Gaffer Tape

Warbler said:

That is not clearly explained in movie, and why was he “going to die anyway”?

sorry not buying it.

This is not clearly explained in the movie either.

Not good enough, I was confused by the whole thing and I sure I’m not the only one.

There were no real lightsaber fights.

Sorry, Warb, but I’m gonna have to disagree with you on all of these. Well, I don’t disagree that there are no real lightsaber fights. I freely admit that. But I loved the fact that there wasn’t. I’m so sick of the formula of them. Luke’s non-fight with Kylo was better and more impressive than any actual fight could have been.

As for the rest, I dunno, it made perfect sense to me. You mentioned something about your viewing experience, but I don’t know what thread it’s in. Maybe it distracted you. But all the visions between Kylo and Rey made it very obvious (maybe too obvious?) to me what was going on the MOMENT Luke appeared on Krayt. I guessed immediately that he was just a vision too, especially given how different he looked. But I thought that whole idea was fantastic, that Luke completely demoralized the First Order without resorting to any measure of violence. He simply outsmarted them. That was probably my favorite part of the whole movie and made The Force feel truly mystical to me for, really, the first time since the original film.

I’m really hoping they don’t kill Leia off. I want at least one of the big three to just be able to retire happily rather than dying for the cause. We’ve already had two die for the cause. I want Leia to have stepped back with her head held high, convinced she’s paid her dues for the cause, and ready to leave everything in the capable hands of the next generation. Then I want her to retire to the Star Wars equivalent of Risa and spend her remaining years being tended to by a hunky cabana boy.

They could easily say all of that in dialogue. =P

Oh, for crying out loud. Right after I come back, Frink gets the hammer. I have such a knack for being a harbinger of doom…

ChainsawAsh said:

Oh shit, Gaff! 😄 I was sad when I came back and realized you weren’t around anymore. So happy to see you pop back in!

That’s me! Always popping!

TV’s Frink said:

Either way the average viewer hears it in every film.

And regardless GAFFER COMES BACK AFTER ALMOST A YEAR AWAY AND THAT’S ALL WE GET, A TOTALLY BENIGN RANDOM QUESTION?

Hi Gaff.

Hi, Frink! Well, I wanted to write up my awesomely-worded review of The Last Jedi, but I just haven’t had time, so instead I just did this. Yeah.

TV’s Frink said:

Yoda Is Your Father said:

Collipso said:

Was there a “I’ve got a bad feeling about this” line?

I hate that ‘tradition’ and it was never a ‘tradition’ until the prequels anyway, so fuck it. Good riddance.

Um…it was a tradition that started in ESB* and continued in ROTJ, so…?

*Because it isn’t a tradition until it happens more than once

Could it be more that it was a coincidence at first before becoming an OFFICIALLY MANDATED THING in the prequels? I dunno. I’m honestly just asking.

From the creators of The Captains and Chaos on the Bridge comes a new documentary for Deep Space Nine, What We Left Behind, and I am so excited I practically wet myself. The IndieGoGo campaign went up for it yesterday, and they’ve already raised more over $40,000 more than they asked for. Check it out! Its release can’t come soon enough for me.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/what-we-left-behind-star-trek-deep-space-nine-doc

Warbler said:

Do you consider yourself transgender or something of the sort? I didn’t know that.

Sometimes I don’t even know anymore…

[Possessed said:]

I don’t consider myself Han Solo but I still find Star Wars interesting.

But I do know I find that very funny!

Warbler said:

I just watched “Gender Revolution: A Journey With Katie Couric”. I thought it was interesting and thought provoking. It gave me some things to think about. I don’t think I agree with everything presented, but it was worth watching. Anyone else watch it?

Damn. I wish I could see that. It sounds like it’s right up my alley.

TV’s Frink said:

We all use screen names…any one of us might actually be Sean Spicer in real life.

You can’t prove anything! This is outrageous! It’s an attack on our democracy!

I don’t think I ever assumed it was the equatorial trench, but I didn’t really give it much thought beyond that. I don’t think I assumed it was longitudinal either. Yeah, it does seem obvious when you think about that and look at the plans, but the plans are rather obfuscating too since it doesn’t really zoom in directly from the complete picture into a trench. It zooms into a square, which zooms into another square, which zooms into a trench. By the time I get through all those different layers, I’ve totally forgotten its orientation!

I had no idea it was pronounced like that. I’ve always pronounced it Tan-tiv. For over 20 years! My entire life feels like a lie!

TV’s Frink said:

Gaffer Tape said:

Tobar said:

I wouldn’t want to hear the Imperial March before its first appearance in The Empire Strikes Back. Having it hinted at here is the right way to do it.

But why would you watch this movie, or any Star Wars prequel, before The Empire Strikes Back? Logistically speaking, this movie came out 36 years AFTER The Empire Strikes Back, so there’s no way anything in Rogue One happens before it.

I do not understand this post. Since I already lived through the experience of watching these movies in the order they were made, and I understand the story from beginning to end, what’s wrong with watching chronologically?

These movies are not real life, they’re fiction. In this fictional world that has been created, everything that happens in Rogue One happens before Empire, not after.

Exactly. This is fiction. Things aren’t revealed in chronological order like they are in real life. Prequels are designed and written under the assumption that you’ve already seen what comes “after.” Otherwise, there’d be absolutely no reason, for example, to include a scene at the end of Rogue One where Princess Leia receives the Death Star plans. That’s a scene that is written and shot specifically to say, “Hey, this is how this all ties in to what you’ve already seen.”

Music is one of those things that is so out-of-universe that it doesn’t even tie into a potential continuity issue. It’s not as if Vader came on to his bridge in Empire toting a boom box and saying, “Hey, guys. Check out my sick new theme. I just had it composed!” Then its appearance in Rogue One would be jarring. But that’s not the case. The Imperial March has no place in-universe.

It’s why I always rolled my eyes when the prequel trilogy was coming out and people were saying they should have filmed it in such a way as to avoid spoiling Luke’s parentage. Since the whole reason the prequels existed was to show how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader, that just seemed to me to be a huge dose of missing the point. And despite Lucas’s cringeworthy assertions that the prequels should be watched first, he is also the guy who put Darth Vader’s breathing into Phantom Menace. He knew what kind of movie he was making even if his stubbornness wouldn’t let him admit it.

As for what’s wrong with watching it that way, I’m certainly not advocating coming into your home and forcing what goes into your Blu-ray player. Watch them however you like. View them with a new perspective. That’s great. However, I would (and do) vehemently argue against intaking any piece of fiction for the first time out of release order, but that certainly doesn’t apply to anybody here. And by extension, neither does any worrying about spoilers in that regard. But I do feel that worrying about a sequel or prequel spoiling something from a previous movie is like watching Return of the Jedi before The Empire Strikes Back and then complaining that all of Empire’s surprises were spoiled for you.

Tobar said:

I wouldn’t want to hear the Imperial March before its first appearance in The Empire Strikes Back. Having it hinted at here is the right way to do it.

But why would you watch this movie, or any Star Wars prequel, before The Empire Strikes Back? Logistically speaking, this movie came out 36 years AFTER The Empire Strikes Back, so there’s no way anything in Rogue One happens before it.

All that nitpicking (admittedly) aside, I do agree with the sentiment. But since Rogue One is a sequel (prequels are sequels too), I don’t necessarily see a problem with using production elements such as music when appropriate. But I do like when they weave those things in narratively. As has been mentioned, Anakin’s theme in Phantom Menace is a variation on the Imperial March, and that makes perfect sense. It’s using the music as a kind of backwards foreshadowing. I’m a little bit more on the fence about its necessity in this case. Anakin’s Theme in TPM makes sense because he’s not Vader, so a gentler, happier version of the same motif makes sense but also ties him to the same musical theme. It helps illustrate the progression of his character. But here he’s full-on Vader. There’s nothing between here and Empire that significantly changes his character. It’s just that John Williams came up with a theme for him in between the first and second films. A hidden Imperial March would suggest that there’s some kind of Vader that’s still covered up and is trying to emerge. But here he’s force choking people and slicing and dicing by the truckload, so there’s really nothing to uncover. So narratively-speaking, there’s no real reason why it would be out of place for him to be accompanied by that theme.

Hi, Frink!

DuracellEnergizer said:

Gaffer is like a phantom ship; you don’t see it (or him) too often, but when it (he) makes an appearance, it’s a momentous occasion.

Well, at least I’m not a Phantom Menace: you don’t see it too often, but when it makes an appearance, you wish you were watching a better movie.

Darth Id said:

Hardcore Legend said:

Tobar said:

Yeah, I can’t watch the movie without that line in it. It’s my favorite gag in the film.

It, along with the stormtrooper bashing his head off the door only to later have the sound effect added.

Did they really do this?

I remember the first time I noticed that guy smack his helmed forehead, probably on approx. my 75th viewing of the film.
Ever since, I can’t see anything else.
God that actor musta felt like an asshole. It probably really hurt—he hits that shit pretty hard!

Yeah, the sound was added in for the 2004 DVD release to tie in with another gag that ties back into this one. In AotC, they made a callback to this by having Jango Fett bang his head on the door of Slave I. And so now the comedy is that Jango’s clumsy DNA got into the Stormtrooper vats! Har har har!

“Helloooo, what have we here?”

Whatever Wicket says when the speeder patrol shoots at Leia and him. It’s always sounded to me like, “Eat 'choo mama. Eat 'choo mama yoota.” Now, I don’t know what all of that means, but especially on Mother’s Day, your mama needs some loving…

Funnily enough, I had done this on my facebook a couple of months ago, so now I get to post it here! I haven’t seen BvS, though… But at any rate, aside from that, here are all the Batman theatrical releases.

1. The Dark Knight-Fantastic. Wonderful psychology of the characters. Best Two-Face ever.
2. Batman Returns-Visually fantastic. My favorite Batsuit. My only complaints are that Gotham Plaza looks very much like a soundstage, and that Bruce starts lecturing about killing when he’s been fine killing people this whole time. Just a little tweak would’ve been all that was needed to make it character development instead of just out-of-character.
3. Batman Begins-Probably the only live-action Batman film where Batman is the most interesting thing about it.
4. Batman (1989)-Great noir atmosphere, which would influence the animated series. Michael Keaton is always a fantastic Batman, and I love the idea of keeping his character in the shadows and intimating his psychology rather than spelling it out.
5. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm-Deserved much more credit than it got. Great tale of Bruce Wayne’s what-if life that never was. And it has Abe Vigoda.
6. Batman The Movie (1966)-Hard to rank these with the others due it being so different and purposely silly. I love it. And if you asked me another day, I’d probably put it somewhere completely different.
7. Batman (1943 serial)-My ongoing review has forced me to confront a lot of flaws in it, but I still love it. The atmosphere is great. Lewis Wilson makes a wonderfully sociopathic Batman, and he and Douglas Croft’s Robin have great chemistry. I even love the costumes.
8. The Dark Knight Rises-Suffers from third part in a trilogy syndrome, where its predecessor set up things this movie could never have pulled off with aplomb. But it still has a lot of heart, and I do enjoy a franchise finally giving Batman some rest.
9. Batman Forever-Could have been much higher if they hadn’t cut out the key scenes of Batman’s character development. As it stands, I like the relationship between Bruce and Dick. Otherwise, fairly forgettable.
10. Batman & Robin (1997)-Silly and ridiculous but not unwatchable. For me, it definitely falls into the So Bad It’s Good territory. Had a good idea with the Alfred dying plot. And I actually like George Clooney as Batman.
11. Batman and Robin (1949 serial)-Dial up all the problems in the previous serial to 11 but counter it with a heavy dose of blandness, and you get this. Also, I hate Vicki Vale.

Possessed said:

I somewhat know the feeling. I’m going through a heartbreak too and we work together so I have to see her all the time. It really sucks and every day is miserable.

Ooh, I had that happen too a few years ago. But in my case, not only did my ex and I work together, but my ex left me for someone else we worked with. So I got to see the whoooole thing. Fantastic.

Actually, looks like someone is paraphrasing the Angry Video Game Nerd…

HansiG said:

Lucas isn’t that smart

Well, for what it’s worth, that is almost verbatim the explanation that Lucas gives in the DVD commentary track.

Yeah, that’s more what I meant. And, yeah, it is highly possible that that might be the case. But my post was more of a cumulative thing. As in, you’d think at least one of these things would have happened. While it’s likely one or more wouldn’t have happened, it’s hard to believe NONE of them would have. Luke wouldn’t have asked, anybody who knows Luke’s father is a Jedi wouldn’t have asked, nobody who knew Luke was training as Jedi wouldn’t have commented on his behavior, AND neither of the people who actually trained him would have mentioned either of those scenarios.

DominicCobb said:

In fairness, the fact that Luke’s father was a Jedi was kept secret.

Well, um, no. Ben was quite clear about that, actually.

I’m not sure if I should be impressed or disappointed that nobody feels compelled to bring up George’s “I totally planned this and didn’t just pull this explanation out of my ass to cover up my mistake” explanation: that, yeah, he totally knows parsec is a measure of distance, but that’s the freaking point! Because it means that Han Solo is really good at navigating and stuff and can compute a shorter route. Even though that really shouldn’t have anything to do with the Falcon at all, right…?

TV’s Frink said:

GAFFER!

Hi, Frinky. Looking sexy as always. In fact, you look like some poster that I used to know…