While there are an ever-increasing amount of female readers/fans in the world of comics and superheroes, there also seems to be a never-ending supply of chauvinist fans who respond to titles such as Ms. Marvel or Batgirl with hostility, often using such charming phrases as "what is this feminist bullshit?" to describe their feelings. In a medium already hyper masculinized what does this behaviour suggest about comics fandom and its audience? Maybe also mention attitude toward female cosplayers, creators, and characters.
Do movies rely too much on shock factor that they lose their purpose or quality? For example, in the timeless movie, "Swing Time," a door would conveniently open in front of the camera to avoid the audience from seeing Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers kiss. Furthermore, homosexuality, cannibalism, and incest are only implied but never explicitly shown or stated in Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift's movie, "Suddenly Last Summer." On the other hand, modern movies and TV shows alike are not only exploiting these kinds of racy subjects but also glorifying them. The TV version of "Game of Thrones" has surpassed the books in some areas and completely gone astray from them in other areas simply to initiate a reaction from the audience. For example, Jamie and Cersei Lannister's relationship is not only developed but given plenty of passionate onscreen scenes all the while their offspring wears the crown. Where movies are concerned, "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" displays a blowjob, rape, and several torture scenes explicitly throughout the film. What should the boundaries in story telling be without assuming immoral or questionable affairs simply do not happen? Do these explicit scenes further the story telling and constitute as art, or do they get in the way?
this could also be vital in "click-baiting" on the internet, not with just films but also youtube videos which can be used as a form of storytelling too. – scole8 years ago
Real terror in something like Rosemary's Baby or The a Silence of the Lambs vs. the cheapness of using tense music setting up the viewer for a someone or something appearing as the orchestra hits the home run note. Hemingway used a British officer's polite and understated description of enemy soldiers being "potted" to heighten the sense of war's inhumanity. Implication and allusion are deeper wells than the ham-handedness of statement. – Tigey8 years ago
Since 2007-2008 TV has evolved exponentially. What used to be cinema's little brother, has now become a top contender against the industry. In the old days, A list actors and actresses thought it was shameful to move from the big screen to the silver screen, normally, it was the other way around. Nowadays, we see big actors on the little screen. For example: Tom Hiddleston in The Night Manager, or Eva Green in Penny Dreadful, or Matthew McConaughey in True Detective. Can an A list actor or actress maintain their "tittle" even if they switch from movies to TV? Are there more opportunities on TV than in the film industry? Which one grants the most financial stability? Is it the quality of the shows or the networks behind them that attract the talent?
With the release of DC Rebirth, it is worth pondering if comic books have become too focused on "shattering the status quo." DC held off decades before finally relaunching their universe with the New 52, but it seems that these relaunches are about to become more common. The question is: do we need, or even want, them? Resetting continuity after just a few years prevents strong world-building and characterization to happen. It also makes it difficult to hold a strong emotional attachment to comic book characters if we know that they will soon be "reset" every so often. While there was certainly backlash to the New 52, will comic book companies simply press the restart button every time they tell a story that some people dislike? And how will this affect comic book storytelling?
It would be nice to talk about the fact that DC is playing catch up with Marvel. – Andrestrada8 years ago
I think another thing to consider is whether or not "shock value" is a factor in the constant relaunching. For instance, one of the new "canons" within this rebirth is having 3 Jokers (as if one wasn't enough). Also, as Andrestrada mentioned above with playing catch up with Marvel, within the same week of DC's rebirth Marvel announced that Captain America was really Hydra all along and caused nothing but outrage from both DC and Marvel fans. – Mela8 years ago
Also note that this is NOT a new or recent phenomenon. DC has been doing things like this, to my understanding, as far back as the silver age. New versions of the Green Latern, the Flash most notably made their debut in the silver age, along with the Justice League. Then there were Crisis on Infinite Earths and so on. For Captain America, I know that Stan Lee had retconned all of the Cap stories post WWII until he brought him back in the 60s by saying her had been frozen all of this time. In the highly noted Brubaker run of Cap, there would be even more retcons, stating that the 50s Cap and Bucky were in fact other people, and that he never became Nomad; that was another guy, who became a small part of his story. And even THAT was retconned recently (I believe by Nick Spencer) who made reference to Steve Rogers being Nomad. So, really the nottion that would have to be put across is the idea of "selective continuity"-- that both writers and fans pick and choose what they want to be part of the mythos. If there was a small event or something that happened 30 years ago that nobody remembers but say the writer, it is up to him whether he wants to use it or not. – Baenacci8 years ago
The implications of the Watchmen being brought into line with the rest of the DC Universe are staggering. The possibility that the entire New 52, and perhaps beyond, are a creation of Dr. Manhattan allows for the retelling of origin stories that could alter the arcs of long time favorites. This could give DC a chance to clean up their often problematic continuity problems. I am reminded of the Star Trek reboot that kept the integrity of the characters intact while allowing for a totally new history to be created.
– Inverkeithing8 years ago
Stemming from this, I think an interesting question is why is continuity so important to the world of comic books. Why aren't there just a series of individual, stand alone series? Why does everything have to neatly mesh? Rebirth was, according Geoff Johns, a way to regain the love and history that was lost during the New 52, and was a measure to reconnect to fans. But why do comic book fans (myself included) care so much about the personal and past histories of superheroes? Continuity, at times, seems to take precedence over the characters themselves. – grabergc8 years ago
To be honest, considering DC Rebirth a relaunch is not completely fair, it still stems off of the New 52 and most of the New 52 is still cannon. What it does is connected the New 52 with the old continuity. Putting things right that seemed to be out of continuity. Granted, some things are retconned, but many aspects of New 52 is still there, as well as bringing back the what was good about the old continuity. As a final note, these "relaunches" from the Big 2 are not all entirely bad, as they allow a new wave of readers to come in with a starting point that is an issue #1, instead of issue #546. – Elijah8 years ago
Something that I have noticed in all of my time watching anime, reading manga, and learning about popular culture in Japan, is that girls are extremely over-sexualized. You get this in the "jiggle physics" phenomenon that has struck anime, or the fact that many clothes that are sort of pop-cultre-y in Japan are like sexy versions of what little girls would wear (at least from what I see about Harajuku culture anyway), or even how animes or mangas that are supposed to have characters that are little girls get into really inappropriate situations, such as the little movie for Sword Art Online when they have the older girls grabbing Suguha's boobs at the pool when she's like 13-14 just because they are big (or, to use No Game, No Life as an example, show really inappropriate panty shots of what is supposed to be a little girl). I think examining how pop culture really over-sexualizes girls and women could point to how things need to change to create more of an equality in the culture that relies less on sex and boobs and more on women as people.
It would be good to look at things from a cultural point of view. What is it about the cultural that encourages the sexualization of young girls? Is it certain standards of girls that people find enticing, or is it just because it sells? – andreacr8 years ago
I think there is absolutely a place for obnoxious over-sexualization of characters. But I also believe there should be just as much selection for women as characters that aren't just jiggle objects. – bluishcatbag8 years ago
Like the old saying goes, "sex sells." And, in my opinion, I believe that is why there is so much sexualization of characters in anime and manga. However, as stated in your point, it is questionable why there is sexualization of young, underage girls. Like what andreacr stated before, culture has some parts on why anime sexualizes teenage girls. In Japan, the age of consensual sex is at 13 years old, but there are laws that makes it illegal for an adult to be in a sexual relationship with girls under the age of 17. But that's a whole different topic that I will get in later. Sexualizing characters is basically fanservice. However, this type of fanservice is mainly directed to male viewers, particularly shown in shonen or seinen animes/mangas which are the two most read or watched genre inside and outside of Japan. So a lot creators or mangakas believe that in order to appeal to men even more, they tend to sexualize female characters. But why young girls? In some cases, the characters that look like a teenage girl is in fact a grown woman in her mid to late 20s. It's basically just the youth factor that plays a role in some cases; the age-old idea that a younger woman is more desirable than an older woman. If the girl is a teenager, then that's a different ball game. As stated before, the age of sexual consent in Japan is 13, but an adult cannot have sex with girls under 17. So, as wrong as this may sound, the loophole is that it is legal in a few parts of Japan where you can watch pornography with girls under the age of 17 so long as they are 13 or older. However, Japan is cracking down on this lately and it is illegal in many parts of the country today. In the West, 13 is considered to be much too young, and those who are 13 are still considered by law to be children or adolescents, so some Western viewers do get uncomfortable watching underage girls put in sexual situations. And if you think about it, in most of these situations in anime, the girl is sometime unaware of the implications of the situation they are put in, or they feel just as uncomfortable but this is downplayed as a comedic scene (ie tsundere). Now this would stem back to the whole idea that innocence is sexy. A video on YouTube titled "Born Sexy Yesterday" does tackle this issue much better than my explanation. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0thpEyEwi80) And I wholeheartedly agree with what you are saying. Oversexualization can kill, and it does diminish the quality of the character. But instead of seeing an actual person, they are portrayed as this sort of sexual fantasy. – themessenger1517 years ago
It's a truism that in manga that there are manga suited to every topic and influence, from playing on a basketball team to the biography of Buddha or Adolf Hitler to manga about preparing food and drinking wine. But one subject area that doesn't seem to thrive in manga is Western style superheroes, at least not in the translated market. The closest analogue to Western superhero comics is the comic MAIL, which was a pretty successful iteration of the supernatural-mystery format seen variously in books like Dr Strange or Constantine. But the book didn't last very long, concluding after just three volumes. A manga like One-Punch Man feels more like a satire of conventional Western superhero comics. Is it that these comics don't exist in either country, or is it that they simply don't succeed in the US direct market because of competition from existing superhero properties? Or is there another, less obvious reason why Japanese superhero comics haven't succeeded in the US market?
My Hero Academia is a popular anime that has been noticeably influenced by Western superheroes. One of the main protagonists even bears a striking resemblance to Captain America. – ees7 years ago
I honestly do not understand what it says here. – T. Palomino2 years ago
Anyone else a little overwhelmed by all the good TV? From Walter White jokes to understanding why Julianne Hough got in trouble for that pesky 'Crazy Eyes' Halloween costume, it seems that TV's Golden Age has created a new cultural vocabulary. Are we all keeping up? Should we be trying?
Yes; but i think in this day and age; the public needs to be aware of the downfalls of certain tv shows reality or fiction. Also the tv that is out there is put out there for public consumption, it is our choice if we the public can filter whats too much for us or what we shouldn't watch or let our kids watch. – Dwrite8 years ago
I think that something that may be of use to the topic would be to acknowledge how many good TV shows are being cancelled in favor of those that have been on for too long and are poorly written, simply because some people would throw fits if their shows got cancelled. A few good examples of this are Firefly, Forever, and Pushing Daisies. It seems like a lot of intelligent TV gets cancelled in favor of things that rely on cheap laughs and clichees. – Cate8 years ago
When referring to "good" TV, it should be acknowledged that the addition of new mediums like Netflix and Hulu has affected the industry. Also, it could be helpful to analyze how much content is lifted (directly or indirectly) by the previous boom periods of TV shows, measuring how much success is copied from the trial-and-error already iconic programming – Dominique Kollie8 years ago
In about '89 TV was such a brain- and time-sucker I stopped watching for 25 years. In truth, since we rented movies, I missed only sports playoffs. A couple years ago I was gifted a smart TV, added Netflxx, and it was off to the races. The race stopped quickly, however, as one of the first shows I watched was Breaking Bad, which has ruined me. The only show as good is the original Arrested Development. Life is short, good is the enemy of great, I don't want to be in a nursing home quoting Pauly Shore, and I've caught myself apologizing for programs – Tigey8 years ago
May I just ask what the point of this project would be? – T. Palomino2 years ago
From a societal point of view, how does an artist serve humanity through his or her works? Many artists simply get rich and famous, but is there more to it than that? What about those lesser known musicians, painters, filmmakers and such that make profound statements through their creations and performances? What makes an artistic performance profound in the first place?
Many artists are misunderstood and that is the problem, you 'll only understand an artists if you, yourself are a true artist. Sadly most artists don not get the recognition they deserve until after they have passed away. – petergeoff218 years ago
The poem "Portrait of the Poet as Landscape" by A. M. Klein could shed some light on this topic. – JennyCardinal8 years ago
This is sort of like the question asked in every art history/fine art class, "What is Art". It usually sparks a lot of heated discussion. However, finding out what it means to be an artist today vs perhaps in the renaissance could be an interesting point to start from – hmsnow8 years ago
I agree with the commentator above, it is a broad question. However, as a visual arts student on the cusp of graduation I would say being an artist in the contemporary art realm means being defined by other artists. Often in class I will hear comparisons being drawn between a learning artists work and a famous artist. We are constantly searching up artists who have already developed a unique subject matter that has defined them as worthy of attention within the art world. I am an artist however I am defined by the artists of the past and present, their techniques and subjects, and their successes and failures. – melpetrinack8 years ago
It becomes clear with times that the Romanticism holds an internal contradiction. These disagreements have a very humanistic nature. Thus, the theme of the concealed self plays particularly integral role in works of some romantic artists such as Emily Dickinson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, and etc.. The role of artist, the role of artist’s self can be considered as a one of main themes of the romantic age. Although, the new limitless artistic and creative possibilities begun with understanding of their godlike nature, the faith in the absolute “thereness”, in the man’s transcendental origin faded. Did it lead to the logical conclusion that faith in the God needs to be replaced with the faith in the man, his mind, his creative powers and possibilities, his nobleness, dignity, and his ability to “self-rely”?
I read a Jezebel article with a title that sums it up best: "To Save Money on a TV Show, Just Get Rid of the Women." Thankfully, Castle was cancelled before they were able to implement this change. But when news broke that Some Genius decided to get rid of female lead Stana Katic, many fans were understandably pissed. Katic's character Kate Beckett had been central to the show since the very beginning, and the dynamic between her and Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) was the glue that held it together (although arguably it jumped the shark several seasons ago). It seemed absurd to suddenly off her after eight seasons. That being said, is it really that surprising that (amid rumours of her feuds with Fillion on set), the producers decided it would be feasible to keep going and tactlessly fire the Important Woman Actor, instead of just ending the show's already too-long run? (Also note: fellow Actress and Woman Tamala Jones was set to depart Castle after the eighth season.)
There is a long history of expendable women characters such as Suzanne Somers from Three's Company and Farrah Fawcett from Charlie's Angels from the 70s. So true. – Munjeera8 years ago
Explore the tensions between Table Top (think: Warhammer; D&D) and Live Action gamers and role players (fantasy real-world experience, think: your banker in a local park decked with with swords and cloaks). Why is one group often disparaging of the other? What credence does one community have for this divide? How often does overlap occur? Does this tension foster a stronger sense of one's own identity?
I like to think of the rift in various "nerd acceptance" is natural and just goes to show how large and evolved the community has become. I mean, look at sports fans. If someone likes one sport they sometimes reject those who like another better and it's kind of the same thing. Overlap and division will occur based on the individual people but it is a good question as to which activities most overlap and why? – Slaidey8 years ago
Explore a phenomenon I've dubbed "Subway Syndrome" (Yes, like the sandwich), as it relates to the choice-heavy model for gaming.
Subway, Chipotle, and choose-your-own-ingredients restaurants give you so many options that you're bound to make a mistake. Add jalapeños and mustard to your tuna? Sure! Sounds great! Throw some ranch and honey on your tortilla soup. Eventually modification leads you to mistake and regret. "Why did I choose this? I should have gotten the BBQ. Why did I add this? I shouldn't have put so many weird flavors here."
How does the potential for regret affect the multi-choice gaming model? In what ways does modification and the opportunity to customize your experience create drawbacks or detract from what could be a solid core/well-crafted story/canon/writing? How does it impact your experience as a user?
Much has been said (even by me) of the benefits of choose-your-own adventure games. Can someone play Devil's Advocate?
The unprecedented success of Lin-Manuel Miranda's "Hamilton" has brought the musical live action play into the spotlight. Its innovative use of rap to quickly deliver information on complex topics (such as the first cabinet debate over Hamilton's financial plan) is fantastic. It also brought new faces to the roles of famous American heroes, bringing a new diversity to the stage. As the title says, does "Hamilton" represent a point that all plays after it will be heavily influenced by its style.
Not only a new age for the stage, I think, but for American history and politics, as well. It is showing an entirely new generation that history and politics can be fun and learning doesn't have to be dry or by rote. As a political scientist, that is refreshing to me. Great topic! – Lee Williams8 years ago
The integration of hip-hop in particular will be interesting – Darcy Griffin8 years ago
If anything, I hope that other musicals take the cast as inspiration. Lin-Manuel Miranda has said that the majority POC cast was a deliberate move to better reflect the diversity of today's America, and include POC in 'mainstream' history. – chrischan8 years ago
My friend is a very big fan of the new stage show Hamilton. I think it will start a new trend to musical style. Hamilton's music is very much a blend of rap, pop, and more classical theatre styles, so I think new musicals will incorporate more styles of music.
– birdienumnum178 years ago
Analyze why one of the main characters in Game of Thrones is revived, and if he is revived for plot reasoning and why this would be, or rather to please audience members by playing on popular societal trends.
Honestly, I do not think this topic can be answered fully until the series reaches the conclusion. There are certainly hints and theories (R+L=J , The Prince That Was Promised, being free from his Night's Watch vows) that could help explain why Jon was resurrected, but until the conclusion there is no way to analyze the extent of Jon's character and importance.
I also would note that I don't believe this resurrection is "playing on popular societal trends" that occur commonly on television. This resurrection has been in the works for years, since the last book came out. This isn't something that came out of thin air for ratings.
This would be an interesting topic to explore after the conclusion of the series, but right now I do not believe it can be answered. If one wanted to explore the topic though, they could look at Jon as following the 'Hero's Journey'. By analyzing Jon through that perspective it could help predict reasons why Jon is important to the overall narrative, although there will be no concrete evidence to draw from in regards to the final stages. – Lexzie8 years ago
Easy answer: the theory is he has king's blood so he's a contender for the child of prophecy along with Daenerys. I think Jon's resurrection is catering to fan interests though. Lexzie is right, an article should analyse Jon as a character, assess where he'll go based on trends in literary genres that resemble it. I'm sure there are plenty enough fan theory based Buzzfeed articles about how and why this one plot mark came to being so lets make it broader and deeper. – Slaidey8 years ago
This is essentially answered in the books – Darcy Griffin8 years ago
I believe it is for plot reasoning. Jon's death at the nights watch allowed for "his watch to end". Jon entered the Wall in the first season as green as a tree but now his character has developed into one of the most special characters in GOT. I believe his character has now grown past commander of the nights watch and off to bigger and better things. – Ringo8 years ago
Jon Snow was told by the raven that he had to kill a boy to become a man--as is explicitly shown in the scene when the four traitors are hanged--yet there is a double meaning. It does not solely refer to the death of the boy who stabbed him, but to the death of jon snow, the young boy who emerges as a man no longer concerned with pleasing others.
Personally, I have read the books long before the series began and I have always seen Daenerys and jon snow as the "end game," of the series. The series is titled a "song of fire and ice,"--> Daenerys being the fire; Jon being the ice. He is a pivotal character essential to the plot development of the show. His return will be monumental as his birth right holds tremendous secrets and insights into the true ruler of the iron throne. – danielle5778 years ago
"A Street Car Named Desire", "Apocalypse Now" and "The Godfather" are some of Marlon Brando's best known work, but why was he such a good actor? What turned him from Hollywood heart throb to Dr. Moreau?
I think the title question is mislead/should be rephrased. The actual description of the topic sounds fine, but "good acting" is very subjective. However an analysis of his career would be interesting – Darcy Griffin8 years ago
How do I edit the title? Marlon Brando: Was he one of the greatest actors, or a very good liar? I could have many different titles, this being my first topic I wasn't sure how to word it properly. – petergeoff218 years ago
Title aside, a cool thing to do with would be to consider how his style would translate to modern film. Was he the perfect man for his era or could his performance transcend the stylistic ravages of time – Dominique Kollie8 years ago
Perceptions of Brando as "one of the greatest actors" were very much influenced by the historical and aesthetic contexts of his career. Streetcar became a smash hit on both stage and screen under the direction of Elia Kazan, who was one of the earliest American directors to adopt (and arguably master) the newly emerging style of Method Acting, as formulated by Lee Strasberg under the influence of the Stanislavsky System that had been taking Russian and European performance by storm since the founding of the Moscow Art Theatre in 1897. Prior to the advent of this hyper-Realist system, acting was either Classical (better suited for the high poeticism of Aeschylus, Shakespeare, and Goethe than for the stark literalism of Ibsen, Chekhov, and Tennessee Williams) or Melodramatic (which heightened emotions beyond anything even remotely believable). Coinciding with this Naturalist revamping of the theatre was the refinement of film technology and the art of cinema, which was capable of replicating the world with photographic precision in a way that theatre simply couldn't. This made it necessary for the acting style to mirror the reality of the mise-en-scene, making the Method the ideal choice for this new medium. Brando's arrival on the screen in 1951 blew spectators away, because never before had they seen an actor so candidly portray real human emotions in such a recognizably realistic fashion. – ProtoCanon8 years ago
I read this quote somewhere: "Brando was troubled, but James Dean was sick." I don't know what to say about Dean, but Brando's sickness - he once said if there were 100 people in a room and didn't like him, he'd want to escape - may have led to his success; I'm pretty sure it led to his famous refusal of an Oscar. This topic may be subjective, but that's not necessarily a flaw. – Tigey8 years ago
Hmmm...what comes to mind is actually Disney's recent film, Zootopia. Totally hilarious, classic Disney fare. But also a pretty clear race allegory, as many reviewers have noticed. Gets to the heart of racialized discourse: are people of certain races (or in Zootopia's case, bunnies) inherently passive, while others (see wolves in the film) are aggressive and still others (see foxes) sneaky and conniving? Of course not, but these are the assumptions we inherit and perpetuate, even on the subtlest levels. Ruminating on these topics in animated form is, I think, rather ingenious. – alissac8 years ago
There are a ton of different ways this could go. Some specification is probably needed: films from a certain era? Country or region? About certain race(s)? Different genres? There are a lot of different factors that will affect the role race plays in a movie. – chrischan8 years ago
Qu'Allah bénisse la France (2014) a French film, shot in black & white that takes a look at the racism, France's well-known unemployment issue as well as heavy drug use and how these factors affect the youngsters in a devastating manner. The film is based on a true story. – oksly8 years ago
I might be interested in this topic. But, in order to give any step further, I am going to need examples, a project with a thesis, an explanation of the relevance of the undertaking, and proof that this idea is original and hasn't been explored before. – T. Palomino2 years ago
Specifically looking at Disney, it seems to be a fad of late that animated films from the past are being given a life-action face lift. Is there an actual reason behind re-creating the Disney classics other than doing so from a purely capitalistic standpoint? There is controversy that Disney films are quite dark and if they are appropriate for their target audience, that is children. So are these remakes being created to be targeted more towards the children and being used to censor their animated predecessors? To they alter too much from the original and does it retain the same magic created by the hand painted animated stories that established the Disney brand?
When the film is reimagined (Think: Maleficent) the live-action remake can serve as a new medium for a new message. When it's the same story, the new medium feels almost like pandering. I'd rather have a remastered release than for someone to tell me the same script, same characters, same story is truly new just because it's been recast. Corinne Andersson just posted on the future of this topic, but her article didn't explore feelings about the process, in case whoever writes on this might find it useful: http://www.insidethemagic.net/2016/04/16-animation-to-live-action-movie-remakes-disney-has-in-the-works-right-now/ – Piper CJ8 years ago
I think the sense of "magic" that was present in early Disney films would be impossible to recreate nowadays. The new live-action movies, beyond existing purely as a gesture for capital gain, seem to pander to modern celebrity culture in which we desire to see our favourite actors playing iconic characters...this is happening in Beauty and the Beast for sure, which features a whole bunch of super famous actors.
This is probably an unpopular opinion, but I think I like the Cinderella reboot better than the original. I think they filled in a lot of plot holes really well, kept enough of the original elements that it felt true to the story, but updated and changed the stuff they needed to. You can't really "replace" the old animated Disney magic with better effects/acting/writing/etc., but I do think these movies could potentially serve a cinematic purpose. I guess we'll see how the next five of them turn out. – darapoizner8 years ago
I don't mind live action remakes of movies, but I do wish they'd make more remakes of movies that didn't do well the first time around. I know they do what they know will work - Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid (upcoming) - but I'd like to see someone try to fix the issues with a less popular movie like Atlantis or Treasure Planet. – chrischan8 years ago
I love animated movies and am never quite sure how I feel about these remakes. Live action and animation are very different mediums, and I don't think that these live actions films can evoke the wonder that the hand painted works do. 'Maleficent' is an interesting film because it presents a really different version of the Sleeping Beauty story and gives the villain depth. However, I have a lack of interest in these other remakes because they seem to be just that, remakes for the sake of making money, taking advantage of the success of the originals, shows such as Once Upon a Time, and previous remakes like the aforementioned 'Maleficent'. – MelanieHurley8 years ago
I believe they do it to bring their old works to the modern age. For the most part, the perspectives in the live action films and being re-explored and the characters are much more independent and developed. – RadosianStar8 years ago
Explore the ways in which Light Yagami's plan for the human race was effective. With the sheer number of criminals dying, what were some of the positive changes that the world saw? In what way could these changes have been sustained if Light was able to maintain sanity through the transition? Find the good in Yagami's fall from grace.
I believe the title Deathnote is generally written as "Death Note." Otherwise great topic (though possibly controversial) about a great show! – Connor Gregorich-Trevor8 years ago
I think the show was pretty clear about how Kira's work created change. Known criminals were removed and future criminals deterred but in the long run it was doing all this through fear. There will always be bad people and with Kira's influence around they would just learn to be smarter about their actions: do crime in secret and not get televised. I think the real question is, would this world have been sustainable? Would it just create worse "villains"? I personally wonder whether Light would have started adding bias to his selections (politicians etc.) and how that would be received by the populace? – Slaidey8 years ago
It was pretty clear that Light was not entirely sane from the beginning, the very first episode of the anime has him declaring himself God. There might be something to be said about the benefits of Light's approach, but that's a very subjective topic. – BoomBap8 years ago
If you want to argue in favour of Light's plan, it might be worth looking at real-world information on the effects of the death penalty and/or vigilantism on crime rates, since that's essentially what the Death Note was. It's one thing to argue that something was helpful in a fictional world, but drawing real-world parallels could make for a more full analysis. – ElijahBassett8 years ago
Pixar produces some of the most high-quality animation films in Hollywood. Pixar president Ed Catmull attributes this success to the "Braintrust" model, a set of four rules Pixar teams should follow that aims to "remove ego" for the ultimate creative success. Very briefly, these rules include
1. Removing power structure from the group 2. Only lateral, peer-peer interactions (no subordinates) 3. All success shared between team members 4. Honesty from peers on ideas proposed
How is this seemingly simple Braintrust model the key to Pixar's success? Further, can this model be applied to other forms of entertainment (such as anime, film, literature) to unleash the potential to create quality, well-received work?
I think this is an interesting topic to analyze, but does require some knowledge of business I would assume, as well as some research into Disney's success as compared to other studios, as well as the knowledge that Disney is probably the largest media corporation in the entire world. A look into Pixar's history and the success of movies produced after this model was introduced in comparison to movies before would be a good contrast to have in this article as well. – Nayr12308 years ago
This sounds like a fascinating topic. Disney has also put into practice certain leadership ideals and their workshops available for business executives are legendary. I mean does anyone actually need anything from Disney, a cap with mouse ears? No of course not, but we all buy Disney. Their marketing strategies combined with corporate leadership has set the bar high. – Munjeera8 years ago
Wow, this is a really interesting topic. I didn't know that Pixar teams followed those rules, but obviously it's working for them. As for if that model could be applied to other forms of entertainment, I think it would be quite difficult for film production companies to employ because everyone's roles have their own set of rules (i.e. directors, editors, producers etc.) – shaniaclarke8 years ago
An extremely popular and successful franchise, the Batman Arkham series is yet another universe added to the Batman canon. However, the latest addition to the series brought in the controversial role of Jason Todd — the former "second" Robin who had been murdered by the Joker — as the "Arkham Knight" and main antagonist of the game. Most fans expressed their outrage for the use of Todd's character and the way it was conveyed within the Arkham Verse, along with (yet again) using the over saturated Joker trope, and Batman's decision with the "Knightfall Protocol". Was this addition to the gaming series poorly plotted out? And most importantly: was the characterization of these iconic characters destroyed by the Arkham verse canon?
I would argue that another reason there was disappointment with the "Arkham Knight" was not just that he was Jason Todd, but that it was so painfully obvious that he was Jason Todd. I think a lot of people were hoping for a brand new baddie to add to the Batman franchise but received a variation of the Red Hood instead. – Logan8 years ago