Ok, the chanukiah has burned out, the middle school band smashed Hot Cross Buns in the winter solstice concert, and you’ve listened to Fairytale of New York. With the end properly near, let me add to Favorites, 2025. Podcast When a lawyer wins a massive personal injury verdict, they owe the outmost thanks to the psychopath defendant that refused to settle for a lesser amount. Something similar could be said for Michael Hobbes and Peter Shamshiri who collaborate on If Books Could Kill. They throw (lots of) shade at bad books, mostly self help “airport” books, but...
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Favorites, 2025
Getting towards the end of the year over here at V&V (and apparently everywhere else), and so it seems appropriate (like everywhere else) to post some favorites of the year. Here, in really no order, are some of my favorites of 2025. Now, note these are not “Bests, 2025.” I have not consumed all the media that was created in the past year, and I do not have the faculty to even judge these things on any semblance of objective scale. No, these are merely favorites. Things I liked, perhaps some more than others. Music Tunde Adebimpe...
Continue reading...The answer—as always—is more ads
I’m sitting here watching the Gotham FC-Kansas City Current match on CBS. KC really came out early and smashed Gotham with two goals in the first 13′, so it’s not that interesting of a match at this point**. It’s nice that NWSL matches are being aired on broadcast television. However, CBS (and some other broadcasters but this post is about CBS) has started placing ads during the game. Sure, it’s usually during short breaks like substitutions or injuries, but they did cut to a commercial when there was no break, but I assume the producers had expected...
Continue reading...Best (Recent) Sitcom Christmas Epsiodes
I’m actually surprised that Netflix doesn’t have a Christmas episode playlist by this point. So, I had to do some research, by which I mean I had to watch a bunch of sitcom Christmas episodes on the various streaming services, so I could report to you the best of the bunch. The only rule is only one episode per show; a number of the shows listed below have multiple great Christmas/holiday-themed episodes, but it didn’t seem fair to just have a list of eight Simpsons episodes, so. I thought about ranking them, but too many of these...
Continue reading...Shakespeare’s plays ranked
1. Richard III 2. Titus Andronicus 3. (tie) The Tempest The Two Gentlemen of Verona The Merry Wives of Windsor Measure for Measure The Comedy of Errors Much Ado About Nothing Love’s Labour’s Lost A Midsummer Night’s Dream The Merchant of Venice As You Like It The Taming of the Shrew All’s Well That Ends Well Twelfth Night The Winter’s Tale Pericles, Prince of Tyre The Two Noble Kinsmen King John Richard II Henry IV, Part 1 Henry IV, Part 2 Henry V Henry VI, Part 1 Henry VI, Part 2 Henry VI, Part 3 Henry VIII Troilus and...
Continue reading...Our favorites, 2014
I‘m starting this post, and hopefully the rest of the V+V team will come in and add theirs. Come back and see if they do. Update: here’s Jack Burden’s and here is ghost’s. Poplicola: Here are my three favorite albums of 2014. I could argue that they’re also the best records of 2014, but you know, that’s all subjective and shit. You’re free to argue; you’d just be wrong. Run the Jewels – Run the Jewels 2 It was damned hard to believe that Killer Mike and El-P could release a better record than 2012’s R.A.P. Music....
Continue reading...Your Official 2014 V+V Guide to Who Should Win the Emmys
It’s that time of year again: The awards for people who make stuff on the TV. Here’s who we think should and definitely will win tonight live on NBC®: Outstanding Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Directing For A Drama Series Meh. Outstanding Comedy Series...
Continue reading...Watch: Maya Angelou reciting “On the Pulse of Morning” at Clinton’s first inauguration
Sadly for humanity, Maya Angelou died in her North Carolina home at 86. Above she is reciting what is likely her most famous poem. Below, a tweet from just four days ago that is beautiful in its simplicity and lyricism. Listen to yourself and in that quietude you might hear the voice of God. — Maya Angelou (@DrMayaAngelou) May 23, 2014
Continue reading...This weekend, go see The Lego Movie
Last weekend, we went to the movies to see a matinee of Monuments Men. Unfortunately for our plans, it was sold out. But, starting five minutes later was the Lego Movie. Luckily, it was surprisingly really good. I mean, I hadn’t seen any reviews of it, and don’t so much pay attention to kid’s movie releases. Frozen came (and went?) without me even hearing that it happened (the only reason I’ve heard about it is in discussions about the Lego Movie). But, hell, why not, I used to play with more Lego than you probably have ever...
Continue reading...Poem of the Week: The Rain
The Rain by Robert Creeley All night the sound had come back again, and again falls this quiet, persistent rain. What am I to myself that must be remembered, insisted upon so often? Is it that never the ease, even the hardness, of rain falling will have for me something other than this, something not so insistent— am I to be locked in this final uneasiness. Love, if you love me, lie next to me. Be for me, like rain, the getting out of the tiredness, the fatuousness, the semi- lust of intentional indifference. Be wet with...
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