Movie #31 of 2026: Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (2019) Here’s a picture that lives up to its title, effectively repeating the premise from Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001): those slacker stoners again going on a cross-country journey to Hollywood, in order to stop a film being made about the comic book superheroes …
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Book #102 of 2026: Magician’s Gambit by David Eddings (The Belgariad #3) I continue to struggle with how generic this 80s fantasy series seems to me, like The Lord of the Rings or The Chronicles of Prydain with the more interesting worldbuilding, character, and plot details sanded down. It’s very much a product of its …
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TV #30 of 2026: Homicide: Life on the Street, season 4 Still enjoyable, but too uneven compared to previous years, which is going to result in a lower rating from me. I do commend the writers for experimenting a bit with the conventional procedural format, and the results include two of my favorite episodes yet: …
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Book #101 of 2026: Gregor and the Code of Claw by Suzanne Collins (The Underland Chronicles #5) This series has had its ups and downs, but it concludes on a high note that ties everything together rather gracefully. Following the cliffhanger from the last volume, the story resumes with the humans and their allies in …
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Book #100 of 2026: The Golem of Brooklyn by Adam Mansbach A golem is a creature out of Jewish mythology, said to be carved from clay and brought to life with the proper incantations to defend its maker’s community during times of strife. This 2023 volume places one in a modern madcap satire, although I’d …
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Book #99 of 2026: The Midnight Train by Matt Haig (The Midnight World #2) I don’t like the beginning of this story nearly as much as author Matt Haig’s previous novel The Midnight Library — to which it is eventually revealed to be a spinoff sequel — but it grows into itself once it develops …
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Book #98 of 2026: Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History by S. C. Gwynne An interesting topic that I’d previously known little about, how the warriors of the nomadic Comanche tribe resisted (and terrorized) white settlers across the …
TV #29 of 2026: Mad Men, season 1 There’s a lot to enjoy in the first season of this stylish period drama, which is already living up to its reputation as one of the better shows of the so-called Peak TV era. It’s an antihero character study supported by a healthy ensemble — nearer to …
Movie #30 of 2026: Clerks II (2006) Probably nobody’s favorite Kevin Smith picture, but a perfectly cromulent film nonetheless. It’s a worthy follow-up to the writer-director’s 1994 debut, bringing back the characters of Dante and Randal for a repeat round of dead-end drudgery while they indulge in existential crises and vulgarity respectively in front of …
Book #97 of 2026: Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven I was expecting this story about a family with their own sixties sitcom to read like Taylor Jenkins Reid, but I don’t think author Jennifer Niven does nearly as good a job at channeling the historical era. I also don’t care for how she populates …
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