Well, dear readers, I am sitting here like so much fish, listening to the final movement of Beethoven’s second symphony in delectable, detailed, amazing early stereo that’s as good as any RCA Living Stereo recording, which is saying something, as good as that early Columbia stereo, which is saying something, and better than most Mercury Living Presence stereo, which is saying something. Now we’re onto the CD 1 filler, The Creatures of Prometheus. I did manage to finally finish Alba, the thirteen-episode Spanish limited series on the Flix of Net. I had three episodes left and I really could have written them prior to watching them. That’s because when you stretch this much then the audience gets ahead of you and that’s something you never want to happen. And stretching what could be a one-episode wrap-up into three is, well, foolish. The acting is very good from all concerned, especially the bad people, all of whom come off as reprehensibly as they should. It’s certainly nothing we haven’t seen a zillion times already – there’s a template for these kinds of limited series and it’s stuck to slavishly. At least I made it through this one.
I also managed to watch a new motion picture on the Flix of Net, entitled The Gray Man, starring Ryan Gosling, Ana da Armas, and Chris Evans. It’s a standard issue bad guys in the CIA thing, directed by some brothers act – what is with this brothers stuff anyway. It’s now a thing – the Duffer Brothers, these guys, the Russo Brothers. There’s not an original thing in this two-hour-and-eight-minute thing – and while I understand that Netflix would love this to be a franchise, the film has no reason to really exist. Yes, there are endless action sequences and fight sequences, done just as you’d expect, complete with the requisite smart-ASS quips that some script doctor probably came in and did for a hefty fee. The actors are fine but in the end it’s just not interesting. When you’ve done thirty action sequences in the first two-thirds of the movie, then you’re never going to top them, and they don’t. This thing got released to theaters for a whopping one-week engagement, where it made a whopping $200,000. Look at that number again. And then be amazed when you hear what the thing cost Netflix to make: $200,000,000. Yes, you heard that right, dear readers, $200,000,000. And then they cry and whine about membership being down and profits being way down. Here’s a hint, brainiacs: When you spend $200,000,000 to stream something you’re an idiot. And that’s the business model at Netflix – overpay for everything. Even the stuff they pick up at film festivals, little films that cost under ten million, they’ll pay twenty-five million or more. That’s not a business model that will succeed, in my opinion. And now, Beethoven’s third is playing – these performances are just so simple and fun and no fuss, no muss, no dragging them out beyond their endurance.
Yesterday was, I suppose, Saturday. I got almost nine-and-a-half hours of sleep, got up, answered emails and had a telephonic conversation, then futzed and finessed episode six, which I think came out pretty well. I sent it where it needed sending and the reaction was excellent. I chose a really fun song for it, too. Now, on to episode seven. After that one, there are only three left, two of which, the final two, will take place here in LA. And I’ve already decided what the season finale will be. Then I found out the dinner thing wasn’t happening, so I ordered the tiny pepperoni pizza from Marco’s, it arrived in twenty minutes, and I ate it all up and it was excellent, as always. That’s all I’ve eaten at this time. Then I watched the rest of Alba and then the Netflix movie thing. And the rest you know.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll hopefully pick up a package that came yesterday, I’ll eat something light but fun, I’ll start episode seven and try to get at least halfway through it. Then at some point I’ll watch, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow, let us pray the Indiegogo funds arrive safe and sound – do send those excellent vibes and xylophones for sooner than later delivery, we’ll continue to ship CDs and there are a lot to still ship – it’ll probably take me over an hour just to forward all the orders – I’ll have some meetings and meals, but mostly I’ll be writing episodes plus beginning to organize the Indiegogo perks – that bit of business will take a week, probably.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, hopefully pick up a package, eat, start writing episode seven, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you dear readers get to make with the topics and we all get to post about them. So, let’s have loads of lovely topics and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, thinking that I’ll change my directing credit to the Kimmel Brothers, just to join the throng.