uspunx's Recent Comments
September 20, 2015 10:36 pm @conor I agree with pretty much everything you said regarding Star Wars falling flat when it attempts to over explain things. It's just not the kind of franchise that needs that type of minutiae. However, I don't think any of that is reason to be concerned about the young Han Solo film considering that really none of the people that were involved with the prequels or EU works you mentioned will be involved with that film. I assume you're also not excited for Rogue One as that will be over explaining the capture of the Death Star plans?
July 21, 2015 2:54 pm To the guy looking for stuff for his fiancee, I tend to agree that “good is good” but if she is dead set on reading books with female protagonists I’d recommend Rachel Rising. There are at least five if not six collections out now so there is a lot to read before you get caught up to the monthlies. The cast of characters is almost entirely female. Aside from one male character who is more of a side character the four or five major players are all women. It is full of supernatural world building (witches, demons, magic, etc.) just like Buffy. It strikes a nice balance between action, drama and humor just like Buffy. I’ve been reading it since #1 and over the past three years it has consistently been in my top 10 if not top 5 comics every month. My one caveat is that it’s in black and white which I know can be a deal breaker for some people, especially people new to comics, but if you can get past that it’s a really great book that sounds like exactly what you and she are looking for.
February 3, 2015 11:29 am And that is...
February 3, 2015 10:22 am Oh! Also curious what some of your favorite albums of the year were? I just realized there was no music on here.
February 3, 2015 10:05 am So I got to this a little late this year. Just listened to the show this morning. Agree with almost all of your choices, great year for media! The only real hole I see on here is the lack of Whiplash. After Birdman and Boyhood, Whiplash was my third favorite film of the year. And while I liked all the other films you listed Whiplash honestly blew them all away. The one thing I have to question is your assessment of the ending of Birdman. FOR ANYONE WHO HASN'T SEEN BIRDMAN MAJOR SPOILERS TO FOLLOW!!!!! Michael Keaton didn't commit suicide at the end. It appears that he does and when Emma Stone runs to the window she initially looks down and look confused because her father's splattered body isn't there. Also there is no screaming from traumatized bystanders that would most certainly be there on a crowded NYC street. She then looks up into the sky and a huge grin breaks out on her face because her father is finally using his powers. The powers that seemed potentially in Keaton's head throughout the film turn out to be real. And I think this is also the real message of the film. It's not a film about acting, (I mean sure on a surface level it is) it's a film about authenticity. The final shot lets us know that Keaton had powers all along but refused to use them publicly because he considered that pandering or cheap or selling out. He wanted to be judged on his own merits not on some spectacle. That's the metaphor of the Birdman franchise. Even though comic films are great and they make huge amounts of money, there is still a ceiling above which they cannot ascend in the cannon of film because they are big and spectacular and over the top. Many "real critics" (like the one in the film) look at the drama in comic book movies as cheap or artificially heightened because of the spectacle. So because of that Keaton refuse to use his powers. Until the end. Because he has achieved legitimacy on his own terms. The play he wrote and loved and acted in and cherished is enthusiastically received by critics and the audience alike. He no longer has to be afraid to embrace the spectacle. He can use his powers. Its the same reason Jennifer Lawrence can be in X-Men and Hunger Games and still win Oscars and be considered a great actress thanks to David O. Russell. I'm sure it's something every actor struggles with. The big franchise paycheck vs. "serious filmmaking." One pays and the other gets you professional respect (though these aren't always necessarily mutual exclusive). By the end Keaton has finally gotten to a place where he has both and can just be himself. I'm honestly not sure how you can interpret the end as suicide and still like the film at all. If he had killed himself it would have stolen all the emotional resonance from the preceding two hours. Birdman was by far my favorite film of the year and probably my favorite film of the past several years.It was the kind of film that was all risk. There wasn't going to be a middle ground. This was either going to be a masterpiece or a complete failure and for Inarritu and the actors and crew to trust each other enough to take this risk is a beautiful thing.
September 3, 2013 9:02 am I know I said thank you once already but I logged on this morning and just had to say something again. I have no idea how I found iFanboy. I just don't remember. A friend asked me this just last week how I came here the first time and for the life of me I couldn't recall. I don't remember every great discussion or every stupid argument I had on here, I don't remember my favorite podcast moment or which movie review got me the most fired up, I don't remember the best pick of the week review I read or my favorite iFanboy upstart (what a great column!) but I will never forget the people I met on this site or time I spent here. I don't know how I first came here, I'm just glad as hell that I did. Thanks iFanboy.
September 3, 2013 8:55 am @ithosapien: Haha yeah we are definitely friends man. Our disagreements didn't change that. Sometimes it's easiest to argue with you friends because you know they will forgive you! I will definitely miss our spirited debates. Hopefully some of us can find a way to still talk about/argue about/ gush about comics in some way.
September 2, 2013 6:26 pm This is so sad. I signed on today to do my pull list and found this waiting! I don't mean this as overstatement but this is devastating. Doing my pull list every Monday was one of the highlights of my day! Conor and Josh thank you for running the best comic site I've ever had the pleasure of enjoying. Jim, Paul, and Ryan thank you for your insightful and interesting articles. Even when I didn't agree with them they were always thought provoking! For everyone else that did ANYTHING for this site over the years, thank you for your time and commitment. You will be missed.
August 29, 2013 12:14 pm Saga Manhattan Projects Hawkeye East of West The Private Eye
August 26, 2013 8:41 pm If I remember correctly, Hickman implied pretty heavily in an interview months ago that is was Bodenheim that caused the delays. And he didn't sound too pleased about it either.