Glee-Cap: The Imaginarium of Dr Stamos, Season 2, Episode 2

THE BRITNEY/BRITTNEY SPEARS EPISODE

Brittney S. Pierce finally is getting featured on this episode of Glee. Answering the question of "what is going on in there" definitively and authoritatively. Ha, I'm kidding, we still have no idea what is going on with Brittney. Though I have a theory or two, but until Glee actually puts more of her into the story there's no way to judge.

This episode featured the entrance into the Glee cast of JOHN STAMOS as dreamy dentist Dr. Carl, Ms. Pillsbury's new boyfriend who, through a commitment to the oral hygiene of the Glee Club students, hallucinogenic anesthesia and a Brittney Spears play list on Pandora.com sends a fair number of cast members on vision quests in the key of Millennial Pop Tart.

Luckily for us all, Santana and Brittney got a chance to sing and dance, which they do with feeling and frankly just make Rachel's songs in this episode look like a kids' jazz class recital. Sorry Rachel Fans, they do.

Lots to say this week, but ultimately, the more screen time you give Santana and Brittney the better, proven in this weeks episode... Spoilers after the break.


Mr Shue did things in this episode, which pretty much guarantees that half the episode is a lost cause but then... out of the blue... STAMOS. As the most attractive dentist ever. He is busy being amazing, and handsome and being a genuinely good partner to Ms. Pillsbury. Confident and strong enough to help her overcome her OCD and to point out thoroughly just everything that isn't perfect about Mr. Shue.

To save all of you my harping on this storyline, I will instead rely on this dramatic depiction of what happens when you attempt to define yourself by the standards of STAMOS from the Animated Classic Clone High U.S.A. : (note: you should really watch the whole season) (other note: it's graphically violent)



Principal Scudworth highlights than when up against such a resplendent light of manliness, you should just give up, as Scudworth learns at the end of Episode 13 when Stamos won Prom King but gave up the title after the clip he also sacrifices himself (already injured by that crown stabbing) to save Scudworth and thwart the Board of Shadowy Figures. Long story short: The characters Stamos play are just good guys.

As happens whenever we profile Mr. Shue, Crazy Ex-Wife Mrs. Shue shows up and looks bad. I will however give props to Ms. Pillsbury, because while this is all too much, and she puts up with a lot of pushy weirdness from Mr. Shue this episode, she seems pretty reasonably confused by her feelings and is being honest with both her current boyfriend, STAMOS, and Mr. Shue about it. She's trying to improve herself and her life and hopefully, that desire will rub off on those around her.



Meanwhile, Rachel's interpretation of Hit Me Baby One More time gives new meaning to "like watching a 7 year old acting sexy." A better choice might have been "not a girl, not yet a woman" because while there is a spark of this arc being true to a teenager's insecurity in social and romantic situations, I.... I just can't care about whether or not she succeeds.

It does bother me that is seems to be utterly acceptable that she treats her boyfriend in this manner, sneaking around getting people to lie to him. I mean, really? It's a consequenceless world as long as she plays into Finn's narrative victimization?

LadyChart of Character Growth:

 Britney:

IS THAT ALL THERE IS? ribbon for participation at best here Glee

 

But yes, Britney rocks.

 

 more please. 

 Ms. Pillsbury:

Rational, trying to get her head together, reacting calmly to crazy things happening around her. Also dating John Stamos.

Solid. Point to you Glee

 Mrs. Shue:

Shows up to be a crazy ex wife. In her defense, she vented honestly because her ex-husband who pays spousal support is getting a crazy-new-car he can't afford.

Breaking even.

 Sue:

Pulls the fire alarm because of inappropriate Homecoming Rally behavior, but in her mind, because a sex riot is breaking out.

Uh.... No Points, no character growth, not sure if it is backsliding or not.  Excellent use of the word Frottage though.

Coach Beiste:

Lets Finn and Arty onto the football team despite earlier drama.

No Change in Characterization, only onscreen to perform that action. 

 Santana:

Whorish, Sticks up for her friend, hell of a dancer. No Change.

"Rachel, while you're dressed like you're trying to impress a Japanese businessman with a very dark, specific fetish, I actually dig this look"

 Rachel:

Manipulates Finn blatantly asking Quinn to lie to him and attempt to seduce him, Asks Finn to give up things that mean a lot to him to suit her vanity, Dresses Sluttishly to get attention,  Acts insecure.

Really? No Change.

"I've never dressed like a pretty girl because I never believed I was one, but now I feel like it's ok sometimes. "

As a note Rachel, I really do believe you know what it feels like to strangle a baby bird. 

Quinn:

Shows up to lie to Finn for Rachel. Good Friend or Just Evil?

regardless, no growth.

 Tina:

Still dating Mike, has good teeth. No Change

 Mercedes:

WHY DO WE ONLY SEE HER WHEN SHE'S SAYING SOMETHING WITH ATTITUDE? At Best, no change. 

Before I throw my hands up and say good riddance for another week, Glee, THE REACTIONS OF THE TEENAGE BOYS TO RACHEL'S OUTFIT WERE UTTERLY, EMBARRASSINGLY, INAPPROPRIATE.

Especially Jacob Ben Israel, in the real world, this kid would have been sent home by way of the therapist and suspended if not worse.

But even more tellingly, in real life, Artie, Finn and a dozen other characters would have been suspended for the way they responded to Rachel. Maybe not in every school but certainly every one I ever attended. While I tend to focus on portrayals of female characters doing bad things and they're there. This wasn't ok, Glee. For shame.

Did other people find this funny? Horrifying? wtf? am I over-reacting? Where was Puck? Weigh in in the comments.

Next week, if there's a god, more Stamos.

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FAT KIDS ON FIRE

Last night I saw the Pipeline Theatre Company's Fat Kids On Fire, an original play written by Bekah Brunstetter and directed by Peter Frechette. It was a funny, well-acted show that excellently captured the social awkwardness of teenagers with low self-esteem due to body image issues.

Fat Kids On Fire is about Bess, an insecure teenager who gets the opportunity to lose weight and build up her self confidence by going to Fat Camp for the summer. As the skinniest girl there, Bess immediately becomes admired and popular. But all the attention replaces her endearing quirkiness with bitchy egotism. In the end, being the hot, popular girl at camp turns out to be more isolating than being the invisible, slightly chubby girl back home.

The humor and the solid performances help keep the play's familiar themes fresh. During certain scenes, I genuinely felt uneasy watching the characters' insecurities unfold. All the actors did a great job of showing the gawkiness of being uncomfortable in one's own skin. Concepts like eating one's emotions or bullying as a means of projecting one's own insecurities onto others were also well-conveyed. Sydney Matthews did an especially fantastic job portraying Bess' character arc.

I really recommend that you go catch Fat Kids On Fire in its final week at The Wings Theatre. It's playing September 29-October 2; all 8 pm showings. For tickets and more info, please visit www.pipelinetheatre.org.

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Glee-Cap! New Directions... towards hell. Season 2, Episode 1

You'll have to forgive me this season my dear readers, I fully intend to re-cap Glee, but I also know that there are many things that will stand in my way of punctual re-capping: work, painful shoes one wears to functions, dinosaurs, and speaking engagements, but enough about me. Our plucky young show choir shares many of my challenges this fall in getting you an insightful and hopefully hilarious recounting of their antics, Cheerios, Schoolwork (HA! when have we ever seen this kids in a class), Football Season, and of course, DRAMA!!!!

They haven't won sectionals and now must prepare themselves for their own Autumn trials and travails. They have become minor celebrities on the blog of the school newscaster, but no one is signing up to audition for Glee Club!!! GASP!

"These girls have been lined up since mid-July, one girl ate a pigeon, a few started worshipping a dead possum carcass as their Lord" -Sue

Thank you Sue, I needed that.

The rest of this episode, I'm not sure any of us actually needs.

I know it's the first episode of the season, but wow. The only place you thought you could take this was "Lets make sure they're doing vile things all the time. That'll make you root for them and think of them as plucky underdogs."

As always, spoilers after the jump, also, ontology. Deep Breath and JUMP!



Oh, and anyone who has ever been in a Public High School arts program knows, the beginning of the year comes with budget cuts that must be fought tooth and nail for your program's very survival. Glee Club is no suggestion, but this time, Sue's Cheerios budget is at risk well. GASP!

Coach Beiste, a particularly androgynous football coach with 5 consecutive national football championships under her belt. (yes, her).

Nationals are in New York this year. And so to recruit, they sing this, even after the online poll explicitly pleas to Mr. Schue to not rap. ever.



It fell flat. So what are they to do?

Well, by awkwardly and disrespectfully recruiting transfer and exchange students in bathrooms. Why is there a transfer student showering alone during class time? also, why aren't the lights on? When does this happen? And why does Finn have time to stalk him? WHY IS THIS HAPPENING???

So, Sue and Mr. Shue are teaming up to try and harry the new coach. But she is handling it with maturity and compassion, while holding the football players

Asian Camp. REALLY? ok, it was a dream. WHY WAS HE ALMOST NAKED??? well, I shouldn't complain too much, we're only a few minutes in and this is really not a "problem" per se.

OK, it's just clear to me that the first few segments of this episode are an homage to man crushing. The Glee Club guys all really like Sam, a comic book loving transfer student who as I mentioned was naked in the shower. Also, Mike Chang, has been upgraded to almost full character, Trina's boyfriend etc... Oh yeah, he was almost naked in the Asian Camp sequence.

Meanwhile, Rachel is deeply threatened by talented exchange student from the Philippines, Sunshine, whose name I am not making up.

As we see with Coach Beiste, who is initially such a stereotype that it barely deserves mentioning, is shown to be nuanced. Even when she misunderstands Finn's attempt to get Artie (guy in the wheelchair) onto the football team.



Upside, she flipped out and Finn is off the team.

I must point out that this is Mr. Shue's fault, because I do not like him. Also, because, in this episode, his infantile, mary-sue-ish innocence is lost. Sue gets him to prank and haze Coach Beiste and in so doing, he finally does something that makes him have to look inwards. It should not be lost just how childish the behavior Sue and Shue engaged in ordering pizzas to the locker room, not letting Coach Beiste sit at their lunch table. This seems pretty intentional on the part of the writer. Ultimately, this show is about high school, and they seem to be trying to celebrate that on several levels.

What I think is going on. While I never rule out bad shrimp or accidentally taking crazy pills instead of Advil, Glee is setting up the pins only to knock them down later.

This however, is the SANE part of the show. Up until this commercial break, things have been back and forth, a little confusing, but a little funny. At this point, things turn around and become so insane and mixed up that I do not know where to begin.

Quinn and Finn are both auditioning for the Cheerios, Quinn earns her spot through her ability to leverage her personal narrative Finn on the other hand, is desperate. Having been kicked off the football team wants something to replace it. Mr. Shue and Coach Beiste have a showdown in the Principal's office, where Mr. Shue manages to make it all about him.

Santana got a boob job because she wanted to get more attention. Sue demotes her from team captain because she doesn't approve. Quinn is back on top of both the squad, the chastity club and the pyramid. Of course, then it turns into a cat fight of epic proportions.

After courting their prospects, no one shows up to auditions.

Brittney and Sue get ugly, Brittney accuses Coach Beiste of touching her inappropriately, then... uh... she says she actually wants to touch Coach Beiste's boobs. Yeah, I must have taken crazy pills. This is just beyond absurd.

Rachel sent Sunshine to an actual crack house when she directed her to auditions.  Trina, Mike and Mr. Shue tell her she has to make it right, so they reschedule auditions in the auditorium and Sunshine blows them away.



Ultimately, characters are supposed to be people and THESE ARE TERRIBLE PEOPLE. Felony terrible. Rachel admits she did these terrible things because she loves herself too much and didn't want someone stealing her spotlight.  Then she sings about how she did all this for love.

THEN IT ENDS.

Setting us all up for "personal growth" by making sure the bar is as low as humanly possible.

As is my custom, let's break down the female characters in last night's episode:

Rachel - selfish, sends foreign exchange student to crack house where she is robbed, even after admitting she didn't do it for "the good of the club" she doesn't get that her utter self-serving pathology is not ok.

Quinn- is back where she was before she got pregnant, possibly hypocritical celibacy club president, cheer captain, and protegee of Sue.

Santana- Boob Job for attention, starts cat fight in hallway with Quinn. Is angry, that's her emotion, it's her only emotion. 

Trina- Asian, Now it's really a "thing". Object of remorse/stalking for Artie, Deus ex Machina.

Brittney- rain man shit. Accuses someone of molestation then says she wants to touch their boobs, skulks around the background looking plastic and clutching dolls to her neck.

Coach Beiste- When I say they make her nuanced, she is on a roller coaster of emotive behavior. Alternately stereotypically threatening and compassionate. She is trying to do right, but dag nabbit, her female vulnerability causes her to persecute poor innocent Finn who just wanted to get his disabled friend on the football team. She was out of line, but also, there is a tone it was about her hurt feelings. I am conflicted here, I have to hope that conflict is their goal. 

Sue- Vacillates between felonies and immature pranks, also, wildly judgemental. On the plus side... that's consistent?

Overall for a show that is reported to be "funny" none of this was funny, it was appalling.

Will I need to turn this into a drinking game as a coping mechanism? or will it just drive me to drink? you'll have to tune in to find out.

Haven't gotten enough hilarious despair? hilspair? despairious? despairity? Check out Caitlin Burns' blog The Mystery of Girls Media or on Twitter: Caitlin_Burns

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90210 Semi Live Blogging - "Senior Year, Baby!"

Previously on 90210

Crap crap blah blah pregnant sleepy teacher, Annie & Liam totally lurv each other, Jasper looking sad (good, that's important, thanks recap...), rape! Naomi's starring in the live action version of the girl who cried wolf. Finally! That's never been done before.
...

That "previously" section made me upset. This show sucks. But - we must carry on! So carry on we will. 90210 Season 3 recaps begin in 5...4...3...2...


Damn. Dixon's still on this show. And has stupid hair. ---------------->

Annie has new hair too, but it's pretty. She wins this round. Though if Dixon is always her competition, she will win all the rounds.

Makes no sense that their parents split up, sorry, not buying it.

What is Dixon wearing? And why? WHY.

Teddy and Silver are still together cause he doesn't know he's gay yet. Aw. Poor Silver.

It seems so obvious now

They're all friends again! Lookit! Good times! Happiness! Friends!

But Naomi is still freaking out. And turning 18 in one week. Something tells me this will be important.

Dixon and Ivy are still dating, auughhhhhhhhhh whyyyyyyy his hair is so stupid, it's like a joke, an actual joke

YES! Ivy met a Brit. Do that instead.

Is this guy really British? But he's so unappealing! How do they manage to even screw up the Brits! Brits are supposed to ALWAYS be hot!

Looked it up. The actor is American. Explains everything.

The rest after the jump


Javier and Adrianna have totally been doing it.

Oh, ok, apparently she hasn't even made out with him once in three months? Yeah. Oookay, that's totally believable. Yup.

Liam! Hating Annie?

Naomi lied to everyone about her summer cause she's sad.

RAPIST ALERT ---------------------------->

The room is shaking. Is this a dream? Is someone dreaming? Oh. No. It's real, it's an earthquake.

Wait, Teddy becomes gay because a bookshelf falls on him?

90210 Guide To Realizing You're Gay. Step 1: Get caught under a bookcase during an Earthquake

Naomi screams and freaks out and Rapey Teacher is Rapey.

Rapey Teacher got real evil real quick

There was always something off about Rapey Teacher, wasn't there?

Hot Sleepy Teacher woke up!!! But he's still a little sleepy. He's always at least a little sleepy.

British New Dude is trying REALLY hard to be suave and it hurts my whole body

Liam hates Annie cause, wait, why, she didn't get in touch with him all summer? I'm confused. So they haven't dated yet?

Annie didn't know that Jasper lit Liam's boat on fire? Wha?


<------- We observe that Silver's haircut gets worse and worse every year. Blech.

So Teddy has a hot male nurse when he is recuperating in the hospital? Is that what happens?

"Schoolscanceledpartyatmyhouse!" You did good, U-5er #actorterminology

British New Dude is actually the one who ended school, okay, yeah, seemed fishy, I just forgot he was a character and thus couldn't figure out who would have the balls to do that.

Hot Sleepy is Annie's senior advisor! Neat! MOAR SLEEPY HOT NESS!

He already wrote her a recommendation letter! Bone?!

I forgot there was just an earthquake. So did everyone else.

Liam does Annie a favor cause he DOES wanna bone her

I knew girls who wore ponchos in high school. I may have even dabbled myself.

Hippie or Wizard? You be the judge. 

Javier is a DICK, you guys

And then Javier…dies?

Jetskiiing!! You know, like normal kids do when they ditch school cause of a massive Earthquake! Sure!

We all talk about what a bad character Dixon is. As morally ambiguous as they come. Or maybe just straight out evil. Just awful.

See, dumb Dixon, British New Dude has a girlfriend, chill out.

Silver's about to walk into a shitstorm what with the Teddy being gay.

Oh shit! Navid can't reach Adrianna cause she got in an accident, that's what happened, ahhhhhh, worst fear

Male nurse male nurse! It's happening! Look, Teddy's hurt! Male nurse!

90210 Guide To Realizing You're Gay. Step Two: That.

Rape counseling time. Totally missed everything that happened in this scene.

"I can't believe Javier's dead." I can't believe this show is so god awful.

This would be an international tragedy. It better be everywhere for the rest of the episode.

His book of hit songs! Do it! That's why they turned him into a dick at the last second out of nowhere, so we will hate him and think Aid should steal his songs. Got it.

The Kardashians are stylers? Are they? Is that what they are?

Naomi is funny looking

Annie is cute! Uses the old "perfectionist" line when responding to the question "What is your weakness?" in an internship interview. Also, she killed a dude. I don't know if that's considered a weakness or anything.

"Guess you have to expect a few aftershocks after an earthquake" is what the interviewer says. Then Annie thinks about how this applies to her life OUT LOUD. Out loud. OUT. LOUD.

"I accidentally killed a man." She said that out loud too. Then acts all crazy and leaves.

Lemme guess - Annie gets the internship for being honest and open!

Interviewer's thoughts: "You're crazy! I like crazy." Cause that's the only way Annie's getting this job.

Liking Rufus Wainwright means you're sentimental, apparently. According to the Brit.

BritNuDood reminds Ivy of the time he gave her her first orgasm. He actually uses the words "First orgasm."

Wait. Did he just say that? Did he actually just say that?!

Finally kissing someone with an iota of sex appeal! Though still not very much...#MaleSexAppealFail

It was a dream! A dream! Nice one. Damn.

Let's all agree that Ivy put a lot more into that scene that she ever has with Dixon.

Laim's so cute. But what's that music playing? Ah! Why!

Liam and Annie kiss! Awww. But to really bizarre music. Kind of killing the moment. WTF is this.

Trailer for Life As We Know It. Josh Duhamel and Katherine Heigl are the same kind of actor - both attractive and unattractive, at the same time, both might be movie stars, but also might not be, it's confusing.

Naomi is teaching us about rape or something. I don't know, I'm bored.

Annie didn't call Liam cause she knew she would totally make out with him. Yeah. I would make out with him too. Which is why I would call him. But, to each her own.

Liam doesn't wanna be friends, Annie, he wants to boooonnnneeee, duuuuhhh

Liam and Annie, to this day the only couple who has ever had chemistry on this show.

Why isn't anyone else talking about this?! An young international superstar just died in a freak accident! Like the Biebs! It would be EVERYWHERE.

I like Laurel. Adrianna should totally use Javier's songs, whatever javierjavierjavier

Teddy's gonna meet a male nurse! Yes! It's happeninggg.

…"now I can be gay!"

He's driving drunk with a torn ACL?! That takes a lot of determination. Wow.

Teddy ignored his doctor. Dumbass.

"Find something else you love." Yes. Men. That was a little obvious.

We all know that when you have too much spare time, you realize you're gay. It's scientific.

90210 Guide To Realizing You're Gay. Step Three: Drunk drive with a torn ACL to a random chick's party. Proceed to get moar drunk.

No, Ivy! You clearly are WAY more attracted to the other dude. Stop it. Stop it with Dixon already.

My mother is baffled by Ivy's wardrobe choices. Aren't we all.

Still not buying it. Will never buy it.

Where did Ivy put her cell phone? Where did Dixon put his hands?! No, they don't love each other. Dumb.

Dude No Longer Attracted to Naomi calls her "Katie Holmes after Tom Cruise", bwhaha. I don't mind that.

Naomi decides to have a three way cause that's her "old self!" Ol' Threeway Naomi! … Ooookay

We observe how Katie Holmes did lose her sex appeal. And Nicole Kidman never got it back. Don't marry Tom Cruise, you guys.

HOLY EXPOSITION! So Harry & Debbie are Separated. He lives 45 minutes away. Left a month ago. Check check check. God I need to find a clip of this to post. (See end of post)

"Aren't I supposed to be the one taking care of you guys?" Full House moment. It's nice to reference your old tv shows. Oh, not what they were going for?

"At least drink some milk" What?! Why?!?! Why would you ever tell your kid to make sure to drink milk after eating ice cream?! Is that a joke?! Are you trying to murder Dixon?! Well, actually, I'd be okay with that.

Annie is actually really charming for a solid 20 seconds.

"...and she just might be desperate enough to do it." Oooh good. Someone is tricking Annie. That's what she needs. Also glad to see the show still prides itself on its stellar dialogue and plot devices.

Limpy Teddy saves Naomi from herself. Yup. From herself. Said it.

The BritNuDood hits on Ivy like woahwoahwoah. Him > Dixon.

He's DOING Jack Sparrow. Not sexually.

The Britis sleeping with Ivy's mom?! What?! Why?! Is that who he has an open relationship with? Ah! Gross!

Naomi is too tiny. Tiny tiny tiny.

"Random physical act like tennis." LOW, Naomi. How will Teddy ever recover.

Why doesn't he want you, Naomi? Cause he's gaaaaaaaaaaaaay

90210 Guide To Realizing You're Gay. Step Five: You Save The Hot Drunk Girl With Baggage Instead of Sleeping With Her...(says 90210. Not me.)

Yeah, this situation doesn't look good, Teddy..

Oh! I've liked this song this whole time and it's Adrianna! Neat.

"The best thing she's ever written." Burn. It's Javeirjavierjavier's, obviously. How long until THIS secret comes out. Siiigh.

Rapey's after Silver now. Watch out Silver.

Naomi's a mess. A hot mess, if you will. (Snap.)

Next Week: Adrian Grenier hits on a high schooler? Well, we know Naomi turns 18 this week, so maybe it'll be legal.

Hey Annie, how did you feel about the season premiere of 90210?

Me too, Annie. Me too.

Start around the 2:00 minute mark to experience Expositionpalooza 2010

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Bioshock: Infinite Gameplay Trailer HEEAAARRTTT

Things that are Bioshock related get entire posts, not just tumbles. Is that what tumblr posts are called? Tumbles? Whatever. Point is - BIOSHOCK: INFINITE. AHHHH. Wish it was coming out now instead of a whole effing year from now.

I'm dying to know how this game will tie into the mythology of the first two Bioshock outings. Obviously that tonic he drinks must have something to do with plasmids, right? Maybe we'll discover something a connection to Andrew Ryan somewhere? Or Dr. Lamb? Oh god, I can't wait I can't wait I can't wait. 

And ss if I couldn't love this trailer anymore than I already do, Elizabeth, voiced by my former classmate Natalie Kuhn, is not only in it but says *a lot*, showing off the awesome actress Natalie is. Notice how great she is with her voice? Multiply that by 100 and you have her talent on stage. She's GOOD, you guys. And happens to be voicing a main character in one of my all time favorite franchises. Fuckin cool. If Lone Star, Big Bang Theory, Community, The Event and the upcoming mid-season show Mixed Signals haven't convinced you yet - NYU breeds working actors like woah. So you should go there. If you want to do that. (Note: Natalie went to the Atlantic Theater Company Acting School at NYU. This is also where Eloise Mumford, Simon Helberg & Jason Ritter went. All of whom are in the tv shows I just mentioned. WIN.)

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Jonathan Safran Foer at NYU

Last night I was lucky enough to get into the Jonathan Safran Foer reading and Q & A for his book Eating Animals, held at NYU's Rosenthal Pavilion, Kimmel Center for University Life. It was hosted by NYU's Creative Writing Department where JSF actually teaches. As a book geek and a vegetarian, I really enjoyed listening to him discuss fiction v. nonfiction and why he wrote a book about vegetarianism and factory farming.

Eating Animals is JSF's third book and first non-fiction piece. Essentially, the book lays out the damages inflicted by factory farming. His previous two books are amazingly beautiful, critically acclaimed novels that you should also look into reading (Everything is Illuminated is one of my favorite books ever). At the event, he discussed how nonfiction writing was very difficult for him and how he found the process very restrictive and taxing. He said that with nonfiction he had to write with a purpose--a specific end goal. This was very unlike the process of writing fiction, for him. He finds fiction writing to be a freeing, open process because he believes fiction can exist just for its own sake. He said he doubts he'll write another nonfiction book again but that he didn't choose this topic or write his book because he's an animal lover or feels it's the most important political topic. JSF was not preachy. He explained that it took him several years before he could commit to a vegetarian diet and that he began working on his book out of curiosity about factory farming. After 3 years of research and writing, JSF published Eating Animals in an attempt to unveil some of the secrecy behind factory farming.

Although I haven't finished reading his book, I enjoyed JSF rational discussion about the destruction caused by the meat industry. Beyond the obvious unethical treatment of animals is another moral dilemma less discussed: factory farming is a massive contributor to global warming. As JSF stated, factory farming has rapidly changed the face of our planet. Not only does it create an insane amount of greenhouse gases but it wastes crops and changes landscapes. There's also the issue of an unhealthy product. The mass production/slaughter of animals, which live and die in inhumane, filthy conditions, often creates toxic meat. Just consider how often we have meat recalled due to some kind of infectious outbreak. The USDA seems conflicted about siding with the consumer or a national industry that makes so much money and stimulates the economy. JSF also raised another great political point: the misconception that vegetarianism and anti-factory farming sentiments are radical or leftist. He argued that it is actually conservative to want to go back to small farming and (beyond political labels) just a matter of health and humaneness to care about the current state of factory farming.

I encourage you all to go buy a copy of Eating Animals. And not because I'm trying to convince you all to become strict vegetarians or because I think it covers the most important political issue. Trust me, I'm not the poster child for vegetarianism or animal rights. I'm also concerned with a vast array of political issues outside this one. I want you to pick up this book because I really believe we should all question the current state of factory farming. We should become better informed of the methods used to provide us meat. We should hold this large, wealthy industry accountable for the effects their methods and products have on our bodies and our planet.

Let me end on two notes, paraphrased from JSF's discussion. Firstly, for most of us urban, middle class citizens becoming a vegetarian is easy. At the very least, it's easy to cut down your meat consumption. We have lots of access to nutritious foods that aren't meat. Vegetables, fruits, and beans are also cheaper than meat and we don't have to go to expensive, organic grocery stores to procure them. It's difficult to always know where your food is coming from (meat or not) but it's pretty easy to just not eat meat (or eat less of it). It's one small, simple way to help our planet. Secondly, the current state of factory farming is an important humanitarian and environmentalist issue that deserves attention just like any other global issue. As Jonathan Safran Foer beautifully stated, caring is a rare commodity that increases the more we use it. So you can continue to care about or be active in fighting other sociopolitical/environmental issues and still find room to educate yourself and concern yourself with the effects of factory farming and the benefits of vegetarianism (or less meat-eating). And I recommend you begin with Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals. Trust me, it'll be far better than going to PETA.

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Surrender to the Clint. CLIIINNTT!

After Fistful of Dollars and For A Few Dollars More, I officially think young Clint Eastwood was the sexiest poncho wearing sharpshooter this side of the Mississippi universe, holy crap you guys.

Since dedicating 50 hours over 3 months of my life to Red Dead Redemption, I've developed a love for Westerns deeper than I ever thought possible. Liiiiiike I love them. A lot. And want to watch all of them. Now. SO. Having already seen The Searchers, I decided to start off my reentry into the world of Westerns with the Man With No Name trilogy - Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More & The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Maybe I'll even watch Duck, You Sucker. You don't know!

For those of you who have *only* seen GB&U, I highly recommend going back and seeing the first two, especially the second. While oddly the least well known of the three (in the mainstream), A Few Dollars More is fan-effing-tastic and I keep hearing from A LOT of movie lovers that it's their favorite of the three. And for you GB&U fans - it's when we first meet Lee Van Cleef and it's fuckin badass. I loved Fistful of Dollars as well, but FAFDM had more heart, more at stake, and the beginning of relationship between two bounty hunters that I suspect has influenced most things ever in the ever.

I also loved the dubbing. The dubbing! I don't know who could actually speak English in any of these movies other than Clint & Lee, but it didn't matter - the dubbing never took me out of it, I found it to be charming. Plus, these films have practically NO exposition. Because fuck that shit. Sergio Leone trusted his audience to get what was going on. And sure my "raised on exposition/ born in 1986" brain had to ask what was going on a few times, but I didn't mind.

ALSO.

This guy.

Gian Maria Volonte, oddly credited as Johnny Weis in Fistful of Dollars (playing a different character from his character in For A Few Dollars More, though both are villains) for no discernable reason. Apparently Volonte didn't take these movies too seriously, and just took the roles for the money. Cause he's a badass like that. He died of a heart attack at age 61, probably from all of that badassery. I LOVES him.

One of the greatest parts of watching these movies was seeing the clear inspiration for Red Dead. The landscapes, the towns, the music, the weapons, the duels, the transportation, the outfits, John Marsden himself, it's remarkable. And obvious - of course these movies would be a huge source to draw from for a western video game, but actually seeing it just felt really...neat. It felt neat.

And now for your enjoyment, a scene from For A Few Dollars More in which Clint is Clint and I die. Background: He is a bounty hunter and the dude he is about to interact with is his target. Video xposted to my tumblr.

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Geek Girl Anthem Of The Week

 

xposted on my tumblr, in which I say,

The singing is questionable, but the sentiment is right on. And I’m pretty sure these girls are actually geeks cause one of them is Seth Green’s wife. And he’s in it. And so is Stan Lee. And so is Katee Sackhoff. Worth a watch. 

Hat Tip: @winnie_tan

Update: Check out this feminist perspective on the video from geekfeminism.org

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10 Best SciFi TV Episodes Of All Time

I discovered Blastr this morning thanks to a link going around showing off an Empire Strikes Back chess set made of legos and have officially added the site to my ever growing google reader.

The first article I discovered was one naming the ten best Sci Fi Television Episodes of all time. And, I gotta say, it's a pretty damn good list. Open in up in a new window, read it, then come back here. Don't worry. I'll wait.

While I absolutely agree with their Buffy, Dr. Who, X-Files, Lost & Firefly episodes (and don't consider myself fluent enough in Outer Limits or Star Trek to have an opinion), I question their Battlestar choice. 33 is a great episode and as the first ep after the mini-series it DOES establish the tone of what's to come and all that, but I tend to lean more towards the season 2 or 3 finales...not that they were brilliant stand alone sci fi pieces, but they WERE breathtaking episodes of science fiction television. I won't be so silly as to suggest my own favorite BSG episode, Unfinished Business, as a candidate, considering there's practically no sci-fi in that episode whatsoever (but a whole of love and shipping!), but 33? I'm just not so sure.

Twilight Zone has so many classic episodes that Eye of the Beholder seems like a perfectly fine choice. It's classic, but disturbing & relevant classic, not almost-silly-at-this-point classic like let's say Nightmare at 2000 feet or overdone classic like To Serve Man. So while I suspect many will object to this selection, I'm actually fine with it.

If I had to add to this list...might I suggest a showing from Angel? If we are talking fantastic episodes that both played with & showed off the conventions of Science Fiction, it's hard to not look to season five's Smile Time. Watching that episode single handedly sold me on watching all of Angel's final season, and I sure am glad I made the effort - GREAT season, by far the best of the spin-off's five years.

So what would you add to this list? What would you take off? What would you tweak? Eager to hear your thoughts, especially from those of you who watch the Sci fi shows I haven't checked out yet i.e. Supernatural and....um...that might be it.

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BUHHHHHHHHHHH, Vox Style

There are new takes on the Inception trailer posted daily it seems, but since this one involved a capella, which I happen to also love...shhh don't you judge me...I'm gonna put it up here. All you web savvy readers have already seen it, I'm sure, but just in case All Things Fangirl is your only source into the world of pop culture and internet phenoms, a. I've been doing a horrible job keeping you informed, please check out my tumblr for slightly better service, and b. Enjoy!

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True Blood Original Score Soundtrack Giveaway!

To commemorate the end of another fantastic True Blood season, we’re holding another True Blood contest!

LoquaciousMuse and I are huge fans of the True Blood score and we’re thrilled to giveaway True Blood Season 1 Soundtracks to a few lucky contestants.

Nathan Barr is the amazingly gifted composer behind the True Blood score. His elegiac and beautiful music provides the perfect backdrop for all of Sookie’s twisted, dangerous, and romantic escapades. Barr’s score is also great to listen to on its own. So here’s how you can enter to win your free copy of the soundtrack:

1. Leave a comment below, telling us why you love Nathan Barr's True Blood score.
2. Go to Nathan Barr's official Facebook page and leave the same comment on his wall.
3. On that same wall comment, leave a link back to this post.
4. Wait for us to chose a winner!

See it’s easy. Just show some love on two different pages, link back to this post when leaving your comment on Nathan Barr’s FB page, and then you’re all set and entered to win a free copy of the Season 1 score. Good luck!

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500 Days of Summer Singing 'Sploge

It wasn't a premeditated form of demonstrating my love for 500 Days of Summer that led to seeing Joseph Gordon Levitt live on stage on Monday and Zooey Deschanel live on stage less than a week later, but I do love 500 Days of Summer and it did happen, so judge me as you will.

For those of you who don't obsessively study my tweets (i.e. all of you), Monday, August 30th, I attended night #2 of HitRecord.Org's Summer in the City, wherein Joseph Gordon Levitt did a bunch of artsy stuff I barely remember cause I drank five flutes of prosecco first. Oops. Luckily, I managed to film the entire show for posterity. Not so luckily, the video was taken by a DRUNK PERSON (me) so it's all shaky and filled with juvenile giggles. Sigh/fail. But I do remember this: He was adorbz, the show was awesomely fun, and JGL definitely called out our friend Pete for being awesome, as they worked together in Sundance.

Then, Sunday Sept 5th, I went to the LA Times Celebration of Food and Wine which closed with an amazing concert from She & Him. Like, amazing. I love them. I know most of everyone doesn't love them cause lots of people no like Zooey Deschanel, but like, I LOVE this band. And man, the guys in this crowd, were OBSESSED with Zooey. To quite the hilarious degree. Have some video featuring some of these crazies that may be going online soon.

Anyhoo, below are some videos from the events. Some are good, some are drunk, some are cell phoney, but I hope you enjoy nonetheless. 500 Days of Summer Singing SPLODE!!!

She & Him - Wouldn't it be Nice

Joseph Gordon Levitt accompanying an animation live

She & Him - Roll Over Beethoven (Cell phone camera)

Joseph Gordon Levitt - "La Valse à Mille Temps"- good close ups, but also, drunk

If you feel like tripping out...

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Back to the Future Card Game?!?!

Don't know. Don't care. WANT.

[Buy it for me]

Hat Tip: @dannytrs

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Don't Pretend Like You Aren't Curious What's Up With Billy From Gremlins

If you love Gremlins like I do, then you probs would have been as much of a freak as I was on the first day of class during my senior year at NYU when lo and behold Zach Galligan was my audition technique teacher at Stonestreet Studios. That was a long (but true) sentence.

He's totally effing cool and also happened to be a fantastic teacher. And with the 3G Art Show going on here in LA celebrating Gremlins, I thought posting a little something about this short starring Zach wouldn't be so random?

An official selection at the Boston Film Festival,

12 Floors Up is a dark comedy that follows movie producer Spencer Hawkins (Zach Galligan) as he tries to survive a pretentious Manhattan cocktail party. As he attempts to navigate his way through the evening unscathed, Spencer stumbles upon eccentric guests, annoying stories, and a murder.

Actually sounds pretty enjoyable, no?

The film also happens to co-star another face from my NYU days, an actor named Gil Zabarsky, with whom you are about to become obsessed. In fact, now that I've seen this clip, I have a new goal called "Make Gil Famous." Mission. Starts. NOW!

Am I right or am I right?

For more info on the project, head to their official site. To help make Gil famous and make Gremlins fans everywhere squee at the sight of Zach Galligan, post this clip everywhere and anywhere.

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I'll Never Pronounce Machete With A "Shh" Sound Again

That's kind of an awkward title for a post. Do I care? Nope!

Ma Che Te!

Okay, I've been seeing a non stop barrage of dislike/indifference for Machete over the Twitters and I just gotta put it on the record that I 2000% disagree. I don't know if my opinion was affected by the fact that I knew next to nothing about this film beforehand, especially any critics' reviews of it, but I loved it. I thought it was ridiculous AND ridiculously fun, possibly the best time I've had at the movies this year. Yes, Scott Pilgrim was epically joyful, especially considering I saw it with thousands of fans & the cast at Comic-Con and Metric performed afterwards, but I was also so high on just the experience, that I don't remember much of the actual movie AND I had so much riding on the movie being awesome, that I was almost too concerned with that to fully enjoy myself. Machete, I didn't give a shit whether it was actually good or not, I didn't know what to expect, I only assumed that it would probably be silly and violent, and I had a great effing time.

I've heard criticisms that there wasn't enough action and between the action the film was dull. Maybe I'm easy to please (Yes, I'm easy to please), but I thought there was a lot of action and didn't find any part of Machete to be dull. I was actually completely engrossed in the story - I wanted to see the bad guys get their intestines ripped out and the good guys have lots of sex at really inappropriate times. And whattya know, they did! I've also heard the opinion that there is too much plot for such an ill structured narrative, but again, lots of plot goes with the territory with this genre of movie, but I understood everything that happened just fine. So. Don't get that criticism either. Also, I would switch teams for Michelle Rodriguez. In a heartbeat. Damn. The entire movie may be worth it just for her.

I never understand vocal distaste from bloggers when it comes to movies like this. Sure, it was silly, and sure I'd expect confusion from non-genre fan critics, but like, really? Genre fans hating on it?  So many fun items were used as weapons! Steven Seagal had a stupid accent! Frank Lapidus in a suit! Lindsey Lohan showing off her busted meth face! Danny Trejo! A taco truck! What's not to enjoy?

After the movie, I definitely had vegan tacos and sparkling margaritas. Delicious and perfect way to cap the evening.

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Simon Pegg Finds Me Geek Art

Reason #94 you should follow Simon Pegg on Twitter: He links to things like this, James Hance's Relentlessly Cheerful Art. Pegg's favorites were the Muppet paintings, but I was more partial to the ones featured below.

"Help"

"The Dark Starry Night"

"These Are The Droids We're Looking For"

Check out the rest of his art and purchase some for yourself here.

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Publishing Houses of Interest

I want to recommend two small publishing houses that I think might be of interest to you ATFG readers.

The first is Pill Hill Press, a small publishing company based in Nebraska that specializes in sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. Their novels are fun, pulp reading. I recommend reading Matthew Moses’ Proxies of Fate, a sci-fi/historical fiction thriller set in the Great Depression about aliens who battle over the fate of Earth. Yeah, I said aliens AND the Great Depression. Awesome.

The second is PM Press, an amazing publishing company based in California with a wide selection of fiction and nonfiction works in different mediums. I like their selection of books, which include leftist political nonfiction, noir, and graphic novels. Check out Rick Dakan’s Geek Mafia, a fictional crime novel about a man working in the comic book and gaming industry. Also, I highly recommend Summer Brenner’s I-5: A Novel of Crime, Transport, and Sex. It’s a dark story about sex trafficking that takes place on the dismal Interstate 5. Brenner writes in this beautiful noir style that sucks you right into her novel.

So if you’re looking for some new reading, check out what Pill Hill Press and PM Press have to offer.

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Joseph Gordon Levitt + Rian Johnson at Summer in the City

Screenshots from my 87,736 videos of HitRecord.Org's Summer in the City, run by Joseph Gordon Levitt. Here, Rian Johnson joins JGL on stage to read a Tiny Story. I almost forgot this happened because five glasses of Prosecco happened first.

Head here to watch the evening in its entirety, though the stream is not close up as my videos are. I'm the drunk girl swooning over JGL. Oh wait. That was everyone. At one point my Inception ring tone goes off a bunch. Fingers crossed you can hear it in the live stream?

xposted at Cineboobs

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