Seth Harris

Solo Tabletop RPG Actual Play – Starforged: Nexus of Destiny Prologue

Introduction/Prologue
Act One
Act Two
Act Three

Introduction

So what is this? Instead of spreading a playthrough over weeks, I decided to do one that was one whole arc. I also wanted to continue with the story I’d established in my previous Starforged playthrough. I did have some elements in mind: I wanted a casino and mushroom-based aliens to be a part of it. Other than that, I had no idea where this story would go. I hope that it proves a little entertaining for you. I like exploring this universe and already have another installment planned for near the end of the year.

Movie Review – Detour

Detour (1945)
Written by Martin Goldsmith
Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer

Noir is not exclusively the realm of detective stories. Detective pictures are under its broad umbrella, but some of my favorite noir films focus on people who get into trouble and can’t escape it. There might be a crime they can commit that would fix their financial situation, or they may be convinced to join in a conspiracy to murder with promises of sex & money. These are the genre at its best, exploring the deep flaws in humanity and how we so often sabotage ourselves. Detour is one of these, possibly one of the bleakest noir films from this period. It was released by the Producers Releasing Corporation, which at the time was the smallest and least prestigious studio in Hollywood. Gower Street in Hollywood made up “Poverty Row,” a low-rent stretch where the lowest-budget studios operated. They made money, but it was often by chasing trends or simply making movies quick & cheap. Detour never feels like that; it’s a masterpiece from a filmmaking system that rarely produced such work.

Movie Review – Laura

Laura (1944)
Written by Jay Dratler, Samuel Hoffenstein, Elizabeth Reinhardt, and Ring Lardner Jr.
Directed by Otto Preminger

I’m currently reading Hollywood: An Oral History by Sam Wasson & Jeanine Basinger. It uses transcripts from people who worked in every aspect of the film industry going back to the early silent era. These transcripts are cut apart and grouped chronologically and by subject. For instance, the chapter I’m in now goes through the departments formed when the studio system was dominant. So we get these figures’ takes on everything from costuming to cinematography to studio personnel. There are chapters on the major studio heads, what each filmmaking house was known for in their heyday, and how the whole profession went from a disposable trend to dominating the planet.

TV Review – Mrs. Davis

Mrs. Davis (Peacock)
Written by Tara Hernandez, Damon Lindelof, Jason Lew, Alberto Roldán, Noelle Viñas, Jonny Sun, Jason Ning, and Chikira Bennett
Directed by Owen Harris, Alethea Jones, Nadra Widatalla, Frederick E.O. Toye

I can’t say that Mrs. Davis was my favorite TV series watch of 2023, but it was the most consistently surprising. From the opening sequence to the final episode, this has to be one of the most original pieces of streaming content ever made. You have Damon Lindelof bringing his mystery-centered storytelling, and Tara Hernandez adds comedy, resulting in something so hard to describe. If you have seen the trailers or even just production stills, you’re probably confused about what this show is. I will attempt to explain it without spoiling it, but it will be spoiled a bit. Going in blind is probably the best way to watch Mrs. Davis.

PopCult Podcast – TMNT: Mutant Mayhem/The Boogeyman

We indulge in some “popcorn” flicks this week. One is the return of an old favorite, heroes in a half-shell with a look inspired by more recent animated box office successes. Then, it is some Stephen King inspired horror as one of his short stories gets adapted into feature length.

Comic Book Review – The Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume One

Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume One (2009)
Reprints The Saga of the Swamp Thing #20-27
Written by Alan Moore
Art by Steve Bissette, John Totleben, Dan Day, and Rick Veitch

By 1983, the “cool kids” knew about Alan Moore and Swamp Thing introduced him to the rest of comics fandom. Before being brought to DC Comics, Moore had been working away on U.K. titles and Miracleman, the revival of a British superhero intended to be their version of Shazam. His work on the weekly science fiction anthology 2000AD got the attention of DC editor Len Wein, who hired Moore to take over the title from Wein himself. Swamp Thing had initially debuted as a one-off in the horror anthology House of Secrets #92. Later, the character would be reworked, transplanted to the modern day, and become part of a relatively formulaic ongoing series. Moore’s arrival drastically changed the book’s status.

September 2023 Posting Schedule

Film Series
September 4 thru 29 – Noir Masterworks
Laura, Detour, The Big Sleep, The Killers, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Out of the Past, Stray Dog, The Third Man, Night and the City, The Big Heat, Kiss Me Deadly, and Touch of Evil

Comic Book Reviews
September 2 thru 30
Alan Moore’s The Saga of Swamp Thing Volumes One thru Five

Television Reviews
Sept 3 – Mrs. Davis
Sept 10 – My Brilliant Friend Season One
Sept 17 – The Venture Brothers Season Three
Sept 24 – The Bear Season Two

My Favorites Lists
Sept 9 – My Favorite Coen Brothers Supporting Performances
Sept 23 – My Favorite Films About Moving

Solo Tabletop RPG Reviews & Actual Plays
Sept 8 – Starforged: Nexus of Destiny
Sept 10, 17, 24 – Public Access Solo Playthrough

Podcast Schedule
Sept 3 – The Boogeyman/Please Baby Please
Sept 10 – One Fine Morning/Baby Mama
Sept 17 – TBD
Sept 24 – Theater Camp/Cassandro

Summer 2023 Digest

Features
Patron Pick – Last of Shelia [Matt]
Patron Pick – Philadelphia [Bekah]
Patron Pick – The Social Dilemma [Matt]
Patron Pick – Nine Days [Bekah]
Book Update – July/August 2023
My Favorite Films with a Fireworks Scene
My Favorite Willem Dafoe Performances
My Favorite Films Released in August
My Favorite Films of 1983

Book Update – July/August 2023

The Inconsolables: Stories by Michael Wehunt

I was an instant fan of Michael Wehunt after reading his debut collection, Green Pastures, back in 2016. I’ve been waiting for more, and this year, we finally got his follow-up collection. What I found interesting is that he’s changed a lot since that first book. The two still have common threads, but these felt like a real development of those initial ideas. I would argue Wehunt is taking on a significant influence from Robert Aickman, creating supernatural scenarios where the exact nature of the dreadful presence is never detailed. It might be strange things happening in the window in the apartment across the way, as in “Holoow,” or haunting childhood memories resurfacing, as in “Vampire Fiction.” Wehunt returns to some slightly familiar territory with “The Pine Arch Collection,” which continues his fantastic work translating found footage into horror lit. Wehunt works better with words to evoke powerful images than most horror films. My absolute favorite in this collection was “The Teeth of America,” framed as various excerpts from books and news articles detailing a bizarre event in the Appalachians involving hundreds of white supremacists congregating for a ritual. Once again, Wehunt’s imagery is so strong I don’t want any of this ever adapted to a visual medium because, in my opinion, it would diminish the potent horror of the source material.

Patron Pick – Nine Days

This special reward is available to Patreon patrons who pledge at the $10 or $20 monthly levels. Each month, those patrons will pick a film for me to review. If they choose, they also get to include some of their thoughts about the movie. This Pick comes from Bekah Lindstrom.

Nine Days (2020)
Written & Directed by Edison Oda

I did not like this movie. From what I see online, it has proven to be a very polarizing film, with few people settling in the middle. I know exactly why I didn’t like it, which concerns some creative choices by the writer/director Edison Oda. I think the film is way too long for what it is trying to say and how it is trying to say it, and I argue the message could have been more poignant if a good half hour was shaved off the runtime. By the time we get to the third act, Oda is just saying a lot of the same things over and over but not building upon them in a manner that excites or interests me. It is thematically similar to another divisive film that came out recently, Alfonso Cuaron’s Bardo. I enjoyed Bardo because I felt the director kept things visually inventive, so I never got bored with the images on the screen. Nine Days is never able to move past the sedate, bland tone it sets at the start.