#anthology tv shows

[purplecowbell]

Black Mirror: A Boring Twilight Zone

When I tell people I love The Twilight Zone, both the original series and the reboot, the first thing out of their mouths is, “You should check out Black Mirror.” I suppress a cringe, thank them for their recommendation, and then never follow through. I don’t because I’ve already tried it, and I don’t think it compares.

I understand why people keep comparing Black Mirror to The Twilight Zone; it’s certainly a more contemporary perspective on issues (at least if you ignore the more recent reboots like many people seem to do), but the actual core of the shows, how and why they depict their speculative worlds, are very different. I apologize for using an insulting title to the Black Mirror fans, but for someone who’s looking for The Twilight Zone, it just does not scratch the right itch for me.

In The Twilight Zone, the writers cover a wide variety of topics. They explore mob mentality, our perception of aliens, and “the other.” They explore tragic stories of luck and ignorant selfishness, and praise heroic stories with martyrs and rebels. My favorite types of Twilight Zone episodes are ones in which there’s no strong message, just Rod Sterling shows up at the end with, “Well, wasn’t that crazy?” There was one episode (“A World of His Own”) where a playwright had a god-like ability to create people and destroyed his old wife to make a new one, and when Rod Sterling starts to narrate at the end, the author interrupts to destroy Rod Sterling. But The Twilight Zone also isn’t afraid of covering serious issues, whether cynical or optimistic, individual or societal. The show can jump from an episode about the mentality of witch hunts and colonization (“Will the Real Martian Stand Up?”) to one about the value of education against tyrannies and the importance of heroic public acts (“The Obsolete Man”). This wide range of diversity allows The Twilight Zone to cover an entire spectrum of imagination and the human condition, whether silly or profound. When The Twilight Zone comments on societal ills (which Black Mirror is famous for), it pressures you slightly on what was already there and asks, “Do you really want this to get worse?” Black Mirror, on the other hand, crushes you with the framework of structural problems without relent.

Black Mirror focuses on the problems of technology, and a focus is fine; it allows you to really get into the granular details. But unfortunately (for The Twilight Zone fans) the exploration of technology is through a singular cynical lens. Every single story is, without fail, a dystopia, for both those who “deserve” it and those who don’t. Some people have argued that this consistency makes Black Mirror intrinsically better, but I don’t read or watch anthologies for repetition. The characters are less “characters” and more cogs in the machine that happen to be human-shaped. No story satisfyingly breaks from the horrific status quo, and the show usually depicts a snapshot of people that could be happening an infinite number of times in other places of the world. Many times the story ends on just the note: “And then everything continues.” The only episodes that I felt were deviations from this were “The Waldo Moment,” “Nosedive,” and “USS Callister.” These are the only episodes where either the characters felt like they mattered (The Waldo Moment), where the ending showed some upside to deviation from the system (Nosedive) or a combination of the two (USS Callister). The emotional spectrum of the characters ranges from black, to gray, to brown, to artificial-happy-yellow. For a show set in the 21st century, its characters are sometimes more black and white than the Twilight Zone in the 1960s. But that’s not a sin; you’re not supposed to worry about complex characters in the anthology episode format. The lack of complexity does, however, clash with the episode length. Most episodes last around an hour, frequently longer, and watching the same emotional shades in the same episode over and over again without disruption for an hour is like watching paint dry. The problem here isn’t all of what I listed; these are mostly personal preferences that some may enjoy. The problem is that even with these qualities and differences, Black Mirror is still being recommended to Twilight Zone fans.

Just because a work of media is of the same format (speculative anthology) does not mean it satisfies the same itch. If someone watched The Twilight Zone for the dystopian episodes like “The Obsolete Man,” or “It’s a Good Life,” or warnings of technology like “The Lateness of the Hour,” (which is a hilarious episode to take as a serious critique against technology), then the connection between Black Mirror and The Twilight Zone is natural to them. But The Twilight Zone had more episodes than those three. Ask 100 different Twilight Zone fans which episode stands out the most to them, and you’ll probably get 50 different answers (I’m not going to pretend some episodes aren’t more popular than others). Ask 100 Black Mirror fans which episode stands out the most, and they’ll probably say, “The one where a politician has sex with a pig.” Black Mirror has two tools at its disposal: shock value and contemporary despair. I have no interest in being bludgeoned to death with either of these.

I ask that Black Mirror fans try to understand their relationship with the genre. Just because The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror are the most popular shows in said genre does not mean they share additional similarities. I also ask that they understand that Black Mirror is not an objective upgrade from The Twilight Zone just because Black Mirror’s differences are more enjoyable for them. I suggest that fans of both shows watch other series to better understand what would actually be relevant to recommend, instead of just suggesting one show to fans of the other. Shows like American Horror Story, The Outer Limits, Solos, and Love Death & Robots might really scratch an itch you didn’t even know you had.

[girlkisser13]

clara bow

"you look like percy jackson" "in this light, we're loving it" "you've got edge he never did" "the future's bright, dazzling"

pairings: percy jackson x fem!reader

warnings/tags: none. purely fluff. dad percy.

summary: your daughter looks just like her father.

the sun was high in the sky, casting a warm glow over the sandy shores of montauk beach. percy jackson, now in his mid-twenties, stretched out on a towel, enjoying the peaceful sound of the waves crashing against the shore. you lay beside him, watching your four-year-old daughter as she ran along the water's edge, her laughter mingling with the sea breeze.

"she's got your energy," you remarked with a smile, glancing at percy. his dark hair, tousled by the wind, and his sea-green eyes were mirrored in your daughter. her curls bounced as she chased after the foam, her excitement palpable.

"yeah," percy replied, his voice filled with pride. "and your curiosity. look at her go. she's like a little explorer."

you watched your daughter with a mix of amusement and nostalgia. the way she fearlessly dove into the waves, her little feet leaving imprints in the wet sand, reminded you so much of percy when the two of you first met. he had the same fearless nature, the same insatiable curiosity about the world around him.

"do you remember the first time we came here together?" you asked, your voice softening as you looked at percy. "you were so determined to show me how to surf, even though the waves were huge."

he chuckled, recalling the memory. "i remember. you wiped out spectacularly, but you got right back up. that’s one of the things i love about you, y/n. you're as stubborn as i am."

you laughed, leaning your head against percy's shoulder. "and now our daughter has inherited that stubbornness. but you know, she has something else, too."

he raised an eyebrow, curious. "oh? what's that?"

"an edge," you said, your eyes twinkling. "she's got this… determination, this drive, that goes beyond what either of us had at her age. she's not just fearless; she's fearless and focused. it’s like she knows exactly what she wants and won't stop until she gets it."

percy watched as his daughter stood on a small sand dune, her eyes scanning the horizon as if searching for something only she could see. "yeah, i see it too," he admitted. "she's got this fire in her. It's amazing."

you smiled, feeling a swell of pride. "that's your influence, percy. but she also has my patience, my ability to think things through. she’s a perfect blend of us both, with her own unique spark."

he wrapped an arm around you, pulling you close. "we make a pretty great team, don’t we?"

you nodded, resting your head on his chest. "we do. and we’re raising an incredible daughter. she's going to do amazing things."

as the two of you watched your daughter build a sandcastle with unwavering determination, you felt a deep sense of contentment. your journey together had been filled with challenges and triumphs, and now, watching your daughter thrive, you knew that every moment had been worth it.

"hey, y/d/n!" percy called out. "come show us your castle!"

she turned, her face lighting up with a bright smile. she ran towards the both of you, her small hands covered in sand. "look, mommy! daddy! it's a castle for the mermaids!"

as your daughter continued to describe the intricate details of her mermaid castle, you and percy exchanged a tender glance, your hearts swelling with love and pride. the sun was beginning to set, casting a golden hue over the beach and turning the waves into sparkling gems.

percy, still holding you close, leaned in and whispered, "so, what do you think? want to make another one?"

you looked up at him, your eyes wide with surprise and amusement. "another castle?" you teased, knowing full well what he meant.

percy laughed, shaking his head. "you know what i mean. another little jackson running around, making sandcastles and chasing waves."

you pretended to ponder the idea, tapping your chin thoughtfully. "hmm, well, y/d/n is pretty amazing... maybe another one wouldn’t be so bad."

percy grinned, leaning down to plant a soft kiss to your lips. "i think we’d make another pretty great team project."

you swatted him lightly on the shoulder, "you did not just call our daughter a project!"

you both laughed as your daughter came running back to the two of you, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "what’s so funny?"

"nothing, sweetheart," you said, scooping her up into your arms. "just talking about how much we love you."

she giggled, wrapping her arms around your neck. "i love you too, mommy. and you, daddy."

as the three of you made your way back to your beach blanket, the sun setting behind you, you and percy knew that whatever the future held, the both of you would face it together, your hearts forever intertwined by the love of your little family.

"maybe one day," percy murmured to you as you watched your daughter settle down with her favorite blanket, the waves lulling her to sleep.

"maybe," you agreed, squeezing his hand. "but for now, this is perfect."

and with that, the two of you sat together, watching the stars emerge in the night sky, your hearts full of love and gratitude for the life you had built together.

[sunny-rants]

the fall season without a new Mike Flanagan horror show is like an angel without it’s wings

[acinematicworld]

Angela Bassett as Desiree Dupree

American Horror Story Season 4: Promos

[fanofspooky]

Karyn Kusama’s horror cinema

[esqueletosgays]

MASTERS OF HORROR S01E10 - SICK GIRL

Director: Lucky McKee Cinematography: Attila Szalay

[movie--posters]

I got a friend watching Beyond Belief, I'm watching Highlander with her husband while rewatching Buffy by myself, another friend is watching Murder she Wrote and another is watching X-Files and yet another is watching Star Trek: Voyager. Everyone I know is watching shit from or that started or aired in the 90's. No matter who's house I go to it's 90's time. Are we nostalgic or did TV peak?

[tithsokphanny31]

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror series

[ilovemesomevincentprice]

Vincent Price - Alfred Hitchcock Presents; The Perfect Crime (1957)

[wittyno]

Is X-Men: Dark Phoenix a good movie? No. Do I love it? Yes. Would I love a sequel? Yes. Am I going to get a sequel? Probably not.

[screenshotsonpinterest]

Please attach all pjo edits to The Prophecy by Taylor Swift down below, thank you

[swiftholiday]

And that was on TV.

(Not my picture!)

[horrorlesbians]

having an oc is all fun and games until you can't fucking draw

[rickchung]

True Detective: Night Country (prod. Issa López).

An inverse of the first season's sweaty Louisiana masculinity, this season is set in frozen darkness during the annual month-long period of continous nighttime in a remote Northern Alaskan town as López both enhances and subverts what intially drew audiences to pulpy detective drama.

[adaptations-polls]

Which version of this do you prefer?

[mariocki]

Michael Craze pops up as Vince Kelly, a teenage runaway from a borstal centre, in Gideon's Way: Boy With Gun (1.23, ITC, 1966)