Imagine, if you will, this little nugget appearing on the big screen (provided movie theaters ever reopen): EXT. DAY. IN FRONT OF A CONVENIENCE STORE. JAY and SILENT BOB are leaned against the brick. JAY bobs his head and freestyles hilariously obscene rap lines. He pauses as his cellphone rings. JAY Yo, Jay and Silent … More Scream, Silent Bob!: A Pop Culture Indulgence
Facebook’s “On This Day” feature can be bittersweet. Scrolling through either evokes an “Awww, I remember that” or an “Oh my, how vapid I used to be.” It can remind you of that one time you found your 60-pound dog inside the dryer … Or it can evoke a heart-wrench as you see images of … More Cinco Denial: Absurdism in the Time of COVID
Many of you are sick of reading about the coronavirus. Honestly, I don’t want to write about it. Still, I feel obliged to contribute something to the conversation. Don’t worry. I won’t use phrases such as “in these troubling times,” nor will I insert any other ominous adjective. (I’m looking at you “uncertain.”) No, I’ve … More COVID Blues: Notes from the Underground
[The following is a piece of flash fiction, originally cut from my short story “Clamp & Fangs.” It should make sense as a stand alone, but for the full story, be sure to check out my Amazon Author Page. I should probably also note that, while relatively mild, there are some adult themes below. You’ve … More The Eastern Side of Paradise: A “Deleted Scene”
I’d always had a strange attraction to the House of Vacuums, the distinct building on the stretch of Huntsville Road that runs through the Sweetwater District of Florence, AL. I’m by no means a vacuum cleaner enthusiast. When it’s my turn to break out the Dyson and gather up the masses of dog hair littering … More “Well, That Sucks!”: The Fall of the House of Vacuums
There are great Buffy episodes: “Prophecy Girl,” “Surprise/Innocence,” “Passions,” “Bad Girls/Consequences,” “Fool for Love,” “Conversations with Dead People,” “Lies My Parents Told Me” … And I’m just going to leave those there, knowing full well some will be apoplectic I’ve left out other gems. Then there’s the trifecta, the Holy Trinity: “Hush,” “The Body,” and … More “There’s Not a One Who Can Say This Ended Well”: The Buffy Re-Watch, “Once More with Feeling,” S6.E7
Some shows are known for their holiday episodes. I rank Valentine’s Day near the bottom of my favorite holidays, but I am always eager to watch Phil and Claire Dunphy don their alter egos, Clive Bixby and Julianna, and get into hilarious hijinks. Buffy didn’t regularly feature episodes revolving around any annual celebration. Working from … More “Shiver Me Timbers”: The Buffy Re-Watch, “All the Way,” S6.E6
I’ve cited Elizabeth Rambo’s essay previously, though perhaps I haven’t made explicit that ever since I read it, it has colored the way I experience the entire season. Playing off the line from Tara in “Entropy,” (“Things fall apart, they fall so hard … You can’t ever put them back the way they were”), Rambo … More “That’s a Flawed Design”: Buffy Re-Watch, “Life Serial,” S6.E5
I had originally planned on spending most of the 4th writing my thoughts on this episode. Then the spirit of the holiday overtook me and I found myself creating ear-splitting explosions and–my recent struggles with going full-blown pescatarian be damned–eating the chargrilled flesh of dead animals. I also think I might have been procrastinating a … More “She Saved My Life a Bunch of Times. Plus, She’s Hot.”: “Flooded,” S6.E4
The new millennium brought with it a downward spiral of quality for the recently revived genre of horror. Scream (1996) breathed new life, sure, but aside from being blatantly self-aware, it also had some genuine creep factor. 2000 gave us Cherry Falls, a great flick in the tradition of Scream, but it wasn’t scary at … More “Did You Think the Blood Wouldn’t Reach You?”: “After Life,” S6.E3
