Though the current project started as a series of posts charting my grief journey after the death of my mother, I am no longer actively grieving. Now, the blog charts a conversation in living, mainly whatever I want it to be. This is an activity that goes well with the theme of this blog (updated 2018). The Sense of Doubt blog is dedicated to my motto: EMBRACE UNCERTAINTY. I promote questioning everything because just when I think I know something is concrete, I find out that it’s not.
Hey, Mom! The Explanation.
Here's the permanent dedicated link to my first Hey, Mom! post and the explanation of the feature it contains.
a sense of doubt post #1531 - The Solo Work and Legacy of Dieter Moebius - hey mom #1164
I have fallen almost a full week behind, and so, I am once again catching up on a blog that is supposed to be daily with many posts on the weekend. I have to get better organized.
To catch up, I delved deep into the vault with a post I set up two years ago about Cluster music genius Dieter Moebius.
Some extra content first but then the main post from BANDCAMP DAILY.
We credit Brian Eno with coining the term “ambient music” and opening experimental music to a mainstream audience—but it was largely the work of Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius, aka Cluster—that prompted Eno to do so. The recordings these two young composers made together helped define a set of stylistic benchmarks that outlined “krautrock”—German experimental rock from the ‘60s and ‘70s—as a genre.
Though it’s most often associated with a shortlist of groups in more traditional psychedelic and prog-leaning directions, or is used as a rather crude umbrella for any German music of the sort (Can, Popol Vuh, and so forth), krautrock may be best understood as early German prog. Though they recorded one of the genre’s foundational staples with 1974’s landmark Zuckerzeit, Cluster exhibited characteristics that positioned them as a stylistic outlier to that basic archetype. (It’s notable that the musicians labeled “krautrock” have never particularly embraced the label.)
They recorded some of the earliest iterations of German electronic music, often eschewing guitar in favor of the new technologies of the time—synthesizers, drum machines, and electronic sequencers. The result was a culmination of sonic circumstances too unique to be replicated. Through technological inquisition, Cluster blended musical structures that referenced African polyrhythms and psychedelic/progressive rock forms with the experimental sensibility of mid-century European composers to develop a new musical language.
The resulting work demonstrated an alliance to the avant-garde in terms of their approach to compositional construction; their methodology was brazenly inventive, intuitive, and freeform. This less concrete and linear instinct connected Cluster to other German experimental groups like Ash Ra Tempel and Tangerine Dream, a substrata of krautrock loosely called, as a marketing term, kosmische Musik (“cosmic music”). Kosmische Musik was the matrix to Eno’s “ambient music” exponent—an atmospheric, amorphous style of composition chiefly concerned with texture and mood over melody and rhythm. If krautrock was German prog, then kosmische Musik was German New Age.
Since 1969, Moebius has contributed to over 30 releases, and has joined forces with many of the most influential composers of the 20th century. In addition to his output with Roedelius in Cluster and with Neu!’s Michael Rother in Harmonia, Moebius also delivered a long run of productions with the legendary German record producer Conny Plank. A luminary unto himself, Plank engineered hundreds of albums in the ‘70s and ‘80s including hallmarks by Kraftwerk, Devo, Eurythmics, and Echo & The Bunnymen, even rejecting a bid to work on U2’s The Joshua Tree.
Over the course of decades spent composing, recording, and performing, Moebius revealed himself to be a gifted artistic catalyst. As he drove new projects forward, he altered variables like personnel, geography and his toolbelt of electronics in order to achieve greater creative purposes. He was so enthralled by the idea of collaboration that only a few solo ventures exist within his entire oeuvre.
The final four records Moebius composed as a solo artist appeared between 1999 and 2011. As digital technology and electronic production tools became more commonplace throughout the 20th century, a flood of new electronic artists upstaged later works by fundamental figures like Moebius. Though public attention may have waned in recent years, Moebius’s work flourished; his later albums have a bold clarity of purpose. Moebius doesn’t loom over electronic music as a figure of canonical authority; he’s more of a humble tradesman, consistently committed to his craft. It’s through these final works that his inherent nature is so vitally represented.
Last spring, German label Bureau B released two of these four last records with 1999’s Blotch and 2006’s Nurton. On July 16, 2017, they’ll complete the set by reissuing 2009’s Kram and 2011’s Ding, both of which have never been previously available on vinyl LP.
Blotch
A glimpse of Moebius at his most self-effacing, his first solo album in nearly two decades is named for a mere dab of paint. A similar wry humor and melancholy is threaded throughout the record, particularly through the vacillating groans of “Meltaway” and the agitation of “Temperate.” It’s also a rare entry in the Moebius catalogue where he employs the use of a number of acoustic elements, namely saxophone, vibraphone, steel guitar, and miniature piano.
Nurton
Seven years after Blotch, Moebius presented a collection of a notably different color with Nurton. Though he still expresses a collagist mentality, these sketches are much more anchored to a steady groove. Industrial beats carry a mad scientist’s array of warbles, bleeps, and creaks. On “Gängig” and “Flag,” Moebius winds the rhythms down to a murky electro dub, suggesting both no wave and Bill Laswell’s dancehall deviations.
Kram
Despite another dismissive album title (German for “junk”), Moebius offers up a calmly virtuosic set featuring some of the most direct and melodic pieces he would produce in the 21st century. From the meditative swirls of “Dauert” to its positively whistling techno companion “Lauert,” Kram is Moebius at his most buoyant.
Ding
Moebius’s final solo album revealed more of his biography and artistic process than much of his prior work. Putting a portable recorder to use, Moebius sourced these 11 pieces from sound he captured organically before bending and filtering them into the cold and menacing bellows found on Ding. This process suggests that, at the age of 66, Moebius wasn’t buried under wires in the studio, but was listening to the world, looking at the sky, bearing witness. Moebius’s translation of these experiences doesn’t err from the sonic vocabulary one might expect him to use, though. His trademark clamor and cacophony are well-maintained as he forges beats from hissing static and layers them with detuned sax samples and droning synths.
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1904.30 - 10:10
NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1530 - Rhetoric - via Amber Lemiere
One of the great things about my new jobs at both schools where I am the "new guy" is meeting some really wonderful new colleagues. At Lower Columbia College, one of the first of these was my "professional partner" (mentor), Amber Lemiere, who creates amazing course content on her weebly site for the classes she teaches.
Given that I have asked my students to employ the Rhetorical Triangle (ethos, pathos, logos) in their essays this term, I asked Amber if I could share with her permission this content from her site.
To be clear, all the content below is REPRINTED from https://lemiere101.weebly.com/ and is NOT my writing but rather the writing of Amber Lemiere, English faculty at Lower Columbia College in Longview, WA.
Knowing the layers of the rhetorical situation helps us to understand and critique the effectiveness of any given text, while also preparing us to be creators of our own effective texts.
At the heart of any rhetorical text is purpose(s):yes, there may be more than one.This is the source of inspiration for any text. The effectiveness/ineffectiveness of a text can be evaluated, at this level, based on the worth/merit of the purpose(s) that inspired the text in the first place, and any truth(s) these purpose(s) might be based upon. Are they actually "true"?
The purpose of a text is
interpreted and presented by the author(s); this implies that we can only know the
ideas presented as they are filtered by the author who conveys them. In other
words, we consume the purposes and truths through the perceptions or lenses of
the author. This suggests that investigating the author(s) a bit could help us
to clarify our understanding of the text’s effectiveness/ineffectiveness. Who is this person? What
authority do they have to speak on the subject? How are they perceived by the
public, in general? How might their background/personality shape the text in a
unique way?
An inspired author with a purpose and a
truth to convey, needs a medium to do so. There are a range of diverse mediums that
include, for example, essays, posters, television shows, radio, t-shirts,
bumper stickers, speeches, documentaries, videos, outfits, Facebook posts, etc.
Each medium has its own advantages and disadvantages in terms of engaging an
audience, and are, therefore, effective/ineffective in their own way. As well,
many authors today package a single truth/purpose in a variety of mediums. At
this level, we can ask: how well does this medium achieve the purpose? Is it
well suited for the ideas presented?
Each medium consists of a combination of the five elements of design: linguistic, audio, gestural, spatial, and visual. How does the author effectively/ineffectively utilize these available elements of design to engage the audience and convey the truth/purpose at the center of the text?
Linguistic: the use of language/words to convey meaning (pay close attention to word choice and any literary/poetic devices)
Audio: the use of sound to convey meaning (tone of voice, volume, speed, style, and emotions that are evoked through soundtracks, for example)
Gestural: the use of gestures to convey meaning (pay close attention to facial expressions as well as body language)
Spatial: the use of scenery/location to convey meaning (what is the physical backdrop for the message? what is the scene/setting?)
Visual: the use of visual design to convey meaning (pay close attention to color, light and dark contrast, focus, background and foreground, shapes, scale, etc.)
While design engages an audience, the rhetorical appeals persuade. These appeals serve as bridges between the design of the text and the audience: targeting their minds, hearts, and guts. They are: ethos, pathos, and logos. How does the author effectively/ineffectively utilize these “available means of persuasion” (
The three rhetorical appeals:
Ethos: an appeal that aims to establish credibility or trust with the audience, focus on good character and values (may also highlight the opposite qualities when presenting ideas that represent the opposition)
Pathos: an appeal that aims to evoke emotions in a range such as sadness or happiness, focus on the feelings of the audience
Logos: an appeal that aims to engage the minds of the audience through use of reasoning and logic, focus on the facts and logistics of problems and solutions (may also highlight the illogical nature of ideas that represent the opposition)
Again, the rhetorical appeals create bridges between the design and an audience, whether that audience was intended (by the author who designed the message with a particular audience in mind), or merely reached (the author did not design with this audience in mind, but technology/globalization/other factors dispersed the message further than intended). You can measure the effectiveness/ineffectiveness of a text by learning about the audiences involved and how they have been considered/overlooked in the creation of the text.
Once a message reaches an audience, there are likely to be consequences, or ripple effects (both positive and negative). We may interpret a text differently based on our knowledge of these consequences: how others reacted, what was said in response, etc. While a text may seem effective/ineffective at a certain layer of the rhetorical situation, the consequences may cause us to question or alter those original claims.
All of these layers of the rhetorical situation exist within context. Context is like an atmosphere, since it is always present and surrounding. Here, we might examine the political, cultural, social, historical, and/or geographical context in which the truth/purpose was conveyed. Context shapes the truth, the author’s understanding of it, the effectiveness of certain mediums, the access we have to available means of persuasion, the willingness of the audience to engage in the content of the message, and the consequence that will result. Effectiveness/ineffectiveness ebbs and flows within the atmospheric conditions of context. (Consider “kairos” as well: the opportune moment. And exigence: something that is not as it ought to be).
Finally, we must remember that there is a blind spotthat cuts through the entire rhetorical situation. We can never know the full truth, investigate everything about the author, or understand fully the effects of the design, the complexities of our audiences, the scope of the consequences, or the richness of the context. We can, therefore, never fully understand a text or create a perfect one ourselves. When we critique and create a text, we should acknowledge our blind spot by 1) recognizing the limits and constraints of a single text, 2) setting our own limits and constraints and making them known, 3) minimizing our blind spot through inquiry and conversation, and 4) admitting our limits, such as bias or personal experience.
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1404.29 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1395 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1904.28 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1394 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1528 - AVENGERS ENDGAME - THANK YOU MARVEL
I saw the new Avengers movie yesterday -- Avengers: Endgame.
I knew I wanted to write about it, but I also knew that I would be challenged to generate substantial content.
Also, I have this thing about not telling people who have not yet seen it ANYTHING about it, even whether I liked it or not, because information is information.
SO STOP READING NOW and return later if you want to keep your mind free.
I will mention that there's no scene after the credits, so no need to sit through them all if you don't want to.
This article came along in my TOR newsletter, and so I thought I would share it, even though I had to go through and change the embed link for each video. Tedious. But the originals are too wide for the Blogger frame. So... time... CONSUMING.
I do not have a complex review of the film.
Mainly, I just want to write: THANK YOU MARVEL COMICS.
As a young boy, hooked on Avengers comics at the age of about 1969 -- Avengers #63 from April 1969 was my first Avengers comic -- I dreamed of things like the Avengers movie, let alone the three glorious hours of pathos, catharsis, angst, drama, and plenty of humor that is Avengers: Endgame.
I never imagined in my wildest fantasies -- given the general regard for comics in the late 1960s and 1970s -- that anyone, let alone Marvel as its own company, would make BIG BUDGET films about these heroes, let alone Avengers films, and then even more outlandish to link the films together in a saga through TWENTY-TWO FILMS!!!
I could not imagine a world in which I did not have the time to devote to seeing each film before the next one comes out. As of this writing, I have not seen the two Ant Man films, Thor: Ragnarok, or Spider-Man: Homecoming, and I feel that I need to re-watch several of them anyway, such as Captain America: Civil War, which I watched while sorting comic books and feel I missed a lot.
1"The Infinity Saga" 1.1Phase One
1.1.1Iron Man (2008)
1.1.2The Incredible Hulk (2008)
1.1.3Iron Man 2 (2010)
1.1.4Thor (2011)
1.1.5Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
1.1.6Marvel's The Avengers (2012) 1.2Phase Two
1.2.1Iron Man 3 (2013)
1.2.2Thor: The Dark World (2013)
1.2.3Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
1.2.4Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
1.2.5Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
1.2.6Ant-Man (2015) 1.3Phase Three
1.3.1Captain America: Civil War (2016)
1.3.2Doctor Strange (2016)
1.3.3Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
1.3.4Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
1.3.5Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
1.3.6Black Panther (2018)
1.3.7Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
1.3.8Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
1.3.9Captain Marvel (2019)
1.3.10Avengers: Endgame (2019)
How amazing to live in a world in which such things exist, so many things, and this Avengers: Endgame thing in particular. Wow. Thank you MARVEL COMICS!
As for saying something intelligent about the film other than I LOVED IT, um, I REALLY LOVED IT?
So many moments that hit the right notes -- both serious and funny -- and proved the reason why so many people, myself included, are invested in these characters.
Setting the tone and establishing character context was so well handled from the utter devastation of what happens to Clint Barton (Hawkeye) when his entire family vanishes, to see Natasha (Black Widow) and Steve Rogers (Captain America) before they try to find Tony Stark (Iron Man), who is shown beautifully in what happened to him after he from where he was nearly stranded in space and then renewed his conflict with cap from their failures. Later, Nat and Steve find Bruce Banner (the Hulk) and Thor to try to bring the team back together as we learn of their changed circumstances, both of which add much needed humor to the story.
Of course, we knew that Thanos obliteration of some many millions of people -- "fixing" the universe -- would not stand, and there would be a way for the Avengers to put things back the way they should be, and so this solution comprises the majority of the story.
SIDENOTE: I LOVED seeing Clint in his Ronin alter ego as well as Ant Man growing giant size for the Giant Man/Goliath alter egos so important to the Avengers' comic history.
And then there's the ending.
Perhaps the main vanguard are retiring. Though Thor is off with the Guardians of the Galaxy, the rest are fully retired, semi-retired, or dead. It's an end to their stories and a transition to the newer heroes like Captain Marvel, War Machine, Black Panther, The Winter Solider, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, and Ant Man that may drive the future movies as well as those hinted at Monica Rambeau (Spectrum among others), Clint's daughter as Hawkeye, Falcon as Captain America, and those not yet seen, such as Hercules, Mockingbird, Wonder Man, Luke Cage, and Jessica Jones.
If you’re one of the brave souls who rewatched all 20-plus Marvel Cinematic Universe movies leading up to Avengers: Endgame, we salute you. But if you’re like us, you’ve spent the last few weeks revisiting your personal favorites several times over, savoring the best moments with beloved characters. From Iron Man to Captain Marvel, we’ve rounded up our favorite bits from across the MCU, from defining character beats and emotionally resonant fight sequences, to laugh-out-loud scenes and unexpectedly brilliant tonal shifts.
The future beyond Endgame is uncertain, but we’ll never forget the moments that brought us here…
“I am Iron Man.” (Iron Man)
My favorite storytelling trope in superhero tales is when the mask comes off—much as I love the Tom Holland Spidey, little surpasses that moment in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 when in halting the subway, Peter’s mask gets ripped off and everyone finds out that it was “just a kid” who saved them. But rather than try to convince the world, and the audience, that Tony Stark could pull off a Clark Kent, the MCU made an audacious opening gambit: Tony outs himself in his first movie, ending on the perfect self-satisfied note and setting up the extra dimension of the Avengers as very public superheroes, both their best and worst moments publicized for the world to follow along with. —Natalie Zutter
“I am looking for qualities beyond the physical.” (Captain America: The First Avenger)
This is the moment when Steve Rogers becomes Captain America. It’s also the moment that this movie, for me at least, earns all of its faux ’40s hokum. Steve thinks the grenade is live, he jumps, and is so dedicated and selfless that no one can laugh at him. Every choice Steve Rogers makes in the rest of the MCU flows from this moment when, with no serum or perfect jawline or magical beard, he becomes the shield. —Leah Schnelbach
“I’m always angry.” (The Avengers)
Poor Bruce Banner spends the entirety of The Avengers being the butt of everyone’s jokes. They’re dying to know how he manages “the Other Guy” (yoga? meditation?) but don’t actually listen when he lays it right out in his first scene: “Avoiding stress isn’t the secret.” Mark Ruffalo’s hand-wringing performance sells this notion of the mild-mannered scientist who can’t control his transformations. But when it comes down to the final battle, Bruce (and Ruffalo) (and Joss Whedon) reveal the unexpected but incredibly relatable truth—that Bruce Banner is as much of a disguise as Clark Kent is for Superman, constantly monitoring his anger so that he can funnel it into the perfect moment. —NZ
“Everybody grab your monkey.” (Iron Man 3)
It’s hard to keep action sequences fresh with the same characters movie to movie, but the Iron Man films were great at upping the ante by constantly upgrading Tony’s tech, and vastly changing the stakes of each narrative. Iron Man 3 particularly excelled at this, using a prehensile suit that Tony could call with a specific set of hand signals and direct remotely. The moment where he lends the suit to Pepper to keep her safe when his mansion is being blown to bits is high on the list (because Pepper is a boss in the suit and handles it like a pro), but the barrel o’ monkeys sequence where Tony saves the falling staff of Air Force One tops it for themes of cooperation and individual care, which so many superhero narratives often overlook. —Emily Asher-Perrin
“You should take another lap. Did you just take it? I assume you just took it.” (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)
The meet cute between Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson is some of the best flirting we get in the MCU, and that’s without acknowledging that Steve would have had to take a pretty circuitous route to keep “on your left”ing Sam on the National Mall. It’s special to see Cap so instantly at ease with someone because that’s not really a strength of his. And since Winter Soldier focuses so carefully on who Steve chooses to trust and why, the quick bond he builds with Sam tells us a lot about both characters right from their first chat. It’s also extra funny to listen to Steve tout the benefits of the future, including the fact that “food is better—we used to boil everything.” —EAP
“He’s my friend.” “So was I.” (Captain America: Civil War)
The expectation of a Civil War plotline (as it had already been a major comics event several years previous) had been high on many fans’ lists years before CACW was released. Without secret identities, the ideological difficulties in this film came down to Avenger government oversight in the form of the Sokovia Accords. But in the end, this fight had to be deeply personal. And Civil Warcreated that moment by making the final fight not about the Accords, but about what Steve Rogers had kept from his friend, Tony Stark. The break is so profound that it took the impending threat of Thanos to make these two even consider speaking to each other again. It still hurts. —EAP
“You care so much, don’t you?” (Doctor Strange)
My biggest critique of Doctor Strange was that it was a little too similar to the first Iron Man, but one scene that felt a bit more unique (if horrific) was the moment Strange allows himself to be genuinely monstrous to Christine Palmer. It’s not a fun moment, but it’s a realistically, coldly adult one. It raises the stakes by showing us how awful Strange can be, and actually gives the character a solid nadir to work from on his arc of redemption. —LS
“Get up, Spider-Man.” (Spider-Man: Homecoming)
I’ve written about the MCU’s fondness for dropping buildings on people, and many people have written about how this moment riffs on the all-time classic cover of The Amazing Spider-Man #33. But maybe nowhere else was this moment done as powerfully as when 15-year-old Peter Parker has to talk himself back to life. A real adult, his supervillain, has left him to die, and no one is coming to save him. He has to become a hero to himself before he can be the hero New York needs. —LS
Loki as Odin (Thor: Ragnarok)
Even by the end of Thor: The Dark World, Loki faking his death was starting to get old. Loki reappearing as Odin was an interesting button on that movie but mostly had me eager to see the trickster god back in his element. Well, turns out that that’s by impersonating his father for however much time passes between the second and third Thor films, complete with a garish tribute statue and a truly delightful play (starring Matt Damon! and Luke Hemsworth! and Sam Neill!) that is an exercise in tongue-in-cheek restraint. But the cherry on top of this Asgardian sundae is Anthony Hopkins’ line delivery of “oh shit” the moment he’s made. It kills, every time. —NZ
“I’m here.” (Thor: Ragnarok)
Thor and Loki have been through a lot in these films, from family deaths to hidden extra siblings to a secret Frost Giant heritage that Odin loved to helpfully gloss over. But the Thor films were excellent at prioritizing their growth and their love for each other, even when they were full of antagonism. Ragnarok saw Thor finally figuring out how to outsmart the God of Mischief and reach him, leaving Loki with little else to do than come to his brother’s aid when Asgard needed them most. At the end, Thor assumes that Loki has gone his own way, saying that he’d give his brother a hug if he’d truly shown up (he figures this is just another one of Loki’s projections). But when he chucks a bottle stopper at Loki’s head, it’s caught, proving that this is no mirage… and then we never get to see that hug because Taika Waititi thinks it’s funny to torture me, personally. —EAP
The wig-throwing fight (Black Panther)
This fight scene was one of the first details of Black Panther to leak out from early conventions, and automatically we knew what Ryan Coogler’s handle on the material would be: badass and funny in the same beat, the kind of movie that has you cheering and gasping in the same breath. No doubt Okoye will bring the same level of ingenuity to Endgame. —NZ
M’Baku and his guards bark (Black Panther)
You have Queen Ramonda, Princess Shuri, and super-spy Nakia, all asking their recently vanquished kinda-sorta enemy for help. Their kinda-sorta enemy who is the ruler of his own land. So why exactly does Everett Ross, who does not know these people or their backstory or their very complex relationship, take it upon himself to try to explain a situation he doesn’t truly understand himself? M’Baku barks at him until he takes the hint, and Ross hopefully learns that sometimes it’s better to stand back and listen than to crash into every situation assuming that you know best. In short: Thank you for helping but now hush, Everett Ross. —LS
“I have nothing to prove to you.” (Captain Marvel)
Screenshot: Marvel Studios
Those words, spoken by Carol Danvers to a supremely smarmy Jude Law, are the words that women the world over wish they had the opportunity to express to all the authoritative men in their lives. Yon-Rogg has spent a whole movie tearing Carol down, purporting that she’s too emotional to be effective as a fighter or as a person. But Carol isn’t emotional—this is just a tactic Yon-Rogg has been using to keep her unsure of her own potential. At the end, Carol finally understands this, and learns that she has more power than she ever could have dreamed at her fingertips… and that all it took to unlock that power was believing in herself and not giving a damn what the Yon-Roggs of the universe had to say. —EAP
Honorable Mention: Mjolnir Moments
In adapting decades of comic book source material, it would be easy to uphold the sanctity of various superheroes’ mythical weapons one hundred percent of the time. But part of what makes the MCU work is that it’s not afraid to poke fun at its own mythology from time to time. Thor’s hammer Mjolnir is one of the franchise’s MVPs, the star of more than one quotable scene: The Avengers tipsily competing over who is “worthy” enough to lift it! “Mew-mew”! Tiny Mjolnir getting its own drawer bed in Thor’s new digs! All of this, of course, made it so heartbreaking when Hela made an example out of our beloved hammer. We were the ones who were not worthy of the time we got with Mjolnir.
Honorable Mention: Unforgettable Sequences
More than once we found ourselves laughing over, then rewatching, then going down a YouTube hole, of our favorite extended sequences in various Marvel films—especially those which managed to sum up the movie’s motif, or signify a larger shift in tone for the MCU, in just a few minutes. The infectious fun of Peter Quill playing Indiana Jones to “Come and Get Your Love.” The big queer energy of the Bifrost battle to “Immigrant Song.” Peter Parker’s video diary! Sure, the Avengers movies have that one big GIF-able set piece fight, but these music numbers and delightful intros are the ones that stick with us.
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1904.27 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1393 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
