Fred and Loathing on The Internet

There are plenty of contemporary artistic productions that the audience is dying to hear me expertly opine on through my daft use of the written word. To be honest, I do not watch many ‘new’ movies or television shows. I would remark that I watched the first episode of Severance last night. If I had the graphic to accompany my thoughts on that show, then this blog entry would be me gushing about the beautiful drabness of that show. Once the graphics department turns in its work, the writing staff can get to work, bringing out a blog post about something fresh in the zeitgeist.

When the blog audience is not hounding me for current affairs, then it’s opinions on works of timeless art they want to hear about. Books of great literary feats. Musical librettos invigorated with orchestral grace. A painting of sublime subtlety. Examples of human creation that reach into your soul; unleashing a universal truth. Such artistic objects are not being critiqued today.

Instead we will be talking about an American TV sitcom that uses examples of fine art as comedy props to lampoon a lovably pompous radio psychologist, in his middle ages, living in a ridiculously luxurious condo in Seattle throughout the 1990s. That’s right, we are talking about Frasier. A sitcom character played by Kelsey Grammer for four decades. The Frasier Crane, of the Cheers, Wings, Frasier sitcom universe. And lately of recent revival sitcom fame.

That new ‘revival’ show has not lured me...

The fires of editorial burn bright early in the year! We have yet another blog post, mere days since the last one. Although there have been a few books I have read to completion lately, none of them leap out at me as amusing writing pursuits. There have been some long-running commentaries I have stacked up in my head for some sitcom with which I have become acquainted. If they stay too long, those witty thoughts will wither away. What a shame! I know there are people out there clamoring to hear my thoughts on the plight of the urban poor presented so blithely in the 1970s sitcom Good Times.

My thoughts on the latest release in the Planet of the Apes franchise will be enough to hold down the clamor until then. I believe this would be the fourth movie since the re-dawn of the Apes, Planet of The franchise. This new imagining I believe began over twelve years ago with that one with James Franco. Where he raises a smart chimp that gets smart drugs, which inadvertently causes a pandemic among humans; thus bringing the apes other than humans as the now dominant species of the planet.

It looks to be about ninety-five percent chimps in this latest movie. In most of these Planet of the Ape movies chimps (or possibly bonobos?) get all the screen time. Maybe because it is easier to commit to one type of costume/makeup setup. No matter the reason, this latest film relegates the gorillas and orangutans to one character a piece. Gibbons are mentioned by the orangutan...

The Alice Network

The first review of the year! That’s just a pedestrian remark on what time it is. There is nothing more than that. Another book read and needing critiquing. That's how it was last year, and so it will be this, and all years henceforth. Until I stop reading books, pamphlets, well written butter labels, and the like. Or when I lose the ability to write blog posts here.

Among those many books I’ve read, and talked about here, are many spy books. Mostly non-fiction and a handful of fiction stuff. Among the fiction, they are usually delivered by either John Le Carre or Ian Fleming. I suppose I have read spy-fiction that took place in more fantasy or futuristic settings. I don’t file those stories away under the ‘spy’ category in my head. That section is reserved for stories that dig deep into that being part of the protagonist's career. I recall that the first The Culture novel, Consider Phlebas, had a shapeshifting spy-type character using his wiles to gain intelligence that aids a larger cause. An interstellar war between cultural relativist The Culture vs some religious space kingdom. That book had a lot more going on besides the actual spycraft, and that is why I do not put that book in the Fredlambuth.com annals of spy novels. Ultimately what I remember about that novel is the sci-fi novelties the author presented.

The Cold War or The Great Game to me are the only valid settings for a bonafide spy novel. This is an obvious...