Category: Puppy

Black Mirror – Episode 12 (Men Against Fire)

It was bound to disappoint after ‘San Junipero’, but I’m disappointed it disappointed this much.

At first, you see what seems like a well-run, well-organized, spotlessly clean black and white fascist dictatorship (notice the highstep) that is hunting monsters they call “Roaches”; protecting “Civs” and keeping their order.

There are some things you’ll notice (if you decide to watch) that are decent touches…but by this show’s standards, they’re mediocre at best. Competent.

You’ll form opinions, you’ll make guesses. It’s good enough for that.

But it’s just too predictable. The coldness gives way, in a way…but I’m never caught by surprise. I mean, I SEE the idea; the warning, the contrast, the slow change…but it’s done poorly. It loses its (potential) power because it doesn’t compel.

I mean, I actually had a ‘Wolf Raiders from VALNA STAR!’ (sp?) flashback to one (poorly directed) scene, but by that point…ha ha ha ha ha ha…

I WAS STUCK THERE!

Easily the highlight, for me, comes at the end of the ending credits.

Now THAT is ‘Black Mirror’ at its best. But it’s…ten seconds? Maybe fifteen? Hell, if you turn it off at the “end”, you might never see it. But is that worth watching the whole thing? *shrug* Even at his worst Brooker is better than some at their best, so…

Is that a great statement on Brooker or a sad statement on everyone else? Or who cares?

A tolerable but completely unnecessary watch.

Inspirational Quote: “We oughta burn the whole forest down, huh? Give those Roaches nowhere to run.”

11/30/16: I think I gave the credits too much credit. Oh well…it seemed clever for a while.

Black Mirror – Evaluation And Suggestion

The main thing that I like about ‘Black Mirror’ creator Charlie Brooker – besides the fact that he can write and direct well, making his episodes worth watching in the first place – is that his style is generally similar to Rod Serling’s, host of another show that Brooker’s has been compared to.

And it’s this: He doesn’t tell you what to think, he *makes* you think.

He writes (at least some) very powerful scenes, in episodes that CLEARLY *could* make a definite statement, that could say “This is right, that is wrong, and here’s why…”

Instead he makes them as “real” as possible, as impressive as possible, as emotional as possible, as POWERFUL as possible…and then, when he could take all of that and very cleanly and tidily (and simply, easily, commonly) put his opinion on it with an end that says “THIS is the point”…he doesn’t. He just lets it go, as it was, and you watch and wait for the comforting, easy-to-understand and easy-to-agree-with ending, and it never comes. It just…ends.

Because of this, you *have to* think; you have to wonder about the different points, the different emotions, the different viewpoints, the different meanings.

Is yours, eventually, what his is? Or what he thinks it should be? Or what he wants it to be?

Maybe, maybe not. But because he doesn’t TRY to force an opinion on you, you are forced to come up with one. And that provokes thought. And sometimes, that provokes some serious thinking and emotion, and opinion. But that’s the point: it’s YOUR opinion. It’s your emotional/intellectual analysis of what has happened and how you view it, from your perspective.

And thinking is a good thing. Thinking, feeling, considering. All of these are good, and often one or more are missing in many shows/movies…because it’s easier (and more commercial) to write something with a definite and obvious opinion behind it; to make it clear *THIS* is the right and *THAT* is the wrong, and here’s why.

By not clearly defining an opinion, by leaving that fairly ambiguous, it provokes YOUR opinion. It makes you think. And that is a very good thing, I think.

Message to Brooker: PLEASE, PLEASE write a movie.

I want to add something to my A List. I want to be blown away, inspired. You certainly are *capable* of doing it, as you’ve proven three times already.

Do me, and the the world, a favor: MAKE A MOVIE.

Spend a little more time, flesh out what would make a great episode, and make a great movie.

Inspired To Be Inspired

“We are asleep. Our Life is a dream. But we wake up sometimes, just enough to know that we are dreaming.”

“Death is not an event in life: we do not live to experience death. If we take eternity to mean not infinite temporal duration but timelessness, then eternal life belongs to those who live in the present.”

“There are, indeed, things that cannot be put into words. They make themselves manifest. They are what is mystical.”

Black Mirror – Episode 11 (San Junipero)

Wow. Very impressive.

Hard to believe I would start off with that, the way this started…but I was wrong. You fooled me, I admit. Good job, and thank you.

My first notes seem irrelevant after watching the whole thing, but here’s a bit of it:

Low-key and convincing from the start. I buy the lead; the wilder cohort is decent. The former stays good, the latter…in a manner of speaking, gets better – just give her some time.

There’s a scene where – based on my perception of the story – I felt it TOTALLY lost it: completely out of character, focus lost, destined for mediocrity at best. Fortunately I was wrong…give it a chance.

It “recovers” (even before I accepted the gaffe as…acceptable?) and stays on course for a while. Parts are low-key, calm, sedate…tranquil, in a comforting way. The music, the backgrounds, the acting, the silences; seem to, for parts at least, slide into this state, this feeling.

The futuristic twist comes with about a third left, and is interesting…and quite a changeup. The state, the feeling…they seem to make sense now, totally, as at times before.

I said in a previous ‘Black Mirror’ episode review that “I wouldn’t ruin it for you”. In THIS episode, I mean it. Don’t read the summary before you watch it, just watch it. It will produce a real experience, I think.

Magic Card for this episode (in multiple aspects): “Tranquility”.

Near the end, there’s a fairly powerful speech, and a choice is made.

In keeping with recent posts, here is a movie clip.

FAIR USE: CRITICISM – A great clip from a good movie.

The choice made in the episode is FAR more difficult, but is has some relation.

Powerful ending. And perfect song. Watch the credits, too.

Truly touching, truly emotional. Truly…that is to say, REAL.

Like a deep puppy once said: these moments always come. They may be rare, they may be separated by huge gulfs of darkness and despair. But they are there, waiting for you if you wait for them. And that is worth living for.

Lots of deep thoughts here, potentially. And I can’t imagine making the decision made at the end, by the cohort. It’s made in the dark, and…somehow, as was wondered, TO ME…it cheapens reality.

If it MIGHT be as the cohort imagined…even MIGHT…I’d like to say I would decline. Fantasy or reality; how much can you live in the first, without making things in the second – things filled with pain, joy, sadness, love, hate…LIFE – meaningless?

Incredibly difficult, but…I would never cheapen the true emotions of my reality. No matter how tempting. And even if…well, it means a different, and total, end. The emotions and memories I have, that I cherish, are too powerful for that. Too real.

Inspirational Quote (from a book): “Our bodies are given life from the midst of nothingness. Existing where there is nothing is the meaning of the phrase, ‘form is emptiness.’ That all things are provided for by nothingness is the meaning of the phrase, ‘Emptiness is form.’ One should not think that these are two separate things.”

Black Mirror – Episode 10 (Shut Up And Dance)

Interesting.

Better than 9, though nowhere near 8. Or 2.

Starts off harmlessly and normally enough.

The story seems more interesting; maybe that’s because it’s not expected to be anything as…”thrilling”? – no Ultimate Virtual Reality – and it keeps your interest, mildly, as it goes along. Mild but constant…and growing slowly, at least for a while.

Also, it seems quite plausible: it could happen. Today. (See “NSA”)

About halfway through it stops growing and starts fading. It tries to get more and more scary, like an action movie that just blows MORE and MORE sh1t up to try to stay “THRILLING!”…and it doesn’t, it just gets more implausible.

When it gets past that (when the hard part seems over), it gets back to being more human, more about human interactions and feelings and characters. And the ending is worth watching, I think.

Message: Never trust blackmailers.

Message Two: Noone is perfect…everyone is flawed. So “take great care” in what you judge, and who you judge, and how you judge yourself.

FAIR USE: CRITICISM – One of the best scenes from a very flawed but quite intriguing movie. Maybe I should re-visit it, in fact…

Inspirational Quote: “There’s no cure for the internet, it’ll never go away.”

There They Go, Satisfied Customers By The Thousands! (Part Four)

Recent message from Alexa.com regarding my website ranking:

“We don’t have enough data to rank this website.”

Bullsh1t.

You had “enough data” for the past two months+, you have just as much now…MORE, actually.

I suggest you change that message slightly…here’s an idea:

“We don’t have enough of your money to rank this website.”

Yeah, that has a nice ring to it.

Though, this does solve the problem of “Do/should I give a fck about my alexa.com ranking?”

The answer to “Do I give enough of a fck about my alexa.com ranking to give them money?” is the same as the answer to “should I follow ‘keyword recommendations’ and alter my posts to make them less genuine and more popular?” and “should I pretend to have different opinions that align more with the collective?”

No thanks, I’ll take the nosedive.

Black Mirror – Episode 9 (Playtest)

*shrug* it’s…ok.

The first half – consisting of mediocre character development and totally un-gripping Basil Exposition – is worthless, except as setup.

I believe Tom Cruise sums my feelings up, to this point of the episode:

“What’s the point?? What’s the FCKEN point…”

Things start getting a little creepy in the second half (“the game”), but I mean…it seems uninspired, generic, completely devoid of impact. Like they scraped together bits here and there and patched together the-episode-after-the-really-good-one.

I would say “I won’t spoil it for you”, but there’s nothing really to spoil.

I mean, it’s kinda creepy, it’s competent, it’s obligatorily “dark”.

But there’s nothing here.

I thought this show was supposed to make you think? And feel? And care?

Inspirational Quote (from a Star Trek episode): “Where the laws do not operate, there is no reality. All of this, is unreal.”

Black Mirror – Episode 8 (Nosedive)

Take two.

Normally I only review ongoing series’ after they’ve ended, but in this case they made more after I thought they might be done. If I didn’t have any interest in the series, I wouldn’t bother, but I do (at least, did), so here goes.

A society absolutely dominated by mass-media in almost every aspect of one’s life. People don’t seem bothered by it, trying to escape it…they seem a seam (ugh) less part of it, and wanting to be accepted into the collective even more, and more…

Everything is enhanced to make grading others as easy and fast as possible. People seem either genuinely happy walking around spending as much time worrying about their grade/grading others as they do actually LIVING, or they do their best to appear so…for grading purposes, of course.

The best things that happen – either naturally, or more often artificially created or at least enhanced – are immediately captured on video/picture/text and uploaded to the collective, in the hope others will appreciate how good they are. This seems much more important than the actual things themselves…the joy of a moment seems to mean more as a way of gathering an up-tick in your rating than in actually ENJOYING the moment…sad.

Also sad that this is NOT totally “science fiction”. It’s science fact, in many ways. And some people probably can watch this and NOT see it as horror. But it is…this is a horror show of ‘Mean Girls’-as-society-ideal; the wonderful BEGINNING, of course…not the horrible, incomprehensible breakup of that ideal clique.

A lot of things are just down the road, sooner or later, if people continue to care more about what other people think than what THEY think, what THEY believe, and what THEY value.

Almost everyone is absolutely ruthless in pursuit of mass popularity…humanity is an afterthought to most, as are personal convictions, beliefs, opinions…’Mean Girls’ is baby-steps in comparison. Even genuine emotion mixes with fake, forced, artificial. It’s hard to tell the two apart…but don’t worry, soon it won’t be hard…it’ll be impossible.

Outliers remain, of course…but they just don’t GET IT…yet.

About two-thirds of the way through it lapses; it starts to explain everything you (For the Love/Lack of God, hopefully) already knew, as long as you were a non-computerized human.

“…no…NO…I…can’t…LEAVE.”
(emotions)

FAIR USE: CRITICISM – A great, powerful clip…and one that fits here, strangely enough.

There’s a slow decline, unfortunately. Terribly unfortunate: from near-perfect and rising, to human.

Oh well. Brave new world, indeed.

The outcome you know is coming…has so much potential.

I mean, 15 million merits of potential…

and…

hey…sort of, wow.

Great music, it builds (not as good as, but…) like ’28 Days Later’…and the emotion, you’ll find, isn’t so different.

The effects are very good and well-placed, the acting is convincing.

Great artistic touch when she looks up right before the end.

Very good ending; nothing maudlin about it…”there’s no vindication here, counselor. Or absolution, or benediction, or ANYTHING…”

Don’t miss the ending. It’s human.

Wow. It’s not ‘Fifteen Million Merits’, but it’s the first thing I’ve felt the excitement of NEEDING to post about in quite a while. I hesitate to praise it TOO much (perhaps two wows is a bit much), because the surprise of seeing something good after a lot of sh1t sometimes pushes the dial too high.

What’s my Alexa ranking now…F@CK THAT.

The best since 2.

Inspirational Quote: “You are just…too old to get it.”

P.S. – I enjoyed writing this…so it doesn’t matter if you like it, or not.

Deep Puppy Thoughts (Part 171)

Now that the Chicago Cubs, in thrilling and spectacular fashion, have finally won their first World Series in 108 years, this all-important question – more than ever before – demands an answer:

If you were a hot dog, and you were starving to death, would you eat yourself?

FAIR USE: CRITICISM – Great impression by Will Ferrell, tolerable straight man reactions by the guy from ‘Remote Control’.

Grumpy Old Puppy (Part 2)

And now with a commentary, here is a grumpy old puppy.

I’m old, and I’m not happy.

People today and their ‘Harry Potter’ wizards…

In my day, ‘Harry Potter’ was called ‘DragonLance’. And it wasn’t NEARLY as popular. And they didn’t make movies out of it because noone would watch them. And the only movie they did make was one of the most embarrassing things you’d ever seen.

And that’s the way it was and we LIKED it! We LOVED it, oh Happy Day!

In my day, you didn’t get nice elegant little invitations to become a wizard who was treated with “respect”…FLABBITY FLOOBITY!

In my day, noone “invited” you to become a wizard, you had to decide for yourself. And even if you wanted to you probably couldn’t because you were too stupid. And even if you could people didn’t like your decision, they hated it. You were an outcast, a social leper before you could cast a single spell or even knew the touch of a woman, and that’s the way it was and we LIKED it!

All this convenience and pleasant company…

In my day, you didn’t have a fancy train carry you to your destination in comfort and luxury.
In my day, you walked there through horrible weather and nasty terrain. And you did it by yourself, because noone wanted to be seen with you. And if you died on the way noone cared. And the only company you had was the other dead failures for miles around. That’s right, the ground was covered with festering failed wizard corpses, and that’s the way it was and we LIKED it!

And this wonderful school with its talented magical specialists eager to teach you…FLEEBITY FLOO!

In my day, it wasn’t a school full of powerful mages you went to, it was some grumpy old wizard in a shabby hut. And he didn’t wanna teach you, you had to grovel for it. And even when he did teach you he was half-senile and you barely learned a thing. And you didn’t learn and advance steadily in magical abilities and knowledge; it took YEARS and YEARS before you could cast even a *useless* spell, and that’s the way it was and we LIKED it!

Not like today…

In my day, we didn’t welcome new wizards with friendly open arms…

In my day, even if you got far enough to become a wizard you had to take a test. And they weren’t nice to you, they hated your guts and called you names. And you had to have someone waiting for you, because if you failed the test you died and someone had to collect your corpse. And even if you passed the test they had to carry you home before your festering wounds killed you; that’s right, you had achieved the best possible outcome and you were horribly scarred mentally and physically.

And that’s the way it was, and we LIKED it! We LOVED it, ohhhh HAPPY DAY!

There They Go, Satisfied Customers By The Thousands! (Part Three)

As an unwanted and rather annoying follow-up:

Recently received SECOND notice from a collection company.

If you’ll check Part Two, you’ll see that the company in question is – according to some – not very reputable.

So, to www.peryourhealth.com AND as a document of my ongoing saga:

You can send me as many “bills” as you want. I’m not going to give you my credit card information, nor am I going to send you a vast amount of money for something that may already be paid.

This is an insurance matter. I WOULD give you my “insurance information” (quoting your letter), but unfortunately the only number you provide is a billing number, with NO way to connect to someone to give information to. As for your website, when I try to go there I have to enter some “information” (my quotes this time) which is “provided” (ditto) for me.

When I enter this information, it says the attempt was “unsuccessful”.

HOWEVER, it also lists a VERY convenient *NUDGE NUDGE* “pay now” option where I can send you money *WINK WINK* for something I am *NOT* responsible for, which is covered by my insurance *GRIN GRIN SNAP SNAP*, and which MAY HAVE ALREADY BEEN PAID. *SAY NO MORE!*

I WOULD give you my insurance information, but you provide ABSOLUTELY NO WAY TO DO SO. Therefore, I regard it as your fault; if you want my insurance information, give me a WAY TO PROVIDE IT.

I will not be sending you vast quantities of money for something covered by my insurance.

If you want their information, ask me in a way that I can reply to.

It is YOUR “responsibility” (quotes mine) to provide a means of giving information to you. You do NOT, and I will not use one of the many EXTREMELY convenient options to simply give you money to make you go away, since I’m not in the habit of giving vast quantities of money to someone/thing simply because they send me a piece of paper.

If you want to keep sending me your useless “notices”, fine.

Every time you do, I’ll re-post here affirming the above until you either A) provide the necessary means or B) go away.

Oh, and in the spirit of Buckwheat’s untimely demise, here’s a link for those of you that may have missed it before:

https://www.webwiki.com/peryourhealth.com

10/26/16: DOCUMENT

What We Become (2016)

There’s absolutely no reason to watch this movie.

The acting is decent, the writing is decent, the filming is decent.

The fx/makeup are mediocre at times; but even if they weren’t it wouldn’t change a thing.

The reason is because it’s totally redundant – there isn’t a thing here you haven’t seen before, as good or better.

Nothing surprising, no twists on the scenario, nothing exceptional.

In the context of that, the grade is wholly appropriate.

Competent and completely unnecessary. Re-watch one of your zombie favs instead.

Grade: D-

Another Example Of Pythonian Influence

An obvious example of being heavily influenced by the “No Time To Lose” sketch:

‘Tombstone’, when Wyatt Earp confronts BB Thornton’s character, and he says:

“Go ahead, skin it! Skin that smokewagon and see what happens!”

Suggested original script to follow:

*BB Thornton* “What?”
*Wyatt Earp* “Skin that smokewagon.”
*BB Thornton* “‘Skin’ what???”
*Wyatt Earp* “That smokewagon. Skin that smokewagon.”
*BB Thornton* “Oh, I see…’skin…that…smoke-wagon.'”
*Wyatt Earp* “Yes, that’s right.”
*BB Thornton* “‘Skin that smoke-wagon…'”
*Wyatt Earp* “Right!”

And so on, and so on…

*glance at cute little pig*

Possible Massive Degeneration Into Terrified/Non-Functional State

So…REQUESTED prescriptions refills (for medications I’ve already been prescribed, no changes) and agreed to an APPOINTMENT ASAP if necessary to make this possible. So, let’s hope this works. If not…

Here’s my plan: I’ll hope my situation gets resolved reasonably, and if it doesn’t, I’ll post here about the state of my decline as I run out of necessary, prescribed medications and/or head to the emergency room. Oh, and I’ll provide the names of some “doctors” people may want to avoid, maybe.

“I do not threaten. I merely state facts.” – Spock

“Hmm…hmmm…Hippocratic Oath…it’s not in there, jolly good. Very useful. Next!” – MPFC

Here’s a lovely clip:

FAIR USE: CRITICISM – A nice little clip about a horrific doctor.

Deep Puppy Thoughts (Part 170)

Humankind’s ability to destroy increases in direct relation to humankind’s ability to create/improve/advance.

That is why all science/invention/advancement must be taken with a grain of salt; all possible uses for anything new should be examined, evaluated, and prepared for with the best interests of humankind at heart and as the first priority.

Exhibit A: Atomic power.
Exhibit B: Advanced technology.
Exhibit C: Make up one of your own, you know you want to.

This is probably stating the obvious for most people, but…just sayin’.

Donald Trump – A Derogatorial

Donald Trump is to politics what ‘Dead Alive’ is to movies: So horrendously bad that it goes from being an F- on quality to being a C because of the tremendous laugh-and-mock-ability quotients; the “oh my God I can’t believe that…”

It’s sad when you can’t even give enough material for your own dedicated propagandists to make a decent, non-laughable case.

I’m still debating which would be worse: electing Trump, or a country-dividing Civil War (part two) if he doesn’t accept the election results.

He’s got about as much leadership stability as Dr. Captain Janice Lesterkirk.

10/20/16: Ok, he’s not as good as ‘Dead Alive’. ‘Hobo’, maybe? ‘Manos’?

10/20/16: Here’s some footage: FAIR USE: CRITICISM – SATIRE…SATIRE…SATIRE…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AelzaRs0EI

Adopt Don’t Shop

I’ve seen some posts about how this is a “deceptive” slogan and “misleading”.

BULLSH1T.

Of COURSE dog breeders are gonna say that. I mean, COME ON.

FACT ONE: Purebred dogs are wanted by a LOT of people. Very few, if any, will ever be put to sleep.

FACT TWO: LOTS and LOTS of dogs and cats in shelters around the U.S. WILL be put to sleep if they aren’t adopted.

FACT THREE: EVEN IF a particular dog or cat is not put to sleep, think about this: since purebreds are pretty much guaranteed a home, if people didn’t adopt these non-purebreds, exactly how would they find a home? They wouldn’t. They would live in a cage without a pet owner to love and take care of them.

So…to anyone who hates “Adopt Don’t Shop”…I think D. Vinyard said it best: “…get your head out of your a$$”.

10/19/16: It’s sad when the best propaganda that anti “Adopt Don’t Shop” people can come up with is that it’s all an “agenda” by “extreme animal rights activists” to eventually have all dogs “freed”, to roam the streets.

Fck, I mean Trump can come up with better BS propaganda than that.

Look up the word “outlier”.

Are there people out there that want all breeders outlawed, all animals freed, cows no longer viciously milked, mice free to explore career opportunities, mosquitoes saved from horrible hunters that kill them for their wings (which can fetch up to .8 of a penny)?

Sure. There are outliers to EVERY cause, EVERY movement, EVERY position. EVERYTHING in the WORLD that can possibly be subjective in ANY WAY has outliers. That’s what they are: outliers.

The VAST majority of people who urge people to adopt (including me) do NOT believe it is assault to milk a cow, do NOT believe cats and dogs can be converted to vegetarianism, etc…

In the same way, the VAST majority of people who buy purebred dogs do NOT believe there is a “conspiracy” against purebreds, do NOT think that we must defend breeders rights NOW or they will soon be gone!!!

I mean, come on. As is almost ALWAYS the case, the TRUTH lies somewhere in the middle of two extremes.

Are there some good, reputable breeders who love their dogs – and dogs in general – and aren’t evil monsters just in it for the money? OF COURSE.

Are there some good, reputable shelters who love their rescues – and rescues in general – and who exist to help give abandoned animals a second chance? OF COURSE.

I mean, what moron actually believes that puppies are NEVER bought because they’re “cute and little”, and then dropped off at a shelter when they grow into adult dogs? And that these dogs are somehow “defective” because of that? And that these dogs don’t deserve a home as much as ANY OTHER dog?

Oh, and to the people that say dogs are simply “property” (yes, I’ve read at least one rant about that) that’s just not true. NOT TRUE. Period.

See…this pillow I sleep with is property. If I want to, I can punch it, kick it, not give it food or water, dropkick it around the house, eat it, shove it up my a$$…WHATEVER. It’s a FCKEN PILLOW.

Dogs and cats are NOT property in anywhere NEAR the same sense. They are not merely “things”. If you think they are, then by that belief you show you don’t really care about them.

There are LAWS against animal cruelty. FACT. Dogs cannot be forced to fight and kill each other. FACT.

There are no laws against pillow cruelty. Noone will be appalled if I tell them I was really frustrated and so I hit my pillow. Noone will try to stage a pillow intervention to remove it from its abusive environment. Noone will campaign for pillow rights. Noone is insane enough to do this, or believe it will happen.

In conclusion, here’s the middle ground between the two extremes (The “milking cows is the same as raping a human woman” ones and the “all animals are property and anything can be done with them that anyone wants including sadists and Jeffery Dahmer-wannabes):

Not all breeders are bad. Not all shelters are bad.

Research where you’re thinking about getting a pet from. Make sure they treat their pets humanely. Make sure you can care for the pet properly. Make sure you are willing to keep the pet for its lifetime. Make sure that the pet has no behavioral issues that would cause you to return the pet. Make sure you LOVE THE PET.

Any objections?

Deep Puppy Thoughts (Part 168)

Feeling:

…After you’ve seen something, sort of a “My God…” realization – because in that moment you’re not debating theism or reason – “…my life could be so much worse.” It’s sort of like time freezes; everything that went too slow before is fine, everything that went too fast is fine, everything outside of you and that feeling, basking in it, feeling it slowly drain away with an odd sort of sadness with the relief. And you think about everything that means something; nothing else seems to matter.

It seems so simple.

…what the Hell was that? Hmmm. Oh well, back to life…

“…This is hard rock as the term was understood before metal moved in–the kind of loud, slovenly, tuneful music you think no one will ever work a change on again until the next time it happens, whereupon you wonder why there isn’t loads more. It seems so simple.”

– Robert Christgau on Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’

Dead Set – A Derogatorial

Almost-award-winning my a$$.

See ‘Dead Set – Episode 1’ for the only info (and episode) that really matters.

I read that Simon Pegg “disapproves” of the fact that these living dead run, not shamble like good old Romero zombies.

And my response is: What are you, a moron?

‘Night Of The Living Dead’ came out fifty flippin’ years ago. How long do you want people to re-create the same thing OVER and OVER again?

And since when was George Romero (f@ck the A) the “authority” on living dead? I mean, if a director/writer/idea-er’s first concern is “Is this Canon to Romero films?”, they’re either overly infatuated with Romero (a common failing…I’m split), or they are bereft of inspiration.

Which means that their “creation” will be either a redundant ‘Night’ imitation (because Lord knows we need more of those) or a sh1tty consumer-whoring tangent.

Dead Set – Episode 5

Things get intense…and more interesting. But it’s the END, and that’s the main reason for both.

Faint alliances form/are played briefly out.

An example of Chaos Theory: Even the smallest action – a word, for example – can have an eventual massive reaction.

Absurdly grotesque death scene…I don’t know if it was satire (?), ‘Dead Alive’ “humor”, or they just wanted to go out with some major blood and guts now that the necessity for a plot has ended.

Don’t care much for the ending. Generic. Yeah, I get the reference back to episode one. But the only thing THAT makes me think of is “episode one was pretty good, gave me some hope…oh well, generic “zombie” sh1t”.

If anyone tells you about the “overriding” message of the whole series, tell them it took WAY too long to tell it.

I can’t say it’s “bad”…not with the feeling it left me with. But I can say there is nothing after episode one that lives up to the promise.

For hardcore zombie/infected fans only.

Dead Set – Episode 3

The living dead don’t like water. I guess they didn’t see ‘Land’.

This is marginally better than two, enough to make me watch four, but I was waiting for it to end more than I was enjoying watching it. And I predict four will be JUST good enough to make me watch five. F@ck it, I’ll watch five anyway. But I think this was over after one.

Dead Set – Episode 1

A fast-moving dead people scenario unfolds along with an episode of ‘Big Brother (UK)’, until the two begin to collide more and more obviously and directly.

They’re not zombies: I classify them as “living dead”, rather en”rage”d.

In fact they act very much like ’28 Days Later”s infected, and are filmed in much the same way (by the real cameras).

The setup is about as “fresh” as you’re gonna get for this sort of thing (by now).

Not a comedy: a dark satire, in parts, perhaps. But mainly (so far) a horror show.

Acting is solid or better, effects are very good; it’s quite convincing, actually.

I like the female lead especially: because she’s cute, but also because her character is convincing and at least slightly noble.

There are five of these. Basically, if they’re all at least as good as this, you’ve got a really long new (if you haven’t watched it yet) decent zombie/infected movie to watch.

I’m actually quite glad and very surprised; it’s been a while.

10/18/16: After watching all of them, I can say that this episode should be regarded as a good “short subject”. Only hardcore zombie/infected/etc fans need go any further. Maybe the second half of episode five, if you must. I’d apologize but it’s not my d@mn fault and I’m probably as disappointed as any of you are.

Dead Set (One Season, 2008)

Basically this brief UK series shows the “real” life of some people on a real(ity) show as documented by a “real” crew who are actually all being filmed by a real crew.

Then the zombie apocalypse starts.

I don’t think I’ve seen that before. Not that I had any choice.

So a watching I go. Stay tuned…

Any good? Answer unknown, I shall analyze…analysis complete: insufficient data to resolve problem. See entry ‘Dead Set – Episode 1’.

There They Go, Satisfied Customers By The Thousands! (Part Two)

FAQ:

1) What if it’s got a nick?
A: If you’ve got a knick-knack with a nick in it, we’ll knock the nick out of the knick-knack with Brighto.

2) Oh…I didn’t notice the leg was missing. War, eh?
A: No, banana peel.

3) WTF is this cr@p?
A: https://www.webwiki.com/peryourhealth.com

10/17/16: DOCUMENT

Pupdate – 10/17/16

Housekeeping of website is complete. For now.

My GOD was that tedious.

I noticed something while going through and tidying things up, too…

Lots of my posts suck. I mean, some are like really repetitive and some are just mediocre.

FORTUNATELY, I noticed some good ones as well. So, I’m both disappointed and heartened.

AND, I may say without fear of contradiction, that my movie/long subject/tv/short subject/MST3K reviews are all RIGHT ON THE MONEY. Good stuff, right from the beginning.

So if you’re wondering what doesn’t suck on here, it’s those, and certain selections from the other groups.

Onward.

Thoughts While Watching The Patriots – 10/16/16

Suggested Follow-Up To Charles Schwab Obsolescence Ad:

(Man) “So, do you think I can run to Mercury?”
(Man2) *chuckle* “No…”
(Man) “Why are you laughing?”
(Man2) “That’s not how the world works.”
(Man) “Well, the world is changing.” *jump* *plummet, scream*

NO!

Your choice of imagined clips to follow:

Michael Palin jumping out of the Kamikaze Advice Centre, OR
Ron Obvious jumping off the starting platform OR
your favorite Kamikaze Scotsman jumping off the top of Edinburgh Castle.

…and why are so many NFL coaches like M. Palin’s wimp character when it comes to managing time?

…time to lose.

Night Of The Living Deb (2015)

So. Back to zombie movies.

You know, seriously, this is actually sort of my contribution to society. I watch these, so that – for the most part – you don’t have to. Vis:

This is not a horror movie. It’s a comedy all the way.

The absurdity is RELENTLESS. I mean, joke after joke after joke parade on and by, some of the time lagging, some of the time the decent ones quickly covering for the bad ones. Twenty minutes in I actually laughed; it was eye-opening.

That’s after a weak, trying-too-hard-to-be-clever intro that made me think the whole thing would be the same. Fortunately, it actually GETS clever after it warms up, STAYS clever (at points, I emphasize…it’s spotty), and maintains a certain level of “quality” before fading near the end. Never revelatory, but it DOES have good points.

It’s only 1:24, so I guess the padding was necessary…but let’s just say you’re not missing anything at the end. You’re really not missing anything anywhere; in the sense that, wherever you start watching, it makes as much sense. And it means as much. And the jokes fly rat-tat-tat-tat as much, til about an hour in.

So I’d say start from about 12 minutes in (after reading the short description of the movie, which pretty much says all you need to know) and watch for as long as you like; if you like it by 20-25 minutes in, great. If not, you’ll never like it.

After an hour or so just stop watching, unless you’re either REALLY into it, drunk, or you’ve fallen asleep.

Here’s a note I took that I just HAD to put somewhere:

– A pretty good Ben Affleck imitation does a surprise Stuart Smalley imitation.

Inspirational Grammar: “Your/You’re”

Grade: D+

4/5/17: I find myself won over by Deb’s cute n’ SASSY-ness. But yeah, it runs out of steam somewhere around the “family” scene. The rest is simply tolerable, but hey…a guilty pleasure zomromcom. Grade: C-

7/14/18: The Great Grade Update. Nothing I enjoy this much (a certain amount) should be ranked “Below Average”. Grade: C

ConHugeCo Bullsh1t Services

Just a random observation on no particular network…

So is it because they think that football fans are all stupid that stations put the following ads during games?

*really mediocre clip from a new show*

Then, proudly and in BIG LETTERS:

“TV’s Number One New X”

X = Drama, Comedy, Whatever

Question: How many “new X’s” ARE there that particular week? Even month?

Ummm…one? Maybe two?

So it’s the best of itself. Or it’s 50/50.

AMAZING!!!

Oh, and then sprinkling in REAL, LEGITIMATE “Number One Y” to give the appearance of “Wow…this station is AMAZING…they have the number one EVERYTHING!”

No. They have one show that’s number one in a diminished “television” market.

The rest of it means somewhere between “Jack” and “sh1t”.

I mean, here’s the intended overall effect, IMPO:

(For this, X = Legitimate Number One Show, Y = BS Number One, Z = BS Number Two)

“Wow…I mean, I knew they had X…that’s a cool show…but they have Y, AND Z too? Wow, this network fcken ROCKS!”

“…but you can never lie to them. To me commercials are nothing but lies.” – Don Hertzfeldt

Grimmsy Grimmling – Pupdate, 10/9/16

Will there be new Grimmsys? Yes!

When? Next one probably next month!

What about after that? Probably one per month!

For how long? Indefinitely! Or until I change my mind!

Will the second one just be a visual version of the second text one? Yes!

Well why should I bother looking at it then? Pretty pictures!

What if I don’t care enough about that and want a NEW script; what’s the point in looking at it then? Well, none at all really!

Will there be new scripts? OH yes!

What advice can you give me for enjoying Grimmsy more? Lower your script standards, develop my sense of humor, and FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD AND SACRED don’t read the text-only versions!

Cialis Ad – “Why Stop To Take A Pill?”

Maybe because if, like some of the couples in the ad, you’re at a garage sale or walking down a street during the day and therefore you can’t just drop to the ground and go at it anyways.

So it’s NOT so much of a problem to take a pill while going somewhere that the general public can’t see you fcking.

Site Review (Three Different Ones)

Wanted to post something and these have been sitting annoyingly waiting for me to review them, so here goes a quick rundown:

Subetalodge.org – Subeta fan site; exhaustive lists of all things Subetan.

gog.com – “Classic” (and other) pc game site. Fairly low prices for (if you’re old enough) some of the games you remember from your (relative) youth and wish you could play again. Limited experience with it; no problems so far.

Dafont.com – ALL fonts, ALL the time. It’s a hoard of fonts, so if you’re in a font-deciding mood (shrug) it’s probably worth a look. Again, (very) limited experience with it.

Da end. Why no grades? I don’t trust my impartiality. Caveat Emptor.

Grimmsy Grimmling – Pupdate, 10/4/16

For non-CA/A’s: More to come! Really…interesting.

For CA/A’s:

Disclaimer: Little Grimmsy, Escort of Souls is a work of fiction. I do not intend in any way to imply by statement or lack of statement that Grimmsy is in any way my conception or perception of death. Nor do I intend at any point to imply that I believe or do not believe in a deity or deities who may or may not exist and (if affirmative) may or may not be in any way related to the character of Grimmsy (see above) or the state, moments leading to said state, or any opinion or perception of death and/or the state of death in any way, shape or form. Numerous fictional events occur/have occured/will in future (assuming said plan of future comes to pass) occur regarding and involving Grimmsy and the comic strip ‘Little Grimmsy, Escort of Souls’; such fictional events have/do not/will not (if coming to pass) represent in any way any opinion, thought, feeling, or belief of any kind that I may or may not have regarding religion, spirituality, death, life, existence, non-existence, gravity, purple eyeballs, drawn pictures with accompanying words, text bubbles, ambiguous bubbles containing letters, punctuation marks, or symbols of any kind in any way, shape or form.

Deep Puppy Thoughts (Part 165)

It’s the feeling you get over and over; very very rarely, but consistently. You feel it wash over you, you’re awed by it. You wonder how it could possibly be so amazing and achingly beautiful. You wonder how you couldn’t see it before. You know you didn’t; there was a time the feeling was gone, it didn’t exist, but now it was evoked. Sometimes you don’t know why, but it doesn’t seem to matter. Whether you write the most beautiful poem or just sit and marvel at what it is to feel, and think, or say, “wow”…it is what matters in that moment, and that moment is pure beauty. And you wish so strongly that it didn’t have to fade, because you know it will. And you wish so strongly it would go away, because you’re too weak and awed to handle both its power and its loss. And then, slowly, it’s gone. And you go about your life; sometimes wistful, sometimes forgetting altogether, for months, years…but it always comes back. And that is worth living for.

I wonder how I’ll feel about this tomorrow?

I’m so glad I got to type this, that it came to me and I was able to let it out, using the best words I knew to capture the feelings.

If you’re ever lost, think about this.

Deviantart Review – DestinyBlue

An artist I think is worth your time because her drawings look good (she has talent) and – more importantly – because I believe her drawings actually mean something to her.

It *seems*, at least, to me, that the emotions she’s expressing are real; that they’re being expressed not for commercial gain but simply because she wishes either to share with others or help heal herself…or both.

It’s not easy to be a very good artist, simply in terms of drawing pictures that look good. It’s not easy to, as an artist, express feelings well – in a manner that comes across strongly, and as genuine.

When you can do both, as she can, that’s something worth watching.

Deep Puppy Thoughts (Part 164)

If you’re REALLY REALLY REALLY intellectual and are talking to someone else that is, and they say something that really annoys/insults you, you might consider the following response, before walking away.

It’s inappropriate for almost any occasion.

“Using a colloquialism to ingratiate yourself with the rabble? How very sad. How *really* very sad.”