The Weekly Raven | January 08, 2023

Hey, Valkyries ♥ Welcome back to the Weekly Raven! How’s January going for you?

As a reminder, each week we’re inviting you into the Halls of Valhalla for a taste of what we’re watching, listening to, and reading. It’s our way of passing on whatever stories are haunting us, no matter the medium. But we’d also love to hear of your hauntings as well. Grab a cuppa, a snuggly blanket, and let’s chat ♥

Alexi's Week 𓄿

It’s been a long time, but I’ve recently gotten back into Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia. If you didn’t know this about me, I love comedy outside of Science Fiction.

Unfortunately, I can’t watch Its Always Sunny while it’s airing, I do look for Hulu releases. I loved seeing the gang hang out in Ireland and seeing Colm Meany (from Star Trek: DS9) was a treat. I’ve also started listening to their podcast and have been delightfully surprised.

Recently I’ve been getting back into World of Warcraft since their newly released expansion Dragonflight. I haven’t gotten too far into that expansion yet, but it’s been awesome so far. I’ve been mostly catching up by playing through the previous expansion Shadowlands which delves into the afterlife on Azeroth.

I took a break from reading but I’m about to jump right into a novel. Just need to figure out which one. Should I do science fiction or get into fantasy? So many choices.

Ari's Week 𓄿

Movie-wise, my week has been a rollercoaster of opposition. Twice I was tempted to rewatch The Walking Dead, but found myself binging Lighter and Princess instead. Zero zombies, but double the bad-boys-who-break-the rules and girls with ride-or-die spirits.

Despite hungering for sci-fi horror shows, I found myself watching Robocop (1987), Dune (2022), Supernova (2000), John Wick 2 (2017) and Alchemy of Souls part 2. Not exactly “horrifying”, but I was still entertained nonetheless. I predict thrillers and horrors to be the flavor of this season, but we’ll see, won’t we? 😀

Book-wise, it’s been a love-it-or-hate-it kind of week. I DNF’d The Priestess and the Dragon by Nicolette Andrews 89% of the way through. I couldn’t, in good conscious, keep hurting myself. Enough said.

I started Rusted Synapse by Elwood Stevens, which has been an interesting cyberpunk read thus far. Keep your eyes peeled for an impending review. I’m also currently reading Salvation by Peter F. Hamilton for both the backlist books challenges I’m participating in this year. That isn’t cheating, is it? January is turning out to be a jolly month for sci-fi reads and a jaded month for fantasy.

It has, however, been a delightful month of music. This week, I found myself replaying a handful of tracks that just hit the right spot. From Alexander Stewart’s “Blame’s on Me” and RM’s “Wild Flower” to Stray Kids’ “Maniac” and “Arctic” by Sleeping at Last, this audiophile did not go hungry.

My music tastes have swung between revolutionary bobs to mournful self-reflective serenades. It’s been a week of first loves, too. I finally found an ATEEZ track I adore (“Halazia”) and a Taylor Swift tune I replay in the background (“Anti-Hero”). If you know me, you know I’ve struggled to find a song I like from either of them, which is why this sudden crush is…surprising! But I welcome it.

Life has been unexpectedly full of working, writing projects, travel preparations, and Taekwondo. This week, I made homemade whole wheat bagels, a veggie-infused spicy chicken meatloaf, and homemade turkey sausage. Not perfect, but edible and tweakable (is that a word? help!) I’m finally taking the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) this year, so I’ve also ~~doubled~~ quadrupled my studying efforts—fingers crossed!

And that’s it, I think. Phew!

Thanks for catching up with us for The Weekly Raven! What have you been been listening to, watching, and/or reading? We’d love to hear about your week in the comments.