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Enjoyed

Cutting The Cord: Thoughts On Playstation Vue

I still have faint memories from around age six of the day we first got cable. Mostly because I refused to go outside, watching every game show I could that afternoon on USA network, to the point where I got my television privileges removed for a week.

For about thirty years, I’ve had fairly consistent access to cable TV, even though I tend to not binge watch much of anything, and the onslaught of technological advancements over the last decade (everything from iTunes selling TV shows to streaming solutions like Netflix) have made it easier and easier to just not utilize it.

Three months ago, triggered by the sweet combination of “needing to get rid of the phone line we never use” and “Comcast jerking us around about previous item”, we decided to cut the cable, and try and make due with just streaming solutions. Front and center in this plan was Playstation Vue, Sony’s internet television service. (We already had heavily used Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime accounts.)

Three months later, I have no regrets, and only minor quibbles.

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Recommended

“Taken For Granted”

The AV Club decided to use their Top Gear U.S. review to make a compelling argument as to why the UK version works, and why the US one is unlikely to reach the same level.

My favorite part, though, is this aside from Jeremy Clarkson:

>In a recent 60 Minutes segment, Clarkson confided that he and his mates just take it for granted that one of them will eventually be killed while filming something for the show, but they’ve talked about it and agreed not to make a big deal about it on the air.

The full 60 Minutes piece (which I haven’t watched yet) is available online.

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Recommended

Adventure Time on Flickr

Finn & Jake Fist Bump - Close-up
I have become a huge fan of Pendelton Ward’s amazing animated series “Adventure Time”. Beautifully animated, slightly off-kilter, and always funny – a trifecta of television for me. 8PM Monday nights on Cartoon Network; also available on iTunes.
One of the side reasons I love Adventure Time: Fred Seibert has been uploading practically every scrap of production art from Adventure Time to his Flickr account. Character sheets, backgrounds, animatics, advertising materials, title cards, staff photos, props, even random bits of story notes. It’s tagged, organized, and available under a Creative Commons license.
You should really plow through everything there – it’s fascinating to see this much material available as a show is being created. Here’s some of my favorites:
"What is Life?" Title Card
Adventure Time Treehouse - Bedroom
"Prisoners of Love" Background
NEVERRR!!!
Worm