This week’s round-up includes remembering Rob Reiner, being flabbergasted to learn how horrendous Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs really is, getting thoroughly horrified (for the third time) by Darren Shan‘s Demonata series, learning how to say FUCK IT courtesy of my mum and sister, and much more.

Film

It was a sad week in the film world. It’s always terrible to lose people, more so when they’ve had an impact on you, and further so when they were taken under horrendous circumstances. Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were murdered by their son Nick on December 14th and it shook the industry, particularly because of the stellar reputation Mr. Reiner had for being an all-round good person. You can read my own tribute and celebration of Mr. Reiner and his work in my Remembering Rob Reiner post.

In other news, this week saw the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash in cinemas. I found the first film in the series, Avatar (2009), to be an averagely interesting story with some terrific graphics and action, but the second film, The Way of Water, was more interesting as it delved into the Na’vi and their story. Fire and Ash tries to balance the action and character growth/depth more evenly but the action comes out on top. I still don’t fully understand how Avatar (2009) rose to become the highest grossing film (adjusted for inflation) of all time. You can’t convince me it’s because of the ticket pricing for a 3D showing – I don’t believe 3D could be that popular. But, even if that was the reason, the story and action was hardly worthy of the title. I do however now see why the series has continued to rise in overall popularity, as James Cameron’s storytelling is really solid. I guess I’m a fan of this series now. Check out my full Avatar: Fire and Ash review.

Television

I caught up with 50 Cent‘s documentary Sean Combs: The Reckoning about Sean Combs, aka Diddy/P Diddy/Puff Daddy/Puffy etc etc etc and all the insane shit he’s been up to over the past few decades. Some stuff wasn’t all that surprising – the revelation about his abuse of men and women has been bubbling under the surface with rumour upon rumour for many years – but some was very surprising, namely his possible involvment in not only the murder of Tupac but also the Notorious B.I.G. The testimonial evidence seems overwhelming and the way his name was able to stay out of the investigations of these murders after all this time is incredible in the most heinous way. The documentary is entirely worth watching, shedding light on one of the entertainment industry’s richest manipulators and abusers.

I finished the 13-episode Constantine 2014 series this week, and I’m genuinely shocked it was cancelled. It was probably one of the best first seasons of a show I’ve ever seen. The horror was excellent and the characters were actually likeable. Matt Ryan was fantastic as John Constantine, and he managed to keep the character just as strong when he moved into DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, but he deserved at least another three or four seasons. As a fan of shows like Supernatural, this could have been just the tonic needed. I like to imagine what a Supernatural/Constantine crossover could have looked like, the Winchesters and Constantine together; those blokes all rolled the same way and surfed the same hell-waves that would have made them a force to be reckoned with. Ah, what could have been.

Music

My music listening has been nothing but Christmas classics this week, partly because I’ve been super focused on Christmas movies, but also because my students have been practicing a couple of songs for a little school performance. My all-time favourite Christmas song is Fairytale of New York by The Pogues. It just sums up the season for me, and its folksy sound is just the vibe I love. I also generally prefer classic singers such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Darlene Love at this time of year as it gives a nostalgic, cosy feel.

Literature

I just today finished rereading Darren Shan‘s Demonata series. I’ve been reading his books since I was a teenager, including The Saga of Darren Shan, or Cirque du Freak, series and its The Saga of Larten Crepsley spin-off, as well as some of his standalones, and I met him and got some books signed a couple of times, but the Demonata series remains my absolutely favourite. This is the third time I’ve read them, my second as an adult, and as much as certain horrific scenes permanently live rent-free in my head, I always seem to forget just how gruesome and graphic this series really is. It’s so good and I cannot believe it’s marketed as YA. The writing style is definitely YA, but I would not recommend the content for under-16s. Every book in the series is either a 4- or 5-star read for me, and I really loved the ending. I have read online that Shan has been working on screenplays for the Demonata series, and I cannot accurately express in words my desire for a television show. I would however need it to be just as grotesque as the books, and I think it would probably need a slightly more conclusive ending for a TV audience.

I also finished reading The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and I really enjoyed it. It was a 4-star read for me, however it could have been 4.5 if it weren’t for the inclusion of incest… I still don’t understand why that was necessary, but the rest of the interweaving, time-hopping story was excellent. Moreno-Garcia does a great job with her twists and revelations, leaving you hanging at the end of a chapter and needing to read what happens next, though you have to wait a chapter or two before returning to that point in time. Highly recommend.

Life

I’ve been thinking a lot about the looming New Year. I have a lot of things I want to do next year, to the point where I’m not sure I’m going to be able to do everything without exhausting myself, but I’m preparing a schedule that I really hope will fit everything in. I’m one of those people that tends to want to do a variety of things rather than focus on one thing and do it well. That’s where I’m hoping to list my priorities and allot an appropriate amount of time to each. These are not ‘New Year Resolutions’ – that feels like too much pressure’ – but rather goals that will hopefully mean something for my future and in the long run. Sometimes I freak out that I can’t do anything, I’m shit at everything, I should just keep doing what I’m doing because it’s easy and comfortable even though it’s starting to make me feel unfulfilled, and that’s when I remember my mum and my sister, Klaire.

As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, we lost our mum a couple (almost three) years ago, but we lost our sister Klaire back in 2016. Saturday December 20th would have been her 32nd birthday. We were close as children but our relationship grew contentious as we grew up and apart. It continued to be up and down, ebbing and flowing as some sibling relationships do, and it bothers me endlessly that I know, deep in my heart I know, that she and I would have a much better relationship as adults. Anyway, my point is that when I start to think about things that I think I can’t do, I think of her and the things that she will never get to do. I will be gone one day, just as she is, just as everyone will be, so FUCK IT. If I’m not doing it for me, I’ll do it for her and all the things she should’ve done/should be doing.

A Random Thing I Learned This Week

Did you know that the Geographic South Pole marker has to move every year on 1st January because of course the ice cap moves. They place a new marker there each year and display the old ones. I learned this from a dude I follow online, Matty Jordan, who works in Antarctica. Check out his video here!