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?

September 5, 2002

Book of the Week: Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard. Sure we've mentioned the film before, which is incidentally one of our all time faves. But even for people who aren't stageophiles, this is just an amazing play to sit down and read. And if you can get some friends together to stage a reading in somebody's house (as I have had the distinct pleasure of doing once)--then you're rocking balls. There's a way to spend your weekend: guerilla theatre.

Graphic Novel of the Week: Pedro and Me by Judd Winick. After seeing Judd at DragonCon this past weekend, I realized that while we had mentioned his profane masterpiece Barry Ween in the past, this work of his we hadn't given a spotlight to yet. Judd became a pseudo-celebrity thanks to his stint on The Real World, but got a lot more than he bargained for. He received a message and a story that needed to be told--and he told it. In this very moving graphic novel, he talks about his friendship with AIDS activist Pedro Zamora and the change it made in his life. Definitely a must read, and it proves that Judd certainly can't be pigeonholed as a guy who "writes funny books."

Comic Book of the Week: Young Justice #49 by Peter David & Todd Nauck. Despite Peter David going over to the Dark Side and becoming a puppet of The Quessiah, he's still been known to be an excellent writer. One of the books I have fun with consistently is YJ. Filled with a bizarre mix of humor, action and seriousness, it's certainly held up better than the books it was spawned from. This month's issue's first two pages, where some of the heroes talk about "their" comic books getting cancelled, is so damn funny it's worth the price of admission.

DVD of the Week: Ultimate National Geographic DVD Collection. Ah, yes--National Geographic specials can be incredibly cool. And seven of the best discs they have are in this really sweet accordianated boxed set. From watching crazed photographers get eye level with a lion during a kill to watching footage of a tornado taken from under an overpass as it passes overhead--there's plenty to make the chin ricochet off your coffee table.

CD of the Week: New Sacred Cow by Kenna. No freaking clue why this thing hasn't been released yet. Sure the economy and the environment in the Brave New World can be blamed--but what in the world on this CD is so controversial? Nothing. But whatever. Download the thing, it's worth it. Buy it when they finally get their heads out of their collective asses and release it. It's kind of like a pop gestalt of Massive Attack with Underworld but with a Tricky who can actually sing. Trust me, it makes sense. Songs to start with: "Red Man" and "Vexed and Glorious." Hasn't left my player in two weeks.

Beverage of the Week: XTZ Tea. When it comes to herbal energy drinks, I like a shotgun approach. Ginseng, guarana, maté, ma huang, kava kava, kola nut, ginkgo biloba, along with citrus and green and black teas. And the freaking kitchen sink too, while we're at. Why not. And none of this sucralose bullshit either. Tasty and stimulating. Mainline the sucker.

Snack of the Week: Moovitz. In either coffee or milk chocolate flavors, these little chocolates pack about 30mg per candy chew. Fine for when you need a little boost but don't want to do the caffeine equivalent of using a bazooka to slaughter roaches. Uses real sugar. And is tasty to boot. Rock.

Pastime of the Week: A Chris Columbus Film Festival. If you attended our Harry Potter panel at DragonCon this past weekend, then you'll remember a challenge that Tobias Clutch had for those fans who simply adore Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and its director, Chris Columbus. So here's his dare - go have yourself a Chris Columbus film festival. Watch Home Alone, Home Alone 2, Mrs. Doubtfire, Bicentennial Man, and Stepmom back-to-back and, as Tobias states, "then let's see what you think about this 'auteur'."