Prison Break binge 01

445th post ;) Just missed my 444th entry. Anyway.

Gordon's mother has been trying to recommend Prison Break to me for a very long time now, same with Comit, who reasoned that it was a show I'd enjoy because I enjoyed the battle of the wits/cat-mouse chase elements of Code Geass and Death Note.

Thus I started watching the first season on Tuesday. So yeah, finally a new binge watch of a TV show. I haven't been completely mind blown like I was for almost all the shows I discovered in the past year. In fact, I was duly unimpressed at the total lack of battle of the wits storytelling, however, Comit assures me that this is a seaosn two thing. Which is why I'm looking forward to when I get my hands on season two, when I can legitimately judge how good it is and also gain inspiration for Trio, which is meant to be written in that tactical warfare style.

I dunno how Prison Break season one would've felt watching it on TV. All I know is that upon a binge watch, the narratological style was pretty crap. The pattern for an episode is that it would always end with some complication (not necessarily a twist, just a complication) that gets immediately addressed in like the first 5 minutes of the next episode, then dealing with the rest of the story until the end when another complication arises.

It's what I called a definitively Fox style storytelling. I don't wish to sound prudish or anything, but it definitely isn't intellectually oriented, which I think I can say is not the networks major demographic anyway. There was a tendency to try to crowbar in some fact about a character, only to have the implications of that fact appear ... in that episode. Like the episode with DB Cooper ... beginning he said he had a child. Then we find out that very child is dying and hence he must escape. I would've so preferred them to mention his daughter in that first exchange with Schofield.

I don't even think it's fair to assume I suggest that because I have a fetish for Lost, which over-indulges in this kind of hint dropping. It's almost as if Prison Break and Lost could be on a spectrum, where Lost is too extreme in complexity and Prison Break is too simple. Unfortunately, as is the case of ugly and beauty, one option is infinitely better than the other, and as such a happy medium really doesn't exist. It just felt like they were trying to spoonfeed us the plot, which I know I slightly resented, having watched the 22 episodes in two days, and I'm sure most people would not only realise but also loathe as I did.

That being send, the series is a great one and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. They have a lot of interesting characters in it, which aren't stereotypically three dimensional. In fact, I think they have a few that are totally two dimensional, which through its irony makes them all the more complex.

It does make me wonder how realistic that view of prison would be. I'm sure in a totally maximum security prison it'd be like that, but in the relatively less stringent ones... surely it would be more pleasant? I dunno, I have a pretty warped view of things like prison and homelessness and I don't think I could really not enjoy my life while in either situation. It's not even the pablum of optimism, of finding the best in situations, it's a fundamental and qualitative difference in my perception of the situation as good and therefore no need to find the food in the bad. It's more like finding the enjoyable in the boredom.


In a TOTALLY UNRELATED AND CONTINGENT NOTE: I've already reached 50% of my download limit this month. It's the 6th today and my counter reset on the 2nd. Great, four days... now I have the rest of the month on 12.5gb :\ :\ :\

Pwning Connor

Connor: (to me) Can you please stop talking? For me? 5 minutes. Please.

***

Shanan: *for 10 minutes* ...
Alistair: Well, this is awkward.
Connor: I'm going to play snake on my phone.

***

Gobi: What was the last good movie that came out? Transformers was good.
Connor: No it wasn't.
Gobi: Yeah it was.
Connor: No.
Shanan: *gives Connor and look and rolls eyes*
Connor: What?
Shanan: ...
Connor: No, seriously what?
Shanan: Nothing.
Connor: C'mon!
Shanan: I just didn't want to strain my neck, looking up at you on your high horse.

Psychologists aren't that stuffy afterall

This post is as much for me as it is for you. Dunno how many of you will have access... But the knowledge of its very existence will do wonders to your soul.

Today I discovered a psychological journal with a very interesting focus. It's called the:

"International Journal of Humor Research"

A whole plublication dedicated to all things humourous and the psychological and physiological basis behind it. Wonderful! You can add that to my list of potential specialisations in psychology. It joins the ranks of personality, psycho-linguistics, bilingualism/biculturalism, philosophy of psychology and morality.

Haven't had much time to seriously go through the available articles. But rest assured I'll use my university credentials to take a sneak peek around and find any interesting tidbits in the coming holidays.

Talent Agent

Three weeks ago I was at my usual Monday night tutoring, on my break (which coincides with the rest of the boarders) and without much to do, I started milling about. It was then I noticed a crowd of boys. Me being the nosy and supremely arrogant person that I am, I saunter over and take a gander.

Two guys there, both showing each other pieces of paper. These pieces of paper had on them MANGA. And really good manga as well :D I asked one of them to bring me some of their work the next week, but they never followed through (and honestly, I can't remember who it was). The other, Chris, HAD A PORTFOLIO OF HIS WORK ... ON HIS PERSON. So he showed me.

There is just some glory in feeling like you've tapped oil - hit a raw pocket of energy. Just brimming with potential and possibilities, unyet tainted by expectations and monotony, unfetted and free. He was just about as good as Gordon, surprisingly, in so far as I just wasn't expecting it.

The next week he brought with me some prototypes he'd done ... for the manga series he'd wanted to write. He had a whole epic series planned, a large mythos spanning throughout history and a general outline for mini-arcs.

This kid is amazing. Not only does he have Gordon's talent, but he has something else too, motivation and drive and persistence. He didn't like his first drafts, so he redid them, and continues to do so.

Tonight he brought some more work with him tonight and brought his writing partner with me and we discussed his plot and stuffs. What excites me most is that his story is so rough right now, it could be anything, and I'm glad to be here, observing it as it unfolds. I think he's really making use of my ... er... wisdom (:P). By that I just mean that I've got experience with a lot of anime/TV series that deal in that genre, am a pretty spiffy writer, read a lot and actively deconstruct texts and from all that I think I can impart some good advice.

It's not like I'm saying "This is how it is and you're going to have to do this," I'm trying very hard to avoid such 'realistic' and 'mature' thinking. That's precisely what they don't need. All I'm doing is trying to tell them how I've noticed things, just helping generate ideas and situations they may not be able to consider, just to give them a more rounded perception of things.

Like for instance, one thing I thought the story could benefit from was a bit more focus in terms of character portrayal and development. It was heavily plot elements they've devised so far, which oftentimes is the hardest part. Creating original and yet does not feel gimmicky, in a world that's had people trying to make new content for many many years is always going to be a difficult task. I think some of there stuff falls slightly short, but for the most part, would make a thrilling and cracking read.

I also mentioned some things I noticed about getting published, or how to distribute the story and get noticed etc. I think they're going to go for the traditional style - release it in a manga compillation magazine, of which there are several free ones out there. But that'd be to get their name and story out there... if they wanted to make money they couldn't operate like that... I asked them to block out the first few episodes, with a general storyline, and maybe I can help work through that.

They've just got so much. They must have upwards of 50 different characters, each with a storyline ... I mean they kept mentioning "this will be in the first 5 seasons or so" and I'm like wow... Most TV series don't even last that long :P

What I'm loving though, is every week I see them and they're at one stage, then they spend the next week and weekend experimenting with drawing styles, techniques, adapting the plot and characters ... It's just really sweet to see them working so hard. Meanwhile, the Liberi ex Janus script sits dusting away in the corner :P

I wouldn't call this so much as a new project so much as I'm really just a mentor or facilitator to their success. And when they do reach it, I will be able to ride upon their back and sail my way into good times ;)

Dolorous Dinner

So what's a horrible food experience do for you? Is it just a transient, in the moment type thing, where you just complain a bit, but there's no longer term effects afterwards? Does it get you so bubbling mad that you make a scene at the restaurant?

I've always had high standards for the food I eat. Well, more than just the taste of the food, but also the service with which the food was delivered. The dining experience is something quite special, quite other than just going out to eat. The ambience, the service and the taste all contribute to dinner, but there's also some extra element. There are people who think that if the taste is good then horrible service is tolerable. I quite disagree. I mean, it could be, in like a Soup Nazi situation, in which the horrible service was part of the actual experience.

But I've already talked about what the experience means to me in a past post. What I want to talk about is what feeling it ellicits in me when goes horribly wrong. Because it occurs to me it really does speak to my personality.

I don't make a scene. I don't let them know, the waitresses, owner, chef ... They're none-the-wiser to my immense displeasure. But I do insidiously let out my feelings of hatred... I don't leave a tip, or at least strongly suggest my family not to. I sit there and complain and complain and complain. In the car trip later I *really* let loose.

I remember vividly a dinner I had in a resturant in Cooma, when I had to wait 45 minutes for a simple pasta and tasted of rubber. That was 14yrs old. I'm 19 now and the same thing happened last night. A Thai restaurant in Belconnen, right by Gininderra Lake, if you ever go anywhere near there, I suggest you avoid the Thai restaurant with the horrible gazebo type entrance. If I knew it's name I'd publically shame it.

Thai food holds a very special place in my heart. There is a very specific set of flavours that separates Thai food from any other asian food. So when we get 4 dishes, all bland, none of it chilli, there is something seriously wrong.

Larb
Meant to be a refeshing, zesty salad, this was essentially flavourly, overcooked, boiled mince pork. When I asked for a wedge of lemon so that I could at least attempt to salvage the meal, I got 3 slices (like you'd get on a drink), which my father dilligently tried to utilise. I had to get the wedge and the waiter gave me a wtf-look. Then took 10 mintues and told me he wasn't sure if he could... YOU'RE A THAI RESTAURANT AND YOU HAVE NO LEMON???

Squid in Chilli and Ginger sauce
The squid was well cooked. That's all that can be said. The flavours offered were pretty much a Chinese stir-fry and not a very good one at that. Bland, tasteless, watery.

Beef in Lemon Grass and Chilli
No chilli, no lemon crass. Just beef slices cooked in some stir-fry style with no taste. Again. Very little difference between this one and the Squid.

Green Chicken Curry
Too much coconut milk, no curry. Watery. Overcooked chicken.

Saffron Rice
WASN'T SAFFRON RICE. It was boiled rice + colouring. Like dude, WTF.

It's funny, ever since I've moved out and starting cooking for myself and watching all these pseudo-cooking shows, like Hell's Kitchen, Master Chef, more Iron Chef etc, I've really homed in on taste and overcooked meat/vegies. Something I never noticed before outside the strength of the taste. My focus was on service, but now it's expanded from service to tastes to the technique.

And the service was terrible. Long wait, too many unhelpful people ... Like when we ordered more Saffron Rice I wanted to change my order to Coconut rice, which theoretically would be actual Coconut rice. I didn't want another lot of fake rice. The waiter I asked was like "oh, it's already been ordered".

???

You can't stop an order? I mean obviously if it were some major meal I could understand. But RICE? Rice isn't meant to be cooked to order. And even if you stopped it, it'd be what? $4 you'll have wasted. Big-fucking-whoop. Then again, a restaurant that crap I wouldn't be surprised if they needed all the money they could get, considering the horrible food.

I should done what I said to my parents, which was I'd just pay for the extra, new rice, take the Saffron Rice and dump it on the floor. That would've given me satisfaction.

So I come home, and I still feel agitated. I feel uneasy, like I let them off too easy or that I ought to do something about it. And you'd think that it would make me want to cook professional, 'cause I think I could do a good job. That's how I feel when I watch a horrible play/movie/TV show or read something disgusting. Most things of which I am most judgemental I feel like I can do better in than everyone else in the world.

With cooking it's different. It's not what I want. What I want to be is a food critic. I want to build up some epic portfolio, so much that restaurants get scared when I walk in, fearing my silver tongue and impeccable palette. When I call, they're willing to cancel on even their favourite customers to make me room. Once I've accumulated that power, I would want to use it to absolutely destroy restaurants that are horrible.

It's really the only field in which I want to make the world "better". It's not enough just to do better than they do, I want to eradicate them from the world, to make it better. It always strikes me as odd that people actually think that "there'll always be bad restaurants" or "once you get rid of the bad ones you'll just up your standards and start roasting more", which is just a bizarre logic. Of course that's not the case. Good food is good food and bad food is bad food - there's relativity or personal standards.

And even if it were, they provide no argument for WHY we should be less harsh just because we would never find the perfect set of restaurants. Assuming that it's true, impossibility should never deter us from trying. And if people think they can argue that then they're delusional.