Bud Light: Real Men of Genius - Hopeless Notre Dame Fan

This is hilarious and totally true. Sorry Uncle ____.

Thanks A.

Jarvis Cocker on Ali s G Show

Funky.

You mean it was 6 years since last we laid eyes on The Spice Girls? It seems like a lifetime... a glorious lifetime! Really, I just thought back to when the Spice Girls first arrived... one of the college girls who did the over the phone surveys at Survey Service with me kept singing that fucking song, especially when we'd stand outside and smoke. Another lifetime ago. But the Spice Girls still suck, that's still a fact. I still think they sound intentionally bad, and have all along.

But more imporatantly, what is this shit? Hillary for Pres and The Spice Girls... it's the 90's all over again- fuck, now I know I have to vote for Obama.

The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show served to remind me just how big the gap is between the universe we live in and the one inhabited by celebrities and super models. Or maybe that gap is totally artificial, a construct of the media and our wacky culture. Either way it served to remind me of that large gap between us and them. This year's theme was "Lingerie for Super People," with many of the "outfits" so ridiculous that they could only be worn succesfully by a hot female superhero or supervillain. At least the new VS commercials were hot, as usual. The pajama one alone... wait a minute... you don't think... ah those crafty bastards. Also, not all of the outifts were ridiculous. Some were actually quite brilliant, so brilliant that this show gets the Tivo green button (until next year's show). At least now I'm in the holiday spirit. You can't help but be all about the holiday spirit after watching the Victoria Secret Fashion Show.

And Prince should take a break from suing his fans and instead sue VS for bogarting his stage design from his Sign O The Times era shows. Or maybe VS was paying homage to the 20 year old masterpiece? I'm sure that's what they'll say in any case in court...

The Books I Read

Just finished Nick Hornby's Long Way Down. Wow. Yikes. I knew from reading his Fever Pitch that Hornby has battled depression in the past (being depressed and an Arsenal fan go hand in hand), but wow, to mine those experiences so to bend them and shape them for such a potent work of fiction... yeah that takes some courage and honesty- and literary talent to make it so damned entertaining. And dare I call it profound? Yes, I will call it profound. Four individuals coincidentally make each other's acquaintance on New Year's Eve on a rooftop in London to do away with themselves but don't do away with themselves and instead choose life such as it is... but with NO BULLSHIT. No trite emotional hargle bargle or tidy happy endings. Hornby is too good for that. Hell Hornby even takes time to comment on our inculcated expectations for tidy happy endings. Oh you get a happy ending more or less in the end, but it's honest, real. And not sappy in the fucking least.

You have to love Nick Hornby.

spoon - you got yer cherry bomb

2007 only produced three albums really worth buying:

Arcade Fire, "Neon Bible"
Radiohead, "In Rainbows"

and Spoon, "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga."

By golly those Americans cans till rock occasionally. Dig that sound. Dig those lyrics. "It was the longest day that I've ever known."

You got that right, brother.

Fear the Underdog

"You've got no fear of the underdog, and this why you will not survive."


RIGHT!

Hurricanes @ Sabres 12/1/07

I'm almost shocked to see that the NHL is being so decent as to provide video highlights on YouTube for free, and with Rick and Harry... the best ambassadors for hockey I could ever think of.

What a game.

Hipsters for Obama

Of course I am that shallow as to take stock of the celebrity Presidential endorsements (Babs will generate as much mojo for Hillary as the "Nature Boy" Ric Flair will for Huckabee; Oprah will totally mobilize the women in touch with their spirits for Obama) , and of course I have to say that I am pleased to see Wilco's Jeff Tweedy doing a fundraiser for Barack Obama. Curt Schilling however is wasting his time for John McCain, the guy whose campaign even Jesus couldn't resurrect.

Shut the Fuck Up!

Did anybody else see El Presidente babble and mug for the press corp today? The guy has literally jumped the shark: the boy who cried WOLF goes for the gold one more time, undetered by reality and the utter disbelief of everybody else in the room except the gay prostitutes- who of course like to see those tricks more than once.

Hummana hummana hummana hummana hummana hummana.

Speed Racer First Look

Yes the third Matrix movie sucked big time, and yes the muy excellent V For Vendetta doesn't actually count (because they didn't direct it- and they ain't George Lucas), but damn does this sound kind of neat. We shall see.

Wow did you see that fella juggle that football out of bounds and get it called a touchdown by a corrupt administration trying to push forward the storyline of "another perfect season" even though the story involves an Evil Empire? For shame.

And the story continues (much to Mike Turico's obscene joy). Does this qualify as another blow to my faith in humanity? No. Somebody will get this motherfuckers and save the day. They have to.

Except the NFL is rooting for the goddmaned Evil Empire. Motherfuckers! And now Baltimore is shitting the bed. Aaaarrrrrgggh.

If you are in Buffalo and you are not rooting for Baltimore against New England than you are just wrong. Out of order. Come on now.

Another Strike Casualty

There's always some pain involved in a strike, and I've seen another show temporarily go under as a result of the (righteous) WGA donneybrook with the last Heroes of 2007 airing tonight (the first casualty of course being the writer heavy Office). Ah well, that's the way it goes... but we have to remain tough, and tough we shall be. At least the Heroes "finale" kicked serious ass in just about every way possible. Blood, guts, betrayal, cold blooded revenge, and death. It was good. I like I said- ah well.


Also, my HD jealousy is growing. Torchwood, Foo Fighters, NHL hockey, Monday Night Football- it's all ridiculous in HD. Of course I like my current digital (non HD) set up- I have the THX certified digital optical cables connecting my shit so it's not like it's all fuzzy and crummy. It's bright and crisp, but it doesn't have that HD depth and weird hypnotic effect. But I will resist.

Check out this bit that stuck with me from Bob Herbert's column from last week on the GOP debates:

I'll concede that it's difficult to have a thoughtful exploration of
complex issues in a format that allows a candidate just 90 seconds to answer.
But the Republicans, far more than the Democrats, go out of their way to present
themselves as 21st-century Rambos - a childish, cartoonish posture that solves
nothing and can easily lead to tragedy in a world that is in fact quite
dangerous.

Now ponder this depressing tidbit: Rambo hits theaters in January 2008.

Right on cue. Now that's a blow to my faith in humanity.

Proof Of An Eventual Satisfactory End To The Writer's Strike In The Near Future

And by satisfactory I mean that the writer's get everything they want (if I have to put up with ads when I watch The Office online somebody who created the thing ought to get paid something). But I digress. You want proof? I've got two words for you: AMERICAN GLADIATORS. And I have three more words for you: ON NETWORK TELEVISION. Coming to us this January.

And may Jebus have mercy on our souls.

And Also Let Me Gush

about the sheer genius of Torchwood creator and Doctor Who executive producer Russell T. Davies and the band of artistic wunderkind (wunderkinds?) who create this stuff for the BBC in Wales. It's become a TV cottage industry, this Doctor Who business, with it's weekly behind the scenes show (Doctor Who Confidential), it's adult spinoff* (Torchwood) and kid's show spinoff (The Sarah Jane Adventures), and even more impressive is the fact that they are all damned good, and they all work as entertaining and compelling TV**. How long they can keep it up is another story, but right now it is all good, and I can't wait for more of all of it.





* and I am talking adult. Cussing, shagging, nudity, it's got it all.

** including the kid's show, which is not available in the US except for YouTube videos that are sadly no longer available. How they get away with having 2 shows for families and 1 totally for adults all in the same overall melieu and written by many of the same writers is beyond me, but it seems to work, and that's all I need to know.

A Higher Level of TV

The first season (or series as they say in the UK) of Torchwood just wrapped up on BBCAmerica and all I can say is: GODDAMN! Like a lot of what's on BBCAmerica and the BBC mothership Torchwood came across like it's from a higher plan of existence; it's clearly derived from some of our finest American TV shows of the last 10 years (NYPD Blue, The X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and worse a spin-off (of Doctor Who) but it utterly transcended it's derivitives and mother show to be something amazingly substantial and occasionally profound. It could be alternately fun and sexy and then dark and existential... all within one episode, and after it's initial 13 episode run you really feel like you've been on a satisfying journey into some of the more intersting dark places of human existence that left me wanting more. Which is good because the second season (series) of Torchwood starts in January and even better for you folks because you get to catch up on Torchwood with 2 reruns a week starting next Saturday, so get those Tivo's and VCR's ready. You will not be disappointed. There really isn't anything on TV like it.