Blog Posts

Pen Beats Sword: When Government "Secrets" Were Foiled by Art

The US Government works really hard to keep their secrets safe from prying eyes. And sometimes bored writers with a quirky idea will just go and reveal those secrets to the world without even meaning to.

Jurassic Lightyears and Autopsying Unnecessary Sequels

Three recent releases serve as great examples of how to make necessary sequels or unnecessary sequels. Guess which two serve as the examples of unnecessary sequels.

Why Everyone Is Wrong About the Enemy in Top Gun: Maverick

Everyone on the Internet is talking about why Top Gun: Maverick never explicitly names the enemy nation. That’s because it doesn’t really matter.

Your Interpretations Are Wrong

Authors, artists, and creators of all kinds spend hours considering how their words and their work will affect an audience. Shouldn’t the audience take just as much care considering their interpretations?

Don’t Show, Don’t Tell: The Power of Suggestion in Fiction

There is a common rule in storytelling that says “Show, Don’t Tell.” However, sometimes doing neither one is actually much better.

Assembled: The Marvel of Long-Form Storytelling

I want to talk about Endgame. I want to talk about all the incredible moments that will make fans stand up and cheer or want to weep. Both exist. And perhaps in a couple weeks I’ll delve into a more spoiler-unfriendly review. This isn’t a review so much as it is a letter of appreciation.

The Humanity of Good Sci-Fi

Sure, sci-fi needs to look cool and show us something new, but truly legendary sci-fi needs to show us something human.

Mary Poppins and the Delight of Musical Theatre

Mary Poppins Returns is a very silly, predictable movie, but it is the right kind of silly and predictable, which makes it a great musical. And like all great musicals, it is quite delightful.

We Should've Seen It Coming

Truth be told, George Lucas’ later mistakes in the Star Wars prequels were all our fault. We should’ve seen it coming.

Why Sequels Are So Often Doomed to Fail

Sequels are like playing the lottery and, just like in the real lottery, you have better odds of being stabbed in the eye by a passing pirate captain than you do of winning.

Mixed Results Meet the Shrunken Sequel "Ant-Man and the Wasp" - REVIEW

Marvel's follow-up to Avengers: Infinity War seems to come from the 22 Jump Street school of sequel filmmaking: just do the same thing as the first time.

"Jurassic World" is Every Bit the Thrill a Dinosaur Movie Should Be - REVIEW

From countless visual callbacks to intriguing new plots, "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" is exactly the type of movie needed to follow up this back-and-forth franchise's return to pop culture dominance.

Once, Twice, Three Times a Panda.

So let me tell you a story about the time my mother bought the same movie not once...not twice...but three times.

The Things We Share

In days gone by, older cultures had epic tales of great warriors and mythical beings. Today, we have Star Wars.

The Problem with Prequels

As long as Star Wars wants to mine the past for these new stories…you're going to keep on seeing these sort of narrative hoops get unsuccessfully navigated.