Who do you trust to make your money?
 
The politicians or the engineers?

On cryptocurrency. Mark Cuban paraphrasing unknown source here.

When they say it like that, hmm...

It's been a while since I watched some of this show. Caught up on two more seasons now. Picked it up again with eight and I just ate nine.

Spoilers may follow.

They keep it going the same way as always. Stirring conflict as soon as they find peace. Building new romances. Breaking old ones over conflict stirred. Bringing in suspicions and intrigue, the regular drama in addition to the common Walker threat.

I don't think they really can unite against it - not like Carl hoped - not as long as they want to keep the story going.

The firefight on the hill was a spectacular one, but a letdown at the same time. Season eight finale. And though my last blog post on this series had to have been about the season before it I felt like maybe I'd caught up on this one too a year or two back, but forgot all about it, because even with the surplus firefights and action here they keep on going through the same old shit. A little panic mode and then a little alone time, deep in the woods, friends and enemies (but mostly friends) interacting, and finding peace, and debating the common topic of what it means to survive, and at what cost it has to be done, and that there has to be 'something after'.

I don't like all of it, but it does have moments, and as far as dark and brooding and moments go maybe the eighth season was the highlight so far. I just hate that they draw it out so long, and yet the moments that really matter are now the ones that last the shortest. The sense of adventure's gone, too. There's communion instead. There's bickering between survivors instead of all out war against the Walkers, and I feel like that's probably the main reason the viewer numbers are dropping. I mean just look at this graph:

It's not strange is it? With this level of filler and repetition.

The special effects don't always hold either, even if the sets are elaborate, and they have a good cast. Strong personalities. Multiracial ones too. A gay couple. Four black and white couples and counting... if I counted right. I don't mind, I think it's great, I just feel like the main thing might've gotten off track when they have to make an effort to contend to all potential audiences more so than to keep the cast alive.

Maybe some people really think about this stuff though.

Glad to have the Neegan thing done with, and yet it's not, they just drag it on and on, on and on... and wiped out the remaining Saviors after the ring thing? When they finally seemed like decent people? The Sanctuary feels like a lost chapter. For a while plot progression slows down unnecessarily and then suddenly they just skip a big chunk. Imbalanced.

Feels like it's on the right way again from the middle of season 9 and onward though. With the fair, with the new foes, with Neegan suddenly an all the more likable and potentially more central part of the cast, and Judith is a real breath of fresh air.

I'm glad they kept Neegan alive after all. Shame about Jesus. Though I never really did get thoroughly introduced to him either. The new guys though... I think I'll get to like them again too. The ones that remain. Maybe it's getting better again, or maybe it just feels that way after a certain time.

Two seasons in... maybe that's enough to feel that way? But the whisperers and the winter really came with a new touch.

Memorable moment at the start of episode 14, season 8, too. Wholesome.

And there's another name to remember. S08E01 credits. John Bernecker.

He was a stunt guy, who on July 12, 2017, fell 20 feet onto a concrete floor during a stunt rehearsal, missing a safety cushion by inches, and sustained a severe head injury. He was taken to Atlanta Medical Center and placed on life support, but died from his injuries the following day.

RIP John. At least your memory will live on. Apparently his demise halted production of the series for some time.

As for the series? I suppose I may get back to it shortly. The next season should be coming soon, and this time I am a little intrigued to pick up where the ninth one left off...

@soulard threw together this awesome logo for me with each individual letter fetched from the logo of an iconic band. :) Guess which ones?

Hello peeps! Like RJ used to say.

I've been having a thoroughly fun weekend for a change.

Two free days for Easter, of which one has passed and one's about to, but it's amazing how as long as you change your location a little it can seem like even the shortest additional sessions of spare days last longer than they really do/are more than they really are... even if this is in fact a 200% increase in terms of usual weekend off time.

About the length-enhancing session sensations though: Yesterday I was out at buddy Bear's mom's place in the countryside, getting my first almost serious sunburn of the year, eating good, doing some woodwork, sipping sunshine and chillin' for real in an early morning still... peace like a painting.

And today I went on a quest to find an air compressor to pump up my car tires, that I swapped yesterday afternoon (winter's officially over - even though we'll apparently be getting a little temporary snowfall this coming week too - studs away though).

I drove by the local gas station yesterday after the switch, but their compressor was broken, and apparently the one at the nearest gas station after that was broken too, and that's all we have as far as 'nearest' goes.

Road trip time today! All the way out to Bålsta, which isn't all that far away really, but enough that it's like a different world.

It's beyond suburb. It's outside the city entirely. With woods and fields and grids of villas (that's what we call regular houses here - independence style - with their own square allotment of garden and fence and all) that spread out endlessly... and the first gas station I stopped at also had a broken air compressor! In what ways can people possibly abuse these tools to the point of their breaking with such frequency?!

The next place did have one that worked though, plus a bucket and brush (also missing at the local place these days) so I could clean my somewhat muddled and severely-in-need-of-cleaning car windows and mirrors. I grabbed a double macchiato and a Danish pastry for free while I was there, courtesy of having voted in the OKQ8 representative elections in Stockholm a month back, and drove around a bit for a suitable spot to stop and have a blissful bite before driving back... and it really felt like a way bigger outing that it was.

Now regarding the car I just need to get it washed entirely. Been at least eight months. Water and a brush is not enough for the rest of it. But the tires did need air, so good to have at least that bit taken care of.

I wish I had a lawn btw. So simple a thing to wash if on one.

So pricey if relations, you build with these here stations.

In other news NG had a nice surprise for the first of April this year too - quite unlike previous Easters too. And that's all I got in regard to this year's foolery. Spent the day at work; didn't have time for as much other Internetal exploration as I sometimes do. If anyone's stumbled upon a particularly good one feel free to leave a comment on it!

In other news World Backup Day was the last of March, and I actually did do a proper home computer backup the day after. If you need a good cloud-based backup provider check these guys out. Been with them over a year now, and so far it's been great. And yes that is a referral link. Much obliged if you do sign up. :)

If you need a good host you might want to check these guys out too. Just signed up there and have no real experience of their services yet but good first impressions...

Also Timor Tempus is back! And I've been reviewing a bunch - and watching a lot of martial art movies you'll be seeing a surge of reviews for soon. Plus re-views on these two a while back. Been updating the anime list a bit as well. Some day I'll really catch up there.

And finally, something I planned on writing about just a while after this post: We saw two wild boars in the woods one day. Ran by just 20-30 meters away. Was pretty cool.

In regards to the price on this thing: it's not bad after all. Ten bucks. Looks super useful. The buy-an-iPhone-to-buy-flipsampler thoughts are currently shelved - I just don't need this enough, but if I ever do start requiring this kind of functionality on the go I know what I'll be getting.

Did I mention I voiced the narration in this thing earlier btw? Won this thing earlier too? Bought this thing a while ago?

Was also going to post about the Escobar Fold - a foldable smartphone developed by Pablo Escobar's brother.

They had a pretty cool site for it. Playboy poster girls posing with said hardware, but apparently: it was a scam. :/ A Samsung with stickers, basically, and they didn't ship like they were supposed to.

Not that I was ever close to buying one but... would've been cool.

(more…)

In regards to that Flash thing. About it being the end and all. Read this.

Basically it's not over!

If you happen to spend your days on NG you'll barely notice a difference.

If you happen to spend your days elsewhere you might want to try Ruffle or SuperNova - or just click that link above to find ways to make Flash work just like it used to. No need for extraneous plugins... just a little configuration file replacement and/or other tricks.

Here's a nice read too. Somewhat relevant but mostly nostalgic.

Lettuce make sure Flash lives on forever now.

Ever wonder what happened to that giant robot on eBay?

This happened.