Bookended by Cats was named after Milo and Otis. They are the short, orange, and furry brothers who, upon entering our lives in 2003, often bookended us on our couch. And who are we? We're a geek couple living in PA. We love music, movies, TV, comics, books, and comic cons. And, from time to time, we'll share our thoughts on these nerdy things.

Friday, April 30, 2021

Friday 80s Flashback for April 30, 2021

 

[On a Lark] -- With the exception of the very first week of April, my birthday month, I have been using the Flashback posts to feature music from 1986, the year I turned 18. And now that we have come to the end of April, we are going out with a bang. 

In October 1986, English rock band XTC released their ninth studio album, Skylarking. It's a much better record for April and May, what with a third of the tracks evoking feelings of spring through summer. But that still makes sense as the album was recorded between April and June of 1986. Skylarking is one of XTC's better known records, and it reached #90 and #70 on album charts in the UK and the US respectively. Prior to recording, however, label executives had threatened to drop XTC if their next album wasn't a bigger success (their prior record, 1984's The Big Express, had been a commercial failure). Apparently, the label figured the problem was that XTC sounded "too English," so they wanted the band to use an American producer. Of the listed producers suggested to them, Todd Rundgren's name was the only one XTC recognized. On paper, a pairing of Rundgren and XTC probably looked like a smashing idea. However, the sessions were rife with tension, mainly due to clashes between Rundgren and Andy Partridge (XTC's leader as well as primary singer and songwriter). As of March 2016, there was still animosity between the two artists (Todd Rundgren Reignites Feud With XTC Over 'Skylarking').

The results more or less speak for themselves (I already mentioned its popularity and top 100 placements). And with a total of 15 solid tracks to select from, I find narrowing down to a few faves to be a difficult task. Still, I usually cite "Dear God" (about a struggling agnostic who writes a letter to God), "The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul," and "Earn Enough For Us" (which has previously appeared in a Flashback post) as my favorites on this record. Of my selections, only "Dear God" was released as a single, but it was also the b-side for the album's first single ("Grass"). That's kind of interesting given that this song was left off the original pressing, and that it caused a bit of controversy when it hit airwaves. And that was not the only controversy for this album: Apparently Andy Partridge originally had something else in mind for the album's cover art

The entire album's playlist, including "Dear God," is embedded for your listening pleasure this weekend.   

Flashback Skylarking (1986)




Once again, I remind you that the rule of three applies when doing Flashbacks. As I've made my three offerings, that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina - Final Season

 Dangrdafne review:

I loved the first 3 seasons of Sabrina and was really looking forward to this final season. I was a little disappointed through the first few episodes as they were overly predictable and a fully encapsulated story but around episode 4 to 5 it went back to what I liked and the episodes ran together more and carried the story over the episodes instead of ending after an hour.

My favorite part of the season is something I don’t want to spoil for people as I wasn’t spoiled, which I can not believe at all, but it was a glorious idea and a perfect use of characters. A great homage and inclusion of history.

And even though I knew what the ending would be, I was ok with it and I still sobbed (but I cry at almost anything really). I think Kiernan Shipka is just incredible and she did Sabrina proud and any girls who watch this show should find a great woman to watch and strive to be in many ways. I do love how women are the forefront of the show and we see all kinds of women throughout the four seasons.

I love that quite a few story lines were worked through and closed. Many characters received extra special treatment and I am glad for that. It felt good to see some closure for some characters close to my heart. Although I wish there were two more episodes to the season so that some things were not so rushed and prettily put together in order to end the show.

I am grateful this show was created and lasted as long as it did. I loved the family aspects of the show and appreciate the female centric stories. It is a little gory at times and scary too but if I can watch it, you can too. It is worth it.

4 paws - all seasons


Friday, April 23, 2021

Friday 80s Flashback for April 23, 2021


[My Memory Lies in Dust] -- For the remainder of April, my birthday month, I am featuring music from 1986, the year I turned 18. Before we go any further with this post, I have to admit that I do not recall the last time I listened to this week's album in its entirety. But now that I've re-listened to both the original release and the CD bonus tracks in preparation for this post, I'm wondering, "Why have I left this out of my personal rotation for so long??" This album is such a time capsule for me, evoking memories and whole moods from my first year of college. 

On 4/21/1986, Siouxsie and the Banshees released their seventh studio album, Tinderbox. This album included two singles: The very excellent "Cities in Dust" (which had been previously released in October 1985) and "Candyman" (which hit the charts in February 1986). Remember, kids, singles used to be used as teasers for upcoming LPs or EPs. I didn't hear either single, let alone the rest of the album, until September of 1986, but better late than never, right? 

Tinderbox was a critical success, hitting #13 and #88 on the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200 respectively. Also notable on this record is the non single track, 92° because it kicks off with a sample of dialog from the 1953 film It Came from Outer Space (clip): "Did you know, Putnam, that more murders are committed at 92 Fahrenheit than any other temperature? I read an article once. Lower temperatures, people are easygoing. Over 92, it's too hot to move. But just 92, people get irritable!"

"Cities in Dust," the lead single, was the band's first significant success in the States, climbing to #17 on the US Hot Dance/Disco chart. There are several delicious remixes of this track, including the Extended Eruption Mix and the more recent Herb's Banshee Tribute Remix.

This week, we have two playlists. The first embedded YouTube playlist has the eight tracks of the original vinyl and cassette release. The second one has the five bonus tracks from the 1986 CD release. If you remember Tinderbox, it's time to blow the dust off your memories like I did. If you're new to Siouxsie, prepare yourself to experience a post-punk band at their peak. 


FlashbackTinderbox (original vinyl and cassette release)



FlashbackTinderbox (1986 CD bonus tracks)




That's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Zach Snyder's Justice League

 Dangrdafne review:

I am not sure where to start with this movie. I wanted to love it. I wanted to like it. I think I tolerated it in the end. Here are the notes I took when I started the movie:

Note 1:

This is not what he (Zack Snyder) would have done from the start. He did this now because he could. Waaaaay too dramatic and drawn out and I’m only 18 minutes in. I didn’t even know what was happening in the beginning. I’m so confused.

Note 2:

The only good thing so far is Steppenwolf does look Much Better. Annoyed at the overly dramatic themes.

Note 3:

Desaad??? Darth Vader or Doctor Doom or a mix? Totally Dr Doom.

Note 4:

The Flash first scene takes waaaaay too long. Not fast enough at all. Ridiculous music.

Note 5:

Here we forget Martha and it’s all about dads.
Flash = dad in prison
Cyborg = dad issues
Batman = dad issues
Aqua man = human dad
Wonder Woman = no dad

Then something changed in the pacing or the story but I noticed that I stopped taking notes, so I must have gotten back into the movie somehow and stopped complaining and just watched. And I did that all the way through the first part of the epilogue, which was really well done but then Zach had to keep going ... why?....and I was right back to the feelings from the beginning of the movie. So annoyed.

There were changes I liked in the movie and obviously some that I did not like. Was this movie needed? Yes for Cyborg, and no for everything else.  

I am torn with wanting to watch it again to try and not be annoyed, so perhaps I need to watch it with Brainwise so I can hear his take on the movie, and not caring to watch it ever again. 

2 paws - Cyborg helped this not be 1 paw

Friday, April 16, 2021

Friday 80s Flashback for April 16, 2021



[America is Hell] -- You might recall that for the remainder of April, my birthday month, I am featuring music from 1986, the year I turned 18. Frank Zappa released two albums in 1986, effectively bookending (heh) the year. In January, he released Does Humor Belong in Music?, a collection of concert recordings from the end of 1984, so that doesn't fully qualify for my music in 1986 theme. But in November of 1986, Zappa released the final studio album (that would be released within his lifetime): Jazz From Hell. In many respects, this has been a week from Hell, and that alone could make this latter of the two Zappa records an appropriate album to feature. But to make the connection even more concrete, according to Zappa himself, this album's title (and maybe even the track of the same name) was a political statement: 
"Things in America can be from hell. Right now we have a president from hell [reference to Ronald Reagan], and a National Security Council from hell, so we should add Jazz from Hell also."  (Quoted here and in the book, Frank Zappa and the And).
While I do enjoy listening to this album on occasion, usually as background music, I cannot give it an adequate review or description. I can tell you that my favorite tracks are "While You Were Art II," "Jazz From Hell," "G-Spot Tornado," and "St. Etienne." And I know Jazz From Hell won the 1988 Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. So, for more detailed analysis, I direct you to this album's entry on zappa-analysis.com, especially if you want a deep dive into the Synclavier, a digital synth Zappa used on every track of this album except "St. Etienne." 

Zappa did not record any music videos for this album, though one YouTube user has an appropriate animation scored with "Jazz from Hell."  Fortunately, the Frank Zappa account on YouTube does feature a complete Jazz From Hell playlist, so that is what I have embedded for you this week. 

FlashbackJazz From Hell



That's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

Godzilla vs Kong - HBO Max

 Dangrdafne review:

Let me start with I LOVE Godzilla. I have been watching Godzilla since I was a child. My paternal grandparents watched Godzilla all the time and always included me if I was visiting. So not only do I love Godzilla but he brings back such amazing memories for me.

That said this was not a Godzilla movie to me... this was a King Kong movie. I don’t dislike King Kong but I definitely prefer Godzilla. Overall the movie was ok. It was nice eye candy and I am shocked at how there were a few things that were NOT spoiled for us and I will not spoil it here either. 

King Kong was HUGE and Godzilla looked a little odd to me. They definitely worked things to be in Kong’s favor and that is one reason why this was a King Kong movie and not a Godzilla movie.

We did laugh at how the movie harkened back to the old poorly acted originals but I actually don’t think it was the actors as much as the material they were given. But I have to say if I could be part of a Godzilla movie, I don’t think I would care what my lines were at all. I would just love to be a part of the spectacle and I am imagining that was the case for this cast.

The young deaf girl was fantastic and I would love to see her in many more roles. When she was on the screen, I couldn’t keep my eyes off her, she was striking to me. I did also like the multi-cultural cast but found it hilarious that the one scene in Hong Kong only showed “Americans”. 

We all know we don’t watch these movies for the story or the humans and that was very true of this movie. But I almost wasn’t sure I would watch at all once the music played. What was up with the music choices??? It was very jarring to me, so we just laughed through them and waited for the action scenes.

I await the next pure Godzilla movie 🍿 and I won’t complain too much about this one because I definitely want another Godzilla movie. I should also add that I would like to see this in IMAX at some point because as I said earlier in this post, the movie was very good eye candy.

2 paws

Friday, April 9, 2021

Friday 80s Flashback for April 9, 2021

 


[On the Windscreen] -- My last several Flashback posts have focused on an entire album that was released on, or near, the calendar date in question. I'm continuing that trend today, but with a slight change. April is my birthday month. So, starting this weekend, I am featuring music from 1986, the year in which I turned 18. I've done this at least once before, focusing solely on music released during April 1986. But this time around, I'm leaving the whole of 1986 open to exploration. This week, I'm featuring a little record that hit the charts on 3/17/1986 -- 35 years ago! It is also one of my favorite albums from that year: Depeche Mode's fifth studio album, Black Celebration. Although it received mixed reviews upon its release, Black Celebration reached #4 on the UK albums chart, yielded four singles (all top 40 in the UK), was cited as one of the most influential albums of the 1980s, and earned a spot on Spin magazine's 25 Greatest Albums of All Time (#15, April 1989). This record successfully married pop beats with a darker aesthetic, a combination Depeche Mode went on to further develop in their next few releases (Music for the Masses, Violator, and Songs of Faith and Devotion). I also need to point out that my favorite version of the fourth single, "But Not Tonight," is probably the Extended Remix (which is not, unfortunately, included in the playlist embedded below). So, while we have only "A Question of Time" (but not "A Question of Lust), let's kick off a "Black Celebration" of my birth month in this "World Full of Nothing." Maybe we can all get "Dressed in Black" and watch a "Fly on the Windscreen." However, "Breathing in Fumes" and getting "Stripped" are both optional.

Flashback: Black Celebration (1986)




That's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

ARMOR (1984) Re-Read

 

// It was an odd being which rose from Felix and through him. It was, in fact, a remarkable creature. It was a wartime creature and a surviving creature. A killing creature. From a distant place, the frightened Felix scanned himself. He recognized little. Still, what he saw was a comfort of sorts and he concentrated himself toward it, toward the coldness, die callous machinelike... The Engine, he thought. It’s not me. it’s my Engine. It will work when I cannot. It will examine and determine and choose and, at last, act. It will do all this while I cower inside. // 

I finished another re-read of ARMOR by John Steakley (1951 - 2010) over the weekend. As I recall, I first read this novel in the late 1980s. I next read it in the mid-1990s. I'm not sure if this latest revisit is my third or fourth. But I will say that, for the most part, I think this book still holds up as an exploration of the psychological toll on combatants -- think STARSHIP TROOPERS (the novel, not the movie), but with better battles and more internal examinations. On second thought, it doesn't matter whether you compare the novel ARMOR to either form of STARSHIP TROOPERS; the simple truth is that ARMOR is superior. 

Some reviewers have pointed out that the shift in perspective from Felix the military scout in Part 1 to Jack Crow the mercenary in Part 2 is jarring and maybe unnecessary. I've also seen the argument that, maybe, Steakley just jammed the manuscript from another unfinished novel into ARMOR and then stitched them together in Parts 3 and 4.  I suppose that is possible. I also suppose that attitude might be a conceit from modern (post 2000s) reviewers having trouble with a form of storytelling (military sci-fi) that was in its nascent development in the late 1970s and through the 1980s. I liken it to kids these days being frustrated with the storytelling and editing of classic films. 

Anyway, like I said, the novel more or less holds up. Some aspects are even reminiscent (or would that be prescient?) of military conflicts that occurred decades after its publishing. 

I found the image for this post online, but it's a good match for my 1984 printing of the paperback.


"That’s the trouble with armor. It won’t protect you from what you are.” ~The Masao to Felix


Friday, April 2, 2021

Friday 80s Flashback for April 2, 2021

 


[Burning Back to 1981] -- Are you ready to burn your way back to 1981? I ask that because, for years, I thought the chorus, and the song title, was "Burn your way back." Turns out, both were actually "Find Your Way Back" for Jefferson Starship's first single off their 1981 album, Modern Times. Released on 4/2/1981 -- 40 years ago this week! -- Jefferson Starship's sixth studio album would eventually peak at #26 on the Billboard Hot 200 while charting three singles, two of which landed in the top 100 ("Find Your Way Back" and "Stranger" peaked at #29 and #48 respectively). Modern Times was also notable for the return of vocalist and songwriter Grace Slick, who had been absent from the band for three years. UCR called this album a zenith of arena rock. AllMusic's Joe Viglione referred to this polished bit of 80s rock as psychedelic metal. I really cannot argue with either assessment. Let me know what you think in the comments.

FlashbackModern Times (1981)


Note: Depending on where you are, three videos in the embedded playlist might be hidden from you, giving you access to only six of the nine total tracks. In case you're interested in the other tracks, here are alternate links on YouTube: "Modern Times," "Alien," and "Stairway to Cleveland."



That's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.

I'll see you in seven!