Each episode in the first season focuses on a different one of the friends and their background while interspersing bits of story line to tie them all together in the world of the characters. Each character has a really interesting background that aches of love and loss, even though they’re only 17. Perhaps it’s just the English way for teens, but these kids party as if they were in their late 20s, it’s pretty amazing more of them don’t end up dead or pregnant—but it makes for an interesting dynamic that is really different from the way I grew up here in the States.

I don’t want to reveal too much plot because it’s so good, but what makes the show interesting is that there is a strong sense of duality in all of the characters, you love and hate all of the characters at the same time, but I suppose that’s how life is. Tony’s character in particular is interesting at how quickly he deceives his girlfriend Michelle and best friend Sid over and over again yet still comes off likable.

The second season picks up after a strong finish to the first and progresses more broadly through the world of the characters and focuses less on each character and more on what’s happening to the group which I think favors very well to differentiate itself from the first season, and also finishes strongly with a logical and agreeable finish. I know there is a third season that picks up with a whole new cast of characters but I sort of consider the first two seasons to be it for this show since I fell in love with the characters so much.

I think what made this show unique is that it was honest and real without apology of judgement and allowed each character to live their life in a way that didn’t compromise who each of them were from the beginning of the show. This isn’t 90210 or anything like it, it’s a realistic portrayal of teen life and how hard it can be and I couldn’t be more excited.

The pace of the novel is appropriate and thankfully you don’t find out what Operation Havoc is until the end, allowing for a good sense of mystery and tension. More so than the actual plot of the novel what makes Pygmy interesting is the style of exposition Chuck uses—the whole novel is told through the eyes of the students and done so through an odd variety of broken English—an example of a sentence “Host father mount altar so stance beside bin empty of water”. This construct makes for an arduous read, yet offers a unique satirical perspective into the American way of life.

The idea of Operation Havoc seems similar to plots aspects of Fight Club, but who’s to say that’s a bad thing. While Chuck took a small break from this style of subversive satire for a few novels, it really is his strong suit when it comes to writing. Pygmy is a pretty quick read and will take a bit of concentration, but you’ll be satisfied and probably spouting out broken English sentences your self.

Within the film it’s hard to distinguish Adam from George and I think that plays an important part in making this film important, not only is it focusing on the idea of tragedy affecting a celebrity but it actually makes you wonder and care for Adam in real life. The normal Apatow crew is here (Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill) and the film has a good pace—the only thing I think most people would agree seems to misfire in the film is where Judd decides to reveal George isn’t going to die—had he waited until the third act of the film we’d actually probably feel more whole-heartedly towards his efforts to improve his relationship with Leslie Mann’s character.

With this film, Apatow does what he’s always done; made a film that is about something that isn’t terribly important, and made it relevant to all of us through the use of casting Adam Sandler into a role that he basically plays himself. Another thing he does really well is shows us that he actually really loves comedy and understands what it’s like to be behind the curtain in that world.

It’s true with this album as it was with their others that they’ve always been good at writing songs with a strong sense of story without giving up their snarly British sound, but this album takes that to another level and moves the band in the right direction to keep making important albums that are worth listening to. With a wealth of great records coming out of the the states it’s hard to have a good reason to listen to a British group, but with Humbug there’s certainly a reason for export.

Standout Tracks:

• Crying Lightening
• Dangerous Animals
• Potion Approaching
• Fire and the Thud

The group’s strongest asset is their lead singer’s strong presence that works well with down-tempo and Arcade Fire-like up-tempo drum beating songs. The singer’s voice sounds like a somewhat toned down version of Zach Condon of Beirut, yet still very ‘European’. I’m very excited to hear where else this band goes and can’t wait for their follow-up.

Standout Tracks:

• I’m a Pilot
• Ghosts
• The Walls Are Coming Down
• Harold T. Wilkins, or How to Wait for a Very Long Time

What makes this album interesting is the simple little flourishes added to each somewhat somber song to take it to that level of seeming simple and restrained to being complicated and sophisticated. Each song takes simple premises and builds upon them on layers of sound—allowing the listener to hear new things every time. I can’t help but think of The Beach Boys in how their style of Pop comes through on songs like “Two Weeks” and “Ready, Able”. Daniel Rossen’s deep vocals are often accented by slight increases in pitch to allow even simple songs that elegance of well composed music where the lyrics take on a more emotive state, well accompanied by minimal instrumentation.

Grizzly Bear is certainly a band worth watching in the next few years, even if you must listen to each album several times before fully appreciating it.

Standout Tracks:

• Two Weeks
• Cheerleader
• Read, Able
• While You Wait for the Others

You can’t really talk about Twin Peaks without talking about the 2 seasons of the show separately. The first season of the show was what really turned people onto the show primarily because it was structured around the murder of Laura Palmer and finding out who in Twin Peaks killed her. There were certainly some odd dream-like sequences but the show in general seemed to be a bit more ‘normal’ when it comes to weird things about the series.

The second season of the show was and should be considered completely separate from the first season except for the first few episodes that were wrapping up the murder storyline of the first season. The second season focused more on a battle between good and evil and the dichotomy surrounding those two elements and the citizens of Twin Peaks. Because Agent Cooper sort of became an honorary citizen of the town after his stay in the first season it seemed only appropriate to have more of his back story fleshed out and brought to the foreground towards the end of the series. Speaking of, the final two or three episodes of the second season really became classic Lynchian storytelling dealing with predominantly abstract ideas and dream-like sequences that could only happen in a universe created by him.

It’s clear after watching the whole series why there were only two season, and ultimately that was a good thing. After being so involved with the first season David stepped away and became more of an executive producer and less an actual director, which unfortunately meant that the show felt a lot less like a David Lynch project and more just grasping at straws for how to bring all the characters of the town together in an odd way.

Regardless of the disjointed aspects of the second season, Twin Peaks was an amazing show that really broke the boundaries of what television could be and the resonance of the show can still be felt in some of today’s shows. While I’m still grasping at Mulholland Drive, I think David Lynch is a visionary director and I always look forward to watching his films—Twin Peaks was a wonderful experiment to see what he could do with a television series and I couldn’t be more impressed.

After having everyone in the family tested the only members eligible are her grandson and her black-sheep son who had been banished from the family earlier in the film. Everyone comes together after years of separation for the Christmas holiday and are confronted by having to make hard decisions and speaking after so many years of separation.

The film does a wonderful job at illustrating the difficulties a family must face with such a dramatic medical decision to be made while also dealing with the micro-problems of siblings and their separate lives coming together under the roof where they were raised. The family in the film feels real, they have real problems and aren’t expected to get along and come together, these are broken people who are focused on their own selfish interests and have a hard time sacrificing for their mother. In a time where ‘family dramas’ seem formulaic this film was a refreshing piece of cinema.

More so than just being a good, inspirational read, this large-format book captures moments in time with important individuals (all over 65) describing what they’ve learned in life and lessons they want to pass down. The length of the book was a bit surprising—clocking in at about 200 pages—especially considering it’s a coffee-table book as well, but it’s certainly a great piece of history to share with your friends and family. With all that aside, it’s all set in Helvetica, so for fans of the typeface it might make you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Standout Tracks:

• Bag of Hammers
• Swimming Pools
• Geography