Update + Unrelated thoughts · 2:42am Dec 30th, 2014
Well, it looks like the worst is over, and the cold/flu/whatever is on its way out. Good riddance, I say. On December 26, The hacking coughs and the absolute worst chills I've ever experienced made for a wonderful night of sleep deprivation. There are only two kinds of people in the world: those who don't deserve to go through something like that, and those who deserve something far, far worse.
In any case, most of the witty and interesting ideas I had that you may have found amusing during the holidays are but ghosts of their former selves, but I'll try and give you the gist of what I can remember:
1. "The Little Drummer Boy" is basically a Christmas carol about a drum solo, so why don't they ever play any recordings of the song that feature an actual drum solo?
2. People occasionally bicker over whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie. The argument against it is usually something along the lines of "It may take place during the holidays, and there may be lots of Christmas decorations, but it doesn't address the timeless themes of classic Christmas movies." But couldn't you say the same thing about Home Alone?
3. There are apparently some people in the Harry Potter fandom who don't think Ron is worthy of Harry's friendship, because he never demonstrates adequate "specialness" or some such bullcrap. Ron is worthy of Harry's friendship because Ron is Harry's friend. Thinking that there even need to be stricter requirements than that means you understand the concept of friendship about as well as Tom Riddle did.
4. It's a lot easier to appreciate your relatives' taste in entertainment when you're too exhausted to either get out of your chair or to ask to watch something else. By the way, Doc Martin is a really good show and you show totally check it out if you have the chance.
I found that Doc Marten started strong but lost my interest over time as it grew a little too 'predictably soap-opera-ey' if that makes sense. This was a ways in, though, the early stuff was fine. Actually wait, which version are you watching, the TV series or the movies? The movies were, like the early TV episodes, quite good.
As for Harry Potter... If you're actually interested in fandom things beyond the books, I do have a story to recommend. It's one where Ron is Harry's friend despite him literally having the understanding of friendship of Voldemort (and one of the best affectionate parodies I've read in a long time). I'd try to mention why but no explanation of mine can really do it justice:
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10677106/1/Seventh-Horcrux
That Die Hard comment made me think of how my mom insisted on watching The Lion in Winter as a Christmas movie simply because it took place on Christmas, and my sister's complete bafflement with that.
1) To be fair the song has a constant drum accompaniment.
2) Home Alone is a shitty film anyway.
3) I would argue that Ron is just really, really, really lame and shouldn't have existed at all.
4) No idea.
2687233 - True, most versions do feature a drum in the background, though my favorite version uses a drum machine, and changes the lyrics accordingly.
Interestingly, aside from the fact that there aren't any live drums on the track, this is one of the few versions to feature the kind of solo I keep hoping for.
It is bullcrap... not the least because, honestly, Harry does just as much stupid shit as Ron*. Like, seriously. A diligent mage, Harry Potter was not.
*and I mean that in the nicest possible way. Sort of.
I don't have an opinion about Die Hard, so I'll leave that argument to others. But I will note that, between the Tom&Jerry style shenanigans, Home Alone actually did give some lip service to a few Christmas themes such as generosity, love, and family. (Note: I'm not saying it did a good job of exploring those themes...)
Honestly, I don't think of Home Alone as primarily a "Christmas" movie so much as a "kid defends his house from burglars; slapstick ensues" movie with Christmas as the time of of year during which it took place. Not that it matters all that much to me.
(Coincidentally, I was linked to an article in which the author posited that Kevin grew up to be Jigsaw. Looks like there are at least a few links you could choose from if you looked up kevin mcallister jigsaw saw like I just did, but this is the article I was linked to.)
I thought people hated Ron because in Goblet of Fire he essentially told Harry to take a hike when Harry really needed his support, and because his role could be fulfilled by any other magical born kid: there's nothing special about him.
Plus, he's poor, stupid,lazy, and has no ambition, and that factors a lot into how people perceive others even if its a wrong thing to do.
2) The defense would like to summit the following... "It's a Wonderful Life."
3) I wonder if many of them are the same fans that think Hermione should have ended up with Harry.
So which kind are you?
Martin Clunes is a brilliant actor is damn near everything he's ever done too. I highly recommend Saving Grace as he's a riot.
2687681 - I think the fact that Ron's role could have been fulfilled by any magical kid is sort of the point; for narrative purposes, one of Harry's friends needs to be an "average" wizard who can act as a foil for Harry. Personally, I think J.K. Rowling did an admirable job of making her "average" wizard an interesting character in his own right.