Windjammers 2 arrived on Thursday with a whole lot of anticipation. The original Windjammers is a cult classic arcade game that saw resurgence through emulators and ports, with many people enjoying the intense air hockey-like play style. The original got so popular at one point that it had a short run at major esports tournaments like EVO.
Of course, before even diving into whether it lives up to the standard set by the original, we first need to figure out if this is a game that is worth playing. Here’s what we think.
What is Windjammers 2?
Windjammers 2 is, at its most basic level, the most intense game of air hockey ever. Of course, there’s way more depth to it with special moves, character stats, and level variety, but the goal for most players is to take a flying disc and either stick it in the goal of your opponent or drop it to their side of the field. This concept is maxed out to an extreme in Windjammers 2 with a style that makes every match feel as intense as a winner take all contest with your best friend at the arcade. Every shot, reaction, and super move feels important, and even the slightest mistake can lead to not only the loss of volley, but an entire set.
What makes Windjammers 2 different from a round of air hockey is how points are scored. The goal is to reach 15 before the opponent in each set. However, the way points are scored varies from map to map. Some maps will reward the player with three points for hitting a disc into the corner of the goal, five for landing in the middle, or two for successfully hitting a drop shot. Another map may reward five points for hitting the corners and three for landing in the middle. Some maps feature obstacles like bumpers for bounce shots, while another will hand out scores based on the type of flying disc in play. The variety keeps maps fresh and makes characters feel stronger based on specific maps.
Why You Should Play Windjammers 2
Intense multiplayer action
Unique characters
Fun gameplay
Windjammers 2 is fun. It takes no time at all to get addicted and the arcade mode is going to put up quite a challenge. We recommend that’s where new players start, but eventually, you will need to move into multiplayer, because that’s where this game truly shines. Taking a friend down to the final set with minutes-long volleys is incredibly satisfying … unless you lose, because with how invested you’ll get, you’re going to be heartbroken. Anyone that wants to put their skills to the test can also try out the online mode, but be wary, because some of the online players have already mastered this game.
Why You Should Not Play Windjammers 2
Not very deep
Multiplayer dependent
Skill gap
The downside to a game like this is how dependent it is on its multiplayer mode. Windjammers 2 is at its best with friends or in an online matchup. This leaves single-player options fairly unsatisfying, with only an arcade mode to tackle. The full experience for someone who isn’t playing with a friend can only be achieved via online multiplayer, and that skill gap can be really frustrating. It’s never fun to get annihilated by someone online, and eventually, that is going to be filled with the best of the best while whittling out the casuals. Obviously, the solution to this is to “get good,” but that doesn’t change that it has the chance of driving away more casual players.
Our Take
Windjammers 2 a great game for parties or small tournaments. We tried it on the Switch and found it worth it at its $20 price tag, but if you pat for Game Pass, you and your friends can download it from there.
A code for the Nintendo Switch version of Windjammers 2 was provided to us for review purposes.
Seattle folk-pop band The Head And The Heart not only just announced their fifth album, Every Shade Of Blue, they also unveiled an extensive 2022 North American tour behind the album with support from Dawes, Jade Bird, and Shakey Graves. Along with the album, the band also dropped the sweeping title track along with a video filmed mostly underwater.
“Every Shade Of Blue conveys a spectrum of emotions and how we live with them,” the band said in a statement. “The closer we get, the more shades we see. The more shades we see, the more responsibility we hold. We all want to feel loved and protected. The question is will we be supported and seen by the ones we love In Every Shade Of Blue.”
Listen to “Every Shade Of Blue” above and check out the album artwork and The Head And The Heart’s tour dates below.
The HEad And The Heart
05/20 — St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live *
05/22 — Gulf Shores, AL @ Hangout Music Festival
05/24 — Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theater *
05/25 — Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater *
05/27 — Pittsburgh, PA @ STAGE AE *
05/28 — Lewiston, NY @ Artpark Amphitheater *
05/29 — Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre *
05/31 — LaFayette, NY @ Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards *
06/01 — Northampton, MA @ The Pines Theater at Look Park *
06/03 — Shelburne, VT @ Ben & Jerry’s Concerts on the Green at Shelburne Museum *
06/04 — Portland, ME @ Thompson’s Point *
06/06 — New York, NY @ Pier 17 @ The Rooftop *
06/09 — Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap *
06/10 — Boston, MA @ Leader Bank Pavilion *
08/02 — Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theater ^
08/04 — Houston, TX @ Lawn at White Oak ^
08/05 — Dallas, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory ^
08/06 — Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion ^
08/08 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Venue to be announced at a later date ^
08/09 — Boise, ID @ Outlaw Field at the Idaho Botanical Garden ^
08/11 — Missoula, MT @ KettleHouse Amphitheater ^
08/12 — Seattle, WA @ Marymoor Park ^
08/16 — Portland, OR @ McMenamins Edgefield ^
08/18 — Santa Barbara, CA @ Santa Barbara Bowl ^
08/19 — Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre ^
08/20 — Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre ^
08/22 — San Diego, CA @ Humphreys Concerts By The Bay ^
09/14 — Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
09/15 — Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
09/17 — Richmond, VA @ Altria Theater #
09/20 — Charlotte, NC @ Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre #
09/21 — Wilmington, NC @ Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park #
09/23 — Columbus, OH @ KEMBA Live! #
09/27 — Toronto, ON @ RBC Echo Beach
09/29 — Detroit, MI @ Oakland University – Meadow Brook Amphitheatre #
09/30 — Indianapolis, IN @ TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park #
10/01 — Chicago, IL @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island #
10/03 — Madison, WI @ The Sylvee #
10/04 — Madison, WI @ The Sylvee #
10/07 — Minneapolis, MN @ Armory #
10/08 — St. Louis, MO @ Saint Louis Music Park #
10/10 — Birmingham, AL @ Avondale Brewing Company #
10/13 — St Augustine, FL @ The Saint Augustine Amphitheatre #
10/14 — Atlanta, GA @ Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park #
10/15 — Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheater #
* with Jade Bird
^ with Dawes
# with Shakey Graves
Every Shade Of Blue is out 4/29 via Reprise/Warner Records. Pre-order it here.
The Head And The Heart is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Bad news, Fugees fans. While news of the New Jersey trio’s reunion tour was met with skepticism due to their longstanding history of inter-group friction, the news that they’ve officially canceled the tour — which they just announced today — still comes as a blow for those who were looking forward to finally seeing Lauryn, Pras, and Wyclef onstage together again for the first time in years.
“We anticipate and understand disappointment but our anniversary tour will not be able to happen,” the announcement reads. “The continued Covid pandemic has made touring conditions difficult, and we want to make sure we keep our fans and ourselves healthy and safe. An idea sparked to honor and celebrate this 25th anniversary of The Score but we see now it may not currently be our time for revisiting this past work. We’re grateful for the special night we got to share with some of you in New York with that rare live moment. If opportunity, public safety, and scheduling allow, we hope to be able to revisit this again sometime soon. THANK YOU for all your love and support throughout the years.”
While the news is certainly disappointing, at least their performance at Global Citizen’s September benefit show at Pier 17 was captured for posterity, giving us all something to watch as we dream of the time COVID-19 isn’t ruining our live entertainment plans.
It has been speculated that on The Weeknd’s new album Dawn FM, he sings about his reported relationship with Angelina Jolie on “Here We Go… Again.” While that’s all just hearsay at this point, what’s not a rumor is that he name-drops Scream actress Neve Campbell on the tune, as he sings, “My new girl, she a movie star / I loved her right, make her scream like Neve Campbell.” When Campbell first caught wind of the shout-out, though, she didn’t exactly know what was going on.
Campbell stopped by The Late Late Show earlier this week and James Corden asked her about the Dawn FM mention. After saying it’s “pretty crazy,” she continued, “At first, my publicist told me and she was like, ‘The Weeknd.’ I said, ‘Wait, which weekend, last weekend?’ I had no idea what she was talking about. Then I realized, ‘Oh, the guy who played at the Super Bowl, that guy!’”
Corden responded, “I can only think he’ll be really disappointed if he knows that you described him as the guy from the Super Bowl, given he’s arguably one of the biggest and best-selling artists of his generation.” Through laughter, Campbell said, “I know, I know! I’m just so bad with pop culture.”
Check out the interview clip above and listen to “Here We Go… Again” below.
It’s a widely-accepted truth in the stand-up comedy biz that everybody bombs, especially when they’re just starting out. This might actually be doubly true for folks who are getting into stand-up from other entertainment disciplines like music because while you might be used to working the crowd, the dynamics are just different enough to throw off any dilettantes. For instance, Chance The Rapper, who famously stunk up his first open mic attempt in 2019. Well, at least now he’s not alone, and can now enjoy the illustrious company of one Clifford “T.I” Harris in the rap-to-comedy hall of shame.
In a video posted to Instagram by T.I.’s wife Tiny and captured for posterity by The Jasmine Brand, T.I. attempts one of those tried-and-true areas of stand-up: relationship jokes. “If you ever get into the area of cheating, that’s no man’s land,” he cracks. Can you be in a committed relationship and still have a friend from the opposite sex? Now, if you f*cking, it don’t count!”
Oof.
Now, no idea’s original, and to be fair, a few chuckles can be heard in the crowd in the video, but the response online was a little less forgiving of T.I.’s novice comedic chops. One commenter on the post wrote, “Boooooooooo! Get off the stage!” Another referenced one of T.I.’s recent boasts: “I get it now,” they mused. “When he said no artist out there could touch his catalog, he was joking. That is good to know because I thought he was high AF.” Ouch. There’s no pleasing everybody but clearly, if T.I. wants to continue down this road, he’ll have to work on his delivery.
Meanwhile, there was one rapper who recently made the leap who actually had a successful comedy debut: Danny Brown, who expressed excitement that he “didn’t bomb” when he opened for his friend Hannibal Buress in September.
It’s been almost two years since the Tiger King story took the streaming world by storm, thanks to a captive audience trapped at home during the start of the pandemic. Peacock has now unveiled the first trailer for its limited series, Joe vs Carole, which takes a deeper dive into the real lives of Joe Exotic and animal activist Carole Baskin. Based on the “Joe Exotic” Wondery podcast, the limited series stars Kate McKinnon as Baskin and John Cameron Mitchell as her adversary, Joseph Schreibvogel, aka “Joseph Maldonado-Passage,” aka “Joe Exotic.”
In a note provided by Peacock, here’s how executive producer Etan Frankel described casting the two leads for the series that will be a “fun and rich journey into the story of people who live very extreme lives.”
We knew it would take two extraordinary actors to portray these larger-than-life people as the complex, three-dimensional individuals that they are. John Cameron Mitchell is one of the most gifted and thoughtful actors I’ve ever worked with. He cares so deeply about the work, and his performance is breathtaking. And Kate McKinnon is simply remarkable. She is able to make us double over with laughter one moment and then break our hearts the next. It was an absolute thrill to watch these two exceptional actors morph into these roles.
While their story continues to captivate audiences, the Baskin and Exotic have not exactly fared well since the Tiger King story blew up in 2020. Exotic failed to secure a pardon while serving a prison sentence for attempting to have Baskin killed via murder for hire. As for Baskin, she’s currently suing Netflix away from using her or her cats in Tiger King 2, which she wants absolutely nothing to do with.
Joe vs. Carole starts streaming March 3 on Peacock.
It got lost among all the talk about microwaves blowing up, but during an early pandemic interview with GQ, Robert Pattinson shared that he didn’t want his Batman to look like a CrossFit member. “I think if you’re working out all the time, you’re part of the problem. You set a precedent. No one was doing this in the ’70s. Even James Dean — he wasn’t exactly ripped,” he explained, adding, “Literally, I’m just barely doing anything.”
It was a very 2020 mood, but nearly two years later, Pattinson swears he was kidding. “That really came back to haunt me. I just always think it’s really embarrassing to talk about how you’re working out,” he told MovieMaker. “I think it’s like an English thing. Unless you are in the most unbelievable shape, where people are just genuinely curious, going, ‘How have you achieved, like, physical perfection?’ or whatever.”
He clarifies, “You’re playing Batman. You have to work out.” He laughs. “I think I was doing the interview when I was in lockdown, as well, in England… I was in a lower gear of working out.”
Michael Keaton once told a story about the time Jack Nicholson saw him exercising on the set of 1989’s Batman. “He looks at me and he goes, ‘What are you doing?’ So I said, ‘Working out.’ And he goes, ‘What for?’ And I stopped sweating and I went, ‘I don’t know.’ Then he just walked away, and I thought, ‘He’s right’ because I’ve got the suit and the suit makes me look good.” See, Robert Pattinson? The moral of the tale: you don’t have to work out to play Batman (Robert Pattinson) or watch Paddington 2 on the couch (me).
There was a time not too terribly long ago when if “single malt” came up in a conversation, it’d almost definitely be about Scotch or Japanese whisky. Scotland and Japan have dominated the single malt game for centuries, especially Scotland — where “single malt” and “Scotch” are often (wrongly) treated as interchangeable terms. But the spirits industry has seen an explosion of craft distilling (especially in the U.S.), making single malt whisk(e)y a truly international spirit.
Below, I’m going to blindly taste some classic Scotch single malt whiskies against crafty American single malt whiskeys. Can the so-called new kids on the block from America beat the distilleries that define the style and push it forward? …Maybe? This is an uphill battle but it certainly sparks my curiosity.
Our (unpeated) lineup today is:
Glendronach 15 Revival (Highlands, SCOTLAND)
Westward American Single Malt Whiskey (Oregon, USA)
Courage & Conviction American Single Malt Whiskey (Virginia, USA)
Dark berry brambles with tart and sweet fruit, stems, thorns, and even a little black dirt draw you in on the nose with a hint of walnut shell and cherry pie. The palate is a creamy-yet-bitter dark chocolate orange that leads towards a semi-savory fig countered by ripe apricot. The chocolate comes back with cinnamon spice and more dark berries and walnut on the end.
Taste 2
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
There’s a mix of cream soda, wet applewood, soft yet spicy malts, and orchard fruit on the nose. The taste has a nice vanilla tobacco vibe with a nutmeg-heavy eggnog creaminess, a little dry leather, and a pretty big dose of dry cacao. The chocolate vibe drives the mid-palate towards the finish with a powdered edge and a slight wet wicker feeling on the end.
Taste 3
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
There’s a clear bourbon caramel and vanilla note with a buttery edge that leads towards a chalky multivitamin vibe on the nose that’s … interesting. The palate is all about red berries, dry cedar bark, more of that vitamin, and a dark chocolate softness. The finish stays very soft with the chocolate leading towards a mildly warming maltiness.
Taste 4
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This is like a fresh herb garden with dill and fennel leading the way on the nose next to fresh bushels of green apples and soft and supple vanilla. The palate has a savory fruit note that’s part fig and part squash next to fancy pear candies and an orchard in full bloom. The finish marries those florals, orchard fruits, and vanilla and then circles back around to a bundle of fresh, green, sharp, and slightly savory herbs.
Taste 5
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This has a nose full of ripe apples and pears with stems and cores alongside soft and damp cedar and a chewy vanilla-laced toffee. The palate counters with grapefruit pith, silken vanilla cream, and apple butter brimming with dark spice. The finish comes about with a singed cedar bark feel next to soft powdery spices, orange oils, and a very light vanilla ice cream scoop.
Taste 6
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
A hint of leather leads towards rich honey dripping through freshly shelled pecans, cinnamon-laden peach cobbler, and light and dry green herbs on the nose. The palate has a stewed pear vibe with a hint of saffron next to a well-made apple soda, cinnamon sticks, milk chocolate, and dry orchard wood towards the finish.
Taste 7
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Leather meets Chery Coke on the nose as vanilla pudding and brown spices mingle in the background. The taste is all about the malty spice with more of that Cherry Coke next to ropes of black licorice. A hint of anise arrives late and brings about a finish that indulges in a spicy oatmeal cookie with raisins and walnuts.
Taste 8
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This opens plummy and leathery with dashes of orange oils, dark cacao, honey, sweet oak, and crushed almonds on the nose. The palate is part ripe and bright cherry and part meaty and dark prune next to more orange oils, dark chocolate, and this vibe of what feels like a really densely packed bale of dry hay. Vanilla cream drives the mid-palate towards a finish full of soft chocolate-covered brandied cherries, spicy stewed plums, and a light note of soft tobacco resting in an old cedar box.
Taste 9
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
The nose dances between Almond Joys, banana bread full of walnuts and winter spices, and a bright peach/pear mix. Gingersnaps open the palate up with cream soda, creamy hot chocolate spiked with pepper, and sweet apple candy. The mid-palate bursts with apricot and toffee that leads towards a rum-raisin and vanilla landing.
Taste 10
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This opens with buttery and sugary shortbreads cut with lemon oils and good vanilla with a hint of soft leather and just … softness. The taste is all buttery toffee, soft oak, and mild dark spices attached to malts. Fresh ginger warms things up a bit more before the finish arrives with creamy vanilla pudding and more of that buttery shortbread.
Part 2: The Ranking
Zach Johnston
10. Courage & Conviction American Single Malt Whisky 2021 Edition — Taste 3
Virginia Distillery is one of those craft distilleries you’re going to be hearing more and more about in the coming years. This expression is a single malt blend of 100 percent malted barley distillate that’s aged in ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and ex-Cuvée wine casks. The blend is a split of 50 percent from the bourbon cask and an equal measure from the sherry and Cuvée casks.
Bottom Line:
That multivitamin note threw me on this tasting. It wasn’t off-putting by any stretch. I just couldn’t square it in the flavor profile. Otherwise, this was a lovely dram.
9. Westward American Single Malt Whiskey — Taste 2
Portland’s Westward Whiskey has its roots in Pacific Northwest craft brewing culture (similar to most craft distilleries in the PNW). This juice is emblematic of how important the first step of whiskey — the fermented mash that is, basically, beer — is to the whiskey-making process. That craft transfers into the 100 percent malted barley whiskey every step of the way.
Bottom Line:
This whiskey didn’t really feel “younger” or “lesser” in any way. It was very tasty but didn’t quite pop the same way as so many others did on this list.
8. Boulder American Single Malt Whiskey Bottled in Bond — Taste 7
This Colorado whiskey is a fascinating experiment — asking what a single malt that’s treated like a bottled-in-bond bourbon might taste like. The juice is made from 100 percent malted barley. Then is spends four years in a bonded warehouse aging in new American oak. It’s bottled at 50 percent ABV, per federal regulations.
Bottom Line:
I wrote in my notes, “Well, that was nice.” There’s really not much else to say besides that this is a well-rounded and easy-drinking single malt but not much else.
This Island’s whisky is all about reaching over the pond. The 100 percent malted barley juice is aged exclusively in ex-bourbon barrels (for an undisclosed amount of time) before it’s vatted, proofed, and bottled as-is.
Bottom Line:
I really like this. In fact, I could see this ranking in the top three of a different blind tasting. That means, the next six whiskies are all killers, and only really separated by a tiny margin.
This Highland malt has made a roaring comeback (the expression went on hiatus from 2015 to 2018). Revival 15 takes its sherried nature very seriously. The juice is aged in a combination of Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks for 15 long years. Those casks are married and this whisky is brought down to a very easy-drinking 92 proof with that soft Highland water.
Bottom Line:
I’m shocked this ranked sixth. I generally love this whisky at home. Still, the fact that such a gorgeous whisky can rank so low goes to show the heavy-hitting quality of the brands at play in this blind tasting.
5. Cedar Ridge The QuintEssential Signature Blend — Taste 9
This whiskey is all about a grain-to-glass experience. The juice is made with 100 percent 2-Row Pale Malted Barley (the same stuff used in some of the biggest craft beers) from up in Saskatchewan. The whiskey is matured in ex-bourbon barrels for an undisclosed term. That whiskey is then finished in a combination of brandy, rum, wine, port, and sherry barrels before it’s vatted. The whiskey is blend is then made using the solera method — where the vat is never fully emptied before the next barrel is added.
Bottom Line:
This is another killer dram. The only reason is ranked slightly lower is that there weren’t quite as much going on or quite as many unique notes popping. Still, this was super easy-drinking and truly tasty.
This single malt starts with Golden Promise malted barley in the mash with proprietary ale yeast and local Texas water. The distilled juice is then loaded into used barrels like all of the world’s great single malts. After a few years of aging under the hot Texas sun, the whisky is transferred into French Sauternes casks, bringing a distinct dessert wine vibe to the juice. Finally, the whisky is bottled at cask strength from very small, one-off batches.
Bottom Line:
I would have put money on this ranking number one. I actually drink this whisky a fair amount at home. It’s really damn tasty but was, again, up against serious contenders today. So, here we are.
This dram from Glenmorangie is a much-loved Highland malt. The juice is matured in ex-bourbon barrels for an undisclosed number of years. The whisky is then transferred to French Sauternes barrels which held sweet dessert wines where it spends two more years finishing.
Bottom Line:
“Golden Nectar” feels like the perfect name for this. Delicious. No faults. It’s very straightforward though, which is why it isn’t number one. Again, delicious.
A’bunadh (ah-boon-arh) means “the original” in Gaelic and the juice in this Highland bottle represents that for Aberlour. The whisky is matured in old Olorosso sherry casks exclusively. The juice then goes into the bottle at cask strength, unfussed with.
Bottom Line:
This would have been the other single malt I’d have put money on picking as number one. And, damn, was it close. This whisky is phenomenal, deep, and insanely sippable. You cannot go wrong with this whisky (even if you’re not into “scotch” yet).
Cragganmore is an iconic Scottish distillery. The whisky is matured in sherry casks for 12 years. It’s then transferred into American oak casks that held port for a final maturation phase before proofing and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This is so damn unique and delicious. While there were a lot of whiskies on this list that came close to the top, this really pulled away thanks to that mix of savory greens and bright fruits. This is a world-class whisky that does, indeed, wow.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
Zach Johnston
I’m honestly not that surprised an American single malt didn’t break into the top three. The competition amongst these bottles was fierce. Though, I am still surprised GlenDronach 15 ranked so low. I guess it is what it is.
Overall, unpeated single malt at this level (whether American or Scottish) tends to be subtle, fruity, and delicious (as you can tell by the number of mid-ranking drams that I still absolutely raved about). Any of these bottles would be worth checking out. But it’s really the top three that you ought to hunt down, spend your hard-earned cash on, and savor. They each offer something a little different — each interesting in its own way for a drinker with an expanding palate. Plus, that Cragganmore is one of the more unique (and tasty) whiskies available today and it comes in at a pretty accessible price point.
The failed Cyber Symposium czar is being slapped with a cease-and-desist order from the state of Idaho, and a defamation suit from another voting machine maker for his claims that both committed ballot tampering, leading to Donald Trump’s eventual loss. Lindell’s beef with Idaho stems from his earlier accusations that votes for Trump were electronically manipulated and switched over to Joe Biden in several counties. Lindell threw such a stink about it that Idaho officials decided to conduct an investigation, auditing three counties at random and finding no evidence of voter fraud. Despite this, Lindell has continued to push his conspiracy theory, placing Idaho as one of the many states responsible for Trump’s loss on his ‘Big Lie’ chart. Not only is the state demanding he removes false statements about Idaho’s election process from his website, they’re also billing him for over $6,000 — which is what it cost to run the election audit.
“Despite knowing your statements about Idaho’s elections are false, you have not removed your ‘Big Lie’ chart and continue to perpetuate your false statements,” a letter, sent to Lindell from state officials (via East Idaho News), read. “Those false statements injure Secretary of State Lawerence Denney’s reputation and subjected him to public threats, criticism and ridicule. Your false statements caused the same harm to the honest and hardworking civil servants and volunteers that supported the election process in Idaho.”
But it’s not just Idaho that coming for Lindell.
Smartmatic, a UK-based voting machine company, filed a defamation lawsuit against the MyPillow guy after he claimed their voting machines switched ballots for Trump to Biden. The company is seeking unspecified monetary damages in its suit, though Lindell’s current battle with Dominion Voting Systems — a company suing him for $1.3 billion in damages — might set a precedent for how much Smartmatic ends up asking for in its suit.
Mike Lindell knows exactly what he is doing, and it is dangerous,” Smartmatic said in its filing. “Lindell intentionally stoked the fires of xenophobia and party-divide for the noble purpose of selling his pillows.”
The Rundown is a weekly column that highlights some of the biggest, weirdest, and most notable events of the week in entertainment. The number of items could vary, as could the subject matter. It will not always make a ton of sense. Some items might not even be about entertainment, to be honest, or from this week. The important thing is that it’s Friday, and we are here to have some fun.
ITEM NUMBER ONE — We’re going to do one last job
The facts are important here, so I am going to start there. The Rock was a guest on the playoff edition of the Manningcast this past Sunday, for the game between the Rams and the Cardinals. That alone is kind of a lot if you think about it. Imagine explaining to someone 20 years ago that the Manning brothers would be hosting a wildly popular simulcast during an NFL playoff game and one of their guests is The Rock, who is now one of the 10 biggest action movie stars in the world. I assume the person from 20 years ago would be blown away by this. Once they got over the thing where time travel exists. Big day for them.
Anyway, more important business here: While Rock was on the Manningcast, while he was discussing playoff football, there was, just sitting there, a massive Tyrannosaurus Rex skull behind him. Here, look.
Uproxx’s Robby Kalland — a good man and a tireless investigator — already did some legwork here. The T-Rex is named Stan. The original version of Stan, one of the most complete dinosaur skeletons ever discovered, sold at auction recently for somewhere just north of $30 million. There are also Stan replicas floating around for much more reasonable prices. I choose to believe it’s the real one, though, mostly because it would be funnier (when presented with two equally plausible options, you should always choose the funnier one), but also because it allows me to remind everyone about the time Nicolas Cage outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for a dinosaur skull and then later had to return it to the Mongolian government when he discovered the skull had been stolen. It is maybe my favorite thing ever.
As it turns out, the skull had been stolen from the Gobi Desert in Mongolia, and the buyer was Nicolas Cage, an actor who among his dozens of films has starred in a movie franchise about the hunt for rare treasures.
A publicist for Mr. Cage confirmed that he bought the skull from the Beverly Hills gallery I.M. Chait in 2007, according to Reuters. The Department of Homeland Security contacted Mr. Cage about the skull last year, and the actor agreed to turn it over.
Perfect, all of it. I love that dinosaur skull collecting is a thing in Hollywood. If you click that link up there, you’ll see that DiCaprio is at the center of multiple dino Venn diagrams. He got outbid by Cage for the stolen Mongolian one, and when Russell Crowe was selling his dinosaur skull (Russell Crowe owned a dinosaur skull, obviously), the paperwork revealed that he bought it from, you guessed it, Leonardo DiCaprio. I choose to believe they have a secret dinosaur club and have meetings in Leo’s house. You cannot convince me otherwise.
Anyway, not the point. Kind of the point, maybe, but also not. The point is more straightforward: We should steal The Rock’s dinosaur skull. A whole Ocean’s operation. Lasers, wires, misdirection, disguises, all of it. I bet Cage would help. He’s probably still sore about the Mongolia fiasco. It could even be a movie, I guess. Nicolas Cage as himself stealing a dinosaur skull from The Rock, also as himself, to replace the stolen one he had to return to the government of Mongolia, which is again, a real thing that happened. Sucker writes itself.
But it would be more fun to do it in real life. This much is undeniable. Please picture a world where you wake up some morning and open the social media platform of your choice and are greeted with a headline like “TEAM OF HI-TECH THIEVES STEAL THE ROCK’S $30 MILLION DINOSAUR SKULL IN DARING MIDNIGHT HEIST.” Imagine how thrilling that would be. It might honestly be the best day of my life, and that’s before we get to follow up headlines that include phrases like “NICOLAS CAGE SUSPECTED” and “BANKROLLED BY LEONARDO DICAPRIO” and “OUTLINED IN AN INCRIMINATING ARTICLE BY A BLOGGER WHO IS ALSO A SUSPECT.”
The only catch here is that we need a getaway driver. Cage could do it but he’ll be too busy verifying the skull for us. We need someone with experience behind the wheel. Someone who maybe has an ax to grind with The Rock. Someone who, just spitballing here, lives his or her life a quarter-mile at a time…
UNIVERSAL
I need this. I am not joking. The last few years have been so weird. John Wick 4 got delayed until 2023. I need some excitement. I deserve some excitement.
Let’s steal The Rock’s dinosaur skull.
ITEM NUMBER TWO — I know I’m on record saying there are too many reboots, remakes, and continuations but this one is okay, actually
FX
What we have on our hands here is yet another Two Things Can Be True At Once situation. In this case, those things are as follows:
There are entirely too many reboots, remakes, re-imaginings, and continuations, and it would be nice if our smartest, funniest, and most creative minds dedicated more energy toward creating cool new things instead of going back to previously fruitful wells over and over
I don’t know. I am strangely at peace with this hypocrisy. Some of that is because the band is all getting back together. (Showrunner Graham Yost is back. Longtime director Michael Dinner is back. Freaking Timothy Olyphant is back as Raylan.) Some of that is because I am a simple man. And some of it is the premise.
The show returns to Givens’ story eight years after he’s left Kentucky and now is based in Miami, balancing life as a marshal and part-time father of a 14-year-old girl. A chance encounter on a Florida highway sends him to Detroit and he crosses paths with Clement Mansell, aka The Oklahoma Wildman, a violent sociopath who’s already slipped through the fingers of Detroit’s finest once and wants to do so again.
This is fine. It’s good. It’s good and fine. Justified was a great show, one of my favorites ever, and one I still return to every now and then even while acknowledging that its “shoot first, ask questions later and maybe never get around to asking questions at all” lead character didn’t age beautifully since it premiered. I’m going to be super happy to re-visit it all with a new story and a new perspective, even — apparently, although let’s not rule it out completely — if it comes without my beloved lawbreaker Boyd Crowder attached. Again, I’m at peace with this hypocrisy. The lessons here are twofold:
It is okay when I do and/or want things but stupid and bad when other people do and/or want them
I still want a spinoff about notes criminal weasel and women’s tennis aficionado Wynn Duffy and I want it to be titled All I Do Is Wynn
This was a good talk.
ITEM NUMBER THREE — I have no notes here
NBC
We’ve talked about the upcoming Hulu series Pam & Tommy. The trailer was an incredible piece of art, in part for reasons relating to stars Lily James and Sebastian Stan looking kind of a lot like Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, in part because it contains a shot of Seth Rogen strumming an automatic weapon like a guitar while wearing pearls and three watches, and in part because… like, all of it. It’s cool and a lot. I love stuff like that.
And it gets better. Varietyran an article this week that previewed the action, and at the risk of spoiling a potentially historic television moment for you, that article contained this passage…
But we’re beating around the bush here. Once viewers catch Episode 2 of “Pam & Tommy,” they’ll all be talking about a specific scene in which Tommy, who had just met Pamela, wonders whether he’s falling in love — and discusses it in a heart-to-heart talk with his penis.
The penis tête-à-tête is inspired by an actual passage in “Tommyland”: In the series, Stan, as Lee, is seen carrying on a conversation with the chatty organ (voiced by actor Jason Mantzoukas)
Perfect. All of it. Especially the part where Tommy Lee’s talking penis is voiced by Jason Mantzoukas. Jason Mantzoukas is the greatest. He’s one of those guys who pops up in everything and makes everything he pops up in a little better. Sometimes a lot better. He has this perpetual chaotic energy that works even when it shouldn’t. This isn’t one of those situations, though. His energy is pretty much ideal for “voice of an extremely famous celebrity penis. I am so proud of everyone involved here.
Let’s read on.
From a technical perspective, Gillespie describes shooting the scene as “just awkward. You’ve got four puppeteers working with an animatronic penis. And then, how much is too much, and do you start to lose his emotional torment of what’s going on? Hopefully it works.”
Meanwhile, Stan says he eventually approached the scene like working with any other acting partner. “By the end of it, I treated it like it was an intimate buddy conversation that one might have when they’re falling in love.”
The ambition on display here is commendable. Like, why not shoot a scene where the damn Winter Soldier talks to a magical penis that is operated by numerous puppeteers and voiced by Rafi from The League? Why not just go ahead and try to have it all? You are only limited in this life by your own imagination. It’s good to remember that sometimes. It’s even better when the reminder is delivered by a talking penis puppet. I have always said this.
ITEM NUMBER FOUR — Go Birds
West Virginia TV reporter @toriyorgeytv gets hit by a car but finishes her shot.
Okay. The important thing here is that this lady is fine. She got hit by a car on live television and brushed it off like a champ, explaining — in a fascinating twist I would love to unpack more at some point — that it’s not even the first time she’s been hit by a car. She’s fine. I want to be very clear that I am establishing this so I can move on to the next thing without you yelling at me for being insensitive and brushing over her health. She’s fine. Everything is okay. I’m going to move on now.
Did you hear it? Did you hear her slip into her regional accent in the aftermath of the car hitting her? Did you hear her say “I gawt ‘it biya corr” in a deeply pronounced suburban Philly accent? I did. I clocked it immediately. This is because I’m a maniac who has spent his entire life in Eastern Pennsylvania and has a lot of opinions about the food selection at Wawa. It sounded like home to me. Like “heaume,” if you will.
But I wanted to be sure. I wanted to double-check just in case I was projecting my own biases onto things. So, I poked around a bit and ended up on her Twitter profile. And I looked at her bio…
TWITTER
There are a couple of things worth noting here:
I knew it
It is wild how panic and adrenaline — and alcohol, in some cases, although not this one — will stir up otherwise-dormant pronunciations of words, almost as though they slip through while the body’s defenses are distracted or operating at a deficit
I watched these two clips again while writing this and now I have a craving for a soft pretzel. So… off to Wawa. I am less of a human being than a caricature. It’s fine.
ITEM NUMBER FIVE — Let’s just keep interviewing Brian Cox every week or two for the rest of this year
HBO
Everyone should talk to older people more. Older people are the best. They’ve seen so much and they have so many stories and eventually they get to a point where they stop caring so much about biting their tongues in the name of politeness. It’s great. Go call your grandparents. Ask them about stuff. Ask follow-up questions when they answer those first questions. You’ll get more out of it than they will.
This brings us to Brian Cox. Brian Cox rules. He rules because he plays Logan Roy on Succession, sure, but he also rules because he just says whatever the hell he wants when people interview him. He’s been doing it for a while, too. Here’s an interview from 2016 where The Guardian asked him a bunch of boring boilerplate questions, one of which was “What’s your guiltiest pleasure?” And Brian Cox said, “Licorice. And cannabis.” It’s beautiful. He did not have to say “cannabis” there. He could have just said “licorice.” He did that for us.
And he did it again this week. Here’s an interview he did with Deadline to promote his new book. It is wild. Both the book and the interview. He talks trash about his friends and his enemies, calls out Johnny Depp by name, and gets way into the whole Jeremy Strong thing. You remember that. The profile where Jeremy Strong discussed his process. Here’s what Brian Cox said about all that.
Because he does what he does and he does it brilliantly, but it’s also exhausting. Particularly exhausting for him, but it’s also exhausting for the rest of us from time to time. But we weather it because we love him and because the result is always extraordinary, what he does, but at the same time, there is the double-edged sword that goes with it.
Which is refreshingly honest. But also the kind of thing that might get him in trouble down the line. Which the interviewer brought up. Which led to one of the best answers to any question I’ve ever seen.
DEADLINE: Do you worry that you’ve done that to yourself to some degree with the book?
COX: What?
DEADLINE: Put yourself in a vulnerable position?
COX: No, no. Listen, I’m too old, too tired and too talented for any of that shit.
Yeah. Let’s go ahead and pencil in one Brian Cox interview every week for the rest of this year. Ask him about whatever. Ask him about pizza. I’ll do it if I have to. This is serious.
READER MAIL
If you have questions about television, movies, food, local news, weather, or whatever you want, shoot them to me on Twitter or at [email protected] (put “RUNDOWN” in the subject line). I am the first writer to ever answer reader mail in a column. Do not look up this last part.
From Drew:
I don’t think we’ve made a big enough deal out of the gravy dispenser in the chicken restaurant on this week’s episode of The Righteous Gemstones. I’ve been thinking about it all week long. I have a million questions about it. Are gravy dispensers with multiple flavors and styles of gravy something that exists in the Gemstones universe? Are they common things that are in other restaurants? Do people have them in their homes? Why don’t they exist in real life? Do they exist in real life and I just haven’t found one yet?
I feel like you have questions, too. Please help me… no, the world, correct this injustice.
Buddy, you are correct on multiple fronts. We did not talk about it enough AND I have a million questions about it. This is on me, kind of. I can and will do better going forward. But before we get into it in any more depth, let’s post the GIF so the people are all on the same page.
HBO
Okay, I have three additional questions:
How do they prevent the gravies from contaminating each other considering they all come out of the same nozzle?
Has anyone ever been kicked out for putting their mouth right on the nozzle and drinking gravy straight from the tap?
What do you think would happen if you mixed all the gravies in a cup and poured it over your mashed potatoes?
I’ll stop here, not because I’m done as much as because I don’t think I can top the idea of Gravy Voltron. This was a good email, Drew. Thank you.
A tourist made a big impression in a Key West bar by ordering drinks three times on New Year’s Eve without leaving a tip. That enabled the staff to easily track him down after police released webcam video showing vandals setting fire to a Christmas tree.
The first and most important takeaway here is to not be the kind of person who doesn’t tip bartenders and lights Christmas trees on fire. That is some big-time Grinch activity. You are better than that. I believe in you.
The second and third takeaways are TIP YOUR BARTENDER. Jesus Christ. I know that’s technically one thing and that I already mentioned it in the first paragraph, but come on. Tip everyone: bartenders, waiters, anyone in any service industry. Tip well, too. Start at 20 percent and go up as the mood strikes you. It feels good and is good and, in some situations, can avoid you getting arrested for crimes you’ve committed. There is no losing here.
The arson caused more than $5,000 in damage to the city’s landmark buoy marking the southernmost point in the United States, and sent the island’s “coconut telegraph” gossip chain into high alert, the Miami Herald reported Tuesday.
Another takeaway: Key West rules. I went there on vacation a long time ago and I’ve never been anywhere that gets the general concept of life any better. Just a whole town filled with eccentric goofballs drinking umbrella drinks. I think about it every winter. Let’s all rent a house and stay there until May.
Like other locals across the city, bartender Cameron Briody watched the video, and recognized the 21-year-old man who had stiffed him at Irish Kevin’s on Key West’s famous Duval Street. “I knew immediately that I had served him and that he had used a card, so his name would be on the slips,” Briody told the Herald.
TIP
YOUR
BARTENDER
The bar’s general manager, Daylin Starks, turned to recordings from the “ton of cameras” that watch over the bar each night, and matched credit card receipts to time-stamped videos of the man and his 22-year-old friend.
“We could follow them the whole time, in and out of the bar,” Starks said. “We could see them getting rejected from all the girls they were trying to hit on.”
This is objectively hilarious and a perfect little bow on the story. Not only did these losers get arrested for torching a Christmas tree in Good Vibes City, not only did they get dragged publicly for being cheapskates who don’t tip service workers, but they also got roasted by the bar’s manager in print for whiffing on their sad little pickup attempts. A perfect news story. Let’s recap:
Tip your bartenders and/or waiters
Don’t light Christmas trees on fire
Key West rules
Please write these down. Thank you.
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