2019 Crime Challenge Results

Ballz: 5251
Markus: 2030
Foz: 1414
Zombie: 1277
Troma: 971
Snowy: 774
Box: 246
Onyx: 105
Gym: 0
Der: 0

I win. By a lot.

The Punisher was better than expected. I like the character, but I've never been able to get through even one season of other Netflix Marvel shows I've tried (Daredevil and Jessica Jones). The Punisher was a little slow and there were a few political moments that had me rolling my eyes. When there was an action scene though, it was usually satisfyingly violent. Between this and his role on The Walking Dead, I'd say I'm a Jon Bernthal fan.

Justified was also good. It started out feeling like nothing special, but it improved as it went. I was already familiar with Timothy Olyphant from Deadwood and his character on Justified was basically the same, except in modern times. Walton Goggins was great as the main antagonist and there were some memorable guest stars, particularly Sam Elliott and Patton Oswalt.

Wish there'd been more time for Boardwalk Empire or movies, but as I quickly discovered, it's not easy to watch multiple episodes of more than one show a day.

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Midnight Rant

Things have been so shitty lately. I mean it. I just got back home after working 14 hours to realize how divided people are on TE, and this shit really upsets me! I've poured years of my life into this place, and all I can see is how many people have joined enthusiastically, only to leave with such bitter disdain.

I blame myself. Who else can I blame? I built this fucking place, as well as all of its shortcomings. I've tried to cater to everyone, but these things can't be divided in such a way that everyone feels compensated. There's always tangents that exponentially deviate in their own direction, and it ends up ruining what could have been a great thing. This usually involves users who have a set opinion that refuses to differ from another user, and all things go to hell because of it.

I've gotten reeeeaaally drunk for this rant, because there's so much to say, but all of it simply cannot be said. Every user here is their own person, and has an indefinite amount of input that can be injected. There are so many opinions here, but a lot of them never see eye to eye, even though this place was (well) crafted to be the ultimate site for imdb refugees after the demise of the message boards, but apparently, archived threads from the last 15 years worth of users has always taken precendence...

Honestly, I just don't know how things have gotten so out-of-hand. Back in (circa) 2009, I started to ponder how message board code worked. I used a localhost (a test server for webpages) to understand the inner workings of HTML and servers. It wasn't until 2013 that I began to understand how websites and web pages worked at an intimate level that I could build this fucking dump of b-movies and html finesse that decided to put "Trash Epics" into full online mode, but even that was frowned upon, and ultimately dismissed.

It wasn't until circa 2014, which was an entire FIVE years ago... that I was able to actually create this damn website, and show the world that I wasn't just some inanimate twat who didn't know how to do anything, that I could create this community of like-minded b-movie enthusiasts who could all get along and create an empire of crazy, ridiculous cinematic love affairs. It seemed to work there, for a while, until I realized how much a user's personal policitics could factor into the mental anguish of it all.

There I ran a site. Then, IMDb closed down, and I had a whole new opportunity to reel in the lost fish who hadn't sided with the bigger fish (imdb2, moviechat), and I did my best to recreate the imdb exprience with the TEDb, which failed right off the bat to lure the golden fish. It was a learning experience, but it didn't bring in the vast majority of users that I'd hoped for. Yes, users joined, and after a while, took offense to something and bailed... in favor of yet another lesser effort to recreate imdb's glory. But I sucked it up, and held my own, until politics fucking ruined everything.

This was circa 2016, when the presidential election was a big deal. I'd side with Trump, and yet so many users here would rag on me, insult me, and insist that I'm an oblivious fuck for siding with a businessman over a crazed woman. Yeah, I know this bit will get a lot of flack, but politics definitely affected TE in 2016 era. We lost a lot of users because of meaningless endorsements to a political party, and that was the first time that I realized how much of an impact my own stupid personal opinion could have. Yeah, I liked Trump. I've agreed with a LOT that he's done of the years, but I've lost sooooo many friends because of it, and for the love of me, I don't know why. I only saw it after the fact, and it sent me into a spiraling depression of loyalties and dismay.

Then, we were fine for a while. TE was doing okay at best, and then we were hit with another speed bump. PERSONAL bias. Personal user interactions weren't acceptable, and users started taking it out on each other. This, I believe, was the worst downfall of TE. The community couldn't keep it's shit together, and by that point, it didn't seem like a community at all, but rather collection of random opinions who vaguely liked the horror/trash subgenre. This, apparently, wouldn't do...


Lately, everything has been fucked. Friendships have turned to shit, and users are trying to split this camp up into multiple camps. I hate that. We were all supposed to be a team, but things went so south!

Now here, I just want to express how much I love everyone on this site. You all have meant the world to me. I've known a LOT of you for the past 15ish years, because YES, I've been on the IMDb horror board since 2005, so I fucking know you guys.

@der has been there with me since 2013, when I first contemplated Trash Epics. Don't anyone forget that! He was there with me since day 1, and he's my fucking brother-in-law, and I fucking love the guy. Sure, he acts like a major fucking dick sometimes, but he's always been one to come around to reason. He's a very rational being, and he truly believes in the power of trash. He's had nothing but praises, sunshine, and enthusiasm for me and everything that Trash Epics represents. I'm bummed out that not everyone sees that, probably because of his moody rants, but the guy is on the level, and he's reasonable. If he wasn't, how the hell would I deal with him for so long after all these years? Yeah, he was a troll, but weren't you at one point? I know I was. I often posted various topics about transvestites and suicide and all sorts of bullshit. Everyone wants to get ridiculous at some point.

Then, there's @Tromafreak, who all this beef started with. Me and him used to be like this •crosses fingers•. He taught me everything I know about shitty movies, and I'll never forget that. He knows his shit, and I really hope he and I can see eye-to-eye again at some point. Despite my rants, I really do like Tromafreak, and OnyxHades, who have been supportive of TE from the start. I'm sorry to Tromafreak if he thinks I've demeaned him with the mod thing, but it honestly just isn't a big deal at all. TE needs no moderation, and I yeah... maybe I wanted him to feel important, because he is important to me. As important as a shitty/awesome movie can be to a movie fanatic. The dude has influence my taste to the point that my favorite directors are his fucking favorite directors, and yet... him and I are now on bad terms, and that makes me feel like dirt. I fucking hate it, and I wish we could all see eye to eye like we used to.

@Onyx is also a genuine person who I've become very fond of, and this mess with tromafreak makes me feel that I've lost her as a friend, too, and that crushes me even more. I hate being at odds with some of my best two pals, but shit happens.

@ballz is my one of my best good friends, so I hope he never hates me. I've bee talking to this fucker for ages, and him and I have always been •dubbed burps•. I feel like I can tell this dude anything, and he wouldn't judge me.

@owl is one of my favorite people in the world, and I'm so glad that she decided to be a part of the TE experience. Also glad that @bambi is active on here.

Then, there's the regs who I always love to hear from. @znep, @sfpx, @tommix, @zed, @vincent, @foz, @gymno, @zombie, @markus, and even @yakko (I fucking love that guy). Then, there's @johan, who I also love, but I always feel that he kind of hates me for some reason.

Basically, I love everybody on here, and all of their contributions, despite what they may think of me. It just thrills me to my core that these guys use my garbage dump to talk about movies and whatever, and I really hope everybody here knows how much I appreciate them, even if there is drama between them. They're all good guys(gals), and I wish I could make them all happy here, but alas, it's something I've been failing at for years. No matter how hard I try to maintain the peace, people always tend to fall out, and put the blame on someone else.

I don't want to do that. I don't want to blame der, or tromafreak, or Trump, or anyone for the shortcomings of Trash Epics. I know there are various "sides" going around right now, and I don't want that. I really miss the comeradery we once had, and I really wish we could have that again, but I'm beginning to lose hope that anyone actually cares about maintaining these things. I really hope I'm wrong about this. All of this. I hope we can all get past our bullshit and make this place genuine again.

It's taken a lot out of me to write this. I've gotten pretty emotional at various points during this rant, because this is the only thing I've ever put my efforts into, and so many people have been so quick to dismiss it. My parents, my co-workers, and the few real-life friends I have. I just want people to believe in Trash Epics as much as I do.

Your pal,
Box a' Hair

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Successive, perhaps Overlapping Eras of Horror

We do threads now and then ranking decades of horror films. I don't want to rank anything here, bu I was just wondering, if you had to break down the last century of horror movies into distinct (not necessarily totally distinct, they could overlap) periods or eras of horror.... how would you do it? They don't necessarily have to correspond perfectly to decades, of course. Like, movies about the Devil infiltrating homey, domestic settings probably peaked between the late 60's and mid 70's.

So, how would you do it? How would you classify the eras, the periods, the chief defining trends of horror, over the years? Just post an idea or two, even if you don't have time to give a comprehensive, highly detailed breakdown of the entire last century.

Like, the golden age of MONSTER movies, featuring various kinds of monsters, was probably the 30s and part of the 40's.

After that, there was the period of scifi/horror movies about mutants produced by radiation.

Coming back to edit: how about a Vincent Price heyday era, in the early 60s? His Edgar Allan Poe movies were one of the biggest things going on in horror for awhile there.

In the late 60's and into the 70's, there were many movies about the Devil and Satanism. Often they were set in a home, but not always.

The 80's of course, had a lot going on. Among the trends going on that could be said to typify that era were 1.) slashers, 2.) movies set on various holidays, or days of the year, 3.) sequels... there started to be really prolonged series of sequels, and entire franchises, 4.) maybe movies just featuring demons, regular, run of the mill, average albeit still badass demons, but not necessarily The Devil?? Like, the Poltergiest movies, Night of the Demons, Demons 1 and 2, and others. I feel like Satan was less of a presence in horror movies than he had been a little earlier.... any thoughts on that???

After the 80s, there was just a total, pathetic train wreck of nothingness. No, not true, but there was kind of a lull. How wouild you describe the era just after the 80's?? Maybe the Blockbuster era? People would rent a lot of 70's and 80's horror movies from Blockbuster. Some of the great 80's franchises continued through the 90's and beyond. Anyway, yeah, maybe the bockbuster era??? Any discussion on that??

After that... it is hard to classify this period perfectly, but you could say it was 1.) the found footage era, 2.) the fashionable vampire era, and eventually 3.) the zombie apocalypse era. How would you define this period? Like, basically the 2000's, but perhaps including the late 90s and early 20-teens.

Since then... hmmmmm... how would you describe the current era of horror? The era of domestic demons? Like, the Insidious movies, Paranormal Activity movies, etc....??? There are many other things going on, of course. Anyone? Anyone?

Mike Flanagan

He may not be the type of household name horror director the way John Carpenter, Wes Craven and George Romero are. All the same, I am pretty impressed from what I have seen of him so far. He is only Forty and he has made some good films. What hits me, is that he seems to have this skill for taking unrealistic, or unworkable, concepts and finding the humanity in them. Here is my take on what I have seen:

Oculus (2013) - I absolutely loved this one. With an emphasis on dread over gore, it is a top-notch horror.
Gerald's Game (2017) - In my humble opinion, it successfully captures the feel of a Stephen King adaptation. Surprisingly more introspective, but well done film.
Hush (2016) - Silent chiller with great acting and an original premise.
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016) - Surprisingly a lot more enjoyable and entertaining than it has any right to be.
Absentia (2011) - Absentia is very creepy, non-formulaic and more grounded in relatable personalities than the usual horror film filled with hottie victims and other stereotypes.
The Haunting of Hill House (TV Series) - In the middle of watching this. I like what I have seen, nice character development - nice atmosphere.

I have to see Before I Wake (2016) yet.

So, all-in-all, he is an efficient craftsmen.

What are your opinions of him, and his work?

I wish I liked horor more.

I often feel one of my biggest disconnects from people on here is my lack of enthusiasm for most horor movies and even most horor genres. I don't really get it. Maybe I'm a bit to sensative to some things, rape, jump scares and torture don't really do it for me, I often want to close my eyes or look away. I think a lot of it comes from my upbringing. I didn't watch an R rated movie until I was 14 or 15 and it wasn't until I was 16 that I was "allowed" to. I honestly grew up watching nothing but the Disney channel (even some nick was to bad for my mom to let me watch(yes way to sheltered)). I had 3 sisters a mom and no dad, so the movies I watched were chick flix, almost exclusively. I read more than anything. Adventure novels, fantasy, sci-fi(Dune, while not a great movie, is the best sci-fi book series ever). By the time I was 16, 17, 18 I was into more trash than horor. I was an actor most of my child hood. At one theatre, when I was 16, the green room had "The Toxic Avenger" in it. I watched it and my life was changed. The director went on to show me many Troma movies. Another friend of the director's and I heard I like Troma and showed me "Evil Dead Inbread Rednecks", sadly it wouldn't be until 3 years later that I met @Box and he showed me the rest of Chris S. Anyway I could rant longer about how I got to my tastes today, but the point is Box and I originally were wanting this site to be a sanctuary of trash, which it certanly is, but I never really thought about horor much. Obviously I've seen the mainstream titles, Fridays, Jasons, Halloweens, HO1000C, etc... and I watch things with Box sometimes but that's about it. But when the boards fell, horor took over here for sure, and I get that. Most people here, that is what their #1 interest is. I just have a hard time jumping into the more extreme non-mainstream horor things and I would like some suggestions on what to watch first to get my tastes acclimated with out scaring me off from horor.

TLDR.
So I guess what I'm asking is what should someone with limitted expirience with horor movies watch first to try and ease out of the mainstream titles.

King Kong Bundy passed away

Hulk Hogan will now have to find a new rival.

Luke Perry

I am deeply saddened by the news of Luke Perry's passing. I have only watched a few movies, and shows he has been a part of, but I loved him in everything I have seen. For starters, he was Dylan McKay on Beverly Hills 90210. I loved this show growing up. It's a lot of drama, but it was something I could watch for hours and hours, and Luke Perry's charater was my favorite. He was the heart throb bad boy that everyone wanted, and it worked. I will always love the show because of him, and I am sad that he will not be in the revival later this summer.

The next thing I remember seeing him in was the movie Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He played Pike. The guy who wins the Slayers heart, and ends up helping her out with her destiny. After recently watching this movie again, I was able to see how his character inspired some of the series. For example, I do not think Spikes personality would have been the same if Pike didn't exist first.

Luke Perry has been involved in two of my favorite universes. First in Buffy, and then In Criminal Minds. In season 4, episode 3, he was Benjamin Cyrus. Cyrus wasa cult leader, and the episode itself is based on the 1993 Waco siege. Luke Perry's character is one of my favorite criminals on this show. He was bone chilling, and yet I hung on to every word. He was hypnotic, and even though he was hurting the characters I had come to love, I wanted him to win. They picked the perfect person to play the leader of a cult.

Currently Perry was Fred Andrews on Riverdale. I realize this is a CW show, and some people just look down on it because its on the CW, but he played the loveable dad that was always there for his kid. Trying hard to make sure his son had a good life. When he became the target of a psychotic serial killer he had the whole town backing him. His portrayal of this character has brought love for him to a whole new generation.

These are just a few of the projects Luke Perry has worked on. And he did amazing. I know we all dont have the same tastes in movies or TV shows, but Luke Perry's passing has bothered me a lot. All I can say, is the next season of Riverdale, and 90210 is going to sad to watch. Rest in Peace Luke Perry.

#BuffyTheVampireSlaye

Afternoon Rant

Since my rant used like 12 shouts I guess I'll just post it all here.

Look, Troma's and I's beef is between us. You guys don't know the vial PM's he had sent, nor the hatred he has stirred up. According to him Box is just a little bitch and I'm nothing more than a giant pussy. There is no place for that here. Yes I changed my avatar. I think it's funny and was a response to him claiming I'm trying to replace him and changing his title to be a passive aggressive dig at box and I. I could have just had a long yelling and pissing match with him on here as we have done before and cause more shit, but instead I turned my avatar into a joke. I'm sorry if that somehow offends you Markus, but no one owes Troma loyalty here. If you want to leave, I can't stop you, but I do like what you contribute and you seem to be a pretty swell guy. I really hope that my attempt to make Troma and I's spat more light hearted doesn't run you off. He accuses me of abbusing power, but it is he and only he who has abbused powers and editted accounts and posts to be a dick (which is why he started losing priviledges in the first place).


I want to be very clear. I'm not here to dictate anything. Or tell anyone how to post or exist. My powers here are reserved, of my own volition, for the unfortunate cermumstance that Box is unnable to run things or dies. That is it. Other than that I really hold, and desire to hold, no priviledges or power over you all. I am opinionated, but please and I want to be very clear, understand that my opinions are not backed, nor enforced by my privileedges on here. I have never, and will never use my priviledges to change post or stiffle an opinion. If I say I think something, it's just that; my thoughts. Don't think or fear I'm going to force them or enforce them in anyway shape or form. That being said I love you all and really do aprriciate what everyone contributes to this site. I care a lot for @Box and this site means so much to him. I've seen him put years of real time into this site and I in no way aim to hurt that.

@Markus, I'm sorry you think we have beef. Until this morning I honestly thought we were cool. I get if you are just backing Troma, but as far as you and I squashing a beef, well I didn't know we had one to squash, but if we do just PM me; let's chat. I thought Johan and I were a tad at odds the other day and we just spent 30 minutes chatting and getting to know each other and now I think the world of Johan, and I hope his opinion of me is better for yeterday's chat.

I really do just want a better site for us all.

Taxman

If you drive a car, I'll tax the street,
If you try to sit, I'll tax your seat.
If you get too cold I'll tax the heat,
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet.
Don't ask me what I want it for
If you don't want to pay some more

That's really it just prepping my return and stewing over how much was taken from me. (Although my refund looks to be nicer this year because of the doubled child tax credit)


So I guess rant here if you don't like taxes, or even if you just don't like people that don't like taxes!