J.B. Sommerset

I was making some "bomb-ass" steaks on the grill this weekend and I let the T.V. decide what it wanted to show. It's one of those "smart TVs", so it had a good idea of what I like, you know, from all that spying on me. While I was preparing the marinade it started playing something sentimental from my past- because apparently my TV knows me in that way. You know, intimately. Like it watched you grow up, I tell you, these algorithms are out of control. But nonetheless it knew that I wanted some good old 80s nostalgia.   So I am tenderizing the steaks and in the back ground I hear something I haven't heard in far to long. That sound was the sound of a prison escape, followed by and ORV chase on a beach in Oregon, with the police, and the sounds of 7 kids just loving the 80's even though they are about to be kicked out of their homes by the "cheap guy" Troy and his douche bag father. Some of you Gen-Xers know what I am talking about. Some of you k...

That's right, I started " House Of The Dragon " season 2. Let's talk about it, like hard, real hard because it does a whole lot right, especially in todays world where screenwriters and showrunners have completely forgotten how to write a good story and then translate it to the screen. Most modern renditions of my favorite childhood stories are so bad that when I watch them I can smell the sour grape and watermelon vape fumes of the douche-people who wrote them. Because that's the kind of image modern literature and film puts in my head. A douchey one with a whole lot of vape-fumes. What an image, it I could describe it, it would look like this: It's this image of an androgynes guy sitting outside the Star-bucks. He's got whispers of chin hair on his prepubescent jawline, and poorly applied black nail polish on his hands. There's an uncentered man-bun on his head, a snake of ratty coils, unwashed hair that smells of pot smoke. Leaning on his tiny littl...

I have talked about this subject before, and it's critical to good story telling. I don't know how many more times I will bring this up, but I will... So just be prepared for it.  This topic is going to come back like the blood everyone thought they totally got cleaned up, but under luminal and black light? Yep, it's still there. It will come back like the drunk guy all of us in the car know we hit but aren't sure is dead. Or that stalker that sneaks back into our house after we got the restraining order. The one that sits quietly in the dark waiting to talk in a distant and mysterious tone... you get the idea. The technique I am speaking of is, of course, the " show don't tell " technique. The "TLDR" is simple, it is a narrative technique that assumes the audience aren't morons and also that they can figure things out for themselves. Things like subtext, language usage, foreshadowing, use of senses, thoughts, feelings, (ad nauseum) the get t...

As promised in my review of Rebel Moon part 1 , I return with a review of Rebel Moon part 2: The Scar giver . So, strap on them Imperium uniforms and prepare for this Space-Viking-cowboy-Nazi-science fiction space opera.  This is the second part, and the thrilling conclusion of Rebel Moon... Wait, what's that, it made too much money, there's going to be a third? Maybe? We don't know yet... um okay. We'll just move forward with this review and cross that bridge when the enemy comes to shoot us all to crap. By now, you might have heard, or at the very least surmised there would be more rebel moons out soon, 4 more if old Zach has anything to do with it. However, I am not so sure the next one, Rebel Moon 3 has been greenlit. There are rumors it has, and also that it will start filming in 2025. If they make it, I will review it. For now, let just focus on Part 2. Don't want to get caught up in the assumption game and get taken out of context. I liked the first one, and...

I really don't know how to feel about this review. I don't know how I feel about the show I just watched, hopefully, this can help sort it out. The fact that it's Amazon that did made this show, somehow makes it worse. Not sure if they are telling us about how they will manage the apocalypse, if they are just providing entertainment at this point, or if we are the entertainment or both... Anyway, here's an honest review of " Fallout ".  That's right, grab your two headed cow, get all your Stem packs together, and finish off that "nuka-cola", then lets ride out into the atomic sunset together- This week I will be reviewing Amazon's " Fallout " series. Buckle up vault-dwellers, strap on yer' pip-boys and enjoy the show. There is something to be said for the story telling and mastery thereof in certain video games, especially those made by old school "Bethesda". Some of the best story telling came from those early years. ...

(Image credit: JBSommerset Copy write 2024) I was surprised when I first heard about this movie and how good it was. I am a big Godzilla fan, I love watching that monster tear a city down while he battles some ridiculous creature with super weird powers. However, lets face it, no one watches Godzilla movies for the plots and character development. Same with other Kaiju   films such as " Pacific Rim ", and " Cloverfield ". We watch them to see giant freak'n monsters have at one another while destroying everything in their path. Which is why I was surprised to see a lot of people saying that " Godzilla Minus One " was no ordinary Godzilla flick. That is was in fact a masterpiece. I did some research and found out that not only was this movie critically acclaimed, it has a 98% on rotten tomatoes, it's been nominated for several awards, and it's budget was only 15 million dollars. The budget is pretty standard for Godzilla movies. But the rest, ju...

Since the invention of the digital format there has been an ongoing argument as to which is better, digital or analogue. Hardcore audiophiles will always argue that old vinyl will always be better than digital formats. Old school artists will always scoff at the digital facsimiles or photoshop drawings. And some writers look down on those who "first draft" on a computer, even though in this modern world most of us will have to type drafts for submission.  I am an old schooler and I see the value of first drafting with pen and paper, but thank god people don't have to read that drivel- I would be embarrassed. That being said, in a world of lazy A.I. driven art, music and writing, there is something very important to be said for original analogue.  The best contrast in this argument is Vinyl versus Digital. My wife and I recently bought some vinyl and a fairly descent record player. I instantly noticed how much better the sound was. I used to be a radio D.J. and I had forgo...

Last week I went back to watch some old shows while I wait for " Godzilla Minus One " to come to streaming- Which I am really looking forward to. In the mean whiles, I decided to take a break from my murder porn (investigation ID true crime shows) as I am pretty sure the F.B.I. has me on some sort of watch-list by now.  So what else is there to watch when you have watched the good stuff and need a fix? Old shows, re-runs of course, those shows that are sitting on the back burner waiting for another shot, waiting for a second time to shine. Lonely shows hiding in the backs of our playlists, looking for some more love in their forgotten little slots where they are missing the lime-light.  I went through my list of favorites, a not too sizable amount. I looked at my usuals- Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, LOTR, Altered Carbon, Stranger Things, 1899, Vikings, and ad nauseum... I wasn't really feeling any of them. Then, there on the bottom of the play list I saw it. A sh...

Sometimes, it's important to remember that writing is about transmitting ideas and the audience receiving them. If we are writing an academic paper it is best to be technical with what we are saying and concise- to the point. If we are writing an instruction manual it is best to be orderly and descriptive. etc. If we are telling a story, we need to show the audience what the characters and events mean. The reader or the person listening to the story must go on a journey with the characters.  We need to show them, not tell them, telling them takes something away from the journey.  Sometimes in my YouTube wanderings and explorations, I find videos that I see as particularly useful for developing skills. I then sometimes post them so all of you don't have to spend 40 years in the desert looking for a home. I hope this one helps some of you develop your skills, enjoy! Cheers!

It took me some time, but I finally got around to seeing “ Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny ”, and I have some thoughts about it. First, let me “pretext” the crap out of this. One of the first movies I saw as a kid was “ Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ”. This set the pace for my movie-going experience. Granted, Temple (as it will be referred to moving forward) isn't the strongest of the entries in the franchise. It does, however, have the honor of being one of the originals. As I said, it's not the strongest, but it carries a ton of fond memories. I watched that tape again and again until it broke. That’s right, VHS, not to date myself. a couple of years later I managed to get a boxed set that also included “ Raiders of the Lost Arc ”, and “ The Last Crusade ”, which incidentally come in as the best in the series, at least in my opinion. For years I waited and wished for another film. By the time Starwars came out with its sequels (“ The Phantom Menace ”, “ Attack o...

When I first saw " Primal " listed on HBO MAX, I didn't realize that it was a  Genndy Tartakovsky  production. If I had, I most likely would have watched it sooner. It's just so damn good. Do yourself a favor, watch it now, here's why... Usually, cartoons don't interest me, so I just pass them by. With the exception: PIXAR . I pay attention to  Pixar  releases because I have a history with them. However, they seem to have gone a little stale over the past few years. What I mean by that is they have found a formula and are sticking to it- make the audience cry. Nonetheless, they still know their craft, but I feel that they have reached a peak. I doubt they will ever come up with another " Wall-E ", or even more poignant, another " Up ". Those risks have been taken, and those stories have been told. The other major animation studios are no different, sometimes they break free of what works and come up with something truly wonderful, but rarel...