The Races Of The Last Airbender

M. Night Shyamalan in his own words on The Last Airbender race controversy

The above is a fascinating interview Indie Movies Online did with M. Night Shyamalan on the race controversy surrounding The Last Airbender. I’m a huge fan of Avatar and was a little peeved at first about the casting of several white actors for the main roles. The more I’ve thought about it and read Shyamalan’s thoughts on it, the better of felt. And this interview really drives the point home. Aside from the fact that many of the main characters (and the director himself) are Asian, there’s the fact that the cartoon and all anime series aren’t explicitly Asian. In fact, many are oddly Caucasian in their looks and given Japan’s fetishism with America, that’s not surprising. The strongest point in the interview comes when Shyamalan breaks down the races of the four nations. For any Avatar: The Last Airbender fan, I highly recommend reading this.

Hulu Plus

UPDATE:

Turns out, 88% of the shows available on hulu Plus are available on the free version. Guess it’s not so great after all. I received my hulu Plus preview the other day but was disappointed to learn it was ad-supported and still cost the monthly fee. Some preview. [via /Film]

There have been rumors since late last year that hulu was going to roll out a paid version of their amazing TV-killing site. It was supposed to happening at the beginning of 2010, but content has continued to be free since then. Now it looks as if they’ve finallized their plans with hulu Plus. From what I gather, this will be a service in addition to their free content. By paying the monthly fee, you’ll be albe to watch hulu using your TV, iPad, and iPhone. It’s not clear how the TV aspect would work except that a number of select televisions and Blu-ray players will be able to stream the content. Not sure how those who don’t own these devices would access it. But for me, the iPhone and iPad versions (which streams hulu on Wi-fi and 3G) are where it’s at. With hulu on Apple devices, the sting of no Flash is somewhat alleviated.

Read the full story at Gizmodo.

Katy Perry Brings Christmas Early

The holidays are still half a year away, but Katy Perry is letting us unwrap our present early. She bares mostly all of what Cracked deems “Zooey Deschanel’s face on a pornstar’s body” in the upcoming August issue of Esquire UK. Stay tuned for (hopefully) more pictures to come (get it?).

Entourage: The One-Man Show

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Entourage LIVE! from FOD Team and Paul Scheer, posted with vodpod

Entourage LIVE! The one-man show starring Greg Hendersol. Brought to you by Funny or Die and Paul Scheer.

Pianos, NYC

No, not the venue. The actual fucking instruments. Strewn about the city for your enjoyment (or annoyance). As much as I hated living in NYC, they did have some pretty cool things every once in a while. Read the story at Huffington Post.

Neil Gaiman On Why Story Is Important

Gaiman’s choice: shouldn’t good writing tell a story too?

A fascinating article on the Guardian website about the difference between writing and story, and the battle of literary fiction vs. genre fiction. Hear how Neil Gaiman and Michael Chabon feel on the subject. Where do you stand?

Tyler Perry, Reviled By Black People

Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder doesn’t particularly care for Tyler Perry either.

I love everything about this A.V. Club article. The opening description of Perry’s work is a much more articulate version of what I’ve been saying for years. And I love that Spike Lee and McGruder, two dudes who rule, hate Tyler too (tippiecanoe?).

Return Of The Rainbows: Miscellanea

And finally, the winner of the rainbow contest:

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That’s My Boy: Mickey Mouse Does Meth

A lot of people hate on Mickey, but I’ve been championing his coolness most of my life. This comic strip totally backs up my claim. Hit up io9 for the interesting story and another strip.

Return Of The Rainbows: Food