July. Not as hot as I thought it would be. There were some toasty days, unquestionably. But we had just as many surprisingly cool days. It has been rather humid overall though. My alcoholic limeade and cherry limeade infusions were well received--best served as highballs over club or tonic. I ran other experiments in the kitchen, some praised, some... not so much.

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This month’s playlist:

HUMANIST VAMPIRE SEEKING CONSENTING SUICIDAL PERSON

I was dismayed when I saw this trailer before a screening of Fight Club. It seemed to have similar elements to a script I’m currently writing. That dismay was unfounded. Or, rather, misplaced. Now I’m worried about creating a worthy entry for the Vampire Lexicon, which Humanist Vampire unquestionably is.

This movie is great. A fantastic addition to the vampire genre. Genuine originality and incredible charm. Funny and touching. Another win for French-Canadian cinema (the other being Denis Villeneuve).

THE BEAR

Season three is a major waste of time. The narrative is scraped far too thin over its ten episodes. Constant flashes of contextless past experiences add nearly nothing to these characters. Music choices consistently distract. The editing and soundtrack would have you believe this season is speeding towards a destination but in reality, it’s crawling nowhere. I was left incredibly disappointed with how this season was squandered.

There are two episodes worth the time: Napkins and Ice Chips. The rest have little substance.

Read my thoughts on season one and season two.

DESTINY 2: THE FINAL SHAPE

It’s a good expansion. I’m enjoying the missions, the shooting. The finale is impressive and feels like an appropriate culmination of a ten-year evolving narrative as promised nearly a decade ago. But I think this is my last rodeo. Every time I pick up Destiny I feel like I’m wasting my time, being strung along. I don’t think live service games are for me. I prefer books. I prefer movies. I like starting new things and finishing them. Series are even falling out of favor with me. I don’t need time sinks. I need novel experiences that are courteous stewards of my attention. That is no longer Destiny 2.

AUTHORITY

I reread Annihilation as an audiobook this month. As wondrous and strange as I remember, and takes quite well to being read aloud. Moved the movie adaptation to the top of my rewatch list as well.

I rolled right into the sequel. An abrupt change of pace to office politics and espionage, but the same weird and eldritch presence lurks in the walls. Some answers. Many more questions. And, truthfully, it’s the questions that drive us.

Annihilation evokes Uzumaki and The King in Yellow, and Authority continues this with the additions of Severance and Control. Can’t wait for my library hold to come in for Acceptance.

KUMO 99

This band, as it was pitched to me, makes you, “feel like a well-dressed video game character.” I listened through their entire discography and immediately bought it. This is adrenaline. It’s running music. It’s writing music. It’s needle-sharp focus music.

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This month I also got roped into a last-minute graduation photo shoot (which turned out surprisingly well) and a music video shoot (yet to be determined if we need reshoots).