On HU

Chris Gavaler with a comics script about twins and death.

Me on Cinderella and pacifism.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Quartz I wrote about

—superheroes as metaphors for assimilation and whitewashing Asian performers.

—Prince, and how rock has always been black music.

At the Guardian I asked Is Mowgli a superhero? (answer, no, thank goodness)

At the Daily Dot I wrote about the inevitable Marvel/Star Wars film crossover.

At the Establishment I wrote about Prescott Colleges’s new scholarship for undocumented immigrants.

At Splice Today I wrote about Little Windows, a great country record by Teddy Thompson and Kelly Jones.

At Random Nerds I highly recommended indie pop/rock/awesomeness artist Mobley’s new ep.

 
On HU

Trina Robbins on why Azzarello’s Wonder Woman is no good.

Chris Gavaler on why comics shouldn’t have words.

A review of the mediocre Laotian drama The Rocket.

Me on Coates’ Black Panther, which isn’t very good.

Me on race in Hamilton.
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Utilitarians Everywhere

At the Guardian I wrote about my favorite Merle Haggard album.

At the Establishment I wrote about how cutting edged sci-fi is often written by marginalized writers.

At Quartz I wrote about how the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame keeps not inducting women (and a list of women who they should induct.)

At Random Nerds I wrote about the Sparks Conversation defense. (You know, that thing where you say, Harry Potter is awful, and your interlocutor says, “well, we’re talking about it, it can’t be that bad.)

Oh, also at Random Nerds I got a chance to recommend a looked at possible election results in the next Congress.

At Splice Today I wrote about

—how Superman in BvS is not a Muslim immigrant.

—a great indie pop R&B album by obscure indie artist Claire Keepers.
 
Other Links

Mistress Matisse Melissa Gira Grant, ethics and reporting on sex work

How Mickey Mouse evades the Public Domain.

News

Robert Stanley Martin has decided to move his posts off the site. His chronicle of on sale dates for comics will continue at his new location. (Hopefully we’ll be able to link you there.)
 
On HU

Featured Archive Post: Andrea Tang on recent films and the yellow peril.

Eleanor Lockhart on trans themes in the work of the Wachowski sisters.

Lindsay George on Watchmen, The Handmaid’s Tale, and anti-dystopia.

Osvaldo Oyola on the Thing, Yancy Street, and superhero ethnic identity.

Me on Old Goats and buddy movies after 65.

Roy T. Cook on Hawkeye and what ASL tells us about the definition of comics.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At the Establishment I wrote about the film Creative Control and how the male gaze is about staring at men.

At Playboy I wrote about Anita Alvarez’s defeat and scaring US prosecutors straight.

In my first piece for Alternet I wrote about how the police kill disabled people.

At Quartz I wrote about

—how protestors in Chicago were working against Anita Alvarez as well as against Trump.

—Trump, the nadir and how racial progress can be undone.

At the Week I wrote about why Obama’s approval ratings are high.

At the Reader I wrote about a lovely exhibit of paintings on wood panels.

At Splice I wrote about how the protests against Trump got Chait and Yglesias off the fence.
 
Other Links

Eva Gantz on sex workers at tech conferences, and on why stigmatizing them is bad.

Jos Truitt on the damage caused by the transphobia in Silence of the Lambs.

Yasmin Nair with a great piece on the limits of feminist utopias that exclude women over 40.
 

News

Folks may have noticed we only had three posts this week. In general, I’ve been distracted with other work and haven’t been pursuing contributors as regularly…or writing as often here as I once did. I’m not sure exactly what that means for the future. Chris Gavaler and Robert Stanley Martin still are committed to posting here weekly, and I still do want to write on occasion. If you want to write here, please contact me (myname at gmail); we’re still running guest posts.

I guess what I’m saying is, we’ve been quieter than usual, and it seems likely that that will continue to be the case unless something changes. Anyway, as always, thanks for reading.
 
On HU

Me on the New Black, a documentary about the marriage equality campaign in Maryland.

Shreya Durvasula on Walter White as superhero.

Robert Stanley Martin with on sale dates for comics September and October 1952.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At the Guardian I wrote about Deadpool R-ratings, and how superheroes are about wanting/not wanting to grow up.

I took part in the Public Books roundtable on women directors, writing about the Descent and rape revenge for women.

At Quartz I wrote about

—what African-Americans should get a biopic after Jesse Owens.

—how we need to reduce Supreme Court tenures to politicize the court.

At the Establishment I wrote about

—Taylor Swift and how we don’t expect men to step up for Kesha.

—the Mad Max series and how women equal civilization and men gotta ramble.

At Splice Today I wrote about

—Bowie, Lori Maddox, and listening to victims even when they say they’re not.

—Huffpo and the authenticity of hackwork.

At the Chicago Reader

—I previewed Typeforce, a typeface art show.

—I did a little review of indie band Sunflower Bean.
 
Other Links

Greg Howard on how SB Nation published a disastrous piece on Daniel Holzclaw.

David Perry on disability inspiration porn.

Yasmin Nair/a> argues that freelancers shouldn’t write for free.