media update: December

Happy (almost) New Year!  God, please let 2023 be a good year; the last four years have been real shitshows both personally and globally.  I/we could use a fuckin' break, thanks.

Asterisks denote something I particularly enjoyed or found especially worthy of my time; double asterisks are reserved for the creme de la creme. As always, your mileage may vary.

FICTION

1. The Best Kind of People by Zoe Whittall:  The Woodbury family is rocked when their patriarch, a hometown hero for stopping a would-be school shooter, is accused of sexual assault.

2. The Light Pirate* by Lily Brooks-Dalton:  Wanda was born during the hurricane that inspired her name, and as Florida succumbs to climate change, causing it to be condemned by the government, she learns to thrive.

3. The Personal Assistant by Kimberly Belle:  Alex is a popular Instagram influencer whose world comes crashing down when she puts up a post slut-shaming a celebrity.  But she doesn't remember posting it, and her personal assistant is missing...are the two related?

4. A Small Affair* by Flora Collins:  Vera is ostracized after her married lover kills his pregnant wife and then himself.  Horrified not just by his crime, but by the fact that he blames her in his suicide note, she decides to investigate.  Super dark, with an unlikable main character I still found myself rooting for.

5. All the Dark Places by Terri Parlato:  When a woman's husband is murdered, the investigation threatens to uncover her own past.

2022 TOTAL:  51

NONFICTION

Nothing this month.

2022 TOTAL:  8

MANGA/GRAPHIC NOVELS

1. Mr. Boop by Alec Robbins

2022 TOTAL:   23 graphic novels and 32 volumes of manga

MOVIES

1. Nope:  An ominous cloud starts hovering over a horse ranch.  Not as good as I was hoping, but the Gordy segment (IYKYK) actually made me so tense I was nauseated.

Side note:  I did like it more upon looking up a few theories that helped clarify things; the shoe is of particular importance.

2. Black Adam:  The titular superhero/antihero (Dwayne Johnson) is released from imprisonment and fights to protect the nation of Kahndaq.  It was a massive commercial and critical flop, so I was expecting nothing, but it was actually kind of fun!  As G pointed out, though, they made a big mistake by not letting Dwayne Johnson show off at least a little of his charm.  Black Adam is kind of a sourpuss.

3. The Banshees of Inisherin*:  Two longtime friends (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) have a falling out that leads to unexpected consequences.  Pitch black with occasional glimmers of humor.

4. Pearl:  In 1918, farm girl Pearl (Mia Goth) dreams of being a star by any means necessary...even if they're bloody.  The backstory of X's antagonist.

5. Glass Onion**:  A tech billionaire invites a group of friends to stay on his private Greek island, but when someone is killed, famous detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig, having a blast) investigates.  Very clever and a lot of fun!

6. DC League of Super-Pets*:  Superman's dog Krypto (Dwayne Johnson) and a group of shelter animals spring into action when Superman and the Justice League are taken hostage by Lex Luthor and...a superpowered guinea pig.

Okay, you may be looking at the star and thinking "What the actual fuck?" and I don't blame you.  G and I had no plans to watch this at all, but I watched the first half-hour of this on the plane back from St. Lucia when I ran out of reading material, and it was funny enough that I wanted to see the rest.  It's lively and enjoyable, with an excellent voice cast that includes more than a few surprise guests. 

7. Bros*:  Bobby (Billy Eichner) is a podcast host who, despite his best intentions, falls for a hot but "boring" guy named Aaron.  Very funny and even touching at times.

2022 TOTAL:  79