Star Wars VIII: You’re Mad About the Wrong Character

Which character, you ask? I’d tell you, but I don’t want to leave anything spoilery above the click-through fold. So you have to put up with a full three fluff sentences before getting to this quick thought.

Spoilers below.

Star Wars VIII: We Need To Talk About Poe

When a movie’s 2.5 hours long, you can sometimes write THREE blog posts about it! (And, uh, possibly more as I think of topics …). There are spoilers if you click in or read further, friends. I know that warning will seem laughable if you’re reading this anytime after, say, March 2018, but remember how it felt when the movie was only a week old? Spoilers ahead.

Star Wars VIII: LtB

Okay, the movie’s still fresh, and I’m still aggressively avoiding spoilers — so much so, that I’m even abbreviating down the full title of this blog post. Maybe a long time ahead in an internet close, close at hand, I’ll edit it back into full words. But for now, suffice to say that if you read ahead, know that I’ll be discussing plot content including SIGNIFICANT spoiler content from the film. You have been warned!

Star Wars VIII: At Last, Jedi

Friends, the concern around spoilers has been strong with this one. I will reiterate here and now, you have been warned! If you are receiving this by e-mail, having subscribed, close it now if you don’t want spoilers!! I hate fighting opening night crowds, but we made a point of seeing it first thing Saturday morning after a Friday social media fast. Here are some thoughts below … I assume you’ve seen it if you read ahead!

And Thor Feels Fine

Thor: Ragnarok is upbeat, hilarious, and high-octane. If you don’t enjoy this movie, you might not have a pulse. Ninety-nine percent of conversations I want to have about it start with that sentence. Then the other person says, “I know, right?!” and then we recount back and forth all the moments we loved in the movie.

But let me give you that last one percent, because they managed to stick just a tiny bit of deeper thought in there, too! Spoilers ahead.

Strangerer Things

We just cheerfully spent Halloween night finishing the last few episodes of the second season of Stranger Things, which dropped last Friday. And I think that — two seasons in — I’ve settled on a sense of what the show actually is. Spoilers for both seasons ahead!

When Heroes Kill … in the DCEU

This is part 2 of 2 in a post about superhero movies and the defeats of their villains. For part one, please click here. Spoilers ahead for most of the recent DCEU films!

When Heroes Kill – Marvel

This is part 1 of 2 in a post about how villains are defeated in recent superhero films. For part 2, covering DC films, please click here.

I’ve been thinking about what it means when superheroes kill on the big screen. Part of what superheroes are for us is “bigger” heroes: they do things we can’t, whether it’s fly, or survive a bullet, or talk in a scratchy voice while hanging upside down dressed like a bat. But our heroes are also a mirror inviting us to become more like them in the ways that we can: Steve Rogers proves he should be the trial case for the Super Soldier Serum when he throws himself on the grenade his squad thinks is real, as everyone else backs off in fear; Spider-Man runs into a fire to rescue someone from being burned alive.

That raises the question: when we see superheroes kill, are we watching them do something we can’t, something we shouldn’t but sometimes have to, something they do as soldiers, or … something we’re supposed to be inspired by?

Spoilers ahead.

Why I’m Not Scathing Spider-Man

This past week, as the closing credits were rolling on Spider-Man: Homecoming, my fiancée turned to me and said, “Does it make me a bad feminist that I liked that more than Wonder Woman?”

I may not be able to rule on the feminism, but I’m with her: Homecoming may not have reached as high, either technically or as a social icon, but it did its job of entertaining really well.

Is it fair to compare the two? You be the judge! Spoilers past the fold!

Wondering About Wonder Woman

I was a week late to seeing Wonder Woman, missing my chance to help it break opening-weekend records. But like many, I’ve been caught up in the excitement of finally seeing a modern-era female superhero onscreen. Read on at your risk — if you choose to travel forward from here, you can never return to this unspoiler’d paradise!