Things to watch on Netflix, Part 1: CARTEL LAND
So I’ve been home almost two weeks after some surgery (I’m fine), and what do you do when you’re on painkillers, can’t drive and can’t write? You read books. And you … Continue reading
Why the world needs newspapers more than ever
Today’s world runs on ideas, spread by the Series of Tubes–and those ideas are made of words. At the foundation of this pyramid of words and ideas sits an endangered … Continue reading
Top 7 ways SUICIDE SQUAD went epically wrong—and could have gone right
Marvel and DC have taken comic books for kids and turned them into an unstoppable machine, designed to entertain the masses while making massive profits. When all the pieces fit … Continue reading
STAR TREK and STAR WARS are now opposite sides of the same repetitive story
I say this out of love, and not just because both series are (a) sci-fi space operas (b) starring ensemble casts of heroes with (c) both series taken over and vastly … Continue reading
The past, present and future of news
This post is like X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, except with printing presses and the web instead of Hugh Jackman. We’ll go back in time, return to the present and … Continue reading
The killer beside you
The first murderer I ever met was tall and awkward, with curly hair. But this was sixth grade, and we were all a bit awkward. Every one of us. This … Continue reading
X-MEN: APOCALYPSE proves that explosions are meh
As a huge fan of action movies, hear me now and believe me later in the week: the Era of Epic Explosions is over. Stick a fork it in. It’s … Continue reading
7 secret ingredients to cook up a Bad Superhero Blockbuster
We live in the Golden Age of comic book movies, with Marvel and DC pumping them out as faster than you can swipe your VISA for $14 tickets to IMAX … Continue reading
CHARACTER ISSUES – A new column in Criminal Element
I love advice columns, especially when the questions are incredibly minor, quirky or insane. Across the pond, they call these advice columnists Agony Aunts, which is perfect. Dear Abby has … Continue reading
CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR does the impossible
What’s hard? Ice skating uphill. What’s impossible? Flying to the moon in a Cessna or making people love a character who’s about as inherently lovable as AquaMan, which is saying, … Continue reading
Man leads police on 112 mph chase, crashes, then flees with his pet monkey
Photo courtesy of the Burien Police Department. This sounds like an Onion story. But it’s not. As a reformed journalist and unrepentant fan of weird news, this story is classic. Let’s … Continue reading
Things I’m selling that you should buy and such
MAGIC BREADMAKER You put water and wheat-powder stuff inside, push a button to use the Force, then POOF, out comes bread. Sort of like this: This breadmaker is in a … Continue reading
The Red Pen of Doom takes on GO SET A WATCHMAN by Harper Lee
To Kill A Mockingbird is a classic novel that turned into an amazing film. So when news broke that Harper Lee, who never published another novel, was coming out with … Continue reading
Superhero movies: Golden Age or insane glut?
You can’t escape the marketing blitz. Superhero movies have targeted your local multiplex and they WILL. NOT. STOP. Ever since Hollywood took a risk by turning Tim Burton and Michael … Continue reading
Top 7 reasons why SPECTRE is average while SKYFALL soared
The latest 007 film misses the target—despite having the same ingredients as SKYFALL: great actors, great director, great action scenes. Here’s why: 7) Biggest fight scene comes in the middle, … Continue reading
The four secret purposes of music videos
Why do music videos still exist now that MTV is dead? The old answer, back in the day, was a simple formula: (a) Band makes a music video (b) Gives said … Continue reading
Why MAKE ME by Lee Child gets graded on a curve
I can’t count how many hardcover Reacher novels line the top shelf of my library. Lee Child is that good. MAKE ME is his latest novel about Reacher, and it’s … Continue reading
Defense against the Dark Arts: Propaganda vs. journalism and rhetoric
As the race for the White House gears up, you are being bombarded with stories, 30-second ads, attack tweets and Instagram videos. Back in the 1970s, the average person got … Continue reading
Bad Writing: The Six Horsemen of the Writepocalypse
Want to become a better writer? Learn from bad writing: how to spot it, how to fix it and how to prevent the disease from happening in the first place. … Continue reading
Top 5 reasons why GO 4 IT by Corey Feldman is so bad, it circles back to good
Corey Feldman’s live performance on the TODAY show was supposed to be a big opening for his new album, Angelic to the Core, and yes, that is punny. You may … Continue reading
The five greatest cover songs of all time
As a fan of music, and music videos, I applaud the decision by MTV to start a new channel that actually plays music videos instead of reality TV shows about … Continue reading
What Thor was doing during CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR
I like it, I love it, I want some more of it. So why does this short bit with zero special effects work so well? Let’s take it apart. Comedy … Continue reading
