GLOW

    Glow is a show on Netflix that describes the life struggles of Ruth Wilder. She's an actress that can't seem to find her next acting role but surprisingly,  jumps at an opportunity given to her that's slightly different than what she's used to.

    The opening of the series have wrestling figures in the back so I assume there's plenty of action. However, the start of the episode started with Ruth auditioning for a role, so I figured that the wrestling would come later on in the show if she was auditioning for a role instead of wrestling. Next, Ruth is shown waiting in the bathroom while the person who auditioned her walks in. She asked how her audition went, only to be shut down. The kind woman does however offer her another opportunity later on. By that point, Ruth was ecstatic, she was finally going to find a role to play.
    The following day, Ruth arrives to the building she was instructed to go to but when she gets there, the director says that they'll be wrestling! But wait, she's an actress, what would she be doing wrestling? She then asks the director, Sam Sylvia, if they're going to be playing as wrestlers or actual wrestlers. The director doesn't really help much by saying that he doesn't really know and sends her off.
    While Ruth is still trying to figure out how to pay her bills, a guy climbs through her window. Ruth becomes frantic and angrily tells him to leave. She tells the mysterious man to leave and go to his family because he's a married man but little did I know he was more than just mysterious, he was the husband of someone close to Ruth. Through the night, one thing led to another and the mysterious man did not leave that night
    Next, Ruth is back at the wrestling auditions and convinced another woman to do something outside of the instructions hoping that they'll work in her favorite. To my surprise, the exact opposite happened and resulted in Sam cutting her from the auditions. Ruth puts up a fight but eventually leaves in defeat. 
    Finally Ruth watches wrestling videos of Hulk Hogan in hope of discovering new moves to reclaim a spot in the auditions. The next day she walks into the auditions building dressed as a wrestler and walks in the ring doing “wrestling” moves. Sam just watches from the balcony as Ruth continues her stunt. Until, her best friend, Debbie Egan walks in extremely livid. To my confusion, Debbies enters the ring and tries to face Ruth. Next, Debbie asked Ruth, “Did you sleep with him?” Then, it finally started to click. Ruth had slept with her best friend's husband and Debbie wanted revenge. Ruth tried to run away but Debbies grabbed her and slammed her on the floor of the ring. While they were struggling, the camera goes to Sam, with a slight smurk on his face.
    Even though Ruth struggled to find another acting gig, she finally did. As a downfall, she tried to be different and had a set back instead. Luckily, she did not let that stop her, she came back and attempted to win the director over. In the midst of that, she best friend discovered her scandalous act and wanted nothing else to do with her felt. On the contrary, her best friend storming in there was the reason the director reconsidered Ruth appearing on the television show. Ruth was persistent and I really liked that about her. Despite the fact she made a mistake by sleeping with her friend's husband, if she hadn't, Debbie wouldn't have stormed in there for Sam to even reconsider her being apart of the show. Therefore, mistakes may make up for themselves and always keep trying and never give up on something you're passionate about. 

The Small Huge

Bojack Horseman is a show about people who run away from their problems. Bojack is the prime example of this. He is a washed up actor, only known for a family sitcom in the 90s.  He has crippling alcoholism, and hurts everyone around him. Typically, he lacks any semblance of self awareness. BoJack is met with feelings of guilt, anxiety, and fear when eventually he confronts his emotions and takes inventory of the damage he’s done to other people. He consistently reaches the next “rock bottom,” but these feelings prove too difficult to deal with. Nothing changes. He creates a facade of confidence, but in truth, no one hates Bojack like Bojack. Depression and self hate make up his identity.

In the season 2 finale, Bojack returns from a long break from his typical life, steeling himself against the barrage of abuse he will undoubtedly receive from all of the responsibilities he abandoned, and people he left hanging. However, he quickly finds this is not the case; the movie he starred in, Secretariat, continued filming using CGI. His mooch friend has begun living a comparatively healthy lifestyle after moving out of Bojack’s abode. The people in his life were better off without him. This realization hits Bojack hard, but the emotions aren’t new to him.

After attempting to change various silly things to make his life better, Bojack takes up jogging. Bojack, along with many other characters of the show, have the tendency to want to change the situation, not themselves. This is small, but it’s huge; taking up jogging is the first time Bojack has tried to better himself in a long time. It’s difficult; he’s badly out of shape. A strange jogger that appeared in the background throughout the season gives him this advice as Bojack lays on the ground, contemplating quitting: “It gets easier… Every day it gets a little easier… But you gotta do it every day — that’s the hard part. But it does get easier.”

The show of Bojack Horseman is a hole that keeps digging itself deeper. This line is the single ray of sunshine, and because your eyes are adjusted to the darkness that is Bojack, it feels nearly blinding. After adjusting to it, it’s still almost disheartening. There is no miracle cure. This is the lesson of Bojack Horseman. Horrible situations can’t make you change. Other people can’t. Often, as shown in the show, they are too wrapped up in their own issues. The change has to come from within. It’s hard, and consistency is the name of the game. It gets easier. But you gotta do it every day, that’s the hard part. But it does get easier.

On Arrested Development

This week for my blog post I decided to analyze the Netflix Original series Arrested Development. The series looks into the life of the Bluth family. Even from the first episode it's clear the writers for the show are trying to make this family based sitcom into more than just a way to binge entertainment for a few hours. Throughout the show there are many aspects of family life that the writers indirectly discuss like trust, mooching money, jealousy between siblings and much more.

Abstract: The Art of Design (Episode 1)

Having to write a blog post over a show that could teach you something valuable or educational, obviously my first choice was a documentary. However, I didn't have enough time in my schedule to watch a full blown 90-minute documentary film, so I went to "Docu-Series." However, most of the shows in the "Docu-Series" listing wouldn't work for my writing either because the topic would be hard to write much about or I had no interest in the subject matter.. White Rabbit Project was labeled as a "science investigation," which seemed to have a lot of educational value, but it was made by the people behind Mythbusters, and with no offense to Mythbusters crew or fans, Mythbusters to me is like the Transformers movies of science shows. But that's neither here or there. Regardless, I was left with one final choice that I hoped would work out for me. And it did.

Enter Abstract: The Art of Design.

This show is essentially a biographical series which covers the lives, works, and methods of the world's most important artistic designers, covering fields from architecture to graphic design to automotive design, and more. However, I only managed to watch the first episode due to time constraints. The first episode is about the illustrator Christoph Niemann, who made the cover art for a lot of issues of The New Yorker (as well as the Atlantic Monthly and New York Times). The episode follows Christoph around as he explains his work life in both the past and present (such as his classwork under the famous Heinz Edelmann, who is most well-known as the art director for the classic 1968 Beatles animated film, Yellow Submarine, and his ventures to New York to start work at the New Yorker, and back to Berlin to get away from the stress of the city) as well as showcasing the current project he's working on: A cover of The New Yorker which can be viewed in 3D via tablets and smartphones. If that peaked your interest, well then that's only the start.

One of the most interesting (and quite frankly awesome) aspects of this episode is that there are numerous illustrations of Christoph shown throughout, some done in the past and some even done specifically for the show. What makes them great is that a lot of the pictures have some sort of meaning behind them, and the illustrations allude to it in a clever and sometimes even literal way (I would like to give an example, but it's so hard to describe them without looking at them, so I would recommend searching for them online). Some pictures, though not really meaningful, are pretty great solely because he uses an everyday object (in 3D, NOT drawn) as a basis for a picture, and then draws things all around it (for example, he uses a pair of socks tucked into one another as a "head" for a dinosaur, and then draws the green body around it. That may seem simple and not all that interesting, but there's more. He even makes one with a coffee cup while using the coffee as paint). Given the fact that he even explicitly said his work life and personal life don't gel together and that he gets very stressed easily from his job, I have to commend the man for not only doing sparetime illustrations and the 3D VR cover for The New Yorker, but ALSO do illustrations for this one episode of this show. That's amazing.

The show does have its educational value within art, such as Christoph's demonstration of the 'Abstract Scale" with the famous heart shape, but the educational value lies within the merit. Throughout the episode, Christoph says that his free-spirited, relaxed self and his strict, workaholic self battle quite often, and even at the beginning he says that Edelmann was usually very down on his work. That attitude gave him the boost and belief that he currently uses today. He states that people usually belief to not stress yourself on work and take it easy. However, he says that is NOT how to do it, and stressing yourself to get your job done is a lot better in the long run with your job. Now that's something a lot people can learn, given a lot of people also have stressful, tiresome jobs.

Overall, I'll probably give this show further watches, although as said before, the show revolves around numerous artists and not just Christoph. The second episode in the series will focus on Tinker Hatfield, a shoe designer for Nike and even the creator of the famous Air Jordan line of shoes. Although, I have to wonder what will be done in that episode to liven up the presentation, like with the illustrations in this episode. But anyway, I'm going to check the rest of the series out later, and so should you.

The Fundamentals of Caring

This movie is based around Ben, a retired writer. Needing a new job, he takes a six-week course to become a caregiver. He gets a job taking care of an 18-year-old boy Trevor who suffers from  Muscular Dystrophy . Trevor is a sardonic, anxious boy with a fascination with American roadside attractions. They decide to go on a road trip and see some of these sights. Throughout the road trip they make new friends and have a lot of new adventures. This movie is a good way to learn a few different things but I will touch on two of them.

Lesson number 1. No matter what you have to stay positive. Throughout this movie you watch as they go through many different challenges in everyday life. Trevor whom has a pretty sad life always stays positive; he says funny things about his condition and continuously keeps his head up. In life if you do this you will be happier, you will always have challenges in life but if you face it with positivity you will enjoy life so much more and stay happier.

Lesson number 2. Make the most out of life. Life is full of opportunity and chances and you have to take them. In this movie it portrays this perfectly; Trevor is affected with muscular dystrophy and before the trip spends all of his time sitting in front of the TV not doing anything. After Ben comes into his life it changes everything. This trip is all about him going out and experiencing new things, item about him traveling and doing what he wants to do and getting the most out of life.  This trip changed both of them for the better and made life better for them. After the trip Ben decides to sign his divorce papers and go back to writing. The trip made Ben realized there was more for him in life than the past and that he needed to move on and do more with his life.

These two lessons are very important to know and to think of from time to time. Sometimes when you don’t want to do something or aren’t looking forward to doing it all you have to do is be more positive and think the best about the situation. It’s important to go through life with a positive outlook and to really enjoy your life. Also you only have one life to live it to the fullest, enjoy every chance you get and don’t let it pass you up. There’s one thing that I like to think of when I’m making decisions, I always wonder if I will regret not doing it. I want to do everything life can provide and live it to the fullest, enjoying every moment.

BoJack revisited

For this week’s blog post, I want to revisit a show that I have already done a post on, BoJack Horseman. Since the first time that I’ve seen Bojack about a month and a half ago, I have continued watching it regularly. In fact, I am currently in the midst of season 6. I, personally, have been touched by the show and I have found myself learning and “growing” (growing is in quotations because the actual personal growth of the main character is debatable) with our washed-up TV star as he faces his demons and leaves a path of destruction in his wake. BoJack Horseman raises the question of where exactly the line is between nihilism and depression while also encouraging the viewer to see a mirror image of their own self instead of simply a comedic animation.

The educational value in this particular show does not rest in any ability to be formally taught. No, the educational value in BoJack relies on the viewer, or the “student’s” willingness to receive possibly life-changing information. When we look at characters like BoJack, we set up a boundary between them and ourselves. We believe that the character is only a manifestation of the most shameful characteristics of humanity as a whole. However, when we see this selfish, egotistical, oblivious, arrogant horse, we have no other choice but to recognize ourselves. That is the hardest part about watching the show, is that moment of realization that we are all BoJack.

Considering this, the best situation to use this show as a teaching tool is when we attempt to teach ourselves selflessness and own up to our responsibility for how we interact with others. Think of W.W.J.D or What Would Jesus Do. What Would BoJack Do? It’s a tough question to answer, because though he is a horse, BoJack is one of the most human characters in modern adult animation. In a tough or tense situation, what what would the audience want to see BoJack do about it?

One field of ideology that I never gave much thought to prior to watching BoJack is nihilism. Put in severely simple terms, existential nihilism is the philosophy that nothing in life has meaning or value. Woven into the dialogue throughout this series are statements that align perfectly with an existential nihilistic view. There are many times where a character deems an occurrence not of note because nothing in life has any meaning. While nihilism itself does not appear to cause any harm, it appears that the concepts of the practice coordinate with the thoughts that come with depression or serious existential crises. After becoming familiar with the show, I found myself more familiar with the idea of nihilism and more critical of the differences between depression and nihilism. In that case, BoJack is a great starting point for considering and evaluating various ideologies.

In conclusion, the lessons to be learned from BoJack Horseman are all within. A tool for learning these lessons is exactly what the show is because it encourages and aids in important self-realization and outward thinking. On an external level, BoJack is a comical starting point for exploration of beliefs.  

The Fundamentals of Caring: what are they...?

            One of my all-time favorite movies is a Netflix original called The Fundamentals of Caring. It is about an eighteen-year-old named Trevor with muscular dystrophy who basically has no life at all and is perfectly content with the same routine every day. That is, until, he gets a new caregiver named Ben who wants to get Trevor off the couch and help him live a little. They have a very good relationship because they have the same sense of humor and basically just make fun of each other all the time. Ben finally suggests the two of them go on a road trip while Trevor’s mom is on a business trip so he can get out of the house. It takes quite a bit of persuasion and planning but he is eventually able to get them both on board and they take off to see a bunch of the country’s lamest roadside attractions, including the world’s biggest bovine (basically a cow..?) and the final stop being the World’s deepest pit. It starts out as a pretty typical road trip, complete with lots of silliness between the two: pulling pranks on one another, trying slim jims for the first time, Trevor peeing on Ben while attempting to go standing up, all the normal dude things. But like any classic road trip movie, of course, things never end up going as planned. They pick up two other people along the way that completely change the dynamic of the trip; one being a 21 year old named Dot (Selena Gomez) who develops a budding romance with Trevor, despite him never having talked to girls before, and the other a pregnant woman whose car broke down on the way to her mom who goes by Peaches. Long story short, they end up changing paths a little and going to see Trevor’s dad who abandoned him and his mother at the age of three when he was diagnosed. Yeah, that’s not a coincidence, and it turns out the guy is a huge ass just like you’d think. In the end, they do get to see the world’s deepest pit and each character learned a lot along the way about life and themselves, yada yada yada… It doesn’t sound super interesting when you explain it, but it is very funny in my opinion.

            When I thought of how to turn this movie into a learning experience, several ideas came to mind. You could definitely use it to teach about muscular dystrophy and the characteristics of the disorder. There are also a lot of psychological aspects of the movie, especially involving Ben’s past and why he went into the caretaking business. But the best lesson you can get from this movie I think is actually more of an inspirational one: all the best things in life happen outside of your comfort zone. This is the underlying message of the entire movie if you ask me. Of course a road trip is not out of most people’s comfort zones, but for Trevor this was the scariest thing he’s ever done. His whole life he has eaten the same food everyday, had the same exact routine every day, and stayed in his house at all times of the day. When you put yourself in his shoes and mindset, going on a road trip is one of the biggest undertakings you could ever have, especially when considering the severity of his disorder. It’s safe to say, however, that this trip included the most exciting things that would happen in Trevor’s life and that he’d never be the same after it. He got to eat something other than waffles and sausage, got closure that allowed him to forget about his dad, and got his first kiss with the girl of his dreams that he could barely even say two words to when the trip started. The point to be emphasized here is how scared he was to leave his house in the beginning. Trying new things takes a leap of faith sometimes and is not always the most fun in the beginning, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go for them.

            This might all sound very cliché and lame, but if Trevor can go across the country with basically a bunch of randos having barely ever left his house for eighteen years, then anything that is scary to the rest of us should seem a little less overwhelming. At the very least, this movie shows us that scary things are worth doing in the end.

Stranger Things

Dad,

It took me a long time to decide which show I wanted to write about this week, because I knew you’d be reading it. As I sat there pondering, a recommendation came to me from the last place I ever expected to receive one: in our basement talking with Luke Shawhan. He thought I would enjoy Stranger Things. I had been avoiding hopping on this bandwagon for so long, but I finally caved and decided to watch this show that had captivated all of my peers (and apparently Mr. Shawhan).

I’m going to give you a quick plot summary that I pulled from Wikipedia, because there was honestly so much going on that I couldn’t think of a good way to summarize it: “Stranger Things is set in the fictional rural town of Hawkins, Indiana, during the early 1980s. The nearby Hawkins National Laboratory ostensibly performs scientific research for the United States Department of Energy, but secretly does experiments into the paranormal and supernatural, including those that involve human test subjects. These start to affect the unknowing residents of Hawkins in calamitous ways.”

You know better than anyone that science fiction has never been my favorite genre. I avoid it at all costs, occasionally to your chagrin (think Star Trek). But as I watched this new show, there were a couple of moments that made me think that maybe, just maybe, science fiction isn’t the worst thing in the world.

First, I was really captivated by the number of plot lines that the show was following. It seemed like each character has his or her own detailed background and mystery to solve, which is relatively unique to this show. As I was watching a few of these plot lines unfold and become even more intertwined, I noticed that I wanted to watch more episodes in order to find the answers to questions that I had. I think that by making this show as detailed as it is, the creators ran a risk. If they made it simpler to follow, I don’t think they would be able to keep their audience captivated and hungry for more. But if they made it too difficult to follow, the audience would most likely find the show mentally exhausting and thus not an enjoyable thing to watch. In my opinion, Stranger Things has managed to find the perfect balance between complex and entertaining.

The second thing about the show that really interested me was the use of children as main characters. Normally, a science fiction show involving language and “scary” content would have mostly adult actors, but the main actors in Stranger Things are children. These kids do an incredible job of portraying material that is difficult to grasp, and I wish I was friends with all of them in real life. Regardless of acting ability though, I would like to ask the creators of the show why they chose to use children. Maybe it allows them to interest their audience in a way that most other shows can’t? Maybe they wanted to make the events that occur in the show even less relatable by having an age gap between the actors and the audience? Whatever the reason, the use of child actors has a profound effect on the show as a whole.

There are honestly a lot of other things that make this show an oddity, but for sake of your time and my word count, I think I’m going to conclude with those thoughts for today. Let me know what you think of these observations!

With love from your favorite daughter,

Anna

Future Wife

Alright babe, I'm going to let you know right now. I am a goofball. I'll get on your nerves, make you wonder why you ever married me in the first, and wonder what you're still doing with me. But once our lips touch and I hold you in my arms as you slowly fall asleep, as you are serenaded by the song we were listening to when we first locked lips when we were younger, you'll remember why you love me oh so much. You'll remember why you still get those butterflies every time we share a kiss under the stars.

I hope you like lots of R&B because I grew up on that. With two older sisters who loved R&B it simply rubbed off on me so get ready for lots of Maxwell, Mariah Carey, alittle bit of Ray J, and a hint of early 2000s Chris Brown. Kind of relaxes me when I listen to that when I finish a hard workout. I know you will enjoy it too. When we are driving down I-95 at around 9pm  in my hometown Miami, and I throw on some "Maxwell- This woman's work" and you're about to fall asleep to the sound of his hypnotizing vocals but then forget to give me a kiss before to enter your deep sleep, so you clumsily lean over and kiss me on my cheek before you tell me you love me. Those are the moments we live for and enjoy so much.

For some reason lots of my friends' parents don't like me. I do not know why but its been that way my whole life so I'm going to assume that your dad really doesn't like. Please stop him from nagging me about not taking care of you enough. People tell me daily that I take care of others before myself way too much so I know I'm going to spoiling you. Your dad may not see that so let him know that I'm trying.

I do not know about you but if we ever have kids, I'm shooting for a boy. I'm fine with having a girl too but have you seen how the girls are acting these days? Especially at college parties, I can only imagine what my daughter would be doing in college. If my daughter ends up on DoItForState I'll probably faint. Plus my boy would do alot of daddy stuff with me such as use him as a wrestling dummy or go hunting with me, lots of manly stuff.

But one thing that I ask from you is to not let myself down and do not let me run away from love. I'm telling you this because I am afraid to love. Everyone I loved and held on to are either gone out of my life or passed away and it hurt me alot. It hurt so much that I push people away because I am afraid of love and that love leaving me again. I'm also afraid of letting people love me because I do not want to hurt them because I know how it feels and don't want that on anyone. So if I slowly edge away from you as we sleep, or I pull away from our kiss too early, or catch myself struggling to say I love you, let me know that its okay to love and that we won't lose what we have. I know it seems weak of me but behind every strong man is a stronger woman.

Stranger Things

This weekend, Halloween approached and many people were excited for their beautiful, lovely, or even creepy costumes that they showed each other. This past weekend for me, besides hanging out with my friend, I watched the first episode of “Stranger Things” and wrote a blog post about it. When I chose to watch “Stranger Things”, I knew that this adventure would provide me with many unexpected and maybe even some dangerous experiences. However, you do not know what is waiting for you until you actually do it. Therefore, I was really enthusiastic to watch this show. In this blog, I will discuss horror elements of Chapter One: The vanishing of Will Byers.
The first episode started with a dark scene with the wind whispering. I began to watch the first episode at midnight; so believe it or not, I have already felt scary at the first minute of the movie. The filmmakers are really professional when combining the wind sound and the creepy music with the laboratory scene. Laboratory always makes the audiences visualize that something is really disgusting will jump out from the nowhere and kill the person in that scene. The scene in the movie happens exactly as same as the imagination of the audience. However, the filmmakers have predicted the audiences’ thought, so before that scene, they focused on filming the door without any sound. The effect of this trick is that the audiences may know that after this, there will be something comes out but they do not know when. Then, the door suddenly opens with a noisy sound. Be honest, I was panic, jumped out of my chair and paused the movie immediately. At that moment, I could hear the sound of my heart beating. It is really interesting that the thing comes out of the door is not an ugly creature. It is a scary scientist who tries to run away from anything. Once again, a legendary motive is used in this movie: trying to escape the creature by using the elevator. The filmmakers try to make the audiences think that the creature will grab the scientist from behind and drag him to it. Unfortunately, the catching scene, ironically, begins when the scientist entered the elevator and was ready to escape. What an unexpected way to begin the first episode.
Then in the scene when Will rides back home, it is really horrifying if there is something suddenly appears in the middle of the road. However, before that, the light from the bicycle turned off and then turned on in a few seconds, but this amount of time is enough to distract Will from the road. Then a dark, creepy, and unknown thing popped up. Will was scary and could not control the bike probably. He rode off the road and crashed. As same as another horror movie, Will ran home in frightening and called for help, but he could not hear anything from the opposite. He ran to the storage, loaded the gun and prepared to fight back. However, it was too late. Unlike the beginning of the movie which the scientist was caught when the creature was on the top of the elevator, this time the creature stood right behind him. The filmmaker can reveal the true identity of the mysterious living thing, but the camera only films the light bulb which is brighter and brighter. Then, bang Will disappear without any clue. The thing which the audiences know about this creature is his creepy voice.
The first episode only has two remarkable scenes but it helps me to make a decision: binge-watch this series now. Besides analyzing the horror element in this episode, I want to say one thing to my future family: if you can read this line, you have to know that do not be afraid of doing anything. You have to go with it, and maybe something bad will happens to you. However, sometimes, bad thing can become a good thing if you consider it as an experience.

Big Mouth

This weekend, I viewed Big Mouth. Before watching it, I wasn’t expecting to be impressed at all. After watching the first episode of season one, I was pleasantly surprised, though unsure if the surprise was pleasant enough for me to come back for the second episode. The show introduces a topic that people tend to avoid discussing, puberty, and presents the matter in a medium that many people enjoy. Though the concept isn’t brilliant by any means, it still is something fresh and the execution was very well done. This particular Netflix original is a little awkward and difficult to watch, but very clever and endearing, identically comparable to puberty itself.

Big Mouth is a show about a group of characters going through puberty, judging from the content of the first episode and the titles of the other episodes. Puberty just isn’t something that people think about very often after completing the process, so to see this strange, awkward time reenacted on screen is very interesting. One thing that I was concerned with about this show was the target audience. It definitely is not a show for adolescents going through puberty though I could see how a very well grounded adolescent in that stage could benefit from such a show. I suppose that the show is for people around my age at the time that I’m writing this. Having not been too far removed from those years, I can still remember the common struggles of those times and can laugh at the horror of it all.

I’m assuming that you’re about 30 at the time of reading this blog post. At this juncture, you’re probably noticing that a lot of shows and movies center around being in college or around the age of mid-twenties. This experience that I’m having now while watching this oddly specific show is probably how you feel while watching various shows.

While I was not impressed overall with the show, there were a few things that I can’t deny appeared a stroke of genius. For example, within the first five minutes, the creators effectively established that the characters were going through puberty in multiple ways. First off, the factor that outed the premise was the fact that the main character’s “Hormone Monster” appeared and put him in a compromising situation during class. Even if that particular occurrence had been removed, there were other supporting factors that would tell the audience exactly what we were watching. First off, in a retreat from his friend Nicholas’ parents, Andrew runs into a door frame. While this scene may seem to be a simple thing to look over, the comical genius is the representation of the clumsiness that puberty brings. In the very next scene, Nicholas’ voice hilariously cracks while asking Andrew a question. These two events that happen in succession were the things that made me appreciate the creation of this show so early on. These little details were pure genius.

Big Mouth was more of an entire experience rather than a run-of-the-mill adult animation. I will probably watch another episode or two of the show just for kicks, but this show seems like it would be fun initially and lose its zest and originality later on. But for now, I’ll appreciate the one episode that I’ve seen.

Untrue Crime

American Vandal has pegged the true crime documentary style to a tee. The narrator speaks ominously over still pictures, heavily relying on the Ken Burns Effect. That is, slowly panning across a static image, optionally zooming in or out, to make it less visually boring. Images of evidence and establishing shots are spliced with talking heads giving their personal side of the story one on one with the camera. Often the questions asked by the interviewer are clipped out, and answers are reduced by manipulative editing to give a certain story. American Vandal gives a forecast of their organization of evidence at the beginning of the first episode, and follows this format through the episode, with a surprise twist that indicates not all is as it seems. This is all very par for the course. The difference is, this is a series mockumentary, a la Documentary Now!

A mockumentary is a fictitious story presented as a documentary. They tend to follow a particular style, and many (though not all) are comedies. The difference between Documentary Now! And American Vandal is that the former has completely independent episodes where a different specific style of documentary is drawn from and mocked. American Vandal tells a continuous story. In some ways, this is appealing to me. A continuous story arc is more gratifying, even if it is limiting. Documentary Now! has a format that allows them the freedom to go wherever they wish in the next episode. However, sticking with one story and one style allows American Vandal’s parody to be fully fleshed. The tone is serious, the style imitated is that of Making A Murderer, but the context is… slightly different. American Vandal takes place in the context of a mysterious high school vandalism: Who drew the dicks on all of the teacher’s cars?

The evidence points to Dylan Maxwell. The first half of the episode is spent in the manner that their forecast of organization states. These are the points the school board used to expel Dylan.The evidence is laid out, and it really doesn’t look good for Dylan Maxwell. Even his peers believe he did it. However, the latter half of the episode goes through the points of evidence in reverse, uncovering the side of the story the school board didn’t realize, or purposefully ignored. It becomes apparent that not all is what it seems.

The drama, comedy, stakes, and Dylan are all high. The truth is as muddy as the rivalries are crystal clear; Dylan doesn’t like the teachers, but it’s equally true that teachers don’t like him. Was the heinous crime perpetrated by Dylan? Could it have been another student spray painting the phalluses? Or, a darker option… Could a teacher be framing Dylan Maxwell? Find out!

Big Mouth

Dear future husband,
(I really hope you read that in Meghan Trainor's voice if you're reading this)

     So by the time you read this, Netflix might not even be a thing anymore, but I'm writing this blog post for a class called 'Netflix and Quill' so that's pretty fun. We watch Netflix originals and then write about them in various ways, one of them being a weekly blog post.

     This week I decided to watch this show called Big Mouth, and although we only have to watch the first episode, I went ahead and watched the whole first season whoops. I had no idea what to expect, and it definitely was not like I guessed it'd be. It's this animated show about middle school kids going through puberty, sounds super weird I know, stay with me. In the show there is a monster called the hormone monster that follows the characters around giving them horrible and cliché, but hilarious advice on how to handle everyday scenarios that accompany going through puberty. A big part of its appeal to me and why it was so funny was because it was just so relatable, like so many of the things that happened to the main girl character in the show happened to me at that age. I can't vouch for the accuracy of the boy characters in the show, but I have a feeling they were also extremely accurate. If that show is still around we can watch it and you tell me if you relate to it or if I'm just a weirdo. I'm guessing you would find it funny, because whoever I end up marrying probably has a similar sense of humor; basically what I mean is hopefully you're as messed up as I am. In fact, I can't wait to mess with our kids when they're around that age. The parents in this show were some of the funniest characters, and they were so stereotypically embarrassing parents. I only hope we can be half as good as them at embarrassing our children when the time comes.

     Puberty is such a weird time, it's so crazy how much those few years shape you into the person you'll be for the rest of your life. I have so many cringy stories to tell you from those days, and I'm sure you'll have some good ones as well. I can't decide if puberty is worse for girls or guys, but my gut is to say that it's worse for girls, but I'm also probably just saying that because that's the only perspective I know. I mean one thing that's for sure is that it's no walk in the park for either gender. If you're like me and like to argue about everything under the sun we can hash it out at some point.

     It's a lot harder than I thought it'd be to write to you, having no earthly idea who you are considering I am as single as could be at the moment. I wonder if you are someone that I already know or have ever met... That is freaky stuff honestly. All I know is I am so excited to meet the love of my life eventually, although I have no clue when that will be. It's like a Netflix and chill partner that you get forever, I can't wait to binge watch stuff with you all the time as I'm sure we will. Well, this has been fun, hopefully I'll remember that I wrote this one day so I can show you how lame my twenty year old self was.

Stranger Things for the Future

Hey Future Wife of mine,

I was watching the new season of Stranger Things last night. It's an incredible and interesting show that is a Netflix original, but I'm sure you've already watched it. If you haven't watched it though, let me give you some info to help get you interested in it.

Stranger Things is noteworthy for many things, but one of my favorites is how faithful they are to the time period they're attempting to recreate. They show off the 80's in a great fashion. The outfits of the characters really put of the 80's vibe. The setting of the show, such as the arcade, or the characters looking for coins in their couches, are all great ways to show that they're in the 80's. Sometimes, shows will use a time for plot advancement and not take it to heart, however, Stranger Things shows off how a show can love a time period and really embrace it.

Another amazing thing about the show is the actors. The actors of the show are passionate and really show the love for their characters. So far, I've never had a character that I roll my eyes at or sigh whenever they come on. Every character has had a great actor and great lines that fill that character. One of my favorites is Finn Wolfhard, because he's a good actor, but I've also seen him on Youtube channels I like, such as the Game Grumps. And, he's also got a really cool last name. He isn't the only character that creates a great environment in the show. Every other main character, and even supporting ones are great.

Overall, there's many things to be said about Stranger Things, but if you are my future wife, then I know you'll enjoy Stranger Things. It's a show that is passionate about everything it does, including the vibes it gives in regards to character, setting, and sound. It is a must watch.

1922: Killing is Bad, m'kay?

1922 is the latest Stephen King adaptation to come out this year and the second to be released and distributed by Netflix. Directed by Zak Hilditch, the film follows the James family as they endure internal fighting in 1922, leading to father Wilfred and his son Henry (Thomas Jane and Dylan Schmid, respectfully) murdering Arlette, the family's unloving wife and neglectful mother. Without getting into spoiler territory, the rest of the film details the effects the murder has on the family, leading to complete misery.
In a year in which It was very good, Gerald's Game was very good, and The Dark Tower..... was a movie, I think 1922 takes the cake and is also one of the better King adaptations of the past 30 years, maybe all time. While I don't think the film holds a candle to King's best adaptations, I do think it is easily on of his ten best.
All of the performances here are terrific, especially Thomas Jane. Jane was previously in another King adaptation The Mist and now returns to give the performance of his career. Even though his character is a cold blooded murderer, Jane is able to give his character s strong level of likability and sympathy. Dylan Schmid's performance as the son Henry was also great, especially considering his role had to have the most range associated with it. Schmid has to go from innocent quiet farm boy to selfish mean spirited in the blink of an eye, something a young actor like himself pulls of quite convincingly. To round out the cast is Molly Parker as the cold Arlette. Parker is also fantastic here as she is terrific at playing such a soulless, selfish, unlikable character. She's so unlikable that it doesn't surprise me that the two guys wanted her dead.
The atmosphere of the film is also terrific as the film feels very eerie and tense throughout. This is a combination of the directing, the solid musical score, and the setting. A horror film set on a mid American farm is nothing new, but the reason for that is because it can be so effective. With the score, it sounds eerily similar to The Shawshank Redemption (ironically another King adaptation), except there is something much darker and sinister going on with it. You can just tell listening to the music that something bad is going to happen. I think the score played a big part in making the film as good as it was. Finally is the directing by Hilditch, who clearly had a good vision for the story and what he wanted to bring to the table. Instead of directing it as a straight horror film, Hilditch decides to film it more as a drama-psychological thriller that definitely helps to distinguish itself from other King works as well as the other horror films to come out this year.
The final thing I strongly want to focus on here is the fantastic themes of the film. Even though what Wilfred and Henry do is completely wrong, they still do have actually decent reasons. Not only is Arlette the definition of a woman you don't want to be a mother or wife, but she was going to uproot the family to the city, destroying Wilfred's livelihood and ruining Henry's relationship with a farm girl which clearly is more than just a fling. On top of all of that, neither character is inherently a bad person. That all said, the murder destroys their lives as Wilfred begins to slip into madness and Henry life is ruined as he falls down a path of crime. What makes this all the much better is that they both get away with it in the end. It really is great to see a movie that deals with murder and is bold enough to say that maybe going to jail isn't the worst consequence of murder. This is all summed up by Wilfred at the end of the film with his final lines being, "In the end, we all get caught." He might not have been caught by the police, but he was caught in a much darker, moral way. So many films romanticize murder making it look like nothing. This is a film that decides instead to show what murder might actually do to someone psychologically.
It is a horrible thing to take another human being's life, something that is against every human law this Earth has ever had. It is never okay, even if you have the "best intentions." Murder is something you'll have to live with for the rest of your life, behind bars or not. To my future child, it is never okay to kill someone, no matter what. To finish with a quote from Clint Eastwood's Best Picture Winner Unforgiven: "It's a hell of a thing, killing a man. Take away all he's got and all he's ever gonna have."
Anyways, if you get a chance to check it out, I highly recommend it, especially with Halloween just around the corner.

Iron Fist, a spoof?

Marvel's Iron Fist is the fourth of the Marvel live action show's on Netflix. This is also the one I've been told is often considered the worst of the shows. Well before I watch Marvel's Defenders and thereby rounding up this sort of mini series I had to watch this. A quick note, because of my busy schedule and limited time frame to watch these shows I only ever get to watch around 2-4 episodes of a show, so these are mostly first impressions over reviews. My first impressions of the show, I see why people may not like it, but I do find it oddly enjoyable.

Lets talk the cast first, because they are always slighted when talking about the show. Finn Jones as Danny Rand/Iron Fist is serviceable. His performance is rather dry, and his attempt at trying to seem like a zen but out of this world monk comes off as a weird hipster. This isn't helped by: his appearance, being homeless, usage of an I-pod, not wearing shoes, and his beard. He really is the stereotypical hipster, which if that's what he was aiming for, good job, but I didn't really care for him. All of the Meachums are getting lumped together as their acting is on the same level. Save for Jessica Stroup as Joy, they all have this sort of attempting to be distant and uncertain, insidious genius. They come across as either robotic or like cardboard. I can't decide which is the better metaphor here. Joy is supposed to be the good guy of the Meachums and rather quickly comes to his support. She's capable of emoting some emotions well, and the scenes she's allowed to do them are some of the best ones in the show. Jessica Henwick is Colleen Wing, a martial arts instructor. She is supposed to be the, I don't know actually. If I had to take a guess she's either a secret assassin that turns traitor, or the rival anti hero with a dark past. Her acting is stiff at some points. If I had to compare it to anything it would be a slightly better than average child actor. I've never heard of any of these actors before, so I'm going out on a limb and saying that most of these faults are down to inexperience. This doesn't wipe away the flaws they have in the show, but I don't want to say they're bad actors.

What I do enjoy about this show, and why so many people seem to dislike it, is how different it is from the rest of the Marvel's series. We're not in Hell's Kitchen at this point, and the show is far more light-hearted than its siblings. It carries a certain amount of a blend of the old martial arts movies and the super hero genre. It's the sound that made me enjoy it. The way it blended with the fights, which are far simpler and less choreographed than the rest the series, gave it a B-list action flick. I found this oddly charming in the puppy just pissed on itself sense. It's stupid and should have been done better, but that's what made me enjoy the show. Even the back story is oddly inserted that it works. Trained by mystical warrior monks is the back story of so many cheesy martial arts stories that I could only be charmed by nostalgia. The scenes have a slight self awareness of just how dumb it is, and that's when the show is at its best. I do not like the drama that goes on in the show. It's too serious and doesn't have this slight self awareness of how dumb it is. These are also the most stilted scenes in the show.

To give my full thoughts on the show. It's not all that good, but it doesn't have to be good for me to enjoy it. I honestly enjoyed just how underwhelming it was. It took me back to when I didn't heavily over analyze shows and just enjoyed the fight scenes. TLDR the shows trash, I'm trash, and I just learned what nostalgia is.

This post was very tonally confused. A lot like the show I was discussing.

The Magic School Bus Rides Again

I feel like to do this entry justice I have to start off with the trademark old-folk saying, so here goes. Back in my day, Magic School Bus was the best show out there for pure, unintentional learning about the science basics. I think back then everyone knew the theme song by heart, could tell you which character they related to most (even though some people couldn't admit that they were totally Arthur), and wished their science teacher would take them on the spontaneous, magical, often dangerous "field trips" like the kids of Ms. Frizzle's class. Kids' shows nowadays are a little disappointing compared to the classics such as Sesame Street, Looney Tunes, Dora the Explorer, and Magic School Bus. I mean, seriously, what even is Dog With a Blog???  Anyway, the point of this is that Netflix came out with a School Bus remake called The Magic School Bus Rides Again and I'm thrilled. Maybe not so necessary for my generation, per say, but for the younger generations currently and those of the future, this is great news.

To properly do the show justice, I went back and watched the pilot episode for the original Magic School Bus series and immediately followed up by watching the pilot of the Netflix's. The original theme song brought back so many memories of eating oatmeal on the couch of my childhood home and I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Netflix version, although in a different cartoon style with a slightly more modern take, was virtually the exact same. One thing I think we all loved about the original was the Ms. Frizzle's fearlessness and quirky personality that was expressed time and time again by her outfit matching the activity they were going to do that day (see photo below). The new show picked up right where the original left off and for an easier transition, the new Ms. Frizzle happened to be old Ms. Frizzle's younger sister, HOW CUTE. With the same spunk and jazz for science, the new Ms. Frizzle was a nice addition to the show that I, for one, appreciated. Some other things I noticed were mostly focused on the updated cartoon style and how it was a definite improvement to the classic, yet still brought you back into your childhood days watching the old episodes. To better explain, there are two scenes from the classic and the remake below. Let's pick out the similarities and differences.

  

Just in general upon looking at the scenes, you can tell that the kids' key features are still intact, for example Ralphie's iconic red hat: still there, both Frizzle's outfits predicting the episodes theme: still there, and although you can't see it in these photos, Liz the lizard helper: still there! Like mentioned above, the only real differences are the new Ms. Frizzle, the updated cartoon style, and the name of the show. Overall, a big thumbs up because the classic was great on its own and didn't need a lot of improvement. Remakes of the old shows are great, if done correctly, because not only do the kids like them, but the parents watching do too because they serve as good little reminders from their own childhood.

This makes me really hopeful that for kids in the future, smart TV companies will continue to remake and improve upon the classics of the 70's-ish/80's-ish/90's-ish and give them the fun education that we all had. Hopefully Magic School Bus keeps on riding because it's a goodie. I'm crossing my fingers for all of you future kids!

Strangers Things to a Friend

If there’s anything that I like to share with my friends, it is my love of shows and movies that send chills up and down my spine.  It doesn’t matter how much a horror or scary show or film creeps me out, but they always keep me crawling back.  I have found that Stranger Things offers a great mix of dynamic character development, spine-tingling moments, conflict caused by mental distress, and uncertainty about the future and even the past.  The third episode specifically delves much deeper into Eleven’s past and the events that transpired.  Will’s mother, Joyce, has continued to descend deeper into the mental dissonance that Will’s disappearance has brought her.  All of these elements slowly compound into issues and conflicts that translate into tense and frightening moments that always get me excited.

Beginning with uncertainties that are the cause of much the excitement surrounding the show, Eleven’s past and her abilities, Will’s disappearance and how unpredictable it has made his mother, and the uncertainties brought up about the Hawkins National Library all add to the experience that so many Stranger Things fans, including me and my friends, enjoy.  Episode three presents many of the memories that Eleven has about her past and the trouble it has caused her.  Earlier in the series, one of Eleven’s memories presented two men carrying her away while she screamed after another man, calling him “Papa”.  In episode three, however, while she was being carried away by the same two men, before being thrown into a room, she was able to free herself.  Immediately after this, the man she called Papa came after her and consoled her,  In previous episodes, the audience was made to believe that he was a “bad guy”, but now that may not all be true.  Their relationship continues to be a source of excitement and uncertainty for me.  Next, Will’s mother, Joyce, has experienced emotional distress that has caused her to go to new lengths to find her son.  During episode there, she begins attempting to communicate with Will through lights.  Not only focusing on her actions, but the reaction that others have to her behavior is what causes most of the uncertainty and excitement for me.  In episode three, no one believes what Joyce is telling them about how she is communicating with Will and that she sees monsters coming out of the walls.  Her perseverance to continue searching, despite this, allows for the viewer to continually depend on her to be the one who will eventually find Will given that everyone believes that Will has died.  Lastly, the investigation of the Hawkins National Laboratory by Sheriff Hopper was a main focus in episode three.  Hopper begins doing heavy research into the lab and the secrets they may be keeping.  With the research, Hopper found that the Lab has performed research on humans, as evidenced by pictures of Hawkins Lab researchers with their lab subjects dressed in hospital robes.  With this, Hopper also found out that the research performed by the Lab was national government-sanctioned, meaning that any research they perform would be completely classified and that any truth may be extremely difficult to uncover.  As the search for Will continues, the tension that the town is wrapped up in only intensifies.  

I do not watch Netflix often, but almost anyone, including myself enjoys an amazing story especially those involved with what may be supernatural such as Stranger Things.  The show very slowly unravels the disappearance of a child until unrest is spread throughout an entire town.  The uncertainty leads to elevated levels of excitement and anxiety about future events.  I for one cannot get enough of it and cannot wait to share it with you.