Himalountain

Spaced, the TV show created by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright before they did Shawn of the Dead and Hot Fuzz (and Run Fatboy Run) finally comes out on Region 1 DVD tomorrow, July 23. The show aired in 1999-2000. I TiVo it whenever it pops up on BBC America but I’m pretty damned stoked finally getting the DVD.

As with Shawn and Fuzz, the style of Spaced is very silly and loaded with pop-culture and movie references: references not only in dialog but also in film making style.

Here is a clip from one of my favorite episodes:

Oh and did I mention they talk about Star Wars a lot?

For more about Spaced, go to the wikipedia entry (natch) or buy the DVD set here.

Rad.

There, I said what we are all thinking. Rad is quite definitely the preeminent BMX Teen Movie of the eighties. If you’ve never seen the movie before, go watch it. Now. But if that is too much trouble for you (it is hard to find, I understand… but that didn’t stop me from finding it again), then just watch this clip. It sums up the entire movie in one beautiful, ludicrous scene.

Some highlights:

• 0:00 - Yes, that is Aunt Becky. And she is hot with shoulder pads.
• 0:45 - The appearance of the Evil Lacky Twins, quickly cut to… the Badass Teen-Villain (why were the jerks always blonde in the eighties?), and he is clearly not impressed.
• 0:56 - Drunk Corporate Asshole! Yes, he is the true villain here, accompanied by his own slick, Mustachioed Lacky
• 1:50 - Wha? The Evil Lacky Twins are enjoying the show? Blonde Badass will have none of it!
• 2:08 - Quite clearly, a man in sequined, be-shoulder padded blouse. Apparently, Aunt Becky can only do tricks when the bike is fixed to a track
• 2:41 - Sooo… do the Evil Lacky Twins share the Zebra Girl? I’ve never been clear on that particular fact.
• 3:43 - Wow, we were so easily impressed back then…

Interesting side note, the movie is loosely based on the life of Eddie Fiola, who is actually in the movie… as Cru Jones’ stunt double.

I can’t count the number of times I watched this movie as a kid. A few years ago I finally managed to turn up a (bootlegged) copy on DVD. And you know what? I like it even more now than I did then. Perhaps if all you are nice enough, one of these days I’ll host a Rad movie night, and we can all bask in the warming glow of the eighties.

And in case you are wondering what that awesome song is, “Send Me an Angel” by Real Life. Thrice does a half-decent cover.

HBO is finally putting shows on iTunes Music Store. Not that I use iTMS unless I have a free download. Really just wanted an an excuse to post my favorite Flight of the Conchords clip:

I’m still amazed how spot-on they got the Bowie sound from several eras.

http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=8a25c3921527528c01152831fb4e000c

Jundt - if you can figure out why I can’t seem to embed anything other than youtube videos, help a girl out

If you are reading this blog then you probably know a little bit about me. And one of those things you know is that I watch a lot of TV. I once tried to calculate how many hours and the result was staggering.* This is mostly due to eight years spent at an “alternative” education school with class year round and no homework. As a latch-key kid, I came home at 3, watched cartoons until my parents came home for dinner, then promptly went back to TV. 8 years. This was a major contributing factor to my lack of sport prowess and poor social skills. It is also the reason I can remember, word-for-word, the following song which popped into my head this morning:

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/coo-coo-cola/3800992299 (I’m having embedding issues (That’s what she said))

*I’ve rated over 1200 Netflix titles.

What show could I possibly be talking about, you may be wondering. After all, The Office is already back on the air. Of course, if you thought that The Office (funny though it is) was even close to the Best Show Ever, you are sadly mistaken.

So what show am I referring to? The Venture Bros. The schedule lays it all out nice and concise.

Just in case you’ve never seen it before, Adult Swim has a ton of clips and even some episodes. So what are you waiting for? Why am I asking so many questions?

And who is gonna play the Cow Counting game with me on a road trip?