Entertainment
Kids Today Don't Understand Every Millennial's Greatest Fear
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
In the age of social media, generational gaps have never been more pronounced, from thinking of Jim Carrey as Ace Ventura, The Grinch, or Dr. Robotnik to “When you hear the name Rizzo, who do you think of?” It’s the same with quicksand: once a constant fear among Gen X and millennials, it’s nowhere to be found today.
For decades, especially during the 80s, Movies and TV shows would toss in a quicksand segment as if it were the most common way to die in the jungle, the desert, or the Swamp of Sadness (a bog is wet quicksand). Did Hollywood realize nothing could top The Princess Bride?
Quicksand Terrified Suburban Kids
Quicksand has been in movies since the beginning. It was a cheap special effect that typically involved a star kneeling in mud. The threat of a slow, agonizing death by way of suffocation added a built-in clock to the scene; after all, we can see them sink lower and lower into the ground. Water, dirt, and room to kneel are all you need to add a terrifying sequence to any western or jungle adventure.
One of the most memorable quicksand scenes is found in 1962’s Lawrence of Arabia. While a sandstorm is starting to engulf the desert, a young boy stumbles into quicksand, and our heroes run over to attempt a rescue using a strip of cloth. It’s a short scene, which makes it all the more terrifying when the boy can’t hold on and is sucked under the sand, never to be seen again. This is the scene that filmmakers spent years trying to emulate to add tension to their films.
The 60s were filled with quicksand, and when those kids grew up and started working in Hollywood, they brought their childhood fear and fascination of quicksand with them. By then, Blazing Saddles had already parodied the trope and few serious films were using it, but that didn’t matter, because the biggest fantasy and sci-fi films of the 80s: Krull, Beastmaster, The Princess Bride, The Neverending Story, Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome, even Enemy Mine tossed one in.
That’s not counting the cartoons of the 80s, which feel contractually obligated to include quicksand. G.I. Joe has some of the worst (or best) scenes, thanks to butterscotch quicksand that looks more like water (this is why Rick and Morty included a sign with the quicksand gun). For some reason, Cobra Commander getting stuck wasn’t the end of the trope; it appeared in the 90s in an episode of Baywatch.
Real Quicksand Is Annoying But Not Deadly
Oddly, it’s Baywatch that’s close to how quicksand is commonly found out in the real world – sinkholes. A guy is messing around on the beach, partially buried, when the tide starts coming in, and he realizes he can’t get up because of the water coming in from underneath. It doesn’t create a suction effect; rather, the liquid and solid sand mix together, alternating between being solid and porous enough that any bit of pressure causes them to part. Hence, the sinking, and why the best advice when stuck in quicksand is to remain calm and keep movements to the absolute minimum.
There’s something terrifying about the thought of being stuck in quicksand, unable to move, as any action on your part will only hasten your own death. It sounds like it would be great for a horror movie, except that real quicksand, which again, doesn’t have its own suction, is more of an annoyance than a deathtrap. Your knee might be dislocated from having to pull it out, but you won’t go low enough to drown, and it’s usually narrow enough that you can reach an edge and apply the bit of leverage needed to walk out. That’s where the generational gap comes in, because the science is clear and the reality of quicksand isn’t terrifying at all, but if you’re a millennial or Gen X, you can’t shake that feeling in the back of your head that there’s nothing more terrifying.
The use of quicksand in Hollywood has dropped to the point that kids today have no fear of the extreme danger that quicksand poses in their everyday lives. If they ever wander off into the desert or try to navigate the jungle, they won’t be prepared. Not like millennials, we’ve trained our whole lives for this moment, we’ve had countless nightmares about quicksand, and we’ll know exactly what to do to survive.
Lift your knee, step out.
Entertainment
Moon phase today: What the Moon will look like on February 26
Have you spotted the Moon looking a bit fuller night after night? This is because we are approaching the Full Moon, a phase in the lunar cycle.
What is today’s Moon phase?
As of Wednesday, Feb. 25, the Moon phase is Waxing Gibbous. According to NASA’s Daily Moon Guide, 70% of the Moon will be lit up tonight.
With just your naked eye, you’ll be able to see the Mares Tranquillitatis and Serenitatis are both easy to spot, as well as the Tycho Crater. With binoculars you’ll also be able to see the Mare Nectaris, and the Alphonsus and Endymion Craters. Add a telescope to this line up and you’ll see much more, including the Apollo 16 and 14 landing spots, and the Rima Ariadaeus.
When is the next Full Moon?
The next Full Moon will be on March 3. The last Full Moon was on Feb. 1.
What are Moon phases?
According to NASA, the Moon takes about 29.5 days to orbit the Earth. Over the course of this period, it moves through eight recognisable phases. While the same side of the Moon always faces us, the amount of its surface lit by the Sun changes as it continues along its path. The shifts in sunlight create the different appearances we see from Earth, ranging from a fully illuminated Moon to a thin sliver or near darkness. The eight phases are:
New Moon – The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it’s invisible to the eye).
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Waxing Crescent – A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).
First Quarter – Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.
Waxing Gibbous – More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.
Full Moon – The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.
Waning Gibbous – The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)
Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) – Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.
Waning Crescent – A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.
Entertainment
How to watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Atalanta vs. Dortmund in the Champions League for free on Virgin Media Player. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
The Champions League playoff round has been everything we hoped it would be. We’ve seen big performances, moments of real drama, and heaps of goals. What more could you ask for?
Dortmund beat Atalanta 2-0 in the first leg of their playoff matchup, but there’s still hope for the Italian side. Atalanta will welcome Dortmund to the Stadio di Bergamo for the second leg, hoping for a stunning turnaround. Dortmund need to be disciplined if they want to progress, as Atalanta are coming off an impressive 2-1 victory over Napoli at the weekend.
If you want to watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund in the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Atalanta vs. Dortmund?
Atalanta vs. Dortmund in the Champions League kicks off at 5:45 p.m. GMT on Feb. 25. This fixture takes place at the Stadio di Bergamo.
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How to watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund for free
Atalanta vs. Dortmund is available to live stream for free on Virgin Media Player.
Virgin Media Player is geo-restricted to Ireland, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Ireland, meaning you can unblock Virgin Media Player to stream the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Atalanta vs. Dortmund for free by following these simple steps:
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Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
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Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in Ireland
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Visit Virgin Media Player
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Watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund without committing with your cash. This isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream select Champions League fixtures before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for Virgin Media Player?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on Virgin Media Player, for a number of reasons:
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Watch Atalanta vs. Dortmund in the Champions League for free with ExpressVPN.
Entertainment
Abused Fans Lash Out Over Review Bombing Accusations, Hit The Wrong Target
By Jennifer Asencio
| Published
An article about Starfleet Academy has faced backlash from fans who were misled by its headline. The drama caused by the headline is almost worthy of its own Star Trek show, especially with Alex Kurtzman at the helm. The piece was a response to recent statements made by a Star Trek insider about the state of the show and its fandom.
Last week, franchise veteran Christopher Cushman made a post on X in which he implied that negative reviews of Starfleet Academy were made by a coordinated effort to sabotage the show. He also threatened that “negative review bombing of Academy likely to end the possibility of shows like Legacy as well put Star Trek into 10-15 years hiatus [sic].” By thus indicating that criticisms of the show are being made in bad faith, his claim is that all fans will be punished with no Star Trek at all.
In a That Park Place article by Marvin Montanaro, titled “Star Trek Artist Warns Fans That ‘Review Bombing’ Starfleet Academy Could End the Franchise,” the site called Cushman’s bluff, making the counterclaim that maybe a hiatus wouldn’t be so bad. He pointed to the long break between the original series and The Next Generation as evidence that a hiatus can give a franchise time to refresh while avoiding the fatigue of too much content from a single universe. He also highlighted that the show’s viewership reflects these negative reviews, despite its acclaim from critics.
The backlash stemmed from the use of the term “review bombing” in the title. Although it is in “scare quotes,” suggesting that the article is skeptical of this claim, many Star Trek fans dissatisfied with Alex Kurtzman’s guidance of the franchise and this show in particular thought the article agreed that the show was being review-bombed.
Creators Declare War On Their Own Viewers, Fans Revolt
This couldn’t be further from the truth, but the reaction is understandable. Starfleet Academy is not the only property to have accused dissatisfied fans of artificially inflating a show’s bad reviews, rather than acknowledging that maybe viewers don’t like the show.
After taunting Star Wars fans that The Acolyte would “make them cry,” show creator Leslye Headland blamed sexism and homophobia for the show failing to draw audiences. This ignored criticisms of significant changes to franchise lore that diminished the struggles of established characters. The show was also criticized for what viewers felt was forced inclusivity and overpowered female characters.
Legitimate Examples Of Review Bombing
In 2019, a review-bombing war broke out between fans of Battle Angel: Alita and Captain Marvel. Fans who liked the anime movie better were accused of sexism and attempting to artificially deflate the Marvel movie.
There is even a current review bombing war taking place between fans of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and Breaking Bad. When Breaking Bad fans left bad reviews of an episode of the Game of Thrones spinoff, so many Westeros fans review-bombed the older show that its IMDB rating for its pinnacle episode, “Ozymandias,” was reduced from a perfect 10 to a 9.5. The episode had held that rating for over a decade.
Review Bombing Accusations Are Used To Shield Creators From The Consequences Of Their Actions
It’s not that fans can’t be petty and leave bad reviews, but the idea that modern shows that perform badly are not being watched because of bad-faith reviews is a way of dismissing criticism rather than admitting a property isn’t connecting with fans. It’s a lazy way of handwaving what fans want, becoming increasingly common as more shows become about “the message” and “representation” than about story or characters. Many video games, books, and even music albums have also used the tactic of blaming negative reviews on bigotry rather than on fan dissatisfaction.
Cushman himself stated that he’d rather ignore dissatisfied fans. He finished his two-post tweet on X with, “…if you don’t like it, don’t watch!” Apparently, fans are supposed to simply stay silent about what they don’t like about a show rather than offer feedback about franchises and properties they love.
Fans Misunderstood That Park Place
However, the knee-jerk reaction of long-abused fans got it wrong when it comes to That Park Place. The site was not supporting Cushman’s notions about review bombing and listed several other reasons the show hasn’t succeeded. The backlash they received was from people who believed otherwise and criticized the site’s X account for allegedly claiming that the negative reviews were made in bad faith. It was clear these naysayers hadn’t read the article and only judged it by its title.
This reaction is an example of how sensitive viewers have become since their criticisms of unpopular properties are dismissed by producers and showrunners. Slop eaters will always enthusiastically promote their favorite bad shows, and plenty of entertainment is being served to them by creators who want their easy money. But viewers who are tired of slop are being decried, so studios can continue developing the content they want, not what audiences want.
It’s no wonder people reacted badly to a headline that sounded like it supports this callous view. Most fans are not reviewing these shows in bad faith, as their viewing numbers demonstrate. It’s condescending to be told that if we don’t like something, it’s because of our moral character and not a lack of quality in the product.
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