|
By Rowen Murphy
Entertainment Columnist Introducing the top three reads that are perfect to pick up this season. Whether you are looking for a story set in a small town where something isn’t quite right with your picture-perfect neighbors, or a Sci-Fi blockbuster that unsettles the senses, or a chilling ambiance where unexpected creatures ensnare a boarding school, we have a treat for you! This list features books by T.J. Klune, Chuck Tingle, and C.G. Drews. Wolfsong by T.J. Klune Wolfsong is the first book in the Greek Creek Series. Set against the backdrop of Oregon’s lush forests is a dark urban fantasy with werewolves and witches. Klune’s series embodies a unique blend of cozy found family dynamics while also being quite sinister at times. With each book focusing on a different romantic pairing, we get valuable insight into the minds of four key characters. Klune’s writing is hauntingly poetic and beautifully exemplifies what it means to love a human who can turn into a beast. Klune’s work offers a poignant discussion on the hardships that come with having a deadbeat dad and a mother you would do anything to see smile again, as well as the importance of finding the people who will help carry you when the impossibility of magic becomes a reality. But beware, there are worse things out there than your childhood crush coming from a family that turns into wolves. There are also “monster” hunters and rogue packs of violent Omegas losing their ties to memory and their humanity right along with it; both factions seek to destroy the comfortable tranquility the Bennett pack has built. This series features bisexual, gay, lesbianand asexual representation as well as the voices of strong female characters and the voices and experiences of people of color, which acts as a backbone to our main characters’ understanding of the world around them. My personal favorites in this quartet are Wolfsong and Heartsong. Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle Bury Your Gays opens with gay TV script writer, Misha Byrne, receiving pushback on a script for the finale of his wildly successful show and his decision to put two female characters, whom he’s hinted at being in love, in a canon relationship. What happens when the film company tries to coerce Misha into killing off one of his lesbian leads after a single kiss with her beloved, and he replies, “bury your gays”, because that’s what the filming executives are essentially telling him to do. Worse yet, he has to contend with super fans in highly realistic cosplay of his films’ greatest villains stalking him, his boyfriend, and their asexual best friend. Tingle’s sci-fi thriller features a diverse cast of characters set up to fail against the titan filming corporation they work under. They must come together to unravel a larger mystery in the face of fictional characters coming to life with less than pure intentions. With a mix of psychological horror, dry humor and profoundly tear-jerking moments, this book is sure to make its mark. Tingle’s novel is an active critique of the overabundance of queer tragedy in the media. Within the story, there is a great deal of dialogue about the duty of the media industry to portray and give voice to every experience people go through, including those in minority communities, as their stories and perspectives matter most of all. Don’t Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews Don’t Let the Forest In is a darkly beautiful story with a Grimm Brothers’ fairytale feel that does not pull its punches when exploring a friendship between two boys that becomes an all-consuming and codependent love. Drews' work features an asexual, anxiety-riddled high school student and horror writer extraordinaire, Andrew, and his gay best friend, Thomas, a hotheaded and strikingly talented artist in all things grotesque. Something shifts when the boys return to their boarding school. The monsters from Thomas’s drawings begin appearing in the forest beyond their school, slowly overtaking the woods and creeping ever closer to the walls that promised to protect them from the elements. This novel oozes with atmosphere. It’s gorgeously written with poetic, in-depth descriptions of academia, the autumnal season, as well as the pervasive and decrepit nature of the forest. Another engaging factor is found in the construction of the book itself, with the faux blood-spattered edges of its pages, four of Andrew’s short stories, as well as four of Thomas’s monster drawings. All of which adds to the gory charm of C.G. Drews’s novel.
0 Comments
By Jane Harig
Entertainment Columnist Hollywood hit downtown LA’s Peacock Theater for the 77th annual Emmy awards, a glamorous event to honor TV’s best, hosted by standup Nate Bargatze. The event brings together writers, actors, producers, directors and more to compete for the win in a number of categories, ranging from Outstanding Lead Actor to Outstanding Cinematography. Outstanding Drama Series, Comedy Series and Limited Series or Anthology that are currently on TV, or were in the last year, represent the three large categories. To highlight the evening’s standout events, I would be remiss not to mention the standing ovation bestowed upon Late Show’s best, Stephen Colbert, following the announced (and seemingly politically motivated) cancellation of his talk show The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Actors, writers and directors alike filled the room with their appreciation for the comedic legend as he came to the stage to present Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. On stage, Colbert joked about his need for a job, pulling out a resume from his inside pocket, featuring a headshot from the beginning of his career. He passed the resume off to Harrison Ford, explaining that he only had one copy, and could give that to Steven Spielberg, which Ford happily accepted. Colbert received another standing ovation that night, when he was announced the winner for Best Talk Series (having competed for the award against The Daily Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live!). The Studio dominated the night with a total of 13 wins, including Best Comedy Series and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, and lead actor Seth Rogen winning Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. The Apple TV+ series follows newly appointed network studio head Matt Remick (along with his ragtag team of studio employees played by Ike Barinholtz, Kathryn Hahn and Chase Sui Wonders) as he navigates the ups and downs (mostly downs) of running the fictional Continental Studios – from casting the Kool Aid movie to deals with Scorsese to “Oners” and missing film reels. Each episode has a standalone quality and feel to it (and often a famous cameo, whether it be Ron Howard and Anthony Mackie or someone more recurring, like Catherine O’Hara and Bryan Cranston), with a rich 70s film aesthetic. Equal parts humorous and stressful, one of the last episodes of the season takes place at a fictional Golden Globes (with many actors playing versions of themselves, like Adam Scott and Quinta Brunson, just to name a few). A running bit in the episode was the speeches the winners made when they took the stage, each adding a thank you to Matt Remick’s second-in-command, Sal Saperstein, played by comedy veteran Ike Barinholtz, whether they knew the character personally or not. The show walked away with lots of applause that night, and viewers can rest assured knowing the show has already been greenlit for a season two. The Emmy’s brought us back to recognizing a very big night in New York City last February, when Saturday Night Live aired its 50th Anniversary episode. SNL Anniversary Specials stand out amongst others in the season, traditionally bringing back tons of old cast members, writers, hosts, and musical guests to celebrate, honor old sketches, and reprise many iconic characters. The 50th Anniversary episode brought back many fan favorites, with Kate McKinnon playing her infamous Close Encounter character, this time alongside Meryl Streep. Amy Poehler and Tina Fey did bits with the audience, before Poehler and Maya Rudolph hopped into their old roles as the ladies hosting Bronx Beat, where they pulled Miles Teller from the audience, insisting on calling Top Gun Maverick, “Top Gun 2.” Emma Stone had popcorn in her dress, John Mulaney and Steve Martin monologued, Bill Murray ranked the top ten Weekend Update hosts, and Paul Simon and Sabrina Carpenter sang a duet. The night had so many comedy MVPs, all led by Captain Lorne Michaels, leading the SNL 50th Anniversary Special to walk away with the Emmy for Outstanding Live Variety Special. Season two of another Apple TV+ series, Severance, got a lot of fanfare. The show, directed by the ever-versatile Ben Stiller, is a twisted – yet comedic – take on the work life balance, which the characters take to the next level as they are “severed” from their home lives every day at work by having their memories switched in the elevator (essentially creating two separate people: their home version, which they call their “Outie,” and their work version, their “Innie”). The show received the most nominations going into the night and walked away with eight wins. Two standout wins of the evening were Tramell Tillman, for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and Britt Lower, for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. Tillman, who plays the chilling Mr. Milchick on the show, made history as the first black man to win in his category, thanking his mother, who he joked was his “first acting coach.” Britt Lower, who plays the impeccable Helly R., had one of the best moments of the night. People watching closely could see that on the back of her acceptance speech she had written “LET ME OUT” for the audience to see, in vain of her severed, rebellious character on the show. Kudos to Britt Lower for that easter egg bit, which surely made many fans chuckle. One of the biggest shows of the year was Netflix’s Adolescence, the dark story of a young boy, Jamie Miller, convicted of killing his classmate and the ripple effect this has on his life, his family, and the world around him. Described as a “why-done-it,” the story is told in four one-hour episodes, each done in one take. The show – headed by actor, director, and writer Stephen Graham – won Outstanding Limited Series or Anthology. Graham also won outstanding lead actor for his role as Jamie’s father. Erin Doherty, who appears in arguably the most intense and memorable episodes of the show, won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Anthology. One of the biggest wins of the night was the adolescent win for the show, meaning young Owen Cooper’s award. Cooper (in his first ever professional role!) played the titular lead of Jamie Miller and walked away that night with the trophy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Anthology, being the youngest, at fifteen years old, to win for his category. Not only that, but he met his hero, Jake Gyllenhaal, before the event, who bestowed upon him a “lucky duck,” which he kept in his pocket the night of the evening. A truly wholesome moment backdropped to a dark but extremely impressive show. In his speech, Cooper stated: “I think tonight proves if you listen, and you focus and you step out your comfort zone, you can achieve anything in life.” If the Oscars proved that cinema is still alive, the Emmys did the same for television. Whether it be a storied show like SNL, or a newcomer, like The Pitt, we can count on Hollywood to gather the troops and celebrate the stories we see on our TVs each night and celebrate the people who make them.  By Rowen Murphy
Entertainment Columnist Dating simulations are typically categorized as low-stakes, cozy video games that require direct player input. This allows you, as the main character, to get to know a multitude of ‘dateable’ characters through branching dialogue paths, which stick close to a nostalgic choose-your-own-adventure feel. With the wide variety of dating sims on the market, one in particular has piqued my interest. From developers Team 17 and Sassy Chap Games comes the sandbox dating sim, Date Everything! In the game Date Everything!, you play as the main character who has recently been replaced by AI in their customer service job for megacorporation Valdivian. This inciting event kicks off our story as a hacker sends the main character a mysterious package containing aviators or ‘Dateviators’ that have the ability to turn household objects into real people; all of whom you have the opportunity to befriend, romance, or antagonize. With over a hundred fully voiced characters, each featuring a unique storyline, there is something for everyone to enjoy. There is a grand pirate’s quest for lost treasure, clothes hangers with golden retriever energy, a fake dating trope with a certain desk, a door whose main priority has always been to keep you safe, a nightmare to have surprisingly therapeutic conversations with, a wall to stare blankly into as you contemplate the ethics of romancing your personified Existential Dread and of course, so much more! I am in awe of the art these developers have created and I genuinely feel honored to have had the opportunity to play this in August. Over the course of the game, I fell in love with the main character's home and the characters that inhabit it. I found that it was so easy to adore the characters because they felt real in a sense, not only due to the writing which was absolutely hilarious and downright unhinged at times, but also due to the voice actors who brought such depth to their roles. To add to this, several had storylines that explored events many of us have also experienced. While some of the topics were more sensitive in nature than others, the writing handled them beautifully and with grace. Hearing about some of the struggles the characters underwent felt cathartic in a sense, as allowing them to tell the main character ensured that they were no longer alone in their thoughts or experiences. By the end of such conversations, Hector, the HVAC system, didn’t feel quite so ashamed about his looks. Rebel, the rubber duck, learned they didn’t need to push everyone away in order to be safe. River, the personification of water, stopped asking others which version of her they preferred and started asking which version she prefers. Barry, the makeup collection, stopped beating himself up over forgetting conversations and instead learned neurodiverse friendly strategies to help him remember the most important moments. Dorian, the household doors, learned the quiet faith that comes with entrusting his heart to someone following a particularly difficult breakup. The stories that mean something and the ones that hit closest to home are often the ones that most accurately reflect humanity. While these characters started out as household objects, they have come to embody the most positive attributes a human being can aspire to. As a whole, Date Everything! has a profound amount of heart. In playing the game, you can feel how much care was put into its creation; the soundtrack, the voice acting, the hand-drawn character designs, the witty writing, the incredibly engaging storylines and the home itself. All of this comes together to tell the story of a shut-in who crafted the courage to speak up for themselves with a little help from a cast of truly delightful characters. Date Everything! is available to play on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, Steam and PC. |
STAFFAndrew Martinez Cabrera '26, Archives
October 2025
Categories |
RSS Feed