Weekly Briefing from the North Texas Apocalypse Bunker, 1/8/24
Brand New Year, Same Old Apocalypse Edition
The calendar page has turned here at the bunker and everyone in Administration is grateful for what appears to be a return to normalcy. I’ve already started filling in dates in my bullet journal for upcoming conventions and other adventures of a traveling nature. Most of these plans are still top secret, so I won’t be tipping my hand just yet. But I can say that the first appearance of the convention season will be at FenCon XIX, February 23 to February 25. Bunker Ops will be in attendance and we’ll have a table set up for anyone who wants to see what’s what and who’s who. If you’re on the fence about attending, consider this the nudge you need to buy your membership.
Happy Elvis’ Birthday
The Patron Saint of the North Texas Apocalypse Bunker would have been a spry 89 years young today, had he not cashed in his chips on a toilet seat back in 1977 at the age of 42. Our traditions here at the bunker are, I’m sure, much like yours: the watching of an Elvis movie (observance of the sacred stories), some Elvis music (the sacred texts), at least one Elvissian Foodstuff consumed (while most families indulge with the traditional fried peanut butter and banana sandwich, neatly bisected, we’re taking the more sensible approach with a modest-but-traditional breakfast of biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, and crispy-as-possible bacon) and the writing of our Promises to the King.
Ordinarily, I wouldn’t share such intimacies, as they are between me and my Elvis, but in the interest of transparency and to stimulate a little discussion, I will give you a glimpse into the process:
1. Write more fiction
2. Publish more stuff on the blog
3. Make and deliver more rpg zines and games
4. Resume the IP protocols
5. Upgrade the N.T.A.B. to the next level
That last one is a teaser. What’s the upgrade, you may ask yourself. No one told me there were levels, you might say out loud. Rest assured, you’ll be the first people to know, once some things get squared away.
Did you make any Promises to the King? Or, as is popular amongst the heathens and savages, did you make any New Year’s Resolutions? Feel free to share, in as much detail as you’d like, what’s in your hope chest for 2024.
New Year, New Marketing Strategies
Those of you with regular cons that you attend, or anyone, really, who needs stickers to hand out to other people, I’ve got a code for $10 off your purchase at Sticker Mule. If you don’t know who they are, give them a look. The website is basic, no nonsense, and dead-simple to use. They offer quantity discounts on multiple designs, and they are fast and accurate. Sign up for their emails and they will throw out a weekly special, like 50 round stickers for $19. They do a lot of things like that. Anyway, use this code when you order: https://www.stickermule.com/unlock?ref_id=3483324701&utm_medium=link&utm_source=invite
Weekly Report from the N.T.A.B. Division of Media Review
Note: For this edition, our team is going to clear the decks with shorter, punchier reviews, along with an experimental system of using numbered ranks to represent both quality and watchability. Your feedback will be most instructive. This Division of Media Review Assessment will run from .5 to 5, with smaller numbers being worth less of your time.
What If? Season 2 (Disney)
The Watcher is back, and he’s got a whole new crop of stories, some of which are based on episodes from the first season, wherein alternate events transpired. So these would be alternate events in an alternate event story. Presumably, season 3 will have an alternate story with alternate events from a story with alternate events from a story with alternate events, at which point, Marvel will have disappeared all the way up their own collective asshole. That being said, these short takes are uniformly better than the ones in season 1.
DMRA: 4.5
007: Road to a Million (Prime)
The premise for this Amazing Race style show is a bit unclear. Celebrity voice over the phone Brian Cox seems to be goading the pairs of contestants in classic spy villain style, but he’s also playing the role of handler, giving them missions to undertake and tasks to accomplish. No matter: these British teams are sent all over hell and half of Georgia, climbing things they oughtn’t to climb and answering trivia about British history, all for the chance to win a million pounds. If you like James Bond movies, you’ll appreciate the framing narrative. As an Amazing Race/Survivor kind of show, it’s pretty good.
DMRA: 3.5
Fargo Season 5 (FX)
The Coen Brothers’ oeuvre continues to be strip-mined to create really compelling long-form shows that feel greater than the sum of their parts. This season’s story is somewhat familiar, like all the rest, but the cast alone elevates the story to next level, starting with Jon Hamm in his most villainous and unlikeable role, ever. Juno Temple (Keelie from Ted Lasso) is amazing, as well. Oh, and Jennifer Jason Leigh is fantastic, even as she’s recycling her Dorothy Parker voice from back in the day. There’s at least one jaw-dropping thing in every episode. As modern-day crime stories go, it’s the series to beat. Our highest recommendation. Start here, work backwards, do whatever you want. Each season is self-contained and not connected, except by Coen Brothers DNA.
DMRA: 5
We watched the final two episodes of Fargo a few nights ago, having saved the penultimate one to finish up with a good one-two punch.
When Lorainne walked out of the prison there was still about 45 minutes left and I said something about us not being done with the kilt-wearing wackjob Ole Munch. That whole soda pop, beer, biscuit-making and -eating sequence was pretty damned tense. I thought we were going down a time-trekking Scandinavian/Celtic/paleoamerican sin-eating rabbit hole. Kind of like the flying saucers at the end of season 2 (I think, or was it 1?).
My favorite season.
We're LOVING Fargo Season 5 over here as well! (Like all the other seasons -- what a great show!!!!)