television

television — No Comments
13
Feb 10

Visually Blessed & Profoundly Human

I am totally in love with Canada as a country and their national identity after watching the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympic Games. And also, I want to send the public speaking textbooks that my friend Rebekah sent me to John Furlong, who gave perhaps the worst large-scale public speech I have ever seen. Totally check out the transcript. Some beauts from it:

You are role models for our children – heroes – giants–human champions – the best ever.

You are living proof that men and women everywhere are capable of doing great good. (Doesn’t he mean grood?)

And tonight the longest domestic torch relay in Olympic history ends in this Stadium after an epic, unforgettable journey of discovery – across a land visually blessed – rich in history — and profoundly human. (Visually blessed? Profoundly human?)

And my favorite, invoking Harry Potter #4: As the Olympic Cauldron is lit – the unique magic of the Olympic Games will be released upon us. Magic so rare that it cannot be controlled by borders – The kind of magic that invades the human heart.

Seriously dude. Did you not have anyone double check your speech before you read it? Oh well. The rest of the opening ceremony was fucking awesome. Some guy doing aerial dancing to Joni Mitchell singing that Judy Collins song “Both Sides Now.” A bunch of punk kids doing riverdance. k.d. fucking lang singing Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” Wayne Gretzky. And some other crazy shit that I probably forget now. Plus every famous Canadian ever, except for Celine Dion, who evidently was in a hospital trying to get fertilized. Oh, and maple leaves. A metric shit-ton of maple leaves. Hooray for the Olympics!

television — 1 Comment
27
Jan 10

My Girl

I’m always up for trying out a new TV show, so when a friend told me that she had a great suggestion, I was psyched. When she then told me to check out some Korean “soap operas” (a genre with which I have no familiarity), I was slightly less psyched, but still game. I’m not too big on American soaps, what with their melodramatic heterosexual romances, white middle class woes, and BO-RING costumes, but figured that this might be different. Her first recommendation was a series called My Girl (“Mai geol” in transliterated Korean), which I started watching this weekend.

I’m not sure if My Girl is an accurate reflection of the genre at large, but it’s pretty freaking fantastic. The heroine, Joo Yoo-rin, is a well-meaning, sharp-witted (though occasionally clumsy) young woman, with a talent for perpetrating hilarious “victimless crimes.” She also dresses like an Ewok designing for Delia’s:

Joo Yoo-rin

Joo Yoo-rin, in a "dressier" outfit

She’s quick on her feet, has a flair for the absurd, and is generally sort of impossible not to like. Her main love interest, from what I can tell from the first episode, is going to be the dashing and handsome director of a large chain of hotels, a young man named Seol Gong-chan: Continue reading →

feminism / television — 2 Comments
8
Jan 10

Ten minutes later, it was dry-hump heaven

My friend Peggy is kind of a genius sometimes. Like when she told me that every couple of months she checks in with Sarah Haskins “Target Women” shorts:

Haskins deconstructs advertising in the truest sense of the word: she dismantles the ridiculous tactics used by advertisers to manipulate women (and sometimes men) and reveals them for the pathetic attempts at pseudo-psychology and bald finagling that they really are. This is feminism at its finest, welding wit with anger and intelligence with accessibility.

And also, it’s hilarious. You can watch these at parties. Well, at least I’ve watched them at parties. Maybe my parties are different than yours. Hey, want to come over later and watch some Sarah Haskins? Then maybe we could play pin the tail on the patriarchy. And pour one out for Mary Daly. Sounds good? Awesome. See you later.

crazy talk / television — No Comments
18
Dec 09

“We’re in a recession, and the White House is shipping balls around?”

I know posting a clip from the Daily Show is pretty much just phoning it in, but this video is absolute gold:

“Fox News commentator” and “Republican Strategist” Noelle Nikpour does an amazing job of persistently digging herself into a deep, deep hole. Did you know that there are Twelve Days of Hanukkah? Shine on, you crazy diamond.

music / television — 1 Comment
2
Nov 09

When this blows up, I’ll probably go solo like Beyonce did

When people ask me what my favorite TV shows are, I often joke that they’re whatever NBC puts on Hulu. 30 Rock, The Office, Parks and Rec– this honestly isn’t that far from the truth.

I was catching up on episodes of The Office this weekend and discovered a little three episode arc about Kelly and Erin’s “girl group” and their quest to make a music video. They’re definitely worth watching, if you’re a fan:

There’s so much to love here: we’re finally getting a glimpse into Erin’s personality, which appears to be minimal in a hilarious way, rather than a “Tara-from-Buffy” way. I love the way that she just mirrors what Kelly says and does. If I could sum up their effort, I would say it lies somewhere between impressively shitty and shittily impressive. This includes their shoot costumes.

Continue reading →

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