# Pop Culture Stuff Everyone Seems to Misunderstand **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 22, 2021, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564 "2021-04-22T19:51:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/121 "2021-04-23T19:54:32Z")
DC can call him Captain Marvel but cant use that as the name of the Comic book. In the animated series he is (Justice league unlimited) he is called Captain Marvel. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/122 "2021-04-23T19:56:37Z")
Yeah, I got rather mad when I saw a set of coffee cups and t-shirts that said “I’m her Joker” and “I’m His HarleyQuinn” because that is a horrible relationship. ---
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/123 "2021-04-23T19:58:01Z")
I felt the final shootout was a catharsis for Munny. Throughout the movie he kept talking about how he wasn’t his old self anymore, as if trying to convince himself. It wasn’t until his friend who truly was changed was killed that Munny became what he claimed to be. No he was going after bad guys who deserved being killed. After that, he truly became the changed man he wanted to be ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/124 "2021-04-23T20:03:02Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > DC can call him Captain Marvel but cant use that as the name of the Comic book. > > In the animated series he is (Justice league unlimited) he is called Captain Marvel. _Justice League Unlimited_ ran from 2004 to 2006. The Captain’s name officially changed to “Shazam” in 2012 in a backup story in the _Justice League_ comic and has pretty much stayed that way ever since. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/125 "2021-04-23T20:13:35Z")
I dont understand- what is a _real_ “fake geek girls” comment? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/126 "2021-04-23T20:20:00Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Tyler Durden was not supposed to be a role model. That aspect of his personality is a hypermasculine violent anarchist _and that’s not supposed to be a good thing._ The whole point of _Fight Club_ is that aggression is a destructive and unhealthy response to white collar disillusionment. When _Fight Club_ came out, it got a pretty negative review in the San Francisco Chronicle. Some time later, they published a letter from a reader who strongly disagreed with the review, and who had found the film’s themes and message to be so compelling that… he joined the army, and was shipping out to boot camp in a couple days. Imagine missing the point of _Fight Club_ so badly that instead of wanting to be Tyler Durden, you want to be Bitch-Tits Bob. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/127 "2021-04-23T21:22:55Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I’ve had it with these flaming snakes on this flaming plane! I’ve been trying to figure if they’d be better or worse than bears that are on fire on roller skates. ---
**Author:** ![SwissMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@SwissMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwissMan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/128 "2021-04-23T21:23:28Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Imagine missing the point of _Fight Club_ so badly that instead of wanting to be Tyler Durden, you want to be Bitch-Tits Bob. His name is Robert Paulson. Something this thread reminded me of was the song “Richard Cory” by Simon and Garfunkel. The narrator of the song is obsessed with the title character, fantasizing about how fulfilling his life of wealth and luxury must be. Even after Richard commits suicide, the narrator is still pining that “wish[ed] that [he] could be Richard Cory.” ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/129 "2021-04-23T21:28:41Z")
> [@Dark\_Sponge](#): > > Darth Vader was not lying to or trying to trick Luke. If he had joined Vader they really would have killed the Emperor together and then ruled the galaxy as father and son. I never once thought Darth Vader was lying to Luke about joining forces to rule the galaxy as father and son. ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/130 "2021-04-23T21:50:56Z")
Lots of people don’t get that you’re not **supposed** to like any of the characters in _The Great Gatsby_. Maybe a tinge of pity for Daisy and Tom’s daughter. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/131 "2021-04-23T22:08:13Z")
Most people seem to think that the “Midas touch” is a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/132 "2021-04-23T22:10:25Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Imagine missing the point of _Fight Club_ so badly that instead of wanting to be Tyler Durden, you want to be Bitch-Tits Bob. I’m more concerned that he joined the Army because he thought it would be like _Fight Club_. I’m just hoping he washed out of Basic. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/133 "2021-04-23T22:13:56Z")
I’m sure he landed on his feet with a job in law enforcement somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/134 "2021-04-23T22:23:18Z")
> [@SwissMan](#): > > > [@Miller](#): > > > > Imagine missing the point of _Fight Club_ so badly that instead of wanting to be Tyler Durden, you want to be Bitch-Tits Bob. > > His name is Robert Paulson. > > Something this thread reminded me of was the song “Richard Cory” by Simon and Garfunkel. The narrator of the song is obsessed with the title character, fantasizing about how fulfilling his life of wealth and luxury must be. Even after Richard commits suicide, the narrator is still pining that “wish[ed] that [he] could be Richard Cory.” It’s taken from a poem by Edward Arlington Robinson, whose point (and Simon’s) is that you can’t tell a person’s demons merely by looking. Or, more simply, money doesn’t but happiness. > Whenever Richard Cory went down town, > We people on the pavement looked at him: > He was a gentleman from sole to crown, > Clean favored, and imperially slim. > And he was always quietly arrayed, > And he was always human when he talked; > But still he fluttered pulses when he said, > “Good-morning,” and he glittered when he walked. > And he was rich—yes, richer than a king— > And admirably schooled in every grace: > In fine, we thought that he was everything > To make us wish that we were in his place. > So on we worked, and waited for the light, > And went without the meat, and cursed the bread; > And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, > Went home and put a bullet through his head. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/135 "2021-04-23T22:38:09Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Imagine missing the point of _Fight Club_ so badly that instead of wanting to be Tyler Durden, you want to be Bitch-Tits Bob. Interesting thing about _Fight Club_ is how many ways there are to interpret it. I took a course on story structure where we looked at this one in depth. While it was presented to us as a thriller, other students made compelling arguments for why it was a different kind of story - with one even suggesting it’s a metaphor for the Buddhist journey from suffering to Enlightenment. Then we have the author himself, who remarked in the afterward, (paraphrasing), “I’ve heard so many explanations for what this book is about, but not once did anyone suggest it’s a love story.” I can’t remember how important Marla Singer is in the film, but in the book the case can definitely be made for love. Marla is the impetus for change and the reason for the narrator’s self- sacrifice. But _Fight Club,_ the book, wasn’t written with an intentional message. Chuck P. explains he was experimenting with story form and wanted to see if he could construct scenes tied together not by temporal cues, context, etc. but patterns. The rules of Fight Club were a pattern. They didn’t have particular significance to the author, at least not consciously. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/136 "2021-04-23T22:41:09Z")
> [@SwissMan](#): > > Even after Richard commits suicide, the narrator is still pining that “wish[ed] that [he] could be Richard Cory.” I figured the point was that the narrator (sung by Simon but I’m not saying Simon himself literally believed this) was saying even being a _dead_ rich guy was better than being trapped in his mire of underclass poverty. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/137 "2021-04-23T23:43:52Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Movie _Wizard of Oz_ too, but definitely not the book. Agreed. I haven’t read the book. The movie _Return To Oz_ also maintains the conceit. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/138 "2021-04-24T00:33:58Z")
The Captain Marvel/Shazam was wrong but is right again thing is kind of like how people used to call the USSR “Russia”. It was wrong until it was right. ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/139 "2021-04-24T01:21:19Z")
Well, except (and yes I realize this really pedantic, but this is the Dope…) Russia was right until it was wrong until it was right again. Shazam was never right in the first place and was wrong and always had been until it was right. ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564/140 "2021-04-24T01:41:21Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > I never once thought Darth Vader was lying to Luke about joining forces to rule the galaxy as father and son. That was my reaction to Dark\_Sponge’s post as well—“What?!? People seriously think Vader was lying?” Ruling the galaxy as father and son would have been incredibly cool, and I’ve always wished Lucas had gone in that direction. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pop-culture-stuff-everyone-seems-to-misunderstand/940564.md?page=8)