Collectioun of Cunnynge Curioustes for June 21, 2014

Johann Georg Hainz's Cabinet of Curiosities, circa 1666. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Johann Georg Hainz’s Cabinet of Curiosities, circa 1666. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

During the Renaissance, cabinet of curiosities came into fashion as a collection of objects that would often defy classification. As a precursor to the modern museum, the cabinet referred to room(s), not actual furniture, of things that piqued the owners interest and would be collected and displayed in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Collectioun of Cunnynge Curioustes is my 21st century interpretation of that idea.
 
Dear Internet,
You can follow me on Pinterest on what I’m readingwatching, and listening.

Reading

I finished a few graphic novels this week, the short story Beyond Lies The Wub by Phillip K. Dick, and dug more into Steam Rising by Pratchett. I’m behind on reviews, so those will be coming up in the next week.

Watching

Lots of shows ending recently or that we’ve caught up on. You know what starts tomorrow? The last season of True Blood! If they end the season like they did the books, I am going to be HELLA PISSED.

  • Game of Thrones
    One can simply not write about Game of Thrones finale without planning on spending days on deep analysis for every scene. So instead, I’ll leave you with this:
    dragonroar
    Until next year!
  • Silicon Valley
    Despite my earlier reluctance at this show, it’s grown quickly to be a fav as it’s started to get its feet. TheHusband would rate this as the second best show on TV right now, after Game of Thrones. Plus, while it’s written by Mike Judge, it has all the ambiance of Party Down. And of course, Gilfoye has quickly become the favorite character, with Dinesh not too far behind. AND THEN the finale had the best dick jokes to top all dick jokes.
  • Veep
    Selena is now president, Amy is running the show, Dan is more or less stable, Jonah is still Jonah, and one day I hope Gary will find himself.
  • Doctor Blake Mysteries
    I was borderline loving this show but it’s now fading into a deep like. The finale at the end of S1 (Doctor Blake heads to China to see his long lost daughter) was tidily summed up in the season opener and left alone. The lady doctor who is now helping Doctor Blake in the morgue is only ever seen — in the morgue! And the big reveal at the end of S2, which we all know was coming, left me feeling like this show is getting kind of flat. Instead of structuring big, compelling characters as it started in S1, it’s now becoming freak of the week.
  • I Never Knew That About Britain
    Eight short episodes exploring the variety of different things that either were started, famed, created, or otherwise in Britain. It’s puffed up on the history rather than getting in depth, and we’re looking at maybe 3-4 items per 22 minute episode, and the setting is fast paced. But overall it was entertaining and informative.
  • Halt and Catch Fire
    This show has been on for a month and I cannot believe I forgot to add it. But yes, new AMC show on the beginnings of the PC wars in the early ’80s, complete with girl hacker totes styled on Angelina Jolie’s character in Hackers. Lee Pace plays a fast talking, possibly borderline genius and his Patrick Bateman potential serial killer lifestyle who thinks he can potentially (possibly? maybe!) change the world. One side story I hope that will be developed is Donna Clark’s, Gordon’s wife, struggle as a woman coder in early ’80s Texas. Watching her face and body movements as she was cuckhold by her boss, I was hissing, “Yesssss — exactly that!” at the TV screen. Also the big contrast between Donna and Cameron, the AMC’s version of Acid Burn, would be interesting if they play it out. One woman flipping off the patriarchy, the other attempting to live with it.
  • Rectify
    S2 started this week — and I promptly fell asleep because I was so tired. Here is a recap I gave last year, and hopefully after rewatching it this week, I will have be more coherent in my description.

Weekly watching: A Place To Call Home, Mr. Sloane, Fargo, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Louie, Penny Dreadful, Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey, Elementary

Links

What have you read/watched/listened to this week?
x0x0,
lisa

This day in Lisa-Universe in: 2012

Collectioun of Cunnynge Curioustes for March 22, 2014

Johann Georg Hainz's Cabinet of Curiosities, circa 1666. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Johann Georg Hainz’s Cabinet of Curiosities, circa 1666. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

During the Renaissance, cabinet of curiosities came into fashion as a collection of objects that would often defy classification. As a precursor to the modern museum, the cabinet referred to room(s), not actual furniture, of things that piqued the owners interest and would be collected and displayed in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Collectioun of Cunnynge Curioustes is my 21st century interpretation of that idea.
 
Dear Internet,

Listening

Watching

  • How To Get Ahead
    Stephen Smith breaks down how to get ahead in various major times in history: Medieval, Renaissance, and then the French court at Versailles. While you won’t necessarily learn anything new about those periods, the content is presented in a logical and entertaining  manner.
  • Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey
    Neil deGrasse Tyson is rebooting Carl Sagan’s beloved Cosmos show for the modern viewer, and oft cheesy CGI aside, it is a damned delight. I feel immensely smarter and well rounded when I watch.
  • Episodes
    Will Beverly and Sean go back to the US? Will Matt get finally get respect? What is going on with PUCKS? Will Carol get the recognition she deserves?
  • Doctor Blake Mysteries
    Recently discovered, I’ve been slowly working my way through these stories. Based in Ballarat, AUS in the 1950s, there is all sorts of drama, twists, and character development. It doesn’t quite have the panache of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, another AUS period drama, but it is engaging.
  • The Walshes
    Comedy about a tight knit, geeky Dublin family, the first episode was hit or miss. The purposeful awkwardness sometimes comes off as a bit cliched and forced. The gags and set up seem too over the top to be believed, but then there is brief sparks of warmth and genuinality.
  • Black Sails
    Not enough swashbuckling, the plot seemed thin on the ground, and I couldn’t muster up enough interest to keep up with it weekly BUT TheHusband seemed to really enjoy the plot and the acting. Hopefully season 2 will pick up.
  • Jigs and Wigs: The Extreme World of Irish Dancing
    We caught two out of the three episodes of this informative docu about the competitive world if Irish dancing — because who knew!
  • Big Fat Quiz 2013
    Hosted by Jimmy Carr and packed with loads of celebrity panelists. Yet, if you watch QI, or hell even most British panel shows, you’ll note there are apparently only 12 people in all of the UK worthy of appearing on such shows. BFQ at least had the lone American (and woman!), Kristen Schaal, on this episode. Overall, it was mostly belly aching funny, except for Carr’s grating laugh which got tiresome as time progressed.

Weekly watching: The Americans, Survivor: Cagayan, Moone Boy, Edge of Heaven, VikingsThe Musketeers, Mr. Selfridge, Top Gear, Stella, University ChallengeHouse of Lies, Archer, Under the Gunn, Justified, Reign,  Elementary

Links

What have you read/watched/listened to this week?
x0x0,
lisa

This day in Lisa-Universe in: 2013, 2004