Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 49

Day 49 was the first of the two flexibility and mobility routines. This is still the one I like better, mainly because it features a mix of standing, seated, and prone stretches, while the second routine has mostly seated stretches. The plan is to finish week 8, then do another round of Lift 4, then try Lift More, then go either to Power 90 and then P90x or jump right into P90x. 

DVD/Movie Review: ...And God Created Woman

 

And God Created Woman is the 1956 French romantic drama starring Brigitte Bardot, Curd Jurgens, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Marie Glory, Georges Poujouly, and Christian Marquand. It was directed by Bardot's then-husband, Roger Vadim. The movie is set in San-Tropez, France, where Bardot's character, Juliette, is an 18-year-old orphan whose outrageous (for the time) behavior makes her the subject of town gossip. To prevent her from being sent back to the orphanage until she turns 21, the town's wealthy real-estate developer tries to convince the eldest brother (Antione) of the family, whose land he is trying to purchase, to marry Juliette. While she wants to marry Antione, he is not interested in marrying her. His younger brother Michel, who is infatuated with Juliette, proposes to her, which she begrudgingly accepts. 

The Criterion DVD remasters the film quite well. It is not on the level of a Blu-ray or 4K-UHD high-quality restoration, but the film looks very good. The movie only has a French audio track (it does not have the English dubbed track that some versions of the movie include), but it can be played with English captions. It has a few bonus features, including the theatrical trailer (which is in English) and a featurette on the remastering process. 

The movie is definitely dated and feels like a product of the 1950s. It was, of course, the film that launched Bardot's popularity into the stratosphere as a sex symbol. It was also Vadim's (who should have been named "lucky bastard" since he married Bardot when she was 18, married Jane Fonda in her mid-20s, and dated several other gorgeous actresses) first film as a director. It does have some quick flashes of nudity, although you cannot really see much aside from a quick flash of side-boob, and some violence (highlighted by a hilariously awful fight scene about a third of the way through the movie). Ultimately, even though it would likely be made quite differently today than it was in 1956, and would probably not be found as entertaining or controversial today as it was back then, if you are a fan of classic films, it is worth watching.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 48

Day 48 was week 7's core-cardio workout. The format is the same, four blocks with two exercises that you alternate and then a burnout block doing four of the eight exercises for 45 seconds, back-to-back. There are a couple of new exercises in the workout, one new variation of the bear plank and a lunge chop with the dumbbell. Every other exercise is one that has been in the prior workouts.  

Book Review: Star Wars: Tempest Breaker

 

Tempest Breaker, published in 2024, is a canon script/novel by Cavan Scott set in the third phase of the High Republic. In it, the Jedi reluctantly team up with former Nihil Tempest Runner, Lorna Dee, to try to stop the mysterious Blight. In exchange for a full pardon by the Republic (and the Jedi), she agrees to help Avar Kriss and Keeve Trennis track down the Nihil's chief scientist, Baron Boolan, who has been working on a way to stop The Blight. The novel connects well to each Phase of the High Republic era, with callbacks to the Tempest Breaker storyline and the fall of the Starlight space station in Phase I, as well as the Path of the Open Hand storyline from Phase II.

The hardcover version of the book is just over 500 pages, but due to the script format, some pages have only one or two lines of text, making it actually much shorter than a traditional 500-page novel and reading fairly quickly. Scott does a good job of continuing to develop the characters, some of whom have now appeared in several books, and advancing the overall story toward its conclusion. Ultimately, if you have followed the High Republic storyline in the other novels (especially the adult books, which are considered the "main" storyline), this one is worth reading.     

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 47

Day 47 was the second lower-body workout of the week, and it was, as predicted, the second "Give Me Five" workout of the week. So, in each of the four blocks, you do a pre-fatigue band exercise for 60 seconds, followed by four sets of a weighted exercise. Three of the weighted exercises use tempos (4x4, 3x1, and 1x3), and one (alternating lunge pulses) does not. You may need to use lighter weights than you did in previous weeks, given the format, but even if you do, it's still a good workout.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Barbarella

 

Barbarella is the 1968 Sci-Fi cult-classic starring Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Milo O'Shea, Anita Pallenberg, Ugo Tognazzi, David Hemmings, Marcel Marceau, and Claude Dauphin. It was directed by Fonda's husband at the time, Roger Vadim, and produced by the famous Italian producer, Dino De Laurentiis. It was based on and adapted from a French comic book. The movie itself is bad. The writing and acting are god-awful, and the plot is silly. It was mostly a comedy (or what passed for comedy in the late 1960s) and was very tongue-in-cheek and campy (similar to the 1960s Batman TV series). It did have some (very bad) action, a slight political message, and a heavy anti-war message (based on the free-love hippie culture of the time). Of course, Fonda would become a highly controversial figure in the 1970s due to her protests against the Vietnam War, including visiting Hanoi, the capital of North Vietnam. 

Despite having a very high budget (for the time), everything about the movie looks cheap and fake. Obviously, special effects in the late 1960s were nothing like what they are today; however, if you compare this film to the other major Sci-Fi classic that came out the same year, 2001, the difference is night and day. However, the movie does feature Fonda (who was an absolute smoke-show back then) in skimpy revealing outfits, and nude during the opening credits. Sadly, Fonda actually had an eating disorder at the time the movie was being made, so the outfits they put her in probably did not help that. The plot involves Barbarella (played by Fonda), who is a space traveler and representative of Earth (which, at some time in the future around the year 40,000, has become a peaceful utopia), being sent to the Tau Ceti planetary system to track down a rogue scientist named Durand Durand (played by O'Shea), who has created a weapon with the power to destroy humanity. There, she has sex with pretty much everyone she meets in exchange for help tracking Durand down. 

The 4K set is a two-disc set, containing a UHD disc and a standard Blu-ray disc. The A/V quality is very good, but it definitely exposes the limitations of the late 1960s special and practical effects. The UHD disc contains the movie and a handful of extras (alternate opening and closing credit sequences). The movie can be played with an audio commentary track by film critic Tim Lucas. The standard Blu-Ray contains hours of bonus content, most of which was produced in 2003 specifically for the 4K release by Arrow Films. The longest feature is a zoom discussion between Tim Lucas and comic book artist Steve Bissette, in which they discuss the movie, the comic it was adapted from, and the influence it had on similar films and comics, and pop culture in general (such as inspiring the name of the 1980s British pop group, Duran Duran, which was probably the best thing that resulted from the film's popularity). Additionally, the release includes behind-the-scenes footage, photo stills (which feature both promotional and behind-the-scenes images), interviews with some of the surviving cast and crew members, the theatrical trailer, and radio spots. Notably, Fonda does not appear in any of the updated bonus features. 

Ultimately, the movie is a product of the late 1960s that does not hold up particularly well, aside from being a cult classic. It is not necessarily a movie that you will watch because you want to see award-winning entertainment (unless you count the Razzies), but it is entertaining in its own way. And, if you like physical media releases with a lot of bonus content, this has you covered. I cannot say that the film will appeal to everyone, but if you like campy sci-fi that is "so bad it's good", this is worth watching. 

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 46

Day 46 was the second upper-body workout of the week. This one is a regular super burnout, so you do three blocks alternating between two exercises, doing each exercise for two sets, then doing a burnout block at the end. This workout focuses on the chest, shoulders, back, and biceps, so you hit all the upper-body muscle groups. Of course, that means tomorrow's leg day will be that pre-burnout format, which should be interesting. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Black Sails: Season 4

 

The 10-episode fourth and final season of Black Sails aired during the winter and spring of 2017. All of the main cast members, aside from Zach McGowan, whose character was killed off at the end of Season 3, return for the final season. The plotline this season is centered around the battle for control of New Providence Island between various groups of pirates and the English, with Spain getting involved (to recapture the stolen cache). The writers also tie events in the series to the book Treasure Island, for example, explaining why Long John Silver is the only one that Flint fears, the island's mysteriousness, and the idea that people are always searching for Flint's treasure. 

The blu-ray set is a three-disc set. The A/V quality is excellent, and episodes look and sound fantastic in the HD format. As with the prior seasons, the episodes can be played in a "play all" format that allows you to pick up where you leave off and will keep your audio and caption selections, even when switching discs. Also, as with the prior seasons, all the bonus features (totaling around half an hour) are on the third disc. The longest bonus feature is the set of ten episode-by-episode recaps titled "Inside the World of Black Sails," which aired after each episode. That runs about 18 minutes, then there is a short featurette on the production design, and then three different roundtable discussions with members of the cast. 

The series remains excellent in its final season. While there is not as much sexual content or nudity in this season, there is a lot of violence and adult language, so it is still not a family-friendly show. It remains well-written and very well-acted, and the writers do a great job of tying up the storylines for the various characters (and, as you can imagine, not every character makes it out unscathed or receives a "happy ending"), while also tying the events of the series to the book. Ultimately, if you liked the prior seasons, this one is absolutely worth watching.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 45

Day 45 was the week 7 total-body workout. There was another switch-up with this one, in that it uses the Dirty MOFO format. So, you do four exercises (all of which are compound movements, however) using the 60-40-20-40-60 time intervals. On the weighted exercises, you do the increasing and decreasing weights. On the bodyweight exercise, which is a high-plank to low-plank to triceps push-up to downward dog, you start on your knees, then start moving to your toes for some of the exercises, and eventually (hopefully) all of them.  

CD/Music Review: Adele: 30

 

30, released in 2021, is the fourth studio album by English singer/songwriter Adele. Like her earlier albums, especially 21 and 25, this one features a diverse mix of genres in its various songs, blending elements of pop, jazz, R&B, and more. The album comprises 12 tracks in total, with the most successful being the first single released from it, "Easy on Me," which reached number one on the Top 100 chart. Also, like her earlier albums, the songs deal with issues from Adele's personal life, such as her divorce, motherhood, and the fame she experienced after the massive success of her second and third albums, as well as the songs "Rolling in the Deep" and "Hello." 

The CD liner includes pictures from the recording sessions. Each page of the liner also includes the lyrics and production notes for one of the songs, printed over a photo. Ultimately, while the album was not as big a hit as her prior two albums, it is still very good. The mix of songs is excellent, and they highlight Adele's amazing voice very well. So, if you are a fan of her prior albums, this one is absolutely worth listening to. 

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 44

Day 44 is the first lower-body workout of week 7. It is just a "regular" burnout workout in which you have four blocks consisting of a weighted exercise that you do for three one-minute sets and a band exercise that you do for 40 seconds. In this workout, you do sumo deadlifts, front-loaded lunges, side lunges, and calf raises as the weighted exercises, and the band exercises are things like pulse kicks, deadlifts, and pigeon calf raises. Some exercises use the various tempos, and others do not. So, it is a good workout that definitely tires you out by the end.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Cheers: Season 9

 

The 26-episode 9th season of Cheers aired during the 1990/1991 TV season. All of the main cast returned for the ninth season, as did some of the major recurring cast, led by Bebe Neuwirth, who reprised her role as Lilith, and included Jackie Swanson as Woody's girlfriend, Kelly, and Roger Rees as Robin Colcord. The celebrity guest stars/cameos this season included former Boston Celtic Kevin McHale, Arsenio Hall, Bobby Hatfield, former Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis, and John McLaughlin. McLaughlin hosted the 200th episode anniversary special, which included a cold open, but then was essentially a panel discussion with the cast and showrunners. The panel did include Shelly Long, but at least as it was presented on the DVD, she did not say anything; they just had a couple of reaction shots of her. Otherwise, the show continued to mainly be a story-of-the-week procedural with some serial arcs included. The most prominent serial arcs were the tease of whether Sam and Rebecca would get together, and Frasier and Lilith becoming parents. 

The Blu-ray set is a three-disc set, and as of this writing, it remains available only on Blu-ray in the complete series release. The individual season is only available on DVD (which is a five-disc set). The A/V quality of the episodes is good, but not outstanding. There are times when the video looks closer to DVD quality than what you would expect from Blu-Rays. There are no bonus features, although the 200th episode is more akin to a bonus feature than a regular episode. The episodes can be played with English captions. 

The series continues to be good, but the storylines absolutely became repetitive by the 9th season. The writers did a good job of balancing the storylines to give all the cast members good material to work with, and Bebe Neuwirth continued to steal nearly every scene she was in. Some of the jokes are still outdated and cringeworthy, but not as much as those in the early seasons. Ultimately, if you liked the prior seasons, you will probably enjoy this one (unless you really only liked Long's character, Diane).

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 43

Day 43 was the start of week 7. It switched back to upper-body to start the workout and introduced both a new tempo (4x4) and a new format. This week, you pre-fatigue the muscle group you will be working in the block with a burnout exercise, and then you do four forty-second sets of the weighted exercise. So, in the first block, you do 60 seconds of push-ups at the 4x4 tempo, and then four sets of chest presses, doing a 3x1 tempo.  In block 2, perform the arrow pulls with the bands for 60 seconds, followed by four sets of rotating rows with no tempo. In block 3, you do shoulder raise pulses with the bands for 60 seconds and then four sets of weighted lateral raises. In the final block, you do w-bicep curl pulses with the band for 60 seconds, followed by biceps curls with the 2x2 tempo. So, in each block, you do five total reps. You will be using very light weights in this workout because doing the burnout exercise at the beginning of the block instead of at the end will definitely wear you out. 

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 42

Day 42 was back to the second flexibility and mobility workout of the program. Again, I can tell my flexibility is getting better and my range of motion is improving, ever so slightly.  

Book Review: Dust: The Inside Story of its Role in the September 11th Aftermath

 

Dust, published in 2009, is a book by Paul Lioy, an environmental scientist who was part of a group of scientists that sampled and analyzed the dust at the World Trade Center site after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, focusing on the composition of the toxic materials in the dust. In the book, Lioy discusses what was in the dust, including how factors such as particle size, especially during the actual collapse and shortly after, affected the rescue workers. 

The hardcover version of the book is around 250 pages. The book is informative, but it is not the easiest read. The better the knowledge of chemistry you have, the easier the book is to understand. While Lioy does write it in such a way that it can be understood even if you do not have a chemistry or chemical engineering degree, it is the cross between a news article intended for mass consumption and a peer-reviewed journal article.  It does contain some interesting information, such as how the composition and particle size of the dust changed over various time periods, and why the amount of asbestos in the dust was not as significant an issue as some thought, as well as why they did not test for the presence of DNA in the dust. 

The book does not focus on the actual 9/11 attacks. The discussion on the actual events amounts to a couple of paragraphs at most. So, if that is what you are most interested in, this book may not be for you. But, if you have followed the issues with the illnesses that people who worked at the Trade Center site have experienced, this is worth reading.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 41

Day 41 was core cardio, so the entire workout was done on the floor, alternating between plank-based exercises, such as mountain climbers, and prone exercises, like dumbbell crunches. The format is the same as the prior weeks. You do four blocks of work, with each block consisting of two exercises that you do back-to-back for 45 seconds, twice. Then you have a burnout block in which you do four of the exercises from blocks 1-4, each for 45 seconds back-to-back with no rest between them. So, again, this is not a traditional cardio workout from programs like P90X, Insanity, or even Lift 4, but it does get your heart rate up, and every exercise works your core. 

Book Review: Hunters of Dune (#22 Chronological Order)

 

Hunters of Dune, published in 2006, is the first book of a two-part continuation to the Dune series of novels, first created by Frank Herbert and continued by Frank's son Brian, and his co-author Kevin J. Anderson. Brian Herbert and Anderson had written a series of prequel novels that detailed different eras that were mentioned in Frank Herbert's original novels, which essentially set up the story in the original six books. They then discovered notes and an outline detailing Frank's plan to complete the story, which would tie all the eras together. The events of this book begin three years after the cliffhanger in Frank Herbert's final novel in the series, Chapterhouse: Dune, in which the no-ship Ithaca, carrying Duncan Idaho, Miles Teg, Sheeana, Scytale, and the seven sandworms, escaped from Chapterhouse, the Bene Gesserit world that had been taken over by Murbella, who has united the Honored Matres and Bene Gesserit. The no-ship had been in an alternate universe, hiding from the "Great Enemy" from whom the Honored Matres were running when they returned from "The Scattering." When the ship returns from the alternate universe, they are pursued by the Face Dancers, the Honored Matres/Bene Gesserit, and the Great Enemy.

The hardcover version of the book is just under 530 pages. The story flows well and is much easier to follow than any of the novels in the "second trilogy." In fact, it helped me to understand the story in Chapterhouse Dune much better than I did after reading it. The events in the book span 19 years and lay the groundwork for a battle that will tie together all the eras of Dune. It would be too much of a spoiler to explain precisely how, but it involves the identity of the "Great Enemy" and the cloning technology of the Tleilaxu. While some people hate the novels by Brian Herbert and Anderson, I believe that their novels are as good, or better than some of the books that Frank wrote. Regardless of where you fall in that debate, this is worth reading to see how the story will end.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 40

Day 40 was the second upper-body workout of the week. It is a burnout workout, so you do three sets of the same exercise in each block (front raises in block 1, pullovers in block 2, chest presses in block 3, and W-triceps kickbacks in block 4), followed by a band or bodyweight exercise to burn the muscle group out. It is another challenging workout in which I had to drop-set many of the exercises.  

CD/Music Review: Adele: 25

 

25, released in 2015, is Adele's third studio album and the follow-up to her multi-award-winning 21. Where 21 was a breakup album, the songs on this one take a more reflective and "moving on" or "making up" tone. The album has 11 tracks in all. The smash hit from this album is the single "Hello," which debuted at number 1 on the Top 100. The other singles, "When We Were Young," "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)," and "Water Under the Bridge," all made it into the Top 30, with the last one peaking at number 8. 

Like the songs on her prior album, this one has a mix of ballads and more upbeat tracks. While "Hello" is the biggest hit (and best song) from the album, all the songs are wonderful and showcase Adele's vocal talent. The CD liner contains pictures from the recording sessions, production notes for the various tracks, and a thank-you note from Adele. It does not include the song lyrics, however. Ultimately, 25 was one of the best, if not the best, albums of the mid-2010s, and is absolutely worth listening to. 

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 39

Day 39 was the second lower-body workout of the week, and unlike the first, this one follows the Dirty MOFO format. Today, the four exercises are alternating front-loaded squats, goblet sumos, swings, and bridges. Of course, the idea is to increase the amount of weight you use for the first three sets and then stay with the heaviest weight you can for the final two sets. I found that my range of motion was much better for all the exercises, and the only exercise in which I had to drop the weight back down to what I started with was the swings. For the others, I was able to stay with either the heaviest weight or the medium weight. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Black Sails Season 3

 

The 10-episode third season of Black Sails aired in the winter and spring of 2016. All the main cast members return for season three, and there are two notable additions to the main cast. First, Luke Roberts, the newly appointed Royal Governor of the Bahamas, named Woodes Rogers, who travels to Nassau to take control of the colony from the pirates, with Eleanor Guthrie serving as an advisor, who has agreed to help him in exchange for a pardon. The other is Ray Stevenson, who plays Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard. Much of the season involves various groups aligning in the bid to control Nassau.

The blu-ray set is a three-disc set. All the bonus content is on the third disc. There is about 50 minutes, give or take, of bonus content, including a season 2 recap, several behind-the-scenes featurettes, and featurettes on the new characters, Woodes Rodgers and Blackbeard. The A/V quality is again excellent this season, with the episodes looking and sounding wonderful in HD.

The show continues to be excellent. While there is less violence and nudity/sexual content on the whole this season, there is still some of each, so it is definitely not family-friendly. A couple of major characters are killed off this season, which will have reverberations into season 4. I will not spoil who they are, but if you have read the book Treasure Island, you know who it cannot be. Ultimately, if you enjoyed the first two seasons of the show, you will like this one. It remains well-written and very well acted, and is absolutely worth watching.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 38

Day 38 was a total-body workout. Like the other total-body workouts in the program, this focuses more on cardio and muscular endurance, so only a few of the exercises use weights. Most of them rely solely on your body weight. And, for the couple of exercises for which you do use weight, it is a single light dumbbell. The first two blocks in the workout have a lot of squats and lunges, and the other two use more plank-based exercises.

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 37

Day 37 was the first upper-body day, following the Dirty MOFO format. So, you do four exercises (narrow chest presses, back flys, push presses, and hammer curls) for the 60, 40, 20, 40, 60 time intervals, increasing the amount of weight as the time goes down, and then trying to stay with the heavy weight as time goes back up. Each exercise uses one of the tempos (either 3x1, 1x3, or 2x2). Even Joel was using lighter weights and dropped to a weight lighter than what he started with a couple of times. So, this one was definitely no joke. 

Workout Update: 25 Minute Speed Train: Day 36

Day 36 was the first workout of week 6. It was a lower-body workout to start off this week, and Joel hinted that this week will be a mash-up of what we did throughout the prior five weeks. This workout was a superburnout workout that utilized all the tempos we had used during previous workouts. So, some exercises use the 3x1 tempo, some use the 1x3, and some use 2x2. This workout has squats, deadlifts, lunges, and calf raises, and works quite a bit on balance. Overall, a very good workout.  

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Cheers: Season 8

 

The 26-episode 8th season of Cheers aired during the 1989-1990 TV season. It can be argued that this was the season in which the series peaked, earning multiple awards. All of the main cast members returned for Season 8. Unfortunately, Bebe Neuwirth was still just a member of the recurring cast, despite stealing every scene she was in as Lilith. She won the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy that year. The other significant recurring cast member this season was Roger Rees, who played an English mogul named Robin Colcord, who was brought in as a love interest for Rebecca and a partial foil for Sam. The guest cast this season included Lisa Kudrow, Kevin Conroy, Alex Trebek, and Bill Medley. The show continues to blend a story-of-the-week procedural format with serial arcs. This season, the big serial arcs are Sam's quest to buy back Cheers from the corporation that owns it and Rebecca's relationship with Robin (and sexual tension with Sam). 

The blu-ray set is a three-disc set. It does not include any bonus content, but the episodes can be played with English captions. The A/V quality is overall very good, but there are times when the picture looks more like standard definition than an upgraded HD transfer. 

The series continues to be good. As the show transitioned from the 1980s to the 1990s, some of the more outdated comedic elements were less prominent. The writers did a very good job balancing storylines for the large ensemble cast, with each cast member getting at least one episode centered around him or her. There are a couple of hilarious Lilith and Frasier episodes, including ones involving Lilith's pregnancy and giving birth. Cliff also has a very good episode in which he is a contestant on Jeopardy. Ultimately, if you have liked the series up to this point, season 8 is worth watching.