#as if their some kind of 5 star review critique

[enixamyram]

I really hate that people seem to be using "[name] Critical" instead of "Anti [name]" now.

Partly because I've noticed far too many people use that tag as a shield against others calling out their problematic claims. As in, if a fan tries to argue an incorrect or misleading comment, these particular people quickly claim the fan "just can't take criticism" as a way of dismissing their points.

And partly because you can be critical of something and still enjoy it. But of course it's only ever being used it a negative light, which is kinda confusing and not just to me. I've seen at least one person tell someone else off for tagging "Critical" because the end of their post stated something along the lines of the good outweighing the bad.

There's nothing wrong with being "anti" something. It's your own opinion and it doesn't always have to be positive. Using Anti tags is a nice clear system and I just really prefer it.

[puckpocketed]

5/08/2023 - Berkly Catton captains Team Canada to gold at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, leading the tournament with 8 goals and 2 assists in 10 games || 19/01/2024 Meet the Future - Berkly Catton named Team White's captain for the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game || 5/07/2024 - Berkly Catton signs his ELC with the Seattle Kraken

Introduction, quotes/transcripts/bits and pieces under the cut!

I can't even begin to describe how jazzed I am that Berkly Catton got drafted to a team I already love. I wrote in my Sharks off-season roundup that I was hoping against hope Catton would drop to 14th overall (back before we had moved up to 11th) and the Sharks would snap him up, as unlikely as it was that they'd try to gather more firepower when we sorely needed defensive prospects. I'm so glad I got my wish one way or another <3

Krakenblr you will LOVE this dude. He's such a star. Such a character. Berkly Catton is so, SO fun to watch. You have no idea!!! I followed him in the months leading up to the draft because there was buzz that he might be available lower down because of the Height Issue (he is, tragically, 5'11 <- which makes him undraftable unfortch) + concerns with how his game will translate to the NHL level. He is an electrifying playmaker. He's so creative, throws in so many fakes, WILL break ankles, very good hands... ough <3 everything I personally love to see in a forward all rolled into one neat little package !!!

There's the suggestion that he's been "over-scouted," which really just means they've all been watching him so long they're probably overthinking things and looking for stuff to critique. I'm inclined to believe this take over the other one because I'm an optimist and he was one of my little guys going into the draft! I won't include more of that here, but there's plenty of material out there if you'd like to look for it.

Below are some of my favourite bits and pieces from media he's appeared in <3

“I don’t like to give it away (pause) but I look at guys before games,” Catton revealed. “What’s weird is going from midget to junior hockey is a big jump. Last year I was learning. This year I wanted to add stuff. My pregame stuff and to look at guys doing draws and seeing what works. That’s pre-scouting on my end. If a guy has a certain move, and you can trump it early, it gets in his head a little bit. That helped quite a bit.”

“I think I sometimes have a problem with passing the puck too much. I love seeing my teammates score and setting up for an open net. It’s one of my favourite things in hockey, if not my favourite,” Catton admitted. “That’s something I can work on. When I get a chance put it home kind of thing. I got better this year at it’s still something I’d like to improve. Honestly, I’m a pass first mentality guy I would say.”

- Berkly Catton’s video scouting has improved his overall game

You know, when I first read and saved this article I was like; this prospect who reviews VIDEO is gonna haunt me. That's my weakness btw, I'm freak4freak. If you tell me a hockey player is also deeply infatuated with the game to the point of reviewing tape in their free time that's IT for me. it's JOEVER. i have a type and i know it <3 also wowie a pass-first guy who gets really really happy when his teammates score??? crying. crying. Berkly Catton . tucking uou gently away <3 forever <3

From A Day in the Life: Berkly Catton & Conner Roulette

Fave movie is The Notebook (<- unrelated there's a . really funny comment on this video from a philly fan lamenting that Catton likes the Notebook - I assume because that's some uhhh how do the kids call it,, femme soyboy shit? lmao anyway stay LOSING toxic masculinity !!!)

The boys call him 'Berk' <3

He talks about Jack Hughes being a big influence on him (in other media, he gives Hughes as a player comp!) and going to hang out and work with the Hughes family in Michigan. I sense a thread of admiration here like it's such a sweet little crush LOL <3 I hope he notices you Berkly !!

he gives the player of the match hat to a coach/trainer (one of the two) it's lovely... ouhhh... good little fella so polite and so conscious of staff being the foundation of his success... mwah!!

From Berkly Catton Talks Hockey Sense, His Start In Hockey & More | Game Tape With Tony

His father and grandfather built him a rink in his backyard, very sweet.

1OA in the WHL draft!

Anime main character levels of training-arc... my guy shot thousands of pucks over the summer in his backyard and then came back suddenly able to score goals. <- this is where the DIY goalie made of wood and blocker pads comes in. lol. lmao. are u even real.

sorry. sorry. OLEN ZELLWEGER MENTION. <- one of my personal favourite little guys (undersized puck moving defensemen my BELOVED) "Kind of a funny story [...] I pretty much had a breakaway, when he just turned backwards and played it as a 1-on-1 somehow, and I was like 'wow, this guy's the real deal', so." I really liked how Catton easily recalled a specific person/moment when asked who challenged him the most in the WHL; I think it speaks to a thoughtfulness about the game - it would've been easy to just give a vague Oh Everyone Is Good answer here and I like that he didn't!

There's a section where he talks about how he got so good at stick lifting, such an interesting perspective I never considered - he played in situations and against people where he couldn't just throw his body around to win, so he had to learn to get the puck in other ways. KEVIN KORCHINSKI MENTION <- another one of my little guys <3

mentions his dad being a big influence on his 'patience'. parents are so funny to me. ur watching your sons juniors matches? and Ohhhhh Chris Catton was a hockey player too . it all makes sense. Berkly Catton product of jockdad like so many before him <3

I do love that throughout this interview, Catton defers to his linemates a lot. Always hyping them up and talking about how he owes his success to them. it could be construed as false humility, given Catton was the highest scoring draft-eligible in the league - but he really does go out of his way to emphasise how highly he regards them and how much of their on-ice success is owed to good chemistry built up over the entire season. It strikes me as genuine!! He's a good boy <3

Revealed he can solve a rubix cube at the end... wow... he just liek me fr...

PLEASE watch this on-ice interview where he's chatting after a game and then gets ABSOLUTELY WASTED by 5 water bottles and all the boys. he is clearly so so so beloved in that locker room waaaahhh <3

Anyway this isn't an exhaustive list but it IS a lot of the reasons why I really liked him pre-draft. welcome to the deep Berkly <3

[dwtsfun]

Dancing with the Stars Season 33 Week 5: I'm Annoyed

Hey y'all. We're back. And I'm a little annoyed about the show last week. I'll start my regular reviews next week. But for now, I'm gonna do some ramblings and spill my thoughts. So here we go.

The Elimination

I was completely fine with Brooks being eliminated. It was the only thing that made sense at this point and I couldn't stomach another moment of Gleb giving her trash choreography and half assing teaching her while going full steam ahead with the showmance for the THIRD SEASON. I couldn't even really tell you what dance they because there was no technique. It could've been a salsa, a cha-cha or a samba. Idk. Brooks could've been much better with any other pro because the potential was there. But here we are. Unfortunately.

Derek and Hayley's Dance

It was really beautiful and it was so nice to see Hayley out there dancing like that again. That's so scary what they went through. I can't imagine Derek's actual feelings in the moment. The brain is no joke.

The Scores/Judging

Mark was a mostly great addition. He was sometimes on some bs though (along with the other judges). So I'm wondering what is going on. Chandler, Joey and Danny should've been tied for the lead with 34 points each. Phaedra should've gotten the same score as Dwight. Jenn should've been given a 30/31 because Sasha sh*t the bed once again.

Thoughts on Individual Couples

So I have a few other lingering thoughts. The first is this weird standard that they are holding Chandler to. The reason I hate contemporary on this show is because it's not valued if it doesn't make you spit up, shake sob, dribble, snot and fart once you're done. That dance was perfectly fine. It was almost perfect minus a lift where Chandler's dress got in Brandon's face and a slight out of sync moment in the side by side choreo. Chandler dances with conviction. She hits her marks, she doesn't just step. She full out dances. None of them feel the same in terms of the feeling. Yeah, this contemporary was lighter, but we weren't dealing with a heavy topic. Her mother is still very much alive and well. She was thanking her. Trying to make it all extra sad would ring as inauthentic and I'm glad that Brandon spoke to that in their interviews. You could tell that they both were confused and that Chandler was shaken by the strange critique.

This Phaedra and Val partnership is not working. Sorry. Homie checked out this season and is not giving Frack (for all you RHOA fans out there) dances that show her in the best light. Is Phaedra the best dancer? No. But she could be so much better if her pro tried. That rumba was the best example of that. Mama pulled a Reggie and that's the one dance I thought she would kill. I'm so disappointed and I wish she had gotten someone else. So far Brandon has done the best with his RHOA star, followed by Tony (surprisingly). Val is sucking this season. I'm just gonna flat out say it.

Sasha had one good week of choreo and went back to bs. That foxtrot was atrocious. I need him in a class or something because the way his choreography skills have regressed in 6 years is WILD.

Joey and Danny, while both good, are being given very kind scores. Joey was skip stepping during that whole dance and Danny needs to loosen up just a bit more (his foxtrot is still my favorite dance of his). The judges are rightfully calling out Stephen for his areas of growth. The same needs to be done for those other two.

I enjoyed Ilona's dance a lot and I think she would benefit with talking to Laila Ali. I feel like that would help her really settle into the dance world in her own unique way. She's almost there, there are just a few more things she's gotta tend to.

Dwight was fine. I want him to dance from his whole body and not just picking a couple different places to focus on.

That's it. Sorry this is late again. Life and I was annoyed with the show last week. But Disney week starts in 5 minutes for the Eastern and Central time zones. So I'll talk to you all very soon.

[mediaevalmusereads]

The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity. By David Graeber and David Wengrow. Picador, 2021.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Genre: history, social science

Series: N/A

Summary: A dramatically new understanding of human history, challenging our most fundamental assumptions about social evolution—from the development of agriculture and cities to the origins of the state, democracy, and inequality—and revealing new possibilities for human emancipation.

For generations, our remote ancestors have been cast as primitive and childlike—either free and equal innocents, or thuggish and warlike. Civilization, we are told, could be achieved only by sacrificing those original freedoms or, alternatively, by taming our baser instincts. David Graeber and David Wengrow show how such theories first emerged in the eighteenth century as a conservative reaction to powerful critiques of European society posed by Indigenous observers and intellectuals. Revisiting this encounter has startling implications for how we make sense of human history today, including the origins of farming, property, cities, democracy, slavery, and civilization itself.

Drawing on pathbreaking research in archaeology and anthropology, the authors show how history becomes a far more interesting place once we learn to throw off our conceptual shackles and perceive what’s really there. If humans did not spend 95 percent of their evolutionary past in tiny bands of hunter-gatherers, what were they doing all that time? If agriculture, and cities, did not mean a plunge into hierarchy and domination, then what kinds of social and economic organization did they lead to? The answers are often unexpected, and suggest that the course of human history may be less set in stone, and more full of playful, hopeful possibilities, than we tend to assume.

The Dawn of Everything fundamentally transforms our understanding of the human past and offers a path toward imagining new forms of freedom, new ways of organizing society. This is a monumental book of formidable intellectual range, animated by curiosity, moral vision, and a faith in the power of direct action.

***Full review below.***

CONTENT WARNINGS: discussion of colonialism, slavery

This book has been on my TBR for a while, and I've only now gotten around to picking it up. Every once in a while, I'll get the urge to investigate some prehistory, and since I've enjoyed Graeber's work in the past, I had high hopes.

Overall, I had a lot of fun with this and I loved unlearning the narratives about prehistory/ancient history that I've been told since childhood. I appreciated Graeber and Wengrow's honest approach to anthropology and archeology - how they deferred to Indigenous scholars and were forthright about what was known versus what was just an educated guess. Categories such as "democratic," "equitable," "hunter-gatherer," "agricultural," "city," "state," etc were challenged in ways that were convincing and interesting, and I felt like I walked away from this book more informed and more motivated to view the past as a complex human experiment.

I also appreciated the way this book was written. It's accessible to non-specialists without reading like pop history; it respects the reader's intelligence while also engaging critically with past scholarship, and it avoids a lot of jargon that could trip people up. In that, this book is very elegantly written. I wouldn't recommend it, however, if you're not inclined to get into the weeds of academic study. I don't think this book is right for a casual reader, but it is good for those with an interest in the origins of what we call "human society."

TL:DR: The Beginning of Everything is a refreshing and much-needed exploration of human prehistory, challenging dominant narratives about the development of human society.

[destinyc1020]

What a truly weird comment from that Robert Daniels guy (and he is someone who hasn't even seen the show to decide for himself). To say that Tom's only 'life experience(s)' have happened in show business. That is a really callous, to act like he hasn't lived like a human in love and loss and disappointments and achievements outside of his work, like we ALL do. To dismiss him as just some one dimensional product of the industry with no life is just gross to me? And the same critic replied with laughing emojis to someone who said it was generous to even call him an actor. Just a huge, huge yikes. I am really getting just a nasty, nasty vibe from some of these critics. Even IF Tom was someone who acted as poorly as someone on a soap opera (which he certainly doesn't, he has turned in some truly fantastic performances in his career and thats just a fact), no one deserves to be spoken about like that from people who are supposedly professionals. People seem to take a really disrespectful kind of joy in insulting him, I know that people can be absolutely vicious to anyone in the public eye, but this just seems truly WAY too much.

The positive reviews from actual publications outweigh the negative. Someone did a review roundup where the count was 17 that had 4-5 stars, 5 with 3 stars, and 3 with 1-2 stars. The narrative I'm seeing on twitter just does not reflect the reality of the reception - it was received WELL. Anyways, sorry for the rant Destiny, but I expect this kind of behavior from trolls, but from professionals living their Twitter mean girl fantasy it gives me a big ick. I'm just glad the audience reception and the majority of critics have appreciated him and Fran's performance and Jamie's production, and I'd just like to see more clickbait about THAT instead of this strange negativity that's cropped up.

Also, am thinking about you and sending you lots of love and condolences, I hope that fandom can be a positive distraction for you in a tough time. Thank you for your discussions on this blog, and I hope you take care of yourself first and foremost

Also, am thinking about you and sending you lots of love and condolences, I hope that fandom can be a positive distraction for you in a tough time. Thank you for your discussions on this blog, and I hope you take care of yourself first and foremost

First of all, thank you so much for this.🙏🏾 I really appreciate it 🥰❤️

Re: Robert Daniels....

I assume you must be referring to this comment he made on Twitter?

Yea girl, I felt like his critique of Tom was just kinda cruel?? 🥴 Like, it's one thing to critique someone's acting, but when you start making all kinds of ASSUMPTIONS about someone and what kind of life they've had, etc, I'm sorry, but that's hitting below the belt imo. 🤨

And I usually don't resort to going in on people's looks and outward appearance when I'm trying to do a rebuttal to smthg I didn't like that someone said, but whew chiiiiilllle..... 👀

Talk about a face only a mother could love lol

Anyway....

I really do hope that Tom just doesn't even pay any mind to the critics and just continues on to enjoy doing this play as simply a passion project for himself and himself only.

Idk what people's obsession is with hating on him on Twitter (I guess he's become Twitter's new "Whipping Boy".... it happens to MANY actors 🙄), but whenever I see ppl en masse hating on someone for seemingly NO GOOD reason, my spidey senses start tingling and I figure that this person must not be as "bad" as people claim, cuz if he were, you wouldn't need such a mass mud slinging and hate campaign against this person. Everyone would be able to see with their own eyes how awful this person is. Jmho 🤷🏾‍♀️

You don't need to convince people so hard when there's actually smthg to really hate about a person imo.

Tom's acting is fine. Don't worry, the stans came after that Robert guy lol 😆 😂

If he's a real, valid, professional critic, then he was kinda unprofessional imo.

But, then again, that's not uncommon for critics. Critics can sometimes go for the jugular if they don't like you, or don't like your work.

Unfortunately, this isn't the first time a critic has been harsh about an actor. 😔

Thankfully, Tom has a HUGE fanbase (just look on IG!), so we don't have to worry about the people who don't like him or his work.

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC Review: The Starlight Heir by Amalie Howard

3.75/5. Releases 1/7/25.

The Vibes: bride hunting (and trials), falling for your betrothed's brother, shadow sex dreams

Heat Index: 7/10

The Basics:

Bladesmith Suraya is shocked when she's summoned to compete with other women for the hand of Prince Javed—she certainly never expected to be a princess, and isn't all that interested. But the threats of the trials are nothing next to what happens when Javed singles her out... she develops a connection with his flirtatious yet mysterious half-brother Roshan. However, the court isn't truly looking for a bride... they're seeking the starkeeper, a girl destined to carry untold power in her blood. And when unrest has Roshan and Suraya on the run together, the starkeeper's identity—and the risks surrounding it—only becomes clearer... and more threatening.

The Review:

I've long loved Amalie Howard's historical romances, and I didn't even know she had a background in fantasy romance. I was super excited to see that she was weaving in, among other things, Persian and Indian mythology into her world—I mean, in general, the current wave of fantasy romances seems to be more diverse than the last. It's exciting stuff, especially when someone who you know can write takes it on.

This wasn't a perfect series opener for me, though I'll admit that's probably in part because I have a generally high opinion of Howard. However, it's also a series opener, and I expect the next book to be where the star of the show really steps up. It's not that this is all set up and no action by any means, but... without giving away spoilers... she's laying breadcrumbs throughout this novel. And she's leaving some seriously unresolved shit (I wouldn't call it a cliffhanger, though) on the table in a good way.

Where this book excels is in the pure entertainment factor. The world. is really rich and well-built. Food, sights, costumes are gorgeously described. You can really sink into this space, and that's something I think a lot of fantasy readers are going to enjoy... while the romance readers still get a good love story and, um, some really hot sex scenes.

Was the romance one of my favorites I've read from Amalie? Not quite. Roshan and Suraya have definite chemistry, and again, the sex scenes were great. Everything was well-built. Honestly, the critiques i have of it are really more a matter of taste. I liked Suraya, and I liked Roshan, but Roshan, while being sexy and flirty and fun and by no means boring, was a bit nice for my taste. I just prefer a grittier hero in general, especially with higher stakes books like those in the fantasy romance space.

That said, I'm constantly made aware of the fact that my opinion there isn't that popular right now, so I'm sure he will please many!

However... There's, again, this whole other thing. And it does involve shadow sex dreams. Some tentacle vibes. I mean, I would be lying if I said that the shadow sex dreams weren't my favorite part of the book. The elements to which those dreams are bound, and again I'm trying to be subtle and teasing about it... Will lead to something a bit more intense in the next book, I think.

One thing that did throw me, I think, and is more a note about the current fantasy romance field in general, is that the language is very modern. Lots of slang, contemporary vibes, etc. It's not badly written, but it did kind of surprise me (and I'll confess, it's not my favorite—I think the ideal is a happy space between "doth and narry" and "fuck yeah bro". Not that this book includes the latter). I see something like this with a series like Fourth Wing, for example, so it makes sense that it folds into the New Adult x Fantasy Romance niche. It just did jar me a bit.

The Sex:

I mean, it's Amalie Howard. She writes a damn good sex scene. They're hot and passionate, you get good foreplay, there's some mixing it up in terms of tone, riskiness, and more. Solid use of magical birth control. It's vanilla, but it's very good vanilla.

And the dreams... a bit less vanilla....

While this could have gotten me a little more hyped, it's still another good entry to Amalie's backlist and I am very much looking forward to the next installment! I'm excited to see what happens next.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[book-ishgirl]

Album Review: Dybbuk Tse!

By: Yoni Mayraz

Album Details:

Genre: Jazz

Released: June 2, 2023

From The Artist: Yoni Mayraz states that the "Dybbuk, known from Jewish folklore, is a malevolent wandering spirit that enters and possesses the body of a living person. It’s a cursed soul of a dead one that wanders tirelessly for sins committed during their life. The most vulnerable victims are the young and the sinful. Possession can be taken literally or as an analogy to the burden that young people carry generations back, which they have no influence on, and which they have to accept. Dybbuk can only be removed by exorcism. The titular ‘Dybbuk Tse!’ is a command to remove the spirit from the possessed body. The album is a story about possession but also about exorcism through music."

Album Review:

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars [⭐⭐⭐⭐.5]

Favorite Track: As We Entered Jericho

Authors thoughts: Wow, wow, wow! What an album! Mayraz has a truly unique sound and artistic voice that comes through here beautifully. A fusion of jazz, 90's NYC hip-hop, and Middle Eastern music, this album harbors a vibe like no other and a rooted story within. These three genres are blended beautifully together through structure, rhythm, melody and star-striking solos from each member of the band. The solos flow from instrument to instrument perfectly and the group seems to be in that state of "musician communication harmony" together. In particular, I enjoyed the groovy and flowing bass lines which Eli Orr rips out on bass guitar with a nice, rich, but synth-like tone. Somewhat dark yet light at the same time, Mayraz delivers his usual style of production while simultaneously experimenting with tinges of murkiness and gloom, resulting in the aforementioned dark/light contrast. I, personally, could not help but get up and dance to some of the tracks on here. My only real critique here is that the titular track (Track 5: Dybbuk Tse!) falls kind of flat in comparison to the rest of the album and the opening vocal sample on it feels out-of-place. Finally, I think the album art is surreally beautiful and worthy of mentioning here because it is just so cool. Very much worthy of it's high rating, I would recommend this album to anyone interested in or looking to get into fusion/contemporary jazz.

Got suggestions or feedback? Let me know in DMs or Asks!

[surrealisticduvet]

Album Review: Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash (1973)

I’d like to start this review with another excerpt from liner notes - please indulge me. It will become relevant in a few paragraphs. 

“Mine has been built on logic, which is probably one of the subtlest traps going... that whole 2+2 trip... the logical development that leads to fear of anything outside itself... ... Music was always the gum in those works... All that thinking went to hell when the music came. I'd be sitting around, immersed in this bubble-bath serenity of having figured something out... put right into its nice little orderly spot, and then - WHAMO - I've got to deal with music... no reason... no basis other than just its purest expression…”

Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash (the one where he’s doing the George Harrison wink on the cover, next to the words “Buy This Record / Compact Disc”) was the last album for Michael’s RCA contract, and it did about as well as the first five did (guess the subliminal messaging didn't work...) What makes this record stand out from the others is that it was recorded with a group of artists from his own Countryside label - which was somewhat by chance in terms of the timing - as opposed to with a dedicated band, or in a duo.

(pretty much your standard rambly review... below the cut!)

Favorite parts of the album:

I think recording with the Countryside group was a great call and very fortunate - the musicality of this record is really iconic, and if you weren’t familiar with the track listing, you could still instantly pick out these songs as parts of the Ranch Stash sound. It’s made up of a rather simple but effective steely guitar strum, in uncomplicated keys, and it suits the songs on this record perfectly. This is not his most technically complicated, his most ambitious, or his most poetic album – but it does have a fantastic, self-sufficient sound, and if I wanted to put on something of his to listen to casually without having to worry about lyrics or themes, I might reach for this one. Another quote from the liner notes:

“The music was just the music. Not really earthshattering, mind- blowing, brilliant... none of that. Just music. This whole album was one of those conversations me and the music had. Don't get fooled by the lyrics... Lyrics aren't really the communicative part... Lyrics are just the logical part for people who are into that…”

The lyrics on this album are good, albeit a little simple at times. There’s nothing really experimental here, except for “The Back Porch and a Fruit Jar Full of Iced Tea” and the words (a medley of a poem and a song written by someone else) are not what makes it a fantastic song – it is the music and presentation. 

Other hits from the record (well, to me – not to the charts) include “Some of Shelly’s Blues," a well-deserved staple for live performances, and “Prairie Lullaby,” where he sweetly yodels a loved one to sleep. There’s an alternate version of “Marie’s Theme” on the extended release as well, which is pretty good if you’re not up for the cinematically trailing original edition on The Prison. “Born to Love You” is perennial, albeit simple, and “Winonah” is apparently hailed by critics as one of his most true-to-form country-style songs, although it’s rather low on my own personal favorites list.

Critiques:

Only three and a half of the seven songs were written by Michael (he co-wrote “Winonah”), although I suppose at exactly 50% that’s not bad, but it feels less substantial than usual. His line about the lyrics being set by the wayside for this one does kind of ring true. 

Conclusion:

Can I first of all just say, it is amazing that his records so far are so highly rated – rateyourmusic is certainly NOT the end-all-be-all of music journalism, and the ratings are highly subjective (but it's where I'm at, lol) -- but for a secondary-career solo artist’s first six albums to average at over 3.5/5 stars is very impressive, in my opinion. I really can’t say enough how good and inspired I think his music is. That being said- 

With Ranch Stash, I think he was really nearing a point where he needed to try something new and invigorating, and he certainly achieved that (spoiler) on his next record-slash-project. He was branching out into many directions, struggling with some personal things, and not doing great financially – I don’t want to say that this album suffered because of any of this, but it makes sense why it didn’t try to be more ambitious. It “kept it simple, stupid” in a very modest and effective way, and it’s still great to listen to. In fact I’m very glad that he had a set of studio musicians who could support him in this way, which is something he always longed for. He seemed self-aware of these external influences and, once again with those liner notes, sort of sums up the philosophy behind the album with this:

“And if I come to a fork in the road, I don't panic anymore, I just assume that one is the road and the other is a road off to the side.”

[horrortino]

WHOOPS I started this blog and disappeared 👻 My bad! Work has been kicking my ass, and then I got sick 🙃 But!! I’m better now and here with a few recent horrors I’ve watched, and a few of my thoughts.

1. Five Nights at Freddy’s - 4.5 ⭐️

I went and saw this in theaters the day it came out. In fact I got off work early just to do so LOL. I really liked it overall, it was fun and goofy. The story we got of Mike Schmidt’s life was pretty interesting, and I liked that it combined quite a few elements from several of the games. My only critique was that it wasn’t as scary as I had hoped, but also I do realize that a majority of FNAF lovers are probably children so it had to be a bit tamer for them. Also Matthew Lillard? Delectable.

2. SCREAM - 5⭐️

A classic. One of my top favorite horrors. It has everything I want: blood, violence, clumsy killers, silly characters, and of course, Matthew Lillard. It has an insane amount of quotable moments, and it’s entertaining all around. Also, is it me, or is it insanely homoerotic sometimes? That, of course, rounds it to a full 5 stars.

3. The Craft - 4.25⭐️

I had never seen this one, surprisingly. I know I would have loved it as a teenager. The fashion in this movie is iconic. It’s not really horror by my standards, but it does have a few ~spooky~ moments. Mostly, it’s a coming of age movie for weird girls. It had Skeet Ulrich in it, which I had only ever seen in SCREAM, so I was like, holy shit it’s Billy Loomis. He has a way with playing terrible, horny high school boys, I guess.

4. The Boy - 4.25⭐️

Even if I gave this a 4.25 I LOVED this one. The twist was something that I caught on to, but was still so satisfying. I only docked it a bit because of the ending. It just…did not give me what I wanted from this film, but that may just be personal preference. *Vague but possible spoilers* I mayyy blame this movie for my rediscovery that I really, really like masked slashers. If I was Greta I might have stayed in the house. Idk. 👀

5. Brahms: The Boy 2 - 4⭐️

This is the sequel to The Boy, and it was definitely a good one! However because of a couple characters and sort of changing up the origins of The Boy, it didn’t quite make it to GREAT. Worth a watch, for sure though. Some of the reviews were pretty harsh for this one but I certainly didn’t think it was bad. If dolls creep you out though, steer clear 😂

ANYWAY, those are my thoughts! I kind of fell out of reading this last month, but I’ve got several horrors lined up so hopefully I can get a few more books finished by the end of the year. I’ll probably also post these movie quips every once and a while and just share a few I’ve been recently watching.

Lots of love, ya boy Val

[justmybookthots]

Guild Codex: Demonized

4/5 stars

Hello to this series that has consumed my life the past couple of days. What is wild is that I almost did not read this series. I saw in the reviews that the demon was in a contract with the heroine in exchange for cookies, and I was like, that sounds overly comedic and I personally dislike it when comedy dominates fiction, so no.

But after reading the first two books in the Red Winter trilogy by the same author, I decided to give this one a try.

LUCKILY IT WASN’T ANYTHING LIKE THAT (the cookies were something the demon had no choice but to accept because they were both desperate for a contract at the time) AND THIS SERIES HAS ETCHED ITS PLACE AMONG MY FAVOURITE BOOKS. 

I just binged this entire series (all four books) from Sunday to Thursday, wtf. I started the first book on Sunday and finished it on Monday (I think??), then tried to take a break but ended up bingeing anyway. The first book was pretty much near perfection; there was almost nothing I could critique about it. Every scene with Zylas (ZYLAS!!!) hit the spot and while I feared their exchanges would become repetitive, each scene was chef’s kiss and had a purpose that led to a greater picture. The other three books weren’t as perfect, especially the last one, but they still had me in an iron-grip and had me zooming through all of them.

The last time I was this engrossed in a series, it was with Cruel Prince. I think it was my obsession with Zylas that really sucked me in. I haven’t loved a male lead like that in a while. At some point, I thought he even rivalled Cardan (now, maybe not? I don’t know). He was rude, cruel, even kind of sociopathic in the first book, which made sense because he was a demon. I was so worried he’d soften up right away and just end up behaving like a normal person (which so many books make the mistake of. Being arrogant but tortured does not make a male lead a demon, just a stereotypical hero, thank you very much) but he was always so unpredictable. I loved how he touched Robin’s hand - then grabbed her into the summoning circle and asked how her blood tasted. It was totally out of nowhere in an otherwise soft moment that had lulled me into a false sense of security. 

I also loved that he wasn't considered strong for a demon, and had to use his cunning to fight a lot of times. °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖° My heart almost broke, though, when Robin forced him to fight the demon from the First House and nearly got him killed. Gahhhhhhhhhhhhh. I don't know why, but I found that plot point soooo good.

Also, in the second book, him harassing Socks (the cat) was EVERYTHING:

I also really liked Robin - she wasn’t the badass, snarky heroine that I’ve read in so many fantasy books. She was timid, and combat-wise really useless. She had to struggle to make herself useful during battle, and was more book smart than street smart. AND I LOVED IT. It was such a refreshing change from what I was used to, and what I’d been looking for. I’d even asked Reddit for recommendations… I wonder why they didn’t recommend this to me? Or maybe they did, and I forgot.

But I digress. 

I think Annette Marie is really talented, and while the language is very straightforward and not very pretty or flowery or anything like that, the story is extremely well-written. My eyes started glazing over when the action got too intense, though, and I ended up skimming the fight scenes. I’ve never really cared about action in fiction, if I’m being honest. I always skim that, including in thrillers. 

The last thing I’d like to add is that after Robin and Zylas consummated their relationship in the last book, their tension kind of ebbed for me, and I wasn’t as invested in them anymore. I’m not sure why - was I so invested in their slow burn that I didn’t care afterwards? I also think the sex scene was meh, and could have been done with better foreplay and all that shit to make it more intense, because it felt - no pun intended - kind of anticlimactic. If the romance is slow-burn, so should the. Fucking. Sex!!!!!

(Also I would have liked Zylas to be more... in pursuit, lmao, but that's neither here nor there.)

Overall, it was so FANTASTIC, and I just loved, loved, loved their little makeshift family with Amalia (GO AMALIA!!! Loved how Robin and her formed a friendship that lasted all the books) and Socks. I was terrified of finishing the series too fast because I’d have a massive book hangover, so… yikes. Thankfully, I think I’m okay, because the last book wasn’t hitting as hard.

I hope I'm okay...

Also, some of my favourite quotes:

❤️❤️ (Can I also say I'm obsessed with his tail? FIRST CARDAN, NOW ZYLAS. WHY DO I KEEP FALLING FOR MEN WITH TAILS?)

- 20 July 2023

[martianbugsbunny]

MartianBugsBunny Reviews: The Music of Wish

I'v been working on this for the past week or so and I have now seen the movie...eight times I think? Four on one Sunday and four on the next lmao

Let’s get the basics out of the way first! Overall, a lot of these songs were mediocre but probably would’ve been things I’d sing in the shower ad nauseam if it weren’t for one or two really horrible lines. That’s kind of the overall theme of the music from Wish, to be honest. I liked the music/tunes of most of these, though. I also noticed that the lyrics have this weird dichotomy of “let’s rhyme these things even if it doesn’t make sense” and “let’s just not care about the rhymes,” both of which were kind of off-putting to me.

I think the voices they got to sing this stuff were MEGA wasted. Ariana DeBose has the most heavenly voice; her higher register has a gorgeous sound. Chris Pine is better at singing than I would've expected. Both of them are good at those subtle shifts in pitch (I think it's called melisma? but don't quote me on that) that I can and will go nuts over. They deserved better material to work with. Now onto the specifics! I’m gonna rank each song out of ten (totally arbitrary lol) and ramble about why for a while. It's not too long, so if you have a little time on yours hands, read on and enjoy!

Welcome To Rosas 5/10 Not bad. It terms of tune, it has some decent flavor, but the lyrics are pretty forgettable. I think using a song to set up the concepts that they did was a good idea, like the first song in Encanto, but I just don't like it much. I think part of that is the informal tone??? like when Asha says "so like, we have this king" or "I'm totally kidding" or "oh hey, did I mention," that kinda gets on my nerves. and yes, I'm well aware that's a little hypocritical bc The Family Madrigal did some of the same things, but WTR isn't super strong to begin with so I instantly become more annoyed at the little details. Also, Asha's literally being a tour guide for the kingdom and that's not professional imo.

At All Costs …… I’m not scoring this one. I don’t know how to. I’m addicted to the chorus, that’s the first thing I’ll say; I watched Wish four times on the first day I watched it, and that was the first part I started singing along with. The harmonies get into my gut. But honestly, in terms of context, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. The lyrics sound like they should be directed at a person, not inanimate objects, which takes me out of the moment when I’m watching the movie. Some parts are a little clumsy, but if I’m viewing it as a love song it’s stunning, and DeBose and Pine's voices are heavenly together. I will say that subjectively, it's my favorite song in the soundtrack, I fell for it so hard and fast. <3

This Wish 7/10 In terms of Disney “I Want” songs this is at the bottom of the rankings, let’s be real. I like the sound of it, especially the non-syllabic vocalizations at the end of the chorus, but a lot of the lyrics just do not hit. Now, I will say that I saw a lot of people ragging on “to have something more for us than this,” and that’s actually one of my favorite parts of the song. It captures that feeling of longing for more without knowing exactly what that means or how to phrase it out loud so neatly. On the other hand, I definitely agree with the critiques of “throwing caution to every warning sign,” that’s one of my least favorite lyrics in the whole movie.

You’re A Star 6/10 Oddly, this one was less horrible than I expected. It delivered absolutely nothing, don’t get me wrong. It tried to tackle the idea of people and stars being made out of the same stuff and basically living as different notes in the same symphony and failed spectacularly. The big question “have you ever wondered why you look up at the sky for answers?” was one of my favorite lyrics in the entire soundtrack and there was NO payoff. (Plus, if I mixed up “elegant” and “eloquent” in a multi-million dollar movie I would never be able to look myself in the face again.) The entire second half of the song was pure lyrical garbage. But I like the tune and the animals are pretty cute, and despite being relatively hollow I found myself enjoying this one.

This Is The Thanks I Get 7/10 I’ve already said this but I’m gonna repeat myself: tonally this song was all wrong. 0/10 for that if I’m being perfectly honest. Something more along the lines of Hellfire or Be Prepared would’ve hit a lot harder—more sinister, more in line with the descent-into-madness thing that was occurring in the plot, would’ve improved this section of the soundtrack SO MUCH. With that complaint out of the way, the song we got was fine. Some of the lines were either poorly-written or repetitive, but as a whole I kind of enjoy it and would definitely dance around amateurishly in my room to it. It’s just too silly.

Knowing What We Know Now 1/10 This was my least favorite song in the entire movie. I just hate it. The lyrics are so sloppy.

This Wish (Reprise) 7/10 Honestly I think I liked this part better than the original song. Asha starting by herself and gradually being joined by her friends and the entire city was incredibly moving, and I might go so far as to say that this was the most powerful moment of the movie. I also enjoyed the twists on the original lyrics, particularly “we’re past dipping our toes in, we know it’s do or die, it’s sink or swim.” That part just felt really well done.

[a-skirmish-of-wit-and-lit]

Book Review: The Siren of Sussex (The Belles of London #1) by Mimi Matthews

Sometimes I need a forbidden Victorian romance to perk me up, a softly building love story that'll set my heart a'flutter with all those longing looks and chaste lingering touches. So imagine my delight to have come across Ahmad and Evelyn!

These two are characters who are out to make their mark in society, but who are both operating under some kind of disadvantage. For Evie, that's being a bluestocking with a family who's on the edge of ruin and who needs to raise her worth on the marriage mart, not, as one would assume, in ballrooms, but on horseback, since that's where she believes she's mostly likely to snag attention. For Ahmad, that's being a half-Indian tailor who's trying to gain recognition for his riding habit designs so that he can achieve his dream of opening his own women's dress shop. As such, they come together out of mutual need...at least at first. However, it isn't long before a deeper connection and attachment is borne.

While this was more of a closed door, fade-to-black, love story, what I liked about it was that it focused heavily on the emotional intimacy and respect that Ahmad and Evelyn had for one another. As a result of that, there was an incremental blossoming of trust and sensuality between them. That was deepened, of course, by the fact that she became his muse, inspiring his designs, and she became his prime fashion showcaser wherever and whenever she could, acquiring him the clientele he needed for his business. I enjoyed their mutually beneficial arrangement as well as the support they gave each other without prompting. Plus, Ahmad sewed pockets into all of Evie's dresses. What's not to love about a man who understands the importance of pockets in women's clothing? SWOON.

Definitely recommended for historical romance readers, especially those who favor books that critique colonialism.

3.5/5 stars

**Follow me on Goodreads

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

Title: Shall We Convene? The Coffee Table Book of Gamer Culture

Author: Studio 4

Rating: 0/5 stars

I picked this up yesterday at a used book sale, which I was attending with a friend who was visiting from out of town. The friend is an experienced gamer and considers herself something of a gaming snob; she wanted to see this book in person (as it were) and was doubtful that it was for real. So I read it in the bookstore with her watching.

If you want a book about video games that does not treat its subject with enough respect to put in a single picture of a game console or even a game screen, this book is the one for you. The first (and last) page of each chapter consists of a large block of text, utterly devoid of paragraph breaks, the style of which "appears to have been inspired by Microsoft Word's default clippy," in the words of the RPG.net reviewer here. The end of each chapter consists of several pages of "The Gaming Sheet," an odd (and unfunny) mix of Cosmo-style sex tips and aspects of the dating/hookup culture of the gaming underground. The cynicism and crude style of the book's writing, and the fact that this style is maintained throughout, makes it feel a lot like the kind of media fanboy writing one encounters on e.g. IGN.com, but worse.

The end of the chapter on "Roleplaying Games" describes the various types of sexual metaphors and acts popular in the (male-dominated) hobby. The ones that strike the reader as the most absurd are:

Having one's character transformed into a rabbit. Or into a slime, or a hideous goblin, or a slimy goblin hiding in a big pile of goblin slime. The incentive here is not to get laid as a liaison between partners – rather, the alteration of one's physical form is considered extremely humiliating and degrading.

Having two other people create a humanoid character which is supposed to represent one's gender. The character is then forced to "bond" with the members of the couple. Yes, you read that correctly. Having two other people play a fictional being representing you having sex with them, while you have no say in the matter.

(Perhaps it's important to mention that this book was produced by a group of male gamers and co-written by a male "veteran editor," and that some reviewers thought that this might go a long way toward explaining certain features of the book.)

There are also other more amusing entries. "Tabletop RPGs," the chapter on pen-and-paper roleplaying, consists primarily of a critique of the existence of any number of hobbyist RPGs whose names consist of a cliched sci-fi or fantasy word in which the first two letters are capitalized, such as The Matrix RPG. The writers mock these games, and their authors, as no doubt they should. But the authors do so in a style that borders on the Unfunny (c.f. above). This is an extremely small target, one that can be mocked by anyone who bothers to bring up the topic at all, and one can't help but wonder why the authors cared so much:

[T]here is a kind of game where even the publishers seem to know that they are indulging in a flight of fancy and try to compensate with humor. The Matrix RPG is the archetype. It is written by Vince Garcia (he of the GDC speech) with a forward by Mark Tyghe, former president of Warner Brothers. The cover shows a random array of monsters, exotic aliens, robots and human soldiers. The game description tells us that in a bizarre twist of fate, Neo and Trinity have joined forces with a group of Matrix RPG players, and have somehow managed to figure out that the true battle is not against a sentient computer operating system, but the very people who think they can use it to exploit and control humanity!

I think it's the "not" in the sentence about Neo and Trinity in the last paragraph that does it for me. "That's right! The Matrix is actually about a bunch of nerds! How clever!" The authors, by the way, include a space on the last page for the reader to take notes. Since this book is 150 pages long, that space is .117% of the entire book.

The writers appear to have been struggling for something to say, and to have found themselves incapable of even that, which is my charitable interpretation of their attempt to talk up their own graphic design abilities -- "it's not just words, it's visual!" The visuals are indeed nice, but the authors do not seem to realize that a coffee table book about gamer culture should be, above all else, readable. They also include a very large number of photos -- more than can fit on the one page they give over to a photo each from each chapter. Many of these photos are unrelated to the text, and furthermore, the vast majority of them appear to be stock images (like the "safe sex" ad from the book cover). Most of the photos are also very large -- one spread, for instance, is a 2-page closeup of a character from an obscure Xbox game called War of Eden -- and it's unimaginable that this would ever work if the reader wasn't constantly distracted by the many other photos on nearly every page. It's possible that the book designers thought they were trying to make a "gamer" book by putting in as many photos as possible, in which case they must not know a single gamer, because real gamers have plenty of experience with slow, unresponsive, and ugly-ass video game interfaces.

I could go on. "The Gaming Sheet" is the kind of thing only a guy in his 20s who has never spoken to a woman in his life and has a lot of free time on his hands would create, and its inclusion in the book is only more baffling because most of the book is mostly about how hey gamers aren't those guys, except here's a little anecdote that implies you actually are (my favorite, about halfway through: "when I mention sexual conquest to my gamer buddies, it doesn't make much sense. However, if you were to tell one of them about a high scoring session, they might be more eager to hear about it.") The layout and style of each chapter's introduction is different, sometimes quite noticeably (although not in a good way), as if to imply that there is a theme between each chapter -- but it's difficult to see what such a theme might be, unless it's simply "you know, games" (and even that's hardly a high point of insight). The authors spend a lot of time mocking one niche game (The Matrix RPG) and seem confused that this has made them look insular, in the same way that someone who holds a potluck with four of their friends might be perplexed that this makes them seem like an especially inaccessible clique. This book is like a haunted house that is scary because it's run by inept college students, and the authors seem to think that they're among the hosts.

A lot of nerd culture -- mostly science fiction and fantasy -- has always been deeply sexist, and this book was written as part of a (fairly narrow) hobbyist subculture that is overwhelmingly male, so the problem of sexism is not just "easy pickings" but also a natural target. Yet, if you're going to mock this problem, you need to make sure that your targets are, in fact, your targets. A lot of non-nerds -- nay, normal people! -- will watch gamer conventions on TV or the Internet, and think of the "geeks" they see there as a group to which they don't belong. Many of these people would say the same thing about the men who participate in nerd culture, but the descriptions in this book -- gamer guys with way too much time on their hands and an odd obsession with the aesthetics of visual design -- are only slightly less bizarre than those in the average hacker comic from the 1980s. If you mock "nerds" you're going to look like nerds to the people whose lives are unaffected by, say, The Matrix, and one of those people is going to call you a poser. If you want to talk about

[jacquelinemerritt]

Dragon Ball Z: Abridged Episode 36 Review

Originally posted January 15th, 2016

Goku is benched, and Vegeta takes his place.

So far, Dragonball Z: Abridged has worked its way through two arcs of the original story, and in the new arc as well as the previous two, there have been plot contrivances designed to keep Goku out of the battlefield for as long as possible, given how powerful he is. I didn’t mind it in the Saiyan Saga, since he literally died and spent most of that time training, and I didn’t mind it in the Freeza Saga, because the “contrivance” was a mixed body situation that led to him experiencing some pretty severe injuries.

Now, however, “heart problems” being what takes Goku off the battlefield feels frustrating more than anything else, because as much as I understand that there isn’t a story if he’s just wailing on the bad guys until he wins, I feel like it should be something more significant than basic medical issues that prevent him from fighting (though a potential thematic significance might undercut that critique1).

None of that is to critique Team Four Star, oddly enough, even if the specifics of Goku’s illness are their invention (I think it is, but feel free to let me know). They handle Goku’s third “benching” pretty cleverly, with his heart attack coming right after (Yamcha lets him make) a mistake that give Android 19 a lot of his energy, and his reasoning for not taking his medicine being that “it was grape flavored.” Despite the bullshit that is exiling the main protagonist, they pull it off with humor and grace, making his departure feel mostly natural and driven entirely by his character.

The rest of the episode is all about Vegeta, and more importantly, all about making “Super Saiyan Swagger” the perfect title for the episode. Vegeta’s arrival and subsequent transformation into a Super Saiyan removes all of the tension surrounding Gero and 19, and what follows is one of the most satisfying beatdowns of a robot that I have ever seen

As Vegeta meticulously counts down from five the number of blows to deliver to 19, we’re left with the thrill of waiting to see just how Vegeta is going to destroy this machine as well as whether or not it will feel fear at its upcoming destruction. It’s one of the best scenes Team Four Star has made, and it’s ultimately sold by the confluence of music and editing with Lanipator’s unshakeable confidence as the Prince of all Saiyans.

Rating: 4/5

If you enjoyed this review, consider supporting me on Patreon.

Stray Observations

1To put it simply, it could be read as signifying the banal, ordinary things affecting us the most, with a Legendary Warrior’s greatest flaw being that he didn’t take his cholesterol medicine. But I don’t think that Toriyama or Team Four Star are interested in actually exploring this, which is unfortunate for Toriyama but probably a good call on Team Four Star’s part. (Yet again, I feel it’s necessary to mention that I haven’t read the manga or seen the original anime.)

Gero: “Why is dodging a subroutine!? It’s not that complex!” *Piccolo looks at Gohan*

Gero: “But enough about hypothetical erections. 19! Suck! Him! Dry!”

Gohan: “I thought you had to have a pure heart to become a Super Saiyan?” Vegeta: “My heart is pure. Pure, unadulterated, badass.”

Krillin: “Senzu bean!”

I always feel somewhat bad when I don’t include many plot details, but with this series, it’s kind of common, since episodes are short and often don’t consist of more plot than “Character A fights Character B.” Hopefully next episode is more conducive to detailed analysis.

[mediaevalmusereads]

Sitting Pretty: the View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body. By Rebekah Taussig. Harper Collins, 2020.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Genre: memoir

Series: N/A

Summary: A memoir-in-essays from disability advocate and creator of the Instagram account @sitting_pretty Rebekah Taussig, processing a lifetime of memories to paint a beautiful, nuanced portrait of a body that looks and moves differently than most.

Growing up as a paralyzed girl during the 90s and early 2000s, Rebekah Taussig only saw disability depicted as something monstrous (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), inspirational (Helen Keller), or angelic (Forrest Gump). None of this felt right; and as she got older, she longed for more stories that allowed disability to be complex and ordinary, uncomfortable and fine, painful and fulfilling.

Writing about the rhythms and textures of what it means to live in a body that doesn’t fit, Rebekah reflects on everything from the complications of kindness and charity, living both independently and dependently, experiencing intimacy, and how the pervasiveness of ableism in our everyday media directly translates to everyday life.

Disability affects all of us, directly or indirectly, at one point or another. By exploring this truth in poignant and lyrical essays, Taussig illustrates the need for more stories and more voices to understand the diversity of humanity. Sitting Pretty challenges us as a society to be patient and vigilant, practical and imaginative, kind and relentless, as we set to work to write an entirely different story.

***Full review below.***

CONTENT WARNINGS: ableism

While I have some grasp on the basics of disability advocacy, I thought it would be beneficial to learn more during disability pride month. This book was available at the library, so I figured it would be a good place to start.

Taussig's memoir is a very good introduction to the basics of understanding broad disability studies concepts while also narrating vulnerable moments of the author's life. I really liked how the focus wasn't so much on Taussig's body (though it was a huge part of the story), but on how society is organized around ableism. We don't so much get scene after scene of Taussig struggling, but we do get very clear and evocative memories of Taussig watching films, dreaming of jobs, and navigating health insurance which are all designed to exclude disabled people. It's also a good critique of a number of related things such as American work culture, beauty and advertising, the concept of womanhood, etc. In that, this book is an excellent example about how to talk about disability and ableism without exclusively focusing on the body.

That's not to say the body is unimportant. Taussig has plenty of stories about managing pain, rolling down stairs or grassy hills, etc. But Taussig is also very careful to demonstrate that it's not the body that needs fixing - it's our imagination about how the world should work. Because after all, most (if not all) of us will become disabled at some point - that's just a consequence of having a body, and society benefits if we can care for everyone.

There are some limitations to this book, however, which Taussig (to her credit) points out. Taussig is disabled, but she is also cis, straight, middle class, and white, which means she has access to certain types of privilege and her stories will likely resonate with a specific audience. But I think I'd rather have an author be honest about their privilege and tell their own story (as opposed to trying to represent all disabled people) than try to have them position themselves on an intersectional identity that isn't theirs.

There's also a lot of humor in here that will read ad Millenial, but fortunately, it's not overwhelming. Toussig is very sincere, and even if the humor isn't to your taste, it doesn't take over the book.

TL;DR: Sitting Pretty is a brilliant memoir and introduction to the concepts behind disabled studies, placing focus on how society is structured around ableism while also advocating for change that will benefit all.

[tittyinfinity]

Just watched Barbie for the first time. I way over-analyze shit, but here's my review I suppose

I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be. I didn't seem to find that "spark" that other people found. The advertising pushed HARD that it would be a groundbreaking movie, and I feel like it may have put a bit of a placebo affect onto some of the people who praised it. But that's based on my biased opinion.

I think that maybe the reason I didn't enjoy it as much is because I've already spent so many years thinking about how the patriarchy works and how to dismantle it, and I'm always thinking about what my purpose is and what I'm supposed to be doing with my life. I do see how it could be meaningful for people who don't have the time to sit around and think about this kind of stuff like I do.

While yes, the movie is correct that in the real world, women are always expected to be perfect at the expense of the patriarchy, it seemed to do so in a very shallow way that involved throwing around buzzwords and stereotypes. "Women's oppression" was only linked to how the worst types of men treat them and nothing else. Their example of "patriarchy" was limited to "men are the ones in power and they all treat women like shit." There wasn't much discussion past that point. When the young girl, Sasha, brings up that a capitalistic society is also what's causing pressure on women, she follows it up by calling Barbie a "fascist," causing her to cry, which to me, looked like they were making a joke out of how "people who critique capitalism always take it way too far." After that, there is no discussion as to how patriarchy and capitalism are connected, it just cuts to "men are stupid airheads who don't know how to do anything other than sexually harass women and boss them around."

I feel like you can't approach conversations about the way women are oppressed without talking about how it's also linked directly to capitalism. Clothing advertisements, weight loss ads, only seeing certain types of people being represented in media, pay gaps, "the pink tax," etc. It's not just limited to "men are shitty to women." And yes, men are a major reason as to why these problems related to capitalism exist in the first place, but capitalism is ultimately the biggest threat to women and women's rights.

But they wouldn't be able to dive that far into those kinds of discussions in that movie, because the whole thing was just a fucking advertisement for toys that used feminism as a crutch.

Anyway. 3/5 stars. It was still funny and entertaining.