Opps, I guess this is the 1001st post

Didn't realize it until the other day but that post about Scarlett Johansson suing Disney was Nerd Trash's 1000th post.

Oh well, I was going to make a big deal about it anyways. Hell, I've probably already pissed the tenth anniversary. 😂

Discontent in the House of Mouse: Scarlett Johansson sues Disney over Black Widow release

With the blockbuster performance of the latest entry in the Marvel cinematic canon, you would think everybody involved would be pleased as punch. Dear reader, you would be wrong for there is one person not happy with the movie's release and that is none other than Black Widow herself, Scarlett Johansson, who filed suit against Disney today.

Her main complaint isn't that the movie was released, but where it was released. Apparently, her contract for the movie stipulated that Black Widow would be released in theaters first, before showing up on Disney+. Instead, Disney released the movie to both on the same day, earning Johansson's ire. It may seem odd at first that she would be upset at how the movie was released, but the mystery dissipates when you learn the real reason beyond it: money. According to the Polygon article, her contract was set up in such a way that she would bank more money depending on how well the movie did...in theaters. I'm guessing Disney+ isn't covered by that, so Johansson potentially lost quite a bit of dough. Can't say I blame her for being angry there.

Weirdness Wednesday: Was Jack the Ripper a Royal Prince?

Via Wikipedia.

Jack the Ripper is easily one of the most infamous serial killers in history and his true identity is also one of the greatest mysteries. One of my favorite podcasts, Red Web, did an episode about Jack a couple of weeks ago and as they were ticking off all the people suspected of being the Ripper, one stood out: Prince Albert Victor, member of the British Royal Family and second (at the time) in line to the throne of the British Empire. Now, I had heard before that a royal prince was floated as a suspect, but I didn't know much more beyond that because the Ripper killings has never held that much interest to me. But a prince close to becoming to king of the one of the biggest empires in history? Now, you have my attention.

Now to be clear, Albert Victor isn't given any serious consideration as a suspect by Ripperologists, the community dedicated to all things Jack the Ripper. Indeed, he wasn't even proposed as a suspect until 1962, 70 years after his death! In 1976 some guy named Stephen Knight wrote a book called Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution in which he claims that the murders were committed to cover up that the prince had had an illegitimate child with a prostitute. The also claims that the murders were either committed by others on his behalf or by the prince himself. Another theory presented elsewhere is that Albert Victor had contracted syphilis from a prostitute and that it drove him insane, thus the killings.

Via Goodreads.

As I said above, Ripperologists have rejected the prince as a possible suspect because there's more evidence that he wasn't than any that he was. Case in point, he was literally 500 miles away from London, surrounded by family and friends when two of the victims were murdered. There's also no evidence that he had any sexually transmitted diseases.

I actually feel sorry for the poor guy. Imagine dying at the age 28 of pneumonia, then being maligned unfairly seven decades later as one of the worst serial killers in history with no evidence to back up those claims.

Music Monday: Jonathan Coulton - Skullcrusher Mountain

Weirdness Wednesday: Holy crap, look at that thing on his neck!

 I also posted about this on my history blog, but I thought I'd share it here too. Kim Il-Sung, the founder of North Korea, had a giant...thing on the back of his neck and man, was that sucker B I G.

Like I said, B I G. According to Wikipedia, he had a condition called calcinosis which causes calcium deposits to accumulate in the body. So you're probably wondering why he didn't just get it removed? Well, the official reason is that it was considered too dangerous to remove owing to it being so close to his spine and brain. Unofficially, it's rumored that he was too scared - paranoia made him too fearful that he would get bumped off while under the knife. I guess if you're the founder and leader of a brutal regime, you're bound to be worried about bad karma catching up with you.

Weirdness Wednesday: Shoebills sound like an old war movie

Imagine having one of these show up somewhere unobserved and it starts making that noise.

Music Monday: Paula Abdul - Opposites Attract

Maybe I'll do a deep dive about this video and its inspiration one day because it involves Gene Kelly, two cartoon mice, and Disney.

He speaks fluent Japanese

God, I have to watch this movie at some point.

Music Monday: Dio - Holy Diver

 

For all D&D inspiration needs.

Weirdness Wednesday: When computers used to have locks

Imagine losing the key, though.

Music Monday: George Michael - Freedom! '90

Batman may be The World's Greatest Detective, but according to DC Comics, he's not a cunning lingus

Oh boy, this is a wild one, folks. The internet got a bit roiled the other day after it was discovered that DC Comics had requested a scene from an episode of HBO Max's Harley Quinn animated series be removed. So what was it about this one particular scene that triggered an intervention by DC?

Batman going down on Catwoman.

Yes, that's right folks, DC found out that one episode contained a scene in which the Caped Crusader *ahem* swabs the deck, so to speak because according the comic giant, "heroes don't do that". They apparently elaborated that it was a marketing decision because somebody at DC thinks that a billionaire who dresses up as a bat and punches clowns performing orally on a woman who dresses up as a cat will somehow negatively impact their ability to sell merchandise of a billionaire who dresses up as a bat and punches clowns. Okay??? Maybe overthinking it here, guys? Maybe projecting a little? 🤔🤔🤔

Really though, this is a perfect example of the "Streisand Effect" where DC unintentionally brought more attention to the whole oral sex thing by trying to excise it. The fact is that this wouldn't have been as big of an issue as they feared, but they made it one by overreacting. Sure, "Batman eats out Catwoman" would have gotten some attention on the internet, but not as much as "DC Comics made Harley Quinn cartoon remove a scene where Batman goes down on Catwoman".

Masters of the Universe: Revelation looks interesting

It's got all the right-wingers on YouTube riled up for reasons that I honestly don't care to find out why. It's He-Man, ya dorks.

Weirdness Wednesday - I don't think that's how you're supposed to use celery

 

Fortunately, this ad isn't real, but rather from some comic called Devil Chef. With that in mind it's obvious that it's a fake, but given the kind of ads that exist for real, this isn't much of a stretch.

Music Monday: Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson - Luchenbach, Texas

;

James Gunn certainly made some...interesting choices for The Suicide Squad lineup, didn't he?

I remember my reaction back when the lineup for the upcoming Suicide Squad movie was announced last year being a shake of the head and a sensible chuckle. James Gunn really would pick characters like Weasel, Ratcatcher 2, and Polka-Dot Man for a major big budget comic book movie. The other person I can think of right off the top of my head who would make similar choices is Ryan Reynolds.

But honestly? I dig it. Like Marvel, DC Comics has a deep roster of characters that they draw from for their movies and TV shows, so they don't have to rely on more like "marquee" characters such as Superman and Batman for example. It'll be interesting to see where things lead if The Suicide Squad is a big hit. Maybe we'll see more lesser knowns be pulled out of obscurity and given the spotlight.

Will you pay $30 to watch Black Widow on Disney+ this summer?

I'm just a tad bit late on the news, but Marvel recently(ish) announced that Black Widow will finally hit theaters July 9 and for those aren't willing to risk exposure to Covid because we're still in the middle of a pandemic, it'll be on Disney+ at the same time.

For thirty bucks. Which is like almost four times the cost of a movie ticket.

It does raise the question, however: would you pay that much to watch new movie? Me? Fuck, no. The fact that Disney keeps charging people extra for a movie on a streaming service that they're already paying a monthly subscription to is just plain greedy. Like, there's no other explanation for it other than greed. HBO Max, Netflix, or any of the other streamers have charged their subscribers extra for new releases.

I do want to watch Black Widow, so I'm hoping that it'll be safe to go to the theater by July 9. Knowing our (humanity) collective luck, Earth will be blown up to make way for a hyperspace bypass.

I has a Twittah now

 It can be found here. Obviously I'll be adding a widget to the sidebar today. I also have a Goodreads, so feel free to scope out what I've read and am reading.