10/6/17 - Media Consumption Blog

Hello Supporters!!

Quick reminder before we get to what Grace and Derek have been watching and playing this week, don’t forget we are doing our No Chump Zone Q&A for our $10 and up patrons tomorrow at 2pm PST! 

And now on to the consuming and considering this week.

DEREK

The Evil Within (PS4)

With it being Halloween season and the sequel dropping next week, it was finally time to dig into that copy of The Evil Within that we’ve been sitting on for a few years. As we mentioned in our post the other day, we plan on covering these games later, so I got to it. And after about 8 total hours, I have to say this is a deeply flawed game that I’m really enjoying but wouldn’t recommend to everyone.

I’m a stickler for tone and pacing in video games, and so far The Evil Within is absolute mess. While I’ve put 8 hours into it, I’ve only reached the midpoint of the 5th chapter (of 15 total). That’s because I’ve replayed the 2nd and 3rd chapters 3 times. Yeah. There’s a lot of claims that The Evil Within is a very hard game. That’s not really the problem, the real problem is that it’s got so many ideas in terms gameplay (and story), it doesn’t know what to prioritize or focus on. It’s a classic Shinji Mikami game, so many interconnecting gameplay gimmicks (also see: Dino Crisis), but it does an absolutely pisspoor job explaining them to you (some things it flatout doesn’t explain). And it moves and shift so damn quickly that you never have time to understand what this game is all about. This is why I went back and played through old chapters again, the game is completely linear and I realized I had misunderstood or completely missed entire sections. But finally having that knowledge, I found myself having a really good time.

I’ve heard a lot about the story being either completely incoherent or just flatout lame. We’ll see. So far all I can say it’s a very gory, very crazy game but not at all scary or making a lick of sense. But I am enjoying myself, and with Mikami not directing the sequel, this could prove to be a really great new horror franchise. But for now, recommended for diehard survival horror fans only. Everyone else should just jump on Resident Evil 7.

Blade Runner (The Final Cut)

Hey, there’s a new Blade Runner coming out! Hey, I haven’t seen Blade Runner in like 15 years! I didn’t really like it back then but hey, I have no idea which of the 12 million cuts of this film I saw! Grace did a little research and concluded that “The Final Cut” made in 2007 is the true version of the film, so hey, let’s watch Blade Runner again!

So we watched Blade Runner. Me again, Grace for the first time. Grace liked it a lot. I, on the other hand, felt about the same as I did when I last saw it. First of all, Blade Runner is one of the most gorgeous films ever made. Every damn frame of it has been ripped off in movies, games, music video, and comics (I’m sure) and for good reason, visually it’s practically flawless.The philosophical quandaries it creates with the Replicants and their place in this world, living in fear of a short lifespan and pursuit from Blade Runners creates dense, fascinating sci-fi world.

But then the film does so actual little inside of this world. We’re told Deckard is “the best”, but we don’t really see it much. He’s good at tracking down the first replicant, I guess, but he’s otherwise a sad, drunk loner. And the love scene with him and Rachel was way, way uncomfortable. If I felt any sympathy for smirking villain Roy or his cohort Pris, it was as replicants but not as the characters I got to know on screen. The life and purpose of replicants is presented as profoundly tragic, making the overarching tone very depressing. But my problem there is if everything is sad, then nothing is. The chase scene at the end was beautifully shot and wonderfully acted but I honestly felt nothing for either Deckard or Roy. I did really enjoy how the film wrapped up at the very end though. 

We’re going to see the new one, Blade Runner 2049 on Sunday. I’m excited to see another story from this world, and it has really good reviews, so maybe it’s everything I wanted from the first one. Blade Runner is a fine, fine sci-fi  film, but it doesn’t quite live up to the hype for me.

GRACE

Bojack Horseman

Last time we did this I talked about Rick and Morty, but this time I want to focus on a show that deals with similar themes, BoJack Horseman. I just finished Season 4, but I’m going to shy away from specifics and just talk about the broad story. 

While a lot of times the show’s premise (talking animals!) seems to exist just to facilitate puns and wordplay (Here’s an amazing supercut), this show plumbs some sadness, goddamnit. During its most recent season, I found myself pausing the show and reminding myself under my breath: “This is a comedy?!” I’ve gotten emotional watching this show before, but BoJack Horseman’s 4th season has some really profound things to say about family, depression and the consequences of multi-generational dysfunction/trauma. 

Which makes it all the more interesting to compare it to Rick and Morty. Both shows have mean, self-serving, alcohol-swilling stars who think they’re better than everyone else. Both deal with depression and how the certainty that nothing you do really matters effects your actions. The difference is one show isn’t interested in dealing out consequences to its characters while the other one does. I think there is a reason people aren’t out on message boards claiming they are superior BoJacks to everyone else’s Todds. Both shows are a sort of thinking-person’s show, but Rick and Morty suffers for its relative overall emotional narrative simplicity. Rick doesn’t get punished for his shittiness, and heck, maybe that’s the point. But, I think it’s a dishonest and ultimately uninteresting framework to work from.

Bojack on the other hand has characters still reeling and dealing with their decisions from 2 seasons ago. It’s complex, heartbreaking, absurd and, ultimately, closer to real life. Which is not what I thought I wanted from a talking horse cartoon BUT HERE WE ARE. 

Thanks again for the support everyone! We’ll see you next week with another blog. We leave you with one of the greatest bad song ever (3:14 “GIRL I GOTTA BIG ‘OL HOUSE!”)

-D & G