5 things + 1 other thing: The Most Interesting 2013 Grammy Performances
This year’s Grammy performances: No Adele, no Beyonce, no Jaden Smith doing a remix of “Parents Just Don’t Understand” to further his baby rap career… but there was still a ton of awesome stuff! Who came out on top? Who crashed and burned? Who looked like they were actually planning on murdering one of their backup dancers?
Let’s find out which were the five performances we want to keep talking about!
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Justin Timberlake
Vocals: 9.5
Set/Costumes: 10 (Sepia-toned camera! JT and the Tennessee Kids! Surprise Orchestra! Everybody in suits! The new hair! Ahhh!)
Awesomeness: 10 (This gets a perfect score just for the spazzy dancing and the return of The Falsetto.)
Whether or not you like JT (spoiler alert: I do), you have to admit that he could not have handled his musical comeback more perfectly. He stayed away from recording but kept himself in the public eye. He changed his style and music just enough to keep it interesting without alienating his fanbase. He built up expectations without forcing the hype. He sounded great. And then… he pulled Jay-Z out of the damn audience like that’s a thing that you can do. I half-expected JT to kneel and get anointed as the official new King of Pop by Emperor Knowles-Carter. Justin made this his event, and we were all just lucky to get invited. -
Rihanna
Vocals: 9
Set/Costumes: 10 (It looked like an abandoned theater or the ruins of a temple. Perfectly understated, and Ekko sitting down so far away from her was great.)
Awesomeness: 9.5
I am so glad she did “Stay” - this song was a Rihanna-flavored revelation on Saturday Night Live, and the raw power she showed there was tempered into something gorgeous and melancholy and memorable. I had to Google that dude in the floppy beanie, though. Who is Mikky Ekko? Why does his name have so many k’s? He’s on the record, apparently. Anyway, he was great too. -
Frank Ocean
Vocals: 9 (+.5 for whistling)
Set/Costumes: 10
Awesomeness: 9
If you haven’t read the amazing New York Times profile of Ocean, go do that. We’ll wait…. Good article, right? In that article, it talks about how he refused to perform at the Grammys unless he got to do the song he wanted to do. Which wasn’t “Bad Religion.” So, if you haven’t spent a lot of time listening to his album Channel Orange, this might have felt like a weird choice. Instead of singing about love or partying or a breakup, he sang about… Forrest Gump? While his top half stood still and a projected lower half ran down an empty highway? It took a minute to sink in, but it was by far the most artistic and unique performance of the night, with a deep emotional undercurrent that snuck up on the audience along with the cool video thingy.
5 things + 1 other thing: “sex and drugs” (revolution 1x06)
(Welcome to 5 Things + 1 Other Thing, because the Tivli blogger likes listing things about TV.)
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5 Reasons I Need Therapy Because of Revolution
Due to a mysterious, well-soundtracked blackout that only affected my computer, I’m behind on my Revolution recaps. It was either that I had to postpone blogging for a little while… or that I just needed a couple weeks to process the complete insanity of this show. But I swore to recap every episode, and I shall! Let’s review what I will be bringing to my television therapist from “Sex and Drugs,” shall we?
1. Pervy Lando Calrissian
“They just have a problem with heroin, can you believe that?” Yes, Pervy Lando, yes I can. Also you scare me. Why am I calling Drexel-the-heroin-kingpin Pervy Lando, you ask? Because, first he did that thing that Lando did to Han Solo, where it looked like Miles was gonna get a bullet to the brain instead of a creepy hug. Miles got a creepy hug, though after the crap Drexel put them through he probably wasn’t thrilled to embrace the guy.
Then Pervy Lando cemented his Pervy Lando status by eyeing Charlie like he had X-ray vision and announcing he was going to “bury myself in tail.” Pervy.
5 things + 1 other thing: “louis ck/fun.” (snl 38x06)
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5 Best Moments from Louis CK’s SNL
I like Fun.. Fun. was very good on SNL. I liked Fun.’s songs. But Fun. needs to take the period. out. of. their. name. because. it. makes. me. do. this. every. time.:
Anyway, Louis CK!
5 things + 1 other thing: what to watch during the hurricane
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(Right now, there are crazy numbers of people watching Tivli at Harvard - over 7 times the average for this time of day! Here’s what to watch when you join them.)
5 Best TV Options + 1 Other Option
Three necessary survival items during Hurricane Sandy: fuzzy blankets, all the random food in your house, and TV.
1. CNN
Usually CNN brings me both solid news coverage, and the angelic visage of Anderson Cooper. Today, we are all instead beholden to a beautiful creature named Sandy. Considering how intense Frankenstorm seems to be getting, it might be a good idea to see what the people with windbreakers and microphones have to say. Drink some hot chocolate, stay dry, and be glad you don’t have that job.
2. Nickelodeon
It’s scary out there! Most fake TV doctors prescribe a healthy dose of Spngebob Squarepants. Trust me, I’ve been watching it today (for work, okay?) and it’s definitely worth coming back to as an adult. There are more than enough “they put this on a KID’S SHOW?!” moments.
5 things + 1 other thing: “soul train” (revolution 1x05)
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5 Best Quotes + 1 Other Quote
This episode had a lot of fun stuff. Fight clubs! Trains! Codewords! Log bombs!
Episode Rating: 8 secret American flags (out of 10)
Here are the five best lines from the episode…
1. “Aaron, Guard Nipples.”
For some reason, this is the episode where everyone decided to get annoyed with Nate’s choice in clothes and it was weirdly hilarious. The best part was that Neville knew exactly who had been captured from the clues “following us, short hair, shirt too tight.” And yes, I know we found out who Nate really is (he’s finally starting to get interesting, though I still don’t know what the deal is with his Charlie-shaped soft spot), but I’m probably still going to call him Nate for a while. Or Nipples. Heh. I love Miles.
5 things + 1 other thing: “the plague dogs” (revolution 1x04)
(warning: spoilers for most recent episode)
This recap is ANIMAL THEMED! For REASONS!
Who’s the snake, the horse, and the dog (yes, I know there were literal dogs, but stay with me here) of Revolution? Read on after the rating to find out…
Episode Rating: 6 blood-soaked diners (out of 7)
Best Moment: “Don’t leave me, everybody leaves me.”
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Wild Horse
I would watch Danny and Captain Neville for the whole hour. The dynamic they’re building here is absolutely fascinating. Danny is being stripped (literally - his shirt seems to have left its sleeves somewhere on the road) to the core, leaving behind a dark-eyed strength that Neville seems to be respecting more and more… even if Neville doesn’t quite realize it. Of course, Neville’s still in control, as seen during the pair’s time in the storm shelter. Just watch the way he combines honest fear and exhaustion with a careful manipulation of Danny’s youth and emotional state - referencing the dead father? Classic move. The camera focuses on Danny’s face as he makes careful, tiny steps forward. It was like coaxing a spooked horse and it was amazing to watch.
5 things + 1 other thing: “murmurations” (666 park avenue 1x02)
666 Park Avenue
5 Cool Moments + 1 Other Moment
Episode 1x02, “Murmurations”
- He Belongs to Him
The opening sequence was fantastic - Patsy Cline’s “You Belong to Me” plays seductively as a smirking Gavin the Main Villain watches Henry the Leading Man walk in slo-mo through the lobby. The timing of the lyrics was perfect, “you belong to me…” fading away just as Henry struts out the door.
We’re not much closer at the end of this episode to discoveringThe DevilGavin’s plans for Henry (though, surprisingly enough, his high level of Boy Scoutery is a good thing), but we do know one thing. Henry is screwed. - Tippi Hedren
The episode kind of ran the Birds homage into the ground by the time Drunk Exterminator got mauled, but that first little black shape, scuttling around, darting out of a hole in a dimly lit wall? I really jumped.
What do you guys think - are those birds the remnants of people Gavin has taken? Since that’s the wall that took the Widower Guy last week, there must be a connection… - Tony
This isn’t so much a moment as a collection of moments, aka every time Tony is onscreen. He’s my current favorite by a mile - every thing out of his mouth is almost mean, but never so much that anyone could call him out for it. Watching Jane try to handle him is hilarious. Especially when she awkwardly starts a conversation with “Did you ever hear about a murder at the Drake?” and he answers, “You’re kinda creepy, aren’t you…” Beautiful.
I just want a spinoff show about Tony sassing everyone without their knowledge. - You Learn Something New Every Day
So here, apparently, are some names for groups of birds (thank you Drunk Exterminator): Murmuration of starlings, gaggle of geese, kit of pigeons, murder of crows, and exultation of larks! - Memories
Poor Danielle. Life must be hard as Gavin’s ghostly lady-shaped attack dog. I mean, it seems like Gavin just keeps her spirit around to kill men he wants to get rid of, right? Anyway, the “rotating 3D photo” effect they used for the moment when she remembers her past kills? I would watch that all day. There was a really awesome shot where everything was static except one drop of blood falling from her knife… that’s the kind of subtle horror I’d really like to see more of on this show.
And one other thing:
- ???
Sorry, still confused. If you get a chance, watch this episode again and look for two things:
The text of Playwright Brian’s play. We get a glimpse of it before he tries to close the curtains the first time, and it looks… odd. I’m really hoping the story of Mariann and the gay restaurant (I don’t know, I got a glimpse) gets more screentime. This needs explaining.
One of Danielle’s flashback victims looked exactly like this… I think he was from the 70s?
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