Barking Carnival — Blog — How to Lose Fans and Infuriate Me

Mas cinema. This from SydneyCarton. – S.R.

__________________________________________

Hi!

Due to the continued dearth of off-season topical conversation, Sailor Ripley has entreated a few guest lecturers to contribute to The Barking Carnival. Fortunately for him, my unchecked hubris, proclivity towards wild exaggeration and generality, and immediate recognition that HenryJames is an unrepentant fairy should allow me to fit in perfectly well within the swelling ranks of Barking Carnival.

Today, probably to the complete and general disinterest of everyone on this blog, I’ll take a quick look at the art of the Summer Blockbuster as consistently and wrong-headedly interpreted by Fox Studios…in this instance illustrated by Wolverine. A few months ago, a buddy of mine who works in Hollywood sent me a copy of the original first draft of the Wolverine script by David Benioff at my request. The trailer had just been released, and I was fairly excited at the prospect of an entire movie about Wolverine without the cumbersome and weighty baggage of a faggoty Cyclops and Halle Berrie’s acting, as well as free of the pestilent douche-touch that is Brett Ratner’s directing.

brett ratner
I killed Professor X when I couldn’t get approval to re-cast him with Chris Tucker.

Now, anyone who’s had any kind of conversation with someone who has worked in Hollywood circles has probably heard someone say that Hollywood is run entirely by the bean counters. This is unquestionably true, but nowhere is this more apparent than at Fox Movies, a studio roundly mocked by pretty much everyone in hollywood. Recent masterpieces include The Day the Earth Stood Still, Street Fighter, 12 Rounds, the magnum opus Dragonball: Evolution. And this is in the past year. They consistently drop more turds than anyone this side of the A&M defense.

The Heads of Fox’s Creative Department

Now, Wolverine was by no means a terrible movie, although I’ll meander towards the specifics in a few minutes. It had some decent action shots that were well constructed, some pretty damn good acting, but more than anything, it started off with an extremely workable script. Not Hamlet, or even Lethal Weapon, mind you, but a very workable script that in the hands of a competent director (like Gavin Hood) could be a very respectable action movie that acquitted itself well to both fanboy expectations (I’m looking at you, Chris Applewhite) as well as the general public. Instead we were subjected to alternating spots of good movie and sadly expected Groan Out Loud moments and a plot that flows about as smoothly and consistently as my dead grandmother’s bowels. So how did this happen? The long answer is a combination of vapid reverie mixed with general buffoonery. The short answer is money.

I always feel like, Fox is waaaatching me!!!

Fox financial strategy is consistently to aim a film at the lowest common denominator in an attempt to widen the general audience. They want to piss off no one and try and make everyone happy, all the while making sure the movie is rated in a way to ensure anyone who wants to see it can see it. Not that that bullshit matters in regards to kids getting into movies these days anyway, but whatever, I digress on that point. The result, much like Hancock, is neither cold nor hot…so being lukewarm I shall spew it from my mouth. After reading the original script and watching the trailer, I knew we were in for trouble. Why is that? Because two of the larger draws to the movie entirely outside of Wolverine himself were the promise of Gambit, and to a lesser degree, Deadpool, were absent from the original script entirely.

Now, Deadpool has kind of a cult comic status as a bad guy and anti-hero, and X-men fans have been clamoring for Gambit to appear in the films literally since it was announced that Brian Singer was going to helm the first X-men feature. Seems like a smart move by Fox to include these popular characters. The problem, as is always the problem with Fox, is that they do it in a half-assed manner. The studio had an option on Ryan Reynolds, and they thought by sticking him in this movie they could pump an entire Deadpool movie out of him. Hardly the greatest motivation for making a complete film. And Gambit, well, shit, he’s about as present in this movie as a well executed RB screen is in the Texas offense. The two of them represent probably a combined 10 or 15 minutes of screen time, and yet their presence on the trailer implies significantly more. These guys serve NO real purpose in the film, but the downside was that they had to butcher the script in it’s original, workable form, simply to insert these half-inflated silicone implants of viable and (to nerds) cherished characters. Jesus, two characters and a story haven’t been this fucked over since George Lucas Bukkaked all over my childhood.

I’m not ChrisApplewhite, but I so think a studio should make a concerted effort to try and respect cannon and source material when adapting a comic book flick or any kind of science fiction or fantasy type book. I mean, Jesus you Hollywood Fucktards, I don’t want to read comic books either, but surely if I can spend 15 minutes looking over a Wikipedia page, you can do the same to mollify your most rabid piece of fanbase. The benefits of staying true to the material that made the original work so popular seem fairly obvious and so simple a Sooner could do it. Sure, occasionally creative license has to be taken to fit something into a runtime, but there’s no reason to, say, completely turn Deadpool into an abortion that is nothing like his history or powers in the comics. Or to trot out Taylor Kitsch as Gambit for 10 minutes of screen time that amounts to him doing Wolverine’s bidding like a mindless pussy while slipping in and out of an accent that is completely unidentifiable by me and certainly neither French nor Cajun. All you achieve here is getting to put faces in a trailer you think will score you a big opening weekend, but at the price of a solid story.

I’ll openly admit that my favorite parts of the movie were the origin pieces of the story as opposed to the action, and I don’t think there’s any coincidence at all these pieces also happen to be the parts that remained intact from the original script. Wolverine and his woman in Canada? Check. Vicious first fight between Logan and Sabertooth? Check. Wolverine’s adamantium procedure? Check. Wolverine’s motorcycle chase (minus flying up to the top of the Helicopter and the inexplicable presence of Hummers about 20 years before they were invented)? Check. It’s a shame the rest of the storyline wasn’t allowed to play out, because I can tell you that we would have exchanged a vast bulk of cheesy shit scenes that gave me The Rage with some of the best dialogue in the entire movie. Because the real victim in all of this, other than us as movie patrons, is Liev Schreiber. The guy is an extremely talented actor despite (or perhaps because of) his blood-curdling upbringing, and in the original script he had even more diabolical dialogue than all we were lucky enough to see in the final cut. He was chewing scenery in my head in a way that we sadly will never get to see him do on screen. Not in this movie, anyway. Hugh Jackman continues to be, in my minority opinion, an exceptional actor who has poorer taste in his film choices than CloseToJumping has in AIDS infested brothels in Namibia. Or Houston, for that matter.

The end result? We get a movie that is average in every way in which it could have been Very Good. Potentially another talented director who will swear off ever working with Fox Again (if he’s smart), just like this guy. And This guy. The entire pissing away of the Gambit and Deadpool plotlines (although that hasn’t stopped Fox from green lighting a Deadpool movie). A forgettable movie turd. I’m out $12. Oh, and Fox will likely make a modest profit.

Fuck you Hollywood.

P.S.: You’d better not fuck up Terminator: Salvation, which seems unlikely considering it’s Directorial Handicap.

Article Tags:

Culture, Movies, off season jackassery, Pop Culture

45 Responses

coolhorn said:

May 13th, 2009 at 3:24 pm

Ditto!
Burnt Orange Wookie said:

May 13th, 2009 at 4:13 pm

I haven’t even seen Wolverine and find myself nodding in agreement. The preview made it pretty clear what we were getting. As much as I love art films and all their heady glory, I must confess my love for a good summer blockbuster, and Fox has indeed become the worst of the bunch. The most I can hope for from them is an occasional blockbuster that has unintentional laughs (I still have to watch certain scene in The Day After Tomorrow whenever it’s on FX. It’s too hilarious).

I loved Star Trek though. I’ve watched most every series and move of that franchise and had a blast. Sure it was missing philosophy, questions about humanity, life and death, but I’m giving that a rain check considering this is the reboot. Hopefully Paramount and Abrams follow the groundwork laid by WB and C. Nolan ala the extremely successful reboot of Batman. And that’s saying a lot considering Nolan had to get the batsuit with nipples out of our minds.
Burnt Orange Wookie said:

May 13th, 2009 at 4:14 pm

Gah, typos. My apologies. “I’ve watched most every series and MOVIE of…”
Zero00Z said:

May 13th, 2009 at 4:44 pm

I actually thought Gambit was well done and well portrayed, people should stop basing their ideas of a cajun accent on a freaking cartoon!. He’s one of the few characters the movies didn’t ruin maybe because his time was too short.

But I agree with the rest. The movie was mediocre
SydneyCarton said:

May 13th, 2009 at 5:02 pm

Paramount is a class studio. Well, as much as any movie studio can really be a class studio. I have no doubt that they’ll do well by the Star Trek franchise for at least a couple movies. They have the same team writing the script as this last one, and Abrams will get first option to direct. And by first option, I mean they’ll throw a shit ton of money at him on top of his existing first look deal with Paramount.

I could do with some philosophy, but I’d actually like to see a Wrath of Khan type feature for the next one, where it’s the crew vs. a tangible and actually well constructed villain. That would be a change.

And I hate Star Trek.
SydneyCarton said:

May 13th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

Zero00Z,

I respectfull disagree on Gambit. Although it wasn’t so much that he was poorly portrayed, outside of the accent, it was his limited screentime and the fact they just stuck him in the movie at all so they could show him in the trailer. It was essentially a bait and switch, in my opinion. I liked Kitsch as Gambit, I just wish his insertion into the movie was better thought out.

As for the accent, or lack thereof, I fundamentally disagree with you. For starters, this wasnt a cartoon, it was a movie, even if it’s comic book based. Second, All I really ask is that the accent be consistent in its existence…not slide in and out and change. But since it’s the most defining characteristic of the character in the comics, I think they could have hired the guy a voice coach and made sure they got the accent right.

Then again, shit like that just typically bothers me. Also, how was it he was General Stryker in this movie, but was a lowly Colonal in X2? Demotion? Maybe. More likely a lazy oversight.
Burnt Orange Wookie said:

May 13th, 2009 at 5:52 pm

Well played, Carton. Sad you hate star trek, but it’s not for everyone. Regardless, I enjoyed your guest work.

I agree with the Nero character’s poor/complete lack of development, but the film did a lot of other things well. There’s actually a decent amount to nitpick, but compared to what Wolverine sounds like, I’m pretty pleased with Trek.

I feel pretty ambivalent about Terminator. On the hand, it’s Terminator. On the other, is McG. I’ll see no matter what, but I don’t have a lot confidence that director.
SydneyCarton said:

May 13th, 2009 at 5:59 pm

Don’t misunderstand me, Wook. I loved this last Star Trek. It was a great movie, start to finish, and designed for everyone. Which is why I enjoyed it. I look forward to all the future movies from this creative team. But in general, I’ve never been a Trek fan. I’m a Star Wars guy.

Nero was underdeveloped, and I’m also ok with that because I agree completely, they had a lot to cover in the reboot and they did other things exceptionally well. It only makes me sad because I think Eric Bana is an extremely good and underrated actor, and I’d have just liked to have seen more from him for my own enjoyment.

I’m similar on Terminator. I don’t want to get excited, but I am excited. McG scares me more than Prison, but Christian Bale makes good movies and a Jonathon Nolan (Batman Fame) did a script polish. It could really go either way. Either way, I’ll be seeing it.

Thanks for the kind words on my article. They are appreciated. It was fun to write.
anonymous said:

May 13th, 2009 at 6:03 pm

Yes, I was quite disappointed to see that this “McG” character was directing the new terminator. Oh well, I tend to enjoy movies the most when my expectations are low.
Burnt Orange Wookie said:

May 13th, 2009 at 8:56 pm

Thanks, Carton. I’m a guy who likes both of the famous “star” franchises. George Lucas keeps breaking my heart more and more with every DVD release though. Regardless, Empires Strikes Back will always be one of my personal favorite movies ever…original version of course.
SL Xpress said:

May 14th, 2009 at 1:01 am

Well done. See, you write about movies people actually give a shit about, whereas I want to write about the surprising Skills Like This and its awesome soundtrack.

I enjoyed reading this. I vote for more.
scally said:

May 14th, 2009 at 6:05 am

Paramount’s turnaround on Star Trek is pretty revealing. The only one they dropped a whole lot of cash on was The Motion Picture.

Nick Meyer had to reuse a lot of shots from TMP for Wrath of Khan. Even after the success of Voyage Home financially, the purse strings tightened up considerably for the train wreck that was Final Frontier.

The budgets on the Next Generation films were similarly low and it was almost a self fulfilling prophecy that the films wouldn’t do well.

Paramount is also notoriously cheap in dealing with Star Trek as far as DVD’s and what not. These new remasters of the classic series with the new special effects are cool, but previous DVD issues and what not of the TV shows and movies have been shit, which is odd, because there is a committed fan base that wants shit like deleted scenes and storyboards and George Takei telling the story of the first time he sodomized a redshirt and stuck a tribble up his ass.

That said, I thought this new movie was enteratining, even though JJ and the writers can’t explain exactly how this new timeline is different from the old one.
BEHorn said:

May 14th, 2009 at 6:11 am

Sidney – this statement couldn’t be further from the truth: “Paramount is a class studio.”
SydneyCarton said:

May 14th, 2009 at 6:47 am

BEHorn:

I’m certainly not going to argue with you, considering your level of insider status in Hollywood. If you say that dog has fleas, I believe you without question.

Maybe I should rephrase that I hear less about their warts than other studios, like say Fox Disney. Could I prevail on you to share some of the shitty things you’ve heard of or experienced in regards to Paramount?
SydneyCarton said:

May 14th, 2009 at 6:48 am

Scally,

I didn’t too much thought to how the new timeline was different. Vulcan is destroyed, and essentially the team now have a blank slate to go out on their own and create their own stories without having to worry about cannon. I didn’t really think it needed much explanation. Am I missing something?
kevwun said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:04 am

I think he was talking about how the destruction of the Kelvin affected the timeline.
kevwun said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:05 am

The only change we know for sure is that Kirk never knew his dad.
Nordberg said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:39 am

Oh yeah, SPOILER:

Why did the destruction of the Kelvin make the Enterprise bridge look like an Apple store? What caused that leap in technology, compared with what we saw on the original series?
scally said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:40 am

Is this an alternate timeline? Is the old one wiped out? I suppose not if Spock Prime is still exists and recalls the old timeline. Time travel has worked in about umpteen different ways in the Star Trek universe and each time there are a shit ton of unanswered questions.

40 years of “canon” and the only one that still exists in this timeline is that shitty Enterprise show.

It’s also odd the fates of 3 of the major classic series characters have faced. Mr. Scott stuck in a transporter for 80 years. Kirk stuck in a temporal rift for 80 years. Spock banished to an alternate universe/timeline. Seems like a copout.

Also disappointed that for a show that revolves around you know, space and the infinite possibilities for story telling in that realm, we are given another time travel story. Plenty of ways to get a good, exciting story introducing the new, young crew, that doesn’t involve time travel. It gets old.
Vasherized said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:42 am

SL,

You want more movie reviews? No problem. That’s clearly all we’re capable of right now.

I’ve been wanting to break down the best movie of all time, Animal House, scene by scene in a 32-part series. That should get us through June and July.

In the meantime, read the first review posted on this site back in August when it was just HJ, Scipio, and three guys from Plan II Sailor paid to post on this site to build traffic.

Profundity abounds.
Facebook User said:

May 14th, 2009 at 9:12 am

That’s the best movie review evah.
Texoz said:

May 14th, 2009 at 9:56 am

That HJ “Bourne Three” review is spectacular.

Is it possible to get a podcast of that with Stewie Griffin as the voice of HJ?
Vasherized said:

May 14th, 2009 at 9:57 am

First paragraph of the NYT’s review of Angels & Demons:

Since “Angels & Demons” takes place mainly in the Vatican, and is festooned with the rites and ornaments of Roman Catholicism, I might as well begin with a confession. I have not read the novel by Dan Brown on which this film (directed, like its predecessor, “The Da Vinci Code,” by Ron Howard) is based. I have come to believe that to do so would be a sin against my faith, not in the Church of Rome but in the English language, a noble and beleaguered institution against which Mr. Brown practices vile and unspeakable blasphemy.

Truth.
Texoz said:

May 14th, 2009 at 9:59 am

Sounds like a few people around here work in the biz, or at least audit those peckers?
Horncasting said:

May 14th, 2009 at 10:21 am

I was thinking of taking my 10 year old to Terminator when it comes out. If anyone could give a review and let us know what made it PG-13 I’d appreciate it. If it is just Lord of the Rings PG-13 we’ll probably still go.
SydneyCarton said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:23 pm

Well, the sole reason Terminator: Salvation was rated R was because of one topless scene by Moon Bloodgood. They cut that, they got to PG-13. I’d expect a very HARD PG-13, though. I wouldn’t really take my 10 year old to see it. And I say that not having a 10 year old kid, or having seen the movie.
Nordberg said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:33 pm

I just googled Moon Bloodgood.

I wish it were still rated R.
Steve Nebraska said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:41 pm

Alex Royas, whom the article mentions warns people away from working with FOX, directed Dark City, which was a really underrated movie.

Unfortunately, his experience with FOX was so terrible that he decided to make only artistically pure projects, like the latest Oscar-worthy Nicholas Cage “I can see the future” vehicle “Knowing.”
Steve Nebraska said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:42 pm

Sorry, Proyas.
SydneyCarton said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:45 pm

Nicholas Cage ruins everything.
H.I. McDonnough said:

May 14th, 2009 at 12:59 pm

Almost everything.
Steve Nebraska said:

May 14th, 2009 at 1:03 pm

Well played, sir.
jc25 said:

May 14th, 2009 at 1:26 pm

Wolverine gross after 2 weeks: $129M

Watchmen total gross: $107M

Ugh.
Texoz said:

May 14th, 2009 at 1:32 pm

“I just googled Moon Bloodgood.”

Ha! I did the same thing. Damn.

“I’d like google her in her star trailer,” says Groucho Marx.

There’s always the director’s cut. She’ll be in that I’m sure.
SydneyCarton said:

May 14th, 2009 at 6:33 pm

Moon Bloodgood was a regular on a TV show that got cancelled recently. I forget what it was called, I think it was Traveller. Loosely based on the concept in The Time Traveller’s Wife. Starred Kevin McKidd. I’m sure you guys could find it on Hulu or something.
Texoz said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:00 pm

Vasherized, apparently one of the actors in “Angels & Demons” isn’t a big fan of Dan Brown either. Here’s Stellan Skarsgard’s thoughts.

“I think Dan Brown is a terribly bad writer, but he has cliffhangers after every chapter which makes you continue reading,” Skarsgard told Swedish broadcaster SVT.

“It’s like eating peanuts at a bar. You don’t like them, but you keep on eating them anyway,” he said.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/eu_sweden_skarsgard
BEHorn said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:08 pm

Sydney – I’d rather not get into the uglier details. Let’s just say that Paramount’s movies have been routinely awful with a capital “AWF” the last few years … they had (or inherited) DreamWorks movies that did pretty well (”Transformers”), and they have a good distribution deal — but zero creative input — on the Marvel movies (e.g., “Iron Man”) and likewise on DreamWorks Animation. Until “Star Trek”, they hadn’t internally developed a movie with a crap in heaven knows how long. And even then, “Star Trek” is a pretty unique franchise (and the development had waaaaay more to do with JJ Abrams and the writers than any genius resident within the walls on the Melrose lot).

We’ll see whether that changes much, but promoting the head of Vantage for losing craploads of money (thanks partly to nutty budgets, but more to P&A spending to chase awards) doesn’t really seem like it’s the answer, so far.

Disney’s actually in much better shape now than it was toward the end of the ME regime. They just aren’t making a lot of movies, and they have mandate — remember, it’s show BUSINESS, not show “art” or show “let’s prove how intelligent we are” — to make 4-quad, cross-marketable content. So, they’re going to focus on things they can sell across their platforms, plus whatever Jerry B wants them to do.

Fox is Fox. They muddle along, have a hit every now and then, and get some nice movies out of Searchlight once in a while.

And as far as Dan Brown goes, I am reminded of what Truman Capote once said about Jack Kerouac: “It’s not writing, it’s just typing.”
BEHorn said:

May 14th, 2009 at 7:13 pm

“Wolverine gross after 2 weeks: $129M

Watchmen total gross: $107M

Ugh.”

Not sure what this implies. “Wolverine” = moderately watchable, slickly-made studio movie. “Watchmen” = muddled, overly-long with one interesting character (Rohrshach) and several tedious ones. Add the additional P&A bakcing Wolverine, plus Hugh Jackman (an actual movie star) and the preceding successes, and the outcome you “Ugh” is highly predictable.
SydneyCarton said:

May 15th, 2009 at 3:54 am

Thanks for the elaboration, BEHorn. I haven’t really consider the roster of movies paramount and put out since they made that statement. I was just thinking that I hadn’t heard stories about the directors going to the lot one day to find that all of the set pieces had been painter lighter colors because the president of the studio or someone high up thought the movie looked “too dark.”

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on what you know about Hollyood. It’s always interesting to hear what you have to say on the subject.
BEHorn said:

May 15th, 2009 at 5:46 am

Ah, the good old Sherry Lansing days. (The funny thing is, she was probably right.)
SydneyCarton said:

May 15th, 2009 at 6:18 am

Ha. That’s where you and I might have a difference of opinion, BEHorn. I think that if the studio didn’t meddle with shit like that, and didn’t add things to the script based on purely financial motives, I think Hood had a better chance of making a great all around movie, which would have made more money in the long run.

Then again, I’m an idealist.
BatesHorn said:

May 15th, 2009 at 7:17 am

Hollywood in general is just pathetic. Look at I am Legend. The basic short story is amazing and required, at best, a bit of updating and minimal adjustment to become a screenplay.

Yet somehow, THREE TIMES, Hollywood has failed to take a story with pathos, action/horror, and a fascinating twist, and COMPLETELY FUCK IT UP. And the last time, for the same thing that brought down Wolverine: They shot the movie to create a cool trailer, thus destroying one of the better science fiction tails of all time.
BEHorn said:

May 15th, 2009 at 11:07 am

Didn’t you guys know that studio exectuvies set out to make bad movies on purpose? After all, it’s so easy to make great ones.

Sidney – I hear what you’re saying, but look at this thread as an example of how hard it is to know when to “meddle” and when to leave things alone. Somebody above (more than one) hates McG — if he sucks so bad, wouldn’t it make sense to “meddle” with his movies?

Besides, you haven’t seen enough 4-hour-long, unwatchable directors cuts to understand how far wrong a director can go. If you need a reminder, just look at anything Barry Levinson’s done in the last 10 years.
SydneyCarton said:

May 16th, 2009 at 4:52 am

I’d never really considered it that way, BEHorn. That’s a good point. Particularly Barry Levinson, where outside of Bandits, it’s just shit until you go back to Sneakers.

I have high hopes for Terminator: Salvation, against my better judgement. Trailer looks good, but I know they were shooting w/o and ending in place, and McG hasn’t proven himself to be able to project a vision of anything that isn’t just a 90 minute ADD ride. But in response to your question, I’d say the point would be to not hire a McG in the first place, as opposed to meddling.

But your point is a good one. I haven’t seen the 4 hour unwatchable abortions, and there’s no doubt shit goes astray at times.

It’s a grayer area than I’d considered. But still, at least we can agree that Fox eats a huge bag of dicks.
BatesHorn said:

May 16th, 2009 at 2:17 pm

Anybody whose been subjected to the extended version of Return of the King understands BEHorn’s point well.

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Good discussion. The perception of Clausen is interesting. He might surprise you. Tate is a player that will contribute wherever he ends up. He’s serious.
Trips Right commented on the blog post Early NCAA Tournament Bets 1 hour, 33 minutes ago

Utah State can really shoot it. They’re the top 3 point shooting team in America. But they struggle against quicker athletes and can be banged inside. the big 12 isn’t getting a lot of credit so the line is short, imo
skymonkeyhorn commented on the blog post Texas Basketball is Dangerous 1 hour, 34 minutes ago

Is it just me or is Damo sounding a lot like Ricky?
Are they just providing some giggles for the rest of the teams? Or do they think this shit will fly even with the blue hairs ?
Will rick ever live down the quotes that will be recorded in Scipio vast mental vaults
Trips Right commented on the blog post NCAA Basketball Tournament Lines 1 hour, 44 minutes ago

I posted my picks, but as you stated Richmond looks like easy money.

I think Purdue is a shell and Siena is experienced, athletic and talented. Saints roll.

I’m fading Gonzaga and St Mary’s. Zero athletes on those clubs.

I”m also fading Michigan State with NMSU. They’ll be able to get shots against
dick commented on the blog post NCAA Basketball Tournament Lines 1 hour, 48 minutes ago

I like UTEP and Wake to add to Trips bets, which I support fully.

Richmond = 4 units
Siena = 3 units
dick commented on the blog post NCAA Basketball Tournament Lines 1 hour, 49 minutes ago

Just to try and keep it on the same thread, Trips likes:

New Mexico -9
Baylor -12
Louisville pk
Aggs -2
Richmond pk
NM St +12
Siena +4
FSU -1.5
Hiphopopotamus commented on the blog post Two Down, One To Go 1 hour, 52 minutes ago

Always interested…good stuff all around.

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dick commented on the blog post Early NCAA Tournament Bets 1 hour, 54 minutes ago

Love Siena, love Richmond, love Louisville. Why is the ags line so small? I’ll take them but that line scares me a bit. Seems like a sucker bet maybe.
Trips Right commented on the blog post Thank You, dick 1 hour, 57 minutes ago

dick, sounds good on the tournament previews. I’ll try to do some wagering stuff in conjunction with your stuff, but I just posted some bets I pounced on at the open.

As for the future bet, I don’t normally post dollar amounts but I wanted you to know EXACTLY how thankful i was for the
Trips Right wrote a new blog post: Early NCAA Tournament Bets 2 hours, 1 minute ago

Got these at bookmakers. Should have totals tomorrow.

03/18/2010 @ 12:00 PM CBB NEW MEXICO -9-110

03/14/2010 by ONLINE at 06:49 PM STRAIGHT BET
03/19/2010 @ 12:00 PM CBB SIENA +4-110

03/14/2010 by ONLINE at 06:50 PM STRAIGHT BET
03/18/2010 @
dick commented on the blog post React-to-Ology: Early Look at the Madness 2 hours, 4 minutes ago

First, Duke is playing Nova in the Elite 8, not WVU. I still don’t like Duke to cut down the nets in Houston (they do that for reaching FF right?)

Second, I keep hearing the pundits say the same thing about the Midwest but I don’t see it. UNLV isn’t better than any of

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Hiphopopotamus wrote a new blog post: Quick Bracket Thoughts 2 hours, 6 minutes ago

Well… it’s not going to be easy.

First off, let me get this straight. As the committee says, they seed based on an S-Curve. So by that logic, this is how they see the top 16…

1. Kansas
2. Kentucky
3. Duke
4. Syracuse
5. Kansas State
6. Villanova
7. West Virginia
8. Ohio State
9. Georgetown
10. New Mexico
11. Baylor
12. Pittsburgh
13. Vanderbilt
14.

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dick wrote a new blog post: NCAA Basketball Tournament Lines 2 hours, 24 minutes ago

The lines are out:

Thursday:

Ohio +13.5 -102
Georgetown -13.5 -108

San Diego State +3.5 -107
Tennessee -3.5 -103

Robert Morris +19.5 -102
Villanova -19.5 -108

Saint Marys CA -1 -102
Richmond +1 -108

E Tennessee St +20 -102
Kentucky -20 -108

Wake Forest +4 -108
Texas -4 -102

Sam Houston +12 -105
Baylor -12 -105

Old Dominion +2.5 -108
Notre Dame -2.5 -102

Lehigh +26.5 -105
Kansas -26.5 -105

Northern Iowa -1 -105
UNLV
dick commented on the blog post Thank You, dick 3 hours, 9 minutes ago

i just saw you risked $400 to win $800. That’ll buy a lot of diapers. Congrats.
dick commented on the blog post Thank You, dick 3 hours, 14 minutes ago

No problem. I do futures all the time so I have obsessed over that decision many times. Letting $100 25-1 odds ride as long as you can is much more intense.

We need to get some more betting previews going here for the tourney. We can link to marchtomarch.com or whatever.
dick commented on the blog post Thank You, dick 3 hours, 14 minutes ago

No problem. I do futures all the time so I have obsessed over that decision many times. 2 to 1 is just a bet and it wasn’t like you were invested in that bet for a long time. Letting season long $100 25-1 odds ride as long as you can is much
Trips Right commented on the blog post Two Down, One To Go 4 hours, 1 minute ago

You guys got absloutely screwed. Toughest bracket by far. Even Lehigh is the toughest 16 seed. The committee did you zero favors.

Here are my thoughts if you’re interested.

http://marchtomarch.fantake.com/2010/03/14/react-to-ology-early-look-at-the-madness/

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Kevin Berger wrote a new blog post: React-to-Ology: Early Look at the Madness 4 hours, 32 minutes ago

Hold on a second…give me a chance to pop in some ear plugs as Dick Vitale waxes indignant about some selection snubs. Count down to mocking a Selection Committee member on the world wide leader is T minus 15 minutes. Great television in any event.

Here’s my early rants and reactions to

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Patrick Bateman commented on the blog post NFL Draft: A Mockery 4 hours, 36 minutes ago

Mike Iupati will get taken by the Cowboys if he’s on the board. I wouldn’t hate a Golden Tate pick, but we have much bigger needs along the OL and secondary rather than getting another WR. We already have a ton of money tied up in the position (when we pay Austin).

Whispers are
James commented on the blog post NCAA Selection show open thread 4 hours, 58 minutes ago

Bob Knight wearing a St. Louis Cardinals polo. Nice.

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Ibas water bottle wrote a new blog post: What ever happened to Luke Schenscher? 5 hours, 9 minutes ago

We earned a 7 seed and will face Georgia Tech in Milwaukee on Thursday. If we survive that we face Ohio State in the second round. Shoot well and we can make the sweet 16. I’m relieved that Lunardi missed on his 8 seed projection for us. I’m much less worried about Ohio State than

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