Topics

The MCU has taken a lot of it's inspiration specifically from the Ultimate line of comics. Thor's Stormbreaker, Spider-Man being in high school again, and Tony Stark's personality. Tony Stark has always been snarky, witty, and a pretty swollen ego, but a lot of the mainline comics' Tony Stark's rough edges have been sanded down. Stark was one of the founding members of the Illuminati, working for Kang the Conqueror, shooting Hulk into space, lots of his actions in both Civil War storylines, and not to mention his stint as Superior Iron Man, exploiting people and lots of other dubious actions.

My question is, have we lost something? Are the rough edges what make Iron Man so compelling in the comics? Has the MCU's more palatable Iron Man worse or just different? What about other comic characters who've lost nuance like Wolverine in every movie besides Logan?

Further, how do we go about adapting these characters from these thousands of issues to hours of film? Is it even possible? Is the loss of some nuance a necessary evil?

Mobile games have a tendency to aim for the flashiest possible branding in a seemingly desperate attempt to attract players in an over-saturated market, to the degree that the gaming sections of app stores tend to be an almost intimidating array of bright colors and rip-off characters, and names that look like they were chosen from a random mix of a few words. Terms like "Space," "Strategy," "Fight," "RPG," "King," and/or their synonyms are interspersed with colons, leading many of these games to be indistinguishable from one another for someone who hasn't played them.

What are the branding styles these different developers seem to prefer, and are they effective? More specifically, what are the patterns within mobile game naming conventions, and is originality a worthwhile sacrifice for search engine optimization?

Though not limited to the discussion of naming conventions, this article would mainly discuss other forms of branding and marketing in relation to naming.

Through the ever growing search for new source material in television and film, many have turned to mining from the stories lying dormant in video games. With a previously established plot, characters and fanbase, video-games have come to provide a steady map for writers and directors to follow in trying to make a show or film with increased odds of success. In a way, such adaptations are almost adjacent to bringing one's favorite book series to life on the screen, just from a different angle. In recent years, however, this trend seems to have gained steam. Afterall, it seems as though each day a new streaming service pops up out of nowhere–along with a new and sudden need for stories to fill them. Netflix's "Arcane: League of Legends" based on League of Legends by Riot Games. Three separate movies (2001, 2003, and 2018) inspired by Core Design's Tomb Raider. HBO's acclaimed hit "The Last of Us," sprouted from Sony Interactive Entertainment's game by the same name. These are just a few examples from the past couple years, and it is unlikely they will be the last.

As with any adaptation, though, one has to ask whether the original source material is being accurately represented. How true can one stay to the story of a video game when the story is determined with each person playing it? Do video games lend themselves better or movies or tv series? Are certain gaming formats easier to adapt than others? What makes a game especially well suited for translation to the screen? This article could be taken in a number of different directions, such as focussing on the validity of one adaptation, or trends that seem to exist across many. Overall, though, I just felt there have been many comparisons between book and film adaptations, and that video games might be the next contender to enter this ring of debate and analysis.

Within the last two years we have received two horror video game inspired TV adaptations, one that was a smash hit, and one that flew under the radar. Neither of these shows stuck 100% to the source material so what made The Last of Us succeed and Resident Evil fail?

Analog Horror refers to the genre of horror created with the aesthetic of Analog technology, that is to say shot on video, "found footage".

Within the subgenre there exists quite a number of breakthrough hits such as "Backrooms" "Local 58" and "The Mandela Catalogue"

What draws people to this genre and what can be said about the genre tropes and themes? What is the appeal and is there a lesson that can be garnered from the creation of these works?

Movies of all genres and decades have had probably the biggest impact on the video game industry. Developers have always cited their favourite films and inspiration (Escape From New York inspired the Metal Gear Series, for example, or the works of John Woo inspiring the Max Payne series). Perhaps the biggest influences are the Action movies of the 1980s. Rambo, Commando, Predator, Running Man, Total Recall, and countless others. This genre has helped lead to some of the most visually and interactively appealing games in the industry. But what is the full extent of the connection? And how many games trace their roots to the big screen?

Bloodborne, the 2014 game from FromSoftware is a game ripe for exploration. One element worth delving into is the nature of femininity within the world.

The ways in which the player is force to confront the cruelty in which women and female coded NPCs are treated with regards to the game's world. Elements such as the "blessings" of the old ones force the player to view the horror of a world where women are specifically targeted for cruelty.

The nature of the blood within the universe is also worth exploring with regards to origins of the blood and the people born of it.

In 2005, actor Christian Bale starred in two interesting, if very different films: David Ayer's "Harsh Times" and Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins." Though both films are practically diametrically opposed, they do share some interesting similarities in regards to the characters Bale plays.

Both characters are specially-trained warriors who return to a less-than-familiar home to then try and use the skills they honed in foreign lands fighting foreign enemies to find a new purpose. The similarities don't end there, though, as both characters are plagued by past traumas that manifest themselves in disturbing visions and hallucinations.

This article would be a study of those characters (Bruce Wayne/Batman in "Batman Begins" and Jim Davis in "Harsh Times" and just how their skills, experiences, and relationships shape them into the people they are.

Many people argue that the purpose of The Hunger Games is to discuss the topics of fascism and capitalism, but many ignore the deeper meaning of the issues presented in both the novels and the movies. It's the entertainment value of the unfortunate chosen who are forced to kill themselves than those of the capital enjoy. They are advertised and marketed to an extreme extent, as well as dressed up and dined as a means to create a personal connection from the audience to the participants. While it's argued that this is to signify the class differences due to wealth and poverty, this really shows the threats and problems that occur with the interpersonal enjoyment of reality tv and entertainment through the enjoyment of both beauty and violence shown in this series.

The gaming community, from twitch streamers to youtube let's players, is synonymous with video games at large.
This has had a number of effects, both on the way that games are made (with features like 'streamer mode' which substitute copyrighted songs so that streamers don't get copyright strikes) and the way games are marketed (with big streamers becoming just as important to get good reviews from as critics).
This article would discuss these effects, and more, that streaming has had on the video game industry. Both in terms of the positive and negative sides – and perhaps what this may mean for the future of video games.

Harry Potter is a beloved series all over the world, and whether you've seen it or not, everyone has heard of it. While the author J.K. Rowling has come into some heavy fire from the media for her transphobia and racial stereotyping over the past few years, the Harry Potter franchise still stands in our hearts. Can art be separated from the creator? Do benefits for transgender and racialized youth outweigh the original intentions of the author? What are the connotations of new creations set in the universe J.K. Rowling imagined? Should they be supported?

Analyze the accuracy of TV and movies that are about policing. A lot of these shows/movies display place work as light-hearted and fun. Some examples are Brooklyn 99 and ride along. Even though both are clearly comedies, impressionable viewers might think differently about policing.

Disney's Frozen burst into our theaters and onto our small screens in 2013, and no one has "let it go" since. The film became a franchise, with rumors of a third installment coming in 2023 or later. But Frozen is not the only wintry tale media consumers love. "Winter tales" can be found across mediums, from TV series like Game of Thrones whose tagline is "Winter is Coming," to a plethora of books with titles like The Snow Child, WinterFrost, and Girls Made of Snow and Glass. Many of today's super-powered or "chosen one" protagonists also have winter-related powers; Queen Elsa might be the most obvious, but there is also Jack Frost from Rise of the Guardians, as well as Freya from Snow White and the Huntsman.

Winter permeates the arts, no matter the season. Yet what is it about this season, out of four, that captures the imagination of writers, filmmakers, and other artists? Analyze a few prevalent winter tales across mediums, looking for commonalities among characters, character arcs, plot threads, powers, and more. Could the other three seasons garner this kind of attention, and if yes, what would it take to make that happen? Are artists, authors, and others who craft "winter tales" trying to make a statement about their art, themselves, or humanity through winter? If yes, what is it? Discuss.

The contemporary popularity of the present tense in narrative storytelling has been critiqued by authors such as Philip Pullman, who have argued a preference for the tone associated with the past tense. Popularised by figures such as Jane Austen, the past tense can be used to achieve a 'classic' tone in narrative writing; today, however, authors are freely experimenting with tense.

This article will address how, in today's world, the aspiring author make sense of tense. Is it a matter of personal preference, or do choices of tense play into more complex sociocultural aesthetics? If tense matters, how important is it to take a stance on the subject? Is tense a purely relativist construct, its validity being subject predominantly to the whims of the author?

Half of Americans say they enjoy true crime and women are more likely than men to really dive in. Lately, it’s as of every other show on all streaming platforms is another deep dive into a true crime murder mystery. True crime series have become a staple in entertainment but why? What is our obsession with death and the events that surround it? Do we truly believe this could help solve cold cases or is there something much more primal laying beneath the surface?

We often think of Satire as being a "modern" invention. Or, at least, that is what our minds usually jump to. For instance, the satirical Chandler Bing from Friends, who constantly uses second-degree humor to articulate his points or arguments.

By analyzing Satirical works from earlier periods of our history, we might be able to understand Satire better. A good place to start could be Jane Collier's An Essay on the Art of Ingeniously Tormenting! It gives advice to people in positions of power on how to torment their servants, companions, or even husbands, better. In short, what we nowadays would call emotional abuse.

Is there power in writing Satire? Is it more effective than using first-degree?

With the rise of virtual influencers like Lil Miquela and Bermuda, brands are increasingly turning to computer-generated characters to promote their products on social media. These virtual avatars are popular with younger generations who are more likely to trust and engage with them than traditional human influencers. However, there are ethical concerns surrounding the use of virtual influencers, such as transparency and authenticity. This article will explore the pros and cons of virtual influencers, and examine what their increasing popularity means for the future of advertising and influencer marketing.

Can it or can it not? Or can aspects be objectively bad for a film? Or is it all subjective? This is a neverending debate to some or an easy yes or no for others.

Critics tend to highlight mostly negative aspects of a movie and tend to ignore that there are passionate filmmakers behind these films, while fans are generally too forgiving, or tend to not demand better and just want a good time.

So what makes a movie good or bad, or is it more important how it makes you feel?

Examine the first season of HBO's House of the Dragon, comparatively with the first few seasons of Game of Thrones. Something that is dearly missed is the sense of humor and witty dialogue. There is no Tyrion-adjacent character, not nearly enough dialogue and japes and sardonic moments, or Bronn-esk side characters. By no means did the humor lessen the impact, popularity, and fairly book-accurate depictions of the Game of Thrones TV series (not including the final seasons). Why is House of the Dragon choosing to be so grim? is it taking itself too seriously? will this effect its success? I'd love Fire & Blood readers to potentially lean in on this topic as well. It's a very different style than the main SOIAF series, so does it warrant the TV adaption being so serious?

Books and magazines have been outlets for creative expression since printing presses made them viable options for creative production. Today, though, the magazine industry seems straddled over digital and print options—and after the editions are printed, they are slowly extinguished in a swirl of ephemeral media (print letters, circulars, magazines), while books re-circulate in libraries, used bookstores, and personal collections.

Is it fair and accurate to say that books hold more enduring value than magazines? If so, why do books hold their value more so than magazines? If a book held the exact same content as a magazine, would its life cycle be different? Is the fate of these publications dictated by their binding and paper type, or are there cultural undertones that determine if these media flourish?