Myriad

So, yeah... it's not been a good... hmm... week? Give or take. Not quite the spiraling down into utter lethargy and heavy chest I've experienced before at my worst, but a truly pervasive dull grayness. Work has been less than engaging or satisfying lately, which makes for several hours a day of just existing. That doesn't help.

It hasn't all sucked, but even good entertainment feels fleeting and leaves me hollow.

I was able to catch up on the first couple episodes of The Mandalorian. I'm generally enjoying it so far, though not without a few issues. A little like diving into an RPG with a character created in a vacuum, there's not a lot of engagement between the lead character and... well... anyone else. That makes for a lack of dialog in general. He's tough, cool, and a man of few words, but that's usually not as entertaining as good banter. I'd also say there's already perhaps an overuse of montages between childhood flashbacks, learning to ride an animal, and fixing a stripped-down ship.
On the other hand, it feels like pretty good Star Wars away from Jedi (mostly). It is probably more Western than Space Opera/Fantasy. To one who recognizes is, the Mando lore felt a little thick in the first episode - that's good and bad. I liked the IG droid, though from promo material was expecting more of a presence (perhaps another one comes along later?). Jawas suck whatever planet they're on. I'm not sure how I feel about a green Force-baby at this point, but I'm keeping an open mind. I'd also say I like the ship design for how it evokes Republic-era gunships.

And for a bit of Star Wars time-shock, I picked up SW: Jedi Fallen Order, which takes place much earlier in the timeline. When finding the local Gamestop and Warmart sold out on Saturday, my thought was "well, this isn't helping Gamestop's financial survivability." I'd rather have a disc, but I'll buy the game online and download before I'll pre-order these days. I'm still adopting earlier than might be a good idea, but early reviews seemed positive enough.
And the game's been pretty good in general, though kind of hard for me. Part of that is trying to become accustomed to a combat system that 1) heavily favors blocking over dodging and 2) is slower than what I've experience in recent "Soulsborne" games. Also, there are the sliding sections - those can go right to hell. Thankfully, falling respawns you fairly quickly with only a small chunk of health gone, but I have died on those segments sooo many times already.
The story and characters are interesting enough to be so far. Cal is definitely someone who has been keeping his head down for a long time, and that is clear in early demeanor and even posture. BD-1 is a cool, chirpy little droid. Greez is the cantankerous ship captain/pilot. Cere... I'm watching. They don't (at least at this point) have the chemistry some group shave, but they work well enough so far.
I like the exploration, but I'm not sure how I feel about the backtracking. I've found myself wanting to be able to fast travel at times, though traversal is a fair bit of the game itself. Some of the vistas are nice so far. I really loved the scrapyard at the beginning, seeing so many decommissioned Venators being disassembled - it looks cool and is very symbolic of the Empire washing aside remains of the Republic.
We'll see how things go.

I also introduced myself to Hazbin Hotel, which got some general laughs and interest out of me - enough that I wish there was a series of it now and not just what seems to be one episode and some chats done by the team behind it. The cast of demons are all quirky in their own rights. Alastor really steals the show for me, though - a ridiculously powerful demon who's a bit cracked and ultimately just looking for entertainment.
"Why does anyone do anything? Sheer. Utter. Boredom." Admittedly, that line might resonate just a little too much with me these days.
But the show was entertaining and amusing I'd like to see more.

What else? Probably something. That's enough braindump for the moment, anyway.