The Internet knows nothing about being thankful. Just look around. Every nice statement is a lead-in to a negative comment, every YouTube video is a fiery response to someone’s hopeless meltdown, and every news site is hell-bent on reminding you what NOT to celebrate.
Giving thanks? That’s not the Internet’s style. So how about we be non-Internet for just one day out the year? I mean, it is Thanksgiving after all. A time when everyone should express gratitude without being the victim of cyber-f@ckery.
However, since this is Action A Go Go, let’s give thanks to the things we like talking about the most: Pop culture. Right? Right.
I give thanks to X-Box’s Free Games with Gold and Playstation Plus’s Free Games.
For making me play video games again. Also, thanks to Microsoft and Sony for being generous to their loyal PS3 and 360 customers by providing free AAA games despite the fact that they both have next gen console currently on the market.
I give thanks to Matt Reeves and Gareth Edwards.
For filling in for Steven Spielberg. It has been 6 summers since the man that practically invented blockbusters has made a summer film. Fortunately for us, Spielberg has spawned many students. In particular, directors Matt Reeves and Gareth Edwards, two filmmakers who gave that Spielberg-ian touch to their respective 2014 summer movies, Godzilla and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
I give thanks to Dr. Matt Taylor.
Because someone needs to thank the project scientist behind the Rosetta mission and “shirtgate.”
I give thanks to HBO.
For going a la carte. Also, for making next year’s Comcast contract a much simpler decision.
I give thanks to Paul Heyman, Hoodslam, and Lucha Underground.
For keeping the world of wrestling interesting. With Brock Lesnar not too far behind him, Heyman brought an intensity to WWE’s weekly programming that has been sorely missing. Outside of WWE, Hoodslam and Lucha Underground diversified America’s pro wrestling landscape by not only highlighting ethnicity but by going against the conventional logic of its major competitors.
I give thanks Nathan Furst, Steven Price, Hans Zimmer, Michael Giacchino.
For composing four of the year’s best scores. Nathan Furst’s Need For Speed score was a surprisingly vast, emotional musical journey. Steven Price’s Fury has a uniquely thunderous sound that refuses to be taken lightly. Meanwhile, the always reliable Hans Zimmer and Michael Giacchino brought something refreshing to two long-running franchises with Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Dawn of the Planet of Apes, respectively.
I give thanks to David Ayer, Seth McFarlane, Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brian Tyler, Michael Keaton, Bryan Cranston, Kevin Feige, Scarlett Johansson, and Luc Besson.
For deciding that putting in work is the key to success. Keaton and Johansson starred in three films this year, Besson produced multiple movies, Kevin Feige continues to roll Marvel Studios to success annually, and Bryan Cranston ended his run on Breaking Bad while providing Godzilla with its emotional core. Meanwhile, Brian Tyler seemed to have his name attached to every movie score from January to November while David Ayer directed Sabotage and Fury in the same year. Finally, Seth McFarlane (A Million Ways To Die In The West) and Tom Cruise (Edge of Tomorrow)selflessly played the fool and abused their bodies for our amusement.
I give thanks to the Russo Brothers and Gareth Evans.
For Captain America: The Winter Soldier and The Raid 2. But most importantly, for directing action sequences for clarity and punctuation. A method that continues to elude many other franchise films.
I give thanks to Christopher Nolan and Quentin Tarantino.
For using their profiles to champion the use of film over digital. Yes, digital is ideal for students and indie filmmakers, but film gives on-screen visuals an otherworldly warmth that makes it unique from TV and video games. We kind of prefer it that way.
I give thanks to Emily O’Hara Ratajkowski.
For just being everywhere you wanted her to be. From “Blurred Lines” to Gone Girl and ads for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare…nothing can stop the Ratajkowski-ing.
I give thanks to hashtags.
For helping online communities find each other. Hashtags are fun to make fun of but, honestly, they help the Internet get back to its original purpose: Dispensing information so that we can all make well-informed decisions.
I give thanks to Neeson “season.”
For extending the summer movie vibe a few weeks longer and for giving “guy flicks” a home again.
And finally…I give thanks to the guys at ActionAGoGo.com.
You just want to speak your mind. And that’s something we should all respect and be thankful for the right to do.
Troy-Jeffrey Allen writes about action/adventure for Action A Go Go. He is a comic book writer whose works include Bamn, The Magic Bullet, Dr. Dremo’s Taphouse of Tall Tales, and the Harvey Award nominated District Comics. In addition, Allen has been a contributing writer for ComicBookBin.com, OfNote Magazine, and ForcesOfGeek.com. His work has been featured in the City Paper, The Baltimore Sun, Bethesda Magazine, The Examiner, and The Washington Post.