For an R.E.M. pick, I was sure they'd pick It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine), but maybe they were trying to be less obvious?

That is indeed a great cover, but I've never been able to get into Pod. Not sure why—just doesn't do much for me.

I really like Last Splash, but I fucking love "Drivin' on 9".  Just a beautiful little song.

@avclub-2586d0717b58d4f4383144ca1341d079:disqus: Maybe it's because it's a little different than most Ramones songs, maybe it's because it's the first version of that song I heard, but for me it's the best iteration. (My least favorite is the Petty/Nicks version.) I was, of course, using humorous exaggeration, but I…

I will brook not criticism of the Ramones' cover of "Needles & Pins".  It's incontrovertably great, & anyone claiming otherwise is worse than a thousand Hitlers.

@unicyclistperiscopes:disqus : I enjoy the Falco mysteries, as well as Steven Saylor's Gordianus books (though they're tonally more serious, even grim), & I'm just getting into Ruth Downie's Ruso series.  They're all pretty well-written & historically accurate.  I do recommend them to my students, but I've never tried…

Stinking, rotten, maggoty, vile NEW ORLEANS!

VERA said that?  Huh.
(We still quote this line quite regularly.)

Sorry—shoulda given you credit for "petulant",@avclub-6997a8bd0e1042b70b60c5c879a1780e:disqus —just laziness on my part.

Well, that does indeed sound about right, @HobbesMkii:disqus & @rockmanj:disqus. Other descriptions of Caesar here, though, sound off to me—seems the "Spartacus" Caesar is something of a hot-head, & someone else described him as "petulant". The historical Caesar comes off as very self-assured & quite cool (not as in…

I don't watch the show, but I'm wondering how they portray Caesar. Your "adorable little Caesar" comment makes me think he's maybe not depicted as almost 30 (Caesar was born in 100 BC & the Spartacan rebellion happened between 73-71 BC).

Well, she's, you know, British.

Freedom Poutine?

To be fair, Hardwick has a specific definition for hipsters, that it's not so much about taste (what you like/don't like), but rather the affectation of not really liking anything.  Basically, Hardwick defines a hipster as someone who feels the need to publicly dislike things, & who only like things ironically.…

Dave Grohl on Nerdist was a hoot.  Side note: Grohl sure does say "fuck" a lot.

Real hard-core conservatives believe that we need to support Israel because, when Jesus comes back, with all the Armageddon & what not, the Jews need to be there, not the Muslims.  You won't hear too many righties talk about this publicly, of course, because it sounds fucking crazy, but there is an element who…

"In Israel, GATE keeps YOU!"

But people DO like Hardwick's comedy.  His "Mandroid" special just got a B+ here the AV Club, in fact.  I like Hardwick a lot myself.  That said, I haven't seen Walking Dead (& this have never seen "Talking Dead" either), which I think I would like less, based on what I've heard.

I guess this is a good discussion to have, but I wish people wouldn't worry so much about what they should or should not play for their kids.  The only thing I try to be mindful of is swears & age-inappropriate content.  That, of course, is a judgement call.  Apart from that, there are really only two things to…

Re the rollercoaster thing, a fun fact: As we age, the fluid in our inner ear thickens, causing us to get dizzy easier—one of the reasons (but I'm sure not the only one) why thrill rides & such are less appealing to coots.