There’s something terrifying about the world right now. I don’t need to tell you about that. I am fortunate enough to work from home full time, so rather than beginning my full-time authorial career walking to the library, or coffee shops.
I have my office.
And my living room.
And my kitchen.
And on the rare occasions the weather is cooperating, my deck. (But there’s a duck that’s been harassing me so even when the weather’s nice I get a half hour max outdoor office time.)
It’s very glamorous, I know.
The point of this digression is that I have a bit more time on my hands and a bit less brain power to do something creative with it. So I’m going to tell you about my media consumption highlights since February. The great, the good, and the still holds up.
I’m by no means a critic or an arbiter of taste. Here are the shows, books, movies, and podcasts that have been keeping me sane when my essential worker husband leaves me alone all day.
Movies- New to me:
Onward- A 2020 Pixar movie available on Disney Plus. I’m 99.9% sure they made this movie for me. It has Chris Pratt playing an RPG loving nerdy older brother to Tom Holland’s more skittish wants to be cool younger brother. It is amazing and if you like DND or heartfelt movies, watch it. (And tell me about it because I’m dying to talk to people about it.)
Willow- A 1988 Ron Howard movie available on Disney Plus that left me saying “How have I never seen this before” every five minutes. It’s amazing. Starring young Warwick Davis as Willow, it is a fantasy film of adventure, friendship and special effects that held up surprisingly well. Plus Val Kilmer hot off of Top Gun.
This is the point where I should admit I don’t watch a lot of movies. Honorable mentions include the animated Beauty and the Beast and Hunchback of Notre Dame. Both held up really well to a re-watch probably over a decade since the last time I’ve seen either. Although, if there is a “no Jason Alexander gargoyle cut” floating around, let me know. It would increase my husband’s enjoyment of Hunchback exponentially.
TV- New to me:
Beforeigners- If you follow me on twitter, you know I’m obsessed with this HBO show. It is a Norwegian cop drama that takes place in modern Oslo with a major twist. People from the past are showing up in the present day. After the opening, there is a time jump and we follow one of the past people as she starts a career as a cop.
Trust me, this show is amazing. 100% if you watch it, please email me, Facebook me, tweet me, dm me on Instagram, smoke signals, anything. I love this show and do not have enough people to talk to about it.
Fargo- A bit late to the hype on Fargo, but I’m halfway through season two and I am obsessed. We’re watching on Hulu but I think it aired on FX. Each season has a different cast and case than the previous and so far, I’m loving it. Fargo season 1 was a blast and I am eagerly waiting my husband’s return from work so we can finish season two.
I am very familiar with Duluth so I was disappointed in the utter lack of hill...and lake in the Duluth scenes, but they have and everything else is amazing, so I let my nitpick slide.
What We Do In Shadows: This one is on Hulu (for me I think it’s also airing on FX) and is AMAZING. If you liked the 2014 movie, you will still like the show. Season 2 is airing, and every episode has me laughing out loud. My husband is constantly quoting Lazlo lines to me, but I know deep down, I’m more of a Colin Robinson type (though I kinda wish I was Nadya).
TV- re-watches that hold up (or that I’ve re-watched and not cared if they held up)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer- (Hulu) except for a few episodes and some cringey CGI in the early seasons, Buffy has held up for me. Currently cued for me is “The Body” so if you’ve seen the series, you know what I’m in for this afternoon.
Top Chef (hulu; Amazon prime) I will make a confession here, I’m obsessed with profession-based reality competition shows. Top Chef is my favorite. I have it on in the background a lot when I cook, clean, cry in a corner after spending too much time on twitter and mourning the state in the world. Something about a group of people competing to prove who is the top of their chosen field is great to me.
(If, for some reason, a person reading this is a reality TV show producer and is interested in making a show about corrugated box designers... let me know... for reasons).
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Hulu) I’m not sure I need to explain myself here. The show is funny. The characters are amazing, and I love them.
Podcasts:
Wine and Crime: Three friends drink wine, chat True Crime, and unleash their worst Minnesotan accents. These girls never fail to make me laugh.
I listened to ep. 169: Stripper Crimes when it came out and I’m still laughing about Lucy twerking to Come on Eileen... on a pool table.... At three in the afternoon.
Omnibus: Ken Jennings and John Roderick have over 250 episodes out about the most random things. Honestly, I don’t even listen for the episode titles anymore, these guys go on the most interesting and odd tangents.
Books:
Disclaimer here: My reading list in the current environment is purely for comfort reading. My rereads are things I’ve read a million times. And my newly-reads are things that I was confident wouldn’t hurt my soul. As a writer who frequently does soul crushing stuff, I’m well aware of the apparent hypocrisy and I accept your judgement.
Old favorites:
In the past week I have re-read all 21of Ice Planet Barbarians and the first 3 of the Icehome series by Ruby Dixon. Yes, these books are about blue alien barbarians and their human mates. No, I don’t particularly care how ridiculous that sounds. These books are like coming home to me in the weirdest way possible and I will continue to insta-buy every one that comes out until Ruby Dixon retires.
I fill my audible cue with The Utterly Uninteresting and Uninteresting Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes. Drew Hayes is another author where I don’t even read the descriptions of his books anymore, I just buy them. Normally the Super Powereds series is my go-to, but I needed to laugh so I turned to Fred. The Vampire Accountant series by Drew Hayes is episodic so I can pick a chapter, listen to it as I do a chore, then get my giggle on as I pretend to clean my house.
New Books (since quarantine...I’ve definitely re-read these too. I’m a re-reader. I also read very fast).
As a speed reader and a Kindle Unlimited devotee, the fact I purchased the paperback of this book after reading the kindle edition, should be enough to tell you how much I love Harpyness is Only Skin Deep by D.H. Willison. It’s a different sort of portal fantasy that follows a character from Earth and one from Arvia as they both try to make their way in the world. I love Rinloh the harpy. She’s so freaking adorable and I just need more of her in my life. (Plus the paperback edition has a mantis on the spine).
The Faerene Apocalypse series by Jenny Schwartz. For someone as afraid of the plague as I am, I was really surprised I dove into these books as hard and fast as I did. There is something reassuring about the way Amy pragmatically handles everything the apocalypse throws at her. I devoured all five books in one sitting and then immediately reread the first one.
Not that anyone asked, but my other quarantine activities are petting Stinky. That’s it. This cat is taking up so much of my free time I can’t do the cool stuff like baking bread or picking up arts and crafts. He is literally sitting on my lap as I write this blog post. Not that I’m complaining. He’s adorable.
I hope everyone stays safe, washes their hands, and consumes media that makes them happy.
Please tell me about your favorite quarantine media. I’m accepting any and all suggestions.
