Black Mirror

The Netflix original Black Mirror features a futuristic world, in which technology rules with an iron fist. It is involved in every single persons livelihood. In the episode "Hang the Dj", single people are paired together with other single people in a simulation. This simulation tests hundreds of scenarios to see if the two would be a good couple or not. The big twist in this episode is the people that we are following are not actually themselves, rather they are two computer simulations of the actual people. This is perfect for a Black Mirror episode because every episode has some big twist at the end. The big technology in this episode is a device that coaches the people through the dating simulation. This device also tells them how long the relationship lasts.

The episode starts off with the two main characters on a date. They are in a mildly lit restaurant, which gives off a romantic vibe. Throughout most of the episode the lighting is dim, which is a characteristic of a romantic film. This episode is meant to be romantic and the background settings throughout the episode show that. In the restaurant classical music is played low and slow, it is a piano being played. Music is used in other points in the episode to give a romantic vibe. When the woman is in the bedroom with her next date, jazz is being played in the background.

Just like any other romance film, the two people who want to be together are kept apart. They both want to be together but they are following the rules of the dating game. The two are reunited at a big dating event, in which they both have different dates. They joke and laugh with each other, and you can tell that they truly want to be together. At one point, when they are leaving, the girl can see the guy at a distance and she is just staring at him. The music in this scene is low, loud, and has a lot of bass to it. You can really feel it in your chest. There are other qualities of romantic films found in this episode. The homes that people are staying in are log cabins that have lakes in front of them.

The two main characters are brought back together at the end of the episode to go on another date. They choose to not look at the expiration date on the relationship, to stay together as long as possible. You can see that they are happy together and that they are enjoying their time together. Eventually the guy goes behind the girls back and looks at the expiration date on their relationship. But, because he looks at it behind her back, the date of their relationship drops from five years down to  20 hours. Their relationship ends and the guy is heartbroken and the woman is mad.

Skipping rocks at the lake becomes a common scene in the show. While skipping rocks, the woman asks the guy if he has ever seen more or less than four skips. This is how she learns that it is a simulation. She meets back up with the guy on purpose and explains her theory to him. They get up to leave and are confronted by a guard. The guard is unable to harm them and everyone pauses. The two then jump the wall. This is where we see that it was a simulation, they two characters then meet in real life.

For my Future Wife

This blog post is to my future wife. Do you remember when we would watch Stranger Things? We watch all of the first season together in one day and then we counted down the days until the next season. We freaked out to all of the jump scares and went through all of ups and downs of the show. We should re-watch it together. We could go back through the glory days when we were just starting out lives together. It would be a trip down memory lane for the two of us. We could watch that terrible Nicolas Cage movie that we got angry at the ending, all of our favorite stand ups, The 100, and if we feel like a good cry, 13 Reasons Why.

As I type this you are 15 house away and I miss you dearly. I really wish that we could be together and watch all of our favorites over again. All of this time away from you has made me realize how much I care about you and that I miss you. We will finally be back together in two weeks and that is currently my only plan. We can just lay around together and be lazy, with no worries about school.

For Dad

This blog post is for my dad. There is a new Original on Netflix called Fastest Car that I really think that you would enjoy. It is kind of like the show that you watch on the Discovery Channel, Street Outlaws. The show follows three competitors as they tune up “sleeper cars” and race supercars. All of the cars are old, beat up, junckers that just blow the supercars out of the water. The show goes in the lives of the drivers the week of the race and shows their preparation. During that time, they give the background story of all of the drivers and how they became grease heads. In the first episode they race a 2006 Ford GT, an old ford pickup, a really old ford pick up, and a 2011 Odyssey minivan. It will surprise you with who wins and I do not want to spoil the show for you.



All of the sleeper cars are fully hand made with leftover parts and all of the supercars are stock. All of the drivers are always confident in their own car until they see the supercar roll up, then they start second guessing a little bit. I cannot emphasize enough how much you would enjoy this show. You love cars and you love different cars that go fast. You and Uncle Tommy would watch one episode of this show and finish the series in the same day because you could both relate to it in a very similar way in that you both have a love for the automotive trade. Both of you are huge grease monkeys and would be inspired to do this with your own sleeper car. I am sure that Stew would want in on it too, which would mean that the Buick would be in contention as the car. With using the Buick, I would definitely be able to drive it in the end of the project because as all of you know, I am the superior driver.

For the Haters

This blog is to anyone who does not think that Big Mouth is not the best Netflix Original. It is one of best representation of life in the form of a cartoon ever. There are so many ways to relate to the show and relate it to your life. The everydays struggles that all of the characters go through are things that everyone go through. Weather it be finding yourself sexually, boys trying to figure out how girls think, (and failing) or dealing with a difficult family situation. The show sometimes touches of some situations purely for comedy, but still somehow makes it relatable. The constant is the challenge of puberty. Obviously, puberty is a challenge for everyone, and we all can see the struggles of the characters and see that everyone is different in their struggles.

With all of the relatability it makes the comedy that much better. I personally was able to say that I have done some of the same things that the characters do in the show and it honestly makes it so much better. The acting in the show is as a big part of its success. Nick Kroll voices himself in the show and makes it even better because you can hear how sincere and honest he is about his feelings on the situation back when they actually occurred. Big Mouth also is funny at all of the right times and never takes itself to serious. It tends to go in the more modest direction, makes light of a real problem or situation, and then makes fun at itself for even bringing it up in the first place.



The real gem of Big Mouth though is the relationship to past experiences of the creators. Each of them give their own life experiences and give their emotions about it in the form of the Hormone Monster. The male and female version of them are in tune with each other but not always the kids that they are trying to help get through life. At some times their input is welcomed and helpful but most of the other times it is outrageous and uncalled for, but they are very easy to distinguish.

For Sharon

In this blog post I am writing to my grandma. I know that you really enjoy HGTV and all of the really amazing houses. I found a show on Netflix called The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes. It follows an architect and a housing designer as they travel the world to see the world's coolest houses. They give their opinions on how it was made and then talk to the owners about the process and the struggles of the construction of the home. Seeing the house in this show I think that it is inspiring me to do the most that I can do with my life so that I can create and build my dream house. Architecture has definitely gone through my mind as a career. I know that it is something that my dad had tried out and did not get to see to the end, so it would be pretty cool if I could do it. It would definitely be a challenge, but the reward would be awesome.

Along with this inspiration I am getting a better appreciation on what it takes to be a high class architect. This show has shown me that it is not all about walls and a roof, it is all about how you feel in the space, and how the house is constructed in the landscape that it is built in. I have found a new respect for architecture as an art form and not at just a building. The only oddity about this show is that the British hosts and making me want to use words like “majestic” and “fantastic.”



I hope that after reading this blog that you will see that I really have big aspirations for my future and that I want to make everyone home proud. It would be really big for me to be the first one in the family with a college degree. Maybe even start my own business and provide for my family late into my life, and, if I am lucky, leave a good chunk of money when I am gone. I hope this finds its way to you and that you are proud.

Queer Eye: the old new take on the reality show

     Sup Mom,
   
      So I watch an episode of the show Queer Eye in class. which is a show that surprised me very much. I'm not going to lie that I was very reluctant to watch it at first, because of my personality, but the show ended up being very fun and exciting to watch. The best part is that, yes, all of the hosts are gay, but that is really second to the main point of the show.

     The show is about five professionals in different fields going into a person's life who has kind of entered a slump, and helps them get back on track. The men are experts in cooking, architecture, culture, clothing, and hair styling. They give their clients extreme makeovers, which affects them drastically. In the episode we watched, their client went from a shy hermit to having tons of people over at his house and being the life of the party.

     This show does raise some concerns, however. Will the people be able to pay for their new things? will they stay with the lifestyle that they created? Yes, as they give the guys a budget and have had updates months later where they are still trying to live in their new lifestyle. So this show is all about the good-feelings, without any catches.

   I highly recommend giving this show a chance, I think that you will really like it!


from,

Noah

Brian Regan

The netflix original Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee is a great show on netflix. It is about a very respected comedian named Jerry Seinfeld who takes famous actors and comedians out for coffee. Every episode he takes a different exotic car to pick up the guest he is getting coffee with. In all of his episodes he starts the episode off with the history of the car. He gives the audience very interesting facts and describes each car very elegantly. This is very appealing to me because it makes the car even cooler than what it already appears to be. I really enjoy this show because you get to see famous comedians being themselves and not acting. It is something that is very new and original that you do not see happen a lot. There are four seasons of this show, which is great for someone who has not seen it yet because they will have lots of material to watch.

The episode that I will be talking about today is episode:13 season: 3. This episode is called “Brian Regan: A Monkey and a Lava Lamp.” Jerry Seinfeld picks up Brian Regan in a blue 1970 Challenger TA. This car is very loud and demanding. I love hearing about the car part of the show because it adds another great element to it. When Jerry picks up Brian to get coffee, they starts to talk about Brian’s first car. Brian remenises on how old and rusted it was. He talked about how every time he would shut the doors rust would fall from under the car. He talked about how him and his brother had an ongoing joke that he was driving a box of corn flakes. I thought that this story was really cool because of how relatable that is for me. My first car was really rusted and I would see rust rust falling off of it all the time and here is Brian Regan, a very popular comedian, and he went through the same thing I did. Another reason I like this show so much is because when Brian and Jerry are getting coffee, they have these really funny conversations that only last around a minute long. It is really cool to see comedians click with each other so well.



I really enjoy this Netflix Original Series. This is one of my favorite episodes because of my love for Brian Regan. When I was younger I use to listen to his stand all the time. I would watch it multiple times in a week. That is one of the many reasons why I like this show so much. There are so many famous comedians that have a great time on this show. People who love comedies and and stand up comedians would really love this show. Jerry Seinfeld does a great job with connected to his guest on the show. I like how we get to see the comedians be themselves and have a great time.

Get Me Dirty Politics

Dear Grandma,

Recently I watched a Netflix original documentary titled, Get Me Roger Stone, which explores the life and career of a notorious Republican dirty trickster who was the driving force behind many political campaigns, including Donald Trump’s. The documentary follows Roger Stone, tracking him from event-to-event, and he is interviewed throughout about his role in many elections over the past 40 years. While it focuses on Stone’s career as a whole, it mostly centered on how he persuaded Donald Trump to get involved in politics. Even Donald Trump himself is interviewed and he explains how Stone likes to get behind people who have a “good chance of winning”. Stone takes credit for many of the shifts in the have occurred in most recent elections, such as the birth of PACs and superPACs, the influence of lobbyists, and the power of fear and anger in the media. Get Me Roger Stone explores a side of politics that I do not think most of the general public is aware of.

This documentary really opened my eyes to what goes on behind closed doors in politics and also how manipulative certain people involved in them can be. It solidified my belief that politics are extremely ugly and dirty, and there seems to never be complete honesty within them. The only goal that most every politician has is winning, and they will go to extremes to achieve this goal. At this point, most aspects of politics are so corrupt, that completely fixing them is practically impossible. The fact that Trump’s recent campaign was the product of Roger Stone makes it clear to see why Trump is so extreme and why he acts the way he does. He was groomed by Roger Stone over the last 30 years to produce the figure he embodies today. Also, it says a lot about this country if a man who everyone knows is especially manipulative and disingenuous is still accepted by society as having a current role in politics. Even though he was recently expelled from the Republican party and Trump’s inner circle, he is still playing a role in Trump’s presidency, which seems unfathomable, but proves just how influential he has been and can be.

I think you should watch this documentary because it provides information that I believe everyone in America should know about, and it makes the viewer understand the behind-the-scenes influences and individuals that went into creating many well-known political figures. I learned a lot about the history of politics in the United States as well as knowledge about the most recent election that I was not aware of. Hopefully after watching this, you will have a different perspective on Trump’s election and campaign and understand why so many people do not support what and who he represents.

Queer Eye

Dr. Weisstein,

In the Netflix Original series, Queer Eye, five gay men help other men who are struggling in many different aspects of their life. In the episode called “Saving Sasquatch”, a man needs help improving his look and his home before hosting a launch party for the app he created. He is also very distant when it comes to sharing his personal life with his friends and family. Each member of the Fab 5 has a different speciality, and they provide the client with the tools and tips they need for success. In this episode, the chef helps him prepare a simple yet elegant meal for the party he is hosting. The home decorator redesigns his house to give it a new energy and make it more welcoming for guests. The hair stylist gives him a new look, while still making him have a unique look. The clothing stylist gives him a new wardrobe to look more professional when he gives presentations. The culturalist attempts to understand why he does not open up to his family and friends and teaches him that being vulnerable can help him to become more confident. Overall, this show tackles issues in life that many people face and it is a different kind of reality TV show that does not focus on negativity, but rather improving the lives of others.

By watching this show, people are influenced because they can relate to the individual being helped in some way and they can probably take the advice of the Fab 5 and apply it to their own life. They also can learn many life lessons from this show. In this specific episode, one of the lessons is that even if someone is not confident and is having problems in personal aspects of their life, they possibly can turn their situation around and make changes that will better themselves. The person must be open to making these changes, though. Another lesson that can be learned from this episode is that being vulnerable is good sometimes and it can show a person’s strength, by being able to display their weaknesses. The problems that the person in each episode face are relevant to many people and they should watch this show because they can see the entire process, from the beginning to when they are explaining what the person is struggling with, then through the changes that are made, and finally the end when the person is transformed. They also give good advice that everyone can take into consideration, such as clothing and personal hygiene tips.

I think you would enjoy this show because it has a very positive attitude and aims to make audiences feel better about themselves, which reminds me of your aim for your students. Also, the jokes that the Fab 5 make throughout the show are similar to ones you make in class. This show is both informative and fun, just like you! If you find time in your busy schedule, I would highly recommend watching Queer Eye.

Not Your Regular HGTV Show

Grandma,

I know you do not always like watching Netflix, but I think you would really enjoy watching The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes. There are only four episodes that are an hour long, so this is a show that you could watch over time or if you are feeling saucy you could watch it all in a day. I know how much you love watching your HGTV shows, and this is one you should add to your list.

Not just because it is HGTV-esque, but this show will instantly put you in a better mood. The show is very calming and you will not will feel overstimulated like some other shows make you feel, but I promise you will be entertained the entire time. The show is hosted by Piers Taylor who is an architect and a property enthusiast Caroline Quentin. I think you’d really like them because they remind me a lot of Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Lynn as they get easily excited by what they encounter while house hunting.

Now I know after watching this you are going to want to go out and build your own house, and hey, if that’s what you really want to do please invite me to help!! Another aspect of the show I think you would like is the fact that there is almost no snobbery going on. Whenever we watch the shows I know you always talk about how poor it makes you feel and how they are all snobby.

I really really think you’d like the show, though. Maybe next time I visit we can watch the rest of the show together and go house hunting. Until then -- lots of love.

Queer Eye

After watching Queer Eye in class, I decided this would be the perfect show to write about this week. The episode we watched, “Saving Sasquatch” consisted of the Fabulous Five making over Neal who is an app designer. He has not had people to his house in over 10 years. The Fab Five went in and gave him a new wardrobe, hairstyle, and they redid his house. Although this was an amazing show there are places where this show would be a problem.

Since this is a show about LGBT, there are places in the world where this show is not acceptable. There are seventy four countries where being LGBT is illegal. Anywhere it is illegal this should would not be acceptable. Even in the countries where it is illegal, there probably still are people that are accepting of it and would not mind watching a show like this.

On the opposite side of that, even in the countries where it is legal, there still probably are people that are not accepting of that lifestyle. Even though it is legal in the US, there still are people out there that would not watch a show that has one single LGBT character in it, let alone Queer Eye that is based around five of them.

Aside from the big aspect of LGBT, another part of the show that I found to be a little bit offensive was the part when they were in Neal’s closet and they tried on his saris and danced around in them. I did not personally find that offensive, but anywhere they wear saris as a part of their culture they may find it offensive as they were doing it in a playful manner and not in a serious way. Another part of the show that could have been offensive was when Tan and Neal were talking about Indian and Pakistani mothers in a stereotypical way. Any mother (Indian and Pakistani) may find that offensive.



Overall, there are various places that this show may be found offensive. Basically, it is not really a specific area where it would not be acceptable, but it is more about specific people.

Comedy Costs

In the show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, Jerry Seinfeld goes around with different celebrities to get coffee. The main theme of this show is that it is a comedic, satirical talk show, basically, and changes the guest for each show. Each season also has a different coffee related name such as: First Cup, Light & Sweet, Just Made a Fresh Pot, and Late Night Espresso. His guests are all comedians that he can have a good time and joke around with. It is a very casual setting and helps to make it a very relaxed comedy that is not force. In the episode I watched, Jim Carrey was on the show. This was the very first episode of the first season. They started off the show by Jerry driving to pick up Jim. They drove around in a baby blue 1976 Lamborghini Countach and talking about their comedy idols. They talked in the car while they were on their way to the coffee shop they would be going to. Once they got there, they got coffee and continued the conversation. This show is a very casual comedy show that can be funny for people of all ages. It has different humor for different groups. The show is very laid back in its comedy style, in that the jokes do not seemed to be forced. It is almost like an everyday conversation that two, ordinary funny people would have while in a car or while drinking coffee. However, I do not think this comedy style is everyones cup of tea. Some people may not like how casual the comedy is. I find that I like comedy better when it is more in your face and not as laid back. This comedy style is more for people that do not like the comedy show type of comedy that many comedians use today. This type of comedy has a different feel to it than the normal style. If you analyze the comedy style of a comedian like Bo Burnham, he uses political and racial humor along with other controversial topics. These tend to be the main sources of comedy that many comedians use these days. This style is usually described more so as dark humor. However, in this show Jerry just uses casual everyday scenarios to make light humor. Another thing that is interesting about the show is that Jerry picks up every person at the start of each episode with a different car. This is weird because many of these cars are older classic cars that are fairly expensive for how nice of a condition they are in. Every episode features a car that ranges from the years 1949 to 1995. That is except for the last episode of the fourth season. Then he has a 2017 Acura NSX, as the only car that is from the twenty first century. All of the other cars were from the twentieth century. The 2017 Acura NSX starts at factory setting at a price of around $176,000. Many of the other cars are just as expensive or more so expensive due to the classic nature and how good of a shape they are in. There are 59 episodes, totaling 59 different cars used throughout the course of this series. If they are all around an average of $200,000 that is close to $12,000,000 just on the cars used in this show.

The Discovery

The movie I am discussing today is a Netflix Original called The Discovery.  This movie is a romantic/science fiction movie. I also would also categorize this movie as a drama because of the serious mood of this film.  I like this combination of genres because it has very cool advancements in technology and it has well made romantic side to the movie. This movie is about a man named Dr. Thomas Harbor, who discovered that your consciousness goes to a different plane after death.  This is very cool topic in my opinion because that is one of the great mysterious that we have yet to prove in our world today. This discovery has led to millions of suicides in the world.

The movie starts out in with an interview with Dr. Thomas.  He decided to come out and talk to the press and clear things up after the millions of suicides that had occurred since his discovery.  During this life interview, the interviewer talks about how many people and how many celebrities and athletes have committed suicide. This hit me extremely hard because I realized how many people look up to celebrities and athletes.  With that being said, many people probably committed suicide because the people they look up to did. Towards the end of this live interview, a man who works for the interviewing company, commits suicide on live tv. This really caught my attention and I was very curious to how the movie would play out. After that scene, the audience meets Dr. Harbor’s son, Will Harbor.  Will harbor is a neurologist just like his father. Will Harbor is played by Jason Segel. At first, I wondered why Jason Segel was in this movie because it is a very serious movie and he is normally in raunchy comedies, but he did an excellent job in playing his character. He travels to his father’s facility on a ferry, where he meets a women named Isla. This is where the romantic part of the movie comes into play.  Throughout the movie Will and Isla build their relationship and become lovers. Will has a weird and awkward conversation about the discovery and suicides on the ferry. During the conversation, there is a screen that shows a counter of how many people have killed themselves since the discovery was made public. I thought this was crazy because if it was just a normal thing to know that 20 people killed themselves in two minutes.   

After the conversation on the boat Will and Isla parted ways.  Later that day Will was walking on the boardwalk and saw Isla on the beach getting ready to drown herself.  He ran into the water and saved her from killing herself. He took her to his dads facility. At his dads facility, Dr. Thomas has a rehab program for people who are suicidal.  It is a very weird facility that gives off a cult vibe. This is a great movie that picks up at the end of the movie.

Similarities and Differences

Recently in class, we watched Queer Eye. It is a show where the “fab five,” which are five homosexual men, go into someone’s life and give it a makeover. From what I’ve heard in class discussions, the episode we watched in class seems to be more of a complete makeover for the guy, Neal, than other people featured in the show.

Most of the aspects of Neal’s life were given a reboot: his wardrobe, his appearance, his cooking skills, and also his house. One could also say that his social life was also affected since he seemed to be more open to relationships with others after the few days of makeovers.

A critical thinking question that I was given was “How is this show similar to ____? (Fill in the blank.)” I chose to compare and contrast the show to Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Extreme Makeover used to be on television and I remember watching it with my family at home. They took a new family each episode and demolished their existing home, that was usually either falling apart, full of bad memories, or outdated.

One similarity of the two shows is the makeover of the house. Each show takes the house and gives it a makeover; although there is a difference with Extreme Makeover, as they take the existing house and demolish it. With Queer Eye, they just give the existing structure a facelift with some fresh paint, new cabinets, or new furniture. Each show also takes the family or person who owns the house away from it while the makeover is occurring. Extreme Makeover took the family away on a vacation while the house was being reconstructed for a week. The family was able to get away from the stresses of everyday life and spend some much-needed family time together. On Queer Eye, the person who owns the house being renovated is taken away for a makeover themselves. On the episode I watched in class, Neal was given a haircut and his beard was also chopped off. He was also taken to a clothing store and got some new clothes along with some fashion advice.

A difference between the two is that Queer Eye gives each participant almost a complete life makeover while Extreme Makeover just built a new house for the family. Both of the shows provided a new life for each family or participant, though. Queer Eye helps their participants rejuvenate their lives, by providing fashion advice, an updated home, a new look for themselves and helps them feel better about themselves overall. While Extreme Makeover doesn’t actually reboot different aspects of the lives of the families who get new homes, they do help to ease the burden of an outdated home that has many expensive aspects that need fixing. One thing that came up in discussion about Extreme Makeover, was that a lot of the people who get new homes through Extreme Makeover end up losing them because they are so new that the family’s income cannot support the new, more costly bills that come along with a new house, along with taxes and other expenses that a new house has, but an older one doesn’t.

Overall, Queer Eye is a good show and I enjoyed watching it. I liked how each one of the “fab five” had a specialty that they focused on with their participant, Neal. One had cooking, one had the fashion aspect, and another helped with the remodeling, among others. I would recommend the show to anyone who likes a feel-good show that inspires or a show that remodels a house.

Not Quite the Sci-Fi Thriller I Was Looking For

Ever since I was young, I dreamed about technology and the prospects of the future, hoping that one day I would push the boundaries of humankind. As time went on, I found I wasn’t completely alone; the American people seemed to get more and more excited about what scientists would come up with next. Television shows and commercials touted the latest and greatest smartphones, robots, and online services. More recently, SpaceX energizes the public with live streams of Elon Musk sending his car into outer space to demonstrate reusable rockets. Boston Dynamics showcases humanoid robots capable of doing backflips. The HTC Vive puts users in the middle of the zombie apocalypse from the comfort of their living room. But today’s technology doesn’t seem to be satisfying enough to steal the entire limelight - people can’t help but look to the future for something newer and better than what we already have.

The Netflix original Altered Carbon is a prime example of the public’s curiosity for what the future holds. Set many centuries in the future, this show is about Takeshi Kovacs, a man who is released from his bodiless existence to help a rich man solve his own murder. Yes, the plot is as confusing as that. I had to do some research on the show before watching it to make sure I understood the story that lies beneath the flashing lights and flying bullets. Altered Carbon ties together two things that people are enthralled with: the newest technology and immortality. In the world of Altered Carbon, people almost never die. A person’s existence is stored on a device implanted in the spine called a “stack” that can be placed into a new body (called a “sleeve”) once that body is destroyed. The only catch is, if the stack is destroyed, then the person dies for real. While the first episode ends on enough of a cliffhanger to make you want to watch more, there was a fair share of things I didn’t like about the show.

Firstly, Altered Carbon’s dialogue makes you want to roll your eyes straight from the beginning. To keep a constant flow of drama, every character speaks as if he or she is the biggest badass on the planet. While this leads to some interesting things being said, it gets old almost immediately. Takeshi makes a stuck up and half witty remark, which provokes a similar one from whoever he talks to, and from there it’s lather, rinse, repeat. Each conversation left me annoyed at every character involved. I can only hope that the dialogue becomes less one-dimensional in future episodes.

Secondly, while the distant future can be a fun place to stage a story, I’ve never been a huge fan of plotlines that take place so removed from reality. A show like Altered Carbon is always a difficult one to make successful because the directors and writers need to find a way for viewers to relate to characters and situations that are unlike anything they experience in today’s world. This is why futuristic shows try and touch on the basics of human characteristics (love, greed, passion etc.) to highlight how even 300 years in the future, we will still be the same creatures that we are today. So far, this show has been doing a fine job of this, but I can’t say I have much of a connection to Takeshi quite yet. Other shows can leave me feeling for the main character by episode one, but between the futuristic distractions and Takeshi’s off-putting nature, it might take a few episodes before I feel the same way for Altered Carbon.

Nowadays I am still fascinated by the newest technology, and I appreciate the creative views of contemporary writers on future breakthroughs. But as of the first episode, Altered Carbon doesn’t give me the excitement that I usually feel with a good sci-fi thriller. Although the show wasn’t all that I had hoped it would be, I could settle in for a few more viewings before giving up completely.

Queer Eye

During class this week we watched Queer Eye, which was an absolutely fabulous show. It follows 5 gay men helped an individual, always a man, to completely improve their lives. They work on appearance, home, cooking, health, and culture. The team of men referred to as the Fab 5 have a week to help improve the lives of these men.

First of all, I absolutely loved this show. I will be binge-watching the rest of the season as soon as I get home. The Fab 5 are actually hilarious and do a really great job at transforming the lives of these men. The most important aspect of the show is definitely the individual work the team does with the guy they are working with. Without the individuals help and guidance the person wouldn’t be able to make the needed changes to improve their lives. The team does such a good job gently pushing them outside of their comfort zones. They are also really good at analyzing the person and knowing what they would want or like. I really don’t there was anything in the show that I found unimportant or not needed. Every moment was used up perfectly to improve the individual and help them make progress. If I had to pick one aspect that is the least important I would say the beginning when the team is in the car on the way to the individual’s house and they are talking about them. They only reason that I would say that is unimportant is because you eventually would find out all the information about the person on your own without them telling you in the very beginning. I feel as this series really resembles What Not to Wear which used to be on TLC. They would also change multiple aspects of the person, they only difference is that they wouldn’t do anything with their houses. So, this show is kind of a cross between What Not to Wear and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

The humor in this show is way better and it’s not nearly as sappy and emotional as those other shows can be at times.

These ideas could possibly help other people who feel like they are in the same position to be able to help themselves to get out of the negative place they are in. This make the show relevant because it can really help other people. It’s also relevant because by the end of the show you feel as if you have really grown along with them and you feel so happy and excited for them.

Overall, I absolutely loved this show and found it so entertaining to watch. I would definitely recommend this series to anyone!

Coping With Murder

In Jessica Jones season two, Jessica Jones learned that the coping habits she has been using were not the best for her and those around her. Jessica has been using alcohol, meaningless sex, bottling emotions, and pushing away friends and family in order to cope with the fact that she thinks she killed her family. She did not actually kill her family but she blames herself. Her family got in a car crash together and she was the only survivor, or so she thought. She learns the history behind how she got her powers and that her mother is also alive and has powers stronger than Jessica. They got these powers on the death bed, and a doctor decided they were the perfect candidates for his illegal program that changed people’s DNA to make them into super humans. These experiments play a big role in the psychological well-being of Jessica throughout this show. The reason she becomes a PI is because she wants to investigate the mysterious nature of these experiments that, originally, she has no memory of. She has small flashbacks occasionally that help her to learn more and more about how she survived and became super strong. She has the help of her adopted sister Trish and her associate, Malcolm, who is a recovering drug addict who is just trying to find something to do to pass his time besides doing drugs. Jessica is not the best influence for him due to her problems too. Through season one, Jessica is just pushing all of her problems away and internalizing her emotions. In season two, she starts to realize that she does not have to live this way. She starts to open up more, get closer and trust people, and actually starts to almost have a boyfriend. These are huge strides in the scheme of things, because Jessica has many mental health issues including a short temper. These coping mechanisms she uses, mixed with her mental health issues, make for a very volatile person that should be kept on a short leash. This is the main reason why law enforcement keeps her on a short leash and always assumes when bodies start to come in under mysterious circumstances, then she is usually involved. She is not very fond of this assumption because she is treated differently for being powered and she does not like this. She does not want to kill people. She feels remorse after she kills people, but people that do not know her, do not realize just how sorry she feels for any time she has killed anyone. Also she got blamed for many people’s murders, when they were not, in reality, anywhere close to her fault. She is blamed for the death of a detective. Jessica is trying to talk her mom down from killing Trish, and the detective pulls a gun and got to close, and Jessica’s mom grabbed her and jumped out the window with her in hand. The detective died on the pavement. This is not Jessica’s fault, she was trying to not have her mother die, but other people thought her death was the only way to be safe from her. Jessica realizes that a piece of her mother is still there and that she is the only one that can reach her, but everyone else is scared of her power and thinks she should have to die.

Queer Eye

Dear Grandma,

I am writing to you about a show we watched recently. It is called Queer Eye, about five homosexual males that help to change the lifestyle choices of people that need it. In the episode I watched, the focus was the person being transformed Neal, who had not had anyone in his house for almost ten years. The reason I am writing this to you is because, I know in the past you have told me stories of people in our family that have had to hide coming out due to the conservative nature of our family. I was thinking about how this show would have been received when you were a kid and also in our family even in the past two decades. I was thinking that there would not have been a very strong acceptance, or even acceptance at all of this show. I think most of the people would not have found it in good taste up until recent years. I think in the culture now, the show is received fairly well, but in past generation’s culture’s, it would not have been received as well. If this trend continues to progress, I feel like the meaning of this show will be obsolete due to the rising acceptance of the meaning. There will be no special aspect to the “fab 5”, they will just be another group of people. The work they do now is more than just changing the lifestyle of the people they help on their show, but they provide an image. The image they provide is to all of the people out there that watch Netflix, to show them that it is not only accepted to be who you are, but you should embrace it. You should not be afraid to be who you are. I think this is the most important aspect of the show. They gave this realization to Neal in the boxing ring, they taught him that he could be both who he and his mom wanted him to be at the same time. I think this is a good message for all people regardless of race, gender, or sexuality. I think the message is fairly powerful for Neal, to the point were he made changes in his life that made him more of who his mom wanted him to be and also allowed him to really show off who he is when he is not an isolated recluse. I think another thing the show does is break cultural and race barriers because one of the “fab 5” is Pakistani, another is polish-canadian, and one is African American. This creates a level of diversity and they use these other barriers to help people on the show and also to break the barriers. I think this show does a very good job of breaking down barriers in society, that have been slowly breaking since you were a kid. These are some issues that society argues and debates about, and I think will continue to diminish going into the future.

With Love,
Josh

Parenting Development

Dear future wife,

I have recently been watching the show Arrested Development. The first three seasons are not considered Netflix Original, however the fourth season is. In the fourth season, George Michael Bluth is getting older and is now off to college. This is, however, very hard for his father, who has very little else in his life besides his son. Alright, he also has his job, but his son consumes all of his life. He gives up on the family business to start his own. He gives up the family business mostly to spite his family because they were not there for him in the past while he was always trying to impress and outdo them all. This lack of acceptance and satisfaction from his family leads to his clingy tendencies toward his son and wanting to be there for him and make sure he feels accepted at all times. This leads to a common occurrence for teens with clingy parents, they start to either rebel or try to get away. In the case of George Michael, he tries to get away by going far away to college. He goes to Phoenix Arizona to go to college. However, his dad decides to go with him. His dad starts to live in the dorm with George Michael. This is not very good parenting. When a parent does not allow their child to have the space they need and deserve in order to grow into their own person, they start to feel smothered. I know this is not the kind of parent I want to be because, I have parents like this, and I know how bad it can be at times. It is important to give your kids enough space that they can be independent but not enough space that they get away with everything. There is a spectrum of parenting seen in this show. Michael is an overbearing parent who does not give his son any space at all. On the other end of the spectrum, are Michael’s parents. They do not pay attention to Michael at all, and this makes him have a sense of emptiness. He is missing that parental approval, so he tries to fill it by other means, while still trying to get his parents approval over his three siblings. I know how this is, because I have three siblings and I’m always being compared to them, so I always strive to do better so I can be the best of my siblings. This is a pointless task, I know, but it is one that I have seen from many different people I know. This is a struggle to be better than your siblings, when really there is no need because, everyone is their own person and should not be compared to another. This is like comparing apples and bananas. They have similarities, but not enough that a comparison is warranted. This is a flaw that many parents have, they pit siblings against each other in competition, but if they worked together, they could accomplish so much more and both succeed at a higher level. I want us to be the kind of parents that get our kids to work together instead of competing.

Your Future Husband,
Josh

Did We Need It?: Lost in Space Episode One

     Hollywood seems to be in a reboot phase, with Disney releasing it’s live action reboots of it’s classic films and every beloved TV show. These reboots have been viewed with varying degrees of success, with some such as Hawaii 5-O being successful and Frequency being far less so. So when I heard about the new Lost in Space reboot, I was a little apprehensive to say the least. I am no great fan of the old series, but my family and would watch it sometimes after the horror movie show on the classic television program. One of the things I enjoyed about it and the 1960’s Batman show that came on afterwards was the atmosphere. Neither tried to take themselves to seriously and ended up being very wacky. Lately, it seems that very few shows that aren’t outright comedies do this. As I sat down to view episode one of the new Lost in Space, I discovered that these fears were founded.
     For instance, here is a cast photo from the original Lost in Space, taken from when it made the move to color:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/11/watching/lost-in-space-netflix-original-guide.html
And this is a screenshot from the reboot:

http://film-book.com/lost-space-2018-main-title-sequence-dr-smith-tv-show-clips-netflix/
     As you can see, the original series utilizes the new color technology and features costumes so garish they almost give the viewer a headache. This is reflected in the show, with the plot mostly focusing on Dr. Smith getting into trouble with the monster of the week (including a carrot monster one week) and the crew would have to save him-usually Will Robinson and the robot. So far in the new series, there has been far more peril, with both Will and Judy being in real danger. Another thing in peril is the Robinsons' marriage, which is bizarre as the parents of the original series weren’t really important to the plot of episodes. This change to focusing on the parents and they’re relationship doesn’t work in the favor of people who liked the tone of the old series and its kid friendly adventures instead adult drama.
     Another set of changes is the Dr. Smith and the robot. I don’t really care that Dr. Smith is portrayed by a woman, as that really isn’t integral to the character. However he was bumbling and self-aggrandizing while this woman seems calculating and cool. The change that has the largest implications is the fact that she hasn’t met the rest of the crew yet. In the original series, the crew was on to Dr. Smith’s tricks and plans accordingly. In the new series, it is likely that a main plot point will be the crew discovering Dr. Smith can’t be trusted and someone will put in jeopardy. This change to such a major character will bring down the light-hearted feeling  down the show. This to is what happens to the robot. Originally, he was a fun robot with arms waving around and eventually dropping witty one-liners. This robot comes from a race of killing machines. This may add some complexity to the character, but he really didn’t need it, making this just another excuse to inject more drama.
     Do these changes work? Well it all depends on how you like your shows. Let’s look at Batman again.  Some people like all of the Batman incarnations because there is something about the ideas that just speak to them. Other people like the zany 60’s show or the grittier Dark Knight trilogy. If you’re someone who wanted a darker Lost in Space, this show will work for you. If like me, you liked the breezy nature of the old show, you might just want to steer clear of this reboot.

The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: A Welcome Addition

The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is a very interesting show. I don’t watch very many shows that have a female lead role, the closest of those being (though ironic) Archer, as Lana Kane and Malory Archer have just about as much screen time as the titular character himself. It was always just personal preference to watch shows that have male protagonists, as many shows with female leads don’t have personalities that particularly get me excited to continue watching a show.

However, I am a big fan of The Office, and Ellie Kemper, who played Erin in season 7 to the end of the series, was the lead role in The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. I decided to give it a shot, since I loved her character so much. After watching the first episode, I did notice that Ellie Kemper seems to fit a particular role as an actor, and hasn’t really been given a good chance to branch out from the ditsy, wondrous young women that she portrays in both of these shows.

Though it is not an original role for her, she does play the role of Kimmy Schmidt very well. She has many crazy instances, such as where she confuses a mother for the leader of a cult, among other things. I was pleasantly surprised by the darker beginning of the series and the humor that persists throughout, it is a sitcom after all.



Overall, I find that The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is a welcome addition in my repertoire of sitcoms. Though not the most original characters, there are sure a lot of laughs to be had while watching this show, which of course is always a good thing.

Saving Capitalism

The Netflix Original Saving Capitalism starts off talking about how all people want is their voices to be heard. It shows footage of people protesting in the streets and in buildings. It follows Robert Reich, the author of Saving Capitalism and the Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton. The film shows Reich speaking in different venues. It also shows him speaking on CNN where he is being interviewed about the free market. He hooks viewers into the show by talking about how people think that the system is rigged so that the rich continue to get richer. He thinks this belief is driven by people who do not understand how the system works. He decides that he wants to go to the places that people do not understand how capitalism works, and wants to teach them. He goes to Kansas City, Missouri and offers a questioning session for people who want the system changed. A sign is strategically placed in the background that says "I'm Standing for a Moral Economy." It only shows Reich answering one of the questions, but it is probably the most important question that was asked.
We then see a news clip of a reporter talking about how under the Clinton presidency new jobs were becoming available, but poverty wages were increasing. It then cuts to Reich talking about how he wanted to implement change for those in the middle and poor class.
Reich throughout the film dresses for his audience. In scenes where he is speaking in nice venues, or speaking professionally, he is dressed in a suit. It shows him in another scene where he is out talking to rural Americans. In this scene he is wearing jeans and a hoodie. The film then shifts to a farmer talking about his experience with the economy. He talks about how his expected profit the year is projected to be 50% less than what it was the past year. It shows visuals on how corporate profits before taxes hit their highest point in 2014 but at the same time real gdp in the labor force has decreased. This film also shows that people in 70% of the people in the US trusted the government to do the right thing in 1977. However, in 2017 just 20% trust the government.
Reich goes on to talk about how those of the higher class have gone about getting rules changed to benefit themselves while hurting others. After explaining how people have gone about this, he sits down to dinner with lobbyist and converses about how people view politics in the economy. One of the man speaking, talks about how he believes that those in power do things in their own self interest. Most of the people talk to Reich about how capitalism is good, and how it is the american dream. Reich does not take a stand during this part he just hears people out. He then eventually starts to take his stand on how people of the lower class should be paid more. They conduct an interview with a woman who works and McDonald's and barely makes ends meet. He talks about how he wanted to cut tax subsidies on large corporations. He lost this battle, then the film shows visuals of how much large corporations get in subsidies. This is where the film takes its turn away from capitalism.
It is an interesting documentary, because its title draws just about everyone in. If the the film had a title that made people belief that it would be against capitalism, a lot of people probably would not watch it.

13 Reasons Why This Show Does More Harm Than Good

WARNING: This blog post includes many mentions of depression and suicide. If you are sensitive to these topics, proceed with caution or do not read this if you feel uncomfortable. If you struggle with any of these issues and need support, please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline:

800-273-8255.

Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why is a show meant to raise awareness and start a conversation about the heavy topics of suicide and depression. Although there aren’t quite 13, there are some reasons why this show could be damaging to the prevention of suicide.

After watching this show, I began to think about how this issue is treated in my school. We do have counseling services and the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is printed on the backs of our ID’s. However, just talking to some students around campus makes me and likely others to wonder if our school is doing enough. For example, a few of my peers, all of whom will remain anonymous, have developed or increased mental health problems with the start of their college career. One friend with this issue went to counseling for help. However, UCS told them that the next appointment would be in 3 weeks, which may have been too late if their mental health issues had been even more escalated. Though we do hold events such as Mental Health Awareness Week, the action taken to prevent and treat the issues is lacking. This shows in our statistics. In 2013, just five years ago, a survey was released showing that Truman students were more likely to have intrusive and suicidal thoughts.

According to the 2013 Missouri College Health and Behavior Survey, 19.1 percent of Truman students responding to the survey experienced a depressive episode, compared to 17.6 percent of other Missouri student responders. Truman students also commit self-injury more often than other survey respondents at nearly a 2-to-1 ratio. (Mika, Rottgen)

Even a few years later (enough time to start solving these issues) three suicides within a year occurred on or near campus (Jost). Clearly, there is a problem with our awareness and prevention. Would a TV show raise awareness of mental health and suicide prevention? The right one might, but 13 Reasons Why is the wrong show for this conversation.

Though 13 Reasons created a wider scope for the suicide prevention conversation, the show doesn’t exactly portray the issue correctly or realistically. In fact, Hannah Baker’s story is quite romanticized. Though she was bullied and isolated in her life, she was glorified after her life ended. Her peers set up memorials for her around her locker and spread the word about her apparently good impression on them. This glorification of a student after her death is dangerous to portray. Thee pep rallies, memorials, and city-wide recognition in memory of someone lost to suicide feeds the need for control in someone’s mind whos impulse control is lost (Psychology Today). Portraying only the sadness and grief around the death of a loved one may not be the correct option, but taking the route of glamorizing the emotionally devastating event is not the answer either.

In the first 45 seconds or so of the first episode, the actors explain what exactly 13 Reasons Why is meant to do. They say it is meant to start a larger conversation about depression and suicide prevention across the globe. With the explosion in popularity, this series did just that. More people are talking about the issue. However, the actual content of the show gives the viewer false perceptions of suicide. There is little to no mention of any mental health issues in any episode of the series. However, 90% of all suicides are a result of badly treated or untreated mental illness (Psychology Today). The show also never mentions any way of preventing the suicide. Without the mention of any true causes or prevention methods for suicide, a significant part of 13 Reasons’ conversation is lost.

Works Cited

“13 Reasons Why: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 16

May 2017, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/two-takes-depression/201705/13-reasons

-why-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly.

Mika, Dan, and Ingrid Rottgen. “Truman Ranks High on Students with Depression.” Truman Media

Network, 1 Nov. 2017, tmn.truman.edu/blog/news/campus/truman-ranks-high-on-students-

with-depression/.

Jost, Ashley. “Third Suicide in Less than a Year at Truman State Sparks Discussion on Campus.”

Stltoday.com, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 12 Apr. 2017, www.stltoday.com/news/local/edu

cation/third-suicide-in-less-than-a-year-at-truman-state/article_c4eab84f-c073-5cda-80

06-c458ef8ae090.html.

Trumps Rise to Power

The Netflix original Trump an American Dream episode "Manhattan", is about Donald Trumps life leading up to him becoming the President of the United States. The film starts off with a piano playing slow and load, building intensity as Trump steps out and into a secret service car. It then shows them drive off with a full police escort. The film then goes all the way back to 1975, showing old camera footage of people and advertisements. The first person who is interviewed is a New York City police officer, who eventually loses his job along with 19,000 other city municipal workers. He was talking about how dangerous the city was during this time period. The next speaker is a reporter from the New York Post at the time. He talks about how there was so much to write about during this time. There is old footage shown of fires, trash piling in the streets, and fire hydrants broken open. This point of the film is building a hopeless feeling for New York City at the time. Then it cuts to an interview being held with a young Donald Trump. He speaks about how he started out working in construction and how he wanted to be like his father. It starts to build Donald Trump up, but they have an old columnist come on and talk about his relationship to Trump. He talks about how they knew of each other but were not necessarily friends. He brings up how Trump asked him three years in a row, "How's your Pop?" But the columnists had already told Trump in previous years that he dad passed away. The film then jumps right back to a family friend talking, who talks about how she and Donald met. She speaks highly of him. At this point in the film, it does seem as if it is bias to trying to make people like Trump. However they do throw in interviews here and there to try to make it seem unbiased. It then starts to take a turn to show how Donald Trump started to turn around parts of the city. His first project was the Commodore Hotel, which he attempts to get a 70 million dollar loan for. This was his first big project that had nothing to do with his father. The film jumps to a city council hearing to see if the loan would be given. It shows people speaking and Trump sitting nervously. The decision is finally given, Trump wins the tax break and gets the loan to save the hotel. It saves jobs and was seen as a win for the city in some eyes, but as a loss in others eyes.
The film is a documentary, which is just about the only way to do a film about a actual person. They show old footage of interviews and they show current time interviews. It also shows old footage of streets and buildings and people during the time, to show how life was.

American Idol: The Cooking Show

The Great British Baking Show is an interesting twist on baking shows. Instead of the judges being so fun-loving and energetic, this show takes a different route in reality TV cooking, almost with an American Idol kind of style. The show has two judges, Mary and Paul. Mary is the bouncy, in your face kind of judge while Paul is more of a Simon type of character, where he is more of a jerk to the contestants. One of the episodes requires cooking a Swiss roll, and all of the contestants have to make their signature Swiss roll to please the judges.

As Mary and Paul go around to each chef, Mary encourages them, giving them positive feedback on their creation, while Paul doesn't. Paul is a jerk, don't be like Paul. Watching the chef's face drop as well as the music just sinking or playing a sad tune. It is really entertaining, just like in American Idol. It is also fun to see Paul scrutinize what could be your favorite character in the whole show.

Overall, The Great British Baking Show is a fun watch, as it takes the format of shows like American Idol and applies that to cooking. One hundred percent recommend it for anyone that is looking for a good cooking show.

Does He Really Win it All?

Netflix recently released a brand new original film starring Keegan Michael Key from hit show Key & Peele. The title of the new Netflix original is Win it All. This follows a man that comes in contact with a lot of money, but not in the way you would expect it. He is confronted by a random man that states he is going to jail. The man hands him a bag, and gives him the instructions to keep it closed and safe until he is out of jail. Obviously, a good story would not be him just holding on to the bag. He curiously opens the bag and finds a large amount of cash. Running low on money, he decides that he should take a portion and gamble for a profit. Now we all know that gambling is easily addicting, and not easily profitable. The man starts to lose cash and this is where he comes in contact with Key. Key tries to advise him, but he continues to lose more money. There is also a slight love story happening while all of this unfolds. The film is a constant moving suspense, with many lessons to be learned.

A big part of the film that I really enjoyed was the suspense. It seemed like the movie never stopped moving. My heart would drop every time the movie would show the amount of money he has lost. When he was sitting at around 60 thousand lost, the movie cuts to show that the guy is getting out of jail early. So at a 60 thousand deficit, he has only a few days to gain back all of the money. So he teams up with Key and attempts to count cards at a casino. This first starts to lose him even more money, and he is close to giving up. He has one last shot to make as much money as possible before the night is over. The movie shows them at the blackjack table one last time, and it shows he is now is a deficit of only 5 thousand. This transition gives us hope as an audience for the main protagonist.

Another favorite aspect of the film that I love, is the sense of friendship. This is definitely an underlying aspect of the film that many may not pick up on. Would you help your friend get out of a deficit by counting cards? His friend Key stuck with through all of this, and that shows the true value of friendship. He really shows his appreciation for Key in the end, which confirms the aspect of the friendship role in the film.

The recently released Netflix Original Win it All is a suspense film that will leave you on the edge of your seat. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys a comedic film with a good and suspenseful story. Keegan Michael Key plays an excellent role in this film along with many other famous Hollywood stars. Netflix has struck film gold again with this impactful film.

The Monster in us All: Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters

     As long as we have had stories, we have had allegories. Stories with a fictional scenario that a lesson can be learned from are popular for many reasons, including being more interesting than a lecture over the same topic and being able to provide a specific situation where the lesson is applicable. While not quiet as fantastic as a fable nor as true to life as a parable, allegories can teach those who enjoy both. Some examples include the Allegory of the Cave, fairy tales and The Chronicles of Narnia. However, I would also like to suggest that monster movies as another from of allegory. A common theme is if science tampering in places it shouldn’t and having to deal with the consequences, such as the 1931 Frankenstein. In the years following the second World War, a film was produced as an allegory of what the rapid expansion of nuclear weaponry could wrought.
     I am speaking, of course, of Toho's Godzilla (1954). Set in the post-war Japan, Godzilla has been awaken by nuclear testing and sets course to destroy Tokyo, mirroring what actually happened during the war. It was highly successful and spawned a franchise with more films than James Bond. Some these sequels forget what Godzilla, as an allegory, was about to the point where is a scene that I have only been able to describe as Godzilla play beach volleyball with a crayfish. This mirrors the eventual post-war attitude, with occupation ended, more friendly relations with the United States beginning and a rise in economic prominence. Godzilla’s salad days would find themselves gone in the early 1990’s with an economic downturn. At this time, the franchise would be rebooted (after a prior reboot which lasted about ten years). And became somewhat grittier with Godzilla becoming an antihero, but still destroying Tokyo.  Godzilla works best when he is an allegory for the current state of Japan, something which the much vilified American Godzilla (1998) forgot in favor of being an action movie.
     So does Netflix’s Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters get the allegory right? The answer is yes. Japan’s economy is still struggling, but this not the allegory this time around as Godzilla represents how humans are hurting the environment. Our heroes leave the planet , but argue if this was truly the best solution, mirroring the way that there is no consensus on how climate change and pollution should be dealt with. The Earth they come back to and the life on it is changed to the point that is unrecognizable, similar to the way that some birds are now singing construction noises and other consequences of deforestation. The strongest pieces of evidence in favor of this is the fact that despite their best efforts, the hero’s actions only make the perceived situation worse, similar to the way that many forms of renewable energy result in initial pollution (solar panels) or loss of fauna life (wind turbines). This is a serious issue in today’s world and maybe not so coincidentally, Japan takes it very seriously. While this Godzilla may not reflect Japan’s economic or social state, it is an allegory for an important issue.
     By examining the evolution of Godzilla in media, we can understand how a figure represented in an allegory can change in interpretation from one generation to the next. What one group saw as a call to peace, another sees as a call to a greener life. We can apply what this means to other historical figures and how the interpretations of their actions change with the culture. Can we apply a similar analysis to a character like Dracula? In this way, the history of Godzilla can mean something to us all.

A "Normal" Family

I watched most of the first season of Santa Clarita Diet this week. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to watch as I scrolled through the Netflix Originals, but I ended up with Santa Clarita Diet. I usually don’t like shows with zombies, but I got sucked into this show. I didn’t think I would be able to learn anything from it either, but to my surprise, I was able to take something away from the show.

Throughout the show, the daughter of Sheila and Joel, whose name is Abby, constantly asks her parents if their lives will ever go back to normal. What Abby is talking about is if the family will be able to function as they used to, before her mom, Sheila, turned “undead.” A side effect of Sheila being undead is that she can only eat raw meat. She, at first, was fine with eating raw hamburger and chicken, but after she got a taste of human flesh, that was all she could eat. Her mom also has an urge to kill people when she is hungry and hasn’t been able to eat in a while, which Abby, a young sixteen-year-old, is having a hard time getting used to. So Abby wants her mom to be able to eat, but also be able to be a normal mom who doesn’t kill people and eat them.

My thought on Abby’s question about if her family will ever return to normal was, “is any family normal?” I think every family has their “norm,” but every family is different. Each has their own members who have their own personalities so each family unit is different.

I will probably end up watching the rest of Santa Clarita Diet, but my guess is that they will find a new normal amidst their mother and wife being undead. I finished episode eight, and the next episode is called “The Book.” In previous episodes, Joel, the husband, and father, discovered there is a book that possibly has a cure for what Sheila has. My guess is that Joel goes on a mission to find the book to help his wife return to their normal.

Ladies First

Here in the United States, we do not have to think much about opportunities for women to work or play sports. Though sexism is far from non-existent, women and men have just about the same opportunities in life. In India, however, women “belong at home” and “should not be working or playing sports.” In Netflix’s Ladies First, we follow Deepika Kumari’s journey in her ambition to be the first woman to win an Olympic medal in India.

Though Kumari had won multiple titles in India, at both the London and Rio Olympic games, she lost her spot in the running for a medal. In those moments, the directors chose to cut to black just before her arrow hits her final target. This choice is very strategic in drawing suspense from the viewer. The sudden change brings us into Deepika’s mind and we feel her speechlessness at the loss. Her disbelief is, unfortunately, the result of how women in India are treated. Women are thought of as inferior to men and therefore aren’t usually allowed to work or play sports of any kind. They are told they physically cannot do anything but care for the family and stay home to tend to the house and children. Deepika Kumari was given the opportunity to break that mold and she held tight. She managed to be the first woman in India to win a medal at a large-scale competition. However, the culture that made its mark in her mind caught up to her in the Olympic games. The pressure for her to succeed was too great and she could not perform at her best.

After Kumari’s loss in the London games, her coach pointed out the fact that she is not “mentally strong.” He goes on to say that the Chinese team typically does well because of their strength. Comparing the gender equality in China to that in India, this does make sense. Again, society is far from perfect, but China has far better opportunities for women than India. The ratio of women to men in the workforce is about 82% in China, while India’s ratio is only 34%. Only a quarter of India’s workforce are women, and China’s workforce is nearly half women. Though China has other issues it may deal with, gender equality is not at the forefront. Ladies First, however, did mention that a mental trainer may be key to Deepika’s success. This may help her relax during the next Olympic games, but a lifetime of oppression cannot be overwritten by only a few months of training.

Works Cited

“Gender Data Portal.” The World Bank, 2016, datatopics.worldbank.org/gender/country/china.

Bahl, Uraaz, director. Ladies First. Netflix, 2017.