Pee-Wee As Himself (directed by Matt Wolf) I said there were no rankings, but this is the best movie I watched in 2025. I was, as we all were, shocked when Paul Reubens died. I cried like a baby when director Matt Wolf ended Pee-Wee As Himself with a clip
Some notes before we dig in: * Two movies I loved but wouldn't feel comfortable ranking, as I know people involved in their creation: Discount Funeral and Snake Oil Song. Discount Funeral is a narrative piece from Brett Whitcomb, who has directed or co-directed some of my favorite documentaries,
Is there more new TV coming in 2025? Who can say? Right now, all but one of the shows on my Best of 2025 list have wrapped up. Barring a new series getting a surprise drop in the next few weeks or Pluribus suddenly turning to garbage, this is the
It feels wonderful to trust an artist or artists. I watched Breaking Bad and that was great and then I watched Better Call Saul and that was even better. Now I get to watch Pluribus with the earned expectation that Vince Gilligan, Rhea Seehorn and all of the writers, directors,
Wicked is coming back. You know what Wicked is. It's hard for me to assess the first Wicked movie's effectiveness. I saw the play twice when I was in high school and loved it then, but didn't find much to hold onto in the
When I listen to Liar by The Jesus Lizard, I end up recalling the time I stood in a UPS parking lot in Seattle with my dad in May or June 2009. The Jesus Lizard had reunited and had announced a US tour. I'd finished my second year
I woke up at 6 this morning, my son was still asleep, the Nintendo Switch was an arm's length away and Mortal Kombat Legacy Collection was loaded up. I am terrible at Mortal Kombat. The Legacy Collection is one of those "everything" video game omnibuses including
I mentioned in my last newsletter that I saw Gallagher's website as his auxiliary brain. This seems obvious, to the point that all websites are the auxiliary brains of their creators, but I didn't just mean "This is where Gallagher writes what he's
I keep saying I'm done and then I keep remembering things I need to write about. When Gallagher died in 2022, the world lost a vital lode of joy: Gallagher's website. Luckily, Gallagher's daughter Aimee started paying the hosting fees after a few months
Daniel Johnston, singing the hymn "Careless Soul" a capella, on his album 1990, has devastated me every time I've heard it and I don't expect there to be a time when it doesn't. I'm not a religious person and don&
A year or two ago, I was talking with Nate about Longboxes and he told me it was basically his Eltingville Club. I like The Eltingville Club a lot, but Nate was wrong. In fact, I don't think I've ever talked to a person who misunderstood
I last saw Les Savy Fav, one of my favorite bands, in June 2024. This was the first time in a decade I'd seen them without having to travel to another city, which would normally just be a nice treat but, now that I have a small child,