But that's none of that is why I'm here, again, this Friday.
Today, on Amazon Prime, we get the start of the 6th and final season of their excellent socio-political science fiction thriller series The Expanse. I've repeatedly extolled the series, which is an adaptation of a series of nine novels, three novellas and three short stories by James S. A. Corey, which is a joint pen name for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck; the published works were nominated for Hugo Awards more than once, with the complete series finally winning in 2020.
Set several centuries in the future, humanity has reached out into the Solar System, and has become increasingly clannish and economically stratified. There's the increasingly martial stoicism of Mars, which feels increasingly resentful of project backers back on Earth, who risked nothing more than their money, and are more concerned with a return on their investment and a sense of ownership than they are about the people risking their lives. Then there's the wild frontier of the asteroid belt and moons of outer planets, where life is cheaper and shorter still, and, again, people feel ill-used by those growing old and fat in warmer, safer, places, living lives enriched by the resources mined by this disposable class of low-gravity workers -
The richness of the environment, and the large cast of characters makes for a steep learning curve, but the show more than rewards it. Also, be aware stepping in that the neo-noir detective theme that dominates the early episodes is just the way they chose to draw the audience in, with a gumshoe set to track a missing woman. The mysteries involved there are important, but they're largely a way to set you on a path through a complicated web of humanity. Also, be careful not to make summary judgements of the characters; you may well end up surprised by hidden depths, and at who your favorites end up being.
The show initially ran for three seasons on Syfy before being cancelled, but outcry from fans led to Amazon deciding to pick it up and continue the series for three more seasons. So, Bezos isn't all bad.
This season will be, sadly, only six episodes. Largely as a consequence of that, Prime isn't dropping multiple episodes on the first day, but instead will just be releasing one episode each Friday, ending January 14th. Here's the trailer for this final season. So, this is something I'm looking forward to, but am also going to try to savor.
I realized a little late that I'd jumped the gun last week, including something that was meant for this week's post, so I'll repeat it here when the heads-up is more timely.
As it'll be beginning before next week's post - the first episode appearing December 16th - HBO Max has a new, 10-episode, limited series: Station Eleven. Based on Emily St. John Mandel's 2014 novel of the same name, it's about a flu pandemic that wipes out the majority of the world's population. The series is set 20 years later, seeing how the depopulated world is working out for the pockets of survivors. On a pandemic theme, as it was something available on Paramount+, I recently watched the South Park: Post COVID special, which has been on the streamer since Thanksgiving.
South Park is one of those shows I've gone long stretches without seeing, then dipped into for a bracing splash. Around for over 24 years, the simple animation style has continued to allow the show to generally stay on top of events. Unfortunately, in this case, we've been soaking in the event for so long that elements of it have started to become cyclical. Anyway, I know it's not to everyone's taste, but I enjoyed plugging back into it. Here's the quick teaser promo they did for it back in November. It runs about an hour. A second part to will be appearing December 16th.
Arrived on Netflix today is a film I'm looking forward to, not only because of the talent involved but because the themes of redemption, and simply of going on after some irreparable harm has been done, are frequently on my mind. I'm not a proponent of the death penalty, and the concept of eternal damnation - be it by some supposed Supreme entity or by earthly society - isn't something I accept, though it's a subject that's always to be wrestled with. Existing on the level of punishment is, to my mind, a toxic existence for all involved, and arguably a mix of pointless and damaging. From the perspective of society and the greater good, there needs to be something more productive and life-affirming.
Based on a 2009 British miniseries (which I've not seen), starring Sandra Bullock, Vincent D'Onofrio, Viola Davis, Jon Bernthal and Richard Thomas, it's The Unforgiveable (2021 1h 52m) I've pointedly avoided information about the story arc, and expect that any honest attempt at dealing with this subject is going to be... fraught, and will have its flaws. Still, I'm looking forward to it. I'll add comments here after I've watched it.
Arriving next Thursday (the 16th) to Hulu is a true crime documentary about someone who is at least argued to have brutally murdered a loved one while sleepwalking. I mainly offer it here for variety's sake, because I know several people who are fans of true crime documentaries and podcasts, and because it may make for good conversation fodder. It's Dead Asleep. As it popped during a quick look to see what was newly-arriving where, and I both liked James Garner and know the show was another popular and successful series, I see that Tubi will be adding the budget detective-for-hire series run of The Rockford Files, next Wednesday, the 15th. As I can't think of the show without it automatically pressing play on the Mike Post and Pete Carpenter series theme (which I remember coming frequently out of Top 40 radio speakers in the late summer of '75), let's pull up a season one show opening. Tubi has commercials, but they're kept at a sane level, and they have a wonderful selection. I wish Netflix and Amazon Prime put the curation effort in that Tubi does. As it's all free, anyone who has an Internet connection should take a few minutes to set themselves up with Tubi.
Approaching the close, we'll move to a seasonal touch, back to 1964, and another, then-contemporized run at Dickens' holiday classic, via a screenplay written by Rod Serling: Carol For Another Christmas (1964 86m).
In it, Sterling Hayden plays wealthy industrialist Daniel Grudge, a man whose heart was hardened by the wartime death of his son, Marley, on Christmas Eve 1944. Grudge has become a spitefully dedicated isolationist, wanting to wall the U.S. off from much of the rest of the world, believing that peace is only to be assured by a combination of that isolation and the development of the largest and deadliest arsenal of weapons on the planet. Cultural exchanges, diplomacy and dialogues are to be actively discouraged, him not merely seeing them as useless but more importantly as a gateway to being drawn into future wars. He's visited by his nephew, Fred (Ben Gazzara), an academic who is on the side of diplomacy and engagement. As you will expect, Grudge is soon visited by spirits who confront him with the past, present, and a possible, very dark, future.
In light of the mission behind it, the talent waived their normal fees and worked for scale.
It's noteworthy that this was the first project Peter Sellers did after having a major heart attack. His character, Imperial Me, is a frightening, eerily compelling role -- all the more so given the increasingly absurdist political theater of our own times. A broad grin, and a populist message of glorified selfishness that moves his followers to almost gleeful violence, heedless of how the message itself marks them all as ultimately disposable.
The film was shown on ABC on December 28, 1964, and not again until 2012, when Turner Classic Movies essentially resurrected it.
At the time it was received with mixed reviews, including those who found it heavy-handed and/or dull, and those who saw it only as preaching to the choir, quickly shut out by those who most needed to be reached by the message. That it was targeted by a letter-writing campaign by the John Birch Society even while it was in production is, at the very least, to the credit of the intent of the film.
TCM will be showing it Thursday December 23rd at noon (Eastern), HBO Max has it in its TCM hub to be streamed anytime, and here's a serviceable copy of it that's on YouTube. One, last bit before closing.
Odd, serendipitous links very recently got me looking at a piece helmed by Ted Koppel, done for CBS' Sunday Morning. It was about Mt. Airy, North Carolina, a town that retroactively reinvented itself as a mecca for fans of The Andy Griffith Show, and of the idyllic, never-was, small town of Mayberry. I've no real problem with the show itself, and share much of the affection for its spirit of humanity and warmth, but some of its appeal is problematic, and is magnified by some (too many?) of its fans.
It's a compelling roughly 13 and one half minutes. The latter scene of the piece, on one of the town's tourist trollies, was chilling for me. People not only nostalgic for a time and place that never was, but at this moment are living in a shared fantasy world where President Trump is a deeply beloved, unfairly maligned, symbol of Godly goodness and righteousness, who had the election stolen from him.
We've each of us plenty to do, I'm sure, and I haven't even made time for half of what I covered in last week's post, so I'll bring this one to a close. Much work to do around the house, and... you know, it's a much better idea if I just try to do some of it rather than list it here. Take care of yourselves and those around you, and don't forget to take a moment to reach out - a card, note, email, or phone call - to someone you've thought of more recently than you've been in contact with. That move will brighten someone's day, and will do you much good, too. - Mike
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