Holy Holiday Specials, Batman!

Happy Holidays! It's the season of giving, so we at Dorkness to Light want to give a gift to you. Lots of people spend December 25th watching their "Christmas canon" of holiday specials, and this is our personal list of must-watch episodes. Cheesy, heartwarming, and full of good will - each one of these episodes examines a different aspect of what the holidays "really" mean.


Community (2.11) "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas"
Abed wakes up on the final day of class before winter break in a claymation universe right out of a Rankin/Bass Christmas special. Unfortunately he is the only one who can see it. Under pressure from the psychology professor, Abed and his friends embark on a magical journey through the winter wonderland of Abed's subconscious to find the True Meaning of Christmas(TM). Rife with wit, sarcasm, and social commentary about "politically correct non-denominational holiday" observances, this special is both cynical and heartwarming. There is also a pterodactyl.

Justice League (2.23) "Comfort and Joy" 
How do Earth's heroes choose the spend the holidays? This episode highlights the annual traditions of Superman, The Flash, Green Lantern and Hawkgirl. Featuring special appearances by Ma and Pa Kent, who love to welcome in strangers and aliens in need of a place to feel at home on Christmas. Not even Martian Manhunter is immune to their holiday cheer.

The Librarians (1.4) "Santa's Midnight Ride"
Santa is kidnapped the day before Christmas and its up to Team Librarian to get him to the North Pole and help him deliver The Gift. This takes a very literal interpretation of the "magic of Christmas" and examines "Santa Claus" and his many, varied historical aspects (beginning with Odin). The power of human Good Will to change individual hearts and the world takes center stage in an incredibly moving conclusion. Also, Bruce Campbell gifts us with a great performance as "Nick".

Moonlighting (2.10) "Twas the Episode Before Christmas"
The spirit of Christmas envelops Maddie, David, and Ms Dipesto when they care for an infant sought by three men named King. A very tongue-in-cheek plot based of a modernized Nativity story, this was one of the earlist shows to jump on this concept before it became a trope. Humorous and very self aware, it is the perfect episode to warm the heart of anyone who rolls their eyes at Christmas specials.

Saint Young Men (Christmas OVA) 
This anime is one of Emily's guilty pleasures. A slice of life anime featuring Jesus and Buddha on vacation in the mortal world, it is a perfect example of our catchphrase "irreverent, not sacrilegious". The Christmas episode is particularly endearing, as Buddha desperately tries to plan a birthday party for his roommate in secret. Fortunately, Jesus has no idea what "Christmas" is actually about - a humorous nod to the fact that Christmas is a largely secular holiday in Japan. This episode has plenty of jokes, but what comes through the strongest is a feeling of sincerity and joy. It's a sentimental love letter to Japanese Christmas traditions, as fluffy and sweet as Christmas cake

Warehouse 13 (2.13) "Secret Santa"
This is one of the few series i have seen to feature a "Hanukkah" episode. The A Plot features a MacGuffin that grants the powers of Santa wreaking mayhem, but the B Plot is what landed it on the list. Claudia decides to find Artie's beloved childhood piano and give it to him as a gift, but when she finds the piano she also finds Artie's estranged father. She decides to reunite the two men, however there are tough consequences as tempers flare. It takes a hard look at the trope of "making up at the holidays", addressing the painful and messy parts of trying to put a family back together again after so long. There are bared souls and lots of apologies, but eventually everyone sits down with a prayer and has a meal together.

The Weekenders (3.25) "The Worst. Holiday. Ever."
Tino, Carver, Lor, and Tish have decided it's time to experience a snow-laden Christmas so they leave Southern California for the weekend and head up into the mountains with Lor's grandmother. They get stuck in a blizzard, and begin telling "So you think this is bad?" stories about their worst holiday experiences, as Granny reminds them no matter how bad things get, at least you're spending time with the people who love you. Each section is about five minutes long and cover Solstice, Kwanzaa, Christmas, and Hanukkah.

Our well-wishes and prayers go out to everyone this holiday season. May you be surrounded by love, light, and good cheer at this blessed time of year.

- Dorkness to Light

God Bless Us Every One

Merry Christmas Eve

Podcast Recommendation

We have mentioned our friend Tyler Smith before. He is a film critic who in addition to being a co-host on the general movie criticism podcast Battleship Pretension, runs the blog and podcast More Than One Lesson, dedicated to providing "movie talk for the discerning Christian." More Than One Lesson spun off a podcast a few months back, The Fear of God, which I recommend.

And their network has grown again! Salty Cinema is a monthly podcast hosted by filmmaker and writer Jacob Kindberg, in which he interviews the film industry's most talented and influential Christians. It is a great idea for a podcast, and the first two episodes have been very enjoyable.

In the first episode, Kindberg interviews Craig Detweiler about the value of mentoring in the entertainment industry and film education. In the second episode, he talks with film marketing specialist Mark Joseph about the extent to which "faith-based" film is a genre.

Book Review of "The Case for the Psalms"

Book #35. The Case for the Psalms, by N.T. Wright. Unabridged audio.

Most of N.T. Wright’s long bibliography is made up mostly of academic and semi-academic works, focusing on life in first-century Israel. He has made great strides in explaining the world that Jesus and Paul came from.

But in this small book, Wright is more reflective. He turns his attention to the Psalms, the Hebrew book of prayer and worship, the great hymnbook of the Bible. He calls for modern Christians, whether they worship in a liturgical manner or not, to include regular reading of the Psalms in their daily lives. He takes a broad swipe at modern worship music, calling musical leaders in church to write more songs that incorporate or reflect content from Psalms.

The subtitle of the book is “Why They Are Essential.” In answering that question, Wright talks about his own devotional practices, giving many examples of how Psalms have been meaningful in his life. This is perhaps the most time that Wright has spent in any of his books talking about himself and his life.

The walks through the Psalms, section by section. This structure enables Wright to bring his academic expertise to the material. He provides historical, literary, and spiritual contexts for reading these hymns, but is able to do that in a highly readable manner.

Source: HOOPLA Digital.

This review originally appeared at: Alan's Eyes and Ears.

Audiofeed 2016 - Glamping

For as long as they have existed, music festivals have been camping events. And Christian festivals kept that tradition going, by offering camping options for attenders. On my own, I attended the Creation Festival a few times in the early nineties, and camped in a trailer that we owned at the time.

But as soon as we began to attend festivals as a family, hotels became out mode preferred mode of lodging for festivals. And at this past summer's Audiofeed, we stayed at the nearby (less than a mile away) Comfort Suites.

There are some advantages and disadvantages to "glamping" during a festival. Better sleep is a huge advantage, as is the ability to stay dry during the summer rainstorms that are regular features of festivals, especially those in the Midwest. Starting the day with hotel breakfast helps as well. Festival food tends to be of the fried variety, so snagging a few pieces of fruit every morning from the buffet adds that needed bit of health to the festival menu.

So many festival attendees do camp on site that I am occasionally embarrassed by our choice to "glamp." But whenever I see somebody at breakfast with the telltale wristband ... I don't feel so bad.

New Comrades Album

We met the band Comrades at Audiofeed 2014, and saw them again in 2016. In addition to having terrific album designs, they play a nice groovy brand of modern hard rock. Their first album"Safekeeper" has an interesting mix of vocal songs and instrumentals.

Their second album, "Lone/Grey" came out in October on Facedown Records. This has the same mix of harsh male vocals, sweeter female vocals, and hard instrumentation that the first album contained.

The first official video from "Lone/Grey," for the song "Dark Tongues Part II" has been released.

The new album is available at the record label's website, iTunes, or Amazon.