So as I kinda predicted, the latest entry in the MCU - Captain Marvel* - is going to be another billon dollar movie. Great movie - already seen it twice. I liked the mystery/detective nature of the plot, even if we all knew she would work out who she was eventually. The unleashing of her power at the end was exceptional. The twists and turns were great. Ben Mendelsohn's character was fantastic (and I love how his Skrull accent is just his straight Aussie one!). And the Stan Lee cameo was pure gold. I also thought the 90s setting worked really well, and loved Easter Eggs alluding to the broader MCU before and after the events in this movie (especially with Nick Fury ... I mean ... just "Fury", Phil Coulson and a certain Tesseract). And the music was pretty much spot on. Pretty much... And this is where the rant begins. The ONE musical cue that didn't gel for me was "Come As You Are". It came off as someone trying to be cool and grungey by putting in Nirvana's probably most-accessible song, without actually being OG fans. Not only that, but it just doesn't make sense - it comes on when we're inside Carol's head when she sees the Supreme Intelligence in 1995 (one year after Kurt Cobain committed suicide, incidentally), but she hadn't been back to Earth since 1989. How would she know this song?!? It just doesn't make sense (unlike ever other thing that happens in that movie)!! So, what to replace it with? Well, she DID wear a Guns'N'Roses shirt back when she was on Earth - how about a G'N'F'N'R song? And that's when I got it - "Rocket Queen" from the awesome Appetite for Destruction (which just happens to be my favourite song from that album back in the day). If you're unfamiliar with it, please enjoy:
Not only is the title perfect for Captain Marvel, but even the lyrics work (kinda) when she's meeting the Supreme Intelligence:
"Here I am And you're a rocket queen I might be a little young but honey I ain't naive"
Feel free to play it over Come As You Are when you're in cinemas going forward. Can't wait to see her (and the rest of the gang) in Avengers: Endgame! * For those unfamiliar with the Captain, this is a good intro: Marvel's Captain Marvel Prelude
So Axl Rose has finally released the next Guns N'Roses album - Chinese Democracy. Although the album has been causing problems in China for some reason, it's been causing even more problems in the Greatest Democracy on Earth. Seems that the good people at Dr Pepper, amused at the amount of time it was taking Axl to release said album, issued a challenge back in March this year, offering to provide everyone in America with a cool can of Dr Pepper if the album was released before the end of 2008. Because he actually did it, Dr Pepper provided people with an opportunity to download a voucher to get access to one of these prized cans, for a limited time. Seems fair enough in this modern age. However, according to the New York Times ("Dr Pepper and Rocker in a War of Hype"):
"The arrangement irked fans, who took to the Internet with stories of being blocked for hours from the site and a related customer-service phone line. And that irked Mr. Rose."
So, "Mr. Rose" (if that IS your real name...which it's kinda not but kinda is) then took the logical next step:
"On Tuesday his lawyers sent a harshly worded letter to the soft drink maker complaining of its “appalling failure to make good on a promise it made to the American public,” and demanding a public apology, more time for thirsty fans, and payment for piggybacking on the “Chinese Democracy” publicity."
The lawyers also asked that Dr Pepper run apologetic full-page ads in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and other papers, giving customers more time to receive their free soda. Apparently, similar sentiments spread across Guns N’ Roses message boards:
“If they said they’d give a free can to everyone in America,” one fan wrote, “can they really put a one-day time limit on it? Seems like it’s something that if someone took to court they’d win.”
PLEASE!! I don't normally get legal on anyone's ass on this blog, but I feel I must take my glasses off this once (i.e., like Superman - he was a lawyer, wasn't he?): What cause of action would you bring, sirrah? Breach of contract? Sorry, buddy, for a contract, you’ve got to give something in return. About the only person who MIGHT be able to sue would be Axl Rose himself, and that’s assuming he accepted Dr Pepper’s offer and in return brought the album out by the end of the year in order to meet his end of the bargain. And there’s no indication that he did accept the offer. Certainly, he had no corresponding obligations if he hadn’t brought out the album in time, and it’s going to be tough to prove he’s done anything he wasn’t already going to do. PLUS, what’s a can of Dr Pepper cost? A dollar?!? Go and buy one yourself, Dr Cheapskate! That said, you should really drink Mr Pibb, because, when combined with Red Vines, it is indeed Crazy Delicious. As an aside, I LOVED the Gunners in the 80's, and even a little bit into the 90's, though we all know things started to go south when Izzy left the band. I would still put Appetite for Destruction in my Top Ten Albums of all time. I even participated in the Calder Park debacle in 1993. However, I do not have high hopes for this album. No Slash and no Duff and no Izzy and no Steven Adler makes Axl something-something. But I doubt it's a good something-something. Anyhoo, now that someone's raised the topic of Top Ten albums, here's mine, as at November 28th, 2008. These are albums that just work, from go to woah.
My Top Ten Albums Of All Time (in no particular order, and subject to change) Appetite for Destruction – Guns’N’Roses Chocolate and Cheese – Ween Either/Or – Elliott Smith Master of Puppets – Metallica The Colour and the Shape – Foo Fighters Odyssey Number Five – Powderfinger (what? Seriously, what?) Surfer Rosa/Come on Pilgrim – Pixies (it was one album in Australia) OK Computer – Radiohead Going Blank Again – Ride Superunknown – Soundgarden (I know Badmotorfinger is probably cooler, but Superunknown is a great album, cover to cover).
I know all of these albums were recorded between, like 1986 and 1996 (except Odyssey Number Five), but that’s just coincidence, plus the music of my X-Generation was like totally the best. That said, I’m happy to hear any other suggestions… As for anyone who wants to diss my selection of "Odyssey Number Five", here's a clip of my fave Powderfinger song, which also happens to be my fave Powderfinger clip, and which also happens to be from "Odyssey Number Five"…
(PS If you want the totally approved version, it's here)
