Out In The Media

Out In The Media

The True Team review some of their favorites!

You, season 1

By Kaylee Duff

The first season of the television show You was wild from start to finish. The psychological thriller follows a bookstore manager named Joe, who becomes quickly obsessed with a customer, Beck. You become wildly popular after coming to Netflix, and has been renewed for a second season. As someone who is not usually a fan of thrillers, crime dramas or “scary” shows, I was surprised that I enjoyed You as much as I did. But it’s nonstop drama and you have to keep watching to find out what’s going to happen next. One of the coolest things about the show is how it integrates so much of what we see and use in everyday life — from texting to social media — but in creepy ways that make you think twice. Without giving too much away, I will say that You’s genius lies in the way it plays off of our deepest fears, that those close to us are predators, liars and creeps. It’s the reason people are so drawn to true crime shows; that stuff is terrifying, but at least it’s not happening to me. (Also Shay Mitchell is in the first season, and what else can a girl really ask for?)

The Music of What Happens, Bill Konigsberg 352 pp. Arthur A. Levine Books. $17.99.

By Kaylee Duff

Released in February 2019, The Music of What Happens is a contemporary young adult romance between two boys who couldn’t be more different. Max plays baseball and video games and is a “dude bro.” Jordan writes poetry and has never been kissed and has two “wives” for best friends. Both of them have secrets. They end up working together on Jordan’s deceased father’s food truck — and romance ensues. Bill Konigsberg’s novel has everything a YA reader could want: humor, truth, relatability, beautiful prose, amazing setting, food truck shenanigans. On the surface, it seems like a light, easy read; at its core, this book is anything but easy. Max is facing trauma from a non-consensual sexual encounter, and Jordan is trying to save his mom from a gambling addiction and impending homelessness. The boys and their friends grapple with the intersectionalities of sexuality, race, class, mental health, trauma and more. The Music of What Happens is beautifully written, creative, interesting and engaging; I didn’t want to put it down!

Rent

By Jeff Skinner

My mother wasn’t a big fan of musicals, so growing up, I never got to watch movies like Beauty and the Beast, The Sound of Music or Aladdin. Eventually, I started going to theatres to watch musicals live and see what I was missing out on. I recently watched Rent for the first time! I got to see the performance at the Palace Theatre in Columbus, and I was shocked by how great the musical is! It starts out on Christmas Eve, in the East Village of New York City, and takes place between 1989 to 1990. The musical follows the lives of several bohemians and their struggles with sexuality, drugs, paying their rent, and life under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. Mark and his roommate, Roger, can’t pay their rent. Benny, their old friend and now landlord, has taken care of their rent in the past but now they have to pay. Some other characters that stuck out to me were Angel — a fierce and beautiful drag queen — and her boyfriend Tom. You also will learn about Mimi and Maureen. Rent is heartbreakingly beautiful, and you will learn a lot about the struggles from HIV and AIDS in the late ’80s and early ’90s.