Yeah, Its Gonna Suck: Netflix Cowboy Bebop (part II)

It started with them trying to get the dog wrong.  That was our first warning. Next, came a picture of the crew of Bebop, and Faye Valentine was clearly dressed to discourage the male gaze, which is the total opposite of her character. The fans voiced their concern about this and the actress posted a snide and sneering video denigrating the fans of her show for not liking the new costume. There is a lot more going on here than just an...

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Eastern Story Telling

I recently asked you, my beloved readers, if you would like me to do an essay on Eastern storytelling traditions as opposed to Western. The support for this was overwhelming.  Three of you said, yes.  Let’s begin. Hakawati, is the Arabic tradition of storytelling wherein each story must have… Beloved Readers: Uh, Cataline that wasn’t the story structure we were interested in. I’m getting there.  Don’t be a pest about it.  …and teach a moral lesson.  I suspect this tradition is more Middle-Eastern than specifically Arabian because the story of Jonah...

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What If – What If… Didn’t Suck?

Astonishing concept I know, but it finally happened. It took three episodes to get one that was, I can't believe I'm saying this, good. The contrivance for this episode was, what if the Avengers were killed before they became the Avengers. And they actually ran with it. They recreated famous scenes from various movies and at end of the scene the Avenger in question was pushing up roses. ***SPOILERS*** FROM HERE ON OUT. When Black Widow gives Tony...

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Cheap Thrills: The 8th Doctor

On my way back from the Mongolian Outlands, I was listening to a few things that I’d loaded onto my phone for the trip.  One of them turned out to be a hidden treasure.  Or at least it’s hidden to most Americans.  The British have known about this for a while. Back in 1996, Fox Network had the absolutely hideous idea of rebooting Doctor Who, which had been on hiatus for seven years at that point.  It was almost as bad as the Peter Cushing...

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Okay, I’m Back

Only slightly worse for wear. Reader Chief_Tuscaloosa writes: "In the future, when Vox Day has bought the Superman franchise for $1, I look forward to issue AV (after Vox) #1: “Superman, The Illegal Alien with Super-powers: He Has To Go Back." Not worth the dollar.   Part of the reason DC is doing this, is so they can turn things over to Jon Kent because 11 years Clark Kent goes into the Public Domain. So they'd like to shoo him off stage.   I'm...

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Is Kathleen Kennedy Getting her Contract Renewed?

Such a move would be fatal to what is left of the Star Wars fanbase.  She is the most reviled personality ever connected with the franchise to include freaking Jar-Jar.  Renew her contract and you may well as pander to the Reylos because you will have absolutely no one left.  Except, the Reylos have already dipped out, after ROS. Both the Mom & Pop and the institutional investors are clearly hostile to the idea. A number of Bob Chapek’s reforms would be reversed if...

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RE:View Clash of the Titans (part II)

Continued from part I So, we see Perseus growing up under his father’s watchful eye.  The various deities of Olympus are instructed by Zeus to give him gifts.  A nuisance for Hera as she is never cool about these things, and they happen a LOT. I found myself admiring Beverly Cross as a writer. She went out of her way to make sure plot holes were filled in advance.  During a needed montage whose only real job was to turn Perseus from a boy to...

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Marvel’s What If… (Second Episode)

Marvel's What If... Comics used to be kind of fun and different. What If Spiderman Joined the Fantastic Four? What If Gwen Stacy had lived? What if Doctor Doom became a hero? What If the Hulk had the brain of Bruce Banner? As you can tell some of these What If(s) proved popular enough to become part of the Marvelverse proper. However, we are now two episodes into the TV series and it is becoming absurdly obvious what all of the shows What If(s) are...

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RE:View – Clash of the Titans (Part I)

“Greek and Roman myths contained characters and fantastic creatures that were ideal for cinematic adventures. If some of the adventures were combined with 20th century storytelling, a timeless narrative could be constructed that would appeal to both young and old.” -Ray Harryhausen  Clash of the Titans was both the end and the beginning of an era. It was first of the Eighties sword and sorcery movies, but it was also the last Ray Harryhausen film.  And it was quite the swan song. In a career...

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