Breakout review 破天网 – Underworld Singapore drama
Dan WildSingapore’s acting scene is one happy family. I was led to Breakout (破天网, Pò tiān wǎng) (2010) by following the link for Jeanette Aw after watching The Dream Job (2016). As Yáng Niànqīng (杨念青) Aw plays jaded and unstable daughter of ruthless underworld figure Yáng Tiānwēi (杨天威). Yang is played with barely contained menace by Guō Liàng (郭亮) …
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Top 10 Mandarin shows on Netflix
Dan WildFor us Mandarin learners, TV on demand is a bountiful blessing. Now we can binge watch and not feel guilty, because we are learning Chinese! I’ve been learning Mandarin for three years, and the list below reflects my viewing journey. I also prefer crime, fantasy and horror so am more likely to watch these than …
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Living in London
Dan WildI didn’t really know London until I’d been there about 2 years, just when I started getting homesick for sunny Sydney. The excitement of being in the big smoke was starting to wear off, the daily commute was becoming a grind. Despite world-class public transport, getting to work sometimes involves multiple changes. Each interchange means …
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Dublin: A Trip Down Memory Lane
Dan WildI used to have another blog. Technically speaking I still do. It has the rather Byronic name: Wild Dan’s Pilgrimage. For those unacquainted with nineteenth century poetry (and why would you be?), this is a reference to the long poem that had the author “wake up and find myself famous.” I affectionally reblog the post …
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Cosmogony 213: Proxima Centauri
Dan WildClosest star to the sun. Part of a triple star system. Several trading outposts orbit Proxima Centauri, drawing their power from large arrays collecting magnetic and solar energy from Alpha Centauri A and its twin. Proxima b, a tidally locked planet capable of sustaining life, orbits this red dwarf star. Residents live in perpetual twilight. …
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The origins of John Polidori and The Vampyre: Byron’s greatest work
Dan WildI really started becoming fascinated with the Shelley-Byron circle during my English honours year at the University of Sydney. My mother read me the poems of Shelley as a teenager and I had already encountered William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge at school. The first wave of English literary romantics were interesting enough. Wordsworth with …
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My mysterious origins
Dan WildI am often asked where I am from. I have lived in four cities now. Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and London. Or three and half cities, for those of you who don’t grant Canberra city status. I’ve learnt to say a variety of things depending on the situation, time of day, attention span of the questioner, direction …
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Cosmogony 121: Betelgeuse Burger
Dan WildThe contents of these burgers are a closely guarded secret. It is rumoured that no one knows the recipe in its entirety, but once a year five executives from Betelgeuse Corp gather on a satellite orbiting Betelgeuse VII. Each executive possesses a key to a safe that holds the recipe. Together they assemble and disassemble …
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Cosmogony 553: Grulos Jandy
Dan WildIn 2420 Grulos Jandy began a series of experiments aimed at limiting the side effects caused by long interstellar hyperjumps (jumps with a distance greater than 10 parsecs). Jandy’s experiments were known for their thoroughness and ethical neutrality: he experimented on everything, from mice to men. He even made men eat mice. Jandy ultimately determined …