Category Archives: Editorial

by | September 16, 2013 · 9:07 am

Editorial | I Want to Be Hank McCoy, A Poem

I was talking to the fearless leader of Therefore I Geek a couple of weeks ago about what my major was here at school, and what I want to do when I grow up.  As I described my ambitions to him, we both started to realize that they sounded very familiar.  In fact, I just want to be Hank McCoy.  Who wouldn’t??  He’s brilliant and powerful.  He has connections to heads of state, and the kinds of people who can kill you with their minds.  So here is my ode to the sweet and sexy Beast—I just want to be him!!

I want a full scholarship to a private university with all the research grants I could possibly desire and a limitless opportunity for travel due to my unrestricted access to a private jet.

Come to think of it… I want to be Hank McCoy.

I dream of opportunities to rescue humanity from itself, although I realize that it would take superhuman talent and power to actualize my savior complex.

So in other words… I want to be Hank McCoy.

I want the brains of an old world, Ivy League educated sphinx, and the physical power of an NFL linebacker in the prime of his youth.

Yup… I want to be Hank McCoy. 

I want to have a working understanding of many fields—to be the epitome of a Renaissance (wo)man.  I want appropriate literary quotes to roll off my tongue with ease.

Oh wait… I want to be Hank McCoy.

I speak Spanish, and some German and French.  I’m hoping to learn several other modern languages so that I can easily communicate with foreign dignitaries.

He did that too?!  I want to be Hank McCoy.

Someday I want to have easy access to the White House as I work to smooth things over between nations at odds with each other.  I want to practice diplomacy at home and abroad.

So… I just want to be Hank McCoy.

fera-e-o-presidente-kelsey_grammerIt’s really quite simple:  if that’s what it takes to get the brains and the sexy, leather suit, I’ll take the blue fur and the frequent changes in physique.

You got it!  I want to be Hank McCoy.

And maybe, if I do a good job at all of these things, they will make a movie about events in my life.  (Although, being Hollywood, they’ll probably change half of it.)

Haha!  I want to be Hank McCoy.

3 Comments

Filed under Comics, Editorial, Tracy Gronewold

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | September 9, 2013 · 2:53 pm

Editorial | NASA’s Historic Lunar Launch

NASA has once again made history with its launch on Friday of the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer. They call the probe LADEE, but blatantly mispronounce it as “laddie;” to which I say, “Tut, tut, NASA.”

LADDEE preparing for its historic mission.

As its name suggests, the probe is going to run tests on the atmospheric conditions on the moon as well as changes in the lunar dust due to environmental factors. It will orbit the moon for approximately 100 days, and then crash into the surface at the end of its mission.

LADEE is a test model for low-cost space missions. Since NASA has been receiving considerably less in government funds (and has defunded manned space-travel completely), this mission will be important to allow the program to continue space exploration while maintaining its budget.

The liftoff moment (last Friday at 11:27 p.m.) was visible from much of the east coast. Students at William & Mary were even able to watch the launch from the sunken gardens in the middle of campus.

Liftoff!

Not only is this probe fascinating for its mission, but because it launched from Virginia’s Eastern Shore, it also makes the commonwealth a lunar launch site for the first time. Considering that Virginia’s NASA outpost in the city of Hampton has been a major participant in NASA training missions for decades, this is a huge deal.

Leave a comment

Filed under Editorial, Tracy Gronewold

Tagged as , , , ,

by | September 2, 2013 · 6:39 pm

Editorial | The Batman is Dead, Long Live the Batman

So you may have heard the news… there’s a new Batman in town.  Ben Affleck, of mixed Hollywood reviews, has been signed to play the caped crusader in the sequel to Man of Steel, which will feature both Batman AND Superman.

The internet reaction to Affleck’s casting has almost been visceral.  Twitter was aflame for most of the first day with angry fans declaiming the franchise.  Honestly, I see their point.  Affleck’s breakout starring role was in a movie he co-wrote with his best friend.  It would make sense that he would seamlessly morph into his character in Good Will Hunting, since the movie takes place in Affleck’s hometown of Boston, and features the places and social norms with which he grew up.

After the 1997 instant hit, however, Affleck’s career became a series of boring (and sometimes nameless) roles in ridiculous movies—and yes, I include Pearl Harbor among those.  In 2003, the actor spandexed up for the first time in the title role of Daredevil.  The movie did pretty well at the box office, but tanked in critic and viewer reviews.  His performance in this last superhero movie seems to be the main talking point for Batfleck haters.

To be completely fair, the early 2000’s were not kind to superhero movies of any kind.  Does anyone remember the first X-Men movie from 2000?  Hulk, which came out the same year as Daredevil?  Still, although there were other terrible comic book movies in that half of the decade, Daredevil was still a pretty awful representation.

While I don’t actually see any fans of the decision, a few people have actually tried to defend the move, citing Affleck’s recent move to the director’s chair with movies like The Town.  Here, I again have to point out first that The Town  would have made a TERRIBLE comic movie, and that it was also set in Boston—Affleck’s home town.

I find it telling that typing the words “Ben Affleck batman” into Google gives me 106,000,000 hits, and the headlines read:

“Ben Affleck’s So-So Batman” (Daily Beast)

“3 Out of 3 Former Batmen Agree: Ben Affleck Will be Fine” (Wired)

“Matt Damon Defends Ben Affleck’s Batman: ‘You Know He’s Not Playing King Lear” (Huffington Post)

Matt Damon is secretly hoping to be cast as Robin…

Even those defending the casting decision point out that Affleck will be ok.  They say that the franchise will be fine.  Life will continue on.  No waves will be made.  Affleck will not do anything amazing with Batman, but neither will he destroy the movies.

Ultimately, I think that this is the best that any DC comic fan is going to be able to look forward to in the next few Batman movies.  To be perfectly blunt, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight brought an unparalleled level of brilliance to Batman.  Until his spectacular three-movie feat, DC’s comic movies have been mediocre at best.  With his departure, Batman will subside back to what it was before him.

Do you agree with the Warner Bros. decision?  Let us know in the comments!

Leave a comment

Filed under Editorial, Movies, Tracy Gronewold

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | August 26, 2013 · 9:59 pm

Editorial | Seek the Geek!

Sitting here on the bunk in my “new” dorm room makes me feel very, very young.  It’s a very unusual thing to live on my own for so many years, only to find myself sharing a room with two other people in a self-contained ecosystem where the organism highest on the food chain usually wears shorts and a hoodie.

2013-08-23 09.42.59

Home sweet home?

From the moment I stepped foot on the campus of William & Mary, I knew this was the place for me.  That feeling was cemented even further in the few short days that I’ve been here, because everyone (and I do mean everyone) here is a geek like me!

My first encounter with my roommate involved a stack of graphic novels with vectoring interests.  She is a dance major, but likes Marvel and is interested in some of the smaller, creator-owned comics.

Next was a statuesque, blond transfer student who was talking about the girly things she was doing to prepare for her wedding.  She wore sundresses and high heels and sprinkled her conversations liberally with references to Game of Thrones.  We spent a fifteen minute walk to the Campus Center discussing the character development of Edrick Storm, and GRR Martin’s reasons for leaving him out of the HBO show.

Then was the ice-breaker game that my group of new students played to learn each other’s names and interests.  Students announced one fact about themselves and then everyone else who shared that quality or experience (such as breaking a bone, or loving cats) would trade places until someone was caught out and had to start the whole thing over.  “My name is Tracy, and I cosplay,” I announced and only one other person stepped into the center with me.  My crestfallen face lasted less than a second as instantly almost everyone in the circle began to ask what my characters were and which conventions I attend.  I received high fives all around.  When the hubbub died down, we asked the foreign exchange student who had switched places with me what he had cosplayed.  Without skipping a beat, he shrugged nonchalantly and said, “The green power ranger, of course.”

Apparently this is how they cosplay in the Netherlands.

Wherever I go on this campus, my geek status is welcomed with open arms.  Other students who look as though they would fit into categories that do not seem to jive with geekhood, such as prep or jock, still share my love of words, memes, video games, comics, or sci fi.

The moral of my short tale is twofold.  First, seek out the company of other geeks—the sense of acceptance is unbelievably warm and fuzzy.  Second, and please forgive my triteness, never judge a book by its cover.  I’m excited to be here and excited to share some of my experiences with all of you, our wonderful readers.  In the meantime, I’ve got an early morning registration appointment.

Leave a comment

Filed under Editorial, Tracy Gronewold

Tagged as , , , , ,