#cruise critic

[marisatomay]

I’m reading reviews for the new season of IWTV (very excited. highly recommend the first season.) and they all allude to this Problem with a good chunk of the second half of the season and it’s kind of freeing to know that every iteration of IWTV will just have this inherent flaw where—no matter how you work it or how talented the other actors are or how compelling you make Louis or Armand or Claudia or Daniel—Lestat still disappears for part of the story and it kills the vibe because he is the driving force for conflict and you need conflict to make a story Go

[star-trek-fandom-confessions]

1368

I can see the appeal of the Star Trek cruise, but seeing how cruise ships are absolutely awful in terms of air pollution, water pollution, and worker exploitation, the cruise industry is completely antithetical to Star Trek’s ideals of a better future. For anything resembling a Trek future to exist, the cruise industry either needs to be radically reformed or better yet just die, and in the meantime, anyone who sponsors a cruise is kinda part of the problem.

[death-limes]

tbh i don't think i would even be suprised if it turned out the playbills were never even produced in the first place and were just part of a scam by spindlehorse and viv to make fans spend even more money on the merch package then they already would've w/o it by making it look like the merch bundle would have more than it really has.

yeah thats partly what i meant; i was also thinking maybe they WERE gonna make it but stuff went pear-shaped in the process and they realized too late that it just aint gonna happen, but they cant refund everyone cuz tbh they probably already spent the money

but yeah i also would NOT put it past them to have just planned this from the start, like youre saying. the super-dedicated fans have shown how easy it is to treat them like garbage & then placate them with cutesy bullshit; someone as greedy and unprofessional as v*vz*epop probably sees dollar signs at the mere thought. time for a fourth cruise this year, or a third taxidermied peacock to match the first two she bragged about buying at over $6000 a pop

[c-duceusclay]

���Sometimes I really miss Dorian!”

DORYM NATION, WE ARE BACK

[thekat-alystreview]

Movie Review - Top Gun: Maverick

I watched Top Gun: Maverick when it came out in theaters, but at the time, I wasn’t committed to reviewing things the way I am now. Some of you might be wondering why I’m bothering to review a movie that was essentially required viewing back in 2022. The real answer? I don’t owe the Hollywood hype machine my punctuality. Also, I just didn’t get around to it. But hey, if this movie can take 36 years to get a sequel, I can take my sweet time forming an opinion.

And honestly? It was… fine. Not bad, not amazing—just fine. I get why people loved it, but I also don’t quite get why they loved it this much. It’s a well-made action flick with solid performances, but for a movie that was hailed as saving cinema, I was expecting something a little more than “pretty good.” Maybe it was the weight of all that hype, or maybe it’s just not my thing, but Maverick didn’t exactly blow me away.

That said, I can admit when a movie does something well, and Maverick absolutely nails its aerial sequences. The action is top-tier, the practical effects are refreshing, and there’s a clear love for old-school blockbuster filmmaking here. The story, though? A little predictable. The emotional beats? A little forced. The characters? Hit or miss. It’s fun, it’s slick, it’s entertaining—but it’s also exactly what you’d expect from a Top Gun sequel made 36 years later. Nothing more, nothing less.

This time, Captain “Maverick” Mitchell, who by all logic should be teaching aviation history instead of flying million-dollar jets, returns to train a new batch of cocky hotshots for a top-secret mission so classified even the audience never gets a clear answer on who the enemy is. The film plays it safe but plays it well, setting up its plot threads with military precision and knocking them down just as predictably.

One of the things that really disappoints me is that the film introduces a promising new cast, only to shove them aside in favor of Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, who gets more screentime than everyone else combined. And look, I get it—Tom Cruise is the star. His name is above the title, his face is on the posters, and he’s the one sprinting full-speed toward the box office every time a blockbuster needs saving. But Maverick dangles an ensemble cast in front of us, only to use them as set dressing for The Tom Cruise Show.

We get glimpses of their personalities—Miles Teller’s Rooster is burdened by legacy, Glen Powell’s Hangman oozes arrogant charm, Monica Barbaro’s Phoenix has serious potential as the franchise’s first major female pilot—but the film never truly gives them space to breathe. They’re here to either idolize Maverick, challenge Maverick, or learn from Maverick. Their arcs are truncated, their conflicts secondary, and by the time the final mission rolls around, it’s clear that their primary function is to serve as a backdrop for Cruise’s daredevil heroics. Even Jennifer Connelly, playing Maverick’s love interest, gets little more to do than look concerned and remind us that Maverick has a love interest.

Hilariously, the enemy is left to your imagination. Is it China? Is it Russia? Is it Iran? That one secret part of Florida with snow and mountains? Nobody knows. Not even the government, apparently. Whoever they are, I really hope no one tells them we have our top-secret debriefings in big spacious aircraft hangars with the doors open, or keep planes in easily stealable places so rogue pilots can prove points to steely officials.

A rare moment of genuine emotional weight comes with Val Kilmer’s return as Iceman, subtly and respectfully incorporating his real-life battle with throat cancer into the film. It’s one of the few times the movie slows down and lets something real seep in.

Top Gun: Maverick doesn’t break new ground—it just polishes the old and slaps a jet engine on it. It’s a quintessential summer blockbuster, engineered for maximum nostalgia and minimal thought. But hey, sometimes that’s all you need. And maybe, just maybe, I should start reviewing movies when they’re still in theaters.

[kimwexlers-brownhair]

This is what Meg's set at the Phantasma should have been like

[musclesandhammering]

Finally made it to the point where I can enjoy all the cool power scenes in Loki without giving a shit about the fuckass characterisation, and I gotta tell you it’s a peaceful place to be 😌

[feralmamaofthevoid]

ROLLIES!!!

Also fuck FCG for doing that to Laudna again!

[retrokid616]

the bells running normaly

chetney

and that's it for me this week anyway like i said check out my new short i'll but in the post blog but until next time is it thursday yet

[neverendingford]

.

[dontthrowthewiimote]

Totk really is on the cusp of difficulty where anything less difficult can be beaten by children, and anything more difficult requires a difficulty adjuster to appeal to a variety of players. If Nintendo wants to keep down this road they seriously need to include an easy mode

[barry2018-2023]

it's so funny every time people see a story comparing a cruise ship to the titanic they're like "when will we ever learn 😔" jdksnd no offense but you have no idea what you're talking about.

[emeto-film-critic]

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back - 2016

SAFE/Caution - M•

•M• Sam says she feels s* and Reacher says to roll down the window. Nothing happens.

•M• Sam is nervous on the plane. Reacher passes her a paper bag and she says she isn't going to p*.

•M• Mention of I feel s* and p*.