On Saturday, I managed to get through the entire season one of Fuller House while holding baby Xuân on my lap. He slept through most of the time while I had a moment to reflect on my life in the early 90s. Full House was one of my favorite sitcoms after school. Although I didn’t understand fully what they were saying, I enjoyed it. I even had a crush on Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber). She was cute and funny even though I only had half of a clue of what she said. The reboot Fuller House brings back so much memories, yet the show has moved forward. The ladies are now in charged. Having read this piece about Jodie Sweetin (Stephanie), I am glad that the cast gets to continue to do the show. I am definitely looking forward to season two.

Hou Hsiao-hsien’s Assassination is moving and masterful. If you have Netflix, it is definitely worth every minute of the two hours you spend watching.

I love reading The New Yorker; therefore, I am thrilled to check out its new TV show. The shows are based on the contents from the magazine. I just finished watching season one episode five and so far so good, especially the short documentaries. You can watch it with Amazon Prime.

After watching The Hateful Eight on New Year day, I decided to catch up with his films on Netflix. Django Unchained is brutal but breathtaking. Inglourious Basterds is insane but ingenious. Death Proof is scary but sexy. I even rewatched Reservoir Dogs. Tarantino has quite a violent, disturbing, and artful taste.

I began 2016 with Quentin Tarantino’s latest work of art and blood. The Hateful Eight is indeed a mind-blowing (brain spattering literally) entertainment. It’s a much needed three-hour getaway from the kids during the holiday break.

I ended the year with the final episode of Mad Men. I spent the last few weeks not only watching it, but also drinking with it and fantasizing it. Besides the drinking and the sleeping around, I enjoyed the art of advertising, which also related to design. The cast is superb and the writing is exceptional. Mad Men is the first American TV show that I had watched in its entirety. It was such a guilty pleasure wasting almost 100 hours on my iPhone and sleepless nights. Now I need to get to back to reality, which means stop drinking as well.

Took the boys to see The Peanuts Movie and they both enjoyed it. The film is better than I had expected. The timeless storyline combined with the new 3D rendering brings Charles M. Schulz’s classic comic strip into the modern era. It is a proof that good storytelling never gets old. Đạo, my six-year-old son, told me that he had learned about compassionate, honest, brave, funny, and kind. What more can a parent ask for from a movie? The Peanuts Movie is worth-watching with the family.

I am now in the fifth season of Mad Men. I knew if I started to watch it I will be addicted to it. What I love about the serious is the drinking. From the sounds (of bottle caps popping, ice dropping on the glass, and liquor being poured into the cup) to the expressions (the way the characters hold their cup, take a sip, and engulf the spirit), drinking takes center of the series. They drink to celebrate. They drink when they get upset. They drink for almost in any occasion and at any time of the day. As a result, I like to drink when I watch them drink. It’s part of the escaping experience. I like to drink, but I am not an alcoholic. The people around me don’t drink so I drink with the Mad Men. It’ll be sad when I get through the entire series, but for now I am enjoying it.

Our Đán is a dinosaur lover; therefore, I took the boys to screen it on Thanksgiving day at noon. Khôi, Đán’s cousin walked out of the theater mid way through, but both Đán and Đạo stayed in for the entire film despite a few frightening moments. As with most of Pixar’s films, The Good Dinosaur is visually stunning complemented with heartfelt story. I personally enjoyed it. The boys liked it as well.

Ms. Johnson ends her latest NetFlix special, Not Fancy, with her mockery of Vietnamese accent at the nail salon. Her imitation is no longer offensive, it is just pure lazy. If she wanted to make fun of a foreign language, she at least should have learned it first or done some research. Her gibberish came off stupid, if not stereotypical, even though that was not her intention. Ms. Johnson is not the extreme type of comedian because most of her materials were lighthearted and she hardly used profanity. Not Fancy is an enjoyable PG entertainment if you can get past her somewhat irritating pitch.