That sure was a month I didn’t update. I wrote a few things but nothing ever felt ‘complete’ enough. And it was an extremely shitty month for me. Moving on.
The biggest thing that’s happened recently is that I completed the third season of TOS. And, oh boy, not to start on a bad note, but it was rough. I actually didn’t have huge complaints about “Spock’s Brain.” I had seen it before and I guess I understood the arguments about it but as silly as it is as an episode it’s at least entertaining and colorful in a TV garbage kind of way. I don’t label things as guilty pleasure – I think a lot of things that we’re told to feel guilty about come from puritanical or sexist or any number of shady reasons – but I enjoyed watching it despite it not having the same qualities that were apparent in previous episodes. It had other qualities.
No, the real slog for me came about midway, perhaps even a bit earlier, in the season, when the writers suddenly didn’t understand what pacing meant. I read a lot of the “rewatch” reviews on Tor.com, which are very good although I need to stop reading synopses of episodes before the episode is done. I can tell I’m struggling with an episode every time I have to pause it and open google. Many of DeCandido’s observations circle around idea that there was enough plot for fifteen minutes and everything else had to be padded with awkwardly long shots and deep silences. I can’t help but agree. Maybe the most egregious was “The Empath,” which literally just took place on a soundstage and had a deaf mute woman running around making wide eyes of sympathy. The idea of a deconstructed Star Trek with late 60s experimental theater influences doesn’t deter me – I really enjoyed “Spectre of the Gun” and perhaps my all-time favorite Monkees episode is “Fairy Tale” – but this didn’t have the wit, camp or playfulness of any good 60’s romp hallmark.
And yet the very last episode kept kicking a dead horse as a former lover and current woman-with-ambition Dr. Lester body swapped with Captain Kirk and then went mad with the power. On top of Shatner adopting “feminine” mannerisms for the entire episode, multiple crew members commented on the new “emotional instability” and “hysteria” of the captain. I actually saw a somewhat decent chance to make a comment on the way women are treated in medicine – with Kirk-in-Lester’s body not able to convince anyone of what was happening to him. Of course, the show didn’t actually develop the idea as a theme, but theoretically a case could be made.
All the other episodes were too boring for me to remember. Really.
This also means I’ve started the animated series, or TAS, and it’s cute, adorable, and only twenty minute episodes each! It’s extremely a kids show with the original voice actors, cheaply made, not very original in the sense that a lot of the plots are reused from live action episodes, but there’s no padding, no unnecessary romance arcs, some of the background drawings are gorgeous and the little zoomy ship in the opening credits is a delight. Take a listen to the reworked theme song, it is glamorous.
Speak Easily, No Time For Comedy
Near the beginning of the month I was watching a lot of classic movies, mostly because TCM was playing a lot of good stuff near Valentine’s Day. I had written most of a post about Speak Easily and No Time for Comedy that I never truly completed, but I wouldn’t want to deprive anyone of my words of wisdom, so here they are, finally printed:
Speak Easily, a Buster Keaton MGM talkie was unsurprisingly not great even though there were a few bits that made me laugh at 3 AM. Inspector General, a Danny Kaye vehicle, was equal parts extremely silly and surprisingly witty. I couldn’t figure out which way I landed on it (especially after the extended “be arrogant, be elegant, be smart,” bit). Unfortunately, I lost the movie halfway though since I was watching at midnight and paused, only just now discovering it on youtube since it’s in the public domain.
Which left me with No Time For Comedy, this week, with romantic comedy between James Stewart and Rosalind Russell. I really enjoyed the first half of the film, which is well written and really sells the romance between a midwest stagewriter and his New York City Broadway star. The lead up to the marriage builds a very solid foundation for the relationship and includes a lot of little jokes. What I wasn’t as overtly aware of was the character building it was doing along the way. The second half of the film has to do with Stewart’s struggles as a successful writer four years later and the torment he puts everyone through because of it. He’s often out drinking and eventually starts an affair with an older man’s wife who fashions herself as his patron and muse. From what I’ve read online the darker content of the film turned a lot of viewers off, unable to reconcile the sweet Stewart from before the time skip to with his harsh and cruel actions only a few years later. I was prepping myself to feel the same way until I realized that this film is a perfect example of a dramedy, made before the studios quite knew what to do with such a monster. The musical cues feel all off – the grand orchestral sweep is frequently overwhelming the quiet character work – but the writing, acting, and direction all point to an unassuming well-observed play that refuses to make a monster of anyone. Russell, particularly, stands out as a stage star who has a dry wit and sophistication who is unafraid to be warm and compassionate. It might wind up being a perennial favorite, I would happily revisit that world again.
Perhaps next time I’ll talk about my 9th annual Bitter is Better marathon but perhaps I’ll also simply keep the experience to myself. Who can say.