Television
The Simpsons (Disney +)
We’re back on the Simpsons couch – the Season 16 opener was great and gives me hope that this show is on an upswing again.
Shrinking (AppleTV+)
I think I cried for, like, 30 minutes without stopping during this finale. Normally, when I get allergies during a television show, I’ll ask Mickey to pass me a paper towel, but he was downstairs taking a shower. This is a Jacki alone show, even though I think he would love it and probably cry for 30 minutes during the finale, just like I did.
So, my next step when my allergies randomly act up during a television show or film would be to grab my couch towel – I use this underneath my plates at dinner times or to wipe my hands. I keep them frequently washed; don’t fret. I still don’t using them for face events, though, so this is a last resort situation.
Except my last resort was nowhere to be found. I have OCD, so I am very particular about where I place my couch towel, and it was in neither. This was still only one minute into the crying. So I thought, okay, I can’t stay crying for that long, so I just sucked it up.
Literally.
But then it kept going. This finale was incredible, y’all. I was telling Mickey outside just now, “this is one of those shows where I want a brand new episode every week. I never want to stop spending time with these people… and learning from them.”
It’s, like, my favorite thing every single one of the actors has done—especially Harrison Ford. When I cry at TV, it’s normally just like photogenic tears streaming down my face. When Harrison Ford stood up at Thanksgiving and gave his speech, it was full on supressed sobs. He’s incredible, just breathtaking.
Ugh, I’m so sad I have to wait so many months for another season. I am ready NOW.
Oh, I ended up using Travis Snoopy to wipe my tears. He was worried he might become too moist and turn muspy. I am happy to report he is fine and healthy.
Bad Sisters (AppleTV+)
Good finale, but paled in comparison to season 1.
The Penguin (Max)
This was honestly so good, y’all. Cristin Milioti was the real star of this, imho. She stole every scene she was in, and that’s not because Colin Farrel’s eyebrows were hidden underneath prosthetics. It’s because she was just that good. She’s probably my favorite part of everything she’s been in:
- Her episode of Mythic Quest (S1E5) gave this show a surprising depth and really elevated the entire season. (It’s a fantastic show – every single episode, this one is simply outstanding, though)
- Made for Love was a quirky lil show that not enough folks watched.
- She was the star of the screen in every scene of The Wolf of Wall Street that she was in.
- Her storyline was trash, but she was a delight on How I Met Your Mother
And now The Penguin. I hope she gets credit for this come awards season. She deserves it.
As for the show itself, I liked that it was more of a psychological character study than a straightforward mob film. It worked excellently on both levels!
Pop Culture Jeopardy (Amazon Prime)
My favorite bop of the week!
The Bear (Forks – S2E7 & Napkins S3E6)
I went down a rabbit hole the other night and watched Forks, because that episode makes me feel a range of emotions that I just kind of NEED sometimes, you know? Midway through, I started reflecting on my favorite episode of season 3 (Napkins) and how they are both about characters who were somewhat problematic in the previous season coming into their own.
In a way, I think Forks and Napkins are both origin stories.
So, when I was done spending time with Richie in Forks, I spent some time with Tina in Napkins.
And I found more supporting arguments for my similarity theory. They both use alarm clocks as pot devices and rely heavily on the theme of “being of service”.
And they are both spectacular episodes of television.
Okay, but then I started wondering, what episode fits this pattern from season 1? I asked D and she said episode 7 – the one where the stabbing happens, but I think I might have to watch the full season again to figure it out properly.
What do y’all think?
Christmas/Comfort Episodes
- Psych: S2E10
- Community Trifecta
- Mr. In Between (weird coincidence): S2E5
- Welcome to Flatch
- Abbott Elementary
Australian TV (Or Dropout TV)
Australian Survivor Heroes vs. Villains
Me and Aubz were chatting the other day and… We might ask Simon to watch an episode with us. That’d be wild, and I think Molls would approve.
Movies
Drugstore June (Hulu)
Esther Povitsky is on the list of people that I will watch in anything. I was first introduced to her talent on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend , then fell all the way in love with her uncomfortably self-aware brand of comedy on Alone Together.
She is also on TikTok and has just had a baby, and it’s been fun watching her navigate that.
This was a bop of a movie. The best of the ones we’ve watched so far.
Brats (Hulu)
This documentary was trash, and I decided 13 minutes in that it would be a hate-watch.
Andrew McCarthy reminds me of Martin Short, and Martin Short annoys the tits off of me, so I knew I was in for a bad time from the beginning.
AM is so whiny in this and I feel like the uncomfortableness of almost every interviewee is just radiating off of them in waves. I CAN FEEL IT.
I feel like the only way this documentary might have worked is if AM didn’t call ahead of time and just, like, ambushed each interviewee one by one.
Instead, he set up awkward shots and made people answer awkward questions, and it was just not fun to watch.
They all told him the same thing: to stop living in the past, but he just didn’t want to seem to listen.
It was not good at all, and I’m mad at NEON for being involved.
Juror #2 (MAX)
Incredible cast, fine movie. Nothing special or ground-shaking. Well done acting, shots, music, all of it. It was just fine, that’s all.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Sigh.
Why.
Babygirl (AMC Theaters via my AA24 Membership)
First off, my AAA24 membership is one of my favorite things that I spend money on each year. I get a free birthday gift from them every year, a zine every quarter, and now I get extra bonuses like a free ticket to every movie they release and $5 off a month in their store. Plus, I get to support the movie studio making my favorite movies right now. They aren’t paying me to say this, but if you wanna join yourself, use my referral link – we’ll both get a free month!
So, that’s how I found myself in a theater watching Babygirl with Mickey at 10 am on a Friday.
Hoo boy, was it good y’all.
How good? Well, I’m currently listening to the soundtrack as I type. It might boost Challengers out of its current top spot.
Also, it might be so good that I can’t talk about it yet. It got so much right, y’all. If I had access to it at home, I’d’ve watched it twice more already.
Nicole Kidman was perfect. Harris Dickinson was not just some fluke of an actor that I loved in Triangle of Sadness – he’s a true talent. Their chemistry was electric. The music was its own character.
I’ll do a more detailed writeup when I watch it at home. We’re kind of on media overload and it’s hard to untangle the spaghetti in the meaningful way that this film deserves.
Other
Geoffrey Thomas Asmus: The Only Funny White Man (800 Pound Gorilla YouTube Channel)
Watch here.
Geoffrey Thomas Asmus tells the funniest joke I’ve ever seen in person. It’s about the bible, y’all. THE BIBLE. I, Jacki, laugh hysterically at a joke about the Bible.
I will share some of the punchlines from this special that made me laugh the hardest (there were a lot more than this; I was just laughing too much to write them down.)
- “huddle around a hole in silence”
- “give it to daddy, but don’t wake father”
- “mass shooter madness”
- “sometimes my voice just gets ahead of my brain”
- “dribbling catholics”
- “i love being a little bitch”
- “god’s lil snitch”
- “duck hat festival”
A+ stuff, can’t wait to see what that brain comes up with next.
James Acaster: Hecklers Welcome (MAX)
This was great. I’d seen a lot of these clips on TikTok already, but altogether a full hour was something, well, special.
I only took one note:
”lolloping”.
Mockumentaries (for some reason)
7 Days in Hell (MAX)
This was ridiculous in the best way.
If I’m ever looking to shock cast a real athlete in a sports movie, John McEnroe would be my first call.
