Joseph Mallozzi's Blog, page 179

December 14, 2020: Orville Nation with special guest star Martin Wood! News of note! SGU!

Later today, Dark Mater and Stargate fans!  Orville Nation reconvenes for a discussion of Dark Matter Episode 10 with special guest star – Director Martin Wood!

DARK MATTER MONDAY

December 13, 2020: Suji Sunday!

 

You shall not pass!

Guilty!

Santa’s little helper.

A rare shot of Suji and her new friend, Roscoe – taken about a minute before she tried to attack him.

Sack o’ potatoes.

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December 12, 2020: Mecha Oishikatta!

Today, Akemi and I received an early Christmas gift from one of our good friends (code name: Black Jack!) in the form of this beautiful custom bento box via Shoushin, home of Toronto’s best sushi!

The bentos were bamboo.

Bento #1: (clockwise from top left) Ankimo, torotaku makimono and tamago, tako with spinach, and shirk.

Bento #2: Anago with sudachi.  Akemi’s favorite!

Bento #3: Chriashi.  Gorgeous, no?

Thank you, Black Jack!

Had a zoom call yesterday to discuss the outline for Project F.  No notes!  It’s both amazing and strange to be working with an exec who not only gets sci-fi, but is probably an even bigger fan of the genre than I am.  I’m on to script!

A week off for my Snow Monkeys as they earned a first round bye with their first place finish.  This week, we root for the Super Spreaders to upset L’s Legit Team, and for the Running Dead to conquer Darren’s Team!

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My Top 10 Favorite Mushrooms!

I’ve never been a fan of your common grocery store mushrooms (button, cremini) but have always loved the wild varieties.  Back when I used to frequent restaurants (Remember indoor dining?), October was always a month to look forward to because it was mushroom season and one could look forward to dedicated menus featuring everything from chanterelles to porcini, enoki to matsutake.  I miss those days.  And I miss some of the harder-to-find varieties that are near impossible to order fresh.  For the time being at least.

You’d thing it would be near impossible to come up with ten different types of mushrooms, but I’m going to surprise you.  Here are my Top 10 Favorites…

#10.  Lion’s Mane

Yes, they look like something that might populate an alien world, but they’re delicious cut (to resemble CT brain slices), and pan-fried with a little garlic, oil, salt, and black pepper.

 #9. Shiitake

This Japanese variety is an Akemi favorite and a common ingredient in her soups and stir-fries.

#8. Oyster

These are a great introductory mushroom for the uninitiated, lovely roasted with olive, salt, and a little garlic powder.

#7. Chanterelles

A mainstay of many a high-end French restaurant in the fall, they’re a highlight side dish, sautéed with butter and garlic.  A great accompaniment to a robust steak.

#6. Enoki

Another terrific Japanese variety, they offer a nice textural crunch that is atypical of most mushrooms.  Akemi loves them in soups but claims it’s hard to find quality product here in Canada.

#5. Matsutake

The grand-daddy of high-end Japanese mushrooms is this coveted variety whose subtle flavor is wonderful in soups or simply grilled with a touch of salt.

#4. Porcini

These incredibly flavorful mushrooms are perfect with pasta.

#3. Morels

They’re pricey, and a little labor intensive, but I think they’re worth the cost and effort.  I love them stuffed and/or roasted with a little olive and thyme.

#2. Maitake

Oven-roasted to crispy perfection with a little salt and garlic powder.

#1. Shaggy Manes

These are extremely elusive.  You can’t order them because of their extremely short shelf lives and, unless you can differentiate between them and other similar-looking toxic varieties, picking them in the wild can be a little dicey.  I haven’t had them since I was a kid.  My father used to forage for them, often a handful at a time, bringing them home where my mother would pan fry them with butter and garlic.

And you?

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December 10, 2020: Snow Monkeys! Projects! Misaki Han!

Well, well, well.  Isn’t this exciting?  My Snow Monkeys wrapped up a first place finish (and first round bye) in  League of Our Own fantasy football action.  That means that, this week, we can sit back and watch our rivals go at it in quarterfinal action as we look ahead to week 15.

I haven’t been this excited since, well, the last time my Snow Monkeys made the playoffs.

Reading recommendation:

ROGUE PLANET
A chilling tale of cosmic terror that elicited the same feelings of dread and delight I experienced the first time I watched Alien. Sci-fi-horror at its finest.
Written by @cullenbunn
Art by @andymacdeez
Colors by @nickfil
Published by @OniPress pic.twitter.com/7yKZukfI68

— Joseph Mallozzi (@BaronDestructo) December 9, 2020

All five issues are out and the complete trade paperback will be released early next year.

Zoom chat tomorrow about the pilot outline for Project F.  I’m assuming I’ll be getting the go-ahead to go to script.  Meanwhile, the deal has officially closed with the author of that marvelous fantasy book series I’ll be developing for television.  We just exchanged introductory emails and will look to set up a chat for some time next week.  “So what’s the book series?”you may ask.  Well, I’ll defer to the official announcement, whenever they choose to make it – however, I will tell you that it’s a big I have read and recommended on this blog in the last five years.  So start your search engines!

From the Dark Matter vault: the amazing Misaki Han (played by the equally amazing Ellen Wong)…

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December 9, 2020: Amazing Comic Book Covers!

Here are a few that caught my eye…

Guardians of the Galaxy #9 – cover art by Rafael Albuquerque

Spider-Man #5 – cover art by Javier Rodriquez

The Rise of Ultraman #4 – cover art by Jorge Molina

Batman: Black & White #1 – cover art by Greg Capullo

Detective Comics #1032 – cover art by Lee Bermejo

Detective Comics #1032 – over art by Stanley “Artgerm” Lau

Superman: Endless Winter #1 – cover art by Rafael Grassetti

The Flash #767 – cover art by Nicola Scott

Wonder Woman #768 – cover art by Adam Hughes

Wonder Woman #768 – cover art by Joshua Middleton

Home Sick Pilots #1 – cover art by Caspar Wijngaard

Piecemal – cover art by Szymon Kudranski

The Lords of Misery – cover art by Eric Powell

So, which were your favorites?

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December 8, 2020: Aliens among us! Santa eggs! And SGU BTS pics!

Actress Torri Higginson!  Director John Stead!  The gang at Orville Nation!  And yours truly!  In case you missed it…

Looking ahead to the holidays, sis sent me an idea for the perfect Christmas gift for Akemi…

She’d never wear it, but it would be worth it just for her reaction.

Aliens among us?  Apparently so according to this article:

Aliens Among Us!

My favorite part: “There’s an agreement between the US government and the aliens. They signed a contract with us to do experiments here.”

The SIGNED A CONTRACT?  Is it legally binding outside of this solar system? Did their intergalactic lawyers vet the agreement?  How many quatloos are they charging for their services?

A festive Yes/No –

So…are white food video people okay? Genuine question, because this seems like a cry for help. pic.twitter.com/9UgABrwuS0

— Mikki Kendall (@Karnythia) December 7, 2020

A little somethings from the SGU vault…

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December 2, 2020: Chatting with actress Torri Higginson and director/stunt coordinator John Stead!

Are you ready, Dark Matter and Stargate fans?  Later today, Orville Nation’s live weekly Dark Matter rewatch discussion continues with TWO special guest stars: actress Torri Higginson (Commander Truffault) and John Stead (episode director, series stunt coordinator).  We’ll be chatting about Episode 10 – but the conversation may stray to other topics: dogs, birthdays, and, of course, Stargate.  Join us!

STARGATE FANS! Plz RT..Thx!

Dr. Weir @torri_higginson will be on Orville Nation TODAY talking her DM role of Commander Truffault

December 6, 2020: Suji Sunday!

Helping with the laundry.

All dressed up and somewhere to be.

Looking three years younger!

Sleepy time.

Sneezy!

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December 5, 2020: My lockdown rant

Came across this video on twitter today of a desperate small business owner in California being forced to shut down her outdoor dining area while, some 50 feet away, a film/t.v. crew sets up their own outdoor dining area in advance of a production –

Watch this video, folks. Sound on. pic.twitter.com/Oo6LMdmE1p

— Klavan Squarebeard, first of his name (@SpencerKlavan) December 4, 2020

There has been a massive failure of leadership across the political spectrum.  I look at it as a sliding scale.  On the one end, you have the most egregious: the Republican party that has chosen to address the pandemic by largely ignoring it and/or actively undermining efforts to curb the virus.  There are the Democratic leaders at the state level who have enacted policies and safety measures in an unequal, often illogical (Sending those Covid-positive patients into nursing homes where the most vulnerable reside) manner.  There are the Western governments that have generally been slow to act, choosing optics over the health of their citizens in refusing to enact travel restrictions and then lying about the effectiveness of masks so as to dissuade the general public from purchasing N95’s thereby ensuring enough of a supply for medical professionals – all because our leaders failed to act quickly  at the first signs of trouble.  There are the governments of China and Russia that apparently have the virus “under control” by, let’s face it, having their people “under control”.  And then there are the outliers – the New Zealands and Taiwans, Japans and South Koreas – countries that took immediate, decisive action.  Countries whose citizens came together to fight the virus and keep each other safe, championing the common good over the egocentrism that compels people to complain about masks or pack into third rate barbecue joints.

“We’re all in this together” is a phrase I’ve been hearing a lot over the past few months, usually from politicians imploring us to lockdown and not travel while they dine maskless or vacation in Cabo.  But the phrase clearly has varying applications.  “We’re all in this together” does not mean, for instance, that “all” receive equal government support.  In the U.S., the top 1% have done very well in this pandemic, the stock market and their zombie companies propped up by the Fed while small business owners and regular folks receive a comparable pittance or, in many cases, do without.

Which brings us back to the small business owner in the above video.  Why is it that the same rules don’t apply to everyone?  We’re all in this together after all.  It’s a question I asked a friend of mine who is a working line producer.  “It’s different,”he explained, “because productions are very careful and test three times a week.”  This, of course, begs the question: “Why isn’t everyone being tested three times a week?”  The obvious answer is: “Because there aren’t enough tests.”  Which is why medical professionals are only tested once a week.  Let that sink in.  The individuals risking their lives on the front lines of this pandemic are tested once a week while, back in June, the NBA was testing players and staff daily.

So what’s the answer?  Ideally, a fast-acting and effective vaccine.  But while we’re waiting, how about some support, both emotional and financial, for those in need? How about honesty and consistency in both messaging and policy on the part of our leadership?  How about a little science-based common sense, selflessness, and general empathy on the part of people in general?  Small sacrifices in the face of a looming crisis.  Because if things keep going the way they are, this virus will be just the half of it.

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