Consuming Consumables

A few years back I happily received The Complete New Yorker CD-Rom set for Christmas. Your pop culture critic/rock & pop music fan/novice historian/teacher/writer/avid magazine reader probably has it, too, and will be salivating for the Rolling Stone: Cover to Cover CD-Rom gift set for similar reasons. More than “just” a music magazine (Rolling Stone‘s investigative reporting alone is reason enough to subscribe), this high-quality slice of expressions in pop culture and essays on cultural and electoral politics, all set to the soundtrack of the fads and fears of America over the past 40 decades, is a treasure that will be coveted by the lucky recipient. You already know that. Praises sung to Rolling Stone can be sung by heart. But ‘til now you haven’t heard this sweet little note: although the easy-to-use multiple browsing options, the ability to magnify, bookmark and other functions of the CD-Rom reading process are very much like those in the aforementioned The Complete New Yorker, thus far – and I’m still looking, although I keep getting drawn into the articles, so it’s taking a while – I’ve yet to come across a folded-over, crookedly photocopied, too faint to read, partially cut-off page in Rolling Stone: Cover to Cover. I cannot say the same (ahem) for The Complete New Yorker. Plus, Rolling Stone: Cover to Cover includes a substantial, full-color book highlighting cultural touchstones in the history of America and the magazine during this time span. Give this, and you will be loved. You’ll also be ignored for hours on end, but be assured, you will be loved.

The best hand-held console in gold limited edition form, along with one of the timeless RPG games in Zelda, is an irresistible combination. The most pleasing things about the DS are its portability and the relative simplicity of games on this system versus the big consoles. That simplicity frankly leaves a bit more to the imagination in gameplay, rendering it a bit more fun than some of the over-the-top, immersion experiences of the large machine games. Plus, that stylus is killer. As someone who was formerly devoted to PDA-based games, the DS is a perfect fit. Plus, a classic RPG like Zelda with its heavy use of text works well in this stripped down format. And, oh did I mention this limited edition DS comes in a really snazzy gold color?

All nine seasons of the groundbreaking series are offered in deluxe, limited edition fashion, packaged with the X-Files movie and a wealth of cool extras, including a comic book, classic art cards, and the theatrical poster. For fans of classic TV and geeks alike, this is the mother lode. True, hardcore fans already have the individual sets like I do with the extras those include. But what completist can ever resist sets like these… one big box full of everything from your favorite show ever. It’s mostly essential for fans of smart TV who don’t already have any X-Files sets or may only have the themed alien story sets or a single season or two.

Oddly enough, this Italian icon never wanted to be the savior of the American oater. He simply wanted to make a commercially successful film, and the rising interest in the spaghetti style western seemed like a good avenue to explore. The result stands as the revamped genre’s greatest hits. Collecting together A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly, and the criminally overlooked Duck, You Sucker, we literally witness the birth of an entire motion picture mannerism. The long pauses, the extreme close-ups, the heat scorched sanctimony – it’s all here to be enjoyed over and over again.

Role playing games have come a long way from the slow-paced, menu-driven “Boy and ragtag band of warriors grow up/fight evil wizard” days. A lot of the credit for that goes to BioWare, whose previous titles Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire combined old school role playing with action packed lightsaber battles and kung-fu fighting respectively. BioWare’s next step in innovation is Mass Effect, which fuses a third-person squad shooter with role playing elements in a completely original outer space science fiction setting. Mass Effect‘s problems (mediocre combat, hiccuping framerates) might be slight annoyances, but the game’s breathtaking graphics and absorbing story more than make up for them. In Mass Effect, you play as Commander Shepard, a mid-level military officer who must pursue a rogue Spectre, the intergalactic equivalent of a CIA operative. Unlike most sci-fi plots where humanity is still the center of the universe, humans are relatively weak in Mass Effect, tolerated by some alien races, hated by others. Combat with guns and “biotic” powers is a big part of the game, but conversation via BioWare’s signature complex dialogue trees is where you make the important and sometimes ethically challenging decisions. Those expecting Halo should stay away, but all role playing fans should check out Mass Effect.

Imagine, Mark Twain on masturbation (although he doesn’t call it that), a 1592 valentine to a dildo (and yes, even then, it’s called, that), a three-part section on other words used for, er, “those parts”.  Imagine, imparted wisdom on “sexual relativity” by Albert Einstein, alongside excerpts from the Kama Sutra and other “authorities” on the subject (not least D.H. Lawrence, Henry Miller). And speaking of The Subject, this little book, loaded with historical images (ads, cartoons, photos), goes all about it, all around it, and covers it pretty thoroughly, with delightful inclusiveness; much like one goes over every inch of one’s person of fascination. It’s a little bit naughty and terribly funny, much like the Real Thing. Consider it a pop-y, anthropological study of the libido with, of course, a fair amount of history and “geography” thrown in. Perfect for the sexy, cerebral, imaginative person in your life.

Everyman Michael Moore is well known for his at times comically, at times painfully blunt approach to the gawdawful truth of life as it is in the US for the average person.  Indeed, Moore is among our most astute cultural/political critics, in the non-academic sense, of course. The fat cats who keep the rest of us underfoot are no match for the Big Man and his team in this TV series—when he can corner them.  He gets a lot closer to them than the average Joe, even makes them squirm, at times, and that’s damned cathartic to watch.  The Emmy nominated show, captured here in the Entire Series and Best of DVDs, make an ideal gift for anybody you know who feels their tax money is misdirected, and their lives and the lives of others, undervalued.

Pan’s Labryinth (2-Disc Platinum Series) [$34.98]

DVD versions of Alejandro González Iñárritu and Guillermo del Toro’s award-winning films are no doubt already part of many a fan’s collection. But to really win that special someone’s gratitude this holiday season, buy them these particular editions. The in-depth “making of” and “interviews” extras with the directors, actors, writers and technicians convey stories of patience, endurance, perseverance, intellect and imagination. Indeed, these admirable qualities of the human spirit emerge just as undeniably strong in the telling of the extras as they do in these beautiful films. Heart-swelling factors aside, it’s also just really cool to learn how Babel spanned those huge geographic and linguistic chasms to so captivatingly interweave such complex yet basic human stories. It’s a pleasure to learn not only about the degree of mental muscle that went into the epic storytelling of Pan’s Labryinth, but also the fantastical special effects, not least the physical endurance required of the man beneath the latex, who made that haunting, paradoxical fawn a permanent presence in our dreams.