Friend of a Friend

A Media and Culture Blog by Eric, all formatting errors by Admin

4/13/26

Welcome to the first-ever friend of a Friend blog! I’ve been trying to find a way to get my thoughts out about all the random things I watch, read, and hear and Tedmond.net has been gracious enough to provide me exactly that outlet.

            The blog will have three goals:

  1. Give myself a place to get my thoughts out so that I don’t have to bother all of my friends, family and co-workers anymore about things they will never be interested in. Let’s be honest though, I will absolutely continue to do exactly that.
  2. Convince someone to try a movie, show, book, or song they wouldn’t have otherwise.
  3. Reach someone who has also watched/read/heard the same movie/show/book/song so we can both go “Hey I liked that!” or “Wow that sucked!” together (bonus points if either of us can explain why).

Alright that’s enough of an intro, you’ll get the hang of it. Hopefully these will happen weekly-ish, but it depends how much I can come up with to write about.

Send me your thoughts! Send me ideas for what to watch/read/listen to! Read til the end, or don’t!

What I Watched:

The Drama (2026):

            I’m not sure if Zendaya purposefully chose to line up her role as a bride with her rumored wedding to long-time partner Tom Holland, but it made for some fun press tour shenanigans for a movie that is absolutely relying on virality and word of mouth. Yes, it has two mega-stars in Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, but it’s hardly a four-quadrant movie.

            Instead, The Drama, is a pitch-black comedy (ironically), one that intentionally crosses the line before turning around as if to say “Didn’t think I’d got THAT far did ya?” before immediately running past the next uncrossable line. The titular “drama” that threatens the happy couple’s relationship is plenty shocking, but I couldn’t escape the feeling that the writer either intentionally chose not to engage with the full depth of said drama (trying to be vague because it’s like THE spoiler for the movie) or was so far out of his depth on the topic that he opted to give up before getting anywhere beyond surface level. It’s a fine enough foundation for some laughs and a neverending series of cringes, but so much of the story’s potential (and boy is there a lot given “it” and who “it” involves) is handwaved away for the sake of punchlines.

Maybe I’m asking too much of a comedy or maybe I’m wishcasting for a movie that was never going to be made. As a surface level dark comedy, I think the movie works? But the more I think, the less convinced I am.

I still haven’t decided whether or not to stop thinking.

My Rating: 3??/5

For Fans Of:

  • Zendaya, who continues to crush every role she’s in
  • Scenes that go on five minutes longer than you’re comfortable with
  • Am I the Asshole threads on Reddit

Euphoria – S1 & S3E1:

            Big Zendaya week for me (good actress btw) and while I have zero complaints about her, the material is letting her down. Euphoria, whose 3rd season premiered Sunday, was never “well-written” by any means, but it knew how to get it’s uber-talented cast in situations that let them showcase their talents. Combined with as stylish an aesthetic as any show on television and a Labrinth-curated soundtrack that oozed emotion, the show was soapy, over-the-top greatness.

            Season 3’s first episode elects to ditch the moody aesthetic, Labrinth’s partnership, and the entire high-school setting (everything about the show was so clearly exaggerated, why not let a bunch of nearly 30-year olds play high schoolers?) in favor of something that is, at best, messy. The characters don’t feel like the same people, the tone is all over the place, the storyline is contrived, and worst of all, it’s boring.

            Hyper-stylized and over-the-top worked when the characters were high schoolers. When every crush and fight feels like the world is ending, you can get away with playing it like the world really is ending. Season 3’s time skip means all of the “turned up to eleven” characters now are meant to be fully functioning adults, except that adults can’t as easily get away with screaming matches, sobs, and zero responsibility. Where does Cassie need to fit in now that she’s relegated to a trophy wife? Who does Nate need to dominate now that his football field has turned into a hospice complex construction site. Humans grow up, mellow out, learn how to function in the “real world”, but Euphoria was never meant to be the real world.

            In an ill-conceived plan to balance out domestic boredom, showrunner Sam Levinson opts for shock value with Rue and Faye’s story. Without the emotional core though and glitzy style though, all of the shock just feels excessive. There’s no Euphoria here, only the post-drug comedown.

            My Rating: 1.5/5

            For Fans Of:

  • Off-brand Breaking Bad
  • Self-torture
  • The first two seasons of Euphoria (if you have an inability to quit a show)

The Pitt S2 E14:

Season 1 of The Pitt was one of my favorite shows of the past few years (and a definite case of something I told anyone in my general vicinity about whether they wanted to hear it or not). While the 2nd season hasn’t quite reached the same heights for me, it’s still a consistent weekly bright spot. The show continues to deftly balance dozens of storylines and the real-time conceit means even the quiet moments feel propoulsive. Not every day can be a crisis, which means the writers spent much of the season finding other ways to torture their characters and for the most part they’ve succeeded.

The season’s penultimate episode feels almost like a hangover, with everyone finally having a second to catch their breath as reinforcements arrive. Even in a “calm” episode there’s plenty of stress, emotions, and best of all, competence. Watching talented people do good work – super fun imo.

And if Season 2 is anything to go on, we’re going to be watching these talented people do good work for a long, long time.

            My Rating: 4.5/5

            For Fans Of:

  • ER
  • The Bear but if everyone didn’t hate each other
  • Universal Healthcare

Odds and Ends:

  • I turned on the final round of the Masters over the weekend and almost instantly fell asleep. Golf is decidedly NOT for me. Thankfully, I already have my designated “Sunday Reading/Napping Sport” slot filled with baseball. Speaking of,
  • The Cubs offense has been a real snooze so far! I’m doing my best not to overreact because it’s not even May, but the Cubs have done this ‘mostly mediocre with a few winning streaks’ song and dance for a few years now and while I don’t think you can truly lose a division before Memorial Day, you can dig yourself a plenty deep hole that leaves little to no room for error. It’s early, but wasn’t this year supposed to be different?

What I Read:

         Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte:

            After watching the movie a few weeks ago (flawed but highly entertaining), I figured I’d give the book a try. I know book lover’s called the movie blasphemous, but surely the general vibes would still be the same?

            WRONG. Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.

            The book is long, slow, boring, and my least favorite read since at least high school (Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man is tough to beat in the “Sucky Classic” category). The Heathcliffe/Cath romance, a love for the ages apparently, feels like it happens off-page or within the span of a few paragraphs. Characters are stubborn in a way that feels plot-necessary rather than earned and the story’s structure means that we hear of all of the passionate events through the eyes of another. It makes the soul-crushing, doomed lovers (both generations) feel cold and clinical. I don’t doubt that is was thrilling for its time, but I would’ve rather read a phone book.

            My Rating: 1.5

            For Fans Of:

  • Sleep (this book will put you to bed ASAP)
  • Terrible people doing terrible things
  • Saying “Back in my day”

            Boy Parts – Eliza Clark:

            Another story of women behaving badly, and thankfully, a far better one. Boy Parts follows Irina, a transgressive photographer who crosses redder and redder lines in the hopes of making it big, or at least leaving her mark. Clark is no stranger to unreliable, unlikable narrators (Penance is also worth a read) and injects the story with a heavy dose of American Psycho as we follow Irina’s violent descent. It’s fun, shocking, and stays on just the right side of real to keep you guessing.

            You probably won’t like Irina, almost definitely won’t believe her, but you’ll be compelled to listen to her and Clark as they show how men think about women, no matter how far they go.

            Highly recommend.

My Rating: 4.5/5

            For Fans Of:

  • American Psycho
  • The Sweden portion of Normal People
  • “Pics or it didn’t happen”

What I Heard:

         Cruel World – Holly Humberstone:

            Humberstone snuck up on me. I knew her from “Scarlett” and a few features but her album wasn’t even on my radar until “To Love Somebody”, the album’s lead single, came out the same week as Harry Style’s “Aperature”. Holly’s song was the one I kept coming back to (and I really liked Harry’s song!). The album is more of the same, poppy and dark, witty and vulnerable.

            “Red Chevy” and “Drunk Dialing” are standouts on a brit-pop dream-pop sound I’m sure I’ll have in my ears all year.

            For Fans Of:

  • 1989 (especially “I Know Places”)
  • Wolf Alice
  • Muna

            Where to Start:

  • “To Love Somebody” if you don’t mind a new earworm
  • “Red Chevy” if you don’t mind yelling “Kiss me like you fucking mean it” in your sleep
  • “Blue Dream” if Bonnie and Clyde are your romantic idols

            Ricochet – Snail Mail

            It’s a Phoebe Bridgers song mixed with a circa 2001 Sheryl Crow/Michelle Branch song. What could be bad? It’s one part nostalgia, but many more parts talent and an eye for mood. It’s an album that invites you in a washes over you, good if you’re only here for vibes, good if you want to sit down and dig in.

            For Fans Of:

  • Anyone mentioned above
  • Soccer Mommy
  • Your childhood pool’s soundtrack

            Where to Start:

  • “Tractor Beam” – Just start from the top of the album. You’ll know if this is your vibe in approximately 15 seconds.

Odds and Ends:

  • “595” – Violet Grohl: As a Dave Grohl hater (even if I begrudgingly love his music), I’m psyched his daughter seems to be carrying on the musical torch while decidedly not being named Dave. Wish it was 4:00 long instead of 2:30, but beggars can’t be choosers.
  • Dry Spell – Kacey Musgraves: I think Kacey’s got her y’all back y’all.

            Still in Rotation: