Bojack and His Consequences

As I continue this journey through the world of Bojack Horseman, I began to notice something about Bojack, and this animated show world. Bojack truly cannot see anyone else’s feelings or the consequences of his actions. In the most recent episode I watched, Bojack has finally realized he cares for his ghost writer, Diane, so he gets blackout drunk constantly, and steals the D from Hollywood, leaving it as Hollywoo. After that, her boyfriend proposes to her and Bojack loses it. He then gets even more drunk, to the point where he begins to bother his ex-girlfriend and manager, Princess Carolyn. Bojack starts to believe that him and Princess Carolyn belong together. He begins to bother her, even ditching her as his manager in the hopes they can be together. He chases her down and almost makes it work, till he gets a haunting call from someone, and drops everything, including Princess Carolyn. She almost lost her job and her pride, and tried to make it work, just for him to ditch her once again.

What I realized about Bojack Horseman, and something that I love, is that there is real repercussions for everyone in the show. In animated shows, when something big happens, it will almost always return to the way it was. However, since the D was stolen, the city has stayed as Hollywoo, and that is how it’s going to stay. It adds another interesting layer to the TV show, and makes you want to keep watching after every episode.

Overall, I have to say that Bojack Horseman is becoming a favorite. I’ve begun to watch it with my roommate and some friends, and it's become tradition. While everyone may hate Bojack in the show, I love his character, as well as all of the characters in the show.

Narcos Season 3 Episode 1 "Kingpin Strategy"

I decided to watch the newest season of Narcos, starting with episode 1 titled "The Kingpin Strategy." This episode was quite interesting because it shows that business does not stop even if the boss of all cartels is dead. When a leader goes down, two more comes back up and that is exactly what the case was with the Columbian cartels. Business never ceases to end. With the death of Pablo Escobar, you'd think that most of hot-shot cartels would just crumble, but that never happened. As a matter of fact, most of the cartels that rivaled Escobar simply flourished. Not only this, but they flourished so much that many of the cartels decided to keep the massive amount of money that they accumulated and decided to voluntarily go to jail in order to live freely after a couple of years.

What this shows me about life is that you must crush your competition and even then when the competition is crushed, you must move forward in life, all the while still continuously destroying competition. This episode also taught to never show mercy to the opposition. I came to this conclusion simply because after the death of Pablo Escobar, the rival cartels targeted the immediate family of Escobar to make sure that the competition will never show itself. I decided to attempt to implement this philosophy into my life. Whether I have to hurt anybody mentally, verbally, or physically; We have to do whatever it takes to rise to the top, just as the Columbian cartels did. They almost even infiltrated the political scene with multiple cartel members almost becoming Columbian politicians.

Overall I find this season to be something of great potential. Not only for Netflix, but for knowledge of criminal activity in multiple countries and how they affect the political climate of things. Continuing to watch the next couple of episodes I hope to gain some more knowledge that I can use in life, whether that may concern law enforcement and the processes that are initiated when criminal activity is active or whether it may be how criminals react to due process and the law when it is applied directly to them. I also hope to gain knowledge on how this effects immediate family because when one person goes down, it tends to have a huge on immediate family physically, and financially. Because if someone has died, the money that they would have gotten and given to their family members is no longer coming in. Based on the stories i have read online, most families involved i the cartel only relied on drug money so when that was gone, so was their luxurious lifestyle.

At the end of the day, I am in love with the show. Narcos is the only reason why I have netflix account and the only reason why I actually have a TV haha. It has taught me alot and it continues to teach me alot. I also have seen different type of angle shots within the show that we talked about in class. There are many stationary shots in the show. Stationary shots that catch the emotion in the characters face, leaving the audience to decipher what is going on in their minds. Very interesting show for understanding emotion because in the show there are times where you can be on the tip of your toes while the characters in the show seem relaxed, all because of the way they shoot the scenes and angles that are used.

On Master of None

To a friend:

For this week's post I'll be looking at Aziz Ansari's Netflix original show Master of None. From what I read the show was a commentary on many aspects of life such as: race, age, and parenthood, as well as implementing aspects of relationships and marriage. Ansari fills it with his takes on life and with is perspectives on life. Overall the show was well directed and seemed to bring up some very good talking points for many difficult topics.

Master of None

            This week I decided to check out the first episode of the show Master of None. I was initially drawn in because I have seen other things that Aziz Ansari is in and I find him to be extremely funny, so I figured this show would be too. Certain elements of the first show surprised me, like the picture on the cover of it, a black and white photo of Aziz on a bike. That made me wonder just what the show was about, because I honestly had no idea, and it almost gave me a vibe that the show was a bit more serious. Don’t worry though it definitely is not. The other thing that surprised me was the title sequence. It was very short and had an interesting song to go with it. They also chose to put the credits at the beginning of the show, which I actually thought was pretty cool. It kind of reminds me of our conversation in class the other day about credits and how no one actually takes the time to watch them, so by adding them in quickly at the beginning of the episode people will be much more likely to notice them and give credit where it’s due, which I think is super important!

            The plot line of this first episode involves Aziz hooking up with a girl and then almost accidentally getting her pregnant when the condom breaks. The rest of the episode basically consists of Aziz having an existential crisis of trying to decide if he wants to have kids or not. Just when he thinks he’s made up his mind, something will happen that causes him to be confused all over again. It’s honestly pretty relatable in that way, because I feel like that’s something that everyone goes through. Maybe not so drastically and switching opinions so many times in such a short time, but in general it’s something that everyone thinks about. It was definitely a very comedic take on this issue that plagues everyone when they’re young. Should I have kids? When and how many? How do I know when I am no longer a child and can therefore have one of my own??? It brought up a point that very much explains where I am in my life as far as this goes. Kids are so awesome and fun to hang out with at times, but it’s also really nice to be able to hand them back to their parents when you get tired out from it all. That’s why I enjoy things like babysitting and having little cousins/nieces and nephews to hang out with when I need my own kid fix. As far as having my own at this point, I am just way too selfish for that right now, and I also can barely take care of myself let alone another completely dependent human being. This reminds me of the very last bit of the episode which was sort of a weird way to end it in my opinion but I also got what they were going for. He was at a friend’s house whose kids he had been watching for the day, and they were finally sitting down to have a dinner. The kid’s mom had brought home some really good looking sandwiches, but the kids had a different idea. They wanted to make their own sandwiches, complete with peanut butter, lettuce, and ketchup. Of course their mom ate the sandwich they made instead of the really good one as any good mom would do, but when the kids tried to offer Aziz his sandwich along with a really adorable picture they had drawn him, he thought about it and then said, “That actually looks really disgusting, I’m gonna eat this other delicious looking sandwich.” I think it’s safe to say by the end of the episode he had decided he is indeed not ready for kids just yet.

A Series of Clever Cinematography

The aptly named Netflix Original series “A Series of Unfortunate Events” follows the Baudelaire children: Violet, Klaus, and Sunny through a series of unfortunate events. It follows a dark humored plot line that enjoys constant misdirections, dead pan, and fourth wall breaking humor. Most of the comedy comes from the dialogue instead of slap stick or lewd elements that one would come to expect from Netflix Original like Bo' Jack Horseman. Which offers a source of oddly refreshing comedy that I seem to be in a constant search of.

A classmate who has read the entire series has said that the books and by a probable transitory property show is heavily based on misleading and deception. After seeing only a little bit of the show I would really have to agree with him. All of the adults have poorly hidden secondary motivations that they or some one near them reveals to a comedic effect. The best part of these characters is that even after being revealed continue to act like or forget that they have been caught. This allows some characters have scenes of being exposed over and over.

While the characters may be deceptive that speaks nothing of the camera that takes glee in messing with you. It plays with field of view, depth of focus, and cuts that hide things or fake you out. The entire first sequence of the episode plays with this. Opening on a dark close up of the incredibly dead pan and mysterious narrator, making you think that this is a close up shot. Then the lights come on (out of focus) in the background revealing this to be a longer shot than you first thought. Moving further into the next part of the sequence we meet our heroes the Baudelaire Children in a clean clear shot, marred by awful CGI. When the shot opens to allow our narrator in everything except him goes out of focus. Most shots featuring him have this effect or have him not being affected by worldly things like wind or rain. This implies and reveals that he is from the world of the Baudelaire, but he is not a part of this story.

I think the highest showing of this, and my favorite scene, is the dinner scene. Count Olaf takes Sunny from the children and begins to act passive aggressively towards the infant. He proceeds to raise her over his head and begin to wobble and sway, while everyone around him readies to catch Sunny. Olaf Remarks that the table they are sitting at is far to dirty and places the baby on a platter and pushes her to the middle of the table. Before telling his troop that they must go practice their show. This scene works because both the camera is changing shots, and we've come to expect awful things from Olaf. He picks up the baby and lifts her over his head. This serves two purposes, one: it shows just how tall Olaf is and how much damage it would do to Sunny if she were to fall from that height, and two: the camera hides that the actor is not holding an actual baby, which would be insane if they actually did. I forgot to mention that this confrontation stemmed from Olaf being upset that the children made an Italian dish instead of a roast for him and his troop. The camera shows that Sunny had been put on a platter with potatoes and various vegetables. When I first saw this scene I thought we were about to get some threats of murder and cannibalism. He however tells his troop that they must go and practice. This scene relies heavily on misdirection and clever cuts.

I equate this show to a magic show. In order to make this show entertaining it requires small talk to prevent the audience from being bored. It also makes use of in universe and out of universe misdirection to surprise the audience. While I can not devote much time to watch this show, (Calculus, you know the drill) I gladly would if I had the time.

Okja: From farm to table

If you’ve ever lived on a farm, then you understand the importance behind never getting attached to the livestock. They are raised for a purpose and that purpose is to provide. Okja ties that in with the traditional ideas behind providing for a large society and the love a young girl feels for her pet. Many aspects of the film have a seemingly political air and it also addresses the rougher side of animal production for human consumption. With no clue what I was in for, I sat myself down in a pizza onesie with Bandit and began the film.

                The opening scenes and credits are very high in energy and almost have a brainwashing vibe to them. The press conference sets the precedent for the rest of the movie and in a whirlwind of excitement you as the viewer is transported across the globe to Korea. The first scenes in the jungle brought about this sense of serenity and I couldn’t help but feel at peace with my decision to watch this movie. Much of the first half of the script features the movie only spoken in Korean. I tend to watch many of my movies with closed captioning on anyways, so this wasn’t a big deal for me, especially since they added the English subtitles, however it was an interesting choice on the half of the director. Our first glimpse of Okja is confusing. The indecisiveness as to what she actually is can be visually distracting, however the plot does a fair job of keeping you entertained and on your toes. While she is classified as a “super pig”, she has many physical attributes and mannerisms that reminded me remarkably of a hippo. Mija, her caretaker and best friend, views her less as an animal for a competition and even more as her pet as the movie progresses. As it continues on, it begins to take a darker turn. Around the time the A. L. F. comes into play, you begin to get an idea behind the message that the movie is trying to get across. Pursuing this idea down the rabbit hole gives you a glimpse into what is potentially a portrayal of the current food industry, only with fictional animals. The vulgar and violent scenes often want to make you look away yet you fear to miss another gruesome detail that showcases the horror of American slaughterhouses. While the mass production of animals for food is no new concept, the conditions in which it can be done are demonstrated in an abhorrent manner. In an effort to not spoil anything I shall not go into further detail. Just know that this film is not for the faint of heart.

                While intentionally depressing and heart-wrenching, Okja stands apart from films and documentaries in its portrayal of the more crude aspects beyond your initial thought in the production of food. The unconditional love Mija feels for Okja provides an easy way for the audience to connect to her. This movie makes more of a political statement as to our meat production as a country more than anything else. With an open mind and a prepared mental constitution, you can make it through this movie and perhaps think about the journey it takes for your meat to make it to your table.

Friends From College

In hindsight, Jacob, I'm glad you turned down my suggestion of watching First They Killed My Father because, you're right, it would've been too sad for a morning that started out with a mini victory (Arsenal F.C. tied at Chelsea... big deal for viewers other than Jacob), even though I thought it looked super interesting. Friends From College, what we chose to watch, looked particularly interesting since it had actors from some good shows we've both seen in the past-- Robin from How I Met Your Mother, Key from Key and Peele, and Ben from Ben and Kate-- but also because I thought it could have some sort of relevancy to our lives, possibly some advice for keeping friends in college.

I was a little taken off guard when it opened up in a sex scene between two of the characters who were friends all throughout their years in college. Quite a bold choice to start out the entire show with that and even more surprising, as it turns out, the two characters were both married to other people in the show which amplified how uncomfortable the show was going to be. Last week's homework made me realize I should pay more attention to the title sequences (thanks @Allison) and after watching the first chunk of the show, leaving us both a little concerned if this was really something we wanted to continue with, it transitioned into a pretty good title. The whole time the camera stayed positioned at an aerial view of a table of six all swapping food and making messes; moving into different, more sophisticated meals in which we could tell that they were all growing up together. It was kinda cool, at first you could tell it was more of a middle school/high school table with the trays and chocolate milk cartons, then into college in which they "cheersed" with pizza, then onto that same sort of cheers with actual champaign and continuing into other milestone meals. All the while, a song entitled "Cut Your Hair" played in the background, reincorporating that things haven't really changed since college at all despite what it seems on the surface.

The premise of the show was a little odd, I think we both agreed. They threw in some semi-known actors in an attempt to give the show a familiar vibe and it started out funny with little one-liners here and there, but after taking a step back and looking at the episode as a whole afterwards it was definitely abnormal. Essentially, the characters all took shots at the young adult literature genre, as one of the main characters' career choice took a slight turn from writing adult novels to young adult. Even though a good part of the show was dedicated to knocking on it, I think you made a good point in suggesting that the writers of the show were probably young adult writers, too. It just came across like they're too cool and wanted to complain a little to make themselves feel better.

Overall, there were some elements of the show that were interesting, but in entirety it was a mess.

Disjointed

I have scrolled past Disjointed multiple times since acquiring access to Netflix. At first glance, I assumed that it was a documentary of sorts, and I just never found myself interested. At least until a friend of mine enthusiastically brought it up in conversation. I caved in and decided to watch it once I finally understood the setup and plot line of the show.

Disjointed is an average cheesy sitcom about a medicinal marijuana dispensary owner, Ruth, accompanied by her employees, as well as their weed-related business ventures and shenanigans. The show offers commentary on weed culture as it depicts various issues and stereotypes such as legalization, the everyday effects it that it has on users, and the way marijuana use is viewed by non-users, among other things. With the short scenes, the random scenes in the middle of the show that have absolutely nothing to do with the plot, it is quite obvious to note that the show is structured specifically for stoners, as can be assumed for most non-educational pieces of work that focus on pot.

Episode one of season one found me experiencing a plethora of thoughts. Initially, I found myself overwhelmed with excitement to watch such a seemingly groundbreaking show. The show successfully caught my attention. However, it also succeeded in losing my attention just as fast. The first episode quickly became dry and I couldn’t finish the single 25 minute episode in one sitting. Now, this happens to me very frequently with shows and movies, but it usually takes me no longer than a day to return to whatever I’m watching at the time. I did not return to Disjointed for about a week, and my return was reluctant. However, I trudged on through to the second and third episodes.

Though the second and third episodes still found me somewhat bored, I could not help but admire the charm that this show has. The show is interesting in a “I wonder what THC pun they’ll make next” way. Or a “what kind of hemp-based product will they educate us on now” way. So while yes, it can be a little cringe-worthy and dry at moments, the show does have its defining qualities.

One thing about stoner media is that it is not required to be of high quality. With ease, any viewer, marijuana user or not, can experience Disjointed and notice the tactics employed to communicate with its target demographic. The show is a novelty. It is an interesting take on sitcoms and weed culture and by crossing the two, it makes a different strain of entertainment altogether. Though Disjointed is not necessarily impressive or of high quality, it is still something that I would encourage most anyone (save for anti-cannabis activists) to watch.

GLOW

Glow came by your suggestion, and while I really liked it, it was hard to write about. For me, the two most influential elements to this show would have to be the costuming and the lighting. While they make use of a few diverse camera angles, it is not as influential. The lighting there is meant to be natural, like it is coming in from the windows above the ring. However it comes off as very artificial and unnatural, perhaps helped in part by the fluorescent lighting that also is there. The lighting makes the environment look grimy and awkwardly bright. It allows you to see everyone clearly. When the guy that Ruth is sleeping with comes into her room, the lighting in there is about the same lighting as the rest of the scenes in her room. The lamps cast warm light and soft shadows. While they discuss that he is cheating on his wife with her, the shadows and lighting make it more serious than if they were in a brightly lit room. It is interesting that she wants to break it off with him, until a bit later when you realize it is her best friend Debbie’s husband.  

Costuming influences the perception of the characters, specifically these four to follow.. The people with most professional outfits left the initial audition when he explained what the parts were going to entail. We are first introduced by name to Cherry. She has a simple, streamlined outfit and exudes confidence and sophisticated. For the wrestling audition where they are learning moves, she has an army green jumpsuit that is more covered than most of the girls outfits and still simple. You can tell she is not using her outfit to stand out from the crowd, relying more heavily on her attitude and talents to carry her through. The girl with the wrestling dad wears simple shirts, first baby blue, then pale yellow. Her headshot is her blowing out candles on a birthday cake. From these you almost get the impression she doesn’t want to be there, especially when they are asked when they want to be there and she simply replies with who her family is. The girl with the scary vampire vibe gives headshot of wolf. She looks like she just came out of a zombie movie or maybe even got attacked by a wolf. I don’t even know what to say about her. The girl who says she “throws things” reminds you of prison. She is wearing a denim jumpsuit for the initial audition and follows up with a strong handshake. For the second audition she has another monochromatic outfit, this time baby blue with a fuller coverage tank top and shorts. Just from her outfit choices she appears strong and put together.

Ruth has the most professional outfit of all potential girls that remain there for the first audition; a long denim skirt, navy and red shirt, and red shoes, along with being only one of a handful of girls carrying a purse. On her second day, she is sporting an outfit that looks like it is straight from her aerobics class, teal and pink, with high leg cutouts. When she comes back after being thrown out, as she is emulating Hulk Hogan, she is more covered up than her second round. Her colors all coordinate, with red, white and blue. Once she enters the ring, she quickly sheds her cape to act. The war paint was interesting touch, as it is fluorescent and vibrant compared to the rest of her outfit. I thought it was going to be indicative of how she was going to fight back against Debbie, but besides one well thrown elbow, she elects to avoid fighting her. She came in with this persona of a professional fighter, however when confronted with her best friend, she cannot follow through. Overall, these costuming choices help us develop an idea of the characters that contributes to their development.

Chasing Coral

“I used to be an ad man. I spent 10 years in advertising, working at some of the top London agencies. Over time, you realize you’re having these conversations about toilet rolls, and it’s heated debate. And it’s about selling four-ply toilet tissue rather than three-ply. And you go, ‘I’m sure there’s something better I can be doing with my life.’” (Richard Vevers)

Did you know that in the last 30 years, we have lost 50% of the world’s corals? I didn’t. I have always loved the ocean. I have so many fond memories from my childhood there. I’ve probably been to the ocean 20 times, but I always come back for more. So, when I saw this documentary about coral reefs on Netflix, I knew I wanted to watch it.

To be honest, this was not very easy for me to watch. Because I love the ocean so strongly, hearing statistics and seeing photos of its plight really made me sad. It also made me a little angry. Why would humans be so disrespectful of this beautiful natural resource? As Chasing Coral points out, a healthy ocean is essential to a healthy planet. The ocean controls our climate, our weather, and even the air that we breathe. A continually thriving ocean is the only way for us as humans to ensure any quality of life.

As a whole, this documentary opened my eyes to multitude of issues, including the effects of human pollution and global warming on the delicate systems of coral reefs. The documentary was an hour and half long, and I honestly feel like I could write 20 of these blog posts and still not cover every issue that they did. So, for the sake of coming across clearly, I’m just going to focus on a few points that really stuck out to me.

One of the things that shocked me the most was that very few people actually know how much trouble the ocean is in. That’s why I think that Richard Vevers’ point of view on the whole situation is so fascinating. As a former ad man, he argues that what the ocean needs is better advertisement. Maybe, if people were more aware of the problems plaguing the ocean, they’d be more cautious of the way that they live their lives.

This is precisely why he began documenting coral reefs all over the world, using an underwater camera called Catlin to produce 360-degree images every 3 seconds. He published these images in a Google Earth type of format, allowing anyone with access to the internet the opportunity to go on a virtual dive. While this was helpful, it still didn’t manage to bring light to the problem: it peaked public interest in coral reefs, but didn’t explain how these reefs are dying all over the world.

So, with the help of some other scientists, Vevers began to make a comparative analysis of coral reefs in the late 20th century to now (an average time difference of 40 years). I am not going to go into too much detail about this second part of Vevers plan, because I want to encourage you to go watch this documentary for yourself. I promise, it will be an hour and a half of your life that is well spent.