Pop Culture Stuff..and kind of a meme

[shadowkat]

1. Finished S1 of Ted Lasso - which I think cleaned up at the Emmy's or maybe it was S2? The last episode made me cry and laugh, but my hormones are all over the place at the moment.

It's a feel good, warm hearted comedy, with some nice zingers or one liners about Americanisms vs. Britishisms. Ted says at one point, for example, the Dick Van Dyke's accent in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was the best proximity of a British Accent ever done. (He had an American accent in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang because his British accent in Mary Poppins was atrocious and Van Dyke refused to repeat the mistake in Chitty, insisting that he be allowed to use his own accent or not do it at all.)

That's just one example. The series is hilarious if you know the British and American differences.

2. Someone on the GH fan board complimented me on my in depth analysis of the storyline and characters. They said..."I wish others in the fandom had the same inclination and ability to analyze to this degree - it would make for some great discussions." Alas so do I. I've found a few here and there. My mother and I have done it for years. I had the same problems in the Buffy fandom - it wasn't until I stumbled upon the ATPOBTVS site that I hit analytical minds who liked to discuss storylines and characters. Everywhere else I went it was, alas, shipper wars.

3. So, Dune isn't the only big adaptation of a classic series of sci-fi novels coming out. The big one is Apple TV's adaptation of Isac Asimov's classic "Foundation", which basically influenced a lot of sci-if. Everything from Star Wars to Star Trek to Farscape, was influenced by Foundation. (Which I've never read and always intended to.)

Trailer..

Watch on YouTube

It has a good cast. Lee Pace, Terence Mann, Jared Harris, among others.

It premiers on Apple TV on Friday - I'll let you know what I think of it.

Also, Robert Jordan's classic fantasy series (possibly the longest and most extensive with 58 books, which was concluded by Bradford Anderson), Wheel of Time.

The Wheel of Time Series has been developed by Amazon.

Watch on YouTube

Dónal Finn (The Witcher) has been tapped to portray Mat Cauthon, replacing Barney Harris, who played the role in Season 1, which is set to premiere November 19 on Amazon Prime Video. The reasons for the recasting are unclear. The expansive, world-building drama, adapted from Robert Jordan’s books, involves a lengthy, complex overseas shoot in the Czech Republic. Filming on Season 2 is underway.

The Wheel of Time, which was renewed for Season 2 in May ahead of its series premiere, is set in a sprawling, epic world where magic exists and only certain women are allowed to access it. The series follows Moiraine (Pike), a member of the incredibly powerful all-female organization called the Aes Sedai, as she arrives in the small town of Two Rivers. There, she embarks on a dangerous, world-spanning journey with five young men and women, one of whom is prophesied to be the Dragon Reborn, who will either save or destroy humanity. Mat Cauthon is one of the five from the Two Rivers who, along with lead Moiraine, are considered the main characters in the books.

The Wheel of Time was adapted for television by executive producer/showrunner Rafe Judkins. Larry Mondragon and Rick Selvage of Red Eagle Entertainment, Ted Field and Mike Weber of Radar Pictures, Darren Lemke, Marigo Kehoe and Uta Briesewitz also serve as executive producers, with Briesewitz set to direct the first two episodes. Pike will serve as producer and Harriet McDougal and Brandon Sanderson as consulting producers. The Wheel of Time is co-produced by Amazon Studios and Sony Pictures Television.


See link: Recast in Wheel of Time Series

4. Mini-meme.

I am a culture junkie. Like most stuff. Have a weakness for relationship melodrama, soap operas, and super heroes.

This is all subject to change of course. It's odd though that most of the stuff on the list is old. Most new stuff I've seen doesn't appear to stick with me long for some reason or other.



* Favorite Non-Genre Drama : The Wire

* Favorite Space Opera: Farscape

* Favorite Supernatural Show: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

* Favorite Superhero series: Wandavision

* Favorite Fantasy Series: Game of Thrones...fantasy is tough and harder to do than it looks.

* Favorite Sci-Fi Franchise: Star Trek

* Favorite Medical Series: ER

* Favorite Cop Show: Hill Street Blues

Movies?

* Horror Film? Tremors (it made me laugh). Mother doesn't consider it a horror film, which I find amusing.

Mother : I don't like horror films.
Me: You liked Tremors.
Mother: That's not a horror film.
Me: Yes, it is - it has monsters and everything.
Mother: I don't think of it as horror.

* Science Fiction Film: Blade Runner. (Although Star Wars is admittedly more fun.)

* Rom-Com: Gross Pointe Blank (I admittedly have odd taste in rom-com's). I also liked Must Have Dogs. Basically anything with a young John Cusak worked for me. Although Christian Slater in Pump up the Volumn, was admittedly hot.

* Satire: Heathers. (would this count as teen romantic comedy? Eh, probably not.)

* Teen Romantic Comedy: Pump up the Volumn (which may not be a teen romantic comedy), so Pretty in Pink (which is admittedly twisted but not quite as twisted as various others...)

* Fantasy Film: I'm going with Fellowship of the Rings. Because again, hard to do. I don't know why - it's not as if there's not a lot to choose from.

* Noir film: Blade Runner, although I do have a fondness for The Maltese Falcon.

* Favorite Epic: Lawrence of Arabia

* Favorite Stanley Kubrick: A Clockwork Orange - I honestly think that's his best work.

Beginning to realize this is a twisted list. Hmm. Whatever will you think of me?

* Favorite Superhero Flick - impossible to choose. I like most of the MCU, my favorite is Black Panther

* Favorite Batman Film: Dark Knight Returns - it fits the noir take of the character in the comics best

***


5. Today saw two covers of songs by Bruce Springsteen of all people that I didn't know he'd done...

Bruce Springsteen does the Clash - London Calling

And..

Bruce Springsteen does The Ramones, I wanna be sedated

I think he's better at the Ramones than the Clash. The Clash sound furious, Springsteen sounds exhausted.

Comments

[mtbc]

I'll be curious what you think of Foundation. Those are another I've reread, I even listened to the BBC radio adaptation from decades ago, with all its bleep-bloop noises. I'd say the characterization is weak and the world-building hardly as rich as Dune's but there are interesting ideas and twists among it, I wonder what Apple TV will do with it.

[shadowkat]

I've never read it. While I have read Dune, and to date Dune has been difficult to adapt to screen. Although at least they were able to adapt it to the screen - Foundation - they've tried, numerous folks have tried apparently, and no one has managed it to date. A lot of sci-fi is almost to esoteric or world building/thematic, but not character or plot oriented enough to successfully adapt to screen. Also, there's the difficulty of recreating a visual version of the world - it's easier to create worlds in print than with graphics, particularly since everyone's head visualizes the words differently.

[mtbc]

I guess Foundation does have plot movement, at least, investigating and the like, though there are enough scene changes that I guess that, over the course of the story, there are a lot of visual versions of things to create, I guess Game of Thrones did that too though.

[mtbc]

I too love Blade Runner. I generally like Kubrick and I think that A Clockwork Orange is great except for the separate difficulty that the scene of the principal criminal offense, the assault, I find too unpleasant to stomach. It's narratively justified, for sure, even critical, but that doesn't help.

[shadowkat]

Yep, the crucial sexual assault at the beginning is painful and hard to watch. The film isn't one I want to ever re-watch. Once was enough. There's a bunch of films that I think are brilliant but can't watch again, similar to some books I think are brilliant but have no interest in re-reading. Interesting - I often prefer to rewatch lesser works which are more fun than the brilliant ones. For example? I never get tired of watching Star Wars, but Blade Runner isn't a film that I can re-watch that much. Same with say Dark Knight Returns - I can't rewatch that film, but I've seen other far fluffier superhero films more than once.

A Clockwork Orange is brilliant political satire, but difficult to watch. Kind of like 1984 - brilliant political satire but painful to re-read. The Shining and 2001 are admittedly far easier to watch, yet not quite as well put together.

[atpo_onm]

Kind of like 1984 - brilliant political satire but painful to re-read.

I've never re-read it, and had no desire to. It is brilliant, absolutely, but I was literally physically and mentally upset for a good two or three days after I finished it, which I think was sometime during my senior year in high school. I remember coming to dinner that night with my parents, and after a few bites of food, I told them I didn't feel well, and left the table.

Horrifying novel, and many years later I remember having almost a similar reaction with A Handmaid's Tale I understand that the recent TV version of that story is highly acclaimed, but I've never watched it, and not sure I ever will.

[mtbc]

I have no wish to go anywhere near A Handmaid's Tale for much that reason, important cautionary tale though it may be.

[conuly]

Everything from Star Wars to Star Trek to Farscape, was influenced by Foundation. (Which I've never read and always intended to.)

If you ever do read it, arbitrarily assign the pronoun "she/her" to half the characters.

[shadowkat]

It doesn't use personal pronouns? Interesting - it was written, I think in the 1960s.

[conuly]

Oh, it does. It is so very 1960s on which pronouns it uses, too. SO MANY MEN.

[shadowkat]

I noticed it has a lot of "Brothers" in the cast, and a lot of men in the cast. There are a few women, but they are young.

You're reminding me of why I couldn't get into the books. I had similar issues with Roger Zelzany (?). 1960s sci-fi writers are somewhat problematic. For some reason I hand-waved it for Vonnegurt and Philip K. Dick and Anne McCaffrey...

[rose_griffes]

Couldn't finish the trailer for Foundation. Wheel of Time looks interesting, plus I already have Amazon Prime, so I'll probably give it a whirl at some point.

[shadowkat]

The Foundation Trailer is confusing. I'm giving it a try, but...there's a reason I could never get into the books.