Thoughts on The Giants Hiring John Harbaugh

It looks as if John Harbaugh will be the next head coach of the New York Giants. Let’s discuss.

Harbaugh was the most coveted coach on the market. When the Ravens let him go it was only a matter of time before he found himself a different team to take over. I know that the Titans, Falcons and Giants all really wanted him. I was kind of hoping, after their meltdown in the playoffs, that maybe even Green Bay would try to hire him, if they decided to move on from Matt LaFleur. I know he was looking at and talking to other teams all last week, and he finally went on an in person interview with the Giants on Monday. I read he was supposed to do an in person interview with the Titans, possibly today, but that isn't going to happen now. The Giants went all out, basically giving him everything he wanted, had current players sit in on the interview and it looks as if he is accepting the job.

I think the Giants really lucked out here. Harbaugh knows the game better than most. He has been around coaching his whole life and it feels like he has been the head coach of the Ravens for almost two decades. He has a Super Bowl ring, went to the playoffs most seasons and commands respect from everyone in the NFL. The Giants have a ton to fix, but hiring Harbaugh was damn near the perfect first step. I'm not too crazy about Jaxson Dart as the QB of the future, but Harbaugh seems to have bought in on him. Dart feels like a flash in the pan, I kind of wished they went with Jameis Winston a little more last year. But if he has the go ahead of Harbaugh, then he will be the QB of the future, until he gets hurt or flames out. And even/when that happens, Harbaugh has much of the same duties as a GM with the proposed deal he is about to sign to coach the Giants. He is not only the head coach now, but he has GM abilities now, so he will get to pick and choose the players he wants. He will have to get a real cowbell running back. Cam Skattebo is not the answer. He reminds me of Peyton Hillis. He showed up out of nowhere last season, has already capitalized on his "fame" and will most likely continue to get injured, especially coming off a torn ACL. The best thing that Harbaugh has on this offense is Malik Nabers, also coming off a torn ACL. Nabers is a legit number one wideout, he cares about winning, he wants to get better and he has all the skills to be a perennial pro bowl player. Harbaugh will need to fix the o line, but he does have some pieces. The defense may be a full teardown and rebuild, but this deal is meant to give Harbaugh time to build this team in his image. It is similar, though not as big a contract with as many responsibilities, to his brother's deal with the Chargers. Jim Harbaugh was lucky enough to have Justin Herbert and a solid defense with the Chargers, but he has built that team the way he wants it and they have been to the playoffs, with weak exits, two seasons in a row. John Harbaugh should have the Giants looking more confident and similar to the Ravens in a few seasons. He will most likely start with building through the draft, but I wouldn't be shocked if he goes big name hunting ASAP. New York is a massive market, guys want to play there, he is a coach that players like. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he goes after AJ Brown right off the bat to team up with Nabers. I bet he will try to get respectable o linemen on the free agent market. I bet, since he knows a ton about defense, he will rework the entire defense with both the free agent market and the draft. The Giants will have a high pick, and if he can get a couple of more studs to pair with Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux, this defense can be formidable as soon as next season.

I didn't know if I liked this idea of Harbaugh with the Giants. But after sitting on this for a day, this is a good move by both parties. The NFL is better when the Giants are relevant. They play in the same division as the Cowboys, so if they can beat them every season with regularity, that will make me happy as a Cowboy hater. And giving him some GM control was a good move. I don't usually like when a coach also has the duties of a GM, but a coach like John Harbaugh has been around the game long enough and has some ideas on how to build a team. I like this for both Harbaugh and the Giants and I'm interested to see how this team looks going forward. Time will tell. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "The Gutter"

I was looking through the streaming services for a movie to watch earlier today. On Wednesday mornings I usually go for a decently long run and then have the afternoon to myself. I usually take that time to watch a movie. I always try to find something I haven't seen yet and that was just the case today. While looking through Hulu I found the movie "The Gutter".

I remember vaguely hearing about “The Gutter” through Paul Scheer and his podcast "How Did This Get Made". The movie came out over a year ago, but I remember Scheer talking about it when I was listening to episodes around that time. He is not the main guy, he has one very funny scene in the movie, but he was promoting it a ton and when I saw it today his talk jogged my memories. I also saw that the runtime was just over 90 minutes and I was in.

As the movie unfolded I found myself laughing and really enjoying my time. For people who may not know, "The Gutter" focuses on Walt, played by Shameik Moore. He moves from job to job and lives his life kind of aimlessly. He eventually finds a job at a bowling alley, working in the bar. The whole interview scene, this is right at the top of the movie, was great. We get a montage of sorts of Walt's former jobs and this stuff cracked me up. The owner of the bowling alley, played by Jackee, plays off Walt pretty perfectly. She is funny, makes more jokes than Moore and she was a delight to see on screen again. D'Arcy Carden is a former pro bowler who now gets drunk at the bar everyday. She basically lives there. I have enjoyed Carden's work since I saw her on "The Good Place". In "The Gutter" she plays a totally different character, but she is still hilarious and great. She is the one who finds out that Walt is actually a great bowler, and they go on an adventure together trying to save the bowling alley where they hang out and work. This is the conflict in the movie, and this is the main story line. Watching Moore as Walt being this great bowler was awesome. I have found that I enjoy movies that take place in and around bowling alleys. I adore "The Big Lebowski". "Kingpin" is a riot. I love the episode of "Documentary Now" that focuses on bowling. I guess I find that bowling makes for funny content. "The Gutter" is now firmly in that camp.

As Carden and Moore go on this road trip, we meet a ton of people. Susan Sarandon plays the "villain" of the movie. She is Linda Curson, a former professional bowler and beloved by her fans. She is upset that Walt is about to take over and break all her records. She does some things that aren't on the level to slow Walt down, but when that doesn't work, she decides to come back and challenge Walt. She doesn't do the back handed stuff on her own, she gets help from Angelo played by Paul Reiser. Resier is the host of a bowling show and he is, quite possibly, the funniest person in this movie. He knew the task at hand and he was up to the challenge. He had the most jokes and I feel like they all landed. During this we meet some of Walt's cousins, played by Langston Kerman and Jay Ellis. They were both great. Rell Battle plays Brotha Candy and he was awesome. He is always monologuing and going on about what he believes in. He is also kind of the savior of the bowling alley in the end, minor spoiler alert. Kim Fields plays Walt's mom and she was dynamite.

Look, is "The Gutter" the best movie ever made, no. But did I laugh and enjoy my watching experience, absolutely. I said aloud to no one that I loved how goofy the movie was. It never took itself seriously. The movie makers were in on the joke. This was kind of like a spoof in certain ways. I also found this movie to be hilarious. I thought Moore and Carden had great chemistry, and I liked that the movie made them just friends. Their partnership was never meant to be romantic. And then I found out that Yassir Lester was the writer and director, and it all made sense.

"The Gutter" is a good time and a very funny movie. Go find this movie and check it out. I highly recommend it. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "The Toxic Avenger" (2023)

A while back I watched the original "Toxic Avenger". I had seen a few Troma movies prior to that one, but that was the main Troma movie I wanted to see. I had heard so many interesting things about it and the time had come to finally sit down and watch. And it was fine. It was pretty much what I expected. It was gory, silly, kind of stupid and upsetting at parts, purposely.

After seeing the original I happened to come across a new interpretation of "The Toxic Avenger". I saw that they had a solid cast and I kind of figured I would watch it at some point. Well that day was yesterday. I had some free time in the afternoon, I usually watch movies while folding laundry, so I decided to watch the remake, or reimagination.

What stood out right away to me was that this new version was going to be just as silly and slapstick as the original. The movie starts out with a voiceover by Peter Dinklage, he is the main character, but all the while he is doing voiceover, he is making jokes throughout. I was in from that moment on. I like Peter Dinklage. He was my favorite part of "Game of Thrones". I love his minor role in the MCU. His work in "Elf" is wonderful. He is as reliable as they come in Hollywood. And he is funny as hell. He gets to do a ton of jokes in this movie and I'm here for it. He also plays this put upon scaredy cat before he transforms and he nails that as well. And when he turns into Toxie, although the hero is played by someone else and voiced by Dinklage, his voice work is so perfect for this type of movie. I loved seeing him in a starring role in something goofy and gory. Dinklage has earned the right to star in more movies, and I hope he gets that chance soon.

Joining Dinklage is a pretty solid cast of actors. Jacob Tremblay plays his step son. He is an anxious riddled ball of nerves, and when he finally gets his voice, Tremblay does some good work. I had only seen him in "Good Boys" prior, which is an underrated movie, but seeing him in something like this was a nice change of pace. Taylour Paige plays a former worker of the corrupt company in the movie who is out to show the world how evil the company truly is. She is a very good actor, and I've never seen her do comedy before this. She is the "straight man" in this role, but when she needs to make a joke or a funny face or do anything comedic, she is up to task. Elijah Wood plays the injured brother of the CEO of the corrupt company. He is bald on top,  but has long stringy hair in the back. He uses a cane, talks with a raspy voice and needs an inhaler. He is head of security, but all I could glean security was in this movie was killing people who speak out against the company. Don't worry, minor spoiler, Wood does save someone near the end, but he still has a not so happy ending. And Kevin Bacon plays the CEO of the evil corporation, and he is so good as the villain. He is vile and mean. But he's also being controlled by a mob boss and he gets to play a scared person whenever that guy is around. Bacon has become so good at playing a villian, even in a silly movie like this, and he nails it here. The big fight between him and Dinklage at the end is pretty epic.

Besides the acting, the action and gore in this one is very over the top on purpose. Heads get ripped off, limbs get pulled around, multiple shots are fired to and about faces. It is an endless orgy of gore, but that is the whole idea of Troma movies. They purposely go over the top, and there's nothing left to the imagination. One of the bad guys gets half his head ripped off. Another bad guy gets his arm ripped off by accident. Dinklage uses a mop covered in acid to fight off the bad guys. They do a throwback to the classic fast food restaurant scene in this movie and it gets way more amped up and violent here.

This new version of “The Toxic Avenger” is, overall, a better movie because people make better movies now. That's just a fact. But I think I prefer the original a little more. I like the whole low fi idea of the original movie. But this one is still very funny and a good time. You need to know what you're getting yourself into when you watch a Troma movie, and if you can deal with the gore and goofiness, I'd recommend both the original and this reimagination of "The Toxic Avenger". They're a good time for what they are. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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My Vinyl Record Problem

I had been contemplating getting a record player for a while now, and on my birthday my buddy actually bought me one. This was very unexpected and very much appreciated. Believe me, I have thanked him many, many times to this point. Let’s discuss.

When I first got the record player my parents had given me three records that they didn't play anymore. They have given away most of their records because they no longer own a player. I played these three pretty immediately because I was psyched about my new gift. Then about a week later I went out with my dad and my buddy that bought me the player to go record shopping. This was great. I found three albums that I wanted to try out on the player, they weren't all that expensive, and when I got home all three got played. I also bought my wife a Fleetwood Mac album because that is probably her favorite band. Then I took a break from shopping for albums because the holidays were fast approaching. I got a few more albums for Xmas and ever since then my record buying has become a minor problem.

I was worried this was going to happen. Having a record player is wonderful because it means I have gotten back to listening to music daily. I was mainly listening to podcasts for a good long while. I still prefer podcasts when I run and when I do errands. But at home I have gotten back into strictly listening to albums when I do housework or any other chores that need to be done. This morning, after grocery shopping, I put on a record and did all my prep work for the week as far as food stuff goes. I chose to listen to "Good Kid M.A.A.D City", and having that playing in the background on my record player was amazing. When I play video games at home I have the record player going. My kids went with me to the record store over the weekend and each got to pick an album to have, and we have listened to them multiple times already, especially my daughter who was literally hugging her album, "Life of a Showgirl" after we brought it home. The record player was great simply because it has reopened my love for listening to music while hanging around the house.

But, the downside, as I mentioned a minute ago, the purchasing of records is going to become a problem. I can already tell. This was the main reason why I was so hesitant to get a record player. I was the last of my brothers to get one. All of my close friends have players in their homes. I would go to their houses and look and pour over each record they had and think to myself that it was time to get one. I just never went through with it. Now that I have one though, I'm fully back in on getting albums. As a teenager and early 20 year old I bought countless CD's. you can ask RD. He used to make fun of the size of my CD books, and those bad boys were totally filled up. I fear I may be doing that with records already. My wife got me a record holder for Xmas, and that is already half full. I mentioned my kids got records over the weekend, well, I bought three for myself on that same trip. I grabbed "Good Kid M.A.A.D City", "Midnight Marauders" and "Stop Making Sense". When we went to check out the total was much more than I had anticipated spending. I went to a local store about a week ago and easily blew about ninety dollars on three records.

I have been making lists of what I want to get next. My grand idea when I first started to collect was that I would only buy records I wanted for the album artwork. That was always a big selling point for me with CD's. I loved the artwork, especially the artwork in late 90's, early 2000's hip hop records. The more boisterous the better I thought. But now I'm simply buying albums because I just want to hear them on a record player. For example, "Stop Making Sense", the version I got, is just black and white with some writing on it. There's nothing too special about it. But I do like the simplicity of it. A few records I have, "Chromakopia" for example, have very cool artwork and cool inserts, but I truly love that album and wanted to hear it on a different player. "Igor" is very simplistic in its packaging. I try to tell myself that I'm going to buy the most basic record because I just want them for the music now, but even the most basic album costs anywhere from twenty two to fifty bucks. I got "Getting Killed" for twenty four dollars and I felt like I got an excellent deal. I need to pace myself because this will only get worse before it gets better.

Damn it I'm thrilled that I have a record player and I feel like a kid again when I go shopping for new albums. I'm not much of a looker when I go to stores. I want to be as efficient as possible. But if you put me in a record store, filled to the brim with music, I could shop for hours and be very, very happy. But I will also spend too much money and feel bad about it afterward. I hope this doesn't get too out of hand too fast, but at the rate I'm going right now that seems to be the case. Oh well, I guess the best thing to do now is buy more storage for the inevitable influx of new records coming my way. This is a good problem to have I suppose. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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The Transfer Portal Needs to be Fixed

There is a big, big problem with the transfer portal, and while I think it must stick around, there needs to be some kind of new rules put into place. Let’s discuss

To start off, I'm all for college athletes getting as much money as they can while they are still playing in college. For some of these athletes, this is the only time they will get paid playing their preferred sport. And for the players that are going to be picked to play professionally, they can start a nice little nest egg for their future. And I'm all for kids being able to move from school to school as much as coaches do. I don't blame any kid who was recruited to Ole Miss by Lane Kiffin looking to go somewhere else now that Kiffin has moved on to LSU. They had an idea of who the coach was going to be, that coach is now gone and maybe they were only going to Ole Miss to play for Kiffin. The same thing is going on at Michigan right now. Some kids have asked out of letters of intent, or some kids who came in from the transfer portal that were recruited by Sherrone Moore are now looking elsewhere since Moore is no longer the head coach. Those kids don't really know Kyle Whittingham, and maybe they don't want to get to know him. And that's fine.

What is happening right now, especially in football and men's college basketball, with the portal is pure madness. There seems to be dozens of new players everyday since the recent transfer window opened up that are leaving one school for another. What's worse, some kids have announced intentions to transfer while their current team is still in the playoff. I know that Ole Miss was bounced last night, in an epic game by the way, but their backup QB has already announced that they have committed to play football at Mizzou next season. I believe this same thing happened with Penn State last season. These players still have important playoff games to prepare for, but the non starters possibly have their mind elsewhere. That's not good. You need your players to be locked in and focused. If Trinidad Chambliss were to get hurt, Austin Simmons may not be all that hype to go into a game because he may not want to get hurt. I bet Mizzou coaches would implore him not to play at all. In a case like this, if a kid is already committed elsewhere, they should already be with that new team. And Simmons very well may be in Columbia, Missouri as we speak. But the sheer fact that Simmons was all but out the door while Ole Miss was still playing, that is part of the problem. Michigan has seen starters leave for the portal. Some have come back, but others are still in the portal. Brandym Hillman was a two year starter, but he entered the portal last night. TJ Metcalf transferred in last year, played the most snaps on defense for Michigan, and now he is gone. Justice Haynes, who started at running back and was the feature back before getting hurt, announced today he was going to transfer. Indiana is the clear favorite to win it all this year, but that hasn't stopped them from getting one of the top QBs in the portal to commit, as well as one of the top wideouts in the portal. Again, they have a game tonight, but that hasn't stopped them from bringing in transfers. Oh, and their current starting QB, the Heisman winner, hasn't declared for the draft as of yet. But they already have his replacement waiting to take over in Bloomington.

As of today, over 2500 players have entered the transfer portal, and almost half have already committed to new schools. That's insane. And I kind of assumed that the portal was going to be used for players who felt they have earned playing time, but haven't gotten as much as they hoped for. That seemed like the best option. Or even, the portal could be used for players who have one season of eligibility left that are playing at a "smaller" division 1 school to go play for a power 4 school and get scouted for the pros. But we have all kinds of players entering the portal now, and this includes guys who have been starters since they got into college football. I mentioned Justice Haynes and Brandyn Hillman already. Josh Hoover was a two year starter at TCU, but now he is off to Indiana. Brendan Sorsby started at Cincinnati last season, but that didn't stop him from almost instantly committing to Texas Tech after Oregon knocked them out of the playoff. Nick Marsh was the top wideout at Michigan State, but he is off to greener pastures at Indiana. Michigan got instant help on defense from former Utah edge rusher John Henry Daley, who was an All American this past season. DJ Lagway was supposed to be the savior for Florida, but next season he will be suiting up for Baylor. Rocco Becht was a two year starter at Iowa State, but he just followed his coach to Penn State. I could go on and on and on naming more and more players. It truly does feel like free agency. It's getting to a point where I don't even know some current starters on Michigan's team, and that is the team I love the most. I just started to root for TJ Metcalf and Justice Haynes, and now they're gone. I have to learn about John Henry Daley and Taylor Tatum now, among others.

This constant movement and constant change is going to do damage to the sport and to the rivalry aspect of college football, which is a big deal for college sports. The university of Ohio State and Michigan rivalry is still pretty heated, but the university of Ohio State has had two transfer QBs start the past two years and Michigan has had multiple transfers on defense. What will happen to the Notre Dame-USC rivalry when  players can transfer from one of those schools to the other. I know Michigan is in contact with some rival teams players in the portal, so I have to imagine the same thing is going on with other big time schools with players in the portal. The rivalry games are going to become just another game because there will be zero continuity with players. Each team is going to have new players every year, and that is going to do nothing but dim these supposed rivalry games. There's also going to be more parity, which is fine. But, with more and more players transferring every season, no team is going to have true continuity. The coaches are going to have to mold things to fit the transfers every year, and if you miss out on a transfer you went all in on, your season will be toast.

The transfer portal can be used for good, but right now it is the wild west. It is free agency. Players are going where they can get the most money, and maybe not the most playing time. To each their own, but rules should be put into place. There should be some kind of restrictions, or this is only going to get worse and worse every year, and it is already pretty bad where we are right now. Changes will hopefully be made, but time will tell. Until then, the average college football fan is going to fall off a bit when they don't get to know who the players are each year. You used to get four years to root for certain players if you're lucky. But now it changes pretty much every season and it is watering down the game in my opinion. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Thoughts on the Trae Young Trade

Trae Young was traded to the Washington Wizards yesterday. This has been a deal in the making for about a week now, but I did not think it would end up with Young playing for the Wizards. Let’s discuss.

When I first heard about his trade request, the two teams first mentioned were the Timberwolves and Nets. These two teams made some kind of sense to me. The Timberwolves need a true, real deal point guard and that is exactly what Trae Young has been since he entered the league. I didn't know how this would work on the Timberwolves end, but that didn't make it make any less sense. The Timberwolves already have a real deal star of the team in Anthony Edwards. He is the most important player on the team and he has the keys to the car. He is their leader and most important player. I don't think Young would take to that so well. You could see some fracturing on the Hawks with Jalen Johnson emerging as an all star candidate. They also took Zach Rissache number one overall in last year's draft. And they have some other young players that they may want to build the team around. Young wasn't the player to build around anymore on the Hawks, and he would be the third or fourth option if he were to join the Timberwolves. Besides Edwards, the Wolves like to feed Rudy Gobert from time to time in the low post. Sometimes the offense goes through Julius Randle occasionally, and even a guy like Naz Reid gets to run the bench unit. Young may have given the Timberwolves a true point guard, but I feel like he would have been almost instantly unhappy at his place and role on that team.

The Nets actually made the most sense to me because they have picks and young players looking to prove themselves. And playing for the Nets would give Young a humongous market, Brooklyn, and he would be the number 1 option by a mile. I would have to imagine the Hawks would have wanted picks, which the Nets could provide, but I also think the Hawks would have wanted some of their young shooters. I would have asked for Michael Porter Jr first. He is having a breakout season and he would be a perfect replacement for Trae Young in Atlanta. If they wanted a pure scorer, they could have asked for Cam Thomas. He may not pass much, and he isn't the best defender in the NBA, but the dude is a microwave when his shot is falling. If they wanted an unproven guy they could have asked for Egor Denim. He is a rookie and he pretty much only shoots threes. But if he can hone that skill and become a lesser Kyle Korver, he could bring spacing to Atlanta. And if they wanted to go big for some reason, why not ask for Nic Claxton. He is young and a good rim runner and rebounder and he could bring more energy to a younger roster in Atlanta. But Brooklyn didn't happen either.

Then, as I was writing yesterday, I saw that Young all of the sudden wanted to go to Washington and Atlanta was willing to try and make that happen. I was confused, but hey, if that was where he wanted to play, why not go for it. Throughout the afternoon I had to imagine both sides were working on a deal. Then it was announced that a few of the Wizards players were "healthy" scratches right before their game. That was the only evidence we all needed. Pretty soon after that Young was traded to the Wizards for Corey Kispert and CJ McCollum. After the trade came out and the players were mentioned, I was unmoved. The deal seemed to be very boring and dull. The only true "star" in the trade was Trae Young, and his star is starting to fade. McCollum had his moment, but he is now your typical veteran journeyman. And Corey Kispert is no better than a bench player. He can score here and there, but he is not a name that moves the needle all that much. The Wizards got the guy that wanted to be there. And Trae Young is going to be able to do whatever he wants. They won't win much, and I wonder if a guy like Alex Sarr, who is having a solid second season, will grow frustrated playing with such a ball dominant guard. And the Wizards are not going to win all that much with the addition of Young. As for the Hawks, they have been a bit of a disappointment so far, and while they played well without Young earlier this year, I don't know if that will happen again. And bringing in Kispert and McCollum doesn't really help or hurt them all that much. They added two decent shooters, but neither is as good as Young. And they don't make defenses shift as much as Young did for them.

This trade feels odd and unfulfilling. I don't really think either team got better. Young got to go where he wanted, and the Hawks got two shooters, but I don't think either team will see any real difference in their records for the rest of the season. Maybe this is just the start of a wild trade deadline. Time will tell. But this trade isn't as juicy as it could have been. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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The Prophetic Vision of the Classic Movie "Blue Chips"

I just finished watching the movie "Blue Chips" for what must be my tenth time. This movie predicted the future. Let’s discuss.

This was an important movie to me as a kid because it is all about college basketball and they have a ton of scenes involving game action. I remember my dad and his assistant basketball coach taking a bunch of us to see it when we were 12, the movie came out in 1994, and that memory has always stuck with me. I think about it often. We got to see a movie based on a sport we all loved and we all had dreams of being college basketball players at the time. I can also vividly remember going to play basketball with some of my teammates after seeing the movie. After watching it we had to go play. We had to blow off steam. And I also remember, after seeing the movie, how much I stood with Nick Nolte, he played the coach of the team. As a 12 year old I always equated the coach as the boss. They were in charge, they ran the show and whatever they said, that was the law. So when he decided he was going to go to the boosters and whatnot to get the players they needed to return to relevancy, I was devastated. He was breaking the rules to win again. It bummed me out. I sided with the writer, played by Ed O'Neil, who constantly pushed and questioned every recruiting move. I thought Nolte's ex wife was right to chastise him. She should have anyway because he lied to her, but she seemed more angry about the recruiting violations. The AD and the assistant coaches all tried to turn a blind eye, but Nolte was hell bent on getting these top recruits, no matter what it took. And I looked at someone like the character of Ricky Roe as a total scumbag. He asked for money and he did it in a very slimy way. And the villain of all villains in "Blue Chips" was Happy, played by JT Walsh. He was the booster who paid everyone. He helped the football and basketball teams stay in the top 25. He made sure they were a perennial power by any means necessary. And boy oh boy did 12 year old me despise Happy. He was the worst. I couldn't believe what he would do just to keep a college program relevant. And when Nolte called him out at the press conference after they won their first game with the new players, I openly applauded in the theaters. I didn't care what my friends and coaches thought. Nolte was standing up for what was right, or so I believed.

After finishing the movie again yesterday, I'm here to say, justice for Happy. He was right. He was doing NIL before it was legal. He has a line early in the movie where he is talking to Nolte about him signing six figure deals to be a coach, then six figure deals to wear certain brands and how pathetic it is that a coach can cash in on this money, but the players get nothing. He was absolutely correct in his assessment. He also takes care of all of the action without coaches knowing anything. That has to be the dream for college coaches. And Happy didn't focus on one sport, he was doing this for multiple athletic programs at the fictional university in the movie. That is what every agent in America is doing right now for athletes in the NIL era. They made Happy out to be such a slimy and smarmy scumbag, but he was the only person who understood and gave the college athletes what they deserve. I have talked so much about this on the website and the podcast, but college athletes bring in so much money, especially to big universities, and all they used to get was a full scholarship. That's a drop in the bucket for these universities that make billions off their athletics. Happy knew that and he made a choice to give the athletes their worth. NIL has only been a thing for a few years now, and it is a true mess, they need to find a way to sanction some stuff and make new rules, but the best thing about NIL is these college athletes are finally able to make money for themselves. They don't have to live on stipends until they get to the pros, if they get to the pros. Happy was just taking care of the athletes. He is not the villain. The villain is Bob Cousy, who played the AD. The villain is Nick Nolte for chastising these kids and boosters. The villain is Ed O'Neil for being a grown man obsessed with the lives of college students.

Justice for Happy. And if you've never seen "Blue Chips", do yourself a favor and check it out. It is a moment in time movie and it is one of the better ones out there. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

Last weekend my wife and I watched "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery". Let’s discuss.

I enjoyed the first two movies in the series. I think the first movie is incredible and I don't get the hate that the second movie got after it was released. I thought the second movie was very funny in fact. I have always enjoyed the murder mystery genre, and when the powers that be make it a little funny, that is right in my wheelhouse. My son saw a few minutes of this most recent one and he asked my wife and I if it was like "Clue". I feel like that was a very apt comparison. I thought he hit it on the nose. And "Clue" is a classic. I feel like the "Knives Out" series has brought the essence of "Clue" into the 21st century. These are funny and fun murder mystery movies. I know that they have said that Agatha Christie stories are the inspiration, and while that may be true, these are much funnier than any Agatha Christie novel. That is what appeals to me.

And this new one starts with comedy at the very top. We see this newish priest, played by Josh O'Connor, and he is pleading with the board to keep him on hand. Apparently he has punched a church goer in the face for something they have said that rubbed him the wrong way. We never learn what this person said, but this new priest is passionately pleading his case. Josh O'Connor is so great in this role. I don't know much about him, but in this movie he was so good. He portrayed this new priest as what I imagine someone in his generation would be like. He was passionate and opinionated, but he also knew his purpose in life and was going to fulfil that no matter what. I thought he was funny and compassionate and I was there for it. Jeffrey Wright, in a small role, plays O'Connor's mentor of sorts and he was perfect. He has such a commanding and powerful voice and you buy every word out of his mouth. When O'Connor gets put into his new church, this is where the movie truly starts to roll. He is placed in a small church in small town New York, and the characters that this church has are second to none, Josh Brolin is the main guy and he is a piece of work. He plays a version of this new wannabe alpha male who just happens to have an audience. He is mean and spiteful. He goes after what he wants with blinders on. Brolin, who seems to be in every good movie lately, does a fine job playing this butthead of a character. He goes for it and lands the jump. The community is made up of some wonderful actors. Kerry Washington has a "kid", played by Daryl McCormack, and he is a piece of work. He's entitled and a prick. He is a prototypical new age republican. This actor is great. Washington is phenomenal as the put upon lady in her family. They push her aside and make her do all the dirty work and she does it until she cannot take it anymore. And when she exposes information, that is a powerful performance, Cailee Spaeny is very good as the former cellist who has turned to the church to try and help her get over a serious injury. She is the joker who got sukered into thinking money and faith could help her heal. Jeremy Renner is very good in a very different role for him. He is a drunk whose wife left him. He will do anything to get her back, but he goes about it the wrong way. He is a pushover and a follower. Andrew Scott is a sci-fi writer who, much like Renner, will fall in line with the group. He has some of the best comedy readings in the movie and his fate at the end was hilarious and fitting. Thomas Haden Church plays a hard working guy who just wants what is best for his partner. Church continues to prove he is a capable actor. His partner is played by Glenn Close and she has the best performance by anyone in this movie, and it is not even close. She is wonderful as the keeper of the church and her arc is such a joy to watch in this role. Mila Kunis plays a cop and she is so understated and does a wonderful job using cop jargon and going about her business. And then we have Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc. This is such a fun role for him and he seems to be having a grand old time playing this detective. He chews scenery in the best way possible and I really love seeing Blanc on screen.

This third installment is fun, funny and a well done movie. I thoroughly enjoyed all two and a half hours, and it flew by. I cannot recommend this movie enough, especially if you have seen both, or even one of the previous movies. I believe you will find it as enjoyable as the others.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Predicts the 2026 NFL Playoffs

Now that the NFL playoffs are officially set I am coming to you all with my predictions and preview. I'll do what I normally do, pick each round, pick the Super Bowl matchup and winner and then pick the MVP of the Super Bowl. Enough preamble, let's get to it.

I'll start with the AFC.

The Denver Broncos are the number 1 seed and that means they have earned the first round bye. I think the bye will be a much needed break and they will get everyone right before their first playoff game.

The 2-7 matchup features the New England Patriots facing the Los Angeles Chargers. This is an interesting matchup. The Patriots are a very, very good team. They are also very inexperienced. This will be a lot of the players' first time in the playoffs, and that is a whole other animal. The Chargers are up and coming and they were in the playoffs last season. Jim Harbaugh is a very good coach as well and he will have his guys ready to play. He rested them all yesterday as well, so they will be good to go. Drake Maye is younger and more mobile than Justin Herbert. Herbert has a better arm though. Both teams have a very solid run game with two guys that bring different elements. The Chargers have a better receiving corps in my opinion. I think both defenses are pretty good too. The Chargers frustrate their opponents to no end and the Patriots like to hit and cause turnovers. I'm going with the Chargers here because they have more experience. The Patriots are coming, but they have to feel some pain before they feel the glory.

The 3-6 game has the Buffalo Bills heading to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars. The Jags are having a remarkable season. I didn't expect this from them this season. I figured they needed one season under their new coach before they got good. They are good now. The Bills have been up and down all season. The offense comes and goes and the defense is not as reliable as they were in the past. Josh Allen is still very good and they have the NFL's leading rusher, James Cook. This game is very similar to the 2-7 matchup. We have youth and inexperience going up against inconsistency and experience. I'm going with the experience again. I'm taking the Bills. here.

The 4-5 game is pretty solid with the Houston Texans going to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. Look, the Steelers lucked their way into this game. Mike Tomlin is a great coach, they have an okay defense, but they are relying on an old QB and they have no run game. The Texans have been on a heater and that is going to continue this weekend. I would go as far to say that they are going to smoke the Steelers. Houston is young but experienced. They have the better QB and receiving corps. Their defense is overall better too. I'm going with the Texans.

So that means the Texans would face the Broncos and the Bills will play the Chargers. The Bills are going to beat the Chargers. The game will be in Buffalo, the Chargers don't like the cold and Josh Allen and James Cook can control the game on the ground. The Broncos and Texans could be a high scoring affair, with Stroud and Nix taking turns going up and down the field. I'm going to go with the Texans since they are an experienced team with something to prove.

That means I have the Texans and Bills playing in the AFC title game and I'm going to go with the Bills, The game will be in Houston, but that means that it will be indoors, and the Bills can once again control the clock with their run game. The Bills will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

On to the NFC.

The Seahawks are the one seed, which they earned this past weekend, and they get the bye in the NFC.

The 2-7 game has the Chicago Bears facing the Green Bay Packers for the third time this season. The Bears are proving to be a better team this year. And with the injuries to Jordan Love and Josh Jacobs, who knows who will end up playing for Green Bay this weekend. The Packers have played the Bears well all year, but they weren't able to close them out in their last matchup. Caleb Williams is having a very good season, he has a solid o line and weapons on the outside. And the Bears defense is very opportunistic. The Packers have really stumbled to end the season and they will go out with a whimper in Chicago.

The 3-6 game has the San Francisco 49ers going to Philadelphia to face the Eagles. This will be a good, hard fought low scoring game. The 49ers couldn't move the ball on the Seahawks last week, and they will struggle to do the same here. Brock Purdy is so much better when he doesn't have to win a game. He needs to game manage. Christian McCaffrey is still good, but a step slower. The wideouts are mediocre and George Kittle is too busy complaining about hip drop tackles. The Eagles have been wildly inconsistent and their offense has looked sloppy. Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley are not having the same year as they had last year. AJ Brown is disgruntled and Devonta Smith is getting the targets he has earned. That being said, the Eagles defense is better than the 49ers defense and the game is in Philly. The Eagles will advance to the next round.

The 4-5 game has the Carolina Panthers hosting the LA Rams. How on Earth is Carolina here? They needed someone else to win to get them in this game. Bryce Young was better this year, but he still has a lot of work to do. Rico Dowdle is an effective pass catcher. They are too reliant on a rookie wideout and the defense is blah. The Rams have stumbled to the end of the year, but they are so, so much better than the Panthers. Stafford has won a Super Bowl. Puka Nacua is one of the better wideouts in the league. Kyren Williams and Blake Corum are an awesome one two punch out of the backfield. And Sean McVay is the best coach in all of football. This is an easy pick. The Rams advance.

That means I have the Rams playing the Seahawks and the Eagles playing the Bears. I would have easily picked the Rams a few weeks ago to beat the Seahawks, but not anymore. The Seahawks have a relentless defense and they cause turnovers. The offense is capable and solid. Sam Darnold has proved his worth and their run game is very good. The Seahawks defense is so much better than the Rams and that will lead them to a win. The Bears-Eagles game will be fascinating. The Eagles have been so underwhelming, but the Bears are so inexperienced. The game will be in Chicago, but the Eagles don't seem to care about where they play. I'm going to go with the Eagles, but I bet this game will finish with a score of something like 10-7. It will be sluggish and dull.

So that means I have the Seahawks and Eagles in the NFC title game. At the start of the season I picked a Bills-Eagles Super Bowl, but that's not the case anymore. I think the Seahawks will crush the Eagles, especially at home. They are a much better team as of right now and they have a much more invested coaching staff. The Seahawks will make their way to the Super Bowl.

That means my Super Bowl matchup will be the Bills from the AFC playing the Seahawks from the NFC. And I'm still going with the Bills, my preseason pick. If they can get through the AFC relatively unscathed I think they can turn that into a Super Bowl victory. I have the Bills winning it all this year, and in a twist of fate, give me James Cook who I think will have a big game running and catching the ball.

There you have it, my NFL playoff preview and predictions. Enjoy the playoffs everyone. 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Indiana is a Very Good Football Team

When I turned on the Rose Bowl yesterday I thought I was going to watch a good quality game, hard fought, close and eventually Alabama winning in the fourth quarter. Indiana has had a wonderful season, but I figured it was all going to come crashing down against a reliable SEC team.

And as the game started, it kind of looked like that was going to be the case. Both teams were kind of feeling each other out, defense was ruling the day and both QB's looked a little shell shocked. But then Indiana flipped a switch and absolutely took the game over. And believe me, I understand that they have the Heisman winner at QB in Fernando Mendoza, but he didn't have to do much to win this game for the Hoosiers. That's what stuck out to me the most. This Indiana offense has been wildly efficient and  a high scoring unit all season long, but it doesn't have to come from the pass game every game day. The offensive line is big and mean and nasty. They want to hit you and want to make you feel each and every hit. The running backs, they played two yesterday, are both bruising and can get to the outside. They embrace contact and fight until they cannot fight anymore. Mendoza did a fine job managing the game and making throws when he needed to, and the wideouts made the necessary plays and catches when called upon. But it was the o line that wore out the Alabama front seven, and the running game helped them control the clock and wear their opponent down throughout the game.

Also, this Indiana defense is truly elite. They may be the best unit in all of college football this season. I thought that the university of Ohio State had the best defense after seeing them suffocate Michigan, but Indiana suffocated them, and then made Alabama look pedestrian. And Indiana is doing this with guys on defense that are "no name" guys or guys that were light recruited. What stood out most to me watching this Indiana defense yesterday is that everyone knows their role, plays their part and loves to hit. Indiana's defensive backs were coming up in coverage and popping guys. The d line and linebackers were crushing the Bama running backs. There was a play where Ryan Williams made a catch over the middle in the second quarter and he got absolutely lit up. He held onto the ball and flexed, but after that I don't believe he went over the middle the rest of the game. The Indiana secondary got in his head. They also hit Ty Simpson time and again, and on one play they hit him so hard he fumbled and it was later revealed that his ribs were broken on that very play. Simpson ended up missing most of the second half due to that hit. Indiana does have guys that were All Big 10 players, but none of the guys are household names, and I bet that is exactly how they want it. They didn't have to prove anything to me, but boy did they show me that they are for real and a legit favorite to win the whole thing this season.

The Hoosiers are a complete and full team. They have everything they need to win a title. Mendoza is a manager, but he can also make the big play when called upon. They have multiple backs that do different things incredibly well. They have a nasty defensive and offensive line, filled with dudes that want to hit you in the mouth. They have big wideouts who make damn near every catch, and a few can run away from their defenders. They have linebackers who always seem to be in the right place at the right time and will crush you. And their secondary is elite with guys who can cover and hit you very, very hard. And they have a head coach, whom I despise, that knows how to win, wants to embarrass you and will do everything he can to take your will and spirit.

Indiana is great. I was very wrong about them. This year's squad has a different feel than last year. They seem ready for the moment and ready to prove that they are among the elite teams in college football. They are now the hunted, and we will see how the rematch goes with Oregon next week, but like I said before, Indiana should be the prohibitive favorite with four teams remaining in the college football playoff. And if the continue to play like they did yesterday, they will run away with the championship this season. 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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The Changes are Coming to the Michigan Football Coaching Staff

I watched the Citrus Bowl yesterday, obviously, and it turned out how I expected. Michigan put up a fight, they even had a lead early into the fourth quarter, but then the ugliness reared its head and they got their butts kicked. It was a fitting end to a pretty mediocre year playing a bunch of young kids.

On Monday I wrote about my cautious optimism pertaining to the Kyle Whittingham hire, and his interview during the third quarter only had me more on board. And now today he is hiring his staff and picking the guys he wants to work with. This staff is going to look very different next season, and I think that is the way it should be so we can all cleanse ourselves from the prior staff and all that came with it. Look, I'm as stoked as anyone that Jim Harbaugh brought a national title back to Michigan and made this football team relevant again, but the stink after he left for the NFL was too much and this football program needed an overhaul. To this point it has been reported that Whittingham has hired a new offensive coordinator, new QB coach, new receivers coach and new tight ends coach. It has also been reported that Tony Alford is staying on as the running backs coach, much to my delight. This means Ron Bellamy is out as receivers coach. That also means that there will most likely be some transfers, but hopefully the new guy can convince some to stay. Bellamy was an excellent recruiter, but maybe not the best coach. He could get some big names in, but they never fully developed. I'm curious to see what Andrew Marsh does, he has all the talent in the world, but other than him, maybe a new wideout coach was needed. There hasn't been any news on Grant Newsome yet, who I feel like is coming into his own as a coach. He could also recruit, but he was getting better at coaching as well. If they keep him, great. If not, he will catch on somewhere very soon and be very successful.  Other than Newsome and Bellamy, I won't miss too many of the coaches walking out the door. In my mind, as far as offensive coaches went, Alford was the one they needed to keep from this current staff and it looks like they have. That is a good thing.

I think the defensive staff is going to look different too. Wink Martindale is most likely out since Michigan has reportedly hired BYU's defensive coordinator to the same role at Michigan. This was a needed move. I like Martindale but he was never a long term solution. He has always had his eyes on the pros. BYU's d coordinator has a solid reputation and he and Whittingham have a solid relationship. I am curious to see if they keep Steve Casula and/or Lamar Morgan. Those guys have done a solid job in two short years and Morgan is an elite recruiter. I know that Zeke Berry had a rough day yesterday, but he is good. Jyaire Hill is very good, Shamari Earls is young and full of potential, Brandyn Hillman is a heavy hitter and they have some up and coming defensive backs that Morgan recruited and is currently coaching. And regardless of how much pressure they do or don't get, the defensive line is solid and can stop the run. Steve Casula has done a fine job coaching them and he is also a solid recruiter. I don't think Whittingham will retain Brian Jean Mary, and while he will be a little missed by me, it shouldn't be too much of a burden to let him go. I don't know what the new defensive coordinator is looking for for his new staff, but if I was told I could only keep one coach on that side of the ball I think I'd go with Morgan. Casula would be a bummer to see go, but Morgan is younger and has more potential in my opinion as a future defensive coordinator and even a head coach.

I expected there to be a ton of changes after the game yesterday and that is exactly what is happening. It may be jarring to see all the former coaches looking for new jobs, but this was always going to be the case the moment they hired Kyle Whittingham. And I trust Whittingham knows what he is doing. He has a ton of experience coaching the college game and he knows how to evaluate upcoming talent in the coaching ranks.

I'm excited/interested to see how this staff fully comes together and how they do in their first season. But, I'm also glad that they're getting rid of all the nonsense that they inherited and I'm ready for this new era of Michigan football. Always and forever, Go Blue. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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R.I.P. Isiah Whitlock Jr

Isiah Whitlock Jr passed away yesterday at the age of 71. I guess he had an illness that took over pretty quickly and it eventually took his life. This one stings.

Whitlock was a very solid and reliable actor in his time. I know him mainly from "The Wire". He was a constant on every season of that show. He played State Senator R Clayton "Clay" Davis. Like most of the characters on that show he was slimy and up to no good. But he had his moments of clarity and showed that he did have a heart to a certain degree. Whenever he showed up on that show I knew he was going to do something memorable and wild. But it was the way he would say "Shiiiiiiit" that got me every time. That was his thing on the show. He would end sentences that way for the most part and I loved it. He was, for lack of a better term, some form of comic relief on "The Wire". He was involved in serious stuff, but he would pull out that "Shiiiiiit", and it was perfect every time. He also has a meme traveling around the internet from "The Wire", where he is snapping a photo and exclaims, "Got your ass". This is what he excelled at doing on "The Wire". He was a quote machine and he made each episode he was in so much better.

I also loved the work he did in "Da 5 Bloods", Spike Lee's criminally underrated COVID movie. He played Melvin, one of the soldiers going back to Vietnam to finish the job of spreading their friend's ashes. Again, he was the comic relief in this movie. "Da 5 Bloods" was a showcase for Delroy Lindo, but Whitlock Jr was there step for step with him. And he has a very dramatic scene in that movie that he absolutely nailed.

He appeared in seven episodes of "Veep" as Geroge Maddox. "Veep" allowed him to do straight up comedy and he was excellent. I felt like comedy was his thing, but he was cast in dramatic roles as the comic relief. He excelled in those roles, but doing a show like "Veep" felt like his bread and butter. He was so funny and so foul on "Veep", just like everyone else on that show.

He got to do more comedic stuff in movies like "Cedar Rapids". He was such a great side character in that movie, and that movie is very good. Go see it if you haven't at this point. He was on "Onion SportsDome" which allowed him to be a news anchor and also do comedy. He leant his voice to "Lucas Bros Moving Company", "Grand Theft Auto" and a "Cars" movie. His voice was perfect for voice acting. He had such a recognizable tone to his voice and when he showed up in animated stuff it was easy to pick him out of the crowd. He would show up randomly in the many different iterations of "Law and Order". This was great because he got to do stuff similar to "The Wire". But instead of playing a senator he would be a detective or cop, which felt fitting for him as an actor.

I thought it was great that he worked with Spike Lee prior to "Da 5 Bloods". He was in "ChiRaq" and "Blackklansman", doing great work in both movies. He had an arc on "The Good Cop", a show I never watched but I bet he was perfectly cast as a cop or detective. He did a few episodes on "Woke" and "Atlanta" and helped those shows simply due to his reputation as a wonderful person and actor. He was in "Cocaine Bear" and he was great in that.

That is the thing with Isaih Whitlock Jr, everyone liked to work with him and he was always reliable. Even if the project wasn't that great or well made, his presence was worthwhile. He never wasted a moment of his time while acting in a show or movie. I'm going to miss him and his work. At least we have the memes, him saying "shiiiiiiiiiit" and the hours upon hours of work he did on screen. Rest in Peace Isiah Whitlock Jr. You will be greatly missed. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Marty Supreme"

I took my dad and son to see "Marty Supreme" yesterday and I have a review for you all today. I have wanted to see this movie for some time now, and it just happened to be released here in Saint Louis on Xmas day. We waited through the weekend, but saw it pretty soon after Xmas.

I was predestined to like this movie. I have become a pretty big fan of Timothee Chalamet in the past few years, ever since I saw him in "Wonka", and I like what the Safdie brothers do as far as directing. And I fully understand that this was a solo directing job from Josh Safdie, which I am all in for at this point. Josh Safdie has always felt like more of a director than his brother Benny. I feel like Benny Safdie has always wanted to be an actor, which he is very accomplished and pretty good at by this point. But Josh seems like he prefers to be behind the camera, and that is great. He brought his usual greatness to this movie as well. What I like about a Safdie directed movie is how anxiety riddled, in a good way, you feel while watching one of their movies. That was the case with "Uncut Gems", and Josh Safdie does the same thing in "Marty Supreme". The scenes shift very quickly into one another, there's always some kind of action going on, there's bad guys and good guys to root for, there's always someone talking and trying to get out of a situation and the romantic scenes always feel a little more raw and real in a Safdie movie. All that was in "Marty Supreme" and it all worked really well for me. Josh Safdie is very good at the kind of movies he makes and I want him to continue with this style of making the viewer anxious. There's no one better at making those kinds of movies at the moment.

While the direction is always incredibly important, you need actors who are up to the task, and they knocked it out of the park with the casting here. I'll get to Chamalet last because he was a revelation, which I didn't think was possible at this point in his career. What I appreciate most about a Safdie movie is they give unknowns a chance. Luke Manley, as Dion, is a first time actor and he was amazing as Marty's best buddy. I rooted for him even though others seemed mad at him from time to time. Ralph Colucci was only in a few scenes at the beginning of the movie, but the back and forth between him and Chalamet was incredible. Odessa A'Zion is becoming a star at the moment, but her work here was amazing. She was so in love with Marty, warts and all, and she tried to prove her worth to him time and again. Tyler, the Creator made his acting debut in this movie and he did a wonderful job. He was the guy Marty would hustle with and that felt like a perfect role for him. He should get many more acting jobs from this. George Gervin, former NBA star, was acting for the first time and his presence was gigantic in his minor role. Then Safdie put some former stars in bit parts and they were equally excellent. Fran Drescher played Marty's mom and she was the epitome of a mom trying to control her son. Her work opposite Chalamet was needed in this movie. Sandra Bernhart played a nurse, or something, and she was as wild here as she is in her minor role on "Severance". Penn Jillette has a very small role as a farm owner, but man is he scary and memorable. And we also have Gwyneth Paltrow playing a former aging movie star. She proved what made her such a draw in the 90's and early 2000's here. She was phenomenal in this role. I loved every second she was on screen in this mcvie.

But the cream of the crop was Chalamet. This was an incredible performance from him. He was, at the same time mind you, slimy and charming. He was always hustling and always talking his way out of some problem he inevitably created. There were times where I hated him, then in an instant I was rooting for him. The way he treated A'Zion's character throughout was mean and disgusting, yet I wanted them to be together. Paltrow's character treated him like the child he was, but there were times where I felt like they deserve one another. Chalamet has more than proven his worth in the past few years with the two "Dune" movies and "A Complete Unknown". I also loved him in "Wonka" as I mentioned before. But this performance proved that he is on another level from other actors his age. He embodied this role and he took his acting to a whole other stratosphere. He doesn't have to be the hero or the good looking dude in every movie. Marty is a hustler who is smamry and slimy, and Chalamet absolutely nailed it here. I think he has a definite Oscar nomination coming from this role and that will be two years in a row that he gets a best actor nomination. He is going to be the definitive actor of this generation and that makes me smile.

I highly recommend seeing "Marty Supreme". It is a fascinating performance from Chalamet and the movie will make you care about ping pong. This movie was great. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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Kyle Whittingham is Who Michigan Football Needs

Welcome back everyone. I hope you all had a nice holiday and have a happy new year. I had a nice relaxing week off, but I'm back and I have some stuff I want to talk about this week. There was a bunch of stuff I read or heard about last week that I feel I need to tell you all my opinions on. And it wouldn't be me if I didn't start the week talking about Michigan football hiring Kyle Whittingham as their 22nd head coach.

This is a big deal. A few weeks back I wrote about the whole Sherrone Moore fallout and what I wanted Michigan football to do moving forward. I was, and still kind of am, all about starting over. This football program needs a reset. Even the guys involved with the team have said as much. I saw Biff Poggi's press conference early in the week and he pretty much said that they need a full reset verbatim. And he has been with the program since Jim Harbaugh was hired.

Jim Harbaugh had his ups and downs, but he did bring a national title back to Ann Arbor and I will be forever grateful. The four seasons after the COVID shortened 2020 season were an absolute joy to watch and made me as happy as I have been since becoming a fan over 40 years ago. But you could see the issues piling up and it was starting to look worse and worse everyday. Then the Sherrone Moore stuff came to light and it was as bad as it could get. I hope Moore is getting the help he desperately needs, but it was clear that he was not suited for the job. It was far too much for him and it all came crumbling down faster than any of us expected.

When Moore was let go, I was concerned and confused. The timing was bad. The situation was messed up beyond belief. The whole story has become a soap opera that seems to get juicier with each new story that comes out. Like I said before, Michigan needed a massive shift in focus and to bring in a coach that could facilitate such a move. I wanted Kalen DeBoer, but Alabama won their playoff game and that stopped any momentum that Michigan may have had in hiring him. I quickly moved on to Kenny Dillingham. After DeBoer was off the table I figured they should go with a young coach who has an offensive background. It seems they kicked the tires on Dillingham, but never offered and Arizona State gave him an extension, taking him off the board. At this point, even though I wanted a change, I thought they were going to give the job to Biff Poggi, and I talked myself into that hire. I thought he could keep the roster mostly intact, the players seemed to like him, he was the first person who said the program needed a massive overhaul and I like him. But he does not have the best rep as a head coach. I understand that Charlotte is a much different level of college football than Michigan, but those Charlotte teams that Poggi was the head coach for were very bad. They did not put a good product on the field. But I thought maybe he could just be the CEO of the Michigan football program, and hire the proper people to run the team for him. It seemed to be trending towards Poggi, but something must have happened during one of his many interviews that turned the people hiring off. I don't know what he said or did, but he was suddenly not even mentioned as an option. This was when I kind of panicked. At this point I thought they were going to hire Eli Drinkwitz. No disrespect to Drinkwitz, but he would have been an awful option. I then read that Jedd Fisch was considered a "gettable" option, and while he has an offensive background, he didn't feel like a much better option than Drinkwitz, and he is from the Harbaugh coaching tree.

Then Kyle Whittingham's name started to pop up more and more. I have always respected Whittingham. His teams at Utah were pretty much always competitive. He seemed to run a clean program. He seems to only really care about college football. He has always had good defenses, and in the 2020's, the Utah offense has been explosive from time to time. He seems quiet and calm and confident. I remember when Harbaugh was in his first year at Michigan they opened the season at Utah, and the Utes beat them in a close, hard fought battle. I was frustrated, as I always am when Michigan doesn't win a game, but I came away impressed by how Utah equaled Michigan's toughness. They didn't play scared, and that was impressive to see. And he has quietly won a ton of games, had Utah in playoff conversations, went undefeated in 2008 and won, I believe, the Rose Bowl that year. He made Utah a perennial top 25 team and a thorn in every opponent's side. I have also heard people say that Utah was the Pac 12 and Big 12's Michigan equivalent. So, as his name came up more and more, he did tell Utah that he was stepping away to pursue other options, so I started to get on board. He felt like a guy who could come in and change the culture in a short time and get this team back to what made it awesome. He likes to run the ball and play defense, which is great, but he has also shown that he can adapt to playing modern offense in current college football. He has hired younger coordinators who understand that you have to adjust and adapt to stay relevant in modern college football. He has shown a willingness to let his coaches coach and to not be a dictator of his program. At his introductory press conference he said and did all the right things, but it never felt phony or forced. He reminded me of a guy who has been coaching college football for 30 plus years and understands what it takes to win, which is exactly who Kyle Whittingham is. I have also read a bunch of people who have coached or are currently coaching college football, and they all have nothing but glowing compliments for Kyle Whittingham. It seems like he is liked by almost everyone in the college football world. And after that press conference, I'm all in.

Maybe it is just because of all the craziness currently with Michigan football, or me looking at this hire with rose colored glasses, but I'm moving ahead with cautious optimism. Whittingham seems like the right guy to turn this team around. I feel like he can retain some important pieces. I do expect some guys to hit the portal, but if he can keep the right guys, he should do fine in year one. I am on board and happy about this hire. Now I'm ready to see who he hires for his staff, if he keeps anyone and how they come out in the Citrus Bowl on Wednesday. I'm ready for the Kyle Whittingham era at Michigan, and I am happy that this wild coaching search seems to have turned out okay for Michigan. Always and forever, Go Blue. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Maker's Mark is the Heineken of Bourbons

Green does not mean go

In honor of the season we wanted to revisit our thoughts on some vital festive must haves, bourbon and beer. The article was originally posted on November 23, 2015. Happy Holidays.

In 1979 Jimmy Carter, history's greatest monster, signed HR 1337 into law. This little piece of legislation allowed people to brew beer at home. Many credit this law with the rise of the micro and craft beer movement, others do not give President Carter the credit he deserves. Regardless of who we want to give credit to, America was about to be introduced to better beer. We were going to be able to determine what actually tasted good, and what was just great marketing.

I entered college in the late summer of 1993,  a very small institution in the middle of Missouri. Many students at my college were legacy, meaning one of their parents had attended at one time. Because of this legacy culture, the college was filled with people from all over the United States. I was lucky to befriend someone from California. This friend brought back some Sierra Nevada Pale Ale after one extended break. At this point in my life I had tasted the entire field of the Anheuser Busch Brewing family and a few local Missouri micro brews (early Boulevard and Schlafly). The fanciest of all beers in my life was the great Dutch export called Heineken.

I thought Heineken was the nicest beer someone could drink. It was a little more expensive, came in a green bottle, and had a funky smell. The advertising told me Heineken was the better beer because of these differences. You will pay more for beer because it is in a green bottle, because it smelled funky, and because it was fancy. I bought the marketing, and Heineken was my go to beer for being a classy individual. The fact was that Heineken was the go to fancy beer for my parents generation. They had very little options in beer, I should have known better.

Eventually I experienced better beer. I became a connoisseur, and a bit insufferable with my ale over lager attitude. My beer hipsterdom eventual led me into the world of high end bourbon. I was not fully aware of single batch bourbon, but I wanted to be a part of the group who would drink bourbon straight. I asked around and quickly learned that Maker's Mark was the best bourbon widely available. At the time I lived in St. Louis Missouri and the internet was not as helpful as it is today. Maker's Mark was available in my area, it was at a higher price point, and it had the iconic red wax on the head of the bottle. All of these factors set Maker's Mark as a brand of its own. The price and the red wax must mean that it tasted better than other bourbons. This was not a bourbon for mixing, it was for sipping.  I was sold, and Maker's Mark became my fancy bourbon for the next few years.

In the winter of 2006 I moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. I was now less than 100 miles away from where all of the world's best bourbon is produced. Suddenly I was introduced to bourbons I had never heard of. Bookers, Blantons, Willett, Four Roses, and Corner Creek to name a few. Maker's Mark was still to be found in many people's home as their expensive bourbon, but the other options available showed how marketing trumps taste. Many of the other high end bourbons had unique and interesting flavors. I was quickly becoming aware that under the red wax of Maker's Mark there lie an aggressively sweet and overrated spirit. For what I was paying for Maker's Mark, I could afford some Bulleit, Buffalo Trace, or Knob Creek. For only a few bucks more one could afford great bourbons like Woodford Reserve or Basil Hayden.

The last decade has seen an explosion in the popularity of bourbon. We are even entering a peak bourbon era where many of the great small batch options are increasingly hard to find. Maker's Mark used the idea of peak bourbon when the announced that their spirit was going to be watered down to stretch out the supply during lean times. Many people expressed dismay at the news, and the distillers at Maker's Mark announced they were not going to destroy their great tasting product. Once again the good marketing minds at Maker's Mark positioned their brand as great tasting high end product. Their sales continued to grow. Their bourbon is not getting better

I still occasionally purchase a bottle of Maker's Mark, I use it to cook with. Pecan pie and bourbon balls are a staple in my house during the fall and the winter. The sweetness of Maker's Mark works very well this time of year. I have used the Maker's Mark in bourbon Manhattans, but it is still to damn sweet. A bottle of Evan Williams black label is half the costs, and is a lot better for cocktails. Sometimes out of town guests will sip on my leftover Maker's Mark, but I try to steer them towards the Corner Creek (my house bourbon). My wife purchased a bottle of Blanton's for my birthday, and I reserve this for only family. I will also occasional drink a Heineken, when that is the only thing available at a summer barbecue. Many times I will skip the Heineken and just go with water. There is never Heineken to be found in my refrigerator I make my own beer and keep some local Cincinnati craft beer on hand (Mad Tree and Rhinegeist are killing it in the great tasting beer market).

Heineken and Maker's Mark have built their reputations in marketplaces with few options. Once these marketplaces started to become more saturated, both brands were exposed. The green bottle and red wax became icons, and people continued to flock to what was iconic. Neither product is downright disgusting, but they are overpriced and vastly inferior to their peers. If you are discovering beer and someone gives you Heineken, do not give up. There are thousands of better options available to you. If you do not live near Kentucky and someone gives you some Maker's Mark as their high end spirit, do not give up. Your local liquor store will have hundreds of better options to sip on. Do not be trapped by marketing. When a beer or bourbon is depending on iconic looks, they are usually hiding inferior tastes.

Oh and if you are lucky enough to have some Pappy Van Winkle, we should get together for a little talk.

The original article said Germany was the homeland of Heineken. We have correctly changed it to the Netherlands. One should not drink while they write.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He finished the Blanton's while writing this article and needs to get another horse and jockey bottle topper. You can help him out.

SeedSing Classic: The Advent Calendar of Good, and Bad, Holiday Eats: Day 23 - The Mall Food Court

Ed Note: This article was originally posted on December 23rd, 2017

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a treat associated with the holiday season. Many will be awesome, some will be terrible. Enjoy.

Opened doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,                           Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One,                              Twenty-Two

Day 23: The Mall Food Court

The final days of the holiday shopping season can be brutal. The stores are packed with people trying to score those last few perfect gifts. Anxiety is high among these last minute shoppers, and good will toward one's fellow person is at an all time low. There is very little time left to enjoy a well crafted holiday treat. The shoppers of the last few days need only to eat in order to survive. The local mall food court is the ideal trough to provide the necessary sustenance to the gift seeker.

The mall food court sees some of it's best business in the last days of holiday shopping season. Sbarro's, Panda Express like eateries, the cheesesteak joint, and Chick-Fil-A on a non-Sunday join their fellow store fronts in offering the shopping masses some needed calories during the homestretch of peak capitalism. Want pizza for Christmas, the food court has got you covered. In the need for generic cheesesteak and thick cut fries for your Hanukah,  the food court is your oasis. Do you desire a huge cherry Icee and some kettle cooked popcorn, the mall food court will deliver on your wish. If a person needs to shop first, and think of nutrition second, the mall food court is one of the best gifts these people can find in the Christmas rush. Taste be damned, just give these soldiers of late year commerce something edible, and give it to them quickly.

Shopping late in the holiday spending spree can be draining on a person's soul. Many people are looking for gifts that are in low supply. Sometimes multiple hands reach for the last doll on the shelf. The winners go home happy, the losers recharge at the food court. There must be a better way. The food court is a gathering place for the rest of us. Celebrate.

RD

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. What is this great holiday for the rest of us? Watch this classic episode of "Seinfeld" and be enlightened. 

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing Classic: Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Music: Day 22 - Patton Oswalt talks about The Christmas Shoes

ed note: This article was originally published on December 22nd, 2015

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we are looking back at the great holiday music, movies, television episodes, and food of this great season. Enjoy.

Day 22: Patton Oswalt talks about The Christmas Shoes (language NSFW)

Opened doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten,

 Eleven Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen,Sixteen,Seventeen,Eighteen,

Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty One

I really love Christmas music. This entire Advent Calendar project is a way to show the people who hate Christmas music that there are great tunes available to the uninitiated. My love for holiday music is directly related to the fact that while I was growing up my parents would regularly take me and my brothers to church. I was never super psyched to go to our little suburban catholic cathedral, except for one time of the year. The Christmas season was the only times of the year I was happy to go to mass, and it was the songs that created my excitement. Many of the best holiday songs come from the religious tunes the congregation would sing. Hope, light, the betterment of mankind. That is the true religious meaning of Christmas, and it sounds beautiful.

A couple of years back I heard the song "The Christmas Shoes" and I was left dumbfounded. I first thought that this "christian" song was some kind of SNL parody. It was atrocious. The basic plot centered on the story of a poor kid who wants to buy shoes for his mom on Christmas. These shoes are very important because the kid's mom is dying, and he wants her to look pretty if she meets Jesus. That plot is dumb enough, but what puts "The Christmas Shoes" into the stratosphere of appalling is that the song is from the point of view of some grumpy dude in line behind the kid. The narrator thinks that "God" sent this kid, and his dying mom, to be in this man's life so he will feel the Christmas spirit. It is a truly disgusting message.

In 2009 comedian Patton Oswalt dedicated part of his stand up set discussing "The Christmas Shoes" Everything he says is spot on. Oswalt talks about how manipulative and downright sinister the message behind "The Christmas Shoes" is. He also imagines a world with a God being pissed about people being grumpy on Christmas and a Jesus who is bitchy about a person's fashion sense. What Patton Oswalt does in the YouTube video attached to this article is take one of the worst Christmas songs ever, and give it a new hilarious life. You can skip the song and get a dose of the Christmas spirit by hearing Patton Oswalt tear this piece of trash apart. His thoughts on "The Christmas Shoes" makes the song listenable, because I hear Patton Oswalt's words behind every horrid verse.

A few weeks back my son was being rude to the checkout person at a store. When we were heading home, my wife and I were scolding him about his behavior. At one point I told him that Christmas is about being nice to your fellow person. My son was not listening and being quite defiant. As I was getting more angry and frustrated I heard the opening notes of "The Christmas Shoes". My wife and I stared at each other and smiled. My son was forgiven. The rest of the car ride was filled with joy and laughter. Patton Oswalt has made "The Christmas Shoes" a holiday tradition. Not the song, it is awful, but his thoughts about the tune's idiotic message is what Christmas means to me. Mr. Oswalt, I owe you a pair of some great Christmas shoes.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the host of The X Millennial Man podcast. Every year he tries to buy his wife some ugly shoes for Christmas, but he never has quite enough pennies. Help him buy those shoes by supporting SeedSing.

Peanut Butter Cookie With a Chocolate Kiss? Yes Please

As we go into the holiday season, I always think it starts when my kids get off school for their winter break, I want to leave you with the one thing I do think you should enjoy as a snack and have fun with during this break. I am going to take next week off from writing, so I wanted to go out with something short and sweet today, literally.

I'm not much for holiday food. to me it becomes redundant and boring. I have never been the biggest fan of the whole idea of "Thanksgiving" food. Turkey is wack. Ham is good in small doses. Stuffing rules, but mashed potatoes get boring. And I have never been the biggest bread person, so rolls don't move me. And this food tends to carry into the other part of the holiday season. I want more people to do what my buddy did and have pizza and wings during this time of year. But there is one food stuff that I go back to every year and find myself craving when the holidays roll around.

I have always had a sweet tooth. I think I got it from my mom. I always like dessert and if it is an option I go for it nine times out of ten. And during this time of year cookies flow aplenty. I love cookies. It is the best representation of a "light" dessert option for me. I can eat a snickerdoodle or two and be happy as a clam. Those are my favorite cookies, and during this time of year they seem to be everywhere, which I love. But there is one particular cookie that I know is a year round thing, but I only eat during these holidays. That is the peanut butter cookie with a Hershey's Kiss on top of it. It is the perfect blend of salty and sweet that I like. I like how the Kiss melts into the cookie as you eat it. I enjoy the fact that you are pretty much supposed to underbake the peanut butter cookie so the Kiss melts. I like how that heat makes it all meld together. When you are fortunate enough to get a perfect bite, that cookie can send you into another dimension. It makes me smile when I see them out on the table as a snack or treat. I try and make sure to grab a few before I know they will get snacthed up. And it is getting harder for my family to have those around because my daughter is still allergic to peanuts, and it looks like she will be forever. She has gotten over every other nut allergy she had but that one. And if you try to make the cookies with a peanut butter alternative, it just doesn't work. It's not the same. So when the actual peanut butter cookie with the Kiss is out, you better believe I'm going to take advantage. And this isn't even a thing that my Wegovy will stop me from overdoing. I will eat these cookies until I'm stuffed. That's how much I like them. And while the snickerdoodle and the shortbread with cherry jelly are finem, they don't reach the levels that this particular cookie does. I like all the sugar cookies that are around with the icing, but even those can get a little too sweet or crunchy. The good thing about the peanut butter cookie with the Kiss, there's never a problem. Even the ones that sit still have a great flavor because that just means that the extra time gave it more time to develop.

So go out and enjoy these cookies and enjoy your holiday. Be nice to everyone and have a good break. I'll see you all in a week. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

No Fruitcake for Me Thank You

My dad was over visiting earlier today, my daughter is now home sick from school so we are both kind of stir crazy and the visit was a nice break, and we were talking about holiday stuff. I mentioned I was trying to think of a topic to write about, and we got on a holiday kick. We did finally fall on something and boy oh boy do I have some thoughts. But I wanted to give my dad credit for the idea today. Without our conversation, maybe I wouldn't have come in so hot today. We can all thank my father.

The topic, fruitcake in general. My dad has always been a fan of fruitcake. He has told me stories about how when his mom used to make it, my grandma, he would drool while it was being made. I have other people in my life who also love fruitcake. My daughter hasn't had it yet, but after telling her about what fruitcake is, she wants to try it out. My son hasn't tried it and he is a little harder to convince. This is the side that I fall on. I'm in step with my son here, but I have tasted fruitcake before, and I despise it. I don't get what the big takeaway is and why it became such a big time holiday treat. For all intents and purposes, fruitcake is a loaf of bread with jellied pieces of random fruit thrown in there. I know there are other things you can do to make fruitcake, but the baseline thing is bread with jellied fruits. I think what I oppose so much about fruitcake is the whole idea. If I want banana bread, I'll make banana bread. If I want cake, I'll make it. If I want some candied fruit, I'll go buy it in the store. To put all of these things together into one mishmash piece of pastry grosses me the hell out. The grossest part to me is the jellied fruit. It reminds me of ambrosia salad, which I also dislike very much. The fruit is way too sweet and chewy. It never tastes like I expect it to taste. It can become gummy and come out whole when taking bites out of each piece of bread. It has the weirdest texture. It is not for me. As for the bread, it is way, way too dense. I'm all for butter and sugar being mixed to make a delicious sweet treat, but fruitcake is a bridge too far. I understand in some recipes it calls for some kind of liquor to keep it from getting dry, but then it gets even more dense. I also do not drink, so why would I ever want a piece of fruitcake soaked in liquor? That sounds like a recipe for disaster. I don't think the first time I were to get drunk I'd want it to be off a piece of fruitcake. That sounds like a waste. I also understand that liquor can be empty sugar calories, so why on Earth would you add that to something that's already far too sweet to begin with? The whole idea of adding liquor is such a putoff to me, but my dad mentioned how his mom used to use a cloth soaked in rum, I believe, and that was part of the allure. That makes zero sense to me, especially when you're a kid. But maybe that is just my distaste for alcohol. But when I get away from the liquor recipes for fruitcake, the whole idea is still gross to me. I mentioned it all above why I dislike it. Whenever I see a loaf of it out at a holiday party or a gathering with my family, I actively avoid it. I want nothing to do with it. I tried a piece about three or four years ago just to see, it was COVID times after all, and I think I disliked it even more. It was akin to when I tried a McRib a few years back, except I used to genuinely like the McRib. I thought maybe my taste buds had changed mildly, I do love coffee now. That was not the case at all. The fruit was weird and gummy. The bread was far too dense. And it was so cloyingly sweet that one bite was all that I needed.

I don't know, fruitcakes are disgusting. I don't think my taste will ever change on that front. But if you like fruitcake, please tell me what it is about it. Tell me what I'm missing. I truly want to know if it is me. So enjoy them or not, fruitcake is not for me, but maybe that can change. Probably not, but never say never I suppose. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Paul Dano is Excellent in "There Will Be Blood"

I saw the recent comment Quentin Tarantino made about Paul Dano and his performance in "There Will Be Blood". Let’s discuss.

I disagreed right off the bat. I adore that movie. I think it is a modern masterpiece. It is my favorite Paul Thomas Anderson movie to date. And I think that Dano, playing dual roles, is the perfect foil to Daniel Day Lewis' Daniel Plainview. But, in light of his comments I decided I wanted to go back and watch the movie. I usually watch it every year, or every other year since its release. But with the uproar and show of appreciation for Dano, and add on the fact that I have bronchitis, I decided yesterday was as good a time as any to make my revisit.

Nothing changed for me on this rewatch except I studied Dano's performance. And I came away mesmerized with how great he is in this movie. Let me say, this movie is all about Daniel Day Lewis. He gives the performance of a lifetime. He is the heart and soul of this movie and there is nothing else without him. That is what a star is supposed to do, and Day Lewis absolutely nails every single aspect of this role. He is the reason we go to see something like this. But you need the supporting actors to bring their A game as well. This doesn't work if it is just one great performance surrounded by dull and lifeless performances. Luckily for us, that doesn't happen here. Everyone is at the top of their games. Ciaran Hinds is perfect as Plainview's right hand man. Dillon Freasier as young HW does a swell job portraying an abandoned kid. He doesn't ask for that life, but he lives it to its fullest. David Willis is so meek and weak willed as Abel Sunday. Paul F Tompkins plays a dull witted townsperson who knows they need Plainview's help very well. James Downey is so reliable as the real estate gentleman that Plainview deals with. Kevin J O'Connor is slimy and creepy and seems like a crook from the moment he steps on screen. David Warshhofsky plays bewildered by Plainview's actions so well. Russell Harvard as an adult HW does some excellent work, and he happens to be deaf in real life. But it is Dano's performance first as Paul, then, especially as Eli, that truly brings this all together.

Plainview is a driven man who has a singular goal. He wants to drill for oil and drill for it everywhere he can. He knows that this will be his ticket to riches. He has that one goal in mind and anyone or anything that stands in his way is his competitor as he would say. That is what makes the role of Eli so compelling. Dano does play Eli's brother Paul, but that is one scene that gets us into the crux of this movie. Paul tells Daniel where to go to drill and then we are off. When we meet Eli he is the quintessential black oil salesman of a preacher. He proclaims that he can heal through his services and that he can speak directly to god. And people in the late 1800's and early 1900's bought that stuff up, no questions asked. And all along the way Eli is a thorn in Daniel's side. He wants a bigger chapel. Then he needs more of the workers to come to service. He claims he can heal arthritis in an old lady, but all he does is say some mumbo jumbo. He does nothing to help HW after his accident. He forces Daniel to confess his sins loudly to everyone in the church after Daniel refused to let him bless his oil rig, which was the cause of a massive fire and what made HW deaf. Daniel is constantly calling out how fake and phony he thinks all of the church stuff is to deaf ears from Eli. They have fights wherein Daniel bullies poor Eli, who then goes to his home and beats up his own father. It is such a great pairing of two very evil and two very motivated people fighting for what they believe in. This all culminates in a gory and gruesome end for Eli at Daniel's home in his personal bowling alley. And to watch this final scene, to see Eli squeal and confess, to see Daniel push and prod and make him uncomfortable, I can picture no one else doing this than Dano and rising to the level of Daniel Day Lewis. He is right there with him line for line and bar for bar. He plays it so perfectly. I still loathed him even after Plainview beat him to death with a bowling pin. And I still loathed Plainview as I had all of the movie.

So, after this most recent rewatch, Tarantino is wrong. He may not like the performance, which is totally fine. That's his prerogative. But for him to say the things he did about Dano, to call him out like he did, that is similar to what older athletes say about the newer generation. Maybe it's jealousy, maybe he truly doesn't like Paul Dano for whatever reason. But Dano is one of the best parts of this incredible movie. He is the foil we all need in this scenario and he was more than up to task. And if you still have not seen "There Will Be Blood", go watch it. It is a remarkable feat of movie making. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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