From the Couch Hole: You Can’t Say What You Don’t Know

Previously on FTCH, the bear said, “Farewell, my lovely,” but hold on if you are in the mood for love or awesome sauce. Your decision to leave may have been influenced by a baconator. This week has August coming to a ending finally. It has been a disruptive summer and I’m excited to have a weekend of college football and movies. I’m hoping that September brings some normalcy back to the schedule. This week the hard truths are that the timecop was back to square one, and Shin Godzilla is back on Alien Earth with strong berry Fudge Stripes. Remember, FTCH comes in your choice of four great colors.

Pop Culture Ephemera

• Shin Godzilla (2016) (Directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi): “Man is more frightening than Gojira” – Hiromi Ogashira. The 4K theatrical release of Shin Godzilla looks wonderful. The 2016 reboot had some interesting choices. Instead of an outright symbolism of nuclear war and Japan’s victimhood of the attack, this is more disaster based, calling upon the political fallouts of the handling of the 2011 earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear disaster. True, America is still to blame here because their dumping of nuclear waste in the ocean. The film doesn’t get bogged down with interpersonal relationships. There is no waiting for the monster to show up. The only humans that we really identify with are Ogashira (Mikako Ichikawa) and Yaguchi (Hiroki Hasegawa) who are part of the Disaster Prevention bureau. The film unfolds for most of it like a fast-paced documentary of government reactions to the Gojira attacks. This might turn off some viewers who want more of a hero story. Godzilla (called Gojira “God Incarnate” here) is the villain again and without the personality that American directors seem to want to impose. The score is above par and helps turn this into one of the best Godzilla films of this century. This new origin is already thrown on the junk heap, but don’t let that keep you away.

Buy Funko POP Movies: Shin Godzilla (2016)

• Alien: Earth – “Metamorphosis” (2025) (S.1 E.3) (Hulu): “When is a machine not a machine?” – Morrow. Just three episodes in and it’s already in the running for my best new show of the year. The first two episodes played out like a single Alien film. The metamorphosis of the title might be that we finally get a vision of how the ten episodes will play out. The initial episodes focused on Wendy. Now we meet the rest of the Lost Boys. Expanding the cast makes this a much more interesting series than I initially thought would be specifically a Wendy-centric series. The story of the government that wants to bring back an Alien sample to study to use as a weapon isn’t new, and we know how that story ends. The philosophical difference between hybrids, replicants, and other human/cyborg variations is interesting. I think that’s going to be what drives this show. Noah Hawley plays well with music in Fargo (FX), but he’s taking it to another level with the heavy metal soundtrack that somehow fits the future world. The Metallica finale was this episode’s best touch. I’m excited to see where this goes.

Buy Tom Petty – Highway Companion

• Tom Petty – “Square One” (2006) (from Highway Companion): “And later on won’t work no more / And the last time through I hid my tracks.” I feel like for some reason, Highway Companion is an underappreciated album. This ballad is one of my favorites that Petty has ever written. The story of humility and self reflection is one that resonates with older artists. Looking back on a life and finding the energy to start over is a universal theme. The listener fills in all the untold details of the past that is regretted. The older man regrets the actions of the younger man towards a lover. The acoustic guitar is perfect to allow his cracked voice to tell the story.

• Rifftrax Live: Timecop (2025/1994) (Directed by Peter Hyams): “Finish that novel you’ve been working on, lose five pounds, start a book group to meet new friends . . . ” – I Know What You Didn’t Do Last Summer. The Riffs don’t disappoint. It’s nothing new, which isn’t a bad thing. This year’s trip to the Riff of Timecop didn’t change the dry humor that has been working for them for decades. The difference that past few years with Riffs of Rad and Point Break is the appeal of the films to a younger generation. These are films that are as removed from Millennials as the films of the ’60s were from my generation. Timecop isn’t a terrible film. There are some acting cringe moments, but the story is actually pretty interesting. The time travel doesn’t try to overthink itself. There’s elements of Phillip K. Dick along with a hardboiled detective story. I was more than satisfied, and I wish we didn’t have to wait another year for the next one.

• Hard Truths (2024) (Directed by Mike Leigh): “I just wanna lie down and close my eyes. I want it all to stop.” – Pansy. I love Mike Leigh films, but I don’t pretend that they are for everyone. There’s lots of dialogue, and it’s often hard to describe a story as much as a mood. Marianne Jean-Baptiste returns to his direction after a memorable performance in one of his very best films, Secrets and Lies (1996). She plays Pansy, who is just angry. We don’t ever get to completely crack all of the reasons for that. The “hard truth” might be that the world is just a lot. Pansy is in pain emotionally as well as physically. Her problems don’t just stem from her personal relationships, the politics of the day, or the lack of empathy in human interactions. It’s all of the above and more. Don’t expect solutions or resolution. A good Mike Leigh film makes you feel like you are watching real people for 90 minutes, and as a viewer, you will infer what may or may not happen after the screen goes black. This film technically came out in 2024 in England, but it wasn’t released here until 2025. I had it on my “Best of 2025” list when the year began, and it’s going to be a candidate to be there when I reassess the list in December.

Best of the Rest

• I’ve come across Eddie Berman on and off. He’s rides that Red Dirt Country and folk line in the best way of both genres. It’s no secret that Tom Petty writes such clean heartfelt lyrics that his songs translate to the country genre pretty smoothly. I really like the simple vocal changes that Berman makes with “Square One” by Petty. I’m just wondering how this cover has been out since 2017 and hasn’t been featured over a montage on Yellowstone.

• Entertainment Weekly (3/28/97): “Best Commercials of All-Time” #7: Coke “Mean Joe Greene” (1979) “I just want you to know I think you are the best ever.” Certainly when you talk about television commercials, this has to be what you mean if you say “iconic.” A bad dude on the field, he’s injured and shown some kindness by a boy who idolizes him. Mean Joe comes through with some kindness of his own. Mean Joe had to drink 18 bottles before the ad was completed. The fact that so many people who weren’t even born when this ad came out also get the references, I’d have to agree with it being one of the most important commercials ever.

• HBO’s removal of so much classic animation from their streaming service is a sore subject for many of us. Losing the full run of Scooby-Doo shows and movies is shameful. The removal of most of the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies in 2023 was downright cruel. Now it’s Tubi to the rescue with the addition of almost 800 classic shorts, including many of the ’30 shorts that don’t see the air much on television rotation. Tubi has quietly become one of the go-to streamers for fans of out-of-the-way films, hard-to-find movies, and now quality old cartoons. Go Tubi! WB Animation adjacent good news – Coyote vs. Acme is off the shelf again and due for a 2026 theatrical release.

Sunday Morning Tuneage Flashback

• Sunday Morning Tuneage from 10/18/2009, I was in the middle of working most of the Saturdays until the end of the year with football, graduation and buyback. Caleb’s football team was losing all their games, and Christian was on his way to a District Championship. I was disappointed with Heroes (NBC), happy with The Biggest Loser (NBC), and curious about Flashforward (ABC). The list of the week is one of the most difficult I’ve ever attempted.
  
  My #91 Top TV Show of All-Time was Dollhouse (FOX) (2009-2010): This is where I even question my own methods. This show had been on a total of 13 episodes at this point. It was a decent-to-good show, but I was projecting to even consider ranking it here. The Joss Whedon show wouldn’t last a calendar year unfortunately. Eliza Dushku was really good as Echo. In the end, it was to slow at development and was only coming into its own at the end of its run. This wouldn’t make my list any longer. I think there’s potential to the storyline as we progress further into AI modeling. I’m embarrassed that this was here back then.
  
• BEST PAUL MCCARTNEY SONGS (Non-Beatles) OF ALL-TIME (2009)
  • 10. “My Brave Face” (from Flowers in the Dirt) (1989)
  • 9. “Fine Line” (from Chaos and Creation in the Backyard) (2005)
  • 8. “Helen Wheels” (Non-Album Single) (1973)
  • 7. “Jet” (from Band on the Run) (1973)
  • 6. “Coming Up (Live)” (from McCartney II) (1980)
  • 5. “Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey” (from Ram) (1971)
  • 4. “With a Little Luck” (from London Town) (1978)
  • 3. “Waterfalls” (from McCartney II) (1980)
  • 2. “Band on the Run” (from Band on the Run) (1973)
  • 1. “Maybe I’m Amazed” (from McCartney) (1970)
    
• BEST PAUL MCCARTNEY SONGS (Non-Beatles) OF ALL-TIME (2025)
  • 10. “Goodnight Tonight” (Non-Album Single) (1979): The last Wings single was left off their albums until someone realized it was a super catchy song. It excelled in the middle of the Disco Era, which says something. How many of his songs became dance floor hits with an extended 12″ verison? Oh, and a vocoder.
  • 9. “Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five” (from Band on the Run) (1973): This didn’t make much impact on me until I saw live versions. This is an excuse for Paul to just go all funky on the piano. It’s super fun.
  • 8. “Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey” (from Ram) (1971): I could make a case that this is just a continuation or lost track from side two of Abbey Road. It’s a fun singalong at the bar too.
  • 7. “With a Little Luck” (from London Town) (1978): There might not be a more mellow track in the McCarney library. It’s not jazz influenced enough to be considered Yacht Rock. Well, it was recorded aboard a yacht, so maybe I need to reconsider that stance.
  • 6. “Band on the Run” (from Band on the Run) (1973): If there was a tally of how many times I have listened to a song on this list in my lifetime, the song will have doubled all the rest. It’s at least three songs in one, and while I am currently enjoying five songs more, it’s also one of a handful that you have to see in concert to really appreciate.
  • 5. “Another Day” (Non-Album Single) (1971): It should have been on Ram (1971). This single was his first post-Beatles and is an interesting transition. It’s a simple description of a normal day of a women, a la “Eleanor Rigby”. This has some of my favorite Linda McCartney harmonies.
  • 4. “Venus and Mars” / “Rock Show” (from Venus and Mars) (1975): This two-part song combination is hard to separate from each other. It feels written specifically to have a great song to start off a concert. The last bit of this rocks so hard, that I think it’s a way to really separate himself from the Beatles sound before heading out on tour with Wings.
  • 3. “Maybe I’m Amazed” (from McCartney) (1970): “Maybe I’m a lonely man who’s in the middle of something / That he doesn’t really understand”. Hailed as one of the best love songs of all-time, it’s mostly about the breakup of the Beatles, the only life he had known in his adult lifetime. It’s been covered more times than I can count. It’s one of those magical McCartney compositions that felt familiar the very first time you heard it.
  • 2. “Let Me Roll It” (from Band on the Run) (1973): It’s inspired by George Harrison lyrics and it sounds like John Lennon wrote the music. It’s partially a response to John’s songs about him, but at the same time, it plays as a tribute to his love of marijuana. This is a perfect in combination with my #1 choice.
  • 1. “Jet” (from Band on the Run) (1973): I hadn’t realized until a couple of years ago what a Bowie influence there is in this song. Paul is great at reading the current landscape of music and putting his own stamp on them. As if I didn’t connect the “suffragette” of the two artists. The mix of horns with that glam guitar makes this my current favorite. “And Jet, I thought the only lonely place was on the moon.”

Buy Paul McCartney Greatest Hits CD

1975 in Review

• August – Ghost Rider #13 (Marvel): “Yeah, baby–take a look! I’m the all-new Trapster–and you’re gonna fly me!” – Stuntmaster. Cover by Eli Katz. Written by Tony Isabella. Art by George Tuska. Now Johnny Blaze turns into Ghost Rider only when he’s in trouble. It’s a convenient trope that works for the Hulk, so why not try it with Ghost Rider? Karen Page returns to Marvel, previously from Daredevil, making a unique connection between the two books.
• August 27 – The death of Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia (the last Emperor) is announced. Haile ruled Ethiopia from 1930-1974. The cause of death is said to be complications from prostrate surgery. Sixteen years later when his body was exhumed, the cause of death was determined to be suffocation from a pillow when he wouldn’t reveal secret bank accounts.
• August 25 – Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run is released. His third album on Columbia would be his huge breakthrough both critically and commercially. The title song would become the one that he is defined by, even with huge hits through the ’80s.

What the Hell Did I Put in My Mouth?

“Rest your head on me, my dear
It took a world of trouble, took a world of tears
It took a long time to get back here
Try so hard to stand alone” – Tom Petty