ASK TRIVIA CLUB #002: THE GREATEST SEQUEL NEVER MADE & ANNA KENDRICK LAMAR
October 23, 2013
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second opinion on? Heck, even a first-rate opinion? Ask Trivia Club’s host
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Q: “What is the great
lost sequel?” -- @raygun_factory of Sam Rockwell
A: Buckaroo
Banzai Against the World Crime League.
With the short answer out of the way, here is the longer
one. If you’ve seen The Adventures of Buck Banzai Across the 8th
Dimension then you know what you’re missing. The first of, I’m sure many,
planned films of the like was a heady science fiction plot in a comic book
world starring the coolest rock and roller you might ever meet against
ridiculous aliens. Suffice to say it was too weird to survive, even in the
80’s. Yes, EVEN the 1980s.
Oh, and Jeff Goldblum plays a cowboy, while still being
unquestionably at his Goldblumiest.
As the titular character, Peter “Robocop” Weller rocks oh so hard. And not just on a guitar. Though he also does that. He’s the smartest, coolest, bravest
dude in the room with parts Doc Savage, Indiana Jones, that guy from Duran Duran, and Doctor Emmit Brown
all rolled into the 80’s version of a pulp hero. Meaning his band of motley
sidekicks, ala Doc Savage, is in fact a kick-ass rock band. And speaking of Doc
Brown, Buckaroo invents a DeLorian looking dimension spanning supercar a good YEAR
before Brown did so and forced Marty into test-driving the sucker 30 years in
the past.
And we haven’t even started talking about John Lithgow’s
character and we really SHOULD talk about it, because honestly look at this.
Look at this!
Which does not begin to describe this movie mind you. Or the
highly comedic, incredibly meta aspects of the film. Director W.D. Richter had
a strong vision, and he brought it to the studios at the perfect time that they
would bankroll such a crazy plan, and seemingly not ask a lot of questions. You
can see the money at play, on the film, and cheer at the entertaining audacity.
Unsurprisingly, this weird-ass movie (see above image) was NOT a hit, not only that but it is only
because of the continued cult interest, and the fact that those who starred in it went on to make bigger movies, that we’re even talking about it now in this sense.
That doesn’t take away form the fact that Buckaroo Banzai Against
the World Crime League is not the single biggest lost sequel. Usually when you
call your shots like that, at the START of the end credits, it’s hard to miss.
Hell, Richter and his fellow filmmakers are still trying to make the sequel happen. Except maybe it’s better that it’s lost, that such a wild and
crazy film added such a strange tough to end things off, is almost perfect.
Sure, a world in which Lithgow and Lloyd play some bad-ass bad guys the World
Crime League would TOTALLY work… but it doesn’t have to.
Just play that end credit music, go for a walk and remember
one thing.
Q: “3,720 to 1?I like
those odds.” – Peter M. of SPARTACUS
A: You know what,
so do I!
I mean, the odds of an adult having to visit the ER due to
an injury from a drinking straw are a little wider at 100,600 to 1, sure sure,
but say a bar of soap? 11,380 to 1! That means only 8,500 fewer people
unsuccessfully navigate an astroid field then a bar of soap. Not too shabby, in
my books.
Q: “What is Russel's favorite
Trivia Club moment so far?” -- Michelle C. of SPARTACUS
A: That’s a tough
one let me ask him, er—me, let me ask me? Excuse me for stalling, pay no
attention to the man behind the use of the “royal we”.
But this isn’t a question that I can give a single answer to. There’s a lot of stuff that I’m really
proud of, whether it’s the first Trivia Club ever, which debuted at Cardinal
Rule (5 Roncesvalles Ave) in April of 2012, and began as a monthly. Or when I
started doing Trivia Club twice a month, or weekly (every Wednesday at Cardinal Rule, natch), or HECK, when I started a
new location for Trivia Club. I mean, honestly, the first Trivia Club at The
Gladstone was a HUGE moment for me as a trivia night host, producer,
and promoter.
Still, there are proud moments and there are FAVORITE
moments. Some of the most fun I have had are with the questions that not only
make people proud that they know the answer, but angry with themselves or with
me that the answer wasn’t the one they expected or wanted. It’s a perfect
encapsulation of the fact that participants are invested, and that they care
about the results at the end of the night. In that vein, no moment caused as
much Trivia Club chaos as the reveal of the author to the Holografik Dancer.
The Holografik Dancer was the sci-fi story set in post-Cold
War America, supposing that the Ruskies had won. It involved, love, desperation,
and yes a holograph of a dancing girl. This question took place during
Jeopardo, at a time when 100s of points could possibly be wagered, and the same
question could be attempted multiple times, each time with not only your points
but the points of others on the line. Every single Cold War-era sci-fi luminary
was tossed forward as a possibility. They were all wrong.
The answer?
Noted science fiction author and friend to wizards. |
Beautiful chaos ensued. It was one of my favorite moments,
no doubt.
Q: “Hey Russel! One
of my favorite parts of Trivia Club is the Mash-Up Madness question! Is there a
mash-up that doesn’t exist that you want to hear?” – Krissy R. of All The
King’s Women
A: Glad you enjoy
it; it’s got to be one of my favorite questions to curate as well! Of any of the
questions, it is by far the one I get asked about more often in terms of
sources and whether or not I’m responsible for the mash-ups. Sadly I don’t have
the musical talents to make some of the more all-time mash-ups, like most
recently “Nothing Compares To Wrecking Ball”.
STILL that doesn’t stop me from dreaming, and one of the
mash-ups I anticipate hearing the most, one day?
ANNA KENDRICK vs. KENDRICK LAMAR.
Tell me Anna Kendrick Lamar wouldn’t be an amazing mash-up!
I’ve gone as far as cutting together what I could from Anna Kendrick’s “Cups
(When I’m Gone)” song to be honest, but I can never find the right Kendrick
Lamar song to bridge the gap. YES, I’ve heard the mash-up of that Drake song
featuring Kendrick Lamar mashed-up with “Cups”, and no that isn’t good enough. So I put out the call to YOU the readers, MASH these two UP and you will have Trivia Club's eternal gratitude.
And yes, this is the second of two Ask Trivia Clubs with Anna
Kendrick in it.
Seriously, Rule #1. |
And I’m right, because you asked me.
If you’ve got a
question you’d like to see Russel tackle in a future column, just send it to
@trivia_club on Twitter with the hashtag #AskTriviaClub.
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