With the semester winding down and my number of columns growing slim, we’ll be accelerating the pace somewhat and running through a few issues in rapid succession. But first, here is one more single-issue week to transition us into a speed run of the rest of Hickman’s saga.
“Femme Fatale” came at a significant moment in both American music and Spears’ career. Riding on the early rise of electronic dance music, the singer’s seventh album had one overarching desire: to commemorate Spears’ new era after her rise, fall and comeback in popular culture. Of course, that’s a simplification of what might be her greatest work to date. But at the time, “Femme Fatale” acted as a turning point.
VJs are visual artists who create and improvise videos for performances and live music events. My VJ project was abandoned, but I started to pay more attention to visuals during music events. Some of them were sublime in terms of design, composition, meaning and even beat-matching; some of them raised questions in my head.
With her voice softer and instrumentation simpler than ever, Lana Del Rey has returned. On March 19, the Los Angeles indie rock singer cast off the weight of numerous controversies before and after the making of her Grammy-nominated album “Norman F***ing Rockwell!” (2019) and released “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” (2021).
The first issue of “Brzrkr” is the comic book equivalent of a Rorschach test. To some, the Keanu Reeves-penned book (yes, that Keanu Reeves) will read as a charming attempt by a celebrity to break into a new medium. Others will see the Kickstarter-funded venture as Sal of comic review channel “ComicPop” put it on his Instagram, “the most blatant movie series pitch in comic book form I've ever seen."
The “Scooby-Doo” franchise is possibly the prime example of an intergenerational cultural touchstone. The Mystery Gang,their iconic outfits and their groovy Mystery Machine have remained something most audiences can connect with in some way. That’s partially thanks to the various installations of “Scooby-Doo,” which have spanned a handful of animated films, video games, television shows, merchandise and live-action movies.
The fashion industry plays a key role in recent violence toward the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, but it goes far beyond the latest controversy over Alexi McCammond, who was set to be the next Teen Vogue editor in chief. Asians have faced an onslaught of racism and violence over the past year of the pandemic.
A good way to ease yourself into this portion of the Fantastic Four saga would be to accept the following: It’s going to get even weirder real quick, so best prepare yourself for the wackiest and strap in tight. In a total departure from last week’s entry, we begin with Johnny Storm and Ben Grimm going on vacation to the bizarre Marvel fixture, “Nu-World,” built as a backup Earth by the mad genius Ted Castle.
Hedda Harari-Spencer, senior lecturer in the Department of International Literary and Cultural Studies, and the Tufts Judaic Studies Program hosted a conversation with Israeli novelist Meir Shalev on March 17. The self-proclaimed “unreliable storyteller” spoke about his literary career and his experience blending “fact and imagination.” Shalev is the winner of several Israeli literary awards and uses his lively stories to plot his way through history and into the present.
Books are able to connect people and their stories from cultures to cultures. Student authors Saherish Surani and Sebastian Fernandez both utilized language and their books to speak to larger societal ideas and give voice to those issues.
In essence, this movie is not just an allegory for what happened to the Lost Generation. It’s about what happens to human beings, in general, when the world surrounding us seems hollow and meaningless. It’s about our inherent urge to create or experience art made by others to find comfort — comfort in knowing that we’re not alone.
Inspired by The Beatles, Jethro Tull formed in the U.K. to write music and cashed in on sounds that progressive rock bands like Cream, Led Zeppelin and King Crimson were pioneering in the mid-to-late 1960s. As lead singer Ian Anderson explained in a 2018 interview with Decades TV, “It was the beginning of that improvised music slipping into the popular format. It came via blues, it came via Black American blues and it had impacted a whole generation of young, middle-class, white British boys, most of whom went to art colleges.”
Dick Grayson is my favorite member of DC’s Bat Family. A young, genuine and caring man with abilities and resources others don’t have and the presence of mind to use them well. Unfortunately, Nightwing has been tossed aside recently in comics and other mediums for the edgier Batman characters (or just turned into them a la "Titans" (2018–)). Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo are here to fix that, and "Nightwing #78" (2021) oozes with the obvious care and love this team has for Mr. Grayson and company.
When asked about my music taste, whether during an awkward first date or during pre-orientation duck, duck, goose, my answer was always the same — “Anything but country, really.” But through the haze of the last year (carrying my clothes in trash bags and dozens of pies out of Latin Way), I found my music taste through much trial and error, not understanding what I liked, and chasing the goosebumps. So now, when asked what music I like listening to, I answer, “weird … psychedelic … funky.” I like my music to not sound normal, to put you on edge as much as it soothes you.
Jaffe is the artist behind the solo project Del Water Gap. He’s an alternative/indie singer and songwriter who’s been producing music since he released his first project during his senior year of high school. Hailing from northern Connecticut, Jaffe started playing the drums in elementary school. As a kid, he was in a Phish cover band.
The place is also much bigger than I imagined. It's not just a single room but almost a maze. The hallway connects several rooms together. From roaming in and out of rooms, looking at the style of the arches and the bricks on the wall, I was drawn to its structure. It's like a part of a bigger picture.
“Lilo & Stitch” has always been focused on family, whether it be broken or whole, and how we can find connections and purposes that matter. The franchise’s earnestness has made it both famous and a generational touchstone. For people who grew up with the film (and its subsequent show), Stitch is just about the cutest plush animal you can get at The Walt Disney World Resort.
The New York Times Magazine created their own “Decameron,” with short stories detailing COVID-19. On July 7, the magazine issue was published. Then, on Nov. 10, The New York Times Magazine released “The Decameron Project” (2020) as a print book, explaining the project and presenting the 29 stories.
With the isolation of 2020, many turned to music for solace. Fortunately, listeners were gifted with album releases from pop singers like Taylor Swift and The Weeknd and rock legends AC/DC. Wrapping up the year was the Christmas Day release of "Whole Lotta Red," Playboi Carti's long-awaited album. It received some disappointing reviews (I personally enjoyed it), but its associated vampiric punk aesthetics reflected the 2020 TikTok phenomenon: e-girls (and e-boys).
Welcome back to the column, friends! Last week we had what may be a Tufts Daily first, a story recap and review so massive it requires two parts to do it justice. In light of this, make sure you catch up with last week’s installment so you won't get lost.
