Tag: Anthony Gramuglia

Gen Z are choosing to watch anime way more than they are Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel. The statistics prove it, but…why? What does anime have that Disney, the MCU, and the recent Star Wars sequel trilogy don’t?

There are a lot of people who believe they understand the reasons why, but the truth is far more complicated — and far more simple — than you may realize.

Space Fascism is one of those big topics in sci-fi, from Helldivers to Starship Troopers. There’s nothing easier than beating up a big evil empire full of conformity and evil, nor is there better social satire than one. But something happens sometimes where we create fascist villains and have to ask “Can they ever be better people?” Like with all things, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it.

In this video essay, Anthony will discuss the idea of redemption and fascist characters. Not all of these characters are strictly speaking fascists, but they all push the boundaries of how evil and wicked an evil overlord can be before we try to redeem them. And…why do we want to redeem them? By the way, the worst person in this video? He ain’t in the thumbnail….

The Wizard of Oz is back at the Las Vegas Sphere like you’ve never seen it before: like absolute hot trash. The new presentation of the Wizard of Oz expands the screen to absurd sizes, remastering the film using several techniques, including Generative AI. And it’s…absolute garbage.

But this is part of a larger trend, how Hollywood and cinema refuses to let the old stay dead, and in order to draw in new audiences, adds slop sequels and reworked copies of the original that makes it look worse and worse and worse. And the lack of human ingenuity is absolutely absurd. So let’s talk about it.

The new Ironheart series has seen a lot of criticism thrown at its lead, Riri Williams. She’s the most recent case of a “girlboss” character getting targeted by the online critical machine.

But…when you look at what people are saying, it seems inconsistent. Her male counterparts do worse, and don’t get criticized.

When looking at the trend of girlboss criticisms, you end up seeing hypocrisy, racism, and sexism as main motivations behind the criticism.

The situation with Itch.io has reached a critical new level. MasterCard and Collective Shout has reached a new level of concerning. Games can now be taken off the market place and delisted without any warning, and sometimes if it’s tangentially connected to any NSFW material.

But why is this a concern? Why should YOU worry? Well, aside from the recent scare with Mouthwashing, there’s a lot to be worried about.