imwalde

1. Slovenia -- Hahahaha air violin! The song is sort of catchy, but I don't really like her voice. She needs someone to teach her how to sing through English vowels, especially the o.

2. France -- Of course the song is in French. Wow thanks for on point enunciation! For a slow song, I don't hate it, it's sort of a power ballad, and she's got the pipes. But I don't know how broadly appealing it will be? Drummers at the end sort of random, I thought, but ok.

3. Israel -- His voice is sort of thin? Higher energy, so that's always preferable. "Pull me baby, I'm your trigger, you know my love is bigger." Ah yes, our first half nonsense English language song of the night. It surely won't be the last.

4. Estonia -- Hahahah we don't need a literal play by play of your every morning thought, random Estonian singer. It got a little more fun once the duet started, but not my fave.

5. UK -- Sort of retro and fun, even if the lyrics are kinda dumb. Love the light up costumes. This is the UK's best outing in several years.

6. Armenia -- Wow, her headdress game is strong, the ladies of Reign are jealous. The second lady singing sounds like a native American. I liked it best once they all started singing harmony. It ended strong.

7. Lithuania -- She's cute and so is her dress. I like this song.

8. Serbia -- Her English sounds native. Her voice is good. More power ballad than ballad, so that's good, too. This will probably be popular. I like it.

9. Norway -- Eh? Kind of boring but also melodramatic. Not my fave, but I liked the harmony at the end.

10. Sweden -- Pretty catchy with a cute singer. This should do well.

11. Cyprus -- How does he look like he's in black and white? That's a neat lighting trick. Another native sounding English singer. It's not bad, but slower than I like my Eurovision songs.

12. Australia -- Catchy with a good voice. But Eurovision-politics-wise, who votes for Australia? I wonder how this does.

13. Belgium -- Catchy, different, and memorable. Might be my favorite so far?

14. Austria -- I like the song and his voice. But I suspect I would find the musicians douchey. Omg piano on fire, though!

15. Greece -- Blake Lively lookalike, wow. But the song's a ballad snoozefest for most of its running length before becoming a power ballad at the end, but too late to capture my interest.

16. Montenegro -- The first non-English song since France. Neither song nor singer are bad, but I don't think his chances are high.

17. Germany -- Good voice, and the song shows off her pipes well.

18. Poland -- Eh? Don't hate it, but bit of a snoozefest.

19. Latvia -- Ok, this is sort of awesome. Headdress game is strong. This is precisely what I want from Eurovision. Would never have guessed she would be the singer from Latvia, though.

20. Romania -- Third non-English song. It's ok. But are we supposed to know what to feel about the people projected on the back screens? I don't. Oh, now it's in English at the end. Still don't know what pictures I am looking at.

21. Spain -- Fourth non-English song. Her voice is pretty, but the song is sort of generic. She may as well be singing Fly Like An Eagle from last year. The costume change was good, and why hello hottie shirtless backup dancer!

22. Hungary -- Zzzzzzzz. Predictably, I liked it better once the group harmony started, but still, eh.

23. Georgia -- Omg she looks like a befeathered Goth space queen. insta fave!

24. Azerbaijan -- The dancers are so much more interesting than the singer. Why is the shirtless dude wearing a collar contraption for no apparent reason?

25. Russia -- Hahhahahah, pretty sure her opening intro montage had her at Swarovski Crystal Worlds. Good voice, generic song. But at least it's a kumbyah peace song, so she didn't get booed like last year's singers.

26. Albania -- Impressive cleavage. But another not my fave. Song's pretty generic.

27. Italy -- Cuties, but it's sort of a dick move in the intro montage to play wheelchair basketball and then stand up at the end? Fifth non-English song. Amazing voices, gotta say. Love the harmony.


Yet again proving I am crap at predicting how things will turn out, while I thought Sweden would be popular, and that did happen, I did not foresee Russia's popularity or neither Germany nor Austria getting a single point. I thought Serbia would be more popular, but at least Belgium did pretty well. Europe, your tastes are a mystery to me every year!

Awww, how sad, Jonathan Crombie has died. I looooooooooooved him (or more accurately his portrayal of Gilbert Blythe). He was probably my first celebrity crush. Didn't see him in too much after that, besides Slings and Arrows, but nonetheless, it feels like a loss. He was only 48.

And on the same day I see Furious 7, and Vin Diesel makes me all sniffly with his goodbye to Paul Walker. Hug the people you love today, people!

Hahahahahah. Amazing.

This NYTimes article made me nostalgic: Manhattan Area Codes Multiply, but the Original, 212, Is Still Coveted. Heheh, so true. When I lived in NYC after college in 2002-3, we had a 212 as our apartment phone number. It wasn't super hard to get, because we were willing to deal with the condition -- 666 in the phone number. The number was 212-666-xxxx, and I found it delightful. This was in a time before the cell phone was something EVERYONE had, though, (it was growing, but mostly still something for the well off) so I can fully believe as the article says that it's a bloodsport now.

I was in NYC two weeks ago, and man, do I miss it. When biggieshorty lived there, I had a frequent reason to visit and a place to stay. Now it requires planning and a hotel! Still, it was fun to be back. I saw three shows in three nights. The Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder and Honeymoon in Vegas were two of a kind. Very funny, great stagecraft, talented cast, performed well, but ultimately, none of the songs were super memorable. Honeymoon in Vegas had a few catchier songs but even now, just two weeks later, I can't think of how the chorus goes. (Meanwhile, I found my playbill for The Secret Garden with Daisy Eagan I saw in 1992, and when looking at the list of songs, I could hear the chorus of Come To My Garden in my head. Some songs just stick with you.) So while I enjoyed myself while watching, I don't necessarily think they are great *musicals*, just that I saw great stage performances.

The third was Hedwig and the Angry Inch with John Cameron Mitchell (who was in The Secret Garden back in the day, btw!) and it was PHENOMENAL. I got goosebumps during some songs. I had seen this production with Neil Patrick Harris last summer, and he was great and talented and performed well. But JCM, man. We came specifically to see him, and it was so worth it. AMAZING. He is Hedwig. The crowd last summer loved NPH, for sure, but JCM owned us for that night. He owned us. He had us in the palm of his hand. He was so funny, and so loose, it was just one of those magical things. The show was a good 20+ minutes longer than usual because he was ad-libbing so much. Here is EW's review, for the interested. At least where we were sitting in the balcony, a good two thirds of people had clearly seen the show before (the giveaways: joining the sing along with Wig in a Box from the first syllable and lifting up their hands as the first "lift up your hands" is begun to be sung in Midnight Radio.) Tickets were at TKTS, so I guess it isn't selling out on its own? So that's good news if you want to see it. SOOOOOOOOO GOOD. Darren Cris is taking over the role sometime soon, and I am not sure I can picture that? He's got a good voice, but he's got such a youthful energy and Hedwig is so world-weary. Not sure how that will mesh. But JCM will forever be the real Hedwig, so see him while you can!

Gamora



Peter Quill


Rocket


Drax

Snow day tomorrow, whoooo! I know parts north are totally sick of the snow, but after being passed over by storm after storm, I am delighted we finally got some snow. And I know the DC area gets crap for freaking out and overreacting about snow, but here is what people who don't live here don't understand: on a perfectly ordinary day, roads are gridlock for the am and pm rush hours. We have THE WORST TRAFFIC IN THE COUNTRY. Add something like snow to the mix, and forget it. The whole regional road network is crippled, because it's only barely above crippled on a normal day (and often gets crippled by normal road accidents). With people here not knowing how to drive in the snow and having no snow tires, etc, there are of course lots of accidents, and then all the other cars are stuck because of the accidents, and the plows can't plow, so the roads remain terrible, so it's a really vicious cycle. This is why is makes more sense, certainly from a public safety standpoint, to shut everything down, so the road crews can work. Drivers would only be in the way anyway.

It's Peeps diorama time! Too bad I couldn't find what I needed before the snow, or I could work on it tomorrow. It'll have to be next weekend.

This weekend I saw three movies: Kingsmen, 50 Shades of Grey, and Jupiter Ascending.

Kingsmen: Very fun, I enjoyed it. Completely over the top, but I was very entertained. Its mission statement (if not the feel) was very like Edgar Wright movies -- both a tribute to and loving send up of a certain kind of movie. (Also, hello, Mark Hamill, nice to see you getting work!) ( spoilers )

50 Shades of Grey: I went in expecting a train wreck, but it was less terrible than I expected? Still can't call it good, but not nearly as unwatchablely terrible as you might have thought. Dakota Johnson was really quite good, but Jamie Dornan was very stiff (in a way that I don't think was deliberate). I think it might have been fighting the accent took up all his actorly energy, and he had none left to emote. The sex scenes were really not much more explicit than your average R movie, although there were perhaps more of them. I am told they took out or toned down some of the more tedious/painful part of the book (the dialogue, the inner goddess) but the story still is the story, though, so if that's a deal breaker, stay away.

Jupiter Ascecnding: I basically loved it. It's like big budget id fic on screen, straight to my fan girl heart. I was more or less delighted with most things that happened. It is the scenario the word ridonculous was invented for, and I don't mean that as a criticism, per se. The plot is a bit of a confusing mess, but honestly, that did not make me enjoy it any less. It is no more or less incoherent than the Transformers movies, but 1000% less cynical and more sincere, so I wish it were going to do as well as those. This movie was a story someone really loved and wanted to tell. A balls-out crazy story, told with love and a huge budget, that's the best way I know how to describe it. It looks fantastic on screen, whatever else anyone might say. If any of that sounds appealing, I recommend it. ( spoilers )

In television news, come ON, Originals!! Not even an explosion is a reason for Elijah to be shirtless, what, his shirts are BOMBPROOF now? CW, you usually excel at giving me what I want, why must you deny me this??? I am basically loving this season, though. Lots to keep me happy, intrigued, and guessing.

And Sleepy Hollow, damn, way to up your game. ( spoilers ) Well done, show, I am hooked again.

The show I am most looking forward to week to week at the moment is Agent Carter. I love it so much, I am squeeful. But when I was talking to niennah about why it wasn't working for her quite as much as it was for me, I started thinking about it, because the show isn't doing very well in the ratings, so why is that?

I think the main issue could be that the show does not actually make a case for why, MCU-wise, it matters if you watch. It's a prequel, so the outcome is already basically known, at least in broad strokes. And while Gotham's success proves prequel status alone need not be a deal breaker, Gotham's prequelness has a hook: you want to see how these people become these supervillains/Batman etc. (How well Gotham is doing on that front is another matter, but it's a solid hook, whatever the execution.) With Agent Carter though, Peggy is already who she is, so the only thing known that will be developing is SHIELD, and maybe that could be of interest, but the MCU already blew that out of the water. So while I find it fun and enjoyable, not even I can argue that it's really *necessary* to watch. And in a franchise empire based on interconnected parts adding up to a greater whole, I think that's a big structural weakness that has nothing to do with the gender of the lead character. What's the hook making viewing feel mandatory? It's a weakness that Agents of SHIELD faced, too, that really only got helped with a story bone from the MCU, with all the post-Winter Soldier fallout.

I fear that people will draw all the wrong lessons from it -- that women-led Marvel projects don't work -- if it doesn't get renewed. I am not even necessarily arguing that it needs to have something interconnecting that makes it mandatory viewing, because I love it as is, but I hope when people judge its performance against things that do interconnect, they realize the difference and how that might have impacted its viewership, and don't chalk up the low ratings just to having a woman as the main character.

Will anyone be sad to see 2014 go? I know basically no one who had a good year. My year was not great, sort of blah at best, but all sorts of loved ones had fairly terrible years. Good riddance, I say, and may 2015 bring better things.

I had a nice Christmas. Just me and my parents this year, since relatives, for various reasons, opted not to or couldn't come. I got my dad a Ken Burns box set called "American Lives" and we watched the one about Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. Super interesting, with lots of stuff I didn't know. I don't read much, if any, non-fiction, but it makes me want to read up on all that stuff. My mom got me a book about Lucretia Mott, so I will start there, once I am ready for a new book.

I am currently reading Little Women for the first time. Unbelievable or no, I just never read it before, just never got to it. The copy in the house growing up was my sister's and dunno, it just never happened. But man, it is delightful. Nearly from the first chapter, you are like OHHHHH, this is why this book is so beloved. Although it does make me want to invent a time machine so I can go back to Louisa May Alcott and convince her that JO AND LAURIE BELONG TOGETHER, DAMMIT.

It's another example, though, of the tenet I have come to believe: Most classics are classics for a reason. A decade ago or so, I started doing a rota of reading different sorts of books: a French, a German, a classic, a contemporary, a mystery, and a sci/fi fantasy. (Theoretically I read one of each before doing another from the same genre, but in practice the scifi/fantasy ones outnumber the others because those tends to come in series, not standalones, and it's my rota; I'll do what I want.) It was mostly started to keep me reading in French and German after college, instead of just the easy stuff, mysteries and scifi/fanstasy, but one of the big benefits has been all the classics I've read and loved. Little Women being the newest on the list. Some classic hold up better than others, but I find the ones that don't hold up as well are largely because of outdated race/gender/social attitudes, not flaws in the writing itself. It's because of this rota that I sat myself down and made myself read Middlemarch, Watership Down, Beloved, The Bell Jar, and Lolita, among others, and how fucking awesome are those books? Middlemarch would be one of the books I would choose to make everyone read if I were ruler of the universe. It would be mandatory. I have a hard time getting other people to read it, though, and I think it's because it's hard to believe it's not like eating your vegetables -- a good-for-you book. That's what I thought going in, too, but I want to shout from the rooftops, it's not vegetables, people, it's fucking creme brûlée! I don't know why it doesn't have more vocal champions, but I'll keep doing my part to spread the word, at least.

Stay safe if you are out on the roads tonight, and happy new year everyone!

Awww, Loukanikos, the Athens riot dog, has died.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/11151215/Greek-riot-dog-has-died.html

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-10/greeces-famous-protest-dog-sausage-dies-of-heart-attack/5803350

I don't know if you ever saw video of him in action, but he was amazing! In the thick of protests/riots, smoke or tear gas all around him, he always seemed to be having fun. He always sided with the protestors, never the police. When I first saw him, I assumed he was a protestor's dog, but no, he was a street dog (kept fed by the community). He just knew who he was rooting for.



RIP, puppy!

I cannot believe tomorrow is September! Where did the summer go? Nutso. It was so mild this year, it doesn't seem like I really lived through July and August. On the plus side: pumpkin spice frappucinos!

I'm not ready for fall tv to start. I just feel sort of close to caught up with things! New show-wise this fall, I'm going to watch The Flash, Constantine, Gotham, and Forever for sure (I mean, unless they are epically terrible, but possibly even still then). The last one looks pretty generic, but I love Ioan Gruffudd and his dopey, beautiful face, so that's enough for me. I'll at least give an episode or two to Madame Secretary, Scorpion, Stalker, and Gracepoint, see if I get grabbed.

Have a meme:

Ideal Dinner Party Guests
1. Kristen Bell
2. Nathan Fillion
3. Rachel Bilson
4. Eric Balfour
5. Jennifer Lawrence
6. Chris Pratt
7. Rachel McAdams
8. The Rock
9. Orlando Jones
10. Patrick Stewart
11. Ian McKellen
12. Emma Stone

Who is your Doctor? David Tennant

Who is your Doctor's companion? Donna Noble

Who is your Batman? Kevin Conroy

Who is your Cat Woman? Michelle Pfeiffer. Meow.

Who is your Sherlock Holmes? I don't really have one so much as a mental impression of what props are needed for a book SH Halloween costume, with an eau of that older pointy faced dude (Basil Rathbone?) who played him on tv movies on PBS. But I hesitate to just name him, because I can't recall his performance with any clarity, just a vague mental impression.

Who is your fictional female federal agent? Dana Scully

Who is your Robin Hood? Michael Praed! (Sorry, Jason Connery, you know it's true)

Who is your Maid Marian/Marion? Judi Trott

Who is your Bond? In my mind, Bond=Sean Connery, although those are not Bond movies I particularly enjoy. I much prefer Daniel Craig, but he's not my mental template.

Who is your fictional female assassin? Nikita

Who is your captain of the Enterprise? Picard

In other news, I basically really liked X-Men: Days of Future Past except I have SO MANY QUESTIONS. ( spoilers )

1. Ukraine - Human hamster wheel, ha! It's an upbeat pop song, fairly catchy. Not bad. And not a fricking ballad, so hallelujah.

2. Belarus - "I'm tired of being your sweet cheesecake." HAHHAHHAHA. A sentiment perhaps never before captured in song. So terrible, I can see it being a favorite. And still not a ballad, so whoo!

3. Azerbaijan - Ballad, yawn. Her voice is pretty good, but this song is meh.

4. Iceland - Colorblock dudes singing a pop rock song? YES. Love the sound. The words might be a bit stupid, but I can't make them all out. Hehehe, synchronized dancing. Cute overall.

5. Norway - He sounds a little like Tracy Chapman. Don't hate it as much as I do most ballads, but I do hate the way he keeps creepily staring directly into the camera.

6. Romania - This is the kind of pop techno-y song that is not my fave, but usually does pretty well in Eurovision voting. Circle keyboard prop is confusing. Her gestures are a smidge Spring Awakening.

7. Armenia - Zzzzzzzzzzz at first, but at least it picks up energy at the end.

8. Montenegro - The first non-English song. his voice isn't bad, but the song is a bit of a snoozer. The faux ice skater is an interesting touch.

9. Poland - Hahahahhaha, amazing. Another (partially) non-English song, but this one I wish I knew what she was saying, because I bet it's hilarious. From what I could understand an ode to Slavic girls? The first folk(ish) dress, but with sexy butter churning and clothes washing.

10. Greece - Hahahahaha, cheese with hiphop posturing. Can't decide if "Rise Up" is exclusively a sexual innuendo? The trampolines are a fun touch.

11. Austria - A memorable singer, if generic song. I don't know enough to pick a pronoun, but very good voice. Please be the next Hedwig!

12. Germany - Accordion! I like her voice. Song's just ok, but a good showcase for her voice. Bet she covers lots of Pink songs.

13. Sweden - Another good singer with a pretty generic song. Zzzzzzz.

14. France - Why am I not surprised the France entry is in French. I instinctively hate them on sight. The one guy is like Weird Al and Judah Friedlander had a kid, and lead guy is an unholy crossing of Kid from Kid N' Play and Peewee Herman. It is somehow, though, quintessentially Eurovision.

15. Russia - Hahahaha, like someone thought Abba was on the right track but needed twins and see-saw. What are they holding? Surprisingly, I don't hate the song. It had nice harmony.

16. Italy - OMG AMAZING OUTFITS. Instant favorite. Wish I knew what she was saying. Her voice is good, and the music is catchy, so hopefully the lyrics aren't stupid.

17. Slovenia - Is she really playing that flute? Don't hate it, but not my fave. This also feels quintessentially Eurovision. Partially non-English, too.

18. Finland - Catchy, upbeat, and sung by a cutie. Sold! New favorite!

19. Spain - Another partially non-English. Another generic ballad. Her voice deserves a better song. What did her tattoo say?

20. Switzerland - Hello adorables! Catchy! Yes. Approve.

21. Hungary - Not sure a child abuse song was the way to go? At least it became up tempo. Would never have guessed this dude was representing Hungary. Accent-wise, he sounds American.

22. Malta - Would-be Mumford and Sons. Like it.

23. Denmark - Kind of cute. Don't hate it.

24. Netherlands - Do they have mile markers in Holland? Shouldn't they be kilometer markers? This song has nice harmony. Strange how it's very US country in sound.

25. San Marino - Ballad, sigh. Her voice is good, but song is meh.

26. UK - It at least is not the things I hate most, but still leaves me largely unmoved. Her name is Molly, I wish I liked her song more.

My favorites: Finland, Switzerland, Malta, and Italy. The so WTF they are nearly great: Poland and Belarus.

Hahaha, love the surprising Graham Norton and other commentators. The 12 song, WHAT IS HAPPEN. It has to be seen to be believed. The Eurovision museum segment was pretty funny, though.

As per usual my tastes are not matched up with who does well, because clearly not everyone shares my boredom with ballads. Also I'm not a savvy enough fan to predict the voting blocks. (The booing of every mention of Russia is vaguely uncomfortable. I mean, I get it, but at the same time, pretty sure the blonde twin singers aren't responsible for military strategy, you know?) I would not have predicted Austria to win by such a margin, but I do enjoy that everyone in Europe united to hate the French song. 2 points, hahahah.

See you next year in Vienna, Eurovision!