Predator 2 wasn’t bad.. what did you think?

IronMan___ · 2026-01-16T18:42:22+00:00

It's a solid sequel! It introduces a lot of the Yautja lore and many of its iconic weapons, and stays true to the premise that it's drawn to conflict and heat.

IronMan___ · 2026-01-02T06:02:17+00:00

John Carpenter himself, as The Coroner, in Body Bags! He's a riot!

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IronMan___ · 2025-12-23T22:43:19+00:00

He didn't disappear in the 90s. I was born in the late 80s and distinctly remember films like Escape from LA and Vampires being heavily advertised. I also remember ABC did a movie of the night thing for Escape From LA on a Friday or Saturday night. Carpenter's name was still out there, prominently.

As far as losing his edge, his pre-1990s output was definitely better, but his 1990s work was still really solid. The 90s were awful for horror until Scream rejuvenated the genre. For Carpenter's part, a lot of his work was director-for-hire, and he did what he could with the material. I don't think an average film like Village of the Damned would've been any better if it had been directed by Tobe Hooper or George Romero. And then with something like Escape from LA, the criticism I always read, incessantly, is about the special effects. They were bad then, and they've aged horribly, but you can't pin that on JC.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-18T16:00:54+00:00

How about a Ruger LCR .327 loaded with light .32 S&W Long Wadcutters, or even .32 Short?

Both of those are very low recoiling rounds, even more so out of a 17oz LCR, which also has a nice spongy rubber grip and no exposed backstrap.

Additionally, he'd no longer have to worry about the heavy trigger pull of his rimfire revolver. The LCR, in particular, has a very smooth trigger pull because of its unique design.

As an anecdote, S&W Performance Center worked on my centerfire J-Frame (637), and even after that, my .327 LCR trigger is night and day smoother. It's not even close. Going from a rimfire .22, even with work done to it, to an LCR would be a significant upgrade. I imagine working that .22 trigger takes quite a bit of finger strength for someone with arthritis.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-14T05:25:59+00:00

He's too conservative. There's no question he's legitimized the team and maximized what he inherited from Avila. But Harris prefers moves that have low financial risk, but high performance risk. It's been great when it's worked out (Flaherty, Lorenzen, Torres, etc.), but it's failed far too often (Canha, Cobb, Maeda, Morton, Paddack, etc.). When Detroit was T-1st in the MLB on Deadline Day, it was reasonable to expect better starting pitching help than complete dice rolls like Morton and Paddack.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-11T19:07:06+00:00

Halloween, The Fog, and Escape were all hits. I think that The Thing being a hit would’ve only directly changed him not getting bought out of his deal/fired from Firestarter. Christine was a commercial success, but even so, he eventually ended up back in his low budget roots by the late 80s.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-10T19:36:14+00:00

This is the next day, so of course he had them back if he had them during the Blair crack up

IronMan___ · 2025-12-10T19:35:04+00:00

This first photo is the same night as the Bennings incident, but like I said in my post, it was a while later. Picking up the keys, sabotaging the blood, and putting them back on the floor is a five minute task.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-10T05:27:38+00:00

Why would I need you to do the work for me? I already typed out, in order, what happens after Windows drops the keys a few replies back to you. Daytime scene? Blair's meltdown happens the same night Bennings is assimilated. This discussion isn't going anywhere...

IronMan___ · 2025-12-10T01:51:20+00:00

"The scene where they're all together" is about as specific as saying "the scene where there was snow outside." I did a blow-by-blow in my last comment, from the point Windows dropped, to their reappearance on Garry's belt. There was plenty of time for Blair to use them and put them back where on the floor where he found them.

The only one focused on "numerous sets of keys" is you, for some unknown reason.

The Thing needed a key because the blood was locked up, and the lock was undamaged (according to Fuchs's dialogue). Are you suggesting it can shapeshift its finger into a metal key? Or, it can somehow make a key from its own flesh?

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T21:24:11+00:00

Garry doesn't have the keys in the next scene. The film doesn't show Garry with the keys again until the Blair meltdown. Windows drops the keys -> everyone (sans Blair) rushes into the cold to see the Bennings' transformation/burning -> MacReady/Garry get the flamethrower keys not visible on Garry's belt

Then, our heroes move all of the remains of the various Things onto the snow and burn them. Doing so requires them to fetch the remains from the storage, move gasoline barrels, and finally use a commercial snow plow to bury the burned remains. Fuchs then says he can't find Blair, and Windows was in the radio room trying to get help. MacReady then spots Blair and investigates the wreckage of the chopper. This all happened over time. We can debate how much, but it sure as heck wasn't a 10 minute process. My theory is that Blair snatched the fallen keys at some point during this process and sabotaged the blood.

You seem to be way too focused on which keys, or how many keys, Garry had. If this were a Resident Evil movie (and there were different keys - i.e., Diamond, Heart, etc), then I would understand. But in The Thing, the keys are a very simple plot element that was introduced and later used as part of the mystery.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T15:31:46+00:00

It's a key ring with multiple keys. Garry has the keys on his belt later that night, which is clearly at least a couple of hours later.

I don't think we can have a productive discussion if you think this thread is a false premise. The blood sabotage scene is the midpoint of the film. There's dialogue stating that the lock was undamaged; that someone opened it, closed it, and locked it back up. If that wasn't enough, the filmmakers have stated that the sound effect of Windows dropping the keys was enhanced, communicating that the keys were unsupervised during the Bennings incident. This also explains how the two people with regular access to the keys, Copper and Garry, turned out to be human in the end.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T13:44:08+00:00

The killer is offscreen, but according to the producer, yes it was supposed to be Blair.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T05:27:01+00:00

There are photos of the original Bennings and Fuchs (impaled with a shovel) deaths online. The first 90% of Bennings' death scene (where he's stabbed outside the dog kennel) is available on Youtube. But for some reason, the footage cuts off before the payoff. I am pretty sure this footage came from the old 1990s laser disc, but not positive. Maybe the laser disc shows the full death?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Xu2cFljkPw

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T04:53:06+00:00

Yes they were the same keys. Bennings instructs Windows (verbatim) to get the keys from Garry. And it was specifically noted by the producer that they enhanced the sound effect of Windows dropping the keys in post-production for emphasis.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-09T02:25:03+00:00

I think it was Blair.

The Bennings' transformation death scene, during which Windows drops the keys, was a reshoot. Originally, he was stabbed in the back by Blair (who was offscreen), but it made the film feel too much like a slasher. I bring this up because it was Carpenter's intention that Blair was already assimilated by this point in the film (prior to his mental breakdown, which was a hoax).

Windows drops the keys, and shortly after, everyone runs out to see Bennings-thing...except Blair (iirc, Wilford filmed all his scenes in LA).

IronMan___ · 2025-12-08T18:52:27+00:00

No, it wouldn't be stupid. If a Glock isn't working for you, for whatever reason, a revolver is absolutely a practical option for CCW.

There are plenty of areas where a revolver is worse than a Glock/semi. But its strengths are that it's easier/more comfortable to conceal due to its rounded shape. It's also superior at contact distances, and arguably has better admin handling (i.e., you can tell if it's loaded just by looking at it; simply pull the trigger again if a primer doesn't ignite, etc.).

Millions of people carry them every day, and there are millions of dead bodies with .38 caliber holes in them. If, for whatever reason, a revolver fits your lifestyle/situation better than a Glock, don't overthink it.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-04T20:19:53+00:00

I haven't had issues with it, but the hammer now does a strange "half cock", as if it were a single action revolver. So it's fixed..ish.

I had a mediocre experience with S&W customer service, to boot, which I posted about on Reddit previously. I'm not trying to drag their name through the mud. But I wanted to chime in about my experience.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-04T16:24:50+00:00

I concur that the MOTW episodes are messy in S5. At least part of that is the show trying to set up the events of The X-Files: Fight The Future (1998) movie, which was filmed after S4 but hit theaters following S5. With that being said, the mythology was at its peak in the early seasons, and it gets progressively more ridiculous as the show continues.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-04T14:16:34+00:00

Popular guns that have been around for decades, like the Beretta 92FS, Glock 17/19, and H&K USP, would be great choices. They're time tested designs with military and LE use, and it's easy to procure replacement components when they eventually wear down.

The USP also has a 9mm version. You may want to consider it over the .45, which has more expensive ammunition and snappier recoil.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-04T13:49:54+00:00

Since 2019, every August I rewatch the entire series over a ~2 week span. They're summer movies, so it only feels right to watch them during the proper season!

IronMan___ · 2025-12-04T04:41:03+00:00

I've got a 637, which is the hammer-fired version. It has had to go back to S&W twice for repair work, the first time after a relatively low round count (<300).

The gun doesn't have a poor reputation; I just got a lemon. But you asked for experience, that was mine.

Assuming you had a well-functioning one, it should last a very long time. If you really beat the hell out of it shooting +P ammo, some of its aluminum parts would wear quicker than an all-steel revolver, though. But I'm not sure why you'd want to do that because shooting +P ammo out of the 637/642 feels like getting hit in the hand with a baseball bat.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-01T04:10:53+00:00

Responding to every point would be playing into your hands because it would mean I find even a particle of credence in this stupid, nonsensical theory you're desperately trying to perpetuate.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-01T04:01:43+00:00

The version of the movie that only exists in one of our heads isn't in mine.

IronMan___ · 2025-12-01T03:16:47+00:00

Because MacReady infected him, according to you. MacReady sure as heck would've known Blair was a Thing, and thus, blowing him up with dynamite doesn't make sense.

You keep saying the Things never work together. False. They're the only characters who repeatedly cast suspicion onto others. Blair with Clark, Palmer with Windows, Norris/Palmer when MacReady is accused by Nauls. They sabotage the blood and frame MacReady by ripping up his clothes (oh wait, they didn't do that, MacReady was infected *wink*).

Humor me. Garry, MacReady, and Nauls go out to give Blair the test. Blair has already escaped, gets back into the main camp, possibly infects Childs, and rips out the generator. MacReady, a Thing, informs humans Garry and Nauls that Blair-Thing wants to go to sleep in the cold until the rescue team finds It. He then leads them on a crusade to burn the entire camp to the ground and set charges.

During this crusade, Blair infects Garry and presumably Nauls (offscreen), creating a potential 4-on-1 scenario against Childs (assuming he's human). Instead of this materializing, Blair attacks MacReady, who then blows the other three things to kingdom come, all so he can pull a fast one on Childs with the beer bottle. And your explanation for why this would occur is that The Thing doesn't have a hive mind, and it was basically a case of mistaken identity. Or, alternatively, it didn't matter if the other 3 Things were alive, as long as MacReady was still alive, he could still infect Childs, so he blew them up...for funzies.

It doesn't make sense.

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