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Ken and Robin Consume Media: Fixers, Palookas, Gaslighters and Star Warriors
December 27th, 2016 | Robin
Ken and Robin Consume Media is brought to you by the discriminating and good-looking backers of the Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff Patreon. Each week we provide capsule reviews of the books, movies, TV seasons and more we cram into our hyper-analytical sensoriums. Join the Patreon to help pick the items we’ll talk about in greater depth on our new podcast segment, Tell Me More.
Recommended
Creed (Film, US, Ryan Coogler, 2015) Illegitimate son of Apollo, Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) seeks out Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) to train him as a boxer, and in a reprise of the original, takes his shot when the world champion (real-life boxer Tony Bellew) picks him for a bum-of-the-month publicity payday. The Rocky series has always been, appropriately, A-treatments of B-movies, and this seventh installment is no exception. (Unlike Rocky V.) Cliche becomes legend, and the cycle finally gets a mythically appropriate conclusion. –KH
The Getaway Car: A Donald Westlake Nonfiction Miscellany (Nonfiction, Donald E. Westlake, 2014) Levi Stahl of the University of Chicago Press has assembled this too-short collection of Westlake (and briefly, Richard Stark) writing about crime fiction, writing, and Donald Westlake. If you appreciate any of those three you appreciate all of those three, and so too this book. –KH
Julieta (Film, Spain, Pedro Almodovar, 2016) Woman recalls the tragic events that led her daughter to mysteriously break off all contact with her. Fuses three Alice Munro stories into a melodrama drenched in passion, menace, and color–qualities that no one but Almodovar would find in her material.–RDL. Seen at TIFF16; now in North American theatrical release.
Murder Me For Nickels (Fiction, Peter Rabe, 1960) Slightly loopy yet completely straight hard-boiled crime novel features the fixer for a juke-box racket getting caught in his ambitions — romantic and professional — when the Chicago Outfit starts muscling in. The dialogue and prose are weirdly and beautifully clipped, like drunken telegraphy. –KH
Total Balalaika Show (TV Special, Finland, MTV3, 1993) Following the recent tragic death of 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, someone has uploaded all 107 minutes of Finnish TV footage of their wonderful, giddy 1993 Helsinki Senate Square performance with the Finnish rock’n’roll art project Leningrad Cowboys. Indifferent sound mixing mars some of the music, but nonetheless the special captures that glorious, larger-than-history moment. Watch it with joy before it vanishes again into night and fog. –KH
Good
Aleister & Adolf (Comics, Douglas Rushkoff & Michael Avon Oeming, 2016) Media theorist Rushkoff’s take on the hoary fable of Crowley working (and Working) against Hitler in WWII catches Oeming in an inventive mood that feeds the theme of warring Signs and Sigils. Too many of the details are wrong or elided in the name of pacing to make this a classic of the genre, but its signal still beats its noise. –KH
Asylum (Nonfiction, William Seabrook, 1935) Seabrook turns his patented jazzy, ethnographic eye upon the doctors and inmates at Bloomingdale Insane Asylum, where he had himself committed in 1933 to cure his own alcoholism. Useful but not mandatory for Trail of Cthulhu Keepers. –KH
Rogue One (Film, US, Gareth Edwards, 2016) Criminal vagabond (Felicity Jones) embittered by the kidnapping of her scientist father (Mads Mikkelsen) gets a chance to rescue him from the Empire’s Death Star project. Too overstuffed with characters to give the hero’s transformational arc the screen time it needs to register emotionally. It is bracing though to see a Star Wars film that isn’t trying to evoke the feel and style of the original, going so far as to place itself in an entirely different moral universe.—RDL
Okay
The Saint (Film, US, Philip Noyce, 1997) Buried somewhere in this $70 million misfire is a charming spy film starring Val Kilmer as an updated version of Leslie Charteris’ suave mercenary thief. Despite some great Moscow locations and one or two good caper bits, the sputtering action and vague characterization combine to display the limitations of the script. –KH
Not Recommended
Chase a Crooked Shadow (Film, UK, Michael Anderson, 1958) Heiress (Anne Baxter) struggles to maintain her grip when a man (Richard Todd) shows up at her Spanish villa claiming to be her dead brother. Dialogue-driven suspense film with one of those misconceived twist endings that punishes the viewer for identifying with its protagonist.—RDL
Episode 222: Suddenly You’re Eating Mustard Lettuce
December 23rd, 2016 | Robin
Finally, after ceding all recent chapeaus to Ken, Robin seizes control of Among My Many Hats to talk about Cthulhu Confidential and the design of the GUMSHOE One-2-One system. Because it’s finally up for pre-order over at the Pelgrane store.
While we’re mulling Cthulhu Confidential, Ken and/or Robin Talks To Someone Else has a word with Chris Spivey, creator of that book’s African American science investigator Langston Wright. And what fine timing, as Chris’ exciting new GUMSHOE project Harlem Unbound is currently Kickstarting.
Then Ken presents us with a thick layer of rant between two slices of bread, as he calls us to order in the Food Hut to tell us how to make a damn sandwich.
Finally our hero, perhaps still spackled with mayo, tries not to look too tasty to large felines as Ken’s Time Machine fulfills a John Kingdon request for the real truth behind the hungry hungry lions of Tsavo.
Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic.
Sleepers awake, and travel through the secret pathways of the occulted world to preorder the new edition of Unknown Armies from Atlas Games. From the deluxe printed edition to ebooks in a variety of formats, the weird wonders of UA beckon!
Want to plunge headlong into Lovecraftian mystery, but lack a gaming group? Want to introduce a friend or loved one to the roleplaying hobby? GUMSHOE One-2-One has come to your rescue! Find this new system by some guy named Robin D. Laws, in the line’s flagship title, Cthulhu Confidential. Now pre-ordering at the Pelgrane Press store.
Do intervals between episodes plunge you into Hite withdrawal? Never fear! his brilliant pieces on parasitic gaming, alternate Newtons, Dacian werewolves and more now lurk among the sparkling bounty of The Best of FENIX Volumes 1-3, from returning sponsors Askfageln. Yes, it’s Sweden’s favorite RPG magazine, now beautifully collected. Warning: not in Swedish. John Scott Tynes’ Puppetland is ready to knock the stuffing out of a game store near you in its gorgeous new full-color hardcover edition. Join the good folks at Arc Dream in battling the horrific forces of Punch the Maker-Killer!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ken and Robin Consume Media: Galaxies Far Far Away and Also Regular Far Away
December 20th, 2016 | Robin
Ken and Robin Consume Media is brought to you by the discriminating and good-looking backers of the Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff Patreon. Each week we provide capsule reviews of the books, movies, TV seasons and more we cram into our hyper-analytical sensoriums. Join the Patreon to help pick the items we’ll talk about in greater depth on our new podcast segment, Tell Me More.
Recommended
All These Worlds Are Yours (Nonfiction, Jon Willis, 2016) Succinct yet meaty tour of the various likely spots to look for extraterrestrial life, and the costs and difficulties associated with finding them. Spoiler: Willis is an Enceladus man. Bonus points for dropping the boring personal anecdotes required by editors of popular science books in favor of the occasional witty aside.—RDL
The Mermaid (Film, China, Stephen Chow, 2016) Guileless young woman falls for the environment-despoiling tycoon her fellow merfolk have sent her to assassinate. A big CGI budget gives Chow all the resources he needs to precision-execute his Chuck Jones riffs in this comedy-fantasy-actioner. Those unsteeped in the rapidfire tone shifts of the Hong Kong movie tradition may be taken aback by its veer from slapstick violence to distressingly bloody violence.—RDL
Neruda (Film, Chile, Pablo Larrain, 2016) Cynical secret policeman (Gael Garcia Bernal) hunts politician-poet Pablo Neruda after the Chilean government issues a warrant for his arrest in 1947. Magical-realist manhunt biopic shot in the blues and purples of a faded photograph.—RDL. Seen at TIFF ‘16; now in North American theatrical release.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Film, US, Gareth Edwards, 2016) In cold rationality, this is a Good war movie bumped up a rank by the presence of AT-ATs and similar delightful Empire chic. The story sprawls a lot, and with the exception of Donnie Yen’s wannabe Jedi and Alan Tudyk’s smartmouth droid, the characters never come to even Hammill-level life. But Edwards can shoot fights and apocalypses well, which is what matters here. –KH
Good
Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show (Film, Ireland, Des Doyle, 2014) Anecdote-rich documentary casts a wide net of interviews, but hauls in a basic primer on the topic with little focus or direction. It’s enjoyable while you’re watching it, but it doesn’t really say or illuminate anything except “showrunning is hard work” and “showbiz is a lottery,” which most viewers probably knew already. –KH
Okay
The Fade Out, Volume 1 (Comic, Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, 2015) Screenwriter prone to alcoholic blackouts goes about his business after finding a murdered starlet in his apartment. Brings in all the requisite elements for a 50s-set Hollywood noir, but saddles itself with a passive, checked-out protagonist who drifts through scenes instead of driving them.—RDL
Episode 221: Live at Dragonmeet 2016
December 16th, 2016 | Robin
If it’s December, Ken and Robin must be coming to you live from Dragonmeet, the little London convention that isn’t so little any more. Join us as Ken emerges triumphant from a draw of the nerdtrope deck that definitely, definitely happened exactly just as Robin describes it. Plus red herrings, steak, and more stupid gnomes. Also in a Dragonmeet tradition, the f-bomb gets dropped–and the dropper might surprise you!
Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic.
Get trapped in Lovecraft’s story “The Call of Cthulhu” in Atlas Games’ addictive new card game Lost in R’lyeh. Take a selfie with your purchased copy of the game at your brick and mortar game retailer and send it to Atlas to claim your special Ken and Robin promo card. Do intervals between Ken’s Time Machine segments leave you listless, bored, and itchy? Then you’re in luck, because TimeWatch, the wild and woolly GUMSHOE game of chrono-hopping adventure has now blasted its way into our reality. Brought to you by master of over-the-top fast-paced fun Kevin Kulp and our reality-maintaining overlords at Pelgrane Press.
For those seeking yet more Ken content, his brilliant pieces on parasitic gaming, alternate Newtons, Dacian werewolves and more now lurk among the sparkling bounty of The Best of FENIX Volumes 1-3, from returning sponsors Askfageln. Yes, it’s Sweden’s favorite RPG magazine, now beautifully collected. Warning: not in Swedish.
John Scott Tynes’ Puppetland is ready to knock the stuffing out of a game store near you in its gorgeous new full-color hardcover edition. Join the good folks at Arc Dream in battling the horrific forces of Punch the Maker-Killer!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ken and Robin Consume Media: An Extra Moon and a Bottle of Wine
December 13th, 2016 | Robin
Ken and Robin Consume Media is brought to you by the discriminating and good-looking backers of the Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff Patreon. Each week we provide capsule reviews of the books, movies, TV seasons and more we cram into our hyper-analytical sensoriums. Join the Patreon to help pick the items we’ll talk about in greater depth on our new podcast segment, Tell Me More.
The Pinnacle
An African Millionaire: Episodes in the Life of the Illustrious Colonel Clay (Fiction, Grant Allen, 1897) Pompous, avaricious diamond magnate becomes the repeated victim of a wily master-of-disguise con artist. Episodic caper tale, told from the point of the view of the marks, wields a wit as sharp as Vance or Wodehouse in its delightful trashing of capitalist mores. What a sad reflection on the gatekeepers of CanLit that I had to learn about this Kingston-born author from my arch-Chicagoan partner in crime!–RDL
Recommended
French Foreign Legion 1831-71 (Osprey Men-at-Arms 509) (Nonfiction, Martin Windrow, 2016) Although the discussion of the Legion’s organization, history, and equipment (in special detail) is up to the Osprey standard, this volume really stands out for its use of period art. Well-selected contemporary sketches, paintings, and even photographs bring the subject to life. –KH
Jacob’s Creek Moscato Rose (Wine, Australia, 2015) It is a Thing I Always Say that rose does not exclusively belong to the summertime but rather embodies the celebratory spirit of the holidays. Moscato is sweet; rose is usually sweet and this bubbly, ultra-quaffable frizzante is super sweet. A treat on its own or can cut through the fat coating all those festive snacks leave on the tongue. Inexpensive, and at 7.5% ABV lets you drink nearly as much of it as you want and still remember the lyrics to Good King Wenceslas.–RDL
Pirate Utopia (Fiction, Bruce Sterling, 2016) Alternate history diverges in 1919 with the arrival of the Pirate Engineer in d’Annunzio’s poetic-Futurist dictatorship in the Adriatic city of Fiume, although lots of other changes bubble up at the same time, such as H.P. Lovecraft becoming an advance-man for the U.S. Secret Service. Sterling never really advances his plot, preferring to curvette around the larger question of the appeal of fascism, but this trip to slightly-alternate Fiume is worth booking. The John Coulthart design and illustrations kick the book up to Recommended. –KH
The Pnume (Fiction, Jack Vance, 1970), Stranded spaceman Adam Reith frees himself from alien trophy hunters with the forced assistance of a young woman they have been keeping in a chemically induced prepubescence. The final installment of the series formerly known as Planet of Adventure sounds some minor key notes, with an unusually complicated (for Vance) relationship taking focus over pulp action.
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World (Nonfiction, Peter Frankopan, 2015) Perhaps better subtitled “The Same Old History of the World From a Different Perspective,” Frankopan’s book re-centers the story of the West on Persia and Central Asia, rather than on the Mediterranean. China remains a sideshow, the Huns are but noted in passing, and even the Persian Empire is rather under-rated. So why Recommended? Because where Frankopan does focus — e.g., the early medieval slave trade, the Anglo-Persian oil contest, and currency fluctuations throughout — he brings capacious research and yes, a different perspective. –KH
What If the Earth Had Two Moons? (Nonfiction, Neil F. Comins, 2010) The sequel to Comins’ What If the Moon Didn’t Exist? continues his tradition of smuggling astrophysics in as alternate history. More a book of planetary mechanics than anything else, it still provides ten great set-ups for SFnal worlds and (usually) justifies the pulpier sort of parallel. Sadly, the Counter-Earth moves into a Lagrange point, ruining that particular lovely madness. –KH
Episode 220: Bear With Us, Everyone Else
December 9th, 2016 | Robin
In the Gaming Hut, urged on by Patreon backer Fred Kiesche, Ken takes us under the hood of his Rex of the Old 97 campaign. What does he do behind that Peter Frampton GM screen, and how does he do it?
But stranger requests await us still! Patreon backer Jeromy French convenes a meeting in the Culture Hut, where Robin talks about the Toronto music scene. Listen to his Toronto playlist on Spotify.
Next we delve into everyone’s new favorite four syllable word, as the History Hut serves up some backstory on the Emoluments Clause.
Then once again we find ourselves in the shadowy environs of the Conspiracy Corner, as Patreon backer Leandro Ugarte wants us to explain where Juan Peron’s hands went.
Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic.
Get trapped in Lovecraft’s story “The Call of Cthulhu” in Atlas Games’ addictive new card game Lost in R’lyeh. Take a selfie with your purchased copy of the game at your brick and mortar game retailer and send it to Atlas to claim your special Ken and Robin promo card.
Do intervals between Ken’s Time Machine segments leave you listless, bored, and itchy? Then you’re in luck, because TimeWatch, the wild and woolly GUMSHOE game of chrono-hopping adventure has now blasted its way into our reality. Brought to you by master of over-the-top fast-paced fun Kevin Kulp and our reality-maintaining overlords at Pelgrane Press.
For those seeking yet more Ken content, his brilliant pieces on parasitic gaming, alternate Newtons, Dacian werewolves and more now lurk among the sparkling bounty of The Best of FENIX Volumes 1-3, from returning sponsors Askfageln. Yes, it’s Sweden’s favorite RPG magazine, now beautifully collected. Warning: not in Swedish.
John Scott Tynes’ Puppetland is ready to knock the stuffing out of a game store near you in its gorgeous new full-color hardcover edition. Join the good folks at Arc Dream in battling the horrific forces of Punch the Maker-Killer!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Ken and Robin Consume Media: Flintlocks and Murder Rooms and Rock ‘n’ Roll
December 7th, 2016 | Robin
Ken and Robin Consume Media is brought to you by the discriminating and good-looking backers of the Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff Patreon. Each week we provide capsule reviews of the books, movies, TV seasons and more we cram into our hyper-analytical sensoriums. Join the Patreon to help pick the items we’ll talk about in greater depth on our new podcast segment, Tell Me More.
Recommended
The Goodbye Kiss (Fiction, Massimo Carlotto, 2006) Conscienceless ex-terrorist works his way, one murder at a time, from a Central American guerrilla squad to center-right respectability back in his native Italy. Spare, brutal psychological thriller recalls Highsmith’s Ripley novels, with a Berlusconi-era political spin.–RDL
The Judas Pair (Fiction, Jonathan Gash, 1977) First novel in the series featuring the polymathic antiques dealer Lovejoy, here in pursuit of a mythical pair of flintlock dueling pistols. The weird emotional switchbacks add spice (and occasionally discomfort) to a fine treasure-hunting novel with lots of digressions into the lore of things old and valuable. –KH
Roadies Season 1 (TV, Showtime, Cameron Crowe, 2016) Ensemble drama follows the backstage crew of a stadium rock tour as they love one another and, above all, the music. Series television gives Crowe, who has struggled recently with the structural constraints of feature film, room for his discursive exploration of life’s small and beautiful moments. Too much so to get picked up for a second season, sadly, but this season is written to tell a complete story and will still reward a binge.–RDL
Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle Season 3 (TV, BBC, 2014) Standup Stewart Lee performs six elaborately constructed routines, each of which starts with a hack premise and builds to something big and dark. As a non-Brit I did have to do some Googling to contextualize certain of the pop culture figures he’s slagging. Remember, “Not all animals are trying to satirize things.”—RDL
Good
New York Rocker: My Life in the Blank Generation with Blondie, Iggy Pop, and Others 1974-1981 (Nonfiction, Gary Valentine, 2006) Conversational memoir by the bassist for Blondie sets the New York street music scene with lively detail, but rather than continue his metaphor of a new Decadence he gets distracted by personalities and trivia — much like the scene he describes, really. Still quite interesting for punk historians looking for the deviationist view of the war between punk and pop. –KH
Secret Beyond the Door (Film, US, Fritz Lang, 1948) Sheltered society ornament Celia (Joan Bennett) impulsively marries architect Mark (Michael Redgrave) only to discover he has a sister, a dead wife, a son, and oh yeah a house full of painstakingly reconstructed murder rooms. Lang bullied scriptwriter Silvia Richards (also his mistress) into tailoring the already top-heavily Freudian story to his visual predilections, resulting in a dreamlike stream of amazing set pieces that fizzle narratively, sadly undermining the superb acting, cinematography, and score. –KH
Not Recommended
Phantom Detective (Film, South Korea, Sung-hee Jo, 2016) Ruthless vigilante private detective with a fragmented grasp of his own identity hunts the man who murdered his mother, with his intended victim’s annoyingly adorable granddaughters in tow. Offers some cool moments of comic book stylization, but the unreliable viewpoint thing is so dominant that it becomes an engagement killer.–RDL
Episode 219: Argue With Ceramics
December 2nd, 2016 | Robin
Dirk the Dice rolls into the Gaming Hut to ask us how to make sword and sorcery monster encounters exciting.
Don’t believe a word you hear in the Conspiracy Corner, as we look at the history and evolution of propaganda.
Expand your consciousness in the Cinema Hut, where backers Andrew Collins and Adam Grotjohn invite us to rap about visionary filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky.
Keep a careful watch as the Consulting Occultist whispers of Les Veilleurs, an Parisian occult group founded in the final days of WWI.
Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic.
Get trapped in Lovecraft’s story “The Call of Cthulhu” in Atlas Games’ addictive new card game Lost in R’lyeh. Take a selfie with your purchased copy of the game at your brick and mortar game retailer and send it to Atlas to claim your special Ken and Robin promo card. Do intervals between Ken’s Time Machine segments leave you listless, bored, and itchy? Then you’re in luck, because TimeWatch, the wild and woolly GUMSHOE game of chrono-hopping adventure has now blasted its way into our reality. Brought to you by master of over-the-top fast-paced fun Kevin Kulp and our reality-maintaining overlords at Pelgrane Press.
For those seeking yet more Ken content, his brilliant pieces on parasitic gaming, alternate Newtons, Dacian werewolves and more now lurk among the sparkling bounty of The Best of FENIX Volumes 1-3, from returning sponsors Askfageln. Yes, it’s Sweden’s favorite RPG magazine, now beautifully collected. Warning: not in Swedish.
Attention, operatives of Delta Green, the ultra-covert agency charged with battling the contemporary forces of the Cthulhu Mythos! Now everything you need to know to play Delta Green: The Roleplaying Game, perhaps extending your valiantly short field life, can be found in the Delta Green Agent’s Handbook or Delta Green: Need to Know, the quick start rules set with extra-sturdy Handler’s Screen.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download