FDI Cast 161: The NOC Blood Feud
Whether we like it or not, we’ve stepped into a blood feud with the boss’ podcast! It’s on! Not really. Keith holds all the cards.
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Hard NOC Life 295: DC in Disarray (Feat. Cody Keenan)
Hard NOC Life will eventually go on hiatus. However, Britney and Keith couldn’t avoid talking about THR’s bombshell report that James Gunn and Peter Safran might be blowing up the current DC Universe after all. Later, Keith is joined by President Obama’s former chief speechwriter, Cody Keenan, about his new White House memoir, Grace: President Obama and Ten Days in the Battle for America.
Colman Domingo and Chris Rock Lead the Cast of ‘Rustin’ Biopic
Many heroes are lost to time, but legends never die. Bayard Rustin isn’t a name people know as well as Martin Luther King Jr. or Malcolm X. But much like his fellow Freedom Riders and speakers for justice, that kind of notoriety probably wouldn’t have interested Rustin all that much. Nevertheless, it’s a name we’ll all hopefully be getting more familiar with thanks to a new biopic from the ingenious mind of George C. Wolfe.
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An Ode to Anthony Bourdain
When I was eleven years old, I bought Kitchen Confidential from the tiny bookstore in my tiny hometown. At that moment in time, I was a picky eater, not well-traveled, and in desperate need of a Mother’s Day present. My mother had mentioned a man named Anthony Bourdain and a book he had written. So that was her gift for that year; she still has it to this day.
At some point after I bought the book, my mother and I started watching No Reservations on the Travel Channel. I always appreciated Anthony Bourdain as a storyteller, a host, and as a critic. Over the years, I grew out of my selective eating habits, I traveled extensively, and I began acting. Now, I live in New York City, I’ll eat almost anything, and I write for blogs.
Southern Fried Asian: Brad Jenkins
On the debut episode of Southern Fried Asian, Keith talks to Brad Jenkins, the Executive Producer of Funny or Die DC and a co-founder of RUN, an organization designed to mobilize Asian Americans politically.
8 Times President Obama Proved He Was Our NOC-in-Chief
For the last eight years, my president was Black. More than that, he was a Black Nerd, a Nerd of Color, the Head Nerd in Charge. After today, we aren’t going to see the likes of someone sit in the Oval Office as intelligent or intellectually curious as Barack Obama. His record in office speaks for itself. Because of President Obama’s leadership, 20 million more Americans have health insurance, marriage equality is the law of the land, and nerds of color were finally represented in the White House.
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NOC Recaps Supergirl: Justice For All
It would be an understatement to say last week’s Supergirl was the most anticipated episode of the season. Not only did it follow what was arguably the series’ best ep to date, episode 14 — titled “Truth, Justice, and the American Way” — was directed by the NOC’s favorite director Lexi Alexander.
Let’s Talk About Police Brutality: A Black-ish Recap
On last night’s episode of the ABC comedy show black-ish, the sitcom took a big chance and dedicated an entire episode on police brutality, racism, and the effectiveness of the American justice system. Although I only catch an episode of this show every now and then, I was made very well aware of this particular episode for some time because of its decision to center this episode on such heavy topics. And boy, it did not disappoint.
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Man of Steel: A Retrospective
Alanis Morissette’s hit track, “All I Really Want,” features one of my all-time favorite lyrics:
And I am fascinated by the spiritual man. I am humbled by his humble nature.
So this weekend I rewatched Man of Steel which still remains one of the most polarizing comic book films to date. The film is essentially a reboot of Superman’s origins much in the spirit of Batman Begins. As Kal-El learns of his origins and his purpose, he soon becomes tasked with protecting the planet from Zod and his invading army.
The verdict?
Nothing’s Wrong with Pink and Purple Bricks: A Defense of LEGO Friends
A few months back, an imgur post about a girl who turned her LEGO Friends juice bar Christmas present into a giant mecha went viral. And the internet cheered. Stupid gendered-girl LEGOs get turned into awesome robot, was the typical response I saw tossed around.
And while the robot was indeed awesome, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy about all of the ridicule that was being hurled at the original LEGO set. You see, my own daughter also received a similar playset for Christmas. Should she be ashamed that she wanted (and actually liked) to build the “boring” girly thing instead of the “awesome” robot thing?
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We Do Not Need a Wonder Woman Movie
We don’t need a Wonder Woman movie. Yeah, I said it.
I can scarcely imagine a worse waste of digital celluloid: flying spears thrown from thin, gangly limbs, a star-spangled miniskirt threatening wardrobe malfunctions for two and a quarter hours, unblemished ivory skin strained under gold and platinum body armor, practicality be damned. Wonder Woman the movie — fangirl nirvana, fanboy nightmare. Whenever people discuss the needless parade of White Anglo-Saxon Protestants who populate superhero movies’ starring roles, part of me appreciates their boredom with the obnoxious identity politics at play; what was The Avengers but a classic fraternity bro-down with human growth hormone, outdated mythology and colorful titanium tossed in for kicks?
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Nichelle Nichols, Original Badass
Black people were marching all over the South. Dr. King was leading people to freedom, and here I was, in the 23rd century, fourth in command of the Enterprise.
Star Trek first aired during the height of the Civil Rights Movement, between the time when Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Supreme Court declared prohibiting interracial marriage unconstitutional in Loving v. Virginia.
Nichelle Nichols, the actress who played Lieutenant Uhura, television’s first major Black female character who wasn’t a maid, did not at first feel the full weight of her role’s significance until after the first season was finished and she handed her resignation to Gene Roddenberry, the show’s creator.
In a 2011 conversation with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Nichols told the incredible story of how one particular fanboy convinced her to stay after all. She gave notice on a Friday, and attended an NAACP fundraiser in Beverly Hills the next day. At the event, someone approached her, saying he had a fan waiting to speak to her.