With all the rumors flowing around about Star Wars right now, the batch of toxic fans who basically are the ones responsible for any troubles the franchise is going through right now, as there is some logic to say they helped make Solo perform so badly in theaters. (All the other Disney Star Wars movies have made blockbuster level returns.) It was the failing of Solo that has caused Disney to look at the franchise and think about doing some drastic, unneeded changes.
With Star Wars, the ultimate toxic fan, Doomcock (Emperor of the dumbest name a misogynistic a-hole could come up with) is spreading rumors about Lucas' return as the head of Lucasfilm as the divine savior of the franchise. Outside of the fact that Lucas gave up his company for a reason and I've seen nothing to suggest he has changed his mind, there are so any flaws to embracing this belief. Those like Doomcock (How can anyone take an seriously someone who choose to be called by such a lame-ass name?) are able to overlook all the great many unforgivable flaws Lucas made with the prequel trilogy and ignore so many facts about what Lucas had been planning in his storyline for the third trilogy (https://www.polygon.com/2019/12/10/21005059/george-lucas-star-wars-sequel-trilogy-plot-characters), like focusing on the midichlorians, one of the greatest mistakes of the prequels. The simple fact is that Lucas has shown he no longer is the storyteller that had created Star Wars and that it is for the best that he has moved on.
But to some like Doomcock (His name just screams 'I am a jackass to be made fun of') Lucas is a god and can do no wrong. Lucas is elevated to the position of deity and can do no wrong in their eyes.
No matter that flaws in such ideology, it seems to be a big part of human nature. So many people are elevated so, many are creators who might deserve accolades for what they created at one time, but had made mistakes and showed that they had lost their skills.
Gene Roddenberry did something amazing when he created Star Trek, but when Star Trek: The Next Generation came about, he was actually holding the show back from its full potential with his controlling nature and unyielding vision. STTNG did not take off as a series until Roddenberry was forced to step back, allowing real growth in the series and better writing and story-lines to get explored. At no point am I trying to take away the significance of what Roddenberry had done. We know the impact of Star Trek. And it is accurate to say the newer Trek is not fully aligned to Roddenberry's vision, but it was shown that his vision was ready to kill off the franchise.
As everyone who keeps up with this blog knows, I am a huge Spider-Man fan. I respect greatly what Stan Lee had created with the help of Steve Ditko, as I am one of those who considers Ditko to have had a great amount of influence in creating the character and shaping his stories. If you compare the stories of Spider-Man with the stories of The Fantastic Four from the same time period, it does feel as if they were written by two different people. Just like how the X-Men were not popular until after Lee left the book and a whole new creative team took over and did some major changes to the book. Looking at Stan Lee's career and that many of his later projects really were not that well written, it seems clear he was a much better concept creator than actual writer. Once more though, this should not be viewed as denying his accomplishments. It was his ideas that created the foundation for the Marvel Superhero universe as well as creating the lasting popularity of superheroes that we still have today. He should be viewed as the father of modern superhero comic, but no one should think that everything he touched turned to gold.
I have yet to find any creator in any format who I think is flawless, even Neil Gaiman and Kevin Smith have some projects that I did not enjoy. That does not mean I am not longer a fan of their work or that I do not look forward to new projects by them. I just do not hold them as being divine.
No matter how much respect I have for George Lucas, I do not for one moment believe he is the one needed to 'repair' the franchise, which really is not broken. I have no problem with him being there with ideas and advice, even maybe letting him co-write (We know he sucks big time at dialogue, so only let him co-write) a story or two for the Disney+ shows, but let others be in charge now. Star Wars is far from being dead after all and Lucas is not a god.
Wednesday, July 22, 2020
Friday, July 10, 2020
Now This is a Puzzling Marketing Gimmick
So at Wal-Mart right now the most expensive Transformer figure on sale is:
Not only is this a character that has been around for some time with dozens of figure made of it, this is just a repaint of one they released last year with a special mini figure that is also a repaint.
So the big question is 'how is this a spoiler?'
It is a character that makes sense to be in the new show. There is nothing new to its transformation.
By labeling it a 'spoiler' figure, I am now speculating that Ultra Magnus will be doing something more significant than I would have thought. If they did not label it as being a spoiler, then it would have been easy to just see a repaint of Ultra Magnus and not think too much about it. Now they have actually made it more likely that whatever happens will have less of an impact than it would have if we didn't know Ultra Magnus was part of a spoiler.
So I am fully puzzled by this on many levels.
First off, who is going to pay $60 for a mystery figure like that? With no idea of what you are going to get, you are not going to be likely to spend the money. Also, the boxes I've seen on the shelves have been damaged by people trying to open them to see what is inside. This says to me there is a better chance of the figures being returned by the stores due to package damage than being sold.
And as I pointed out, they have ruined whatever the spoiler is by labeling the character a spoiler. Everyone watching the new show will likely be more concerned with what Ultra Magnus is doing, because they are waiting for the 'spoiler' to happen and not be as focused on the whole of the story and what is happening with the other characters.
And of course if the 'spoiler' does not pan out to be anything significant or truly interesting, then that is going to be a slap to all the fans. In fact I really doubt whatever they were trying to protect us from, it is not going to play out to the level it would need to in order to justify this packaging.
In the end, I see this becoming a joke among fans after the show premiers. Right now, none of the fans understand what they are doing.
I so wonder how this idea got approved, as there is now way I can see this being good for sales.
A sixty dollar figure, but you don't get to see it or even know who it is, all because it is a spoiler for some reason.
Now of course this is the day and age of the internet, so this secret lasted all of five seconds. And the big reveal was the figure is none other than, yet another Ultra Magnus.
So the big question is 'how is this a spoiler?'
It is a character that makes sense to be in the new show. There is nothing new to its transformation.
By labeling it a 'spoiler' figure, I am now speculating that Ultra Magnus will be doing something more significant than I would have thought. If they did not label it as being a spoiler, then it would have been easy to just see a repaint of Ultra Magnus and not think too much about it. Now they have actually made it more likely that whatever happens will have less of an impact than it would have if we didn't know Ultra Magnus was part of a spoiler.
So I am fully puzzled by this on many levels.
First off, who is going to pay $60 for a mystery figure like that? With no idea of what you are going to get, you are not going to be likely to spend the money. Also, the boxes I've seen on the shelves have been damaged by people trying to open them to see what is inside. This says to me there is a better chance of the figures being returned by the stores due to package damage than being sold.
And as I pointed out, they have ruined whatever the spoiler is by labeling the character a spoiler. Everyone watching the new show will likely be more concerned with what Ultra Magnus is doing, because they are waiting for the 'spoiler' to happen and not be as focused on the whole of the story and what is happening with the other characters.
And of course if the 'spoiler' does not pan out to be anything significant or truly interesting, then that is going to be a slap to all the fans. In fact I really doubt whatever they were trying to protect us from, it is not going to play out to the level it would need to in order to justify this packaging.
In the end, I see this becoming a joke among fans after the show premiers. Right now, none of the fans understand what they are doing.
I so wonder how this idea got approved, as there is now way I can see this being good for sales.
Thursday, July 2, 2020
Now That is a Truly Stupid Idea
There is an internet personality who calls himself Overlord Dicktor Van Doomcock (DVD), yes that is the name he goes by and I believe he believes it is a clever name. He has a whole Youtube channel dedicated to him being a toxic fan and putting down anything and everything that does not live up to his beliefs of what is worthy entertainment. He shows himself to be a true misogynist. For as he puts down anything that has the slightest essence of female empowerment, he claims he is all for powerful female characters as long as they fit into his little box of female characters.
The basic idea is that he knows better than everyone else how stories should be told and that all he is doing is trying to safeguard our modern myths, painting himself as a heroic force here to save us all.
Understand, this a is guy who is upset with the questionable science of only the newest seasons of Doctor Who, the ones starring Jody Whittaker, the first female Doctor. He is able to ignore all the horribly bad science that has been used for over fifty in every incarnation of Doctor who, but is going to point it all out now that there is a female Doctor. If you watch his video, this is his norm. He rips apart so many aspects when strong females characters are there, that he will straight out ignore or even compliment when connected to male characters.
Needless to say he hates the newest Star Wars trilogy, spending a lot of time talking down about the character Rey, even when a lot of those criticisms could be said about both Luke and Anakin. He is one of the toxic fans that for whatever reason refuses to accept the the prequel trilogy produced the worst movies in the franchise, two of which I and many other find unwatchable, due to how bad they are. But those had a male lead and were made by Lucas, so they get overlooked by Doomcock (Seriously, who would call themselves by such a stupid name as he tries to say we should listen to his opinions?). While the sequel trilogy has its flaws and there are a fair amount of issues I have wit them, they are not bad movies.
Now the great Doomcock (I really have hard time using that name and not picturing a full on joke of a person, yet I truly believe he thinks it is witty) claims he has sources at Disney. He has mentioned these sources many time in his videos. Now he is claiming those sources are telling him Disney is planning on doing one truly stupid, poorly conceived retcon of the sequels, making the actual movies no longer canon. And he is celebrating this idea, ignoring the truth of just how such a thing would be the actual act that would ruin the franchise.
So the whole idea revolves around a concept introduced in the Star Wars cartoon series, Star Wars Rebels. At one point we see a corridor of mirrors that reflect various possible realities. In the retconning, the Emperor would somehow use his own collection of these mirrors to rewrite the future and create a new trilogy.
Oddly enough Doomcock (Seriously, that name is so lame), is one of those who was upset over the return of the Emperor and how he had not died at the end of Return of the Jedi, so I am unclear how having him still survive is acceptable in this case.
So here is small list of my problems with redoing the sequel trilogy.
First off, one thing that worked for the new movies was to see the return of the heroes from the classic trilogy. That is not going to happen again.
Carrie Fisher sadly cannot return. Harrison Ford has made it clear he wants to be done with the character. And I doubt Mark Hamill would return. So the connections to the original trilogy that all the fans would want, would not be there. And honestly, it would be spitting on the legacy of Carrie Fisher and Peter Mayhew (He played Chewbacca in most of the movies, sequels included).
Next up is the simple fact that there is no guarantee at all that any new movies would be better movies or better received. In fact, with how messed up the basic concept is, there is a good chance such new movies would really suck as they likely would be overly forced and micro-managed. They might even end up being worse movies than the prequel trilogy. Even if you are someone who dislikes the movies, why take the risks. Best to let things be.
Now one aspect that Doomcock (I so hate that name with ever fiber of my being. It is just so stupid) talked about was the merchandising. Now understand, ever single one of the sequel movies was a blockbuster. They made big bucks, and would have made even more if it weren't for the fact that China in general is not into Star Wars and they are the second largest movie going market in the world. So the movies made money, but the merchandising was not up to the level of previous movies, including the prequels. The thing that is being over looked, is that all such merchandising is not up to the standards it was twenty years ago. That has nothing to do with the quality of public opinion of the movies, but that people are not collecting like they have in the past. Making a replacement trilogy will not change that, so the merchandising is still going to fall flat.
Of course by doing such a thing, replacing movies in this manner, that sets up a new standard where people are just going to lose faith in films. Why get invested in any franchise if they might just throw it all away if it fails to live up to someone's standards. And of course putting a new set of episode 7, 8 and 9 out would be confusing and cause a lot of non-fans to be burnt out before the movies even hit the theaters. People seem to have enough of an issue understanding the concept of the prequels and how the movies were not made in order. Now you want to them to grasp that the first set of sequel films and not the real sequel now, but the new set are the real sequel, at least until the studio decides to redo them again.
Personally, I truly believe if Disney decides to push this really bad idea, there is a real good chance these new movies would extremely under perform and in the end hurting the whole franchise greatly.
It is a horrible idea that only toxic fans are hoping for. The future of Star Wars would be best served by keeping with the idea of exploring difference areas of the Star Wars universe away from the Skywalker Saga for a little while. This is what Disney should push for if they really want to do the right thing for the Star wars franchise and its future.
The basic idea is that he knows better than everyone else how stories should be told and that all he is doing is trying to safeguard our modern myths, painting himself as a heroic force here to save us all.
Understand, this a is guy who is upset with the questionable science of only the newest seasons of Doctor Who, the ones starring Jody Whittaker, the first female Doctor. He is able to ignore all the horribly bad science that has been used for over fifty in every incarnation of Doctor who, but is going to point it all out now that there is a female Doctor. If you watch his video, this is his norm. He rips apart so many aspects when strong females characters are there, that he will straight out ignore or even compliment when connected to male characters.
Needless to say he hates the newest Star Wars trilogy, spending a lot of time talking down about the character Rey, even when a lot of those criticisms could be said about both Luke and Anakin. He is one of the toxic fans that for whatever reason refuses to accept the the prequel trilogy produced the worst movies in the franchise, two of which I and many other find unwatchable, due to how bad they are. But those had a male lead and were made by Lucas, so they get overlooked by Doomcock (Seriously, who would call themselves by such a stupid name as he tries to say we should listen to his opinions?). While the sequel trilogy has its flaws and there are a fair amount of issues I have wit them, they are not bad movies.
Now the great Doomcock (I really have hard time using that name and not picturing a full on joke of a person, yet I truly believe he thinks it is witty) claims he has sources at Disney. He has mentioned these sources many time in his videos. Now he is claiming those sources are telling him Disney is planning on doing one truly stupid, poorly conceived retcon of the sequels, making the actual movies no longer canon. And he is celebrating this idea, ignoring the truth of just how such a thing would be the actual act that would ruin the franchise.
So the whole idea revolves around a concept introduced in the Star Wars cartoon series, Star Wars Rebels. At one point we see a corridor of mirrors that reflect various possible realities. In the retconning, the Emperor would somehow use his own collection of these mirrors to rewrite the future and create a new trilogy.
Oddly enough Doomcock (Seriously, that name is so lame), is one of those who was upset over the return of the Emperor and how he had not died at the end of Return of the Jedi, so I am unclear how having him still survive is acceptable in this case.
So here is small list of my problems with redoing the sequel trilogy.
First off, one thing that worked for the new movies was to see the return of the heroes from the classic trilogy. That is not going to happen again.
Carrie Fisher sadly cannot return. Harrison Ford has made it clear he wants to be done with the character. And I doubt Mark Hamill would return. So the connections to the original trilogy that all the fans would want, would not be there. And honestly, it would be spitting on the legacy of Carrie Fisher and Peter Mayhew (He played Chewbacca in most of the movies, sequels included).
Next up is the simple fact that there is no guarantee at all that any new movies would be better movies or better received. In fact, with how messed up the basic concept is, there is a good chance such new movies would really suck as they likely would be overly forced and micro-managed. They might even end up being worse movies than the prequel trilogy. Even if you are someone who dislikes the movies, why take the risks. Best to let things be.
Now one aspect that Doomcock (I so hate that name with ever fiber of my being. It is just so stupid) talked about was the merchandising. Now understand, ever single one of the sequel movies was a blockbuster. They made big bucks, and would have made even more if it weren't for the fact that China in general is not into Star Wars and they are the second largest movie going market in the world. So the movies made money, but the merchandising was not up to the level of previous movies, including the prequels. The thing that is being over looked, is that all such merchandising is not up to the standards it was twenty years ago. That has nothing to do with the quality of public opinion of the movies, but that people are not collecting like they have in the past. Making a replacement trilogy will not change that, so the merchandising is still going to fall flat.
Of course by doing such a thing, replacing movies in this manner, that sets up a new standard where people are just going to lose faith in films. Why get invested in any franchise if they might just throw it all away if it fails to live up to someone's standards. And of course putting a new set of episode 7, 8 and 9 out would be confusing and cause a lot of non-fans to be burnt out before the movies even hit the theaters. People seem to have enough of an issue understanding the concept of the prequels and how the movies were not made in order. Now you want to them to grasp that the first set of sequel films and not the real sequel now, but the new set are the real sequel, at least until the studio decides to redo them again.
Personally, I truly believe if Disney decides to push this really bad idea, there is a real good chance these new movies would extremely under perform and in the end hurting the whole franchise greatly.
It is a horrible idea that only toxic fans are hoping for. The future of Star Wars would be best served by keeping with the idea of exploring difference areas of the Star Wars universe away from the Skywalker Saga for a little while. This is what Disney should push for if they really want to do the right thing for the Star wars franchise and its future.
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