Joint Review

The Hungry Hedonist's Stony Food Reviews

2011-10-02T17:53:00.001-07:00

Late in the spring, some friends of mine went to this Barbecue spot in L.A.’s fashion district. We were toasted and I can’t remember the name but it was bomb; this is a spicy pulled pork sammich and seasoned fries.

These are some spicy barbecue wings with bleu cheese; bomb.

This is the wreckage and a Coachella wrist band with no v-chip in it that we never got to use; don’t ask.

In June I went to Portland with some other friends; Voodoo donuts has like 3 locations throughout the city and they are all cracking all the time… here’s why

Yeah, that’s Cap’n Crunch on one frosted donut, frosting pentagram on a devil’s food donut, peanut butter and Oreo on another (they call that the ODB) and the one in my hand with the bite taken out is the maple bar with a strip of bacon on it. Yeah.

And Sunday mornings after ragers, we hit up Papi’s Tacos in Riverside. Newly reopened off Chicago and University, primo tacos and burritos with fresh cooked green onions and fixins on the regular; hit up Papi’s for bomb ass Mexican hangover cures.

I am actually surprised there’s not more documentation of my culinary adventures over the last few months so we’ll stop there for now but tune in next time for more adventures of the Hungry hedonist!

Return to Red Hot Kitchen

2011-08-22T21:45:00.000-07:00

Douglass & University, Riverside CA is the address for this place. I told you once and I'ma tell you again hit this place up.

This place now serves burgers with both their short rib and bul-go-gi beef, still with your choice of regular or sweet potato fries. Pretty hearty.

Teriyaki bowl has your choice of meat with fixin's such as pineapple slices and onions.

The pulled pork sandwich is with Korean BBQ'd spicy pork and pretty damn mindblowing. Same combo as the burger; don't miss out.

Tacos, nachos, burritos all have more or less the same combo of your choice of meat, salad fixin's, onion, pineapple slices and Sushi restaurant style sauces but damn if it's not a winning combination.

The fish plate was a nice blend of salad, rice and a well fried fillet with a Korean fusion style tartar sauce for the fish.

I also have been getting the jalapeno and mushroom bombs which is hollowed mushrooms or jalapenos with cream cheese, green onions and other fixin's for a rich appetizer. The Hawaiian bread roll sliders have your choice of meat and too sweet to beat, but not quite as filling as some favorites like the chimichanga and pulled pork sandwich.

I dug the flavor of and especially the sauce that accompanied the kim-chi quesadilla but I couldn't take the texture of that much kim-chi even though the flavor was bomb. That's just me though, I can't say it wasn't bomb but just not for me.

I had some seafood tacos there the other day that were bomb if a little hard to keep together. Chefs here are always fusing American and Mexican cuisine with their special So Cal blend of Korean Barbecue in simple ways for new specials and I dig trying the new dishes up on the marker board each time I come in. I always taste something tangy and leave satisfied I'll say that.

-T

Yo Gabba Gabba iiiiiiiiiiis AWESOME!

2011-06-29T22:35:00.000-07:00

Being the only mother contributing to the Joint Review, I feel it appropriate to handle the "family living" type posts. I also deem it appropriate, if not necessary, to formally introduce you to Yo Gabba Gabba, a godsend to the world of modern children's entertainment. Film and Television are entertainment cornerstones in America and while many vilify the industries and our younger generation's "addiction" to such media, I personally cannot deny my daughter the glory that is this show.

The first time I saw Yo Gabba Gabba, all stoney and hungover, I couldn't get over the phallic, ribbed-for-her-pleasure, one eyed monster or the insanely enthusiastic black guy in an orange raver jump suit and furry hat. But still, I was captivated and I have thoroughly explored the show since this experience. It turns out the black guy is actually DJ Lance Rock (Lance Robertson of the LA indie band The Raymakers) and the one eyed monster is actually a creature named Muno and he's just tall and friendly. DJ Lance casually strolls in at the start of every episode with his boombox, a magic boombox you might say, as it is filled with vast lands and creatures that come to life with the utterance of the words "Yo Gabba Gabba". Muno is joined by four others in Gabba Land; Foofa, who is pink, happy and the maternal figure of the group, Broby, the little green one and most likely an immigrant, Toodee, a fun loving cat-dragon and Plex, a fucking magic robot. The shenanigans of this cast are accompanied by a plethora of colorful and imaginative animated and live-action segments including Biz's Beat of the day (in which Biz Markie teaches the audience how to beatbox), Mark's Magic Pictures (Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo draws pictures that come to life) and Super Martian Robot Girl (a comic book style superhero cartoon drawn by artists from Space Ghost Coast to Coast and the Superman animated series). If that's not enough to get you interested, you're probably retarded.

The creators of the show, Christian Jacobs (of the Aquabats) and Scott Schultz have taken the quirkiness of Pee Wee's Playhouse and all of the educational and moral ground of shows like Sesame Street and blended them with modern music and just plain awesome to create a children's show that I can be proud to show my daughter and be excited myself to watch.

I leave you with some of my personal favorite musical performances from the Super Music Friends Show segment, as well as a bonus video of Mos Def as Super Mr. Superhero... Enjoy!

Devo- Watch Us Work It

The Roots- Lovely Love My Family

I'm From Barcelona- Just Because It's Different Doesn't Mean It's Scary

Why haven't you been to Red Hot Kitchen yet? -Restaurant Review

2011-04-26T09:18:00.001-07:00

Sweet potato fries, regular fries, Korean BBQ burger, deep fried bacon cheeseburger

This is two burger combo meals; each of them is 6 bucks.

Red Hot Kitchen is a pretty new Korean Mexican American fusion restaurant in downtown Riverside at 1995 University Avenue, Riverside CA. It is awesome.

1 spicy pork taco, 1 beef bul-gogi taco, 1 kalbi beef taco. 2.45 each, 2 each on Saturdays.

a better shot at a Korean BBQ burger with sweet potato fries.

This place does Mexican and American favorites but with a Korean twist. The BBQ burger is a standard awesome cheeseburger except for the fact that the meat is sweet Korean BBQ. The tacos have large helpings of savory Korean BBQ meat in them as well as a zesty and unique blend of seasoning and flavor. I find the prices and the wait reasonable.

My roommate was understandably intimidated by her short rib chimichanga.

The chimichanga has been the most noteworthy item I have tried yet: egg roll style tortilla fried around it, bomb Korean meat of your choice heartily added, Korean style fried rice inside as well as spicy mayo and other sauces typically associated with sushi in addition to cheese sprinkled on the 4 massive slices of chimichanga you get with the meal.

The deep fried bacon cheeseburger is noteworthy as well, not only in its rich flavor but the burger stays together despite its size and elaborate nature. It's crispy on the outside with sweet juicy onions easily pulled and enjoyed from the inside-yum.

I have yet to try the kim-chi quesadillas, the Hawaiian bread sliders, or the burritos but you damn well better believe I will as soon as possible. This place is open til 9, let me know if you go but either way: enjoy.

I'll leave you with one more shot of a spicy pork chimichanga in all its food-porn glory.

so far this place has a rating of 4.75 of 5 joints from me. Only points off for not making sampler box available at all times.

-T

Breaking News: Cravers of Buffalo Wings and Freedom descend upon soon to be opened Buffalo Wild Wings

2011-03-20T16:40:00.000-07:00

Camping has already begun at the new Buffalo Wild Wings in Moreno Valley, California.

The settlements have been confirmed by our people on the ground as having extended onto the other side of the neighboring Sports Authority premises, traversing an area referred to by Al Jazeera correspondents as the "Buffalo Strip".

Excited campers and prospective nugget munchers play catch in the Spring time wonderland that is the Day Street business plaza.

Nothing seems to quite bring Americans together like the possibility of free fried chicken coupled with icy beer pitchers and sporting events.

Presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty, when asked about the stirring events taking place in Moreno Valley, responded " Whether you're left wing, or right wing, we can all enjoy some wild wings."

The excitement is certainly palpable here at Wing Central (patent pending), as wing enthusiasts gather from all around. This reporter counts about 90 wingnuts in line so far. Many campers have EZ-ups, tents, as well as sleeping bags. Friends pay each other to go on Chic-Fil-A runs during the wait. Several middle aged men have been disappointed to find that Sports Authority is not having an epic sale. Sports authority is rescinding their one day return policy for one day in anticipation of scamming wing campers who want to use the equipment simply for the wing campout only to bring materials back the next day, with unmentioned buffalo sauce stains.

Surprisingly, people have not been using power outlets provided by both BWW and Sports Authority despite their proximity and availability.

"You know, we're really enjoying just kind of roughing it, getting away from it all, and camping out in nature with other members of the community you know?" said local mother Susan Enzi before gently scolding her child for spilling her Starbucks.

Eventually I asked Mrs. Enzi what the direct incentive for being first in line was. She explained to me that the first hundred customers that entered the hallowed doors at 11 AM on Monday, March 21st would receive 52 '6 wing' vouchers, representative of a free order of 6 wings for every week of the subsequent year for the voucher recipients.

After doing some quick math, I found myself muttering "Damn, it's a recession." as I got the hell out of there to avoid mace sprays from state troopers who were almost certainly on their way for purposes of crowd control.

Stay tuned, the Joint Review will be on the pulse of this breaking news. Specifically we expect some 'chicken hawks' to be swooping for the spots of squeamish campers who may or may not disembark on their wing camping journey if expected levels of rain in the Mo Val region come into fruition.

-T

Review- Crisis: Behind A Presidential Commitment (documentary)

2011-02-22T16:27:00.000-08:00

Robert Drew, D.A. Pennebaker and others produced this film about when Vivian Malone and James Hood were admitted to the University of Alabama as the University's first African-American students ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stand_in_the_Schoolhouse_Door ).

Occurring in 1963, this documentary is a really worthwhile document because it chronicles firsthand what Alabama Governor George Wallace, as well as President Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy, did during this crisis. There was a film crew with each Kennedy, Wallace and RFK's Deputy Nicholas Katzenbach and the crew was allowed access to most meetings surrounding the events.

The product is that rare instance where a document is produced that provides incontravertible evidence that there indeed have been people in our modern history who have fought on the side of justice for all the world to see.

This film is not only entertaining to politicos like me but I think a great value to anyone who wants to see victories of the civil rights movement up close and personal..

You see the first two African-American students who go to the University of Alabama, you see the Kennedy's discussing the best way to handle this, and probably most importantly you see the actual confrontation between Nicholas Katzenbach and Governor Wallace, providing the political class a little taste of what todays politicians deal with every day: making news live while the whole world watches.

It's truly awesome and amazing to see the nuts and bolts of on instance where people in power pull strings to make sure what's just is what occurs.

Stylistically, the film reminds me of other Pennebaker work like War Room, Primary and Don't Look Back and they are similar in their candor, in their almost awkward but ultimately cinematic silences with the clickety clack of typewriters and 60s style stationery being used by people in government offices. You get moments of candor and interesting discussions on the part of Wallace and Kennedy and you get vignettes of two very different men. RFK and Katzenbach seem most aware that they are taking part in history; Malone and Hood are remarkably beautiful young people and one can't help but root for all of their dreams as you watch the hour long film.

It's one of the few documentaries I've seen that to me moves like a film, you have heroes, victims, antagonists, and political twists in black and white (no pun intended) all in less than an hour.

We hear a lot about the Kennedy's from our mainstream media, but there are so few documents of them at their best in the 60s in such an uncut and substantial form like this; anyone with the slightest interest in the Civil Rights struggle in this country, the Kennedys, the presidency or politics should check this out.

I give it 5 of 5 stars.

-T

Review: Casino Jack (film)

2011-01-17T16:06:00.000-08:00

Casino Jack
directed by George Hickenlooper
starring Kevin Spacey, Barry Pepper, Jon Lovitz

This film was released in certain theaters late last year (2010).

This movie impressed me in that it used Kevin Spacey's comedy and character acting muscles in all of the most amusing ways. Spacey takes on ticks and phrases and delivers pompous diatribes at the drop of a hat in a delicious manner. The film is called Casino Jack because it primarily deals with Abramoff's lobbying operations bilking Native American tribes of millions of dollars over years.

If the West Wing is one of those fictional programs that can deliver a romanticized notion of government if just for a second, Casino Jack is the exact opposite- arriving at a time when class warfare and the disparity between the rich in America is more noticeable than ever, this film has a darkly humorous relevance. The light manner in which lobbyists and important congressmen talk about the fates of millions in their golf game cocktail conversations is cynical brilliance. The story largely hinges on Jack Abramoff's exploitative dealings intertwined with his substantial connections to high level congresspeople.

That said, the exploitative scheme and the story that ensues as a result of Jack Aramoff and his partner, one-time Tom DeLay chief of staff Mike Scanlon executing it is all pretty astounding. The ironically kitschy cool jazz and harmony soundtrack complements the whole shiny on the outside, evil on the inside motif the film holds together and completes the over-all aesthetically pleasing delivery of this most cynically clever of stories.

I appreciate that the film maker attempts to communicate a possible philosophy behind Abramoff's thoughts and actions especially in comparison to that of Scanlon's- Abramoff, in the film, was interested in helping someone besides rich white men, was interested in diversifying his ventures and being respected in the faith community whereas the young Scanlon was ruthlessly enterprising but ultimately they are both committing the same crimes despite different self justifying philosophies in regards to it.

I've watched this film two or three timesnow and recommend it to anyone that digs politics or loves a great con-man story.

5 of 5 stars.

-T

TWODCAST 2

2010-12-06T15:49:00.000-08:00

http://snd.sc/dRqwtZ

To elaborate a bit: The Walking Dead podcast is by what ever Joint Review members are together to record after an episode airs. The podcast itself is discussion of the television show predominately with people who have read most if not all of the comic book installments as well.

-T and Joint Review staff

TWODCAST

2010-11-28T16:22:00.000-08:00

Starting this week there will be Podcasts from Joint Review staff with discussion of the previous week's episode of AMC's The Walking Dead. This week's Podcast is regarding TWD episode 4.

Many of us at the Joint Review have been huge fans of the comic book for a long time. This podcast is a natural outgrowth of our fandom and tendency to discuss the art we digest. As I add installments, there will be more specific credits as to contributors.

For now, enjoy.

http://snd.sc/gIy8Jx

-Tanjint and Joint Review Staff

Review: Le Tigre's debut album

2010-10-09T21:41:00.000-07:00

I finally realized this band is the awesome. I was running around L.A. with my good friend and he was playing this album on the Ipod and the punk attitude drenched catchy hooks of this record were stuck in my head. The political edge to this record is subtly woven into the classic pop high energy feel of this record. It's thought provoking but it's effective and often dancy accessible melodic music. There are some slower sections like "dude yr so crazy" or "Les and Ray" but even those songs have a powerful momentum. The content of the songs and their stories are at once rebellious but upbeat. It feels more polished and somewhat less blatantly political than Bikini Kill so it makes sense as a product of 1999- an era where artists were aware that the audience was aware of their agenda and was more focused on using this great new recording equipment to make an exceptionally enjoyable record. I have no complaints about this album except that I wish it was longer....The band blends 90s grunge, 80s punk, and trip hop and hip hop beats and effects for a fantastically spunky and catchy blend of high energy music that I find soundtracks a good time pretty well.

Favorites are "Deceptacon", a brutal and deliciously catchy and melodic opener, and "My Metrocard" which is a fun New York city themed upbeat rocker on a classic descending progression.

If the record was just politically interesting, it'd be worth listening to. If it was just catchy and melodic as it is it'd be worth listening to. If the band was just as muscular and rhythmic as it is, it'd be worth listening to. However, it is all of those things so it is indeed worth listening to a lot.

4.9/5 joints

-T

Hack and Slash Dreamscape

2010-09-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

Today I will review the dream I just had. The dream was a cross between anime and reality and was based on all those samurai hack and slash anime features. As with most dreams it started off in Tarantino fashion, which would be the middle of the film or near end, but I still knew all the information that led up to said point.
There, I bobbed in a dark underground water source waiting and watching the only staircase that led down from the only door set in the center of and high up on a cliff. My mission: rescue and then destroy. I was a samurai for hire, a Ronin, I was here to rescue a young girl, by the name of kimonos, from the clutches of an evil gangster ((name unknown)). And down she came accompanied by two old witches, twins by the looks of them. They were on either side of the young girl leading her to the water for whatever reason. This was my chance I realized! So under the water I dived and swam right up to the landing and hid myself behind a large water soaked wooden column. As they fast approached my position I readied my katana, a quick slice slit both of their throats leaving the girl unharmed. As she looked at me I noticed her blue hair and there was a sudden change in environment to a completely drawn world of the anime! She was the typical anime girl: useless, yelling, and with blue hair. I grabbed her wrist and quickly ran up the steps, my job was not yet complete.
As I burst through the door I was met by not a hostile crowd of guards, but a single man with a disgusting smile. He looked like a cross between a soprano and Gary Oldman in The Professional, with the same wicked grin.
We immediately cut scene to the front yard and had some banter, the kind of uncomfortable banter two drunks, who hate each other, have at a bar and the air itself waits for the hat to drop. It was then I noticed my katana was missing! He gave another grotesque smile and handed the sword to me covered in something of a blanket shammy-type thing, like a goddamn ShamWow. This mother fucker put a sham wow on my sword. That was it, the charade ended, I drew and cut! And to my displeasure the world snapped back into a real world look and my blade was ineffective! But the nasty slice did leave quite a cut and I became very frustrated and excited by this. He tried to counter with a scimitar of his own but I was too fast parrying his blade and slashing again and again. His neck was beginning to take on a hamburger like look, quite stylish, yet still I slashed and hacked like I was pruning some evil hedges in the front yard. Finally as little bits of his neck were being spewed about he came in low, too fast too reckless I would say from loss of blood but loss of neck is more realistic since there was now bone showing from his hamburger neck, I countered by slashing my blade across his, low and twisting it up and up I drove it right into the spot between his chin and what was left of his neck. I felt resistance, I saw blood, and most of all the comical look on this beaten man’s face was priceless! I gave another great shove and that was it, brain matter burst through the now gaping hole in the back of his head.
It was then I looked down at my blade, twas not mine!! I let out a loud feral roar in protest and looked this imposter over, it wasn’t even sharp! I ran to the door and burst through. One word echoed through my mind down through my heart and into my sword hand, “vitals“. I took off at a run and at one point it was like running out of reality into an anime once more. The next door led me to a room filled with mercenaries, and at the back, standing taller than the rest, was the fat boomerang guy from the first episode of Trigun. I burst into movement and turning my blade at a backwards angle, to the flat side, began to just pluck out jugular veins until I reached the fat man. I threw this imposter blade at him and it stuck, though he seemed not to notice and then I twisted grabbed his wrist and my blade, and as it came free I spun and plunged it into his heart. Then… then my chums, I woke up and strode over to the computer and wrote because an awesome dream like this from a deranged mind like mine comes only every so often.
All and all I give this dream four hacks out of five and rate it’s viewing TV-MA for strong violence and confusing plot.

"Whatchall know 'bout that Obama app?": Review of the Organizing For America iPhone Application

2010-09-13T19:47:00.000-07:00

So,

To the amusement of many of my friends, I finally acquired an iPhone in the last month after years of being staunchly against such extravagances. Everyone said as I found the "apps" that applied to the stuff that I liked to do, I would be hooked. I was skeptical until I saw advertised to me on Huffingtonpost.com, the Organizing for America application designed to help Democrats get out the Vote this election season. I was excited; Organizing for America is the political action committee that Barack Obama started so it's obviously a proven organization and I expected this app to actually have some kind of practical help to me in spreading the word about why and how we need to vote this season.

However, I would come to find that like the President himself, this Organizing for America app is disappointing if well intentioned. First I installed the free download. I started the app up on my Iphone and it asked me to log into either my account for BarackObama.com or facebook. Firstly, why am I logging in again? I just logged into this app; you obviously have access to my Itunes account info, why do I have to re-register? I haven't logged into BarackObama.com since 2008....so I don't remember that info. I hit "facebook" and try to log in and the program lagged for like 7 minutes before telling me 'error-try again later'. I go to the "call congress" function of the app and it only identified my senators, not my congressperson which made me feel kinda small and unvalued. I hit the 'go canvass!' function of the app and then it GPS' my location and puts all these markers on people and it does not make it clear whether these are other registered Democrats that I should be reminding to vote or if these are other people connected on this app but all of the sudden I have their name and address....

See people, this is why the Democrats are always in a one down position. The Democrats are still like a rag tag bunch of kids who can't get their shit together; we can only root for the under dog for so long before we expect this under dog to something with the power we've helped it amass.
I have been registered absentee and registered Democrat since I was 18 years old and I have never gotten my absentee ballot during the primaries. I always get the November ballot, but never the primary. Every Republican I know gets their primary ballots on the first damn day possible but some how my shit never comes on time or at all.

Get me my damn ballot on time, make your canvassing app user friendly and fine tuned, fund Jerry Brown so he can battle this Whitman character half decently. At least get him some young ethnic to spruce up his website! It's supposed to the Democratic party, right? A youthful diverse group of people with leadership and vision to move this nation towards progress?

Okay, I'm still trying with this app, now it's force-quitting me out of the program like it knows I'm hating on it. If you guys wanna canvass this year, just tell your other homies on facebook or something to go vote this November cause this BarackObama.com Organizing for America app sucks.

1.5 Joints of out of 5 Joints. It gets what it gets because it's a benign concept and looked kinda cool and sleek before I realized it doesn't help me much.

-T

Music Suggestion

2010-09-09T14:41:00.001-07:00

You should listen to:

Hospice by The Antlers.

Photo Review

2010-08-31T12:55:00.000-07:00

This is awesome.

Let Bartlet Be Bartlet: Review of The West Wing

2010-08-17T13:13:00.000-07:00

“Let Bartlet be Bartlet”

The West Wing, to me, is an artistic meditation on the transition of the prominent progressives in America from whites who believe that a diverse group of Americans should be participating in governing to an actual diverse group of Americans that wants to participate in governing. We see Josiah Bartlet, the last Kennedy-style New England progressive in America, administering over the presidency that Kennedy never got to finish. The Presidency that Clinton curbed with centrist moderation and scandal-stained. The Presidency of a true economic academic, the likes of which the intellectual-hating American people would never actually elect. The Presidency, the administration we’d see if all political operatives were actually adherents to their chosen philosophies. Ultimately, we see this mythic yet familiar President pass the reins to Matt Santos, the Obama before there was an Obama. The first minority President; a bold progressive from a truly working class background who considers himself post-partisan and post-ethnic.

It’s interesting to see the shifting views on the effectiveness and actual day to day effects of a Presidential administration on the lives of the American people and other citizens of the world. Some episodes, it feels that every pen stroke of everyone in the White house is crushing or saving lives and in some episodes it feels that those in the beltway live in an impregnable bubble that has nothing to do with everyday lives. This is reflective of politics in real life in my view and it’s interesting how we go from Barlet’s second year full of staff that believe anything is possible and that it’s time to take the gloves off to pass a truly populist and progressive agenda to 6 years later on the Santos campaign where Candidate Santos discusses the same messes of healthcare and education that we see in real life today and how they are still prevalent even during the end of the idealized Bartlet administration. Despite Herculean effort, it’s hard to get anything done through extensive bureaucratic processes.

I was extremely touched by the last opening scene to the West Wing; depicting Bartlet looking out wistfully at the sunrise from the Presidential bedroom, eyes full of disappointment and intensity. His wife comes from behind him, takes his hand and says, “You did a lot of good, honey.” He looks back with pleading eyes, unconvinced. She squeezes his hand and repeats “You did a lot of good.” I think the presidency of the U.S. is something that though it gets a lot of attention every 4 years, is not understood or related to on a human level. West Wing is remarkable in that it bottles and packages that, even a simplified idealized version of that, into 42 minute increments ready for mass consumption

Many have criticized the West Wing as overly leftist, overly idyllic, but to me it never hides it fictional premises: that politicians, though flawed, are basically doing their best to govern according to their principles. The show essentially has the same history as the real world up until Nixon at which point The West Wing’s fictional administrations take over. To me this is of great significance. In The West Wing, the public seems to be more engaged in politics; more trusting of their administrators and this I believe, is largely because Nixon never happened and that’s what allows the premise of operatives who are more likely to break laws to save lives then they are to smear the other party. The show does depict rich Republicans that would like to cut welfare benefits and beef up military spending but not because it means more money for their buddies at Halliburton but because they really do have manifest destiny. They really do fear the Arabs. The show depicts Democrats who want to tax the rich and socialize medicine but not because they are socialist plotters or are pandering to a base but because they really do believe it will help people and they really do think it would be more effective to have everyone on Medicare. The politicians and operatives in the West Wing are flawed as anyone but they really are about their principles and that’s the brilliant fictional premise that serves as an engine for the show. Republicans are really small government conservatives who’d like to give the American people their tax money back. Dems are really progressives who want to culminate society’s efforts into something brighter and better for tomorrow.

The show’s creator Aaron Sorkin left after 4 seasons for a slew of reasons. He wrote over 80 of the less than 90 episodes of the first 4 seasons and it really does play like one large film or novel. The rest of the series, written by assorted writers that had worked on the first 4 seasons as well as some new blood(even the cast began to write and direct episodes towards the end and it wasn’t a failed experiment) feels like the continued adventures of with some episodes that are done-in-one stories and some seasons having larger arcs building to a final election cycle in the last two seasons. It’s something like the slew of writers that have written Daredevil comics since Frank Miller-no one will ever be that master but it doesn’t mean the serial can’t be damn good and very challenging to the audience and critics still. Among my favorite moments are Sorkin’s final episode where the 25th amendment is invoked and the imperial presidency, is for a moment at least, threatened; when a Latino staffer has to leave a Republican campaign because his morality is challenged when he hears his grandma teaching his nieces the word “Santos” , the name of the first major presidential candidate of Latino descent in the show’s universe, and my favorite when the morose, sad sacked but brilliant White House communications director Toby Ziegler with just enough help from difficult congress people and the hot tempered Deputy Chief of Staff more or less save social security for generations to come- all within one masterfully executed and satisfying 42 minute installment. Also incredibly worth mentioning is the rotating staff mirroring political turn over during administrations as different brilliant actors/political operatives keep the audience starry eyed regarding legislative battles and moral grandstands for the nature of America’s soul.

Ultimately, the West Wing speaks to me so much because it doesn’t talk about politics in the cynical ‘nothing matters’ ways that I hear most people discuss politics with. It, in my view, is honest that what the characters in this setting do affects lives, where our money goes and many factors regarding our day to day lives. I was first exposed to “The West Wing” in my honors Government class in high school and now that I’ve seen the whole show, I understand more than ever why so many people view it as a valuable educational tool: it explains much of the legislative process and logistics of politics while packaging it into 42 minute drama episodes that anyone that likes dialogue and thinking while being entertained can follow along with. To me, it’s a positive sigil for positive governmental participation and to be a little more indulgent a sigil for progressive success. The West Wing’s run ended in 2006 just as Democrats took back congress and you can look no further than Wikipedia to find articles from 2008 discussing the uncanny similarities between the final campaign depicted in the series and the 2008 Presidential election.

I cried a little when I watched the final episode, not just because I would never again get to watch dreamy Rob Lowe go on about fealty in a new story, or to see Leo McGarry and the President stumping to convince us why “Bartlet for America” is the right choice, but because outside of rewatching this series I don’t know that I’ll ever see politicians acting according to their principles and not their polls and their pocketbooks again.

9.5 out of 10 Joints. I really find little flaw in how the series was executed entirely but can’t help but be very curious as to how it would have turned out had Aaron Sorkin never left and had actor John Spencer survived the duration of the series.

What time is it?!

2010-08-13T13:45:00.000-07:00

Yes it is! I personally love this show, so thank you to its creator Pendleton Ward. To me it's up there with some of the great shows that came before it like Rocko's Modern Life, Ren & Stimpy, Dexter's Laboratory, The Misadventures of Flapjack, Chowder, AHH! Real Monsters!, The Angry Beavers and so many more great shows that I sadly didn't feel like listing.

I move on to my point: this show is a nice mix of random child-like silliness and adult humor. The timing of its jokes and the subtle mature underlinings it makes are pure fun and make the show enjoyable for all ages. It even has good life lessons and teaches you them in a very fun and entertaining way without being too cute or corny. All the animation is spot on; bright and colorful creatures and charters that are simple and fun. They use detail like Ren & Stimpy and Rocko's Modern Life to express the nastiness and drama of a scene which I've always enjoyed. The stories are simple and fast paced to keep up with the kids of tomorrow with their short attention spans. All the voice acting is wonderful and fun, they all work well for the charters they are playing, they even do a few musical moments that just add even more to the silliness. The tag line "what time is it?" has everyone getting in on the fun. You can be just about anywhere and yell that and someone will yell back "adventure time!" So you can easily find other fans. over all its a show that makes you feel like someone spiked your Kool-Aid and dropped you into twisted game of Candyland. I recommend this to all, and this is coming from a guy who only watches tv mostly for cartoons. It's nice to know that kids still get to watch a good cartoon and not so much of the other live drama "B.S." that is on today's tv channels. So stay righteous! And be a true adventurer and watch yourself a episode or two. They will be, in the words of Fin: “Elemental!”or “Mathematical! Rhombus!” and can't forget “Algebraic!” So what time is it!?

[Edited for grammar by ♥Santee]

Santee's Wiggy's Thoughts on Shark Jumping Vol. 1

2010-06-28T02:42:00.001-07:00

I used to love the show Weeds, and I remember reading about it when it came out. Jenji Kohan, the show's creator, had been doing research in California's Inland Empire suburbs for a show about marijuana and the underbelly of neighborhoods that presented themselves as pristine. I thought playing on this contrast, this disconnect, would be brilliant. And for a while it was: the show had a suburban but surreal feel that effectively mimicked a cartoon version of neighborhoods that had grown familiar me. Agrestic felt like Heritage in Fontana. The community college looked just like Rancho Cucamonga's Chaffey College.

The street smarts were questionable, but it felt like the show's creators had interviewed my buddies and ran with it. The show was good when it kept it light and focused on misadventures in weed dealing with the local youth, other PTA moms, wannabe Gs and all the other trappings of suburbia. Add a stoner uncle and his lawyer friend with some other typical dramedy and some snappy writing and voilà: a decent show for a season and a half. More than decent; one of my favorites.

(Said lawyer friend)

In the second season someone must have complained that there weren't enough guns and action, because all of the sudden the main character is dating a DEA agent, and the show became filled with guns and gangsters and other common things that can be found on CSI, The Wire or any other number of cop dramas or procedurals or action movies from the late 90s.

(Said DEA agent)

Then they go on to move the cast to doper areas like San Diego and Mexico or whatever....anyone can do some high stakes shit in Mexico; peoples is always dying, doing crime and drugs over there.[This sentence is PERFECT. ♥S]

Anyone can do cool things in San Diego, that city is a major cultural center.

What made Weeds tight in the beginning is that it was doing original, and interesting things with a "nothing ass" area like the suburbs of the I.E. It took suburban "bored drug-abuser" stereotype and made it a hit show that was funny in a way that worked, with Kevin Nealon!

I haven't even watched it since they moved to San Diego. I didn't ditch the show, the show ditched me.

Since jumping the shark will be measured out of 5 stars, I hereby give Weeds 5. I mean, who the fuck jumps the shark in the second season? Pff...oh yeah, Heroes. And they're next in: "Wiggy's Thoughts on Shark Jumping."

-T

[Edited for grammar and coherence by ♥Santee]

Wiggy's thoughts on shark jumpers vol.1

2010-06-24T23:08:00.000-07:00

I used to love the show Weeds. I remember reading about it when it came out; Jenji Kohan, the show's creator, had been doing research in California's Inland Empire suburbs for a show about marijuana and the underbelly of neighborhood's that presented themselves as pristine. I thought playing on this contrast, this disconnect, would be brilliant. And for a while it was... the show had a suburban but surreal feel that effectively mimicked a cartoony version of neighborhoods I grew familiar with. Agrestic felt like Heritage in Fontana. The community college looked just like Rancho Cucamonga's Chaffey College.

The street smarts were questionable, but it did feel like this show's creator's interviewed my buddies and ran with it. The show was good when it kept it light and focused on misadventures in weed dealing with the local youth, other PTA moms, wannabe Gs and all the other trappings of suburbia. Add a stoner uncle and his lawyer friend with some other typical dramedy and some snappy writing, voila...decent show for a season and a half. More than decent; one of my favorites.

The second season, someone must have said there wasn't enough guns and action because all of the sudden the main character is dating DEA agent and the show for the next years becomes guns and gangsters and other regular ass shit you can see on CSI or The Wire or any other number of cop dramas or procedurals or action movies from the late 90s you can think of.

Then they go on to move the cast to doper areas like San Diego and Mexico or whatever....anyone can do some high stakes shit in Mexico; peoples is always dying, doing crime and drugs over there.

Anyone can do dope shit in Sam Diego, that shit is a major cultural center.

What made Weeds tight for 5 minutes, is that it was doing original interesting things with a nothing ass area like the suburbs of the I.E. It took what most kids get so bored at that they're doing copious drugs and made it a hit show and was funny in a way that worked with Kevin Nealon!!!

I haven't even watched it since they moved to San Diego; I didn't ditch the show. The show ditched me.

If jumping the shark could be measured out of 5 joints, I give weeds 5. I mean, who the fuck jumps the shark in the second season? Pff...oh yeah, Heroes. And they're next in Wiggy's thoughts on shark jumping.

-T

Review of voter communication with Congress: POOR!!!

2010-06-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

Don't protest; there's a system in place for when you want to see the law act a certain way and if more people were aware of it we wouldn't need to protest. Contact your congressperson and give this democracy some lifeblood. Please, I feel the most important thing we can do right now is tell our congresspeople that B...P must NOT have a cap on their liability. They need to pay for every cent of the damage they have done and wages they have caused working Americans to lose. Contact your congresspeople at

house.gov- If you are in Riverside county, Ken Calvert is your rep. San Bernardino than it is Joe Baca. Otherwise, punch in your zip code.

senate.gov- hint, in CA, your Senators are Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. They are liberal ladies who will listen and hit you back! Let them know that we want to see corporations held responsible otherwise they will always do this kind of thing and there will be nothing beautiful to enjoy!

If you don't do this, I don't want to hear your armchair activist ass bitching about the oil spill. This is the mechanism for this kind of thing. If lawmakers don't think we are watching this issue and caring about it, they will do shady ass things under our noses! It's your job as an American to let them know you are watching so they will behave well! It's YOUR fault if congress is shitty, they reflect their constituents! Don't blame a system you didn't even try to contribute to! Only YOU and YOUR participation can make it better!

Dungeons and Dragons for a New Generation

2010-06-03T23:30:00.000-07:00

Its a whole new game; a phrase often used to describe the result of an increase in talent over the years in music, sports, etc. changing the face of the particular business. This, to my extreme displeasure, is NOT true for Wizards of the Coast's 4th edition of the popular fantasy role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons. As an avid AD&D (Advanced Dungeons and Dragons) player, I can remember a time when a keen intellect, sharp reasoning skills, and an imagination when in a tight spot where necessities. Now it seems, all that a player needs is the ability to function on the level of a six year old with down syndrome. Wizards of the Coast have perverted what was once a staple of nerdom into yet another marketing mishap.

As with all RPGs, one would start with creating a character. A good, fleshed out character should be realistic and have a lot of thought put into it. A good avatar is a character that mimics real life strengths, has individualistic characteristics and super sweet powers. More importantly, a good character should have weaknesses and draw backs. As anyone who has played a game with cheat codes knows, it's fun for awhile to be invulnerable and crush all of your enemies under your boot heels, but after a short period of bliss, it all becomes dry and completely challengeless. This is exactly what Wizards of the Coast have managed to do with D&D 4th ed. Playing a character in 4th ed. is akin to playing a character in God Mode. No draw backs, no weakness, no strategy, no fun. All the races have so many added benefits with nothing to counterbalance these traits, that anyone could pick up a character sheet and start playing. Granted, this is a plus in the way that it attracts new and more diverse players, it forces those who do have the intellect to out think man's best friend to sit there, head in hands, shaking in a boredom induced breakdown.

But character creation is not the only flaw in the newest edition of D&D, oh no, they have gone as far as changing game rules to allow for character death exceptions. One of the best things about classic D&D is that the rules are much like life. You have limits to your actions, you must sleep or suffer consequences, if you sustain too much damage YOU WILL DIE. But fear not my friend, for death is no longer a problem or damage for that matter, or anything else you might experience while adventuring in a realistic world. For now, there are so many power items and abilities that you might as well do away with caution and strategy all together.

All and all, I give Dungeons and Dragons 4th editions two middle fingers up. Go fuck yourselves Wizards of the Coast. I hope you trip and fall, you heartless bastards.

There's a Gay Day for most activites.

2010-05-27T22:33:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night is gay night at the rinks.
Here's my photo blog.

!

2010-03-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

i vote YES on greenberg.

t-t-t-teenage cokeheads

2010-03-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

a 90 minute biopic based on the book by cherie curry, set in 1975. it's 'bout how joan jett started out with the first american chick band, the runaways. these women opened up a six pack of "fuck you" to a man's world in rock n' roll and debauchery.
kristen stewart (joan jett) shed that teenage angst appeal she likes to present in every movie she's been in and was pretty bad-ass!
jailbait alert! it wasn't creepy seeing a young dakota fanning (cherie curry) act out of her age, even though she is and played a 15 year old front woman with massive sex appeal. good for you, dakota.
did you know alia shawkat was in this movie? she played the bassist! oh, little maeby funke.
anyway, i just wanted some of that lesbian action. wouldn't invest the time to see this movie again, so:

movie, i give you a 5 outta 10. neither awesome, nor poop-tastic. couldn't give it a joint review, because none was involved. i might've liked the movie a lot more if there was one present though..

Food Review: Easter Treats

2010-03-19T13:47:00.000-07:00

Every holiday major candy manufacturers release appropriately shaped and variations of their most popular candies. Of course for Easter we see rabbits and eggs (paying homage to the mutant bunny that laid the egg from which Christ arose after his crucifixion). It has come to my attention recently that all of my favorite candies are not only offered in a most awesomely festive shape, the egg, but they taste better in said form. I had always known that Reese's eggs were better than the cups, I never thought too much into it. Perhaps it's the different peanut butter to chocolate ratio, maybe they use a different peanut butter (it seems creamier to me), or maybe, and bear with me here, the pope blesses them on behalf of God himself. All I cared about before was the sheer deliciousness of the Reese's egg, all of that changed only days ago. I was fortunate enough to be given both a snickers egg and a milky way egg, to my surprise both eggs surpassed their respective bars in flavor ten-fold. What is this madness? Do these companies use better ingredients during the holidays to sell more? Does the egg shape itself hold some kind of culinary super power? Is it just me or do I smell a conspiracy? I decided to dig a little deeper into my mysterious findings. I travelled to the nearest Target and picked up the first egg shaped candy I could find; Trolli's sour gummies. They are traditionally sold in the form of worms, but let me tell you the egg is the way to go with these fun snacks. There was something about the concentration of gumminess and more evenly proportioned sourness that made me hate whoever decided to make the treats into worms in the first place. Could this phenomenon transcend the candy world? There's a new Hot Pocket on the market that is reminiscent of an egg.

Could it be that Hot Pocket has discovered the magic of egg shaped food items and has now bestowed upon us the perfect cheeseburger? Doubtful, but I bet my unborn child that they're better than a regular hot pocket. Bottom line, next time you're staring at aisles of food contemplating what will satisfy your munchies, take my advice and go for something egg shaped. I don't even want to know why it makes such a difference, I'm just going to blindly follow the egg based on the few amazing experiences I've had. I give egg shaped candy a hearty twelve out of twelve Apostles.

Music Reviews

2010-03-18T15:49:00.001-07:00

Put this on the wrong damn blog:
Stop me if I'm getting too fancy with my layouts.

First we have Gin Wigmore's "Holy Smoke" which came out recently (see: 2010). Imagine her as Duffy with a more dynamic voice. Slightly. Also like Duffy her voice begins to grate on me after too long. It's actually starting to annoy me just thinking about it. Good for a couple of listens, perhaps because some songs are actually pretty rockin'.

Look at her being all moody and shit, that's so 2003.

Now we have The Coral! With "Magic and Medicine." The Coral presents here a folksy rock with some 60's and blues influences.

They remind me of the Animals just a touch, but that might be a little too generous.

Still, for an album from 2003 they've got a sound I haven't heard from many contemporary bands.

Anyways its groovy shit kids, and speaking of kids, look at what the guitarists 5 year old painted after they gave it a handful of valium and acid. -->

Just kidding. It was shrooms.

Speaking of groovy bits, here's an album that hits all the right notes in all the right places. The late Ali Farka Toure with Ry Cooder, whose name rings a bell, but I can't place it right now. If anything has made me happy for colonialism its this album right here. Whatever historical events or happenings that led up to Toure picking up a guitar is fine by me. God damn, I don't even know what he's saying most of the time, but I know for damn sure that he's speaking to me. Clear stand out here is "Ai Du". I don't care what you have to do, but get your hands on a copy of this album.

Well, that's it for today Santee-fans, I haven't really been listening to anything new lately. Mostly just the Black Keys. Speaking of which look for my next review (they're more review-esque if anything) of Drummer, Patrick Carney's side-project. Guess what he plays? Nope, he plays bass.

Oh yeah, and have you HEARD Blakroc? That's shits ridiculously great, go listen to it now.

watching a couple of dicks..

2010-02-27T09:14:00.000-08:00

its taken me a little while, but i have finally dipped my toe into the blogosphere. i started a blog this week for a place to post my various political thoughts with other miscellaneous items in between (check it out here if you like). however, ive felt somewhat guilty this week as well, mainly because i have yet to post anything on the jointreview here. so to clear my conscious and to make my official debut on the jointreview, i have a little review for kevin smith's new film: Cop Out.

i've grown so accustomed, when watching action flicks, to not expect (intentionally) funny dialogue or decent plot development. let me tell you, "cop out" was a major exception to this rule of thumb. the film offers just as much of a comedy than it does action; i was expecting an above average buddy cop movie, on the same lines as "hot fuzz", but i found kevin smith to be far more effective than edgar wright when it comes to the genre of "buddy cop homage". it may be due to the fact that other influences like as "stray dog" and "butch cassidy and the sundance kid" shine through this film to make it pretty unique in its tribute. i give it 6.75 joints out of 7 joints. recommendation: smoke at the very least one jay before watching this very stoner-friendly movie:)

..til next time, matt

Review: Batman/Deathblow-After the Fire

2010-02-11T09:09:00.000-08:00

I had to have all of the Brian Azzarello Batman. Having more Lee Bermejo Batman material was nice incentive to pursue this book too but either way, I have just finished reading what is basically the prequel to the stellar "Lex Luthor: Man of Steel" and "Joker" series of graphic novels by the team of Azzarello and Bermejo.
The story was okay, but the art is the true revelation here. Lee Bermejo gets to cut loose on doing every kind of Batman shot you would want this artist to do.

It helps me understand and appreciate the Azzarello/Bermejo team's use of Batman throughout all 3 of those graphic novels (as well as in Bermejo's art on John Arcudi's Superman strip in Wednesday Comics last summer). In Joker and Lex Luthor, Batman appears throughout roughly a chapter and a half what are easily six chapter (120 page, do the math...) graphic novels. It's sparse, it's moody, it's cinematic and frankly they're probably better stories both than "After the Fire", an early 2000's attempt on Azzarello's part to start injecting the kind of reality (conspiracies, CIA spooks, IO soldiers, no costumes but Batman and 'Blow's red vertical lines)he likes in his gritty funny books into Gotham city. That said, Bermejo gets to do all the awesome Batman shots he could ever want so the creative team would go on to use the character more effectively in later works.

That said, the story is cool and readable. Bats and Alfred have entertaining dialogue and Deathblow isn't the most annoying tough guy sodier in comics though he's not the most endearing either. The hip Asian pyrokinetic villain strikes me as something Grant Morrison would have put in Final Crisis, and that's not a bad thing but as a lot of Azzarello stories before he hit his stride during '100 Bullets', it all feels so bleak, nihilistic and manly at points that it's hard to care or pretend that this book has an emotional core...(Oh come on, how many dying friends had Bruce Wayne had in the hospital while he's gone out into the city and kicked ass on their behalves? This CIA spook is not going to be the one to make Batman cry...)but the story is double crossing intragovernmental agencies that get in Batman's way and a decade spanning 'job gone wrong comes back to haunt government agents' story that links Batman and Deathblow but never actually causes them to meet each other.

It's pretty good.

If you're like me, you want all the Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo Batman and you want to own this.

Or if you just love super great Batman art, this is worth owning.

But over-all? With the okay story plus Bermejo's phenomenal art this gets a generous (I think) 3.5 out of 5....joints.

yeah, that'll be our rating system....joints! I should have someone make a graphic for that...

-T

Medical Cannabis reviews

2010-01-17T18:31:00.000-08:00

I am going to begin an experiment for the joint review in incorporating reviews of

- medical cannabis dispensaries

- strains of medical cannabis

-specific batches of specific strains and other products from specific dispensaries

Dispensary review:

Medicine Chest

located at Lincoln and Magnolia in the Home Gardens part of Riverside area in California.

This small and discreet little club has a small, simple set up consisting of a two shelved glass case. One of these shelves has dozens of full size glass pipes and the
other jars and medicine cannisters of flowers. They had something like 20 strains to check out with decent price range.

There was 12, 15, 18, and 20 dollar a gram medicine. There was probably 5 or so very exceptional smelling strains

sour grape
og kush
super sour diesel

come to mind immediately. I went with the og kush for 18 a gram. Even though it was discounted it had the strongest most pleasant smell out of all of the medicine there in my opinion.

The employees were friendly and helpful. The setting felt safe and discreet. The medicine was diverse enough in price and quality to be deemed able to meet my needs.

For first time patients, you have a choice of a free glass pipe or a joint of the 12 dollar a gram herbs. They have some pretty sweet pipes so the friend I checked this place out with and I got the pipes and it was awesome to taste that OG kush out of a new clean piece.

Good club. Solid B

Nothing wrong with or insufficient about this club but to get an A you have to wow me in a few more ways than this place did. Not a huge diversity of strains, in this particular instance their sativas were somewhat lacking but that may not always be the case.

Strain review: OG Kush is a powerful indica known for its potent pungent citrus-y kush flavor. It can leave you very couch locked in the way that the best indicas do but once more, is known and revered for its recognizable and intense flavor. A classic. A.

Batch review:

The OG Kush I got from the Medicine Chest in Home Gardens in the Riverside area, CA
about a week ago was exceptional. Definitely among the best batches I have ever tasted. I got to hit it out of a clean brand new glass dry piece and the flavor was so overwhelming I could taste it in my nose and lips for minutes after our session was done. The high is extreme and pleasant and once more...the flavor's intense presence alone was worth the price of admission in this case.

Hm...I see the OG Kush made me quite repetitive. Meh, it was the first one...

-T

Avatar Support Group and Postpartum Depression from the Film

2010-01-13T19:51:00.000-08:00

Do you ever wish you could live on Pandora with the Na'vi? Did you get thoughts of depression or even suicide when the film was over? Well apparently this is a wide-spread problem all over the world as moviegoers cant face the reality that was waiting for them as they left the theater. Fret no more, help is in sight, in the form of an internet forum titled "Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible."

Suzie B. says: "After I watched Avatar at the first time, I trully felt depressed as I "wake" up in this world again.So after few days, I went to cinema and watched it again for the second time to relieve the depression and hopeless feeling.Now I listen to the soundtrack and share my views in this forum. It really helps."

Tom had this to say: "The first time after I woke up the next day after watching it I "had" to see it again. I have seen it four times now, and soon to be a fifth. I think watching it takes away that depression, because when I am watching it, i dont know how to describe how I feel, but it feels good. I want to just forget about it all sometimes, take down my avatar wallpaper, stop reading about it and what not, but I just cant.I have to use a quote from the movie sometimes I guess "Sooner or later though, you always have to wake up."I heard writing a sequel helps, but I just cant compete with what has been laid out.I dont know if theres any WoW addicts out there, but after seeign Avatar I have lost all desire to play (and trust me thats like being addicted to any drug)I'm just hoping it will pass over time, but if anybody has any recommendations how to cope I would love to hear them."

Here are somethings to keep in mind if your as jaded as these people, If you lived on Pandora chances are you'd be:

1) Ripped to pieces by a pack of viperwolves .

2) Trampled by a Hammerhead Titanothere.

3) Devoured by a Thanator.

4) Pecked to death by a group of Ikran.

5) Snatched away by a Toruk.

6) Pinned to a tree by a Na'vi arrow.

7) Stung, bitten or eaten by some other Pandora plant or animal.

I'll be taking donations to start the, Sometimes Your Entire Life Boils Down To One Insane Movie Foundation ™ a Big Balls ™ Affiliate.

Music Review

2009-12-28T03:05:00.001-08:00

Royksopp - Junior

The last thing I listened to by this band was Melody A.M. which they released way back in 2001, which had that catchy little track from the geico commercial. (Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H02iwWCrXew)

They've come a long way from those practically bare midi player-esque songs. Junior is their fourth album, I have no idea what I've been doing to miss their other two, but I'm not going back now.

The first song didn't really stand out, but once "The Girl and The Robot" was halfway through it was clear that Royksopp had just made me their bitch. They quickly followed with the groovy-ass "Vision One" and I was sold forever.

Also, they're Norwegian, and I know how you kids these days love them foreign bands. So! Listen to this band and you will be instantly cooler.

Music Suggestion:

2009-12-09T11:51:00.000-08:00

You should listen to:

Featuring:

movie review in the matter of seconds

2009-11-17T12:26:00.001-08:00

couples retreat: NAAYYY

glenn beck's christmas sweater: NAAAAAAAAYYY. haven't even seen it! naaayy

where the wild things are: yay

new york, i love you: yay

a serious man: yay

the men who stare at goats: yay

the fourth kind: yay..

paranormal activity: nay.

pirate radio (the boat that rocked): yay!

cirque du freak: vampire's assistant: nay, although i do enjoy john c reilly.

restaurant review?!

2009-11-16T14:23:00.000-08:00

I'M FUUUUULLL!!!

shit. aiight. hung out wit ma homiez today, ma mom and ma daddy, and we's went to SANAMLUANG. bomb ass thai food. right thurr next to mix bowl, and in my opinion, much betta.
spicy mint seafood rice? down.
pad thai? down.
delicious papaya salad..
mmm-mmm, bitchesss!

LOOK! a pygmy aminal. so cute, so cute!

Lifestyle Review: Neck Pillows

2009-11-15T15:36:00.000-08:00

Today is my parents' anniversary, so in honor of them I would like to submit a new review: neck pillows. Yes these cozy conveniences might seem ideal for that 4 hour flight to the east coast, but in actuality they are just serving to make Americans lazier. I mean, really? Just hold your own neck up! (For the purposes of this review only Americans use neck pillows.)

Not to be confused with these beauties from Canada(need I say more?):

<---these are alright.

Neck pillows are just another way for the man to keep us down. Just look at the new slave-collar edition:

<--- "Komfort Kollar"

This dangerous trend has even begun to spread to not only our children, but our pets too:

<--- Despicable.

I'm afraid at this point in the review that the seriousness of this situation hasn't breached you're consciousness, dear reader. With that said I will leave you with a series of atrocities and let those speak for me.

<--- This "comfort pack" comes complete with blinding and deafening tools to make you truly oblivious to the world once successfully asleep.

<---She's lying down while wearing one.

I don't know if she's confused, but I sure am.

<--- Jimmy Fallon uses them.

Should those guys even be that comfortable? They're at the emergency exit seats! I bet they fell asleep before that important speech they're supposed to listen to or something. I dunno I zone that out.

<---Leo uses one!

Bet he'd "never let go" of that baby, because it's clipped to his back pack. Also, jacket tied around waist. And I think I can see his nipple. EEEE!

I'm not quite sure what I was arguing anymore. Honestly once I saw Leo with a neck pillow everything became-- No! They're Evil! Don't use them! Be a proud Amurrkin and hold your head up high, without support!

Coltrane would have liked Grant Morrison

2009-11-15T10:28:00.000-08:00

I would like to bring to people something like happiness. I would like to discover a method so that if I want it to rain, it will start right away to rain. If one of my friends is ill, I'd like to play a certain song and he will be cured; when he'd be broke, I'd bring out a different song and immediately he'd receive all the money he needed.
-John Coltrane

Literacy and Bus stops

2009-08-21T16:39:00.000-07:00

I am never bored when I go anywhere or do anything. You know?

Never bored. Ever. Not in line at the DMV, in a lobby at the dentist…none of it. I always have a book with me. It’s a portable fuckin’ story…I’m always entertained.

I was getting out of class right now right at 930 at night. I’m seeing people at the bus stop outside the school. The bus driver is chilling with all these big ass Latina ladies of all ages and it occurs to me that they are waiting for the last summer courses which’ll be out at 9:50. I, who had just been let out early from a class that was supposed to get out at 9:30, felt bad for a moment. “Damn, It’s 10 at night and these people are waiting for the bus.” Then, I realized they had a street light over them. And they were sitting there looking all bored, impatient and pissed off. I was thinking “were I in their situation, I would not be bored. Because I’d be reading about zombies.” Furthermore, all the sudden…and mind you this is here in the I.E. where mass transit is not widely used. Cars are even more necessary in the I.E. than in L.A…..it’s all freeways and the shopping centers off of them. Anyway, it occurs to me that not reading probably would be characteristic of people at the bus stop right?

Maybe if you read more, you’d be a little bit more educated, then you could get a better job and afford a car so you would ‘t have to ride the fucking bus.

-T

movie review: the mila is pressed for time edition

2009-05-16T11:11:00.000-07:00

not like my first movie review was lengthy anyway.

RUDO Y CURSI
see it! it's beautiful.

SHALL WE KISS?
i really liked this french flick. see it.

WOLVERINE
"ehh" is all i can say about it. there was no competition when..

..STAR TREK
came out. there is not a thing i don't like about this movie.

THE SOLOIST
not a big fan of inspirational, based-on-a-true-story type blockbusters. see it if you want.

peace out.

non american biased

2009-05-05T18:12:00.001-07:00

http://lesnouvellesinternationales.blogspot.com

Movie Review: Taken

2009-04-21T15:56:00.000-07:00

So you've heard of Liam Neeson, and maybe you've actually seen him in a couple of movies. Before I went to see Taken, I would have never really imagined Neeson as the action type. Savior of Jews, sure. Wise old Jedi Master, of course. Loving father and widow, why not. But a take-no-prisoners ex-cia type? Uh...not quite. Then I saw Taken, and let me tell you children, I was mistaken. I could not have been more wrong. Liam Neeson kicked ass with more efficiency than Jason Bourne and James Bond put together, and without any fancy gadgets or cars. Don't get me wrong, there are car chases in this movie, at least one that I can think of, but it's not so much a chase as it is Neeson's character deciding to use a car instead of a gun or his fists on the bad guys.
The premise is this: Neeson playes Bryan Mills, and Mills' 17 year old estranged daughter (her parents divorced early in life due to her mother being a total bitch) goes on a European vacation. It doesn't take long, and she doesn't get far before - guess what - she's taken. Now it's time for Mills to use his special set of skills to do everything he can to get his daughter back in 96 hours or she'll be gone forever. Apparently the world of human trafficking has a very high turnover rate. If you love action, have ever wanted to go on a vengeful rampage, or if you're just a fan of Liam Neeson, I highly recommend this movie for you. It will not disappoint. And if it does then you have poor taste in movies.

Review of Literary technique: Decompression in comic books

2009-03-29T15:56:00.000-07:00

I was just reading a Judd Winnick interview (http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=20586)where he talks about Didio and others deciding to scale back his ideas for Battle For The Cowl so they could touch on those story points in the monthlies. This is decompression basically...but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. On some level it scares me that Didio wants to scale it back to according to Winnick "1/8" of what was originally being covered but I think an argument is there to be made for fully exploring Gotham and the world without a Bruce Wayne.

People complain about decompression alot, especially in the case of Brian Michael Bendis'Marvel work but I think there is an argument to be made for it. Sometimes decompression allows for a story to truly breathe. Giving full weight and space to moments that deserve it. I wish Marvel would have taken more time with the Spider-books with the status quo of Peter's identity being revealed...those were some of my favorite Spider-stories from recent memory.

There is a flipside though...sometimes decompression really is used to stretch out thin story material. I'm sure we've all had at least a few experiences where we finished a story and thought "They didn't need 5 issues to tell that story..."..

Lately I've been feeling like Bendis is getting better at delivering on an issue to to issue basis even if the larger story is still taking a long time to develop.

How do you guys feel about the job Bendis is doing delivering from issue to issue?
I feel he has improved greatly...every issue of his I've read since Secret Invasion #5 feels like a lot happens in it, and there's a lot of cool moments content and ideas but somehow the over all story is moving as slow as ever to keep us hooked.

How do you guys feel about the decision to decompress the larger BFTC story? I think it could be good but I could see some getting mad.

It does give the BFTC a lot of tie ins but i wonder....if the issues are respectively entertaining unto themselves (which i personally think more than half will be) ...if that such a bad thing? Is that not the point of comic books versus prose novels? Moments can expand and breathe visually? I think decompression is part of the natural evolution of comics...look at All Star Batman and the upcoming Wednesday Comics....both of which I'm sure will be beautiful pieces when complete.

-T

Secretary of the Arts Petition

2009-03-20T13:38:00.001-07:00

Quincey Jones is "begging" Obama to instate a Secretary of the Arts.
A petition has been started to support his plea for a Cabniet level postition. When schools face budget cuts (as they are now) the arts are one of the first things to go. Sign this petition to help protect the future of fine arts and performing arts in America.
And we need two million signatures so spread the word.

Go to:
http://www.petitiononline.com/esnyc/petition.html

to sign now.

Stop reading! Do it right now!

The Top Ten Penises in Film, or Why I love Dr. Manhattan

2009-03-20T10:54:00.000-07:00

That's right folks, set aside your modesty and/or your ithyphallophobia (I just said that to sound smart, did it work?) and let us discuss the top ten best appearances of wang in film (according to me)!

10. Sex and the City

<<<>

This one is for the LAAAAADIES! While watching this movie, I just kept thinking to myself "when is Samantha going to get into some shenanigans so I can see some pretty pretty penis?" And of course...she delivered. This is the first time I saw a penis in a movie and giggled like a school girl.

9. 28 Days Later

Penis. Post-coma and Pre-zombie apocalypse.

8. Star Wars Episodes I-III

"But Kristen" you may be thinking to yourself "I didn't see any penises in any of the star wars films." And yes friend, you are correct, but I've seen Ewan Mcgregor's uncircumcised Scottish member in so many movies (Trainspotting, The Pillow Book, Young Adam, Robots, etc) that I couldn't help but imagine what was going on under Obi Wan's cloak the entire trilogy. I may be the only one, but its my list bitches.

7. Forgetting Sarah Marshall

This was the best use of cock in a comedy that I have seen in a looong time. Nothing is more hilarious than watching a guy get dumped by a hot chick while his prick is swinging in her face.

6.Caligula

How does the saying go? When in Rome, do as the Romans do? Well this is what the Romans did.... they fucked alot. The creator's of this movie understood that and gave us enough dong to feed a village (with a side of vag).

5. The Little Mermaid

This one almost didn't make the list, because not everyone can agree that the image above is indeed an intentional penis rather than a mistake on the artist's part. Then I realized, this is Disney we're talking about, of course its intentional. There are two great things about this penis.

A. The boner is subliminal. Is there really anything better than encouraging children to be sexually active prematurely? I dont know about you, but I think teenage mothers are adorable! Why do you think Juno did so well?

B. Its clergy cock. Disney is doing their part to desensitize children to priest dick at a young age so the catholic church can avoid embarrassing court cases.

4. Transamerica

Three words. CHICKS WITH DICKS!!!!! It was hard to decide which movie would fill the tranny hole in this list. My decision ultimately came down to Transamerica, Boys Don't Cry, The Crying Game, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I feel like Transamerica is the best choice, because it is a celebration of tranny dick. The Crying Game is quite possibly one of the most disturbing penises in film (if you haven't seen it, dont. I just ruined the ending for you anyways) and Hilary Swank's penis in Boys Don't Cry isn't even real. I dont really remember if you ever see the angry inch in Hedwig?

Honorable mention for:

Most realistic dildo of all time.

Honorable mention for:

The creepiest use of penis in a movie. (by the way you're welcome, for posting a blurred picture of the little guy)

3. Grindhouse: Plant Terror

I couldn't find a picture, sadly, but I hope you all remember the scene where Tarantino is chasing down the two chickies with his infected dripping mutant dick. 'Nuff said.

2. Teeth

First off, I highly recommend this movie to any woman. It has been a dream of mine for years to have retractable teeth in my snatch as a defense mechanism, and it is SUCH a good idea that someone made a movie about it. Anywho, the best johnson in this flick is the dismembered one of a man who had just tried to rape Ms. Vagina Teeth herself. Check it out.

AHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA

1. WATCHMEN! (dont tell me you werent expecting this)

That's right guys, glowing blue balls and cock in all their glory. Get a good long look at it. Honestly, I agreed to read Watchmen back in 2001 initially (first comic I ever read by the way), BECAUSE I saw Dr. Manhattan's penis while flipping through the book. I thought to myself "hey, maybe this guy is right, this is a big kid's story, it must be if there's a cock in it!" or something like that. Anyways the point is, we're born naked, a lot of people die naked, according to the bible we were created naked (go figure) so why wouldnt a more evolved human being choose to be naked? With the kinds of things people watch in porn on a day to day basis, you would think that this county would be okay with some full frontal nudity in a rated R film. I vote that we make shirts with his cock all over them that say "I ROCK THE BLUE COCK." ok ok maybe not such a good idea, but you get the point. I LOVE THIS PENIS AND I LOVE THIS MOVIE!!!!!!

Lifestyle Review: Fanny Packs!

2009-03-13T01:20:00.000-07:00

That's right children, fanny packs!

First, an English lesson:

fan⋅ny
–noun, plural -nies. Informal. the buttocks.
pack
–noun
1. a group of things wrapped or tied together for easy handling or carrying; a bundle, esp. one to be carried on the back of an animal or a person: a mule pack; a hiker's pack; a fanny pack.

Put them together and what do you get? A fanny pack! This stylish accessory/container is a great alternative to a purse(ladies) or even a "murse"(Tristan). "What's so great about a passé '80's fad?" you ask. Well let me tell you!

Fanny packs are the ultimate in travel attire, being both bag and stylish belt. They come in many solid colors and even have patterns to them. There's probably a fanny pack to match every outfit you have! They're ideal for holding your wallet, keys, cellphone, Walkman, cigarettes, lighters, tamagotchi, camera, or even your concealed firearm. Don't believe me? Then look at all these people who use them:

The Cell Phone:

<--manly

You can walk your dog with them:

<--bitch

Fashion models wear them!

<--bitch

Of course, the ever popular holster model:

<--powerful

Always popular with the tourist crowd, this man also uses his as a "banana hammock":

<--creepy

Again with the speedo action, except this time less tourist-y and more compensating-y. Wonder what he's trying to hide?(Notice: The "getting thighs bigger than your head" and "shaving your fake tanned body so it looks even gayer" looks are not approved lifestyle tips. Please do not consider this photo with any serious thought; your mind will melt.):

<--douchebag

So what's that perfect accessory to go with your socks & sandals? That's right sheep, fanny packs! Let this wave of tourist chic wash over you and make you the new, better person you're waiting to be!

Wiggimah: Joint Review (4)

2009-03-07T00:17:00.000-08:00

Shared a joint with 4 friends. It was rolled by ODB: The Little Cuban Boy so it was perfect. Not perfect as in cigarette status but the function and tightness was perfect pitch.

-T

I Watches The Watchmen

2009-03-06T14:23:00.000-08:00

Before I review this film, I'll say that I have read the graphic novel once or twice and am a huge fan.

This film may be the best adaptation of a genre story since the Lord of the Rings films. The changed ending is a bunch to discuss but I felt this film was amazing...one of the best I've ever seen.

I was absolutely astounded and delighted at how much of the dialogue-y, actionless, talking heads-scenes that STAYED in the theatrical cut. They fooled many Americans into thinking they were gonna get a colorful bright action-y popcorn flick but you actually get philosophy, discussion, and commentary that can change the way you look at life. The creators of this movie did what so few adapting filmmakers are willing to do: let the writer speak; bring the source material to life.

They fearlessly kept tons of political moments, music-less surreal sci-fi scenes that reminded me positively of a Stanley Kubrick movie. It was weird, trippy, realistic yet larger than life fantasy, everywhere at once but it never falters; every plot point delivered, every lose end tied up. Even down to stuff like Rorschach's sessions with his psychiatrist, the filmmakers left no stone unturned when it came to at least giving nods to everything about the graphic novel.

There were many scenes that clearly were scripted as straight transcriptions of the book...and you can tell. Those scenes, I'm thinking the first several dialogue scenes in the book, feel like comic book pacing and it's sort of awkward but naughtily delicious for a comic book geek like myself but I do wonder how the general public felt about that; I like to think they'll see it as refreshing but who knows? It's brave and new. Even Dark Knight's whole thing is to take the best comic book elements of Batman and make them suitably cinematic. Watchmen takes the best elements of movie-making and makes them comic-y.

The characters were just nailed dead-on. I get the impression that Snyder didn't pursue big names at all; that he put out a huge casting call for people that looked just like the characters and picked the most talented of that crop...and it works. Rorschach die-hards will explode with pleasure at how appropriately glorified he is. Another thing I liked...

and mind you as I list the things I like about this film, I feel bad because everything I like about the film is what I like about the graphic novel so it sounds like I'm giving the filmmaker's credit for Alan Moore's work so let me say, All props to Alan fuckin' Moore and I love the graphic novel but from this point on let's look at that as a given and I'm praising the filmmakers for being so ego-less that they didn't feel the incredible need to do Watchmen through the filter of themselces and to just TELL THE STORY. Which they did, in spades.

Anyway, I loved(as in the graphic novel) that most of the characters got they're own mini-movie within the film. We get nice 10-30 minute long origins of Manhattan, Rorschach, Comedian and more and it's so gratifying and well done how the subtleties of detail and character traits are revered...right down to Rorschach's mom, and Henry friggin' Kissinger! That guy looked more like Kissinger than Kissinger! I gotta hear his thoughts on this film! And god...so many scenes were lifted straight off the panels of the book...what a sight for sore economy-weary eyes that even in this age of tightening wallets, a couple-a fatcats'll blow 130 million dollars on somethin' that'll make me go 'OH SHIT!' and ponder about the nature of existence simultaneously!

That's another thing...does anyone else feel like this movie could have huge cultural shockwaves? It just is another testament to how cutting and brilliant of political commentary the original graphic novel was. This story's analysis and comments on the cold war, war itself, idealism and its costs combined with its remarkable current feel and timeliness are almost unparallelled. I like to think this story will get people thinking about things they may not have otherwise....Watchmen certainly does that for me every time.

I know it sounds like I only loved the film but like any comic geek or hipster who considers himself 'in the know', I can nitpick. I would have switched out the Leonard Cohen version of Hallelujah with the Jeff Buckley version and I would have switched the My Chemical Romance "Desolation Row" with the original Dylan version.

I would have have Nite Owl and Rorschach on the speeders on the way to Ozymandias' lair. I would have kept the original ending and foreshadowing to the ending though I think the current ending is more than acceptable and artistically viable.

I also would have kept the Black Freighter in the film, but I don't think the filmmakers had that choice. I'm very much looking forward to the director's cut DVD as I think it will address a few of these concerns.

I just find this movie so brave; in an age of short attention spans this movie has tons of contemplative, dialogue filled and even philosophical moments. It pushes the edge of weird with the sci-fi Kubrick-esque indulgences and adventures. It pushes the edge of real with how masterfully this superhero universe is juxtaposed over the cold war 80s while still commenting on the dirty corruption of Nixon-era politics, red scare ignorance and violence.
Snyder and crew tell a story that could have easily become unwieldy and hard to follow in the most streamlined and effective way conceivable even landing it in 14 minutes less than 3 hours (though the director's cut with "Black Freighter" and all could very well start to approach five hours).

This movie is friggin' Godfather like in its well-told complexity, layered events and characters and genre-accent rich story telling style.

Solid A.

Let's continue discussion of this in the comments; I'll be having more and more thoughts about this film. I plan to watch it in a few more contexts soon, including the motion comic so there'll be a lot to compare and discuss.

Goddamn I loved this movie; aight Wiggy out.

-T

More Joint Reviews

2009-03-01T23:27:00.000-08:00

Late last week I partook in two more joint sessions. The first was rolled somewhat tightly and went around for a long time; it tasted good but was hard to hit because of how tight it was. The next was looser, same great taste, but as a result went faster. Both strong Bs.

-T

movie review: medicine for melancholy

2009-02-25T21:59:00.000-08:00

Sorry guys, I got caught up in life.

So: Medicine for Melancholy. I didn't know what the fuck I was getting into, but this movie is pretty good. It's about a pair of people who got ultimately drunk at a party, which resulted in a one night stand. I forgot the characters' names. Wyatt Cenac and that chick end up taking a break from their normal lives to just chill. Bonding with a complete stranger, they enjoy time together to absorb art, talk of racial separation, and party, but only for a day. The dialogue was kind of cheesy, but it worked well for the film as a whole. The cinematography rocked, and the actors were awesome.

Guys, leave your man friends at home and take your woman.

I'm out.

Joint Review (1)

2009-02-25T19:45:00.000-08:00

Hit a joint at a party last night. Was rolled a little loose; even bordering on dangerously loose. But nonetheless, it smoked well and tasted good and piny if not bombatronically dankalicious. C+

-T

Lifestyle Review: Socks with Sandals

2009-02-25T14:17:00.000-08:00

Long held to be a fashion faux-pas, or just something old people do, wearing socks with sandals has not been given a fair shake. Let's face it your feet are going to get cold, especially during this time of year, but sometimes you just don't have the time to lace up some sneakers or slip into some deck shoes. This is where sandals come in: suppose you had the time to put socks on for that base, frostbite-warding warmth, but then instead of the seemingly logical next step of shoes you went straight for the speedy choice of sandals. BAM! 20 seconds to two minutes of grueling shoe application skipped in one instantly gratifying moment.

Now, I know what you're all saying, "But Santee, that's just not done! You're not supposed to wear socks with sandals, you'll just look stupid!" To that I say "Says whom!?" Who decided for us all that the combination of socks with sandals was a societal no-no? Why can't we simply opt to wear our foot clothing with our beach shoes? I paid good money for both, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let a misguided fashion rule chain me to cold feet in flip flops. Rise up with me children! Rise up and take back the warmth and comfort of socks with sandals - be they wool or cotton, argyle or plain white, flip flops or those lame ones with the straps - rock this look like you've always wanted!

Now, here is a list of cool people who do this and thus so should you:

High Fashion!

The always illustrious K-Fed with our previous lifestyle tips in use: smoke like it makes you cool and knock up a celebrity.

Is it Beckahm? Beckham? Whatever, he's that guy everyone wants to show they don't care about thus making him popular anyway. I care, and so does he!

Even Superman is in on this!

So shake off your fashion inhibitions! Cut loose with some sockage, and throw on those flip flops! Whether you're on your way to the office or school let the world know: Our feet are warm, and our shoes light!

Share a joint with us!

2009-02-21T13:16:00.000-08:00

This commences the creation of the Joint Blog Review. A joint effort between friends, artistic commentators and noted Southern California local hipsters Tristan "Tanjint Wiggy Woo" Acker, Matt "Where's Waldo?'" Guss, Chris "Sit-Mo" Santee, and "Balla" Mike Williams. It is our intention to discuss our thoughts on music, comic books and other literature, films, concerts, comedy and more for your thought-digesting pleasure. We have to spark consciousness and get people to engage in fun but tangible thought and discussion about the art and entertainment they take in on a regular basis. Perhaps we'll delve into cultural commentary and editorials as well, who knows?

-Wiggy out