I have seen the Cats. I have seen all of them. I have seen them with such incredibly poor CGI that even this nephophyte was like: “Wait, do these cats have hands now?” and “Did someone CGI with the Windows Paint feature, to give Rebel Wilson a collar?” I have seen them with human faces that floated over their cat ears like a fever dream that would disturb Salvadore Dali and give Hieronymus Bosch a wet dream. I have seen,... Read more
WARNING: Mild spoilers for Game of Thrones, The Good Place, The Lord of the Rings, and Lost. Game of Thrones on HBO is now officially over, and as a long-time watcher of people watching Game of Thrones on HBO, it was prime viewing to see the shouts of disappointment over the series finale. I’m far from the first to draw connections between fans of Lost crying out their disappointment over the conclusion to a high-concept TV show, but I’d like... Read more
SPOILERS FOR AVENGERS: ENDGAME Even the trailer says there are spoilers. This trailer contains spoilers. If you haven’t seen Endgame, don’t read further. But if you have seen Endgame (and read my take), then keep reading! It’s time for your favorite friendly neighborhood superhuman to tie up all the loose ends of the MCU and sling us into the next phase of the franchise. New Spidey Trailer! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt9L1jCKGnE This trailer pulls no punches as soon as it gets going: letting... Read more
WARNING: SPOILERS. So many spoilers. All the spoilers. Seriously: I mean it. Spoiled. Utterly and totally spoiled. Like fruit: spoiled. So much of the spoiling. Last chance! No turning back! Stop right now! Well…you were warned. What do we think about Endgame? Last night, I had the chance to see the latest in the Marvel franchise, the conclusion to the story built from the original Avengers (heck, since Iron Man) through to even more obscure pieces of the puzzle such... Read more
The only comfort I have about the loss of Notre Dame (in whole or part) is that we tried to destroy her during the French Revolution, too. And she was restored. St. Peter’s Basilica is built upon St. Peter’s Basilica, which is built upon St. Peter’s tomb. Death is not the end. If we love, we lift things up again. I only saw Notre Dame once. It was when I was trying to LEAVE Paris, having just realized that I... Read more
Comic book and superhero movie fans were all a-Twitter long before Marvel’s first movie featuring a female lead, Captain Marvel, hit the theatres. Rotten Tomatoes changed their policy of allowing fans to put up their reviews before a movie dropped, in order to quell the inevitable trolls that began giving the movie bad scores before anyone had seen it. But now that Captain Marvel has proved itself a financial success, and critical darling… What does your favorite Pop Feminist think?... Read more
Hello, Interwebs! It’s been a hot second since I’ve written, although I’ve been consuming a lot of culture. HOT TAKES Umbrella Academy (Netflix) – Great score, strong visual aesthetic, strong storytelling. I very much appreciated the use of superhero metaphors as a way of parsing out childhood traumas among adult siblings. Shrill (Hulu) – While I don’t love every choice the protagonist (Aidy Bryant) makes in this new series based on the book by Lindy West, I greatly applaud a... Read more
A quick meditation for you on the proximity of poverty and prosperity: Had a true METROPOLIS moment today: Next week, I’m working as an executive assistant for – let’s just say – one of those gazillionaires that only live in New York City and Palm Beach (excluding the various houses in Nantucket, etc.). The gazillionaire will not be in the office for several more months (after all, the boats are still in winter storage, and DC doesn’t have any galas... Read more
(The following is in response to Church Militant’s latest blog, which critiqued the Pop Feminist’s latest article.) What Do They Teach Them At Those Schools? Rejoice, friends, for I have been called out! Church Militant, whose work I rebutted here, ruffled their feathers and shot back a conspiracy theory, entitled: “Franciscan University Pipeline to Patheos.” (You may follow the link above to their Facebook page, and from there give them your business if it pleaseth thee.) The article, primarily a... Read more
Lately, Church Militant posted about a “scandalous” novel that was apparently taught at a graduate-level class at Franciscan University of Steubenville (FUS). The post not only sent the usual suspects reaching for their pearls to clutch, but also resulted in mob mentality raising their internet pitchforks and demanding the removal of the educator in question, tenured Professor Stephen Lewis, from his post as English department chair. FUS replied by cowering before the mob, and removing Professor Lewis almost immediately. (A... Read more
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