Comic Con came and went, a hundred announcements to continue to milk the cash cow of fandom with reasonably low expectations and not one thing that came out of it really interests me anymore. I have seen it, I have paid for it, I'm done financing it for now.

My favorite mainstream retail outlet is probably the trusty Barnes and Noble. I get into one about once a month and come out with a book or two, a Blu Ray, a Vinyl record, something. For years I have walked by the swanky art house Criterion Blu Rays and passed them up because they were just too expensive and why the heck would I buy something without a caped hero or Jedi in it?? Well, the past month they have been on sale and I've gotten deeply invested into older films that are frankly... Better... Way better than before the time Hollywood figured out all the money was in nerd fandom. In a way, I feel like it's opened my eyes, in the last fifteen or so years we have all been exploited by an industry that doesn't really respect our fandom beyond the cash we are willing to spend and the quality of film has suffered drastically for it.

I hate to say it, but I think nerd fandom is destroying the art of cinema. Marvel / DC / Star Wars... It's time to give it a break.

Let's jam.

Overall I was very very into the first 3/4 of the season, they lost me in a big way on the main backstory. I feel like they were missing some key vibes compared to the original anime. The pace was much faster, which I think is to be expected in the 2020s, yet I can't help but feel that they lost something crucial in the process. And yet, I will watch it again and would definitely come back for season 2.

I haven't read a lot of the reviews online because my expectation from the mainstream is negativity, but there was a lot about this season that I personally really loved, even though I felt let down by other areas.

Honestly a LOT of the early episodes hit me in just the right way. From many of the shots they reproduced particularly well, to the Jet character being absolutely spot on, to the Bebop itself and most of the tech being just gorgeous. The overall familiarity really blew my socks off.

I'm withholding my negativity for now while I gather my thoughts, but have at it. Share away!

I liked it, decent job building the world up, pacing was a bit quick but does a good job. Nice bit of bait to grab you at the end and keep you coming back. I'm in.

Just wish it was a bit longer per episode, not sure if I'm into the music yet either.

I watched ESB after it. Damn it looks good in 4K, Lucas meddling be damned.

It’s only logical it would come to this. The rejuvenation of Star Trek on the big screen, eventually, had to do the same for the franchise’s native medium, television. And after months of rumors and speculation, it’s actually happening—Star Trek is coming back to TV.

Multiple outlets are reporting that Alex Kurtzman, co-writer of 2009’s Star Trek and its sequel Star Trek Into Darkness, will executive produce a new Star Trek show through CBS Television Studios.

The show will premiere in January 2017 with a preview episode on CBS and then, in the U.S., move exclusively to the CBS video on-demand and streaming service, CBS All Access. It’ll be the first developed specifically for the CBS streaming service.

Internationally, the show will “be distributed concurrently for television and multiple platforms.”

So what’s this series going to be about? Here’s all the official press release said:

The brand-new “Star Trek” will introduce new characters seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966.
It also added this:

The new television series is not related to the upcoming feature film “Star Trek Beyond,” which is scheduled to be distributed by Paramount Pictures in summer 2016.
“This new series will premiere to the national CBS audience, then boldly go where no first-run Star Trek series has gone before – directly to its millions of fans through CBS All Access,” said Marc DeBevoise, Executive Vice President/General Manager of CBS Digital Media in a press release. “We’ve experienced terrific growth for CBS All Access, expanding the service across affiliates and devices in a very short time. We now have an incredible opportunity to accelerate this growth with the iconic Star Trek, and its devoted and passionate fan base, as our first original series.”

It’s certainly uncharted territory for a new Star Trek show to be available exclusively on a streaming service. But with the 50th anniversary coming up, Trek embracing technology seems like a pretty fitting celebration.

ABSOLUTELY LAST WARNING, TOTES SPOILERS AHEAD DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU LIKE SPOILERS LIKE SOME KINDA WEIRDO.

I would implore anyone who can appreciate an unprecedented level of story telling and film making to stop reading this and go see 1917. I cried 1 and a half times, why are you still here and not at the theater?

One of the hallmarks of Hereditary was the slow and almost perfect tension ramp to the shocking and violent conclusion. Midsommar once again shows that Aster has a tremendous amount of control over the tension curve in his films; the movie starts out with a slow, weird ramp-up, and as we see the friend crew being assembled for the trip, get a hint of the awkwardness between them all, then follow them to Sweden, meeting the Hårga for the first time, their first drug use, and so on... it just gets a little bit weirder and weirder as the movie goes on.

The first "wtf" moment comes when Josh says "Are we just going to ignore the bear then?" as they walk by a giant caged grizzly bear. That's a signal that the next phase of weirdness is about to begin.

By the time the final act comes, when Dani becomes the May Queen, and suddenly can speak Swedish and perform ancient rituals, we're prepared for it because of the slow but steady introduction of weirdness. So, seeing Josh's foot buried in the garden, or seeing Simon's body flayed and hung in the chicken coop, or knowing that they're eating people meat at the dinner table doesn't serve to "shock", just maintain our sense of despair and horror as we watch this madness unfold.

I fucking loved it, and I can't wait to see it again. There are so many little details. The flowers "breathe" when they're on drugs. The illustrations and drawings everywhere hint at what's about to go down. There is a giant monstrous face in the forest as they walk by. I'm sure there are tons of things I missed on my first viewing.

1. Mysterio was a fantastic villain. I loved the mid-movie plot twist rather than some big dramatic reveal in the third act.
2. The love story was super cute, appropriately awkward-teen, and not over-done.
3. The scene where Peter was using Stark's machine to build a new suit, with Happy wistfully watching him hit me hard.
4. Ned is always perfect.
5. TONS of web-swinging and acrobatics, just the right kind of Spider-Man movie. This is what we come for.
6. I'm super glad Mysterio revealed who he is at the end. The plot point of anonymity has run its course and the world needs a new Avenger and I'm glad it's over and we all know.
7. THE DAILY BUGLE. J. JONAH JAMESON. J.K. SIMMONS. It all comes back full circle!
8. The post-post end credits scene. HOLY SHIT SKRULLS. A nice tee-up for Phase 4. Are the Skrulls in SHIELD now?

I had a grin on my face from beginning to end. I went alone and the dude who sat next to me and I were hooting and hollaring and high-fiving by the end of it.

With Speed, Keanu became an action movie star.

After The Matrix, he belonged on any Top 20 list of action movie actors.

By the time the John Wick series is over, he will belong at the top of any such list. Fight me (with a fucking pencil).

So hyped to see part 3. Re-watched 1 last night and watching 2 tonight with @Aaron for, uh, the plot refresher. Yes, for the plot. (Does this movie even need a spoiler thread? I think not.)

The post-credits scene where she is just suddenly "there" with the Avengers was fantastic. No pomp, no explosive entry... just... I'm here, where's Fury?

Also, KITTY

I've been hype about this movie since the first trailer dropped. I'm already a huge Rami Malek fan, and I couldn't wait to see what he did with it.

Absolutely not disappointed. From start to finish, his performance was a masterpiece. Rami Malek for all the awards next year.

The settings, the music (I mean, come on, how could the music NOT be amazing in a Queen movie), the path they took through his life (heartbreaking). Everything about this movie was the perfect tribute to the quintessential rock & roll showman.

I was only 16 when Freddie passed, so it didn't really affect me that much other than the standard "Oh man, no more Queen".

The last week or so in the lead up to this movie I've been jamming a ton of Queen in preparation. Listening to all the different things they did, playing with genres and turning conventions on their heads. A Night at The Opera came out barely a month after I was born, and I think it still holds up as one of the greatest albums ever put out. Full stop.

Also, in listening to so much in the last week, his death has really sunk in as to its impact on the music world. More than Bowie. More than Michael Jackson. Freddie was a phenomenon, and we're all much worse off in the 28 years he's been gone.

I haven't felt such an emotional ride from a movie in I can't remember how long.

I won't even get into the songs they used, because the contexts could be taken as spoilers, especially toward the end.

If you have an even passing familiarity with Queen or Freddie. Go see this movie.

Trailer:

I can't talk about it very much without spoiling anything, but the core concept is so devious and so unique in horror stories that it deserves mention as something "new", something we've never really seen in horror cinema before. It's a movie that feels like it's going to be a slow burn: the normal horror film progression of tension slowly mounting until something bad happens (either once at the climax or several ups and downs throughout the film) is turned on its side: the ratcheting up of tension is released shortly into the film and then the entire story takes on a whole new direction.

The soundtrack is absolutely stunning, the acting is phenomenal across the board, the set design, editing, transitions, and most of all the truly unique story. I've been on a horror movie kick again lately and it's basically impossible to top this one.

TURN AWAY IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE OR CARE ABOUT SPOILERS

I'M SERIOUS

LAST CHANCE

Shall we begin?

I'm really glad they ratcheted up the father-daughter relationship aspect; this movie is ultimately just a family story about parents and kids. It's not a superhero movie and almost doesn't feel connected to the MCU (which is a good thing IMO - it stands on its own), but they are becoming really good at making these vignettes about the characters and their motivations. Because of Ant-Man I and II, I now really care about what happens to Scott and what's going to happen to him in future MCU films.

I loved the character of the Ghost too - a not-really-villain who is really just a terrified kid. If anything, the real villain in this movie was the capitalist mobster Sonny Burch.

On a side note: They keep talking about "30 years ago" and in my head, through the whole movie, they were referring to the 60s... and when they showed the technology from 30 years ago I was like "That's a little high-tech for the 60s but whatever".... My old ass keeps forgetting that 30 years ago was the 80s ???

http://www.cc.com/video-clips/h8z7a0/detroiters-all-hustle--no-flow---uncensored

Redband NSFW: (more swearing... some butt... and hella blood)

Anyone else pumped? Thoughts/theories?