Entertaining in a Disturbing Way

This is mostly just quick thoughts, but gets a bit long. Covers episodes 1-25ish, I think, with one or two not listened to.

The monthly range seems to vary in era and continuity, and while I listened to them generally in order, I don't think it's actually required (outside of a couple linked ones, like the Andy + Norton or Andy + Owen ones).
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I'll get the non MCF game out the way first:

Amaranthine Voyage: The Tree of Life. I love the design in this one--it's steampunk. However, they repurposed a spacey game for it, so the base is a crashed spaceship buried in the jungle, with a castle built on top of it! It's a ridiculous mash of periods, and I LOVE it. The game does suffer from bad acting from Real People (photo-realistic), and the one dude tends to just stand around with his bare feet looking confused. You can click to speed up the dialog without losing anything. The mythology backstory is mostly entertaining. Mostly, though, I drool at the buried spaceship.

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Still working what feels like five peoples' jobs. October was just. I don't even know how to describe it, but I never felt like I had a moment to come up for air at all, and I didn't manage to do anything for Sparktober outside of that first week or so (which was mostly occasional comments in discord, and a watchalong).

Mom and I have two more Leverage Redemption episodes to go, and then we'll be through the season. Definitely enjoying the revival.

Not entirely through my fall down the Narnia rabbit hole (I've still got some of fanfiction.net to get through), but I've found that I am done with Susan Pevensie fic that list any of the following as a tag or description:
forgiveness
redemption
the problem of
solves the problem of
fixes the problem of
earns her way back into Narnia
remembers
etc.

basically. No. No, I do not give a fuck about the problem of Susan. I'm just fine with her being competent and practical, and do not need her to earn her ~rightful place and ~apologize for living in the real world.

It's not my fault I read National Service (well, the one with Susan, first) before I'd ever read any other Narnia fic and imprinted on the Susan in it.

Also, Susan/Caspian just doesn't work for me unless you're crossing the movie Susan with Samuel West's BBC Caspian. And then it's hot, and I'm all right with it (I just. Ben Barnes is not that interesting looking, ok. And West has this ridiculous hair.)

I'm sure I'll have more thoughts at another time.

On another hand, I watched Peppermint (yes, the Jennifer Garner gets revenge movie) and enjoyed the competence porn all over the place. Then I re-watched Ava. I also watched Mr. Right which is very entertaining (and if you liked Grosse Point Blank, you should watch it.) I basically then wanted a crossover of Mr. Right and Peppermint and Ava, with the latter two being like "...the fuck?" and the MR two being like ":):):):) Don't mind us, you're doing good things, sorry about the assassins on our tails. BYE."

I cannot fucking wait for The 355, btw. That will be a 90-minute smorgasboard of "yes, this, and more of this. Thanks." (I mean. Hopefully)

1. So, DragonCon. As we lost someone in my team at work there was 0 chance I could fly down or have any days off the week of month end close. This meant that I took the Thurs/Fri before off, packed and flew down to stay with my sister. Which, was awesome, because I don't get to see my sister that often. But also sucked, as I then worked Monday-Friday.

1A. Sis roped me into watching Stranger Things, through season two. I... I liked parts of it? I feel no one should be surprised that I came out a) shipping Jonathan/Nancy/Steve (and disappointed at the straightness, jesus), b) disinterested in the little kids, c) wanting to climb Hopper like a tree (even if I think he's kind of an asshole). I'm aware my taste can be a little sad at times. Otoh, can I just say that MARTINE AS A HOUSE WIFE took a lot to get used to (I mean, I didn't. I kept waiting for her to shoot someone). And Ryder was absolutely amazing (also, I really appreciated that the "there is Something Happening" is not dragged on for too long with people going "you're just hallucinating" for twenty episodes).

1B. Bad news, though, my nephew was home from school as he didn't feel good. Ended up testing positive for Covid on Wednesday. Both sis and I are vaxed, so I wasn't that worried, but she was, so she stayed away from me most of the week (sadly). I suppose I got a lot of work done. Neither I nor my sister have Covid.

2. DragonCon was entertaining, even with masks and not a lot of things I wanted to see/do. I spent Thursday working, then took an uber in and got our hotel room. Friday was all work (including a 8 am meeting taken in one of the long hotel corridors on the 3rd floor. Thank goodness for comfy chairs and everyone sleeping in.). I didn't see a lot, but I watched some stuff on DC TV, and had dinner with GreyCoupon one of the nights.

3. I did watch the first episode of Sense8 a while back. I liked it, and I will watch it -- I just need to carve a time out to bury myself in it.

4. I also re-watched the first Walden Narnia movie while with my sister, and, uh, then proceeded to fall down a Narnia fic-reading rabbit hole (I cannot count how many times I've re-read National Service, and it's hard to find stuff that matches that exact super-competent flavor that hits my id so deliciously---which is not to say I didn't find a lot). I find myself not wanting any of them to be domesticated. I blame Leverage. (now there's a crossover for you)

5. I did read some Stranger Things fic, but as I don't care about the pre-teens, nor for a lot of what I found so, I sort of gave up after a while (OT3 or not, I am sooo vanilla, ok. D/s is just not my thing, no matter who it is, and there's a few too many "Steve and Jonathan love each other more than they love Nancy, who's there to facilitate their screwing" framings for my taste; also, I might want to climb Hopper, but I do not want smut with him, ok.)

6. Mom and I have looped back around to season two of Leverage in our watching. It has been interesting, as I don't think I've re-watched this season quite as much as 1, 3 and 4? We have reached Tara, and I still love her so.

So, Gunpowder Milkshake crossed my radar a month (two? three?) ago, and reading the cast list was like someone dangling a carrot in front of a giant-ass rabbit.

Lena Headey? Karen Gillan? Angela Bassett? Carla Gugino? Michelle Yeoh? ALL IN ONE MOVIE, and it ISN'T about women falling in love and learning to realize they're Beautiful Inside?

Is it my birthday?

(and not to mock movies about women in love and finding beauty and stuff, lbr, my thing for Carla Gugino happened during her stint as Nan in The Buccaneers, and so did my Mira Sorvino thing. And I suffered a Woody Allen movie for the latter, so, like. No stones here.)

It has been released on Netflix, and in some theaters. I'm still not leaving the house, so I watched it on Netflix. I sort of want to see it on the big screen, too.
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This got longish, so cutting (also, like, spoilers for episodes that are a decade old?)
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A new Garbage album dropped last month, and it's so so good. I think I've listened to it almost four times a day since I grabbed it. (Shirley is soooo angry!)

The deluxe version comes with some very delightful b-sides, too.

Fave tracks:
The Men Who Ruled The World
A Woman Destroyed
Flipping the Bird
Waiting for God
The Chemicals (b-side)
Godhead (it's incredibly catchy, and not work appropriate at all)
This City Will Kill You
The Creeps
Destroying Angels (b-side)
Starman (b-side, Bowie cover)

I mean, I like the rest, too. But are the ones I'm constantly bopping to.

1. We are all still working from home (earliest back in office is end of June). Work is not making vaccination mandatory. FFS.

2. Get my second jab on Saturday (we are a Pfizer apartment, and I'm the last to get the second jab).

3. Mom and I have been re-watching Leverage together. I don't recall why, but we started in s4 and are almost to the end. Time to re-start!

4. Speaking of Leverage, the trailer for the new Leverage series dropped and looks pretty good. Still worried that Wyle's character will be the focus the way Nate was. Do not want.

5. Been re-watching MASH, too. Season ten is full of really depressing things (there are funny bits, but there's a lot of serious stuff, too). But, man, Margaret is still so hot.

- Halfamoon is coming soon - https://halfamoon.dreamwidth.org/360825.html <--post with prompts is there. I'm personally pre-gaming, as it were. That way, I have fic to post every day (or maybe fic to post. We'll see).

- Work has been a nightmare: part of my role was expanded as an interim cover for another department who had someone turn in his notice and leave, with the assumption that they would be hiring to fill that position... and, no. They're not. I did not swear at the person who told me this, but it was a close fucking thing. No, I cannot continue to cover for this role, I can't even get my own fucking work done on time. Fucking hire someone you assholes.

- I watched Ava with Jessica Chastain this afternoon (which I massively enjoyed). Then I went and read the reviews (which are bad, the movie is apparently awful and the woooorst). I am pretty sure if this had been a movie with a 99% male cast, the reviews would have been much much better. People seem to really hate the idea of women-lead action movies where there are multiple women with speaking roles (as opposed to the critically-adored Gina Carrano flicks where she's the only woman who exists).

The movie wasn't as in-depth as it could have been, but it managed to convey a lot with the time it had. And Ava is now on the list of stoic characters I adore. She and Ros Myers should go out for coffee. Olivia Dunham can bring the cookies.

That said, if you want a movie about a female assassin with some angst and addiction issues, who has painfully complicated relationships with her sister and mother, then this is probably a movie you'll enjoy.

(I want both a prequel and a sequel, Hollywood. I know you won't make me one, but I can dream).

- This movie also just makes me want The 355 even more (the release date on that is a year from now, which is awful). In the meantime, I'll just have to re-watch Ava and The Old Guard.

- The Equalizer remake is happening soon, with Queen Latifah. I am so here for this, it's not funny (fuck the superbowl, give that to me now, dammit).

- Netflix tempted me with Fate Winx Club (I think that's what it's called). I am clearly not the target audience for teen magic schools, and yet. It does appear to have lots of women, though, so I might give it a try. Netflix also tried to lure me into the chess show, but I'm not really into One Girl In Our Entire Show + Sexism Is Reality Everywhere narratives anymore, thanks.

- I also watched the pilot of LA's Finest (Gabrielle Union + Jessica Alba as buddy cops). I enjoyed it, even if I kept going, "don't you need a warrant for that..." I'll probably watch more of it, since it was fast-paced and kept my attention.

And I'm honestly not sure how much more boring I can get?

IDK.

1. Have not watched WW84, will manage it at some point.

2. I have now played through all of the Dark Parables games, enjoyed them a lot. Also amused at the credits in the Little Mermaid one.

3. I took two weeks off. It has been utterly fucking ridiculous to not have to work. I don't know how I'm going to face work on Monday.

4. I sorted my entire music library by title, started in the Ells. Now I'm in the Esses.