Peruvian Idle

It was a short month and I was in San Diego for a week, so I didn't really consume much content in February. I spent most of my media time watching movies.

🎮 Games

Not a lot going on in gaming right now. Aside from Civ 7 and some of the usual suspects, I didn't really play a ton of games this month. I'm hoping March's release of Assassin's Creed Shadows keeps me busy for awhile, because there's not a lot of compelling games on the release schedule. This time last year we had Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Helldivers 2, and Balatro all released in short order. This year hasn't seen a ton of stuff I've been interested in, unfortunately.

Civilization 7

I usually only talk about stuff that I'm really liking in this newsletter. But Sid Meier's Civilization is a series I've invested a lot of time in over the years. It's been nearly 10 years since Civ 6 was released, so I was excited to see how a Civ game would take advantage of the latest in gaming hardware. Though as much as I've loved the series, this installment kind of feels like an early access game — filled with bugs, rough UI, and missing features from past titles. They've added a few new mechanics, such as the concept of Ages, where you can switch up your Civ or leader during key turning points in the game, I suppose to adjust your bonuses based on what's happening. But none of the new features really add much. Granted, I only made it through the first two ages with Pachacuti, the leader of the Incas. (Though you can't even select the Incas until the second age.) Diplomacy seems to be extremely fragile compared to what I remember in previous titles. An early ally suddenly just decided to turn on me out of the blue while I was already fighting a war on two fronts. I can't say for sure if this game is not as good as previous entries or if it's just one of those instances of the mechanics of a series not aging well in general, but this one, sadly, was a disappointment. [PS5, Xbox, PC]

Other games I enjoyed

NBA 2k25's MyTeam mode is getting to that time of year where even the scrubbiest player that ever laced up a pair of Nikes is getting a 96 OVR card. At a certain point the only differentiator between cards is the heights of the players and it really loses its appeal. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has introduced so many pop culture skins this year it's really kind of ridiculous. First there were a bunch of Squid Game contestants and guards running around, then The Terminator, and now the game is awash with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, complete with extremely annoying melee weapons. I'm still having fun slowly earning prestiges and unlocking camos, but what little sense of realism the game had is pretty much gone at this point. I also played a bit more Sniper Elite Resistance with my friend Dave, and some Sniper Elite 5 with Jose.

🎬 Movies

With not many games to play I had a lot more time to catch up on movies. I watched a few more awards contenders from 2024 and tried to put a dent in my 4k Blu-Ray backlog, only to order a bunch of new ones. 😅

Sing Sing

There’s a vulnerability in acting that almost seems incongruous with prison life. Yet this story, about the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at Sing Sing, proves that wrong, blending fact with fiction with a cast of real RTA alums. Coleman Domingo gives a powerful performance and deserves all of the awards buzz. But the real standout for me was Clarence Maclin, one of the RTA members, who plays his vital arc with convincing nuance. A great pairing with Ghostlight, which also shows the redemptive power of theater. [VOD]

Nickel Boys

A fascinating debut feature from RaMell Ross that immerses you in the experience of two young men at a Florida reform school in the early 1960s. The movie is shot almost entirely from the first-person point of view of its main characters. It struggles to sustain that mechanic over 2 hours and 20 minutes but the end hits hard. Sadly, Nickel Boys is extremely relevant given our current political climate. [VOD]

This is the Tom Green Documentary

Say what you will about Tom Green's humor but he's undeniably a comedy pioneer. This doc, directed by Green himself, covers his rise to stardom and what he's been up to more recently since leaving LA to live on a farm in his native Ottawa. I remember a lot of his early work on MTV but there was so much fun stuff I missed and it's great to see that Tom is still at it. [Amazon Prime Video]

Body Parts

"CAN'T YOU SEE THIS ARM IS KILLING ME?!" An underrated and unhinged horror classic. I remember seeing this in the theater as a sophomore in high school and it still delights me now more than ever. Just a brilliant premise (a psychologist gets an arm transplant from a death row inmate after a car accident) carried out to its ridiculously over-the-top conclusion. Jeff Fahey plays the lead with earnestness and his sweater game is on point. Brad Dourif pops up in this so you know it's good. [4k Blu-Ray]

Other movies I enjoyed

Wonder Boys is one of my all-time favorite screenplays, I must have seen this movie a dozen times, though not recently enough to spot Rob McElhenney for the split second he appears in it. Peak Michael Douglas and a fun supporting performance from Robert Downey Jr. Bought the 4k Criterion of Punch-Drunk Love even though I hadn't seen it since it came out and only remember being disappointed with PTA's follow-up to Boogie Nights and Magnolia. I love the low-budget feel of this, Emily Watson's tender performance, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, my god. To think of all the brilliant performances we've missed out on since his passing. I'm not sure how much of The Social Network is true but Fincher's direction, Sorkin's writing, and Reznor and Ross' score add up to a hell of a movie. Zuckerberg sucks now more than ever. I had somehow never seen The Hidden. This movie is amazing! It dives right in and keeps getting crazier and more (inadvertently?) funny as it goes. Extremely 80s.

📺 TV

Thursday nights have been great lately. Watching Reacher, The Pitt and Severance back-to-back feels like Must See TV all over again.

Reacher

This A-tier, dadcore crime drama is back for it's third season and the "Previously on Reacher" recap is basically just like "Reacher is a beefy hobo Army MP who's good at solving crimes and kicking ass" and that's really all you need to know about this show. It's a hell of a good time and Alan Ritchson is as charming as he is intimidating as Jack Reacher. This season they somehow found a guy that makes him look small. I'm looking forward to that ultimate showdown. As a bonus, Anthony Michael Hall appears this season as a shady rug salesman/crime boss. I'm loving it. [Amazon Prime Video]

SNL50

Both SNL and I turn 50 this year, if you can believe it. I've watched this show for as long as I can remember, and from a young age dreamed of one day being on the show. I even went so far as to do the conservatory and writing programs at Second City. It wasn't meant to be, but this celebration of the most influential show in comedy was a joy. There was the Anniversary Special itself, which was packed with SNL alums and a boatload of famous people. But even more fun was the Homecoming Concert, which featured a mix of tributes to classic SNL musical sketches and some just bonkers team-ups of famous musicians. There was also a four-part documentary series on different aspects of SNL from the audition process to the writing process to an oral history of perhaps its most famous sketch: More Cowbell. I still need to check out Questlove's doc on the show's 50 years of musical guests. [Peacock]

The Pitt

I talked about this show last month but wanted to give it another shout out. It's excellent! I was initially concerned that having the show take place entirely over the course of a single ER shift would make it hard to develop the characters, but the show does a great job of fleshing out the characters through action rather than exposition. A recent episode dealt with child loss and turned me into a blubbering mess. Unlike most modern shows, The Pitt's first season is a whopping 15 episodes, taking us into April. Having Noah Wylie back in an ER on Thursday nights is like a warm blanket. [Max, the one to watch for HBO]

Other shows I enjoyed

Season 2 of Severance has been hitting on all cylinders. The most recent episode included a lot of flashbacks that were filmed in a much warmer style than the show's typical cold, fluorescent lighting, and added as much depth to the show's characters as it did its mysteries. I'm really hoping they can stick the landing with this show.

📱 Videos

• Sony dropped a trailer for a new game from the developers of Returnal, one of my favorite PS5 games of the last few years. Saros looks like it has a similar death/rebirth cycle and the same third-person, bullet hell shooting mechanics as Returnal. This is definitely high on my wishlist.
• I absolutely love this tour of Walton Goggin's New York Lodge. Goggin's is one of my favorite character actors and I'd love to just hang out in his cozy cabin.
• Mac McClung won his third consecutive NBA Slam Dunk title, the first player to ever do so, with some of the most bonkers dunks I've ever seen. McClung, at 6'2", is only two inches taller than me. Even if you're not a basketball fan, you'll appreciate this.
• Here's 8 hours of Lo-fi music to refine to, inspired by Severance's theme music.

Thanks for reading!

I hope you enjoyed this issue of Peruvian Idle. I send this out on the first of every month. You can subscribe at peruvianidle.mikeaparicio.com or via RSS.

What are you looking forward to in March? Let me know!