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https://www.thenerdelement.com/2022/08/11/nina-west-at-san-diego-comic-con-2022/

Drag queen Nina West (stage name of singer/actor Andrew Levitt) may have placed sixth in Season 11 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” but at San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) 2022, she was number one. West, who won the title of “Miss Congeniality” on “Drag Race,” came to SDCC to host a panel about her upcoming children’s book, The You Kind of Kind, which is illustrated by Hayden Evans. West is one of the first drag queens to have their own SDCC panel, and she was excited to be there.

West’s book is a bright light in a time where LGBTQIA+ folks are facing increased discrimination and anxiety. Her sunny disposition and focus on treating others with respect, as well as showing children it’s okay to be themselves, is refreshing.

The Nerd Element spoke to West about her book, her time at SDCC, how we all could be kinder to each other, and her hopes for what The You Kind of Kind could mean to the children and all who read it.

Nina West’s The You Kind of Kind may be pre-ordered at www.ninawest.com

The post Nina West at San Diego Comic Con 2022 appeared first on The Nerd Element.

https://blacknerdproblems.com/top-gun-maverick-delivers-but-is-tom-cruise-the-military-industrial-complex/

Top Gun: Maverick is for all intents and purposes a good movie. It doesn’t glorify the military but instead teamwork and doing things for the love of it and not the glory. There are still military recruiters posting up outside of showings of it. When coupled with Tom Cruise’s many roles, it begs the question: is his cultural impact really that he is a plant for the military-industrial complex?

The Top Gun That Was

There can’t be anything to say about Top Gun: Maverick without reaching back to discuss the first Top Gun. This will be so referential that it’ll have the feel of those Levi’s ‘Buddy Lee’ commercials. “Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise, in…Top Gun 2! Executive Produced by Tom Cruise.”

Either way, the 80s gave us a new archetype that echoed all throughout the films of the time: the ‘hero’ as the wild card. The nerds in Nerds, the rascals in The Goonies, the motley crews of John Cusack’s many early movies, Naked Gun and all of John Hughes’ movies. So on and so on. But who knew that Top Gun would blow the roof off the idea and cement a new action archetype? Every marketing department on Earth, that’s who. Tom Cruise’s ‘Maverick’ would inspire writers for decades. Making the story’s hero a reckless, devil-may-care type that audiences can rock with and deal with little to none of the consequences of their actions was just what the 80s needed. That was sarcasm, the out-of-control capitalism, and warmongering of the 80s didn’t need any encouragement, but lo and behold Top Gun.

Top Gun is the first ever film to use actual combat-ready planes (but not the first to use real planes), a mighty mean Cold War flex if I’ve ever seen one. Despite that moment of authenticity, the combat cinematography was terrible! You can’t tell which direction pilots are flying, they’re looking everywhere around the cockpit, and you NEVER know if this whole thing is a simulation or not! Not to mention the highly questionable if not borderline illegal student/teacher relationship. At that time, the real-life Cold War was on a high simmer. Things were tense on the geopolitical landscape. It was a stroke of narrative genius to use that tension in the movie. The non-descript ‘Soviet’ planes gave the whole thing an over-the-top realism to match the rate of sweating every pilot did in that movie.

Highway to the Danger Zone

Do you know those memes that reference when someone went too hard in the studio for the soundtrack? Phil Collins for Disney’s Tarzan, Tevin Campbell in A Goofy Movie, Adele in Skyfall, etc. I humbly submit for the culture’s approval Kenny “fucking” Loggins to the mix. Bast dammit, that man put hot sauce all over “Danger Zone.” Who knows where the danger zone even is? Does it matter? All we need to know is that there’s a highway that goes right to it. Not for nothing, but Kenny Loggins MADE this movie go. I would posit that the music of Top Gun contributed greatly to its cultural impact. If you ever need to find your way to a quintessential 80s piece of media, just fire up your GPS and catch the nearest entrance onto the *signing way off key* HIGHWAY TO THE DANGER ZONE! (sorry, not sorry)

Is the Danger Zone a Sundown Town?

Another touchstone in OG Top Gun is that it was shockingly under-melanated. Nary a negro in the movie save for small and silver screen vet Clarence Gilyard Jr. So, bless the representation gods that he’s even there. Wait. What was his callsign? Oh yeah, Sundown. The only Black pilot is named Sundown?!?! Wow. Well, let that speak to what happens when not enough creators of color are in front of or behind the camera. To say that Top Gun was very white is a gross understatement. Mind you, I absolutely love this movie, but my goodness it aged awkwardly.

The Top Gun That Is

Top Gun: Maverick is giving ‘Tom Cruise is, Maverick in…Top Gun 2: Does He Still Have It?‘ The awkward part is, that I was going into it expecting a well-made but bad movie. I spent weeks leading into seeing it talking smack about it with friends, knowing good and well I was going to see it. In my mind, there was no way this wouldn’t be a slightly mindless military propaganda flick with little more to offer than a couple of cool dogfights. I can admit that I was pretty damn wrong.

Top Gun: Maverick is a darn good movie. Somehow, we center on an aging Maverick, who in his older age is still flying planes. Only now, he has the added dimension of bucking the military-industrial complex that made him by piloting experimental planes in the hopes of space exploration. He literally traded in his reckless f-boy attitude and desire to be the best of the best for the desire to be an explorer for SpaceX! You can’t write that kind of a character arc! Oh wait, you can! Like most of the movie, it’s surprising how much depth there is in each individual element. Cruise delivers a nuanced performance that gives Maverick multitudes. More than the character deserves. They find a way to make this guy likable and that is an achievement in itself, because I recall him throwing his best friend’s dog tags into the ocean when last we saw him. The growth?!

I Feel the Need…For Good Cinematography

Unlike its predecessor, the flight cinematography is stellar. It gives the illusion of true speed and makes the science of fighter piloting accessible. With the exception of Starbuck shooting while flying backward like Diddy reversing the whip in the “Hypnotized” video – I haven’t seen anything this good. The dogfights, whether simulations or otherwise, are mean, lean, and pushed the story forward. There’s something to be said about using combat as storytelling, and Maverick pushes the needle forward in that regard. The need for speed is on full display, and I can’t knock a second of it.

A Cougar and a Manther Walk Into a Bar

Let’s call it what it was, Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis’ teacher-loves-student in the original Top Gun was looking wild inappropriate. Top Gun: Maverick raises the bar by raising the age. Somehow in the midst of all the mild political intrigue, callbacks, and redos, Maverick delivers a very layered and nuanced age-appropriate relationship for the aged hot shot. The maturity and wholesomeness of this are almost enough to make you forget the whole IRL Scientology quasi-cult thing. Who else could hold that leading lady vibe alongside the titular icon but the real-life Highlander herself, Jennifer Connely? Their chemistry isn’t the random smashed-together thing of Top Gun past. No, these two really make you feel something real – it’s a genuine accomplishment and isn’t very common in mainstream movies.

Top Gun, but Make it Modern

There are a few clever modernizations to the house that Tom Cruise built. All are very socially aware and referential of the present day. One is a callback and an update at the same time: the US is still beefing with Russia! The resurgence of Cold War tensions with high-tech and economic espionage is front-page news and barbershop gossip once again. Maverick does some very cool things with it storywise, but it borders on offering an opinion about how the US can run up in any country and blow shit up. Those moments struck me as very World Police.

Inclusion is the Weapon

Another sign of modernization in this franchise is that all of a sudden, more than one Black person knows how to fly a fighter jet! With women! Then type B personalities! Plus AAPI folks?! DEI meters were shattering from the sheer pressure of the representation. It was progressive politics mayhem. Imagine the Stone Cold Steve Austin entrance, but the shattering glass is a glass ceiling.

It was all very nice to see all these people from different walks of this country come together under one roof with the goal of blowing things up outside of the military’s jurisdiction. I knew something was gonna go sideways with this movie since Tom Cruise is lowkey the foremost spokesperson for the military-industrial complex. Like if the armed forces were a person and that person became a really successful used car salesman – you’d have Tom Cruise.

Live. Die. Play A Soldier. Repeat.

This brings me to an idea more comical and insidious; that Tom Cruise is the military industrial complex. Hear me out: after Top Gun and Born on the Fourth of July in 1986 and 1989, respectively, Cruise plays soldiers or military-adjacent characters. A whopping 22 credits spanning 30 plus years. Narrowing it down to just the Mission: Impossible movies, the amount of real-life military tech used in those films is mind-boggling. Add to that, Cruise has a license for almost all of the vehicles on Bast’s green Earth. Obviously all the ones his characters use. Let me be clear, there’s a man out there in the world with no armed forces experience and more access to those things than any civilian should have.

Media and the Military

Why does this even matter? Didn’t I say Top Gun: Maverick was the bees knees? Well, while the numbers have gone up and down over the years, the 1986 ‘Top Gun inspired a five-hundred percent Navy recruitment spike’ has been debunked. In reality, the bump in recruitment for the US Navy was only around eight percent in ‘85-’86. But that was still a difference of seven-thousand people who joined a branch of military service because they were inspired by Goose hitting his head on the canopy and dying (spoiler?) trying to support Maverick’s hot-headed choices. And if a movie that simplistic can have had an impact of on geopolitics, what does it say about the way the Navy is depending on this movie to boost its ranks? How duplicitous does it feel to know that Paramount and the US Navy are partnered along with the Department of Defense’s ‘Entertainment Media Offices’ to make this movie? How dystopian that recruiters set up tables outside of the individual theaters playing Top Gun: Maverick? Not good over here.

I remember when the Army pulled up to my high school in humvees tricked out with TV screens and consoles with Call of Duty for students to play. It felt wack then, still feels wack to see it play out as an adult. Especially when so much of our countries culture and decision making derives directly from our media consumption of said culture. So yeah, Top Gun: Maverick was a cool movie, but at what cost? There is something continually troubling about the relationship between the armed forces, state-sanctioned violence, and mainstream media. As fate would have it, you can measure the intensity of that relationship by following Tom Cruise’s lengthy acting career.

Cover image via Amazon.com

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The post ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Delivers, but is Tom Cruise the Military Industrial Complex? appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

http://www.afronerd.com/2022/08/discussing-she-hulk-disney-more-warner.html

 

Afronerd Radio can now be heard LIVE courtesy of Apple Music/Itunes

Good Evening, citizens!  It's time once again for the latest installment of Afronerd Radio's Grindhouse broadcast airing every Sunday at 6 p.m. eastern on BTalk 100.  The topics up for grabs are: the first two episodes of Marvel-Disney+'s She-Hulk streaming series were released and we give you our impressions; more upheaval at Warner Media/Discovery-including shunted projects, job losses, and canceled shows at HBO Max; and speaking of Warner, purportedly troubled actor, Ezra Miller had a sit down with WM executives concerning his future as the Flash; a King Kong series is under development for Disney+; as The Marvels movie is slated for a 2023 release, one of the film's three protagonists, Photon (also at one time called Captain Marvel), is priming for a solo comic book series; music mogul and artist, Sean P-Diddy Combs, appears to have caused an internet uproar over his comments about the state of R & B music (but his former protegee, Usher, disagrees); the Batman: Killing Time comic book series introduces a new (but unpronounceable villain) and Marvel fans are starting to complain about dropped plot threads in movies and films.   

One thing that Dburt is doing (finally) is investing in cryptocurrency, courtesy of Roundlyx. We would implore our followers to investigate, discern and then explore by using our referral code: afro-87A4BF

https://blackgirlnerds.com/jennette-mccurdy-hides-nothing-in-her-shocking-memoir-im-glad-my-mom-died/

Jennette McCurdy provides a riveting account of her life growing up as a child star and being forced into a competitive industry by an emotionally manipulative mother. Unlike other autobiography content, McCurdy’s self-accounts are raw and barely refrain from exposing those who put her in uncomfortable situations. 

The book also shares the narrative that McCurdy’s negative actions are often a direct result of verbal and emotional abuse by adult influences. In her autobiography, I’m Glad My Mom Died, McCurdy takes her power back by using little censorship with her words as she details the abuse inflicted by her superiors. 

The Significance of “The Creator” 

McCurdy shows great strength and courage as she tells her truth while using vivid phrases to reveal those who do her wrong. The significance of limited censorship in McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died is it establishes the narrative of whom is to blame for the detriment of her childhood and upbringing. She is very raw in her truth, to the point that readers familiar with her work can use context clues to figure out who she discusses or wants to expose. 

Her autobiography is not simply her life story but also serves as an exposé. She exposes her mother, grandmother, and TV executives, as the adults who fail her and contribute to her downward spiral. These spirals include her eating disorder, secrecy, and burgeoning maturity. 

Although the focal point of the autobiography is McCurdy’s relationship with her mom and how Jennette was forced to be the breadwinner by booking TV roles, she notes other influences who inflicted pain upon her. She vaguely mentions a prominent Nickelodeon executive using terms like “The Creator” to issue a powerful statement. By using terms like “The Creator” to describe her abuser, her audience can understand the power that person has on her and the industry. 

McCurdy does not use their name for privacy reasons, but still illustrates the power dynamic this person has on her by calling them “The Creator.” The Oxford Dictionary defines “creator” as “a person or thing that brings something into existence.” In this case, The Creator symbolizes both the maker of a show and a person of power. The Creator brings her show into existence which also serves as McCurdy’s big break in acting. Like her mother, The Creator is also one of the adults in her life that she tries to never displease; she will not face repercussions. 

Why such a title?

On the cover of her memoir, McCurdy wears a salmon-colored attire and smirks while carrying a pink urn. One may think that the cover image and title I’m Glad My Mom Died is a rather harsh take on a toxic maternal relationship. But, it helps to create the story about McCurdy’s truth. 

There are portions in this autobiography in which McCurdy empathizes with her mother. In specific chapters, she cries about her mother’s illness and does what she thinks will satisfy her mother or gain approval. Even though McCurdy shows human emotions over particular events that impact her mother and their relationship, she is still a victim of abuse. The grieving and mourning for her abuser’s health or obedience to her mother’s wishes, don’t make her any less of an abuse victim. 

A large percentage of the abuse she endures is emotional and verbal. Her mother is one of the figures who know how to emotionally manipulate her. She is glad the abuse is over. The death of her mom puts life into perspective. It brings an end to her manipulation that otherwise would remain had she not passed. The abuse, control, and suffering are gone. She is done living life on eggshells; she is free.   

Growing up and losing control

I’m Glad My Mom Died is a coming-of-age book. This book cover’s McCurdy’s childhood, awkward teen years, and ultimately her becoming a woman. Despite McCurdy’s stages of growth, her mom fails to provide her daughter with the independence that comes with maturation. 

McCurdy discusses the discomfort she feels due to the lack of respect her mother has for her daughter’s body. As McCurdy grows older, the feeling of owning her body doesn’t come with it. Throughout her book, she discusses the awkwardness of having her mom still bathe her, wash her hair, and wipe her. Her mother never wants her to grow up and it’s obvious. Youth is significant to McCurdy’s mom because it enables a stronger acting career for her daughter. 

The younger and smaller she looks, the more child roles McCurdy will book. In McCurdy’s case, appearing young allows her mother to treat her like a child rather than a teen. Her mother seems to suffer from “good little girl” syndrome. She does not want to let McCurdy grow up. This is a crucial part of her memoir because the lack of space between the two, or the coddling that goes on between them, signifies an unhealthy relationship that leads to an unhealthy self-image. Like her relationship with The Creator, this is also a power dynamic issue. 

Drawing Conclusions

McCurdy concludes that she spends the majority of her youth pursuing an acting career she never sought. It takes McCurdy years and a little self-discovery to realize that she lives out her mother’s dream not her own. Although she establishes a name for herself in the industry as a successful Nickelodeon actress, she no longer wishes to act. In the pursuit of an acting career, McCurdy instead discovers a toxic industry. She learns that the vast majority of the adults in her life are abusers, and through this memoir, she unveils their truth.

Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died is now available as an eBook or audiobook at Barnes & Noble.