Yeah. You’re probably right on that. It’s just that things seem so bleak. Could use some fun.
If you look back on the Relationship Thread, Al, this last discussion involved one of the members posting about how his girlfriend of six years just told him she wants to break up. Not exactly “fun”.
Are there albums where every song is great in your opinion, where you don’t skip anything? Some of mine are: Kate Bush’s debut album, Ry Cooder’s eponymous debut album, Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and Purple Rain by Prince.
My formative pre-teen years occurred in the late ’60s/early ’70s when ALBUMS were the thing! The first album I remember owning (which I got from an uncle for Christmas) was More of the Monkees, which was a very uneven collection of some of their radio hits surrounded by lots of filler, which would have benefitted from lots of skipping; but the albums I bought for myself (or specifically requested as gifts) were meant to be listened to from start to finish: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Abbey Road, Led Zeppelin IV, After the Gold Rush (Neil Young), Tapestry (Carole King), Dark Side of The Moon, The Wall, Brothers and Sisters (Allman Brothers Band), There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (Paul Simon), Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and so on. Even though there are one or two songs on a particular album that aren’t quite as good as the rest, I’ve often felt that the artists put them on the record, and arranged the songs in a particular order, and that I should not mess with that order.
The rise of the compact disc changed all that for me. Whereas albums were usually limited to 45 minutes maximum in length, which forced artists to self-edit and include only 8-12 songs per album, the standard CD allowed them to go up to about 75 minutes. This led to releases that contained 45 or 50 minutes of great music and a half hour of…not-so-great stuff that probably appealed only to diehard collectors. These days it’s harder to find that perfect CD album where every song is worthy.
The thing is, corporate Marvel doesn’t actually want to go in bold new directions. Instead they want to continuously recycle old ideas in new packaging and hope that the consumer doesn’t notice. The only significant difference now is that they are giving work to people who are willing to work for a much lower rate than the previous standard, as a way to make profit without increasing sales. If you’re looking for innovative and competent writing, art and editing at Marvel these days, generally speaking, you’re looking in the wrong place.
(Sorry, it’s a Bleeding Cool Link.)
You think saying “sorry” absolves you from this sin, Todd? Think again. 
There was a report last week about ICE invading a Chicago housing complex (helicopters landing on the roofs) very late at night and zip lining everyone.
I really hope you meant to say “zip-TYING everyone”. 
There’s literally a gun in the 007 logo!
Yeah, first thing I noticed too.
Are we able to do that in modern society?
That depends: are you in captivity?
Thanks, Lorcan; I’ll keep an eye out to see if it shows up here in New York. Thankfully the title is easy to remember 
I wonder if Tim Walz is considering throwing his hat in the ring. As Harris’ running mate during the 2024 presidential campaign, his common sense approach and sense of humor impressed me; and after checking out his Wikipedia page, I agree with just about all his positions on LGBTQ rights, gun legislation, workers’ rights and other key issues. And, while he’s not a kid like Pete Buttegieg, at 64 he’s younger than me, which is a good thing considering how sitting in the Oval Office prematurely ages just about every President.
That’s really great, Tobias! Thanks for sharing the process with us!
It makes sense to me: why waste $2 on a $30M jackpot when I can wait a few weeks and waste $2 on a $1B megapot?!
Yeah, people are stupid. I mean, ALL OF US!! We’re ALL stupid. Except for Dave Wallace.
I don’t think she’s a great actress and she looks nothing like Lara Croft. But otherwise, perfect choice!
They obviously signed her up based on her stellar performance in X-Men: Dark Phoenix!!
Thing is, we’ve been taught by popular culture to expect an apocalypse to be both instant and dramatic. Climate change is neither, which aids those who want to dismiss or deny it.
I remember reading an anecdote once about boiling frogs; if you put the frog in a pot of room-temperature water and slowly boil the water, the frog won’t realize that it’s getting cooked until it’s too late to do anything.
There was no wars. No genocides. No terrorist attacks. No school shootings. No riots in major cities. No drug epidemics. No police brutality. No mass layoffs. No climate change or environmental disasters. No poverty, no homelessness. No corporate greed or outsourcing jobs. No racial tension, no protests, no marches.
The government was honest. Corporations cared. The media told the truth. Kids respected teachers. Celebrities were role models. And nobody ever got canceled because nobody ever did anything wrong.
Yeah, the past was great. Unless you were a minority. Or homosexual. Or non-Christian. Or a young woman wanting more out of life than to become a wife and mother. Or a low-wage worker trying to strike for better wages, shorter hours, or benefits. Or a third world country being exploited for its natural resources or its cheap labor.
And what, we’re afraid of offending dictators now?
Martin, if you want to talk about how the US Senate and Congress are tiptoeing around Donald Trump, save it for the Politics & Current Affairs thread.
I very much doubt Superman did the numbers DC were hoping for (it made significantly less than Man Of Steel, even without adjusting for inflation), but obviously they’re not going to admit that publicly.
As I think you’ve stated previously, Dave, the conditions in the first two decades of the 21st century that made possible the unprecedented blockbuster ticket sales for MCU and similar franchise films abruptly vanished when COVID shut down cinemas and film production. In its place we now have many customers (including me) who are perfectly happy waiting a few months for new films to transition to streaming services; or, if we still go out to the cinema, we only do it once and then wait patiently to have repeat viewings on the small screen. This being the case, I’m not sure we will ever again see the billion-dollar-plus box office numbers that became commonplace with the superhero genre films. You see it, I see it, most people on the Carrier see it, just about everyone sees it except the heads of the studios.
The effects of climate change have negatively impacted the wine industry in France and southern Europe over the last few years, and now drought-fed wildfires are threatening the vineyards of Northern California and Oregon. If we end up having to drink South African or Australian wines, I would call that a major catastrophe!!
Yes there IS climate change but I am not sure yet that it IS catastrophic.
Fixed that for you, Arjan. Climate change isn’t something that may or may not happen in the future. It is here now, it is already having catastrophic results, and I’m stunned that people are still denying it.
Is your one as bow-legged as mine? It cannot stand unsupported…
Yeah, he’s leaning against a short box of comics, and has a tendency to fall down when I disturb the shelf; but I kind of expect it from an old guy like SuperPatriot.
Random toys on top.
You may be interested to know that my Super-Patriot figure watches over my comic book collection alongside Savage Dragon.
Spotify is similar; their algorithm creates playlists for you based on what you’ve already listened to on the app; so if I primarily listen to 70s rock music, it’s unlikely that I’ll get a recommendation for a new song by Pitbull or Toby Keith. That’s why I still listen to college radio, since they have range of deejays who play new and old music in a variety of genres; it’s the only way I know to discover new artists in different genres and styles.
(Knowing that I’m at least a decade older than most of the other members here) The current generation of kids and generations to come will likely never know the joys and sorrows of Saturday Morning Cartoons. The joy of looking forward each week to a new episode of Wacky Races or the Herculoids or the Bugs Bunny/Roadrunner Hour; and the sorrows of discovering two beloved shows are airing at the same time on different channels. Sure, on-demand viewing is convenient, but something has been lost. Saturday is just another day now.
Jesus, Lorcan, it’s as if you and Greg Pak still haven’t understood that all we need to do is to hand over the those marginalised groups to the nazis, stop respecting women’s rights and trying to save the planet and once we’ve done all that everybody will just go back to normal and to voting proper conservative like they used to. Because nazis won’t be needed anymore then, and historically, giving in to fascists means they’ll then be satisfied and just go away and disappears. Is that so hard to understand?!
Wait…..what?!
Terence Stamp has died.
While my first and foremost Terence Stamp appearance was as General Zod, of course; but I will always be impressed and cheered by his performance in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. RIP, Bernadette Bassenger. 
“Chalant” is a humorous, informal term that means the opposite of “nonchalant”. It’s not a real word in the sense that it’s not found in standard dictionaries. However, it’s used in a playful way to describe someone who is careful, attentive, or concerned, contrasting with the “nonchalant” person who is cool, calm, and seemingly unconcerned.
“Aura farming” refers to the practice of strategically performing actions, often in a performative way, to cultivate a desired “aura” or cool image, particularly in online or social settings. It’s essentially trying to gain social capital or admiration by appearing effortlessly cool or stylish. The term borrows from gaming, where “farming” means repeatedly doing something to accumulate resources or level up.
“Rizz” is a slang term, primarily used by Gen Z, that refers to charisma, charm, or the ability to attract and seduce someone romantically. It’s essentially a shortened version of “charisma” and often implies having “game” in romantic pursuits. Someone with rizz is considered smooth, confident, and skilled at flirting.
So, to translate, when Dave’s kids say Bond is very “chalant” and is constantly “aura farming” for “rizz”, what it really means is that all of us here on The Carrier are old farts who need to get a life.
Timothy Olyphant very good (giving me the creeps sonetimes? Hmm…).
Yeah, Olyphant has that acting ability where he can be the good guy in one show (Justified) and the villain in another (Die Hard With a Vengeance), or even a nasty good guy (Deadwood).
All those who chose to oppose his shield must yield
Even as a kid, I always thought this was the cleverest rhyme scheme ever.
njerry wrote:
Scotch matured in bourbon casks is a pointless exercise: Scotch is already perfect and cannot be improved. This is known.There’s a lot of scotch that is matured in sherry casks. Seems like a fashionable thing.
Oh, I know that, Arjan; I was just trying to be funny. In fact, my favorite go-to Scotch is The Balvenie 14-year Caribbean Cask whisky, which starts out in bourbon barrels and then finished in Jamaican rum casks.
There is more demand for sherry casks, which are to be used for maturing whisky, than there is for the actual sherry.
Yeah, there are strict regulations in the Scotch whisky industry regarding the barrels used. Per the Scotch Whisky Association:
Previously, Scotch Whisky could only be matured or finished in casks that had been traditionally used in the industry – bourbon, sherry, rum , wine, beer to name just a few. Such casks will continue to be used but some flexibility has been introduced which potentially allows for the use of casks previously used to mature other spirits, as long as a number of conditions are met.
Scotch Whisky can only be matured or finished in new oak casks or oak casks which were previously used to mature wine, beer/ale or spirits but not if those casks were previously used to mature:
– wine, beer/ale or spirit produced from, or made with, stone fruits
– beer/ale which has had fruit, flavouring or sweetening added after fermentation
– spirit which has had fruit, flavouring or sweetening added after distillation
The American bourbon industry has even tougher standards, including limits on how many times a barrel can be used.
Who knew?
These days, who needs street gambling when FanDuel, DraftKings BetMGM and other apps let you lose your money while sitting in your easy chair at home?
I have no hesitation spending $$$ on an original sketch or a signed/numbered print from a favorite artist, but I haven’t been able to plunk down big bucks on a statue. It probably has something to do with never knowing the right place to display it, but now that I have a home office maybe I’ll consider a Hellboy statue or something like that. Maybe.
The suspense is killing me, Dave! Just tell me: DID I WIN THE CAR?!?
Was JFK a happening kind of guy?
Well, he was definitely in dating shape, Al!!
I went to see that first ST film in the theater with a friend who was a HUGE fan of the original series. The film was so bloated and tedious and full of itself that even he described it as a self-masturbatory disaster. In particular I recall the scene where the camera circled the newly-built Enterprise for waaaay too long for no good reason except to say to the viewer “look how cool our special effects are!”
Thankfully they followed this mess up with The Wrath of Khan and got the franchise on track.
I don’t know….I see a dozen Oscar nominations there!!!
I recall a visit to Copenhagen in 2014 where, at the Osterport train station, we saw racks and racks of bicycles placed on the exterior wall by commuters taking the train to the city. As New Yorkers, we were pleasantly shocked to see that none of the bikes were secured with locks; they were just left there, with the expectation that the bikes would still be there when the commuters returned home that evening.
By way of comparison regarding bicycles left on the street in Manhattan, see Al-X’s photo above.
Yes, it’s definitely better to be brainwashed by fringe media.
Well, now I’m mad as hell, and…
Next up: Chuck Mangione
Ozzy Osbourne has died.
And now Keith Richards keeps looking for the Grim Reaper over his shoulder…
Ghislaine Maxwell subpoenaed by Congress
Poor Ghislaine; I wonder if she’ll get “suicided” before she gets to testify.
Some Ok news to me:
😊 Alfred, I thought of you when I heard that report on the news.
So, should I expose others to my thing again, especially in public?
Fixed that for clarification, Todd.
You’re welcome.
I think it’s probably time for Feige to step down and bring in fresh blood to go along with the “reboot”.
Serious question: who would you suggest as a replacement? Feige did something unprecedented in overseeing the establishment of a sprawling yet cohesive cinematic universe at a slow, steadily increasing pace consisting of 23 films over 11 years (with some television shows thrown in), culminating in an overwhelmingly satisfying conclusion. Who in Hollywood or television today do you think is able to do what Feige did?
I concede that, judging from the last five years, Feige doesn’t seem to be able to catch lightning in a bottle twice, but I wonder if anyone else can…
Theo…
Sad news.
A24 and filmmaker Ari Aster’s divisive Western Eddington opened in sixth-place domestically with $4.3 million, slightly behind expectations despite plenty of buzz and an all-star cast led by Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal.
From the TV ads I had a feeling this should not have been a summer release. The good news, I guess, is that Pedro Pascal won’t have to worry about Eddington cutting into the FF box office next weekend.
Al-x wrote:
Arjan’s new avatar reminds me to get back into Breaking Bad…I thought it was a funny image. Walt looks so bitter sitting with that bottle of tequila
At a quick glance I thought it was the Dalai Lama. In fact, I’m pretty sure that “Walter White” translates as “Dalai Lama” in the Tibetan language. Or not…
So I guess the Gerard Jones (scumbag!) issue #84 will never see the light of day.
Didn’t know what you meant by that, so I did a Google search on Jones. Oh, man, that’s….unfortunate.
There’s also some interesting thematic stuff about the title that is confident enough to remain subtext rather than bashing you over the head with it.
I was actually expecting that to become a more significant “thing”, and was disappointed that it did not.
I haven’t actually sat down and watched the show, but over the course of a long weekend I was exposed to two binge-watch sessions by other various family members. They (all women, I should point out) absolutely loved it.
I hope there’ll be a US in 2028.
Weird that “big beautiful bill” makes the same acronym as “build back better”.
Or the Better Business Bureau
njerry wrote:
I’m sorry.I tried, but I just can’t feel sorry for all those Microsoft employees who got sacked. They made their bed, now they have to lie in it.
I think it’s worth remembering that some people don’t join a company by choice, but through acquisitions etc.
Even if you have no goodwill towards Microsoft, I think you can be sympathetic to someone who has been pulled into the company involuntarily and has ended up in this situation (which is what has happened with a lot of these games developers).
Well, now I feel like a heel. 
the D+ shows
I thought you were giving the show a D+ rating. Disney needs to rethink its streaming logo. Or maybe it’s “truth in advertising”.
Next James Bond director announced as Oscar-nominated Denis Villeneuve
So who will be the next James Bond? Josh Brolin? Timothy Chalamet? Zendaya?
Lorcan, I don’t care that you posted the Blowjob Brothers thing three times already; I’m still not going to give it a “Thanks”.
Edited to point out that it’s really confusing when your post comes at the end of a page/start of another page. 
The only difference between Chris Cuomo and a lump of shit is that a lump of shit doesn’t speak.
This must be why Feige rejected my pitch for Agents Of Y.O.K.O.O.N.O
That would have been golden, Dave. GOLDEN!!
My hope is that enough young people, disenfranchised/fringe people, and intelligent people who’ve seen the corruption and ineffectiveness of the current Democratic machine against the MAGA juggernaut will figure out that our best chance right now is to turn away from the same-old/same-old, and start putting faith in new leaders who are actually representing the people they are supposed to serve rather than serving their own self-interests and those of their rich sponsors.
But what do I know? I’m just an old fart who voted for Michael Dukakis.
I can get that with voters, sure. But the party apparatus? They should know better.
I really believe that the stodgy Democratic Party Machine (including the Clintons, Chuck Schumer and, to some extent, Barack Obama) are afraid of the progressive branch of Dems represented by the likes of AOC, who are eager to dismantle that machine and get back to the basics of what (and who) the Dems are supposed to represent.
Voters generally have short attention spans and will typically vote for the person whose name is familiar or has a favorable association. In Cuomo’s case, many New Yorkers remember him, as Governor, reassuring us via daily televised conferences during the COVID lockdown, of everything his administration was doing to help the people of NYC (in particular) and talk us off the ledge. That memory was apparently stronger than the various sexual and ethical accusations that led to his resignation as governor.
That being said, I’m thrilled that Mamdani apparently has won the Democratic primary. Cuomo is already whispering about the likely possibility of running as an Independent in the general election (as is current mayor Eric Adams); if so, we’re stuck with another season of endless political ads on television leading to November. Yay!
Maybe the franchise should have ended a couple of films ago.
Yeah, it probably should have ended with Fallout, which resolved a bunch of threads including the recapture of Solomon Lane and the reunion of Ethan and Julia. But the lure of big money is a tough thing to pass up in an up-to-this-time successful movie franchise.
Still, the Roberts court has its place in history all right.
Alongside the 1940s Reichstag and the 1960/70s Pol Pot regime.
DEPT Q
We enjoyed this one too, but my recommendation to my fellow Murricans is to watch it with subtitles in English, otherwise some of the Scottish accents are too dense for comprehension.
Like, is it me?
Is it not a good movie and I’m a weirdo?
It’s not your fault, Sean; you’re Canadian.
This place just has a bad vibe over it, the last few years. Maybe it’s time to leave. It’s sad because it used to be a great place to debate. But the good ones are already gone. I still respect you Christian, but there are some people here I grew to dislike intensely.
I think the majority of members here are friendly and tolerant of others, Arjan. To be brutally honest with you, the only “bad vibes” I see regularly here are from your posts.
That’s not intended as a personal attack on you, more like a suggestion that maybe the problem is with your constant focus on negativity in your posts in this thread and others. It isn’t healthy.
I’m not an expert, but I strongly recommend that you stay off of social media for a while, at least the ones with algorithms that feed into your obsessions. Stick to funny/cute animal images instead.
I wish you well.
Finally finished Andor, and my God was that satisfying.
We finished the final “year” of season 2 last night, and I had the same appreciation for that Krennic/Partagaz conversation. I also appreciate the decision to present this season as a quartet of 3-hour films with a one-year break between arcs, to create a better sense of time passing as the rebellion amps up. As soon as the last episode ended, I immediately wanted to start watching ROGUE ONE, but that will have to wait for this weekend.
The weirdest thing about it though was they had John Cusack playing old Brian Wilson and Paul Dano playing young Brian Wilson
Have you ever watched Todd Haynes’ film “I’m Not There”? It’s based on Bob Dylan’s life, with SIX different actors portraying him during different phases of his career/life. The actors include Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett (!), Marcus Carl Franklin (!!), Richard Gere, Heath Ledger and Ben Whishaw.
they attack anyone who is even slightly critical. Crazy shit.
Welcome to the Trump administration.
We cancelled our cable television service, replacing it exclusively with various streaming services supplemented by FUBO for local live television channels. Much cheaper, but I do miss channel-surfing through all the HBO, MAX, SHO, STARZ, etc just to see what’s on.
I will always appreciate Mark Millar’s involvement in creating MillarWorld.com after DC shut down the WildStorm threads on their site. I met a lot of great people on MW who became good friends on-line and IRL.
Having said that, I think I’ve outgrown Mr. Millar and his self-promoting hyperbole. I wish him well but I no longer think I am the audience he is trying to appeal to.
But look on the bright side, Arjan; until that happens, we still have Trappist ales!!
Honestly it’s funny that protestors in LA are waving Mexican flags. That’s the country you are afraid being sent back to?
Why is that funny?
Well, I’m currently re-watching Dead Reckoning (on Amazon Prime), and it has improved the second time around, since I already know the plot points and can pick up more of the subtleties now.
Another thing I’m noticing during this re-review is that Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg and (especially) Tom Cruise have really aged since their previous MI appearances, BUT…Vingh Rhames still looks the same as he did way back in the first Mission Impossible film.
I still applaud BKV’s genius in creating that series, one that was totally fresh and original as well as timely.
See, I would have thought his favorite food would be a corndog, or meatloaf with mashed potatoes. You just never know with those Kryptonians….
Um…I see the head, but where’s the rest of the dog?
Me next!
Yeah, looks like those aliens are enjoying that too much.
Arjan: here’s some good stuff to think about:
The Millar project does not do anything to me, and the DC/Marvel news does even less. I’m more excited about the new Chris Condon one-shot from Oni Press, The Goddamn Tragedy, which will be on comics stands tomorrow!! And you should be excited TOO!!
Sounds like the start of a horror movie.
Oh, wait, elevator pitch coming on:
Let me know when the Kickstarter campaign starts.
Arjan, may I suggest that you spend some time away from your computer/smartphone? Go outside, take a walk, get some ice cream, and chill out a bit.
I think basically nothing before Gunn came in is canon now, unless he decides to use it. Which presumably he mostly won’t, as he’s building a different kind of universe there.
So movies like The Flash, Wonder Woman 1984, and Shazam! Fury of the Gods are no longer canon?
Good!
It’s sad to realize how much philosophy writing from ancient Greece we lost. I think the only ones we have complete books from are Plato and Aristotle. Many others must have written books, but they’re lost. We only have fragments of their works, and quotes about them from others.
And yet today we can go to a bookstore or on-line and purchase every book Danielle Steele has ever written.
Being talked about in the comics thread: PETER DAVID
I enjoyed many of the comics runs Peter David wrote, but I really loved the “But I Digress…” column he wrote for The Comics Buyers’ Guide on a variety of topics, sometimes controversial, sometimes cantankerous, but ALWAYS entertaining, thought-provoking, and informative.
It is fitting that the late author Harlan Ellison wrote the introduction to the first collection of those columns, because Peter was the Harlan of the comics industry (and I mean that as a compliment).
Rest in peace, sir.
If you’ve never seen, this is comic geek heaven.
One of the things I loved about the FRINGE series is that events of the final season tied back to previous events of the series, all the way back to the first season. It made me feel like JJ Abrams wanted to tell a complete story and avoid the mistakes of previous shows like LOST and X-FILES that failed to resolve plot points. The finale was a reward to faithful viewers instead of yet another unsatisfactory disappointment.
Very cool George Lucas homage:
The 1138 reference goes back as far as A New Hope, where there was mention of a Cell Block 1138 on the Death Star.
I love Easter Eggs.
You know that way than an r and an n together can look like an m? Hopefully that won’t harm The Big Burn’s prospects.
(Who knows, it may even boost them.)
Unless they assume that The Big Bum is a graphic novel about Trump.
Oh, wait, this isn’t the News and Politics thread. Sorry…
