Batson's Blog

I decided to be brave. After the success that I had with Battleship last week, I figured I would check out Taylor Kitsch’s other box office bomb, John Carter . I never saw the film’s previews, but I remember seeing the cover sometime last year and thinking, “It could be good.” I thought John Carter was an odd name though. It seemed like the name of a movie about a piano teacher in a small town in the 1940s, or maybe the main character in a football movie. It just didn’t seem to fit with a movie about action and adventure. According to the description, it’s a film about a soldier who is transported to Mars and becomes embroiled in a clash between different social classes. Whichever group wins this battle could very well end up with the fate of the planet in their hands. It does sound like a storyline you’d find in a B-movie, but with Disney’s budget behind it, at least I didn’t have to worry about the production quality. I actually really like the idea though. A soldie...

Just like I normally do since I gave up cable earlier this year , each Monday night, after Raw is over, I’ll check out Lords of Pain to read the recap. Despite a lackluster product, it’s hard to kill the wrestling fan in me. To my surprise, WWE generated a lot of buzz around last night's Raw, but unfortunately it wasn't the kind of buzz they were probably hoping for. Lots of headlines about CM Punk and an incident with a fan. Mr. Tito published a column saying that punishment should be coming Punk’s way. ‘What the hell happened?!?,’ I wondered. Turns out, as Raw was going off the air, Punk rushed into the crowd, like many heels have done in the past. Vince McMahon, who evidently made a return, was telling Punk who his opponent would be for the upcoming pay-per-view, Hell In A Cell. That’s when the incident with the fan happened. Punk was evidently annoyed by a few of the fans, but the camera cut to Mr. McMahon, who was still in the ring. When it cut back to Pun...

Don’t you just hate those dry periods for movie releases? It seems like it happens a few times a year when there’s no movies you anxiously want to see. That’s how it was the other day when I made a stop by the Redbox . The Avengers DVD came out last week , but I already saw that in the theatres. I spent a few minutes browsing through the selection of movies, but was having trouble finding something. Some of them didn’t even sound that bad, but they were all on the same level, so it was tough making a choice. When you’re in the mood to see a good movie, you don’t want to spend two hours watching something, only to find out that it’s a dud. For lack of better options, I went with Battleship . I heard that it bombed in a big way at the theatres , but I remembered seeing previews and thinking it could be decent. I was surprised to see that Gambit was in the movie. I didn’t know the actor’s name, so I Googled him. Turns out his name is Taylor Kitsch – a Canadian model-t...

I’m not the biggest fan of Christina Aguilera. She, of course, possesses singing talent, but in my opinion she rarely uses it. The needless screeching and the bellowing she adds in most of her songs just distract from the rest of what was good. I don’t find her too annoying in her new single, “Your Body.” The lyrics – which take being a “free” independent, without inhibition woman to a whole new level – are provocative. There’s no in between on this song. Ms. Aguilera wants it, needs it, and is going to have it. I realized something about the song while it was playing over my car stereo yesterday. It’s very similar to Pink’s, “Slut Like You.” Maybe it’s the questionable lyrics that triggered it. Or maybe it was simply because I just bought Pink’s new CD. The songs don’t sound too similar, but they do send the same message. Pink’s version has more humor in it, but, without that, it’s a very similar song. After reading a review of Aguilera’s new single online, I notice...

It was another gorgeous day in Charlotte today -- perfect weather for checking out the 2012 Charlotte Auto Show at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was actually my first time going to the Speedway. I've driven by it lots of times, but during the big races I'm usually working. I'm not sure I'd want to fight the traffic to be honest. No traffic jams today though. I went to the auto show after lunch and things were just picking up. It was cool just walking on the track. Man, is that thing steep at places! People told me it was, but I didn't realize just how steep it actually is. There loads and loads of cars, from all different eras. Some really cool paint jobs, for sure: A few paint jobs that maybe need to be redone: A few odds and ends, just like at a pawn shop... Like I said, if it was on wheels, it was there... No size too small... This guy was smart. I walked all over the Speedway. Wore my sandals out. Naturally, my favorite part ...

The day finally arrived. Pink’s new album dropped. It’s been four years since she came out with a new album, though it doesn’t seem like it’s been that long. Maybe it’s because she had a couple pieces of new work on her Greatest Hits….So Far!!! album just two years ago. Like most artists these days, Pink pulls from a lot of different genres and musical styles, creating an interesting amalgam of sounds on The Truth About Love . A lot has changed since Pink last wrote new music. She and her husband, Carey Hart, put their marriage back together. Pink had a baby. Her life has changed and so has her music. It’s still pop rock with an edge of wild and crazy. There’s less swearing, though. There’s not a lot of angst in this album. There’s not a bunch of heartbreak either. It’s every bit as enjoyable as her previous work, but it seems like Pink has less to prove on this album. While I wish her Katy Perry-like success with her upcoming singles, I’m not sure she’ll get multi...

Got this message from YouTube a couple of days ago: Today, I checked out Lords of Pain today. "WWE announced late Thursday that it was removing "dated and edgier" footage from its official website and media platforms, a day after co-founder Linda McMahon's political opponent used clips in an attack ad. "To better reflect our current family-friendly brand of entertainment, WWE is removing some dated and edgier footage from digital platforms," said Brian Flinn, WWE's Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, in a statement. "Some of this footage has been misused in political environments without any context or explanation as to when it was produced. This damages the corporate reputation of our company. WWE is well within its rights to protect its intellectual property for fair use." Flinn said the footage removal is not related to an ad released Wednesday by Rep. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat running for Senate again...