rose_griffes

I'm in the usual frenzy of grading now that the semester is rapidly drawing to a close. Thankfully the checkoff list requiring signatures is smaller than in years past, so I can spend more time trying to grade rather than trying to fulfill an obscure requirement so that someone else can initial my checkoff list.

Still importing some of my original posts from tumblr. This one from two years ago was about Person of Interest. It's short, so I'll just copy the text.

It’s possible to appreciate that Person of Interest didn’t resort to the “Kill your lesbians (and bisexual women)” trope to deal with Sarah Shahi’s unexpected pregnancy--keeping the character of Shaw alive even without knowing whether she would return during the show’s run--and still acknowledge that Carter’s death played into the trope that characters of color are somehow more affected by bullets than white characters.

I can be grateful that the show hasn’t erased the impact Carter’s death made on the characters, and still be angry at the bad writing that framed her death.

I’m impressed that Person of Interest made a canon f/f ship that includes a woman of color. That doesn’t make PoI’s ongoing problems with people of color disappear. One form of positive representation doesn’t trump the absent and negative representations.

Unlike my mother, I never had to slaughter chickens in my childhood. Or adulthood, for that matter. But her eyewitness account is that they do indeed run around after you cut off their heads. So there's a reason for that expression.

It's applicable to how I feel right now: running around in what feels like an increasingly incomprehensible mission, wondering if I'm missing something absolutely essential to this whole life process... probably I just need a nice nap and someone to clean that kitchen for me.

Anyway! Shows are coming back to TV. I finally gave up on This Is Us. I enjoyed all five episodes I watched from season one, and I adored seeing Sterling K. Brown onscreen, but I just didn't think about the show when I didn't take deliberate steps to watch it. Instead I whiled away my time with frivolities like The Good Place--and apparently that started last night, so I think I'll go watch 2.01 before I get completely spoiled by the internet for any/all juicy details.

Inspired by Mark Watches, I've been rewatching Person of Interest season one. This is partly in the hope that I'll feel inspired to complete one of those unfinished fanfics I have on the computer. No show since then has brought that level of fannish inspiration. I literally haven't finished a new fanfic on my own in, er, three and a half years? Which, not so coincidentally, is two months after the departure of a character from PoI, so... hence the hope that watching the parts from before that exit will inspire me.

The students in my school district get two - TWO - days off this month that we (the faculty and staff) have to work. *cue the jealous grudge*

Anyway. Maybe I'll get some fanfic written tomorrow? I actually have an idea that's tickling my brain enough to make me write notes. Lacking a fandom that really says Love me! means no fanfic production of late. This started before Person of Interest killed off Carter, by the way. The transition from procedural to full-on sci fi show had me already losing that level of interest (heh, interest) that my brain apparently requires to produce fic on a semi-regular basis. Killing Carter rather cemented it, however.

(Depression may be a factor as well. But I wrote that multi-chapter fic with depression, so I'd guess it's not the biggest element in writing production or lack of it.)

Co-written PoI fic is pretty much finished, thanks to my co-author. I'll post a link once she starts putting chapters online. It really did end up being a hybrid story of what I like and what she likes, which is fascinating.

Er. Anyway. Last two Person of Interest related things:
1) we're doing a rewatch on Tumblr, which has reminded that I really did love that first season of the show. Grimorie chose a format that allows for actual comments on the posts, so you don't have to reblog to talk about the episodes. Like back in the day, yeah? I'd say I miss back in the day, but when it comes to PoI fandom, I really really don't.

2) There are spoilers out there for the upcoming season, which is being filmed right now. No air date yet (it's going to be a mid-season replacement). This teaser trailer from whatever con is going on now is silly and pretty spoiler-free. So enjoy.

Books: nothing of interest to report recently, though I have some recs that I intend to explore soon.

Author Maggie Stiefvater has a book series, The Raven Cycle (still incomplete), that starts with The Raven Boys. Apparently it's fairly popular; I had to wait to check out the digital copy from my library.

I like Stiefvater's prose more than some other recent YA novels, but it was hard to distinguish between two of the main characters' voices. So... I doubt I'll read more anytime soon. Maybe try something else by her where there aren't four teenage boys to recognize.

TV: Person of Interest has yet to be renewed or cancelled for a fifth season. And I'm left indifferent by this. ( spoilers for 4.20 and 4.21 )

So for me, cancellation is not a "bring tissues" kind of event. Remember when this show was THE show for a while? The only show to inspire me to write a multi-chapter fic. (It's been over a year since I've posed any fanfic, by the way. PoI isn't THE show now, but neither is any other show, apparently.)

The Flash caught my attention again, and I caught up on recent episodes. Thank goodness ( spoilers for 1.20 and a warning )

Anyway! As someone who never got into comics as reading material, this show is a fun watch. Pretty people, and Barry "No Chill" Allen is a goofy and happy superhero, in spite of angsty (dead mother) backstory. Tom Cavanaugh as the ambiguous Dr. Harrison Wells is great. I love Cisco (Carlos Valdes) and robot boyfriend Eddie Thawne (he's not really a robot), and Barry and Iris...

Also caught up on Elementary, which currently deserves the secondary title of Friendship is Magic, or something of the sort. Alfredo! Detective Bell! CLYDE!!!

And just one episode until I'm caught up on Jane the Virgin again, so maybe I'll wait to post about it. I'll just say that it's living up to its telenovela roots.

I have not-LJ writing to do! But instead I'm here, at least for a brief moment.

So glad that the library system in my town is gradually acquiring more e-books. I have three books on hold right now, and when they're (finally) available, I'll get an e-mail and then download them, all from my comfy couch. It's pretty nifty. I'm currently reading the second book in Seanan McGuire's series with Tobey Daye. I'm wondering if my guesses about two things will be correct... still no guess on the actual murderer yet, but maybe soon?

Oh, hey, one of those books is As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride. It's by Cary Elwes, who played Westley. Eeee, can't wait to read this! If I liked audiobooks better, I would consider buying it in that format, since I've read that the voice impressions were really funny. But... I'm not really an audiobook person, unless it's a full BBC radio production with major actors and sound effects and so forth.

Time for TV now. So, Tuesday night's Person of Interest -- ( spoilers, obviously )

Currently I have a DVR in my home, and TV channels and everything. Giving it a trial run. Pros: big, pretty picture, and the ability to skip commercials. Also, no lag time on the video. Cons: I'm still not watching any more TV than before, and all of those shows are still available on the internet for free. So... dunno if it's gonna stay.

Various TV shows are starting up again, some returning and some new. I watched the pilot episode of Gotham and decided that it was too grim and violent for me. Not to mention that the one shining light among the adult characters thought it was a brilliant idea to consult with a recently orphaned twelve-year-old about taking down crime in the city from the inside. Not a good plan, not-yet-Commissioner Gordon.

The pilot episode of How to Get Away With Murder also left me feeling that there was a lack of adults who are trying to, y'know, do any kind of good in the world. Morally ambiguous characters can be fun, but a whole show full of them? It's a bit much. Also, the idea that a law professor is letting her students muck around in a current murder trial where she's serving as the defense attorney just hurts me in the logic.

Both of these shows have some great filmography and fantastic actors and compelling plots, but that doesn't mean they're what I want to watch.

Black-ish isn't on my must-watch list yet--the pilot had some funny moments, but the humor didn't always work for me. I might give another episode a try in a week or two, to see how it's going once things are a bit more established.

As for returning shows, Sleepy Hollow started off with an episode that highlights everything good, bad, and implausible about it. I loved it almost unconditionally, complete with anachronistic Ben Franklin's kite experiment. (Franklin did, in fact, take "air baths", but the kite experiment happened a decade or two too early for our Ichabod Crane to be helping with them. No matter, though!) Still great: Crane and Mills and Mills. Still lacking a plot: ( vague spoiler )

Person of Interest was in transition mode to start its fourth season, so this episode had more to do with shifting the show's universe than anything else. It felt a bit slow for me at first, but the pace picked up by the end. As for ( spoilery stuff )

PoI is on my 'watch, but if this goes somewhere I don't like, it's gone' list. We'll always have AU fanfic, whether I'm watching the show or not.

And... hm. I think that's it? Oh, I've also watched four episodes of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, an Australian show on Netflix, set in the 1920s. And I'm almost done with season two of Call the Midwife.

Oh, hi there. Still alive!

I just started trying to make my summer vacation plans more definite: I'm looking at ticket prices and places to stay. Best to do all of that now and get everything settled. Woohoo, summer!

Of course, there's close to three months of school left before any vacation traveling can start, but still... it's exciting to think about.

I finished reading Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. As a 'journey' book, I liked it, though I have very mixed feelings about the ultimate destination of the two main characters. But it was interesting and well-written.

Still watching Person of Interest, although that was touch-and-go for a while. The last episode that aired (3.16 "RAM", I believe) was the first one I genuinely enjoyed since the Terrible Thing happened. Also still watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which has been very enjoyable so far during its freshman season. (And I'm still watching Elementary, although I'm behind on it. AGAIN. Somehow that keeps happening this season.)

Depression: trying a second medication, since the first one made no difference. Debating over other options, but waiting to see if the second medication helps first.

I'm not done being mad about Person of Interest 3.09: ( I'll put it back here to spare those of you who don't want another (repetitive) rant about the subject. I posted this to tumblr already, by the way. )

Also, I have feelings about episode 3.10. ( mixed reaction )

Happy Halloween!

The Fringe userpic is for Kirk Acevedo, aka Charlie, who made a guest appearance on Person of Interest 3.06. His hair was shaved, which was EVER SO DISTRESSING. The episode was good; not the same caliber as 3.05, but that's a high level of excitement to sustain. Weirdly enough, Acevedo's character was a bit of a weak link for me. I think they made him too sweet; he needed to be a bit more prickly.

Anyway, back to Halloween stuff. cleolinda has amusing? creepy? Babysitting instructions.

And back here you can watch the best zombie movie I've ever watched. Okay, the only zombie movie I've ever watched. I don't like zombies, but this is only seven minutes long.
( maybe have a tissue ready? )

Ack, I've already entered the "can't ever catch up on grading papers" zone! Nooooo! *sigh*

I was at the thrift store a few weeks ago--a place I visit regularly, because I like clothes and I like cheap and I like reusing stuff that still has some usefulness--and found a copy of Cassandra Clare's City of Bones. It was two dollars, so I bought it. I finished a week ago and I've already forgotten the names of most of the characters, and my smidge of interest in what happened next was completely extinguished by peeking at an online description of book two and realizing that I just didn't care about any of these characters. Not even enough to read a short and spoilery summary.

I started a book by Sophie Kinsella, Twenties Girl, and couldn't even make it past the first quarter without terminal disinterest.

Time to find a new book.

TV: I've watched the first three episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It's a sitcom set in a police station, with an ensemble cast. Andre Braugher is the new precinct captain; he's always fun to watch. The element that concerns me the most is Andy Samberg, who's young and theoretically funny, and who hasn't been very interesting for me. In spite of that, I'm still enjoying it enough to watch when I have a moment. Not a ringing endorsement, I know, but I'm not much of a sitcom fan, so consider this a recommendation if you want a sitcom to watch.

Interesting link about TV and other media: I'm always sad, I guess, when people feel jilted by creative works that show age or have flaws. Good things burn through their periods of greatest creativity and go down blind alleys now and then, while less complex things often don't, for the same reason real plants die and plastic ones don't. You know what never lets me down? Judge Judy, because it's a plastic plant. It doesn't change, and it's nobody's baby. It's there to decorate and specifically to require no upkeep and no attention.

belated addition: Person of Interest has for season three. The show is clearly evolving, with two new cast members for this season and Carter's change in work status. That means it feels different, but that's not necessarily bad. ( non-spoilery thoughts for season three so far )