That's part of it…probably a big reason why this generation doesn't freak out at the decreased personal space. I think the most telling thing is that even during the 90s, at this time of year, you'd have to drive slowly through residential neighborhoods to give the kids a chance to get their games out of the street. …

Something struck me while watching this show, and that may be more reflective of my own mindset than any authorial intent. Anyway, what caught my attention was that these kids had private lives, where they would wander away for hours at a time, and keep secrets from adults, and nobody would freak out. In fact, it…

Emily, consider that Mike's reactions to El have been primed by pop culture. He's treating her like a space alien because he and his friends are kids who play D&D in his basement all weekend, read X-Men, quote Lord of the Rings, etc. Eleven is his genre fantasy come to life. In a more realistic version of this…

Ashley makes, I think, some reasonable points about how the some of the material might have been in poor taste due to the rawness of the subject matter. However, it seems she is also saying that this issue is serious enough that a story about it should not permit any moral ambiguity. With all due respect, I don't…

Sure, you're right…I just wish the other writers could get it together.

I'm like hmm, interesting change, a newswire article that is actually funny…looks like they are FINALLY finding their voice after O'Neal's departure.

I'm still trying to process the Marissa Tomei thing.

Mew 2 the Jewels 2 Furious

I figured it was because of Tulip's "cooking."

Far preferred:

Rapping! The intended word was "rapping!" We really need to spellcheck these dolphin laws…

The opening credits to 300 should be over any minute now.

I'm now going to camp outside shooting ranges. This is going to be HILARIOUS.

This conversation has taken an unexpected turn.

It's really hard to tease apart the truth behind the numbers. Do black people commit crimes disproportionately, or are they arrested disproportionately? My old argument against profiling was (and still is) that if you base police activity on arrest statistics, then deploying more police to places with higher arrests…

I agree with you so much. I can't stand wading into either kind of partisan forum, these days. I used to favor progressives…conservatives are usually a lot worse, but they're both insufferable.

Ah, fuck these terrible newswires. I get the feeling that the current staff has revived the worst aspects of hipsterism to marry them with the worst po-faced aspects of contemporary progressive politics. Very millennial, very tiresome.

Well, I don't want to force my opinion; the question of whether it had flaws or was flawed is a matter of degree, and that degree is going to be subjective.

I'll straight up admit that I'm a bit of a snob about science fiction. I don't demand hard sci-fi, because it's impossible to be genuinely realistic about speculative fiction. But I still look for something that feels plausible, not a plot that just uses science fiction contrivances to create drama. I don't expect…

My ranking is quite different. Viva la difference.