Freakin' Free Time ...

On 05/26/2017 at 05:17 PM by Super Step

So, summer has given me plenty of time to do absolutely nothing, and that means I can sit and listen to NWP without interruption and while typing every random thought that pops in my head.

And um ... I can see how people would find me overbearing and annoying: http://www.pixlbit.com/feature/5024/episode_114_tropes_vs_nwp_in_video_games#comments

I really need to edit myself more.

Anyway, hopefully my overstated presence hasn't kept anyone else from commenting. I am fairly self-conscious about my walls of text and don't mean to take up so much space. It just happens when I'm actually interested in most of a 2 and a half hour show.

On a side note, I'd like to talk about art and media critique. Do you think there can ever really be an objective measure of what is good and what isn't? Personally, while I can understand how tight controls in gaming, good lighting in film, solid writing in books, and good pacing in television could come to be seen as "objective" measures of quality, I still think all of this is really just guidelines and how you feel about the end result is just personal taste.

For instance, there's a really cool series about the Transformers movies (which I personally can never sit through for the entire running time and think are boring) on YouTube that discusses Micheal Bay's ... oddball techniques.

Here's the thing: I don't like this style of filmmaking. Not at all. But maybe it works for some people, and not just teen boys with ADD. I could easily see a grandmother or someone "unexpected" going for the bright colors, explosions, and fast cutting because it's just "fun" or something. I can't stand the Transformers movies. I can tell you specifically why. But I don't think you can say they are "objectively" bad, just that I think they are bad.

What say you? Is there any truly objective measure of media and art?

Matt Snee Staff Writer

05/26/2017 at 06:44 PM

No there isn't. But Michael Bay still sucks. HA ha. Honestly, watching Twin Peaks again has reminded me I like slow cuts. It's just better.

Hope you're enjoying your summer off. Do you have any big plans?

Super Step Contributing Writer

05/26/2017 at 11:07 PM

Wedding tomorrow, concert Sunday, colleague retirement (kind of) dinner the 6th, probably gonna see Wonder Woman, start inventory gig mid-late June, New Orleans trip late July, and hoping to do some stuff in Dallas.

05/26/2017 at 11:48 PM

Oh you're going to NO? What for? Cool city.

05/27/2017 at 01:37 AM

Best friend's friend's wife's birthday party ... But really I just want some Cajun food.

Nicoleb1989

05/26/2017 at 11:29 PM

Im about to have quiet a bit of free time but not because I asked for it.My job isnt doing hot with hours so Im job searching again. Kind of annoyed with them to about other stuff so Im thinking its best I leave now. I do hope you enjoy yours though, well deserved!

05/27/2017 at 01:36 AM

You'll find something! That sucks though. Message me if needed.

daftman

05/27/2017 at 10:28 PM

Ack! Too many words here. Definitely not reading all this

05/28/2017 at 01:18 AM

It's ok! There's a Michael Bay YouTube video for the hip kids to jive to!

KnightDriver

05/27/2017 at 11:18 PM

I guess you can objectively talk about technique in media and art and what it does in conveying the message. Critics have to decide if the work is good or not. That's pretty subjective but you can talk about how technique is used and whether it serves the vision of the work. Critics have to explain why they like or dislike a thing. Objective analysis may help convice a reader of his/her argument. The measure of the work may be the end result though and not the skillfullness of the technique used.

05/28/2017 at 01:20 AM

I think critique is useful in that it clearly explains WHY a work does or doesn't work for a type of audience, but you can never objectively measure IF something works.

Pretty sure I'm agreeing with you, but I also just got drunk at a wedding, so it's a toss-up.

05/28/2017 at 09:16 PM

I can hear ten snobs say, "No, you can objectively say what is good or bad. Citizen Cane is good, and Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is definitely BAD." But those are just snobs.

goaztecs

05/31/2017 at 12:13 PM

Easy answer is no there isn't an objective measure for art or media, and that is what makes them so great. If there was a set list of what makes something good, it takes the creative freedom away. I might not like/understand an art piece while others will think its the greatest thing ever created.

The most recent example is when I went to that shack out into the desert and looked at an imaginary hole. I thought it was interesting but there was no way I thought it was as powerful or profound as many of the artsy folks who went (I do find it funny that I don't associate with the "artsy" folks even though I really should)

Also the whole Michael Bay Transformers flicks. I don't like them. I'd rather have my old school boxy Transformers where Bumblebee isn't cool, than the new stuff.

05/31/2017 at 12:37 PM

In my case, I can't stand Transformers and think they're just dumb movies, but I can't stand overtly pretentious art on the other end either.

So I'm pretty much the average middle American consumer, I guess, even though I really mean southern. Lol

PixlBit