So, two weekends ago Sony found out definitively that “The Amazing Spider-Man” is now all-but-destined to be the third-place finisher of Summer 2012’s superhero blockbusters. “The money people” are already whispering that “Dark Knight Rises” probably won’t beat “Avengers” boxoffice, and there’s no way this is opening ahead of that, so… yeah.

Hence yesterday evening’s huge multi-channel “special presentation” of a 4-minute preview of the film… about 2 1/2 minutes of which were all the scenes you’ve already seen in the trailers. The first minute and a half, however, are “new” and appear to be a major action scene that’s been awkwardly re-edited/scored into trailer-beats – unless this is actually how they’re cutting and scoring this thing, in which case… yikes…

Every problem I’ve had with every piece of advertising on this thing is still present, so let’s just cut to the discussion: 1.) If you’re Sony, is it really the best idea to tease what looks unavoidably like a less-interesting version of the big climactic action scene from the first movie as a BIG SETPIECE of your all-new-all-different reboot?

2.) Does anyone think (or maybe “has anyone observed?”) the shell game the trailers keep playing about “The Untold Story” – i.e. trying to make this look more like a sequel with a big plot twist rather than a remake to audiences who might not follow this stuff as closely – is actually working? Or that it actually matters?

I don’t typically cross-post new Game OverThinker episode stuff to this blog, but this new one that is now up for all audiences at ScrewAttack has a lot of bigger political and general-culture ramifications so I think it’s appropriate enough.

The subject in question is the new “Call of Duty” ad campaign, which trots out Iran-Contra creep turned Fox News creep Oliver North to do some reactionry fear-mongering as a game advertisement and (maybe?) make “Call of Duty’s” status as right-wing military-propaganda “official.”

http://screwattack.springboardplatform.com/mediaplayer/springboard/video/scre004/0/487951/

I’m pretty happy with this episode, though naturally I’d prefer the events in question never happened and thus that I wouldn’t have had reason to make it. If this is your first exposure to “The Other Show,” feel free to catch up in the archives on ScrewAttack and see some of the older ones on YouTube.

It’s alright.

“Intermission” has Bobcat Goldthwait talking “God Bless America”

I was back on the Post-Movie Podcast with Steve Head and John Black this week, talking about “The Avengers.” Here’s the link to the iTunes page where you can download this and other episodes; embed is below the jump:

http://player.wizzard.tv/player/o/j/x/133661520615/config/k-48276aa9ffcfb432/uuid/root/height/400/width/600/episode/k-907cf3d70d27527d.m4v

The President of The United States has come out in favor of Marriage Equality.

This is the big one – second only to the killing of Bin Laden in terms of “things Obama will be remembered for.” It’s been widely assumed that he supported equality all along, but was holding back on outright support in order to not anger certain voting-blocs (churchgoing African-Americans/Latinos and Catholic-descended blue-collar Union laborers mainly) known to be reflexively-Democrat voters but socially conservative. Whether this was planned via Biden’s “trial-balloon” admission of support or whether that really was a “gaffe” that forced the President’s hand is for the pundits to decide.

I am a supporter of same-sex marriage and the President overall, so this is pretty elating… but I won’t lie and say I’m not a little bit worried. I was with everyone else in assuming Obama was trying to feign the middle-ground until after the election, and I was always fine with it – politics for grownups are about results, not idealism – because I’d rather have him fake-right, win and give me four more years of progressive judicial nominations (the most important thing ANY president can do long-term) than be “true” and lose, saddling me with 4 to 8 years of backwards-looking right-wing governance. So yeah, I’m happy… but I hope he knows what he’s doing.

If nothing else, this is the clearest signal yet that the Democrats “get” what the GOP has “gotten” for a year now, that with neither party having the kind of record you can really “run” on, this is going to be a base-versus-base election – re: “swing voters” are being written off in favor of “who can fire up turnout among the already-decided base.” This is the gauntlet being thrown and the notion of “changing minds” being back-burnered – it’s Culture War time: Thinkers versus Believers, Red versus Blue, Past versus Future, Backwards versus Forwards, Regression versus Evolution, Reason versus “It’s In The Magic Book.”

I’m excited. I enjoy the relative-clarity of times like these; and it’ll be a rare pleasure to actually vote for a candidate instead of just for his likely-politicies (or “against” the other guy.) I just hope there actually are enough Good Guys to win…

As a rule, I try to let the comments section of these blogs run wild – people can post anonymously if they want, and the only things I tend to delete are abusive comments directed at other users. Unfortunately, owing to the continued bad behavior of some repeat-offenders I’m going to have to start getting more strict. I don’t like it, but there it is.

From now on, the comments sections will be moderated by me on the following criteria: No abuse of others, no soliciting, no intentional derailing and try to stay on-topic to whatever degree possible. In other words, attempting to hijack any given conversation or spamming the recurrent “gotcha” lines into every damn post is a good way to get yourself consistently removed. Several recent posts will have their comment-sections culled in this manner once this message is posted.

I don’t like it, but that’s the way it has to be. Hopefully this will not overly impact the vast majority of commenters who don’t make trouble.

Based on a true story, “Argo” is about a covert mission to rescue American’s trapped in Iran following that country’s 1970s revolution. The mission’s premise: Stage the production of a fake big-budget Hollywood scifi movie that wished to film in Iran’s “exotic” desert locales, and while there smuggle the would-be hostages out as part of the “production crew.” Ben Affleck directs and stars.

Of special note for geek audiences: The non-film used designs from comics legend Jack Kirby as it’s concept-art – Kirby will appear in the film, played by Michael Parks.

Amusingly, I’ve already been effectively called a racist once today in-part for not coming out against this movie because Affleck’s character was Latino in real life. So… yeah, now I’ve mentioned that: Affleck’s character was Latino in real life. I’m not sure what else I’m expected to say about that other than to note that I don’t like Hollywood’ insistence that white leads are needed to a open a movie

Maurice Sendak, legendary author best known for “Where The Wild Things Are,” has died at the age of 89. A major, major loss for literature and for culture.

Below, a reposting of my (positive) 2009 review of the “Wild Things” movie; directed by Spike Jonze with Sendak’s blessing and endorsement:

One more “Avengers”-related show? Why not…

Apologies for not putting this link up sooner – busy day of podcast recording.

In any case, the movie is as good as you’ve heard. Proceed to theater immediately.

If you HAVE seen it, and you stayed through the credits, and you want to know why half the theater was so excited, read this (spoiler-warning, obviously.)