Gotta Do A Better Job
I’m not one to focus on what the usual voices of Philadelphia sports media (like WIP’s morning radio host (more accurately escaped sociopath) Angelo Cataldi, who thinks he does, but does not, represent the typical Philly fan) have to say about much of what goes on sportswise in Philly. As as Steelers fan, I can look at Eagles situations from an outsider’s point of view. I tend not to get bogged down in the hometown rhetoric.
But this is different. Andy Reid, the polarizing former head coach of the Eagles is returning to Philadelphia to coach against his former team. Suddenly, there is something that has drowned out the ridiculous Chip Kelly bombast that has been swirling for the past few weeks. The Eagles fanbase is alive and talking. And, while this is good for sycophants like Cataldi… it’s not really good for anyone who is objective and retains his or her sanity when presented with a delicious situation like a former coach returning to the city.
Reid was maddening. His press conferences went in circles and he provided no answers to any questions. He was repetitive and condescending and evasive. Despite many voices questioning his coaching moves, he plowed on, striding a very similar path week after week, For a while, things went pretty well. The Eagles went to the Super Bowl in 2005 (based on results of the stellar 2004 season), but lost to the very film savvy New England Patriots.
Now, Reid is the head man in Kansas City. The overhyped (he’s 1-1) Chip Kelly is the head man in Philadelphia. The inevitable game pitting Reid against the Eagles (really, the city of Philadelphia) is here. Obviously, there is a great outpouring of emotion over this event. Most callers to the sports radio station are alight with dreams of the Eagles handing their nemesis a “shellacking he’ll never forget…”
As if this wasn’t enough to cause a frenzy in Philly, there’s more. The Eagles are going to honor equally controversial former quarterback (and a guy that was Reid’s main guy for 10 years) Donovan McNabb that same night. Wow! Reid and McNabb – two of the most talked about Philly sports figures back in town on the same night. I am surprised that the ground didn’t open up and swallow the stadium whole.
Let’s recap:
Philly fans are in a lather because, according to ESPN, Chip Kelly has arrived in Philly and presented the fans with an offense that has never been and never will be again seen in pro football. Something that will live forever and make us forget about football the way it used to be. There is no shortage of talk praising Kelly and his offensive schemes, even if a lot of it is simply a backhanded shot at Reid.
Former coach and media and fan punching bag Reid is back in town, tasked with taking on his former team in what is certain to be a somewhat hostile environment. I think it’s safe to say that Reid will hear some cheers, but he is also certain to hear some boos. Short memories. The team is in a lot better shape now than when he first arrived. But his standoffishness and sanctimoniousness left a bad taste in the mouth of the fans. It’s OK to be a jerk if you win. And while Reid won plenty of games, he never did win the Super Bowl.
Donovan McNabb is going to be honored the night of the game. There are few players that have engendered such emotion from his fanbase AFTER leaving the team than McNabb. The problem is, much like in his playing days – he doesn’t know when to just say nothing. He makes oblique references, and frequently finds someone else to blame for the negative things that happened. A lot of Eagles fans will impugn his skills as a quarterback, but that’s unfair. He was a very good QB, and deserves respect for what he did on the field. It was his inability to accept a leadership role (and also to accept blame for losses) that made him such a controversial figure in Philly. In my opinion, anyway.
So what does all this mean? That the Eagles and their fans will get some measure of revenge by beating their former coach and by booing their former quarterback. Both of whom did many great things as members of the Eagles, but tarnished those achievements by either having too much personality and no backbone (McNabb) or by having zero personality and making too many snarky comments when asked a question (Reid). Chip Kelly and his nothing-like-this-has-ever-been-seen-before offense will see to it that Reid & Co. lose by at least 37 touchdowns.
Not so fast. All the pressure’s on the Eagles. From the fans, from the media… there’s too much focus on Andy Reid. Also, he should know how to get in the head of some of the players. And he might know some of Vick’s tendencies. Add in the McNabb ceremony, and you’ve got oodles of distractions for the Eagles.
It’s rarely good to play when you have too many possible motivators. Reid has nothing to lose. He’s with a new team, he’s 2-0 (already tied last year’s win total) and he’s in a fairly weak division. Despite ESPN’s hyperbole, I think that Denver will crash to Earth soon. Especially if they play a team with a tough defense who will actually pressure Peyton Manning. In the Thursday night game, the pressure is all on the Eagles. They should be careful not buy into their own hype.
The way I see it, these teams are evenly matched. With this much attention on this game, anything can happen. I don’t think home field will be a factor here. Who knows? This ought to be a very interesting game – one played between the fans of a city and their former coach – if nothing else.
As for Angelo Cataldi – he said that he’d be in intensive care if the Eagles lost to Reid and the Chiefs. I wonder if any Eagles fans would think it would be worth it to lose, given this information?
It’s Not You, It’s Meme
What happened to all those great Facebook thingamajigs that expressed a profound sentiment in a really funny and original way? The memes that seemed to know what we were all thinking but didn’t have the courage (or creative expressionism) to say!
You know – the Gene Wilder one that was often used in mock wonder. Or the one that had six pictures on it and depicted the various humorous ways in which a job or hobby was seen by different people? Or – my personal fave – the Batman slapping Robin one? (Robin: It’s raining outside. Batman: I have a fucking window! Chortle! Comic genius!)
Some of them were amusing, sure, but after they’d been displayed and distributed about 40 times, it got a bit old.
Then — just like the turkey in Christmas Story — they are gone! All gone! No meme a la King! No meme sandwiches! Gone!
What happened? I can’t remember the last time I saw Gene Wilder. How am I supposed to cunningly express dismissive sarcasm as it pertains to the important events of the day?? Come on Gene, don’t leave me hanging!
I think I saw one of the six picture memes about a week or two ago. And I might have seen a Batman slapping Robin one just the other day. But – it’s been a while since these gems have made the Facebook rounds. At one time, it seemed that half of my Facebook feed was composed of one of these memes.
I don’t really miss the memes, mind you. Well, I suppose I miss them a little bit. I mean, there were a few that were clever and well done. One thing I do have to say about them is that, overall, (like Kim Kardashian) they got a lot of mileage and traction – for little to no reason, then crashed and burned. Hmmm – it’s interesting to note that the memes simpy went away when their 15 minutes of fame was up. Maybe Kim should consider that….
Back to the topic: I guess there’s something to be said for delivering a message or thought using only recycled pictures and a little bit of cleverness. Now I am left to wonder what form the next generation of memes will take.
I had thought that those “Still a better love story than Twilight” ones might have taken off. Or Grumpy Cat. But no – neither one of those have had the staying power of the Gene Wilder meme or the Batman slapping Robin meme. Aparently it takes more than just hating on everything to get staying power.
I’ve seen some Jean-Luc Picard action floating around Facebook. He might have the stuff. Even I didn’t know the extent of just how many JLP memes there are.
So I put it to you, meme-sters. Despite my better judgment, I don’t want to be meme free. Marshall all your creative memeosity. Dazzle me. I think you owe it to us to deliver the next generation (pun intended) of memes for our Facebook feeds. Frankly, things have gotten a little dull.
Alone in His Field; No Zombies or Mad Men
Based on what I am seeing on Facebook, I am apparently the only person on Earth who is not lamenting the season’s end of The Walking Dead and also not watching (nor have ever watched) Mad Men.
But that’s OK – this sort of thing isn’t exactly new territory for me. I am often on the opposite side of the fence on matters such as this. For example: I never saw an episode of Lost. I know. I’ll pause now so you can pick up your drink, or get your heart restarted or just allow time for you to recover from the shock of this bombshell.
While I am sure that Mad Men is a fine TV show, and I am sure that the near universal praise for the show is fully and truly warranted – I have little interest in watching it. And truth be told, for whatever reason – I never did. My reasons for this are best kept to myself. Suffice it to say that I see Mad Men as a fairly generic, sterotypical, recycled set up that has been covered many times over by countless TV shows before it.
I’m sure that this is a narrow minded and frustratingly dismissive attitude to take, but I’ve gotta be me. Sometimes I will decide years later to check out a show from the past and find out that my assessment of it was inaccurate. I don’t see that happening here, but you never know. I can see this happening with Lost, but not with Mad Men. Time will tell.
Now, the Walking Dead is another story. I did watch the first season, and thought it was one of the best shows around. All I needed to hear is that it was based on a comic book and that Frank Darabont (he of Shawshank Redemption fame) was going to be the writer/director for at least some of it, and I was intrigued. And was not disappointed.
Those first six episodes were chilling, compelling, horrifying and just plain fun. Everything you’d want a show to be! At least, what you’d want a horror show to be. I found the story and characters intriguing and the acting and writing was top notch. Every episode left me wanting more, and wanting to see what happened next.
Season two was another story. Started off with a hootenanny, then got a mite slow midway through. Came up with a humdinger of a midseason finale, then drifted back to meandering until the end of the sophomore offering. Unlike with the first season, I was not left with a burning desire to see the next season. I was interested, but the luster had faded. And I think that Darabont had since moved on to other projects somewhere during the season.
I watched maybe the first two or three installments of season three, then called it quits. Among my ill conceived reasons:
- I thought that the return of Andrea (truly, is there any more annoying character in TV history? If that’s her goal, the actress is doing an amazing job)
- the emergence of Carl as a gun toting twerp
- the inexplicable way that Andrea and Michionne were surprised by Merle (you’re on the run from zombies! all the time! any lapse in judgment could mean a grisly death! And you allow some dumb ass to sneak up on you?!?!?)
- Hershel getting bitten in what I thought was an obvious set up in the prison. I can’t have been the only viewer who saw that coming as soon as they set up the scene, right? And I’m hardly clairvoyant and I’m not saying that I’m great for seeing this…. I was annoyed when it happened.
Perhaps it’s for the best. I mean, we are talking about the extermination of the human race here. Eventually, all of these people will be Zombie Chow. I think I got the best of what the show had to offer, and I look back fondly to the scenes and moments that made the first two seasons so … utterly watchable.
Now, the good news in all of this is that I have a new show to be looking forward to: Joss Whedon’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. After The Avengers, I will definitely be giving this a look. And who knows, if things go well it could join Arrow and Big Bang Theory in a very exclusive club.
That being shows that I watch with anything resembling consistency.
Dumbledore and Diet Coke: Send an Owl to the Ad Agency Right Away!
Those of you who have – like me – read the book Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and have also seen the movie of the same name will have little trouble, I am sure, conjuring up the image. Said image being that of Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter, side by side in the cave, risking their lives to thwart the evil wizard Lord Voldemort.
For the uninitiated, Dumbledore and Harry were looking to procure – and then destroy – a horcrux, which is an infernal magical object into which a madman has encased a piece of his soul. It’s a nasty business, and in this case, nearly a fatal one. However, as is usually the case (Martin Scorcese notwithstanding), the heroes triumphed and lived to fight another day.
The plot was diabolical. In order to retrieve the magically protected horcrux, Dumbledore was left with no other option but to drink the unkown potion in the basin where the horcrux had been placed. Consumption of this dreaded concoction, it turns out, causes the drinker to relive his or her most horrible moments, weakening them to a near death state. And it also leaves them with a burning thirst.
The final magical protection the horcrux had was that the only source of water that could be found was the water in the pool surrounding the island on which the aforementioned basin rested. Any and all attempts to produce water via magic, and therefore, any attempts to circumvent the perfidious enchantment cast on the cave, were doomed to failure.
So, Harry did the only thing he could, which was to retrieve water from the pool. This action triggered the final trap, which, perpetrated against a lesser wizard, would have resulted in a gruesome and unimaginable death.
And then it occurred to me. A great idea for promotional campaign. Dig it if you will: Any and all attempts to produce water were doomed to failure. But what about other beverages? Orange Juice, perhaps? Vodka? Coffee? I know that an ice cold German beer is something I very much enjoy to slake my thirst. German beer – and Diet Coke.
Re-imagine, if you will, the scene I had described previously. Dumbledore, having drunk the potion, appearing to Harry to be on death’s door. Weak, disoriented and cursed with a burning thirst that can’t be quenched.
Harry attempts to summon water. Due to the dark magic about the cave, it disappears just as quickly as it appeared. Another summoning attempt. Same result. A third try. A fourth failed attempt, and despair filling Harry like the ineffectual air filling a pool toy courtesy of a frazzled parent just looking for peace.
Then, the camera focuses on Harry’s tortured face. Suddenly, a small grin crosses his face. Instead of “aguamenti” Harry calls out “makeitreal” and an icy cold Diet Coke appears in his hand, open and ready to drink. Harry pours some into Dumbledore’s waiting mouth, and as soon as the drink passes his lips, he springs up, revived and refreshed.
A la “Mean” Joe Green in that famous ’70s commercial, Dumbledore downs the remainder of the soda in one continuous chug. Finished, Dumbledore holds the empty bottle at arm’s length, and smiles broadly. Then, he turns to the camera and says “Life Tastes Good!” Cut. Print.
BETC London, I’ll be expecting that call any day now. You’re welcome.
Dubrovnik: A Tour of King’s Landing (and other locations)
When I visited the medieval walled city of Dubrovnik, Croatia in November of 2011, I had no idea that one of my favorite television shows, Game of Thrones, had just recently finished filming its second season there. I thought it might be cool to share some of the photos from my trip that match up with locations from the television series. To read more and see the photos, click the link below:
Andy Blank
Mike Frangione
Depends on What the Meaning of the Word 'Blog' is 
Aaargh-o! Affleck as Batman
I admit it. I was a little surprised (I’d stop short of saying upset or angry, but only just barely) to have heard who was going to be the next Batman. It is a kind of out-of-left-field choice. But I decided to take a step back and look at this whole thing from a distance. See if I could make any sense of it. That hasn’t really happened, but I’ve had about a month to read what other people thought and to see all the clever memes pertaining to this. It seems that a lot of folks are not sold on Ben Affleck as Batman.
Okay, so Mr. Affleck as the Dark Knight wasn’t what most folks had in mind. It could be worse – it could be George Clooney, Val Kilmer, Nicholas Cage or Hayden Christensen. And is this really the worst aspect of this whole thing? Not to me.
If you’re going to reboot a franchise (and I’m assuming that is the plan once the Batman/Superman … thing … comes and goes) so quickly after the initial set of movies was produced, then you might as well get some big names in the mix. It might be a good thing to be able to say “Academy Award winner” Ben Affleck in the promos.
After all, the Superman/Batman movie is being masterminded by Zack Snyder, who brought us the interesting but tepid Man of Steel and the interestinger but tepider Watchmen. In both movies, there were some elements that worked and were pretty cool, but as an overall production, I thought both fell short. Of course, both were attempting to do lofty things – translating what it was that made Watchmen and Superman such big time entities in the first place was going to be a daunting challenge no matter who was doing it.
I am sure that I am in the minority in being underwhelmed (OK, maybe I was whelmed) by Man of Steel. But I can’t get it out of my head that this Snyder guy – not Joss Whedon (Buffy, Avengers), not Jon Favreau (Iron Man and Iron Man 2), not Christopher Nolan (Dark Knight trilogy), not Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class) – is handing such a crucial piece of the DC Universe.
Batman/Superman is one of the keystone movies that will be setting the stage for the long awaited Justice League movie. And after The Avengers, there’s a huge bar set for the whole team concept. Add to this the fact (well, it’s a fact to me) that Marvel’s lead-in movies (Iron Man, Thor, Iron Man 2, Captain America) were all excellent movies in their own right.
I don’t see this being the case with DC. They had a miss with Green Lantern, and The Dark Knight movies will be a distant memory by the time they get to greenlight Justice League (2017). Mix in the stupid inability to get a Wonder Woman movie concept generated or approved, and things are not looking so good. She’s a pretty major player in the team’s history and she can’t even get screen time (not since the 70’s, anyway). Even the Flash had a TV show in recent memory (1990’s) and even has a show coming soon (2016), based on the strength of Arrow.
Of course, the strength of Arrow is that it truly is a very good TV show, and lays a solid groundwork for one of the other main players in Justice League lore. If I had any complaints, it’s that I’d like to see more costumed adversaries – or at least more characters from the Green Arrow universe. But this is a small complaint – if you’re not watching the show, you should be.
I’m trying to be open minded here – I’d like to see a good Batman/Superman movie. And a good Justice League movie. I just don’t think I will. Now – Ben Affleck as Batman. Yes, this does rile up the Batman fanbase, doesn’t it? I’m not jazzed up about the choice myself. There have been many many many names floated as alternates to the casting, but none of them are going to happen, so I will not even bother to comment on that. For my money, I thought John Goodman would have been a good fit for the role…
Yes, it’s true that Affleck was Daredevil. And it’s true that many folks felt that DD was a terrible movie, myself included. But then, this just proves that DC is not the only publisher of comic books that is capable of making less than spectacular super hero movies. And that film’s writer/director, Mark Steven Johnson, is nowhere to be found.
If Batman can survive Joel Schumacher, Ahnold and Christian Bale’s somewhat incomprehensible growl, he can survive Ben Affleck. How bad could it be? It can’t be worse than Batman Forever or Batman & Robin, right?