Let’s wrap this up with the movies I watched in 2020.
Movies:
Indiana Jones and the [Temple of Doom, Last Crusade, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull] – Temple of Doom was creepy, but good. The Last Crusade wasn’t earthshattering, but was good. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull could have been good if like, 15 of the last 20 minutes of the movie just didn’t exist. There’s weird, and then there’s why was that even necessary?
The Matrix – Not my favorite, though I do appreciate it as an important science-fiction work, and it was worth watching.
The Crimes of Grindelwald – This is objectively not a good movie (and this is coming from someone who likes Fantastic Beasts). Besides contradicting previous Harry Potter canon, much of the plot feels unnecessarily a) complicated, b) coincidental, c) contrived, or d) all of the above? (It’s d.) The movie is still somewhat entertaining to watch, and the score is a highlight.
First Man – A movie about Neil Armstrong and the moon landing. They did a pretty good job looking at his life and family outside of NASA, though like basically any movie based on real life or adapted from a book, both real life and books are more detailed.
Captain Marvel – This wasn’t bad. It followed a standard superhero origin story-style plot. I don’t think they went overboard with the “Look, here is a woman. But even though she is a woman, she can do things. All by herself. And did we mention that she is a woman?”, but I do think she has some of the same problems as Superman does in that she’s too powerful. They end up having to send her off to deal with galactic matters so she doesn’t just obliterate Thanos by looking at him in Infinity War.
Spider-Man: Far From Home – Another movie that adheres to the Marvel superhero movie formula, which is enjoyable, if not particularly innovative at this point. In this installment of the MCU, Peter Parker and friends are on a school trip to Europe when they run into trouble.
Chappaquiddick – I heard about this movie on a Reddit thread, and borrowed it because it takes place in New England (it’s about the 1969 Ted Kennedy/Mary Jo Kopechne car accident on Chappaquiddick). Came for the setting, stayed for the political corruption, of which there was quite a lot, at least in the movie.
Space Jam – Kind of silly, not super deep, but I found it amusing. I mean, if the Looney Tunes need help to win a basketball game, why not recruit Michael Jordan?
West Side Story – Decent adaptation of the musical, though I do think it works better on the stage than on the screen. There’s a remake scheduled for later this year, which should be interesting.
The Addams Family – Best movie I saw in 2020. It was (darkly) funny, ridiculous without being farfetched, and surprisingly wholesome. The characters are great, and there’s a disembodied hand.
Fiddler on the Roof – Rewatch from a long time ago. Solid movie, classic songs.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 – It was on Netflix and the first movie turned out better than people were expecting, I think, so the sequel(s) were on my “watch eventually” list. Great animation and score, but light on character and plot development.
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial – Another rewatch. Did not remember the frog dissection scene.
Jersey Boys – Critics complain it’s too long and meandering, but I didn’t mind. It’s a bit of a niche movie, where if you don’t really care about musicals, Frankie Valli, and/or The Four Seasons, you probably won’t really care about this movie.
The Producers (2005) – Faced with yet another musical flop, a Broadway producer comes up with the brilliant idea to make money by producing the worst musical ever. The original was a 1967 Mel Brooks comedy, which was later (2001) turned into a Broadway musical, and the musical adapted back to film (this movie). The idea is perfect musical fodder, but I’m not sold on this adaptation.
That’s what I saw in 2020; so far this year I’m still working through Star Trek: The Next Generation, started the latest Great British Bake Off season, already saw a movie that may be a contender for a 2021 favorite, and am rereading The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Saturday, January 30, 2021
Saturday, January 23, 2021
From Page and Screen, part 1
2020 was a weird year in many ways, including media consumption. The library was closed for a large portion of the year, then was opened for contactless pickup, which meant that you had to request specific titles. I usually choose my books by browsing the shelves, so I ended up reading a couple of library books before the initial shutdown, some books from the library bookstore that I bought but hadn’t gotten around to, and one book that I requested in the summer, plus reread books on my bookshelf. Similarly, I borrowed some movies early in the year, then mostly watched TV shows on Netflix. Because of this year’s circumstances, I read/watched a much lower number of items than previous years, so I’ll try and summarize everything in one two post(s).
Books:
Lock In, John Scalzi – The standalone prequel to Head On. In this sci-fi mystery, FBI agents Chris Shane and Leslie Vann investigate a murder that gets complicated. Relatively quick, enjoyable read.
China Rich Girlfriend, Kevin Kwan – Sequel to Crazy Rich Asians. The adventures continue, and range from China to California as family drama, scandals, and accusations abound. Not quite as good as Crazy Rich Asians, but still highly entertaining.
Star Driver, Lee Correy – Mass market 80s sci-fi novel about inventing a space thruster that defies Newton’s third law. The author is a scientist, so the technobabble (e.g. “we recalibrated the quantum phase shifters to eliminate nanoscale elemental degradation in the lateral reactors”) isn’t awful, but the main female character largely plays the role of the love interest. Overall not terrible, but not great.
Mountain Madness, Robert Birkby – A biography of Scott Fisher, describing his adventures in the mountain climbing business leading up to the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Well-written (the author has hiking/guiding experience), with good pacing.
Dragonsbane, Barbara Hambly – Mass market 80s fantasy novel about a witch and her husband on a quest to slay a dragon. It was actually (thankfully) much less ridiculous/vapid than I was prepared for based on the bookstore shelf it was on. There was a good bit of depth and nuance, and the characters grow on you as the story goes on. I was pleasantly surprised.
Seven Summits, Dick Bass, Frank Wells, Rick Ridgeway – Two middle-aged/kind of old well-off businessmen seek to be the first to climb the highest summit on each continent. Interesting read, especially the chapters about the Vinson Massif in Antarctica.
Wayward Son, Rainbow Rowell – Sequel to Carry On, which was based in a Harry Potter-esque magical England; Wayward Son answers the question “what happens after you defeat the enemy and win the war?” Apparently, go on a vacation and road trip through the American west. I like the concept, and the individual events/disasters that occur, but my biggest issue is how phenomenally unprepared and astonishingly unaware the main characters are. They’re supposed to be smart. They have phones. It’s the 21st century and the internet exists. One of them has been to America before. And yet everything they stumble across is like Newton discovering gravity to them. It’s America, not a galaxy far, far away.
TV shows:
The Office – With the number of pranks, field trips, and shenanigans that go on, it’s a wonder Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch ever sells any paper. I find the show funny, and yes, ridiculous at times, but it’s not as far-fetched as some critics claim.
The Great British Bake Off – I think the best seasons are a few years into the show, when they had kind of figured things out and still had the original judges and hosts. But it’s a show all about baking, with minimal drama, so I’ll keep watching and enjoying it.
Community – A study group at Greendale Community College becomes more than a study group. Although later seasons suffer from cast turnover, firings, and cancelations, the show has some of the best parody/spoof episodes.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (A:TLA) – Rewatch when it came to Netflix. Still great.
Parks and Recreation – Similar to The Office, but takes place in the parks and rec department of Pawnee, Indiana. Also funny, and the characters and plot are arguably more well developed than in The Office.
The Legend of Korra – Not as bad as some people make it out to be in comparison to A:TLA, but not as good as A:TLA. I found the characters less likeable, and the plots can be a bit all over the place, though the villains are generally more complex and the series raised some interesting points.
Star Trek: The Next Generation – The show is riddled with bizarre plots, bad CGI, and Deus ex machina moments, and why does the flagship of the Federation lose shields/suffer engine failure/come seconds from losing life support so often? Anyway, once you get past all that most of the plots are well-written and the characters are interesting.
Schitt’s Creek – It took really until the end of season 2 for me to get into it. After finishing the show, I don’t know that it was entirely satisfying, but it had its moments, and “A Little Bit Alexis” was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a while.
Grey’s Anatomy – Basically a soap opera set in a hospital. I’m a fan, but the number of marriages, divorces, pregnancies, deaths, and other major traumatic events that happen at/to this hospital is seriously concerning. Also, the musical episode is horrible, so naturally I loved it.
Books:
Lock In, John Scalzi – The standalone prequel to Head On. In this sci-fi mystery, FBI agents Chris Shane and Leslie Vann investigate a murder that gets complicated. Relatively quick, enjoyable read.
China Rich Girlfriend, Kevin Kwan – Sequel to Crazy Rich Asians. The adventures continue, and range from China to California as family drama, scandals, and accusations abound. Not quite as good as Crazy Rich Asians, but still highly entertaining.
Star Driver, Lee Correy – Mass market 80s sci-fi novel about inventing a space thruster that defies Newton’s third law. The author is a scientist, so the technobabble (e.g. “we recalibrated the quantum phase shifters to eliminate nanoscale elemental degradation in the lateral reactors”) isn’t awful, but the main female character largely plays the role of the love interest. Overall not terrible, but not great.
Mountain Madness, Robert Birkby – A biography of Scott Fisher, describing his adventures in the mountain climbing business leading up to the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Well-written (the author has hiking/guiding experience), with good pacing.
Dragonsbane, Barbara Hambly – Mass market 80s fantasy novel about a witch and her husband on a quest to slay a dragon. It was actually (thankfully) much less ridiculous/vapid than I was prepared for based on the bookstore shelf it was on. There was a good bit of depth and nuance, and the characters grow on you as the story goes on. I was pleasantly surprised.
Seven Summits, Dick Bass, Frank Wells, Rick Ridgeway – Two middle-aged/kind of old well-off businessmen seek to be the first to climb the highest summit on each continent. Interesting read, especially the chapters about the Vinson Massif in Antarctica.
Wayward Son, Rainbow Rowell – Sequel to Carry On, which was based in a Harry Potter-esque magical England; Wayward Son answers the question “what happens after you defeat the enemy and win the war?” Apparently, go on a vacation and road trip through the American west. I like the concept, and the individual events/disasters that occur, but my biggest issue is how phenomenally unprepared and astonishingly unaware the main characters are. They’re supposed to be smart. They have phones. It’s the 21st century and the internet exists. One of them has been to America before. And yet everything they stumble across is like Newton discovering gravity to them. It’s America, not a galaxy far, far away.
TV shows:
The Office – With the number of pranks, field trips, and shenanigans that go on, it’s a wonder Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch ever sells any paper. I find the show funny, and yes, ridiculous at times, but it’s not as far-fetched as some critics claim.
The Great British Bake Off – I think the best seasons are a few years into the show, when they had kind of figured things out and still had the original judges and hosts. But it’s a show all about baking, with minimal drama, so I’ll keep watching and enjoying it.
Community – A study group at Greendale Community College becomes more than a study group. Although later seasons suffer from cast turnover, firings, and cancelations, the show has some of the best parody/spoof episodes.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (A:TLA) – Rewatch when it came to Netflix. Still great.
Parks and Recreation – Similar to The Office, but takes place in the parks and rec department of Pawnee, Indiana. Also funny, and the characters and plot are arguably more well developed than in The Office.
The Legend of Korra – Not as bad as some people make it out to be in comparison to A:TLA, but not as good as A:TLA. I found the characters less likeable, and the plots can be a bit all over the place, though the villains are generally more complex and the series raised some interesting points.
Star Trek: The Next Generation – The show is riddled with bizarre plots, bad CGI, and Deus ex machina moments, and why does the flagship of the Federation lose shields/suffer engine failure/come seconds from losing life support so often? Anyway, once you get past all that most of the plots are well-written and the characters are interesting.
Schitt’s Creek – It took really until the end of season 2 for me to get into it. After finishing the show, I don’t know that it was entirely satisfying, but it had its moments, and “A Little Bit Alexis” was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a while.
Grey’s Anatomy – Basically a soap opera set in a hospital. I’m a fan, but the number of marriages, divorces, pregnancies, deaths, and other major traumatic events that happen at/to this hospital is seriously concerning. Also, the musical episode is horrible, so naturally I loved it.
Monday, January 11, 2021
Deck the Halls
One day shortly before Christmas, I was taking advantage of the thus far fairly mild winter and partaking in my weekly perambulations around Ann Arbor when I came upon an ornament hung on a tree along one of the trails I sometimes visit. I thought it was a fun idea, and a simple way to celebrate the holiday season in a pandemic-friendly sort of way. As I continued along the path, I discovered more ornaments adorning tree branches along the way, making the walk a sort of scavenger hunt. Since I’m not allowed to have a live Christmas tree and haven’t bothered with a fake one, this was as close as I got to decking the halls this year, besides the half price grocery store Christmas lights strung over my closet doors. It was nice.
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| One-armed Frosty, mitten, Christmas camel, and Santa crossing |
Tuesday, January 5, 2021
The Year in Ann Arbor [2020]
2020 was not the year most people thought it would be, but as they say, hindsight is 20/20, right? To document life during a pandemic, unlike other years I’ve been writing monthly posts since March, so this post will be a summary of summaries. [Find each month here: March April May June July August September October November December.]
For the third time in four years, I began the new year at the airport, flying back to Detroit at the beginning of January. I reread The Fellowship of the Ring, ate pineapple tarts delivered from Singapore and picked up at home at Christmas, had a band concert in which I made my debut on the triangle, and was recruited to attend a couple ChemE seminars and have lunch with faculty candidates.
In February, reports of a new virus in China were circulating, but it was believed to be localized and people didn’t need to be concerned unless they had recently travelled to China. We procrastinated and complained in the office, our lab had group meetings, band rehearsals for our third concert of the season continued, I watched the end of Cornell men’s hockey’s very successful season and the start of MLS’s 25th season, and I started Star Trek: The Next Generation.
By March, it was becoming clear that the coronavirus was not contained in China. Days before classes went online, conferences and visit weekends were cancelled, churches stopped meeting in person, and sports were delayed, I performed in what might end up being my last concert with the Ann Arbor Concert Band. Later that week, our lab had our last in-person group meeting, and I went to my office for the last time to pick up books and notes before non-essential research (anything not virus-related or necessary to keep cells/animals alive) was shut down. As Michigan got an official stay at home order, I finished watching The Office.
I worked from my apartment through the month of April and started exploring the neighborhoods and parks of Ann Arbor on foot. Community came to Netflix, MLS re-aired old matches while the season was on hold, and I baked peanut butter cookies and cinnamon rolls, assembled jigsaw puzzles, read from my bookcase, and finished writing the first draft of my manuscript v2.0.
During May, businesses started reopening with cleaning, mask, capacity, and distancing requirements. As a computational researcher, I continued computing in my apartment, though the university tested opening a limited number of labs for experimental researchers. I began my quest to visit every park in Ann Arbor, which turned out to be a great pandemic activity. Basically free, essentially infinitely ventilated, can be done alone, generally easy to remain distanced, is a source of vitamin D, reduces cortisol (stress hormone), and produces endorphins (can lower symptoms of depression and anxiety).
With coronavirus numbers looking much better, the stay at home order was lifted in June. I spent the month on my bike in all corners of Ann Arbor hunting parks down. The Ann Arbor District Library put on the 2020 pandemic version of the Summer Game. My baking masterpiece of the month was a pineapple upside down cake, and I finished the available Great British Bake Off episodes, started rewatching Avatar: The Last Airbender, and ate, slept, and did research.
July was hot and humid, just like summer should be. While I sweated my way through dozens of parks and miles on my bike and avoided the oven, Jeopardy! opened up their vault and aired old episodes, and MLS started back up after four months. They bubbled up in Orlando for the MLS is Back tournament (the Returnament), where each team played three group stage games that would count in the standings followed by knockout games that didn’t factor into the standings but would earn the team a mostly meaningless trophy. The Revolution picked up a win and two ties, then were knocked out in the round of 16 (the first knockout round).
Students returned to campus in August for a limited number of in-person classes and on-campus activities. I didn’t think it was a great idea, but covid numbers in Washtenaw county looked pretty good, so I wasn’t vehemently against it. The MLS regular season picked up again with regional games (with the three Canadian clubs stuck in Canada only able to play each other), no fans, and regular testing. At the end of the month, I submitted edit 927 of version 2 of my manuscript and had my first day of 21st grade.
The university’s (lack of) coronavirus plan was a major point of contention in September, as minimal covid testing and quarantine housing conditions, among other things, drove the grad students to strike, the RAs to strike, the dining hall workers to want to strike, and the faculty senate to vote no confidence in the university president. Matters were somewhat resolved and people settled in for the semester. In other news, I finished Parks and Recreation before it left Netflix, met up with a couple individuals for the first time since March, picked up my clarinet very briefly, and saw goats.
October was my birthday month, and to celebrate and enjoy fall before everything froze over for six months, I visited several parks in Ann Arbor in search of fall colors. Covid cases at the university rose enough for the county to issue a shelter in place order for the undergrads, and nationwide cases and hospitalizations were trending upwards (again).
I was finally forced to put on pants in November when temperatures dropped, but I continued my outdoor wanderings (in shorts) whenever possible. The election happened. One of my coworkers defended via Zoom, I watched a livestreamed wedding, and the Revolution finished the regular season with enough points to make the playoffs. To the surprise of many people, they won a play-in game, beat the number one Eastern Conference seed in the round of 16, and emerged victorious in their conference semifinal game, earning themselves a spot in the conference final. Also, I baked molasses cookies and cranberry orange scones, made cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving, had breakfast for dinner, and my manuscript, after a couple rounds of revisions, was accepted. One of those things is not like the others.
And finally, we made it to December. The Revolution lost in the conference final, but that means they made it to the conference final. I tried to venture outside a few times a week, it snowed (and melted), and I started cross stitching again. And my paper was finally, after many trials and much tribulation, published.
For the third time in four years, I began the new year at the airport, flying back to Detroit at the beginning of January. I reread The Fellowship of the Ring, ate pineapple tarts delivered from Singapore and picked up at home at Christmas, had a band concert in which I made my debut on the triangle, and was recruited to attend a couple ChemE seminars and have lunch with faculty candidates.
In February, reports of a new virus in China were circulating, but it was believed to be localized and people didn’t need to be concerned unless they had recently travelled to China. We procrastinated and complained in the office, our lab had group meetings, band rehearsals for our third concert of the season continued, I watched the end of Cornell men’s hockey’s very successful season and the start of MLS’s 25th season, and I started Star Trek: The Next Generation.
By March, it was becoming clear that the coronavirus was not contained in China. Days before classes went online, conferences and visit weekends were cancelled, churches stopped meeting in person, and sports were delayed, I performed in what might end up being my last concert with the Ann Arbor Concert Band. Later that week, our lab had our last in-person group meeting, and I went to my office for the last time to pick up books and notes before non-essential research (anything not virus-related or necessary to keep cells/animals alive) was shut down. As Michigan got an official stay at home order, I finished watching The Office.
I worked from my apartment through the month of April and started exploring the neighborhoods and parks of Ann Arbor on foot. Community came to Netflix, MLS re-aired old matches while the season was on hold, and I baked peanut butter cookies and cinnamon rolls, assembled jigsaw puzzles, read from my bookcase, and finished writing the first draft of my manuscript v2.0.
During May, businesses started reopening with cleaning, mask, capacity, and distancing requirements. As a computational researcher, I continued computing in my apartment, though the university tested opening a limited number of labs for experimental researchers. I began my quest to visit every park in Ann Arbor, which turned out to be a great pandemic activity. Basically free, essentially infinitely ventilated, can be done alone, generally easy to remain distanced, is a source of vitamin D, reduces cortisol (stress hormone), and produces endorphins (can lower symptoms of depression and anxiety).
With coronavirus numbers looking much better, the stay at home order was lifted in June. I spent the month on my bike in all corners of Ann Arbor hunting parks down. The Ann Arbor District Library put on the 2020 pandemic version of the Summer Game. My baking masterpiece of the month was a pineapple upside down cake, and I finished the available Great British Bake Off episodes, started rewatching Avatar: The Last Airbender, and ate, slept, and did research.
July was hot and humid, just like summer should be. While I sweated my way through dozens of parks and miles on my bike and avoided the oven, Jeopardy! opened up their vault and aired old episodes, and MLS started back up after four months. They bubbled up in Orlando for the MLS is Back tournament (the Returnament), where each team played three group stage games that would count in the standings followed by knockout games that didn’t factor into the standings but would earn the team a mostly meaningless trophy. The Revolution picked up a win and two ties, then were knocked out in the round of 16 (the first knockout round).
Students returned to campus in August for a limited number of in-person classes and on-campus activities. I didn’t think it was a great idea, but covid numbers in Washtenaw county looked pretty good, so I wasn’t vehemently against it. The MLS regular season picked up again with regional games (with the three Canadian clubs stuck in Canada only able to play each other), no fans, and regular testing. At the end of the month, I submitted edit 927 of version 2 of my manuscript and had my first day of 21st grade.
The university’s (lack of) coronavirus plan was a major point of contention in September, as minimal covid testing and quarantine housing conditions, among other things, drove the grad students to strike, the RAs to strike, the dining hall workers to want to strike, and the faculty senate to vote no confidence in the university president. Matters were somewhat resolved and people settled in for the semester. In other news, I finished Parks and Recreation before it left Netflix, met up with a couple individuals for the first time since March, picked up my clarinet very briefly, and saw goats.
October was my birthday month, and to celebrate and enjoy fall before everything froze over for six months, I visited several parks in Ann Arbor in search of fall colors. Covid cases at the university rose enough for the county to issue a shelter in place order for the undergrads, and nationwide cases and hospitalizations were trending upwards (again).
I was finally forced to put on pants in November when temperatures dropped, but I continued my outdoor wanderings (in shorts) whenever possible. The election happened. One of my coworkers defended via Zoom, I watched a livestreamed wedding, and the Revolution finished the regular season with enough points to make the playoffs. To the surprise of many people, they won a play-in game, beat the number one Eastern Conference seed in the round of 16, and emerged victorious in their conference semifinal game, earning themselves a spot in the conference final. Also, I baked molasses cookies and cranberry orange scones, made cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving, had breakfast for dinner, and my manuscript, after a couple rounds of revisions, was accepted. One of those things is not like the others.
And finally, we made it to December. The Revolution lost in the conference final, but that means they made it to the conference final. I tried to venture outside a few times a week, it snowed (and melted), and I started cross stitching again. And my paper was finally, after many trials and much tribulation, published.
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