Vicki Vale Popcorn

Batman 1989

Back in the 80s, an action movie by a young director with only two films under his belt was shot at a venerable British studio with a motley cast of Oscar winners and veterans of 60s schlock from Hammer/American International. Dismissed as B movie camp by the press, and even…
October 12, 202035 Comments
Hamburger Nationalism

Hamburger Nationalism

With the constant churn of the news cycle, it's easy to forget that the current counterculture moment initially coalesced around pop culture revolts like Gamer Gate and Sad Puppies. Whether the aim was to reform games journalism or expose the logrolling at science fiction awards, these early efforts brought together…
September 29, 202029 Comments
Web Comics Autopsy: Penny Arcade

Web Comics Autopsy: Penny Arcade

Pop culture trends come in cycles. A new property shows up on the scene, gains traction, and explodes in popularity. Entropy always gets a vote, though, and the IP holders inevitably turn to milking the brand. A consequent decline in quality follows, and the brand--sometimes the whole genre--goes moribund. The…
September 23, 202020 Comments
Galaxy Quest

Galaxy Quest

My 80s and 90s movie reviews seem to be resonating with readers. This response makes sense, given that many have rightly despaired of Hollywood ever treating classic franchises with anything but contempt. Multiple commenters brought up one film in particular that seems worthy of review, especially since it has the…
September 14, 202059 Comments
The Running Man

The Running Man

In keeping with my recent penchant for reviewing lesser 80s and 90s classics, I took the occasion to rewatch 1987's camp dystopia actioner The Running Man. Based on a Stephen King novels published under his Richard Bachman pen name and adapted for film by the screenwriter of Commando and Die…
September 7, 20208 Comments
Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey

Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey

Readers immediately asked for a follow up to yesterday's post on Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. I'd planned on watching the sequel, anyway, so happily our purposes aligned. This was only my third viewing of Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey. My dad took me and a friend to see it…
September 2, 202010 Comments
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure

Red Letter Media's retrospective on Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and its sequel, occasioned by the recent release of the series' long-awaited third film, put me in a mood to revisit the first movie. If you want a case study in how much Hollywood has changed in the last thirty…
September 1, 202030 Comments
Secondary World Religions

Secondary World Religions

World building is the one element that sets speculative fiction apart from every other category of writing. When designing a secondary world, it’s crucial to establish a foundation of internally consistent principles to help readers suspend their disbelief. Religion in general has been a constant of human existence. Writing a…
August 19, 202012 Comments
Terra Incognita

Terra Incognita

Like a lot of people, I've been on a nostalgia trip lately. The accelerating societal collapse seems to be the catalyst for this phenomenon, so it makes sense that much of today's nostalgia revolves around the High 90s--when most entertainment media sang their swan songs prior to hitting cultural ground zero. For…
July 23, 202035 Comments
Victory Defeated JRPGs

Victory Defeated JRPGs

Besides writing best selling books, I've kept myself occupied during the Corona-chan lock down by going back and playing some classic games. Mainly I've been revisiting celebrated titles from console gaming's 8 and 16-bit golden age. To say it's been a trip down memory lane would be an understatement. I've…
May 12, 202055 Comments