Can the Media Influence you for better and worse? A look at influence from the 1950s to the 1990s.

Anyone who knows me, would know that I do not believe that Media specifically the fictional mediums that involve violence, can influence people to commit real life violence. I even recorded an Essay regarding my theory that media in general is a mirror, rather reflecting what we see in our daily lives as seen here:

https://cieir.blogspot.com/search?q=Mirror

However recently I have come to the realization that while I do not think Media is capable of doing so at the very least on a huge scale or believe that it's the direct cause of violence, I do think people through the media have tried and sometimes even succeeded in influencing our actions for better and worse. 

Unlike my video I won't go completely back in time, but mostly highlight moments where Media could influence you for better. 

First let's start with a tame example, Sci-Fi movies of the 1950s.

While many of them have been hailed as classics, others seem to at best not know or at worst outright ignore things for the sake of entertainment only to find some of those things they ignored rubbed off on them in some way.

My personal favorite examples are The Fly and Invasion of The Body Snatchers. Because once looked at through a certain perspective, it's hard not to see it. 

In the case of Invasion of The Body Snatchers. A movie about a group of humans who discover a plot by an alien plant-like race who wish to kill and replace humans. Making them exactly alike in every way, but lacking emotions.  While a terrifying movie on it's own right, it was originally made to be an Anti-Communist Party Propaganda piece. The idea being the Pod People, representing communism one day dominating the world and everyone losing their individuality as the result of it.  However, while everyone is well aware of that message, what they don't know is that due to the result of they based the race of pod people on, it can also double as an anti-environmental message as well. The pod people while a dangerous and deadly group, are basically giant seeds with the bodies being their bloom. The only way to stop them is to cut them down or burn them. No different than killing a human on the surface, however it is often equated to how one can permanently destroy plant life. It comes at no surprise that one of many movies funding back then was predominantly supplied by Oil Men and Slaughterhouse Owners.  People who make their money destroying the earth and try to convince us we're communists if we don't join them. Of course not all of it is in greed and money. Which leads me to the second example:

The Fly. No not the Jeff Goldblum one, but rather the 1958 Vincent Price film. About a scientist who tries to invent a safer alternative to transportation than planes and cars. Only to have a horrific accident that swaps his head and some of his brain to that of a common housefly. Tasking his wife to help him go back to normal. Both films were the subject to downer endings which end with the titular character being killed. Much of the movie, is spent with the characters lamenting the invention of the teleporters due to what happened to the title character. Which as stated in regards to Body-Snatchers is the industrial producers way of saying "Teleport bad, buy a car instead." And while there have been films that were created before and after this, it expanded more into religious territory. Movies like the Fly, Attack of The 50 Foot Woman and The Incredible Shrinking Man among most, have a running theme of science being bad and that anyone who gets hit with it, especially if they are the cause of the thing that created the disaster; get no sympathy and deserve to die in the end. That's right, Religious Influence was also at play in how these kind of movies are created. In this case, Fox, which was beginning to transition from a financially troubled studio to a Christian/Republican-Dominated powerhouse which had branches everywhere. Fom Movies, to TV and Video Games.  

Ironically it was the worst of them, that tipped me off. 

Plan 9 From Outer Space. Created by Ed Wood and was Post-Humorously Bela Lugosi's last film. About aliens who use advanced tech to bring the dead back to life, because they fear humans are stupid and destructive.  Now most studios, where depending on the country and which religion dominates said country due to the owner being of that religion and expecting his or her employees to adhere to those laws along with company rules; they never go out of their way and call themselves by their religion, politics or employers, but rather let their mediums do the talking for them. Plan 9 on the other hand was funded by Valiant Pictures, which was a known Christian company and while mostly funding the movie had put in suggestions themselves.  Such as Plan 9 being changed from the original title: Grave Robbers From Outer Space. However like the previous examples I mentioned, their influence here is just as obvious as even the not so subtle companies. Since despite the Aliens' well intentions, they're robbing graves and die a fiery death which could easily be interpreted as them going to Hell for what they did. 

Just from those three examples and the reception that followed them, one can easily believe that Media can influence us and our actions. Which seemed to be true, since those that enjoyed these movies were mostly men, meat eaters and Christians themselves. However not one of them committed the very violence that would later become subject in eras of filmmaking that follows. 

Welcome to the 1960s. This was a time when the wheels of the Cold War kept turning, but we focused more on fighting our own countries internally while living under constant fear of an external attack. But for good reason, even though this was the era where Civil Rights and Minority Privilege was just getting the ground work, activists had to fight tooth and nail to make sure it stayed there or went away depending on how you viewed it then.  Because of the fight, in an effort to get us to focus on the war anyone that was fighting for Women's Rights, Rights of People of Color or protesting the War on Nam, were labelled communists even if said protesters were war veterans themselves. And like an electronic mirror the media showed both sides in an exaggerated light. 

Even my favorite era of James Bond films, the Sean Connery Era was no exception. While James is a badass in all eras, each one of them has done something very unpleasant to the modern eye and Goldfinger was no exception. Both the movie and book, had a supporting character or in the business "Bond Girl" as they are called, named "Pussy Galore". What many people except hardcore fans know, is that Pussy Galore is in fact a homosexual. A lesbian to be specific. In what is now a controversial scene, James was able to what many activists dread to call "Convert" Miss Galore into heterosexuality as part of a plan to get her to replace the deadly nerve gas, she and her all female flying acrobat team were planning on spraying Fort Knox with, with a harmless sleeping gas. A scene many considered to be rape by the protagonist.  In an effort to soften the controversy, her actress Honor Blackman came up with a backstory in which, Galore wasn't really a lesbian and that she thought she was due to abuse laid out to her by Goldfinger. And because James was the only "Good" man she met, it snapped her out of it completely. It was somewhat backed up by the book only instead of Goldfinger, she was sexually abused by her uncle. Needless to say while I can understand that, I am not a majority so I can understand why any activists would be pissed off at that explanation.  However if you were to accuse this book movie of anything it would be the following:

1. Claiming that Homosexuality is phase.
2. All Asians Eat Cats.

Oh ya, forgot about that one didn't I? Everyone remembers Oddjob, the silent, hat throwing strongman who nearly killed Bond and later starred in a series of funny cough syrup commercials. While it wasn't shown in the movie, the book specifically states that Oddjob a Korean's favourite food is cats and even at one point ate Goldfinger's Golden cat. Then of course you got the usual Connery's charming line between being a charmer and a misogynist. Violently interrogating women and even in the most comic of scenes treating them, like they are less than men. Though surprisingly all of that, wasn't what turned people off in the movie. The movie was well liked by many including but not limited to people who thought Connery was the ideal male role model. What turned people off from the movie was the antagonist himself Goldfinger. Specifically the actor who played him. Many boycotts from Israel and it's supporters were placed on this film when it was found out that the Antagonist was played by Gert Frobe.   What many people don't know is, that Frobe was a member of the Nazi Party in WWII and despite playing a captitalist villain in this time around, many boycott him because they though his mere presence glorified Nazism. As a result, movies like Goldfirnger weren't allowed in theatres in Israel. However, in a surprising twist, many people looked into Frobe's history further. That while he was an official member of the Nazi Party, he used his position to hide and sneak out many many victims of the camps. A notion that caused Israel to lift the ban and apologize. Which makes this media mess of misogyny and homophobia, a diamond in the rough due to one of the few villains having been played by a real life hero.

Of course around that time, both Hollywood and Europe believed that the strongest leads should have been white and Goldfinger was made only 2 years before a certain legend managed to create a spark on television that would snowball into a grand phenomena in the decades to come.

It was 1966 and Bruce Lee was just doing demonstrations of his concept of Jeet Kune Do at Karate Tournaments. One of which inspired producer William Dozier, who was also famous for the 1960s Batman TV series starring Adam West and Burt Ward. Lee was hired to play Kato, Chauffeur and Butler by day and Partner, Driver, Enforcer and Bodyguard to the titular character by night.  Through Lee's influence Kato went from fistcuffs and basic Karate to an extraordinary Kung Fu master who practically stole every scene they were in. A notion not unnoticed by the executives of Fox TV. At the time, many non-white actors were often reduced to stereotypes, in the case of Black people, they were often portrayed as big lipped, fried chicken eating, water melon sucking lesser than human lives. In the case of Chinese and Chinese Americans, they were portrayed as clumsy goofballs who were only good at building railroads and working minds.  Where Sidney Portier changed that notion one year after this show, with the movie In The Heat of The Night, Bruce Lee opted to change the notion, not just with Green Hornet, but with ideas he couldn't put into play for the next 4 years to say the least. Mainly due to the execs trying to restrain Lee for changing what they viewed as the status quo. To me this lessens the idea that media itself is the influence, because here you see two entities fighting each other on who should be the big influence. All Bruce wanted to do was give people the right to choose who their hero should be, by giving them an option. Whilst all the execs wanted to do was keep their sponsors happy. But point being rather than it being an example of the media influencing us, but gives an example of the reversal. That we influence the media. Needless to say the execs lost, due to Bruce's increasing popularity and their own show getting the same treatment in Hong Kong they tried to burn Lee on. Even going as far as changing the name from "The Green Hornet." to "The Kato Show."

Which leads us to the 1970s. Or as I like to call it. The Idea Melting pot of Media as well as the most problems accused thus far of causing. While every decade has had at least one unique idea that would help change movies for better or worse. None were more out there than the 70s. With flashy colors, campy tones and over the top madness, any idea could be convincing if one puts their mind to it. However while many ideas were good, this was the decade that caused the most accusations of media influence. Here are the highlights.

A Clockwork Orange. Made in 1971 by Stanley Kubrick and based off the book of the same name by Anthony Burgess. The story revolves around Alexander DeLarge a leader of a gang of thugs he calls droogs.  Their motif is burglary, rape and ultra violence. The latter of which Alex has an obsessive fascination of in all forms.  Upon getting caught, Alex tries to get out of jail early, by volunteering for the experimental Ludovico Technique.  A form of aversion therapy in which the subject is given nausea inducing drugs and forced to watch violent and sexual acts.  The result would cause them to be very ill should they think to act on such violence and sexuality. Upon being released, Alex was subjected to tortures by the people he tormented before, culminating in a suicide attempt that cures him and brings him back to his bad self.  I cite this movie among most, as a very unique example due to the following factors:

The first is the themes of the movie itself. Such as political influence and the idea that we could or could not be in control of our inner impulses and should we be in situations beyond our control we often associate our impulses with the outside stimulation around us.  Case in point even before being subjected to the treatment, it's not so subtly implied that Alex reacts very differently to the music played around him. During the famous scene in which Alex put his droogs in their place for trying to rebel, he specifically mentioned that he knew what he had to do, the second he heard a stereo playing.  Implying that his lovely lovely Ludwig Van Beethoven gave him a silent cue to beat up his gang members. Giving the inner notion that media may be responsible for violence within this movie. A meta accusation if you will. Then you have other characters who are also influence by music in various ways. In what was originally meant to be an improvised moment, the infamous home invasion scene had Malcolm McDowell sing Gene Kelly's "Singing in The Rain." while carrying out the dirty deeds. As a result in the later film Frank Alexander, who survived his attack long after his wife passed away from complications of the assault finds the Ludovico influenced Alex at his doorstep. Due to Alex being masked at the time, he didn't recognize him as his intruder, but rather recognized him as the poster boy for the technique. Even offering him food and shelter, in exchange for him helping them whistleblow on the government over it amongst many atrocities.  Giving the little bastard a slight semblance of hope. However that hope was shattered by his own hand, when upon having a relaxing bath, Alex haphazardly sings the song again. Prompting this iconic reaction from Frank Alexander.

Said song not only helping Frank recognize his tormentor but triggering a sever case of post traumatic stress. So in essence, it not only accuses the media of influencing violence, but also triggering those who have been victims of violence.  For the latter it's less about the song itself and more about the context of the situation.  The man was simply at home writing a book, when some young fellows knocked claiming there was a terrible accident.  In an effort to help them they were duped to letting the Droogs in. Causing him to be crippled, while his wife was beaten and gang-raped in front of him, while Alex sang that song. So in conclusion to that at least to me, the media doesn't quite influence anything other than what outside factors try to use it for. Once again making the media a tool rather than the direct cause.

In the next and last factor, I will talk about the movie's impact on the real world and how even the best directors can get duped into the following BS of Media Violence causing real world violence. Not too long after the movie was released, there have been many people going around dressed like droogs having gang wars and other various crimes. When caught, they blame the movie for influencing them.  A blame so powerful it caused Stanley Kubrick, the man who directed the movie to have it banned from his residing country in England.  A ban that has been lifted not too long after his death. I personally do not believe this movie caused a rise in Droogs. I believe that the real life Droogs were already fucked up to begin with and as a result they simply clung onto this movie like Manson clung onto the White Album. They interpreted the movie differently in an attempt to project their own feelings onto it and scapegoated it to avoid taking responsibility for their own wrongs. A notion that has been repeated in 1979 when The Warriors was blamed for the rise in gang violence.


Up next an attempt at a positive example of media influence gone wrong by a death.

Despite the poster being there, this has nothing to do with it, but this was rather a symptom of an attempt to bring more positive influence using media as a tool.  After Bruce Lee returned to Hong Kong, he was approached by Golden Harvest Studios, after the mentioned cult following of The Kato Show.  To put his foot in the door, Bruce had to do two movies under the direction of despised director Lo Wei.

The first being Big Boss, where he plays a Chinese Man entering the workforce in Thailand. A pacifist who until being pushed too far tried everything he could to avoid fighting.  As his newfound fame spreads among his people, he discovers that the Thai workers, are using their factories as fronts for an Opium/Heroin Smuggling Ring. Which he tries to stop. With the exception of thinly showing anti-racism between the Thai and The Chinese, there wasn't really anything I could find remotely influencing about the movie itself. Save for Bruce Lee's performance of course. The next movie on the other hand....

Fist of Fury. Was chock full of propaganda.  This movie was based on one of many conspiracy theories based around the death of Huo Yuanjia, famed founder of Jing Wu School as well as revolves around the life of one of his student's Chen Zhen.  Who believes that Huo is murdered and sets out to expose the murderers and avenge his teacher.  All the while, a rival school that believes Japanese Bushido is superior to Chinese Kung Fu, constantly torments and ultimately kills the Jing Wu school due to Chen's actions. The movie itself is a prime example of someone attempting to use the star power of a known celebrity, to influence and enrage as many fans as possible into siding with the person.  In this case Lo Wei specifically created this movie to restart tensions between Japan and China at a time when war could have broken out before them at the slightest of whims. A notion said star was aware of. Sick of the One-sided racism his own people and fans seemed to eat up, Bruce quit Lo Wei and took the bulk of Golden Harvest with him. But not before making a few changes. While Chen was meant to live in the end, Bruce as another attempt at using media to create a better message, had his variation of Chen killed off in a firing squad. In an attempt to tell his fans that murder is not OK especially in terms of revenge and rage.  As a final "Fuck you" to the man, Lee directed the next Golden Harvest Movie.

Way of the Dragon. Written by Bruce, Directed By Bruce, Starring Bruce and he even did the percussion work for the theme music.   This was one of many attempts where Bruce tried to avoid type casting. In this case rather than be typecast as an easily enraged, but powerful action hero, he tried to branch out in a more comedic setting.  In this Bruce plays Tang Lung, a man from Hong Kong sent to Rome to help his Uncle's friends from going out of business there. Said friends run a restaurant, that is constantly being terrorized by the Roman Mob lead by a man named Boss. Who wan the land their eatery stands on.  While the other movies get dubbed for convenience, this was the only movie in the Bruce Lee library that points out the language barrier. Which is often used for laughs. In this case despite the dubs, Tang Lung can't speak English, so he would need someone who spoke Cantonese or Mandarin to translate for him and vice versa. As a result many scenarios ensue including but not limited to him accidentally following a prostitute to her house.  Of course being a Bruce Lee movie, a fight finally happens and Bruce shows off his skills.  Which in turn causes his friends to admire him as a teacher and his enemies to continue escalating.  It all culminates in a climactic fight in the Roman Colosseum. Where Bruce faces off an American Black Belt, named Colt. Played by Chuck Norris. While the movie itself was mostly for laughs there have been a lot of aesops planted within it.  Since Bruce wrote and direct it, it gave the opportunity to briefly put in his philosophies on life and martial arts. In the case of the latter, Tang Lung mentions that it doesn't matter if the moves are from foreign influences, as long as it can help you out in a fight.  Whereas, Lung himself has had a moment of expressing bigotry based on bigotry he's faced in the past. In the case of the prostitute scene, it all started with Tang having trouble at the bank.  In this case, he didn't trust the banker even though his friend Chen Ching-Hua vouched for him simply because he was Italian like the people that hurt his friends. Later in the movie, Chen tries to give some heartfelt advice to Tang which was meant to invoke "Not everyone who isn't us is a criminal." notion of racism all races had the luxury of being victimized of. Of course this being a comedy movie he takes her advice literal and puts himself in hot water. That said if there was an example of media influencing us in a positive way it's that. Of course it doesn't hurt that we get to see two legendary martial arts fighters go at each other to boot.

However any attempt at further influence for the better was tragically cut short. Which leads to this:

Before Hollywood decided to call Lee back and bring him back to the American Spotlight, Bruce worked on a secret project that if done just right, would have made a massive change in media entertainment.  That was Game of Death.  According to the notes, the movie itself ontop of being action was meant to be Bruce's first Martial Arts, Edutainment movie, where he would finally showcase Jeet Kune Do for all to see. A notion previously touched upon in his guest spot on Longstreet. The original story was as followed. Bruce plays Hai Tien, a martial arts champion sought out by the Korean Mob.  The reason being is that they are after a treasure, rumoured to be inside a pagoda.  However the Pagoda is guarded floor by floor by one or many people.  Each floor showcasing a different martial arts concept.  Tien refuses, until the mob captures his family. Hai Tien and two others storm the pagoda.  The formula would be simple, but still entertaining: They face off against a master or masters of an individual style, the two others with him get beat up to show their concepts won't work and Tien comes in show casing how Jeet Kune Do is superior to that style. With an occasional line from Tien which is taken from Lee's Book. Literally. Sounds like a cool concept right? HA HA!!!! We never got to see it fully. It wasn't even finished by the time Lee got contacted to do Enter The Dragon and as a result, Lee died just as he was about to get back to it. While don't get me wrong, Enter The Dragon is a good movie and had he lived it would have made him a world star rather than just make him limited to America and Hong Kong; I can't help but feel frustrated for various reasons:
The first is that missing out on what could have been is a major sore spot for me. There was so much that could have been done, that would have made this movie much bigger than Enter The Dragon could ever be and it's gone.  The closest you'll ever get to seeing it, is if you watch Bruce Lee: A Warrior's journey. It's one thing to accuse media of influencing, but it's another to miss out on what kind of influence this could be.
The other? Rather than simply piece together his notes, Golden Harvest and Robert Clouse created a disgusting abomination. Feeding into the conspiracy craze Lee's death sparked and inadvertently predicting the death of his son Brandon. Turning what would have been a great gift into the bane of movie existence.

What's really tragic, is that not too long after, media would later be accused of something else entirely. Cursing the people making it.

While some of Warner Bros, was still busy on Enter The Dragon in Hong Kong, the rest had their focus on another unique concept that helped shape media entertainment: Religious Horror. While this wasn't anything new as religious themes have existed in horror stories for centuries, The Exorcist was unique in which it combined the very idea of religion itself with Horror. The movie was a multilayered story revolving around Three Characters: Lankester Merrin, Damien Karras and Chris McNeil. Damien Karras is a Jesuit Priest and Psychiatrist in Georgetown Washington who has suffered a crisis of faith when he loses his mother to dementia and death.   Chris McNeil is trying to figure out what's wrong with her daughter Regan when she starts acting out without warning. From swearing, to violent behavior, to unexplained circumstances that lead her to believe that her daughter is being possessed by a demonic entity. Upon confirmation from Karras that Regan is indeed possessed, Merrin is called into assist Karras in saving the poor girl.  Merrin himself having faced the demon before on many occasions. A once acclaimed movie was later accused of being Catholic Propaganda due to the horrific nature presumably scaring even the most stubborn of atheists into being believers. However that is far from true. However if you want definitive proof that there exists an evil entity trying to put a stop to this movie, look no further than this. Among most things to happen, Linda Blair's career took a swan dive and the set itself caught on fire through unknown means. Leading fans to cry the existence of a curse, believing the devil himself was trying to stop the movie from being made.  Now why does that sound familiar? That's right, because that's what many media detractors have also been trying to do with some going through similar extremes to do so.  While this was the first movie to be accused of being cursed, there have been many before and after that follow the lead.

The Omen, much like Exorcist was trying to cash in on religious horror. However while the Exorcist had had few instances of bad luck. This movie had bad luck all around.  The movie revolves around Robert Thorn, a diplomatic American living in England and expecting a child.  However the child dies upon being born and as a result of trying to hide it from his wife, he secretly adopts a baby in the hospital. Naming him Damien.  As the child grows up a series of bad circumstances leads Robert to believe that Damien may be the Anti-Christ. The Son of the Devil in Human Form. Who is using his family name in an attempt to connect himself to other world leaders and dominate the world for Armageddon. Upon producing this movie a lot of things went wrong. From the animals used for Damien's influence actually attacking the cast and crew, to a series of unfortunate deaths to an airplane even getting struck by lightning. This movie on top of being unfairly compared to The Exorcist ends up having topped it off in curses.

While this trend slowly died down, it made way for something else entirely.

Welcome to the 80s. The Cold War reaches it's peak and you have many things to choose from. Such as a wide variety of action movies, multiple genres of horror from gore-fests to psychological and many more.  However on top of that it was movies between this era and the 90s that were most accused of being a huge influence on the world for better and worse. With some in the movies themselves on top of the usual accusations of propaganda.

 

First Blood was Stallone's attempt to get out of the Rocky spotlight and show what he could really do as an actor, before he got typecasted as an overall action star. It tells the tale of John Rambo, a former green beret and veteran of the Vietnam War. A man who has been through many hardships, from losing his friends in the war, to being treated like garbage at home. As he goes into Hope Washington he is accosted by Sheriff Teasle. A former Korean Vet who looks down at Rambo as nothing more than a Vagrant.  Upon arresting him and subjecting him to his fellow officer's cruelty, Rambo's PTSD sets in and he snaps, beating the officers, escaping and fleeing into the woods. A manhunt for him escalates into war between the two after he accidentally kills one of Teasle's Deputies. It's up to Colonel Sam Trautman to stop the battle.  While there have been many movies before, that have been Pro-Nam and even given some story that offer sympathy to the soldiers, whilst the real world gave next to none. This was one of the first movies to delve deep into the psychology of a vet who went through hell as well as dived into what would make them feel like they're in hell.  Giving heart to a character we as a society would normally spit on and call baby killer. The only influence it can give was to show that soldiers are no different than civilians. But positive or negative, it's not really a big example of media within media accusing media.

Then you have Poltergeist another example of the cursed film trend. However this one is unique compared to them and I shall explain why. The movie revolves around a family being haunted by a group of ghosts who communicate with their youngest daughter through a television set, before eventually kidnapping her.  While there was little to no exact talk about media influencing, there have been media related moments.  Attention to detail regarding the equipment the parapsychologists use in order to capture footage of the ghosts, the remote war between neighbors and of course the main TV being the cause of it all. While one could see it as a coincidence that the whole thing starts with a TV talking to Carol Anne and directly influencing her and ending with a TV getting thrown out; I beg to differ.  Considering that one of the people that helped make this movie, has tried to use media in a different way to influence people.  Let's go back to the 70s just briefly.

Tobe Hooper originally got his claim to fame making the famous slasher film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  Many have interpreted this movie among most things as a Pro-Vegan film. Stating that the Cannibals are doing to Sally and her friends are no different than what humans do to cattle or pork or poultry.  A notion that Hooper didn't deny.  And while Spielberg was the main creator of Poltergeist, it's quite easy to tell who's ideas were what in it.  For example, the infamous face tear scene, started with one of the Parapsychologists trying to get something to eat. Among most things, the ghosts mess with him by causing a steak to crawl by itself across a counter and maggots to appear in all the meat products. That along with the gorey face tear, was a definite Hooper moment. So needless to say any anti-media subtext within the film was also Hooper too.

But as the years went on, many have discovered that media itself rather than be a direct influence, can and would be used as a tool to further their own influences around the world. All starting with a warning from the most fucked up master of body horror imaginable: David Cronenberg.

While Cronenberg was already famous with movies like Rabid, Scanners and the Brood, this was the movie many talk about the most when it comes to him. Filmed on location in Downtown Toronto, Ontario Canada; Videodrome starts off with Media Mogul Max Renn, who runs a late night television and adult content TV station called Civic-TV (CityTV in real life.). While looking for new material for this channel, he stumbles upon a snuff show called Videodrome, which seems to be nothing but endless torture porn. However upon watching it, Max ends up suffering from a series of hallucinations as he's caught up in a war between Brian O'Blivion, an activist who believes Television is the next step to a peaceful world and Barry Convex, who believes violent and sexual media are the causes of lowlives and the world becoming soft as a result of immersing themselves in it. The movie itself let's us hear from both sides of the war and even leaves so much ambiguity that it leaves room for us the audience to decide who is right and who is wrong on the matter. Making it the ultimate tool of influence of it's time.  This was a time when the internet was still being worked on. A time when the most universal forms of communication were Radio, Theater and of course Television and even then the channels were limited to the signal and the time of day. Before the internet, this was the thing that was blamed for the world's woes as well as being praised for many highlights and it's ability to reach people from all over the world. Yet while many people have a love-hate for the internet and social media, TV in the end is still the most loved form of multimedia entertainment. This movie is the prime example that media is not an entity, but a tool that one can use their own influence on for better or worse. As for who I side with. There is only one answer to that "Long live the new flesh."

Of course while this was one of the first, it wasn't the only movie to poke fun at media influence for good or bad.

Welcome to the 90s, where the 80s go to die and the 2000s used to mean the end of the world. Ya...used to. This was in my opinion where media in general reached it's peak. Granted there were ways of making it better and making it worse in the 2000s, but this was the tip of the scale. The Cold War was finally over, 9/11 didn't happen yet and many kids including yours truly either watched reruns of old shows or got caught in the gross-out humor trend. But the adults of the time seemed to be at their wits end. Where stories about media influencing violence were very few and often dismissed, this was where the most headaches came from and the headaches of the 2010s continued on from. The only difference between the outrages was the main topic at hand. In the 90s, there have been many controversial shows that got popularized by it, whether they started in the late 80s and gained traction or started in the 90s and became instant hits.

The Simpsons was one of those shows.  While not the first cartoon adult family sitcom, it became the stepping stone for what came after in the 90s to the 2000s. Often always going border-line to even crossing the border in offensive humor among most things.  But while it like other shows were often accused of being bad influences. With George Bush making the famous line "More like the Waltons and less like The Simpsons." They were no stranger to poking fun at those accusing them. From the writers, writing as Marge telling off Barbara to, Marge accusing Itchy and Scratchy for causing Maggie to attack Homer. However while still going on today, back then they barely scratched the surface.

When South Park first started out, it was mainly an R-Rated Peanuts with fart and death jokes, but as the years went by, they too tried to influence people through surprisingly good life lessons.  One of which became the basis for my Electronic Mirror Essay. In the episode "Death", much like Simpsons before it, parents were protesting against a TV show.  In this case where the Simpsons was dealing with violence in the media and whether or not it influences real life violence, South Park went a different direction. One of the tamest controversies compared to the sexual and violent influences being accused in the media, is swearing. Me I see no big deal on swearing and see it as a way to get a fucking point across to those who don't fucking listen. These parents on the other hand see it as the end all be all to childhood existence. While Marge's protest aggressive it may be was peaceful; the parents of South Park went as far as sling-shooting themselves against a TV station killing them instantly and even that didn't work. The episode itself was also pointing out the hyopcritical elements of the parent's protest. In a subplot, Stan's Grandfather Marvin Marsh is trying to get him to kill him after being alive and in agony for 102 years.  Upon caving in, Death arrives and it's assumed he's after the kids for trying to kill Marvin.  However it turns out as part of the running gag, Death was only after Kenny. However during the chase, Stan and the others try to call their parents, but they ignore them claiming to be too busy "protecting" them with their protests.  Which brings the aesop that parents are so focused on what's influencing on TV, that they don't care what happens to their kids in real life. Especially with their life in danger. As well as another aesop, one I have grown tired of seeing. The notion that Parents see TV as their kid's babysitter. And rather than take responsibility and simply change or block the channel, they blame an inanimate object for what's causing their kids to swear or go violent.

Stan: Dammit!!! You know, I think that if parents would spend less time worrying about what they watch on TV and more time worrying about what's going on with their kid's lives, the world would be a much better place. 

Kyle: Yeah, I think that parents only get so offended by television, because they rely on it as a babysitter and the sole educator of their kids.


Hell the reason why many parents get offended is because they see the Television as this magic box that solves their daily problems.  And when said box does something they don't want it to do, they blame it rather themselves for abusing said box.

It didn't help that some kids in the mid 90s up and killed their classmates and the only thing they could blame for their behavior was a bunch of metal posters, horror movies and video games that have been plastered in their room. Which leads me to my final entry of this look.

Scream is the the culmination of everything many detractors have seen as wrong with movies. Even though it's message on top of simply trying to kill the Slasher Genre, was actually pro-media rather than anti.  Scream takes place in Woodsboro which is infamous for the rape and murder of Maureen Presscott.  On the one year anniversary of the case, a serial killer is on the loose killing students and staging them in the form of death scenes in slasher movies.  Their main target being Marueen's daughter Sidney.  Spoilers for those living under a rock, the killers are her boyfriend Billy Loomis and his friend Stu Macher.  As revenge for Maureen having an affair with Billy's dad and breaking his family up.  During the climax of the movie, Billy and Stu plan on killing Sidney, framing her father for the crimes and staging themselves to look like the sole survivors left for dead.  As they prepare, Sidney claims they're sick fucks who watch too many movies. To which Billy responds "NOW SID DON'T YOU BLAME THE MOVIES!!! MOVIES DON'T CREATE PSYCHOS, MOVIES MAKE PSYCHOS MORE CREATIVE!!" That line stuck with me ever since and it brings me to the conclusion of this essay. 

On the whole Media is not the direct influence many detractors of this era along with new detractors of the recent decades bring it out to be.  It doesn't cause violence, racism, sexism or any atrocities we know in the past century. It can however be used as a tool for influence and it's often based on the will of the person using it. Whether it's the exec trying to please their sponsor or the worker that is trying to bring something positive to the table.
If you feel the need to kill someone after watching a horror movie, then there is something seriously wrong with you. Whereas if the person making the movie is saying "You think Leatherface is a monster? Well what makes human meat different than that burger you're eating?" Then that's on the fault of the person making it. He is not the media, he is merely someone who knows how to use that tool well.  Here endeth the lesson.

All Lives Matter? I used to think so. Covid-19 Update

First of all I want to address something.  I first wish to express my condolences to any friends and family members of George Floyd. You have my condolences and I also wish to in advance apologize for what I am about to say. Because anyone who reads further than this would believe that what I say will downplay your grief over this tragedy.

With that out of the way let's get to the meat of this.

For those that don't know, George Floyd was murdered while in Police Custody. I won't get into any of the details, but it has caused a massive resurgence of protesters from the radical group, Black Lives Matter. Or BLM for short. Whom despite common sense telling them and their associates that they should stay indoors are willing to risk infecting themselves and each other in the pandemic just to have their voices heard. 

However while "noble" as their intentions are (If you can call this group Noble.), it is the most disgusting display of ignorance I have ever witnessed in my life. Not just disgusting, but downright hypocritical. Before this incident occurred, even they were aware enough about how dangerous this pandemic is. That gathering together in groups of more than four is dangerous, that being within 6 feet of each other is dangerous, to any act that allows saliva particles in the air. Such as the yelling and screaming of protesters. However when Floyd's murder has been announced. Suddenly to BLM, the pandemic doesn't matter anymore. It's harsh to say, but as said before "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one." George was the one. Yet according to groups like BLM and the news stations that encourage their risky behaviour based on that alone, the death of a man at the hands of a cop, is worse than the millions of deaths that have been happening around the world. Deaths that won't stop until a cure is found.  And that's just my take on them simply going outside.  I won't even begin to tell you what they're capable of. Riots, looting, arson.  It's all happening again.  When's it gonna be enough? It's one thing if they were ignorant to the potential infections its another when they're intentionally hurting people. Hell I believe they're gonna intentionally spread it in hopes it kills every cops. But don't get me wrong, I'll get to that other side next.

First off, everyone knows it's a felony to assault someone in police custody. Cops are not exempt from that, but since this one went as far as killing the man, I wouldn't be surprised that they're gonna really burn him for that. Which they are. Yet rather than wait until it was official, BLM and their affiliates do their song and dance before Floyd's family have a chance to give him a proper funeral. They don't care about Black Lives as much as they claim too otherwise they would have at least given them time to grieve. As well as have the patience to wait and see if the Justice System fucks up. Which they didn't.  Both sides of this thing are to blame, but when one side jumps the gun more than the other and blames the other side for it, I'm sorry, but you're stupidity is gonna kill everyone.

Second off, there are other ways to protest that don't involve going outside in large groups.  You all could have petitioned, face-timed each other or god forbid aired your grievances on youtube or something. It's 2020, you're voice can be heard without leaving the fucking house and guess what, no one would be at risk of getting sick. But no, you opted the traditional way and as a result you risked killing everyone for nothing. So fuck you.

Whenever people asked me if I believed Black Lives Matter I always said the same response over the year. "All Lives Matter." I grew up to believe that you shouldn't limit your empathy to only one race, sex or orientation just because some yahoos on the internet tell you to. The response I get is the same "You're racist for not focusing on only black lives. You fucking white privilege POS!!" You say it's racist, yet you never say how it's racist. The closest I get to an explanation is that apparently according to the world the only people that should matter are Black Lives. Well if you really cared about Black Lives you wouldn't be risking those very lives you claim to care about or you wouldn't be out there getting yourself or others you care about sick. I guess Optimus Prime is also Racist considering his famous quote "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings." Or Spock is Racist "The Needs of the many, outweigh the needs of the few or the one." These were characters that many of these so called groups, grew up watching yet they would throw them under a bus if it made them look better on TV. Making those very claims I made the comparisons out of. But alas. The world is changing. So I am gonna rather than make a positive change to my response and give you all the cold harsh truth.

NO LIVES MATTER!!!

Which in the long run is true. The cold hard truth is no matter what we do, no matter who we are. No matter what color our skin is, what our religion is, what our orientation, lifestyle and political views are, every thing that makes us unique and independent in the long run doesn't matter anymore because of the cold hard truth that not only we share common ground for each other, but other life forms on this world and the next. We're born, we grow up, we die.  Some of us more quicker than others, while some of us more slower than others depending on the circumstances.  But in the long run everything we've ever done in the past millennia is pointless simply because we are all gonna die one day. Does that sound bad yes it does, but unlike my last response on the matter, there is no way in hell anyone can interpret it as racist, because we're all thrown under the bus by this saying. No Lives Matter. Fuck everything. 

Fuck the cop that sparked this shit. 

Fuck BLM for putting their priorities over the lives of millions. 

Fuck the News for encouraging them after months of telling everyone to stay in doors.

Most of all FUCK YOU if you disagree. I don't give a shit anymore. 

Cure this thing and let us live with our fucking lives already. 

Straight Up Reviews: Don't Hug Me I'm Scared

One thing about being in isolation during the pandemic, is that it often reminds me of similar situations in fictional mediums. Not so much the cause of isolation, but the idea that one or more people trapped in the same room together while insanity ensues, makes this both hilarious and harsher in hindsight. Case in point Don't Hug Me I'm Scared. The popular web video series that was all the rage lasting from 2011 to 2017 and thanks to the clever creators Rebecca Sloan and Joseph Pelling.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared is about three best friends, who go on an adventure to find a magic pirate ship and save the day.......At least that's what the creators say. Though watching it first hand, you wouldn't think that is what it's all about. Needless to say it was. Just kidding.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared, is essentially a surreal horror comedy that parodies popular children shows. Specifically, children's edutainment and puppet shows like Sesame Street. It centers around three people, whom were obvious parodies of Jim Henson's muppet archetypes.

The first is The Red Guy, who is both a parody of the monster type muppets: Creatures whom are not based on any animals and depending on the character are either friendly or mean. The big examples being Elmo and Grover Red Guy is also a parody of the suit type muppets as well. Being the only character to be played by an actor wearing a suit. Similar to characters like Big Bird. Red Guy is essentially the board, older man of the group who often takes things in stride whether he likes it or not. He rarely expresses emotion, but later shows to be a caring individual especially around his friends.

The second is The Duck Guy. Who is a parody of the animal type muppets: Creatures whom are often based on one type of animal or another, yet are anthropomorphized and treated like everyday humans. Such as Miss Piggy or Kermit the Frog. Duck Guy. He is talkative and somewhat intelligent and often every now and then speaks in an autotune like voice.

Last but not least is The Yellow Guy. Who is a parody of the human type muppets: Creatures who are in essence human in puppet form, but often sometimes have distinctions that separate them from what society views as humans. Such as a non natural skin and hair color. Similar to characters like Walter. He is the youngest of the group, child like and somewhat dim-witted. He also serves as the mascot of the show even though by all intents and purposes it should be Red Guy. There's a reason for that.

The show itself has a simple yet, effective formula. With the exception of the third episode, the characters are mostly in the same house together, minding their own business. That is until a puppet, known in the series as a Teacher, would appear to give the lesson of the episode. However, said lesson often gets twisted and turned into a total mindscrew. Where weird things happen, the characters get hurt, maimed or even killed in some way and rather than it be played for comedy like you would expect in the Muppet Show, there is often an excess amount of blood and gore involved. The episodes repeat this formula until the end. But why does it happen. To answer that I will break down the episodes one at a time.

The first episode centers around the Teacher called Sketchbook. A living sketchpad that has arrived to teach the trio about the wonders of creativity. While it seems Yellow Guy has been following the lesson well, Sketchbook seems to insult him, citing the colour green as not a creative colour and destroying a well painted picture of a clown by dumping oil on it.  As the episode goes on, it takes a dark turn where the characters shift into various art forms of themselves from CGI to Yellow and Duck Guy spontaneously turning into Suit Muppets. All while the word "Death" is stamped out, a human heart gets covered in glitter and someone cuts a slice of cake to reveal human entrails inside. After the lesson is over, Sketchbook decides they should never get creative again before closing themselves out. As you can see for yourselves, we are in for a nasty surprise in the continuing series. When I first watched this. I initially dismissed it as nonsensical mindfuckery however when I went back to the series, I wished I followed it when it continued. The saddest thing though is, that this one is tame compared to what is coming next.

The second episode has them sitting in the living room, waiting for their show to come on. As they think of a way to pass the time, another Teacher appears. This time in the form of a talking clock named Tony. This one takes a more surreal approach as he teaches the trio about time. Taking them to the past, showing them the future and the effects time has on the world. Such as aging trees and rotting apples.  However when Duck Guy and Yellow Guy question the concept of time, Tony gets angry and turns into an alarm clock that makes the latter's ears bleed. In the last of the episode, Tony speeds up time. Causing the characters to age rapidly, with Yellow and Duck Guy rotting in agony. All before revealing that they were the show the Trio was trying to watch the whole time. The episode also introduces another character named Roy. The Father of The Yellow Guy, who later makes appearances in the show and even has his own special thanks.  One thing I noticed among most things, was that much like Sketchbook before, Tony seems to go out of his way to hurt Yellow Guy the most. Scrubbing him raw in the bathtub, making his ears bleed even though Duck Guy was the one that insulted him over time being an illusion and putting him in the most agony when he ages them. Why would these random puppets go out of their way to go after the poor guy?

The third episode is the only one of the series where they are outside of the house. The trio is in a forest enjoying a chicken picnic. Said picnic involves uncooked eggs and meat. Yellow Guy comes across a small butterfly admiring it before Duck Guy kills it, mistaking it for a bee. Upset, Yellow Guy retreats to a tree to cry alone when he meets a bigger butterfly. The third Teacher, Shringold.  Who has come to him to teach him about the concept of Love. Said lesson involves Yellow Guy being lead to a land in the clouds populated by love obsessed creatures. From people to animals to even a huge tree. Much like Sketchbook, they berate Yellow Guy for using the concept "Wrong" when he expresses love for inanimate objects.  Stating that he should save his love for his Special One. Whom is represented by a female counterpart to Yellow Guy. As they prepare him for Special One they introduce him to the dark side of their group. Revealing themselves to be a love cult that worships a gravel eating head named Malcolm. The Self Proclaimed King of Love.  While trying to persuade Yellow Guy to in their words "Change your name, clean your brain and forget about everything you ever knew." The whole thing ending with Shringold menacingly approaching Yellow Guy with a ring to initiate him. Thankfully the event seemed to only be a dream. Whilst Duck Guy and Red Guy find him to apologize. Saving the last egg to cheer him up. Inadvertently giving a good lesson about love. However the egg gives us all one last scare when a bloody yellow caterpillar hatches out of it, proclaiming Yellow Guy as it's father before Duck Guy kills it, mistaking it for a bee. While it's not explicitly stated, it's implied that the events were not only not a dream, but that Shringold may have had Yellow Guy raped to conceive said caterpillar. Adding it to the many abuses Yellow Guy has suffered.

The fourth episode is where things get more psychological than the usual gory/psyche mix we're used to at this point.  The trio is sitting down playing a trivia game when Red Guy draws a card which asks "What is the biggest thing in the world?" At this point they are so used to the Teachers popping up, that Red Guy intentionally tries to provoke a globe named Gilbert to appear to explain. Just when we think that it happens, the show takes a left turn when the real Teacher shows up. A talking computer named Colin.  Who steals the show, doesn't answer the question and instead crudely explains how a computer works.  When Red Guy tries to get a word in edgewise, he's rudely interrupted by Colin who tries to push the Trio into giving him their personal information.  When Red Guy has enough, he smacks the keyboard causing them all to be trapped into the digital world. A crudely CGI world where three things can happen: Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing. Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing.  Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing.  Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing.  Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing.  Graphs/Charts, Digital Style and Digital Dancing.  As demonstrated here, the three things are repeated in an endless loop as more digitized versions of the trio and Colin appear in an impromptu dance party, which I can only describe as a Rave if Stanley Kubrick got interested in doing a movie about a Rave. Red Guy was able to escape and finds himself following a red cord which leads him to a neighboring television set which happens to film a low budget version of their first episode. The resulting scene causes Red Guy's head to explode in glitter as well as give us the first clue to why this is going on. They are on TV and are forced to do the stuff that has happened in the past 4 episodes.

The fifth episode is where that clue becomes more of a reality. Duck Guy and Yellow Guy are in the kitchen and the only ones on the show now. Both of them realize something is missing, but don't realize it's Red Guy. Before they could ponder the situation further, they are visited by not one, but a group of Teachers called the Healthy Band. A group of food based puppets lead by a suit muppet in the form of a steak. They sing about a grossly inaccurate view on what is healthy and what isn't. Which as the song goes on, contradicts itself, while at the same time forces product placement entitled "Roy" brand foods. Which is mostly a plain food based diet of bread, cream, white sauce and aspic. The number itself gets interrupted twice by a phone call, which Duck Guy tries to answer. The first time showing him on a hospital bead with a strange helmet on his head, before returning to the kitchen.  Exasperated by the phone calls, the contradictions and the overall unsettling nature of the show, Duck Guy snaps and tries to escape. Knocking a camera and presumably the camera man operating it in the process. Cementing that they are on a TV show as hinted in the fourth episode. However Duck Guy didn't get too far as he finds himself back in the hospital bed, while giant can shaped puppets feast on his guts.  All while the band continues to torment Yellow Guy with their contradictions. This all culminates into the grand daddy of all mindfucks (So far.), which ends with Yellow Guy bloated with his mouth full surrounded by cans that have Duck Guy's face on them. Throughout the entire episode, the number was a smokescreen while the teachers force fed Yellow Guy, his only friend left. As he stands there in the dark, realizing what he did, the phone rings a third time.  The end credits revealing that Red Guy was trying to call them from the outside world. Now wearing a trenchcoat and carrying a suitcase.

The sixth episode ends with Yellow Guy in his bedroom. Crying and looking over the beds and photos of his two missing friends. Before he could go to bed, the next Teacher appears in the form of a Lamp puppet. In a surprising twist, Yellow Guy, whom despite the abuse wrought out on him has been very cooperative in each episode; turns the light off in defiance. Unfortunately that doesn't stop the lamp from tormenting him anyway. Forcing this video's lesson on him. In this case dreams.  Said lesson has been in the form of a 2-D animated sequence where Yellow Guy is dragged off against his will as the Lamp wrongfully describes what dreams are. Yellow Guy wakes up in an effort to escape only to find himself drowning in a pit of oil similar to how his animated dream sequence ended. The series then cuts to Red Guy, whom between episodes 4 and 5, has found himself in a world mostly populated by people like him.  Albeit clothed and running about their daily lives in the most boring way imaginable. He tries to strike up a conversation with a co-worker, invoking an idea for a puppet based on a file. Only to be rebuffed as boring by said co-worker.  Later on, he attends a nightclub where he gets drunk, strips back to his normal self and tries to sing the Creativity song. Only to be met with boos from the crowd. Among the see of Red boos, Roy appears and Red Guy finds himself in a mock sound stage, where his microphone and stereo have turned into puppet versions of them. As he wanders the room he finds what can only be described as a mix between an editing station and a super computer. With the main screen displaying the lamp continuing to torment Yellow Guy. In an attempt to stop it, Red guy messes with the buttons which cause the Lamp to change places with other puppets. First starting with the previous teachers. Then showing Duck Guy briefly resurrected. Last but not least it shows puppets that could have been their Teachers had the show continued from this point. All of which further tormenting and traumatizing Yellow Guy, until Red Guy scrambles the controls causing them to switch more rapidly.  Before he could try to fix his mistake a long arm grabs him. Which is attached to Roy. Revealed to be the mastermind behind all the events.  In a last ditch effort, Red Guy approaches the plug attached to the computer and pulls it. The result resets the show to the first episode, only everything seems peaceful and they become their favourite colors. Red Guy being Blue, Duck Guy being Red and Yellow Guy being Green. Sketchbook then reappears again making it ambiguous to whether or not they are safe from the TV world.

As for why Roy would do such a thing, especially to his own son. It's explained in this interview:

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared Interview

Which to summarize, in Roy's only speaking role he says "My silly boy has allowed his eyes to grow arrogant and rude, for this I will take him on a trip to punish land." Now thinking back to the entire series, while twisted it makes sense. What he did as gruesome as it was, was all to convey a severe punishment. Now the question remains. "What did yellow guy do to deserve this?" There is one clue, in which was briefly shown. In the second episode, which introduced Roy, there was a scene where Yellow Guy walks in on him while he is on the computer.  Where it's not so subtly shown that Roy was looking at porno. When Yellow Guy mentions the iconic line "My dad is a com-co....computer." Roy is shown staring at the camera, breathing heavily.  Now does this justify what he did? No, but at the same time it's easy to understand why he would want to punish his son. However if you go by that scene alone, it doesn't show Yellow Guy being arrogant and rude. Or does it?  One thing I never understood was why Yellow Guy would stammer at the word computer. One could theorize this was meant to be a reenactment of his younger days. Which would make sense because when kids learn to talk, they often struggle with some words before getting used to them. However there may be another layer to it. While it could have just been me hearing things, the way he stuttered "Com." almost sounded similar to the profanity "Cunt." Did Roy think his kid called him a cunt and simply took things too far in said Punish Land? I think so. As for why Duck Guy and Red Guy got it too, there are three reasons. 1. They simply stood in the way in his eyes. 2. They tried to put a stop to it. and 3. As part of said punishment, Roy took his friends away one at a time. To further make him suffer.  While it's implied Red Guy left on his own volition, all the things Roy did to him could factor into his leaving.  Whilst Duck Guy had the unfortunate luck of being fed to Yellow Guy. With Yellow Guy isolated and alone, Roy was free to torment Yellow Guy for as long as he wanted. That is until Red Guy pulled the plug. Not to mention while episode 2 and 6 focused on him greatly, the episodes between merely had him shown in background events. Implying he was working behind the scenes of every torture.  Now where did Roy get that kind of power and freedom? If you look closely in episodes 4 and 5, you'll notice there are food products littered all over the show with Roy's name on them. Meaning he was the show's sponsor.  Meaning he put all the time and money he made plus the increase of sales, into making his Punish Land.  To further hammer it in, as mentioned before, he was also featured in the special thanks of every end credits. Which is ultimately why I believe the ending is a happy one. The new home, no longer has his products all over.  Meaning his influence was no longer there.

When this series ended, people thought we seen the last of Don't Hug Me I'm Scared. However in 2018 the official Youtube Channel posted this:

A trailer entitled "Wakey Wakey." Which showed a new world, new puppets, new animation and most of all, a huge hint that something new was on the horizon.  Which it was. In 2019, Rebbeca Sloan and Joseph Pelling released a 23 minute pilot episode of a potential Don't Hug Me I'm Scared TV series.  The pilot was released only in the Sundance Film Festival and the series is currently being worked on. I have not seen the pilot episode to warrant an opinion on it, but rest assured I will.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared is a great series. Great puppetry, great effects, superb music, horrifying scenes and is an overall work of art. With themes of friendship, family and freedom. It's worth the watch especially around this time, because if you're gonna isolate yourself and worry about going crazy, then this might either scare the crap out of you or make you believe your life isn't worse off as you think. When Robin Williams rampaged on Death To Smoochy he referred to the titular rhino as a "Muppet From Hell."  These are the real Muppets From Hell.

CIEIR Presents: Self Isolation Log #1

The following audio is fake, but based on real world events. In this I play a fictionalized version of an average person dealing with Self-Isolation in regards to the Coronavirus. Why I did this was simple. I do not believe everyone is happy with self-isolation. While in this case it's a major necessity. I believe that isolation in and of itself can lead to a severe mental breakdown and I believe that many people who rally for it, overlook that and should be ashamed of themselves. Audio Spectrum Effect by: VSDC Song: Our Darkest Hour by Me. https://shanethemusician.bandcamp.com/track/our-darkest-hour

Trudeau and Trump Dodging Personal Responsibility Coronavirus Update

Two things before we get to the meat of this.

First off: The current total is 526,044 with the death toll being 23,709 and the Recovery number at 122,066 regarding the virus.  Italy and Spain have knocked China off it's spot for the most deaths at a whopping 8,215 and 4,154 respectfully. However their recovery rate much like the sum total has outweighed the death toll. So like the rest of the world there is hope that they'll make it through this.

Second off: Despite the title I do from the bottom of my heart, express my deepest sympathies to Justin Trudeau and his family due to his wife and kid testing positive on the disease and despite what I think of him as a leader I do wish them a well recovery.  With the exception of a select few, I would not wish this disease on him or anyone regardless if I don't like the person. 

Now onto the actual topic.  As you may know, like the rest of the world, Canada and The United States of America are currently enforcing border restrictions and encouraging citizens to self isolate and practice social distancing.  Now these ideas are not bad in the practical sense. As it does give a chance to slow down and halt the spread of the virus.  That part I am not upset about. What I am upset about is how soon these were implemented. 

On the States side of things as much as I don't like the guy, Trump at least had the excuse of ignorance. Regardless of the bullshit story The China Government has come up with, blaming the states for the virus; it's safe to say Trump never saw the thing as a big deal until it bit him.  Regardless of what we all think of the guy, it's hard not to 100% blame him for the shit that went down in the states. The only other reasoning being him having business partners in China, but with the way they been flip flopping each other, it's unlikely. However he is not 100% off the hook.  Because while his actions against the states regarding this is basically one of the biggest fuck ups in the world. His personal responsibility on the matter, is a different story. I"m sure you all heard that he tested negative on the virus. With some claiming he faked the results and other more crazier theorists believing that maybe he himself is withholding a cure. While it is a tad possible he could be telling the truth in a sea of lies, I myself believe he faked the results.  Since both he and Trudeau have been known to travel abroad, which is most certainly how Trudeau's family got the disease, he would definitely go through great lengths to hide it from the states. If the cure however unlikely, ends up being true I do not blame you guys if you decide to form a coup. Because you wouldn't be taking back the states, you'd be saving the world too.

On Canada's side a question I ask is, what's Justin's excuse? They didn't halt air traffic until it started to get bad in Canada this month.  While the news can say all they want about, how they had weeks to avoid it, I call that a steaming pile of bullshit from the worlds largest fertilizer factory. We didn't have weeks to avoid this, we had months. We had been warned when the outbreak first hit Wuhan. The outbreak should have stayed localized within Wuhan. China should have warned us not to accept people citizen or no, in Canada from their airports on the off chance one or more could have been infected. Most importantly Trudeau should have shut down all non-essential travel the second they heard of an outbreak and looked for a different way to get our people out without it fucking over the rest of us. But no. He knew damn well what was going on. The name of the virus shared the same name as the fucking SARs virus.  I am sorry for what his family is going through. I really am, but because of him, this country is slowly becoming a fucking police state. They are already enforcing laws that will fine, arrest and forcefully quarantine anyone that goes outside whether they are infected or not.

Congratulations assholes, you both will have gone down in history as the men who destroyed the western world.

The Coronavirus Update Aka What The Fuck is Wrong with all of you?

It had been one and a half months since I did a survival guide on the handling of the Coronavirus situation. And I must say after what I seen over that period of time, it made me lose my faith in people in general. So I am writing this article, not to enlighten, but to tell you all off for your incompetence on the matter.

Before I even begin I shall let you know, that currently the total amount of infected is 169,387 people all over the world. 6,513 died and 77,257 people have recovered. So good news world, we're actively fighting back naturally. However it seems in certain parts of the world it isn't enough as the damage has been done so severely it's made the majority of the population also known as the dumbest part of the population of the human race in general, do stupid shit in the past couple of days. But I wish that was the only problem, however due to the fact that this shit could have been avoided months ago, this shit merely cinched an already bad situation.

The first people I call out, are the news medias of the world. Depending on where you live, some either deny the damage, others downplay it and some even to this day refuse to believe the virus exists to begin with.  Most of which offer useless information on how to deal with it, others downplaying the effects more focused on not offending the reason why this shit happened in the first place and to top it off, their lackluster approach is why this shit ended up like wildfire to begin with.

Fuck you.

The second people I call out, are the boards of educations all over the world.  Now you're all shut down, but in the past two months, not a single one of you. NOT A SINGLE FUCKING ONE OF YOU, warned your kids about this disease. Nor even gave them the simple steps on how to avoid infection. In the words of Matt Hooper, I'm aware of the fact that you all ignored this particular problem until it swam up and bit you in the ASS!!! You shut down now and pretty much extend March break, but it wouldn't have killed you back then, to hand out flyers at least.

Fuck you too.

The third people I call out, are the people criticizing the travel bans.  Their justification is that, the travellers have a right to see their families. I sympathize with that, I really do. However it's not like they can just walk into the airport and hug their families, especially if they themselves tested positive. If the families really loved each other, they'd do everything necessary to protect each other, even if they had to do something they didn't like, such as distancing themselves. If they are willing to risk spreading further infection, then they not only are putting themselves or their families at risk, but also putting the population of their home country at risk too.  It goes to show that a once fictional saying, bares relevance now.

"The needs of the many, outweigh the needs of the few or the one." -Spock

If you don't care about the risks then, I'm sorry. Fuck you too.

The fourth, are the raiders. You all know what I'm talking about. When word came that the virus was spreading more, every grocery store got raided of essential items. Food and hygiene products specifically. We all heard that story regarding the bulk of toilet paper. Now this wouldn't be so bad, you're stocking up so you can ride it out until it blows over. If only that were the real reason. Nope. At least %70 of these people are not panicking or even desperate.  These assholes are capitalizing on a pandemic.  There was a story once of one guy who thought he had the "bright" idea to charge $200 on one roll of toilet paper. Now if this were an extinction level event like these assholes have claimed to be, money would be worthless at this point. The only thing worth a damn would be food, medicine and hygenics. The stores are working round the clock to restock them, because so many who actually need them, complain endlessly that there's next to nothing there. Old Mother Hubbard's cupboard was more stocked than the local grocery stores and Supermarkets. To make matters worse the whole ordeal has gotten many businesses so fucking scared that they've closed down. From local shops, to discount public gyms.

To these raiders, capitalizing on the fears of the people. Fuck you. I hope you get infected.

And the fifth. To the people that started it all. The idiots that thought it was smart to test and splice deadly diseases and test them on animals.  To the idiot janitor that thought that disposing them would be a waste of meat and thought they could make a quick buck. To the governments who rather than tried everything necessary to prevent the spread of infection until the last moments and still manage to fuck things up once you do get a hold of the situations.  To the people who use this virus as a means of hurting others. To the celebrities that act like they're the medical experts. To this entire fucking planet that allowed this shit to happen. I have only one question to ask.


WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH ALL OF YOU!?

All of this shit, could have been avoided if people took better precautions over the past 2 months.  All of this shit could have ended sooner if you all weren't so focused on capitalizing on the fear of the people.  YOU ALL DESERVE TO FUCKING ROT!!!  And I really hope this does blow over soon, because when it does, you all have a lot to answer for. I myself don't like violence, but the rest of the 7 billion people you all pissed off, would like to have a word with you. Goodbye, godspeed and one more for the closer: 


FUCK YOU!!! 

The Snyder Cut: What a Clusterfuck

In 2017 after so much hype, the Justice League Film of the DCEU was released. At last all of Snyder's, Ayer's and Jenkins among most director's works, was finally gonna pay off after so much controversial bullshit they were put through.  Or so we thought.  The movie was not only horrendous, but fans of DCEU, DC and Snyder despite their differences all agreed this was not the true film. For better context let me explain.

When the movie was first being put into production, Zack Snyder had a different idea in mind. What it was, I never knew and while many fans interpreted it based on his words and pictures among most things gave them somewhat of a complete picture of what he had in mind. However we can never really know until we see the full picture with our own eyes.  This picture, was essentially his original cut of the film.  Dubbed the Snyder Cut by both fans and detractors alike. With the fans believing it existed while the detractors believing it to be a Myth at best or at worst, an outright lie. But be that as it may, what he originally planned was a hell of a lot better than what we got. Unfortunately before he had the opportunity to give the finishing touches of it, a tragedy struck.

Autumn Snyder, his daughter passed away, causing Zack to halt production until he was ready to come back. However WB, Geoff Johns and Joss Whedon, whom was originally hired as a screenwriter for the flick had a different idea.  Rather than go with the idea Zack had in mind or at the very least attempt to poorly rip it off, Warner Bros. wanted to captialize on the future success of the next recent Avengers movie at the time. The recent one, Infinity War, being released just a year after. So, believing they had a golden goose in the form of a man who got MCU's ball rolling with the First Two movies, they made Whedon director in everything but name and as a result is the clusterfuck of a poor movie we have seen. Plan 9 should win an Oscar out of general principle, because of what this abomination was.

When I did my twitter promoting my recent work as a musician I was basically an outsider of the cause at first. Mainly because I believed there was a Snyder Cut based on certain principles of my own:

For Starters. It took more than 2 decades for Richard Donner to get his Alternate Cut of Superman II off the ground and I believe WB and the fans owe Snyder that long of a time frame.

Second, the idea of denying a certain cut existed, like these detractors did is asinine when you consider many filmmakers had their own alternate cuts all the time.  James Cameron had a Special Edition of Aliens and Termniator 2. Ridley Scott had 3 different cuts of Blade Runner: Theatrical, Director and Final.   Hell even Zack Snyder was no slouch, since Watchmen and Batman V Superman before it, had their fair share of alternate cuts. So why is this any different?

And third, while it took 2 - 3 years, almost everyone that has worked on it: Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ray Fisher, Jay Oliva, Jason Momoa. Just to name a few crew and even Zack Snyder himself confirmed that said cut exist. Yet despite that, said detractors double down and insist they are either lying for relevancy or claiming they never said it at worst. John the douchebag Campea being the worst offender because he himself has lied more than once prior to the confirmation. He claimed that Rotten Tomatoes wasn't rigged. Event though a member of Rotten Tomatoes flat out admitted it, just to give an example.

By the time of that third reason I was no longer an outsider, I too supported the movement. While I am not like the so called "True Snyder Fans." as to my admittance I never cared for either Sucker Punch or Dawn of The Dead Remake. Nor was I in a position to do such great things such as donate for suicide prevention or pay for billboards which could be seen by millions; I did my best to spread hope that people would see it again simply because it was the right thing to do and call out those that: A. Were the most severe detractors, going so far as threatening fans because they hated being proven wrong. (Threats I will not mention, because they are too fucking disgusting.) Or B. Extremist members of the movement who take their shit too far, attack those that disagree with them and to add insult to injury went as far as having their twitters suspended when their bully tactics don't work. Myself included.

Two Twitter members, the most despicable extremists I have come across. Saw fit to harass a contest host based on two things: 1. One of the Entries, was created by a despised member of a faction that was part of a great divide between the members of the movement on how the movement should be handled. In an attempt to have this person barred from the contest, they harassed the host by bombarding them with screenshots of what said entry did. 2. They continued to harass the contest host, spreading lies about them simply because the host blocked one of them. I myself have gotten into an altercation. All I did was call them out on trying to disrupt the contest as well as offer them a better way to handle this entry. Namely wait till said entry lost and revel in their humiliation. Not only was I rudely rebuffed, the only thing they used to attack me, was bring up my own past as well as bombarding me with pointless gifs and pictures, as though to them, they were enough to claim victory. In my last ditch effort, I decided on my own volition to expose them to my own followers. Not to incite harassment, but to warn them on the off chance they were following these people, what kind of scumbags they would become. Naturally they saw fit to report me and have my account suspended. These two have had a history of false reports as well as have other members of each faction of the movement become sick and tired of their bullshit.

And that's just two examples of the more extreme of the movement. There are hundreds more, but if I listed them all this would take hours to read.

Point being, is I witnessed this clusterfuck first hand, I tried my best to help through with it and I paid the price for it. Yet I wouldn't trade it all away for the world. I will still find other ways to spread the word. To give hope that this cut will see the light of day.

And to those two along with the hundreds of others, that agree with their way of doing things. I am still standing. It's gonna take more than simply suspending my twitter to destroy me and I still stand by what I say: You are a bunch of toxic assholes, you make the movement look bad, you're an embarrassment to this movement and you can go fuck yourselves. I dare you to Dox me.

To everyone else. #ReleaseTheSnyderCut