Weekly Recommendations...from Needcoffee.com

Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.

Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in this, can we?

January 16, 2004

Book of the Week:

by Ian Falconer. No matter what your age, there's no excuse if you have not been introduced to Olivia yet. A very intense young pig, she's dealing with having to come up with a soccer uniform that matches her own unique personality, when--suddenly--her favorite toy goes missing! On a mission to find the culprit and rescue her toy, Olivia leaves no stone unturned. Who knew "Wooshee gaga" could carry such gravitas? Brilliant. Get all three books immediately.

Graphic Novel of the Week: Kyle Baker: Cartoonist. I must admit: I've been doing myself a disservice. I've only known Baker's work on mainstream comics, and I've been robbing myself of the ass-destroying laughter he can invoke with just a cartoon panel or two. Going through this book, I can't recall a page turn that didn't have me chuckling or shaking my head or usually both. To see some examples of what I mean, check it out here. The star bits, though, involve "The Bakers"--dealing with the author himself, his wife and two (now three) children. If you've ever been around kids for any length of time, you will be startled how well Baker captures the mayhem. His son's section on "Toddler Self Defense" is worth the price of admission. And hey, purchasing it through his website gets you a signed copy. Bonus.

Comic Book of the Week: Dead@17 #3 by Josh Howard. What's not to like about this book? It gives you zombies, whacked out occult conspiracies, shady would-be government agent types, unique killer artwork, and an ass-kicking undead schoolgirl protagonist who will make you think naughty things while she saves your hide from the end of the world. Howard and Viper Comics deliver the goods, so the story rocks; if your local comic shop doesn't carry it, shake some sense into them, would ya?

TV Docu of the Week: The Barbarians. Granted, this isn't a call to arms for the weekend, but the series will run on the History Channel here shortly. Check their site for show times. Covering the Mongols, the Huns, the Vikings, and the Goths and balancing kickass production values with quality historical info--and narrated by the Kurgan himself, Clancy Brown--it's four hours that will world premiere this coming week, so don't miss it.

TV Movie of the Week: The Goodbye Girl. Neil Simon's play, was previously adapted as a feature starring Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason and then most recently on Broadway with Martin Short and Bernadette Peters, hits TNT as a new TV flick. This new version, re-adapted for a contemporary spin by Simon, is entertaining enough, with both stars turning in very respectable performances. So if you need something moderately witty, you get three chances this weekend to check it out. Find a schedule here.

Docu of the Week:

. If you want some hardcore information, then this release from Docurama is right up your alley. After World War II, America wanted to test its newfound weapon, the atomic bomb. In order to do this, they cleared an island in the Pacific of its indigenous people, and then set about conducting some of the most foolish military testing the world has ever seen. You will be amused, then indignant, then astounded, then blown out of your chair by this one. Shocking beyond what I can explain to you--it's just highly recommended.

TV DVD of the Week:

. Nothing makes us happier than TV boxed sets so stacked that they're almost ridiculous. Specifically, we're talking about this bad boy from Anchor Bay, which contains all twenty-two episodes from the show's third season. You also get commentaries of the audio and/or video variety with cast and crew, deleted/alternate scenes, and a bonus CD-ROM disc that has all the scripts and more. It's massive, buddy.

DVD of the Week:

. An amazing thriller that spanks the genre like it's never been spanked before? Eh, not exactly. But an entertaining little flick that works well with a tub of popcorn? Sold! And hey, you can honestly say that Denzel can be golden even when a film falls apart around him. The DVD release from MGM comes with a respectable set of features, including a commentary with director Carl Franklin, a featurette, outtakes, and screen tests.

Anime DVD of the Week:

. Another twelve episodes of this series by Rumiko Takahashi has hit DVD, thanks to Viz. In this boxed set, we get the further adventures of Godai, the broke college student, and Kyoko, the young woman who manages the boarding house he rooms in. With a diversely whacked cast of other tenants to assist in the mayhem, it's easy to see why this is a very popular anime comedy.

Adverse DVD of the Week:

. Okay, so, yes, Pauly Shore. He plays a loser in this flick and when he suddenly finds himself with no place to hang his hat, he turns in desperation to a notice that he's to perform jury duty--figuring a nice, long, drawn out trial where the jury's sequestered will give him a place to sleep. About the funniest thing to be had here is how embarrassed you'll be over the list of respectable actors who somehow found their way into this thing.