"Battlestar Galactica" Start Date

After some thought, I've decided to start the Battlestar Galactica reviews on May 30th. I'll be reviewing the miniseries on that date, and then one episode every Thursday from that point onward (with the occasional break, if necessary), until we've finished season one. The current plan is for this to be a summer only project (I would tackle one season each summer), but you never know.

Can't wait!

2013 NCAA Tournament Picks

You probably don't know this about me, as I never blog and only rarely tweet about it, but I'm a pretty big fan of college basketball. While I didn't really watch much of it this year (due to, you know, having exams to study for and papers to write), I did still follow it with great interest throughout the year. And now it's time for the best three weeks in all of sports, and I thought I'd share my picks with you. I do this mostly so that if Belmont makes it to the Sweet Sixteen this year, I have proof that I did in fact make that pick. It probably won't (while I consider myself moderately knowledgeable about the sport, I don't tend to do well, mainly due to the fact that I always make a few gutsy picks that rarely work out), but you never know.

My picks after the jump.

Announcing New Review Project - "Battlestar Galactica"

For the last year or so, I've been toying with the idea of reviewing Battlestar Galactica, but certain things have caused me to hesitate: among them lack of time, fear that the project will overwhelm me (which it very well might, but we'll see), and my desire to watch other stuff. All of those things are still there, but I've basically decided to throw caution to the winds and start writing about the show this summer anyway. That's the only way it's ever going to happen, after all. Plus, I want to get to it before The A.V. Club does, so that's an additional motivating factor.

So starting at some point in May (I haven't decided on the specific date yet), we'll be journeying through the first season of one of television's all-time great dramas, and the show that got me seriously interested in television. Before I started watching BSG, I was pretty much only a film obsessive. In other words, this show is the reason why I now spend pretty much all my free time in front of a television or computer screen, as I now have to try (and fail) to keep up with both TV and movies.

These reviews will be spoiler-free (as should any comments anyone may wish to leave), so that anyone who's never seen the series can follow along. I may, however, occasionally include a section at the end of a review in which I discuss—likely very vaguely, as it's been so long that I don't remember a lot of specifics—how a few things that transpired in a given episode relate to storytelling developments down the road. But it will be at the very end (and clearly marked) in any weeks when that's the case.

I'll have a few more specifics to address in my first review, but that's the gist of it. So whether you're a new viewer of BSG or someone who's watched before, I hope you enjoy my commentary on one of the most consistently riveting dramas of the 21st century so far. See you in May!

A New Place Where You Can Find My Writing

Starting today, I will be writing for the online desk of Sooner yearbook. I'll likely be writing a few different types of pieces, but primarily I'll be contributing reviews of under the radar movies currently available on Netflix streaming. I'm not 100% sure exactly how often and when these pieces will appear (although it will be on either Mondays or Wednesdays starting with the next one), but they should be fairly frequent. So be sure to check back often, as I probably won't be linking to them over here every time a new one goes up.

The post that went up today is a review of Headhunters: a fantastic thriller that is one of 2012's overlooked gems. Feel free to check it out here. And for future posts, just follow the link I've put in the blog sidebar under "other places you can find my writing". Hope you enjoy! 

Film Review - "Les Misérables"

A review of Les Misérables after the jump:

"Sunrise" Paper

As most of you probably know, this year I began my career as a full-time college student at the University of Oklahoma, where I'm majoring in Film and Media Studies. I have been taking an introductory course this semester, and one of the assignments was to write a short paper about a scene or sequence from one of the films we saw. I chose a sequence from F.W. Murnau's Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans for mine.

November Update

Haven't posted anything here in over two months, so I thought I'd let you know that I'm still alive. I've just been too busy with my college courses to post anything here lately. Not sure when that will cease to be the case. I'm still writing about The Dick Van Dyke Show for This Was Television, and I've also contributed to a few other posts over the past month or so. So if you're at all interested in TV history, be sure to head over there (if you haven't already) and read all the fantastic content that writers far better than myself have been writing, as well as my own meager contributions.

That's all for now. See you later.

"Breaking Bad" - "Gliding Over All"

Spoilers for the mid-season finale of Breaking Bad after the jump:

Leaving for College (and What This Means for the Blog)

Next week, I'll be leaving to attend the University of Oklahoma. This will be my first time attending college full-time and in residence, which means there's almost certainly going to be a lot going on the first couple of weeks as I get used to my new living and studying arrangements. There's been a lot going on just getting ready for the impending move, which is part of the reason I haven't been posting very much recently.

Whether this trend will continue or not is something I just don't know yet. Hopefully once I've been there a few weeks, I'll find I have both the time and energy for blogging. But even if I don't get the chance to write many new posts during the school year, rest assured that Screen Ramblings isn't going away any time soon. It could be that it will transform into a summer-only blog, with perhaps a few additional posts over spring, Thanksgiving, and winter breaks. Hopefully not. But at this point, who knows?

In the meantime, you can continue to find my Dick Van Dyke posts over at This Was Television, and be sure to check back here occasionally to see what's going on. And as always, be sure and check Twitter for my latest thoughts on TV and movies.

That's about it. See you later!

"And the beauty is . . ." - My Five Favorite Adam Guettel Songs

Most of the posts on this blog have involved movies or TV (and that will continue to be the case), but I do have other interests. One of them is music. I'm a serious piano player, but I also just enjoy listening to and talking about many different genres of music. This means that you'll probably be seeing more posts on this subject in the future, including more album reviews like the one I wrote about The Idler Wheel a few weeks ago.

An Announcement About My "Dick Van Dyke" Reviews

Starting today, my Dick Van Dyke coverage has a new home at This Was Television: an awesome website devoted to classic television and television history. I can't tell you how happy I am to be joining this site, and I only hope that my reviews will come close to measuring up to the high quality of the writing on it. So those of you who've been reading my coverage of the show should head on over there right now and check out my thoughts on "To Tell or Not to Tell". And check back every Friday for new reviews.

"Breaking Bad" - "Live Free or Die"

Spoilers for the Breaking Bad premiere after the jump:

"The Dick Van Dyke Show" - "Forty-Four Tickets"

Spoilers for this week's Dick Van Dyke after the jump:

"The Dick Van Dyke Show" - "My Blonde-Haired Brunette"

Spoilers for this week's Dick Van Dyke after the jump: