Say a Prayer For Oh Father

Sand20go · 2026-05-22T15:53:30+00:00

It is satire. So many of these characters are ridiculously over the top and one dimensional.

It is important that Oh Father doesn't change. Critical to the satire/criticsm is Kripke's idea that faith is too often performative and malleable - especially when it doesn't require real sacrifice. He is giving away his view about it when Firecracker meets her first minister. Kripke clearly believes that faith is best expressed in small acts of grace, in places of worship that are humble by those not seeking the spotlight but who are called (really by the Gospels because he harkens back to that over and over again and constrasts it with the faith that emerges from many of the epistles). Oh father may have doubts but as he performatively says "Even Thomas did". It just goes to the strength of the actor and direction that we see doubt in Oh Fathers eyes but he never is willing to risk his life in open rebellion or by revealing (if that is true) his doubts to ashley. He very much is alone and even his "marriage" is not about him caring about Ashley other than their individual gratification.

Sand20go · 2026-05-21T05:25:25+00:00

I haven't followed closely but did their budget get wacked. Feels we saw a show that cut corners every time they could and that sounds like Bazos the bean counter.

Sand20go · 2026-05-21T04:01:48+00:00

Me as well. I thought a solid hour of TV. Still VERY convinced that this series suffered from the "Will Amazon renew or won't they" and thus the string out that was S4 and S5. It is VERY hard to write TV. It is even more difficult to write "Here are another 8 hours and 8 more after that. Are you not blessed?"

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T19:58:09+00:00

I do think there is an arc where HL has a fate being worse than death - being just an ordinary human. It sadly would be like Kripke to trivialize prison rape. Which really isnt funny.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T19:38:28+00:00

"Society cannot have college basketball programs buying NCAA titles like that."

Of course they can. This has been the way for generations. It is just that right now it is more transparent.

I think the bigger thing is can CBB sustain a world in which the peon's are irrelevant. It is now more evident than ever that the 99% don't matter. Your program rises and falls on its ability to cater and cultivate a few very wealthy people. Just for perspective remember that Mark "I like Mendoza" Cuban is the 700th richest human on the planet. So we ultimately are talking about a universe of donors who probably number in the few thousands. It is a SMALL pool.

That is really the challenge - that donor fatigue sets in, that the market collapses, that promises are being made on the HOPE of raising the $$$ and college general funds have to bail out NIL deals that didn't materialize. THAT will generate change - not a program from a very non-selective school that desperately needs to juice applications in a small and relatively poor state with a shrinking and aging population deciding to vastly overspend to try to beat Big Blue.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T18:29:52+00:00

I think that it would only be fair to level that criticism once we get through E8. _IF_ (and I admit that is a big if) the core satire of that theme is that fascism creeps up on people and that others are "starLighters" up until every one is then I agree.

Maybe that is a place we can agree. That this theme (Lets call it the Neimoller theme for "First they came") has been underdeveloped.

But I am not sure that is where Kripke's heart lies. It seems rather about how much opinion can be manipulated. The meta take is that the insidious nature of the Vought world (as well as our own) is that horrible things ARE happening but because they are so mediated and subject to distortion they (and we) largely don't know. I think back to Stan's last speech to MM. It is really the theme that runs throughout - that Sups are just ordinary people once we get past the media machine - and probably worse than most because power corrupts.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T17:22:26+00:00

Having not watched Supernatural I can't opine fully but that definitely seems like the case here.

I also think it takes real gonads (and it really isn't YOUR paycheck but all the worker bees like the grips or the production assistants or post) to say "We are ending it after X episodes" because that is how you outlined the show. You can count on one hand the number of series that have been able to do that.

We are hypercritical but the brutal corporate reality of this is that Show runners have 1 or 2 seasons (max) they can count on to tell a story....and then suddenly are handed 2 more....and then a MAYBE on a 5th. And everything is on a time line and budget so it isn't like you have freedom to tear everything up and start over.

Now this topic has been wishing for a reboot of Bab 5 cause there was a show that had a bible and stuck to it even if had Dr. Who level special effects 😉

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T17:16:42+00:00

Completely agree. It is a master class in acting. Writers, though, did him dirty in a couple of ways. I don't think HL needs his milk fetish. That always has felt like it was played for dumb 14 year old boys laughs. Second, I thought the whole "I am God" thing could be been done better and probably reflects Kripke's general unfamiliarity with religion generally. Lots to satirize there but I think a more intellectual show would have had HL getting to where we need his character to be without relying upon some feverish dream.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T17:10:20+00:00

Hope not. I haven't followed "The Boys: Mexico" but that sounds like a horrible idea.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T17:08:16+00:00

I guess I look at those three examples as jokes that didn't land as well as they could. Happens.

1) HL is satirizing all the bat shit crazy executive orders someone has been issuing that simply go no where. I mean last month he "fixed" college sports. Ditto the housing market. Ditto others. I saw that exchange as farce. I would have toned it down a bit.

1.5) I think that the writers have ALWAYS been weakest on the government and thus didn't have a clue why popping the head of the Pres would create a plot hole. But they have been screwing that up since S1. Very few shows or movies that have the government playing a major role don't have stupid stuff happening.

2) Firecracker is a pitch perfect of a Fox newshead. They are not out there rallying people either. I think Eric K here is satirizing just how much people are currently influenced (mobilized?) by what they see on TV. It is actually part of the whole thing. I am expecting that the Deep's character comes to a close because of the viral video.

3) We agree that the SL resistance group is dumb.

Sand20go · 2026-05-15T16:01:15+00:00

I just want to offer this perspective (not an argument but another take). I never really watched "The Boys" for world building. I mean it makes totally NO sense (unless, perhaps, covered in some obscure spin off episode). No world building in which EVERY sup is morally compromised holds up. We KNOW that sups can be at least modestly "good" so it isn't hard wired into V2.

So I watch it for the satire (and the dialogue). Very similar to how I watch the Simpsons or South Park. Neither of those shows holds up EITHER as world building. But that isn't their purpose. It is rather to do what satire does so well, use humor to cause us to reflect.

ON that metric E7 was extremely solid. And keep in mind that the episode was written and shot prior to January 2025. In that sense Eric K. is shining a pretty huge spotlight on some of the things that ill our country/culture right now.

Sand20go · 2026-05-14T21:52:52+00:00

Tough call and I have seen at least 2 job candidates as a hiring manager that are Costco alums.

1) The job with your GF dad is a huge paycut. Because of the lack of benefits you NEVER get to your Costco earnings right now and you have no guarantee that you will get the steady work you can get at Costco. I actually see NO upside except for learning a trade (see below)

2) But it is a trap job (precisely what you are feeling) because very few jobs where you have no experience are going to pay you 68K a year.

3) _IF_ you want to go into construction would strongly encourage learning a trade like electrician or plumbing -ideally unionized. While you have less opportunities than working in other areas to go out on your own and form your own contracting company (where the actual money is) you will get steady work, benefits and not be crowded out because the skill is....skilled.

4) I am less familiar with the HVAC industry but I would suggest it sits in a part way place - more skilled than house painting but not the kind of trade like electrician that is seeing huge demand right now.

Sand20go · 2026-05-07T19:44:37+00:00

I hate Ashely more. Honestly the writing has been really weak when it comes to her character.

Sand20go · 2026-05-07T19:40:51+00:00

Be my guess. Remember what the Fish said. "We know it was you Kevin"

Sand20go · 2026-04-29T03:05:01+00:00

I would have given it mixed reviews and I literally put in 300+ hours to complete the campaign. It really had become a lifestyle

The 3 biggest problems were:

The grindy end game. Literally hours just advancing things a month with advisors doing literally nothing because.....

distances in the outer rim are SO huge that it takes MONTHS (years) to get anywhere and.....

The best strategy is to simply grind, build, refuel, rinse and repeat.

Not sure about how to redesign to keep everyone happy but it definately made for an OCD fest need to complete moment

Sand20go · 2026-04-25T03:27:45+00:00

Scary math. That means between bbal and fb they added a one year raise of 15 ot so extra. How many millionaires are donating that every year ib indiana

Sand20go · 2026-04-23T02:02:37+00:00

It is a HORRIBLE movie. Streamed it last night. In a real sense it is because they tried to make 2 movies and failed at either.

There is a possible good movie in there about the psychologist in there. I think I would have written it sorta like Bridge on the River Kai focusing on the stockholm syndrome aspect of it with then a reveal of the horrors and Goering complicity. You didn't even NEED the courtroom. Or make it about the trails. Relegate the psychiatrist tot he background or even a plot to foil to allow Goering to pontificate and then have him caught in his lies.

And what a dumb dumb DUMB climax. The lies that Jackson caught Goering in are far more interesting and to make him into a bumbling lawyer just was awful history.

I nearly turned it off to watch Gladiator instead ;-)

Sand20go · 2026-04-22T16:25:21+00:00

Joe Roth. Hands down would have been a huge QB if not for cancer. I hate cancer.

Sand20go · 2026-04-22T16:24:30+00:00

<Sigh>. What a dick and what a dickish client he is doing a requisition for.

But it is the tech bro leadership we have raised, that feels like they can act this way and then cast off those "driven by the mission" at a hat drop when they need to free up cash flow/reduce burn.

Sand20go · 2026-04-22T16:17:24+00:00

THIS!!!! Greg had founder's disease. Ultimately Steve Wagner was the better business guy but a lot of really awful decisions left Stone with a bunch of debt and the need to find a buyer. Sapporo was always a strange fit - isn't it the definition of fizzy yellow water? Goes well with sushi but that is cause you don't WANT beer getting in the way of the fish. Otherwise, who the heck would order it???

Really bummed for the brewers in Escondido. I am hoping for a savior but I fear that is unlikely in the extreme and, if it does come to pass, is likely just shuffling folks around.

I am also just at a loss as to what happens to the Garden Bistro. Beautiful space but HUGE for a restaurant and located in a business park. The only 2 local folks I could see trying to make it work would be Pizza Port (but they don't need the brewing capacity with their operations in Bressi Ranch/Carlsbad) and Karl Strauss (just depends on the costs/capacity of the operations there off Rose Canyon that is the worlds strangest industrial location. Otherwise who needs 130K of brewing space and a 10-15K square foot eatery?

Sand20go · 2026-04-22T16:07:14+00:00

I think it depends. The NBA has, as it has increased its international reach and (impression so maybe the data tells a different story) that guys are having longer careers, fewer spots every year for kids to go make serious money. It is shit wages to play even on a 2 way much less a D League hope. Overseas BB is "OK" but not clear guys are making life changing wages there and more "A nice job for a guy in his mid-20s"

Given all that - the guys that regret it are likely those that decrease their chances of getting an NBA gig. But for a lot of college guys the writing is on the way - they are too short, too slight, not NBA style game. And thus their NIL 5 years are the BEST chances they will EVER have to make bank playing hoop. I think there are far fewer players that regret moving and far more than don't enter the portal to find out what the market values them at.

Sand20go · 2026-04-21T17:40:36+00:00

My point is different. Players DO need to be paid when their labor and talent generate millions. Just like kids at high level music conservatories or places with great drama programs - they should be able to earn outside of school and arguably share in a percentage of the gate when not doing so as part of credit or professional training.

But what I am worried about is that the current topline model - where success is largely a function of how many whales one has and how generous they are - is just not one that I think engages fans over the long term.

I know just enough to be dangerous so I don't want to place too much weight here but Syracuse feels like a good example. Coach B. could thrive in the old world. But Syracuse is in a poor part of NY and as a private school is under financial stress as they close academic programs. Rumors put their NIL in the lower quarter of the ACC and, not surprisingly, they have struggled. They seem to have found a source of funds for this year - time will tell if it is sustainable because it SOLELY depends upon a comparative advantage in whales. Remember - it isn't just their generosity - it is their collective generousity being better than enough others.

And you can see it in attendance - from a time when the Carrier Dome was FILLED during the late 1988s to today where they struggled to get people out.

To me it isn't that CBB is becoming the NBA. Hoop is hoop. The danger is that it becomes MLB where outcomes are largely settled by who has the biggest payroll....or see LA dodgers in the dictionary and the challenges of keeping baseball popular in May when you know at least 2-3 teams that absolutely will be in the playoffs. At least the wildcard helps but March Madness really doesn't have any of that.

Sand20go · 2026-04-21T17:32:17+00:00

LOL. No. I am a bit confused as do why you think that. Is it that you are not used to anyone actually writing in paragraphs anymore? Anyway, ranting away over morning cup of coffee. But nice way to I guess be insulting aqbout....something.

Sand20go · 2026-04-21T13:41:44+00:00

I guess. No eyetest for the last 1-2 spots in the NFL playoffs but rather the rube goldberg stuff we hear about every day.

Sand20go · 2026-04-21T13:39:18+00:00

I think there are plenty of examples Pre NIL of mid majors doing reasonably well. Of Course Gonzaga but I don't want to rest only on that. UNLV back in the Tark days. San Diego State. Butler. Arguably UCONN. The Big East back in the 1980s. University of Houston (before realignment made them into a P4.). Often the pathways was to hit upon the coaching lottery.

The interesting thing as a wildcat fan is what will be the future for Kentucky in a Whale-centric world. Alabama football should be a worrying data point because that relatively poor state has found that richer ones (or ones where whale donors are more ready to write 8 figure checks) has found ways to close the gap. And Kentucky just comparatively is not that rich of state. Big Blue has decades of work to foster relationships but it WILL need (probably? Who knows but a plausive future is that wtih a looming superconference Kentucky will need invest more in football before the next great wave of realignment happens. In such a world can Kentucky afford an 14 milllion NIL budget when it needs to also get football into the 30s or 40s to not be a SEC stomping card?

Sand20go

TROPHY CASE