March 15, 2020
A Bitchute Question
The blog's crack team of embed management technicians has encountered a conundrum.
(Actual footage of our North American IT department at work.)
If someone is watching an embedded a Bitchute video, is there any way to watch it on Bitchute the same way one can with Youtube? Given Bitchute's diffident search engine, this seems like it's another hurdle for new channels to get traction.
Obviously this has no real impact on the blog's active channel, which has had 6 posts in 14 months. The active Bitchute channel is just to post videos for this blog especially stuff that's likely to be taken down by You-Tube. I don't create much content and don't migrate stuff unless it's run afoul the YT censorbots.
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A Video Primer on Hygiene in Current Year
Besides the hand-washing, one should familiarize oneself with PPE, its proper use of protective equipment and ideas for extemporization in a pinch. .
more...
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March 13, 2020
On This Day in Triskaidekaphobia
Friday the 13th does not necessarily bode ill.
For example, on March 13th 1781, William Herschel discovered Uranus!
For example, on March 13th 1781, William Herschel discovered Uranus!
"March 13, 1781 was a Tuesday, not a Friday, thus invalidating this whole post."
Details...
Besides, the seventh planet from the sun is actually quite interesting despite the tedious jokes revolving around its name.
Besides, the seventh planet from the sun is actually quite interesting despite the tedious jokes revolving around its name.
The planet and its moons have surprising potential. In fact, here is a long post by Matter Beam on how to colonize Uranus!
"...."
What?
The planet has an anomalously large percentage of helium 3 in its clouds and a bunch of cool icy moons which seem quite comparable to Ceres.
The system is far enough out to keep the pesky tourists at bay.
Interestingly though, Matter Beam's article has an idea for a potentially interesting "killer app" that could make the the two "ice giants" quite useful in the far future.
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March 12, 2020
Wait.
No.
Stop.
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March 11, 2020
Well. THAT Was an Odd Glitch
For those of you arriving late the front page just filled up with duplicates of a half typed post title.
Anyway, the President just gave his speech and by Trump standards it was reasonably short on the hyperbole and such. Between sniffles and wheezes he laid out several things being done to deal with the current crisis, among them being a rather belated set of restrictions on travel to and from Europe and pending financial assistance for those ill or caring for family members with the virus which is intended to prevent people from going to work sick.
I think the big takeaway from this will be the sniffling and wheezing though.
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March 08, 2020
An Unusual Source of Protein
Scientists examining a meteorite think they have discovered a protein inside it. This is significant because, while amino acids have been found in space rocks, proteins had not. The researchers are reasonably sure that the protein is not due to terrestrial contamination due to its isotope signature and the fact that the protein is like nothing ever seen before.
The hemolithin protein found by the researchers was a small one, and was made up mostly of glycine, and amino acids. It also had oxygen, lithium and iron atoms at its ends—an arrangement never seen before.
"Hemolethin appears to be a new word invented just for this protein. but that's not NEARLY as important as the validating fact that one actually CAN find protein in space!"
Kanata no Astra's Aries by: Reverie
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March 06, 2020
Science Babe Doing Science Things
...with varying degrees of utility.
Side effects may include blunt force trauma, forrest fires, suicidal thoughts.
Seriously, would you buy underpants from this woman?
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March 03, 2020
A List That Ought to Be Shared Far and Wide
Deep in the heart of Coronaville , it appears that Uyghers are being trucked in from their "re-education" camps to staff the factories in the plague zones that are either unsafe to operate due to contamination or have massive numbers of people out sick. The purpose of this appears to meet government mandated targets for production in an attempt to rescue an economy hammered by having its workforce immobilized by this disease. Of course if members of a demographic that the CCP is trying to exterminate are infected with a deadly pathogen, then, (presumably) they won't be required to be trucked back to the concentration camps. As far as the CCP is concerned, "two bats, one stone".
As vile as it is, this situation is actually worse than that.
The utilization of these people in the disease wracked regions is a current expedient, but it turns out that this pool of 80,000 or so workers has been used as a sort of slavery temp service since at least 2017.Long before COVID19 was unleashed upon the world, this cadre has been used by various firms to round out the labor pools at factories that include those of western companies set up in China.
This practice has been noted in a in-depth report by The Australian Strategic Policy Institute a PDF of which is here. It gives extensive citations regarding the practice and helpfully notes which companies have been taking advantage of this abhorrent service.
Abercrombie & Fitch,
Acer,
Adidas,
Alstom,
Amazon,
Apple,
ASUS,
BAIC Motor,
BMW,
Bombardier,
Bosch,
BYD,
Calvin Klein,
Candy,
Carter’s,
Cerruti 1881,
Changan Automobile,
Cisco,
CRRC,
Dell,
Electrolux,
Fila,
Founder Group,
GAC Group (automobiles),
Gap,
Geely Auto,
General Motors,
Google,
Goertek,
H&M,
Haier,
Hart Schaffner Marx,
Hisense,
Hitachi,
HP,
HTC,
Huawei,
iFlyTek,
Jack & Jones,
Jaguar,
Japan Display Inc.,
L.L.Bean,
Lacoste,
Land Rover,
Lenovo,
LG,
Li-Ning,
Mayor,
Meizu,
Mercedes-Benz,
MG,
Microsoft,
Mitsubishi,
Mitsumi,
Nike,
Nintendo,
Nokia,
The North Face,
Oculus,
Oppo,
Panasonic,
Polo Ralph Lauren,
Puma,
Roewe,
SAIC Motor,
Samsung,
SGMW,
Sharp,
Siemens,
Skechers,
Sony,
TDK,
Tommy Hilfiger,
Toshiba,
Tsinghua Tongfang,
Uniqlo,
Victoria’s Secret,
Vivo,
Volkswagen,
Xiaomi,
Zara,
Zegna,
ZTE.
I note that many of the western entities on this list not only profess their own piousness but frequently presume to lecture us on what they claim are our moral failings (usually sins involving mere words).
China is a brutal dictatorship, and a nuclear power. Our ability to affect their internal affairs are necessarily limited. However, while we can't stamp out all evil in the world, willingly engaging in this atrocity is another matter entirely.
This is a list that needs to get some distribution and attention.
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March 02, 2020
Leading Indicators of the National Mood
That screenshot is actually from the 27th. As I type this, this whole category is largely sold out or won't be delivered until mid-March at the earliest.
I spent about 55 bucks apiece on virtually identical items I bought myself and my family in 2018-19.
20 pound bags of rice are still available for around 20 dollars though pinto and kidney beans are now running about $50-$60 for a 20 pound bag.
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All That and a Bowl of Grits
On my iMac, for browsers, I've got Safari, Opera, New Moon (A mysterious Macintosh fork of Pale Moon), Epic, and Vivaldi. All have good and bad points. Now I've loaded Brave and it is better than the lot of them. It's closest to Epic in concept and execution, being a "privacy browser" based on Chrome, but it seems rather more polished and is independently verified to be about as private as advertised. I'm not sure, but I assume given that last fact that Brave would also get maximum utility out of one's VPN.
Anyway, I'm very pleased with it. The only thing it lacks is a cute personification avatar. But we can rest assured that when it comes, it'll likely be a catgirl.
UPDATE:
My curiosity has out argued my skepticism so I've tentatively activated the Brave Rewards option and will keep you appraised.
UPDATE 2: Well. THAT'S annoying.
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March 01, 2020
Oh
Musk's second test rig for his giant rocket met the same fate as the first, bursting during a pressure test.
Well that was demoralizing.
It went "bloop".
Let's see if one of the Brickmuppet's Crack Team of Science Babes is ready to throw in the towel on Starship.
"This is why we have tests to destruction. Run to destruction, fix, run to destruction, fix, For context see below."
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V-Tuber Gets Doxxed
A tragic, tragic story.
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February 29, 2020
Meanwhile: in the Commonwealth of Virginia's General Assembly
Much has been made of the fact that one of the more onerous Democrat gun-control bills did not pass the General Assembly, however, it is not actually defeated, just tabled until after the election. Several other anti-second amendment bills have passed and are heading to the governors desk.
There seems to be a virtual news blackout of the Virginia legislative session now except of the few victories or temporary reprieves regarding guns, even in the local news. The exceptions involve silly and tyrannical bills like the ban on balloons (which was defeated).
These seem to be being used like the Democrats as chaff, to conceal the rest of their legislation.
One bit of legislation that seems to get no coverage, is the annexation of a chunk of Tazwell County (68 miles, presumably waterfront) into the "Clinch Scenic River State Park". Tazewell County was among the first of the counties to set up a sanctuary and is the first county to have the county government provisionally call up the "militia". Annexing their waterfront property could well be retaliation...or not...but its getting no coverage because the media seems to have a blackout on Richmond's antics.
Likely more important than any of this, are the changes to Virginia voting registration and election law, that are still not getting any coverage. I've posted a hyperlinked list below the fold and some of these are doozies.
This is the big battle, but like a cat we've all been chasing the ephemeral dot.
more...
There seems to be a virtual news blackout of the Virginia legislative session now except of the few victories or temporary reprieves regarding guns, even in the local news. The exceptions involve silly and tyrannical bills like the ban on balloons (which was defeated).
Art (sans text) is by Dairin, also here, whose NNV channel is here.
(and who is not responsible for the context of her chibi)
(and who is not responsible for the context of her chibi)
These seem to be being used like the Democrats as chaff, to conceal the rest of their legislation.
One bit of legislation that seems to get no coverage, is the annexation of a chunk of Tazwell County (68 miles, presumably waterfront) into the "Clinch Scenic River State Park". Tazewell County was among the first of the counties to set up a sanctuary and is the first county to have the county government provisionally call up the "militia". Annexing their waterfront property could well be retaliation...or not...but its getting no coverage because the media seems to have a blackout on Richmond's antics.
Likely more important than any of this, are the changes to Virginia voting registration and election law, that are still not getting any coverage. I've posted a hyperlinked list below the fold and some of these are doozies.
This is the big battle, but like a cat we've all been chasing the ephemeral dot.
more...
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Use This Rare Gift Well.
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February 28, 2020
One Way to Achieve Good Trigger Discipline
And yes, this invaluable book is still in print.
And yes, this invaluable book is still in print.
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Chinese Sends Expeditionary Forces To Assist Pakistan Against Invaders (UPDATED)
UPDATE: Noting some skepticism about this story our crackerjak team of fact checkers and damage control specialists was going to update the post, however, the AP has "helpfully" replaced the article at the below hyperlink with a completely different one Titled : Questions raised about of China anti-locust ‘duck army’
Which notes that the proposal is not, in fact an official one.
China is dispatching 100,000 ducks to Pakistan to assist with repelling an invasion of locusts.
Things are getting serious in Asia.
Which notes that the proposal is not, in fact an official one.
China is dispatching 100,000 ducks to Pakistan to assist with repelling an invasion of locusts.
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Freeman Dyson
94 years is a long time. Mr. Dyson did not waste that time. Wikipedia provides a partial overview of his discoveries and concepts, as well as this non-comprehensive list of just the things that were named for him.
There is an excellent interview with him from a year and a half ago here.
Thank you Freeman Dyson.
Godspeed.
UPDATE:
Issac Arthur has a fine tribute to this great man.
94 years is a long time. Mr. Dyson did not waste that time. Wikipedia provides a partial overview of his discoveries and concepts, as well as this non-comprehensive list of just the things that were named for him.
- Dyson sphere
- Parasitic number, also known as a Dyson number
- Dyson operator
- Dyson series
- Dyson conjecture
- Dyson tree
- Dyson's transform
- Dyson's eternal intelligence
- Schwinger–Dyson equation
- Thue–Siegel–Dyson–Roth theorem
- Feynman diagram, also known as Dyson graphs
There is an excellent interview with him from a year and a half ago here.
Thank you Freeman Dyson.
Godspeed.
UPDATE:
Issac Arthur has a fine tribute to this great man.
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February 26, 2020
Good News: Bad News
UPDATE: More Good News... There are Still ZERO Coronavirus Cases in Antarctica! Yay!
Corona-Chan is quite the cosmo-girl..
83 people being quarantined in Long Island.
Northern Italy is Quarantined....The shelves are empty.
300 are being quarantined in London after one Chevron employee developed Covid-19 at their office building in...Canary Wharf, where, presumably, he/she has talked to LOTS of people in the last 14-27 days.
Corona-Chan has now knocked South America off her bucket list.
San Fransisco has declared a state of emergency.
China is reporting that its rate of infections is going lower. This should be taken with a grain of salt, but given the extreme proactive measures that China has implemented (quarantines work after all), it's not at all impossible.
In what is surely completely unrelated news, leaked documents indicate China's Covid-19 cases are 52 times higher than officially reported. (~80,000 x 52 = oh dear)
In fairness China's government is concerned about other things.
There is some good news. Despite considerable institutional inertia and red tape, The U.S. company Moderna has sent off its first vaccine for testing. Human trials could start as soon as July, but getting it in bulk would probably take at least until the fall, if, in fact , there are no problems. Besides the normal pitfalls in developing a vaccine in a crash program, it should be noted that China did NOT allow other countries to collect samples from the source in Wuhan, so this must be based on samples the Chinese have provided and patients evacuated from Wuhan. How that may effect the matter is unclear.
Several American companies are fast on the heels of Moderna and an Australian company is working on a different approach that shows considerable promise.
Anyway, fingers are crossed.
When, not if, it catches fire here is the question now, with the CDC predicting severe disruptions.
Don't panic.
Most of us will get through this OK. However, water treatment, power, and shipping require trained people who will probably spend a few weeks in quarantine, or on their backs miserable. Things could get unpleasant for a few weeks. Have some means to get or purify water, and several weeks worth of food, all the cold medicine you can store and and some books. If you develop breathing problems, then go to the hospital, but only then. The window an all the things except the books is rapidly closing.
Keep of good cheer and remember that despair is a sin.
Most of us will get through this as long as we keep our heads.
Corona-Chan is quite the cosmo-girl..
83 people being quarantined in Long Island.
Northern Italy is Quarantined....The shelves are empty.
300 are being quarantined in London after one Chevron employee developed Covid-19 at their office building in...Canary Wharf, where, presumably, he/she has talked to LOTS of people in the last 14-27 days.
Corona-Chan has now knocked South America off her bucket list.
San Fransisco has declared a state of emergency.
China is reporting that its rate of infections is going lower. This should be taken with a grain of salt, but given the extreme proactive measures that China has implemented (quarantines work after all), it's not at all impossible.
In what is surely completely unrelated news, leaked documents indicate China's Covid-19 cases are 52 times higher than officially reported. (~80,000 x 52 = oh dear)
In fairness China's government is concerned about other things.
There is some good news. Despite considerable institutional inertia and red tape, The U.S. company Moderna has sent off its first vaccine for testing. Human trials could start as soon as July, but getting it in bulk would probably take at least until the fall, if, in fact , there are no problems. Besides the normal pitfalls in developing a vaccine in a crash program, it should be noted that China did NOT allow other countries to collect samples from the source in Wuhan, so this must be based on samples the Chinese have provided and patients evacuated from Wuhan. How that may effect the matter is unclear.
Several American companies are fast on the heels of Moderna and an Australian company is working on a different approach that shows considerable promise.
Anyway, fingers are crossed.
When, not if, it catches fire here is the question now, with the CDC predicting severe disruptions.
"Disruption to everyday life might be severe," Messonnier, who is the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, told reporters Tuesday.
Messonnier said she told her children over breakfast that they will need to begin preparing for an escalated outbreak. Parents and caregivers, she said, should ask officials at their children's schools about plans for school dismissals, closures, and teleschool in case the virus spreads in their school districts.
Don't panic.
Most of us will get through this OK. However, water treatment, power, and shipping require trained people who will probably spend a few weeks in quarantine, or on their backs miserable. Things could get unpleasant for a few weeks. Have some means to get or purify water, and several weeks worth of food, all the cold medicine you can store and and some books. If you develop breathing problems, then go to the hospital, but only then. The window an all the things except the books is rapidly closing.
Keep of good cheer and remember that despair is a sin.
Most of us will get through this as long as we keep our heads.
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February 24, 2020
GranBlue Fantasy The Animation (Series 1)
Granblue Fantasy aired in 2017 and I did not really pursue it at the time.
Well, I noted that the show features many elements that can be considered to be warning signs in media, much like brightly colored coral is underwater....such as...
*It's based on a video game.
*Nay, a GACHA game actually.
*It's set in a sort of steampunk Middle Earth.
*The initial set up appears to be a series of bromides, bound together with cliche's served on a bed of tropes.
*This thing exists, and talks...
...and that's where I initially stopped watching, because with all the other warning signs this just did not seem promising.
However, there is a sequel series out now, and, given the slim pickings of this season I decided, to check it out and to that end, I decided to give the old series another shot.
I'm glad I did.
Meet Lieutenant Katalina Alize. Until a few hours ago a highly skilled and decorated soldier of of the Erste Empire who was (until a few hours ago) in charge of security for an undisclosed research project. This involved undisclosed badness being perpetrated on Penny Plot Device Lyria (the young girl in the background). We join our statuesque heroine in the process of rescuing Lyria from her own troops, on a flying battleship. In the process of this unorthodox personnel transfer, Lt. Alize demonstrates that she's not a diversity hire, but rather an example of authority being derived from asskicking ability. Katalina is an accomplished spellblade who makes short work of her former shipmates until a particularly smarmy example of effete' aristocracy unleashes a magical weapon upon the young lady she's trying to rescue, precipitating an explosion, that results in Lyria falling from the ship, into the forest of a floating sky island near...
Gran, who, as we are introduced to him, is chopping wood in full plate armor, not because they have only one Gran model, but because he's a little fanatical about his swordsmanship training. Upon seeing the Battleship fly overhead, suffer an explosion, and drop what they took to be flaming debris in the forest, Gran and the off-model pokemon noted above rush to the scene of impact to see what happened (and if necessary work to control any forest fires). They find Lyria, unconscious outside the long sealed shrine to the island's god (called Bahamut). They note that the long abandoned and off limits shrine is...glowing. Lyria awakens, and after virtually no exposition is found by Katalina, as well as imperial troops. After a brief fight Gran, realizing that the two ladies are actually fugitives, takes a moment to ponder who the bad guys are in this situation, a question that is helpfully addressed by the Imperial troops as they interact with the locals...
The issue thus resolved, he lends his pitifully non-magical swordsmanship to the two young ladies, and, while nowhere near as skilled as Lt. Katalina, he proves to be quite impressive in his own right, punching well above his weight.
Upon recieving a bit of exposition after the Imperials withdraw, Gran decides it's a really good idea to accompany these two young ladies on their quest, which currently is to get as far from this island as possible, and ultimately is to...
Umm..
They are going to work on that while flying away in their airship.
To my astonishment, GranBlue Fantasy is a hoot!
For all it's many many cliche's this series actually manages to work and not be boring. The pacing is solid throughout and most of the characters are nicely fleshed out. This is a remarkably ensemble cast, with everyone bringing something to the table and as the party grows over the series, they all complement each other well and compensate for each other's weaknesses.
There are consistent and nice character touches too,
Regarding visual quality, there a few off-model scenes and the 12th episode seems to have been rushed, with some of the VFX not up to the series' usual high standards. The art direction is gorgeous, and the animation appears to mostly be cell animation. As often happens, the CGI doesn't quite mesh and this would normally be jarring. However, the computer animation is used mainly for unearthly/ supernatural things where the "off" look actually works very well.
I watched it in two sittings and found it quite enjoyable. the climactic episode (12) is a little odd, and as mentioned earlier seems a bit rushed. Perhaps it was intended to be two episodes. However, it definitely sets the stage for another season, and while it does advance the plot, it really seems more like a mid-season climax than any sort of denouement. This would probably have infuriated me in 2017, but as GBF2 is currently airing it means I have something to look forward to.
There is an episode 13, but it is essentially a Netflix adaptation.
All, in all, I was quite surprised how enjoyable and engaging this show is. It is basic fantasy with a side of steampunk, but it is quite nicely executed and has me hooked for more.
Granblue Fantasy aired in 2017 and I did not really pursue it at the time.
Well, I noted that the show features many elements that can be considered to be warning signs in media, much like brightly colored coral is underwater....such as...
*It's based on a video game.
*Nay, a GACHA game actually.
*It's set in a sort of steampunk Middle Earth.
*The initial set up appears to be a series of bromides, bound together with cliche's served on a bed of tropes.
*This thing exists, and talks...
Vyrn is completely off model with the rest of the show. Even the other cute animals don't look like this.
...and that's where I initially stopped watching, because with all the other warning signs this just did not seem promising.
However, there is a sequel series out now, and, given the slim pickings of this season I decided, to check it out and to that end, I decided to give the old series another shot.
I'm glad I did.
Meet Lieutenant Katalina Alize. Until a few hours ago a highly skilled and decorated soldier of of the Erste Empire who was (until a few hours ago) in charge of security for an undisclosed research project. This involved undisclosed badness being perpetrated on Penny Plot Device Lyria (the young girl in the background). We join our statuesque heroine in the process of rescuing Lyria from her own troops, on a flying battleship. In the process of this unorthodox personnel transfer, Lt. Alize demonstrates that she's not a diversity hire, but rather an example of authority being derived from asskicking ability. Katalina is an accomplished spellblade who makes short work of her former shipmates until a particularly smarmy example of effete' aristocracy unleashes a magical weapon upon the young lady she's trying to rescue, precipitating an explosion, that results in Lyria falling from the ship, into the forest of a floating sky island near...
Gran, who, as we are introduced to him, is chopping wood in full plate armor, not because they have only one Gran model, but because he's a little fanatical about his swordsmanship training. Upon seeing the Battleship fly overhead, suffer an explosion, and drop what they took to be flaming debris in the forest, Gran and the off-model pokemon noted above rush to the scene of impact to see what happened (and if necessary work to control any forest fires). They find Lyria, unconscious outside the long sealed shrine to the island's god (called Bahamut). They note that the long abandoned and off limits shrine is...glowing. Lyria awakens, and after virtually no exposition is found by Katalina, as well as imperial troops. After a brief fight Gran, realizing that the two ladies are actually fugitives, takes a moment to ponder who the bad guys are in this situation, a question that is helpfully addressed by the Imperial troops as they interact with the locals...
The issue thus resolved, he lends his pitifully non-magical swordsmanship to the two young ladies, and, while nowhere near as skilled as Lt. Katalina, he proves to be quite impressive in his own right, punching well above his weight.
Upon recieving a bit of exposition after the Imperials withdraw, Gran decides it's a really good idea to accompany these two young ladies on their quest, which currently is to get as far from this island as possible, and ultimately is to...
Umm..
They are going to work on that while flying away in their airship.
To my astonishment, GranBlue Fantasy is a hoot!
For all it's many many cliche's this series actually manages to work and not be boring. The pacing is solid throughout and most of the characters are nicely fleshed out. This is a remarkably ensemble cast, with everyone bringing something to the table and as the party grows over the series, they all complement each other well and compensate for each other's weaknesses.
There are consistent and nice character touches too,
Regarding visual quality, there a few off-model scenes and the 12th episode seems to have been rushed, with some of the VFX not up to the series' usual high standards. The art direction is gorgeous, and the animation appears to mostly be cell animation. As often happens, the CGI doesn't quite mesh and this would normally be jarring. However, the computer animation is used mainly for unearthly/ supernatural things where the "off" look actually works very well.
I watched it in two sittings and found it quite enjoyable. the climactic episode (12) is a little odd, and as mentioned earlier seems a bit rushed. Perhaps it was intended to be two episodes. However, it definitely sets the stage for another season, and while it does advance the plot, it really seems more like a mid-season climax than any sort of denouement. This would probably have infuriated me in 2017, but as GBF2 is currently airing it means I have something to look forward to.
There is an episode 13, but it is essentially a Netflix adaptation.
All, in all, I was quite surprised how enjoyable and engaging this show is. It is basic fantasy with a side of steampunk, but it is quite nicely executed and has me hooked for more.
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February 22, 2020
At the Intersection of Freaky and Deaky
This evening, I noted that I had over 7,000 E-mails. Well, I though, "Spam!", so I set about e-mail hygine.
It turns out they weren't spam. Well, not mostly.
G-mail had dredged up and put in my inbox EVERY email I sent or received on my account since 2014.
There were memories there...
That just freaked me the hell out a lot more than it ought to have.
But one thing still freaks me out, and it probably should: Every one of those things...I deleted once.
I deleted most of them again.
But there is no delete...there is only Google.
It turns out they weren't spam. Well, not mostly.
G-mail had dredged up and put in my inbox EVERY email I sent or received on my account since 2014.
There were memories there...
That just freaked me the hell out a lot more than it ought to have.
But one thing still freaks me out, and it probably should: Every one of those things...I deleted once.
I deleted most of them again.
But there is no delete...there is only Google.
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