Reading · My Pal Sammy · RSS Amplifier

What do you want to build today?

I had a unique opportunity to chat up a growth specialist who works at one of the more prominent AI writing tool companies.

I’m fascinated by this AI gold rush.

I’m curious about what opportunities this’ll spark, especially for creative folks. Shortcut taking creatives and ghostwriters have been with us for centuries…that’s always part of pop culture.

If you’re lazy before AI, you’ll be lazy with AI.

However, a whole new creative playground is amazing.

So, I have so many questions and a deep curiosity tempered with legitimate Skynet concerns.

As she did her best to keep up with my rapid fire what about…questions, one thing instantly stood out.

And I can’t tell if it’s disturbing or not:
When I talked about their AI, I referred to it as an It...as in Pennywise: a shapeshifting cosmic predator.

Only when she talks about their AI, she says "he." He as in...Rick Deckard?

I know how it goes with dogs, for example.
Non-dog owners typically go with "it," while dog people say "he" or "she." The doggy is an adopted family member with the same last name; I get it.

Arnold, who is a cybernetic assassin Terminator in

T2, says "it" about Skynet. Before his human programming (“Hasta La Vista, Baby!”) kicked in, Arnold recognized Skynet as an "it" because it’s a vicious blunt instrument—a tool. (In all definitions of tool, if you recall the tragic ending of T2.)

Yet, as the passionate AI rep was talking to me, she said:
“He’ll give you results…”
“He can meet your expectations…”
He can…he will…he likes to help.

Errr, yeah.
I’m not ready to sign off on "he" for AI…just yet. Does that make me…John Connor?

As for Arnold in T2? As he—not it—famously promised: he’s back.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day returns to cinemas, starting on the day before Judgment Day.

For its 35th-anniversary re-release, T2 screenings run from August 28 through September 2, 2026.

Seeing T2 back in cinemas is a bittersweet return to a very cinematic he moment…not an it disposable tech experience designed to fade away.

I don’t normally get verklempt with movie endings, yet when the T-800 “died” in Terminator 2…yo: that hit me hard in the guts & the nuts.

Terminator 2 is one of the best movies of all time: sci-fi or otherwise. I was emotionally devastated when The Terminator melted away.

It still hurts 35 years later.
Yo, son. Thumbs up for owning your pain.
Perhaps some compelling TV will balm my battered soul.

Leave a comment

A new month means new TV.

For August 2026 I present 5 TV recommendations you’ll wanna #SetTheVCR for.

July was all about Nolan and The Odyssey in 70MM, stuff most of the public doesn’t care about. Highbrow cinema (discourse) can be exhausting. Spider-Man: Brand New Day was a welcome return to lowbrow.

Lowbrow is fun. Sometimes you don’t want a three-hour existential crisis with subtitles. A giant shark wrecking boats and consuming skinny dippers can also be satisfying.

So, for #SetTheVCR for August 2026—prepare to enter the glorious, unpretentious world of a B-Movie.

Enjoy 5 unfiltered fun late-night TV discoveries. Even Terminator 2, generally considered to be a classic, has bold B-Movie roots.

Michael, the Michael Jackson biopic, isn’t a B-Movie per se; however it has a number of B-Movie hallmarks: it requires no homework and no pay-attention plotting. You can jump into the movie at any scene and still know exactly what’s happening.

All these offerings are fun and disposable.
Brimming with cool kills and killer one-liners.
Just visceral, popcorn-crunching entertainment meant to be experienced, not intellectualized.

For August…set aside cinematic snobbery, grab some sweet and salty snacks and let’s celebrate the glorious art of rolling the dice on something delightfully wild.

Shall we?

The Event
→ Lanterns — Season 1

The Sleeper
→ Sawtooth Mountain

The Comeback
→ Michael

The Wildcard
→ Normal

The My Pal Sammy Pick
→ Deep Water

Oh and before we get into all the B-Movie goodness…attached is a MSL conversation with Sawtooth Mountain’s Gabriel Carter. “Three college students get entangled in a horrifying ordeal after booking a Bigfoot-themed cabin run by two paranormal-obsessed brothers.”

Gabriel plays Clint, one of the paranormal-obsessed brothers. My conversation with Clint covers Bigfoot, X-Files, UFOs, They Live and Clint’s strange and dark arc in Sawtooth Mountain.

Oh and as you’ll read below…his enthusiasm for Tubi. Gabriel is a big Tubi fan.

The Comeback
Monday, August 10
Michael (Anytime / Starz)
~~
Singer Michael Jackson emerges from Gary, Indiana, as a prodigy in the Jackson 5, captivating audiences with his unmatched talent in the early 1970s. As a solo artist, he transforms pop music with groundbreaking albums like Off the Wall and Thriller, redefining performance, music videos, and global stardom. Behind the fame, Michael grapples with family expectations, management pressures, and the relentless pursuit of perfection that fuels his creativity. His visionary artistry and tireless dedication culminate in the record-breaking Bad World Tour, showcasing his evolution from a gifted child to an international icon. The film charts his rise, triumphs, and innovations, concluding at the electrifying finale of the Bad Tour in late 1980s. capturing the peak of his career.

Michael, a biopic about pop star Michael Jackson’s early career, was released on April 24, 2026. It quickly became the highest-grossing music biopic in the world, grossing $1 billion globally ($644 million from international markets and $372 million domestically.) Michael Jackson is a #GOAT. (“A million dollars isn’t cool. You know what’s cool? A billion dollars.”)

Online idiots struggled with this dancey, delightful movie because it was missing this or failed to acknowledge that. It’s a biopic.

These pitch-fork armed fools came for a crucifixion and all they witnessed was a glorious coronation. So yeah, they can all Beat It with their worthless nonsense.

More? The impressive success of Michael is an emphatic and loud double bird to the cowardly generation that shot Elvis from the waist up on January 6, 1957. (Ironically on C-BS. Though it’s all full circle to MJ as he left Motown for…CBS Records.)

Y’all were soft in your Elvis reaction.

By 1983 Michael’s leg kicks and thrust movements were dazzling and part of his brand. The culture Moonwalked away from Elvis and sailed like a tossed fedora into a glorious future.

Thank you so much to Elvis, to James Dean, the Rolling Stones, EC Comics, The Doors and more...everyone who openly rebelled and helped to win their phony war on “Juvenile Delinquency.” “Their” as in the uptight moral absolutists, the fundamentalists, the elected buzz killers: the vapid are legion.

Since the ‘50s we’ve known Cancel Culture—The Seduction of The Innocent—is just gross trash morality.

Pop Culture is Bad and Thriller-ing and Dangerous.

Programming Note: Michael streams on Crave on August 14.

The Sleeper
Tuesday, August 11
Sawtooth Mountain (Anytime / Tubi)
~~
Three college students become entangled in a horrifying ordeal after booking a Bigfoot-themed cabin run by two paranormal-obsessed brothers.

How do you Tubi?

I asked Sawtooth Mountain’s Gabriel Carter, as he plays Clint in this horror movie. Gabriel is a big Tubi fan.

On his Twitter account he’s written praise such as: “Tubi is the best.” And “Tubi rocks. They feature long lost gems.”

So, as a Tubi fan…I asked him: How do you Tubi?

The overlooked aspect of Tubi is that it has become this fascinating online modern-day middle of the video store. The Blockbuster walls featured Jurassic Park or True Lies, safe blockbusters. Even if you didn’t enjoy those movies you knew what you were getting into.

But if you wandered into the middle of the video store, you’d spy strange action movies. Or be attracted to lurid horror VHS covers. These movies were always risks. But to Gabriel that’s the Tubi Thrill: rolling the dice on a strange unknown movie. It’s a cinematic surprise party.

I haven’t offered a valid reason to check out Gabriel’s Sawtooth Mountain, right?

Granted, the trailer is below. And Google is free.

Or you can test The Tubi Thrill. Just press play and see how big of an imprint this Bigfoot horror movie leaves on you.

The Wildcard
Friday, August 14
Normal (Anytime / HBO Max)
~~
In the aftermath of a bank robbery, interim sheriff Ulysses uncovers a criminal conspiracy at the heart of his small-town Minnesota community.

Middle Class John Wick is not…Normal. Nobody was decent: way better than the Tubi Trash Treats that Gerard Butler, Liam Neeson and Bruce Willis issue with alarming regularity. I appreciate Bob Odenkirk’s current ruckus phase.

“Normal is a crime thriller film directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Derek Kolstad, based on a story by Kolstad and Bob Odenkirk.”

That’s the entire hook.

Derek Kolstad created the John Wick franchise: Tick…
You know (and like) Bob Odenkirk. He’s not a Nobody: Tick…
And Fonzie is in this! Henry Winkler displays some casual duplicity that is impressive: Boom!

Normal’s tagline:
Small town. Big secret. Good town. Bad people.

If you Normally like all those things…you’ll dig Normal.

Programming Note: Normal streams on Prime Video-Canada on August 28.

The Event
Sunday, August 16
Lanterns: Season 1 (Anytime / HBO Max & Crave)
~~
The series follows new recruit John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) and Lantern legend Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), two intergalactic cops drawn into a dark, earth-based mystery with cosmic ties as they investigate a murder in the American heartland.

“What the fuck?” is how the Lanterns trailer opens. Indeed.

It’s difficult to generate nerdy enthusiasm for Lanterns, the next chapter in the revamped DCU.

Like, it’s Damon Lindelof; hacks for nothing James Gunn. Remember how wretched and devoid of all value Watchmen was? Lindelof also hacked up The Leftovers. And Star Trek: Into Darkness. (At least that was well-named.) And Prometheus. Lindelof is a vacuum: he just sucks.

Like, with a frowzy track record like that: why would Lanterns be embraced with hope?!

Like, this dumb TV show is called Lanterns plural but what...based on the lackluster HBO trailers so far, there’s just 1 ring?

Like, it truly doesn’t matter how Lanterns will justify a cloth suit. Yet another disappointing trailer moment. No matter what...the explanation will be dumb: Stewart is in training, Hal’s Danny Glover too old for this, Coast City is gone, this is what Alan Scott wore etc. The reveal will be dumb bad...bad writing.

Like, Lanterns is TV writing. “Something is off here. I can feel it.” Oh, come on man. Really?

Like, Lanterns is a TV show about space cops taking on ruthless moonshiners in a backwater town?! Welcome to Smallville.

Like, remember how Watchmen sucked? Lindelof is not even close to Alan Moore. Rise up as a vicious choir and sing loudly: because as terrible as Watchmen is…this DC Comics TV show is desperate to be even worse. Like, Tom King is one of the writers, too. Oh boy. So far nothing shown indicates quality. What else ya got?

Like, it’s hard to muster up much enthusiasm for this Emerald Dawn when it looks like a lame True Detective. Can HBO get back on track in 2026 following the It: Welcome to Derry debacle?

Apparently this HBO show has the Green Light to be even worse than the Ryan Reynolds debacle. And there’s nothing to like about that.

The My Pal Sammy Pick
Sunday, August 16
Deep Water (Anytime / MGM+)
~~
A flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai goes down in the middle of the Pacific. After surviving the crash, the survivors soon discover they’re not alone and they must survive the shark infested waters.

Deep Water directed by 90s classic blow-em up dude, Renny Harlin is now streaming. So at home you can fin-esse the savage shark movie starring Aaron Eckhart and Ben Kingsley into your life.

It’s a water-ful life for shore.

Can I make a Deep Water suggestion that’ll maybe put me in deep hot water? Deep Water is firmly a freshtastic B-Movie. For true there’s some decent ‘90s action movie moments (i.e. the epic airplane crash!). And 3 shark kills that are Top Shelf. So good.

However, it’s a lot of fun to watch with an audience. It makes the corny cool. So gather your friends and host a Deep Water watch party.

Sharks are still a whole genre. I haven’t watched Under Paris (a giant shark appears in the Seine), No Way Up, Devil’s Mouth, or Dangerous Animals and much more.

This is Jaws’ legacy. It’s so personal.

Programming Note: Deep Water streams on Paramount+ Canada on August 21.

Those are five #SetTheVCR highlights so your August hot as the Summer days slowly melt away.

Don’t forget to check out #SetTheVCR every week: Watch More TV!

#SetTheVCR for August 2026

Comments