So here we are - Election Day in America. Hoo boy.
I said a little prayer in my car driving to work today, I didn't ask God for any one side to prevail - I just asked that somehow our country find it's way back to being closer together rather than so severely divided as we have been for the past few years.
God also knows my heart and knows that I would also prefer to see a red wave today, but truthfully - I would take any wave at this point if the result meant less anger and hate in our hearts.
Sadly, I fear that if the Democrats do take back the house, the result will not be unifying whatsoever - but we will widen the gap of fear and fury even more.
Ben Shapiro had a great monologue on his Fox Sunday Election special a few weeks back that went down a detailed list about why we should vote GOP and how terrible the consequences will be if we let the Dems back into power.
You don't need to watch the whole thing - the gist is that the Democrats are frothing at the bit, ready to go to war against our president should they happen to take back the house. In other words, they will aggressively pursue impeachment, along with trying to dig up every little bit of dirt that they can on Trump.
Now I get that millions of Americans detest Donald Trump, but really I don't think that matters as much as the big picture does.
Right now we are a nation divided, certainly more divided than I have ever witnessed in my life time. This division is pernicious in that both sides believe they are righteous and that the other side has lost it's mind.
Clearly, compromise is needed desperately. If I may, here is my view on what has to happen on the left for any sort of bipartisanship to emerge.
As for what has to happen on the right, we'll get to that.
It's one very simple thing the left must do that will singlehandedly help turn the tide from boiling hot rage to at least a manageable temperature:
Our president cannot be called a racist. Period. End of story. When you impugn the man this way, you are painting half of the country with the same brush. It's unacceptable. I don't especially care what people actually believe, but to say this out loud without any actual hard smoking gun evidence, does so much damage to the liberal cause and credibility, it simply has to stop.
Liberals need to understand that when they say Trump is racist, they are saying that we conservatives are racist - or at the very least, racist if we support him.
I have become a Trump supporter, read the previous post for a good explanation why, but I still have misgivings about his character and wish that he wouldn't be so antagonistic all the time.
But I don't believe he is a bigot. If I did, I wouldn't support him. It's that simple. He's a bit of an ass, sometimes a jerk, but I believe he is a good man insofar as other presidents were who also had deep flaws of character.
Bill Clinton has been credibly accused of rape - and has an army of other women who have credibly accused him of various degrees of harassment and assault.
Kennedy was a womanizer of the highest order.
Nixon's deep character flaws are permanently on display in the Watergate tapes.
Clinton is a tough one, because I really do suspect Anita Broderick is telling the truth - and there is a fair amount of corroborating evidence. Unlike the Kavanaugh thing in which there was ZERO.
But the other women that Clinton trampled on, none of them have a story that gets into rape territory; so it's hard for me to know for certainty. Yeah, exposing himself to Paula Jones is revolting and awful - it's not rape. Coming on super strong to a 20 something intern and then demeaning her sexually is revolting and awful - it's not rape. As powerful as he was and as at a great disadvantage she was, it does border on assault but in the end it was consensual.
So when Bill comes up in conversation or on the internet, my first response is not "Oh, you mean the rapist." It does cross my mind, but I keep it to myself, because there is a reasonable doubt.
I admire some things that Clinton did administratively, especially his second term. Along with the GOP congress he balanced the budget for the first time in a long time, and the only time since. He also passed the fantastic welfare reform (which Obama gutted) and an amazing crime bill that saw crime rates fall off a cliff. Obama also had a big hand in weakening all of this good work.
So was Bill a good guy? Probably not. Is it worth it for me to scream RAPIST every chance I get? No.
There is a reasonable doubt, he was our president, not going to do it. Wouldn't be prudent.
I would hope that sensible liberals could step back and use the same methodical reasoning in regards to Trump being a racist.
Are there signifiers that this might be true? Sure.
Can you say it with certainty? No.
Is it worth it to shout 'Racist' to the rooftops every time Trump comes up in conversation? Absolutely not.
The damage done by liberals to our country by smearing Donald Trump this way is truly incalculable.
It really is like dropping hand grenade after hand grenade into a political discussion - entirely unproductive and very harmful because the destruction can't really be undone.
It's time to drop the R word from discussion - and if you can't do it, I really have nothing to say to you.
******
Now, I promised I would touch on what we need to do on the right to get us moving back in the correct direction - that is, less angry and more willing to listen.
Truthfully, I'm having a very hard time coming up with something simple that conservatives can do to affect positive change in our political discourse. I kind of think it has to start on the left. A prominent and respected voice needs to make the argument that that our president is not racist. He/she doesn't have to believe it, but the point needs to be made and the American left needs to be convinced that even if deep down they still think Trump is racist, it does ZERO good and a ton of harm to keep bringing it up.
Once this smear is off the table, then it will be on the right to reciprocate somehow; again, this is tough for me. I see the left as the quickest to anger, the quickest to smear, always the first ones to make things personal.
I think the best thing we can do as conservatives is embrace that there will always be a double standard, and then to work within that framework.
In other words, yes, the left will never be called out for their personal attacks because the media supports them. Meanwhile, when a good conservative slips, it's the end of the world because the media is primed to rip them apart.
We just have to embrace that - and always strive to be the adults in the room. It's not fair, but that's the way it is for now.
When someone on the right, for example our president, launches a personal attack - we need to speak up and discourage this behavior. We don't have to feign outrage the way the left does and condemn him whole cloth; but we can give a gentle rejoinder or suggestion at a different approach.
For example - rather than saying -
"Trump is clearly a racist because he says there's mostly gang members in the caravan"
maybe we can say
"I share the presidents concerns that there might be a criminal element among the thousands marching to our country, but I think it's a bit early to conclude that the majority of these folks are criminals."
In this way we don't give into the leftist hysteria about reading Trump's heart, but we do put ourselves firmly in camp grown-up while still supporting our president.
And that, is the best I can do for now.
The correct approach for conservatives who hope to promote unity is thoughtful and involved.
But the correct way to go for the left is very simple and rudimentary.
Calling President Trump a racist is unacceptable.
Tuesday, November 06, 2018
Monday, September 10, 2018
Bedside Manner
I've never talked about the birth of my child here - and I don't really feel the urge to, but I think there is a lesson in it for me that applies to today.
Upshot - the birth went, as these things go, overall rather normal. There were moments of straining, anguish, and of course exuberant joy. In the end my kid came out and was perfect.
One tiny sticking point for me was my wife's OBGYN. He was a brusque man with about the worst bedside manner you could imagine. He was rude, he was abrupt, he was not a warm or caring person.
He didn't interact with us too much until it was time for the actual birth. He performed his task proficiently and the baby came out and it was all good. Then, mere minutes after our kid had entered the world he asked to no one in particular "Did anyone see that Laker game last night?"
I had to laugh, this was a joke right? No, he was serious and curious. My wife piped up, "Um, is the baby a boy or a girl?" That's right, he hadn't told us.
The guy was an asshole.
But, I found out later from one of the nurses who came in to Bev's room and chatted with us - "Yeah, he's pretty abrupt sometimes, but if you had had any complications, he's the guy you want."
It rattled around in my brain a bit, this guy, all business and no tact - had been right where we needed him when we needed him and had performed his tasks expertly.
Natalie had arrived a month early, so there was a bit of concern. The doctor had stayed on top of her vital signs and in his own way, took pains to let us know that everything was looking good. When Nat came out, she had her umbilical cord around her neck. It was very loose, but there it was. The doctor expertly extracted her from the tangle, all business, and just as proficiently prepared her for cord cutting - which I got to do at his prompting.
After Natalie had been wrapped up and put in her mother's arms for awhile, the doctor and another specialist examined her in the bassinet and quickly assessed that a trip to the NICU (or it might have been another room for early but not super premature arrivals) was in order. He was concerned about her breathing.
Nat went to the other room, with me tagging along, and she was given oxygen and put under observation. Everything as I remember, turned out fine. While in that room a delightful pediatrician showed up and examined Natalie. Everything checked out good. The pediatrician was so great in her bedside manner, we chatted and by the end of the conversation I was basically telling her 'Great, you'll be Natalie's doctor." Her charm and poise had so enraptured me, after dealing with Dr. Dickhead, that I figured she must be the best doctor of all time.
It turned out, that she was a very good doctor, and we took Natalie to see her for many years before Dr. L, let's call her, left the medical group we were in. But really, she could have been a terrible doctor when I first met her, and I wouldn't have known. She didn't do much to newborn Natalie, other than examine a bit, you know - stethoscope, etc. I could've done the same thing and passed myself off as a doctor.
Anyways, yes she turned out to be very good - but it easily could've gone the other way. Dr. Dickhead however, I knew he was an expert and great at his job almost right away, simply because he had a much tougher task at the time. Logically, he's the guy I should've been praising and fawning over, but emotionally I just wanted to get away from him and chat it up with Dr. L.
By the way quick aside - when Natalie was back with mom and Dr. Dickhead checked in on us, he noticed the baby was mildly jaundiced and asked in what he thought was a joking manner "Whose Asian baby is that?" Lovely fellow.
So the point of this rather long story - is that yes, that OBGYN was a bit of a prick. But given what the nurses said about him, and observing his expertise in action - I'm very grateful he was there.
Would I have wanted a super nice and smiley and super friendly OBGYN? Sure, but if there skill set was below the dickhead's, I'd take the dickhead, thanks.
************
And so we find ourselves with a president who has literally broke the mold when it comes to decorum.
He is brash, he is crude, he is impulsive. He's a bit of a prick.
Oh by the way, the GDP is now higher than the unemployment rate for the first time in a hundred years.
400,000 new jobs.
ISIS has been decimated.
US Military, rebuilt and re-energized. Morale is now sky high with the commander-in-chief enjoying widespread support.
Got Kim-Jong Un to sit down at the table - something all previous presidents have pined for and wanted, and were unable to achieve. The results so far of course, have been less than great, but mad props to our Prez for at least making it happen.
A fantastic conservative on the supreme court and another one imminent.
Massive corporate tax cut (a great thing in my conservative mind) - and a decent tax cut for the rest of us.
Keystone pipeline - jobs over politics, practicality over emotional nonsense.
Paris Climate accords - a TERRIBLE deal for the US that was going to cost us literally TRILLIONS of dollars, while not holding big polluters accountable. Now it turns out, our carbon emissions are still the lowest in the developed world, lower than any European country by far.
Obamacare mandate repealed. So now you can choose and not face a fine if you decline healthcare? Wacky.
And I could go on and on, but you get the point.
Sure, Donald Trump has plenty of flaws.
But if you look me in the eye and ask me - Would you prefer Trump through 2024 or a democrat? What do you honestly think I, or any bonafide conservative for that matter, is going to say?
Trump's a bit of a douche, but he's kicking ass. He is by far the most effectual president I've seen in my lifetime. He doesn't just talk - he does.
I'll take the asshole thanks, don't need to go back to the American apologist, the lukewarm economy, the squishiness on moral issues. Sure sometimes I wish Trump would cool it on the twitter, but really, it's very apparent at this point that he knows what he's doing and understands that liberals and never-Trumpers fall for it every, single, time. That's why he keeps doing it.
I know it's hard for my liberal friends to hear this, but I think it's important.
The American people knew exactly the kind of man Trump was when they voted for him. They simply didn't care. They saw a doctor enter the room and take charge and expertly deliver the baby. The last guy who was in here almost dropped the damn thing.
I'll take the jerk, thanks.
Upshot - the birth went, as these things go, overall rather normal. There were moments of straining, anguish, and of course exuberant joy. In the end my kid came out and was perfect.
One tiny sticking point for me was my wife's OBGYN. He was a brusque man with about the worst bedside manner you could imagine. He was rude, he was abrupt, he was not a warm or caring person.
He didn't interact with us too much until it was time for the actual birth. He performed his task proficiently and the baby came out and it was all good. Then, mere minutes after our kid had entered the world he asked to no one in particular "Did anyone see that Laker game last night?"
I had to laugh, this was a joke right? No, he was serious and curious. My wife piped up, "Um, is the baby a boy or a girl?" That's right, he hadn't told us.
The guy was an asshole.
But, I found out later from one of the nurses who came in to Bev's room and chatted with us - "Yeah, he's pretty abrupt sometimes, but if you had had any complications, he's the guy you want."
It rattled around in my brain a bit, this guy, all business and no tact - had been right where we needed him when we needed him and had performed his tasks expertly.
Natalie had arrived a month early, so there was a bit of concern. The doctor had stayed on top of her vital signs and in his own way, took pains to let us know that everything was looking good. When Nat came out, she had her umbilical cord around her neck. It was very loose, but there it was. The doctor expertly extracted her from the tangle, all business, and just as proficiently prepared her for cord cutting - which I got to do at his prompting.
After Natalie had been wrapped up and put in her mother's arms for awhile, the doctor and another specialist examined her in the bassinet and quickly assessed that a trip to the NICU (or it might have been another room for early but not super premature arrivals) was in order. He was concerned about her breathing.
Nat went to the other room, with me tagging along, and she was given oxygen and put under observation. Everything as I remember, turned out fine. While in that room a delightful pediatrician showed up and examined Natalie. Everything checked out good. The pediatrician was so great in her bedside manner, we chatted and by the end of the conversation I was basically telling her 'Great, you'll be Natalie's doctor." Her charm and poise had so enraptured me, after dealing with Dr. Dickhead, that I figured she must be the best doctor of all time.
It turned out, that she was a very good doctor, and we took Natalie to see her for many years before Dr. L, let's call her, left the medical group we were in. But really, she could have been a terrible doctor when I first met her, and I wouldn't have known. She didn't do much to newborn Natalie, other than examine a bit, you know - stethoscope, etc. I could've done the same thing and passed myself off as a doctor.
Anyways, yes she turned out to be very good - but it easily could've gone the other way. Dr. Dickhead however, I knew he was an expert and great at his job almost right away, simply because he had a much tougher task at the time. Logically, he's the guy I should've been praising and fawning over, but emotionally I just wanted to get away from him and chat it up with Dr. L.
By the way quick aside - when Natalie was back with mom and Dr. Dickhead checked in on us, he noticed the baby was mildly jaundiced and asked in what he thought was a joking manner "Whose Asian baby is that?" Lovely fellow.
So the point of this rather long story - is that yes, that OBGYN was a bit of a prick. But given what the nurses said about him, and observing his expertise in action - I'm very grateful he was there.
Would I have wanted a super nice and smiley and super friendly OBGYN? Sure, but if there skill set was below the dickhead's, I'd take the dickhead, thanks.
************
And so we find ourselves with a president who has literally broke the mold when it comes to decorum.
He is brash, he is crude, he is impulsive. He's a bit of a prick.
Oh by the way, the GDP is now higher than the unemployment rate for the first time in a hundred years.
400,000 new jobs.
ISIS has been decimated.
US Military, rebuilt and re-energized. Morale is now sky high with the commander-in-chief enjoying widespread support.
Got Kim-Jong Un to sit down at the table - something all previous presidents have pined for and wanted, and were unable to achieve. The results so far of course, have been less than great, but mad props to our Prez for at least making it happen.
A fantastic conservative on the supreme court and another one imminent.
Massive corporate tax cut (a great thing in my conservative mind) - and a decent tax cut for the rest of us.
Keystone pipeline - jobs over politics, practicality over emotional nonsense.
Paris Climate accords - a TERRIBLE deal for the US that was going to cost us literally TRILLIONS of dollars, while not holding big polluters accountable. Now it turns out, our carbon emissions are still the lowest in the developed world, lower than any European country by far.
Obamacare mandate repealed. So now you can choose and not face a fine if you decline healthcare? Wacky.
And I could go on and on, but you get the point.
Sure, Donald Trump has plenty of flaws.
But if you look me in the eye and ask me - Would you prefer Trump through 2024 or a democrat? What do you honestly think I, or any bonafide conservative for that matter, is going to say?
Trump's a bit of a douche, but he's kicking ass. He is by far the most effectual president I've seen in my lifetime. He doesn't just talk - he does.
I'll take the asshole thanks, don't need to go back to the American apologist, the lukewarm economy, the squishiness on moral issues. Sure sometimes I wish Trump would cool it on the twitter, but really, it's very apparent at this point that he knows what he's doing and understands that liberals and never-Trumpers fall for it every, single, time. That's why he keeps doing it.
I know it's hard for my liberal friends to hear this, but I think it's important.
The American people knew exactly the kind of man Trump was when they voted for him. They simply didn't care. They saw a doctor enter the room and take charge and expertly deliver the baby. The last guy who was in here almost dropped the damn thing.
I'll take the jerk, thanks.
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
Movie "Review" - Ant Man & The Wasp
Another fan boy 'review' for your perusal. As always, the disclaimer - I'm a blubbering comic book crazy person who loves all the Marvel movies. I'm not a critic, I'm a massive FAN and Disney/Marvel could literally have a 2 1/2 hour long shot of a toilet and I would be hard pressed to criticize it. So let the knob gobbling commence. (TONS OF SPOILERS AHEAD)
I loved, loved, LOVED the first Ant-Man because it was so unique (at the time) in the Marvel pantheon of movies. It put humor and heart at the very front and center with an emphasis on the humor.
Also, it was as good as origin stories get; it had everything. It was a fun heist movie with eye popping special effects and tech, superbly choreographed and shot action sequences, a dash of romance with great chemistry between the two leads, and of course that most necessary of all ingredients - emotional resonance.
We cared about Scott, we grew to care about Hope and Hank, and the seed was planted to care about the one and only Janet Van Dyne.
Janet, as all of us comic book readers know, is a GIANT in the Marvel Universe. She is a founding member of the Avengers and over 30 years barely left the team - even when her husband Hank turned into a wife beater that she divorced. Hank was kicked out and eventually died, but Janet stayed strong and stuck around, and became a heroine well ahead of her time with her grit and gusto right alongside the other mighty heroes. Janet was and is the ultimate badass.
So I love that this new movie is all about finding her. That emotional power that I crave in these things, is pretty much on display in every frame because of the 10+ years I devoured the Avengers comic book. Even though Janet doesn't physically show up until the end, her presence is felt for the whole film.
I love that there are little hints all throughout that Hank is indeed a troubled man - I don't know that they need to go full comic book with him, but it will be interesting to see how he and Janet shake out. I could totally see a balls to the wall prequel with them, either younger actors or digitally enhanced Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfieffer. On the other hand, the adventures in my head that they have been on are probably better than any movie that could be made.
Before I continue - the reviews by critics have overall been very good, and the fans are on board as well - but one thing I've noticed in Nerd-Land (that awful community on the internet that deigns itself the end all be all of what's good and what isn't in Genre film making) is that the neck-beards have all pretty much said that AM&W is 'good not great'.
I could not disagree more.
Comic Book Girl 19 said "The movie? It's ok." Mr. Sunday Movies said similar.
I say, they're jaded jackasses. (And I actually like them both a lot and watch all their videos).
From beginning to end I was swept away by this new adventure, and the 2 hour + running time felt like an hour tops.
The movie moves like a bat out of hell - yet they don't skimp on the character moments at all. The little girl who plays Cassie (a future superhero as you comic book readers know) is just superb and helps build in even more emotion along with the Janet thread.
Luis is back and even funnier this time, which is crazy, I dreaded them re-doing the lip synched story telling, but here it's even better because they use Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly in the flashbacks! Awesome! Gotta put Michael Douglas and Michell Pfieffer in the next one!
The 'science' is rather absurd and silly at times, like it was in the first movie, but it's so easy to forgive. I look at it in the spirit of the old Marvel Editor-In-Chief Jim Shooter, who used to award a "No-Prize" to comic book readers who would write in a detailed explanations to fill in plot holes
and oversights.
Yes, it's ridiculous that they shrink an office building and then roll it away like a piece of carry on luggage - the miniature building should simply rattle and fall apart as it's rolled along the ground. But, as you may remember from the first movie, they explain that when Scott shrinks he gains strength and power exponentially - I figure the same could probably be said of the lab building. It gets a lot tougher and more resilient when it's miniaturized. So where's my 'No-Prize'? Right?
Other than that bit of plausibility stretching, the rest of the movie holds together very well. I am especially happy that the villains this time around are MUCH more well rounded and believable.
Ghost turns out to be fantastic - and her relationship with Black Goliath is truly something special - he really has adopted her, loves her, and will not go along with her morality bending plans, and best of all Ghost actually listens to him and doesn't betray him! How refreshing is that? I was amazed that Ghost didn't go after Cassie, I groaned when she floated the plan because I knew that's what she was going to do - and then she didn't do it! Awesome! Excited to revisit her character, hope they do bring her back.
The action in this movie is just as good and sometimes even better than the action in the first Ant-Man. Love the kitchen sequence, love the car chase that goes on and on and on! Giant Scott is of course great, stunning visuals of him in San Francisco Bay.
Hanks descent into the quantum realm could not have been done better - I was hoping he would flash into a realistic looking setting like his house - and he does and it's awesome!
Another great great scene - Janet goes into Scott's body. Awesome humor that incredibly also gets emotional! Now that's a hell of an actor who can pull that off - if Paul Rudd had been even a little bit off, the scene simply wouldn't have worked. Outstanding!
So yes, I loved this one - A LOT.
As to where to rank it in my massive MCU ranking list a couple of posts below... well it is tough because the list in my head changes quite a bit every time another movie comes out.
Objectively I think it's fair to say that the first Ant-Man is at least as good as this one, but honestly right now I just want to watch Ant-Man & Wasp over and over! Because it's so new and fresh I feel like it's BETTER in a lot of ways.
I know that passion will cool off eventually, but right now I don't think it's possible for me to put it at the same level or below Ant-Man part 1. I'm going to have to put it in the top 10 for sure, and bump out part 1 down to number 11, also bump down the first Iron man to number 10. Yes, Ant-Man & Wasp is the new number 9!
That's as objective as I can be right now, if I really let my emotions take over I would put the movie in the top 3, but that would be pretty silly. All the movies ranked 1-8 are genuinely objectively better than AM&W - I know this to be true deep down, so I won't dwell or get too goofy.
I would be remiss in this, whatever this is, if I didn't mention the mid-credits scene. What a gut punch! Still, it's pretty clear from Infinity War that the characters who got 'dusted' are all coming back (based on the sequels that are scheduled and some that are already shooting) so I'm not too freaked out. Hopefully Scott Lange will play a major part in Avengers 4!
I loved, loved, LOVED the first Ant-Man because it was so unique (at the time) in the Marvel pantheon of movies. It put humor and heart at the very front and center with an emphasis on the humor.
Also, it was as good as origin stories get; it had everything. It was a fun heist movie with eye popping special effects and tech, superbly choreographed and shot action sequences, a dash of romance with great chemistry between the two leads, and of course that most necessary of all ingredients - emotional resonance.
We cared about Scott, we grew to care about Hope and Hank, and the seed was planted to care about the one and only Janet Van Dyne.
Janet, as all of us comic book readers know, is a GIANT in the Marvel Universe. She is a founding member of the Avengers and over 30 years barely left the team - even when her husband Hank turned into a wife beater that she divorced. Hank was kicked out and eventually died, but Janet stayed strong and stuck around, and became a heroine well ahead of her time with her grit and gusto right alongside the other mighty heroes. Janet was and is the ultimate badass.
So I love that this new movie is all about finding her. That emotional power that I crave in these things, is pretty much on display in every frame because of the 10+ years I devoured the Avengers comic book. Even though Janet doesn't physically show up until the end, her presence is felt for the whole film.
I love that there are little hints all throughout that Hank is indeed a troubled man - I don't know that they need to go full comic book with him, but it will be interesting to see how he and Janet shake out. I could totally see a balls to the wall prequel with them, either younger actors or digitally enhanced Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfieffer. On the other hand, the adventures in my head that they have been on are probably better than any movie that could be made.
Before I continue - the reviews by critics have overall been very good, and the fans are on board as well - but one thing I've noticed in Nerd-Land (that awful community on the internet that deigns itself the end all be all of what's good and what isn't in Genre film making) is that the neck-beards have all pretty much said that AM&W is 'good not great'.
I could not disagree more.
Comic Book Girl 19 said "The movie? It's ok." Mr. Sunday Movies said similar.
I say, they're jaded jackasses. (And I actually like them both a lot and watch all their videos).
From beginning to end I was swept away by this new adventure, and the 2 hour + running time felt like an hour tops.
The movie moves like a bat out of hell - yet they don't skimp on the character moments at all. The little girl who plays Cassie (a future superhero as you comic book readers know) is just superb and helps build in even more emotion along with the Janet thread.
Luis is back and even funnier this time, which is crazy, I dreaded them re-doing the lip synched story telling, but here it's even better because they use Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly in the flashbacks! Awesome! Gotta put Michael Douglas and Michell Pfieffer in the next one!
The 'science' is rather absurd and silly at times, like it was in the first movie, but it's so easy to forgive. I look at it in the spirit of the old Marvel Editor-In-Chief Jim Shooter, who used to award a "No-Prize" to comic book readers who would write in a detailed explanations to fill in plot holes
and oversights.
Yes, it's ridiculous that they shrink an office building and then roll it away like a piece of carry on luggage - the miniature building should simply rattle and fall apart as it's rolled along the ground. But, as you may remember from the first movie, they explain that when Scott shrinks he gains strength and power exponentially - I figure the same could probably be said of the lab building. It gets a lot tougher and more resilient when it's miniaturized. So where's my 'No-Prize'? Right?
Other than that bit of plausibility stretching, the rest of the movie holds together very well. I am especially happy that the villains this time around are MUCH more well rounded and believable.
Ghost turns out to be fantastic - and her relationship with Black Goliath is truly something special - he really has adopted her, loves her, and will not go along with her morality bending plans, and best of all Ghost actually listens to him and doesn't betray him! How refreshing is that? I was amazed that Ghost didn't go after Cassie, I groaned when she floated the plan because I knew that's what she was going to do - and then she didn't do it! Awesome! Excited to revisit her character, hope they do bring her back.
The action in this movie is just as good and sometimes even better than the action in the first Ant-Man. Love the kitchen sequence, love the car chase that goes on and on and on! Giant Scott is of course great, stunning visuals of him in San Francisco Bay.
Hanks descent into the quantum realm could not have been done better - I was hoping he would flash into a realistic looking setting like his house - and he does and it's awesome!
Another great great scene - Janet goes into Scott's body. Awesome humor that incredibly also gets emotional! Now that's a hell of an actor who can pull that off - if Paul Rudd had been even a little bit off, the scene simply wouldn't have worked. Outstanding!
So yes, I loved this one - A LOT.
As to where to rank it in my massive MCU ranking list a couple of posts below... well it is tough because the list in my head changes quite a bit every time another movie comes out.
Objectively I think it's fair to say that the first Ant-Man is at least as good as this one, but honestly right now I just want to watch Ant-Man & Wasp over and over! Because it's so new and fresh I feel like it's BETTER in a lot of ways.
I know that passion will cool off eventually, but right now I don't think it's possible for me to put it at the same level or below Ant-Man part 1. I'm going to have to put it in the top 10 for sure, and bump out part 1 down to number 11, also bump down the first Iron man to number 10. Yes, Ant-Man & Wasp is the new number 9!
That's as objective as I can be right now, if I really let my emotions take over I would put the movie in the top 3, but that would be pretty silly. All the movies ranked 1-8 are genuinely objectively better than AM&W - I know this to be true deep down, so I won't dwell or get too goofy.
I would be remiss in this, whatever this is, if I didn't mention the mid-credits scene. What a gut punch! Still, it's pretty clear from Infinity War that the characters who got 'dusted' are all coming back (based on the sequels that are scheduled and some that are already shooting) so I'm not too freaked out. Hopefully Scott Lange will play a major part in Avengers 4!
Monday, May 14, 2018
Leftism is Revolting - I would NEVER be a liberal today.
Honestly, I would never want to be a liberal today. They are just gross.
I used to pride myself on understanding where people on the left were coming from. While they would wring their hands and tear out their hair in anguish and bewilderment at conservatives, I would simply smile and placidly nod my head at their infantile proclamations. Sure they're dumb, but entirely understandable. Liberals just want what the rest of us want - peace and prosperity and a better world for our kids. Right?
No, not really. Not so much these days.
Lately I have been bewildered myself as the left makes less and less sense.
Why attack every single person you disagree with as a racist? It makes no logical sense to castigate and alienate your political opponents. I am confused at this completely irrational impulse that many liberals have these days... disagree with someone? They are VERY LIKELY RACIST.
Senseless. Rather than engage with ideas and critical thinking, simply go for the jugular with the most vile smear you can think of. No thought or conviction required.
The President? Not mine and he should be impeached immediately.
This is rather absurd and entirely unlikely and doesn't seem to be coming from anywhere logical. Rather than engage with ideas and critical thinking, simply deny plain truth and clamor for the destruction of the presidency. No thought or conviction required.
I want democrats to take back the house, senate and the presidency. So I'm going to double down on my identity politics and make things exponentially worse and alienate anyone who might be on the fence - pushing them away and to the right.
This tactic of simply repeating everything that made democrats lose in 2016 is maybe the most nonsensical behavior of all. Why would you re-emphasize everything that pissed off conservatives and yes even the moderates who voted for Obama twice before?
Makes no sense.
I suppose I should be glad, lefties are all but assuring that they will lose again this November, the blue wave is now more of a trickle as polls across even the most liberal of sources are showing it less and less likely that the Dems will retake the house.
Trump keeps winning and winning, and the left keeps helping him by increasing and not decreasing the hyperbole and hyper-anger.
It's one thing to say that a particular politician or celebrity is racist for something they may have said years ago, that's the kind of character assassination the left has always been eager to implement - but it's quite another thing to now call 60 million people racist. Even if this temper tantrum driven declaration were even partially true, why would liberals want to make it worse? What logic is there in spitting in the eye of those you supposedly want to vote for your candidates?
Makes no sense and it makes me feel like I must be missing something, some bigger master plan to bring people together in the end.
But I know this isn't the case - all the left has left now is anger and hate, and it is boiling over and out of control because it's just making things worse for democrats and they simply don't seem to care.
Makes no sense at all.
I used to pride myself on understanding where people on the left were coming from. While they would wring their hands and tear out their hair in anguish and bewilderment at conservatives, I would simply smile and placidly nod my head at their infantile proclamations. Sure they're dumb, but entirely understandable. Liberals just want what the rest of us want - peace and prosperity and a better world for our kids. Right?
No, not really. Not so much these days.
Lately I have been bewildered myself as the left makes less and less sense.
Why attack every single person you disagree with as a racist? It makes no logical sense to castigate and alienate your political opponents. I am confused at this completely irrational impulse that many liberals have these days... disagree with someone? They are VERY LIKELY RACIST.
Senseless. Rather than engage with ideas and critical thinking, simply go for the jugular with the most vile smear you can think of. No thought or conviction required.
The President? Not mine and he should be impeached immediately.
This is rather absurd and entirely unlikely and doesn't seem to be coming from anywhere logical. Rather than engage with ideas and critical thinking, simply deny plain truth and clamor for the destruction of the presidency. No thought or conviction required.
I want democrats to take back the house, senate and the presidency. So I'm going to double down on my identity politics and make things exponentially worse and alienate anyone who might be on the fence - pushing them away and to the right.
This tactic of simply repeating everything that made democrats lose in 2016 is maybe the most nonsensical behavior of all. Why would you re-emphasize everything that pissed off conservatives and yes even the moderates who voted for Obama twice before?
Makes no sense.
I suppose I should be glad, lefties are all but assuring that they will lose again this November, the blue wave is now more of a trickle as polls across even the most liberal of sources are showing it less and less likely that the Dems will retake the house.
Trump keeps winning and winning, and the left keeps helping him by increasing and not decreasing the hyperbole and hyper-anger.
It's one thing to say that a particular politician or celebrity is racist for something they may have said years ago, that's the kind of character assassination the left has always been eager to implement - but it's quite another thing to now call 60 million people racist. Even if this temper tantrum driven declaration were even partially true, why would liberals want to make it worse? What logic is there in spitting in the eye of those you supposedly want to vote for your candidates?
Makes no sense and it makes me feel like I must be missing something, some bigger master plan to bring people together in the end.
But I know this isn't the case - all the left has left now is anger and hate, and it is boiling over and out of control because it's just making things worse for democrats and they simply don't seem to care.
Makes no sense at all.
Wednesday, May 09, 2018
Avengers: Infinity War - "Review"
I use the term "review" loosely. I'm not a critic of these Marvel movies, I'm an unapologetic fan boy who read comic books voraciously from ages 5 through 15 and now I'm in heaven as all the stories and characters I loved as a child have now come to life on the big screen with big budgets and stellar production values. Best of all, they make TONS of money; way more money than there are former comic book readers in the world - so that tells us that everyone, not just us nerds, is deeply in love with these movies.
So - Avengers: Infinity War, where to begin?
I think it's a fantastic movie and it's especially amazing that the filmmakers pulled it off. They were tasked with delivering the first part of a climax that did two things -
1 - Delivered the goods with Thanos, the villain that the MCU has been hyping for nearly a decade.
2 - Included almost every superhero character that we've met during that decade.
It's amazing that AIW succeeds wildly in delivering these two goals and also manages to have a tight and compelling story with lots of emotional moments with the characters that we've all come to love.
Could someone go in to this film and know nothing about Marvel superheroes and still enjoy it? Probably not. Seeing this movie is a conditional experience. It's important that you've seen and enjoyed at least 10 out of 18 of the Marvel movies if you want to have a good time.
It's pretty unusual for a movie to basically require that you've seen previous movies in order to enjoy it. This is not uncommon in television at all. No one in their right mind would sit down to season 7 of Game of Thrones without watching the prior 6 seasons, right? I think it's okay that we have to do our due diligence with other MCU movies first before taking in the massive payoff that is AIW.
The 10 movies that I would say are 100% required viewing to appreciate AIW fully -
Iron Man
Captain America: The First Avenger
Marvel's Avengers
Guardians of the Galaxy
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Captain America: Civil War
Doctor Strange
Spiderman Homecoming
Thor Ragnarok
Black Panther
And this is the bare minimum. That is a lot of movies!
If you want to have the absolute BEST experience with AIW you should of course watch all 18 MCU movies, maybe pass on The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2, I don't know.
So having made it clear that you're not going to get any critical analysis here - let me get into HEAVY SPOILERS and rank and break down all the stuff that I loved.
Top 5 Favorite Characters (& partnerships) -
5. Doctor Strange - the good doctor is front and center in this epic as he should be, a very critical piece to the puzzle; perhaps THE most critical piece in ultimately beating the bad guy. I loved how Dr. Strange interacted with Stark and also loved when he went full on mystical bad ass with the Shiva goddess multiple arm thing.
4. Spider-Man (or non made up name, Peter Parker) - so many great moments with Marvel's most popular superhero. Really dig that we basically carve out a slice from Homecoming on the school bus and then Spidey descends right into the Infinity War stuff. Great humor up in space, utter heartbreak at the end.
3. Rocket and Thor - A most unexpectedly delightful duo that delivers the biggest cheer of the film and also helps greatly in the humor department.
2. Scarlett Witch and Vision - These were my two favorite comic book Avengers, and I have to say that the big screen versions are even better. Olsen finally dispenses with her uneven accent and I don't miss it. Bettany is note perfect in his performance as the android that breaks our hearts in the end.
1. Thanos - best Marvel villain ever period. It's so great that we can not only understand where he is coming from, but we might even catch ourselves agreeing with him for brief moments before we understand the lengths he is willing to go to. After all, who doesn't want peace and prosperity? Thanos is such a VAST improvement over the comic book character, who just wants to bone death, it's not even funny.
Top 5 Favorite Action Set Pieces - (tough to choose, there are so many!)
5. Hulk gets his ass kicked. - Perfect introduction to Thanos. Hulk gets knocked the fuck out and it's amazing.
4. Wanda saves Vis - outstanding and visceral sequence in Edinburgh Scotland. Really enjoyed the location work (though who knows how much of it is real) and the concept of two very powerful Avengers caught off guard and then the female trying to save her man and get away after he is damaged. Satisfying when Cap and his sidekicks show up, though it is a little strange that the three most human and least powerful Avengers have to rescue two of the most powerful.
3. Tony handheld down the street and around the corner - The long unbroken shot when Stark leaves the Sanctorum and walks down Bleeker and comes across a massive donut in the sky, is about as technically impressive as it gets these days. He's almost clobbered by a crashing car along the way, and when we see the big baddies, it's has a very 9/11 feel to it. Spine tingling and powerful. (The fight with Ebony Maw afterwards is great, but a bit shaky and tight for my tastes. Now that I've seen it a few times, I can follow it much better.)
2. Titan team up - Thanos is almost defeated on Titan by Stark and the gang and the action is superb. Especially dig all the various Dr. Strange portals opening up and closing on cue. Boom! Speaking of Quill, of course he has to blow it but oh well.
1. Wakanda. Well duh. Reminded me a bit of the epic War and Peace battle in the Star Wars prequel Phantom Menace, but so so much better in so many ways. Really dug, in no particular order, War Machine's pyrotechnics, Widow and the other ladies going after Proxima Midnight, Cap and T'Challa sprinting so fast they leave the others in the dust, and of course Thor and Rocket/Groot's epic arrival.
Top 5 Jokes -
5. I am sure I am invisible.
4. Are you making your voice deeper? No.
3. I'll do you one better, WHY Gamora.
2. Kick names and take ass.
1. I am Groot. I am Steve Rogers.
Top 5 Favorite Emotional moments -
5. Quill pulls the trigger - So awesome the moment when Gamora confesses her love for Peter. Lump thoroughly lodged in the throat, eyes watering up.
4. Rocket loses Groot - devastating! Tears a' rolling.
3. Thanos kills Gamora - Incredibly powerful, especially the way Thanos grabs Gamora's arm, in the same manner that all parents grab their toddlers in a supermarket when the toddler has a fit. We all lose our tempers as parents, and there's that moment when you grab them and you're mad - you don't stop loving them for an instant, but you do what you have to do. That was the vibe I got from the very deliberate choice of Thanos grabbing his daughter's arm and Gamora fighting back in the manner of a child.
2. Peter fades away - utterly heartbreaking when Peter says he isn't ready to go.
1. Vision convinces Wanda to end it. - This is the one part in the movie that really, really, got me. I cried probably half a dozen times throughout (I cry easily at movies) but Vision mouthing "It's alright..." TWICE and then of course mouthing "I love you..." right before he buys the farm is JUST SO SO GOOD. LOVE the choice to make the words barely audible.
Top 5 Stand Up and Cheer Moments -
5. Paging Captain Marvel - the moment when the logo pops up, WOW!
4. Boom! Quill's middle finger drop.
3. Wakanda forever!
2. The Hilarious and Deadly Bucky/Rocket Spin!
1. Thor arrives with Rocket & Groot in Wakanda. Perfect camera move + perfect music = #1 Stand Up and Cheer moment!
And so yes, I LOVED this movie. As to where to rank it in my list in the below post, we will get to that, but first, some unfortunate but necessary business of pointing out five teeny tiny NERD nitpicks - the handful of things that I can't help but mention didn't quite add up 100%. Because I am a NERD and it is in my NERD DNA.
5. Cap, Black Widow and Falcon rescue Vision and the Scarlett Witch? Really? Yes, I know Vision was injured and Wanda was frantic because of it, but still - she all by herself could easily take out Cap, Tasha and Sam with very little effort.
4. Ebony Maw can bend time and space, but just kick him out the window and HE DEAD. I know this was a big fun moment for the audience, but it seems highly improbable. Silly I know, nitpicking over the plausibility of the death of an entirely fictional character in an entirely fictional universe.
3. Quill kills trillions by going apeshit. Yes, it is very much in his character - and we are all only human, but this seems to be a bit much even for the hotshot known as Star Lord.
2. Cut off a monsters arm with a portal - but don't try that with Thanos, because... er... why not try it?
1. When Itchy plays Scratchy's rib cage like a xylophone he CLEARLY strikes two different ribs and yet the ribs play the same tone. What, are we supposed to believe Scratchy's ribs are a ''magic" xylophone? I really hope someone gets fired over this gaffe.
And so to ranking - I've gone 'deep into the tank' on this one (that's a poker expression, meaning taking a long time to make a decision) and in the end Avengers Infinity War comes out at number 3, right ahead of Winter Soldier and just behind the original Avengers movie.
I really think this is perhaps the most spectacular superhero movie ever made, mainly because it has the best villain ever AND it manages to give every single superhero their due and there are almost 30 superheroes! Crazy! All the action is top notch, the humor is frequent and great, and we genuinely care about these characters very much. They are endeared to us, so when they hurt we hurt. When they die, we feel it, even knowing deep down that most will be back.
The only reason it's not number one is that the first Avengers is self contained - it's not just a part 1, and Guardians is a remarkable movie, period, not just a superhero movie. It's one that I can recommend to anyone, not just fan boys and girls.
So there it is - I've seen the movie 3 times, I can't wait to see it again and again!
So - Avengers: Infinity War, where to begin?
I think it's a fantastic movie and it's especially amazing that the filmmakers pulled it off. They were tasked with delivering the first part of a climax that did two things -
1 - Delivered the goods with Thanos, the villain that the MCU has been hyping for nearly a decade.
2 - Included almost every superhero character that we've met during that decade.
It's amazing that AIW succeeds wildly in delivering these two goals and also manages to have a tight and compelling story with lots of emotional moments with the characters that we've all come to love.
Could someone go in to this film and know nothing about Marvel superheroes and still enjoy it? Probably not. Seeing this movie is a conditional experience. It's important that you've seen and enjoyed at least 10 out of 18 of the Marvel movies if you want to have a good time.
It's pretty unusual for a movie to basically require that you've seen previous movies in order to enjoy it. This is not uncommon in television at all. No one in their right mind would sit down to season 7 of Game of Thrones without watching the prior 6 seasons, right? I think it's okay that we have to do our due diligence with other MCU movies first before taking in the massive payoff that is AIW.
The 10 movies that I would say are 100% required viewing to appreciate AIW fully -
Iron Man
Captain America: The First Avenger
Marvel's Avengers
Guardians of the Galaxy
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Captain America: Civil War
Doctor Strange
Spiderman Homecoming
Thor Ragnarok
Black Panther
And this is the bare minimum. That is a lot of movies!
If you want to have the absolute BEST experience with AIW you should of course watch all 18 MCU movies, maybe pass on The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2, I don't know.
So having made it clear that you're not going to get any critical analysis here - let me get into HEAVY SPOILERS and rank and break down all the stuff that I loved.
Top 5 Favorite Characters (& partnerships) -
5. Doctor Strange - the good doctor is front and center in this epic as he should be, a very critical piece to the puzzle; perhaps THE most critical piece in ultimately beating the bad guy. I loved how Dr. Strange interacted with Stark and also loved when he went full on mystical bad ass with the Shiva goddess multiple arm thing.
4. Spider-Man (or non made up name, Peter Parker) - so many great moments with Marvel's most popular superhero. Really dig that we basically carve out a slice from Homecoming on the school bus and then Spidey descends right into the Infinity War stuff. Great humor up in space, utter heartbreak at the end.
3. Rocket and Thor - A most unexpectedly delightful duo that delivers the biggest cheer of the film and also helps greatly in the humor department.
2. Scarlett Witch and Vision - These were my two favorite comic book Avengers, and I have to say that the big screen versions are even better. Olsen finally dispenses with her uneven accent and I don't miss it. Bettany is note perfect in his performance as the android that breaks our hearts in the end.
1. Thanos - best Marvel villain ever period. It's so great that we can not only understand where he is coming from, but we might even catch ourselves agreeing with him for brief moments before we understand the lengths he is willing to go to. After all, who doesn't want peace and prosperity? Thanos is such a VAST improvement over the comic book character, who just wants to bone death, it's not even funny.
Top 5 Favorite Action Set Pieces - (tough to choose, there are so many!)
5. Hulk gets his ass kicked. - Perfect introduction to Thanos. Hulk gets knocked the fuck out and it's amazing.
4. Wanda saves Vis - outstanding and visceral sequence in Edinburgh Scotland. Really enjoyed the location work (though who knows how much of it is real) and the concept of two very powerful Avengers caught off guard and then the female trying to save her man and get away after he is damaged. Satisfying when Cap and his sidekicks show up, though it is a little strange that the three most human and least powerful Avengers have to rescue two of the most powerful.
3. Tony handheld down the street and around the corner - The long unbroken shot when Stark leaves the Sanctorum and walks down Bleeker and comes across a massive donut in the sky, is about as technically impressive as it gets these days. He's almost clobbered by a crashing car along the way, and when we see the big baddies, it's has a very 9/11 feel to it. Spine tingling and powerful. (The fight with Ebony Maw afterwards is great, but a bit shaky and tight for my tastes. Now that I've seen it a few times, I can follow it much better.)
2. Titan team up - Thanos is almost defeated on Titan by Stark and the gang and the action is superb. Especially dig all the various Dr. Strange portals opening up and closing on cue. Boom! Speaking of Quill, of course he has to blow it but oh well.
1. Wakanda. Well duh. Reminded me a bit of the epic War and Peace battle in the Star Wars prequel Phantom Menace, but so so much better in so many ways. Really dug, in no particular order, War Machine's pyrotechnics, Widow and the other ladies going after Proxima Midnight, Cap and T'Challa sprinting so fast they leave the others in the dust, and of course Thor and Rocket/Groot's epic arrival.
Top 5 Jokes -
5. I am sure I am invisible.
4. Are you making your voice deeper? No.
3. I'll do you one better, WHY Gamora.
2. Kick names and take ass.
1. I am Groot. I am Steve Rogers.
Top 5 Favorite Emotional moments -
5. Quill pulls the trigger - So awesome the moment when Gamora confesses her love for Peter. Lump thoroughly lodged in the throat, eyes watering up.
4. Rocket loses Groot - devastating! Tears a' rolling.
3. Thanos kills Gamora - Incredibly powerful, especially the way Thanos grabs Gamora's arm, in the same manner that all parents grab their toddlers in a supermarket when the toddler has a fit. We all lose our tempers as parents, and there's that moment when you grab them and you're mad - you don't stop loving them for an instant, but you do what you have to do. That was the vibe I got from the very deliberate choice of Thanos grabbing his daughter's arm and Gamora fighting back in the manner of a child.
2. Peter fades away - utterly heartbreaking when Peter says he isn't ready to go.
1. Vision convinces Wanda to end it. - This is the one part in the movie that really, really, got me. I cried probably half a dozen times throughout (I cry easily at movies) but Vision mouthing "It's alright..." TWICE and then of course mouthing "I love you..." right before he buys the farm is JUST SO SO GOOD. LOVE the choice to make the words barely audible.
Top 5 Stand Up and Cheer Moments -
5. Paging Captain Marvel - the moment when the logo pops up, WOW!
4. Boom! Quill's middle finger drop.
3. Wakanda forever!
2. The Hilarious and Deadly Bucky/Rocket Spin!
1. Thor arrives with Rocket & Groot in Wakanda. Perfect camera move + perfect music = #1 Stand Up and Cheer moment!
And so yes, I LOVED this movie. As to where to rank it in my list in the below post, we will get to that, but first, some unfortunate but necessary business of pointing out five teeny tiny NERD nitpicks - the handful of things that I can't help but mention didn't quite add up 100%. Because I am a NERD and it is in my NERD DNA.
5. Cap, Black Widow and Falcon rescue Vision and the Scarlett Witch? Really? Yes, I know Vision was injured and Wanda was frantic because of it, but still - she all by herself could easily take out Cap, Tasha and Sam with very little effort.
4. Ebony Maw can bend time and space, but just kick him out the window and HE DEAD. I know this was a big fun moment for the audience, but it seems highly improbable. Silly I know, nitpicking over the plausibility of the death of an entirely fictional character in an entirely fictional universe.
3. Quill kills trillions by going apeshit. Yes, it is very much in his character - and we are all only human, but this seems to be a bit much even for the hotshot known as Star Lord.
2. Cut off a monsters arm with a portal - but don't try that with Thanos, because... er... why not try it?
1. When Itchy plays Scratchy's rib cage like a xylophone he CLEARLY strikes two different ribs and yet the ribs play the same tone. What, are we supposed to believe Scratchy's ribs are a ''magic" xylophone? I really hope someone gets fired over this gaffe.
And so to ranking - I've gone 'deep into the tank' on this one (that's a poker expression, meaning taking a long time to make a decision) and in the end Avengers Infinity War comes out at number 3, right ahead of Winter Soldier and just behind the original Avengers movie.
I really think this is perhaps the most spectacular superhero movie ever made, mainly because it has the best villain ever AND it manages to give every single superhero their due and there are almost 30 superheroes! Crazy! All the action is top notch, the humor is frequent and great, and we genuinely care about these characters very much. They are endeared to us, so when they hurt we hurt. When they die, we feel it, even knowing deep down that most will be back.
The only reason it's not number one is that the first Avengers is self contained - it's not just a part 1, and Guardians is a remarkable movie, period, not just a superhero movie. It's one that I can recommend to anyone, not just fan boys and girls.
So there it is - I've seen the movie 3 times, I can't wait to see it again and again!
 |
| Warning: May not have actually happened. |
Monday, April 30, 2018
All MCU Movies Ranked! EDIT 2021: ALL 27 OF THEM!
Keep in mind, I'm an unapologetic fanboy - I love all of these movies, the very worst of them I consider above average entertainment. I prefer giving movies letter grades like we have in school - and the first three on this list would be a B - .
Also Keep in mind - there are some spoilers in the movie rankings below.
Without further ado, something I've wanted to do for ages - rank them all!
UPDATED JAN 28, 2022
27. The Incredible Hulk
This one suffers from a feeling of disconnect from the rest of the MCU, mainly because of the woeful miscasting of Ed Norton who we never see again. Mr. Norton is a phenomenal actor, he is NOT Bruce Banner in any way shape or form. Rumor is that he took over on the set and basically directed and wrote it as filming went along - judging by the final product, I believe it.
The plot in this one is only slightly less muddled than the very problematic Ang Lee film "Hulk", but the pacing and the characters at least are much more sharply defined and clear. It does sort of shit the bed at the end, though not nearly as spectacularly as Lee's version.
I'm sort of glad that this movie is not an origin story, but another part of me wishes they had done it correctly from the get go, an expertly done story of the beginning of the Hulk would have been something to see.
26. Iron Man 2
This one is a mess and doesn't have but a handful of action set pieces, the last one being a dissapointing gobbledygook of a different Rodes flying around somewhat at random. Weak sauce.
The good news - IM2 does bring us Scar Jo's Black Widow. The bad news, and I know this seems like a nitpick, but I can't seem to get over it - she has ridiculously long and curly hair. Black Widow would NEVER have such a ridiculous coif. "Hey you baddies, need something to grab? I know I don't have a silly cape, I'm in a skin tight catsuit for stealth and quickness - but how about you just grab on to this here 'do? Go on, grab it!"
Absurd.
Mickey Rourke is criminally underused and a lousy villain who turns out to be not much of a threat at all. Pointless.
All the same, held up against previous super hero movies pre-MCU, this one beats almost all of them still.
25. Thor
Yes, I'm going to catch flack for this one; I rank it way lower than most Marvel movie lovers. I'm sorry, Thor is just boring. He was boring in the comics and he's boring here.
Some fun stuff on earth with the whole fish out of water thing, and Natalie Portman is fantastic, but the entire time we are in Asgard I just want to curl up and go to sleep.
24. Eternals
23. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the 10 Rings
Also Keep in mind - there are some spoilers in the movie rankings below.
Without further ado, something I've wanted to do for ages - rank them all!
UPDATED JAN 28, 2022
27. The Incredible Hulk
This one suffers from a feeling of disconnect from the rest of the MCU, mainly because of the woeful miscasting of Ed Norton who we never see again. Mr. Norton is a phenomenal actor, he is NOT Bruce Banner in any way shape or form. Rumor is that he took over on the set and basically directed and wrote it as filming went along - judging by the final product, I believe it.
The plot in this one is only slightly less muddled than the very problematic Ang Lee film "Hulk", but the pacing and the characters at least are much more sharply defined and clear. It does sort of shit the bed at the end, though not nearly as spectacularly as Lee's version.
I'm sort of glad that this movie is not an origin story, but another part of me wishes they had done it correctly from the get go, an expertly done story of the beginning of the Hulk would have been something to see.
26. Iron Man 2
This one is a mess and doesn't have but a handful of action set pieces, the last one being a dissapointing gobbledygook of a different Rodes flying around somewhat at random. Weak sauce.
The good news - IM2 does bring us Scar Jo's Black Widow. The bad news, and I know this seems like a nitpick, but I can't seem to get over it - she has ridiculously long and curly hair. Black Widow would NEVER have such a ridiculous coif. "Hey you baddies, need something to grab? I know I don't have a silly cape, I'm in a skin tight catsuit for stealth and quickness - but how about you just grab on to this here 'do? Go on, grab it!"
Absurd.
Mickey Rourke is criminally underused and a lousy villain who turns out to be not much of a threat at all. Pointless.
All the same, held up against previous super hero movies pre-MCU, this one beats almost all of them still.
25. Thor
Yes, I'm going to catch flack for this one; I rank it way lower than most Marvel movie lovers. I'm sorry, Thor is just boring. He was boring in the comics and he's boring here.
Some fun stuff on earth with the whole fish out of water thing, and Natalie Portman is fantastic, but the entire time we are in Asgard I just want to curl up and go to sleep.
24. Eternals
Didn't write a full review of this one - but just because I didn't, and just because this one is ranked near the bottom of this list - doesn't mean I didn't like it. I did like it, a lot. I just didn't LOVE it like so many others on this list.
What I enjoyed the most - was the big question philosophical stuff. This movie is about God and our perception of God and the consequences and questions that arise when we go against God. Heady material for sure, and quite unlike any other MCU movie.
I was also greatly relieved that there really wasn't much, if any, "woke" preachiness to be found. Yes, there was a gay couple, but that didn't really factor into much of anything, other than ticking a box - which is fine by me. Don't care. The bigger point is that the relationship was centered around one of the Eternals and it was his family that he loved. Cool. Whatever.
Save for this one virtue signal, there wasn't really any other finger wagging in the story, which overall was interesting enough to hold my attention.
It is a tough order for audiences to care for characters that we've never heard of - and although the Eternals are no small part of Jack Kirby's legacy, I have to confess that even this fairly serious comic book reader as a kid and teenager, had never heard of any of them. Still, I did find myself invested enough.
Like all MCU movies, this one is VERY dense. I've seen it twice, and I do want to see it again, just so I can absorb more details and plot points. Whether you are an MCU fan or not, I think there's a lot here to chew on, and I can recommend it fairly confidently.
23. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the 10 Rings
So I never got around to writing a full review of this one, and you're probably assuming I hated it because it's ranked so low.
Actually, I liked it a whole heck of a lot - and I loved the first half of this movie. It has two monstrously strong action sequences. The stronger of the two is the bus fight, which is one of my all time favorite MCU action set pieces.
I also really like the cast and the characters and the acting. The lead is a little milquetoast but that's ok, his sidekick Aquafina is fantastic and brings all the heart and humor that we need and expect from the MCU.
The villain, whoever he is, is a tremendous actor and brings the entire film up to a higher level which helps a lot with the mediocre story and the unimpressive final act.
Yes, that final act is what really disappoints with this one. It just devolves into a giant CG battle, and it's hampered by Aquafina's sudden expert marksmanship which feels really out of left field and unearned.
I feel that there was a much better way to do this, rather than have the battle take place the next day after Shin and Aqua arrive, why not have it a year or two later? Time could pass differently in that realm or something. If you're going to have last minute heroics from a non super-hero character, make it at least plausible.
In any case, that's my one disappointment - the final act, but there was tons to love before that and I am excited about a sequel and/or Shin's/Aqua's integration into the MCU
21. Thor: The Dark World
Like this one a lot more than the first Thor, and rank it much better than most MCU critics who typically put this one squarely at the bottom of the list.
Natalie Portman makes this movie for me - her scenes, with Thor and with her friend, are a hoot.
The Dark Elves are kind of 'meh' in a DCU sort of way - the Ether is a lame McGuffin, but it still works I guess and most of the rest of the movie is a lot of fun, especially Loki who is as intriguing as ever. Thank goodness we spend a good deal of time not in Asgard.
20. Captain America: The First Avenger
My dear friend Allen will want to choke me out for ranking this one so low - but as I said, from this point on I love all of these films - and I truly do love this one.
My favorite stuff is Steve Rogers pre-super serum, Peggy Carter who is a magnificent choice for Cap's 'girl' and Cap in the USO shows. Fantastic.
Less impressive to me is the convoluted Howling Commando sequences, the thoroughly unconvincing death of Bucky (doesn't help that I know the comics so well) and Red Skull who is as much of a mustache twirler as has ever been in the MCU.
I do love the ending - it's emotional and powerful.
19. Iron Man 3
Lots of hate out there for this one in the internet nerd world - mostly because of the twist on the Mandarin character. I for one think this is a brilliant choice and I love it! There's also lots of other stuff to love here - Pepper Potts is great for once, love when she is in the suit (that whole sequence is awesome) and she makes a great damsel who is not too much in distress.
Love the idea of Stark having to pay for the sins of his past. Love the kid and the sub-plot with him. Thoroughly enjoy Tony attacking the compound sans Iron suit. And of course the airplane sequence is spectacular.
Not so crazy about the final action sequence - it does have some fun moments, but it's also quite a bit confusing and frantic, and I simply don't buy that Tony is destroying all his suits and all his work. It's silly and seems like lip service to Pepper, which as we find out, it totally is.
18. Avengers: Age of Ultron
Crazy to me that this one ranks so low. Nerds on the internet were disappointed, I really wasn't, it's just that from here on out the MCU movies are so SO GOOD, that this one has to go somewhere. It is the last solid "B" on my list, after this, they are B+ and up.
I love the party scene before Ultron shows up - MCU character exploration at it's best,
I love Paul Bettany's Vision, in the brief screen time he gets, he is about as perfect as the character as I could ever have hoped. The shot of him saving Wanda is just sublime.
The entire Sakovia sequence has some of the best action gags ever done in a Marvel movie. Joss knows his geography when shooting action and it shows. Just awesome awesome stuff.
The glaring exception is the death of Quicksilver. I love the story choice, I hate the execution. He gets shot, really? Very sloppy and not believable.
Again, Tony is quitting. Lame. We all know he's not. Not emotionally resonant at all. That ending line from Steve Rogers though, or rather partial line, pretty dang cool.
17. Guardians of the Galaxy 2
I love this movie - it is a spectacular character study, giving each member of the Guardians (and a new one) an emotional journey to undertake in which they all grow and change. Very unexpected and very daring, but James Gunn pulls it off.
We know we are in for something different when the entire opening action sequence is thrown out of focus right away and put in the background while we watch little baby Groot dancing around happily. Good stuff.
Love the Ravagers raiding the Milano in the woods. Thoroughly enjoyed Yandu's revenge on his old crew, gruesome as it was. Gamora and Nebula have the best scene when they finally break down and recognize that they are stuck with each other. Really great.
Less impressive was Ego's story line, I mean I get it - it does work, but it also seems rather abrupt, Ego all the sudden mean and nasty. Seems like he would've been more sly about hooking into Quill, but I give it a pass to a point because the final action sequence is so awesome.
Love baby Groot and Rocket teaching him how to set off the bomb timer - hate that it was spoiled in the trailer.
Love Yondu's Mary Poppin's line because it works on so many levels. Yeah, Mary Poppins is pretty damn cool, she really is! It's a self aware, fourth wall breaking moment that just makes the Disney / Marvel fan in me want to stand up and cheer!
Yondu's death is emotional and effecting, but not perfect. I wish we had a longer flashback when Quill is reflecting on what matters before he does away with Ego; that for me is one of the most spine tingling moments, to see Peter with Yondu as a kid, to see him flying with Rocket, to see his mom - ugh! I wanted more!
16. Captain Marvel
It kind of sucks that there was so much internet bullshit surrounding this one - both from in-cel neckbeards and from misguided conservatives who brought all of their emotional and political baggage to this very straightforward cosmic adventure that features a fantastic Brie Larson as the modern incarnation of Carol Danvers in the incarnation that many of us know and love from a relatively recent comic book run written and drawn by Kelly Sue DeConnick.
Truly, it is a rip roaring, and sometimes heartstring pulling yarn about our favorite Air Force captain - this time around she has amnesia - which isn't my favorite story telling device, but it works here because most of the audience isn't familiar with who she is either, and so it's an effective way for all of us (including Carol) to get to know her.
As for the internet nonsense - I really don't get it. Life is political enough, I don't need to inject politics into a movie where it doesn't really exist; and that's what I think is going on here. Look, I get it, in real life Brie Larson is a political ding-dong. So what? That doesn't mean the movie has one of her idiotic political agendas, or that the character of Captain Marvel is a 'Mary Sue' (the dumbest concept from the right as of late). Captain Marvel is a fun movie that moves right along and does a great job at straddling the line between earth bound adventure and the Marvel cosmic scene.
I love the young Sam Jackson (amazing) and his chemistry with Brie just crackles - in a totally plutonic way that works. Love Jude Law as the sniveling Kree, and it's great to see him finally dealt with properly at the end. And of course I love Ben Mendelsohn as Talos who brings the funny to his misunderstood Skrull character.
15. Ant-Man
A tremendous caper movie that also happens to have eye popping special effects and a healthy dose of the best kind of humor. Who knew that a thoroughly outstanding Ant-Man Movie of all things would be in our lives? It is truly a great time to be a super hero fan!
Love Hope Van Dyne. Love Scott's first round with the suit. The visuals are simply awesome.
Love Michael Pena's overdubbed stories from the hood. So damn funny.
Michael Douglas rocks. Young Michael Douglas, HOW did they do that? Awesome.
Best of all, the entire third act and ending are simply amazing. The movie drags just a bit in the middle, but man does it finish strong. This is something that all the MCU movies have in common from here on out, they all pretty much stick the landing - which we all know is one of the toughest things to do on the movie screen.
14. Iron Man
Probably will be ranked higher by most. I loved this when it came out, it was my favorite super hero movie of all times by a lot - (Dark Knight and Raimi's Spider Man 2 were the closest but all others fell far behind) - and I'm super impressed that 9 other movies since are even better.
The first act is about as perfect as it gets though, Tony's struggle in the cave, culminating in his escape is a sequence I could watch over and over again. Actually, I have.
Working on and perfecting the suit once he's back home is also great. Lots of opportunities for what would become and MCU staple - humor done broad but plausible.
My favorite scene by far is when Tony goes back to the Middle East and dispatches the terrorists. Just awesome.
Like this Brody a lot, a shame Terrance Howard was such a tool in real life. He's great in the role.
Less appealing to me is Jeff Bridges villain, very predictable, and the third act alas is not as strong as the rest of the story. Still, it is not a shitting of the bed by any means.
This one will always be a classic, because it was the one that was done first - and paved the way for all the awesomeness that was to follow.
13. Spider-Man: Far From Home
This one is a blast and a half! Not quite as strong as the first MCU Spider-Man installment, FFH still manages to bring the excitement and freshness only as the MCU can.
Jake Gyllenhaal is truly the very best choice for the very best until-now unused villain in the Marvel pantheon - Mysterio! Everything here works; from the faithful costume design (which works perfectly as a 'manufactured' costume to mock) to Mysterio's half-cocked scheme that he executes perfectly as he transforms from a nice guy who you want to have a beer into a snake who is incredibly dangerous.
Love the relationships here - Ned and the blonde chick are hilarious! "Thanks babe!" And Peter and MJ, the whole thing works really well - better than it did in Homecoming.
Love the location work, it gives the movie a much bigger epic feel than the story warrants.
The best stuff is with Happy and Peter on the jet, and the climactic fight is a "marvel" (see what I did there) in visual FX and editing. Beautifully done! Can't wait to see how they deal with the shocking reveal in the mid-credits tag! Great to see JK though!
1. Avengers: Endgame
Well this may change in the future - but as of right now Avengers: Endgame is for sure my absolute favorite MCU entry. It is the culmination and the payoff for over a decades worth of movies - and boy does it deliver!
Be sure to read my entire review - HERE, to learn why I love it so so much!!!
Well, there it is, how I see and rank the MCU. I imagine this list will keep changing for the rest of my life, as Disney I'm sure has no plans to stop cranking these movies out anytime soon!
22 Black Panther
Of all the rankings here, I know this one will be the most controversial. People LOVE this movie. One of the biggest reactions by the audience when I saw Infinity War on opening night was when we arrived in Wakanda. I too absolutley love this movie, I just happen to love it a little less than the ones ranked above it.
One of the movie's biggest drawbacks for me is the lack of action - there are only two big sequences. Granted, they are both excellent, especially the first one in Korea. Very very cool with Tchalla's virtual driving sister and the Kingsguard lady kicking ass with her Vibranium spear. But I really wish we had more. The middle of the film drags a bit.
The movie's greatest strength is for sure it's emotional power - seeing a prospering African country is very moving. When the King is "killed" it is a heartbreaking sequence. It all works.
I also especially love Michael B. Jordon, up until Infinity War he was easily the best MCU villain of all time. He is outstanding in every way.
My favorite scene in the entire movie is when Killmonger visits his late father and it's in the old Oakland apartment. Powerful stuff.
The final battle between T'Challa and Killmonger on the railway is okay, not fantastic. Killmonger's death is done beautifully though.
As for the films politics, they are not why this falls lower on my list. I truthfully didn't see what some of my conservative friends saw - if anything the movie preached mostly conservative values. Personal responsibility first and foremost. It was also a celebration of masculinity, the King was indeed just that, a very strong and bold leader. It also presented women as strong, but in a different way. When T'Challa decides it's time to give back, he's not giving anything away - he's setting up programs for people to work and earn a better life for themselves. I enjoyed it all very much.
That said, I could've done with a bit more action and trimming of the dialogue. There was a lot of talking in this one. While T'Challa's death was staged very well and was very powerful, his return seemed clumsy and almost an afterthought. The two women and the white dude wander into the snow tribe and whoops, there he is! Okay.
Of all the rankings here, I know this one will be the most controversial. People LOVE this movie. One of the biggest reactions by the audience when I saw Infinity War on opening night was when we arrived in Wakanda. I too absolutley love this movie, I just happen to love it a little less than the ones ranked above it.
One of the movie's biggest drawbacks for me is the lack of action - there are only two big sequences. Granted, they are both excellent, especially the first one in Korea. Very very cool with Tchalla's virtual driving sister and the Kingsguard lady kicking ass with her Vibranium spear. But I really wish we had more. The middle of the film drags a bit.
The movie's greatest strength is for sure it's emotional power - seeing a prospering African country is very moving. When the King is "killed" it is a heartbreaking sequence. It all works.
I also especially love Michael B. Jordon, up until Infinity War he was easily the best MCU villain of all time. He is outstanding in every way.
My favorite scene in the entire movie is when Killmonger visits his late father and it's in the old Oakland apartment. Powerful stuff.
The final battle between T'Challa and Killmonger on the railway is okay, not fantastic. Killmonger's death is done beautifully though.
As for the films politics, they are not why this falls lower on my list. I truthfully didn't see what some of my conservative friends saw - if anything the movie preached mostly conservative values. Personal responsibility first and foremost. It was also a celebration of masculinity, the King was indeed just that, a very strong and bold leader. It also presented women as strong, but in a different way. When T'Challa decides it's time to give back, he's not giving anything away - he's setting up programs for people to work and earn a better life for themselves. I enjoyed it all very much.
That said, I could've done with a bit more action and trimming of the dialogue. There was a lot of talking in this one. While T'Challa's death was staged very well and was very powerful, his return seemed clumsy and almost an afterthought. The two women and the white dude wander into the snow tribe and whoops, there he is! Okay.
21. Thor: The Dark World
Like this one a lot more than the first Thor, and rank it much better than most MCU critics who typically put this one squarely at the bottom of the list.
Natalie Portman makes this movie for me - her scenes, with Thor and with her friend, are a hoot.
The Dark Elves are kind of 'meh' in a DCU sort of way - the Ether is a lame McGuffin, but it still works I guess and most of the rest of the movie is a lot of fun, especially Loki who is as intriguing as ever. Thank goodness we spend a good deal of time not in Asgard.
20. Captain America: The First Avenger
My dear friend Allen will want to choke me out for ranking this one so low - but as I said, from this point on I love all of these films - and I truly do love this one.
My favorite stuff is Steve Rogers pre-super serum, Peggy Carter who is a magnificent choice for Cap's 'girl' and Cap in the USO shows. Fantastic.
Less impressive to me is the convoluted Howling Commando sequences, the thoroughly unconvincing death of Bucky (doesn't help that I know the comics so well) and Red Skull who is as much of a mustache twirler as has ever been in the MCU.
I do love the ending - it's emotional and powerful.
19. Iron Man 3
Lots of hate out there for this one in the internet nerd world - mostly because of the twist on the Mandarin character. I for one think this is a brilliant choice and I love it! There's also lots of other stuff to love here - Pepper Potts is great for once, love when she is in the suit (that whole sequence is awesome) and she makes a great damsel who is not too much in distress.
Love the idea of Stark having to pay for the sins of his past. Love the kid and the sub-plot with him. Thoroughly enjoy Tony attacking the compound sans Iron suit. And of course the airplane sequence is spectacular.
Not so crazy about the final action sequence - it does have some fun moments, but it's also quite a bit confusing and frantic, and I simply don't buy that Tony is destroying all his suits and all his work. It's silly and seems like lip service to Pepper, which as we find out, it totally is.
18. Avengers: Age of Ultron
Crazy to me that this one ranks so low. Nerds on the internet were disappointed, I really wasn't, it's just that from here on out the MCU movies are so SO GOOD, that this one has to go somewhere. It is the last solid "B" on my list, after this, they are B+ and up.
I love the party scene before Ultron shows up - MCU character exploration at it's best,
I love Paul Bettany's Vision, in the brief screen time he gets, he is about as perfect as the character as I could ever have hoped. The shot of him saving Wanda is just sublime.
The entire Sakovia sequence has some of the best action gags ever done in a Marvel movie. Joss knows his geography when shooting action and it shows. Just awesome awesome stuff.
The glaring exception is the death of Quicksilver. I love the story choice, I hate the execution. He gets shot, really? Very sloppy and not believable.
Again, Tony is quitting. Lame. We all know he's not. Not emotionally resonant at all. That ending line from Steve Rogers though, or rather partial line, pretty dang cool.
17. Guardians of the Galaxy 2
I love this movie - it is a spectacular character study, giving each member of the Guardians (and a new one) an emotional journey to undertake in which they all grow and change. Very unexpected and very daring, but James Gunn pulls it off.
We know we are in for something different when the entire opening action sequence is thrown out of focus right away and put in the background while we watch little baby Groot dancing around happily. Good stuff.
Love the Ravagers raiding the Milano in the woods. Thoroughly enjoyed Yandu's revenge on his old crew, gruesome as it was. Gamora and Nebula have the best scene when they finally break down and recognize that they are stuck with each other. Really great.
Less impressive was Ego's story line, I mean I get it - it does work, but it also seems rather abrupt, Ego all the sudden mean and nasty. Seems like he would've been more sly about hooking into Quill, but I give it a pass to a point because the final action sequence is so awesome.
Love baby Groot and Rocket teaching him how to set off the bomb timer - hate that it was spoiled in the trailer.
Love Yondu's Mary Poppin's line because it works on so many levels. Yeah, Mary Poppins is pretty damn cool, she really is! It's a self aware, fourth wall breaking moment that just makes the Disney / Marvel fan in me want to stand up and cheer!
Yondu's death is emotional and effecting, but not perfect. I wish we had a longer flashback when Quill is reflecting on what matters before he does away with Ego; that for me is one of the most spine tingling moments, to see Peter with Yondu as a kid, to see him flying with Rocket, to see his mom - ugh! I wanted more!
16. Captain Marvel
It kind of sucks that there was so much internet bullshit surrounding this one - both from in-cel neckbeards and from misguided conservatives who brought all of their emotional and political baggage to this very straightforward cosmic adventure that features a fantastic Brie Larson as the modern incarnation of Carol Danvers in the incarnation that many of us know and love from a relatively recent comic book run written and drawn by Kelly Sue DeConnick.
Truly, it is a rip roaring, and sometimes heartstring pulling yarn about our favorite Air Force captain - this time around she has amnesia - which isn't my favorite story telling device, but it works here because most of the audience isn't familiar with who she is either, and so it's an effective way for all of us (including Carol) to get to know her.
As for the internet nonsense - I really don't get it. Life is political enough, I don't need to inject politics into a movie where it doesn't really exist; and that's what I think is going on here. Look, I get it, in real life Brie Larson is a political ding-dong. So what? That doesn't mean the movie has one of her idiotic political agendas, or that the character of Captain Marvel is a 'Mary Sue' (the dumbest concept from the right as of late). Captain Marvel is a fun movie that moves right along and does a great job at straddling the line between earth bound adventure and the Marvel cosmic scene.
I love the young Sam Jackson (amazing) and his chemistry with Brie just crackles - in a totally plutonic way that works. Love Jude Law as the sniveling Kree, and it's great to see him finally dealt with properly at the end. And of course I love Ben Mendelsohn as Talos who brings the funny to his misunderstood Skrull character.
15. Ant-Man
A tremendous caper movie that also happens to have eye popping special effects and a healthy dose of the best kind of humor. Who knew that a thoroughly outstanding Ant-Man Movie of all things would be in our lives? It is truly a great time to be a super hero fan!
Love Hope Van Dyne. Love Scott's first round with the suit. The visuals are simply awesome.
Love Michael Pena's overdubbed stories from the hood. So damn funny.
Michael Douglas rocks. Young Michael Douglas, HOW did they do that? Awesome.
Best of all, the entire third act and ending are simply amazing. The movie drags just a bit in the middle, but man does it finish strong. This is something that all the MCU movies have in common from here on out, they all pretty much stick the landing - which we all know is one of the toughest things to do on the movie screen.
14. Iron Man
Probably will be ranked higher by most. I loved this when it came out, it was my favorite super hero movie of all times by a lot - (Dark Knight and Raimi's Spider Man 2 were the closest but all others fell far behind) - and I'm super impressed that 9 other movies since are even better.
The first act is about as perfect as it gets though, Tony's struggle in the cave, culminating in his escape is a sequence I could watch over and over again. Actually, I have.
Working on and perfecting the suit once he's back home is also great. Lots of opportunities for what would become and MCU staple - humor done broad but plausible.
My favorite scene by far is when Tony goes back to the Middle East and dispatches the terrorists. Just awesome.
Like this Brody a lot, a shame Terrance Howard was such a tool in real life. He's great in the role.
Less appealing to me is Jeff Bridges villain, very predictable, and the third act alas is not as strong as the rest of the story. Still, it is not a shitting of the bed by any means.
This one will always be a classic, because it was the one that was done first - and paved the way for all the awesomeness that was to follow.
13. Spider-Man: Far From Home
This one is a blast and a half! Not quite as strong as the first MCU Spider-Man installment, FFH still manages to bring the excitement and freshness only as the MCU can.
Jake Gyllenhaal is truly the very best choice for the very best until-now unused villain in the Marvel pantheon - Mysterio! Everything here works; from the faithful costume design (which works perfectly as a 'manufactured' costume to mock) to Mysterio's half-cocked scheme that he executes perfectly as he transforms from a nice guy who you want to have a beer into a snake who is incredibly dangerous.
Love the relationships here - Ned and the blonde chick are hilarious! "Thanks babe!" And Peter and MJ, the whole thing works really well - better than it did in Homecoming.
Love the location work, it gives the movie a much bigger epic feel than the story warrants.
The best stuff is with Happy and Peter on the jet, and the climactic fight is a "marvel" (see what I did there) in visual FX and editing. Beautifully done! Can't wait to see how they deal with the shocking reveal in the mid-credits tag! Great to see JK though!
12. Black Widow
Loved this and had ZERO problems with the character choices and wasn't at all threatened by the girrrlll power on display. Great flick with a strong message, worthy of Natasha's legacy.
Wrote a full review for this one - be sure to check it out by clicking here!
11. Ant-Man & The Wasp
Love this one so much! Be sure to read my 'review' a couple of posts up. So much humor and heart! So many great visual gags and superb action sequences! We really are in a Golden Age of comic book movies!
10. Doctor Strange
Damn is this a great movie or what!? Cumberbatch is stellar - the story moves and benefits greatly from the casting as well. Love McAdams so much in her small but crucial role. Tilda is dope. The guy who plays Wong is great. Mordo also is sufficiently menacing by the end.
This movie also has some of my favorite action sequences ever - the fight at Bleeker Street is both dynamic and super creative - and a hell of a lot of fun. The culmination of that scene with McAdams in the hospital might be my favorite Marvel fight ever. Just great great stuff.
The final battle is ingenious and hilarious at the same time. "I've come to bargain!" I love it!
9. Spiderman Homecoming
So much to love here. Tom Holland is note perfect - even though he's a Brit, I have to forgive him because he's so good.
It's the characters that make me love this movie so much. Peter and his friends actually seem like almost real people. Peter's relationship with Stark is also powerfully grounded. When Tony is disappointed, we really feel it!
The action sequences are top notch - but my favorite scene by far in the film is one that takes place in a car with just a few lines of dialogue. Magnificent acting and a perfectly delivered script.
Michael Keaton forever ends the MCU villain curse - he's simply outstanding as the very real and very human Vulture.
8. Thor: Ragnarok
The best time I've had at the movies in a long long time. Funny from the first frame to the last. The MCU's first and hopefully not only full on comedy. The director Tai Wakiti (sp?) is some kind of mad genius because he manages to combine all of my favorite things - outrageous Sci-Fi, irreverent and self aware superhero characters, and a healthy dose of emotional resonance into a thoroughly enjoyable and totally trippy comic book come to life.
I want to be Korg! He has the best outlook on life, like, ever.
"Hey man, we're going to go see this funny movie about Thor and stuff. Wanna come?"
Oh yeah, and Thor is NOT boring! He's now awesome! He was showing signs of promise in Dark World, but Chris Hemsworth really busts it open here and now we have a Thor that we can love and appreciate as someone truly special. I thought I would really miss Natalie Portman's Jane Foster, but honestly, I'm shocked that I don't!
I have been falling for 30 minutes!
The villain Hela is pretty good, but it's everyone and everything around her (Karl Urban for one) that makes this movie great. I love the colors, the sets, the music. And I LOVE this version of Hulk so so much!
Hulk like raging fire, Thor more like smoulder....
7. Captain America Civil War
If you had told my 12 year old self back in the day that there would be 3 outstanding big budget full on Captain America feature films that captured hearts and minds all over the world - I probably would've laughed in your face. Anyone remember the Captain America movie in the 1980's? Google it sometime if you want to be depressed.
Civil War is outstanding from beginning to end, and almost like an Avengers 2.5 movie. But it is in the end, the Cap's story.
Love the opening action sequence so so much. Great to see the Avengers kicking ass (for the most part) as a team.
Of course the highlight is the middle third of this movie - the airport sequence is legendary. A splash page comic book come to life before our eyes in a way we could never imagine. Just amazing.
Love Cap's character arch - from Peggy's death (very moving), to his new girlfriend (touching) to his letting go of his old friends (heartbreaking). I really do believe this is Captain America's movie in every way that matters.
The ending is stirring and emotionally draining - the very best of the MCU.
The remaining movies are a solid A.
(A+ is reserved for like, 3 of my favorite movies of all times. Not spilling those here.)
6. Captain America Winter Soldier
5. Avengers: Infinity War
Read the above post for all the reasons why this one ends up here!
4. Marvel's The Avengers
Everything works so well - it's an incredibly satisfying culmination of phase 1 that brings us something we've never seen before on the big screen. Multiple mighty heroes fighting side by side with incredible production values and visual effects. The entire NY sequence still gives me the chills - I could watch that gladiator style dolly move around our heroes over and over again and never get tired of it.
Best of all, Joss Whedon brings his patented humor and whip-smart dialogue to the party, making this one fun for everyone, not just comic book lovers. No wonder it is still near the top of the MCU list in box office success.
This is when my deep like of Black Widow turned into love - when Cap gives her that boost, oh man is that something else! Chills EVERY TIME.
The hellicarrier stuff is also great - the movie never really missteps or gets bogged down. So much to enjoy from start to finish.
And who is that purple dude at the end?
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
I said it at the time, and I still pretty much believe it - this movie is this generation's Star Wars. Yes, it's that good.
The Guardians of the Galaxy were an obscure comic book back in the day, and had a few incarnations that never really saw too much success.
James Gunn said he could make something great out of them and thank God Kevin Fiege believed him.
The result is a spectacular space opera with a huge amount of humor and an even bigger helping of heart. The music helps the story soar, a story that is yet another super hero origin thing, but it really is something special.
All of the team members are broken in one way or another, and we get to journey with them as they learn to let go of their pain and grab onto each other as a family. It's fun, it's frenetic, and best of all it's emotionally resonant.
When people ask me which MCU movie I would recommend for someone who doesn't care about comics - this one is by FAR the first on my list. It has universal appeal and themes. You don't need to be a nerd to love it.
Love the dance off and the climax of the movie SO MUCH!!!!
2. Spider-Man: No Way Home
Love this one so much! Be sure to read my 'review' a couple of posts up. So much humor and heart! So many great visual gags and superb action sequences! We really are in a Golden Age of comic book movies!
10. Doctor Strange
Damn is this a great movie or what!? Cumberbatch is stellar - the story moves and benefits greatly from the casting as well. Love McAdams so much in her small but crucial role. Tilda is dope. The guy who plays Wong is great. Mordo also is sufficiently menacing by the end.
This movie also has some of my favorite action sequences ever - the fight at Bleeker Street is both dynamic and super creative - and a hell of a lot of fun. The culmination of that scene with McAdams in the hospital might be my favorite Marvel fight ever. Just great great stuff.
The final battle is ingenious and hilarious at the same time. "I've come to bargain!" I love it!
9. Spiderman Homecoming
So much to love here. Tom Holland is note perfect - even though he's a Brit, I have to forgive him because he's so good.
It's the characters that make me love this movie so much. Peter and his friends actually seem like almost real people. Peter's relationship with Stark is also powerfully grounded. When Tony is disappointed, we really feel it!
The action sequences are top notch - but my favorite scene by far in the film is one that takes place in a car with just a few lines of dialogue. Magnificent acting and a perfectly delivered script.
Michael Keaton forever ends the MCU villain curse - he's simply outstanding as the very real and very human Vulture.
8. Thor: Ragnarok
The best time I've had at the movies in a long long time. Funny from the first frame to the last. The MCU's first and hopefully not only full on comedy. The director Tai Wakiti (sp?) is some kind of mad genius because he manages to combine all of my favorite things - outrageous Sci-Fi, irreverent and self aware superhero characters, and a healthy dose of emotional resonance into a thoroughly enjoyable and totally trippy comic book come to life.
I want to be Korg! He has the best outlook on life, like, ever.
"Hey man, we're going to go see this funny movie about Thor and stuff. Wanna come?"
Oh yeah, and Thor is NOT boring! He's now awesome! He was showing signs of promise in Dark World, but Chris Hemsworth really busts it open here and now we have a Thor that we can love and appreciate as someone truly special. I thought I would really miss Natalie Portman's Jane Foster, but honestly, I'm shocked that I don't!
I have been falling for 30 minutes!
The villain Hela is pretty good, but it's everyone and everything around her (Karl Urban for one) that makes this movie great. I love the colors, the sets, the music. And I LOVE this version of Hulk so so much!
Hulk like raging fire, Thor more like smoulder....
7. Captain America Civil War
If you had told my 12 year old self back in the day that there would be 3 outstanding big budget full on Captain America feature films that captured hearts and minds all over the world - I probably would've laughed in your face. Anyone remember the Captain America movie in the 1980's? Google it sometime if you want to be depressed.
Civil War is outstanding from beginning to end, and almost like an Avengers 2.5 movie. But it is in the end, the Cap's story.
Love the opening action sequence so so much. Great to see the Avengers kicking ass (for the most part) as a team.
Of course the highlight is the middle third of this movie - the airport sequence is legendary. A splash page comic book come to life before our eyes in a way we could never imagine. Just amazing.
Love Cap's character arch - from Peggy's death (very moving), to his new girlfriend (touching) to his letting go of his old friends (heartbreaking). I really do believe this is Captain America's movie in every way that matters.
The ending is stirring and emotionally draining - the very best of the MCU.
The remaining movies are a solid A.
(A+ is reserved for like, 3 of my favorite movies of all times. Not spilling those here.)
6. Captain America Winter Soldier
This one has some of my favorite action sequences ever, they are shot and cut expertly with a mix of frenetic hand held and high shutter speed camerawork that never loses geography or purpose. The opening salvo on the ship at sea, Nick Fury's SUV adventure, the freeway battle and the climax high in the sky - all absolutely outstanding.
I also just LOVE the semi-romance / friendship between Cap and Black Widow here. The dialogue is not really that deep, but Chris Evans and Scar Jo really make it powerful somehow. Just amazing acting chops, the both of them.
Love the scene with Peggy, brings all of the feels.
Robert Redford is probably the MCU's first very good villain. (Didn't get great until Vulture I think).
So much to love throughout, this one will always be one of my favorites. Again, I am just astonished that we have 3 top quality Captain America movies in the world for everyone to enjoy!
5. Avengers: Infinity War
Read the above post for all the reasons why this one ends up here!
4. Marvel's The Avengers
Everything works so well - it's an incredibly satisfying culmination of phase 1 that brings us something we've never seen before on the big screen. Multiple mighty heroes fighting side by side with incredible production values and visual effects. The entire NY sequence still gives me the chills - I could watch that gladiator style dolly move around our heroes over and over again and never get tired of it.
Best of all, Joss Whedon brings his patented humor and whip-smart dialogue to the party, making this one fun for everyone, not just comic book lovers. No wonder it is still near the top of the MCU list in box office success.
This is when my deep like of Black Widow turned into love - when Cap gives her that boost, oh man is that something else! Chills EVERY TIME.
The hellicarrier stuff is also great - the movie never really missteps or gets bogged down. So much to enjoy from start to finish.
And who is that purple dude at the end?
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
I said it at the time, and I still pretty much believe it - this movie is this generation's Star Wars. Yes, it's that good.
The Guardians of the Galaxy were an obscure comic book back in the day, and had a few incarnations that never really saw too much success.
James Gunn said he could make something great out of them and thank God Kevin Fiege believed him.
The result is a spectacular space opera with a huge amount of humor and an even bigger helping of heart. The music helps the story soar, a story that is yet another super hero origin thing, but it really is something special.
All of the team members are broken in one way or another, and we get to journey with them as they learn to let go of their pain and grab onto each other as a family. It's fun, it's frenetic, and best of all it's emotionally resonant.
When people ask me which MCU movie I would recommend for someone who doesn't care about comics - this one is by FAR the first on my list. It has universal appeal and themes. You don't need to be a nerd to love it.
Love the dance off and the climax of the movie SO MUCH!!!!
2. Spider-Man: No Way Home
All the way to number 2 with a bullet! This one brings the feels like no other MCU entry except for Endgame, that's why it lands here!
Be sure to check out my exhaustive review by clicking here!
1. Avengers: Endgame
Well this may change in the future - but as of right now Avengers: Endgame is for sure my absolute favorite MCU entry. It is the culmination and the payoff for over a decades worth of movies - and boy does it deliver!
Be sure to read my entire review - HERE, to learn why I love it so so much!!!
Well, there it is, how I see and rank the MCU. I imagine this list will keep changing for the rest of my life, as Disney I'm sure has no plans to stop cranking these movies out anytime soon!
Tuesday, March 06, 2018
How bad does it have to get?
Right now the SF City Council is more concerned about bizarre elitist business regulations that artificially drive up unemployment and housing prices than they are about keeping communities safe - and now they are paying the price.
Instead of letting the free market do it's thing, San Francisco has tried to manipulate the economy and housing to guarantee equality of outcome instead of equality of opportunity - and the result is now housing no one can afford, jobs that are no longer available and streets that are no longer safe.
The second part of this disastrous 'progressive' formula is that instead of putting cops first and giving them the tools to fight crime, San Francisco has put leftist activism first - and the result is areas of the city that give Cartagena and Caracas a run for their money in violence and mayhem.
Again, indifference to unacceptable behavior is mistaken for compassion - a shift of blame from personal responsibility and accountability to some nebulous social construct is why our state is letting thousands and thousands of violent felons back out on to the street. It's such a sad thing that doesn't have to be.
I just wonder, how bad will it have to get before people have had enough? It got so bad in New York in the 1990's, the crime, the homelessness, the drug dealers and the murder rate - that New Yorkers found themselves electing a Republican out of desperation. Rudy Guilianni God knows wasn't perfect - but in under four years he had utterly transformed the city from a top 5 crime center - to a city that didn't even crack the top 30 in homicides. He quite literally saved the city.
He did this with a zero tolerance policy for vagrancy - the options were shelter, treatment or jail and they were mandatory. He did this with broken window enforcement from the cops - every violation , no matter how minor, was cited, arrested and/or prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Stop and frisk was a big part of this equation. Criminal recidivists were taken off the street for prolonged periods of time. Thousands upon thousands of minority lives no doubt were saved because of this.
Today, crime in New York remains low despite the disasterous reign of mayor DeBlasio, because the NYPD has a system in place that they have fought tooth and nail to maintain. Despite roll backs in stop and frisk policing and broken window enforcement, and a plummeting morale among the NYPD ranks, NYC is at this moment in time still a very safe major city. The mentally ill are creeping back in and taking over, urination in the streets is no longer a crime - but all is not lost. Not yet.
I pray all the time that Californians will see the light and finally demand safe streets. Conventional wisdom says that this is a very difficult problem and that there are no easy solutions. I say that is nonsense.
I live in Burbank, and the city council and cops simply don't put up with criminals or the mentally ill. Our parks are virtually free of derelicts because they are not allowed to be there. They are given options but they must pick one - shelter, treatment, jail or a ride out of town.
If other cities would follow Burbank's lead we could eliminate that last option - it is, I will concede by far the least compassionate of the choices. Eventually, the best case scenario would also be to eliminate jail as a mandatory alternative to the a city park or playground. But as bad as jail is, I will always argue that it is infinitely more compassionate that allowing someone to live on the streets.
Instead of letting the free market do it's thing, San Francisco has tried to manipulate the economy and housing to guarantee equality of outcome instead of equality of opportunity - and the result is now housing no one can afford, jobs that are no longer available and streets that are no longer safe.
The second part of this disastrous 'progressive' formula is that instead of putting cops first and giving them the tools to fight crime, San Francisco has put leftist activism first - and the result is areas of the city that give Cartagena and Caracas a run for their money in violence and mayhem.
Again, indifference to unacceptable behavior is mistaken for compassion - a shift of blame from personal responsibility and accountability to some nebulous social construct is why our state is letting thousands and thousands of violent felons back out on to the street. It's such a sad thing that doesn't have to be.
I just wonder, how bad will it have to get before people have had enough? It got so bad in New York in the 1990's, the crime, the homelessness, the drug dealers and the murder rate - that New Yorkers found themselves electing a Republican out of desperation. Rudy Guilianni God knows wasn't perfect - but in under four years he had utterly transformed the city from a top 5 crime center - to a city that didn't even crack the top 30 in homicides. He quite literally saved the city.
He did this with a zero tolerance policy for vagrancy - the options were shelter, treatment or jail and they were mandatory. He did this with broken window enforcement from the cops - every violation , no matter how minor, was cited, arrested and/or prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Stop and frisk was a big part of this equation. Criminal recidivists were taken off the street for prolonged periods of time. Thousands upon thousands of minority lives no doubt were saved because of this.
Today, crime in New York remains low despite the disasterous reign of mayor DeBlasio, because the NYPD has a system in place that they have fought tooth and nail to maintain. Despite roll backs in stop and frisk policing and broken window enforcement, and a plummeting morale among the NYPD ranks, NYC is at this moment in time still a very safe major city. The mentally ill are creeping back in and taking over, urination in the streets is no longer a crime - but all is not lost. Not yet.
I pray all the time that Californians will see the light and finally demand safe streets. Conventional wisdom says that this is a very difficult problem and that there are no easy solutions. I say that is nonsense.
I live in Burbank, and the city council and cops simply don't put up with criminals or the mentally ill. Our parks are virtually free of derelicts because they are not allowed to be there. They are given options but they must pick one - shelter, treatment, jail or a ride out of town.
If other cities would follow Burbank's lead we could eliminate that last option - it is, I will concede by far the least compassionate of the choices. Eventually, the best case scenario would also be to eliminate jail as a mandatory alternative to the a city park or playground. But as bad as jail is, I will always argue that it is infinitely more compassionate that allowing someone to live on the streets.
Friday, February 16, 2018
Same old song...
In the wake of yet another horrific shooting the leftist media is bombarding us with the same talking points and largely disingenuous pleas for 'sensible' gun control. And by sensible they mean meaningless platitudes that serve little purpose other than to inflame passions and divide us.
Every time there is one of these mass shooting events the cries go up - "Finally, it's time to do something!" And every time nothing happens. Why is that?
When Obama first came into office the democrats held the majority in both houses - and not a single piece of gun control legislation was passed. Obama did make a hair brained executive order attempt at using the social security administration to seize guns from the elderly who were using proxies to purchase firearms. That radical right wing group the ACLU fought Obama on this maneuver, Trump last year repealed the order and now leftists are pushing the lie that Trump wants mentally ill people to have guns.
And still the screeching continues after the tragedy last Wednesday in Florida. Rather than address the problem directly, gun control groups simply shout to the heavens "Gun control!" and then dare anyone to say anything negative about it. If someone does dare to question the narrative, they are simply told that 'The vast majority of Americans support gun control!" Well that is true, but the vast majority of Americans support spending cuts in our government and yet would never allow social security or medicare to be touched. As with government spending, the nitty gritty of gun control is - what specifically can we do to tackle the problem of mass shooting events?
The left has no answer for this beyond "We need to be like Europe because they banned guns and now they don't shoot each other." Newsflash, liberals, we are not Europe and never will be. We have a unique perspective on firearms, in that we won our liberty with them and we now own more guns by far than any other country in the world. There is a firearm for every man, woman and child in this country. Half of these guns have been manufactured and acquired in the last 25 years. During this time period crime has dropped in half. Not to say there is a direct correlation, that would be unscientific - but this is just truth in numbers. Numbers that plainly present the truth that our guns aren't going anywhere.
I would posit that there was no gun control legislation under Obama and there is no specific call to action to this day from the left because this is a deliberate choice. If liberals come out with specifics, they will be subjected to scrutiny, most likely by the majority of Americans. It is much easier, and feels much better, to launch cowardly personal attacks on gun owners and 2nd amendment supporters.
To actually get down to brass tax on certain types of gun control, such as making it much harder for the mentally ill to get their hands on guns, a proposal that the NRA is in favor of - is a daunting challenge for gun control enthusiasts because it would definitively shelve their emotionally driven lifelong dream of somehow magically taking guns out of the hands of private citizens.
And make no mistake, this is ultimately what most liberals want - the eventual confiscation of privately owned firearms. Many of the more savvy gun control folks will deny this if asked, but it is the only logical conclusion if you actually listen to their arguments and wildly broad proposals to 'be more like Europe'.
As we all know, mass confiscations will never happen in the US. And yet gun control proponents are content to let mass shootings go on so they can feed their fantasy of a gun-free utopia. They don't want to forward the debate, because the inevitable outcome will be the surrender of the state to the will of the people.
*******
I had the chance on my private political Facebook page to engage with a good guy who is woefully uneducated in firearms and yet stubbornly insists he is just as qualified as me to weigh in on guns and the 2nd amendment. I would say that this absolutely could be possible - that someone who has never touched a gun in their life could educate themselves to the point where they know more than I do about the subject - it is possible. But in this case it just isn't true, he is very ignorant about guns and displayed this in plain fashion with a recent response to my thread on the Florida shooting.
"Certain guns (like the AR-15) shouldn't be available for legal purchase. Period. The average person doesn't need one and I don't care if they want one. Too bad. Get over it."
At first blush, if you are firearm ignorant this statement seems straightforward, but to someone who deals with guns in their life, it belies a tremendous ignorance. I hammered out a response and then thought better, this is an inflammatory subject and I didn't need to inflame him any more. But I really dug what I wrote, so Imma share it here.
Oh, there was also this gem that he wrote -
"I'm also not hearing "second amendment" it was written when modern weaponry was unimaginable..."
This is patently false, and I know this because I'm an avid studier of history and often specifically firearms and weaponry in history. My rebuttal...
----
Appreciate the lengthy response _______, and your willingness to engage.
I disagree with you about the AR, if you are going to remove it from the market you are doing so based only on what it looks like - not it's lethality or effectiveness in mass killing.
There are literally hundreds of rifles that are more powerful and fire just as rapidly and would be just as effective and maybe more effective to perpetrate a mass shooting.
Furthermore, over 90% of gun himicides in the US are committed by handguns - CDC stats show that in 2012 only 322 people were killed with rifles, the remaining 10,000 plus were killed with handguns.
So this is why I get frustrated with non-gun people, it's because of statements like 'the AR15 shouldn't be available for purchase, period." This is on it's face absurd. Why should it be removed when there are a ton of rifles that don't have a military look but do the same thing? It's not logical, it's emotional and it's borne out of a lack of knowledge which comes from a lack of direct experience with firearms.
I also part ways with you on your views on the 2nd amendment. Perhaps the most fallacious argument people use against it is that the founders could've never imagined modern weaponry. This is simply not true - but people who don't use guns or have any interest in them wouldn't know this.
They wouldn't know that the Belton flintlock, which was invented for the revolutionary war, could fire 20 shots in under 5 seconds. They wouldn't know about the Girandoni air rifle, another product of the revolutionary war that had a high capacity magazine. This particular rapid fire firearm was famously delivered personally by Thomas Jefferson to Lewis and Clark for their expedition.
Then there's the Puckle gun, an early gatlin style gun that was actually made half a century before the revolutionary war and was seen in the field under the charge of both the colonists and the British at various times.
But perhaps the most well known rapid fire weapons of the 16th century (which had actually been invented 200 years prior) were the "Pepperbox" revolvers - mass produced by a variety of manufacturers. Lethal pistols that were all capable of firing half a dozen or more rounds in the space of a few seconds.
So the idea that the founding fathers could never have imagined rapid fire weaponry is demonstrably false. Furthermore, not only were they aware of these kinds of guns, many founding fathers were avid fans of military grade hardware being in the hands of private citizens.
One of the best examples of this enthusiasm is in the form of a letter of marque from president James Madison who authorized a merchant to equip his ship with cannons to fend off would be pirates. This wasn't just a firearm in the hands of a private citizen, this was full on artillery!
To be fair, even without my historical knowledge, I've never bought into the argument that the 2nd amendment was crafted to carve out a narrow right to own a single shot musket just because on it's face this doesn't make sense. The 1st amendment wasn't made to only protect quill and parchment or cumbersome printing press, it was made to be timeless and extend protection to all forms of speech, regardless of the technology delivering it. Developing technology was all around the founding fathers over their lifetimes - and they were not only aware of it, many of them like Ben Franklin, were enthusiastic about it.
*****
No this didn't all come off the top of my head, all credit to Stephen Crowder's youtube channel, which is where I learned about all the rapid fire weapons of the 1700s. But the reason I learned it is that I am involved with guns and take an active interest in everything about them.
Every time there is one of these mass shooting events the cries go up - "Finally, it's time to do something!" And every time nothing happens. Why is that?
When Obama first came into office the democrats held the majority in both houses - and not a single piece of gun control legislation was passed. Obama did make a hair brained executive order attempt at using the social security administration to seize guns from the elderly who were using proxies to purchase firearms. That radical right wing group the ACLU fought Obama on this maneuver, Trump last year repealed the order and now leftists are pushing the lie that Trump wants mentally ill people to have guns.
And still the screeching continues after the tragedy last Wednesday in Florida. Rather than address the problem directly, gun control groups simply shout to the heavens "Gun control!" and then dare anyone to say anything negative about it. If someone does dare to question the narrative, they are simply told that 'The vast majority of Americans support gun control!" Well that is true, but the vast majority of Americans support spending cuts in our government and yet would never allow social security or medicare to be touched. As with government spending, the nitty gritty of gun control is - what specifically can we do to tackle the problem of mass shooting events?
The left has no answer for this beyond "We need to be like Europe because they banned guns and now they don't shoot each other." Newsflash, liberals, we are not Europe and never will be. We have a unique perspective on firearms, in that we won our liberty with them and we now own more guns by far than any other country in the world. There is a firearm for every man, woman and child in this country. Half of these guns have been manufactured and acquired in the last 25 years. During this time period crime has dropped in half. Not to say there is a direct correlation, that would be unscientific - but this is just truth in numbers. Numbers that plainly present the truth that our guns aren't going anywhere.
I would posit that there was no gun control legislation under Obama and there is no specific call to action to this day from the left because this is a deliberate choice. If liberals come out with specifics, they will be subjected to scrutiny, most likely by the majority of Americans. It is much easier, and feels much better, to launch cowardly personal attacks on gun owners and 2nd amendment supporters.
To actually get down to brass tax on certain types of gun control, such as making it much harder for the mentally ill to get their hands on guns, a proposal that the NRA is in favor of - is a daunting challenge for gun control enthusiasts because it would definitively shelve their emotionally driven lifelong dream of somehow magically taking guns out of the hands of private citizens.
And make no mistake, this is ultimately what most liberals want - the eventual confiscation of privately owned firearms. Many of the more savvy gun control folks will deny this if asked, but it is the only logical conclusion if you actually listen to their arguments and wildly broad proposals to 'be more like Europe'.
As we all know, mass confiscations will never happen in the US. And yet gun control proponents are content to let mass shootings go on so they can feed their fantasy of a gun-free utopia. They don't want to forward the debate, because the inevitable outcome will be the surrender of the state to the will of the people.
*******
I had the chance on my private political Facebook page to engage with a good guy who is woefully uneducated in firearms and yet stubbornly insists he is just as qualified as me to weigh in on guns and the 2nd amendment. I would say that this absolutely could be possible - that someone who has never touched a gun in their life could educate themselves to the point where they know more than I do about the subject - it is possible. But in this case it just isn't true, he is very ignorant about guns and displayed this in plain fashion with a recent response to my thread on the Florida shooting.
"Certain guns (like the AR-15) shouldn't be available for legal purchase. Period. The average person doesn't need one and I don't care if they want one. Too bad. Get over it."
At first blush, if you are firearm ignorant this statement seems straightforward, but to someone who deals with guns in their life, it belies a tremendous ignorance. I hammered out a response and then thought better, this is an inflammatory subject and I didn't need to inflame him any more. But I really dug what I wrote, so Imma share it here.
Oh, there was also this gem that he wrote -
"I'm also not hearing "second amendment" it was written when modern weaponry was unimaginable..."
This is patently false, and I know this because I'm an avid studier of history and often specifically firearms and weaponry in history. My rebuttal...
----
Appreciate the lengthy response _______, and your willingness to engage.
I disagree with you about the AR, if you are going to remove it from the market you are doing so based only on what it looks like - not it's lethality or effectiveness in mass killing.
There are literally hundreds of rifles that are more powerful and fire just as rapidly and would be just as effective and maybe more effective to perpetrate a mass shooting.
Furthermore, over 90% of gun himicides in the US are committed by handguns - CDC stats show that in 2012 only 322 people were killed with rifles, the remaining 10,000 plus were killed with handguns.
So this is why I get frustrated with non-gun people, it's because of statements like 'the AR15 shouldn't be available for purchase, period." This is on it's face absurd. Why should it be removed when there are a ton of rifles that don't have a military look but do the same thing? It's not logical, it's emotional and it's borne out of a lack of knowledge which comes from a lack of direct experience with firearms.
I also part ways with you on your views on the 2nd amendment. Perhaps the most fallacious argument people use against it is that the founders could've never imagined modern weaponry. This is simply not true - but people who don't use guns or have any interest in them wouldn't know this.
They wouldn't know that the Belton flintlock, which was invented for the revolutionary war, could fire 20 shots in under 5 seconds. They wouldn't know about the Girandoni air rifle, another product of the revolutionary war that had a high capacity magazine. This particular rapid fire firearm was famously delivered personally by Thomas Jefferson to Lewis and Clark for their expedition.
Then there's the Puckle gun, an early gatlin style gun that was actually made half a century before the revolutionary war and was seen in the field under the charge of both the colonists and the British at various times.
But perhaps the most well known rapid fire weapons of the 16th century (which had actually been invented 200 years prior) were the "Pepperbox" revolvers - mass produced by a variety of manufacturers. Lethal pistols that were all capable of firing half a dozen or more rounds in the space of a few seconds.
So the idea that the founding fathers could never have imagined rapid fire weaponry is demonstrably false. Furthermore, not only were they aware of these kinds of guns, many founding fathers were avid fans of military grade hardware being in the hands of private citizens.
One of the best examples of this enthusiasm is in the form of a letter of marque from president James Madison who authorized a merchant to equip his ship with cannons to fend off would be pirates. This wasn't just a firearm in the hands of a private citizen, this was full on artillery!
To be fair, even without my historical knowledge, I've never bought into the argument that the 2nd amendment was crafted to carve out a narrow right to own a single shot musket just because on it's face this doesn't make sense. The 1st amendment wasn't made to only protect quill and parchment or cumbersome printing press, it was made to be timeless and extend protection to all forms of speech, regardless of the technology delivering it. Developing technology was all around the founding fathers over their lifetimes - and they were not only aware of it, many of them like Ben Franklin, were enthusiastic about it.
*****
No this didn't all come off the top of my head, all credit to Stephen Crowder's youtube channel, which is where I learned about all the rapid fire weapons of the 1700s. But the reason I learned it is that I am involved with guns and take an active interest in everything about them.
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