You don't understand the phrase "The Emperor's New Clothes"

I don't really get the 'cultural vegetables' thing.

Just had to come back here to relive the AV Club's most embarrassing rap review of all time.

On the one hand, yes this is a mediocre record and Jay-Z is kind of trapped in his now very boring self-mythology.  On the other hand, a line like "Its value lies merely in the fact that it has value." makes it seem like maybe you have never heard a rap record before. (Not an unfamiliar feeling at the AV Club, but…)

it wasn't a very godardian font

Borges.

Borges.

The lake thing wasn't SO far-fetched.

The lake thing wasn't SO far-fetched.

Simon on the lack of 'engaging story:'  "We very purposefully made a story about post-Katrina New Orleans that utilized ordinary people as characters. Musicians, cooks, a lawyer, a cop, but not people who are engaged in life on a continuously heightened basis. And that was purposeful and we thought that was the best…

Simon on the lack of 'engaging story:'  "We very purposefully made a story about post-Katrina New Orleans that utilized ordinary people as characters. Musicians, cooks, a lawyer, a cop, but not people who are engaged in life on a continuously heightened basis. And that was purposeful and we thought that was the best…

Glad we have Rabin to tackle this or else no one would have ever written about these two albums.  Totally necessary and not at all a waste of time or bandwidth, not at all an intellectually vapid retread of the hackneyed boilerplate "golden age" hip-hop criticism already written by a million other critics.

Glad we have Rabin to tackle this or else no one would have ever written about these two albums.  Totally necessary and not at all a waste of time or bandwidth, not at all an intellectually vapid retread of the hackneyed boilerplate "golden age" hip-hop criticism already written by a million other critics.

"Both revitalized R&B after disco left it limp" "Disco was bloated and old."

"Both revitalized R&B after disco left it limp" "Disco was bloated and old."

Wasn't the liquor store thing a joke/comment about how there aren't any banks in the ghetto? Everyone is waiting in line to cash their reparations checks.  Or am I remembering this wrong?

Wasn't the liquor store thing a joke/comment about how there aren't any banks in the ghetto? Everyone is waiting in line to cash their reparations checks.  Or am I remembering this wrong?

Yeah, this might be the most generic rock record ever made.  It's like a 'serious' version of Andrew WK

Yeah, this might be the most generic rock record ever made.  It's like a 'serious' version of Andrew WK

"Outstanding Achievement in Reality Programming"