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retrosofa · 1 year

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After I finished Mahou no Mako-chan, I decided I wanted to re-watch some other magical girls shows I haven't seen in awhile. Last weekend I started watching Mahoutsukai Chappy or "Chappy The Witch." I haven't seen it in 10 years and honestly, I barely remember anything about it. Chappy is more or less a ripoff updated retelling of Mahoutsukai Sally.

Chappy and her family live in the magic kingdom. During a royal banquet she decides to flee to the human world with her younger brother, Jun. Her mother, father and "pet" Don soon follow, and thus their adventures in the human world begin.

Chappy is the third majokko series Toei Animation produced, following Mahoutsukai Sally, Himitsu no Akko-chan, Mahou no Mako-chan and Sarutobi Ecchan. While Mahoutsukai Sally and Himitsu-chan no Akko were both extremely successful series, Mahou no Mako-chan and Sarutobi Ecchan were not. Mako made decent ratings but definitely never came close to Sally or Akko's success. The series also failed to keep consistent ratings, which gradually dropped throughout it's 48 episode run. Ecchan tanked in the ratings, which resulted in it ending with a mere 26 episodes. Frantic to get another winner on their hands, Toei Animation decided to make their first "original" magical girl, combining elements from their previous series. Like Sally, Chappy was a witch from another realm. Like Akko and Mako, she had a magical item. Like Ecchan, she had a "pet mascot." The end result exceeded their expectations. Apparently Chappy was only planned for 26 episodes but got extended to 39.

The first episode, "Here Comes the Magical Family," was written by Masaki Tsuji, directed by Yugo Serikawa, and featured animation direction by Shinya Takahashi. These three men previously worked on Akko, Mako, and Ecchan. The first episode does a pretty good setting the tone of the series. There is quite a lot of Disney influences sprinkled around, namely Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. In the magic kingdom, Chappy dresses very similarly to Maleficent. Her father conjures a spell to turn a mouse and pumpkin into a horse and carriage. There's a scene where Chappy's brother and their grandfather have a magical battle that's reminiscent of Flora and Merryweather fighting over Aurora's dress color, etc.

The scenes in the magic kingdom are a lot of fun. They're pretty spooky and the denizen depicted are all eccentric and otherworldly. If you look closely you can see one of the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz, and there's also a demonic character aptly named "Satan King." When Chappy arrives to the human city, things are not as she had hoped for, evoking the social commentary we previously saw in Mako. As with the other series, Chappy and her family must keep their true identities a secret. There's a darker twist this time, as they fear being burned at stake.

I just re-watched the first two episodes, which were both pretty fun. Some of the darker aspects took me off guard - like the paranoia about witch burnings, as well as a scene where a biker thug attempts to assault Chappy's mother. It's not a graphic scene at all but the implication is very clear.

The animation quality is a little rocky, even for an older series. This series was produced in 1972 which was around the time of the Toei Animation Lock Down, so maybe that's why? If I remember correctly, the series has a lot of ups and downs in the animation department. Some episodes look fantastic while others are downright horrendous.

Oh, something I found very amusing: most of the cast would go on to star in Cutie Honey. Check it out:

Chappy: Eiko Masuyama (Honey Kisaragi)

Chappy's mother, Shizuko: Noriko Watanabe (Sister Jill, Mami)

Chappy's father: Koji Yada (Additional voices)

Jun: Sachiko Chijimatsu (Twin Panther)

Don, Chappy's grandpa: Kosei Tomita (Danbei Hayami)

Obaba: Nobuyo Tsuda (Panther Zora, Ms. Miharu)

Ippei: Masako Nozawa (Scorpion Panther)

The fact Eiko Masuyama and Noriko Watanabe play daughter and mother in one series and mortal enemies in another is so freakin' hilarious.

Anyways, I'll post more after I watch the first 13 episodes.

#chappy the witch #mahoutsukai chappy #magical girl #review

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profgandalf · 1 year

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Huck Finn: Profoundly Anti-Racist, Not to Be Altered But Tom Is Still Sometimes Annoying

When approaching a nearly universally praised work of literature like Huckleberry Finn there is a temptation to just throw up one’s hands and say “it’s a masterpiece” and anyone who says otherwise has rot in their brains. But this is too easy. One must respond to the text to evaluate and incorporate it as must be done to all art. Conversely, those who judge any work with their own parameters of social worthiness—the secular mirror of religious acceptability that once dominated so many who judged texts—are traveling into a narrowing black hole and dooming themselves to literary spaghettification. Thus one must respond to the text within its own understanding of reality. One should not complain that a Puritan from the 16th century (like Robinson Crusoe) does not understand the concept of animal conservation any more than to fuss over the fact that the poet Homer does not acknowledge the existence of the one true Jewish Christian God. The concepts just did not exist when the work of art was created. What should be considered is what was the author struggling over during his or her own lifetime?

In the same way the social abhorrence to the word “Nigger” (now only spoken by black comics and referred to as the “N word” by everyone else) did not exist in Twain’s day. Instead in 1885 it was still used often. However Mark Twain was certainly aware of the stain of slavery in America and the racism upon which it was built. He needn’t go after slavery, the terrible war had doomed that institution, but the prejudice still needed to be addressed. The rise of the novel’s action, its regular presentment of personal folly which those who use the term while supporting slavery (people as diverse as Pap Finn and Aunt Sally) and Huck’s gradual growth to the wrongness of this position so that he declares that “he will go to Hell” if it means not helping his friend Jim escape from slavery all show an author critical of his own culture. However the fact that so many currently are encouraging the expurgation of the word “nigger” because they feel it is such a foul word, completely miss the powerful anti-slavery anti-racist elements in the novel and dilute the narrative as they do so.

Actually I think that Twain pushes his abolitionist perspective too much in one part of the text at the cost of its artistic verisimilitude. Huck, who is pretending to be Tom Sawyer, tells the tender hearted religious Aunt Sally about a supposed explosion in the steamboat on his way down river.

"Now I struck an idea [on how to explain himself], and fetched it out:

`It warn’t the grounding—that didn’t keep us back but a little. We blowed out a cylinder-head.’

`Good gracious! anybody hurt?’

“No’m. Killed a nigger.”

`Well, it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt. . . .’”

This woman is pictured as a religious, affectionate, good woman whose husband has church services for the local slaves and who joyfully takes in two rambunctious boys and who is treating Jim the captured slave very well. She would likely weep over a wounded dog and yet is then credited to such insensitivity. This indifference to a slave’s life while effective as humor and commentary seems to fail on being true. It still shows Twain’s commitment to the antiracist nature of his book—and makes its alteration in the name of inclusion all the more absurd.

If I have a complaint about the novel, which took Twain eight years to compose, it is Huck’s submission to the ascendency of Tom Sawyer’s cultural and educated superiority near the novel’s end. Huck begins the novel playing with Tom with make-believe pirate fights, pursing the role of attacking robbers against rich merchants thwarted by evil magicians (whom Huck says looked more like a Sunday School picnic defended by its teacher). The fact that Tom answers Huck’s queries by filling his explanations with references to Don Quixote shows what a dream world Tom lives in. That’s all well and good.

But when Huck escapes his dangerous alcoholic father and goes down river with a runaway slave, there is no more fantasy. But there is glorious spectacle and imminent danger. He sees a host of terrible and violent things (bloody feuds and murder in the streets) and shapes his decision about Jim partly in the shadow of these events. Also it is in this section that Huck describes with wonder and beauty the world of the river and the nature which surrounds it.

To have Huck then retreat into the world of Tom’s dream play at the novel’s end—until Tom is shot and Jim has to sacrifice himself to make sure the boy is cared for—is difficult for me to accept. (It’s notable that the beautiful descriptions end at this point as well.) I felt the same way about Mary Tyler Moore stepping into the spin off show Rhoda after she had been through so much. I found Mary annoying, and so do I find Tom. But perhaps I underestimate the appeal which Twain portrays for a traumatized boy of returning to a safe place emotionally and physical after such a perilous journey. Howsoever, the book is a masterpiece and I am glad to have read it again.

#Mark Twain #huckleberry finn #racism #n-word #verisimilitude

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tilbageidanmark · 2 years

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Movies I watched this Week #94

My 6th and 7th films by Mike Leigh:

🍿 "En-ra-ha!" - His light and pleasant film, Happy-go-lucky is another insightful look into the lives of ordinary people. Sally Hawkins (Photo Above) dominates the story as the bubbly, always-spirited primary school teacher, but this is not a feel-good movie: Pathos bubbles to the surface through the character of Eddie Marsan, the anti-social driving instructor, who harbors so much anger, it blackens his teeth. 8/10.

🍿 On the surface, Vera Drake did not seem to be very compelling: A story of a working class, middle age woman in 1950 who secretly provides abortions to desperate young women who “needs her help”. But the good-hearted, saintly mother who helps everybody around her, and who has to pay the price for it, is a hero for our time. Subtly, without commentary or judgement, it tells a tragic tale of suffering without redemption. 10/10.

It’s the best of the Mike Leigh’s films that I saw so far, and my best film of the week.

🍿

The Ornithologist, my first from gay Portuguese director João Pedro Rodrigues. What a strange, maybe unusual film! It starts with a quiet view of a bird watcher in nature whose kayak capsizes. As he finds himself lost and then found, he experiences a sequence of odd and symbolic adventures: Two young Chinese missionaries hang him up in a Shibari set in the forest, intending to castrate him. Some tribal men perform pagan rituals at night. A deaf and mute goat herder named Jesus makes love to him and then he kills him. He sermons to some koi fish he finds in an abandoned mission abbey. Eventually it becomes obvious that the film is an odd erotic-religious allegory, about the teachings of a local Saint, Anthony of Padua. 5/10. 🍿

3 more by François Truffaut:

🍿 First watch: Shy Charles Aznavour in Shoot the piano player. Loose, non-linear, low-key homage to American Noir. 4/10

🍿 “You can’t make love all day. That’s why work was invented...”

I wanted to revisit The man who loved women for a long time, and couldn’t find a copy until now. The sweet Don Juan fantasy is about compulsive womanizer Charles Danner, addicted to the process of seducing every single woman that crosses his path. He loves women so much, that he smashes his car just so he can meet another driver, and eventually he even dies while crossing the street following another stranger. He is not a misogynist pick-up artist, but his story could not be made today. In spite of its problematic gender politics and exclusive male-gaze, I still enjoyed it.

With the magnificent Brigitte Fossey (24 years after ‘Forbidden Games’) and a cameo by Truffaut a-la-Hitchcock.

🍿 “Grégory il a fait boum!”...

The magical L'Argent de poche (Small Change) is from the same period, done in the same episodic, romanticized style, but with ‘Kids’ instead of ‘Love’ for its theme. This has not only been my all-time favorite movie about children, and my favorite Truffaut movie (Even more than his ‘400 blows’ and ‘The last Metro’) - it’s probably one of my top 50 films of all time. With another 2-second Truffaut cameo at the beginning. 10/10.

🍿

2 by (Māori-Jewish!) New Zealander Taika Waititi:

🍿 I’ve only seen one film by Waititi, ‘Jojo Rabbit’ (which I hated very much). His early film Boy was much better. It’s a simple coming-of-age story about 11-year-old boy whose mother is dead, and father returns suddenly from prison. Low-budget, charming and poignant, reminded me a bit of a sad ‘Napoleon Dynamite’. The young actors were terrific, especially the main boy. It ends with a lovely mid-credits Haka dance of Michael Jackson’s Thriller! 7/10.

🍿 2 cars, one night (2004) was his Oscar-nominated early short, another terrific and sweet story about 3 Māori kids waiting in a parking lot while the grown-ups are busy with drinks at the pub. 9/10.

🍿

First watch: “...Don’t be redic!...” Billy Wilder’s overdramatic The lost weekend, with hopeless alcoholic Ray Millard going on a bender. An early entry in the long tradition of stories about drunks, like ‘The verdict’, ‘Under the volcano’, ‘Leaving Las Vegas’, Etc. 🍿

2 more by Tunisian Kaouther Ben Hania, directed before her ‘The Man Who Sold His Skin’:

🍿 Beauty and the Dogs, a harrowing abuse story that was incredibly hard to watch. A young woman is raped by two policemen and then spend a traumatic night trying to report it at the same police station. Brutal and not for the faint of heart.

The only ‘good’ thing about it, is what happened to the real-life policemen who committed the crime on which this film is based: The convicted rapists were sentenced to 7 years in prison, and after protests it was extended to 15 years.

🍿 Sheikh's Watermelons, After her acclaimed ‘Beauty, she filmed a 23-minute short about a power struggle between an imam in small mosque and his duplicitous assistant. (This Vimeo copy is in French without subtitles.)

🍿

The Fool, grim and dark kitchen-sink Russian drama from 2014. It tells a depressing story about an honest plumber, who discovers that an apartment building with 820 tenants in it is about to collapse, due to faulty structural construction. His earnest attempt to save the people there clashes with apathy, corruption and drunkenness of the authorities in this provincial northern town.

🍿

“...Don’t you believe in medicine, doctor?

- Do you believe in justice, judge?...”

And Then There Were None (The first 1945 version), based on the ‘world's best-selling mystery novel’ by Agatha Christie. I recently saw the latest BBC 3-part adaptation with Charles Dance, which was faithful enough for this original. Solid entertainment. Agatha Christie was as bloody macabre as Hitchcock! - I should try to watch other films that are made from her books.

🍿

Re-watch: I used to love reading the early crime novels of David Baldacci. Absolute Power, based on his novel, is peak Clint Eastwood who directed, starred in, composed, produced, etc. and with an excellent William Goldman scrip. Eastwood used to play such ‘salt-of-the-earth’ types. The full cast is terrific: Gene Hackman as the sadistic POTUS, E. G. Marshall in his final role, Laura Linney, Hector Salamanca as ‘Red’, Richard Jenkins as an assassin, others.

🍿

“...What’s up?...” The new Bros, which was heralded as “one of the first gay romantic comedies released by a major (American) studio”, but which bombed in box office (due to off-kilter marketing). It wasn’t ‘When Harry met Sally’, and still a pretty decent rom-com (even though the Billy Eichner character was loud and obnoxious). 6/10.

🍿

2 wordless Shorts:

🍿 Nuisance Bear, a short New Yorker documentary about what happens in Churchill, Manitoba, when polar bears' migration paths crosses this northern town.

🍿 Seven Boats, a simple, black-and-white short from Iceland. A single, 360-degree shot that leaves a mark.

🍿

An interesting genre to enjoy: At night, when all is calm, I am diving into a Mellow Psychedelic Journey. Later on I will find other meditative Psychedelic slow trance videos to relax with.

🍿

“I would rather die with you, than live in this world without you... “

Why am I so obsessed with Palm Springs, that I keep watching it again and again? It’s my all-time favorite Time-loop Rom-com, and it is based on a perfect script. I can’t find any fault in it. I even posted it to r/Moviesinthemaking, and discovered that there are others who watch it multiple times.

It’s also very funny: “She’ll be OK! This dentist glues teeth!”

🍿

“So-bad-I-couldn’t-finish-it-films” X 2

🍿 Another time loop romance but one so bad I couldn’t finish: 50 First Dates. A horribly-directed cringe-fest with unfunny and artificial acting from Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore and Rob Schneider (?). I lasted 20 minutes before having to turn it off.

🍿 Strippers who steal? Glamorized pole dancers? Hustlers (2019) received some positive reviews from critics, and its hook of female and economic revenge appealed to me. But in spite of all the noise, curves and titillation, it was flat, boring, idiotic. I soldiered on for painful 29 minutes.

🍿

(My complete movie list is here)

#movies

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shipcestuous · 6 years

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1/ 2 I don't know if this makes any sense, but I'm watching Mad Men for the first time and am currently in the second season, when Don and Betty are separated and Sally constantly asks for her dad and clearly misses him a lot. I know bc of tumblr that they'll have a more strained relationship as she grows up, but anyway what I was thinking about is that I really love father/daugther relationships in fiction where the daugther feels neglected, and Sally and Don's relationship kind of reminds me

2/3 of that song Emily Blunt sings in Gideon’s Daugther. As you know, it’s about a daughter who feels neglected by her womanizing father, and that is something that fascinates me: a daughter seeing her father give so much attention to other women, but not to her, and how that may blur the lines of filial & romantic loves in her mind. And it reminds of Sally because she clearly yearns for Don’s presence and love, while he’s busy with affairs.

3/3 I’m only on the second season of Mad Men, so I don’t know if their relationship will continue to be interesting, especially because I know I’m already projecting a lot on something that offers very little, but that’s what my interests make me do! So if you have any other relationships like this in mind please share with us.

I’m hesitant to say too much about Don and Sally’s relationship because I don’t want to spoil you, but I always don’t want to give you the idea that there’s anything big to spoil, which there’s not.

You’re not alone in picking up on something. I spent the entire series waiting for /dreading something awkwardly incestuous to happen from Sally towards Don. Obviously when she was grown I would have had an interest in there being something canon there, but I didn’t want to see a child humiliating herself.

Nothing happened. Their relationship does become more strained as Sally sees Don more for who he really is, which is interesting in a different way. Their relationship is really unique on the show, because Don is motivated to care about her in a way that’s different from all the other women and people in his life (he can’t just brush her off or move on), and she’s the only one of the children who is a character in her own right.

The scene that struck me as the most suggestive in the entire series - and Anon you can ignore this paragraph if you want to but since Don/Sally hasn’t come up before I figured I might as well get all my main thoughts out - but it’s in one of the later seasons about Don goes to visit Sally at her boarding school. I think I have this right. And they go out to dinner together but a bunch of Sally’s friends join them. And Sally has the impression that all her friends are flirting with him and that he’s flirting back. I felt it was kind of ambiguous about whether that was really happening or not but that’s what Sally felt was happening. It was interesting - but not that surprising - that she would think that her friends would think he was hot. And that she would be thinking about him being interested in someone her same age.

I like the comparison to Gideon’s Daughter a lot. I was also thinking that the father/daughter relationship between William and Emily on Westworld is similar. These three fathers are all sort of existential-type characters living very independent lives with daughters who feel/are neglected. But I like the Gideon/Don comparison relating to all the women in their lives who are getting the attention that the daughters should be or feel like they ought to be getting instead. This is one of the dynamics that interests me most in father/daughter relationships.

Thank you for bringing this up!

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hellyeahheroes · 5 years

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Post-OMD/Slott’s unused Spidey characters: Alpha a.k.a Andrew Maguire

So there was an ask about Alpha and it was about what happened to him, and yeah, it was just as @filipfatalattractionrblog, otherwise known as the admin, said, Slott got tired of him and dumped him on someone else where they got written into obscurity. And that is like a thing Slott or the writers of Post Brand New Day did constantly. He did it with Cindy Moon, he did it with a bunch of Spider-verse characters, he did it with Yuri Watanabe, he did it with Mr. Negative, Screwball, he did it with the entirety of Parker Industries and Horizon Labs. He even did it with Superior Spider-man. The moment Brand New Day started, Spider-man was tossed around a bunch of writers where they all started trying to race to create the next MJ love interest replacement. So there are even more characters that Slott didn’t create that are very under utilized. Not to mention characters created prior to One More Day/Brand New Day didn’t have much fucking screen time during this and thus did not receive any development. So characters like Liz Allen, Phillip Chang, Betty Brant, Flash Thompson(although he got to be Agent Venom), Randy Robertson, Glory Grant, Mary Jane Watson until fans complained, and even Aunt May which made the whole One More Day deal redundant.

Old school Spider-man constantly hung out with his clique. Post One More Day Spider-man didn’t seem to have many friends outside of his Spider-man persona. And the partnerships that he did make didn’t last.

So, this is where I will go back and detail those lost characters starting with Andy because he is the most egregious. Then I speculate if they can come back, what role should they have.

I fucking hate Andrew Maguire. And apparently, I am supposed to hate him according to Slott, but I believe that is a cop out. He wanted this character to work. Regardless, Andrew Maguire serves as the Peter Parker without any of the selflessness and virtue. “So...Eddie Brock?” No, not as cool as Eddie or as well written.

And subtlety is not a thing for Slott. If you noticed, the character is named after the two Spider-man actors at the time, Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield. People say it is a tribute, I personally think he was mocking them. My opinion, but you already know that.As you can see that the origin is pretty much a This Loser Is You trope which is weird because it’s insulting for fans of Spider-man, a character that is renown for being a superhero with everyman problems, to have a character who exists to say Peter is exceptional and you are not.

Andy goes on a Field Trip to Horizon Labs and meets Peter Parker who is about to unleash his newest discovery, Parker Particles. Which by the way, feels like an accomplishment for Peter, but Slott just had to twist the knife on that and have Reed casually say that he discovered it first and decided to leave Pandora’s Box be. Fuck Reed Richards. Anyways, as expected, Parker’s experiment went to shit and Andy decides to to perform his one solo act.

And Alpha is born.

Okay well, first, Horizon had to settle with Maguire’s parents to avoid lawsuits and Any became the mascot for Horizon labs and then Alpha is born. So they do a check on his powers to see what the kid’s got.

He has the strength to lift a ton which is weaker than any Spider-man, he is bulletproof, has enhanced speed,has energy projection. So if you are following those useless ass stat charts on Marvel wiki, his chart would be...

Intelligence: 2 Normal

Strength: 4 One Ton is his max

Speed: 3 It just says enhanced speed so I am going to assume he can’t break the sound barrier

Durability 5 Bulletproof

Energy Projection: 5 Long Range single energy type blasts

Fighting Ability 2 Normal

What we have here is a powerhouse. Oh and he has a caveat. He can only use one power at a time at the moment. And he is only growing more powerful because Mr. Fantastic points out, Andy is embedded with Parker Particles which are tied to the expansion of the universe. His powers are only going to grow. So Mr. Fantastic decides to place Andy Maguire under Peter Parker’s care. Thus making Alpha Spider-man’s sidekick.

Alpha because no one else in the world has self-control without an Uncle Ben dying decides to market himself as the next best superhero. He gets marketing deal with Horizon to market their inventions, and he also becomes a pop sensation and media darling. Gets the girl that he was pawning after, Chrissy Chen, who I do like btw. I mean he is living the life, amigo.

His new girlfriend even makes him a fan page.

And this is where there is some credence to the idea that Andy was meant to be hated because the comment section tears him apart with meta commentary. He is called a poochie which is a synonym for Scrappy, a term tor fan hated characters. Which, again, what is the point of a character that we, the fans, are meant to hate? It is counter intuitive and a waste of time. I mean people like Golden Booster, Slott. I just don’t get why bother with this? Of course, Andy’s set up in his origin follows the same beats as Slott’s other creation, Cindy Moon, who he wanted to be liked and cried racism when fans hated her as well.

This is endemic to Slott’s run as a whole. He doesn’t get Spider-man. He wanted to create Iron Man instead of making Spider-man stories. And when he introduces new characters, he doesn’t properly want to build them. Like Kamala Khan had 3 issues of character development before she became a superhero. Her origin was fleshed out. Miles had 5 issues and 14 issues to have a proper origin. Andy literally has just 1 issue that can’t even be considered an origin. It is not his origin story. It is just another problem for Peter to solve and that was the problem with Cindy Moon. She wasn’t a character but a replacement to Felicia Hardy who Slott went and tarnished to begin with.

So Alpha gets annoyed with those comments and decides to prove the haters wrong. Peter has been keeping track of Alpha the entire time so he intercepts him before he does anything wrong. Spider-man takes him under his wing and makes him his side-kick.

First, no. Spider-man has turned down sidekicks from Black Cat without super powers, Ollie Osnick, Sally Avril, and a few others. Miles’ isn’t his sidekick, student, or anything. Miles is his own hero who Peter feels responsible for and he sort of hangs out with.Spider-man doesn’t do sidekicks nor would he take them on if offered. He barely does team-ups and only out of propriety and necessity. So him donning Andy as such is out of character and kind against theme.

Second, the dialogue here does not match Peter’s tone.He is too sarcastic and cavalier about things. Peter is one of the most restrained heroes in Marvel in terms of his power usage. He knows what Andy is capable of. He wouldn’t be so casual. He would be on him like white on rice. He knows the seriousness of Andy’s situation. If he teaching Andy, he would refrain from fighting unless he has to. Peter was a teacher. He should know how teenagers are because he has dealt with them. It is like....okay.

Anyways, Andy being the ambitious little scamp decides to take over and do his own thing.

Okay, this is when I kind of knew that Slott would be an okay Fantastic Four writer.And he doesn’t waste any time reminding people that he is the most powerful hero of all time.

Ben is beside himself because the little shit used his catchphrase in public, Johnny is ribbing on Spidey because he created a monster, Sue is trying to keep the peace, and Reed is annoyed because of Parker’s terrible decision of telling a teenager that he is the most powerful being in the universe.

Reed tries again, and reminds Peter that Alpha is his responsibility. He has to essentially babysit Alpha for free. Meanwhile Alpha is letting his newfound success go to his head. He decides to two-time the girl that he was pining for...or he only liked because he felt that she was the best that he can get. You see, Andy is the guy who thinks as people as material to gain. He doesn’t mind using them, but once he outgrows them, he dumps them.

It is like Slott just wants to create the biggest asshole in Spider-man. And I guess that’s okay, but again, to what end? Is Andi going to be a bad guy? No. Is he going to be a reoccurring character? No. So why bother creating him if other writers won’t bother and fans hate him?

After this, Miles Warren aka the Jackal captures Andy easily and Peter has to find the little fuck because he is ,”Peter Parker’s responsibility.” Yeah, I am tired of that too.The Jackal wants to clone Alpha and repopulate the world with his own Alpha Males. No I am not kidding, that is what he calls them. Anyways, Peter tries to stop him but not before Miles Warren congratulates him of “out mad sciencing” him and creating Alpha.

....I am already bored with this comic so I will speed it up. Jackal unleashes the clones, clones don’t have the Alpha powers because the power is not tied to Alpha’s genetics, Alpha breaks free of the harnesses and kills all of the clones, and saves himself sort of. Well not before saying even more alarming shit.

This is it. This is where he will learn, right? This is where Alpha makes a turn and become the little scamp that we hope for.

Well...can’t say that I am surprised.

Peter gets fed up and conspires to take his power away from Alpha because the kid just can’t be trusted with them anymore. He is far too dangerous and honestly, Peter was right, but he was wrong the rest of the time.

Here is the thing: Alpha should have never been given these powers and allowed to keep them in any capacity.Peter should have suggested of taking them away from the very beginning and so should’ve Reed Richards and every hero who tested Andy. And I get it, it’s a little hypocritical of a blog about teenaged superheroes to say this, but there is a difference between the teens we usually cover and characters like Alpha. Alpha is in it for the glory and fame. He never has a redeeming moment. He is never humbled and is too self-centered to be humbled.Making him the strongest teen ever without proper guidance and knowing his parents were trying to mooch off of him and didn’t give a shit how much it effected his son, and only cared because of a profit margin should have been a dead giveaway. Someone should have spoken to his therapists or teachers and figured what kind of kid Andy was. It shouldn’t have taken issues of Spider-man testing it out because it was a bad idea from the start.

Alpha continues to use his power irresponsibly until the Avengers demand that Spider-man call him in to deal with Terminus. Alpha does so as he travels from Japan to Manhattan to deal a huge blow.

So good news is that Alpha got stronger. Bad news is that Alpha took out all of the airplane controllers in the vicinity so all planes are about to crash all over the New York area. So think 9/11 except on 30 buildings or so. The Avengers go into scramble mode and try to immediately rescue the civilians which by the way was the first rule Spider-man told Alpha. Guess who isn’t trying to save any civilians?

So Alpha utterly failed this day. He made a bad situation worse and it shouldn’t have taken this to finally bench Alpha. The moment he disobeyed Peter, was the moment he should have been stripped of his power. I am being serious. But whatever, Alpha gets stripped by Spider-man.

So Alpha got powered down and is normal again.

But wait, there is more. Otto took over Peter’s body and preceded to give Andy his power back, but only a little of it this time. Andy moves to Pittsburgh, his parents divorced, and becomes the new hero of the Burgh. But he accidentally kills someone using his Alpha power, his power has been shown to be cancerous and he unknowingly gave his mom cancer and he doesn’t know it, the person he supposedly killed comes back and becomes this huge cancerous alpha powered villain named Zeta, Alpha stopped Zeta, and then another criminal blackmailed him to stop Andy from fighting crime or he will kill his whole family. And that was it for Alpha.

Can this character be redeemed?

Yes.

Honestly, Alpha was saved in his mini in my opinion. I know, I didn’t post any pictures because that mini looked like shit. Again, however, the story wasn’t bad and did redeem him a little. He should have been in Miles Morales spot when it came to Marvel’s PS4. He was more suited for it and most of Marvel’s PS4 was Slott’s Spider-man run anyways. It had Yuri, Screwball, Mr. Negative, a sympathetic Doc Ock, and shit. All of these are hallmarks of Slott’s writing.

What would I do to introduce him back to the Marvel fold?

First, Alpha isn’t Godly anymore. He is like a low rent Nova. That stat chart that you saw in the beginning is where he is at now. So as long as he stays at that level, we are good. Second, his new predicament of being blackmailed by a criminal creates an interesting scenario. I would think a criminal would love having a bad guy under his thumb. So I suspect this bad guy, Boss Jimmy Cohen might think of expanding with his brand new super pet.Let’s say Alpha becomes his own enforcer and forces him to. Alpha’s mom dies of the cancer that he accidentally gave him and becomes Zeta 2.0.

So Andy after dealing with a ton of despair decides to come back and help Boss Cohen expand his empire in New York. He starts in Brooklyn, and you know where I am going with this. Andy meets Miles, Spider-man II. I am against having Miles inherent Peter’s characters, but Andy is basically an unused character. He might as well go somewhere so why not with Miles Morales who is getting an expanding list of rogues anyways. A reluctant fallen hero would be an interesting addition.

As for Chrissy Chen, I don’t like wasting characters at all, especially one that is just off the edge of Spider-man mythos. Chrissy still goes to Midtown High. And so does Lana Baumgartner. Instead of creating another character, just have her be Lana’s confidant just like Miles has with Ganke.

And that is all folks. Now I will be doing a bit more on the forgotten characters of Post OMD Spider-man. A lot of them aren’t teens, so I will cover them on my other blog. I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading.

@ubernegro

#alpha #andrew maguire #spider-man #peter parker #dan slott #marvel #Marvel Comics #long post

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peggy-faces · 6 years

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Mad Men rewatch: Season 1, episode 3: Marriage of Figaro

Marriage of Figaro is probably my favourite episode of Season 1 and, coincidentally, the first episode of Mad Men I remember watching.

Our episode opens with Don being recognised by someone claiming to be an old army buddy of his. Pretty standard stuff except for one thing: He recognises him as Dick Whitman, not Don Draper. The show tries to make it seem as though this is just a case of mistaken identity and Don is just playing along in this scene, which makes for some really great writing and acting on Jon Hamm’s part.

Pete’s back from his honeymoon and Peggy’s ready to open up yet another can of Campbell soup. Unfortunately, Pete seems to have gotten to know Trudy a little better on their honeymoon and is willing to give their marriage a proper try and that means no more late night trips to Peggy’s apartment. Peggy is understanding but clearly upset and chooses to deal with her disappointment by reading a suspiciously wet-looking copy of Lady Chatterley’s Lover that’s being passed around the office.

Don’s flirtations with Rachel Menken continue as he makes a visit to her store, and culminates as he shares a long, passionate kiss with her on the rooftop. Then he tells her he’s married. You can almost hear the sad trombome in her head when he reveals that piece of information. “It shouldn’t have happened,” he tells her. On the audio commentary, Jon Hamm questions whether he’s referring to the kiss or his marriage.

I really feel bad for Betty when Don takes off in the middle of Sally’s birthday party and ends up having one of his existential crises on the way home from collecting the cake. Come on, Don, you had one job! It’s implied that this has happened before and that even the neighbors are familiar with this sort of event.

Later that night, Don finally arrives home. With a dog. How he got a dog at such short notice at on a Saturday night is unexplained. Earlier in the episode Rachel tells Don that “for a little girl, a dog can be all you need. They protect you, they listen”. Does Don give Sally a dog to protect her because he’s trying to to escape, perhaps even subconsciously? I can’t blame Betty for being upset. Don’s not the one who is going to be looking after the dog, she is.

Of course, I must mention Creepy Glen. Matthew Weiner, I believe, chose to cast his son because he knew he’d be bringing back the character throughout the show and child actors are often difficult to get ahold of(see: Bobby Draper, who I think is already on his third incarnation in this episode). For the record, Marten Weiner was just a kid. He didn’t force his dad to cast him. All the blame should be placed squarely on Matthew Weiner for this one.

Random Observations

“According to Glen, when the door’s a little bit open you’re supposed to come in.” That… explains a lot.

I don’t get the part where Don accidentally films a married couple kissing tenderly and he looks scandalized? Is he... remembering his kiss with Rachel? Thinking about his own marriage? ???

I also walk for stress relief so I feel like I’d make a terrible 1950s housewife.

Carlton’s one of the slimiest characters on the show and that’s saying something. I love how it’s obvious that Don can’t stand him.

Audio Commentary

There is only one commentary track for this episode(Jon Hamm, Maggie Siff, Darby Stanchfield). Actually a rarity as most episodes pre-season six have two commentary tracks.

Apparently Matthew Weiner has stated in an interview that the meaning behind the Mad Men opening credits is “a world collapsing around this person”.

Everything outside the train windows is CGI. Some of the better CGI in Mad Men in my opinion. Some of the stuff later in the show… yikes.

Stanchfield says that she’s never seen the sets for the offices of Sterling Cooper because they shoot the Draper home scenes in a different studio.

Don’s cufflinks were trick cufflinks that were supposed to fall out on cue, but they turned out to be quite bothersome to work with.

Siff says that, while the corset she had to wear was uncomfortable, it forced her to sit a certain and it turned out to be helpful as Rachel is supposed to a very refined, composed character.

The chicken defecated onto the floor several times during shooting.

Menken’s Department Store is actually an old bank in downtown Los Angeles.

An LAPD helicopter ruined the filming of the scene on the rooftop so there’s a lot they had to do to edit it out, but they didn’t have to reshoot it.

The beers are actually cans of carrot juice because they’re the cans they could that open like beers did in 1960.

Great episode, my favorite of the season, nine faulty cufflinks out of ten.

#tupf mad men rewatch

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barkercast · 3 years

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337 : Martin Mercer

You’re listening to the Clive Barker Podcast. Please do us a favor and subscribe or follow wherever you get your audio so you never miss a release.

Episode 337: He worked with Image Animation on Nightbreed ,Lord of Illusions, Hellraiser 3, and continues to be a part of lots of projects like Aquaman, Predators, and the upcoming Renfield. Martin Mercer joins Ryan and Jose, with Ed and Nina of Coenobium.

Sponsor: Don Bertram’s Celebrate Imagination

This episode is sponsored by Don Bertram’s Celebrate Imagination. Don Bertram is a long-time friend of Clive, and advocate of his art, but Don’s unique and inspiring paintings are for sale, and up to 50% of the proceeds go to the arts in medicine program at the Texas Children’s Cancer Center. Click the side-banner and follow the link to the etsy shop to have. A look!

Show Notes

Lord of Illusions Storyboard Artist Featurette

Silent Hill Revelatrions Interview

Article on The Mortal Instrument

Martin Mercer Press

Martin Mercer Sculptures

Our Video: The Crest Westwood Nightbreed DC Premiere

I Bought A Vampire Motorcycle

To Catch a Yeti

Little Devils: The Birth

Predators

The Predator

Predators

Popo’s Healing Hands, (Illustrastor) (Upcoming book by Sallie Tchang)

And this podcast, having no beginning will have no end.

Coming Next

Duels Of Blood: Final Volume

Jericho Squad 77 C1E11

Commentary: JoJo Baby

And this podcast, having no beginning will have no end.

web www.clivebarkercast.com

iOS App| Android App, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Android, Stitcher, Spotify, Pandora, Libsyn, Tunein, iHeart Radio, Pocket Casts, Google Play, Radio.com, DoubleTwist and YouTube and Join the Occupy Midian group

Discord Community

Twitter: @BarkerCast| @OccupyMidian

Support the show, Buy a T-Shirt

All Links and show notes in their Entirety can be found at http://www.clivebarkercast.com

New episode of the Clive Barker Podcast

#Clive #Barker #Podcast #Hellraiser

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mcbastardsmausoleum · 3 years

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The Film Detective Presents: The Amazing Mr. X (1948) & Frankenstein’s Daughter (1958) on Blu-ray in time for Halloween!

THE AMAZING MR. X (1948)

Atmospheric Film Noir Masterpiece, The Amazing Mr. X (1948) Coming to Special-Edition Blu-ray & DVD, Oct. 5th

The Amazing Mr. X stars Turhan Bey as Alexis, a mystery man who claims to communicate with spirits. Appearing on the beach one night, Alexis easily charms a depressed widow (Lynn Bari) and her sister (Cathy O'Donnell). The sly Alexis makes a living by separating gullible people from their money, but before this tale is over, he will learn that the living are far more dangerous than the dead.

Featuring exceptional cinematography by John Alton, director Bernard Vorhaus delivers a film that oozes weird passion and sinister suspense. The film’s striking 4K restoration from original 35mm film elements and Bey’s performance as the debonair, yet lurking mystic, contributes to one of the most unforgettable film noir restorations to be released in recent years.

Special Features:

- Audio commentary from professor and film scholar Jason A. Ney

- Full-color booklet with essay, “The Amazing Mr. Bey,” by Don Stradley

- Mysteries Exposed: Inside the Cinematic World of Spiritualism, an original documentary from Ballyhoo Motion Pictures.

The Amazing Mr. X

The Film Detective

Genre: Film Noir

Original Release: 1948 (BW)

Not Rated

Running Time: 78 Minutes

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Release Date: October 5, 2021

FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER (1958)

Richard E. Cunha’s Cult Classic, Frankenstein’s Daughter (1958) Coming to Special-Edition Blu-ray & DVD, Oct. 19th

Fans of low-budget horror will recognize many familiar faces, including John Ashley, Harold Lloyd, Jr., and former Playboy Playmate of the Month, Sally Todd. For director Richard E. Cunha, Frankenstein's Daughter was released in the heat of a historic year for low-budget favorites, also having directed such cult classics as She Demons (1958), Giant from the Unknown (1958) and Missile to the Moon (1958).

Frankenstein’s Daughter finds Dr. Oliver Frank (Donald Murphy) carrying on the legacy of his late grandfather, the notorious Dr. Frankenstein, by building his own hulking beast with the transplanted brain of a beautiful, young woman. Bringing a fresh twist to Frankenstein films, Frankenstein’s Daughter takes place in ''modern'' Los Angeles, where—despite news reports of a female monster menacing the neighborhood—nothing stops the local sun-soaked teenagers from partying poolside.

This special-edition release marks the latest in a series of collaborations between The Film Detective and The Wade Williams Collection. Restorations of Flight to Mars (1951), Giant From the Unknown (1958) and The Other Side of Madness (1971), have also been released recently on special-edition Blu-ray and DVD.

Special Features:

- Audio commentary track with author and historian Tom Weaver

- Full color booklet with original essay by Weaver

- Richard E. Cunha: Filmmaker of the Unknown, a new retrospective from Ballyhoo Motion Pictures, featuring an archival interview with the famed director

- John Ashley: Man from the B’s, a new career retrospective featuring film historian C. Courtney Joyner

Frankenstein’s Daughter

The Film Detective

Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi

Original Release: 1958 (BW)

Not Rated

Running Time: 85 Minutes

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Release Date: October 19, 2021

http://mcbastardsmausoleum.blogspot.com/2021/09/the-film-detective-presents-amazing-mr.ht

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tilbageidanmark · 3 years

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Movies I watched this week - 36

After five recent Elisabeth Moss's films ('The one I love', 'The square', 'Us', 'Shirley', 'The invisible man'), I decided to re-watch an episode or two of 'Mad Men' again. Peggy's story arc was the most interesting of them all anyway.

But the series is so fantastically addictive, that I binged the first thrilling 3.5 seasons non-stop. Nearly every story had deep emotional core of loss, love and disappointment. Moving between the personal stories of the characters and the historical comments on the 1960′s.

Poor Sally (and Bobby), and poor ice queen January Jones.

Imagine the constant stench of booze and cigarettes mixed with so much beauty, nostalgia and pain.

And I was reminded of the best reviewer / commentator I used to love the first time I watched it, Alan Sepinwall (Now Rolling Stone's chief TV critic).

In appreciation of David Carbonara, the composer who developed the Mad Men mood sound.

Here is my old Peggy Olson post from Metafilter.

✴️

I imagine Jon Hamm & Elizabeth Moss casted as George & Martha in a Broadway production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? A scathing play of humiliation and co-dependency.

The magnificent Albee classic was Mike Nichols first film. With vicious performances by Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, and just as magnificent score by Alex North. The only modern film to be nominated in every eligible Oscar category.

Best film of the week!

✴️

Who killed Captain Alex, my first Ugandan No-Budget action movie, filmed in some village for $200!

As good as any other action movie. With 2 free bonuses:

1. Great running commentary by the director.

2. Sweet dedication to his grandma, and coming attractions at the end.

6+ / 10

✴️

2 Psychos:

First! I watched the two versions of Psycho simultaneously, the 1960 Hitchcock black and white, and the shot-for-shot remake by Gus Van Sant. I understand that the color remake was reviled as a blasphemous experiment, but as an experiment is wasn’t bad at all, uncanny and respectful. The Bernard Herrmann's score was chilling, the original tropes were all there, and Robert Forster was good as the psychiatrist.

One blooper from both versions: There are no dark and rainy storms like that near Barstow, where the motel is.

✴️

Hitchcock/Truffaut, a 2015 documentary film about François Truffaut's book on Alfred Hitchcock, and its impact on cinema. Narrated by Bob Balaban, who co-starred with Truffaut in Close Encounters.

I had and read that book, before giving it all away.

✴️

Jules and Jim, Truffaut's third film. A tragic menage-a-trois.

Jeanne Moreau sings Le tourbillon.

✴️

Bitchin': The Sound and Fury of Rick James, (2021) another shallow, puff piece about an entertainer who flamed out.

- - - - -

Throw-back to the art project:

Adora With Don Draper (Above).

Peggy Olson Adora

Sally Draper Adora

Virginia Woolf Adora

- - - - -

(My complete movie list is here)

#movies #Adora

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wazafam · 4 years

Link

What some would call the grooviest decade is officially 50 years old. Many films of the early 1970s can be considered a part of the New Hollywood movement, which saw filmmakers testing uncharted waters in storytelling. Television during this time benefited, too, since it had experienced two decades of trial and error. Ironically, 1971 was also the year that Philo Farnsworth, an early television pioneer, passed away.

RELATED: 10 Shows For Fans Of The Brady Bunch To Watch

Iconic movies and TV shows were born in the 1970s, and some featured more diverse casts, too. There are so many films and programs to come out of 1971, and now that they're 50, it's time to revisit some of them.

10 All In The Family

All in the Family's importance in the sitcom stratosphere is not forgotten as the show reaches its 50th birthday. Produced by Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin, the series was based on Till Death Do Us Part, a British sitcom that aired in the 1960s and 70s. All in the Family focused on Archie and Edith Bunker in Queens, New York, along with their daughter, Gloria, and her husband, Mike. These four characters were played by Carroll O'Conner, Jean Stapleton, Sally Struthers, and Rob Reiner, respectively.

Archie is notoriously bigoted, a trait that the writers used to broaden the show's themes into wider social commentary. The very first episode came with a disclaimer about putting a "humorous spotlight on our frailties, prejudices, and concerns." All in the Family spanned all of the decade, ending in 1979 after setting in motion an equally iconic line of spin-offs, most notably, The Jeffersons.

9 Jackson 5ive

The Jackson 5 band was discovered and brought into the Motown family in the late 1960s. Tito, Jermaine, Jackie, Marlon, and Michael Jackson topped the charts with "I Want You Back" in 1969.

This famous family group got their own animated series on ABC beginning in 1971, Jackson 5ive. The Jacksons would later be given a place of honor in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but years before that, they were brought to the Saturday morning screen in a co-production between Rankin/Bass and Motown Records. The series loosely depicted the Jacksons' lives as star musicians.

8 Bedknobs And Broomsticks

Based on children's books by Mary Norton, Bedknobs and Broomsticks is one of Disney's rare live-action/animated hybrids. The musical film is often compared to Mary Poppins for the obvious similarities, and it even starred David Tomlinson (George Banks from Mary Poppins) as Emelius Browne, the love interest for Miss Eglantine Price (Angela Lansbury).

RELATED: Ranking Disney Princess Songs By Spotify Listens

On their magical adventure with the Rawlins children, Emelius and Miss Price also meet animated characters like King Leonidus (a lion), Secretary Bird, Fisherman Bear, and Codfish.

7 Soul Train

Soul Train deserves great recognition as it turns 50. The series was on the air for 35 years, and the first 20 years included its creator, Don Cornelius, as host. The late Don Cornelius once said of the show, “I had a burning desire to see Black people depicted on television in a positive light.”

Starting with a hip theme song, there was a lot to dance about on this musical series. Acts ranged in genre from pop and hip-hop to R&B, soul, and funk. As Cornelius had hoped, Soul Train shined a light on a huge variety of Black artists. These included The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Smokey Robinson, Aretha Franklin, and Marvin Gaye, to name a few.

6 The Electric Company

When it comes to educational kids' shows, The Electric Company is one of the most nostalgic of its time. The PBS show was produced by the Children's Television Workshop (Sesame Street), and it featured a diverse cast of children and adults.

Morgan Freeman and Rita Moreno were among the series regulars. The Electric Company was the coolest way to learn about grammar and phonics with live-action and animated segments. The show was rebooted in 2009.

5 Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

Children of multiple generations have seen Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, and many have read the 1964 book it is based on, Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. There's nothing quite like stepping into Charlie's world and grabbing hold of that golden ticket with him.

Though the film can be frightening for smaller children, its eye-catching effects and bright colors lend to its one-of-a-kind story. In addition to the 2005 film, Dahl's characters will come to the screen anew in a prequel movie set for 2023.

4 Diamonds Are Forever

James Bond was born in Ian Fleming's 1953 novel, Casino Royale. But before Fleming's Bond works were complete, the character went to the big screen in 1962 and the Bond stories would gradually develop into a huge dynasty of films.

Sean Connery portrayed James Bond for the last time in 1971's Diamonds Are Forever. He had played the role in the first five Bond movies, George Lazenby took over for the sixth, and Connery finished his run with the seventh. In the film, Agent 007 must shut down a diamond smuggling ring in this aptly named installment.

3 Dirty Harry

This movie was the first in the Dirty Harry franchise. Clint Eastwood established himself as "Dirty Harry" Callaghan, an inspector looking for a psychopathic sniper with the help of an inexperienced partner named Chico Gonzalez.

The film was based on the true events of the Zodiac Killer, who was active in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Eastwood's line from the film, "You've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?" has been quoted too many times to count.

2 Masterpiece Theatre

Masterpiece Theatre has been bringing the finest dramatic content to public television viewers for half a century now. The program "has won 83 Primetime Emmys and 18 Peabody Awards, seven Golden Globes and two Oscars."

RELATED: 10 Fantastic Drama Movies You Didn't Know Were On Netflix

From Jude the Obscure and Bleak House to Upstairs, Downstairs and Wuthering Heights, the smart features of Masterpiece Theatre have provided hours of worthy entertainment to devoted fans of the program.

1 Fiddler On The Roof

Fiddler On the Roof was adapted from Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, and Joseph Stein's 1964 Broadway musical, which was based on Sholem Aleichem's stories.

The movie musical examines Jewish life and systemic anti-Semitism in a Ukrainian village in 1905 as Tevye deals with marrying off his daughters. The music of the award-winning film is a pillar of musical theatre with songs like "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," "If I Were A Rich Man," "To Life," and "Sunrise, Sunset" established as musical mainstays for decades now.

NEXT: What Was The Very First Television Show (& 9 More Questions About TV History, Answered)

10 Iconic Movies Or TV Shows Turning 50 In 2021 | ScreenRant from https://ift.tt/39TwCXi

#Blogger

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lindseyvalois · 7 years

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Mad Men Analysis

I have heard a lot of good things about Mad Men over the years but I have never gave myself an opportunity to sit down and watch it. After viewing season 3 episode 4, “The Arrangements,” in class I can say that I definitely am going to make this show one of my next binges. Although the episode wasn’t one of the most exciting it would seem, I found it quite interesting to watch it from an analytical standpoint and listen to Professor Aloi’s commentary.

First off, I’d like to touch on the role of women in the show. On the surface, this episode emulated the sexist nature of the time period, where women were stay at home mothers while their husbands went out and made money. For example, Betty Draper gave up her modeling career to take care of her children while Don is the breadwinner of the family. However, there are female characters that don’t fit the stereotypical mold. We have Peggy Olson who is looking to move to the city without a man, just another female roommate. Upon further research, I learned that Peggy works her way from secretary to top copywriter in the office but has to sacrifice a love life for the most part. This was a time right before feminism for pushed into the front of people’s consciousness, however the way that Gene treats Sally Draper seems to be foreshadowing of what was yet to come. He teaches Sally to drive and convinces her that she is smart which doesn’t seem to fit the overall tone of the male view of women at the time.

American masculinity standards in the 1960’s called for strong, sexually dominant, hard working men who showed little emotion besides happiness and anger. Being the postwar era, older man had a callous attitude towards emotion, such as Gene, who we see rummaging through a box of his “souvenirs” from the war, including a dead man's helmet. Don Draper is the top man in his business as well as a devilishly handsome womanizer. Success seems to come easy to him however he seems to be quietly haunted by his past as we see him looking at a picture of his adopted parents. Another example of masculinity, or lack thereof, is the character of Sal. Sal is a closeted gay man who is married to a woman. He hasn’t had sex with his wife in months and she is becoming more worried about him and asks why men don’t show their emotions to which he then opens up about the stress he’s under. That to me is indicative that he is not a stereotypical “man.” My favorite part of this particular scene is when Sal acts out the commercial in a very flamboyant way and his wife looks shocked and maybe even suspicious.

Lastly, the cinematography itself plays a big role in this show. I really found it interesting how color is used in this show. Green to symbolize being an outsider, such as in the scene with Sal and his wife where she wears green. Blue to symbolize loyalty, Like the blue pillow in between the men who have been friends for years. I found that orange in this show appears to mean that something bad is about to happen, and I don’t know if I’m reading too much into it but Gene tells Sally that the chocolate ice cream “tastes like oranges” before he dies. We see a lot of fabulous retro costume designs that also use color to tell a story and develop a character, such as Peggy’s boring and old fashioned ensemble as opposed to Joan’s vibrant and youthful dress. From color to editing to set design and everything in between, it is said that Mad Men has some of the most powerful cinematography in television and it is clear in this episode.

Overall, I am very intrigued in watching Mad Men from start to finish and I think this was a very good episode to start with because we can see not only the beautiful film aspects but the character relationships with each other in the time period that this show takes place in. I’m very excited to start this show on my own time.

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elizabethcariasa · 7 years

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Working, and paying taxes, on holidays

Happy Labor Day. While many Americans are working on this holiday, others are fortunate to have off this first Monday in September.

Whether you're working or not most likely depends on the type of employee you are.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not require employers to pay employees for time not worked, such as vacations or holidays, writes Susan Heathfield for The Balance.

Different jobs, different days off: Salaried employees in exempt professional, technical or managerial positions expect paid holidays. Nonexempt, or hourly, employees are less likely to have paid holidays, or they receive fewer such days off than their salaried counterparts.

In some cases, workers who clock in while others are sleeping in get holiday pay.

However, absent a collective bargaining agreement, whether or how much holiday pay you get is totally up to your boss. There are no federal or state laws that require companies to compensate you more for holiday work than your normal hourly rate.

If you do get extra pay this Labor Day, good for you … and the U.S. Treasury. Today's earnings will be reflected in your income and payroll tax withholdings.

If like me you're a contractor working on holidays, things don't change. We still must meet our deadlines for the amount negotiated with our clients.

And, oh yeah, keep track of our earnings so we can make the appropriate estimated tax payments. Remember, we have one of those, the third of the tax year, coming due on Sept. 15

Enjoy employment-themed movies: As for all y'all with Labor Day time to kill, consider checking out a work-related movie.

Here are 10 of my employment-themed film favorites.

In the classic silent movie "Modern Times," Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp struggles to survive in the modern, industrialized world. The 1936 comedy, written and directed by Chaplin, is a comment on the desperate employment and financial conditions many people faced during the Great Depression. Trust me, despite the harsh setting and topic, Chaplin entertains.

Charlie Chaplin as the Little Tramp on a new job in "Modern Times." (Photo via Wikipedia)

More modern workplace issues are the subject of Mike Judge's contemporary comedy "Office Space." Live vicariously through the three company workers who hate their jobs and decide to rebel against their greedy boss. Plus, Milton Waddams' red stapler!

Who hasn't felt like they knew exactly what needed to be done to get the job done right? That's why we cheer for the movie version of real-life environmental health activist "Erin Brockovich." Julia Roberts portrayal of the insistent, committed single mom who becomes a legal assistant and almost single-handedly brings down a polluting power company earned her an Oscar. Albert Finney, who played her boss, deserved one, too.

Want more environmental activism? Rent or stream the late Mike Nichols' "Silkwood." Meryl Streep is the title character, a plutonium processing plant worker who, according to legend and the movie, literally gave her life to expose the facility's worker safety violations. Streep and costar Cher received Academy Award nominations for their performances, Nichols for his direction.

I'm on a heroic worker roll with "Norma Rae," the 1979 biopic about efforts to organized union workers in the South. Sally Field as the film's lead won her first Oscar for her performance.

OK, let's get back to lighter film fare with a double feature of employees getting the better of their horrible bosses. Yep, I'm talking about "9 to 5" "Working Girl."

In "9 to 5," released in 1980, and pre "Grace and Frankie" Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, along with movie theme-song writer/singer Dolly Parton, take down their sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical, bigoted boss, played with relish by Dabney Coleman.

Eight years later we got "Working Girl" Melanie Griffith's big hair and bigger aspirations, with secretary Griffith stealing back her idea that evil boss Sigourney Weaver appropriated while simultaneously finding love with Harrison Ford.

Hey, guys, I haven't forgotten y'all. "Trading Places" gives us Eddie Murphy as a street-smart con artist and Dan Aykroyd as a snobbish commodities broker who initially unknowingly switch places as part of a nature vs. nurture bet. But the duo wins in the end, besting the two brothers — played by Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy — who used Murphy's and Aykroyd's stations in life as an experiment, giving the comedy some social commentary bite.

Yes, I'm a George Clooney fan, so his 2009 movie "Up in the Air" makes my workplace flix list. Clooney's character specializes in firing people, a job he actually enjoys. But as the story progresses, his mind and job choice changes.

Finally, the Labor Day movies round-up closes with a movie about a worker who rarely, if ever, gets a paid holiday. "Waitress" stars Kerry Russell as Jenna, a pregnant, unhappily married waitress who falls into an unlikely relationship as a last attempt at happiness. Bonus: there are lots and lots of pies.

I know I was a bit late in getting this post up, so you probably won't be able to get all 10 of these movies in this afternoon. But check them out in the coming weekends. You'll be glad you did.

You also might find these items of interest:

5 moves — and 7 tax tips! — to make if you're fired

Job search expenses could help reduce your tax bill

Labor Day tax tip: Union dues might be tax deductible

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christophergill8 · 7 years