Solving for U

Scott Hardie | September 4, 2016
How would you sum up yourself or people you know in a math formula, based on the primary brands consumed or identified with?

For instance, I might be Funeratic + Lean Cuisine + Disney World - Disney. (I like the theme parks but I have little interest in other Disney products.)

Scott Hardie | September 18, 2016
No takers? Not fun? I don't mean to insult anyone by reducing them to a few brands; I just thought it might be a fun brief mental exercise. I can think of someone on this site who might be Star Wars + Green Bay Packers + Pearl Jam - Binaural (a little-loved album). But then, Star Wars is a common denominator. If you said Star Wars + Beatles, I'd still have to ask which Funeratic member you were talking about. (Add Sailor Moon for one, Mario Kart for another, and so on...)

Erik Bates | September 20, 2016
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Steve West | September 20, 2016
Star Trek TOS + Acoustic guitar / The Republican Party X (The Beatles - Ringo).

Scott Hardie | September 27, 2016
I enjoyed the latter Star Trek movies as entertainment, but almost none of them have felt like Star Trek. Picard on television is a negotiator who uses diplomacy and eloquence to solve his problems. Picard in the movies uses his fists and guns. It's pretty clear that they wrote generic action plots according to formula without considering what makes Trek Trek. The same goes for the three recent films that reimagine Kirk and Spock as sexy immature boys who blow up everything in their path; they're fun movies but very disconnected from the source material.

No bands, Erik? I would have guessed you'd name Queens of the Stone Age, or maybe Josh Homme solo. Years ago you might have said Stone Temple Pilots. I just know that music is important to you.

Samir Mehta | September 27, 2016
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Erik Bates | September 27, 2016
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Scott Hardie | September 27, 2016
Good lists so far! I'm learning new things about your interests that I did not know. :-)

I suppose I should add Netflix and Fallout games to my own formula.

Lori Lancaster | September 29, 2016
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Scott Hardie | September 30, 2016
All Star Wars? Even the prequels? I think the prequels are better than their reputations, but I also don't identify with Star Wars fandom the way that more serious fans do, so their failures don't bother me as much.

Lori Lancaster | October 5, 2016
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Scott Hardie | October 7, 2016
Well, the prequels introduced retcons for some things that people loved about the original films, such as the mitichlorians, so maybe it would be karmic for some upcoming film to retcon out the worst elements of the prequels. There's no fixing the feeling that it's all fake CGI and green-screen, but fixing Jar Jar is still possible. Disney stock would probably plummet the moment it was announced that a Jar Jar movie was in the works. :-)

I like the retro feel of The Force Awakens too, even if its plot matched A New Hope way too closely. Here's hoping that they can continue to replicate the feel of the beloved originals with more original, more surprising stories to tell.

Matthew Preston | October 7, 2016
The Darth Jar Jar Theory that Lori mentions. One of my favorite Star Wars conspiracies.

Also, Episode VIII rumors mention that Frank Oz was on the London filming sets, which should only be necessary if he were doing puppeteer work. So not only is it entirely possible we see Yoda again, but it could be with practical effects instead of CGI.

Chris Lemler | October 9, 2016
Center store clerk 101 + checking + real smartass (ONLY at work) + wrestling + soap operas + baseball + hockey + bowling + disc golf