I’m now about 4.5 hours into Metroid Prime 4; I’m still enjoying it, but every criticism I read beforehand is essentially correct, and there are some real bad design decisions here.

that spiked 60 Minutes story is all over TikTok now, which is both good and extremely funny. (The story is horrifying. The fact that the attempt to censor it just ensured more people would watch it? Amazing work.)

trying to imagine why i would get excited about an actor being cast to play a character in a series finale, and failing. (are we thinking this is leading up to a Trek original series remake? because i have other, even more complicated feelings about _that_.)

okay so I’m on the second episode of Lower Decks’ fifth season and, um… does it get better? Because this is the second episode in a row with too much and too little going on, including a fucking -awful- Tendi subplot.

I am taking the bold step of covering a show for my Patreon that people actually like! First taste is free, please give it a look.

i had to drop what i was doing to make this

is it weird that I felt like I could -taste- Eowyn’s terrible stew in the Two Towers? Like, how it would mostly just be really hot water and some undercooked vegetables and meat. Like somehow I was remembering stew she’d given -me-

seeing clips of Charles Grodin on Letterman pop up on TikTok gives me hope for the future.

bari weiss saw this and decided that she had to hide it from the american public

we begin our journey through Babylon 5! my review of The Gathering is free to everyone, so please check it out, share it widely, and consider subscribing if you'd like to follow along!

!! Here’s a link to full video of the 60 Minutes segment that Bari Weiss killed last minute, via @jasonparis.bsky.social: is.gd/paU8Ko (It was uploaded to the Global TV app in Canada, seemingly by accident, and has now been taken down)

it’s funny how instantly charmed I am by methodical pacing, hokey outfits, and ambitious sci-fi ideas. Remember when genre shows were about grown-ups doing a difficult job, and not just self-absorbed narcissists bending the universe to their feelings?

Ok -now- I’m watching the Babylon 5 pilot, The Gathering.

this is how i found out Paddington died

i am so fucking close to finishing edits on this draft, and it's this incredible feeling of creative excitement mixed with an almost overwhelming desire to be _done_ with this fucking thing. (by "close," i mean i still have to fix up the book's two biggest scenes, but the end is in sight!)

it's the most wonderful time of the year!

I posted about the latest video last night, but the whole series so far is very well done—thorough, empathetic, devastating.

Okay, so I haven’t watched a lot of Rifftrax. Trying their take on Samurai Cop

watching this, getting mad and sad all over again

she looks like glow-up Gollum.

dunno about that, but i do know this weasel is forcing me to apologize for being a human being.

ok, i'm 2 and a half hours into Metroid Prime 4, and i'm enjoying it. the sidekick is stupid, but the combat is fun; i just went through a level where you put together the motorcycle, and it was kind of a blast? very video game-y, but in a fun "i'm a kid" kind of way.

this was unsettling and really well done. heard about it in @thereveal.bsky.social, glad I knew to seek it out.

Felt like something to focus on, so I decided to watch PREDATORS, and fuuuuuuuck this is uncomfortable.

tonight’s MST3K: Monster A-Go-Go I dunno if the riffing is better on the truly painful movies, but I always find myself rewatching those the most.

This has been said a million different times and ways and it never seems to penetrate but I’ll try again: Using AI to “do” art isn’t possible. Art is not the process of coming up with a good idea to get started and then executing it flawlessly in the style of someone you admire.

i have been trying for thirty years to write a novel that gets published. for a while, it was the most important thing in the world to me. i have failed with every novel i've written. and if someone came up to me and said i could use AI to "fix" those broken stories, i would set them on fire.

I liked how this piece came out too, so this one is now public as well.

the only thing Matt Yglesias is good at is getting everything wrong. if he says it's not going to rain, bring an umbrella. beyond that, ignore and/or shame him, that's absolutely it.

This Yglesias piece in the NYT is horrifically bad. Almost every "fact" it cites is provably false. At best it is cocktail party banter from a pundit who knows nothing of energy. At worst, it was cut/paste from oil industry talking points. So, a rebuttal: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...

man, if i'd known running for mayor of NYC would let you meet Mandy Patinkin, i would've done it ages ago.

It was such a joy to celebrate Hanukkah with Mandy, Kathryn and their son, Gideon. As Jewish New Yorkers across our city prepare to light candles and mark the seventh night today, I wish you and your families a Hanukkah full of light and love. youtu.be/KIxAKyioXng

i bought Metroid Prime 4 (look, when you don't exchange gifts with anyone, you get to be a little indulgent). so far it is very... yonic? Like, there's a whole area where you just go through a bunch of doors that look like they're leading you to a lady's electric shaver.

NEW EPISODE! Dave and I go in pursuit of a Santa serial killer in 80s London, but the real mystery is how many directors this film had. Welcome to Don’t Open Til Christmas, where the content warning is longer than the transcript. One thing’s for sure, it slays!

so, like, everyone who’s watched Pluribus has thought about who their Zosia would be, right

we are now reaching "Nixon trying to figure out a way to release the tapes without incriminating himself" levels of desperation, which is fun.

god help me, i'm -this- close to saying "fuck it" and buying Metroid Prime 4.

vehement Avatar defenders are a curious breed. you won, folks. you are now the Marvel fans yelling at non-Marvel fans during the MCU's peak.

wait, there was a pilot Babylon 5 _movie_? Goddammit. I thought I could just start with the TV show!

I got fooled by one of these. Thanks, jerks, for making me skeptical about one of the few pure joys in life.

tonight’s MST3K: Touch of Satan. This is one of my faves—riffs are great, and I love how the movie kind of works? Not enough to be legit good, but it definitely has an effectively creepy vibe. (One I associate strongly with ‘70s horror paperbacks.)

sudden, legitimately shocking explosions of violence. it’s terrific!

good news, everyone! I’m going to review BABYLON-5 for my Patreon—which means watching the show for the first time. yes, I know the first season is rough, but I’m gonna watch it anyway.

I mean, there’s a ton of stuff, but I think I almost have this one memorized:

I love you, @ifbookspod.bsky.social, but the sheer volume of Elon Musk the latest episode made me listen to (with bonus Joe Rogan) is bordering on abuse. (Great ep, tho.)

man I hope he doesn’t have a Paul Dano take.

I love Resident Evil 8, but it is hilarious how completely incoherent the story is. The first hour is like they came up with six different ways to get started and decided to use all at once.

yeah but I bet he still feels hollow deep down inside, where there are things that money can’t—can’t— … … can i have some

finished a replay of RESIDENT EVIL VII, which is still one of my all time favorites. First 3/4 is some of the best survival horror ever made; last 1/4 is weaker, and there’s some emotional stuff that doesn’t land, but god does it otherwise hold up.

It's the end of 2025, and that means it's time to spotlight the amazing work of Episodic Medium's contributors. I've removed the paywall on a review by each, meaning here's 17 great reviews (and one of mine) from this year, plus 10% off yearly subscriptions (and gift subscriptions).