#just using blitz as my example again. it's not a masterpiece like it's not ''good.'' but it is a masterpiece

[risingsunresistance]

i dont know how to word this in a way that isn't mean but we NEED more "cringe" minecraft parodies. sometimes things don't need to be good, i think things that are "bad" are actually better. i have such a deep love for them even if sometimes i laugh at them or think they're kinda silly, they're the ones i go back to the most

captainsparklez i love you and your top-notch music videos but what happened to the guys with crappy mics singing over screen recordings of gameplay. or literally just a png or mspaint art. where are they. come back i am begging you

[notveryproductive]

thoughts on the last jedi (including spoilers) below the cut

generally, i’m a little perplexed about people saying it was the worst thing ever. i think certain people are reacting very hysterically to something that frankly i don’t see as a big deal.

in more specific terms... i’m going to try to itemize my thoughts and not jump around too much. here we go:

General Plot

To be honest, this was not a well-structured movie. Don’t get me wrong, I had fun the whole way, but it just didn’t let up for like a second. I mean, it did, but it never felt like the audience was given a real chance to breathe- things kept happening and happening. It felt like we had two climaxes and potential endings- the first with Snoke’s death and the shattering of the First Order fleet and Anakin’s lightsaber, the second with Luke confronting Kylo Ren and the Resistance escaping on the Falcon. The movie could have ended with the Resistance escaping to Crait, but I see why they didn’t. Just an oddly structured and paced movie all around.

R2-D2

as you all doubtless know from a glance at my blog, R2 is My Boy, so i went into this really hoping he’d get to do something in this movie, at least more than in force awakens. my hopes were not met, but my expectations were. he had a nice scene with luke, and we did see a shot or two of him being useful on the falcon. 

i had a feeling that seeing R2 in this movie would be a bittersweet experience, and I was right. they’ve done so much to show BB-8 as very competent, agile, and useful in various situations throughout the movie, in stark contrast to R2′s plodding tin can nature in the original trilogy. it’s clear that the galaxy has moved on from the old R-series droids, and it’s not fun realizing my favorite character has been rendered quite literally obsolete in-universe. i just wish they’d give him something instead of giving BB-8 all the glory. don’t get me wrong, i like the little guy, but i want my boy back.

Luke Skywalker

Kind of the “elephant in the room.” As alluded to earlier, a lot of people apparently had issues with his characterization in this one, but I’m really not seeing the big deal. No one can live up to their reputation as a purely compassionate forgiving person 100% of the time under every circumstance. That was kind of the whole message, that trying to project a perfect image to everyone at all times will only result in failure. I get that a lot of people are very invested in Luke as a character, but I think because of that they kinda missed the point. the hysteria surrounding his arc in this movie is frankly unfounded, at least for the most part.

I saw some people say that Yoda’s appearance was unnecessary. i disagree- i really liked that part, and it was nice to see yoda finally learned his lesson.

Also, anyone saying “ZOMG Luke is dead and never coming back, what a waste!!” are literally actually morons. He is so painfully obviously going to come back as a force ghost in the next movie. Did y’all even watch the same film I did?

Rey, Kylo, and the Force

Rey’s characterization was muddled because they opted to “tell, not show” her coming around about Kylo. She went from hating his guts and calling him a murderer with tears streaming down her face to suddenly wanting to redeem him, all because of a Force vision of his ~inner goodness~ that we didn’t even get to see. her character arc left more questions than answers- the “reveal” of her parentage felt false, but it’s unclear if that’s because kylo is trying to deceive her her or if the writing is just bad. the idea that her parents were nobodies makes an intuitive kind of sense, but i have a feeling this won’t be the last we hear of this.

i also walked away from this movie unsure if they’re going to redeem kylo or not. which, i mean, i guess that might indicate good writing if we’re unable to predict the outcome, but it’ll be hard not to feel a little cheated if he does end up redeeming himself, seeing as he’s been given multiple chances to come around already. still, the seeds are there for it- both rey’s conviction that he can be turned, and the fact that he didn’t shoot at leia when he had the chance near the beginning.

apparently some people aren’t happy about Snoke’s anticlimactic end, but i’m actually very pleased they killed him off. there was nothing they were going to do with snoke that wouldn’t have felt like a rehashing of palpatine. at least if he comes back as a force ghost or something that will be a new interesting angle. his death streamlines the conflict, both between kylo and rey and between the first order and the resistance. it identifies kylo as the threat, and the one with the sole responsibility to put an end to the madness, rather than as a helpless puppet of a more powerful master like vader was.

Finn and Rose

it’s hard not to feel cheated by this subplot. these were both good people just trying to do the right thing, and the narrative essentially punished them for it. literally nothing that went wrong in this subplot was their fault in any way- taking on the wrong codebreaker was something that just kind of happened to them. the twist that their actions led to ruin for the resistance didn’t feel earned.

the romantic turn it took didn’t feel earned, either. it feels weird that they’re introducing a new character to be a love interest to finn when he had more chemistry with both rey and poe in the force awakens. i’m not too concerned yet since star wars has definitely done romantic fake-outs in the past (we can all name the notorious example from empire strikes back), it just feels weird is all.

also, i have a sinking feeling that if they haven’t confirmed finn as force-sensitive yet, then they probably never will. but maybe we’ll see rey train one or two of the others as jedi in the next movie? i mean we finally got to see leia use the force in this one, so it’s never too late.

Poe, Admiral Holdo, and the Resistance’s Flight

Since when is Poe an insubordinate hotshot? i mean, i know he didn’t get much characterization in tfa, but he never came off that way to me. especially when he defied leia’s orders at the beginning of the movie, that seemed very out of character from what we know of him from supplemental sources.

also, holdo not letting him in on the plan felt forced. i saw someone theorize that she didn’t believe the first order really had the ability to track ships through hyperspace, but rather were relying on a spy or bug on board the raddus. if they had actually said this in the movie, that would have felt like a decent justification for why she wasn’t telling anyone the plan, but as it is they never explained this at all. it’s especially frustrating because if holdo had just given poe an explanation, or at least not condescended to him when he was just worried about everyone, then the entire subplot with finn and rose wouldn’t have happened, and the resistance wouldn’t have gotten screwed by their turncoat codebreaker. very obviously forced in order to make the subplot happen.

some people had a problem with the whole sequence of the resistance running away from the first order fleet. i kinda see where they’re coming from, but i didn’t have a problem with the concept. i think if i were the director, i would have had the payoff with the transports happen sooner, and maybe that way it wouldn’t have felt like it was dragging on quite so long. that also would have solved the plothole of why holdo didn’t just shield the transports with the raddus- if there was more distance between them, then she wouldn’t have had that option.

anyway, i don’t even need to say it, but the shot of the raddus hyperspeed-blitzing the first order fleet was the sickest fucking thing. my only complaint is that it retroactively presents the plothole that fans have thought about before, but the movies themselves dodged until now- why didn’t the rebellion employ this tactic against either of the death stars? why don’t factions in star wars use hyperspeed missiles in this manner in general?

oh! by the way, i think i have a justification for why the first order didn’t just use interdictors to prevent the resistance from escaping- they wanted to know where their hideouts were! i mean, tracking them to crait led them to that particular stronghold- if the resistance had panicked and jumped again when the first order ambushed them there, they could have inadvertently led them to another such hideout. and of course in hux’s hubris he couldn’t have predicted they would launch a ship at hyperspeed right into the heart of their fleet. that’s my theory, anyway. also, interdictors aren’t movie canon, so i’m willing to give them a pass on that one.

Final Thoughts

This was a fun movie to watch, but an easy one to poke holes in- bloated and flawed. definitely not as bad as the prequels, but that’s a low bar. still, i think it’s in good company with the force awakens and the saga as a whole- a fun movie, not a masterpiece of storytelling, with good scenes and not-so-good aspects.

Movie Rankings, Favorite to Least-Favorite (subject to change, and doesn’t necessarily reflect how I feel about the quality from an “objective” standpoint)

The Empire Strikes Back

A New Hope

Return of the Jedi

The Force Awakens

The Last Jedi

Revenge of the Sith

Rogue One

The Phantom Menace

Attack of the Clones

[auburnfamilynews]

Auburn’s offensive attack continues to improve and Saturday’s first half just might have been the best this offense has looked all season long.

It was a rough start for this offense in the first three weeks of the season. They weren’t necessarily bad against Georgia Southern and Mercer but eight turnovers in those games resulted in closer scores longer than Auburn fans wanted to see. It also just wasn’t pretty. Then there was the trip east to Clemson where Auburn’s offense absolutely imploded and wasted another outstanding performance by their defense. When Mercer made it a 7 point game in the 4th quarter, Auburn fans were ready to not only jump off the Gus Bus but set it on fire and send it careening off a cliff.

But then there was that delightful trip to Columbia, MO. An oasis for ailing offenses. Kerryon Johnson returned to the lineup and Jarrett Stidham was set loose on that poor secondary. The result was a feel good beatdown and some confidence heading into what was supposed to be a battle with a hard nosed Mississippi State team.

That’s when things got really fun. Auburn’s offense was as explosive as ever with 7 plays combining for 361 yards of offense and two touchdowns. All the right buttons were being pressed at the right times and Mississippi State’s defense was noticeably off balance. But Saturday’s first half just might have been the best offensive half of football Auburn has played this season. The Tigers scored touchdowns on their first five drives, effectively ending this game before halftime. It was fun to watch. But more importantly it showed what this attack can look like when the majority of it’s weapons are healthy and being used properly. Let’s take a closer look.

Improved Rushing Attack

First off, Ole Miss’s defense is really bad. According to Bill Connelly’s numbers, S&P+ ranks the Rebel defense 91st in the country. That’s not very good. However, that doesn’t invalidate Saturday’s results as it wasn’t the result itself that was encouraging, but how and why Auburn’s rushing attack worked so well Saturday. To understand that, we need to understand what had been going wrong. I have talked about this a lot in previous weeks but just to refresh your memory, here’s the three main things that have been causing Auburn’s rushing attack problems.

1.) Overloaded boxes

2.) Offensive line unable to get to the 2nd level

3.) Injuries at running back

Saturday, all three of those problems were corrected and the result was a dominant rushing attack that compiled 326 yds on 31 carries resulting in a very nice average of 6.4 yards per carry.

Let’s start with the math component. Here’s what the typical box looked like against Clemson.

Auburn has six blockers against seven defenders. As you would expect, the one man unaccounted for in this play steps up and stops Pettway in the hole for a minimal game. Clemson’s defense rarely had more than one safety deep and were keying on Auburn’s inside run game and quick screens. Now compare that to Saturday.

AU starting to get more favorable numbers in the box which is another reason running game as improved http://bit.ly/2kHZzhh

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 9, 2017

For most of the game, Ole Miss kept both safeties back which left an even number in the box for Auburn’s offense. The Rebels have six defenders to Auburn’s six blockers and that opens up a nice hole for Kerryon Johnson to pop through for a big gain. Why did Ole Miss not have an extra defender in the box? Because they saw stuff like this the previous two weeks.

Watch Stidham's eyes. Looks left first which brings other safety away from MOF. Then comes back to Hastings for TD http://bit.ly/2fQs4bi

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 3, 2017

When you start threatening teams vertically like Auburn has done the past two weeks then you start backing those safeties out of the box. The result is more favorable numbers for your run game which in turn allows big plays on the ground to happen.

But it’s not just having better numbers, it’s also about executing your blocking scheme. Auburn’s offensive line has been a work in progress this season but there’s been a noticeable improvement in recent weeks. A big part of that has been Casey Dunn’s emergence at center allowing Austin Golson to move out to left tackle and keep Braden Smith inside at guard. A chemistry is starting to form which has allowed this offense to do a better job executing combo blocks which in turn open up bigger opportunities for Auburn’s running backs. Kerryon Johnson’s longest TD of the day is a great example of that improvement.

Better angle of the masterpiece. Motion along with KJs first steps pull #43 out of his gap. Everyone does their job http://bit.ly/2xzQJZe

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

Auburn was not doing this very well early on in the season. A great example is against Mercer where Dunn doesn’t get off his man quick enough and the linebacker shoots through to blow up the outside zone.

As each week has passed, this Auburn offensive line has gotten better and better at getting to the second level resulting in an improved rushing attack.

Finally, you can have favorable numbers and great blocking but you still need someone to actually run the ball with authority. Kamryn Pettway was far from 100% against Clemson and Mercer and it showed. Kerryon Johnson has still been somewhat hobbled the last two weeks. However, Saturday gave us a glimpse at what this rushing attack could be with a healthy KJ.

Amazing how much more respect jet sweep gets these days. At least 3 OM defenders sucked in. Big time run by KJ http://bit.ly/2kIhwMG

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 9, 2017

Johnson is a complete back. He’s fast enough to beat defenses to the corner, quick enough to make guys miss and strong enough to run with power when needed. His biggest issue has and continues to be staying healthy. Hopefully, we can at least keep KJ at 90-95% rest of the year as he’s a very important part of Auburn’s resurgent offense.

Playing Under Duress

Speaking of getting better each week, Jarrett Stidham has come a long way from that first night in Jordan-Hare Stadium when he looked gun-shy and at times overwhelmed by the speed of the game. Each week he has improved but against Ole Miss I saw something that I have not seen much from Stidham this season, coolness under pressure.

Stidham was so much better under duress Saturday. Important improvement. Martin's pass blocking uh.. needs some work http://bit.ly/2xy173P

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

Auburn is using slide protection here while Ole Miss is sending a blitz off the edge. Golson gets beat by a nice swim move and Horton is slow to help. Meanwhile, Kam Martin gets run over by the blitzer (might explain why AU been hesitant to play him this season) and all of a sudden Jarrett Stidham has two rushers in his face. However, he keeps his cool, spins out of the pocket, keeps his eyes down field and delivers a rocket to Darius Slayton who makes a sick catch.

Stidham was even creating plays when things weren’t there, something he hasn’t really done all season long.

Again Stidham was making plays outside of the pocket Saturday. Always seemed under control and unphased http://bit.ly/2xzaW1p

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

All of Stidham’s options are well covered on this play. He gets good protection but recognizes he’s got to get out of the pocket before protection breaks down. Again, he keeps his eyes down field and Will Hastings does a great job of finding open space. Stidham delivers a very catchable ball while on the move and Auburn gets the first down.

It wasn’t just getting outside the pocket that was encouraging, it was also watching Stidham step up and deliver strikes even when a rusher was bearing down on him.

Finally use Barrett tendency against D. Watch #3 get sucked in. Great job by Stidham standing tall under pressure http://bit.ly/2xy187T

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

This is an incredibly important step in Jarrett Stidham’s development. This week the Tigers will face one of the better pass rushes in the SEC and still have teams like Texas A&M, Georgia and Alabama on the schedule who can bring pressure as well. He won’t always have a clean pocket but if he can continue to learn when to buy time to get wide receivers open and when to step up in the pocket and deliver a strike before the pass rush arrives, this offense will be really tough to handle down the road.

About that 2nd Half

I know a lot of people are very frustrated with how that second half played out. I feel you, so was I. However, on rewatch I am not as angry at the coaching staff as I was Saturday. The 3rd quarter especially was fine as playcalling is concerned but it appeared Jarrett Stidham had checked out. After going 9 for 11 in the first half, Stidham was only 3 for 8 in the 3rd quarter and a lot of those were misfires or him trying to get way too much on a play instead of taking what the defense gave him. It should be a great teaching moment for the sophomore and hopefully next time he gets the chance to close a game out he takes full advantage.

The fourth quarter though should have been handled differently in my opinion. I really wish Auburn had set Malik Willis free and allowed him to run the offense. Not saying he needed to be chucking it deep but it could have been a great opportunity for him to get some good experience running the offense. He looked good in the few chances he got Saturday.

Finally, don’t worry about the defense. Ole Miss scored 13 points in garbage time against Auburn’s second and third team. The first team Ole Miss offense moved the ball pretty well at times against Auburn’s first team defense but that was because Kevin Steele was going to give them everything they wanted underneath. The Tigers ran a lot more zone and two high safety looks against the Rebels than they have all season long. Why? Because when Ole Miss has typically scored this season it’s been on long plays. When the field shortens, they actually become less dangerous as seen by the fact they rank 6th in offensive explosiveness but 87th in points per trip inside the 40 yard line. Auburn’s defensive game plan was to let them hit those quick routes all day if they wanted too but not allow them to have that big play over the top for a touchdown. It worked as Auburn’s first team defense held the Ole Miss offense to 10 points. Expect a return to a more aggressive scheme this week against LSU.

Life has changed for the good when we are mad about not beating a team by 30+ points instead of 20+ points.

Touchdown Auburn

Auburn’s fifth and final touchdown came with 6:38 left in the first half. That’s the definition of starting a game fast....

Watch Cox on this play. Outstanding job against an end. Also watch how long it takes LBs to move http://bit.ly/2xy18EV

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 9, 2017

Auburn’s first touchdown comes on a sweep play with Johnson following Mike Horton outside. Great job by Darius James, Jalen Harris and Chandler Cox to seal their guys and open up a lot of green space for Johnson. KJ makes a nifty little move to beat the cornerback and it’s six points for Auburn.

What Dunn does on this play is not easy. Hell of a job. Outstanding effort from NCM & Hastings as well http://bit.ly/2kG0gbc

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 9, 2017

Touchdown #2 is a lot of fun to watch. Ryan Davis has been more of a move the chains option for this offense rather than a HR hitter. On this play though you get to see his complete skillset. The play action one way sucks in most of the Ole Miss defenders. Austin Golson gets enough of the cornerback to spring Davis but it’s Casey Dunn’s block downfield that turns this play into a touchdown. Great job of getting to the defender but also not getting called for a hold. Some great downfield blocking and some nice moves by Ryan Davis finished the play off. It was nice to see one of these screens plays finally break a long touchdown.

Great read by Stidham to see blitzing S & throw fade to Slayton. Nice to see 81 back on the field. He's a playmaker http://bit.ly/2xyCRhF

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

This might have been the best play of the game. Ole Miss sends their free safety on a blitz which leaves Darius Slayton 1 on 1 with the cornerback. Kerryon Johnson picks up the blitzer and Jarrett Stidham drops a perfect ball into Slayton’s bread basket. Heck of a catch by Slayton and he does a great job getting that first foot down. Auburn has really missed him the past few weeks as he brings a bit more speed with his size and has an outstanding catch radius.

Bo Jackson, your thoughts?

Bo knows touchdowns http://bit.ly/2kI0Xk3

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

We talked about the next touchdown above but here’s another angle of it.

The OL execution on this play is a thing of beauty. Huge props to Darius James on this one http://bit.ly/2xzImwC

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

The jet sweep motion pulls three defenders away from the play including the backside linebacker who overruns his gap. Darius James does an outstanding job coming off his double team and putting that poor linebacker on his butt. All Johnson sees is open field and scoots in for the easy score. This play shows how Auburn’s ability to attack teams horizontally and improvement in combo blocks is opening bigger holes for Johnson and company.

Somehow OM doesn't have enough defenders on strong side to defend this play... Easy TD http://bit.ly/2xxHQiR

— AUNerd (@AUSportsNerd) October 10, 2017

By this point, the Ole Miss defense was completely flustered. Auburn loads up the right side and for some reason the Rebels defense doesn’t adjust. The Tigers have superior numbers and it makes this an easy final touchdown for the offense. Auburn would try and run this later with Malik Miller but that time the Ole Miss cornerback was able to trip him up, not so much on this play.

Death Valley Part 2

Auburn has taken care of business the last three weeks and will now gear up for 3 straight road trips in the SEC. First up is a place Auburn has not had much success in, something I am sure you won’t hear mentioned much this week or in the broadcast...

This isn’t your typical LSU team. The Tigers were able to steal one in Gainesville but it wasn’t exactly a stellar performance. In fact, based on how the game played out they had a 24% win expectancy but a missed extra point proved the difference. It’s a team that is beat up on both of their lines and whose top two expected stars just haven’t looked right all year long. Everything about this game screams an Auburn victory.

But this is Baton Rouge where dumb things happen. I won’t for a second take this game for granted until the clock hits zero. Auburn should and honestly must win this game but I would not be shocked if that Bayou voo doo played tricks on us again. Here’s to hoping we put an end to this dumb streak and continue punishing LSU for letting the Mad Hatter go.

War Eagle!

from College and Magnolia http://bit.ly/2kILxME