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Welcome to the Cinema Discusso Video Essayist Lounge! This is a nice chill thread for video essays, prose essays, reviews, retrospectives, blog posts, discussions, and tweets (though hopefully not too many tweets) about film and other arts. This is NOT the place to do sick owns on your posting enemies for the crime of having bad media opinions. There's plenty of other places on SA for that. Rather, this thread is for good faith discussion on media analysis and critics. While this thread is mostly about film analysis videos, it's important to recognize that Internet videos are part of the cinematic lineage: the techniques used by many creators like Jon Bois were not created out of nothing, but have a history in documentary and essay filmmaking. In that spirit, this thread shouldn't be strict about film relevance: videos about games or sports or music can have just as much to discuss cinematically as videos about movies. Thread rules 1 The golden rule, be excellent to one another! Try to disagree respectfully. Don't call someone a nazi, a pedophile or an idiot because they like or dislike a piece of media you don't/do. Please be chill. 2 Assume good faith as the default. Assuming bad faith usually leads to snarky attempts to own people instead of productive discussion. If you genuinely believe someone is arguing in bad faith, report their post and let a mod handle it. 3. This thread is primarily for discussing the content of the essays posted. While social media posts can provide context and clarify points, they should not be the main topic of conversation unless circumstances demand it. If you're looking to discuss a particularly infuriating twitter thread by Movie Bob, GBS's Idiots On Social Media thread would be a more appropriate venue. The official CD VEL thread recommendations: Hbomberguy A fellow goon who makes some of the best video essays of all time. Probably most famous for his X is Genius/Garbage, and heres why series. Definitely check out his Fallout New Vegas and Pathologic is Genius videos, as well as his Scanline series! We all wait with bated breath for him to do his series on the Star Wars Prequels and Zack Snyder's filmography  Noah Gervais Possible the greatest creator of long form video game critic available online! Josh04/Josh McNamee Regular poster and irregular video maker releases one essay roughly every three years, but always worth the wait.  Gwendolyn Jae Stone Film essayist who made the fantastic "The people V Snyder" video. Games As Literature Video essay series that analyzes video games with an emphasis on games' interactive storytelling. The Worm's Hole Youtube media essayist whose videos discuss topics ranging from capeshit to the Sopranos. Empire Wreckers Made by our resident goon Robot style, so far there's only 3 videos, but they're all great and well worth your time. Check them out! More recommendations from our fellow CD goons! Yhara Zayd "Mostly film-focused video essayist that covers a wide range of movies from teen comedies to horror." -Flying Zamboni Broey Deschanel "Essayist in the same vein as Yhara Zayd" -Equeen Film Critters "Primarily a film podcast by two queer creators discussing current releases and throwbacks. They also create intermittent video essays, like their excellent Fight Club analysis video." -I before E In Praise of Shadows "Really good videos on horror stuff." -Flying Zamboni Skip Intro "Makes great, decently paced videos on TV shows." -Equeen Dark Corners Reviews "Mostly horror-focused channel that puts out a wide range of content. Their most frequent videos are usually under 10 minute light hearted reviews of very trashy movies. They also do short "streaming reviews" of stuff that's out there that they actually like. These are fun, but what made me really like the channel are their short documentaries digging into various classic horror films that display a pretty clear enthusiasm and love of film." -Flying Zamboni Hats Off Entertainment "Less serious than many on the list, both in style and subject, this channel focuses on retrospectives of forgotten and misbegotten comedy features, as well as remembrances of departed comic actors." -I before E The Armchair Auteur "Recently came off of a hiatus and puts out nice, concise reviews of movies with occasional reviews of older stuff he likes. His overview of the many failed attempts at getting a movie about The Flash off the ground is a good watch." -Flying Zamboni Feel free to post your own recommendations!
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Jul 2, 2022 02:01
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Huge thanks to I before E, Josh04, Jimbot, Equeen, Flying Zamboni, and the rest of CD discord gang for helping me make the OP and for giving feedback on the idea for this thread.
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Jul 2, 2022 02:03
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Nice, this looks fun. I don’t know the majority of these creators so looking forward to exploring. There’s a video essay show in Netflix called about that has some good episodes. The every frame a painting guy is one is the main directors on it, though essayist seems to change each episode. 1st episode is not very good, but the other 3 I have watched have been solid.
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Jul 2, 2022 02:13
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As the person who did the film critters blurb, here are some favorites from them: Their episode of Film Critters Processes(their new releases discussion show) on Alex Garland's Men Their video essay on Funny Games, Megan Is Missing, and the ways films implicate their viewers, so hot a take it was taken down by one of the directors. This is a teaser for a reupload on their patreon. Their discussion of Imageboardsploitation documentary tfw no gf the Fight Club video mentioned in the OP blurb I also love their Film Critters Throws It Back videos, but those are patron exclusive.
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Jul 2, 2022 02:30
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A good thread for good posts
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Jul 2, 2022 05:41
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Here's a veritable goldmine of content: https://www.youtube.com/c/StudioBinder/videos Studio Binder has tons of great short videos, from what signifies a directors style to different types of foreshadowing in film to the different kinds of satire in film. Tons of great videos here
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Jul 2, 2022 05:42
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McCloud posted:Here's a veritable goldmine of content: I'd like to pick out this particular video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3SUv_e33do Very interesting look at how different collaborative pairings between a DP and various directors lead to different approaches. Reminds me of Cinematographers On Cinematography, though that's more an archive of preexisting behind the scenes docs.
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Jul 2, 2022 06:02
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Ghosthotel posted:A good thread for good posts Hell yeah! 
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Jul 2, 2022 06:02
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McCloud posted:Here's a veritable goldmine of content: Really enjoying these so far.
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Jul 2, 2022 06:44
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Thanks for the cool new thread Jamie! Here's a couple of specific videos I like from some of the channels in the OP: The Horror Films of Val Lewton - Dark Corners Reviews: This is a short documentary on the career of Val Lewton, a 1940's producer who also helped write the screenplays for the films he was producing. It's an interesting story and definitely added a couple of movies to my watchlist. Aaliyah, Britney, & The Apathy of Lifetime "Biopics" - Yhara Zayd: A good look at a couple of bad Lifetime Original Movie biopics that spins off into discussion of how the media treats female pop stars. The Disaster That Almost Ruined Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and The Coen Brothers - In Praise of Shadows A video about the troubled production of Sam Raimi's second film, Crime Wave and the difficult process of Raimi adjusting to making a movie with a real budget. Despite being about a movie that no one involved was happy with I think this video also highlights a lot of Raimi's strengths as a filmmaker and really makes me want to get around to watching Crime Wave.
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Jul 2, 2022 12:30
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Looking forward to a bunch of posts full of rad videos to watch when I get back from vacation, contributions all look great so far
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Jul 2, 2022 16:15
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Here are some of my favorites. BigJoel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEMqTPUWXqw Thoughtful and thorough critiques of many topics from long-forgotten Dreamworks movies of the mid-2000s to insane PragerU propaganda videos. Pretty well-known to breadtube and the rare pro-follow on twitter. Primm's Hood Cinema https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pegGdvIZMGE Dude reviews and roasts classic hood films from the 90s and 2000s. One of the funniest channels on youtube. Be Kind Rewind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECRxGKiESMQ Informative analysis on the leading actresses from Hollywood's Golden Age and beyond. exquisite tea fucked around with this message at 09:38 on Jul 3, 2022 |
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Jul 3, 2022 08:44
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Hey, I did a video essay a few months: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPDR8gZ-Mok Combattler V was the second super robot cartoon produced by Sunrise, and codified several of the genre cliches. It's something of a transitional show, sitting almost precisely between the established conventions of the 80s kids cartoons and the more... narratively idiosyncratic anime of the late 60s (think Speed Racer). It is a wildly melodramatic show, with comic drunkards, violent child death, a villainous bisexual robot, lighthearted gags, and explicit depictions of slavery all competing for the stage. The show is also Christian. God shows up to save the day at one point. Thanks, God! My intent with the essay was both to contextualize it as a product of the marketing and production constraints of mid 70s Japan and also to shine a spotlight on the frequently weird and sometimes entertaining particularities of a very influential show in a genre that's often (correctly) derided for being derivative. I'd also like to give a shout out to my bud Kaz's video essay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6h66VXVhOo Bravely Default was an unexpectedly highly acclaimed JRPG title for the 3DS. It's sequel, Bravely Second, was not. While likely the better game mechanically, the second title lacks a distinct narrative throughline, instead having a multitude of competing plots that never coherently fold into a greater narrative. This has left it as the forgotten sequel to a much better remembered game, all the more so since the completely distinct Bravely Default 2 was released. Kaz's
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Jul 3, 2022 18:01
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Thank you for the kind mention in the OP! To show my gratitude, I got off my rear end and made a video, which I'm sure will get copyright struck any minute now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRK-2X1R2OY
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Jul 3, 2022 23:26
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Like Stories Of Old is the best, high quality “video essayist” channel for movies on YouTube IMO. It makes me want to become a YouTuber. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLw_fQn5ors https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4etinsAy34
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Jul 4, 2022 03:22
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Schwarzwald posted:
I recently finished Bravely Second, and I agree, it was so lackluster. The characters and story were so incredibly bland, and since that's the biggest reason i play RPGs the whole thing just left a bad taste in my mouth. I all but forced myself to finish the game but I really checked out long before the ending. josh04 posted:Thank you for the kind mention in the OP! To show my gratitude, I got off my rear end and made a video, which I'm sure will get copyright struck any minute now: Pro-click
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Jul 4, 2022 18:06
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Yeah, "discarding the jedi" was an idea I thought they were building towards with TLJ. Luke was on the right path and I thought, before the film came out, that they were going to build on that idea with Rise of Skywalker (or Duel of the Fates or whatever the discarded idea was). Would have been pretty rad. The Prequels showed that while an individual jedi might be good them as an institution was not. They cared more for jockeying for political power and keeping their seat than they were freeing the slaves.
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Jul 4, 2022 18:51
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Jimbot posted:Yeah, "discarding the jedi" was an idea I thought they were building towards with TLJ. Luke was on the right path and I thought, before the film came out, that they were going to build on that idea with Rise of Skywalker (or Duel of the Fates or whatever the discarded idea was). Would have been pretty rad. The Prequels showed that while an individual jedi might be good them as an institution was not. They cared more for jockeying for political power and keeping their seat than they were freeing the slaves. Qui-Gon certainly didn't care for political power, but even he, the most liberal of the jedi, couldn't imagine freeing the slaves. Their jobs was to protect the status quo, not to help people. In that sense the jedi really were Space-Cops.
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Jul 4, 2022 20:40
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Glad folks seem excited for the thread!  Anyway, Mega64 just released the next DBZ saga in 5 minutes! This one features a ton of cameos like Hideki Kamiya, Gabe Newell, and Hideo Kojima! EDIT: just realized this may not be the best place to post this vid because its not a video essay, just a silly sketch, but oh well lol https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3A8YRRnpMm8&ab_channel=Mega64 Jamie Faith fucked around with this message at 22:46 on Jul 9, 2022 |
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Jul 6, 2022 08:51
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josh04 posted:Thank you for the kind mention in the OP! To show my gratitude, I got off my rear end and made a video, which I'm sure will get copyright struck any minute now: Shamelessly double posting here but I just wanted to say excellent work as always, Josh!
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Jul 6, 2022 08:53
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If you folks like Hbomberguys style then check out this video about the manosphere from műnecat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgO25FTwfRI&t=5s I'm only 5 minutes in and I am already thoroughly entertained
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Jul 10, 2022 00:18
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quote:Noah Gervais Highly recommend his channel!
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Jul 10, 2022 00:23
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I don't watch that much video essay style content any more but one I've been kind of getting into recently is FD Signifier who does black media analysis and often collaborates with other black and minority creators. The videos are quite long so I haven't gotten through a lot of them but of the ones I watched I'd recommend his video on Will Smith and the Fresh Prince reboot, as well as his coverage on Dave Chappelle's recent transphobic turn. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtXPTGkuJIA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S42DJr95Dfw
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Jul 10, 2022 01:37
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It's honestly just insane how poisonous transphobia is, because it just seeps into their brains and infects everything they do. Everything they do is about sticking it to transpeople
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Jul 10, 2022 02:41
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I really liked Lindsay Ellis, it's too bad she got pulled into drama and then quit making videos. https://www.youtube.com/c/FoldingIdeas is pretty good too, I like his NFT video and some other ones like the Classic WoW and 50 Shades of Grey. His older stuff isn't so great though.
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Jul 10, 2022 06:37
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Since all the poo poo around Love and Thunder is getting people to notice that, hey, these films are kinda loving poorly shot and put together, it reminded me of an older Hbomberguy video on action scenes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch-5ydxW_WE It really highlights the assembly line nature of these MCU films when you compare it to genuine artistry and filmmaking.
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Jul 10, 2022 21:11
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0UAEjsKy4I A rare movie analysis video from Shaun. I'm more than a little amused by this because I vaguely recall the CD thread on Ex Machina covering many of his points.
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Jul 15, 2022 02:10
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aHbrdrvT7M I've been following Timbah's work for a while, his work is evenly split between explorations of the history of conservative pundits and videos about 2010 UK electronic music, and I love the way he approaches the task of pairing b-roll for the music he's talking about. This in particular, a video about the year or so before James Blake released his self titled album and was releasing dubstep EPs and atmospheric remixes, is a fascinating example of Timbah's ability to communicate not only his experience of a song, but its relationship to the scene at the time of release. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBfRpGSztac His video on Flirta D is also fascinating.
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Jul 15, 2022 21:15
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I Before E posted:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aHbrdrvT7M This is a fascinating look at a music scene I knew nothing about, but I got to laugh at how the visuals for many of these tracks are just AMVs.
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Jul 18, 2022 20:14
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What better way to visualize 2009
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Jul 18, 2022 23:59
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa3pAcaIgFk This video does two things: it provides a brief and entertaining overview of an extremely obscure anime from the 60s that largely vanished after the animation company that produced it dissolved, and then takes a sober look at the state of animation and film preservation as well as the laudable efforts of amateur archivists. Even if you could give a take the look at the weird anime you haven't heard of, the film preservation stuff is quite informative.
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Jul 25, 2022 18:29
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I'm going to link a channel, rather than any one specific video, and explain the content which is about as "good faith" as it gets. Minor series:
Major series:
I'll only post two videos, as to not overwhelm you but if you like giant robots in any form, this is essentially academic writing. Its incredibly niche but if you like any kind of science fiction, almost all of the principles discussed here can be applied unilaterally elsewhere. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IO9bL6OF12w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tif1H7WwesA The examples themselves tend to be medium agnostic, and are more concerned with the concepts of how objects and directing is used, or how motion and shape are used. This is a language and format I don't really see in the anime community, and I think is taken from the cinema and film community so I feel it has a place here. I don't know if Argonbolt himself is a goon, but I suspect he is. I do not know if he posts his work here. AB, if you're out there, say hi.
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Jul 26, 2022 18:24
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHYK706vcd8 Explanation for why Patrick Willems ended up doing all the coconut stuff. Its probably not a surprise, but he did it because he loves making movies and was getting bored just doing video essays.
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Jul 28, 2022 23:46
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Here's a new video by Yhara Zayd about why body horror movies are cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VosvAUS8Ww
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Jul 31, 2022 12:59
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I'm a big fan of this one. It's not a defense of Rise of Skywalker so much as it is an educated guess of how it probably got so messed up from someone with experience in the industry, and no the answer isn't as simple as "JJ is a hack." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBExyfw8mXk Pirate Jet fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Aug 1, 2022 |
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Aug 1, 2022 14:50
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Pirate Jet posted:I'm a big fan of this one. It's not a defense of Rise of Skywalker so much as it is an educated guess of how it probably got so messed up from someone with experience in the industry, and no the answer isn't as simple as "JJ is a hack." I really liked this one. Stuff like this is 100x more interesting and preferable to watch than "this movie sucks made by people who hated the previous one" for 90 minutes. It's just a case of Disney being a mega-corporation who wants these things done and released yesterday. I feel really bad for some of the actors whose characters basically became a bunch of nothing and were never developed from their interesting introductions but that's just what happens when you don't have much time for pre-production.
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Aug 1, 2022 15:21
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I've been neglecting the heck out of this thread since it dropped while I was on vacation. A quick one, Joel Haver firing a shot at Disney for just churning out shows and movies for everything in their IP farm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVD-zD4vJGw I wouldn't necessarily consider Haver a video essayist but he obviously loves the art of filmmaking, has done movie making challenges the past few years for Oscar season. He had created a channel just to do more of a movie opinions thing but I can't find that channel or the announcement so maybe he abandoned that idea?? ... Also Jack Saint is back after a long hiatus; I find him notable especially because he seems one of the few left wing YouTubers who has done some critique on the politics of the MCU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t7JIlALCTY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPlag_PvqAk Not sure if he will get back this type of media criticism but was impressed by these previous ones, so here's hoping!
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Aug 8, 2022 19:00
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Harver is great. Lots of humorous content including those animations/
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Aug 11, 2022 04:47
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Been powering through this fellow's videos: So Uncivilized https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvlWSsZwLn0 They have really interesting takes on the Prequel, Original and Sequel Star Wars trilogies that explainers and haters don't really get in to that you'll find pretty interesting, regardless of how you feel about those films. I liked the one about Luke because it's really good and it's on a subject that isn't as divided as liking or disliking the Prequels or Sequels.
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Aug 11, 2022 15:53
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Jimbot posted:Been powering through this fellow's videos: So Uncivilized hot new divisive video off the presses from said channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wRO_OJS848
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Aug 28, 2022 03:33
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