1) This past week, the defense team for Bryan Kohberger was in court, trying to get all kinds of motions granted. You know who Bryan Kohberger is:
The dead-eyed Ph.D. student accused of murdering four Idaho college students.
Bryan has an airtight alibi. He was stargazing at the time of the murders.
And also, that knife that his Amazon account shows he purchased? He doesn’t know anything about it.
The defense asked to ban the words “sociopath” and “psychopath,” because I guess it would be hard for Bryan’s associates to come up with another way to describe him. The defense also wants to keep out the facts about his Amazon purchase history because, you know, purchasing stuff on Amazon is such a complicated and tricky process. Sometimes they send you knives you didn’t order, and those knives can go missing.
I guess this is what the defense is saying. Who knows?
I’d like to hear something from Kohberger’s parents and sister, but they’re harder to reach than the director of JOKER 2 on opening weekend.
2) Feedback requests from businesses.
When did this become the norm? I understand the request to review purchases online and for small businesses. But if I stop at CVS for a bottle of mouthwash, I don’t understand why I receive an email shortly afterwards asking me how my shopping experience was.
I bought mouthwash. What, you want a blow-by-blow detailed analysis?
This sort of request has bled over to all aspects of life now. Have a doctor visit? You’ll receive a request for a review. Call customer service for some reason? You’ll be asked to answer a survey afterwards on how well the poor customer service rep in India performed their duties.
3) What I’m watching:
Tried an episode of LONG BRIGHT RIVER. As much as I like Amanda Seyfried – or, at least, I liked her in the limited series THE DROPOUT – I can’t stick with this show. Too much drawn out story stuff where the writer withholds information in order to generate mystery and suspense.
I find tactics like that annoying. Mystery and suspense should come naturally. Never forced.
Also watched CON MAN, a short series (literally…each episode is around 12 minutes long) starring Alan Tudyk, as Wray Nerely, an actor from a cult favorite sci-fi series that lasted half a season. Wray makes appearances at conventions and deals with crazy fans and his even crazier convention booker.
And if all this sounds similar to Tudyk’s own life, it is. Tudyk leans into parody and his time on the cult favorite, half-a-season show FIREFLY. In fact, many of Tudyk’s former FIREFLY co-stars pop up in episodes.
I could watch Tudyk in pretty much anything, and this show is no exception. I don’t love it, however. Yeah, some stuff has made me laugh, but there are plenty of cringe moments, as well.
Personally, I’d rather watch Tudyk in a new season of RESIDENT ALIEN. But this will tide me over until then.
4) What I’m reading:
I think I’m still reading ALL THE COLORS blah, blah, blah… But I also started another book this week:
MASKED, edited by Lou Anders, a collection of short superhero stories, the majority written by comic book writers. I’m usually up on superhero prose stories, but this one got by me somehow.
I’ve read the first two stories in the collection so far, and found them well-written and interesting enough to want to keep going.
That’s your Dispatch for the week.
Slade Grayson is a writer who relies on the kindness of strangers. And readers. And sometimes strange readers. You can buy his books here, or buy him a coffee here.