Forget You. November 18, 2010
Posted by OhmsBlog in Geek, TV, Video.2 comments
Great job last night Glee!
The Tao of Ohms: Mad Men August 31, 2010
Posted by OhmsBlog in Geek, TV, Words.5 comments
I think I may have scared a colleague of mine during a conversation on the bus. As is the case with most of my contributions in conversations, it starts with the latest story of the week involving my son, Ben, and eventually leads to what media I’m “consuming” at the time (Yeah, I’m not sure why people sit next to me on the bus either). Well, this conversation probably started with some talk about Ben’s walking skills, and lead to my love of the show, Mad Men. Why did I say I love this show? Because it’s depressing.
I’m not sure when this love affair of depressing media happened. (I do remember really liking Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street…Ah, the seeds of melancholy). I’m certainly oversimplifying my “love” in this case, but I think it’s fair to say that my experience with the things I respond to in media are often rejected by others for making them “feel bad.” While others might reject, I embrace. I’ve been known to describe a move , as “being hit in the face with a shovel.” And that’s a positive review!
Where does Mad Men fit into all of this? Well, I was first introduced to this show in the early days of fatherhood while awake with Ben in the middle of the night. I believe I watched the entire first season on DVD in the matter of a few days. I responded to it’s attention to detail, and it’s overt symbolism on identity and how we define ourselves. Mad Men is currently a handful of shows into its 4th season, which is my favorite by far. I definitely think that’s because it’s also the most emotionally gruesome season to date. The central character, Don Draper/Dick Whitman, is one of the most damaged characters on television. On one early episode this season, I believe he hit rock bottom, and then here comes the next week’s episode where the bottom falls out. I used to think the beginning credits for the show was just a metaphor, but based on this season, perhaps we’re leading to a literal interpretation!
So, to get back to my original point, yes, I know that I can come across as one sick puppy…especially on the bus. But, I’ll never stop thinking it’s healthy and important to respond to emotion in art (pretentious much?) Whether it’s listening to Smashing Pumpkins in my angst-ridden teen age years, or watching Mad Men in my angst-ridden 30′s, I love connecting with tv shows, books, music, and films that dare to say something about emotions and the baggage we all carry with us.
I’ll leave you to go cry for humanity, but I thought I would share my favorite image from this season of Mad Men, as I think it works with what I’ve talked about in this post. Obviously context would enrich the image, so I hope you watch the show, but I think it’s beautiful in and of itself.
faithfully cheesy. June 9, 2010
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I have had this song and performance from last night’s Glee stuck in my head all day:
I’m not sure what it is, but I love the imagery of these two high schoolers singing together surrounded by people in the audience. It’s a great moment from a great show. A show that normally would be rejected by my cynical self, but somehow has turned into one of my favorite shows of the last decade. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m a relatively new father and I want my child to live in a community that supports the arts, and more importantly, supports people expressing who they are and caring about one another. Whatever the reason, like the reviewer from the Onion’s AV Club, I’m buying what Glee is selling.
The Island of Misfit Toys November 9, 2009
Posted by OhmsBlog in TV, Video, Words.1 comment so far
As the holiday season begins, so too brings those lovely traditions in our families and pop culture. Everyone has their favorite, or must-see holiday film or tv program. I was always personally against people buying these on DVD, as these should only be seen on tv during this time of year. Half the fun is trying to catch them when they air and watching the crappy commercials. Now you can actually watch the Charlie in a Box try to sell you a phone after you see him tell Rudolph about the Island of Misfit Toys.
It was inevitable that a Charlie in a Box would be used to sell phones in today’s “we have no fresh ideas, so why don’t we just use pre-existing pop culture references to sell our crap.” [see Direct TV commercials] I guess I shouldn’t complain, as that is what we crave so much this time of year…nostalgia.
I’ve been looking forward to “rudolph” for quite some time, as I’ve been watching Top Chef Las Vegas and one of the chef’s, Kevin, looks exactly like Yukon Cornelius. You be the judge:
As to the other items to ponder in regards to Rudolph and the Island of Misfit Toys, I’ll leave you with this website.
Flash Gordon doesn’t suck? August 5, 2009
Posted by OhmsBlog in Trailer, TV.add a comment
This past weekend I was channel surfing and came across “Flash Gordon” being shown on the program “Movies That Don’t Suck.” Now, I watched it, because it is hilarious and Flash was excited to hear his name being sung by Queen, but this movie sucks….
