tag:matthewwrites.svbtle.com,2014:/feedMatthew Edwards2015-05-20T17:53:34-07:00Matthew Edwardshttps://matthewwrites.svbtle.comSvbtle.comtag:matthewwrites.svbtle.com,2014:Post/best-to-worst-of-the-mcu2015-05-20T17:53:34-07:002015-05-20T17:53:34-07:00MCU: Best to Worst.<p>With the release of Avengers: Age of Ultron, and the season finale of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I thought it’d be time for me to sit down and finally rate the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)—movies and tv shows—from best to worst. I’ve discovered that choosing what makes a Marvel movie* good or bad is tough, especially when the worst Marvel Entertainment movies are still better than other superhero franchises I’ve seen (I’m looking at you Fantastic Four).</p>
<p>So for me, I’m looking for a lot of things as I make this list: movie significance, well told story, cool fight scenes, and fitting in with the Marvel Universe. But above all, I’m looking for personal preference: what made me love this movie, and why I think it’s better than the others.</p>
<p>Anyways enough dilly-dallying, here’s the list.</p>
<h1 id="1-strongiron-man-2008strong_1">1. <strong>Iron Man (2008)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#1-strongiron-man-2008strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>Most people I know think either Guardians of the Galaxy or Winter Soldier deserve this spot, but for me, it will always be Iron Man. This movie changed everything, taking a character that most people knew nothing about—and those who did rather despised—and making him the most popular hero in the Avenger’s lineup. And it did this overnight. The movie does everything excellently. Great characters, good story, fun fight scenes, and it sets the stage for the rest of the MCU with an after credits scene that’s just perfect.</p>
<p>This movie is the reason everything changed: why superheroes stopped being a nerd thing, and became the norm. Yes, there were superhero movies before this (good ones too!) but this movie set the stage for making hero movies the “In” thing to do. No longer were superheroes for nerds. They were for everybody. The best example I’ve got is the movie’s ending, when Nick Fury mentions the Avengers Initiative. When I saw this in theaters, with eight other people, only I knew what Samuel L. Jackson was hinting about. Now, everyone knows. </p>
<p>It’s all thanks to Iron Man,and I think every MCU story should look at this movie to see how best to continue the Cinematic Universe.</p>
<h1 id="2-strongcaptain-america-the-winter-soldier-20_1">2. <strong>Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#2-strongcaptain-america-the-winter-soldier-20_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>For my money, this is probably the best executed Marvel movie. The writing, acting, combat, and special effects are all fantastic. This is Marvel’s spy movie, and is one of the better spy movies I’ve seen. They took all the problems in Captain America: The First Avenger, and reforged them into cinema gold. </p>
<p>The reason I love this movie so much though, is Captain America. <br>
Captain America is a Golden Age hero, someone who knew right from wrong, personified righteousness, and punched Hitler in his original comics. This movie is the story of a Golden Age hero living in the Dark Age, a hero that sees the world as black and white, fighting in a world of spies, lies, and grays. </p>
<p>The Winter Soldier taught us how we should tell superhero movies, with Cap not compromising in his beliefs even as the world falls apart around him. It’s just fantastic.</p>
<h1 id="3-strongguardians-of-the-galaxy-2014strong_1">3. <strong>Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#3-strongguardians-of-the-galaxy-2014strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>When you think of the success of this movie, it’s rather insane. Even when the trailers were coming out, no one knew who the Guardians of the Galaxy were. They weren’t popular, not even in comics. To take characters that the audience had no connection to, and that even comic fans shied away from, and make a summer blockbuster is just impressive. </p>
<p>This movie is a fun ride, cleverly incorporating 70s—80s music as it references other sci-fi movies, while creating a story that stands on its own. It’s a blast, and though some scenes felt rushed, it still told its story and portrayed its character very well. And it kept in the MCU wonderfully, with that full scene that excellently introduces Thanos to movie goers. </p>
<p>GotG deserves to be in the top three, taking unknown characters and making them fan-favorites, and playing with its genre perfectly.</p>
<h1 id="4-strongthe-avengers-2012strong_1">4. <strong>The Avengers (2012)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#4-strongthe-avengers-2012strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>The Avengers was a dare, and it paid off. Before this movie, we didn’t know if team-up films would work. Sure, there was the success of the X-men series, but all X-men have something in common: they’re mutants. Then there were the Fantastic Four movies, which were disasters. </p>
<p>The Avengers was a make it or break it point, bringing together multiple strong characters with completely different behaviors and motivations, and making them work together. And it worked. The Avengers proved that everything that the MCU wants to accomplish can be attained.</p>
<p>The movie has problems though, mostly with how it treats poor poor Hawkeye. However, Joss Whedon delivers in this movie, giving every hero (except poor poor Hawkeye) the screen time they deserve, while having great fight scenes, and witty dialogue.</p>
<p>With its end credits scene, it also promised much more to come—that this was just the beginning of the Marvel Universe.</p>
<h1 id="5-strongdaredevil-2015-season-1strong_1">5. <strong>Daredevil (2015, Season 1)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#5-strongdaredevil-2015-season-1strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>This show. Holy crap. Daredevil has brought a lens to the universe that had been overlooked: what’s happening to the average man while all these superheroes are saving the day? Set in Hell’s Kitchen, right next door to where both Avengers and The Incredible Hulk took place, this show is dark, gritty, and nasty in its violence—bringing a side to the universe that was completely missing. </p>
<p>Through Daredevil, it’s revealed that the Avengers can’t solve every problem. Some lives are just lost or overlooked when heroes are trying to save the world. Daredevil isn’t trying to save the world, or the entire city. He’s trying to save a district. It’s a wonderful season, with powerful dialogue and refreshing fight scenes, some of the best fights I’ve seen made for television.</p>
<p>It’s those fights that lands this show in my top five. Each fight scene tells a story—you can tell that the cinematographer and choreographer were working closely together in every single shot. There is not a fight scene wasted. Rather, every fight is a unique story, something that is sorely missed on other superhero shows (Like Arrow…). </p>
<p>Daredevil’s great, and I cannot wait for the second season.</p>
<h1 id="6-strongagent-carter-2015strong_1">6. <strong>Agent Carter (2015)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#6-strongagent-carter-2015strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>I will say, out of everything that’s come out up to this point, I was most nervous about this show. I didn’t believe it could be anything worthwhile. I mean come on, how could it when the slogan for the show was, “Sometimes the best man for the job, is a woman.” ? It reeked of being a 2-dimensional disaster. </p>
<p>I am happy to say I was wrong! This show rocks, and Agent Carter kicks ass. She’s a well-made character, who has to live with the double whammy of losing the love of her life, Captain America, and living in his shadow. This show delivers the zest of the 50s with great fist fights, car chases, and espionage, and shows the strength of an overlooked character, and why she is a superhero. </p>
<p>I strongly recommend it. </p>
<h1 id="7-strongavengers-age-of-ultron-2015strong_1">7. <strong>Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#7-strongavengers-age-of-ultron-2015strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>Age of Ultron was faced with a problem—could it top The Avengers? Personally, I would say it failed, but came close. Overall, the movie is great. It starts us off in the middle of the adventure, fixing the problems The Avengers movie had right away. It brings in every minor character they could get their hands on, as well as giving lots of screen time and love to poor poor Hawkeye. </p>
<p>The team starts united, avoiding the messiness of assembling the Avengers. It also has a strong villain with interesting motivations, second only to Loki for best MCU villain. However, there were problems. </p>
<p>Killing Quicksilver and skipping over any guilt Tony Stark should have over creating Ultron were both major blunders. But worst of all, it ignored other continuity in the MCU, completely tuning out Iron Man 3 and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. To me this is the tragic failure of the film, showing a disconnect between visionaries working in the MCU. Hopefully, we won’t have more continuity errors as bad as this one, where a movie is outright ignoring other stories in the same universe.</p>
<p>Overall, it’s a great ride, and if you liked The Avengers, you’ll love it, but it falls outside of my top 5. </p>
<h1 id="8-strongthe-incredible-hulk-2008strong_1">8. <strong>The Incredible Hulk (2008)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#8-strongthe-incredible-hulk-2008strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>This movie doesn’t get enough credit. The Hulk is a difficult character to portray: people get bored of the big and strong hero—we’re no longer impressed by super-strength or invulnerability. But this movie delivered. The Hulk is great in this movie, has good fight scenes, and is shown to be rather clever; not all “Hulk Smash”, but rather with heart and thought behind his angered actions.</p>
<p>Although I am not overly thrilled with his performance, I think Edward Norton’s Bruce Banner was an interesting take, focusing more on self-control and keeping calm. Plus seeing a skinny guy hulk out was awesome.</p>
<p>But this movie deserves love for other reasons. As the first movie after Iron Man, it was the first real risk. If this movie flopped or failed the MCU, the movie storytelling would start off on a bad foot, difficult to recover. But this movie delivered a good story with believable villains and a hero. Plus, it stayed in the universe, introducing the audience to the darker side of S.H.I.E.L.D. and having Tony Stark come talk to the General at the end. The Incredible Hulk proved that the Marvel Cinematic experience was going to be unlike anything we’d ever seen. </p>
<p>It’s number 8 on my list though, because the movie is just okay. It’s worth watching—it’s fun!—but isn’t as long lasting as any of the top 5.</p>
<h1 id="9-strongiron-man-3-2013strong_1">9. <strong>Iron Man 3 (2013)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#9-strongiron-man-3-2013strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>I have very mixed feelings regarding this movie. There are parts I really liked, and parts I straight up hated. Overall, the movie does a good job about addressing something missing in Avengers: the reaction to the attacks in New York City. Watching Tony Stark break down over what he’d experience was a step in the right direction for the character. Along those lines, I was personally a fan of the scenes between him and the kid, because Tony Stark is a kid, just in a grown up’s body.</p>
<p>Still, the way the movie ends is dumb, and rather unrealistic, with Tony Stark blowing up all his suits. I’m sorry, but when you’ve gone on TV saying “I am Iron Man”, you know you don’t get to walk away from it all. Villains will always be gunning for you, whether or not you put on the suit. I think Tony Stark is smart enough to know he doesn’t get to just walk away, and I can see why Avengers: Age of Ultron decided to pretend none of that happened.</p>
<p>Another problem was the plot. The first arch was good, but it drops off as questionable decisions are made with the Mandarin, turning him from a truly impressive villain into just another wannabe Tony Stark. Iron Man 2 and 3 have the same problem: none of the villains can actually stand up to Tony Stark’s daunting aura. At first the Mandarin seemed like the perfect foil, a man on Stark’s level, but revealing him to be a hoax took the strength out of the story, and the movie suffered for it.</p>
<h1 id="10-strongthor-the-dark-world-2013strong_1">10. <strong>Thor: The Dark World (2013)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#10-strongthor-the-dark-world-2013strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>The Dark World does a much better job than the first Thor movie. It knows where to focus, looking at Thor and Loki’s relationship, and spends much more time on Asgard—and in space—than anywhere on earth. However, the movie just doesn’t stand as strong as the others. Nearly everything that happens in this film is forgettable, except for maybe Loki’s ending on the throne of Asgard. A lot happens, but it’s all noise and so-whats. The big deal of the movie isn’t even revealed to be an Infinity Gem until Age of Ultron. There just wasn’t a point to invest, and the movie struggled to make me care. </p>
<p>The movie also failed to help the MCU. Yes, we get a gem, but seeing Thor contact Tony Stark or Captain America and let them know he’s back—that would’ve been really cool. Sadly, it’s a missed opportunity.</p>
<p>Still, the Loki and Thor scenes are fantastic, and every scene they are in together is worth watching. Both actors deliver their roles perfectly, and are definitely the highlight of the film.</p>
<h1 id="11-strongcaptain-america-the-first-avenger-20_1">11. <strong>Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#11-strongcaptain-america-the-first-avenger-20_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>These next three are the hardest for me to place, The first Cap and Thor movies, and Iron Man 2, all have major issues and—overall—didn’t thrill me. I think I would say though that this is the best out of the worst Marvel movies. </p>
<p>Captain America: The First Avenger is a strange movie, clearly made for the 3-D experience, which is always a turn off for me. The vast majority of its fight and adventure scenes are smushed into one montage, and overall the story is boring. It was great seeing Captain America in action against the Nazis, but the movie was really going for that Golden Age feel, which ended up portraying World War II as flashy, adventurous fun, and not really that dangerous. Personally, I don’t think that portrayal translates well when making a modern film. </p>
<p>There is some good stuff in the movie though. Chris Evans is perfect for the role, and I love how he plays Cap throughout the piece, showing that Steve Rogers is the same hero with or without his powers.</p>
<p>Another good thing about the movie was the ending. It’s wonderful, bringing the MCU back into the modern times with Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. talking down a startled Cap, and Cap realizing he missed his dance.</p>
<h1 id="12-strongiron-man-2-2010strong_1">12. <strong>Iron Man 2 (2010)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#12-strongiron-man-2-2010strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>I honestly don’t know what to say about this movie. Its greatest failure is that it’s just not as good as the original. A lot of what Tony Stark goes through in this movie was already covered territory from the first one, and the villains are so unimpressive they’re completely forgettable when put on a shelf next to Loki and Ultron. </p>
<p>I guess I would say the whole movie’s forgettable. It’s unfortunate too, because it tries to keep up. Bringing back Nick Fury and introducing Black Widow were both great calls, and the movie did those scenes well. Likewise, War Machine was good, and the buddy-buddy fight scenes were fun. But the movie as whole just isn’t good, and its fights are not all that impressive.</p>
<p>The ending was also strange, turning down Iron Man from the Avengers Initiative. I get that it’s showing Tony Stark’s not perfect, that he’s striving to improve…but why not take the most brilliant man in the world, with the most powerful technology anyone has ever made, and put him on the S.H.I.E.L.D. payroll? It didn’t make sense.</p>
<h1 id="13-strongthor-2011strong_1">13. <strong>Thor (2011)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#13-strongthor-2011strong_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>Both Thor movies could have been better. This one in particular is just not fun to watch. Everything in this movie is weird, and kind-of wonky. Even something as little as the blocking is weird. Everyone stands in this movie like they’re on a stage, and all the costumes look just like that—costumes, not clothing. It all looks staged, unbelievable, really ripping me out of the experience. Look, you should suspend your disbelief when you watch a movie like Thor, but the movie should help you do that as it tells its story. </p>
<p>The fights are eh, the only good one coming at the beginning of the movie on the Frost Giant’s planet. This movie dropped the ball, wasting a great opportunity for some epic fights. Along those lines, it did a horrible job of introducing poor poor Hawkeye.</p>
<p>If you forgot he’s in the movie, that’s okay: the movie forgot too. They stick Hawkeye in one scene where all he does is watch Thor fail to pick up the hammer, and make a quick quip. What a wasted opportunity: Hawkeye vs. Thor? That would’ve been awesome to watch. </p>
<p>I will say the movie has some good humor. Thor’s interaction with mortals is really fun, both in the hospital and afterwards. And Agent Coulson’s scenes were a joy to watch. But man, everything could have been better told, and made more believable. This is the movie I avoid the most during Marvel marathons.</p>
<h1 id="14-strongagents-of-shield-20132015-2-seasonss_1">14. <strong>Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013—2015, 2 Seasons)</strong>. <a class="head_anchor" href="#14-strongagents-of-shield-20132015-2-seasonss_1">#</a>
</h1>
<p>This show may be the only actually bad thing Marvel Entertainment has made. While the rest of the movies and shows have bad moments, I can’t say that their entirety is bad or worthless. You can find stuff even in Iron Man 2 to enjoy. But Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is just plain bad. The first season is a train-wreck, a painful experience that my friend—and fellow Critical Hit host—Kyle says more closely resembles the Magic School Bus than any spy thriller. The show claims to be about S.H.I.E.L.D., but none of the agents ever do anything that would be considered morally questionable. Which is weird, because every Marvel Entertainment movie that has S.H.I.E.L.D. in it has made it clear that S.H.I.E.L.D. is all about morally questionable decisions. </p>
<p>But it’s worse than that. In the first half of season one, no one has any real flaws: no one even has bad secrets, or makes morally gray choices. They’re all a bunch of good looking white people (with just a pinch of other races tossed in so they can say it’s a diverse cast) flying around and doing science stuff. Woo-whoo.</p>
<p>Everything about season one is awful: the acting, the writing, the music, and special effects. But the worst thing though is how distant the show is from the rest of the MCU. </p>
<p>The point of the show was to get the universe more connected, but Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. rarely does that. An Asgardian will show up for an episode, or they’ll reference Ultron or The Dark World. And if we’re lucky, Samuel L. Jackson will show up for the finale. But that’s it. This feels more like product placement than a connected universe. </p>
<p>The show tries, and tries, clearly desperate to be one of those big special things, like Avengers or GotG. It’s like a kid wanting to hang out with his big brother’s cool friends. It’s awkward and awful, occasionally reminding us of those Marvel movies and shows that we should be watching instead of this. </p>
<p>That all being said, the show has absolutely improved. With the introduction of the Hydra story-arch, all the characters got a breath of fresh air, and the show returned to its spy roots. </p>
<p>In the second season, things can be tedious to watch, but the character development has skyrocketed (though I personally don’t care for how they introduce the Inhumans, but whatever). Everyone now is acting like the spy they should’ve been all along, and more spies—and people with superpowers—are being introduced, which I think is the right move for the series as it continues.</p>
<p>The sad thing is though, that as much as I enjoyed certain episodes, I don’t think even the best episodes are worth slogging through the first half of the first season. The show’s just that boring, lacking all the darkness and questionable decision making we should be expecting from a show about S.H.I.E.L.D.</p>
<p>(If you’d like to hear more of my ranting about Marvel movies and shows, be sure to check out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukbReBm-blk">Critical Hit</a>.)</p>
<p>(*Note: I’m only rating Marvel Entertainment movies in this post, things made by Marvel itself, not anything else that has Marvel’s name on it [X-men, Fantastic Four, Spider-man, etc.].)</p>
tag:matthewwrites.svbtle.com,2014:Post/eminem-and-theology-part-1-cold-wind-blows-and-the-epic-of-gilgamesh2015-02-24T10:54:04-08:002015-02-24T10:54:04-08:00Eminem and Theology: Cold Wind Blows and The Epic of Gilgamesh<p>“Only the gods live for ever with glorious Shamash, but as for us men, our days are numbered, our occupations are a breath of wind.” — The Epic of Gilgamesh</p>
<p>I’m no musician, but I am a writer. When I hear music, I focus on the lyrics, what’s being said and how it’s being conveyed. This is why I’ve become so fascinated with hip-hop and rap. Yes, the music stuff is absolutely important, but rapping is largely focused on its lyrics, conveying words clearly, concisely, and cleverly. And when it comes to lyricists, I find myself in awe of Eminem. </p>
<p>Eminem has demonstrated a mastery over language that makes me envious. He uses the rhetoric of hip-hop culture while playing with puns like an evil scientist mixing chemicals. Although it’s up for debate whether he’s the best rapper (and what, indeed, are the qualifications for “best rapper”), he’s certainly one of the cleverest.</p>
<p>But the thing that gets me about Eminem is not his fancy wordplay or his music awards or anything of that sort—for me, it’s the stories he tells in his music. Rap is a place for both hyperbole and vulnerability. In his rapping, Eminem expresses his thoughts and experiences, his doubts and hopes. He talks big, like most hip-hop artists—and is vulgar throughout—but in his songs he also expresses interesting snippets of his personal life.</p>
<p>I’m a strange fan, because I started listening to Eminem when <em>Recovery</em> was released. The album is usually frowned upon as one of Eminem’s “meh” albums, but for me it was a great starting point. Throughout the album, Eminem is incredibly introspective, focusing on what brought him to needing rehab, and who he plans to be now that he’s recovered. And it all starts on the first track: “Cold Wind Blows”.</p>
<p><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3Tj1luJyKPQt7WbrqpJ2Az">Eminem—Cold Wind Blows</a></p>
<p>“Cold Wind Blows” is still one of my favorite Eminem tracks. Especially as a Christian it grabs my attention, because it addresses both who Eminem is, and what he believes.</p>
<p>That’s the thing about theology—everybody has it. You believe something, whether you think consciously or not about it. You have an opinion (and usually a strong one) about the way the world works, and what—or who—is running it. In art, we get neat little glimpses of personal beliefs, whether an artist intended or not to share those beliefs.</p>
<p>Anyways, in “Cold Wind Blows” Eminem talks directly to God, claiming to be struck by lightning for his wicked ways. And God talks directly to him on the track, explaining, “This is for your sins / I told you, / you can repent but I warn you, / if you continue, / to hell I send you.”</p>
<p>So here we go. Eminem starts this entire album, an album focused on him recovering from his past, and he’s already condemned by God Himself. Eminem’s clearly acknowledging that he knows he’s in the wrong, that God will punish him for his sins, but also that he’d be forgiven if he repents.</p>
<p>But he doesn’t repent, because he’s Eminem. His response to God is the chorus: that he’s as cold as the cold wind blows. He won’t change who he is or what he’s after. Later in the song, he says so himself: “How long will I be this way? Shady until my dying day…”</p>
<p>Eminem won’t change, even if that means he’ll be damned, and God directly speaking to him won’t change his mind, or his heart. He’s committed to his goals, even if those goals lead straight to hell.</p>
<p>This story of Man vs. God is not a new concept. In fact, it’s one of the oldest stories ever written down.</p>
<p><em>The Epic of Gilgamesh</em> was written on tablets somewhere between 2100 B.C. – 1800 B.C. This ancient collection of stories is about Gilgamesh, King of Ur, and his many adventures. In summary, Gilgamesh is an ancient hero: he saves the city, fights monsters, offends gods, and so forth. He’s incredibly powerful, brave, and a well-loved ruler. However, after the death of his dear friend, Gilgamesh becomes obsessed with discovering a way to avoid death, the fate of all men.</p>
<p>Gilgamesh prays to his god, Shamash, “O Shamash, hear me, hear me, Shamash, let my voice be heard. Here in the city man dies oppressed at heart, man perishes with despair in his heart. I have looked over the wall and I see the bodies floating on the river, and that will be my lost also. Indeed I know it is so, for whoever is tallest among men cannot reach the heavens, and the greatest cannot encompass the earth.”</p>
<p>After this, Gilgamesh pleas with Shamash for help, for aiding him in his mission for immortality. And like “Cold Wind Blows”, Shamash shows up, giving Gilgamesh an answer: “You will never find the life for which you are searching.”</p>
<p>Both gods give similar replies. Shamash is telling Gilgamesh his purpose—eternal life—is impossible. God, likewise, tells Eminem he can repent, but if he continues the path he set for himself, he will be damned to hell. Both are saying that both men’s pursuits will only end in misery.</p>
<p>But more interesting to me is that Eminem and Gilgamesh respond in the same way. Eminem makes it clear that he’s staying cold, unchanging even if he doesn’t know why he behaves the way he behaves. Gilgamesh continues on his adventure, disregarding the truth Shamash told him of his quest, convinced that there must be a way to live forever. Thousands of years apart, both rapper and hero have set their feet in their own paths, and will not change their ways even when the gods themselves intervene.</p>
<p>For both of them, the reason why is the same: immortality.</p>
<p><em>Recovery</em> is not only a reference to Eminem going clean—he’s recovering his lost throne, taking back his place at the top of hip-hop, aiming to take that seat and claim it forever. Immortality is the common ground between the ancient hero and the modern rapper. It’s the primary goal in mind, haunting their actions until they achieve life eternal, or die trying.</p>
<p>When put in this perspective, I find I sympathize with both Eminem and Gilgamesh. In striving to reach immortality, both find it simply impossible to obey their gods.</p>
<p>Which is completely understandable—I mean why serve a god, when you fully believe you can become one?</p>
tag:matthewwrites.svbtle.com,2014:Post/comedy-and-tragedy2014-07-07T10:36:44-07:002014-07-07T10:36:44-07:00Comedy and Tragedy <p>In Shakespeare’s time, three different flags were raised over the theater prior to a performance to signify the type of play being preformed. Red flags were for histories, plays portraying significant people from the past (i.e. Henry V), white flags for comedic plays (As You Like It), and black flags for tragedy (Hamlet).</p>
<p>Like most people, I’m going to ignore the histories and talk about the big two: comedy and tragedy. Comedies tend to have happy endings, and humor throughout. Usually they end in marriages. Think Happy Face.<br>
Tragedies tend to have darker endings, and are more serious. Usually they end in multiple characters dying, including the protagonist. Sad Face.</p>
<p>As a storytelling culture, we are obsessed with tragedy. </p>
<p>Think of the big hitters in any medium over the past year, any work that has been given a significant reception and recognized as praise worthy. The majority of them are tragic in nature. </p>
<p>This isn’t anything new. My bookshelf marked “literature” has a lot more Sad Face books than Happy Face books. Why is that? Are sad stories better stories?</p>
<p>Maybe we like being sad. We love the experience of feeling, and perhaps we get more of a emotional experience from a tragedy that tugs our heart-strings than a story that tickles our tummy. So, in way, Sad Face stories make Happy Face people, if only because it makes us happy to be sad.</p>
<p>Yeah, that’s a worrying thought.</p>
<p>I’m not sold on it. We love good storytelling, and we are always in need of better stories, but I don’t think a focus on tragedy is necessarily the best course of action for our souls. Look, I’m all for tragedy—bring me the good sad stories, and a box of tissues, and I’ll be all set to bawl my eyes out—but I think we’re missing out if we disqualify the comedies as being significant and praise worthy.</p>
<p>Yet you don’t often hear about high quality comedic storytelling. And if I ask you to think of one of the best stories you’ve ever read, watched, or heard, a comedic story will not come to mind as quickly as four or five tragic tales.</p>
<p>Why is that? I think it’s because we think we live tragic lives. Which, to be fair, we do… in some sense. Life has a lot of sucky things that happen for no good reason. It is easy for us to remember the tragic, and to recount them to others. Tragedy happens, and maybe that’s why we love tragic stories. It hits close to home.</p>
<p>Here’s the thing though—comedy happens too. But we don’t tend to remember the comedy as much as the tragedy. We’ve become so pessimistic that we dwell in the dark and don’t think about the moments of light. Life really doesn’t suck. There are a lot of good things that happen to you, and to those you love. Good things happen, just as often as the bad things. Maybe even more often. So why do we get so focused on the bad, when there is good? We’ve become addicted to tragedy, and, personally, I’m rather sick of it. I want happy endings too, dammit! </p>
<p>Tragedy is fine, and we need to keep telling tragic stories, but remember: anyone can tell a sad story. We’ve all had sad stories happen to us, we can all feel sympathetic towards tragedy. But we’ve also had comedy. Anyone who can tell you a tragedy from their life can also tell you a comedy. As storytellers, we should live in the good times and bad, and make stories that demonstrate both comedy and tragedy, honoring both happy and sad moments.</p>
<p>For now though, I want more comedy. We’ve tipped the scale too long in the dark, we need more light. Keep writing your sad stories if you want, but when you look me in the eye and say with conviction, and a smile, “They all lived happily ever after,” I will want to hear your story.</p>
tag:matthewwrites.svbtle.com,2014:Post/storytelling-the-medium-and-the-story2014-03-28T14:12:05-07:002014-03-28T14:12:05-07:00The Medium and the Story<p>The story: what is told. The medium: how it is told. The medium is not the story, and the story is not confined to the medium. This happens all the time: a book gets turned into a movie (<em>The Lord of the Rings</em>), or a comic book gets turned into a television show (<em>The Walking Dead</em>). Sometimes the stories improve, sometimes worsen. Elements of the story, perhaps even entire plots, may have to be changed to adapt to a different medium, but it is possible to tell the same story through multiple mediums of storytelling.</p>
<p>As a storyteller, this is important to me, because I want to know what medium should I use for my story. Should my story be a movie? A videogame? A play? There are options available, and storytellers should be considering their options, choosing the best medium to go with their story. However, too often I idolize the mediums of storytelling themselves, rather than treating the medium as a tool for the story being told. As a writer, my storytelling gets caught writing in one way: the novel.</p>
<p>Ah, the novel. The writer’s magnum opus, the glorious dream of every homeschool kid like me that someday I would visit <em>Barnes & Noble</em> and see my book sitting on a shelf next to my favorite authors. For years I wrote draft after draft of novels, convinced that this was the art of the true storytellers.</p>
<p>I was wrong. Novels are a good medium, but I was limiting myself by refusing to consider any other mediums. Too often we deal with writing in one way—we only write the novel, or the short story—when there are a multitude of mediums to choose from: lyrics, comics, gaming, poetry, playwriting, television, movies, and more, many, many more. Not only are those options, but each medium has genres and storytelling options within itself. <em>Breaking Bad</em> and <em>Wolf’s Rain</em> were both made for the medium of television, but one is live-action, the other animation, one is focused on being concrete in this world while another is built on a fantasy-future. But both are still stories told through the same medium: television.</p>
<p>With such a multitude of mediums, and within each medium, multiple options for telling the story, why do we confine ourselves to thinking in only one way of storytelling?</p>
<p>I think the problem lies in our mainstreaming of mediums. Rather than celebrating all forms of storytelling, we have become convinced that certain storytelling devices are better than others. For us right now, the big ones seem to be movies and television. A lot of people have watched <em>Game of Thrones</em>, or <em>The Lord of the Rings</em> trilogy, but those same people don’t open Martin’s or Tolkien’s novels. </p>
<p>Why is that? Is it just the hype of flashy things on the screen, or because the medium itself is better? Are the stories better told through TV and Movies? Or are we as audience members, readers, and listeners to stories growing lazier, and thus more interested in a visual medium that requires less work to be engaged in then, say, a novel or play script? </p>
<p>Personally, I am not fond of either of those lines of thought. I am not convinced that any storytelling medium is better or inferior to any other medium of storytelling. Rather, I think each medium should be viewed in the strengths it provides for storytelling. </p>
<p>There isn’t a hierarchy of mediums. Rather, we are dealing with a case of personal preferment. We are raised and educated to enjoy certain mediums more-so than others. For some, movies are for the common folk, but literature is for the educated. For others, literature is for snobs, who are too self focused to enjoy a perfectly good movie. </p>
<p>Hogwash. I don’t know about you, but I’ve found excellent stories in literature and excellent stories in film. And I’ve also experienced terrible…<em>terrible</em> movies and works of “literature”.</p>
<p>There is certainly a mainstreaming of mediums, which I find problematic. I’ve met a lot of people wearing Captain America t-shirts, excited for the new movie, but they feel uncomfortable at the mentioning of comic books. So there are prejudices, but our personal preferment of storytelling mediums doesn’t mean we should toss out all other mediums of storytelling. </p>
<p>There doesn’t need to be a competition (Which is better: movie or book?) but rather collaboration (What’d you think of both the movie and the book?). Don’t limit yourself to just novels or movies, but go to plays, play a videogame, marathon an anime series. Watch how the world is telling stories in all its various shapes and forms, and figure out which medium belongs best with your story.</p>
<p>After all, as storytellers, we do not need medium warfare, but rather an appreciation and understanding of the different mediums in order to tell the best tales.</p>