Redlettermedia, in an old review of Michael Bay's Pain and Gain, contrasted that movie to The Wolf of Wall Street, directed by Martin Scorsese.
In the Wolf of Wall Street, the RLM guys say, there's a subtext that we're ALL capable of the mistakes the main character ...

At Them With Them
Banes at 12:00AM, Sept. 7, 2023Quackcast 651 - Strong characters of any gender and DD awards stuff
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, Sept. 5, 2023 LISTEN on our player!
Or TuneinRadio - https://tunein.com/podcasts/Books–Literature/Drunkduck-Quackcast-p1150194/
We're chatting about a couple of things today: the DD 2023 Awards which are in their completion faze now, and “strong” characters of any gender.
The DD awards are finding up now and presentations will be ...
J_Scarbrough’s Vampire Girl Goes Out with a Boomsday, Right Before Labor Day!
kawaiidaigakusei at 12:00AM, Sept. 4, 2023
Photo: “Which Levana Do You Feel Like Today?”. Vampire Girl. Story and art by J_Scarbrough. (January 2021-August 2023)
Vampire Girl by the Duck’s resident, puppeteer-webcomic creator, J_Scarbrough (not to be confused with the Jonathan Richman song with the same title) reached its conclusion on Wednesday, August 30, 2023.
Synopsis ...
Imitation and The Content Avalanche Ahead?
Banes at 12:00AM, Aug. 31, 2023
During the filming of Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock was unable to be on set one day. His crew filmed the scene for that day (I believe it was where Arbogast, the detective, goes up the stairs where he encounters Mrs. Bates). Hitchcock saw the footage, and said he had to reshoot ...
Writing Strong Characters of Any Gender
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Aug. 26, 2023
Last time I'd written about gender toxicity and what a trap it can be for creators seeking to write powerful characters. It is not something that only plagues the “strong female character” attempt, but also the “strong male character” and definitely the “strong LGBTQ+ character”.
Too many of these ...
They Make You Believe
Banes at 12:00AM, Aug. 24, 2023
A long time ago I read something, I think an interview with a respected screenwriter or something, where he brought up the movie “Rain Man”.
If you haven't seen it, it's about a struggling wheeler-dealer type guy, played by Tom Cruise, who goes on a road trip with ...
FEATURED COMIC --> Into the Bookwoods
kawaiidaigakusei at 12:00AM, Aug. 23, 2023
The Forest is home to a community of woodland creatures who have taken on the qualities of personified human beings while still resembling animals in outward appearance. Three librarians—Milly the Mouse, Martha the Weasel, and Sylvia the Cat—work at the Forest Public Library where they help select the ...
Quackcast 649 - Gendered clothing
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, Aug. 22, 2023 LISTEN on our player!
Or TuneinRadio - https://tunein.com/podcasts/Books–Literature/Drunkduck-Quackcast-p1150194/
When you're drawing people in a webcomic one of the common ways to indicate gender is by outfits, but why are clothes gendered at all and is that a constant?
Gendered clothing clothing is influenced by ...
Gender Toxicity
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Aug. 19, 2023
The debate on what constitutes a “strong female character”, whether having “strong female leads” or “feminism” is tanking “woke” films these past few years, is ongoing. There's accusations of toxicity on both sides. Misogyny, misandry, wokeness and brokeness, all of these terms and hot takes are fired and take ...
A Look at Books
Banes at 12:00AM, Aug. 17, 2023
I was thinking about the power of books in fiction - like, secret journals, diaries, and such.
In the show Supernatural, the brothers found a lot of information, help, and intrigue in their father's journal of his monster hunting exploits. I will say that it got harder to believe later ...