#girl goes through Every Shakespearean Tragedy in the book

[oldfacesnewdawnoffical]

Spoiler about uuhhhhmmggg Rainfall

Shakespearean tragedies are in awe of her last few months of life

[tbhwhocaresanymore]

Nancy Drew 1x16

Oh my God you guys it has been so long since I have been able to watch a show that is so well written that has clearly been planned out from the beginning where the viewers have been able to theorize and have it pay off and Jesus Christ it is GLORIOUS. If I ever write for a show I would want to work with these writers on a show like this.

Before anything else let me start off gloating that I started calling Nancy as Lucy and Ryan’s daughter back around episode 9 or 10 and I am so fucking vindicated right now, I have been riding an otherwise unattainable high nonstop for the past three days. @kat--writes is this how you feel when you accurately predict things??? Because it feels AMAZING.

For the rest of the episode first can I just say how horribly tragic Lucy Sable is? Kudos to the writers because it was a stunning plot twist that I never saw coming but for some reason it’s almost worse than a murder to me? If for no other reason than how it has affected and will continue to affect everyone around her. Ryan who is now going to be even more guilt ridden about not getting to the ice cream parlor on time, Karen and Josh trying to avenge a murder that never even happened, Tiffany Hudson who died for nothing, Nancy who will be forever wondering if her mother slipped and fell or if she really did kill herself right after Nancy was born because if anything will give you an abandonment complex it’s that.

And hearing Carson say what happened that night with Lucy (PHENOMENAL acting by the way, maybe best scene of the season so far) makes rewatching the earlier episodes, especially 7/8 where Nancy was accusing Carson of murdering Lucy so much more tragic. This girl who he and his wife clearly cared for and felt sympathy for, begging him with her last words to take care of her daughter, knowing he looked away for less than two seconds and probably spending weeks if not months if not years questioning if he’d just looked up a half a second sooner if maybe Lucy would still be alive. Seeing Lucy’s daughter, his daughter, accuse him of murdering Lucy had to be a gut punch and it gives his character so much more depth. I just hope this doesn't put too much of a strain on his relationship with Nancy because they have finally gotten to such a good place and as far as Carson is concerned Nancy is his daughter, and he wasn’t trying to lie to her about Lucy. All he was trying to do was respect Lucy’s dying wish and protect her from the Hudsons. I mean he was willing to go to prison for murder before admitting what happened on the bluffs that night, that should count for something.

Moving away from the Shakespearean levels of tragedy for a moment.

God I fucking KNEW Owen was shady I have known it since the beginning. Granted I do not have absolute confirmation yet BUT: him being in his car outside the Claw when he said he would be out of town, holding a piece of Lucy Sable’s skull? (As far as the skull goes though, loved that bit of Bess/George/Nick teamwork to casually hide it from the cops.) Creepy bastard, thy name is Owen. I have no idea how it will play out yet but I hope to God that it will. But also that is going to be a bit of a blow to Bess, finding out her cousin is whatever he is, and also Nancy who literally just had sex with him.

Speaking of.

Much as it pains me to admit, the writers are clearly taking several steps away from Nancy x Nick for the moment, probably to give Nick x George a fighting chance. Side question. Why is Nick sleeping on a couch when he has over four and a half million dollars? Like he could afford to build a house with that much money. But I digress. I think it will be good for George to have a love interest who is A her own age and B not married, especially someone who she already had a good friendship with. Maybe since Owen is a Confirmed Shady Motherfucker the writers will either keep Nancy single for awhile or pair her up with Ace because their chemistry is off the charts. And as long as we’re on the romance topic, Bess. BESS. My sweet queer daughter. Where are Lisbeth and Amaya? Last time we saw Lisbeth they admitted they were kind of falling in love and slept with each other, last (and first) time we saw Amaya I fell in love and she and Bess had more chemistry than a high school sophomore. GIVE ME MY ON SCREEN BESS ROMANCE DRAMA WRITERS. And am I the only one who finds it a little bit weird that Bess is apparently so good at other people’s relationships when she has never really had one before?

I’m going to take a quick minute to be sad about Nancy x Nick so if you don’t like that you can skip this paragraph. NED NICKERSON. How the FUCK can you be so totally fine with Nancy sleeping with Owen when you two are clearly soulmates and you never liked him anyway? After the inevitable Owen betrayal possibly one of two things will happen with Nancy. She will regress and start to push people (read: love interests) even further away than before, OR she will finally really start to open up to Nick and they will find their way back to each other. Admittedly the second one is unlikely since Nick and George literally just got together but you never know. Just as long as Nick doesn’t cheat on George with Nancy because those two are finally friends and are really good friends to boot, and also George deserves way better especially post Ryan Hudson affair debacle. Maybe she and Nancy can bond over having shady not good for them older boyfriends.

On the topic of Ryan being Nancy’s biological dad every time George complains about Nancy asking favors I want her response to be “you had sex with my dad” every time.

Now we will talk about the promo for the as of now untitled next episode and also what the rest of the season and possibly season 2 have planned.

In episode 17 Ryan will clearly be Going Through Some Stuff, and will also find out that Lucy was pregnant. Whether he realizes she had the baby or thinks it died with her remains to be determined, but that shot of Nancy with a busted lip and her hair cut off in a car being driven by Ryan makes me think maybe he snaps and kidnaps her? It’s a bit of a stretch but it would certainly be interesting. I think we’re also going to see more of the Aglaeca coming after Nancy for not paying the toll, because for a minute we can see Nancy sort of choking and putting her hand to her throat like she’s about to throw up again. Maybe it’s going to keep coming after Nancy until they finally let the Aglaeca have Owen, or maybe its going to try to kill Nancy as punishment for saving Owen. I don’t know but I can’t wait to find out.

For the rest of the season/next season there are a couple threads not related to Ryan finding out Nancy is his daughter. There’s the new detective but I’m not talking about him. Joshua Dude, Lucy’s brother. He is still out and about wherever he is, and does not know his sister killed herself. This will probably not exonerate Ryan in his mind as Ryan’s family is part of what drove Lucy to suicide. Maybe he will come back and decide to sort of take revenge on A the Hudsons or B the town of Horseshoe Bay as revenge for what they did to Lucy. (Sort of like the Black Hood from Riverdale but you know, well done.) There is also Everett Hudson. Last time I checked he had just been arrested for sinking the Bonny Scot and racketeering and insurance fraud and stuff, what the hell is he doing at a yacht club? I can only assume he got out on bail so maybe we will see Nancy (possibly together with Ryan) work to put him behind bars for good. Maybe Carson Drew will finally leverage some of that dirty laundry he has on the Hudsons, or better yet that Grecian urn thing Ryan has will finally be put to good use. And then in the future although there is zero proof of this I still want A for George to become clairvoyant/psychic like her mother and B for George and Bess to be cousins. I don’t think I’m asking for too much here.

Finally, because of how much of a staple character he is in the books I refuse to accept that Chief McGinnis is gone for good. My very being rebels against it. But before you scream at me about how different the show is from the books (those two or three of you who have read the books anyway) even if he were an original character I would want him to stay. He is a fantastic character, he was just starting to get depth, I adore his relationship with Ace and on top of everything else he’s good Native American representation.

I ALSO WANT VICTORIA TO COME BACK. I HAVE NOT SEEN HER SINCE 2019. WTF WRITERS. YOU CAN’T JUST MAKE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH A DYSFUNCTIONAL PSYCHIC ALCOHOLIC MOTHER LIKE THAT AND THEN ONLY PUT HER IN TWO EPISODES.

Dead Lucy should also continue to stick around, maybe she can teach Nancy how to hang from ceilings or they can bond over how much Everett Hudson Sucks. It’s just that Lucy spent all this time trying to show Nancy that she is her biological mother, and for her to move on after sticking around for 20 years right after Nancy learns the truth? It would be too - and I fully recognize I have used this word too many times but I am going to use it again - tragic.

The wait for April 8 is going to be an agony unlike any other but at least after it comes back there will only be six episodes left, and so it is very unlikely the show will go on another hiatus before the season is up. Let me know what you guys think will happen in season 2/the rest of season 1.

[esonetwork]

A blog of ice and fire: Thoughts on Game of Thrones season 8 (spoilers!)

New Post has been published on https://esonetwork.com/a-blog-of-ice-and-fire-thoughts-on-game-of-thrones-season-8-spoilers/

A blog of ice and fire: Thoughts on Game of Thrones season 8 (spoilers!)

After four months of gasping, cheering, and yelling at the TV, my journey through Game of Thrones came to an end this past week. In some ways I’m glad I waited till the show was completely done to start watching it (I’ll delve into that thought more later), but I’m also a little sad I missed out on some of the episode-by-episode discussions that happened while the show was airing.

I was really curious to see what my thoughts on the final season would be, after I heard that it was controversial amongst fans. As I’ve mentioned before, I heard spoilers about how most of the major character arcs ended before I started watching this show, so I didn’t get caught up in guessing who would ultimately take the Iron Throne.

In the end, I’m pretty happy with where most of the character arcs ended up, though I will say that the conclusion felt a little rushed and needed more fleshing out.

The North remembers

As a fan of House Stark, I was going to be happy with any member of the Stark family ending up on the Iron Throne, and I think Bran is an interesting choice. It has some nice narrative symmetry, bringing the show full circle (since Jaime Lannister basically started this whole mess by pushing Bran out a window). I also like that the new leader of Westeros didn’t win the throne through violence and hadn’t been seeking power for its own sake.

I will say that if “King Bran” was always going to be endgame, the showrunners needed to do a little better job of foreshadowing that and giving Bran a more active role throughout the series. Maybe part of that disjointed feeling has to do with the fact that the show outpaced George R.R. Martin’s books, and so the showrunners had to come up with their own conclusion to the story. But still, they could have started making Bran more of a major player back in season 5, when the show really started diverging from the books.

I also love, love, love that Sansa is crowned Queen in the North. She’s had to suffer through so much, and I’m so happy that she survived all the dangerous political games going on around her and outlasted everyone who tried to use her as a pawn. Again, similar to Bran, I wish the show had done more to set up the North declaring its independence, but it makes sense that they’d want to do that after all the bad stuff that’s happened to them. It’s also great to see Arya heading off on her own adventures (spin-off series, anyone?).

The Dragon Queen

Now, one of the most controversial aspects of the series finale is Dany’s abrupt turn to the dark side. While I was okay with this plot twist, I totally understand those who were disappointed and wanted something different for her character.

The show should have started showing us Dany’s fall from the light much sooner, and with more nuance this could have been a truly fascinating and heartbreaking character arc. Instead, Dany simply snaps two episodes from the end of the series and starts burning literally everything in King’s Landing, even innocent children. It just didn’t make sense for her character at that time. The series needed to do more to show how (and why) she arrived at that point.

I do believe that it’s more difficult to show a hero’s fall from grace than a villain’s redemption, and off the top of my head, I can’t think of an example where the former has been done really well (although I’m sure there’s one that I’m simply forgetting). We did see hints of Dany’s darkness before the final season, as she sometimes responded too harshly to those who opposed her.

The show could have spent more time reflecting on Dany’s sense of justice and demonstrating how her desire for vengeance gradually drowns out her compassion. Dany believes it is her right to rule the Iron Throne; is that fair, just, and noble, or is there a darker sense of entitlement running underneath the surface? There are so many fascinating psychological and philosophical issues that the show just didn’t explore.

The fall of the Lannisters

Another character arc that seemed a little too abrupt was Jaime Lannister’s. He actually leaves Cersei to go fight in the battle against the Night King, and it seems like maybe he’s finally on a better path. Although Jaime has never really been one of my favorite characters, even I was kinda rooting for him to have a redemption arc.

Then, after he demonstrates his love for Brienne, he just decides, “Never mind — I’m going back to King’s Landing to be with Cersei!” He and Cersei die in each others’ arms while rubble collapses on top of them.

Cersei is probably my favorite villain on this show, and I believe she deserved a more epic death scene than that. I would have preferred to have Jaime actually reject Cersei in the end. Maybe he lies to Brienne so that she won’t follow him to King’s Landing and place herself in harm’s way, and then he kills Cersei himself. Maybe he still dies in the destruction of King’s Landing, but Brienne finds out the truth and knows that Jaime died a hero.

As it stands, I’m really mad that Jaime broke my girl Brienne’s heart, and she deserved better. I know that in the final episode you see that scene where Brienne is writing about all of Jaime’s deeds in that fancy book, but in my personal head-canon she scratches all that out and writes lots of dirt about him in there instead. 

The King in the North

I’m still trying to decide how I feel about Jon Snow’s character arc. He goes from being King in the North, to one of Dany’s greatest allies, and then he ends up killing her once he sees what she’s become. He still loves her, even though they’re related and she’s turned to the dark side. (It’s really, really complicated.)

If I hadn’t known the ending already, I probably would have been rooting for Jon to take the Iron Throne, and after all his moments of triumph, it is a little disappointing that he’s basically exiled and sentenced to return to the Night’s Watch.

Yet it does have a sense of Shakespearean tragedy to it; Jon gives up his destiny and a woman he deeply cares about in order to do what he believes is right for the future of Westeros. I think that if the series had gotten one more season, to really flesh out Dany’s fall and the final battle for the throne, the writers also would have had enough time to give us a really deep arc for Jon. Maybe it still ends in his exile, but they could have made that whole arc more meaningful.

Final thoughts

While I’ve spent a lot of time in this blog talking about some of the drawbacks of the final season, I don’t want to end on a negative note because I really, really loved this show.

From season 1 up until the battle against the Night King and his army of the dead (season 8, episode 3), Game of Thrones is some of the best television I have ever watched, or probably ever will watch. While the final few episodes of the series were a little disappointing/rushed, that doesn’t take away from how amazing and narratively rich this series is as a whole.

Peter Dinklage leads a master class in acting every single episode. I never expected it, but Theon Greyjoy had an amazingly beautiful redemption arc, and I felt genuine sadness when he died. I loved Jorah Mormont’s unrequited love story, and it was fitting that he died protecting Dany. Overall the battle scenes and special effects in this series were amazing, and I got excited every single time the dragons showed up.

I’m so glad I finally decided to watch Game of Thrones, and I can definitely see myself returning to certain arcs and rewatching my favorite scenes (although I never, ever want to watch the Red Wedding again). In the end, I am glad that I heard some spoilers about the final season, because it helped me adjust my expectations regarding the final episodes. Even though I personally would have changed some things, I’m happy I went on this journey.

Game of Thrones is one of my all-time favorite TV shows now, and I’m looking forward to talking more about it with other fans now that I know the complete story.

[dragonwriter1633]

(ahem, sorry the picture is faded, but that’s how the screenshot came out on my phone and it’s too late to change it now).

Well, it’s here. At long last we have come to the end of our journey. The last book in the UnEnchanted series. And what a wild ride it was, made all the wilder by this concluding book. (If you’re interested in reading my reviews on the previous four books—UNENCHANTED, FAIREST, FABLE, and REIGN, you can find them pretty easily on my homepage. I think. I don’t really know how to work tumblr). Where to even start. Or end, as it were. Prepare yourself for another incoherent rant. We start off right where we left off—Teague destroyed the Godmother guild and now our heroes are running around with their heads cut off (figuratively, I feel like I had to clarify due to the craziness these books have thrown at me) trying to regroup. My first thought was, hold on, is this our old narrator? (because the last book had a different one and I was quite bitter, I’ll admit it). Sure enough, I checked and it was! Anyway, moving on. An extremely sad part came out of nowhere when a black omen dog (kind of like the dog of death in the third Harry Potter book) tracks Mina down to the safe house and her mom sacrifices herself because it won’t stop until it claims someone’s life (remember this for later, this is an important plot point). And dude…it was sad. Like, Charlie (Mina’s younger brother) who’s never spoken a word starts yelling “NOO” and “MOOM” while crying (well done, narrator, well done) and it was so sad. The next note I made is not quite as sympathetic. I jotted down “ok this whole flower thing for the mom is sweet and all but can we get back to Teague.” Yes, I admit I have a thing for the tortured bad guys…though Teague is all sorts of messed up. Basically I’m left with him because I don’t ship Mina with Brody (never have, never will) and he was the only other option, sooo here we are. I’ve always liked Jared, too. ANYWAY Now we end up at a carnival somehow (I apologize, due to the holidays and travel for a wedding it took me a while to write up this review so I didn’t remember details at the time) but I do remember Mina paying for a kissing booth that Brody is at for charity, and she gets sort of mad at him for not pushing the Mean Girl from book 1 away, but she realizes she isn’t jealous (YES YES YES FINALLY) and then decides to get back at Brody by paying to kiss another guy. I can’t make this up. And this other guy is suspicious and good looking and no one we know…which of course means it’s Teague in disguise. Which I called right away. And the kiss…okay, so it got awkward real fast. Again, having someone read it to you is the worst. There’s a phrase that went “he nuzzled her lips with his own” and I NEVER WANT TO HEAR THAT EVER AGAIN. And then the fairytale bad guys from the other books attack the carnival (and they have tesla coils or something? What?) and Teague basically says that he’ll keep coming after the people Mina loves unless she turns herself in, which is where the Beauty and the Beast thing comes in. So things move along. Mina finally realizes she’s part Siren (thanks to her mom being the little mermaid, no I am not making this up) and has been compelling Brody to like her this whole time (cue happy dancing from me, SEE YA BRODY), she FINALLY admits to Brody that she fell in love with someone else (Teague) the night of the time traveling glass slippers and the ball, so she lets Nan have him as her best friend was supposed to, everyone is happy, they try to come up with a plan to trap Teague in a mirror world but Mina has a dream where that goes to complete crap (except for the part where she snuggles with Jared) so she decides the best course of action is to just turn herself in to Teague. He promises not to hurt Charlie, but then he gets bored and says he’s going to go after Charlie, Mina screams and cries about this for a few days before he comes back and says “just kidding,” (I would have stormed out because he broke the deal, but that’s just me), there’s also an adorable flirting in the library scene that made me smile too much simply because I am a librarian and was listening to this in a library and isn’t that every librarian’s fantasy. Anyway, I’m going to jump to the end because we’re practically there and that’s what you’re all waiting for. Her mom’s side of the family (the sirens/mermaids, remember?) kidnap her back from Teague, so of course he goes on the warpath and they all end up by San Francisco Bay for the big showdown. And she and Teague face off…and she finally stabs him. After two books of avoiding it. And he dies…and then she begs this sea witch, the one who originally split him into two halves (long story but we met her earlier) to bring him back, like, make up your mind?? And the witch says I can’t, blah blah blah…and then she does. But only temporarily. He comes back as TWO DISTINCT SOULS because they were separated for long enough that now there’s two of them, and Teague jumps in front of the black omen dog who’s coming for Mina and it takes him and he dies (again). And Jared only sticks around long enough for a tearful goodbye before the sea witch can’t hold onto his essence any more and he disappears. This is some Shakespearean tragedy. But wait, there’s more. Mina knows something is wrong in the Fae plane now that Jared is dead. A-girl, whose name I can’t spell and can’t even remember right now, who was a contender for Teague’s heart back in the day, has set herself up as queen. Mina goes to confront her with the hope of putting the Fates (Teague’s parents) back on the throne I guess, but who really cares. And she gets there and lo and behold…TEAGUE IS NOW THE OMEN INSTEAD OF THE DOG! And A-girl orders him to attack Mina (and he can’t back off until he’s done his job). So Teague takes her to an in-between plane where he can talk to her and tells her to get the bone whistle from A-girl because that’s what controls him. So they go back to the normal world, there’s a scuffle, and Mina gets the bone whistle and sics Teague on A-girl instead of her, thus claiming the death he needs. And then in the world’s strangest proposal Teague talks about how in the beginning of the world there was darkness and light and a balance between them (did someone say Reylo?) and I quote “his father the sun and his mother the moon” and that he is clearly the darkness and he needs a light queen to rule beside him. And Mina says Yes. And they live happily ever after. I’m a writer and I couldn’t make this up. In conclusion: if you’ve made it this far through all five of my rants, congratulations. I did really enjoy listening to this series, mostly for the craziness it put me through. Though I’ve basically spoiled the whole thing for you, I still think it’s worth a read (or a listen. Vastly entertaining that way). And then you can tell your friends and rant about it yourself.

[all-brown-everything]

THE MOST INTERESTING INDIAN FILMS OF 2016

Critical writing should attempt to be somewhat objective, to rationalise and give meaning to one’s opinions, but with cinema that is impossible. Cinema deals with emotions and with humanity, very far from rationality.

To discuss the “quality” of cinema over an arbitrary 52-week period seems ridiculous, as the Indian film calendar doesn’t have the formal book-ending that the Oscars awards season gives to Hollywood (though we do have the masala noise-fest of Sankranti/Pongal movies in the early months, and the all caps BOLLYWOOD event movies of Diwali, Eid & Christmas into the second half of the year). Yet over the last 52 weeks, Hindi cinema in particular seems to have succumbed to the cold and clinical idea that we should be told exactly how to feel and when to feel it, using sound and image for little more than a beginning-middle-and-end, setup-problem-resolution, with well-oiled emotional propaganda like Dangal, Airlift and Pink. These “good” films were full of rationality in their storytelling. A rationality based on rules, commerce and market testing. You are able about to say what they are “about” in one word. So the following films are those that I found most rewarding, as they dared to be irrational. Confusing. Irritating. Sometimes boring. These are films that perhaps accidentally, embraced a spirit of anarchy and looked both inward and outward, works that felt both a sense of being inside and outside “cinema”. We know now what it means to be “good” in terms of movie making. Good camerawork, good direction, good screenwriting - these things have now been defined. All the films in this list have these features, so I will attempt not to write about them. These are the films that used those tools to do something more than tell a story. 9. Achcham Yenbadhu Madamaiyada

A. R. Rahman’s stunning song from this soundtrack, Thalli Pogathey, has a lot in common with the film itself. No chorus, no refrain. A run of melodies that never repeat, yet still never deviate from a common emotion or feeling, that layer on top of one another and build to a explosive and confusing climax. Then before you know it, it’s finished. Incidentally, the song plays over a car crash. A film with great respect for the laws of genre, but no respect for keeping them clean and intact. Boy meets girl. Boy convinces girl to go on spontaneous picturesque road-trip. Road-trip turns into insane gangster chase movie. Then the resolution of the story is so wild it might as well be from a different film, while cramming as many Tamil pop-culture movie references as possible into a five minute scene. The most stimulating thing about the film is trying to work out just how seriously it is taking itself. Depending on which end of the spectrum you answer that question, it’s either a work by a filmmaker brave enough to break every last rule and still attempt to make us feel something, or a mocking criticism of the idea that anyone ever thought it possible to even try.  8. Bambukat

Punjabi cinema continues to be thrilling, creating its own language that is near impossible to pin down. A film like this, that tells a simple and unambiguous, almost proverbial tale, seems out of place on a list like this that celebrates the subversive. But there is something more at play. The Punjabi cinema of the last 10 years has blossomed when at its most Punjabi. Initially, this cinema was very clearly language-based; stage play-esque comedies that relied on accent, wordplay and slang. But now, a love for the soil, people and culture of Punjab has created something amazing. When you love and respect everything around you, the air, the light, the sound of the wind, what better medium is there to express it than cinema? And this is true cinema. The story of two men battling it out to have the best motorbike is a gilded washing-line on which to hang these small details, these beautiful paghs and parandey. 7. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil

Usually, the thundering act-of-god is a disappointing deal breaker in films about people and the consequences of their actions (read: the car crashes in Cocktail and Kapoor & Sons), but the twist works in this film. It is the classic Bollywood trope of tragedy. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil is melodrama itself, from a filmmaker who has huge love for this very Indian art form. Aside from Bhansali, which other contemporary director still explores the meaningless calamity of human existence with such poetry and romance, and such disregard for being concise? The characters of this film are people with nothing real to worry about, who create their own problems without meaning to. And then that twist, wherein they realise even the worst thing God can throw at you is nothing compared to what you can throw at yourself. Cinema shouldn’t attempt to answer questions. It should use camera and sound, abstracts like music, poetry, colour, and other fundamentally absurd components of popular culture, and pose questions with them. 6. Action Hero Biju

Is cinema an honest medium? Is it ever possible to capture truth on camera? Action Hero Biju seems on the surface to be trying. A documentary-esque non-narrative casebook of events in one charismatic policeman’s life. With characters etched in such succinct detail despite appearing on screen for a matter of minutes, moments of devastating melancholy juxtaposed with sudden roaring humour, moments of stillness and observation ended with crowd-pleasing fourth wall-breaking masala punches, and a camera that roves like an escaped chicken in a bustling street market, this is as honest a film as you will ever see. 5. Maheshinte Prathikaram

Another film about people, the world they inhabit, and the things they do inside it. The mood and texture of this particular world, and the way in which it is communicated to us, is entirely singular. It’s all just chance. The crux of this film, and any small trace of “narrative” that exists within, is just a random chain of banal events, a farcical demonstration of the butterfly effect involving some dropped coconuts and a slapstick street brawl. What we’re left with is a film that laughs at the idea of reason, at the idea of originality of thought. Some films are brave enough to be about many things at once. Others are even braver to dare to be about nothing at all. Yes it is superbly shot and directed, with beautiful characters and performances, but more importantly it is a film that whispers to you softly, as warm water rushes around your feet, and you aware of just what it is to be alive.  4. Kali

Speaking of films that are “about” things, we have Kali (Rage); a film that can be read as another interesting exploration into the Indian 2-act structure (pre and post-interval), or a moody exploitation thriller about a road trip where everything goes wrong (and isn’t the genre of exploitation such an interesting thing for any audience to think about?), or most interestingly, a cubist dissection of anger as a concept (as emotions are to cinema what light is to painting). Then you have Sai Pallavi as a centerpiece, an undeniably wonderful actress and bonafide icon who,in 2015’s Premam, became the focus of a film about the male gaze and subsequently held the gaze of every male in the South of India. Now she is the partially seeing-eye of the narrative, and it is through her gaze and her experience that we feel the wrath of male anger weighing down on us. In the opening of the film we are treated to a character establishing flashback, a giant brawl on a college campus, shot with a biblical audacity, iconoclastic gait. In this testosterone-fueled pure masala moment, we realise how “masculinity” is rage, and how rage is, in turn, masala cinema. 3. Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum

The hardest film to write about in the list. A film with a sense of purpose in its craft, but that left me wonderfully confused. Is it just a drama about two people from two walks of life attempting to understand each other and define the (sexual or non-sexual) attraction they both hold? Is it Shakespearean farcical comedy of errors? Is it an ode to a wasted life - a sighing, weary half-warning on chasing an idea of excitement that is peddled to the poorest, stupidest people only to disappoint them and leave them with nothing? There are films in this list that are about “issues” that affect people, where people die, and that guilt us into change with swathes of sadness. But this may be the saddest film of the lot, as it is ultimately pathetic and hopeless. You laugh at its protagonist, a failed gangster who has given up on trying to intimidate anyone and just slumps around, barely bothering to be alive. But it is a dangerous laughter, because doesn’t that person exist somewhere inside all of us? We are offered catharsis, even something of a happy ending, but like every other moment here, it is softly lined with utter nothingness. That nothingness comes from the performances, from the mood, from the camera, which ironically fill every second with great life and detail. How powerful it is to speak with such purpose about having no purpose. 2. Kammatipaadam

A truly scholarly work, that on a first viewing could be seen to be a slow-moving collection of vignettes that add up to some dramatic character arcs. But this is more than a film. It is a dense and academic study of a particular socio-political moment in time, where a city was gentrified and “developed” at the expense of its most loyal and loving inhabitants, whereby they were not fought with, but lied to, manipulated, and swallowed up by the belief that they were being helped. It is a study of an intricate and contradictory caste system, and the way it was abused and controlled by those above it to enslave the people within it. But the film doesn’t shout these things at you. In fact it doesn’t even whisper. It just happens. And you might not even notice it if you don’t read a few essays and historical books. That is how slight and personal a work this is. 1. Sairat

Then you have Sairat, which covers similarly socially important subject ground as Kammatipaadam, with considerably less subtlety. But both are valid forms of expression. In fact, Sairat is proud to manipulate you. It makes no secret of it. It does poke and prod you, and put things in front of you and ask you to answer to them, as if you are an active participant in such horrors. But it builds on you slowly, it creeps up on you, lulls you into rhythms and then wakes you up at random, sometimes with loud bangs and sometimes, even more unnervingly, with tiny scratches. This is something I’ve never felt before in a film. To say simply that the pre-interval half is filmi escapism, complete with the colourful and musical diversions that make popular cinema popular, and that the second half smacks you in the face with cold and silent “realism”, would be true but over-simplified. The second half, as quiet as it is, still sings to you. It is still untrue, still cinema in an equally calculating and designing mode. Just perhaps a less enjoyable one. Then the ending. Preachy and heavy handed, maybe. Soul crushing, certainly. But after three hours of being massaged, of feeling the warm hands of cinema all over your body (with varying degrees of lightness and heaviness of touch), to be suddenly left with this devastating nothingness, this void of humanity, is an experience. It may sound trite, but in this moment you realise that we are all at danger of being nothing but a passive audience to our own lives. Sense of self, pride in an abstract sense of community, social class – those are the biggest manipulations dished out to us by each other. To say Sairat is about caste is too easy. It is about all the hateful lies that have ever killed love. ------------------------------- Thank you and see you next year. For the record I also loved Kabali and Befikre, but wanted to maintain some air of respectability and was ultimately unable to justify my divisive love. Does that make me a failure? On that note, I shoudn’t even mention my feelings for Housefull 3. Whoops I think I just did...

[aion-rsa]

The Buy Pile: Welcome To Image Comics’ God Country

WHAT IS THE BUY PILE?

Every week Hannibal Tabu (winner of the 2012 Top Cow Talent Hunt/blogger/novelist/poet/jackass on Twitter/head honcho of Komplicated) grabs a whole lotta comics. These periodicals are quickly sorted (how) into two piles — the “buy” pile (a small pile most weeks, comprised of planned purchases) and the “read” pile (often huge, often including comics that are really crappy but have some value to stay abreast of). Thursday afternoons you’ll be able to get his thoughts (and they’re just the opinions of one guy, so calm down, and here’s some common definitions used in the column) about all of that … which goes something like this …

THE BUY PILE FOR JANUARY 11, 2017

God Country #1 (Image Comics)

Jump from the Read Pile. Whoa. This staggering new idea — and it is that, a wholly new idea — does everything right in a pitch perfect first issue. What seems like a fairly by-the-numbers if effectively presented family drama takes a big turn in the third act and becomes something magnificent. Too much to spoil, but the script from writer Donny Cates delivers characters and a plot that work and feel right while the visuals from Geoff Shaw, Jason Wordie, and John J. Hill effectively makes a desolate section of Texas come alive on the page. Where has this book been hiding? Wow.

It’s a bumpy ride but still pretty good in “Deathstroke” #10

Deathstroke #10 (DC Comics)

Warning: this issue signals a chance for this series to lose its “buy on sight” status. There were some solid developments in small doses — Rose Wilson using her gifts to bond with her mother’s relatives and a flashback for the titular character — but the story wasn’t a single cohesive narrative and meandered too restlessly. There was a lot to enjoy, but this issue didn’t stand up to the series’ standards. Had this been read before purchasing, it would be an honorable mention, so let’s see if it can find its way back to greatness next issue.

Harlem’s heating up in “Power Man and Iron Fist” #12

Power Man And Iron Fist #12 (Marvel Comics)

Despite the super powers and sometimes spectacular (or in Iron Fist��s case, laughable) costumes, this is a crime comic done so well. Three rival groups — the Black Cat and Piranha Jones on one hand, the formerly dead teen genius Alex Wilder on a second and albino crime lord Tombstone as a third — are all vying for control of the criminal underworld in Harlem. Along the way, the innocent became victims of the system and the guilty saw their crimes washed away, all with two best buds caught in the middle. David Walker’s script allows everyone a moment to shine in a harmonic smoothness that makes this book a joy to read. The visuals from Sanford Greene, Lee Loughridge and Clayton Cowles are rough hewn but fitting for the highly kinetic, rough and tumble city streets. This book is a joy to read and almost Shakespearean in its machinations.

Get into the Wayback Machine for a secret origin in “The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl” #16

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #16 (Marvel Comics)

The origin issue is a staple in comics, and with her 25th anniversary as a character (wow!) we look back at the literal origins of Doreen Green, who didn’t have to wait until puberty to begin her climb into awesomeness. From what could be the most awesome five-year-old birthday party ever (apologies to the children of this columnist) to celebrations of her birthday throughout the years this wonderfully exposed not only her great character development but also her longtime relationship with her squirrel friend Monkey Joe (no idea why he’s called that). Ryan North turns in another winning script (with Will Murray, Squirrel Girl’s creator) and the cartoony, kinetic stylings of Erica Henderson, Rico Renzi and Travis Lanham (with a Steve Ditko sketch in there, too) deliver big time.

WHAT’S THE PROGNOSIS?

Even in the sole challenge, there were high points, plus that great jump from Image, so that’s a good thing …

THIS WEEK’S READ PILE

Honorable Mentions: Stuff worth noting, even if it’s not good enough to buy

“Occupy Avengers” #3 was very close to making it home as the chemistry and banter between characters was as engaging as the clean, gorgeous artwork. Unfortunately, we were all having such a good time making new friends that the plot didn’t keep up, lacking story meat when push came to shove. Very close and the first two issues were stellar, so this will likely pick up steam next issue.

“Doctor Who The Eleventh Doctor Year Three” #1 had a lot of charm and started strong but didn’t finish or tell a complete story, as if it never had any intentions of being a single installment. Enjoyable until it was frustrating.

If the changes in Victor Creed last longer than this crossover, “Uncanny X-Men” #17 might be worth noting. As it was, too many red shirts fell and too much monologuing from Sabretooth made this a little emo even amongst all the bloodshed.

“Green Valley” #4 was running a little too slowly for its own good, but answered a number of questions about the nature of the threat and did some solid character development.

“Captain America Steve Rogers” #9 succeeded largely in its flashbacks, giving the cosmic cube-powered retcon real resonance and gravity. It failed mightily in its cover-advertised “Trial of Maria Hill,” which had procedural, scientific and logical flaws big enough to fly a helicarrier through (unless Everett K. Ross is just a really bad lawyer). This gets closer to finding its ground, but hasn’t made it there yet.

The “Meh” Pile Not good enough to praise, not bad enough to insult, they just kind of happened … “Titans” #7, “Ninjak” #23, “Deadpool” #24, “All-Star Batman” #6, “Foolkiller” #3, “Dungeons And Dragons Frost Giant’s Fury” #1, “Guardians Of The Galaxy” #16, “Hard Case Crime The Assignment” #1, “Totally Awesome Hulk” #14, “Detective Comics” #948, “Spider-Man Deadpool” #13, “Birthright” #21, “Flash” #14, “Spider-Man” #12, “Hard Case Crime Triggerman” #4, “Jessica Jones” #4, “Doctor Who The Tenth Doctor Year Three” #1, “Khaal” #1, “Rocket Raccoon” #2, “Hal Jordan And The Green Lantern Corps” #12, “James Bond Felix Leiter” #1, “Justice League Power Rangers” #1, “Silk” #16, “Samurai Brothers In Arms” #5, “Uncanny Avengers” #19, “Wonder Woman” #14, “E.V.I.L. Heroes” #4, “All-New Wolverine” #16, “Red Hood And The Outlaws” #6, “Deep” #1, “Mighty Thor” #15, “Suicide Squad” #9, “Assassin’s Creed Awakening” #3, “Superwoman” #6, “Flash Gordon Kings Cross” #3, “Motro” #3, “Violent Love” #3, “Supergirl” #5, “Marvel Universe Guardians Of The Galaxy” #16, “Mega Princess” #3, “Spawn” #269, “Groo Fray Of The Gods” #4, “Scooby Apocalypse” #9, “Savage Dragon” #219, “Namesake” #3, “Doctor Strange And The Sorcerers Supreme” #4, “New Super-Man” #7, “Amazing Spider-Man Renew Your Vows” #3, “Doctor Who The Third Doctor” #4, “Ms. Marvel” #14, “Justice League Of America Vixen Rebirth” #1, “Motor Crush” #2, “Inhumans Vs X-Men” #2, “Gotham Academy Second Semester” #5, “Red Sonja” #1, “Star Wars Poe Dameron” #10, “Earth 2 Society” #20, “Invisible Republic” #14, “Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey” #6, “Great Lakes Avengers” #4, “Doctor Who The Twelfth Doctor Year Two” #13, “Action Comics” #971, “Daredevil” #15.

No, just … no … These comics? Not so much … … what? Nothing awful? That’s fantastic!

SO, HOW BAD WAS IT?

Good to have nothing to complain about.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

Call this week a winner with that brilliant new idea and nothing to truly be angry about.

THE BUSINESS

The writer of this columnist will be a special guest at Black Comix Arts Festival in San Francisco, making a number of new announcements about comics projects for 2017.

The writer of this column isn’t just a jerk who spews his opinions — he writes stuff too. A lot. Like what? You can get “The Crown: Ascension” and “Faraway,” five bucks a piece, or spend a few more dollars and get “New Money” #1 from Canon Comics, the rambunctious tale of four multimillionaires running wild in Los Angeles, a story in “Watson and Holmes Volume 2” co-plotted by “2 Guns” creator Steven Grant, two books from Stranger Comics — “Waso: Will To Power” and the sequel “Waso: Gathering Wind” (the tale of a young man who had leadership thrust upon him after a tragedy), or “Fathom Sourcebook” #1, “Soulfire Sourcebook” #1, “Executive Assistant Iris Sourcebook” #1 and “Aspen Universe Sourcebook,” the official guides to those Aspen Comics franchises. Love these reviews? It’d be great if you picked up a copy. Hate these reviews? Find out what this guy thinks is so freakin’ great. There’s free sample chapters too, and all proceeds to towards the care and maintenance of his kids … oh, and to buy comic books, of course. There’s also a bunch of great stuff — fantasy, superhero stuff, magical realism and more — available from this writer on Amazon. What are you waiting for? Go buy a freakin’ book already!

Got a comic you think should be reviewed in The Buy Pile? If we get a PDF of a fairly normal length comic (i.e. “less than 64 pages”) by no later than 24 hours before the actual issue arrives in stores (and sorry, we can only review comics people can go to stores and buy), we guarantee the work will get reviewed, if remembered. Physical comics? Geddouttahere. Too much drama to store with diminishing resources. If you send it in more than two days before comics come out, the possibility of it being forgotten increases exponentially. Oh, you should use the contact form as the CBR email address hasn’t been regularly checked since George W. Bush was in office. Sorry!

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