I was just writing another blog post while listening to a free CD that came with Word magazine and the sweet vocals of Ben Taylor (son of Carly Simon and James Taylor (and you can tell)) came to my attention as he sang “Wicked Way”:
I just want to take you out and get you drunk so I can have my wicked way with you
I’m just being honest cause I know the other guys are thinking just the same way too
And I’m not gonna lie and say that I will take you out to dance there’s just no chance cause I don’t even like the same music you do
I just wanna have my wicked way with you
So don’t you fight it cause I know you’re gonna like it
Show me some skin I might bite it
I wanna have my wicked way with you
Thanks Ben for a song that is obviously amusing and sweet and not at all offensive.
This was my favourite episode so far although it was full of flaws. I may have relaxed a bit and accepted it for what it is.
The lack of a sexual element in relation to Echo really improved my reaction to the episode. I was quite nervous at first and I urged them to cut to the chase as Echo was accepted by the cult until I delightfully realised that the cult and its leader were actually okay – apart from the being religious nutters and the hitting women aspect. Echo may get hit in every episode (so it seems) but she always gets her own back (so that’s all right then…).
While I don’t really buy Topher’s pathetic inability to use medical/clinical terms the scenes between him and Dr Saunders were hilarious. Amy Acker’s delivery was perfection.
Why?
I’ll say again that Enver Gjokaj is really cute and that was before his awakening.
Tahmoh Penikett aimed for Nathan Fillion in his first scene with his fellow FBI officer but failed but still managed to be his most endearing so far. The scenes with Mellie were just stupid – a huge dish of something Italian is a daft thing to bring into someone’s workplace, her inability to get that the man in the corridor was a postie was insane and allowing her to hang around in the office was bonkers. As it stands Mellie seems simple rather than sweet and smitten so I just hope it is all going to be switcheroo’d on us very, very soon.
Adelle’s attitude to Echo is suspicious and Lawrence is right that she is a threat. It is a pity he is such a creep. I did enjoy Adelle telling him to take the stairs.
Regarding Battlestar Galactica, what adequate explanation can there be that Tory Foster, one of the five final cylons, is the only one not to have an interesting storyline in season four? Scratch that – not to have a storyline at all. She offed Cally and she has now spent the last few episodes doing nothing in particular except to utter the line “I wanted to ask him about that frakking song.”
I love Christopher Nolan’s Memento and The Prestige was interesting but felt like two films stuck together. It took me two viewings to appreciate Batman Begins – the first time I fell asleep – but second time I thought it was pretty good – certainly better than any of the Batman films of the late 80s/early 90s. I was quite looking forward to seeing The Dark Knight and here are some things I don’t mind about the film:
I don’t mind Batman’s stupidly deep voice.
I don’t mind the detour to Hong Kong.
I don’t mind the contrived and idiotic scenes on the ferries.
I don’t mind people criticising Katie Holmes’ performance in Batman Begins as if it is bad.
I don’t mind people pretending Maggie Gyllenhaal’s performance is any better just because she isn’t married to a Scientologist (because that is what it’s about, isn’t it?).
I don’t mind that Rachel Dawes isn’t as interesting in this because we have Harvey Dent instead as our person/man/knight on the side of good.
I don’t mind that there is a variation of the “Mind if I borrow your girlfriend?” line used in this film (“Mind if I borrow Rachel?” says Dent to Wayne).
I don’t mind that Rachel is refrigerated. It’s boring and predictable for a woman to be killed (sometimes a child) in order to motivate heroes and villains but it’s been happening for a long time and we don’t need anything fresh.
I don’t mind that women are almost completely unimportant in this Gotham. There may have been one with dialogue on one of the ferries. And, of course, we do have Rachel and Detective Ramirez.
Actually, I have just got to the point of this post, women are so completely irrelevant in this film that James Gordon Jr is the focus of the scene between Two-Face and Jim Gordon at the end. However, if you ask anybody who knows the tiniest thing about Batman to name Commissioner Gordon’s children, they will say he has a daughter (maybe a niece) called Barbara Gordon and I bet most of them have no idea there was a son called James Jr.
So, when I say I don’t mind, I mean I do but not as much as I mind that during the climax (okay, one of the climaxes) the daughter of Jim Gordon (who is likely to be the future Batgirl) is barely considered as one of Gordon’s choices (in fact, her face is hardly even seen). Sorry dear but Jr is so much more important.
This was a very talky episode by the standards of a very talky series.
Don’s revenge on Roger wasn’t particularly plausible because there is always more than than one lift available in skyscrapers (plus service lifts) and on any floor Roger could have tried the lift again (despite Don’s unlikely advice that they would hear them) and stupidly didn’t.
Peggy’s freaked out reaction to Pete’s hunting, killing and eating story was very played by Elizabeth Moss. I personally don’t think she was turned on but in a sea of TWoP posters who don’t agree then maybe I just saw what I wanted to see.
There was some ridiculously unsubtle vodka advertising in the milk and vodka scene with Roger.
Clearly there was no patient-doctor confidentiality in 1960.
I hope the Betty storyline plays out in Betty’s favour despite her frustrating behaviour. Don’s attitude to her makes me despair. He was willing to humiliate Roger but wasn’t prepared to understand Betty’s position on the evening it happened when he blamed her instead and continued to be awful to her the next day. The show seems to be supporting the notion that Betty is childish (for a variety of reasons), after all, giving a nine year old a lock of hair because he asked is childlike.
There are six episodes to go and I’m thoroughly enjoying this series. The accusations of misogyny thrown at it were out of order. Depicting misogyny is not the same as being misogynistic. Generally it has walked on the right side of not revelling in sexism with the exception of the ad men’s reaction to the focus group in the previous episode. The women in this show from Pete’s secretary to Betty’s friend, Francine, are all fascinating with depth and variation in character.
I don’t want to see “strong” women all the time, I want to see believable women in all our variety. This review by Purtek of the Hathor Legacy of I’m Not There (which I haven’t seen) makes the excellent point about how women in films and television don’t have to be perfect (or strong) they just need to be recognisable “as though they’re human beings with complete lives, even though we may not see the whole thing”.
After a dismal experience reading a literary novel (The Blue Flower by Penelope Fitzgerald) it was a real pleasure to turn to Affinity by Sarah Waters. (Actually, pleasure is not quite the right word…).
I came across the reference to Tennyson’s charming and by no means unusual view of women as being either pure good or pure evil. I decided to look it up using my search engine of choice, Google, and once again, Google’s “Did you mean:” turns up an insulting suggestion.
I put in the words women heaven hell tennyson and Google saidDid you mean: when heaven hell tennyson.
This goes nicely with the previous time that Google did this to me. I put in “They are afraid women will laugh at them.”, it said Did you mean: “They are afraid when will laugh at them.”
No, I did not flipping mean when. When I type in women, I really, really, really expect to get results with the word women contained within. Seriously, why the fuck would I be expecting when? Just why?
Girls grow up faster than boys do
Girls grow up faster than boys
Girls grow up faster than boys do
So, baby, I’m old enough for you
Once you used to date my big sister
Now, baby, she’s too old for you
Won’t you take a look at me now
You’ll be surprised at what you see now
I’m everything a girl should be now
36-21-35
I don’t really know where to start but any analysis of the words ought to leave a skeezy taste in your mouth.
However, what really gets me is that this is a Goffin and K…, thank goodness, not King but a Goffin and Keeler song. Gerry Goffin is a lyricist and so he is responsible for these words and those of “He Hit Me (and It Felt Like a Kiss)”. I understand the background to “He Hit Me” but to translate the complexity of a troubled relationship into a three minute pop song is sometimes beyond the scope of talented wordsmiths like Goffin. I do rather wish he hadn’t bothered trying.
Anyhow, Keeler co-wrote the theme to the charming Bewitched starring the equally charming Elizabeth Montgomery.
PS On the other hand:
I can recall the time
When I wasn’t ashamed
To reach out to a friend
And now I think I’ve got
A lot more than
A skipping rope to lend
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Georgia, USA on 