I Saw This!! What I Have Been Watching -- Wot? No Movies P2

I Saw This (double exclamation point) is our feature wherein Kent(him) or Toasty attempt to write about a bunch of stuff they watched some time ago and meant to write about but just never got around to doing so. But we can't not write cuz that would be bad, very bad.  That dog in the fiery house bad.

What I Am/Have Been Watching is the self-admitted state of typically Toast (not him), spending too much time in front of the TV. Sure, the Great Pause is winding down (culturally if not virally) but habits have been formed, doors have been locked and going outside is soooo pre-2019. The weird thing of late is not committing to movies. Sure, we add them to Watch List, we Download them, we say, "Let's watch xxx instead of TV tonight," but then we just either re-watch something classic or I find something else to download. 

One Episode is a segment in which we talk about shows we have watched one episode of (and sometimes more). We would like to watch less volume and more quality Television but that involves wading through a bevvy of meh to get to the good stuff. Sometimes we find gems which, for one reason or another, we don't (or haven't yet) watched another episode of.

P1 is here.

Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy, 2021, CNN - download

If you have seen my IG feed, you know I love food. And despite what I usually say ("I love eating"), no it's more about a love of food and all its glory. I was raised in a state of food phobia (i.e. a picky eater) and barely ate anything outside of my usual North American fast-food fare, or meat & potatoes. Once I was out of my home town, and with Marmy's sense of cooking at hand, I learned to love different food choices. And it continues, with almost new foods entering my radar almost every day.

One of my formative food experiences was Stanley Tucci's Big Night (1996, Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci) about two Italian brothers in New Jersey having one big night of food celebration at their little Italian resto. This was still in my early exposure years, so not everything looked delicious to me, but the approach, the zeal, the absolute love of the making and eating of the food embedded itself in me.

Apparently, Tucci never left his love for food behind (not sure how he stays so fucking skinny; how do YOU do it Kent?) and this show came up on my IG radar recently. He travels around Italy, visiting all of the major regions of the country, sampling the fare they are known for, visiting farmers, cooks, restaurateurs, and chefs. We have only watched a couple of episodes so far, because it makes me so very very hungry. I have already had to dive back into making "rustic" homemade pasta and putting together a quick cacio e pepe.

The amusing thing about food-travel TV is that every dish, every chef's specialty is the "best in the country". So, watching sincere, and sometimes lightly forced, "OMG, that is incredible!" reactions is fun. The first few episodes cover some American standard fares "of the moment" such as the aforementioned cacio e pepe, carbonara, pizza (Naples, with knives and fork?), tagliatelle bolognese, etc.

But its not just about cooking and eating, as he covers some food history (e.g. the Prosciuttopoli scandal), how different foods arose in some regions, the relationship locals have with the signature foods, and we. of course, get to see how absolutely grand travelling Italy with a nice budget is.

Dark Winds, 2022, AMC+ - download

Native American, or indigenous, culture is rising in exposure of late. I wonder how my new Director of Indigenous Affairs would see this exposure of his people's culture through the colonist's eyes. One of my favourite indigenous actors is Zahn McClarnon, who we got to know as the irascible tribal police chief in Longmire. But his character was one of those, the more you know about him, the more you admire. So, it's not surprising that he was chosen to play Joe Leaphorn from the Tony Hillerman crime series, about two Navajo Tribal Policeman working the usual murder-crime mysteries, while being steeped in American Indian culture. There have been a few adaptations prior to this series, but I was not familiar with them; I was here purely for McClarnon.

Only one episode in, we have met Leaphorn as he begins investigating the murder of a teenage girl and an old man who claimed to be cursed after he saw a helicopter used in an armoured car robbery fly over. The wise woman the teenager was working with is traumatized, but alive. As he begins to dig into what is going on, the idea of Navajo witchcraft comes up, which intertwines in a few other sub-plots. And his new Deputy shows up, Jim Chee, who is in fact an undercover FBI agent tasked with looking for the robbers. 

Set in the 70s, this feels it will be typically grim, full of suspicion and anger against colonials and men like Leaphorn who appear to be working for the white man, at odds with their people. This is "pre-woke" but I hope they don't use "period authenticity" in order to just have people be even more shittier to each other, no matter what side they are on.

Ms Marvel, 2022, Disney+ 

This show, and pun entirely intended, is a marvel. As the Internet of Old White Guys buzzes about how they cannot relate to a show about a teenage Muslim Pakistani-American, I just revel in watching something that is made with such vigor, such sincerity. Every episode, I am glad I am seeing the gradations of their Muslim Pakistani-American community, that we can finally step outside the stereotypes of how pop culture depicts the non-whites that make up the tapestry of North American life.

But its also a superhero story, where in a young girl finds a bracelet (bangle) that provides her with weird, loosely controllable light-based-energy, with which she can smash things, catch people and generally do what the Green Lanterns do with their rings.

I also enjoy that the main character did not have to be sexified up. She is a cute, vibrant teenage girl that is allowed to be just that. We don't have a 24 year old CW model playing the role, and very little about the show is even going to acknowledge that side of pop culture. Maybe that is why the Internet of Old White Guys (older than 20) are whining, in that they cannot get their creep factor on.

And the production! Oh, the colours and the stylistic choices! The music and balance between her doing super hero things, and just navigating her family, lifestyle and community! While I find the actual story-story somewhat lacking, all the things in between are perfectly setup.