It is definitely fan service but I think it’s “good” fan service in that it’s something we haven’t really seen before from an important character. And the scene is not just flair, it has the purpose of Vader trying to recover the stolen plans. But, I get your point and we will agree to disagree.

Agree with absolutely everything here except your take on the Vader scene. That is either the best or second best part in the movie to me, along with the Rebel fleet mobilizing and jumping above Scarif. God, I love that part of the movie.

When you set the game’s difficulty level to “novice”

I want to see this movie instead.

He is, get this, taking a position that a majority of Democratic voters agree with. Democrats are split on Medicare for All as a single payer option and it’s getting less popular as time goes on. I’d like our elected representatives to actually represent us.

You forgot: heroin overdose and dead by 20.

I think you can enjoy all of their past performances without worrying if someone is “cancelled” or not. If it turns out that Tom Hanks has been keeping a family trapped in his basement, I will still watch all his good movies. 

For someone with a Kindle or other e-reader, is there an app available to access these books? I remember trying to get an ebook from Project Gutenberg a few years ago and it was painful. My local library uses an app called Overdrive where you basically borrow an ebook through Amazon for free. Is there something like…

I just read The Left Hand of Darkness this year and it’s a fantastic story. I moved right on to The Dispossessed as soon as I was finished. 

forecasting a Dunkirk-like emphasis on unrelenting action

Hah! A better example would be the Italian cruise ship captain who abandoned ship with his date at the first sign of trouble.

Yeah, I was thinking the same. She seems to be one of the best in the country at tracking down police reports and revealing the true extent of things like NFL domestic violence cases. I imagine the narrative for this story has been handed down from the higher levels.

Interesting to see that this whole thread was hidden by Deadspin.

What is the “veneer of science” behind testosterone and athletic performance? It is well established.

Tour De France riders, MLB players, NFL players, etc. aren’t doping to reduce their lactic acid levels. They are doping to increase testosterone. Testosterone is a massive difference maker in athletic performance. You cannot control for all genetic differences so a line must be drawn somewhere. That line has been…

The Michael Phelps comparison is a poor one and not really a comparison at all. The women’s sport comparison to Michael Phelps is maybe Serena Williams, who everyone recognizes has distinct advantages over her competitors but it’s not remotely controversial.

I did not say they were mutually exclusive. I will use Hogshead-Makar’s well-stated point: relevant to sport, she has male advantages.

It is public knowledge released by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Rikki-Tikki-Deadly posted the link in another reply above.

She has XY chromosomes according to Hogshead-Makar. This is an INCREDIBLY important detail that all the Deadspin writers intentionally omit. That, along with the highly elevated T levels should pretty much end the debate.

DAMN this is perfect.