Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 2249

ARROW Stars Pick Who Should Be Star City Mayor Instead of Oliver Queen

Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) is officially the most inexperienced person to ever get elected mayor, but that didn’t stop Star City from voting him into office on Arrow.

The former billionaire playboy is now the person with the most political power in Star City, regardless of whether or not he was the best or most qualified person for the job. To be fair, he’s actually not doing a terrible job so far … although that could be because his younger sister Thea (Willa Holland) is doing most of the work for him while he focuses more on his nighttime duties as the Green Arrow.

As Arrow hits the milestone of 100 episodes during the four-part mega crossover next week, we decided to celebrate the occasion by having some fun with the cast and showrunners, asking them who should be mayor instead of Oliver … since literally almost anyone else would be a more qualified candidate.

Slade Wilson

“Out of all the characters, Slade Wilson [Manu Bennett],” executive producer Marc Guggenheim told us. “You know what, no one would mess with City Hall if Slade Wilson was mayor. It would be awesome. I think he would be an awesome mayor. He would ban all 3D movies in the city because he can’t enjoy them. He would change all the traffic laws because of the difficulty with making a right turn for him. He would be great.”

Quentin Lance

Rather than a villain like Deathstroke, executive producer Wendy Mericle decided to stick with a character who was on the more heroic side of things.

“Yeah, Oliver may be the most inexperienced [mayor] in U.S. history,” she said with a laugh. “I think Quentin Lance [Paul Blackthorne] has a lot of experience in public service and working with the city. I think he would be amazing in that job.”

But Blackthorne disagreed with her. “No, it should be Oliver Queen!” he said. “He just made me Deputy Mayor so of course I’m going to say that. I back him.”

Felicity Smoak

And Emily Bett Rickards thought her own character, Felicity Smoak, would be the best candidate for the job.

“While I don’t think Felicity is ready for the job, maybe she could train while Oliver does the job right now,” Rickards said. “But maybe also Wells [Tom Cavanagh] on The Flash because he’s a con artist and he could cheat and win the election and then actually get things done.”

Perhaps Felicity’s new boyfriend, Detective Billy Malone (Tyler Ritter) wouldn’t be such a bad choice either. At least, that’s what Ritter seemed to think.

“Not to toot my own horn but Detective Billy Malone has been in the force for nearly a decade at this point,” he said with a smile. “He knows the law inside and out. He’s definitely got the best interests of Star City at heart. I’m not saying this election season or next, but you never know.”

Oliver still has some support from his team, however, since new recruit Artemis (Madison McLaughlin) believes he’s doing a good job as mayor so far.

“He’s qualified in the sense that he loves the city,” McLaughlin said. “He sees the city in a different way than everyone else does. But he does have his hands full. I think Oliver’s heart is in the right place. And he’s got good old Detective Lance alongside him and Thea, what she’s doing is great. You get to see this side of her where she’s still kicking ass but it’s in a new way and a new light.”

Thea Queen

Joe Dinicol, who plays new Team Arrow recruit Rory Regan, agreed that Thea’s political competence has been a pleasant surprise to him.

“She’s sort of doing the job now in his stead,” Dinicol said. “But aside from that I would probably have to say Felicity. She’s the most capable, she can multi-task, she thinks on her feet, she’s insanely passionate and she just gets things done.”

Who do you think should be Star City Mayor instead of Oliver? Tweet me your top picks at @SydneyBucksbaum!

The 100th episode of Arrow airs Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 8 p.m. on The CW.

Images: The CW

A Game Developer Proposed to His Girlfriend with a Custom Video Game

Asking somebody to marry you can be tricky business, because there are so many variables to consider: How much do you spend on the ring? Do you pop the question on one knee, or do you try something more creative? If you go the creative route, do you make it a spectacle, or something intimate and cute? And of course, is she going to say yes?

People have gotten creative with their proposals over the years, and one game developer decided to go the creative route with his girlfriend (spoiler alert: now his fiance) by proposing via a one-of-a-kind video game.

This story is making the rounds again via a GIF on Reddit, but it originally went down in May 2015, when game developer Austin Piech of Covington, Kentucky asked his girlfriend Lauren Woodrick to test a game he was working on, a game called Lolo’s Bizarre Adventure that Piech told Buzzfeed he spent about 100 hours working on.

The side-scroller has levels based on the couple’s relationship, like a level based on a beer and goat festival in Cincinnati when they first swapped phone numbers, a level about their first date at a local pizza place, a level based on their first roadtrip to Piech’s Indiana hometown, and others.

Perhaps the most touching part comes at the end, when Piech acknowledges in the game that his family previously set high proposal expectations to live up to: The final level features a mariachi band playing a song called “Nosotros,” virtually mirroring how his own grandfather proposed to his grandmother over 60 years ago.

It’s a very sweet story that reminds us to be thankful for the trouble our loved ones go through to make moments like these special, so read more about it via Buzzfeed, ABC News, and Piech’s own Imgur gallery.

Featured image: TimeToChange

Pizza, Blue Cheese, and Wasabi Lollies Are Like HARRY POTTER ‘Every Flavour Bean’ Candy Pops

There is only one question that comes to mind when scanning over the selection of oddly flavored lollipops available from Austin-based lollipop maker Lollyphile, which includes everything from “Blue Cheese” to “Salty Dog” to “Sriracha Bacon.” And that question is: Has science gone too far? Also, how many licks of a Sriracha pop does it take before your tongue starts to bleed? (OK, maybe two questions.)

The wild array of tantalizing—and terrifying—Lollies comes via Laughing Squid, and although there’s no claimed association with Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans from Harry Potter, we can’t help but think of the classic HP treat when we hear flavors that include “IPA Beer,” “Fruity Cereal Milk,” and “Chocolate Bacon.” Oh, and there is also a “Breast Milk” flavor, and we’d like to all agree now to not find out how Lollyphile honed that particular taste.

According to Lollyphile, the company has been “having fun experimenting with new flavors and watching the reactions of our friends when they try our creations for the first time.” The company also wants to “see just how far [they] can go,” and considering the Breast Milk lollipop, that is definitely no empty promise (threat?).

Lollyphile has over 30 flavors of lollipop, including some more tame flavors like Lavender and Passion Fruit. Also, for any Hitchhiker’s fans out there, there is a “Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster” flavor, although you probably shouldn’t eat more than two unless you’re an ill 30-ton mega elephant.

Lollyphile’s instagram is also just as exciting as its array of lollipop flavors, but fair warning: This is possibly the most coquettish candy campaign in existence:

#wasabi #ginger #lollypop #lollyphile #candy #prettygirl

A photo posted by Candy (@lollyphile) on Jun 29, 2013 at 4:02pm PDT

What do you think about these strangely flavored lollipops? Are you brave enough to try out these wild treats, or should some tastes from say, your childhood, stay out of your mouth forever? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Images: Lollyphile

Celebrate 50 Years of BATGIRL with a New Infographic

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, one of DC’s most popular heroines. But Batgirl’s history extends even further back to 1961, when Bat-Girl a.k.a. Betty Kane made her debut. While Gordon is easily the best known Batgirl, she spent nearly half of her existence outside of her signature role, which was later filled by three other heroines who took up the mantle of the Bat. Now, a new infographic is taking a look back at the history of all of the Batgirls and the Batwomen who have protected Gotham City for the last several decades.

Fun.com debuted the Evolution of Batgirl infographic, which charts its beginning in 1956 with the debut of Batwoman, the superheroine identity of Kathy Kane. Neither Batwoman nor Bat-Girl fully captured the imaginations of the readers in the way that Barbara Gordon’s Batgirl did. While Gordon’s Batgirl gained fame on the Batman TV series from the ’60s, she did make her debut in the comics before actress Yvonne Craig took on the role.

Looking back, one of the biggest surprises is how Batgirl’s costume from the Batman animated series by Filmation was more influential than we previously realized. The infographic also shared a few lesser known Batgirl stories, including the fact that DC actually considered turning Misfit into the fourth Batgirl, before wisely deciding to pass the role on to Stephanie Brown instead. Fans of the third Batgirl, Cassandra Cain, may be a bit upset about the way that this infographic glosses over her tenure in the role because she was the first Batgirl to star in her own self-titled ongoing series. By comparison, Helena Bertinelli was only the second Batgirl for a few months before Cassandra, but she got the bulk of that costume’s description.

In 2011, DC Comics decided to make Barbara Gordon resume the role of Batgirl as part of the New 52 reboot. But that had the unintended consequence of taking away the DC Universe’s most prominent disabled heroine. After the controversy of Batman: The Killing Joke, which left Barbara Gordon paralyzed, Suicide Squad editor Kim Yale and writer John Ostrander re-envisioned her as the ultimate hacker: Oracle. Barbara Gordon spent 23 years as Oracle, and she arguably made a bigger impact in that role than she ever did as Batgirl. At one point, Oracle was even a member of the Justice League, which was an honor that had eluded Barbara Gordon as Batgirl. She was also an inspiration to disabled comic fans, and the void left by Barbara Gordon’s restoration has never really been filled.

This infographic also served as a reminder that the modern Batwoman, Kate Kane, debuted ten years ago in the pages of 52, and she has easily bested the original Batwoman in terms of popularity. According to the infographic, Alex Ross actually designed that Batwoman outfit with Barbara Gordon in mind, before it was given to Kate Kane and revised by other artists.

Which Batgirl is your favorite? And who had the best costume? Light up the Bat-signal, and share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Image: Fun.com/Kate Willaert

Speaking of Justice League, let’s get…dark.

The Concept of POKÉMON Might Just Be A Dream, According to the Anime’s Creator

Takeshi Shudo passed away in 2010, but before that, he was one of the most important writers behind the early seasons of the Pokémon anime series and the first three movies, so his influence on the multimedia franchise cannot be overstated. That said, his thoughts on the conclusion of Ash Ketchum’s Pokémon adventure might rub a lot of fans the wrong way, and were they to be considered canon or incorporated into the official storyline, a lot of viewers would likely be upset (via Gamnesia).

Shudo used to maintain a blog, and in 2009, he wrote a post sharing his idea for the end of the series, suggesting that at the conclusion, Ash would wake up as a senile old man, meaning that his adventures, and the concept of battling pocket monsters as a whole, never actually existed. This post was just translated to English for the first time by Reddit user NAveryW, and in it, Shudo writes that Ash just misremembered his childhood, and that the adventures he had and friends he made along the way are filling gaps he experienced in his own life:

Months and years having passed, Satoshi [Ash], who has become an old man, suddenly remembers the old days. It is an embellished memory of childhood. A fantasy…The imaginary creatures, Pokémon, and their adventure. Friendship. Coexistence. That is, in the real human world, something Satoshi could not possibly encounter. However, somewhere in childhood, surely Pikachu and the other Pokémon are there, Musashi and Kojirou are there, Mewtwo is there…

Not just that; everyone Satoshi encountered on his childhood adventure can be seen in the elderly Satoshi’s eyes. Satoshi hears his mother’s voice in his ear. “Come along, hurry to bed. You set off on your journey in the morning, don’t you?” The next morning, woken up by his mother, Satoshi, once again in the form of a young boy, energetically rushes out of the house.

This is a search “Not to catch Pokémon, not a journey to become a Pokémon Master, but to discover what I am”, a journey with the goal of coexisting with others.

Anybody with a cursory understanding of the anime knows that this plot development never… developed, and thank goodness, because it would have both stripped all meaning from everything that happened in the show, and it would have been sad as all sadness. It’s an interesting thought exercise, but we’re glad it stayed at that.

Featured image: The Pokémon Company

The Nerdiest Black Friday Deals of 2016

The phrase “Black Friday” sounds like it should refer to the aftermath of gravy splatter and cranberry sauce wounds that make up the post-Thanksgiving apocalypse, the term more famously represents the best deals for your holiday shopping list. While fighting off the crowds might sound maddening when you’re in a tryptophan turkey coma, there are tons of great deals to be discovered on this manic of days, most of which can be obtained right from the comfort of your couch.

We’ve put together this handy list of geeky deals for you to bookmark and refer to up until the big day. Check back often to see what’s new and let us know in the comments what you plan on picking up. Go forth and shop!

Amazon

Game of Thrones: Songs of Ice and Fire Series 5-book box set, 20% Off


Star Trek Fan Collective DVD set $67.99 (regular $114.29)


Middle-earth Limited Collector’s Edition Blu-ray/DVD $389.99 (regular $599.99)

Thirty discs featuring all six Middle-earth films in their extended edition forms? This is exactly what your family needs to pass the time between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Break out the second breakfast, it’s gonna be a long watch.

Xbox One Battlefield 1 Bundle $299.99 (regular $349.99)


Xbox One Fears of War 4 Bundle $299.99

Archie Comics

40% off sitewide with the code FRIDAY

Archie is having a great Black Friday deal, offering 40% off everything on their site. While it doesn’t include subscriptions, you can still get a ton of graphic novels, single digests, and the first issue of the new series Reggie and Me for all those hardcore Reggie Mantle fans. I know you’re out there.
Barnes and Noble

NOOK tablet 7-inch $49.99


Samsung Galaxy Tab A NOOK tablet 7-inch $99.99 (regular $139.99)


Star Wars Episode 7 Force FX Lightsaber $112.46 (regular $149.95)

Best Buy

Microsoft Surface Book 13.5″ $1249.99 (regular $1499.99)


Microsoft Surface Pro 4 12.3″ $799.99 (regular $999.99)


Sphero BB-8 App-Enabled Droid $127.99 (regular $149.99)

Blizzard

Overwatch: Origins Edition $34.99 (regular $59.99)

If your friends haven’t jumped on the Overwatch bandwagon yet, now’s the time to get them on board. Winter is cold and you need to keep warm by the light of your computer screen, so you might as well do it while pretending you’re a genetically engineered gorilla scientist or piloting a state-of-the-art pink mech.

World of Warcraft $4.99 (regular $19.99)


Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty $9.99 (regular $19.99)


Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm $9.99 (regular $19.99)


Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void, from $19.99


Heroes of the Storm FREE

Costco

Xbox One S Minecraft Bundle $239.99 (regular $289.99)

Your kids have been asking for Minecraft, and Santa’s ready to deliver. So far this is the lowest price we’ve found for the Xbox Minecraft bundle. Time to start stacking blocks!

Xbox One Battlefield Elite Bundle $399.99 (regular $449.99)


Sony Playstation 4 Bundle $279.99 (regular $329.99)


Sony Playstation 4 Ultimate Bundle $349.99 (regular $399.99)

Disney Store

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Deluxe Die Cast Action Figure Gift Set

$109.95 (regular $129.95)


Star Wars Medal of Yavin Replica $44.96 (regular $59.95)

Here’s your chance to give the heroes in your life the Medal of Yavin. A full-sized replica as seen in Star Wars: A New Hope , this defintiely make a great gift for a deserving Wookiee.

Star Wars Mega Figure Play Set $39.95 (regular $49.95)


Avengers Mega Figure Play Set $39.95 (regular $49.95)


Disney Princess Mega Figure Play Set $39.95 (regular $49.95)


Disney Princess Classic Doll Collection Gift Set – 12” $99.95 (regular $119.95)

Elhoffer Design

Black Galactic Scavenger Dress $95 (regular $150)


Galactic Fighter Dress $95 (regular $150)


Galactic Knight Dress $95 (regular $150)


Grey Unlined Galactic Scavenger Dress $95 (regular $150)


Grey Lined Galactic Scavenger Dress $95 (regular $150)


Mischief Blazer $100 (regular $155)


Mischief Dress $95 (regular $150)

Gamestop

Uncharted 4 PlayStation 4 Slim Bundle With The Last Of Us $249.99


Gears of War 4 Xbox One S Deep Blue Special Edition Bundle $249.99


PS4/Xbox One Lego Dimensions Starter Pack $39.99 (regular $84.99)


PS4/Xbox One Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack $44.99 (regular $74.99)


Pokémon 20th Anniversary Plushes $29.99

Everyone will be excited to see one of these Poke-plushes in their stockings on Christmas morning. They’re much easier to catch and you don’t even need a Pokéball!

Funko Mystery Box $20

Hallmark

Star Wars Chewbacca Wookiee Cookie Plate $13.56 (regular $16.95)

This is the holiday plate you’re looking for. As featured here on Nerdist, make some easy DIY Star Wars cookies and leave them out on this festive plate for Santa on Christmas Eve.

Star Wars Itty Bittys 20% off


Star Wars Cubeez 20% off


Star Wars Jumbo Itty Bittys Darth Vader $103.96 (regular $129.95)


Star Wars Yoda Candy Dish $15.96 (regular $19.95)

Target

Star Wars Rogue One toys, buy one, get one 50% off


Doorbuster: $25 Amazon Fire


Doorbuster: Nintendo 3DS $99


Save $15 on select Nintendo 3DS games:


Kirby Planet Robobot (Nintendo 3DS)
Pokémon Omega Ruby or Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (Nintendo 3DS)
Pokémon X or Pokémon Y (Nintendo 3DS)
Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon (Nintendo 3DS)





Save $25 on select Wii U games:


Splatoon (Wii U)
Super Smash Bros for Wii U (Wii U)
Super Mario Maker (Wii U)
Star Fox Zero (Wii U)
Pokkén Tournament (Wii U)





Xbox One Battlefield 1 or Minecraft Bundle $249.99 (regular $299.99)


PS4/Xbox One Lego Dimensions Starter Pack $39.99


PS4/Xbox One Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack $39.99


PS4/Xbox One Guitar Hero Live Starter Pack $39.99


48-inch tall Battle Buddy Darth Vader $49.99


48-inch tall Ninja Turtle figure $49.99

Things From Another World

comics 70% off

Think Geek

Captain America Shield Backpack $49.99 (regular $69.99)


Life-size BB-8 Floor Lamp $174.99 (regular $349.99)


Star Wars BB-8 Waffle Maker $23.99 (regular $39.99)


Star Trek Enterprise Sushi Set $13.99 (regular $34.99)


What a deal, this sushi set is the perfect gift for a foodie Star Trek fan that has everything. A copy of the Enterprise from Star Trek: The Original Series, the warp trails are actually chopsticks and the saucer serves as a useful soy sauce dish. At 60% off you might as well buy a few and invite over some friends. Crank up the food replicator!

Star Trek The Next Generation Uniform Hoodie $23.99 (regular $59.99)


Warcraft Lothar Armor Hoodie $39.99 (regular $69.99)

Toys R Us

BOGO DVDs $1


Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh Decks, Tins, Boosters, Buy 1, get 1 40% off


Star Wars: The Force Awakens Sphero BB-8 $99.99 (regular $149.99)

This is the lowest price so far for the remote controlled ball droid that won our hearts in Star Wars: The Force Awakens . Better than the puppy the kids asked for, this requires no clean up.

Xbox One Battlefield 1 or Minecraft Bundle $249.99 (regular $299.99)


PS4 Slim Uncharted 4 Bundle $249.99 (regular $299.99)


Save $10-20 on select Wii U games:


Save $10 on Minecraft: Wii U Edition (Wii U)
Save $20 on Super Mario Maker (Wii U)




Ubisoft

Buy any edition of select games on PC and get one of these games free:


Tom Clancy’s The Division
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
Far Cry Primal




Viz Media

Demon Prince of Momochi House Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Food Wars!: Shokugeki no soma Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Kimi Mi no Todoki Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


My Hero Academia Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


My Love Story Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Nisekoi, False Love Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


One Punch Man Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Yuusuke Murata’s One-Punch Man recently hit a phenomenal milestone of over 11 million copies in print and now you can see how it all began with volume 1, available at half price from Viz.

Skip Beat Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Twin Star Exorcists Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)


Yona of the Dawn Vol. 1 Digital Manga $3.99 (regular $6.99)

Walmart

Apple iPad Mini 2 32GB $257.94 (regular $319)


PlayStation 4 Slim 500GB Uncharted 4 Bundle $298.99 (regular $319)


Xbox One S 1TB Gears of War 4 Bundle $299.99 (regular $349.96)


$50 off Xbox One S + $25 Gift Code + 1 Free Game, while supplies last


Xbox One S Gears of War 4 Bundle (1TB), from $299


Xbox One S Battlefield 1 Special Edition Bundle (1TB), from $299


Save $15 on select 3DS games:


Pokémon Alpha Sapphire or Pokémon Omega Ruby (Nintendo 3DS)





Save $25 on select Wii U games:


Splatoon (Wii U)
Yoshi’s Wooly World (Wii U)





Save $5 on select Nintendo Select games:


The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (Nintendo 3DS)
Super Mario All Stars (Wii)
Pikmin 3 (Wii U)
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D (Nintendo 3DS)
NES Remix (Wii U)




Welovefine

25% off all orders over $100 using the code BFCY25
15% off all orders using the code BFCY15

Featured Image: Powhusku/Flickr

Images: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Blizzard, Costco, Disney Store, Gamestop, Target, Toys R Us

Audio Rewind: The Mysterious Resurgence of Vinyl and Human Connection

In 1994, the compact disc industry was flourishing. Vinyl was already a distant memory, and the cassette, too, was being removed from music sales grace year after year. Technologically, this all made sense and everything was in perfect order. CDs were more convenient, after all. Digital. No tape. Maneuvering from track to track was finally done with ease, and the discs could be loaded into 300-disc binders or stacked into CD towers that doubled as lava lamps. Everyone bought CDs and so all artists released their music on CDs. This was the way the world worked.

But then, Pearl Jam, perhaps the biggest band in the world in 1994, decided to release their third album, Vitalogy, on vinyl. There was no good financial reason for doing so, and at that time there was no vinyl hip factor involved in their decision. But it didn’t have to make sense, because they were the biggest band in the world and they could afford to do whatever they wanted. So they released Vitalogy on vinyl, and like everything else they did, it proved very successful.

That success probably doesn’t have anything to do with the vinyl resurgence we’ve experienced these past few years, but the story of Vitalogy itself is actually a pretty good allusion for why it’s happened.

In 1978, according to an inflation adjusted RIAA chart, vinyl sales accounted for $9 billion of the country’s $15 billion music sales revenue. ’78 would be vinyl’s peak, though. Sales decreased every single year thereafter until 1993. The cassette overtook the LP in 1983 and held onto its reign until 1991, when the shiny new compact disc took the helm. Two years later, the LP was at its lowest revenue total ever ($17.2 million), and the CD was at its highest: a staggering $10 billion. You would have been hard-pressed to find a vinyl believer in those dark days.

But if you were one of those vinyl believers, you may have found a little hope on November 22, 1994, when Pearl Jam released Vitalogy on vinyl of all things. For two weeks, the album was only available in LP form. It sold 34,000 copies in the first week alone, which helped it debut at No. 55 on the Billboard 200 album chart and made it the first record to chart on the Billboard 200 due solely to vinyl sales since the CD had become the dominant format. It was so successful that the 34,000 copy total would stand as the most vinyl sales in a week until Jack White released Lazaretto in 2014. When the CD version followed two weeks later, Vitalogy sold another 877,000 copies, shooting it to the top of the Billboard 200 and making it the second fastest selling record ever (second only to Pearl Jam’ previous record, Vs.).

Vitalogy may have been responsible for the modest spike in vinyl sales in 1994 ($28.5 million), and perhaps it awoke some future precedent for the LP, but it did not alone incite the vinyl resurgence of the oughts. Vinyl sales would flounder through the rest of the ’90s and into the new millennium. Even in 2005 vinyl sales only matched their paltry 1993 numbers, earning just $17.2 million. After that, though, sales rose steadily and rapidly, and last year, vinyl accounted for $416 million in sales, holding its own in a deflated $7 billion industry where no format accrued more than $1.5 billion. (The CD is still king, and album downloads, single downloads, and paid subscriptions are all hovering around $1 billion in revenue.)

These stats raise a couple big questions. First: what happened to the music industry? According to the inflation adjusted numbers, it’s making less than half of what it was in the ’70s. People haven’t stopped listening music, of course and in fact the opposite is true. More people are listening to music today than ever before. The way we consume music, though, has changed drastically. Subscription services offer unprecedented access to music libraries at a fraction of the cost (think about the price of building a CD library of 30 million songs…), and digital downloads offer a more convenient method of music consumption than does any physical copy of the same music. But the biggest culprit for the sales drop-off is pirating. In 2009, a report estimated that only 37% of the music acquired by US consumers was paid for, and instances of music (and anything else that can be digitized) piracy has continued to increased since then.

Ok, so if everyone today is either streaming music or downloading it, free or for purchase, why are so many people buying these cumbersome LPs? They’re inconvenient. Outdated. Even antiquated by technological standards. So what’s the allure?

Pearl Jam’s startling decision to release Vitalogy on vinyl may have arisen from the album’s namesake, an early 20th century medical book of the same name. Eddie Vedder found the book at a garage sale and was enamored by both the cover art and the essence of its title. “Vitalogy” is the study of life, and, in the minds of Vedder and Co., perhaps the richer, more tactile experience of vinyl was a better embodiment of life than its digital evolutions.

But what is it that we think about when we consider the study of life? In our minds, is life analog or digital? We live in a world that has integrated one into the other, of course, but as we shift further into the digital era, perhaps there will be a natural reaction to hold onto something analog. Could vinyl’s resurgence be an indication of that reach for something tangible? Sure, it’s eas to use the word “hipster” to discuss a vinyl collection, but more is going on than that. Vinyl doesn’t make sense financially—LPs are expensive. And there are lossless digital formats with such similar sound quality to vinyl that even audiophiles can’t tell the difference. It has to be something else, and whatever it is seems to extend to many aspects of our lives.

Take our work environments, for example. Laptop-laden desks and headphones. Plug-and-play access points to the Internet where everyone is connected and no one is. Perhaps we listen to music while we work, but we don’t actually listen to music. I don’t know how many office-bound friends I’ve talked to recently that have noticed a decrease in human connection. Many can do their jobs as effectively from a remote location as they can in the office. And they miss collaboration, both in the office and remotely. Palpable human connection. Something you can feel and touch with your hands. A non-virtual handshake. Presence.

Life may be growing more digitized, compressed into compact replicas of the non-virtual here and now. But the richness of analog is irreplicable, and I think that people, consciously or not, are naturally drawn to this distinction of real. The scratch of the needle. The route it runs along etched grooves. The depth of each tone. The crackle of a still-spinning record that’s ended, like chestnuts on an open fire. The people, gathered around, listening together.

Image: Andrew Patra

120,000FPS Camera Reveals How Fighter Pilots Fired Machine Guns Through Their Propellers

Those blessed Slow Mo Guys are back with a bit of a military physics lesson masquerading as a super cool video where bullets fly at 120,000 frames per second. Gavin Free and Dan Gruchy’s latest frame-by-frame exploration gives us a clear look at a plane-mounted, fixed armament firing without damaging the propeller (or throwing away its shot).

It’s mesmerizing to look at because of the interplay of the two objects: the bullets come unbelievably close to grazing the propeller blades, but the sync gear (a World War I innovation) only allows the machine gun to fire between the blades as they rotate, and at the speed they’re both going, every shot is a close call by definition. The result is a beautifully satisfying, coordinated dance of high speed objects. On that same front, the video puts into context how much faster the bullet travels compared to the blade. You can see how the latter almost freezes while the bullet sails by.

Granted, they had to keep the propeller at a much lower speed than normal in order to keep it stationary, which makes the brilliance of the sync gear even more impressive.

The basics of that brilliance are a rod and cam that connect the machine gun to the propeller, interrupting the gun’s firing capability when the bullet would go tearing through the blade. Luckily for us, the Slow Mo Guys are willing to destroy a blade to show us what happens when the sync gear isn’t turned on.

Image: The Slow Mo Guys

The Worst Thanksgiving Family Disasters from Film and TV

Will this year’s post-election Thanksgiving be the most brutal and anger-fueled holiday of all time? Perhaps. Perhaps. Almost certain if you’re going back to see your extended family. Why do we do this to ourselves?

Filmmaker Jacob T. Swinney has created a video essay for Fandor Keyframe that stitches together some of the worst possible filmic representations of this terrible decision to bring our families together once per year. At best, it might remind you that some people out there have it way worse than you. At worst, it might look really upsettingly familiar. Either way, it’s a pretty excellent check-list of films you might want to revisit.

Also, there’s Dexter. There’s always Dexter. To be fair, it is the best episode of the entire series.

Anyhow, here’s Jacob’s excellent stitching together for the turkey holiday, kicking-off appropriately enough with Addams Family Values — which is the most that some Americans know about the original Thanksgiving.

Let us know what you think of the video. Anything you think they missed? (cough PIECES OF APRIL STARRING KATIE HOLMES cough)

Best of luck to all of you out there, especially those of you heading home. Our hearts are with you.

Image: Showtime

Turns Out a Drone Is Not the Best Tool for Making Thanksgiving Dinner

You always need the right tool for the job, but when your task is preparing Thanksgiving dinner it usually means using a lot of tools, which means long after your family and friends have headed home you have an awful lot of clean up still to do. If only there were some way to cut back on all of the tools you need to cook with, or even for all that mess to sort of just get up and fly away.

Or maaaaybe there’s a way to have both.

You thinking what we’re thinking? No? No, you aren’t? Not at all you say? Oh, well that’s probably because using a drone to prep food is a terrible idea.

This video from Autel Robotics features their X-Star Premium Drone peeling vegetables, chopping parsley, mixing mashed potatoes, and even flying a turkey breast into a deep fryer, all in the name of prepping a complete (mess of a) Turkey Day dinner.

Now while most of this was a disaster (though in fairness that’s pretty much what it looks like when we chop parsley with a regular knife), the drone was remarkably adept at peeling the potatoes and carrots. However, it’s not really worth it when you also need a medieval quality glove to make sure you don’t chop your own hand off.

So maybe this Thanksgiving, instead of using a drone in the kitchen, just use it to film your family football game in the backyard. You’ll still have a mess to clean afterwards, but at least you’ll have footage of Uncle Bill throwing cheapshots.

Are there any foods that you think a drone would be helpful in making? Cook up your best ideas in the comments section below.

Images: Autel Robotics