Category: Viral

Things are weird right now, everywhere, in a lot of different ways. We’ve all been stuck inside for months, some of us alone, some of us with our families, neither option ideal. People are shouting at each other about masks, online and in person. Our political discourse is the equivalent of two circus animals heaving rotten produce at each other. You have every right to be fried extra crispy right now, to be stressed, to need something to slow your brain down a little and give you a few fleeting moments of peace. We all do. You can find lots of suggestions for how to do this (deep breathing, taking a walk, etc.), but here’s another one if you need it: Maybe you should just chill out for a while and binge the Harley Quinn animated series.

Are you familiar with the Harley Quinn animated series? I’ll forgive you for now if you aren’t. It premiered last November on DC Universe, a more niche streaming service tailored to fans of the DC Comics. The second season came out in April. Critics love it, as you can see by taking a quick scan through the reviews at the time of its premiere, but if you’re not the type of person who wants to plop down $8 a month for content from one specific comics brand, it might have slipped under your radar. That’s a shame because the Harley Quinn animated series is very good. And this is a very fixable problem, especially now, today, because both seasons of the show came to HBO Max at the beginning of this month. You might have access to it and not even realize it. What an exciting development for you.

You should check it out if you can, too, because it is really very fun and good. The show is smart and funny and powerfully strange at times. It’s dark and violent and silly. It’s the kind of show where someone’s Nana might get killed with a shotgun in one scene and a hulked-up supervillain like Bane might be holding a coffee mug that says “CAFFEINE IS MY RECKONING” a few minutes later. This, to be clear, is exactly the kind of show I need in my life sometimes.

It’s also an interesting take on the character of Harley, one we’ve all become very familiar with recently thanks to Margot Robbie’s live-action portrayal in Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey. This version, voiced by Kaley Cuoco, has broken up with The Joker — portrayed here as equal parts toxic boyfriend and supervillain — and is setting out to form her own crew, with the help of Poison Ivy, who never actually joins the crew but serves as a kind of emotional and physical support system as Harley’s best friend. There are moments between the two that are legitimately touching. The show has layers.

It also has an incredible voice cast. Cuoco is properly unhinged as Harley. Lake Bell gives Poison Ivy a touch of exasperated Voice of Reason. Tony Hale plays a cackling Dr. Psycho. Ron Funches plays a sweet but menacing King Shark. Alan Tudyk plays like half a dozen characters, including Joker and Clayface, the latter a member of Harley’s crew who can shapeshift into anything and is very pleased to give it more theatrical flair than necessary. Jason Alexander is in there, too, as are Andy Daly and Wanda Sykes and Giancarlo Esposito and about two dozen other recognizable voices. J.B. Smoove plays a murderous houseplant names Frank. It’s upsetting how long it took us, as a society, to make that happen.

My favorite character on the show, though, is Bane, voiced by James Adomian as a well-meaning doofus who sometimes wants to blow up service workers who get his name wrong on a takeout order. Here, look at my sweet evil boy.

Everything on the show is like this, tilted maybe 30 degrees off of what you know and expect from characters you’ve seen in other DC projects. The Legion of Doom — the villainous collective that features Joker, Bane, Lex Luthor, and more, and which Harley is at times desperate to join on her own — is shown as a bureaucratic mess, middle-managed out the wazoo, with forms that need filling out and mandatory meetings and break rooms with microwaves and refrigerators. Jim Gordon is an unshaven wreck who likes playing with the Bat signal. Batman shows up every once in a while and it barely ever matters, which is actually refreshing in a way. Creators Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker have refocused the whole world through Harley’s eyes, making you root for a series of mini-triumphs for a sociopath who loves her friends and doing crimes pretty much equally.

The show works so well as a binge, too. The episodes are like 25 minutes each and flow so well from one to the other that you can easily lose four hours in its world. You don’t even need to be super-familiar with the comics to get into the action. I had zero clue who King Shark was until I Googled him halfway through the first season and I still love him anyway. If you’ve seen the Dark Knight trilogy and are generally familiar with Harley Quinn, you’ll be fine and get the vast majority of the jokes.

And again, it’s very good. It’s one of my favorite shows of the last year or so, one I only refrained from shouting about because it wasn’t accessible to a lot of the people I wanted to shout about it to. But again, it’s on HBO Max now. And you probably need the mental vacation a show like this can provide. And I really think you’ll like it.

So, once again: Maybe you should just chill out for a while and binge Harley Quinn. I promise it can’t hurt.

Though neither side was at full strength due to the absences of Montrezl Harrell, Patrick Beverley and Seth Curry, Thursday’s matchup between the L.A. Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks likely qualified as a playoff preview. After all, the Clippers and Mavericks are widely projected to occupy the No. 2 and No. 7 spots in the Western Conference, respectively, pitting the two teams against each other later this month. If a postseason series is in the offing, Thursday’s tilt provided optimism for entertainment value, and the Clippers secured the victory by a final score of 126-111.

For the most part, the first quarter was sluggish, especially when compared to the offensive baselines of the two teams involved. The Mavericks and Clippers rank as two of the top three offenses in the NBA this season, but neither scored even one point per possession and both struggled to maintain efficiency.

There were a few highlights, though, including a big-time dunk from Kristaps Porzingis over Ivica Zubac.

Both Kawhi Leonard and Luka Doncic got off to slow starts, but that didn’t last. Doncic connected on a step-back three late in the second quarter, before finding Porzingis for a dunk that prompted all kinds of celebration.

Almost immediately, Leonard retaliated by scoring 12 points in the second quarter to lead the Clippers to a one-point halftime lead.

The Clippers continued their upward trajectory to begin the third quarter, spurting to an 11-2 run to take a double-digit lead. While Leonard and George were crucial, Ivica Zubac also made a tremendous impact, posting a double-double by the middle of the third quarter.

Eventually, L.A. built a 12-point edge but, to their credit, the Mavericks battled back. By the end of third period, Dallas slashed the margin to four points and, with 6:41 left, Maxi Kleber connected on a three-pointer to tie the game. Unfortunately for the underdogs, though, the Clippers threw a counterpunch.

The Clippers scored the next nine points, with a timeout from Dallas in the middle of the run with the game teetering.

With L.A. leading by ten points with three minutes remaining, Doncic did connect on a deep three-pointer to pose something of a threat. Still, that was too little, too late, as George answered with a three-pointer of his own to put things on ice.

Predictably, Leonard (29 points, six rebounds, five assists) and George (24 points, seven rebounds, six assists) were tremendous for the Clippers. With that said, Zubac’s performance was potentially enlightening for L.A. in this matchup. The starting center didn’t miss a shot, converting all ten attempts, and he finished the night with 21 points and 15 rebounds in 24 minutes. Beyond that, Dallas started Bojan Marjanovic but, after six minutes, he never returned, and Dallas leaned heavily on Trey Burke in a smaller lineup.

Overall, it isn’t terribly surprising to see the Clippers outlast the Mavericks, even in a game that didn’t mean all that much for either team in the grand scheme. In the sense of a playoff preview, however, there were things to take away and, if L.A. gets the kind of performance from Zubac they did on Thursday, they will be difficult to beat.

This week, viral photos from the first day of school in various Georgia counties showed students crowded together with few masks in sight. Schools in the same area had to shut down entire classrooms due to positive tests after the first day back, quarantining students and teachers for two weeks.

In these counties, students are “encouraged” to wear a mask at school, but they are not required. Mask-wearing is referred to as a “personal choice.”

This week, a private Christian college in a town near where I live announced that is planning to resume in-person classes this fall. The school has decided that students will not be required to wear masks, despite the fact that the town itself has a mask mandate for all public spaces. “No riots. No masks. In person. This fall,” the college wrote in a Facebook post advertising the school last month.

The supposed justification for not requiring students to wear masks is that it’s a “personal choice,” and that students have the freedom to choose whether to wear one or not.

That’s a neat story. Except it is totally hypocritical coming from schools and school districts that have no problem placing limits on personal choice and freedom by mandating stringent dress codes for students.

In Cherokee County school district in Georgia, students must wear pant legs that don’t touch the ground, shirts that completely cover the shoulders, and skirts or pants without frayed edges. But they don’t have to wear masks in the middle of a literal pandemic.

The dress code for New Saint Andrew College dictates that male students must wear button-up shirts (but no polos), dress pants and dress shoes at all times. Women must wear dresses, dress shirts and dress pants or skirt, dress shoes, and “at least one extra item (scarf, visible and dressy jewelry, dressy jacket, blazer, cardigan, etc.).” But they don’t have to wear masks in the middle of a literal pandemic.

A few other choice details from the college’s dress code:

– “Students must maintain good hygiene and grooming, both for the sake of the student’s appearance and for the comfort of others nearby.” (Umm, doesn’t good hygiene include not keeping germs to yourself in a pandemic? I know that would make me comfortable.)

– “Students must keep their shoes on at all times.” (Sooo, shoes on at ALL times. Masks on during a pandemic only if you feel like it. Got it.)

– “Black academic robes (available for purchase from the college bookstore) are required at disputatio, convocation, commencement, and oral finals for matriculating students who have earned 32 credits toward their degree program. Robes do not replace proper dress and must be worn over top of correct clothing as required by the dress code.” (So you have to wear the black robes in these instances. As in, no personal choice in the matter. But making students wear masks to mitigate a contagious novel virus spread is too much to ask.)

It’s pretty clear that the refusal to mandate masks is not about personal freedom; it’s about political statements. Because too many of our leaders and too much of our hyperpolarized society insist on turning everything under the sun—including basic science—into a partisan argument, somehow mask-wearing has become something political.

Public health is not a partisan thing. It shouldn’t even be a political thing. The pandemic doesn’t care about your political beliefs. Period.

Presumably, dress codes are in place to protect students in some way, right? To keep the environment safe and conducive to learning? How is mandating masks to keep students and teachers safer in a pandemic any different?

The only way I can see that it’s different is that masks actually have science to back up their use, they’re recommended by public health officials, and they’re useful in helping not only the students, but the entire community at large.

Seriously, you can’t enforce a dress code under normal circumstances and then turn around and say that you won’t enforce mask-wearing in a pandemic because of “freedom.” If schools were really concerned about personal freedom when it comes to putting things on your body, students wouldn’t be required to keep their shoulders covered or wear shoes. The blatant hypocrisy is ridiculous.

I took my 16-year-old to the store the other day, and as we walked in, she said, “It makes me so happy to see all these people wearing masks.” We live in a state that requires masks in public. And I agreed with her; it’s a relief to know that everyone will be masked when you go into a store or other public place. We know that masking is most effective if everyone does it. Our governor has taken heat from the “but my freedom” folks over the mandate, but I’m grateful for the clarity and decisive action based on public health recommendations. Too many people have already proven that they won’t wear masks if they are not required. My state has gone from having the first outbreak in the nation to #23 for total cases, and I credit the requirements the government put in place to keep spread under control.

If schools are going to open, masks should absolutely be part of the strict, required safety protocol to keep the pandemic as controlled as possible. Letting it be a “personal choice” won’t work, as evidenced by what we’ve already seen in Georgia. While keeping masks on little kids is a whole other question, high school and college students can handle it. Toughen up and save lives. It’s really that simple.

Over the past few years, there has been a growing movement to fight back against some of the everyday racism that exists in America.

The Washington Redskins of the NFL have temporarily changed their name to the Washington Football Team until a more suitable, and less racist, name is determined.

The Dixie Chicks, a country band from Texas has decided to change their name to The Chicks to avoid any connotation with slavery, as has Lady Antebellum who now just go by Lady A.

(Although they stole the name form a Black woman who has been using it for over 20 years.)

At a time when people are trying to expunge the Earth of racism, NASA has cast its eyes to the stars to look for offensive names that it’s given to objects in space.

So far, the Space Administration has found two objects that have offensive names, first is the planetary nebula NGC 2392 which commonly goes by the nickname the “Eskimo Nebula.”

Photopoesie / Flickr

According to NASA, the term “Eskimo” is a “colonial term with a racist history, imposed on the indigenous people of Arctic regions.”

The name has been used to refer to Inuit and Yupik people in Alaska for ages, and is seen by many as offensive.

“This name is considered derogatory in many other places because it was given by non-Inuit people and was said to mean ‘eater of raw meat,'” the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska told CNN.

NASA will also stop referring to NGC 4567 and NGC 4568, a pair of spiral galaxies in the Viro Cluster, as the “Siamese Twins Galaxy.”

via Astrobin.com / Twitter

The term “Siamese Twins” is derived from a 19th-century freak show starring Cheng and Eng, conjoined twins from Thailand (once known as Siam.) These days, the appropriate term for twins who share body parts is “conjoined,” because they can be born anywhere on the planet, not just Thailand.

via Wikimedia Commons

“I support our ongoing reevaluation of the names by which we refer to astronomical objects,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at Headquarters, Washington.

“Our goal is that all names are aligned with our values of diversity and inclusion, and we’ll proactively work with the scientific community to help ensure that,” he added. “Science is for everyone, and every facet of our work needs to reflect that value.”

The Agency will be working with diversity, inclusion, and equity experts in the astronomical and physical sciences to provide guidance and recommendations for other nicknames and terms for review.

“These nicknames and terms may have historical or culture connotations that are objectionable or unwelcoming, and NASA is strongly committed to addressing them,” said Stephen T. Shih, Associate Administrator for Diversity and Equal Opportunity at NASA Headquarters. “Science depends on diverse contributions, and benefits everyone, so this means we must make it inclusive.”

If space is truly the final frontier, then it should be a place we can journey while leaving the troubles we’ve created on Earth behind. Kudos to NASA for its new effort to make space a little more comfortable for all mankind.

In 2016, Kobe Bryant signed a pair of shoes for Devin Booker and, in doing so, the legendary Los Angeles Lakers guard told Booker to “be legendary.” Four years later, Booker is enjoying the best stretch of basketball in his NBA career and, after a buzzer-beater to knock off the L.A. Clippers on Tuesday, the Phoenix Suns star keyed his team to another victory over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday.

Following the game, Booker shared that Bryant is still in his mind as he players.

“Kobe’s with me every day,” Booker said. “You guys see what I put on my shoes, the ‘be legendary.’ That’s a reminder for me. Even without that reminder, it comes, through 24 hours, at least two or three times a day it crosses my mind, if not more.”

As Booker notes, he still writes “be legendary” on his shoes and it is clear that Bryant left an enormous impact on him, both on and off the floor. He is certainly not alone in the NBA world, but Booker’s willingness to share this sentiment is certainly interesting, especially within the bizarre circumstances of the bubble environment.

While the team success has not yet arrived for Booker, his game has matured tremendously in the last two seasons, with an uptick in efficiency and tangible improvement on the defensive end. Everything is coming together at an even higher level in the bubble as well, with the Suns posting a 4-0 record and flashing some of the team-wide upside they possess for the future.

Ryan Coogler’s latest project is a look at another kind of Black Panther: the controversial death of influential activist Fred Hampton. Thursday brought the trailer for Judas And The Black Messiah, a Coogler-produced drama about the assasination of Black Panther organizer Fred Hampton in the late 60s that remains a point of anger in the Black community in the present day.

The trailer showed us a first look at Get Out‘s Daniel Kaluuya as Hampton as well as Lakeith Stanfield of Sorry To Bother You fame, who will serve as the movie’s main characters. The film is directed by Shaka King, who wrote it with Will Berson. According to the trailer’s YouTube page, the duo pitched Coogler, of Marvel’s Black Panther fame, who will produce the film.

The trailer shows the heightened tensions of the Black Panther movement in Chicago, where Hampton rose in leadership ranks with his energetic speeches and enigmatic organizational skills to make the party a force in the community. The refrain of “I am a revolutionary” punctuates the trailer, which sets the scene: an agent played by Jesse Plemons (Breaking Bad) puts pressure on Stanfield’s character, who will ultimately betray Hampton and lead to his death.

Historical spoilers here, perhaps, but Hampton was later killed at age 21 in a predawn raid of his Chicago apartment by Chicago police and the FBI. That incident is largely considered to be an assassination, and a lawsuit later awarded his family and others millions due to the nature of the deaths. The subject matter is compelling and tragic, but the cast assembled is perhaps the most exciting thing revealed. Kaluuya is firey and charismatic, while Stanfield visibly struggles with his predicament while Plemons’ presence at the rally looms heavy on screen.

The trailer hints at something the movie is sure to explore: while the FBI considered the Black Panthers a paramilitary threat to safety, Hampton’s work in the community was viewed very differently by those living and working in it. That nuance and the tragedy that resulted from it won’t be in theaters until 2021, but it will certainly be just as relevant when it debuts as it did when the story played out in 1969.

Without Jimmy Butler and Goran Dragic both out, the Miami Heat were seen as significant underdogs to topple the Milwaukee Bucks in Orlando on Thursday afternoon. The Heat put together quite a fight, however, and Erik Spoelstra’s team led for the majority of the contest. In the end, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and the Bucks flipped the script in the second half, overcoming a double-digit deficit and securing a 130-116 victory.

Miami blitzed Milwaukee out of the gate, putting on an offensive clinic against the best defense in the NBA. Not only did the Heat knock down 13 three-pointers in the first half, but Miami also generated easy buckets along the way.

The Heat led by as many as 23 points and, even after Milwaukee found life late in the first half, a Bam Adebayo buzzer-beater gave Miami a 17-point edge at the break.

In predictable fashion, the Bucks awakened in the third quarter, providing a reminder that they were the best team in the NBA prior to the hiatus. Milwaukee created six turnovers, converted all 15 of their free throw attempts, and generally dominated the proceedings.

Still, the Heat were in the driver’s seat, at least to some extent, until Milwaukee put together another run. After trailing for a (very) long time, the Bucks scored 13 straight points to claim a 107-103 lead with seven minutes remaining.

From there, Miami did briefly stop the bleeding, but the damage was largely done. The Bucks then finished things off with a mind-blowing 20-0 run to take a 130-111 lead, and Antetokounmpo was in the middle of it all.

Though the Heat did provide a worthy challenge, Milwaukee flashed their considerable upside after halftime. In the second half, the Bucks shot 56 percent from the floor and 50 percent from three-point range, outscoring the Heat by a 74-43 margin while clamping down on the defensive end. Antetokounmpo and Middleton finished with 33 points each and, even with the slow start, each member of Milwaukee’s starting unit finished with a +15 or better.

The Bucks haven’t been consistently dominant in the bubble, as evidenced by the first half on Thursday and a bizarre loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Still, Milwaukee sent a bit of a message in the second half, and they don’t appear to be “struggling” anymore.

Two of the NBA bubble’s hottest teams met on Thursday afternoon in Orlando. No, not the Bucks and Heat. Not the Lakers and Rockets either. I’m talking about the Suns and Pacers, a pair of 3-0 teams that have been shockingly impressive to open their restarts, behind sensational play from Devin Booker and T.J. Warren, respectively.

On Thursday, it was the Suns, once the afterthought of the West playoff race, who managed to take control of the game in the second half en route to a 114-99 win, moving them to 4-0 in the bubble, tied with the Spurs just one game back of Portland for ninth and two back of Memphis in eighth. How the Suns have gotten to that point was further evidenced on Thursday, as it was more stellar play from their core duo of Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton, combining for 43 points in the win on strong efficiency — a combined 17-for-30 from the field — and each notching double doubles.

However, what is different for the Bubble Suns compared to what we saw in the regular season is the play of the supporting cast. Even with Kelly Oubre Jr. out, the Suns have gotten terrific contributions from the rest of their roster. Ricky Rubio continues to be a steady hand on offense and providing excellent point of attack defense. Mikal Bridges, now tasked with playing major minutes with Oubre out (he played 35 on Thursday), is not only playing spectacular defense but has emerged as a better, more reliable offensive weapon in the bubble.

Cam Johnson is thriving at the 4-spot as a shooter but also a capable rebounder and functional defensive presence, with Dario Saric taking well to a sixth-man role. However, what may be most surprising is the play of Cameron Payne, signed just ahead of the restart to provide some needed backcourt depth. Payne has not only given them decent minutes, he’s looked pretty good, averaging 10.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game in the restart after some brutal years in the league early in his career with the Thunder and Bulls. On Thursday, Payne had another strong outing, giving Phoenix a needed lift in the third quarter with an offensive spark that saw him do a little bit of everything.

Payne finished the afternoon with 15 points, three boards, and three assists in 22 minutes off the bench on great efficiency, going 6-of-9 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range. Even if that kind of production isn’t to be expected from Payne every night, it’s notable that the Suns are now a team where a player can come in, find themselves a role to play, and thrive in it. That hasn’t been the case in Phoenix for years, but it appears Monty Williams, Booker, and Ayton have honestly created a culture in the locker room that allows it and have a real system in place that pieces can slot into.

The efforts of Booker, in particular, should be noted in doing this. Prior to the season he said he was taking it upon himself to start shifting the perception of the Suns, and he’s put that to practice on the floor. Take this sequence from Deandre Ayton that is, truly, preposterous and shows the best of what the big fella can do on both ends of the floor.

However, also note that Booker, recognizing the effort put in from his young star center on defense, doesn’t dart up the floor looking for his shot after Ayton gets him the rock off the block. Instead he directs Ayton to run a pick-and-roll and dive hard to the rim, rewarding him with a great pocket pass and an easy dunk for all that work defensively. It’s that kind of maturation from Booker, those kinds of strides from Ayton defensively, that lead the charge for this Suns transformation. There is buy-in on both ends, and whether they make the playoffs or not, there is a ton of good to build off of for Phoenix going into next season.

The John Wick universe is expanding at an alarmingly exciting rate. Not only is a fourth Wick movie bringing Keanu Reeves back as the assassin with a love of dogs, a Lionsgate earnings call apparently revealed that a fifth movie in the series will be on the way as well.

According to Deadline, John Wick 5 was essentially confirmed well before the fourth movie, currently still slated for a Memorial Day release. On the earnings call, it was revealed that filming for both John Wick 4 and John Wick 5 will start once the actor is freed from filming the latest in the Matrix series:

On today’s Lionsgate earnings call, the studio’s CEO John Feltheimer said, “We’re also busy preparing scripts for the next two installments of our John Wick action franchise, with John Wick 4 slated to hit theatres Memorial Day weekend 2022. We hope to shoot both John Wick 4 & 5 back to back when Keanu becomes available early next year.”

That’s another film guaranteed in the assassin-filled Wick universe, where coins are bartered for a hilariously wide variety of services and everyone is trying to kill someone else for one reason or another. There’s also a Continental TV show in the works for Starz, which apparently will hit TVs in this universe sometime after the fourth movie. Here’s hoping we get a TV show specifically about the coin economy as the Wick entertainment options continue to multiply.

As the report noted, Reeves has shot action films back-to-back in the past, finishing the Matrix trilogy in a grueling marathon filming session that hopefully isn’t repeated in the Wick cinematic universe. For fans of the series, though, the more Wick the better.

(Via Deadline)

Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz are currently battling it out for seeding in the Western Conference during the NBA’s bubble restart in Orlando. But the next few weeks are also big for Mitchell off the court, as the second edition of his signature sneaker line with adidas, the D.O.N. Issue #2, is set to release later this month.

The first release of the Issue #2 will be the bright green “Spidey-Sense” colorway hitting stores August 28. The sneaker features a BOUNCE midsole with a mesh upper, and will retail for $100. Along with the “Spidey-Sense” colorway, nine Team colorways will be available on the August 28 release date.

The bright colorways of the Issue #2 will only continue from there, as the second release will be the Crayola pack, in partnership with the crayon giant to bring three colors — Sky Blue, Banana Mania and Jazzberry Jam (because, you know, the Jazz) — to his sneaker line. The three bright yellow, blue, and purple colorways certainly stand out and make the sneaker pop on the court.

The Crayola pack will hit retailers on October 2, with other planned colorways releasing throughout October and November. As part of the sneaker launch, Mitchell and adidas also partnered on a brief video where he discusses the hiatus and how the past few months have only furthered his desire to impact change in the community.