Friday, January 26, 2007

My latest obsession

Modest Mouse's new single, "Dashboard." This song is infectious. Like Oukast's "Hey, Ya" and Smashmouth's "Walkin' on the Sun" that came before, I can't sit still when I hear "Dashboard". My friend Kate will often refer to the time we were walking from Piper's Alley and we passed a bar where "Hey Ya" was blasting from inside. I stopped on the sidewalk and simply started dancing. "Dashboard" is that song. My coworkers love it. I dance at work. And then, it gets inside my head so I hear it all the time. If you happen to be by me and I spontaneously start moving erratically, keep two things in mind: 1) I'm dancing, and 2) I most likely have "Dashboard" in my head. It's on their MySpace page. Check it out, funk soul brother.

Monday, January 22, 2007

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.


No, not yet.


The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.

The Bears are going to the Super Bowl.


Wait, what?!!!


THE BEARS ARE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wahoooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday, January 20, 2007

The Sopranos vs. The Wire

First off, apparently not everyone is watching The Wire on HBO. Fix that.

I myself recently began watching The Wire. I expected it to be good. What show on HBO isn't? But you may know me, and if you do, you know that I think The Sopranos is the best show ever produced. And I am not one to change my favorites often. It's a long process that necessitates much mental paperwork in triplicate.

But The Wire made me consider: Is this the best show ever? And I mean "ever." Such large pronouncements from people tend to make me cringe unless it's said with a minimum of 10 years' hindsight, but we are living in a golden age of television. Not since television's inception have we really utilized the medium to its fullest potential.

But back to the question. And the answer: It is one of the best television shows ever. It, along with The Sopranos, is a show that demonstrates exactly what TV can do. One is not better than the other. They are simply different beasts.

The Sopranos focus is character, mainly Tony Soprano. There is not a facet of him that the show has not explored. Many have complained about Season 6: Part 1, but I found it to be one of the best. It placed Tony in new circumstances and showed us what he would do. The other characters are just as rich: Carmela, Paulie, Silvie, Christopher. That is what The Sopranos is about. There are excellent plots lines (Season 1 concerning Tony's mother is probably my favorite), but that is secondary. The plot is there to reveal character. Character is what moves the story.

The Wire is plot. I have not seen anything more intricately plotted. In the first season, a character has a monologue relating their life to a chess game. The metaphor is true for the entire show. And that is what keeps us involved. So many shows create tension by keeping things from the audience. That's cheating. As Hitchcock would define it, that is surprise, not suspense. The Wire provides true suspense. We watch both sides of the law squaring off while we hold more pieces of the puzzle than they do.

The show doesn't use short-cuts in any area. That's what I appreciate the most about it. Almost any show or movie that you watch assumes that you have seen something like it before, and it will use that knowledge to make short-cuts. This is how CSI and Law & Order exist. They know that you've seen police and law procedurals before, so they gloss over some things so they can get to what they really want to show you. The Wire assumes you've never seen anything before. It shows you every detail that goes into making a case. And not in a pedantic way. Everything is handled with such finesse that you feel as if you've never seen, for instance, a courtroom scene. And you probably haven't. You've only seen an approximation. Each season of The Wire is essentially a 12 or 13-hour movie, so they have the freedom to do this.

They apply this same thoroughness to their characters. A stock character is a short-cut. When a stock character is used, there is not much set-up that needs to happen. We've seen them before. They can be thrown into a situation with immediate emotional dividends. While you may initially think you recognize a character on The Wire, they pretend that you don't. They present every situation so that when an emotional payoff arrives, it has been paved and payed for with toil on their parts. It makes it all the more powerful. Characters die on the show, and when they do, you have truly lost someone.

So treat yourself. TV is being used to choose pop stars and a cast for a musical , and that's great. It's a new facet of TV not previously explored. But as an art form, there are people doing incredible work here. If you don't have HBO, rent The Wire or The Sopranos. That's how I'm doing it. Some things are too good to pass up.

Monday, January 15, 2007

Hooray! It's cold!

I love that it is really cold. I am absolutely thrilled that it's snowing. Why? Because I live in Chicago and it's January and 60 degree weather freaks me out.

People look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them I'm excited about all of this. Listen, if I didn't want seasons, if I wanted to worry about my tan over the holidays, I would live in California or Florida. But I don't. And you know what? I don't want to live there. I like my seasons. I like bundling up. I like braving the cold. I love to be inside at night when it snows. And I love how sweet it makes Spring when it comes around.

So you can moan and complain all you like and wish for your crazy world. I like that we have the old one back.

Friday, January 12, 2007

iPhone

Did you hear? iPhone has taken over the world.

I swear, Apple announces a new piece of technology and the next day, the world stops and wants. I mean, really wants it.

"Did you see what it can do?"

"It's so cute."

"It's got a touch-screen."

"You can see the albums." (I don't know exactly what this last one means, but my friend sure was excited.)

This discussion happened at my church drama meeting. My church drama meeting! Please don't read the explanation point as saying Apple is the devil, but another friend looked over at me and said, "I feel like Apple is our sponsor." Which we immediately agreed would be awesome.

'Cause Apple makes cool stuff. That's the thing. It's like they look at something and say, "How can we revolutionize this?" And then they do. If Apple announced Monday that they were reinventing the wheel, Tuesday would be Michelin's and Goodyear's worst day.