Saw multiple movies this week. First was Kung Fun Panda 4, which was cute and funny, as expected. We needed something lighthearted.
Then we saw The Princess Bride, as described in the “Thing you said or heard” thread.
Tonight we saw Labyrinth in the theater, which was fun to see on the big screen. Feel like I have not seen the very beginning often, so it is a surprise to see how much of a whiny brat Sarah comes off as right at first. 
I think that would be Spoon. (Sorry.)
Recently watched both Gaslight (1940 and 1944) for an upcoming Ribbon of Memes. Yes, Bergman, but I’m still really glad the earlier one survived.
I saw Scorsese’s After Hours tonight, which is a film that makes sense to me as his take on a farce, as there are really dark moments throughout*. One moment you’re laughing and the next it’s impossible to even think of laughing (but soon you will be). I’m sure it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I really enjoyed it.
(*) metaphorically speaking, although also literally because it was all filmed at night :).
This is a common topic of conversation for me (I’m a sci-fi writer, I work at a game store and have opinions…).
My basic takeaway from the book (I’ve only read “Dune,” none of the sequels) is this:
The first half of the book is this tense, tightly written political intrigue with deception, assassinations, and a universe of brilliant plots and schemes. The fact that Herbert does all this in third person omniscient is a testament to his skills as a writer… but it’s a dead format for a reason. It’s really hard to do well, and even the best (this part of the book) is clunky by modern standards. That stated, there’s a banquet scene around chapter 4 or 5 that reads like a sword duel, and it’s still one of my favourite chapters from sci-fi ever.
The second half of the book is this massive, sprawling philosophical and theological analysis of destiny and history and what it means to have a purpose. It’s drug-addled in the sort of way that H.S. Thompson might write, but at the same time with a clarity of purpose that ties everything together (even if it gets very deus ex machina at points). Whereas the original is “What if Star Wars but Politics,” the second half is “What if Star Trek But Selfish.”
Is it worth reading? I mean, it’s a book that’s brilliant for its time and by modern standards is still interesting. A part of the reason to read it is that so much of the modern zeitgeist in sci-fi is clearly taking Dune and modifying parts of it (off the top of my head: Jedi, Space Marines, The Empire, martial arts and swords/knives in sci-fi, weaponized mind-reading, the God-Emperor, etc). But it has problems, and it suffers from how good modern sci-fi is by comparison. I mean, Herbert is a goddamn genius compared to Asimov or Clark, but he’s a monkey scratching in the sand compared to Jemisin or Corey.
I’m just rereading Dune now, and that dinner scene is awesome.
HELP!
Amazon tricked me into a prime trial 
… what is on there that I need to binge before I cancel again?
(they still had my old address, that’s how often I order from them)
Amazon Prime is actually a pretty good deal - free delivery, loads of free audiobooks and podcasts, obviously the TV.
Reacher is definitely worth watching, Wheel of Time and Rings of Power are ok, Tales from the Loop, The Boys, The Man In The High Castle, The Expanse, Good Omens, Sneaky Pete, Fargo, Vikings, The Handmaid’s Tale etc
All good stuff
We used to have prime. But since we don’t order much from them anymore and have 2 other streaming services… we canceled.
Thanks for the recommendations:
Between the two of us, we’ve seen almost all of the ones you mention. I was going to keep my trial option for when Good Omens II is out -.- I remember now.
I’ll check out the ones I don’t know
That was just a list of what I remember. I’m sure there are others!
Yes to Reacher, Wheel of Time, Rings of Power. Also The Peripheral and Carnival Row.
If anyone else has recommendations, I need to justify my Prime bill
Prime has a surprising number of shows I’d recommend:
Good: Legend of Vox Machina, Sneaky Pete, Good Omens
Very Good: Sneaky Pete season 1, Invincible
Great: The Expanse, The Boys
And Hazbin Hotel deserves special notice because it’s a crazy fever dream, and I love everything about it.
Then you definitely need to check out Helluva Boss on YouTube from the same creators, in the same universe (Hell).
I randomly found that Paula Deming (from Things Get Dicey) and Katrina Alysha (who I’m not familiar with) have a youtube show called Gallifrey Gals where they’ve been watching Red Dwarf. The episodes are heavily edited, so you don’t actually get to watch an episode of Red Dwarf with them – you more or less need to remember the episodes – but it’s fun. They didn’t have the foggiest idea what the show was, so the first episode was pretty funny!
I really don’t get reaction videos
I’ve seen some that were fun, like a musician watching someone do an unexpectedly good (or bad) version of their song. But the idea of watching someone watch a tv show is pretty much a very big “huh?”.
My take on reaction videos in general is that the appeal is much the same as introducing a friend to something you enjoy and getting to enjoy (a) the thing you enjoy, and (b) their enjoyment of the thing you enjoy. They go “oh wow, this is fantastic!” and you go “I know, right!?” and you’re both amplifying the good time.
The fact that these are strangers on the internet, who have already watched the thing at some point in the past, and who are bringing their reaction to you rather than you bringing the show to them… it doesn’t eliminate the feeling of sharing a thing you enjoy with someone who wasn’t previously familiar with it, and getting to enjoy them enjoying the thing that you enjoy, while you enjoy it.
(And if they’re not enjoying the thing “correctly”, there are no consequences when I immediately cut them out of my life :).
Watching folks discover eg: The Princess Bride for the first time and fall in love with it, and then enthuse about it, is sweet.
Seeing them watch Aliens for the first time and visibly freak out and then enthuse about it is also fun.
YOU know the Luke/Vader conversation in Empire Strikes Back is coming, it’s fun to see people react to it in real time.
When I was at my parents’ place for Christmas this year we watched the entire original Star Wars trilogy with my 12-year-old niece for her first time. You best believe in that scene I was watching her more than I was watching the movie. She did not disappoint. But I do think part of the appeal of that is she’s my niece and I was there with her in that moment. I’m not going to go seeking out videos of random strangers doing the same thing.
I have watched a few videos of these twins who are into music listening to older songs and reacting to them for the first time. I don’t do it a lot, but it is entertaining every once in a while. Maybe because the songs are shorter than a movie or even episode of a tv show so you get the whole experience with them in just a few minutes?
Yeah, songs are what I’ve mostly watched reactions to.
Opera singer Elizabeth Zharoff’s “The Charismatic Voice” channel is great fun, because she genuinely is very charismatic, she has fascinating insights into the vocal performances of whoever she’s watching (across a vast range of styles; almost exclusively not opera), and it’s just fun watching her geek out over stuff.
I did get tired of the sheer glut of rock/metal bands she covers though, which I think is a self-perpetuating consequence of her having gotten traction in that general community, therefore getting endless requests for more of the same, and therefore getting the best return from views/advertising if she continues to cater to those requests (leading to more fans of the same, and around it goes…)
A while back I watched pretty much every reaction I could find to Kasey Chambers’ extraordinary cover of Lose Yourself because, once I’d gotten accustomed to the performance, it was great seeing other people losing their minds by seeing it for the first time.
Sometimes they’re great, sometimes they’re terrible. I find the good ones can be very rewarding viewing, though.
I am surprised nobody mentioned The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel till now. Amazing Amazon show. Short description: A house wive in the late 50s wants to become a stand-up comedian. Great Dramedy, very crazy and hilarious characters. It sometimes reminds me of a theater play with the perfect timing for the jokes in the conversations. If you like witty banter you’ll get a lot of that 
But it can also lean well into its drama, often enough as a commentary about society (especially women’s roles).
Highly recommended!