Severance podcast with Ben and Adam

Severance season 2 was really fantastic. That's my opinion. Not an uncommon one, though I have also seen a headline or two that seemed to possibly take the opposite view (I haven't yet made time to read or listen to those).

My ritual for this season was 1. to watch the latest episode as it dropped each week (of course), and 2. rewatch the episode on the weekend with my kids, and then 3. to listen to the follow up podcast episode with Ben Stiller and Adam Scott.

When the season ended, I was both exhilarated and sad. The ritual was done, there were no more episodes to be had.

But then! Ben and Adam dropped a bonus episode of their podcast, this one featuring a couple of really interesting guests (and Dan Erikson, Severance creator and interesting person in his own right). In the middle section of the episode, another set of Severance podcasters - two of whom are neuroscience-related medical professionals - talk about the theories and ideas that Severance posits, which is very interesting as it comes from people in the actual scientific know.

The final guest of the episode is SZA, whom I know really nothing about outside of her Superbowl halftime appearance. But she is fascinating, and highly intelligent, and philosophical, and funny, and charming. I love joyous surprises, and I loved her - and will now be seeking out her music based solely on her 20 minute conversation with Ben and Adam.

And here is my first dose.

Dreams - listen and cover by La Lune, Vancouver shoegaze band

Alright here's another one, this time it's Dreams by La Lune. So it's Fleetwood Mac, it's dreampop / shoegaze, basically two great tastes that taste great together for me. It's got a slowdown, which is wonderful. The whole thing takes me back to Hot Robot, the band I was in in university / post-university years, before the Unlevels.

The bassist is the correct vocalist for this song, and I do like her voice a lot. I wish they put some phase on her vox, and also there is so much room in there for some sweet harmonies. But also, this is an impromptu thing (who knows how long they really got but surely it was not a lot) so you know. I get it, there's never the perfect take, so I get it. But man I got ideas.

Anyway, one thing both this and the previous video did was make me aware of new bands, and potentially bands that I would want to check out online or maybe even in person. And that's always cool.

Heart Shaped Box - listen and cover exercise by Ulysses Owens Jr and Band

Listen man, I know this ain't new, taking a Nirvana song and making it jazz. The Bad Plus did this perhaps the most famously with Lithium on their album, For All I Care. (Or maybe there's some even more famous Nirvana jazz cover, but I loved For All I Care and I am very familiar with that cover.)

Anyway, but listen man, it's Friday and I want to share with you this little video of Ulysses Owens Jr and his band, all of whom - with the exception of the bassist - hear Heart Shaped Box for the first time and then proceed to cover it. Now maybe because he knows the song already, the bassist just rips shit up. Like, RIPS IT UP. But probably he's doing that all the time on all the songs. But the sax player also, I'm not kidding, when she started playing I almost got a tear in my eye.

So anyway, listen. Just, have a listen. And enjoy your Friday, y'all.

Free Agency, or, Saying Goodbye to Some Old Friends

This year's start of free agency has hit Niners fans pretty hard. That's because, as the team aims to get younger and also shed some of their larger contracts, we have had to say goodbye to some players who have provided some of the most memorable, team-galvanizing plays of recent times, contributing hugely to wins against big rivals (Seahawks, Eagles) and led us to the NFC championship and Superbowl runs that have been a staple of the last five years. The only two teams more successful in this period have been the Chiefs and the Eagles - we have been riding pretty high!

My favourite player of these last five years has been Deebo Samuel. I love his wrecking ball style of play. His 3 TD game against the Eagles last year was probably his last really great game as a Niner, but there's so many other points in time where he's just dominated a game or turned it around - and so often against a rival like the Rams or Seahawks. This last year was absolutely not his year, and it's sad to see him go - though to be honest it has felt like he's been gone for a little while now. But I'm sure he's still going to have a game or two as his old self with the Commanders.

Dre. Man, did I ever love Dre. I loved Fred and Dre together almost as much as I loved Patrick and NaVarro - which is a lot, folks. Responsible for one of the single greatest plays in 49ers history - no hyperbole, I know that's a huge cauldron of great plays and a significant number of iconic out-of-your-seat jubilance moments that I'm comparing to - was his goal-line stand against Jacob Hollister of the Seahawks to end the 2019 season and start their Superbowl run. Like, Dre didn't just tackle Hollister, he DESTROYED him. Hollister went from moving forward to moving absolutely nowhere in an instant. The ball could not have been closer to the goal line without crossing it. Just so great. That was Dre. Big Play Dre.

Hufanga, I will say that he didn't have the same prolonged success as the other two, but his highs were pretty damn high. Obviously the special teams play in Green Bay to end that horrible snowy stalemate will be remembered as his biggest moment as a Niner, but damn he sure had Matt Stafford's number a few times as well.

And then there's Aaron Banks, who was as solid of a left guard as you could hope for. Juice, of course, who was the original "offensive weapon". Though he was never quite used in that way, he did have several plays, toe tap catches on sidelines and such, that just yanked you out of your seat.

Mooney Ward, who we knew wouldn't be coming back due to his desire to leave the trauma that he's had to endure while with the team behind (no one's fault, just life). But whose departure still hurts. Man his clamping down on DK the past couple years has been amazing and legendary. He was a true shutdown corner. And I loved his locker room interviews. He always came across as thoughtful and respectful, humble for a guy who could stand up to and shut down a hulk like DK Metcalf on the field.

Anyway, time moves on and the team must as well. But yeah, sad and reflective time in the Niners fandom for sure. Here's hoping we do some trade-ups in the draft and snag some really quality young replacements in April.

Happy Severance Day, kids!

To paraphrase Elaine Benes: I'm obsessed. I'm obsessed with [Severance]!

<-- This is what Severance is doing to me, except in reverse. It's implanted and there's no reintegration happening. Reintegration is impossible anyway, don't you know.

Never have I ever watched so much YouTube follow-up or listened to so many podcasts talking about a show, frigging cast interviews, frigging EVERYTHING. (Though to be fair I probably would have during seasons 2-4 of Lost if such things existed.) But yeah, I can't get enough. So much so that my YouTube algorithm is unshakable and I can't even open the homepage on Fridays unless I've watched this week's episode for fear of spoilers.

Beyond the story, the writing and acting and direction and cinematography and sets and props and everything, literally everything, THE MUSIC!!!, are damn near perfect on this show. I'm in love.

And I know I said as much about Shogun last year, and it was true then for them, and it can also be true now for this. Two wildly different shows, but Twin Peaks (RIP David Lynch) of peak television without a doubt.

So, happy Severance day everybody. And, hey kids, what's for dinner?

(My God Turturro is a force. And Brit Lower, and Tramell Tillman, and Zach Cherry, and Adam Scott. Chris Walken. Frigging Balf.)

(But straight up, John Turturro and Brit Lower both should have multiple awards for this season, as Tramell Tillman should have had from season 1.)

(So good.)

My brain decided it was just too chemically imbalanced, and then fixed it itself

In my dream last night I'm a high school teacher supervising a class trip to Quebec. One of my co-workers and co-chaperones is Ana de Armas. Not the Ballerina Bond girl Ana de Armas, but high school teacher Ana de Armas. We're at the end of the trip, heading home. And at the same time, at the start of me and teacher Ana's journey of dating. Without getting into details, most of which I don't remember because dream, it's that thrill of the beginning of a relationship and the electric buzz of firsts that go along with it.

And it's one of those dreams so vivid and real and immersive and the feelings I'm feeling of warmth, comfort and excitement, spill over to when I awake.

And so I say: thank you, Brain, for allowing yourself to feel happiness. Thank you for self-prescribing oxytocin, we probably needed that.

Now onto season 2 episode 2 of Severance.

(The claymation event that causes Dylan to say, 'What the shit?', is the tie in you see.)

(Yes I'm once again behind, but I will at some point write up my favourite shows of 2024. Obviously Severance was from well before, but I just did a rewatch of season 1 and listened to the rewatch podcast with Ben Stiller and Adam Scott, and I am at an all time high of Severance stokage. Like, higher than after watching the season 1 finale the first time.)

(While I'm at it, may I also say that after rewatching s1 ep7 Defiant Jazz, it really must be noted that that might have been one of the greatest episodes of tv ever made. It is absolutely top shelf.)

Where Everybody Knows Simu Liu's Name

 

Just want to throw this out there: so Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson do this podcast on Team Coco called Where Everybody Knows Your Name. They recently had Simu Liu on as a guest, and I just listened to it, and it's a really really cool interview. Very fluid and not artificial-feeling at any point (until maybe the very end when they start talking about music), just like a conversation between three guys who are genuinely interested in each other and are genuinely enjoying each others' company. Which is my favourite kind of interview / podcast (see Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend, or Smartless).

The story of Simu's upbringing as the child of immigrants, in particular Chinese immigrants, was super poignant but ultimately uplifting, which again is my favourite kind of immigrant story.  The stuff about mental health, generational trauma, all that is also quite impactful. And of course the academia and professional career but with artist's dreams thing, ah you know. There's a story in there as well. But Chinese Canadian kid does good is the overarching theme, and if you're into any of that, maybe you'll enjoy this chat too.

https://youtu.be/UqmKus4gTgc?si=bP933VQ2USHt7Osn

The State of the Niners

Listen. The Chiefs game was bad, we could all see that. And it wasn't just the loss of Deebo three plays in, or the loss of Aiyuk (for the season!) half way through, or any of that. Brock played terribly, the INTs were just downright bad. Bad decisions, bad throws. He was trying to force stuff. The defense played terribly. Slow, poor positioning or ended up in poor positions, seemingly easily blocked, not covering. Even Fred looked slow last week. And speaking of, the Mahomes run - clearly Winters thought he was going to go out of bounds.

(And by the way, Mahomes & Chiefs: you can't have it both ways - you can't complain when people hit you and then do that shit. Or the next time you're running, don't complain when someone hits you inbounds. And I do wish Winters had just hit him. I wish it was Dre on that play, he would have laid him the F out. Then there would have been none of the showboating in the end zone when he ran over Mustapha (who I also believe was letting up because Mahomes had already crossed the goal line.) Anyway, I digress.)

The key to the rest of this season now lies squarely in the coaches hands. Specifically Shanahan, but also Sorensen. (Let's not even entertain the thought that anything good can or will happen on special teams.)

The key is to adapt. Adapt to win. Get wins however you can. Salvage the season, and save some F'ing face. People are calling for your head, Kyle. I don't believe you should be fired, but I damn sure hope you show us all that you can coach out of this hole. It's the last thing us true believers need to see out of you. (Well, that and a Lombardi.)

Andy Reid is doing it. John Harbaugh has done it. Mike Tomlin has done it. Those are three great coaches, three Superbowl winning coaches. Show us you belong in that echelon, Kyle!

You don't have CMC. That's not an excuse for red zone problems. You also didn't have CMC in 2019 or anytime before 2022. Ever. You don't have Aiyuk. On defense, you don't have Hargrave or Greenlaw. (I'm not convinced that not having Huf right now is worse than having the Huf that was just coming back a couple games ago.) Doesn't matter that you can't run what you wanted to with all those guys in there. Run something else with the personnel you have. Great coaches find the strengths of their players and their teams and run plays to those strengths. Extremely simplified I know, but that's what this team needs now. Not just The System, but tailoring to the pieces that are left.

The Niners can still win with Brock and Deebo and JJ and Kittle. Run the tandem of Mason in the middle and Guerendo to the outside. Kittle chips at right tackle, then leaks for 8-12 yards. A couple deep shots to Deebo or Cowing. (Please no more Ronnie Bell, for god's sake let's let that ship sail.) DISCIPLINE ON THE LINE!! That goes for both offense and defense. Stop taking penalties. Want the football.

Seriously, we're all tired of excuses and we're tired of losing stupid games that we should have won (that would be the Rams and Cards). We should be 5-2 and leading the west. But we're not. And all the whiny self-appointed pundits are being proved right.

Don't take this shit, Niners. Show everyone what a good team does in the face of adversity.

Niners completely waste Brock and Jauan's almost perfect game

 

It's the sort of loss that makes me feel sick to my stomach. The previous week at Minnesota, where the Niners were competitive but ended up losing by six points, felt like an 'ah there's things to fix but they're plain to see and fixable' game.

This week against the Rams in contrast was a game where Purdy was missing three of his top four options on offense, where he would be forced to show up and show out in order to really truly shut up the naysayers (though of course not really, and definitely not once and for all - we could only hope).

And he did!! He played about as well as any QB this season. (Yes there was a strip sack but that was McKivitz, not Brock.) He was throwing to Jauan all over the yard, and holy god JJ had the game of his life - which is saying something because he should have been Superbowl MVP had the Niners won that one.

But they didn't win the Superbowl, and they didn't win this one either, and JJ - and Brock - will not get the recognition they deserve. What a waste, and what a shame. It's for them that the pit of despair exists in my guts today.

The reason for so many of the heartbreaking losses in the past, what, dozen or so years has been special teams. And special teams once again fucked us yesterday. And no, I don't even blame Moody (yes being drafted in the 3rd round raises expectations pretty damn high for a kicker, but his draft position isn't his fault). No one expects a 55 yarder to be automatic, that's not a reasonable expectation. But LA's successful fake punt and the final LA punt return were just not okay. Those are not winning plays, to say the least. Why can't we find a decent  special teams coordinator?? What is the origin of this curse?

The defense also should not be relinquishing that type of lead. Why does it keep happening to the Niners? Does this happen to other teams too? It boggles my mind, given the talent and the recent success that they've established as one of the standards in the NFL. New coordinator yes, and also yes I remember Demeco and Saleh both requiring time to get up to speed. But no, you should not be giving up a 10 point lead in the 4th quarter to end up losing by a last second field goal. Not to an admittedly pretty great QB, but with one with only ONE receiver.

I also have to say, Kyle, please stop with the Ronnie Bell. How many times does this guy have to break your heart? Put him on the practice squad if you want to keep him, but stop playing him in games. It's not working man, a receiver who can't catch does not work in the NFL.

Anyway, Brock and JJ, y'all balled absolutely tf out yesterday and I wish the rest of the team could have held on and won so your accomplishments could be properly recognized.

LA Times Article on NFL QBs by NFL QBs (by Sam Farmer)

Here is a really good article about NFL QB success, or failure.

It seems simple, quite comprehensible, and you'd think people with basic football knowledge - let alone coaches at the highest level, or team owners, or critics (some once NFL QBs themselves) - would get it. And yet so many don't. This list of 3.5 legendary NFL QBs (Jim Everett is only 0.5 legendary) plainly spell out why Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and Derek Carr are seeing career resurgences on new teams.

In conclusion: Carolina, you will remain busted as long as David Tepper is your owner.