Episode 77: Movie Advisory 2017B, Best of 2017, and 2018 Preview

We give our takes on the theatrical releases we watched in the back half of 2017, then talk about our bests of the past year before plunging into what we’re looking forward to in the new year! There are some spoilers, but we rarely make much sense. Movie Advisory 2017A was episode 66!

Links

Movie Advisory 2017B

Battle of the Sexes
The Dark Tower

The Hitman’s Bodyguard
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
It
The Mountain Between Us
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
Murder on the Orient Express

Pitch Perfect 3
Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi

Coming Soon
Black Panther
Deadpool 2
Ready Player One
Ocean’s 8
Proud Mary
A Wrinkle in Time

Pacific Rim: Uprising
Fifty Shades Freed
Crazy Rich Asians
Ant-Man and the Wasp
The House With a Clock in its Walls
Halloween
X-Men: Dark Phoenix
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Best of 2017
Movies: Get Out, Wonder Woman, The Last Jedi, Hidden Figures, Fate of the Furious, The Hitman’s Bodyguard
Books: #libfaves17, Gone to Dust by Matt Goldman, Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough, No One Can Pronounce My Name by Rakesh Satyal, Misfit City by Kiwi Smith, Kurt Lustgarten, and Naomi Franquiz, Broken Earth trilogy by N. K. Jemisin

Television: Riverdale, One Day at a Time, Supergirl, Hallmark/Lifetime movies
Music: Rainbow by Kesha
Other: the power of twitter (Metro-North train rescue), phone battery replacement, eclipse, Women of NASA Lego set

Looking forward to in 2018
Midterm elections
She-Ra on Netflix
Lumberjanes Coloring Book
Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
New Becky Chambers book
Painting by Numbers (Shades of Grey 2) by Jasper Fforde
Black Lightning on the CW
Grown-ish on Freeform
The X-Files on Fox

Musical Obsessions
Anna: “Seasons of Love” from Rent
Alene: “Santa Fe” from Rent

Obsessions
Anna: 221B Baker Street board game, Fandom Hearts series by Cathy Yardley, Bingo Love by Tee Franklin and Jenn St. Onge
Alene: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Episode 50: Comfort with Carolyn

 

We made it to fifty episodes! In this very special post-election installment of Bellwether Friends, we talked to founding Friend Carolyn about comforting pop culture (and food) to consume when we’re trying to recharge our batteries.

Via Two Bossy Dames,  “A post specifically for white women from a white woman”

Code Switch, “A Muslim and a Mexican Walk into a Bar…”

Still Processing, “The Day After”

Music

Bustle, “52 Songs To Cheer You Up Every Time”

“One Way Road” by John Butler Trio
“My IQ” by Ani DiFranco
“Born Free” by MIA
“Sheep” and”Sitting on a Fence” by The Housemartins
Spotify playlists: 80s Ladies for Margaret
Hamilton Mixtape
Inc.com, “Neuroscience Says Listening to This Song Reduces Anxiety by Up to 65 Percent”
“Borderline (An Ode to Self Care)” by Solange
“I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from Mulan

“Stop” by Spice Girls
“Hasa Diga Eebowai” from The Book of Mormon
“Fight Song” by Rachel Platten

Television

30 Rock
The Muppet Show
Law and Order
Gilmore Girls
The West Wing
Sports Night
Quantico
Sleepy Hollow Season One
Arrow
The Shannara Chronicles

The Dresden Files
Person of Interest
The Flash
Dateline

Endeavor
Inspector Morse
Grantchester

Movies

Best in Show
Charade
D.E.B.S.
Fire
Saving Face
Pitch Perfect
Love Actually
Shaun of the Dead
The Sure Thing
Hallmark Channel Christmas Movies
Pretty in Pink
Sisters
Kate McKinnon

Books

Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer by Kelly Jones
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
Vorkogisan series by Lois McMaster Bujold
Latin@ Rising: An Anthology of Latin@ Science Fiction and Fantasy
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova
The Ladies of Missalonghi by Colleen McCullough
The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery
Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie
Phryne Fisher mysteries by Kerry Greenwood, read by Stephanie Daniel
#booksfighthate
@diversebooks

Food

27 Uplifting Foods to Get You Through Uncertain Times
Mushroom Marsala Pasta Bake
Dill pickle Halfpops

Other

Coloring
Candletime
Warm Beverages
Crafting

Obsessions

Anna: Lego sets
Alene: Supergirl recaps on Autostraddle

Carolyn: Cider with bourbon

Musical Obsessions

Anna: “They Don’t Know” by Ariana Grande from Trolls
Alene: “Get Back Up Again” by Anna Kendrick from Trolls
Carolyn: “U-Turn” by Tegan and Sara

Episode 27: Hamilton and Best of 2015 Show Notes

Download episode here.

After three months away, we are back to discuss Hamilton (one of us is an expert and one is not) and discuss some of our highlights for 2015. And make an important announcement. Thanks to all our fans for your patience and support.

Links
Hamilton: An American Musical
Lin-Manuel Miranda
LMM and This American Life
LMM on Jeopardy!
“Hamilton” is the Very Model of a Modern Fast-Paced Musical
Disney’s Moana
The Wiz Live!
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Carol
Magic Mike XXL
Inside Out
Carly Rae Jepsen
Walk the Moon
Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
Supergirl
The Flash
The Nine Lives of Christmas
Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Crosstalk by Connie Willis
Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold
Stiletto by Daniel O’Malley
The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig
Mr. Fahrenheit by T. Michael Martin

Obsessions
Carolyn: Justin Bieber: “What Do You Mean?”

Anna: Adele: “Hello”

The Princess and the Prix by Nell Stark
A Lego Brickumentary

Episode 15 Show Notes: Boy Band Extravaganza! and Song of Your Birth

Episode here.

For this episode, we took a much closer look at a subject that we’ve touched on a few times before: the animal known as the “Boy Band.” DISCLAIMER: We know that there’s no British boy band named “Take Five,” we really do. Let’s blame Robbie Williams or something. We also took a look at what song was topping the charts when we came in to the world.

Links

98 Degrees (They have four members! And toured in 2013!)
The Monkees (also still touring)
Menudo (currently inactive)
New Edition (toured in 2014)
New Kids on the Block (touring in 2015)
Boyz II Men (touring in 2015 + recently released album)
Backstreet Boys (touring in 2015 in China)
*NSYNC (inactive until Justin Timberlake hits sixty)
Arashi
Photo History of Boy Bands: 31 Essential Acts

“I Swear” by All 4 One
“Please Don’t Go Girl” by New Kids on the Block
“Don’t Leave Me This Way” by Thelma Houston
“Star Wars Theme” by Cantina Band
“Gold Digger” by Kanye West
“I Gotta Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas
“Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor

This Day in Music

Obsessions

Anna:
Lego Catalog
Star Wars Rebels
Texts from Jane Eyre audiobook (available now!)

Carolyn:
The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber
Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & The Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

Episode 3 Show Notes: Flashdance and the Lego Problem

In our third episode, we discuss the fallout from our enforced watching of the 1983 classic (“classic”?) Flashdance, as well as conversing at length about Girl Legos and the troubles inherent in raising modern children. We wrap up, as always, with our current obsessions.

This week’s tagline: “We watched it so you don’t have to.”

Links (episode spoilers ahoy!)

View the story “Flashdance Forcewatch” on Storify
Flashdance
Every Little Step documentary about A Chorus Line
Lego Friends
A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson (hat tip to @mrsfridaynext)
The House of Small Shadows (not The House of blahblah, as Carolyn said) by Adam Nevill