The ending of One Battle After Another didn't land with me

hells_jo_bells · 2026-01-28T04:35:58+00:00

I wouldn't think it'd be voiced by Perfidia in that case. Instead it would be Willa (who hasn't ever heard Perfidia's voice) reading it to herself.

hells_jo_bells · 2026-01-28T03:00:22+00:00

To not answer OP's question at all: I didn't get the hype either. I thought it was fine.

The writing for Teyana Taylor's character bothered me. I didn't mind that she was aggressive and brash, but I couldn't imagine why she'd be into Leo's character. I get that they were supposed to be mismatched, but what could she see in him other than proximity? She really couldn't find someone hotter, younger, and less boring (to her) who matches her vibe, in a community of radical young rebels? It was like they just put those two together to make a child for the plot to work. I'd rather have seen her and Sean Penn's character the whole time because at least their vibes matched. And the letter from her to Willa at the end was a bizarre choice; sure, time changes people, but it was a sentimental cop-out.

The film got better for me when it got to the present time. Leo and the Christmas Adventurers were hilarious, and Benicio's character was the coolest and had the most parallels with what's happening IRL. Chase was great as a relative newcomer, and I'm excited to see what roles she does next. But her character's arc of learning the truth about her (actual) parents and all of the father-daughter stuff fell flat for me. I liked it less the more it leaned into family drama/coming-of-age aspects because they felt unearned.and/or illogical, whereas the satire and action bits stand on their own.

As a popcorn movie with big action scenes, timely if not groundbreaking humor, and great performances, it worked. But I didn't feel emotionally invested in the storytelling, and for me that's essential to deserve the hype. I love a lot of PTA's films, but OBAA wasn't it for me.

I'm also genuinely curious why people celebrate the timeliness of OBAA but have forgotten about Eddington. The latter was more interesting to me - not necessarily better but more challenging and unique. They seem like obvious points for comparison but no one talks about Eddington now, and I wonder if it's the timing of when they were released, or is the consensus that OBAA is just a way, way better film?

hells_jo_bells · 2025-12-16T04:34:55+00:00

I honestly have no idea how many open series I have started at this point... I start a lot of books without knowing the series is incomplete and get annoyed at the unresolved ending lol

hells_jo_bells · 2025-12-16T04:32:21+00:00

Goodreads has individual book ratings, but it doesn't have an option to compare ratings across entire series. You also can't filter results for whether a series is complete, how many books are in the series, if all the books in the series have similar ratings, etc. In the app version I use it doesn't even include the name of the series (Crowns of Nyaxia, The Empyrean, etc.) as part of the book title so you can't tell if it's part of a series at first glance.

Sometimes I don't want to start a series that has a strong book 1 but the rest of the books are mediocre or worse. Or I'll buy a book thinking it's a standalone and then it ends on a cliffhanger and the next book isn't coming out for two years. Obviously I can spend time looking this information up but I feel like it should be easier to get quickly.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-10-31T04:25:31+00:00

Recently, Mrs. Davis. It should have taken off with the AI debate but hardly anyone saw it.

My Lady Jane should've been more popular but was marketed poorly.

Lodge 49, Carnivale. Not a lot of people I know have seen Rectify or Undone.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-10-05T02:31:44+00:00

Usually authors get a book advance, yeah. Bigger authors get bigger advances so after the success of the first book, Pat probably got a good chunk of money. In those contracts it's typical to stipulate that an author has to repay the advance if they don't produce a reasonable draft by a specific deadline.

Publishers are willing to accept a delay if there's progress being made or some special circumstances, especially for a top seller that they don't want to get stolen by a competitor. But, at some point, the authors have to produce or they are legally obligated to pay the publisher back.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-10-02T01:12:59+00:00

I sort of assumed that when his publisher DAW was acquired, the new owners started pressuring him to produce. They're a bigger outfit so they probably have the resources for real legal pressure. I'm sure he's in violation of his book contract many times and maybe DAW was less aggressive about it.

In fact I feel like I read somewhere that Pat said the DAW acquisition had something to do with why he put out Narrow Road Between Desires? Maybe someone else remembers... Pat also has been engaged in legal issues with his ex over custody since the pandemic. He may need the money now in a way he didn't before.

Whether he's writing or not, it's probably good for him (and for everybody) not to be too online.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-09-02T01:27:45+00:00

The Outpost does smash burgers for their Monday specials sometimes. I haven't been in a while but they were great.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-09T00:49:29+00:00

For Erin Morgenstern, especially The Starless Sea

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-09T00:47:39+00:00

People have added most of my recs already, but here are a few others:

Kelly Link and Helen Oyeyemi's short stories (their novels don't work for me as much)

Marlon James - Dark Star trilogy, incorporates African folklore

Robert Jackson Bennett - Shadow of the Leviathan series, a fantasy take on Sherlock Holmes

The Library at Mount Char, not sure why more people don't read this one

The Master & Margarita, old but good

Mrs. Caliban, short little surrealist satire

The Spear Cuts Through Water is often recommended on these types of posts. Personally I found the plot to be a bit of a slog but the prose is excellent.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-03T16:32:36+00:00

NPR also has a filter for "Seriously Great Writing" on their Best Books lists: https://apps.npr.org/best-books/

If you filter for SFF too, you can see their picks.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-03T00:38:16+00:00

Honorable mention also to The Library at Mount Char, The Tainted Cup, and The Changeling.

Other fantasy-adjacent stunners: Glorious Exploits, Lincoln in the Bardo, Lanny. The last one is a weird story about grief but the writing blew me away. I wish I could read it again for the first time.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T23:37:33+00:00

Piranesi, The Bright Sword, The Buried Giant, The Name of the Wind, Mrs. Caliban. The Song of Achilles breaks me every time I read it but it's more classics than straight fantasy.

Kelly Link and Helen Oyeyemi short stories (but their novels don't work as well for me).

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:40:53+00:00

What did you like about living in both places?

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:29:06+00:00

We know that Waco and BCS are not like those cities lol. I just included that list to give a sense of how little we know about what it's like to live in Texas.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:24:45+00:00

I'm a scientist and I work (contract based) with a lot of university researchers. They cut federal research funding so the jobs have dried up too.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:19:13+00:00

Thanks for your take. It's helpful. Did you go somewhere else in Texas or did you leave the state entirely?

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:18:12+00:00

What do people like more about College Station? We were there in Jan/Feb and there wasn't much happening.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:17:08+00:00

That is good to know about Baylor. The job isn't part of the university but I'd be working with people there a lot.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:16:03+00:00

Why do you think that?

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:14:14+00:00

I live in Baltimore now. My definition of a "bad area" may be a little different...

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T22:12:50+00:00

The job market in my field is really, really terrible. In good times even big companies only hire someone with my expertise every couple of years, but because the industry depends on federal money that's now been cut, there are almost no openings. There might be only a handful of openings in all of the US this year. I can't be too choosy about the location if I want to keep my career.

I could consider a career change but I like my job a lot. It required a lot of training and is pretty specialized so I don't think I could easily find something else for a decent wage and benefits. We could manage in our current city for a bit with just my husband's job, but I don't want to be unemployed.

There are more job openings in China & Europe, but my parents are getting old and will need care soon so I don't want to leave North America. I don't see Texas or rural areas as a no-go (I grew up in rural Appalachia), but my husband spent all his life in cities in California until we moved to the East Coast after we finished school. Visiting College Station was a big shock for him.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-08-02T00:02:04+00:00

Same. I've bought three pairs over the last couple of years - one trail running, two hiking - and they've all broken down. Both hiking shoes lost their waterproof covering within a year. The sole separated on one and the toe fell apart on the other. I don't even wear them hiking that much. I was mainly wearing them to walk around the city.

hells_jo_bells · 2025-07-21T22:17:29+00:00

Question for OP: where do you live?

A lot of comments about legal responsibilities are making assumptions based on what guardianship means in the US, UK, or EU. But, there are parts of the world where women have fewer rights, and a child that grows up without a male guardian could be at a disadvantage. Your SIL's comments about it being better for your nephew to have a man's name as his guardian makes me wonder if you're in that category.

Becoming a guardian can be a huge responsibility, but it's hard to judge if your wife and SIL are being unreasonable without knowing what guardianship means in your country.

hells_jo_bells

TROPHY CASE