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?
August 8, 2003
Book of the Week:
by Robert Anton Wilson. That's right, there's not necessarily any rock and roll involved, but if the drugs
and sex are good enough, I'm sure that third thing would be superfluous anyway. Yes, we turn back to RAW--time tested
RAW for his take on the history of the use of mind-alterting substances to enhance the horizontal mambo dance of love and
enlighten any and all participants. His take on the war on drugs is worth the price of admission all by its lonesome.
Audiobook of the Week:
by Bill Bryson, read by the author. It takes a great deal of testicular fortitude to try and cover the breadth
and width of existence. But still, Bryson accomplishes the entire thing, making it interesting for even the most bored-with-science
whackjobs among us. He snags time with scientific luminaries and uses all manner of reference material to make this
presentation fresh. And he's reading the thing himself, so that's a welcome bonus. Though abridged, Random House still
gives you six hours of goodness to deal with. So rejoice.
Graphic Novel of the Week: Dreadstar, Vol. 2: The Price
by Jim Starlin. Long ago, back before Jim Starlin began to be punished for misdeeds in a prior life and found himself
doing nothing but rehashing The Infinity Dildo over and over again for Marvel, he actually did some cool things. One
forgotten cool thing, which I have always fondly remembered, is Dreadstar. With this trade, you get the origin of
Vanth Dreadstar's right-hand man--the powerful mage Syzygy Darklock--not to mention the story of what happened to Vanth
after the destruction of the Milky Way Galaxy. Nothing like some harsh sci-fi with a fantasy twist to spice up your
weekend.
Comic Book of the Week:
Alias #25
by Brian Michael Bendis, Mike Gaydos & Mark Bagley. Again, Marvel is overhyping the shit out of this. How many "darkest
chapters in the history of Marvel" can there be in a year? Disregard that and just check it out. Jessica's past with
The Purple Man is revealed, and while it's not what I personally was expecting...it's actually a lot worse, if such a thing
is possible. Mark Bagley steps in to help tell about Jessica's dark secret. Truly a wild, disturbing ride.
Comic Book of Last Week:
Red #1
by Warren Ellis & Cully Hamner. Every once in a while we get overwhelmed and miss a week of Recommendations. And sometimes
that means we miss spotlighting a kickass book, so we just hold it over till the next time. So here we are. Most of
Ellis' three-parters, as I've noted, are best read as trade paperbacks. This series looks to be an exception. Paul Moses
is a former CIA agent who has done some terrible, unbelievable things. He's inactive and silent now, living a life of
peaceful retirement. But when somebody at the Agency decides that he simply can't remain alive, things are going to get
dicey. And Paul is going to have get his hands dirty again. Kickass, swift and brutal. Can't wait till the next ish.
DVD Boxed Set of the Week:
. Another seven disc monstrosity is what we put forward this time around. If you like this show, then this
DVD will either sate your hunger for it or nothing will. Ten hours of Hercules flicks, thirteen episodes of the show,
commentary by Sorbo and Michael Hurst on certain episodes, and little odds and ends like bios, trivia and...for the truly
fanatical...a Hercules screensaver. Yeah, I can hear your pulse racing. If this show is your game, then this set will
take a few weekends to get through. So go to, go to.
DVD of the Week:
. Now, before Dindrane gets all excited, thinking this is some kind of "dolphins rise up and bring down holy
wrath on the teeming, evil hordes of mankind," let's just say the title can mislead you if you're not careful. Featuring
George C. Scott as a scientist who's taught a couple of dolphins to talk, things get kind of crazed when word about his
work gets out--and appropriated by those who would use this breakthrough for evil. Home Vision brings you a new digital
transfer of the flick, interviews, a dolphin trivia gallery, an essay by an Onion film critic, and dolphin bios.
Good sci-fi 70s fun for your weekend.
CD of the Week:
. Ladies and gentlemen...Marley is the cure for road rage. You simply can't listen to Bob Marley and be pissed
off about anything. Somebody cuts you off? Reaction's like this: "Hey, watch it! You dumb son of a...a...oh...yeah,
brutalize me with music, mon." Anyway, a great listen is this two-disc set featuring the entire 1976 concert, including
the second disc, which contains the never before released encore. Sweet.
Magazine of the Week:
. The September issue. "The Women of Starbucks." Do I really need to say anything more?