My Week In Media

Andy Diggle tagged me with this damn meme, "My Week In Media." So, what have I been absorbing this past week?

DVDS

Almost all TV these days:

Band of Brothers - for the fourth time. Lisa got it for me for the Solstice. Beautifully made series, just perfect every which way. And it looks four times as good on our new HD TV.

The Tudors - which didn't work for me on TV, but that's because the editing hacked it up. It's still more acting and spectacle than storytelling, but it's pretty good acting and spectacle. They take a few too many liberties with the real story, which ought to be a good enough story as is. And there's way too much gratuitous sex (did we really need to see Henry VIII jerking off into a footman's hankie?). But as historical popcorn, worth the rental.

West Wing, Season Three -- nice to see a beautifully done show about characters I care about.

Northern Exposure, Season Five - picked it up at the library on a whim. Didn't realize that David Chase was running the show!

Checked out Season One of Saturday Night Live to remind myself what Samurai Hotel was all about.

Up next: Time Bandits, Life of Brian

BOOKS

Suetonius, The Lives of the Caesars -- probably because of watching ROME

Neal Stephenson, The System of the World -- retro science fiction about a fellow who works at the Massachusetts Bay Colony Institute of the Technologickal Arts, among other things. Stephenson is a genius at bringing alive the 18th Century and telling a rollicking, ganglia-tickling tale in it.

Steve Martin, Born Standing Up -- a tightly written, thoughtful memoir about how he created his act. As he says, he spent ten years figuring it out, four refining it, and four in wild success. If you're wondering after a year and a half if you should quit, read this book. Read it if you're not.

Lorenzo da Ponte, Mémoires -- Mozart's lyricist, 'nuff said

O: The Intimate History of the Orgasm -- couldn't resist the title when I saw it in the library stacks

Writing the TV Drama Series -- Pamela Douglas. Review book. So far, nothing new.

MAGAZINES

The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, The Economist

TV

Not much here, guess why? We taped the THE BORDER and JPOD pilots, assuming the rain didn't kill the satellite signal.

CINEMA

Hah! Nothing's inspiring me to go to the movies, though now that Hunter is back I'll see what's out there. We did see Charlie Wilson's War before the holidays, a fine intellectual popcorn movie.

ONLINE

I've been reading Slate obsessively during the election, especially the political markets page and the polls. Trying to wean myself off Reddit, since it's all Ron Paul mania now. I read DMc and Jane Espenson off the feed. Facebook of course, and now and then I check my Zip.ca page to see what DVD's are coming down the pike.

So who shall I tag ... McGrath, you're "it." So are you, Lisa!