A Matter of Taste: November 2014

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) CONSTANTINE 1x05

In this episode:

Discussion of Constantine 1x05 "Danse Vaudou," including the introduction of Jim Corrigan, Chas and Zed getting to do stuff, and ALL THE PLOT POINTS.
And...uh...yeah, that's about it. There's a lot happening on the surface this episode, but it doesn't really present many opportunities to dig deeper.
We briefly discuss Constantine's future, and who we think could appear.
This week's Deadshirt Is Watching... , featuring Julian Ames' review of "Danse Vaudou."

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

Yeah, so this was a short one. Enjoy my own riff on the whole "rising darkness" theme this season--it's a work in progress, but I felt like tacking it on since this episode was so short.
Podcast buddies Anglo-Filles have just released an episode discussing fall TV, including their own thoughts on Constantine.
Friend of the podcast Cleolinda Jones and Emily Whitten (foresthouse) have inherited a podcast! We wish them happy podcasting, and may the avocado be ever in their favor.
Happy Thanksgiving, to those celebrating it! To those not celebrating it: Happy Thursday!
EDIT: Tumblr user and long-time listener fool-errant provided some background on voodoo as it was portrayed in this episode. Thanks!

Music:

Intro music: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
Outro music: "The Rising Darkness (Acoustic Demo)" - original song, music & lyrics by Ian. Work in progress; more on this as it develops.

Winner of the contest for "Least Effective Golden Corral Commercial"

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) CONSTANTINE 1x04 and SLEEPY HOLLOW 2x07

In this episode:

Discussion of Constantine 1x04 "A Feast of Friends," the turn towards gray morality this episode seems to promise, the expanded universe of Constantine's aforementioned magical friends, and the show's continuing attempts (both effective and not) to carve out a distinctive presence in the subgenre of the Supernatural Procecdural.
We cover the differences between the first issue of HellBlazer (upon which this particular episode is based) and the episode itself and discuss what we think the writing staff intended by the changes they made to the end of the story in particular.
Ian's dad references the story of Abraham and Isaac. It's a pretty deep cut.
Chas and Zed still haven't really been given a chance to spread their wings. Neither has Manny for that matter, and he's the one with actual wings.

Look, all of the interaction with our guest-compatriot Gary this week was really solid, but if you want us to feel for the actual recurring characters on this show you're gonna need to give us more to work with, guys.

The hunger demon was a really unique monster-of-the-week and we hope to see more like it in the future if the show really wants to make its mark, though it seems like some of the effects were a bit clean and there were some opportunities that were missed.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

Again sorry for the lateness of this particular episode. Fio has some life-things going on at the moment and time is in a bit of a crunch.
Here's a link to the Escapist review Ian was talking about.

Music:

Intro music: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
Outro music: "Maneater" - Hall & Oates | YouTube | iTunes |

How could this show be anything but delightful.

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) CONSTANTINE 1x03

In this episode:

Discussion of Constantine 1x03 "The Devil's Vinyl," including plottiness, the introduction of Papa Midnite, serialization vs. villain of the week, and what we want to see more of.
We also have several digressions where we talk about the way other shows (including The Flash, Sleepy Hollow, and Doctor Who) handle storytelling, but it's all relevant. Really. We swear.
Ian's still not sure about Matt Ryan's acting, but it may be more of a problem with the writing.
What do the writers hope to accomplish with the storytelling in this series? (Spoiler alert: It's probably something to do with making money.)
How can they earn the narration that they're including at the end of each episode? Should they just chuck it altogether?
They're starting to show some cinematic flair. MOAR.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

Apologies once again for the lateness of this episode. We'll do our best to keep you apprised on Tumblr and Twitter if it happens again.
Once again, here's a link to the Halloween-themed episode of Lag Time Podcast. We discussed gameinformer's Top 25 Horror Games of All Time, I retold my P.T. story, and much fun was had. Also, MAJOR SPOILERS FOR AMNESIA: THE DARK DESCENT.
I wanted to use "Money, Money, Money" by ABBA for the outro, but I couldn't find our copy of ABBA's Greatest Hits. Woe.

Music:

Intro music: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
Outro music: "Money" - Pink Floyd | YouTube | iTunes |

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) CONSTANTINE 1x02

In this episode:

Discussion of Constantine 1x02 "The Darkness Beneath," including racism, shirtless Matt Ryan, and ethics in ~~gaming journalism~~ storytelling.
Yeah, we weren't happy with the portrayal of a Romani woman, the use of the G-word, and everything wrapped up in that. To say the least.
We liked Zed, though!
Urban fantasy and supernatural dramas on TV

If NBC's Constantine hopes to last in the modern market, they're going to need to figure out how to set themselves apart.

Constantine, Supernatural, Sherlock Holmes, and tracing the effects and responsibilities of adaptation

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

Between both of us being sick, me having a cough, the episode's problematic material getting in the way of the plot, Fio's computer crashing, Fio's microphone giving him issues, and (most heinous of all) the recorder cutting off our goodbye's at the end, I completely forgot to mention that I was on another podcast last week!
Some of you may recall Kenny from our Horror in RPGs episode. I had the pleasure of joining him and his co-hosts on the Halloween-themed episode of their podcast, Lag Time. We discussed gameinformer's Top 25 Horror Games of All Time, I retold my P.T. story, and much fun was had. Also, MAJOR SPOILERS FOR AMNESIA: THE DARK DESCENT.

Also-also, I wrote the music for their intro and outro, the latter of which can be found as a full-length song here on iTunes.

From Fio's timestamps/notes: "I’m talking about miner ghosts, how did we not mention Scooby Doo? That sounds exactly like a Scooby Doo episode."

Music:

Intro music: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
Outro music: "Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners" - Foo Fighters | YouTube | iTunes |