Retro Stream

Years Ago and in Another Country

A common saying has it that the past is another country. It's taken as a figure of speech, but pay a visit to almost any mid-American shopping mall these days, and the prevailing vibe resembles an archaeological site. What was the hub of American commerce in the previous era is…
March 21, 20247 Comments
Behind the Mask

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

From time to time, I open the curtain and give this blog's readers a sample of my premium material. Today’s review originally appeared as a Patreon and SubscribeStar exclusive. If you like it, please consider subscribing. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon is a unique and entrancing exploration of…
March 20, 202411 Comments
The Mall

The Idea of a Mall

Yesterday a fascinating intergenerational conversation took place on X. And it put me in mind of a subject we haven't touched on in a while: The cultural impact of the mall - how it rose to dominance, and how it faded. While loving the idea of a mall is a…
March 19, 202428 Comments
Matt Walsh Parade

Walsh Tries to Jump the GamerGate Parade

The Grift Right's paymasters must be desperate to distract normies from some brewing enormity. Because they've got their controlled opposition mouthpieces out in force stirring up controversy. First it was Hollywood creature Ben Shapiro arguing for people to work till they drop dead. Now his Gen Y crony Matt Walsh…
March 15, 202422 Comments
Fist of the North Star

Fist of the North Star (1986)

Let me take you back to a time before rent-seeking cargo cultists prowled the animation industry shaking down studios. When anime was drawn on cells with rich, hand-mixed paint. Before the dead-eyed, pastel times; before Ground Zero. In those bad old analog days, if you wanted to watch anime, you…
March 11, 202412 Comments
Toriyama Goku Goodbye

Beloved Cartoonist Akira Toriyama Dead at 68

Akira Toriyama, the legendary creator of global phenomenon Dragon Ball, has passed away at age 68. Akira Toriyama suffered an acute subdural hematoma, a type of bleeding near the brain, his studio said Friday. Dragon Ball is hugely popular around the world and the comic series has also spawned cartoon…
March 8, 202420 Comments
Rooster Teeth Logo

Rooster Teeth Bites the Dust

Earlier reports of geek culture cartoon studio Rooster Teeth Productions' demise turned out to have been premature. But now, the Time-Warner subsidiary's general manager has issued a statement confirming that the animation company has indeed given up the ghost. Dear Rooster Teeth, Since our founders created and uploaded their first…
March 7, 202427 Comments
SBI Detected

SBI BTFO by Brazilian Vidya Curator

Controversy erupted on X over the weekend when professional Woke Cult purity assurance coven Sweet Baby Inc. issued a fatwa against a scrappy Brazilian vidya curator. The curator, Sweet Baby Inc Detected, describes itself simply as "A tracker for games involved with Sweet Baby Inc." The About page from SBI's…
March 4, 202417 Comments
Howdy Doody Reboot

No Howdy Doody Reboot

A recent post on the Pop Cult occasioned a salient and topical discussion in the comments. Author JD Cowan writes: That’s just it, isn’t it. Nothing is made for younger generations anymore. The average age of Cartoon Network viewers is 29. Disney World is filled with single wine aunts and…
February 28, 20249 Comments
Nintendo vs Sony

The Riddle of the Pop Cult

Author JD Cowan wrote a post yesterday that shed new light on elements of Cultural Ground Zero and the Pop Cult and showed how they're interrelated. So it was of course fitting that he prominently featured this now-ubiquitous image by retro artist Rachid Lotf. We've been plumbing the riddle of…
February 23, 202419 Comments