August: school starting, weather insufferable, dull gap in good media releases.
October: midterms, starts of seasonal depression, and as a former Halloween hater due to the fact that I used to be scared of everything, it still never aligns well with what the universe likes to abruptly thrust my way.
(Above: Lost my credit card, slept horribly the night before, my dining hall had lied about having orange chicken stir fry. There was more going on, but I can let y'all connect your own dots so I don't have to unearth anything I'd rather keep buried and dead. I called it one of my worst "God giving his hardest battles to his strongest warriors" days in forever. Boy, how I keep heightening my digital footprint day-to-day amuses me a good amount. You're welcome.)
All being said, I love September. Sure, school is still exhausting and the weather is still insufferable, but I can't control Mother Nature's beef with the Texas and my academic calendar. To me, September is a transient month, an establishment of a crisp calendar season (scoff), the beginning of most Oscar contender releases, a breath of fresh air after a hectic month of settling, and the source of a solid Earth, Wind, and Fire song. Hence, the title of this entry.
(Above: Forest Whitaker in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), one of this month's first watches for yours truly, inquiring Damone, the school scalper, for EW&F tix.)
By no means or desire do I want to convince anybody to chip into this appreciation, but this post was entirely jumpstarted by a conversation I had with a friend on the beauty of all Virgo's favorite four weeks. It started with me posting this cartoon clipping on my Instagram story on the first day of the month...
...to which my sweet gal pal Abigail Davies slid up on it and proclaimed: "I agree." Those two words, and I felt seen. We shared our takes on August and October, to which I now make an exception for the latter with it being her birth month and thereby now being grateful for it for existing to create Ms. Abby. I tell her "just a good month of shifting seasons," followed by, "might make a whole blog post about sept, i'll credit you." An "Ugh yes pls do" later, I've been pondering on the subtle peace of this month not only to keep me grounded, but for excellent M-dubs content. Abigail, this one's for you.
A September win I'll share: the WGA reached negotiations and the strikes are subsiding! Albeit there is work still to be done, and points still to be proven, a Big one already made is how these strikes have cost California's economy an estimated five BILLION dollars. CEO's: You don't give money, you won't make money. My dream job seems a bit less in hot water, and progress is being made!
Remember when I said I had a whole series planned for summer that didn't happen, and then a summer recap I promised and also didn't deliver on. I'm trying to step back up, alright? Need I mention that this entry is only finally being put into documentation on account of procrastinating a paper as I sit in the library. Anyways...SEPTEMBER IN MEDIA!
Plays: 1
On September 29th, my mother and I went to see Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird at Fort Worth's Bass Hall. Not having touched the story since reading the book and seeing the movie in freshman year of high school, revisiting it brought back those unnamed emotions that arose back in 2018 and then some, especially from how times have changed pertaining to the issues addressed in the story to the world we live in now in 2023. Aaron Sorkin adapting this to the stage was a feat to accomplish, but by GOD was it accomplished well! In a seemingly passive yet purposefully powerful moment, Scout on the porch says, "I don't understand," to which Calpurnia replies, "Good." Boohooing all the way home, I'm reminded of how little I understand and yet how grateful I should be.
(Nothing too big, just the table read of Rebel Without a Cause at director Nicholas Ray's place at the Chateau)
Books: 1
Nonfiction takes a bit longer to stay consistent and fervently engaged. Don't let that shy you away from this read though. Shawn Levy's The Castle on Sunset: Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont is my mysterious-girl-on-the-bus-read, chockfull with the hottest gossip under one roof. Name drop after name drop, more about the building itself than the humans that inhabited it, I've loved getting to explore this retrospective of Hollywood, immersed so deep that I feel a breeze on my face as if I'm on the balcony of my own penthouse. In my dreams, right?
Series: 6
It's too many, I know, but as I've said, it's the season of new seasons! Prior to sweet Sept, packed in my queue lied Ozark, Futurama, and Only Murders in the Building. Only the first one is all available on Netflix, but it's been a struggle to get through. Long episodes and taking-their-time pacing isn't a good combo for Mo, chronically wanting to get things done at all times. Futurama and Only Murders are weekly releases, an easy thing to look forward to on Mondays and Tuesdays, the former that has offered me mindless entertainment for years, now rebooted on Hulu, and the latter an obsession my mother and I have nurtured for the past couple seasons. As of this entry, one episode remains, and I am crawling in my skin thinking of how things are going to get tied up and resolved.
And then there were three...more shows this month. A new season of Archer? Yes please. Additionally, a new Bob's Burgers season drops the night of October 1st. Now that I'm thinking about it, next month might look slightly more prosperous knowing that H. Jon Benjamin's two most iconic characters will be flanked on each shoulder, helplessly getting me through the week.
The next one: Seth Green's Robot Chicken. Those who know me, know. A Mo Lee personality cornerstone: if there's a raunchy animated show (in this case, mixed media and stop motion with dolls), I'm gonna be watching it. Notice how a perfect half of this list includes said genre across Matt Groening, Adam Reed, and Seth Green's loose-screwed noggins.
Lastly, but never leastly: Sex Education. Cast members Emma Mackey, Ncuti Gatwa, and Connor Swindells made a group appearance this summer as they all starred in prominent roles in Greta Gerwig's Barbie. Ncuti's Ken and Mackey's Barbie were even paired together, as if the nod to half the main players of their show being in the film wasn't already obvious enough to note. They were just missing Gillian Anderson and Asa Butterfield (sidebar: name envy for life). The last season of this series dropped this month, and as much as I try to soak up every last minute, I simultaneously mourn the inevitable end of these characters's stories and saying goodbye to their world. This show, however much you've assumed from reading the title to now, addresses the ups and downs of growing up, mostly around sexual behavior while also profoundly tackling varying coming-of-age obstacles outside the bedroom. There's a storyline to relate to for everyone who sees it, and for that kind of diversity to be executed without oversimplification or saturation, it's that breath of September fresh air perfectly aligning with being dropped this month. Thank you Laurie Nunn. You are one of many reasons we must keep paying our writers RIGHT!
(The year of Ayo Edebiri: between breaking out in FX's The Bear, Emma Seligman's Bottoms, and Molly Gordon's Theater Camp (who also makes an appearance as a love interest in the 2023 season of The Bear), those are just the Holy Trinity that Edebiri has appeared in this year. Other roles in this year alone include Black Mirror, Abbott Elementary, I Think You Should Leave, Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem)
Films: 7
To make up for my lack of viewership as school and work envelop my cinema screen time, I must note my last viewing of August: Emma Seligman's Bottoms. This and Shiva Baby (2020) are deeply impressive debuts for her, and this screening, my own debut of the local Alamo Drafthouse, was a laugh-out-loud with a packed theater experience I'll never forget. The joy of sharing the joy of film. Can't and won't ever get enough.
This month, though, we also touched new territories:
Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) - an in-class screening for Film and Television Analysis.
Tim Burton's Big Eyes (2014) - same class, a rewatch for yours truly, and a criminally underrated Burton bop.
Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman's Theater Camp (2023) - mockumentary that I missed a chance to see in theaters, but was blessed with its release on Hulu.
Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone's Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016) - on a mockumentary kick as you can see, and one of Lonely Island's most expansive projects with cameos in what seems like 3 figures.
Martin Rosen's film adaptation of Watership Down (1978) - the book I was reading as the pandemic was starting, and although it's cinematic parallel only slightly rekindled my appreciation for the literature, it's truly a powerful allegory and an important story to drink in.
Sanjay Gadhvi's Dhoom (2004) - back to FTV Analysis, my first genuine Bollywood film experience, and an intriguing gateway into a culture I look forward to venture further into.
Amy Heckerling's Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) - Friday night watch with my boyfriend when he came into town for a weekend visit, iconic and a true testament to its era, just not as much of my cup of tea as a day/night in the life as American Graffiti (1973) (that I saw an anniversary screening of in August as well) and Dazed and Confused (1993) (that celebrated its 30th birthday on the 24th of this month).
Music: a lot.
October holds my first Hozier concert, his latest album being in frequent rotation in my AirPods this month. Not only out of gobsmacking adoration, but preparation.
I also was gifted the experience of getting to see Noah Kahan this upcoming June during this month, so it's been a crash course of his discography as I haven't been as doted of a fan as my sister whom I will be attending the show with.
If I can shuffle a new album every day, I do. Here are some of the favs:
Stephen Sanchez's "Angel Face"
Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black"
Olivia Rodrigo's "GUTS"
Travis Scott's "UTOPIA"
Hozier's "Unreal Unearth"
Reneé Rapp's "Snow Angel" Teezo Touchdown's "How Do You Sleep At Night?"
Beyoncé's "RENAISSANCE"
Danny Elfman's Edward Scissorhands Original Score
Jack Johnson's "Better Together"
Songs particularly on repeat these days:
Jimmy Buffett's "Margaritaville" (who we lost the first day of this month; not a great start, but a legendary legacy left behind)
Jordan Ward's "FAMJAM4000"
Teezo Touchdown's "Familiarity"
boygenius's "True Blue" and "Not Strong Enough"
Alex G's "Sarah"
Bastille and Hans Zimmer's "Pompeii MMXXIII"
The Eagles's "Lyin' Eyes"
Jean Dawson's "Starface*"
Rainbow Kitten Surprises's "Work Out"
Logic's "City of Stars"
...and a trilogy: Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Bark Like You Want It," "Ride," and "Baby Got Back."
Sweet, sweet, September. Your in-between-ness never goes unnoticed. Thank you Abigail for keeping my eyes a bit keener to the nuances of the ninth month, and may you never let an interim moment in your life be without thanks for its existence.
Cheers,
Mo.
(p.s. if you can solve the lil riddle i made with the title and thumbnail, i'll...grant you a job well done and you can know that i admire your matched wit to yours truly. anyways.)
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