1,064 thoughts on “Scroll by Scroll”

  53. Ok, lets see if I get this straight. Her sister dies, she moves back home to stay in her sister’s room, doesn’t seem to work anymore, hangs with sister’s hippy boyfriend, and has the same dreams as sister

    Sure

  114. An explanation of Stephen King’s IT from a different perspective:
    Stephen King’s IT is a boggart from Harry Potter. He becomes what ever you fear the most and the only way to get rid of him is to stop being afraid. The whole movie is a bunch of muggles trying to get rid of a boggart without using magic.

  116. I may have mentioned months ago that after the insanely high-priced U2 presale was over, the regular tix were reasonable*.

    So here we are! Waiting for Beck to start as the opening act. After that, U2 doing The Joshua Tree in its entirety.

  135. The tracklist from the hour of magic that is the new Electric Six cover album

    1 Kids In America – Kim Wilde
    2 Rasputin – Boney M
    3 Union Of The Snake – Duran Duran
    4 Drenched In Blood – Turbonegro
    5 Animal Day – Wall of Voodoo
    6 Dirty Laundry – That one Eagles Guy that’s not Glenn Frey
    7 Magic Dance – David Bowie from Labyrinth
    8 Seminole Bingo – Warren Zevon
    9 Last Night I Had A Dream – Randy Newman
    10 Vow – Garbage
    11 Nightclubbing – Iggy Pop
    12 Young Americans – More Bowie

    The Turbonegro and Duran Duran pieces may be among the finest songs E6 have ever recorded.

  138. Crap joke for the day:

    Jon starts working in a lumber camp. The boss says, “We work twelve hours a day, we eat two meals a day, lights out at ten-thirty, and you can put your dick in the barrel over there for a blow job any day but Thursday.”
    Jon says, “Why not Thursday?”
    The boss says, “Because Thursday is your turn in the barrel.”

  141. So I’ve been watching the Ken Burns documentary on the Vietnam War.

    I just wish there was more from the Vietnamese side, the US side has been done to death.

  147. Yesterday was the first day of autumn. The weatherman was explaining that while this is essentially true, here in Canada, our autumnal equinox doesn’t start until Monday.

    • I haven’t watched the Ken Burns Vietnam series. He’s historically been pretty good about calling out uncomfortable truths. Disappointing if that article is true.

      The article’s other points merit applause.

  158. Crap joke for the day;

    It was the funeral of a Meter Maid. As the coffin was lowered into the ground, a voice from inside screamed:

    “Let me out! I’m still alive! Let me out!”

    The Vicar smiles, leans forward, sucking air through his teeth:

    “Too fucking late Pal, I’ve Already done the paperwork”

  165. Crap joke for the day:

    Threes women nurses visit the morgue and see a dead man with a hard on.

    First nurses says it’s too good not to use, climbs on and does the business.

    Second nurse does the same. Third nurse initially refuses as she is on her period, but is persuaded to have a go.

    The man suddenly sits up, the nurses apologise as they thought he was dead.

    The replies that he was, but after two jump starts and a blood transfusion he feels as good as new..

  167. My old college English professor published a novel last year. I’d kept loosely in touch with him, and always liked his class, so I figured I’d check it out.

    The book’s about an aging professor (hmmmm), and at one point in the beginning, he mentions occasionally hearing from former students who are “leading unremarkable lives.”

  169. Well, we finished the 2nd part of the new Star Trek premiere. While it looks impressive, I’m a bit meh on it right now. We’ve been subscribed to the CBS thing for a long time already, so I expect we’ll continue to watch the new Trek and see how it goes. I think I’m mostly meh about the choice for another prequel setting.

    After three episodes of The Orville, I’m definitely on board for the rest of the season. I didn’t come in with any particular feelings about Seth MacFarlane one way or the other, but I’ve enjoyed the combo of sci-fi exploration laced with some snark along the way.

      • So this was a choice that was SO bad, many people just didn’t vote.
        Roy Moore – If there was such a thing as “Christian Taliban” HE would be their poster boy. If his radical social views wrapped in a veneer of religion weren’t bad enough … he ran for and accepted the job of “Chief Justice” and then immediately decided that the law was what ever HE said it was. He told the Supreme Court F.U. when they reminded him that he was supposed to follow and enforce the laws of the United States and he kicked out of office. Our country is falling appart and the last thing we need is someone who decides the rules are what ever they personally woke up and believed that day.
        Luther Strange – he is the stereo-typical southern Politian right out of central casting. He will say what ever he needs to say to get elected and then do/say what ever he needs to do for those running the show to keep his comfy position. He is here to embed himself into the system like a parasite and then see how much Luther Strange can get for Luther Strange. Honestly, he had his nose soooo far up trump’s butt that it probably took a half dozen secret service agents to dislodge him.

        There is the slight possibility things could work out though. If the Democrat the Moore will face is “center” enough it just might cause some of the Republican Roy Moore haters who did not vote (and there were a lot of them), to cross over. Pretty slim chance though. They probably will just not vote in the general election.

  174. Netflix music doc recommendation of the day: “Who the F**K is That Guy”?

    About the gay NYC kid who became a major music industry player, signing acts like Metallica, Metal Church, Nina Simone. Really interesting life, plus a fascinating glimpse of NYC.

    • He was apparently a strange old coot with some funny ideas – – that evolved over the course of his writing career – – but I’ve never heard of him being a major mega-creep like Clarke. Or a less major mega-creep, like Isaac.

    • Personally, I found it just difficult. But I did the audiobook version and could not stand the reading interpretation. It’s very hard for me in these situations to tell whether it was 50% reading / 50% writing or 100% reading / 0% writing or any other breakdown. I just know I didn’t like it. I had the same problem with Star Wars Aftermath and Dan Simmons Hyperion.

        • I’m currently listening to the audiobook of Hyperion and enjoying it (although I did enjoy the book when I first read it).

          It uses different people to voice the main characters, which I prefer on the rare books it is done for.

          • I wish I had listened to that version. The one that I heard was voiced by a single female reader who found it appealing to read everything in a monotone sing-songy almost hypnotized-sounding voice. Drove me crazy.

          • Though, if I recall correctly, they only have the full voice cast for the first Hyperion book. The other and the Endymion books have a single narrator, though he does a great job of it.

            Given the structure of the first book, it benefits the most from the multi voice cast, though it was a bit jarring getting used to the second book with one narrator for those same characters.

  186. I’m late for the party (as usual) but I finally saw the new Star Trek 1st episode. Over-all I liked it. Production wise I thought it had a really great look (although by 15 minutes in, I was ready for them to lay-off of the “lens flair” filter).
    Also, I am not down with re-inventing the look of their major adversary … AGAIN.
    Other than that I am looking forward to episode #2.

    • I’m not familiar with Lazarus. But I’m definitely excited/scared for Snow Crash and Ringworld. I love both, but they are each dated in their own particular ways and I fear for how they will be modernized. They are also both quite “thinky” books and I fear the intelligence will be passed over in favor of special effects and “action”. If anything, Ringworld might just do better as a TV series as there is a lot more social drama that TV writers will be able to fart around with.

    • With the exception of Saga, Lazarus is the most well constructed, deeply world built, engrossing comic on the market. To say I recommend it highly is a massive understatement.

      Fuck this idea with Forever Carlyle’s sword.

  194. Apparently I need to start all over in my search for a roofing contractor.
    My spidey senses have been telling me that something wasn’t right and it now those who now that industry are warning me that I should move along.
    Now … how do I sack this guy.

    I hate dealing with contractors 🙁

  195. Hey Deadpan. I’m doing a play by play with a twist Netflix has this series from 2013 called Portal Into the Unknown. Apparently it’s about real life haunting and It looks hokey as hell
    The write up: unsolved cases from the past, mysterious lights in the sky, tales of ghosts and demons. Open a door to the supernatural

    (Insert evil laugh here)

  259. So about a third of the way through Hyperion.

    Either I skimmed the book when I first read it or my memory is truly fucked.

    Some big parts of the characters story i’ve Completely forgotten about.

        • I remember guesting on KAMN years ago and being frustrated that they were judging book 1 poorly solely by itself. They especially hated the non-ending. I was telling them that Dan Simmons had written it as 1 huge book that his publisher split into 2. If you only read book 1, you’re not getting any resolution on any of the stories.

          • I was annoyed with that too. I didn’t know that it was one book split into two. While I prefer books to have some sort of resolution, a non-ending is only bad if it doesn’t make you want to read the sequel. “Hyperion” did that in spades for me. It is still very memorable after reading it over 20 years ago.

  260. I watched “What Happened to Monday” over my work trip last week. It was good, even if it was predictable. Glenn Close is creepy as ever.

    • I wouldn’t call them the norm but each one does seem more heinous than the last.

      I will say this and I have always said this… While I appreciate the “pray for Vegas” or “pray for Alberta” or “pray for London” or “pray for Paris” mantras, it’s bullshit that there is never a “pray for (insert country or city with a predominantly non-white population here)” when this type of violence happens. It doesn’t even have to be violence. Look at the was Houston and Florida were treated in the media and by those in power as opposed to Puerto Rico and the Caribbean as a whole. Those places were nearly wiped off the map and said media can find no fucks to give.

      Now that I write it here, maybe I don’t appreciate this “pray for…” bullshit.

      • If good vibes/prayers are all you can spare – – emotionally, financially, temporally, then sure. . .

        but yeah, it’s mostly a cop out.

        Remember, though – – he’s white, so it’s not terrorism.

  265. I’ve thought about that LOTR comparison myself. The non-ending was certainly one of the things that bothered me about Hyperion. And, it didn’t for LOTR. I think the difference might be that I knew it was coming in LOTR and it caught me by surprise in Hyperion. Also, in LOTR it seemed to come to a natural break, whereas Hyperion seemed unnatural (makes sense now the I find it was a stupid publisher decision [like breaking up Freebird on the Synyrd Greatest Hits album) and not the author’s). I should probably give it another try. Soon as I’m done re-listening to the Dart Tower Series.

  268. Crap joke for the day:

    This businessman was walking down the sidewalk when a jet black van stopped by him. The guys pulled the man inside, stripped him of all his clothes till he was butt naked, threw him back outside, and then slammed the door shut taking off.Five miles later the men look outside and see the businessman running right beside the van. The thought “oh well”. So they drove on for another five miles, and once again they saw the businessman running beside their van. So this time they pulled over, opened the door, and asked the man, “Hey, how can you run so fast?” He replied, “You would to if your dick was stuck in the door.

  271. As the news grabs our attention with BIG horrors, it’s easy to miss the less flashy horrors.

    After dawdling and dithering and finally doing nothing, as of this morning, Congress let the nation’s Children’s Health Insurance Program expire. That was healthcare for about 9 million, low income, AMERICAN children.
    The House of Representatives DID however, approve 10 BILLION dollars earlier in the week to start on prototypes for trump’s wall.

    • Oh it’s gonna get SO much worse before it gets better. Maybe my children’s children will be able to live in an actual country instead of something turning into the walled city from Land of the Dead

    • It’s that simple. Racism, mental illness, and religious-based hatred are devastating, murderous, oppressive, unchecked evils at work in the world – – absolutely – – but the primary motive of our “leaders” is suppression of the poor in order to further elevate the obscenely wealthy.

  272. … and since I am being a downer I might as well add this one.

    Earlier this week the trump Justice Department weighed in on a case (without being ask by the plaintiff or defendant) saying that employer totally had the right to fire people simply for being gay.

    The case involved a guy who worked in a skydiving company and simply advised a female customer concerned about the close physical contact necessary to participate in that sport that he was “100 percent gay,” and that she had nothing to worry about. Her boyfriend then apparently reported that to Zarda’s employer, who promptly fired him.

    A lawyer for the US Justice Department weighed in, explaining that, under federal law, employers were absolutely free “to regulate employees’ off-the-job sexual behavior”.

    Gay? Fired. Living with someone but not married? Fired. Married and having kids with someone of a different race/religion? Clearly you must be having sex. BOOM! Your fired.

    “this” is trump’s Amerika.

  276. So, the horror that happened last night in Vegas has made me ill this morning. That festival where the shooting occurred is a festival I would have attended; in fact, I tried several times to win tickets to it over the past few weeks.
    Seriously, shooting people at a concert- just sick I’m glad the a-hole is dead. I hope authorities find some answers when they search his home.

    • Sadly, once again I fear we will not be looking for the right answers.
      Yesterday, the average person could have mentioned in public that they owned an an assault rifle and it would have received little attention. On the other hand if they mentioned they were seeing a mental health professional or a counselor because things had been kind of tough lately and they felt like they just needed someone to talk to, they likely would be shunned.

      Until we make “going to see my counselor” as socially acceptable as “going to see my physical therapist” (and financially accessible to everyone – ESPECIALLY those down on their luck) … these horrors will continue to a regular occurrence.
      🙁

  384. I was in a garage band as a teenager where the drummer and bassist were new to their instruments and never practiced. Suffice it to say, we were terrible. But we had a decent keyboard guy, and the one song we could do marginally well was “You Got Lucky.” Thanks for that, Mr. Petty.

  385. With this walking stick I suspect I’m going to start getting “tell us about the war grandpa” comments from uncouth younguns.

  389. JW: The Gifted Episode 1

    First episode left me feeling meh! Even with the delightful Amy Acker playing the concerned Mom.

    Just a feeling of tiredness at the same old mutant tropes being trotted our all over again.

    Oh and bloody teenagers, fuck that shit.

      • What we really need is a show about a scrappy, basically decent white teen-ish man who’s freaked out by their newfound super powers, who’s rejected by their misunderstanding parents, and is sent to an academy for special kids, where they meet a hot girl, a funny black kid, and a crazy kid – – all with super powers – – who band together when they realize that the academy doesn’t have their best interest at hear. The evil old white guy in the suit wants to use their powers as weapons – – but they realize that together, they can use their powers for good!

    • I don’t even watch all of the shows, and I’m feeling the New Mutants fatigue. Which is funny, because they haven’t actually made the New Mutants show.

    • Thanks for posting this link, Cynful! Of course I have opinions….

      -How is it that Link Wray isn’t already in? I’m thrilled for this one.
      -It’s fantastic that Judas Priest is getting in, but it’s hard to induct them and overlook Iron Maiden. Bad move, HOF.
      -Bon Jovi can suck it.
      -Honestly, the Eurythmics are a 2-hit wonder. Induct Annie Lennox, sure. Not the Eurythmics.

      • Meh
        I call shenanigans on this sort of voting. The demographic of those who will go on-line and vote once a day does not match the demographic of all those up for nomination. = skewed results

        I had to wiki the last 5 or so on the list to get some idea of who they were.
        What Bon Jovi fan is going to bother to do that?

  411. You know, of all the science fiction future predictions for the Earth, I wouldn’t have put money on Ender’s Game being the most accurate.

    The whole subplot (and characters for that matter) left out of the terrible movie adaptation with Ender’s brother and sister essentially taking over the world’s online discussion forums with their avatars and persuading the masses on various topics was, at least to me when I read them, one of the more far fetched elements of the book. Yet, here we are. I’m honestly surprised that at least the sci-fi aware media doesn’t draw more attention to this.

  413. Today my boss is checking out the new website for the first time. While I appreciate the confidence, you’re never sure if a person likes bright flashing primary colours or not :silly:

  414. If you are in the mood for Halloween related music – I am very much enjoying the streaming music at deadair.co
    Not the usual fare. I’ve heard stuff from The Residents, The Mystic Nights of Oingo Boingo … even the song by the girl in the radiator from “Eraser Head”. An entertainingly wide range of the odd and the obsolescent!

  417. And soo….. I guess it’s time for a little announcement.

    I am officially making a return to Podcasting. It’s not out yet, but we have 5-6 episodes in some state of completion. The show is called “Ideas Start Here,” and it’s being made for my day job. (So no Dumbass Memories or 60 Lines segments. . . I probably won’t use the Samuel L. Jackson soundbyte very often.)

    The focus will be on vaccines and vaccination technology, but there will also be a number of human stories too. I’ll post something here when it releases. I’ll probably make some kind of Facebook announcement too.

  423. So today I discovered there will be a S2 of Travellers.

    That was the good news, the bad news is there will also be a S2 of Timeless.

  426. Bladerunner 2049

    Ok.

    Since it’s moved on from the book I had no problems with the film
    On that score.

    Ok was my initial reaction on leaving the cinema, I might change my mind on reflection.

  430. Just back from seeing Bladerunner 2049.

    I’ll give it a “Wow”.
    Non spoiler thoughts.
    It’s a BIG picture and I find those rare any more.
    Someone spent some time on the “art” of film craft. Great movie making.
    It gives you LOTS of concepts to ponder.
    and finally …
    Something about getting to re-visit a world that was such a big influence in my life 30 years ago and see what it has become 30 years later … kind has that “my life has come full circle” feel to it.