya interjects: “Tragedy can suck it” might be my new personal motto now. Thanks, Austin.

7. What Shakespeare plays have changed for you?

Henry VI, Part 1. Reading it again recently, I was struck by the level of chaos Shakespeare depicts in a kingdom struggling without a ruler. It’s almost like Monty Python meets Veep: Sentences can’t get finished because people are running in and out, declaring “I’m in charge! I’m in charge!” with grand impotence. Of course Shakespeare would write it like that: He needed to entertain his audience, who were probably also nervous about their aging queen who had yet to declare a successor. Shakespeare created a chaotic warning that England shouldn’t descend into that kind of comically dangerous madness again — a warning that wasn’t really heeded, unfortunately.

8. What Shakespearean character or characters do you identify the most with?

Having played so many of them (albeit in reduced forms), that’s a tough call. But because I’m also an actor and a playwright, the ones I probably identify with the most are Shakespeare's seemingly autobiographical ones: Peter Quince, the only (I think) actor-playwright in the canon. Hamlet, the Danish prince with surprisingly strong opinions about theatre’s power and how certain speeches should be played (and how annoying comedians can be). Benedick, who struggles with his writing so comically. Suffolk, who in Henry VI, Part 1 declares, “I’ll call for pen and ink and write my mind.” And Bottom, of course, who thinks he can play anything.

Mya interjects: PETER QUINCES OF THE WORLD, UNITE!

9. Where can we find out more about you? Are there any projects/events you would like us to check out?

I’ve spent the last several years doing incredibly deep dives into Shakespeare, across many media:

My RSC partner Reed Martin and I wrote Pop-Up Shakespeare, an incredibly fun (and useful) introduction to the Bard’s life and works with beautiful, amazing, and funny illustrations by Jennie Maizels.

I contribute monthly essays about the intersection between Shakespeare and popular culture for the Folger Shakespeare Library’s Shakespeare & Beyond blog.

My weekly podcast (now in its 13th year) is a backstage glimpse into the life and works of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, featuring interviews with our many comedian, actor, playwright, author, director, composer, dramaturg, and artist friends and many many deep dives into matters Shakespearean.

Reed and I also wrote the definitive irreverent reference book, Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention-Impaired (abridged), which is still inexplicably in print (perhaps cuz it’s definitive).

We also wrote the stage play William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) (“An absolute resolute hoot of a bawdy comedy of errors!” Broadway World), which premiered at the Folger Theatre in 2016, has toured the US and the UK, and is available for licensing via Broadway Play Publishing.

And in November 2019, the RSC will perform the international premiere in Israel of our brand new script Hamlet’s Big Adventure (a prequel) — what would happen if Tom Stoppard wrote Muppet Babies. It’s the comedy of the Prince of Denmark!

If after reading all this, for some insane reason you still want to get in touch, come find me here on Twitter. I think Mya will agree that it’s a much more civilized and fun place than its reputation suggests.

(Back to Mya) Thanks so much to Austin for taking the time to answer my questions! If you want to HEAR us actually talking to each other check out:

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #493

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #532

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #653

Q&A August continues next week with two phenomenal women who are using Shakespeare to build the most amazing things.

[sistercelluloid]

Welcome to another edition of TINTYPE TUESDAY!

Does the current crop of Christmas movies make you yearn to go back to 1947?  I mean even more than you normally do?  Then let’s journey together back to that magical time…

…when the lovely Maureen O’Hara was ready to pretty much punch someone in the face. She’d just flown home to Ireland after back-to-back shoots on The Homestretch and Sinbad the Sailor, and was all set to curl up with a cuppa and relax for a spell. So just imagine her excitement when she was suddenly summoned off the sofa and clear across the ocean to New York to star in a little confection called Miracle on 34th Street.

Luckily for 20th Century Fox, she fell in love with the script the instant she read it.

Which is more than you can say for Darryl F. Zanuck, who didn’t want to make the “corny” film at all. Director George Seaton, who’d thrown his heart into the project, fought back hard—finally wangling a paltry $630,000 budget out of the cynical studio boss in exchange for a promise to direct The Shocking Miss Pilgrim, which Zanuck was willing to pour five times as much money into. (And which we all gather ’round the TV to watch every year! Oh wait…)

For O’Hara, a divorced working mother herself, the part of Doris Walker was an especially good fit, and also a chance to cast her glow on the kind of role rarely seen in films of the 1940s. (The powerful Legion of Decency found the portrayal of divorcées on screen to be “morally objectionable.”)

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present a newly restored print of the Oscar¨-winning Christmas classic ÒMiracle on 34th StreetÓ on Thursday, December 11, at 7:30 p.m. at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. The 35mm print to be screened is from the collection of the Academy Film Archive, courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox, and is presented as part of the AcademyÕs Gold Standard screening series. Pictured: Edmund Gwenn, Natalie Wood, and Maureen O’Hara in a scene from MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET, 1947.

Once the perfect leading lady was on board, the search for Santa was on. The first choice was Cecil Kellaway, who turned down the part but suggested his cousin, Edmund Gwenn. “I’ve never seen an actor more naturally suited for a role,” O’Hara later recalled.

So much so that until she saw him in street clothes at the wrap party, Natalie Wood—who said she’d been “on the cusp of not believing in Santa Claus”—thought her beloved co-star was the real thing. And this was no sheltered, impressionable child: known as “One Take Natalie” for her photographic memory, Wood was whip-smart and had what Seaton called “an instinctive sense of timing and emotion.” And if she O’felt Gwenn was Santa Claus, who are we to argue?

Unbeknownst to the thousands of spectators lining the streets of New York, Gwenn was also Santa Claus at the 1946 Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, even greeting the crowd from the store’s marquee. To make sure he got ample footage, Seaton set up 14 cameras all along the route. “It was a mad scramble to get all the shots we needed because we only got to do each scene once,” recalled O’Hara. “The parade couldn’t stop because we needed a second take!”

In fact, in an era when soundstages ruled the day, almost the entire film was shot on location—during a winter so bitterly cold that the chill sometimes froze the cameras.”One scene was shot in Port Washington, New York, where a woman let us warm up in her house,” O’Hara later laughed. “The crew put the cameras in front of her living room fireplace to thaw out… finally the cameras defrosted and we were able to finish the scene. Her generosity was one of the miracles in Miracle on 34th Street!”

The closeknit cast also helped to warm things up. “John Payne was a wonderful person to work with,” O’Hara remembered. “And he became one of my dearest friends.”

O’Hara was especially close to her screen daughter: “I played ‘Mom’ to more than forty children during my movie career. But Natalie always held a special place in my heart. She called me ‘Mama Maureen.'”

The scenes in Macy’s were shot after hours, which thrilled the adventurous eight-year-old: “Natalie loved to work at night because she got to say up late. With all the shoppers gone, we walked through the store and examined all the toys and girls’ dresses and shoes,” said O’Hara. “It was a special time for us.”

“Mama Maureen” was also kinder and more lenient than Wood’s own notorious stage mother: “I brought a bag of chocolates for Edmund every day. We hid the candy from Natalie because her mother didn’t want her to have any.

“One day, Edmund got some chocolate all over his white beard, and Natalie spotted it immediately. We let her sneak some, but we made sure her mother never caught us.”

Wood found a special way to thank her movie mother for her much-needed warmth. “At least once a week, she gave me a little ceramic figurine she’d made,” O’Hara remembered. “I took them all down to my home in the Virgin Islands but when Hurricane Hugo hit, they were all literally blown away. I couldn’t find a single one.”

When the movie wrapped, the cast and director were pretty confident audiences would love seeing the film as much as they loved making it. But Zanuck remained unconvinced—and in another stroke of genius, decided to release the film in June, when, he argued, movie attendance was higher. This left the studio scrambling to promote a Christmas film without ever calling it a Christmas film. Which brings us to this head-smackingly odd trailer:

In it, the studio boss, who’s something of an imbecile (did Zanuck see this?), bellows, “What do you make a trailer for? To give the public an idea of what kind of picture to expect!” Then—Irony Alert!—they completely sidestep the fact that this is a Christmas movie. The boss wanders out onto the lot, buttonholing passing stars like Rex Harrison and Anne Baxter for their opinions of the film. They all love it, for wildly different reasons (Peggy Ann Garner calls it groovy!) but no one dares utter the “C” word.

Joining the long list of films that succeeded in spite of studio bosses rather than because of them, Miracle on 34th Street ultimately found its (sandal-clad) audience, recouping its skimpy budget several times over. And along with The Bishop’s Wife, it was one of two Christmas films vying for Best Picture at the 1948 Academy Awards ceremony. Both lost to Gentlemen’s Agreement.

Gwenn fared better, taking home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor against a brutal field. Literally. Two of his rivals—Richard Widmark in Kiss of Death and Robert Ryan in Crossfire—played noir characters legendary for their viciousness. So the next time you see Tommy Udo push Mrs. Rizzo down that flight of stairs, just remember that ultimately, he was beaten by Santa Claus.

As you can hear in the clip below, the applause that greets his name—or as presenter Baxter would call it a few years later, “waves of love coming over the footlights”—make it clear who the winner will be. “Whew! Now I know there’s a Santa Claus,” Gwenn tells his adoring colleagues. “He’s an elusive little fellow… he turns up in all sorts of places under all sorts of names and disguises. The first time I met him, he told me his name was George Seaton…” And later, his voice breaking, “Thank you, all of you, for making the evening of my life such a happy one.”

Actor Edmund Gwenn (right) and writer George Seaton (left) holding their Oscars for the film ‘Miracle on 34th Street’, with presenter Anne Baxter, at the 20th Academy Awards, Los Angeles, March 20th 1948. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)

And finally, here a few bits of Miracle on 34th Street trivia to toss around the Christmas table:

Remember when Kris Kringle is taking his sanity test, and to show off his memory, he proudly proclaims that the Vice President under John Quincy Adams was Daniel D. Tomkins? Um, no, he served under James Monroe. Adams’ veep was John Calhoun, whose picture is too scary to put in a Christmas story. (Google him. Yikes.) So the next time you watch the movie with friends, be sure to smugly point out this mistake! (And never be invited back!)

Macy’s Christmas window displays were made by Steiff, famous for their stuffed bears and other toys. After the movie wrapped, the store sold them to FAO Schwarz, which later sold them, improbably, to the Marshall & Ilsley Bank in Milwaukee, where they’re showcased every year in the main lobby.

Gene Lockhart, who plays the judge, was also Bob Cratchit in the 1938 version of A Christmas Carol. And Percy Helton, who played the drunken Santa Claus, also popped up as the train conductor in White Christmas. Oh and speaking of making a bit too merry, here’s a Gimbel’s ad from the year Miracle on 34th Street came out:

The movie also gave us the gift that keeps on giving: the film debut of Thelma Ritter, who went on to win six Oscar nods while never moving out of Queens. And typically, she’s the one who sets the whole Christmas détente between Macy’s and Gimbels in motion.

Ever wonder what Kris Kringle and the little Dutch refugee who sits on his knee are talking about? Here’s the translation:

Kris Kringle: I’m happy you came! Little Girl: Ooh, you are Sinterklaas! Kris Kringle: Well yes, of course! Little Girl: I knew it! I knew you would understand me! Kris Kringle: Of course! Tell me what you would like to get from Sinterklaas. Little Girl: I don’t want anything… I already have everything… I just want to stay with this lovely lady. Kris Kringle: Do you want to sing something for me? Little Girl (singing): Saint Nicholas, little rascal, Put something in my little shoe! Put something in my little boot! Thank you, little Saint Nicholas! Saint Nicholas little rascal, Put something in my little shoe! Put something in my little boot! Thank you, little Saint Nicholas!

The house Natalie Wood bolts into at the end of the movie still stands, at 24 Derby Road in Port Washington. It looks almost exactly the same today, but for the addition of a window that changed the roofline.

It seems only fitting to give the final word to Maureen: “I’m so proud to have been part of Miracle on 34th Street.” And we’re so grateful you were. We still miss you, dear lady. And we’ll never forget what you told us:

TINTYPE TUESDAY is a regular feature on Sister Celluloid, with fabulous classic movie pix (and backstory!) to help you make it to Hump Day! For previous editions, just click here—and why not bookmark the page, to make sure you never miss a week?

TINTYPE TUESDAY: Behind the Scenes of MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET! Welcome to another edition of TINTYPE TUESDAY! Does the current crop of Christmas movies make you yearn to go back to 1947?  

[therewatcher-blog]

Introduction to The Re-Watcher: First Up, Gilmore Girls

Recently, I’ve accepted something about myself. I love re-watching television. I don’t think this is unique. In fact a good chunk of the streaming business model is predicated on the fact that most of us like what we already know. I started my third? fourth? rewatch of Gilmore Girls at the beginning of the month, and decided that rather than just mindlessly blazing through these rewatches of shows with the random tweet reinforcing the viewpoints I’ve always had, I thought I’d try to be a more active viewer. It will never be the first time again. I will always know what is going to happen to the characters in my beloved shows that merit this amount of hours devoted. So instead, I decided that each time I rewatch a show, I will choose a topic and focus on it in a mini-write up for each episode. Not only will this stop me from watching too quickly, I hope it will help me in forming skills writing about TV and maybe I’ll learn something new about the shows I love as I watch with a specific goal in mind.

 We’ll start with Gilmore Girls. The topic I’ve chosen is, The Best Underrated Scene. I want to focus on the scenes that don’t get necessarily quoted as much or that catch me off guard in my rewatch with their depth, brilliance, and significance. Amy Sherman-Palladino has finally gotten some awards and recognition with her newest show, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, but her talent was evident from the beginning and her cast in Gilmore Girls certainly did everything they could to take it to the next level. I want to look beyond the big fights and big cries and find those nuggets that offer depth to even the more cartoonish of Stars Hollow characters or reveal an important character trait and dynamic in a subtle way. Let’s see how this goes!

 1x01 – Pilot

 Pilots are difficult. I know this from watching many and from hearing screenwriters talk about it. Comedy is particularly difficult, it seems. With the exception of Veep, Cheers, and maybe Arrested Development, I have a hard time thinking of comedy pilots that operate at the same level of the show in its prime. Gilmore Girls was marketed as a typical WB teen drama, but also, it’s really a smart show about family and class. It’s a comedy, a family drama, a small town fantasy. It’s so many things and the pilot has a LOT of exposition to get through in as smooth a way as possible for a show whose premise is deceptively simple. As such, finding a truly great and understated scene that isn’t bogged down by introducing our big dynamics and long arcs for the season and series (Lorelai and Rory, Lorelai and her parents, Lorelai and Luke, Rory and Dean, the Inn, Stars Hollow, etc, etc, etc.) is difficult.

 With all of this in mind, my first pick for Best Underrated Scene is maybe a bit of cheat since all the scenes in this that are really worth talking about are all a bit iconic.

Lorelai Asks Her Parents for Money

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njZo0lvgCsY

This is almost halfway through the episode. It’s the turning point and the whole premise for the show. While Lorelai and Rory are interesting and fun and I enjoy their dynamic, Lorelai and her parents (Emily and Richard) will always steal the episode away with their interplay. The strain between these two generations is painted so beautifully and delicately from the beginning. The transition to this sequence comes from a picture that Lorelai keeps on her mantelpiece of herself as a young child in front of her parent’s mansion that seems dark and cold compared to the warm, tchotchke–riddled home that Lorelai has built for herself. Lorelai is looking at this picture as she realizes her only option to pay for Rory’s new fancy school is to borrow money from her parents. We cross-fade from this small token of Lorelai’s childhood to the present-day real deal. But even the fact that Lorelai has this picture is telling. For every bad thing she has to say about her upbringing and her parents, a part of her still holds ties. As the series continues we will see in which ways Lorelai is really a lot like her parents, but for now this maybe is just a slight hint that nothing has ever been as black and white as Lorelai likes to act like it was.

Lorelai waits with her coffee, next to her Jeep (which obviously stands out against the backdrop of her parents house…”HELLO! I’m different from you!” Lorelai loves to scream with all of her purchases). She is gulping down her pride, finding the courage to go in and do what she never in her lifetime wanted to do. Cut to Emily opening the door, clearly surprised to see her daughter who only lives forty minutes away. “Is it Easter already?” she jokes. While we constantly have instances throughout the show of Emily and Richard not understanding Lorelai’s jokes, we can see from this first interaction that she probably got much of her wit from them. Emily is hilarious. She is maybe a bit harsher in her sarcasm, a bit drier than Lorelai’s hyper-joking mannerisms, but it is there and we see it right away. I love even more so that Richard makes the same joke when he first discovers Lorelai there unexpectedly (“What is it, Christmas already?”). Emily and Richard’s marriage has it’s ups and downs in the show, but they are solidly made for each other in many ways. They have a partnership that has lasted for decades and it shows in the way they at times seem to have one mind.

 As Lorelai and Emily make their way to the living room, making awkward chitchat we are greeted with maybe the longest pause in the episode yet. Pauses are a big deal in the famously wordy Palladino scripts.  It speaks volumes how little these women seem to be able to say to each other. “I’m sure I told you,” Lorelai tells her mother answering in a bit more detail about her business class. “Well if you’re sure, than you must have,” Emily bites back sarcastically. We get no answer to whether Lorelai did or not (my guess is that she didn’t), but either way we see so clearly the miscommunications that bubble up between these two who have so little faith in the other’s ability to understand the other. They don’t make this one a big fight, but it is part of the fight we will see later in the episode. Emily resents that Lorelai shuts her out of her life. Lorelai resents her mother’s controlling nature which causes her to avoid telling Emily anything rather than risk criticism or involvement in her choices. It’s a vicious cycle. Every bit of Emily’s dialogue is dripping with sardonic disbelief as she explains to Richard that Lorelai decided to just “drop in to see us” after her “business class” that “she told us about it, dear, remember?” “No.” Richard demures. He doesn’t play the same games that Emily and Lorelai do with each other. No, he doesn’t remember. This could be because he doesn’t listen, but it could also be a point in the column for the theory that Lorelai never told them.

 Just this small part is enough to make this scene practically perfect. We got the back story before this for the most part in a scene between Lorelai and Sookie, but so far this has given us so much of the relationship between Lorelai and her parents (and a bit into the relationship between Richard and Emily). It soars in it’s ability to shed exposition and get to the root of what this dynamic has been for the last 16 years. It’s even better than the first Friday Night Dinner that happens towards the end of this episode, in my opinion. But now we have the discussion of money and the loan. Gilmore Girls at times handles the class dynamics between Lorelai and her parents so well it approaches Mad Men in what it is saying about whiteness and power and inherited wealth and those that reject it. Other times it is a magical place where money and finances make no sense. But that’s down the line. Here we have the simple act of a child asking their parents for money. Something many people have done with various degrees of injured pride. For some it’s easy, for Lorelai it is immensely difficult. Her saving grace is that it is for Rory, not for her, that she asks. It is interesting to note, that while Lorelai is adverse to the moneyed class her parents are in and the trappings of the white, wealthy elite she still wants her kid to have those advantages that she turned down by having Rory and leaving her parents. She still wants Harvard. She still wants Chilton. She is asking her parents for the money to buy her and Rory’s way back into the world she left behind. Of course she believes that it won’t have to affect their quaint little life in Stars Hollow, but it is interesting nonetheless that this is what she wants for her child and what she believes Rory deserves and needs in order to be what Rory wants to be.

 Before Lorelai can even ask, Richard repeats two times “You need money.” Again, Richard doesn’t mess around and he doesn’t play games (at least not when it comes to calling his daughter out). He doesn’t need to hear her explanation, but Lorelai won’t leave until she gives it and says what she came to say in the way she wants to say it. It’s for Rory, for Chilton, she explains. Emily’s eyes brighten and she notes how close the school is to her house. “So…you need money,” Richard again chimes in, cutting through the bullshit. “Yes,” Lorelai has to admit. But it’s Rory, she repeats, and she will pay them back. “I don’t ask for favors, you know that.” (Lorelai’s anthem) “Oh yes, we know,” Emily admits.  Emily’s voice is rife with bitterness and sadness. She wants to help her daughter, but she’s not allowed to. “I’ll get the check book,” Richard says. It is a sweet moment that is cut short by Emily’s proposal, but sweet regardless. Despite their past and hurt feelings, there is love between these people. Richard does not hesitate and he knows that Emily agrees. Rory binds them all together and certainly they are willing to do this for her, but they are obviously just as willing to do this for Lorelai. 

 And here we have Emily’s proposal that sets up the backbone for this generational family drama. Emily wants to be actively involved in Lorelai and Rory’s lives. She wants dinner once a week and a weekly phone call in exchange for the loan. Kelly Bishop is honestly so pitch perfect in everything in this show. She has that pose and demeanor here that seems almost villainous. It’s why on first watch you might want to always side with Lorelai. Emily is controlling and privileged and she has many faults, but honestly she just loves her daughter and granddaughter and sees an opportunity to force a connection that Lorelai would have denied her for eternity if she had not jumped on it. There is a softness in this. She doesn’t comment on Lorelai’s inability to provide this schooling for Rory herself, or honestly do anything to make her feel bad (in this moment) about her life’s choices. She just wants to be a part of that life now.  Of course it gets messier the more we go into this episode and the series, but for now that’s all there is. We see again Lorelai’s pride, “I don’t want her [Rory] to know that I borrowed money from you.” But that’s not the only fault of Lorelai’s we see in this scene. We see also her stubbornness when it comes to her parents and her oftentimes inability and unwillingness to see the ways they demonstrate their love and their longing for her. She brushes past her mom’s request and agrees to the weekly dinners, but she is annoyed by it. She seems to see it only as her mother controlling her (of course it is this too, but as is often the case with the best scenes in this show people’s motives are both-and. Emily is controlling and vulnerable in this one). She doesn’t see that longing to connect as the simple love of a mother for her daughter that it is.

 And that’s that. So much is revealed besides the plot in this elegantly written and brilliantly acted scene. It is simple and yet I could probably go on about how much this one scene says about this show as a whole. So much is revealed and set up for the series. Of all the iconic scenes in this episode, this one stands above the others and for that reason I think it is underrated.

[donheisenberg]

Top 20 TV Shows of 2017:

So this is the bit where I talk about how difficult it is to write a top 20 list because of peak TV, yada, yada, yada. If you are into TV criticism you have read it all before several over the last few years, the thing is while it might feel like a cliche it is totally true and with every year it become more true. Trying to watch everything out there is impossible and trying to then narrow down what you have watched to a list of 20 is almost as difficult. Every show on this list had an outstanding year as shown by some of the shows I left off of the list. In any other year the likes of Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Americans would be givens even if they just had middling seasons but not this year. It was truly a great year for TV and here are my top 20 shows of 2017.

Shows I Did Not Get Around to Watching/Completing That May Have Made My List: The Deuce The Handmaid’s Tail (to watch) Legion (to watch) Better Things Search Party Difficult People

Honorable Mention: Rick and Morty (season 3): Shout out to Review as well, which was excellent but just had to few episodes for me to really count it. In terms of Rick and Morty it was often in the news (or at least the twitter news) for the wrong reasons this year as a group of its fans decided to act like complete dickheads for a period of time. All of which deflected from the fact it had its best season ever. I’ve always had issues with the show and basically how pro-Rick and his asshole behavior Harmon and co seem to be and this year didn’t necessarily dissuade me of that but on a week to week basis it was crafting, ambitious and well thought out stories, at a rate the show had never before.

No 20: Fargo (season 3): As many observed this was not Fargo’s finest year and it maybe took a while to get going. It is also the case that 3 seasons in it is tougher for a show as idiosyncratic as this one to surprise us. When a seemingly major character dies in episode 1 it is less of a shock than it should be because that is what happened in season 1. Yet at the same time I so enjoyed this season and the performances by the likes of Carrie Coon (more on her later), Ewan MacGregor and David Thewlis and you still had episodes as excellent as The Law of Non-Contradiction.

No 19) Veep (season 6): Similar to Fargo this was a just slightly below average year for Veep, but even then the quality of the ensemble is so far above any other comedy out there and the quality of the writing/jokes/insults is again just of the highest order. There are few shows I enjoy more than Veep.

No 18) Master of None (Season 2): In my review I did write about how aspects of MON did frustrate me. For it’s social awareness, it is a show that wants me to desperately feel sorry for the man with seemingly the nicest/most privileged life in the world. The extent to which the show is essentially lifestyle porn at times can be a problem and the extent to which the show never questions Dev’s actions can also be a little off-putting. Yet having said that the good outweighs the bad and then some. The show crafts so many beautiful fully realized episodes and months after watching it is episodes like Thanksgiving that stick with me, more than the show’s flaws.

No 17) The Young Pope (Season 1): I’m not sure I get The Young Pope. I love it but I’m not sure I get it. Even in this age of weird TV there is something truly odd about this show. So difficult to write about because it does not conform to any conventions or labels and that’s why it makes this list. Having said all of this I’m not quite sure the show ever hit the heights of its pilot (even if it remained excellent throughout) and that’s why it is not a little bit higher.

No 16) Brockmire (Season 1): Brockmire is exactly the sort of gem that can get lost in this golden age, but for those few of us who did see it we know that it was one of the most raucous, hilarious and endearing comedies out there. I don’t know or care about baseball at all but I do love Brockmire and can’t wait til it comes back.

No 15) Brooklyn Nine Nine (season 4/5): Just as Brockmire can get lost in a sea of amazing shows, B99 is the sort of show that you can take for granted so easily but 5 seasons in and it is still full of heart and brilliant gags. More than that though this year on a couple of occasions we saw the show break-out of its comfort zone with episodes about Terry being racially profiled and more recently Rosa coming out to her less than progressive parents. Those episodes showcased a different side of the show and demonstrated how B99 is not just a great sitcom but an important one. Nine Nine!

No 14) Preacher (Season 2): Parts of season 2 of Preacher were as good as anything on TV. The opening scenes of the first two episodes, as well as standout episode Sokosha plus a whole host of other moments, showed how Preacher could execute some of the most ambitious TV out there to near perfection. It was not all perfect and the season might have benefited from being 10 episode long rather than 12 but nonetheless I love this show and it seems to only go in one direction. Bring on season 3.

No 13) GLOW (Season 1): GLOW was sort of the perfect summer show. It was funny and likable and so binge-able. Netflix makes a lot of deeply serialized shows, designed to be consumed in one sitting so as you find out what happens next. Glow was not that. What GLOW was, was a show that quickly established an ensemble of distinct and interesting characters who you wanted to spend time with and for that it was a standout show.

No 12) Better Call Saul (Season 3): It pains me to put BCS at number 12, in any other year this could be a contender for my number 1 spot but here it does quite make the top ten. Part of the reason why it is a little lower than you might have excepted is that at this stage I don’t have to tell anyone how good this show is. Into it’s third season and BCS was possibly better than ever. Certainly episodes like the chilling Lantern and in particular Chicanery mark series high points and some of the finest TV I’ve seen all year.

No 11) American Vandal (Season 1): American Vandal is a curious show. It is ostensibly a parody, yet by the time you finish it you look back and think that was funny but not funny enough to be making this list necessarily. What it was though was the most engrossing show of the year. And it all centred on the question “who drew the dicks?” Yet for the silliness of the premise I could not have been more intrigued. AV found new ground for the most tired of sub-genres, the mockumentary and in the process delivered an absurd but in many ways tragic story of a stupid but well meaning kid in high school whose life goes array for reasons that have little to do with him. Defining the pleasures of the show may not be straight, but boy was it insanely watchable-the Netflix model at its best.

No 10 )Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Season 3): Similar to B99, UKS is the sort of consistent joke machine that you can take for granted, and that many have, but for me this year there were few shows enjoyed nearly as much as it. I thought the show delivered its best season. The work of Ellie Kemper and in particular Titus Burgess can match any comedic performers on TV. Again though amidst all the laughs is a very human character study piece of an abuse victim and maybe where the show’s genius thoroughly lies  is in the way the show balances these two sides of itself.

No 9) Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Seasons 2/3): Rachel Bloom’s musical comedy/drama goes from strength to strength. Like many shows of this list it perfectly balances cartoonish sensibilities with discussions on mental health and never more so than in the first half of season 3. In addition to that though are the musical numbers. At times I’m just in awe of how spot on and clever their parodies, my favorite this year being “Let’s Generalize About Men” and for that it had to make my top ten.

No 8) Bojack Horseman (Season 4): In its 2nd and particularly 3rd seasons Bojack became a show that delivered some of the most outstanding individual episodes of television, possibly ever. Escape From LA, Fish Under Water and That’s Too Much Man are just incomparable half hours of TV. Season 4 did not deliver a single episode of quite that standard. What season 4 did do though is deliver quite possibly the show’s most consistent, revealing and hopefully season. Something we all needed at the end of the show’s previous season.

No 7) Catastrophe (Season 3): Okay it was only 6 episodes along, but I ask this question every year, is there a better written show on TV? There might be snappier dialogue out there, there might be more profound existential musings on some other show, but there is no show with more wonderfully naturalistic dialogue on now or possibly ever. Also there is not really a couple of TV I root for quite as much as Sharon and Rob and I really just want to watch the two of them on screen together as much as possible.Plus the final episode of season 3 was just the perfect send-off for Carrie Fisher and for that alone it deserves it place on my list.

No 6) Jane The Virgin (Season 3/4): Now four seasons in Jane the Virgin still has the power to surprise and hit me emotionally as much as just about any show on this list. I would go as far as to stay no episode of television this year hit me as hard as (spoilers) Michael’s death which was absolutely devestating. But when it comes to Jane the Virgin it is not just the big gut-punches that count, it is the smaller moments as well. The other scene that sticks with me most from its episodes this year is when Rogelio (often the show’s most comic presence) opens up to Xo about how he hasn’t been able to grieve properly for Michael, who was his best friend, because he knew he had to be strong for Jane while she was grieving. It is a comparatively small moment but every bit as resonant. I can take or leave all the intrigue concerning the Marbella but week after week the show delivers moments that really effect me, which even in this golden age can’t be said of too many show.

No 5) Twin Peaks (Season 3): It seems to me that Twin Peaks has either been number 1 or completely absent from every critics list. And I can understand both positions. Twin Peaks was fascinating in a way that television and art more generally rarely is. It was also incredibly and deliberately frustrating at times. I’m almost reluctant to point out how obviously frustrating parts of the revival were because I feel like I might be missing something. On the other hand because its Lynch and because he is a widely and rightly acknowledge genius I think some critics have been too forgiving of some pretty blatant narrative issues, that on another show they would have lambasted. Ultimately though it was the TV event of the year and nothing quite engaged me on a week to week basis like it did. More than anything though there were certain moments, particularly toward the end of the season, that were greater than anything else on TV this year. Moments I completely lost myself in, in ways that are quite difficult to explain and for that I won’t be forgetting the revival for a very long time.

No 4) Mr Robot (Season 3): If season 1 was clinically perfect, in a way no show since Breaking Bad has been, season 2 was an over-ambitious, definitely fascinating, mess. I was a bit of an apologist for the largely disliked second season-but even I was somewhat disappointed after the heights of season 1. Season 3 not only got the show back on track but it found a balance in the ensemble that neither season 1 (which was almost all Elliot) or season 2 (which felt like very little Elliot) had. It also starting making sense again and the show successfully battled the urge to be overly opaque or to have unnecessary twists. All of which meant that we got some of the show’s finest hours yet specifically the thrilling fifth and sixth episodes as well as the surprising and heart-warming eight hour, not to mention the finale which had a bit of everything. And for all its pessimism few shows made me happier this year, because I was so delighted to see this great show prove all the doubters wrong.

No 3) The Good Place (season 1/2): Michael Schur has secured himself a place in TV history with The Office, B99 and in particular Parks and Rec, already but with The Good Place he has gone one further. We all knew he could craft wonderfully funny and likable sitcoms, but here he has delivered a show as twisty and as engaged in huge philosophical issues as any prestige serialized drama. The Good Place is not necessarily a sad-com like many of the show’s on this list but it is possibly the most plot driven network sitcom ever. The thing is the plot has real stakes and is completely unpredictable as well. The huge twist at the end of season 1 showed that even in the age of Reddit you could pull out the rug from underneath your audience and I did not think that was possible. I don’t know how much longer they can continue it but as of now The Good Place is just about a perfect piece of television. 

No 2) Halt and Catch Fire (Season 4): Without spoiling what is number 1 on my list, when it aired I thought nothing would come near it but Halt and Catch Fire came very very close. Back in its much derided first season Halt was a jukebox spitting one antihero cliche after another. In some ways it never strayed too far from the conventions of the antihero drama but what made it different was that at a certain point it just wasn’t about antiheroes. Sure all the characters were deeply flawed, none more so than Joe, but their constant strive for something more, for some kind of connection felt so human you could not help but love them. The final four episodes were TV drama at its best and when it ended I really struggled with the notion that I would not be spending more time with these characters, but if anything made it okay it was how well they stuck the landing. Speaking of which..

No 1) The Leftovers (Season 3): No show has ever made quite the impact in such a short space of time. The Leftovers conclude its mere 28 episode run this year, just 28 episodes yet about half of them are nothing short of masterpieces. That includes just about every episode in this final run. It’s tough in just a paragraph to breakdown what made The Leftovers such a transcendent piece of television-so to be glib I’ll say it took the ambition and phantasmagoria of Twin Peaks and combined it with the heart and focus on character of Halt and Catch Fire. LOST-one of my absolute favorite shows of all time-will define Lindelof’s career but The Leftovers is ultimately a more complete and mature piece of work. The writing, performances and direction coalesced to give us something often hilarious and surprising and always deeply powerful. There may never be a show like The Leftovers again and for those reasons it was always going to be my number 1. 

[recentanimenews]

Fruits Basket 2 – 01 – The Hideous One

First of all, let me say how good it feels to have Fruits Basket back in my life. It’s truly a salve for the heart! Those who haven’t watched the first season probably wouldn’t agree. It should go without saying: make sure you watch those 25 episodes before getting anywhere near this episode. But holy crap, what a return to greatness!

A gorgeous new OP, followed by an episode centered squarely on … Minagawa Motoko! In which she recognizes Tooru’s positive effect on Yuki. And stops living in a world of fantasy. And acknowledges her flaws. And commits to pursuing Yuki the right way. In other words, Motoko changes…and in doing so becomes yet another character I love and can’t wait to see again. And lest we forget, she’s brilliantly voiced by MAO!

Tooru shows up to put an iron uncomfortably close to the faces of Kyou and Yuki, but otherwise this is basically The Minagawa Motoko Show from start to finish (with a sprinkling of Yuki). It’s a ballsy move to make Tooru’s arrogant, one-dimensional, self-deluded love “rival” the protagonist-of-the-week, especially as the first episode back.

But Fruits Basket has already demonstrated time and again that none of its cast is really shallow; it’s just a matter of how much we know them, and this was the time to really hunker down and get to know Motoko, beyond the scheming president of Prince Yuki—someone nearly bowled over by Arisa’s eager new delinquent minions (a great potential pairing for a future episode, by the way).

Motoko puts her war with Tooru aside to deal with a more pressing matter: the identity of the new StuCo board members. Specifically, she wants to make sure none of them are hussies that will steal her man (who, let it be said, has already been all but stolen by Tooru!) But former StuCo prez Takei can sense Motoko’s intent and isn’t spilling the beans.

Meanwhile, it’s new StuCo prez Yuki who meets the new board members in question, in a very bizarrely staged scene. When he enters, he hears a girl seemingly weeping in the dark in a giant mess of files. Yet after recoiling from his touch, she adopts a stoic demeanor and goes about cleaning up. This is the new StuCo treasurer, Kuragi Machi.

Then he meets the new veep, the brash and grigarious Manabe Kakeru, who had been napping in the next room and reminds Yuki of his repellent brother Ayamu. He has a particularly weird exchange with Manabe later, leading him to wonder if there’s something Zodiac-y or Zodiac-adjacent about these new members…or if they’re just a bit eccentric.

That night, we end up in Motoko’s very rich-girly room as she waxes poetic about Yuki and curses those who would stand between her and him, only to be rudely interrupted by her no-nonsense mom in curls. Turns out Motoko puts on Kongou Mitsuko rich girl airs at school, but is actually from a working-class family who lives above their shop. I’m already more fascinated with her!

The next day, Motoko decides to bypass Takei entirely, enlisting the aid of third-year and fellow Prince Yuki member Aida Rika, to pick the lock of the StuCo office. Turns out the office unlocked, and Motoko and Rika are in luck: the only person in there is their beloved Yuki. Quietly cheered on by Rika, Motoko gets off to a rough start by asking Yuki…about what he ate for breakfast.

But because Yuki is such a nice guy, he dutifully tells her what he ate, and she discovers they like the same kind of natto. Then, unbidden, Yuki asks Motoko if she normally speaks so formally, commenting that it’s “kind of cute.” Motoko would normally be happy beyond words by being called cute by Yuki, but when she sees his warm easy smile that accompanies the words of praise, she sees a Yuki she doesn’t recognize.

The adoring distance she’s kept from Yuki means the Yuki she saw was rarely the Yuki he really was underneath a much cooler, at times forced smile. She realizes how far that distance remains when Yuki could change so much without her knowing, and with the help of someone else … someone not her by his side. It’s suddenly too much to bear, so she runs off.

As she flips on a faucet to wash her suddenly tear-filled face, Motoko professes her hatred of all women who “dare get near Yuki”, but hates none of them more than herself, the “hideous one” who thinks those kinds of thoughts as she’s reflected in her mirror. It’s the kind of honest self-reflection I was hoping from Motoko after her fateful visit to the Hanajima residence (a veritable bastion of Keeping It Realness).

Motoko shouldn’t just thank Tooru’s influence for giving her a Yuki who can smile, but one who didn’t let things sit where they were. He goes after her to make sure she’s alright, and in doing so, confides in her that despite looking so “unruffled”, he’s barely keeping his cool. Motoko can relate, as she just lost her cool back in the office!

Heartened by Yuki’s smile, Motoko vows not to give up the fight. He may have changed, and Tooru may have changed him, but she still adores him and wants him to be hers. Now that she’s actually exchanged more than just polite pleasantries, but shared a moment of mutual vulnerability, that affection has gained intensity and legitimacy.

As I sat staggered at how well they fleshed out Motoko and made her someone I half want to root for in just an episode, Yuki returns home and washes dishes with Tooru, and mentions the almost Zodiac-like strangeness of his new council-mates. He also confesses that he was happy when Manabe said he was “more interesting than [he] thought.”

Earlier, Kyou called Yuki lame, and privately, Yuki acknowledges that yeah, he is lame. It’s why Kyou’s barb is so painful; he believes it. But Tooru assures him that even if tough times are coming, either in the StuCo (maybe) or the Souma family (most assuredly) there will be fun times to cherish as well. Life is a never-ending string of getting hurt and healed by words and actions big and small.

After Tooru delivers those wise-beyond-her-years words, the episode closes perfectly on its heroine Minagawa Motoko, positively angelic in her frilly nightgown and glorious pink palace above a workaday store, gazing at the stars in quiet, hopeful, healing prayer.

By: magicalchurlsukui

[kellyinboston]

WHAT Wednesday - end of the year edition

Hi everyone! Sorry I am been MIA this week, work decided to blow up and I haven’t had much time to breath! We are recruiting for A LOT of positions and there have been interviews galore, which makes it hard to do my other tasks! But…only 2 more days and I will be going home!

Snoop will be in good hands – don’t worry. Mike and Cheryl are watching her for most of the time and we have other people (who she knows and trusts) to watch her a couple other days. I still worry about her a whole heck of a lot but she will be just fine.

This will probably be the last post of 2017 so make sure to cherish it.

As you know I love my wrap-ups so let’s a do WHAT Wednesday, 2017 edition!

WHAT did I read this year?

As you know there are still 11 days left of the year and I plan to get 3 more books (2 of which are in progress) so this list isn’t 100% complete, but you get what you get. This year has been a really big reading year for me, here is the breakdown:

53 books

14 of which were audio

11 were non-fiction

Here is Goodreads visual breakdown:

I should finish 3 more books by the end of the year (1 is an audio book), so I will get to 56 books which is a record for me! I also read A LOT of good books this year, which is always nice! This year I got into audio books (which Neil said doesn’t count as reading…that can be a debate for another day).

I know next year will look a little different. Neil bought some baby books that he wants us to read and I expect to be barely surviving for a large portion of 2018 so my reading life will have to adjust, but reading for me is a stress reliever and makes me a better person so I will make it a priority!

My favorite books of the year were:

Columbine        

The Boys in the Boat

Into Thin Air

Five Days at Memorial

Team of Rivals

The Neapolitan Series (4 books) (the ones I am listening to on audio)

Everything I Never Told you

I tend to really enjoy nonfiction and I wish I would have read more nonfiction this year…something to keep in mind for 2018!

Least favorite:

In Farleigh Field

Every Last Lie

The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress

But really, overall, 2017 had some GREAT reads!

WHAT did we watch in 2017?

The first show that comes to mind is 13 Reasons Why – that one had an impact on me.

But to be honest I don’t think we got into too many new series this year, but let’s list them anyways:

Game of Thrones

Mindhunter

Stranger Things 2

West Wing (a couple season)

Veep (a couple seasons)

Lots of football

Am I missing anything?

We saw Star Wars this past weekend and let me tell you – it was SO good. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. When it was over I looked at Neil and I had a goofy grin on my face and I proclaimed over and over again ‘OH MY GOSH THAT WAS SO GOOD’ – Neil agreed. And I am not a Star Wars fan, but man was it good!  

WHAT was our family up to this year?

Neil has been with his firm for 3 years now and was able to visit Spokane a few times this year for a project (a plus side was his best friend lives there). He stayed very busy but seemed to find a better work-life balance. We were able to go on one trip together this year (we were spoiled the last couple years) when Neil came to Denmark with me, that was a fun trip, always fun to explore a new country together. Neil was able to visit his favorite city ever – LA – for a solo trip (slept in his car) and he very much enjoyed seeing all the architecture and eating Chick-fil-a.

Snoop grew up a little this year. Seems to have calmed down some…she also sneakily made her way onto the couch. She is more spoiled than ever, it is her world, we are just living in it. Her world will be changing a little come May, but I think she will be a great big sister and she will have a buddy for life. She made some more friends and still has an aggressive eating style…and she doesn’t share her toys…so we have some stuff to work on!

I had a good year, both personally and professionally, which is great. Looking forward to 2018!

WHAT am I looking forward to in the new year?

Terri’s wedding! Although I cannot go, I am SO excited to hear ALL about it and see all the beautiful photos. Terri and Andy will also be coming to Boston in June (?) for a friend’s wedding and will also be visiting me and Neil…so that is exciting.

Seeing what all the fuss is about having a baby…supposedly people enjoy having kids…I’ll be the judge on that!  

Thanks for reading! 

[mdwatchestv]

Emmy Blog 2k17 (aka the 69th Emmy Awards...Nice)

I mean it's TV's biggest night, I feel like it's obligatory to blog about it. These are barely predictions, do not use these for your Emmy pool. I mean you can, but I really wouldn't recommend it.  I don't have insider information, and if I did I would hoard it for my own Emmy pool. To be honest, I'm usually pretty bad at picking winners (I lost my pool last year), but in my defense people vote crazy and spend all their time watching This Is Us. That's not my fault. I DID successfully predict Tatiana Maslany's win, but that was mostly wishful thinking that gloriously somehow became reality. That being said, let it be known I warned you about what this was going to be here and now at the beginning.

I would like to begin my blog by congratulating the winners of the casting Emmys! Casting is given awards during the Creative Arts Emmys which were last weekend and no one really knew about, but IT'S STILL AN EMMY AND IT COUNTS. So congratulations to Carmen Cuba (Stranger Things), David Rubin (Big Little Lies) and Dorian Frankel & Sibby Kirchgessner (Veep). Let's all take a moment to reflect on their specific casting achievement, as well as the struggles and trials the casting community as a whole faces each and every day.

(Space for reflection)

Okay that felt good. Let's move on to the main event. With the glory/curse of peak TV, and the endless proliferation of television programming, the Emmys have become an increasingly schizophrenic event in recent years.  For one, the general rule that a show that is half an hour is  a comedy, and a full hour is a drama no longer really applies, leaving some shows like Transparent and Orange is the New Black in a strange area competitively. But shows on a whole have become more tonally ambiguous (one needs only look at the Best Actor in a Comedy category this year to see we are a long way from nominating the leads of network multi-cams). Additionally with the sheer volume of television to watch, what people claim to watch, actually watch, and then decide to vote for, are very rarely in alignment. Also Hollywood awards shows are mainly publicity events designed to self-congratulate in an insular industry and don't really reflect quality of content or artistic merit but hey they are also FUN TO WATCH!!!! I love watching pretty people dress up, parade about, and then cry publicly. I also love Stephen Colbert.

Let's start simply with the:

 Best Supporting Actors in a Limited Series or TV Movie.

These categories used to be sideshows with maybe an HBO original movie now and again, but they have increasingly become home to major movie stars and high-caliber competition.

The best actress category is essentially a smackdown between the stars of Feud, and the even bigger stars of Big Little Lies with poor Regina King and Michelle Pfeiffer just holding on for dear life:

Judy Davis, Feud: Bette and Joan Laura Dern, Big Little Lies Jackie Hoffman, Feud: Bette and Joan Regina King, American Crime Michelle Pfeiffer, The Wizard of Lies Shailene Woodley, Big Little Lies

I think this one goes to Laura Dern, people love Laura Dern. Let me confess something now to you though: I did not watch Big Little Lies. This is a choice made on intuition and bravado. I warned you not to take these picks very seriously! Let's look at the dudes:

Bill Camp, The Night Of Alfred Molina, Feud: Bette and Joan Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies David Thewlis, Fargo Stanley Tucci, Feud: Bette and Joan Michael K. Williams, The Night Of

This is a trickier category than the gals because it now includes The Night Of, which along with Feud  and Big Little Lies is the other heavy-hitter in the limited series category. David Thewlis was absolutely brilliant this season of Fargo, but I kind of feel like nobody watched this season of Fargo. I also think that Stanley Tucci is a national treasure, one of the jewels in the crown of Great American Actors, but his role in Feud was more flashy than award-worthy. Also kind of feel like nobody watched Feud. Therefore, I'm giving it to Michael K. Williams. Let me confess something now to you though: I did not finish The Night Of.

Onto Best Lead in a Limited Series or TV Movie!

Carrie Coon, Fargo Felicity Huffman, American Crime Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies Jessica Lange, Feud: Bette and Joan Susan Sarandon, Feud: Bette and Joan Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies

I mean, just look at those names, the very best white actresses Hollywood has to offer. Carrie Coon in particular has had a hell of a year, and once again she was transcendent on Fargo (but did people watch it???) Sadly she is out-shined by the blinding light of A-listers Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman, one of whom will surely win this. Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon both turned in unstoppable diva-licious performances on Feud, but Sarandon's Twitter opinions make her untouchable and Jessica Lange's residence in Ryan Murphy-land has taken off a bit of her movie star shine.

Riz Ahmed, The Night Of Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: The Lying Detective Robert DeNiro, The Wizard of Lies Ewan McGregor, Fargo Geoffrey Rush, Genius John Turturro, The Night Of

Honestly, I don't even know what to do with this jumble. I would say that Riz Ahmed (and his gentle deer eyes) is definitely the hottest name there, but also never underestimate Hollywood's desire to reward movie stars for coming to television. I'm just going to go with Riz because I would really like to see him wearing a tux and standing on a platform.

Ok so after dissecting the above categories I feel we have extrapolated the winner of 

Best Limited Series:

Big Little Lies Fargo Feud: Bette and Joan Genius The Night Of

It could also be The Night Of, but hey, I only finished Fargo and Feud so what do I know.

Alright, I'm having fun now. Let's go on to the 

Outstanding Supporting Actors in a Comedy Series!

Louie Anderson, Baskets Alec Baldwin, Saturday Night Live Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Ty Burrell, Modern Family Tony Hale, Veep Matt Walsh, Veep

Now this one is a real puzzler. Louie Anderson, Tony Hale and Ty Burrell have all won previously in this category, but Modern Family feels increasingly like the odd man out amongst these shows. I could also see Alec Baldwin winning here for his send up of he-who-must-not-be-named on SNL, which was equal parts hilarious and intensely depressing. However I am going to be optimistic and think that maybe enough momentum has built for Tituss Burgess to take the win. Titus Adromedon is simply electric and one of the funniest characters on TV. If you have not seen the Lemonade parody from this season of Kimmy Schmidt, you have missed out on true brilliance. It is HERE .

Vanessa Bayer, Saturday Night Live Anna Chlumsky, Veep Kathryn Hahn, Transparent Leslie Jones, Saturday Night Live Judith Light, Transparent Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live

This is a super weird category too, but for different reasons. It's essentially the mega-talented ladies of SNL versus the poignant performances of Transparent, how can you compare these things! You cannot. Also poor Anna Chlumsky, always a bridesmaid. I feel very special love for her, because her character on Veep is my spirit. But just as Kate McKinnon had a red hot year last year, I think Leslie Jones is similarly poised to win. I can predict anything I want! Justice reigns from above!

I am feeling increasingly drunk with power in making these picks. Onward to 

Outstanding Lead Actors in a Comedy Series!

Anthony Anderson, Black-ish Aziz Ansari, Master of None Zach Galifianakis, Baskets Donald Glover, Atlanta William H. Macy, Shameless Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

If you recall this was the category I referenced at the beginning of this post as being emblematic of the changing television landscape. To further illustrate this point I would like you to accompany me on a journey back to the 2006 Emmy Awards. In this category that year, Tony Shalhoub was winning his third Emmy for Monk (a role he would be nominated for a total of eight times) and his fellow nominees were Steve Carrell, Larry David, Kevin James and Charlie Sheen. This 2006 group was all middle-aged white men, two of whom were the leads of broad multi-cam half hours. Today not only do we have much more diverse nominees (both in race and age), but there is not a multi-cam in sight, instead replaced by introspective, often deeply emotional, works. This is a stark contrast that demonstrates a marked change in both episodic content and form, and a satisfying one at that. Don't worry I will ruin all the good feelings in the next paragraph. Even though Jeffrey Tambor has won the past two years, I'm going to bank on a decrease in viewership for Transparent and yolo pick Donald Glover. I make the rules!

Pamela Adlon, Better Things Jane Fonda, Grace and Frankie Allison Janney, Mom Ellie Kemper, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie

To illustrate a very different point, let's play the same game with the women. In ye old Emmys of 2006 the winner was Julia Louis-Dreyfus, with Stockard Channing, Jane Kaczmarek, Lisa Kudrow, and Debra Messing rounding out the nominee class. Both years are full of comedy legends, glass ceiling breakers, and incredible talents... but those are not the only obvious similarities between the slates. If all goes well for the Will and Grace reboot, next year’s Emmys could once again have two of the same nominees from twelve years previous. Despite the tangible progress being made on some fronts, in others (comedy in particular, but also not just comedy) there is a long way to go for women in leading roles, particularly women of color.  There is still a resistance that women (especially non-white women) can be broadly appealing, and worthy enough, of having their stories told. Of course there are shows that are the exception to this-  as I said at the beginning, the Emmys are not a true reflection of the best of what is being done in television, but they are a  good litmus test of what is “trending”.  If peak TV has taught anyone anything it's that there is an audience and an appetite for all different kinds of stories! Let's expand the circle of who is allowed (and then celebrated) to tell them!  Anyway I'm going go with Julia here because she is a non-scary choice for voters, she is a genius, and I think at this point people are wistful for a Meyer presidency.

And finally we have 

Outstanding Comedy Series:

Atlanta Black-ish Master of None Modern Family Silicon Valley Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Veep

Veep has taken this award two years in a row, breaking the iron grip Modern Family held on this trophy for eons. I think Modern Family's days of being an awards darling are over, and Veep's change in show runner may have dampened it's glory. Atlanta and Master of None are too cerebral to generate the winning numbers, lol Silicon Valley, and Kimmy Schmidt is getting long in the tooth. I'm going to say Black-ish, but I can also say whatever I want. Woo this is going straight to my head.

The power-trip is subsiding and fatigue is setting in. Onward to 

Outstanding Supporting Actors in a Drama

Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale Chrissy Metz, This Is Us Thandie Newton, Westworld Samira Wiley, The Handmaid’s Tale

There are the usual suspects in the drama categories, the big name actors, Uzo Aduba, etc. But beloved tear-jerker This Is Us  is making big moves on these nominations. It's the perfect Emmy show:  feel-good, cry-inducing, covers hot button issues without being too divisive. I think This Is Us will hit the Emmy's trifecta of the show people actually watched, bragged about watching, and will summarily cast votes for. Let me confess something now to you though, I did not watch This Is Us.

Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul Ron Cephas Jones, This Is Us David Harbour, Stranger Things Michael Kelly, House of Cards John Lithgow, The Crown Mandy Patinkin, Homeland Jeffrey Wright, Westworld

I'm telling you guys!

Almost there. 

Outstanding Lead Actors in a Drama

Oh god, let it end.

Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder Claire Foy, The Crown Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale Keri Russell, The Americans Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld Robin Wright, House of Cards

The Crown was everything to me, but scientologist or not, Elisabeth Moss turned in one of the best performances I have seen anywhere, ever, at any time. Insert my speech on the need for increased diversity in television here.

Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us Anthony Hopkins, Westworld Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul Matthew Rhys, The Americans Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan Kevin Spacey, House of Cards Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us

Yeah, you can tell people are going nuts for This Is Us by Milo Ventimglia's nomination here. I think Sterling K Brown's win last year for American Crime Story will cement him as winner in the continued This Is Us massacre. Insert my speech on the need for increased diversity in television here.

Finally, we have made it. It's 

Outstanding Drama Series. 

The end is here, and it is a sweet blessing.

Better Call Saul The Crown The Handmaid’s Tale House of Cards Stranger Things This Is Us Westworld

The only real competitor for This Is Us  is The Handmaid's Tale, but I don't think it will be  able to stop the inevitable. You will cry America, and you will cry even harder than you did last week next week. Mandy Moore demands your tears. Succumb.

Okay I'm done phew. This took forever. That's why you're getting it Saturday morning.

If I have learned anything from this rundown, it's that I cannot spell the word category correctly on the first try. I've also learned that most prediction blogs must truly be based on nothing. I hope I have been very transparent about the fact that this one 100% was. Happy watching! Should I live tweet it? If I do it will be @marthadee, come watch!! It will be like you are in my house eating a copious amount of cheese and screaming at the TV with me! Yay we are friends.

XO MD

[dcbicki]

“You’re Gonna See it Someday; It’s Affection Always”

Fandom: Veep Characters: Dan Egan, Amy Brookheimer Pairing: Dan/Amy Rating: T (use of mature language) In which Amy’s pregnant, and Dan already has a plan mapped out for them.

He’s a fucking snake with the eyes of a hawk. Of course he’s up to something. She knows him, better than anybody else probably ever has, ever could.

“And now you’re gonna eat.” He reaches down, picks up a rounded bowl. “Eating for two now, Amy.”

She’s seriously gonna stab him with a fucking spoon.

----

He’s thought long and hard about this. Well, that’s to say he thought of it, considered it for like twenty minutes, and then made up his mind.

He didn’t even need to consider it– not really, not hard at least. It all just seemed rather obvious, now that the cards were in place and the inevitable was no longer deniable.

He knocks once, twice, knows she’ll answer despite it being so late at night because she’s Amy, and she just will.

Dan bounces up in his heels, waits for the wooden door to Room 206 to open and its guest to greet him. He frowns. She’s probably wearing that awful fucking granny nigh- “What?”

Nope. She’s still wearing that dress that looks like a long blouse. It still stops at her knees, still shows off traces of her bra underneath. Oh.

“What?”

“What?” Amy scowls, eyes drawn tight and lips thin. Her body is hard, tense. Fuck. “You knocked on my door, Dan.”

Right. “Can I come in?”

There’s no ‘please’, not even a hint of one coming soon. There are no cherries on top of this, no sprinkles to garnish their massive fuck-up.

“No. And you’ve got one minute to say whatever bullshit you’ve been reciting in your head before I scream.”

She wouldn’t. He’s sure of it.

“Well, aren’t you a fucking delight?” Maybe sarcasm wasn’t really the right idea to start things off, he judges based on the look she gives him. Whatever. “You really want me to let everyone on the floor know of our little sexcapade, Amy?”

“Goodbye, Dan.”

The door doesn’t shut because he pushes a hand up flat against it, and she removes her own, backing down against her will. She still glares up at him, though. She can still look like she hates him, at least.

“You could’ve told me you weren’t on the pill.”

On second thought, maybe blaming her isn’t gonna go down too well either.

Fuck him, and fuck his finger-pointing.

“Yeah, well, you could’ve used a condom.”

One hand curled around the doorway to her room, he sighs, slight aggravation showing in his tone (because she’s not letting him in, because she’s blaming him), “I was told-”

“A low sperm count doesn’t mean no mean sperm count at all, you fucking dildo.”

Dan smirks at that (because he’s an ass, after all), and he leans in closer, “More like a vibrator, angel.”

“Oh, fuck you.”

“Besides,” he shrugs, still towers over her even though she refuses to let him into the room, “You weren’t bitching about the lack of condom when you were riding my dick.”

“You told me not to worry, and because I was as drunk as a freshman sorority girl lying face down in an back ally, I didn’t worry.”

He drank more than she did that night, and they both know it.

“It’s not my fault you couldn’t keep up with me.” He’d been six drinks in, and she’d been five. So close. Damn him.

“You were the one who kept buying me drinks.”

“And yet I wasn’t the only one completely trashed at the end of the night.”

“Fuck you.”

“Can I come in?”

“No. Go back to your room. Go fuck an unsuspecting twenty year old. I don’t care.” She wants to close the door, to slam it in his face so hard his fucking nose bleeds, bruises, breaks.

He won’t budge though, and he’s practically already inside at this point anyway.

He’s asking out of common courtesy, which is almost funny considering Dan is one of the rudest people she knows. He’s fake, too, though.

It’s ironic, because common courtesy was the sole reason she decided to tell him. She didn’t tell him because she wanted to, because she needed him or his money or his help. It was the right thing to do – to tell him of his impending fatherhood, if he wanted it – try as she might to fight it.

“I don’t want to fight, Amy.”

It’s not good for the-

“Well, if you’d have used the brain that the Wizard of fucking Oz gave you at birth, then we wouldn’t have anything to fight about in the first place.”

He kind of wants to tell her that they always find ways of arguing anyway, that there is always just something there as a source of heated conversation between them, a raw nerve left uncovered. He almost wants to remind her of how they once clashed over a flavours of fucking frozen yoghurt. He’s not blind. He knows how they operate, how and why and just how well they work together.

But he doesn’t – doesn’t mention their ever-present, ever-lingering need for eye-drawing disputes – because he knows it’ll only make matters worse. And they’re already in pretty fucking rough shape as it is.

We don’t have to fight now, Amy. We need to talk about this.

He’d tell her this if he wasn’t such a coward, if he wasn’t just two steps away from becoming a full-fledged sociopath, one who craved her attention and cherished her scoldings. It’s that five percent part of him needs to feel loved (so people say), he reckons.

He’d tell her this, but only if their deliciously twisted Machiavellian souls weren’t so damn twisted. He’d tell her this, but he kind of likes it when she hates him.

“Best put on those ruby slippers then, Dorothy. It’s gonna be a long fucking road ahead.”

Campaign trailing and tightrope walking and hormone-fucking-controlled screaming matches. All this until they become parents. All this until the emerald-tinted goggles wear off and all they’re left with is a fucking baby and a fuckload of diapers.

Fuck the wizard, and fuck that analogy.

“Can you leave?” Her lips purse, and he somehow knows that she wants to add a simple ‘Please?’ on the end of that. But she won’t. They don’t do manners. They don’t do nice.

Shoulders raised high and body hunched, her spine is probably fucking screaming out for help. He’s never understood how her spine hasn’t tensed up so much that it shatters into fucking pieces, but he’s always admired it from afar, from too close.

“No.”

No, because you said you pregnant with my fucking kid, so, I don’t know, we should probably talk about it. Maybe? Huh? No? Well, tough shit, Brookheimer.

Dan lifts a brow, in that sharp way he does when he’s testing her, messing with her. Except he isn’t really messing now, but his face has never quite mastered the art of expressing anything other than boyish overconfidence or sheer disgust, so he just looks like a fucking prick instead. Nothing new there then, Amy thinks.

“Why?”

Because we need-

“I ordered room service and told them to bring it here.” He shrugs, nonchalant, ignores the icy blue daggers her eyes bore into him.

Amy lets a moment pass before she speaks again, just watching as he ventures further into her room, not even asking for her approval now. He tosses that stupid beige coat down on the chair beside the dresser, sits down in said chair with one leg crossed over the other at the knee. And he’s grinning. Fucking asshole.

“What did you order?”

She didn’t dare eat enough at dinner, too distracted by his constant nudging and staring. They hadn’t spoken to each other all night; well, of anything other than Selina or her baby that is the White House, that is. They didn’t talk about what was really at the back of both of their minds, pushing its way to the forefront as only their evil fucking spawn could.

“Cravings kicking in already?” He’s messing now, and they both know it.

“Fuck you.” She ignores his look, utterly despises the smug smile – no, smirk – he keeps plastered on his face. She sits on the bed, phone still clutched in her hands. Ring, goddamn it. Fucking ring. “It’s a surprise,” she hears him say, all proud and sounding much like his usual self it’s truly disgusting.

Fuck him and his voice. Fuck him and personality. Fuck him and his shitty genes. Fuck, him.

“You know I can just call someone to come and drag you out of here, right?” She’s not lying, but he knows she’s bluffing. Her hands are sweating, the backs of her knees hot against the bed’s blanket. Is it abso-fucking-lutely vital that he keep staring at her like that?

He taps one hand against the armrest of the shitty chair he’s sat in, sighs in a way that lets her know he doesn’t give a single flying fuck about her threat. “Feel free, Ames.”

“You could at least wipe that shitty grin off your face.” Amy offers, flicking blonde hair behind the shoulder when it starts to stick against her neck, all warm and sweaty. Maybe she’s not pregnant, maybe she’s menopausal already and having a hot flash. Her doctor would disagree.

Just as I thought. You’re pregnant. Congrats, Miss Brookheimer. Would you like to call anyone?

She’d thought about it, about calling him then and there, about letting him know straight away. Hell, she’d thought about dialing his number and just handing the phone over to her doctor to let him learn the wonderful news from someone else.

Hello? Mr Egan? Congratulations are in order. You’re going to be a father.

She’d internally debated all options before making her decision. She’d considered every alternative available to her before making up her mind. She’s getting older, and time is moving faster, and she’s changed (somewhat) as a person.

Fuck.

It’s winter for fuck’s sake, why is her room so hot? Fucking heating.

“You don’t have to be involved. I’m not gonna hunt you down for fucking child support.” She’s a working woman with a job – undetermined, uncertain, unspecified as of yet. She can be a single mother if she has to be.

And she can picture him working alongside her all day everyday, purposely ignoring her pregnancy, and then intentionally avoiding all mention of the kid she’d surely talk about every once in a while. He’d be good at pretending, she knows.

If she told him to go, he’d walk. Quite happily, she thinks.

“You can get the fuck out.”

Of your room? Of your life?

Constantly circling each other’s orbit, casually dancing around an endgame. Maybe they had just been in denial of the inevitable.

“I think I’ll stay right here, thanks.”

His tone contradicts his meaning. He’s smug, but he’s serious.

I’m staying. I’m here. This could work for us. This could for me.

This is a golden opportunity, and not just for him. Maybe it’s a blessing disguised as a fucking embryo, all devil horns and shit-eating smiles.

There’s a knock on the door before he can get another word out, suggest something she’ll either love or loathe. Dan hops up to answer the door, brushing past her legs with the coolest of drafts. She, despite herself, likes it.

“Room service.”

The door swings open, revealing a short white guy dressed in a low rent khaki-coloured uniform. He looks as though someone just killed his family pet, and Dan barely acknowledges him. Poor fucker.

He grabs the handle of the cart – the whole thing, not just a tray – and wheels it into the room before letting go of the truck to pull out some already-counted cash from his back pocket to tip him, “Thanks, buddy.”

Door slamming shut, he spins back around to come face to face with Amy, only a couple of steps away from him, eyes squinting in distrust. He smiles – that motherfucker – and makes a note of her phone lying on the bed. Finally.

“What kind of game are you playing?”

“Why do you assume I’m playing a game?” He has a new job, his own fucking business for Christ’s sake. He is settled… kind of. He’s a grown adult who fucks people and fucks with people as a favourite past-time. “Jesus Christ, am I not allowed to order food for the mother of my child?”

She feels something twist into a knot in her stomach at that, and it rises to burn in her throat. Bile. Vomit.

Don’t ever fucking say that again. Please. Jesus.

“You didn’t eat much at dinner.”

“You kept staring at me, and I had shit to do.”

“And because I was staring I know you weren’t eating.”

She chooses to ignore the slight hint of concern he’s showing. He’s a fucking snake with the eyes of a hawk. Of course he’s up to something.

She knows him, better than anybody else probably ever has, ever could.

“And now you’re gonna eat.” He reaches down, picks up a rounded bowl. “Eating for two now, Amy.”

She’s seriously gonna stab him with a fucking spoon.

The motherfucker ordered what looks like one of everything, and she would thank him if he wasn’t just so naturally, perfectly, plainly sketchy.

“It’s your fault, by the way.” She’s not claiming responsibility for their latest fuck-up, “You were the one who said you couldn’t get your fucking swimmers to the finish line.”

He holds up both hands, blamelessly, “Then I guess you’re just an extra special swimming pool.”

“Fuck you.”

“Maybe later I’ll let you.”

Can she kill him with a spoon? Can they legalize spoon-killing? Fuck, she’ll settle for spooning his eyes if she has to.

Eyes narrowing, Amy finally gives in. Not for his sake, but because she’s hungry as fuck and there are like twenty dishes in front of her. Screw him, him and his tall, towering ass.

“Fine.” Those cravings aren’t going to kick in for some time, she knows, but she’s desperately craving something sweet. And that bowl full of caramel – is that fucking salted caramel? – ice cream looks near orgasmic.

Dan smirks, so much wider than before that it almost resembles a true smile, when she snatches the white bowl containing the dessert from his hands and sits back down on the mattress, completely ignoring the flashing notifications on her phone.

They can get to work tomorrow. Selina and her attention-seeking ass can wait. Nothing’s going to change because Amy ignored a couple messages. Well…

“Good?”

She’d toss the bowl at him if she wasn’t so damn hungry. So instead she just nods and raises a brow, challenging him, “Join me?”

He brushes off her invitation, making his way back over to the uncomfortable chair by the dresser, “You told your mom?”

Why, because you wanna fuck her too, and claim vagina-rights to all three Brookheimer women?

It takes everything she has in her to bite her tongue, to stop herself from saying this. Fuck him, and fuck her sister.

“She does love me.” He speaks more to himself than to her, and Amy scowls, lowering the pot down into her lap. It’s cold through the material of her dress, and she’s grateful.

The metal spoon clangs against the side of the bowl when she lets it slip from fingers, and she’s somewhat surprised when Dan leans forward and grabs it from her hands. Why the hell are his hands so warm? He’s supposed to radiate frost, not heat.

“My dad fucking hates you.”

“Your dad would hate anyone who touched you. Not just me.” He’s softening the blow to his ego, she notes. Asshole.

“He liked Buddy.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t.”

He’s not entirely wrong. Damn him.

“Whatever.”

There’s another bowl being placed into her lap then, and his hands remain cupped around the porcelain until she reaches for it. He retracts, carefully avoiding her touch.

“Are you trying to make me fat so you can add that to your list of reasons to bail? That’s low, Dan. Even for you.” Her tone is mocking, and he knows it. So he grins, because he knows her better than anybody.

“If I was gonna bail, I wouldn’t be making sure you were looked after.” It sounds deeper than he means it to be, he reckons, “Amy, if I was gonna abandon you…,” Dan pauses, glances down at her stomach for only the shortest of seconds, “or it… I wouldn’t be in here.”

Shit. He gulps, almost sighs until she cuts him off.

Eyes closed, she breathes through her nose, does that thing where her neck strains and her body tenses, “You can’t abandon someone unless you were ever there for them in the first place.”

“Well, I’m fuckin’ here, aren’t I?”

You getting worked up there, Danny? Gary would grin like a toddler on a sugar rush and Jonah would come out with some shitty joke that only he would ever find funny. Selina would tell him to sort out his goddamn sour puss and get on with it.

His lips are drawn thin, brown eyes wide, throat tight.

“Why the fuck are you in here?” She wants to shout, but it’s late and Leon fucking West is in the room next to hers. Then again, that twice-flushed turd’s probably got a glass pressed up against the wall right now anyway, eavesdropping on a conversation she’d rather not be having.

He’s a bastard – a heartless one, he knows – but he’s not a fucking deadbeat.

Fuck, his dad’s a deadbeat and his mom’s a saint, but that never stopped him from becoming Satan’s whore in male form. But that didn’t mean he wanted to follow suit.

(And her family’s no picnic either. He doubts she wants to turn out like either one of her parents.)

(And he definitely – oddly, he knows – doesn’t want her to end up like her sister, all unfathered kids and fried aspirations.)

(She’s not just some random woman that he fucked.)

(She’s smart, and his equal.)

(She’s fucking Amy.)

So we jump together. Butch and Sundance.

If she’s in this for the long haul then he will be, too. If she’s keeping this baby (his baby), then he’s keeping her close by. If she’s ready for this, for change, for restless nights and shitty diapers at two o'clock in the fucking morning, then he’ll join her.

No point in beating a dead horse when it’s already done and buried. No point in delaying the inevitable any longer, pushing fate past its due date.

They fucked, and now they’re fucked.

We jump together.

(She’s Amy, for fuck’s sake.)

“Because you’re gonna fuckin’ marry me.”

[deathitsclff]

MUN STUFF.   /   remember to repost, not reblog.

NAME: rachel  GENDER: female EYE COLOR: brown HAIR COLOR: brown RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single  ZODIAC: gemini FAVORITE COLOR: right now teal FAVORITE SEASON: summer FAVORITE PLACE: at home  FAVORITE VIDEO GAME: legend of zelda: ocarina of time LAST SHOW YOU WATCHED: veep WHAT’S YOUR HONEST OPINION ABOUT YOUR MUSE?: i would literally die for elektra natchios she has never done anything wrong ever WOULD YOU DATE YOUR MUSE?: i would WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE KINDS OF THREADS?: the stuff where elektra gets to grow as a character. so like my thread with @untolikeiron where she realized she let bullseye kill her. or i think my thread with @focusedtotality where she says she wants to restart the chaste is going to be really good. i’d literally kill for a chance for elektra to talk to matt openly and honestly.  ARE YOU A SELECTIVE ROLEPLAYER?: definitely. you have to be. look it took me a long time to realize this was a hobby. it’s something i do for fun. you have to sort of try and put fun first or it becomes a job.  DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE MUSE?: oh god i can’t pick one.  WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO JOIN THE FANDOM?: i read all of elektra’s appearances. and i loved her. and i wanted to play in the marvel fandom. i’d already been in the marvel fandom once before like a trillion years ago. but i decided to come back to play elektra.  DO YOU SEE YOURSELF STAYING WITH THE FANDOM FOR A LONG TIME?: i hope so. 

tagged by: @epiicenter tagging: whoever wants to do this!

[justamilkshake]

Things This Week

May 1st to May 7th

TV: Monday was amazing as usual. We started with The Leftovers. It was a great episode, the Lindsay Duncan scene was so sad. I already miss this show. Veep had Minna in it! She is always so funny. The Last Man on Earth was as funny as always. I’m scared that it is about to be cancelled. The Simpsons (the only show I watch by myself) was fun enough. 

Jane the Virgin and The Americans were both amazing, highlights of their respective seasons for sure. The Handmaid’s Tale was a bit of a let-down this week, probably because the first three episodes were so good. But it still has Elizabeth Moss’s acting so... And it was renewed for a second season, so it will be interesting to see how far the novel takes them. 

Fargo was Carrie Coon-centric and that is never a bad thing, but still, I’m not getting into this season. Modern Family was as terrible as usual (why do we watch? Good question. Let me know if you find out the answer) but at least Niecy Nash guest-starred. Because we don’t follow enough shows we have decided to watch American Crime. Seeing Regina King in her small role in Boyz n the Hood last week made it clear that we have to watch everything she’s ever been in. So far the first seson is interesting if a bit bland.

Friday brought Grey’s Anatomy which was great as usual and Riverdale which was terrible as usual. Out of our completist hearts we are watching the finale but that will be it. We also watched the very good second episode of American Gods (with Gillian Anderson!).

However, the show of the week has been Sense8. Netflix released the second season and we binged it in a 24 hour period. Because we had to work, otherwise it would have been a 10-hour period. Because Sense8 is everything. This season was amazing and funny and I was tearing up every three scenes. The core of the show, that is, the revolutionary idea of empathy as a superpower is something that gets me everytime.

Movies: For the Queer Challenge we watched Queer Palm Winner Skoonheid. We started the Apu trilogy with the amazing Pather Panchali. Boyz n the Hood was also incredibly good, it is sad that John Singleton doesn’t direct more often. 4th Man Out and Gifted were far more charming than I anticipated. This last one we watched during a 2017 mini-marathon with Fifty Shades Darker (better than expected) and The Discovery (worse than most things).

We also finished the Cannes Proje(c)t 2017 by watching Ruben Ostlund’s Involuntary. And all I can say is thank god Elisabeth Moss is in his new film. On Sunday we went to a movie theatre in what felt like ages to see the astonishing new film by James Gray, The Lost City of Z. Really, really, really good. We finished the week with Lights Out and I was so scared the whole time.

Food: It was a great week foodwise. We went with M to Hard Rock Cafe. We had Indian food delivered. And we closed Sunday with a post-movie drink at Garra and a little McDo.

Books: I’m still reading America’s Women and The Heart Goes Last.

Thesis: Ha! Thanks for asking.

All in all, my life is way better than yours.

[brendanmoviedate]

"Nobody will ever notice that. Filmmaking is not about the tiny details. It's about the big picture."

All through 2015, I’d been hearing about people doing a new-movie-a-day challenge starting January 1st and ending December 31. It seemed like a great idea for clearing through my watch list and an excuse to get out to the theatre more. 

So for 2016, I decided part way into January that I was going to go for it. By that point, I was only a few movies behind, so how hard would it be to catch up and get to 366 (I just had to pick a leap year for this) by December 31? Well, by April, I was about 15 movies behind, and this was with watching three or more films every Saturday while my girlfriend was in class. Still, I was confident - my girlfriend would be going to school in London starting in September, so I’d have lots of free time to cram in some extra movies. 

Flashforward to October, and an outdoorsy summer and month-long trip to the UK found me around 80 movies behind pace. Not good. I thought about giving up, but I’m too stubborn and foolish to let go of stupid things like this. October was rough. I watched movies all weekend, every weekend. I found the movies on my list that were less than 90 minutes, so as to pile on an extra film or two. By the end of the month, I had watched 100 films in 30 days. Halfway through December I reached 366, capping out at 374.

What did I learn?

This type of challenge really fucks up your decision-making abilities

When trying to decide between going out and watching a movie, or reading and watching a movie, or doing chores and watching a movie, or grabbing a meal at a restaurant and watching a movie, watching a movie always seemed like the right choice, just to get me closer to that goal of 366. Every time I chose to do something other than watch a movie, I felt anxious that this could have been the one movie keeping me from reaching my goal. It was rough. I’m only now getting over this feeling and it’s already March (spoilers: I’m never going to do this again).

The “only new movies” clause really stung

There were so many times when I wanted to watch a recent favourite, but couldn’t justify it. Mad Max: Fury Road, 22 Jump Street, Nightcrawler, Sicario, et al. kept beckoning me, but I would invariably choose something new.

Peak TV takes a backseat

With only a few minor excpetions (Veep, Silicon Valley, Game of Thrones), my TV watching for the year plummeted. I was already behind on shows like The Americans, Orphan Black, and Fargo that I really wanted to watch, but multi-episode seasons would eat up too much prime movie-watching time.

You don’t always watch what’s good, only what’s available

Netflix is so diluted at this point with direct-to-video releases and Netflix originals starring Adam Sandler that finding something of quality to watch was always difficult. Often I’d find myself watching a mid-2000s action movie instead something from my iMDB list just because it was on Netflix. Other times, even if I film I’d wanted to watch was on Netflix, like Son of Saul or Leviathan, I’d watch The Book of Eli because I was already too worn out by a day’s worth of watching movies. 

A movie-a-day only really makes sense for those who can watch a movie a day

Work+girlfriend+dodgeball+hockey+friends meant I had only two or three days a week to squeeze in movies, necessitating regular marathons. It really defeats the purpose of the challenge and wears out the viewer on a physical and psychological level.

Korean thrillers are awesome

I watched a number of excellent films from some of Korea’s best directors, mostly in the horror and/or thriller genres. Bong Joon-ho’s Memories of a Murder and The Host, Kim Jee-woon’s The Age of Shadows, Na Hong-jin’s The Wailing, and Yeon Sang-ho’s Train to Busan all explored well-trodden movie tropes from fresh perspectives and made choices that North American filmmakers would normally shy away from. All of these films are classics that I can see myself revisiting over and over again. Of these films, Memories of a Murder is probably my favourite, serving as a Zodiac-like look into the futility of murder investigations. I should also mention Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden here, but I’ve talked about that masterpiece twice already.

Brian De Palma is an underrated master

Unabashedly fixated on voyeurism in his films, De Palma constructs tightly scripted, twisty plots that focus on peeping, spying, surveilling, and stalking as a means of telling a vast breadth of stories. His films are sleazy in all the right ways, but he brings to his low, almost uncomfortable, subject matter a brilliant technical understanding of film. Raising Cain, Body Double, and Dressed to Kill are all great examples of his craft, but it’s 1981′s Blow Out, starring a never-better John Travolta that is the perfect synthesis of his methods and methodology. The use of sound, split-screen, and split-diopters to focus on foreground and background at the same time is as captivating as the plot.

The worst movies were unfunny comedies

This probably shouldn’t have come as a surprise to me, but the worst kind of movie is an unfunny comedy. Not necessarily comedies with unfunny jokes (which, don’t get me wrong, are also nigh unwatchable), but comedies without jokes whatsoever. The films I’m talking about are those that are considered comedies because they weren’t serious enough to be dramas or tense enough to be thrillers, but instead just some stuff happens to the characters that provides a minor conflict or misunderstanding before an uninspired resolution. Fortunately, I only saw a couple of these, but they were painful enough to leave scars - The Overnight and the deliberately ironically titled The Comedy. The less said about The Overnight, the better, but I’ll at least faintly praise The Comedy for being a deliberate joke on its audience by being so gleefully unfunny.

I’m finally on board for the Fast & Furious franchise

After a meh first instalment and a horrible sequel, this franchise was as good as dead to me. With Furious 7 dominating the box office and positive word of mouth for the series finally drowning out my doubts, I decided to hop back into the franchise with the third instalment, Tokyo Drift. This film wasn’t by any means great, but it was engaging and personal in the way that the first two weren’t. When the next film cut back to Vin Diesel and company, I was slightly disappointed, as the band of thieves dynamic didn’t really meet my needs. However, it was Fast 5, when the franchise got a Dwayne Johnson injection, that it became an over-the-top superhero team-up movie. This film was absolutely insane, culminating in a getaway chase with a giant vault tied behind the vehicles demolishing half of Rio. The next two films failed to live up to Fast 5, but still featured cartoonish lunacy in the form of a wedge car vaulting other vehicles into the air and Dwayne Johnson flexing out of a cast.

The films of the 70′s and early 80′s continue to impress me

We’ve all heard that the 1970′s were the true golden age of cinema. Godfather this, Annie Hall that. But there’s so much more of value than the masterpieces everyone lauds. Sorcerer, Possession, The Warriors, Marathon Man, and The Taking of Pelham One Two Three are all vastly different films, but all have incredible performances, perfect pacing, and are utterly captivating. Sorcerer, about a group of drivers carrying unstable dynamite through treacherous jungles, and Possession, featuring Sam Neill as a spy watching his wife’s character slowing change into something else, both stayed me long after they were over, due to their incredible suspense and shocking outcomes.

Lilo & Stitch might be my favourite Disney movie

The Disney Renaissance died after the release of Mulan, with Tarzan, The Emperor’s New Groove, and Atlantis: The Lost Empire failing to capture imaginations the same way Aladdin or Beauty and the Beast did. Combining this decline with my bumbling journey through adolescence, it’s only natural that I’d didn’t give them a chance. So it’s with great regret that I did not see Lilo & Stitch until 2016. This film has all the heart and morals of a typical Disney film, but it’s incredibly funny as well. This was one of the movies I laughed at the hardest last year, mostly due to the antics of Stitch, who seems part koala and part centipede. This will easily get a rewatch over any of the Renaissance films. I wonder if a live action remake is in the works. 

Return to Sleepaway Camp is as boring and tone deaf as Sleepaway Camp is fun and outrageous

Sleepaway Camp is a notorious cult classic, featuring campy performances and low tech slasher violence as well as one of the most genuinely shocking and disgusting reveals I’ve ever seen in a film. The image of it's final frame is forever burned into my brain. Naturally, the film garnered a few poorly conceived sequels with no one from the first film involved, which were easy enough to ignore. However, what I couldn’t help but be intrigued by was a “true” sequel from the original writer-director, featuring at least a handful of the original cast. If ever I regret watching a movie, it’s this one. Return to Sleepaway Camp reeked of desperation and ineptitude, from a director who had been far removed from filmmaking for the 25 years since his debut was released. It’s shrill, loud, derivative, boring, and featuring a twist so outrageously apparent for the whole film, it felt like a big “fuck you” to whomever watched and liked the first film. 

The Purge movies are getting increasingly closer to being worthy of their own premise.

The first film in the Purge series was a missed opportunity. Setting up a brilliant premise, where all crime is legal for one night a year, the filmmakers foolishly decided to confine the film to within a single house for an uninspired home invasion thriller. The Purge: Anarchy brought the action to the streets for some expanded world building and introduced Frank Grillo as the new face of the franchise. But it wasn’t until the third film that real characters and an interesting plot developed. The Purge: Election Year is topical, disturbing, and more visually interesting than the previous films; if the series continues in this upward direction, I’ll be completely on board for the annual purge.

As I said earlier, this experiment was taxing, making me feel the crunch of a deadline for an entire year. But despite those struggles, I’d qualify it as a success. For each bad and mediocre film I watched, I watched two that I liked. I found a bunch of classics that I’ll be sure to return to over and over, and a bunch of directors whose filmographies I can make my way through.