Escape to the Movies: Kingsman: The Secret Service - Can Lightning Strike Again?

[Kerric]

There'll probably be an on-site goodbye, but thread might as well serve as one. I'm glad to see Bob go.
He's a negative influence on people, he uses whatever politically correct topic there is to "stand tall" and show how stubborn he can be for no other reason than being stubborn.

I feel his energy is ill spent and his behaviour off of this site has shown as much.
That being said, I respect his tenacity and I believe that no man should be silenced even if what he says is not shared by very many others. Something he should consider himself.

-

On topic this movie seems like a spin off of Spy Kids more than anything. Competent teenagers? I don't think so.

Is the Escapist finally listening to it's viewership? has it finally got rid of one of the biggest internet trolls? it has? finally! is it time to join the publisher's club? IT IS!

I've never understood this attitude. I found 'The Jimquisition" to be unpleasant and rude so.... I just didn't watch it. I watched the stuff I liked. I didn't campaign to have it removed. It being on the site had no effect on me since I just don't watch the stuff I don't enjoy.

Why should you revel over shutting down someone with whom you don't agree?

 

[PrinceofPersia]

Well that's it then, there is no more reason for me to have an escapist account; without Bob I just don't want to be here. Well later folks, gl and have fun.

 

[OManoghue]

We'll miss you Bob!
It all started with Transformers and ever since then you were the main critic to influence my movie going experience.

 

[Jeremy Dawkins]

Has anyone who has also seen the movie found it's plot similar to Deus Ex: Human Revolution? It can't just be me.

 

[Akjosch]

On topic this movie seems like a spin off of Spy Kids more than anything. Competent teenagers? I don't think so.

Oh, there are hyper-competent teenagers, and they're stories are often too unbelievable for movies. There are of course all those young athletes, but they're not alone:

* Malala Yousafzai [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malala_Yousafzai], Nobel Peace Price winner at 17. If you don't know about her, you should re-evaluate your news sources selection.

* Audie Murphy [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy], enlisted during WWII at the age of 15 (lying about his age, obviously), earned a Medal of Honor at the age of 19 for holding off an entire German company all by himself, killing or wounding 50 enemy soldiers in the process.

* Blaise Pascal [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaise_Pascal], started his invention of the mechanical calculator at the age of 19.

* Alexander Graham Bell [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Graham_Bell] created his first invention (and got paid for it) at the age of 12.

 

[Guestyman]

I cancelled my publisher's club membership yesterday when I heard about Bob leaving. I signed up originally to support content I loved to watch but The Escapist is not the community nor the content hub it was when I first came to love it. It is true that Zero Punctuation was one of the reasons I discovered the site, but shows like Escape to the Movies, Lisa Foiles, The Big Picture, The Jimquisition, even Extra Credits back in the day were the reason I stayed.

Instead of the laughs involved in tearing something down, I grew to admire The Escapist for supporting content that strived to push this medium and geek culture in general towards something more constructive, something that (funnily enough) told us this hobby we share could be more than just escapism. I'm sad to say that is no longer the case, and has been slowly moving away from that ideal ever since Susan Arendt left as Editor in Chief, and the culture of the forums has slowly changed to accommodate that shift to the point where I no longer read them beyond comment threads for episodes of things I watch.

But perhaps more importantly than the cultural divide between us, is the fact that The Escapist simply does not produce enough content I want to view for me to continue wanting to pay for it. The occasional chuckle from Zero Punctuation, Critical Miss comics, and an episode of Feed Dump I would rather get direct from LoadingReadyRun themselves are not enough to retain me as a consumer/reader/supporter. This website over the course of a year has gone from "A new reason to check in every day" to "Two things on Wednesday (one of which is non exclusive) and the occasional comic update."

 

[lastoflancas]

I'm still not sure if Bob liked the movie because the church in-fight scene or he liked it despite the church in-fight scene.

I think he said that it's well executed pandering.

So, the big cherry on sundae, I suppose?

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[Hungry Donner]

Really disappointed by the news. I was away for a few days, and jumped on to see the episode of Big Picture I missed, and saw that all of his content has been removed from the lineup.

I'll still stop by the Escapist for game related stuff, and the remaining LRR content, but this is a big blow.

 

[elvor0]

Wow...*one* movie has an American villain and British good guys, and Bob can't handle it. The number of movies where American goodies wail on a British villain is frankly so high it's gone beyond cliché, but one that reverses it and it's a huge deal.

I thought it was a very enjoyable movie, well worth the watch.

I don't think he had issue with us being the good guys, he was just pointing out the thematic contradiction of "the world must be saved from American Imperialism, by /British/ Imperialism." notion; Imperialism is bad, but not when the British do it. Plus we do make good villians, presumably because a lot of our actors are classically trained so they have that Shakesperean gravitas that makes a villian fill the room and an upper class British accent is quite cold.

....not that I'm going to argue with that notion, I'm pretty sure any patriotic Briton has imperialist qualities /somewhere/ in him, and is slighty embittered that we're not the leading man on the world stage anymore. We haven't forgiven you lot for the Boston Tea Party, y'know. *shakes fist*.

The people you've mentioned are from times or countries that haven't been pampered with smartphones, computers and social media - distracted with entertainment every minute of their lives. Does it makes it impossible for teenagers today or in a western society to be keen, aware and brilliant?
No.

I just don't buy it and see it as a weak point.

And I'm sure that the people then would've near enough the same thing. Bell was more pampered than his predecssors, and they were more pampered than their fathers etc. It's not like the average level of intelligence was higher then and everyone was doing some significant. The average level of intelligence is higher now and thus it should be MORE believeable. That and it's also about super spys and an evil world dominating computer CEO, a "competent teenager" (*scoff! In MY day we had to walk up hill both ways with no socks or shoes in -40 degrees!) born out of bitter ludditism is the least of your suspention of disbelief worries.

 

[Elijah Newton]

Whoa. I just read through comments to find MovieBob is gone. Wheeeelp. That about does it for me, folks.

Loading Ready Run productions
I Hit It With My Axe
Extra Credits
Shut Up & Sit Down
Reel Physics
Matt Lees
Jimquisition
The Big Picture
Escape to the Movies

I've got a morbid curiosity about what comes next for the Escapist. That and ZP might be enough to have me come back to check in now and again but I think it's time to stick a fork in the Escapist. They're done.

MovieBob, I look forward to following you elsewhere, sir. Take care, hombre.

You're about done? Why? Because all the SJWs are now gone?

If that's what you see in the list of folks there, then yep. But it's also because of posters like you, people who sling 'SJW' as a pejorative, fly their Vivian James flags high and warble triumphant over the reduction of content.

You make me feel so goddamn old.

I grew to admire The Escapist for supporting content that strived to push this medium and geek culture in general towards something more constructive, something that (funnily enough) told us this hobby we share could be more than just escapism. I'm sad to say that is no longer the case, and has been slowly moving away from that ideal ever since Susan Arendt left as Editor in Chief

Yeah. And I know I can get back to that dialogue elsewhere but this is where I discovered there were people who'd played games their entire life and felt as I did. People who wanted to push the medium to do more. The debates which used to take place shifted in tone and I can't quite see how. At some point, though, doing more became read as a threat to do away with what is enjoyed now. This seems patently absurd to me, the kind of thing an editor could help resolve by steering various articles and discussions...

The Escapist isn't political in nature, so taking a political stance not only alienates those from the opposing side, but, as you said, those who just don't care. As with virtually any political conversation, I'd wager that the large majority of
folks out there fall into the "don't give a damn" camp, and, frankly, when it comes to searching for entertainment, I'm right there with them.

Cheers,
Joshua Vanderwall

Or not. *pained chuckle* Apparently, Vivian James is now the Escapist's editor.

well played

 

[Sofox]

Yeah. And I know I can get back to that dialogue elsewhere but this is where I discovered there were people who'd played games their entire life and felt as I did. People who wanted to push the medium to do more. The debates which used to take place shifted in tone and I can't quite see how. At some point, though, doing more became read as a threat to do away with what is enjoyed now. This seems patently absurd to me, the kind of thing an editor could help resolve by steering various articles and discussions...

My take is slightly different. It's not that people were "doing more" which is a fine goal in and of itself, it's that many became completely intolerant of any opposing viewpoints, and wrote off anyone who criticised them, whether they were fair or not.

 

[KazeAizen]

You're about done? Why? Because all the SJWs are now gone? There is a reason they are no longer here, and it is because they are anti gaming, and anti equality. Even if they weren't, most of their behavior was deplorable and most of their claims factually false.

Dude. I think you missed the point entirely. People are leaving because surprise surprise content they like is going else where. In this case it literally has nothing to do with any "SJW this" or "Anti-gaming that". For example there is one thing keeping me tethered to this site right now. If that one thing were to be shut down tomorrow I would no longer come here because Jim isn't here, Bob isn't here, and they wouldn't be here and those things were the things bringing me back each week.

 

[MorganL4]

I just canceled my PubClub membership.

For me, I quit visiting the site daily shortly after Susan Arndt left the site. She was the person on the site that I trusted to vet the reviews and articles for legitimacy. Additionally I enjoyed watching LLR on Mondays The Big Picture on Tuesdays kind of quit watching ZP years ago, but still came back on Thursdays for Doraleous & Associates and later No Right Answer. And Fridays I looked forward to because of the Escapist Podcast, and Escape to the Movies. If you look at The Escapist's current content line up, almost everything that kept me coming back has gone. Susan is gone, LLR is gone (Unskippable being the only exception) D&A. Basically I have a reason to come to this site to watch one 3-5 minute video a week, whereas in 2011 I deemed this site my favorite site on the internet. I came very close to making it my splash page at one point, just because I was always here. I came here in 2007 originally for ZP. But by 2009 I had come to love this site for it's content. Check for Traps, The Editor's Note, and the content just seemed to consistently improve over time giving birth to The Big Picture, and Extra Credits, even The Jimquisition was a solid show for a while. I haven't felt that way about the site since Susan left. And now that Bob is gone too, so am I.

Goodbye Escapist, it has been a blast.

 

[AstaresPanda]

I just canceled my PubClub membership.

For me, I quit visiting the site daily shortly after Susan Arndt left the site. She was the person on the site that I trusted to vet the reviews and articles for legitimacy. Additionally I enjoyed watching LLR on Mondays The Big Picture on Tuesdays kind of quit watching ZP years ago, but still came back on Thursdays for Doraleous & Associates and later No Right Answer. And Fridays I looked forward to because of the Escapist Podcast, and Escape to the Movies. If you look at The Escapist's current content line up, almost everything that kept me coming back has gone. Susan is gone, LLR is gone (Unskippable being the only exception) D&A. Basically I have a reason to come to this site to watch one 3-5 minute video a week, whereas in 2011 I deemed this site my favorite site on the internet. I came very close to making it my splash page at one point, just because I was always here. I came here in 2007 originally for ZP. But by 2009 I had come to love this site for it's content. Check for Traps, The Editor's Note, and the content just seemed to consistently improve over time giving birth to The Big Picture, and Extra Credits, even The Jimquisition was a solid show for a while. I haven't felt that way about the site since Susan left. And now that Bob is gone too, so am I.

Goodbye Escapist, it has been a blast.

i had no idea Bob had gone untill i noticed its been awhile since ive watched big pic or escape. Why are all the good ones leaving. And ive not been around as long as you have but this was one of my fav sites these days ...... eh its been fun.

 

[karamazovnew]

I mostly disagreed with Bob, but I've never stopped watching his episodes. There's no loss for me, because I'll continue to watch and disagree with him on Youtube. I think that The Escapist has lost something "different". I don't know the reasons why Bob is gone, so I can't comment them directly. But I've seen other sites start "alternative and smart", just to later fall into the trap of popularity hoarding, and let's face it, popular media things can be... uhmmm... worth escaping from. What I liked about people like Jim and Bob was not that they were not afraid to be different at first, but that they didn't change when they became popular (and disagreed with).

 

[Gamgee]

No Jim, no Bob, no Escapist. Buh bye.

 

[Atraira]

Wow, so there is literally no reason to visit the Escapist anymore except for Yahtzee. Great job, guys. Just keep killing off your content creators, one by one.