When the Band Breaks Up Again
2024 is already 10% over...11% really.
I haven’t shared a playlist in a while, so here’s what I’ve been listening to. It’s got some new releases (including a song from the new Liquid Mike record, who had my AOTY last year) and some stuff I hadn’t checked out from last year.
I also had band practice for the first time in almost three years. Coincidentally, I am getting together with my bandmates from Ascetic Parade this coming weekend. Those two things are not related. That’s what coincidentally means. But Ascetic Parade may play a show this year as well.
Poor Adrianne was going to flee to safer lands, but her plans fell through so she gets to hang out with us. We might go see Darude on Friday night.
I’ve also begun working with a middle school at an elementary school through Chess RVA. I’m a board game “coach,” which feels a lot more like the flerken scene from The Marvels than it does teaching children the value of gaming. 15 elementary school kids from K-2 is a lot for one person, I don’t understand how class room sizes continue to rise and teachers don’t quit en masse.
Exploitation of people who want to do the right thing by people who don’t care isn’t limited to the private sector.
Music isn’t the only thing I’ve caught up on, here’s a quick rundown of some shows we/I watched over the last month:
The Bear - Wow, what a great TV show. I think season one was slightly better, mostly because it felt more human. The redemption of characters are great and it is one of the better ruminations (a favorite word of mine) on obligation, accountability and success. It also is a love letter to Chicago, which is less impactful for me, and food. Marcus, the baker, is my favorite character.
It also has defined women as characters that don’t exist as props for the men. It’s refreshing, especially on prestige television centered on a troubled man. Rating: A
The Brothers Sun - Michelle Yeoh is the matriarch of a Triad family. The patriarch has been shot, she’s in seclusion in California with her son Bruce who has no idea about his family’s history. Charles “Chairleg” Sun comes to find his mother and their worlds collide in some of the best action choreography on television. The writing and acting are shaky. The blend of drama and comedy doesn’t always land, but overall the show is fantastic. Rating: B
A Murder at the End of the World - Emma Corrin (who will be a villain in the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine) stars as a Gen Z amateur detective named Darby Hart. Darby is invited to Clive Owen and Brit Marling’s gathering of brilliant and influential people at a digital utopia in Iceland. Darby is surprised to see the Bansky-esque Bill “Fangs” Farrah there, her ex-lover and fellow amateur sleuth. Six years earlier they solved a serial killer cold case. His death at the end of episode one sparks the central mystery, was it an accidental overdose of a relapsed addict or something more sinister?
The show is Agatha Christie meets Veronica Mars with Corrin channeling Jodie Foster in both looks and demeanor. They really anchor a show that at times struggles under absurd plot beats. I have never seen the crown, where they star as Princess Diana, but I am excited to see more of their future work. The show stumbles at the end, but manages to right itself and have a satisfying conclusion. I for one hope for more Darby Hart. Rating: B-
Blue Eye Samurai - Netflix has been at the forefront of American animation for a while now and this show is no exception. Heavily influenced by Kurosawa films, adult anime and spaghetti westerns, this is another landmark achievement in the back and forth of westerns/samurai blending. The story is one of revenge, a young child bullied for having blue eyes sets sight on taking out the four white men who live in Edo-era Japan.
As the show progresses, we learn more of Mizu’s motivation and are introduced to an exceptional cast of characters. The voice acting is top tier, with Maya Erskine (PEN15, Mr. and Mrs. Smith) playing the titular samurai. She is joined by Masi Oka (Heroes), Darren Barnet (Never Have I Ever), Brenda Song (Social Network, Scandal), George Takei (Star Trek) and Randal Park (Fresh off the Boat, the MCU). Adrianne is very selective in her animated viewing and she was hooked as well. This is a great, but very adult, show. Rating: A+
Gen V - The Boys spinoff that tackles the X-men in their supe-laden world. The acting and the writing both fail to reach the levels of either property, but I always appreciate stories that dig into the humanity of superhumans in a real way and Gen V certainly does that. The show is anchored by a group of teen heroes trying to find out why top student Golden Boy (Arnold Schwarzenegger’s son Patrick) has killed beloved teacher Brink (Clancy Brown).
Andre (the now problematic Chance Perdomo), the best friend who can manipulate metal. Cate (Maddie Phillips), the girlfriend who can control people’s minds. Jordan Li (London Thor, Derek Luh), Brink’s TA and a friend of the group who can change gender at will with different powers in either form. Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair), a freshman with a troubled past who is a blood bender and a rising star for “stopping” Golden Boy. Emma (Lizzie Broadway), Marie’s roommate who can shrink down by throwing up.
The show uses the powers as allegories for societal ills to varying degrees of success. The shocks come fast and furious, much like The Boys, but it feels like the punches get pulled here a little too much and the social commentary isn’t quite as tight. Still, if you liked The Boys, this does a great job at expanding the world. Rating: B.
We are also watching Hilda, Upload and I have seen the first half of Invincible S2. And instead of watching the Super Bowl we watched The Marvels. Adrianne wasn’t feeling well (and still isn’t), so we curled up and watched. Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan continues to be a high point in current Marvel offerings, even if the film was a little ridiculous. I would recommend it, but I hope the X-men movies will maintain a bit more of the adult orientation some of the best Marvel movies have had.