An Open Letter To Andy Grammer

From The Sinkhole Bar & Grill
Danny Thompson, Manager

Dear Mr. Grammer,

I would have written to you sooner but it took me this long to be able to find a means of contacting you.  I'm not sure if you personally remember the events that occurred in my establishment last Tuesday, but I'm sure that between TMZ, the tabloids, and the explosions on Twitter and Facebook, you've been able to piece it together.

Just in case, though, I thought I'd offer my assistance in helping you piece together the events of that evening.

Moribito

For a long time, anime drove me bonkers.

I loved it, and I watched a lot of it, but there were certain things that I kept seeing all the time that just made puzzled, confused, and...well, honestly, it made me fascinated by the cultural aspects of a nation that would shape their entertainment this way when it was clearly so different from American entertainment.

For instance, I could go on and on and on about how only teenagers are able to save the world.  Whether it's being the best pilots of giant mechanical armor suits, the best magic-wielders, the best soldiers, or just the best at, well, anything, Japan seems to flourish in its animation by having it feature teenagers that the audience connects with.

That isn't to say that American studios don't do the same thing.  Harry Potter is a pretty good example of "hey, this kid could be YOU, he's so bland!"  Lots of cartoons for kids feature either children or teenagers as the stars, whether they're turtles fighting ninjas or just someone with two wacky magic-casting fairy godparents.

But look at some of the biggest names in movies these days.  Iron Man, Batman, Superman, Captain America, these aren't kids.  Robin was originally introduced to the Batman mythos because someone at some point realized it's easier for children to connect with "a kid who really loves Batman" than "Batman."

I'm getting drastically off-topic, but this is one of the many tropes that I didn't expect this series to not just avoid, but stomp on in full view of the audience.

It's easily one of my favorite things I've seen this year.

An Open Letter To Meghan Trainor

To Ms. Trainor,

First off, I wanted to thank you for attending the couples counseling session we set up between you and your (now) former boyfriend.  I always strongly encourage couples to do everything they can to work through issues, and the fact that you both were willing to show up indicated you both still had hopes that this relationship could fix what you felt was wrong.

However, after you both had your turns talking to each other and to me about what you feel is missing, I feel like there were a few points that need to be made.  I've made notes in this letter following phrases and sentences I wrote down after you said them, because in my years as a couples therapist, I've found that it's only in extreme cases is the fault entirely on one side.  I'm also writing one of these letters to your ex, because I feel that to not try to help both of you after this break-up would be not fulfilling my job as your counselor, and I don't want this experience to hinder either of you from finding the relationship that's right.

Batman: Arkham Origins

A funny thing happened while I was playing Batman: Arkham Origins.  Set five years before the original Batman: Arkham Asylum game, we see a young, fresh-faced massively bitter Bruce Wayne still enjoying the "Batman is a myth" aspect of being a costumed do-gooder who only goes out at night, while the cops are determined to stop the rise in crime committed by people in colorful outfits as well as take in this crazed mercenary dressed like Dracula but understanding the whole "transforms into a bat, not dresses like one" thing.

You have the same game play as in previous games, with a few little touches here and there.  Batman's more of a rookie, so he doesn't have quite the same massive skill set, though he's still busting out double take downs when he couldn't do it in the original game.

But here's the funny thing.

Halfway through the game, I stopped having fun.

And I think I could pretty much just leave the review there and call it a night, but I think I need to explain why I stopped having fun.

The Big Hit

After suffering through the disappointment that was Requiem For The Phantom I wanted to sit back and watch something fun.  Something that had likable characters, an interesting plot with some fun twists, and great character interaction.  I wanted interesting set pieces, goofy action, and sexy femme fatales who could hold their own with the boys.  I wanted loud guns, fast cars, and dangerous stunts.

So with all that in mind, I went to a movie that I had fond memories of watching once on TV, and if I can have fond memories of watching a movie after it's been on TBS,

So I sat down and watched The Big Hit.

Phantom: Requiem For The Phantom

Just recently I declared my undying and tolerant love for a DVD-based game that is to meaningful story progression and realistic characters what Uwe Boll is to accepting disappointment like a reasonable human being.  But regardless, that game has a special place in my heart, as does the short mini-series that came out in Japan years ago also called Phantom of Inferno.

Now, because I enjoy it when things I like get recognized and get to grow in popularity and scope (but only to a limit) I was excited when I learned that they were making a full-length series based on the game called Phantom: Requiem For The Phantom.

Nobody ever accused Japan of reasonable naming practices.

However, I got caught up in a lot of other things, and didn't really have a chance to sit down and watch it until just recently.  Did I have an opinion about it?  Have you ever read this blog before?

Beasts Of The Southern Wild

Beasts of the Southern Wild is one of those movies you always mean to see one day but just never get around to it.  Nominated for best picture, best director, best adapted screenplay, and best actress (setting the record for youngest actress to ever be nominated), it won dozens of other awards from film organizations around the world.  It doesn't have huge action sequences, there's little in the way of CGI (aside from a few notable exceptions), and the cast aren't household names, but you always figured "hey, if I saw it on TV, I might stop and watch it."

Beasts of the Southern Wild is a movie everybody should see, if just because I've found myself thinking about it regularly since viewing it three days ago.  I find myself trying to talk to myself about metaphors involving giant beasts, and where poverty ends and self-sufficiency begins.  Where does pride screech to a halt and madness take over?  How can there be people who look just like people I see every day who speak a language I (almost) completely understand, but their ideas about how the world works are so foreign to my own despite the fact that we live in the same country?

All this coming from a movie about a small girl, her father, and a huge storm.