I think this is inaccurate pedantry. In my experience, people DO figuratively call things "the best", so specifying that you mean something is the actual, literal best has semantic value.

I think the only way to make sense of this is to assume that blasters are top-of-the-line weapons that many galactic populations don't have easy access to, at least in terms of sheer damage. The sand people of Tatooine are shown using what appear to be conventional rifles, which seem superior to blasters in both…

I really enjoyed this even if no one else did.

What's a good prostate simulation these days? Call of Duty?

I got this on vinyl from Amazon, and I was surprised to find it included access to the album via Amazon's music service, which allows DRM-free downloads. Not a perfect solution, but better than nothing.

And we all fall down slack-jawed to marvel at words!

A whole Georgia o' Keefe, my friend!

And I was going to say it reminded me of Reign the Conqueror, but it turns out that's by the same guy!

Jeez, reading through these comments is just me remembering how many of these songs I love. Is there a better line than "so this is what the volume knob's for"? I am skeptical.

Woke Up New is such a perfect song. He played it at the first Mountain Goats show I saw—just him in a Phantom of the Opera mask on stage at an old movie theater—and introduced it by saying something like, "This is a song about something that will happen to all of us." I'd never heard the song before and ended up…

It is literally impossible for me to listen to that song without crying; honestly, it's tough to even think about without tearing up. "You were a presence full of light upon this earth / and I am a witness to your life and to its worth" gets me every time.

This might be my favorite AVClub comment of all time. Your efforts do not go unnoticed!

Not according to John Darnielle!

There are several Magic: the Gathering cards like this, and they always bother me. How could there be a Voltaic Key in a universe without Volta, or a Galvanic Arc without Galvani? THIS IS AN OUTRAGE

I actually spent several minutes trying to figure out what Hollywood project Stokoe had worked on. What a bummer to discover it was just a grammatical mistake.

I am surprised to find I feel the same way.

Wow, is this some powerfully stupid statistical reasoning.

We are agreed.

I would recommend
1) The Sunset Tree—the most autobiographical of Darnielle's albums, it's about his abusive step-father.
2) Tallahassee—a concept album about a dysfunctional couple destroying itself.
3) All Hail West Texas—probably my favorite Mountain Goats album, but it's from the bang-an-acoustic-guitar-and-scream…

Grendel Grendel Grendel
You did a lot of harm
Grendel Grendel Grendel
so I tore off your arm