We kick off our ongoing look at 50 years of the X rating with De Palma and De Niro

Plus let's talk about THOR

It’s Friday, July 22nd, and here’s where we are…

Okay. I like this schedule. I like knowing when I’m going to publish and being able to budget my time a little better. Monday is an installment of The Hip Pocket. Friday is a round-up of other pieces and thoughts. I can throw in special stuff, but you know you’ll have something to read on those days. That works for me.

I’m glad I’m not in San Diego for Comic-Con right now, but I don’t begrudge anyone who felt like they had to go. I get it. The world’s on fire. Literally. It’s hard to be mad at anyone having a good time. I have always had what I would describe as “crowd claustrophobia,” and going to Comic-Con for work was genuinely taxing. It took a lot out of me, as did festivals. COVID has simply given me a valid reason to opt out of that kind of massive crush of human bodies. I have to be able to work to keep money coming into my house. I don’t have a safety net. I can’t get sick. It freaks me out, thinking about losing three or four or five weeks of work. I don’t see how I’d recover. I would rather be over-cautious and remain healthy, and I sincerely hope everyone who opted to go in person also stays healthy. I just don’t see that realistically happening.

I’m sure we’ll see some cool new trailers and things over the next few days. I like the new trailer for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. We’re entering a new glut of fantasy, and in the end, it’s going to come down to characters and what’s fun. There is enough out there that I can’t imagine committing time to something I’m not enjoying. I’ll see this, certainly…

… and I will offer at least some of my time and attention to both The Rings of Power…

… which also dropped a Comic-Con exclusive trailer today…

… and as a big Game of Thrones fan, of course, I’ll check out The House of the Dragon…

… and I think both of those trailers are equally impressive while also finding both of them a little cold. As I said, I’m tuning in for both, no question, and I will give them both time to win me over. But at first glance, what I’m seeing in all of these trailers is the worlds, the impressive effects work, the production design… and at this point, that is the bare minimum I expect. I like that Middle-Earth looks like Middle-Earth. I like that Westeros feels like Westeros. Beyond that… who knows?