Cozy “Winter”: Reviewing the 1st Gilmore Girls Revival Episode

It’s no small secret that I have been eagerly awaiting the Gilmore Girls revival since it was announced earlier this year. In fact, to complete my due diligence in respecting this incredible tv show, I’ve watched the ENTIRE SEASON. That’s right – from beginning to end. Not one episode missed, not even during that dreadful Season 7.

With the release of “A Year in the Life” I’ve decided to take my time and not binge on these scarce number of episodes. Instead, I’m watching one episode every couple of days, letting it marinate, and then posting my online review. Let’s see if I can stay true to my goal.

So, let’s get to that first episode, shall we? Spoilers aplenty, obviously.

The decision to start with the Winter season is just perfect. It’s the perfect opportunity to catch up with some of TV’s favorite characters during a time in which good cheer prevails, alongside copious amounts of food eating and sometimes garish decorations adorning the homes of the inhabitants of Stars’ Hollow (see Lorelai’s house).

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Gilmore Girls’ Keiko Agena Tackles That Other Mystery: Where Is Mr. Kim?! — TVLine

Move over “Last Four Words.” There’s a new Gilmore Girls mystery in town, only it’s not new at all. It’s an oldie but a goodie: Where on Earth has Mr. Kim been hiding all these years — and will we ever meet him? The whereabouts of Lane’s dad — who was occasionally referred to over…

via Gilmore Girls’ Keiko Agena Tackles That Other Mystery: Where Is Mr. Kim?! — TVLine

National Dog Show 2016: Gia The Greyhound Named Best In Show At Thanksgiving Classic — Hollywood Life

A big round of applause is in store for Gia the Greyhound!

via National Dog Show 2016: Gia The Greyhound Named Best In Show At Thanksgiving Classic — Hollywood Life

New York inspired this 1930s masterpiece mural — Ephemeral New York

Biographies of painter Thomas Hart Benton usually describe him as a Regionalist, an art-world misfit who eschewed the Abstract style of the 1920s and 1930s and painted images of everyday life in the American heartland. But Benton did live in New York in the teens and 1920s, and he drew partly on his experiences in […]

via New York inspired this 1930s masterpiece mural — Ephemeral New York

Wonderless “Wonder”

You’ve got to hand it to author Emma Donoghue. Crafting a novel based on the many cases of “fasting girls” reported across the world from the 16th to the 20th centuries is no easy task. These events wherein women and girls, often prepubescent, who claimed to live without food for months or even years. Whether it was anorexia, religious mania or entrepreneurial spirit that was driving them, they drew donations from curious visitors and fascination from doctors, scientists and priests, keen to discover if they could really be living on air, light or the love of God.

Sounds intriguing, right?

Too bad the story falls into a generic romantic dalliance between a well-trained, intelligent nurse (an underling of Florence Nightingale herself) and an overly ambitious reporter trying to crack the case of Anna O’Donnell, the local fasting girl. I fully support u-turns in narratives. I like being surprised by a characters unexpected flaw or a tragic event in their past. I’m even a fan of a surprise lost child or resurgence of a long since-considered dormant patriarchal figure. But when Donoghue veers her novel into a power struggle between a rigid nurses’ and her quest for love instead of focussing on the tragic tale of the fasting girl, I began to roll my eyes. And they kept rolling.

I’m sure I’m the only one of the few who’ve read “The Wonder” and didn’t like it. I’m ok with that. I think it’s cowardly of an author to fall into familiar and somewhat staid plot tropes to entertain the reader. If you’re brave enough to tackle a phenomenon entrenched in religion and superstition, then stick with it to the end.

Needless to say, I found “The Wonder” to be everything but wonderful. Cliched, tacky, and extremely regressive, Emma Donoghue’s newest novel gets no accolades from me.

Some Thoughts on “The Lines of Union” By K.C. Bryce Fitzgerald

It is a world you don’t ever want to live in, but it is also a world that is inevitable. Censorship is commonplace, omnipotent over freedom. Set only 7 years in the future, the world has become a mash up of apocalyptic suppression and simmering beliefs. Expressions of emotions are intense and sharp, and words are used like weapons.

In the superb “The Lines of Union”, author K.C. Bryce Fitzgerald ornately depicts a world that though different than modern day, is entirely familiar and believable. The novel’s opening immediately pulls in the reader with the descriptive representation of the books titular hero, John Herald. A man who is not so unlike other fictional characters that have come before him, John is wounded and torn. He is also beyond intelligent and driven to foster a world where politics can be used as a tool to unite the separate factions of the world, not to destroy them.

‘The Exorcist’ Executive Producer on Creating Smart Scares for the Modern TV Viewer, Future Seasons — Variety

There are terrifying images in the Fox drama “The Exorcist,” but many of the most disquieting developments are a product of its atmosphere. In one recent episode, Angela Rance (Geena Davis) noticed a slimy substance dripping down her kitchen wall as she obsessively cleaned her house in order to distract herself. In another room, two……

via ‘The Exorcist’ Executive Producer on Creating Smart Scares for the Modern TV Viewer, Future Seasons — Variety

‘Stranger Things’ Season 2: See Who’s Returning (Photo) — Variety

Tussling with a Demogorgon appears to be all in a day’s work for Eleven, as a cast photo for Season 2 of “Stranger Things” reveals Millie Bobby Brown will return as the Eggo waffle-eating young girl. sƃuıɥʇɹǝƃuɐɹʇs#ɹɐǝʎ ʇxǝu noʎ ǝǝsuoıʇɔnpoɹd uı ʞɔɐq pic.twitter.com/jYd1tDsPRi — Stranger Things (@Stranger_Things) November 4, 2016 Caution: Spoilers ahead for those who……

via ‘Stranger Things’ Season 2: See Who’s Returning (Photo) — Variety

My New Favorite Thing

Portrait Cookies.

Yes. This is a thing. Look at how this artist captures the essence of the celebrities she’s baked (never thought I’d write those words)!

http://www.eatmysweetface.com/

I got hot sauce in my bag, swag.

 

This Is Why Songs Get Stuck In Your Head — TIME

Why do some songs stick in our heads for infuriatingly long periods of time? According to the first large-scale study of its kind, it’s all about their combination of upbeat tempos, easy-to-remember melodies, and a little something unexpected. The new research looked at some of the most popular songs with this “stick factor”—and gives advice…

via This Is Why Songs Get Stuck In Your Head — TIME