Jonathan Albujar's Ticker Articles

Arts & StyleArts & Style
MAY 4, 2015 THETICKER ARTS & STYLE I PAGE 17
TV summer premieres bring back old and new fan favorites
Letterman says farewell to late night after more than two decades
BY BRIAN MCMAHON
STAFFWRITER
On May 20, David Letterman
will host his final episode of The
Late Show after a legendary 31-year
run.
“It’s been great, you’ve been
great, the network has been great,
but I’m retiring,” announced Let-
terman on an episode last year. Let-
terman, 68, said he is calling it quits
is to spend more time with family.
On air, Letterman often mentions
his 11-year-old son Harry, once
referring to him as “the only thing
that I’ve ever had in my life that is
perfect.” Letterman rarely shows
that type of sentimentality, prefer-
ring self-deprecation to revealing
his gentler side.
Nobody made hosting late
night TV look easier than Letter-
man. As he sat relaxed behind his
desk with his legs crossed and head
tilted slightly, Letterman coasted
through monologues and Inter-
views without ever showing a hint
of unease. Seeing what most late
night shows have become today—
little more than internet-type hu-
mor with the hosts partaking in
choreographed dance routines and
playing games—viewers may never
see Letterman’s Johnny Carson-
like style again.
Letterman did not sing and he
did not dance; he hosted. Unlike
Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers, Let-
terman’s intention was not to be-
come friends with every person he
interviewed. He stood toe-to-toe
with the likes of Bill O’Reilly and
Donald Trump, never holding back
an opinion. “In my mind, I think of
you as a goon,” said Letterman to
O’Reilly in 2008. And when Paris
Hilton came on the show in 2001
after a stint behind bars, Letterman
boldly asked her, “How’d you like
being in jail?”
The one-time weatherman got
his start as a comedy show host
in 1980, starring in The David Let-
terman Show on NBC, a morning
show that was canceled after less
than a year despite winning two
Emmys. From there Letterman be-
gan his late night career, hosting
Late Night with David Letterman
for 10 years before moving to CBS
in 1992 to host The Late Show.
The Late Show featured sketch
comedy that often took an acquired
taste to see the humor in. One
popular sketch was “Will it Float?,”
where a household object would be
droppedintoacontainerofwaterto
test its buoyancy. “Great Moments
in Presidential Speeches,” which
were excerpts from speeches that
made President George W. Bush
look foolish, also became a fan-fa-
vorite. Whether it was the time he
asked a smug James Franco what
his IQ was or when he checked an
invisible watch as Bill Maher mis-
fired with political jokes, Letter-
man had an uncanny ability to take
any overconfident celebrity down a
few notches.
Letterman is a comedian’s co-
median, and he received his fair
share of backlash for controver-
sial jokes. But he always took it in
stride, even laughing off a death
threat he received from al-Qaida
in 2011, which he speculated was
the work of his longtime adversary
Jay Leno.
Letterman was also the subject
of a blackmail scandal in 2009,
when he was threatened with the
publication of his dalliances with
Late Show employees. Letterman
owned up to his promiscuity, and
his blackmailer, Joe Halderman,
was sent to prison. Al Qaeda and
Halderman alike had failed to real-
ize what so many of us have: Letter-
man is untouchable.
Letterman interviewed Presi-
dent Barack Obama in September
of 2009, marking only the second
time a sitting president appeared
on a late night talk show. Other
prominent guests included Bill
Clinton, Tony Blair, George W.
Bush, Madonna and Oprah Win-
frey. In addition to being perhaps
America’s most successful come-
dian, Letterman is a prosperous
businessman. As the owner and
founder of Worldwide Pants Inc.,
a company that has produced TV
shows for five different networks,
Letterman has an estimated net
worth of $400 million.
Stephen Colbert, a comedian
who came to prominence as the
host of The Colbert Report on Com-
edy Central from 2005 to 2014 will
replace the Indiana-bred comic.
Fans of Colbert will have to adjust
to a new style from the political sat-
irist, as he will not portray an irate
Republican on the The Late Show
as he did on The Colbert Report.
Colbert, who signed a five-year
contract with CBS, expressed his
feelings on replacing Letterman in
an interview with Rolling Stone last
year, “I never dreamed that I would
follow in his footsteps, though
everyone in late night follows
Dave’s lead.”
Also saying farewell on May 20
will be Paul Shaffer, Letterman’s
sidekick and musical director since
1982. For decades, late night show
hosts will be judged by the standard
that Letterman set. And as viewers
try to get used to Fallon giggling
over every question and Jimmy
Kimmel’s stiff demeanor, they will
appreciate what they had in Letter-
man even more. Letterman will live
on in YouTube videos, but viewers
should all make a point to watch
him at least once in his remaining
few weeks on TV Letterman was as
good as it gets.
Letterman is seen as the force to be reckoned with on late nightTV with a career spanning back as far as 1980.
WWW.EONLINE.COM
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
The summer television season
is fast approaching, with premieres
galore starting in June. Among the
offerings are new seasons of estab-
lished TV shows, along with spin-
offs and a revival of an old favorite.
Here’s a look at some key premieres
to look out for:
Netflix’s original Orange is the
New Black is back for a highly an-
ticipated third season. The third
season, which premiers June 12,
follows the inmates of Litchfield
Women’s Corrections Facility as
they traverse daily life behind bars.
OITNB also provides viewers with
flashbacks to a different inmate’s
life before prison in each episode,
giving a more thorough backstory
on how these inmates became the
people they are.
OITNB is one of Netflix’s biggest
success stories. The dramedy has
been nominated for 12 Primetime
Emmy Awards, winning in three
categories, most notably for Out-
standing Guest Actress in a Com-
edy Series by Uzo Aduba. Critics
and fans also hail the show for its
diverse cast.
Just in case reality TV is your
preferred style of TV, CBS summer
staple Big Brother is a must-watch.
Big Brother is entering its 17th
season this year with a two-night
premiere scheduled for June 24
and June 25. The series itself airs
three nights a week on Sundays,
Wednesdays and the weekly live
elimination show on Thursdays.
Big Brother is a competition series
where 16 guests are locked in a
house for the summer. Each week,
the houseguests compete for luxu-
ries and power.
One houseguest has the power
to target two others for eviction
each week, with another compe-
tition played later in the week for
safety. At the end of the week, the
non-nominated houseguests vote
against whom they want removed
from the game with the majority
vote prevailing.
The last nine eliminated house-
guests comprise the jury that de-
cides the winner between the two
finalists by a majority vote. The
series is also notable for offering
viewers a live 24/7 Internet feed of
the house for a fee, allowing fans
to get an uncensored look at the
house throughout the season.
The program has a high social
media presence with an increase
in younger viewers last year, partly
due to Frankie Grande’s inclusion
in the cast. CBS is so confident in
the summer series that it has also
green-lighted an 18th season set to
air in June 2016.
Fans of AMC’s The Walking
Dead will be treated to a spin off
this summer, titled Fear The Walk-
ing Dead. Although Fear does not
have a set premiere date yet, not the
six-episode season will definitely
premiere in the summer, according
to show runners. Fear The Walking
Dead is meant to act as a compan-
ion series to its predecessor.
In contrast with traditional
spinoffs, which either serve as
prequels or sequels of the parent
series, Fear will tell the story of a
separate group of survivors during
the zombie apocalypse, in a differ-
ent setting. The time period is also
meant to be around the same start-
ing point as the first season.
The series currently has five an-
nounced lead roles. New Zealand
actor Cliff Curtis will portray Sean
Cabrera, a divorced teacher. Kim
Dickens will play Nancy Tomkins,
a guidance counselor who has two
children Nick and Ashley. The two
children will be played by Frank
Dillane and Alysia Debnam-Carey.
Orange is the New Black actress
Elizabeth Rodriguez has also been
cast in a lead role, which has been
kept under wraps.
If battling robots are more your
style, or you were a fan of Battle-
Bots when you were younger, you
will be happy to know that ABC has
revived the cult hit reality show for
this summer.
BattleBots was created by Greg
Munson and Trey Roski, and origi-
nally aired on the Comedy Central
network for five seasons from Au-
gust 2000–August 2002. The revived
series will air for six episodes be-
ginning June 21.
BattleBots is a reality compe-
tition series, where competitors
operate remote controlled robots
whose mission is to destroy the op-
posing robot in an arena. The com-
bats are in an elimination tourna-
ment format, where one winner
emerges from each weight class.
There are four weight classes
in BattleBots, which are the Light-
weight, (60 lbs weight limit) Mid-
dleweight, (120 lbs weight limit)
Heavyweight (220 lbs weight limit)
and the Superheavyweight division
(340 lbs weight limit).
BattleBots entertains a diﬀerent type of fan, with its sci-ﬁ-based where contestants build robots competitively.
WWW.TECHTIMES.COM

THETICKER ARTS & STYLE I PAGE 11
Icelandic artist Bjork showcases her eccentricities at MoMa
APRIL 27, 2015
BY AMANI JAMES
STAFFWRITER
Bjork is not just singer or song-
writer but an innovator of these
times. She has been able to capti-
vate the world with her eccentrici-
ties. For the last 20 years, she has
pushed the boundaries through
art, music and design. The Mu-
seum of Modern Art presents a
complex perspective through the
presentation of her collaborative
art career.
On the first floor of MoMA, the
beautifully constructed wooden
instruments used on Bjork’s album
Biophilia (2011) are spread across
the floor. These large but intricate
instruments range from pipe or-
gans, gravity harp, a Tesla coil and
a gameleste.
These instruments only serve
a small piece of Bjork’s creative
process, though their massive
size makes it clear that her aes-
thetic is like no other. Each in-
strument serves an individual
purpose that cannot simply be
recreated by technology like most
music today. Instead, it brings
back the quality that a lot of music
is lacking in such a technology-
driven world.
As the sounds take over one’s
thoughts, the actions on the screen
create an image that the brain is
not used to seeing. In a room full of
quiet breathing and light from the
massive high-definition screens,
the experience can be overwhelm-
ing and alarming. But as the
sounds begin, one is quickly aware
that this is like nothing one has ever
experienced.
As Bjork appears on screen in
what seems like more of an artis-
tic expression than a dress, she is
on her knees moving in a pulsing
motion in a cave. As she moves, the
sound begins; produced by a high-
er quality than what many people
are used to, its uniquely engineered
design is very clear. There are over
20 speakers strategically placed to
provide the highest level of high-
definition sound possible. Many
assume that that the black tube-
like materials covering the walls are
simply to add to the visual aspect of
the installation. Instead, they allow
the sounds to bounce off the wall,
making the experience that more
impactful while soundproofing
the room.
With only 100 visitors allowed to
enter the exhibit at a time, visitors
are given the opportunity to fully
engulf themselves in the art before
them. “Black Lake” is a song from
Bjork’s recently released album,
Vulnicura. This song serves as the
lyrical guideline in which the vid-
eo is following. Serving as Bjork’s
ninth studio album, it provides an
alternative sound within a world of
heavily commercial pop music.
When exiting “Black Lake,” cin-
ema provides audiences with a
look into some of Bjork most iconic
music videos. As oversized red
cushions cover the floor inside the
room, visitors are given the oppor-
tunity to continue the manifesta-
tion of Bjork as the videos play on
a cinematic screen in front of them.
One video that catches attention is
“All Is Full Of Love” (1999).
The video begins with what
seems to be a female robot lay-
ing down on an all-white elevated
platform as machines tug and
pull at her to do what seems to be
maintenance.
Once the robot begins to sing, it
is clear that it is Bjork. As the video
continues, another robot begins to
sing background for Bjork. How-
ever, the video takes a controver-
sial turn when both female robots
kneel together on the platform and
touch and kiss each other in a hu-
man, intimate way. These same two
robots can be found on display in
“Songlines,” which serves as the
most intriguing and unique part of
the exhibition.
But for the most innovative part
of the exhibit, visitors are required
to wear headphones connected
to an iPod while a pre-recorded,
40-minute record plays as they
walk through the exhibit.
In “Songlines,” visitors walk
through an interactive maze that
progresses through the life of Bjork
through sound, images, biographi-
cal narrative as well as objects. This
part of the exhibition requires a
timed ticket since space as well as
technology is limited.
In this walk-through, some of
Bjork’s most memorable costumes,
portraits and props are presented.
The headphones provide the nar-
rative of a woman going through
life’s milestones by intertwining
some of Bjork’s most interesting
songs to tell the story. This musi-
cal ability to capitalize on the use of
many different types of sounds and
engineering leaves audiences im-
mersed in the exhibit.
With the use of music, Bjork has
been able to provide the world with
another perspective. Her uncom-
promised passion gives her work
an authenticity that cannot be du-
plicated. Her work withstands the
test of time as she continues to
evolve within her own boundaries,
with no sense of society’s expecta-
tion affecting it. This exhibition is a
reflection of that evolution.
Homogenic serves as Bjork’s third studio album, released in 1997 after a dangerous run-in with a mentally ill fan.
WWW.STEREOGUM.COM
Theseinstrumentsonly
serveasmallpieceofBjork’s
creativeprocess,thoughtheir
massivesizemakesitclear
thatheraestheticislikeno
other.Eachinstrumentserves
anindividualpurposethat
cannotsimplyberecreated
bytechnologylikemost
musictoday.Instead,itbrings
backthequalitythatalot
ofmusicislackinginsucha
technology-driven
world.
BBC sci-fi favorite returns
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
The 2013 hit Orphan Black has
returned for a third season. The
Canadian sci-fi drama series pre-
miered in 2013, with the latest sea-
son opening on April 20.
The series attempts to draw the
viewer in from the opening scene.
As the main character, Sarah Man-
ning (Tatiana Maslany), arrives
at a train platform, she witnesses
another woman placing down her
belongings. The stranger seems to
be moving closer toward an on-
coming train, seemingly preparing
to die by suicide. Seconds before
the mysterious woman flings her-
self to her death, Sarah notices that
the woman looks exactly like her.
Although Sarah initially steals the
woman’s identity, she is quickly
thrust into a conspiracy involving
human cloning.
The first clones introduced in
the series are Sarah Manning and
Elizabeth Childs. Sarah, a con
artist, seizes the opportunity of
Elizabeth’s suicide by moving into
her house and emptying her bank
account. She quickly realizes that
her dead clone was a police officer,
and her plans go up in smoke. Sar-
ah is also targeted by an assassin,
who turns out to be a clone.
Sarah’s foster brother, Fe-
lix, is played by Jordan Gavaris.
Maria Doyle Kennedy plays her
foster mother, Mrs. S, and Sky-
ler Wexler plays her biological
daughter, Kira. Kira is frequently
targeted throughout the series by
the Dyad Institute, which is be-
hind the clone conspiracy. The
mystery behind Sarah being able
to have a child is central to the
series’ plot.
The assassin, Helena, is yet an-
other clone. Helena is a religious
zealot from Germany and is now in
pursuit of her clones to kill them.
Although Helena at first seemingly
enjoys killing her clones, she later
struggles with her actions, espe-
cially when she comes face to face
with Sarah.
Alison Hendrix, a suburban
soccer mom, is also a clone. Ali-
son is initially unaware of the ex-
istence of her clone sisters until
Sarah seeks her out due to their
geographical proximity. Like Sar-
ah, Alison also has two adopted
children, since she is unable to
procreate because of her biologi-
cal makeup. She is conservative
and protective of her family, which
vaults her into action to help
Sarah in her mission to unravel
the conspiracy.
Cosima Niehaus rounds out the
four clones central to the Orphan
Black universe. Cosima is a Ph.D.
candidate studying microbiol-
ogy at the University of Minnesota.
She also befriends Sarah early on
in the series and aids Sarah’s pur-
suit of their origin with Alison.
She is the brain of the trio, balanc-
ing her studies with figuring out
how they all came to be. Together,
they discover that they all have
someone monitoring their every
move, which sends them all on a
hunt over who in their lives that
might be.
Orphan Black has remained at
the top of critics’ must-watch lists
over the last few years because of
its unique storyline and the ethi-
cal questions it presents. Cloning
has always raised scientific and
religious debates, and seeing their
effects on television has gripped
viewers.
Maslany’s acting chops have
also allowed her to elevate the pro-
gram, as she has to portray other
clones besides the four main ones.
As long as the series continues
to raise the bar season after sea-
son, Orphan Black will continue
to succeed.

ITHETICKER ARTS & STYLE
HBO’s fan-favorite Game of Thrones draws in new wave of fans
APRIL 20, 2015
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
HBO’s most-watched original
drama of all time, Game of Thrones,
has returned for a fifth season. The
season’s first episode, titled “The
Wars to Come,” picks up where the
fourth season left off. The Nielsen
ratings indicate that the season
premiere recorded a series-high
viewership of 8 million viewers,
and that is before factoring in the
DVR and Video-On-Demand audi-
ence viewers in the days following.
The title of the season opener
is meant to set up the multiple
plots of the season. The most im-
portant of the many ongoing wars
being the fight for the iron throne,
which is the struggle the show is
named after.
At the beginning of this sea-
son, the seven kingdoms are led by
Tommen Baratheon, who assumed
power after his brother, formerly
King Joffrey, died in the previ-
ous season. There are several who
threaten his fragile grip on power,
especially with his grandfather, the
ferocious Tywin Lannister meet-
ing his demise in the season four
finale. Those seeking to claim the
throne include Stannis Boratheon,
who believes he is the rightful heir
to fallen King Robert Baratheon
and Daenerys Targaryen, who be-
lieves Robert snatched the throne
unjustly from her father.
Daenerys enters this season
fighting her own internal war in
how best to govern the cities of Es-
sos, which she conquered in the
past few seasons. Although she
is building toward sailing across
the Narrow Sea with her massive
army, she must first prove to her-
self she can successfully govern a
smaller country.
However, her dragons are be-
coming unruly, her trusted advi-
sor Jorah Mormont was exiled for
previously spying on her, and the
former masters she overthrew are
rebelling against her rule. So the
question remains: Will Daenerys
ever make it to Westeros?
Meanwhile, north of the Wall,
Stannis’ storyline has merged with
Jon Snow’s as we last saw Stan-
nis saving Jon from the Free Folk,
led by the King-Beyond-the-Wall
Mance Rayder. Since being nar-
rowly defeated in season two in his
war against the Lannisters for the
throne, Stannis has regained mo-
mentum in his quest. Although his
intentions in the throne are unclear
going into the new season, view-
ers can be sure that his reasons are
linked with strengthening his po-
sitioning before striking the ruling
army a second time.
Another proxy war central to
the future of Westeros is the battle
between Queen Regent Cersei Lan-
nister and lady-in-waiting Mar-
gaery Tyrell. Cersei has been wary
of Margaery since she first arrived
in King’s Landing, and their rivalry
has only escalated since then. With
Joffrey out of the picture and Mar-
gaery promised to the new King
Tommen, Cersei is sure to under-
cut Margaery’s influence at any op-
portunity in the new season, and
Margaery has shown she will not go
down without a fight.
Cersei’s troubles are com-
pounded by the death of her father,
who was killed by her brother Tyri-
on in the season four finale. Tyrion
immediately flees King’s Landing
with the help of Varys, who decides
to leave with Tyrion. They are head-
ing across the Narrow Sea, with
previews leading up to the season
premiere pointing to crossing paths
with Daenerys.
Arya Stark has also decided to
leave the Seven Kingdoms and
seems to be headed somewhere
new. With nowhere else to go, she
decided to head to Braavos, where
an old friend Jaqen H’ghar had told
her to go if she ever needed a place
to stay a few seasons back.
Characters from seasons past
that will not appear in season five
are Bran Stark and Hodor. These
characters’ storylines have caught
up to their storylines in George R.R.
Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire nov-
els and showrunners David Benioff
and D.B. Weiss made the decision
to give these characters the season
off, but they will return.
The progress of plot of the TV
versionofGameofThronescatching
up to the novels has been subject
of much debate this season, with
many other storylines also near-
ing where they left off in Martin’s
fifth novel, A Dance With Dragons.
Creators Benioff and Weiss have
finally commented on the matter,
confirming that the show will likely
end before Martin’s seventh novel
is released, spoiling the ending for
book readers.
In an interview with Vanity Fair,
they stated, “Luckily, we’ve been
talking about this with Martin for
a long time ... and we know where
things are heading. We’ll eventually
meet up at pretty much the same
place where George is going. There
might be a few deviations along the
route, but we’re heading toward the
same destination.”
HBO’s season five launch also
hit a snag just one day before the
premiere. The cable channel sends
out DVD screeners to critics to view
episodes early, under the condi-
tion that they are not released to
the public. One of these copies was
leaked on the eve of the premiere,
resulting in the first four episodes
being leaked prematurely. Al-
though this did not seem to hurt
HBO when the viewer figures were
released, this is sure to cause head-
aches for viewers who abhor hav-
ing the show spoiled for the next
few weeks.Daenerys, also known by her Dothraki queen name, Khaleesi, is the mother of three dragons and widow to Khal Drogo.
WWW.BLOG.SKYLIGHT.COM
Althoughsheisbuilding
towardsailingacrossthe
NarrowSeawithhermassive
army,shemustﬁrstproveto
herselfshecansuccessfully
governasmallercountry.
However,herdragonsare
becomingunruly,hertrusted
advisorJorahMormontwas
exiledforpreviouslyspyingon
her,andtheformermasters
sheoverthrewarerebelling
againstherrule.

MARCH 30, 2015PAGE 16 ITHETICKER ARTS & STYLE
BY REYNALDO CARRASCO
SPORTS EDITOR
Catch him riding around town
naked in a Lamborghini or teach-
ing a dolphin how to handle a Bar-
etta. Better yet, find him at the lo-
cal basketball court giving Godzilla
the work. He is a man of many
names, one of which is universally
recognized: Action Bronson.
The gourmet chef-turned-rap-
per is at the forefront of New York’s
hip-hop renaissance, and his lat-
est release, Mr. Wonderful, is as ri-
diculous and over-the-top as any
album in recent memory. Though
his absurd rhymes are enough to
bring anyone to tears of laughter,
Bronson is no joke-rapper.
An astute student of Ghostface
Killah’s Wu-Tang school of rap,
Bronson is capable of weaving
metaphors, similes and double en-
tendres as well as anyone in the rap
game. What separates him from the
pack is his dedication to old-school
beats and humor.
After a cheeky introduction,
Bronson gets right to work with his
cousin, Big Body Bes, on “The Ris-
ing,” the album’s second track. The
duo boasts about its new celeb-
rity status and all the luxuries that
come with it. Bronson has always
been a pretty boy, but a little extra
cash helps the cause: “Since I was
young I had the husky gut/ But I’m
gorgeous/ got money in the pouch
just like a tourist.”
The album slows down on the
following song “Terry.” Bronson
takes listeners on a dreamy tour
through the corridors of his mind
over a soulful, psychedelic Alche-
mist beat. When Bronson said he
let the drugs take over, he meant
it. Who else could discover the
universe’s deepest, darkest secrets
while watching Iron Chef high on
jenkem?
The album hits a high point af-
ter the “THUG LOVE STORY 2017
THE MUSICAL” interlude as Bron-
son links up with Mark Ronson
and Party Supplies on a series of
genre-bending songs. It starts with
the eighth song, “A Light In The Ad-
dict,” a pensive, somber cut. Bron-
son contemplates life’s fragility as
he stares out a plane’s window.
He wonders if a fall from a plane
would be felt at all. Twisted as he
is, he compares the experience to
being strangled with a belt during
sex, in an interview with Complex.
He said, “It’s kind of like, would you
cry if I died with a belt around my
neck? Or would you be like, hell
yeah? If you knew that I died from
strangulation while f---ing would
you be happy or would you be sad?”
The following song, “Baby Blue,”
is arguably the album’s best track.
With help from Chance the Rapper,
Bronson curses his past love over a
catchy piano and horn instrumen-
tal. Despite two heavy verses from
Bronson, Chance’s verse is the big-
gest takeaway of the song.
Chance delivers a spiteful wave
of lyrics as he hopes for the very
worst in life for his ex. Though at
the end, he reveals his true feelings.
“I hope your tears don’t hurt, and I
can smile in your face/ Cut my loss-
es, how Delilah changed my locks
to a fade/ I hope you happy/ I hope
you happy /I hope you ruined this
s--- for a reason.”
With a jazzy bass line and soft
drum line, Bronson delivers every
rhyme with a calm, calculated de-
livery. The last verse presents Bron-
son at his best as he uses the song’s
final seconds showcase his rapping
chops. “I’m classically trained in
drug dealing/ but I wasn’t good
at drug dealing/ so I flipped shit,
rug, ceiling.”
To call him a cult hero would be
cutting him short. Though he has
been on the scene for a relatively
short time, Bronson’s reputation
precedes him.
That being said, the fame does
not seem to faze him. He presents
himself as an everyman; he pushes
that notion through his music and
antics. Bronson routinely gives
away food, shoes and goodies at
his shows.
He brings fans on to the stage,
only to suplex them back down to
the floor, like an older sibling prac-
ticing his favorite wrestling moves
on a kid brother. And he never
stops. Bronson keeps rapping, even
in a portable toilet. Even while
working in a food truck. Just wait
for him to rap while waiting for his
child in the delivery room.
Bronson was born and raised
in Flushing, Queens, and he never
forgets that; the borough’s most
famous avenues always make an
appearance in his lyrics. And he is
always eager to pay respects to his
forefathers: the Kool G Raps and
Cam’rons of the world.
Catch him schooling Dolph
Lundgren in the ring. Or pirouet-
ting on the moon. Or riding a uni-
corn into the sunset. Bronson is the
most interesting man in hip-hop.
Queens-bred rapper Action Bronson slays with Mr. Wonderful
Earl comes into his own Bloodline toys with family dynamics
Chance the Rapper and Bronson recreate scenes from the 1988 ﬁlm ComingtoAmericain the music video for“Baby Blue.”
WWW.PITCHFORK.COM
BY STEPHEN ELLIOTT
COPY EDITOR
I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go
Outside is Earl Sweatshirt’s sec-
ond studio album. The lead and
only single, “Grief,” was released
only a week before the album was
digitally released on iTunes. With
little to no marketing, the album
has so far flown under the radar,
especially in light of recent high-
profile releases by industry heavy-
hitters like Kendrick Lamar and
Action Bronson.
One would be inclined to think
this was deliberate on the part of
Earl, who, in his maturation as
a rapper has only become more
introspective. His latest release is
practically diametrically opposed
to his earlier material under the
Odd Future banner.
Clocking in at a mere 29 min-
utes and 56 seconds with 10
tracks, I Don’t Like Shit is as sparse
and pared down as Earl’s new
flow. Muted harmonies overlaid
on choppy, ambient beats stand
in the background to Earl’s muf-
fled, prosaic rhymes. A couple of
hooks and no true choruses em-
bolden the incisive, albeit laconic,
wit with which Earl spits. Save for
one song made by Left Brain, Earl
produced all of the beats. Mini-
mal features and no guest pro-
ducers speak to the heart of the
album: clarity.
Since releasing his first mix-
tape, Earl, and subsequently being
sent to a school for at-risk youth
in Samoa, Earl has undergone an
identity deconstruction and re-
vival. Earl has looked inside and
elected to stay there despite his
popularity. The prodigal son of
underground rap, Earl has never
seemed comfortable with the
hype surrounding his name.
I Don’t Like Shit is Earl react-
ing against expectation. Aban-
doning the braggadocio, verbally
deft raps characteristic of his
early days, and likewise the apa-
thy of Doris, Earl’s evolution has
reached the point of despondency
like a teenager rebelling against
his parents.
“I just want my time and my
mind intact/ when they both gone
you can’t buy ‘em back,” the last
bar of “Grief” emblemizes Earl’s
introspection in light of his noto-
riety. Rapping with a target on his
back, forever at the mercy of ex-
pectation, Earl’s understated, even
underwhelming, album’s genius is
in its ennui.
Individually, each song is rug-
ged yet reflective, heavy-handed
yet understated. But as an album,
they make for a bored composi-
tion. Earl’s flow is considerably
slower, packing the punch into the
diction and not the delivery, and
his beats complement this.
Nevertheless, the album is a
strong showing for Earl, one that
serves as a transition between two
different versions of himself. Some
speculate that the album is writ-
ten this way in response to feuds
about direction, money and fame
with Odd Future’s frontman, Tyler
the Creator.
Some went so far as to suggest
that Odd Future was a defunct
project, as the group to which Earl
owes his name has struggled to
maintain any semblance of rel-
evance in pop culture, let alone
salience in the rap world. Earl may
very well be distancing himself
from his established image of ex-
cessively vulgar skate punks with a
penchant for shock value.
I Don’t Like Shit is the growing
pains album for Earl, though the
pain is dull and hardly noticeable.
Bored but not uninspired, tired
but not lazy, Earl’s sophomore re-
lease is a strong step forward for
Earl into his own brand of rap.
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
Netflix has continued its recent
streak of releasing original pro-
gramming in consecutive months
with its latest addition, Bloodline.
The family drama, which pre-
miered on March 20, is already be-
ing considered a hit by critics and
fans alike.
Bloodline tells the story of the
Rayburn family, four adult siblings
and their parents. The series be-
gins with the family holding a fam-
ily reunion in their Florida Keys
community where the siblings
grew up and where the parents still
reside. The eldest son, considered
the black sheep, is absent from the
family reunion. This is where view-
ers start to see the first cracks in
this seemingly close family, which
is treated as an important com-
ponent of the community, having
contributed to its growth.
Danny (Ben Mendelsohn),
the aforementioned black sheep,
eventually shows up to the fam-
ily reunion, much to the delight of
his mother. However, his presence
causes waves with his siblings. It
becomes clear that some mem-
bers of the family hold resentment
towards Danny for reasons other
than just his wild behavior.
His drug addiction, for exam-
ple, is revealed during the pilot ep-
isode. Adding to the mystery of the
Rayburn family is the line recited
by his brother John in the closing
minute of the premiere episode.
“We’re not bad people, but we did
a bad thing,” John states, reveal-
ing that the Rayburns have a big
secret, which is meant to keep the
audience hooked.
Although he clearly loves his
family, Danny’s intentions for
returning home are not entirely
pure, as he goes against family
wishes and brings an outsider to
the reunion, upsetting his siblings.
His friendship with Eric O’Bannon
(Jamie McShane) also adds to his
bad reputation, for Eric is a parolee
who is not a great influence on his
behavior. Danny eventually makes
the decision to try to return to the
family fold permanently.
Kyle Chandler plays second
son, Jack Rayburn. Jack is consid-
ered the family’s protector, always
trying to mend the rifts caused
mainly by Danny. Jack also works
as a detective in the county sher-
iff’s office and, in the pilot, finds a
dead body while on duty. Danny
pleads to Jack to make his case
to their father for his permanent
return, and it becomes clear that
Jack is one of the main reasons
Danny is still welcome, as he has
been his defender in spite of the
bad behavior.
Linda Cardellini plays the
third sibling and only daughter,
Meg Rayburn. Meg is an attorney
and the only Rayburn sibling to
have made a living outside of the
Florida Keys. She also plays the
role of family peacekeeper, try-
ing to keep everyone together
whenever possible.
Norbert Leo Butz is the young-
est Rayburn, Kevin. Danny’s arrival
affects Kevin the most as he is sus-
picious of his motives, and so the
two immediately clash. Kevin is
protective of his mother’s feelings,
seemingly aware that Danny will
only break her heart once again
by disappointing her. Kevin would
prefer Danny’s stay in the Keys to
not become permanent.
Sissy Spacek and Sam Shep-
herd play the family matriarch and
patriarch, Sally and Robert. Sally
welcomes Danny home with open
arms and is just happy to have her
family back together.
Robert, however, is cold and
shares his youngest son’s suspi-
cions on Danny’s motives to make
his stay permanent. After consid-
ering John’s plea for his brother
Danny, Robert decides to leave the
decision up to his three other chil-
dren, which is sure to further drive
a wedge in a family their neigh-
bors, and viewers alike, would con-
sider close-knit.Bloodline is one of nine Netﬂix original series to debut over the course of this year.
WWW.NETFLIXLIFE.COM

THETICKER ARTS & STYLE I PAGE 13MARCH 23, 2015
SPORTS EDITOR
Kendrick Lamar is a force of na-
ture. Every rhyme he spits a gale,
every bar he throws a tidal wave.
His best verses change the very
landscape of hip-hop, and his latest
release, To Pimp A Butterfly, may
change the genre itself. With heavy
funk, soul and jazz influences, La-
mar attempts to confront his latest
demons as he struggles with his
newfound success.
Though not a socially-conscious
album, To Pimp a Butterfly does
find Lamar setting crosshairs on
many of society’s injustices against
African-Americans and the hypoc-
risies that have become a mainstay
in today’s culture. This is not an al-
bum for the club, car or patio. This
is an album for meditation, not
congregation.
Lamar opens the project with
“Wesley’s Theory,” a funky, fast-
paced piece focused on the pitfalls
ofthepursuitofmaterialhappiness,
especially among the lives of black
entertainers. Clocking in at around
five minutes, Lamar sets the tone
for the rest of the album with help
from Thundercat and George Clin-
ton. He approaches the struggle of
black stardom through two lenses:
that of the artist in question and the
system abusing him.
The title itself was warning
enough, using Wesley Snipes’ tu-
multuous journey through Holly-
wood to describe the exceedingly
depressing short shelf life of black
musicians and actors. Legend-
ary 1960s reggae artist Boris Gar-
diner lends Lamar use of perhaps
the greatest hook ever sung by a
black singer, elevating “Wesley’s
Theory” that much higher; ques-
tion the heart of any friend who
is not moved by “who will re-
mind/you and I/that every n---- is
a star?” Clinton’s booming voice
then takes over to offer a parable
using the album’s title before the
song truly begins.
From then on, Lamar takes over.
In his role as the artist, Lamar de-
scribes the illusions of grandeur
that have destroyed many black
artists before him. His voice whines
and pops with every guitar stroke
as allows the clueless, arrogant
artist run wild.
Despite its upbeat tempo, the
chorus is strikingly cynical and
somber. Thundercat combines
two of black America’s most iconic
phrases,aDaveChappelle-inspired
verse, “we shoulda never gave” and
“n----- wanna go back home,” to
create a chorus catchy enough to
remember.
After a short, cliched interrup-
tion from Dr. Dre, the system takes
over Lamar’s second verse. Lamar
blacks out and allows his sinister
second psyche to assume control
as he runs through the complete
pimping process.
Under the guise of Uncle Sam,
he pushes the artist down the path
of destruction. Go on, buy any-
thing and everything. “Don’t have
receipts?/Oh man that’s fine.” Pay
them later, and “f*ck those hat-
ers,” they never understood the
struggle. In fact, go ahead and buy
everything twice. “Your horoscope
is a Gemini/two sides/so you bet-
ter cop everything two times. Two
coupes, two chains, two C notes.”
Lamar plots the artist’s rise to
the top, all the way up to the White
House, before it all comes crash-
ing down: “But remember you ain’t
pass economics in school/and ev-
erything you buy taxes will deny/
I’ll Wesley snipe your ass before
35.” Uncle Sam, the taxman and the
reaper are one and the same in the
artist’s eyes.
Lamar created “Wesley’s Theo-
ry” to break the cycle of abuse, and
before its closing, Clinton reminds
those still on the hunt to confront
success to “look both ways” before
it “crosses their minds.”
With 16 songs in total, Lamar
spends nearly an hour and 19 min-
utes illuminating the darkest cor-
ners of his soul to the world. After
good kid, m.A.A.d city, it was clear
that Compton left him with major
psychological damage.
The album’s sixth track, “u,” il-
lustrates this perfectly. Lamar
spends four-and-a-half minutes
drunk and alone in a hotel room
confronting his survivor’s guilt. He
stares at a mirror, cursing his short-
comings and inconsistencies, con-
stantly repeating the phrase “loving
you is complicated.” He calls him-
self a “f-cking failure” while drink-
ing his sorrows away.
He fades in and out of con-
sciousness, reminiscing on all the
times he let his friends and fam-
ily down. “You ain’t no brother/
you ain’t no disciple/you ain’t no
friend./A friend never leave Comp-
ton for profit.” Anger is not this
album’s sole focus. Lamar runs
through the entire emotional spec-
trum as illustrated on songs such as
“Hood Politics,” “How Much A Dol-
lar Cost” and “Mortal Man.”
Raising an album to instant-
classic status a few days after its re-
lease is always a risky proposition.
Lamar has yet to offer anything less
than great though. Time and time
again, he has delivered. His flow,
delivery, lyricism and storytelling
ability are unparalleled; Lamar is
at the height of his powers. It is rare
in the world of music to find a song
that can clearly conjure a color or
image in one’s mind, yet Lamar’s
work is constantly on that edge.
At its core, music is about vibra-
tions, about metaphysical forces
that are never seen but obviously
felt. Lamar’s synesthesia is no ac-
cident. He is a sorcerer. He takes
his life energy to create music that
transcends the mind’s barriers.
Is there a difference between a
song and a sermon? Both have the
power to move nations and cul-
tures, minds and souls.
Kendrick Lamar breaks Spotify’s record for first-day listens
Lamar won two Grammy Awards this year in the categories of Best Rap Song for“i”and Best Rap Performance.
WWW.WIKIPEDIA.ORG
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
The CW network is venturing
into the zombie craze with the lat-
est edition to its lineup, iZombie.
The show is a horror-comedy hy-
brid that puts a new spin on the
zombie stories viewers have grown
accustomed to. Veronica Mars
producers Rob Thomas and Diane
Ruggiero-Wright developed the se-
ries for television while tying in the
crime-fighting wit of their former
program.
The show tells the story of Olivia
“Liv” Moore, a promising medi-
cal resident. Liv leads a seemingly
perfect life at the beginning of
the show, though this all quickly
changes after she attends a boat
party with a colleague.
The boat party turns into a
zombie outbreak, and Liv turns
into a zombie after being infect-
ed by a drug dealer who created
the drug that directly caused the
outbreak. This flips Liv’s perfect
life upside-down, as the zombie
side effects force her to change
around all aspects of her life. She
becomes depressed, cannot sleep
and loses her purpose in life in ad-
dition to breaking things off with
her fiance.
Rose McIver leads the cast as
Liv. Her acting credits include re-
curring roles on Masters of Sex and
Once Upon a Time. Although she
begins the series feeling lost, she
eventually realizes that she has vi-
sions about the person whose brain
she eats. She uses this newfound
ability to her own advantage.
Liv also finds it difficult to deal
with friends and family; she does
not want to get too close for fear of
infecting one of them. She instead
chooses to shut everyone out, not
only breaking off her engagement
but also turning cold to her room-
mate. She also fails to listen to ca-
reer advice from her mother, who
believes her condition is just post-
traumatic stress disorder from the
zombie boat party.
Liv switches career paths and
lands a job assisting the coroner
Dr. Ravi Chakrabarti (Rahul Kohli).
Chakrabarti quickly realizes Liv is a
zombie. Interestingly, he has dab-
bled in conspiracy theories before,
an endeavor that cost him his last
job. Rather than being frightened
by a zombie, Chakrabarti takes
to studying Liv and expresses an
interest in finding a cure for her.
Liv’s reaction to eating brains
leads her to work with detective
Clive Babineaux (Malcolm Good-
win). Babineaux is a newly promot-
ed detective from the vice division,
though he has fallen short since
receiving his promotion. Desperate
to make his first arrest, he decides
to use Liv’s visions to his advantage
although he is wary of just how she
is able to procure them. Chakrabar-
ti allows Liv to take time away from
the morgue to assist Babineaux.
Robert Buckley portrays Liv’s
ex-fiance, Major Lilywhite. Lily-
white begins the series deeply in
love with Liv. Due to their impend-
ing nuptials, he insists she have
one last hurrah at the boat party
without him despite her initial re-
fusal to attend. However, Lilywhite
is deeply affected by the inevitable
break up. Although he clearly still
loves her, he begins to move on in
the pilot.
Rounding out the cast are Da-
vid Anders, Aly Michalka, Molly
Hagan and Nick Purcha, as Blaine
DeBeers, Peyton Charles, Eva
Moore and Evan Moore, respec-
tively. DeBeers plays the drug
dealer at the boat party. He pops
back into Liv’s life in a vision at the
close of the pilot with unanswered
questions looming.
Charles is Liv’s best friend and
roommate and is very worried
about her new attitude in life. She
attempts to bring back her room-
mate’s bubbly attitude, but her at-
tempts prove futile, thereby creat-
ing a rift between them. Eva and
Evan are Liv’s mother and brother.
While Evan seems less disturbed
than Eva at their Liv’s condition,
they both notice her declining in-
terest in life, and Eva, in particu-
lar, tries to nudge her back into
the fold.
The pilot convinces the audi-
ence that this show has staying
power. It not only appropriates el-
ements of past zombie shows and
movies but also mixes humor to
create a powerful combination. At
first, Liv is depressed by her condi-
tion, though by the end of the hour
she is able to find the positives.
iZombie shows the power of friend-
ship and family, as each person in
Liv’s life has not lost hope in resus-
citating the old Liv.
The show premiered on March
17. It airs on the CW’s Tuesday
night line up.
The CW’s iZombie channels neo-noir with an insatiable bloodlust
The show is loosely based on the comic book series of the same name created by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, and Allred even illustrated the opening credits.
WWW.HYPABLE.COM

THETICKERARTS&STYLE I PAGE19MARCH 16, 2015
CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE
Statistically, rape occurs in In-
dia every 20 minutes. Despite the
commonality of these instances,
this particular case led to a pub-
lic uproar. Protests, led primar-
ily by university students, were
held across India. In India, where
names of rape victims are not of-
ficially released, she was named
India’s daughter.
The film featured interviews
with friends and family of Singh’s
as well as one of the convicted
perpetrators and the attorneys.
The victim’s identity was disclosed
artfully in the film, reflective of the
series of events that took place
after the rape. For days, the pub-
lic knew of the woman who was
attacked but did not know her
name. In a symbolic shedding
of fear and shame that has been
largely associated with rape, her
father stepped forward to reveal it:
Jyoti Singh.
Satendra, a tutor and friend of
Singh’s, explained the events of the
day as he had heard them. Singh
was raped and grievously injured
while returning home with a male
friend. Her companion’s attempts
at defending her were futile; he
was assaulted and discarded to the
side, incapable of helping.
Singh herself disclosed the gro-
tesque details of the rape once she
was taken to hospital. After raping
her, Singh’s attackers had also evis-
cerated her with an iron rod. Her
injuries were so substantial that
the doctors did not know what to
“put together” or take apart.
One of the convicted rapists,
Mukesh Singh, blamed the victim
herself for the crime, stating, “[A]
girl is far more responsible for a
rape than a boy.” Along with Muke-
sh, defense attorneys on the case,
A.P. Singh and M.L. Sharma, used
arguments based on deep-rooted
beliefs in the country.
According to these individuals,
a woman is created for taking care
of the household, her husband and
children. Sharma equated a wom-
an with a flower that needs protec-
tion from a man, symbolized by
the thorns on a rose stem. If the
woman is not protected, “certainly
the dog will take her out.” Mukesh
and his attorney stated that since
Jyoti was with a male friend who
was not her husband, the actions
of the men were justified.
The ingrained distinctions be-
tween males and females in Indian
society is also represented by the
large-scale female feticide. Of the
feticides that took place in India
in recent years, 99.87 percent were
female fetuses.
Teary-eyed reactions pervad-
ed the audience as Jyoti’s father
shared his pain of cremating his
own daughter. Her mother spoke
of her inability to move past her
daughter’s death. One particular
comment by Asha, Jyoti’s mother,
hit home for a lot of people in the
audience: “If the law thinks it is
right to marry a girl at the age of
12 or 13, then a 15/16-year-old
boy who rapes or harms a girl, why
can’t he be punished?” She was
referring to the 17-year-old rapist
who was charged as a juvenile and
sentenced to a lesser punishment.
As Udwin spoke to the audi-
ence, she mentioned why Baruch
was chosen as a venue for the
documentary’s global premiere.
This location was chosen mainly
because “[violence or rape] could
happen anywhere” and in recog-
nition that the young, educated
generation is key in moving this
cause forward.
She actively referred to students
as the “torches” of the future and to
education, as one of the speakers
conveyed in the film, as the only
way to change the current way
of thinking.
India’s Daughter was scheduled
to broadcast in India on March
8, International Women’s Day.
However, the film was banned by
the Indian government and never
aired, but Udwin proudly noted
that rather than showing any other
content, the screen went dark for
an hour in support of her cause.
The end of the documentary
and the follow-up panel discussed
the issues that India’s Daughter has
brought into public spotlight. The
panel stressed that India is not the
only region with these problems.
These issues, which are rooted
in gender inequality, are prevalent
in developed, developing and un-
der-developed countries. Accord-
ing to Rt. Hon. Valerie Amos at the
premiere, “There is a continuum
in both individual and targeted
violence [against women]. Cultural
change is very difficult. This is not
just about developing societies. It
is systematic.”
During her speech, Pinto ad-
dressed the immediate categoriza-
tion of children upon birth, which
leads to and is characteristic of
gender inequality throughout so-
cieties. “Global misogyny is the
greatest pressing issue in our soci-
ety ... Our pride is misplaced when
one gender on our planet is yet to
be emancipated.”
Pervasive throughout the pre-
miere of this enlightening docu-
mentary was Jyoti, meaning “light”
in Hindi. Jyoti lit the hall at the
beginning with the vigil. It was felt
when Udwin asked the audience
to close their eyes to feel Jyoti and
when Pinto ended her speech ask-
ing the audience to imagine the
greatest source of light they could
think of empowering them to take
a stance.
India’s Daughter pushes women’s rights Netflix breaks in Kimmy
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
SENIOR STAFFWRITER
Netflix has become famous
for streaming its original dramas,
such as House of Cards and Orange
is the New Black. This month, how-
ever, it premiered the comedy se-
ries Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,
which creators hope will join the
ranks of its heavyweight prede-
cessors as a critically acclaimed
juggernaut.
NBC originally won the rights
to air the comedy, but the deal
fell through last year, and cre-
ators Tina Fey and Robert Carlock
went shopping for a new home for
the program.
Kimmy tells the story of a group
of women who, after living under a
cult leader for 15 years, are thrown
back into the real world, which has
been modernized since they were
last free. The series is told through
the eyes of Kimmy Schmidt as
she attempts to start her life over
again, letting nothing stop her in
her quest for a fresh start.
Ellie Kemper, most famous for
playing receptionist Erin Hannon
in The Office, portrays the titular
character. She is a carefree woman
who, after being saved by the au-
thorities from the cult leader, de-
cides to leave her hometown and
move to New York City. The big
city puts up a lot of hurdles, most
notably who to move in with in the
premiere episode since she has no
friends or relatives in the area and
no source of income.
Playing the role of her even-
tual roommate is Tituss Burgess,
who plays Titus Andromedon. An-
dromedon is an aspiring Broad-
way performer, currently down
on his luck and making ends meet
by working as Iron Man in Times
Square. He is originally cold to
Schmidt’s plight, as he wants to
live alone and does not care much
for others. However, through
various hilarious adventures, he
grows to bond with her, albeit
begrudgingly.
Carol Kane, who lives above
Schmidt and Andromedon, plays
their landlord Lillian Kaush-
tupper. Kaushtupper cares a lot
for Andromedon but that does not
stop her from attempting to evict
him for not having paid rent in
months. Schmidt offers to pay the
back rent if she is allowed to stay
with Andromedon, who reluctant-
ly agrees but not before ensuring
he gets the bigger room.
Schmidt’s search for a job final-
ly comes to an end after she agrees
to become a nanny for the family
of Jacqueline Voorhees, played by
Jane Krakowski. Schmidt begins
different relationships with Voor-
hees and her two stepchildren,
Xanthippe and Buckley, played by
Dylan Gelula and Tanner Flood.
Jacqueline, though hesitant at first,
eventually becomes friends with
Schmidt, who helps her through
problems of her own. Schmidt be-
friends Buckley, who is a spoiled
child, by letting him get what he
wants. Xanthippe, however, abso-
lutely despises her and will stop at
nothing to get her fired.
Schmidt is a kind, lovable pro-
tagonist who goes through rough
patches throughout the 13-epi-
sode season. Although she loses
hope on the future in some in-
stances, flashbacks from her time
trapped in her cult’s bunker re-
mind her of life’s obstacles and
ways she can overcome them.
The character’s interactions
not only provide comic relief but
also serve to provide hope to any
viewer who might have lost it at
one point or another. This mes-
sage of hope will serve Kimmy well
in its future.

MARCH 9, 2015 THETICKER ARTS & STYLE I PAGE 13
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
STAFFWRITER
The Underwoods are back and
this time they are fighting to stay
in power.
The Netflix original series House
of Cards returned for its third sea-
son, consisting of 13 episodes, on
Feb. 27, much to the anticipation
of viewers. Reprising their roles
as series leads are Kevin Spacey
and Robin Wright as president
and first lady of the United States.
House of Cards was created as part
of Netflix’s foray into producing
original programming, and the
flagship series shows no sign of
going away.
House of Cards tells the story of
now former House Majority Whip
Francis J. Underwood and his wife,
Claire, and their various machina-
tions in the world of politics. The
first two seasons focus on the Un-
derwoods’ ascension up the po-
litical ladder after then-President
Garrett Walker promised Francis
the office of the secretary of state
before winning the election but
later reneged.
Through various underhanded
schemes, Francis gets selected to
be vice president after removing
the incumbent by offering him a
more desirable position. He re-
moves any evidence of these plots
along the way, including shoving
first season’s Zoe Barnes, played
by Kate Mara, into the path of
a moving train, but one loose
end remains.
His Chief of Staff, Doug Stamp-
er, played by Michael Kelly, is his
enforcer, carrying out most of the
dirty deeds that Francis’ power
struggle requires. Stamper, a re-
covering alcoholic, usually follows
through on his orders but falls in
love with a prostitute, Rachel, who
becomes a part of Francis’ political
chess game.
Though he is tasked with kill-
ing her, Stamper hesitates on fol-
lowing through, which results in
Rachel beating him to near death
at the end of the second season. In
the season finale Francis succeeds
in getting Walker to step aside.
Thus, he is is elevated to U.S. Presi-
dent, despite having never had a
vote cast in his favor. Rachel on
the run and Stamper’s uncertain
fate provide obstacles on Francis’
road to power heading into the
new season.
The third season sees the return
of some characters from previous
seasons. It also introduces new
characters central to the new plot.
Returning characters include Molly
Parker as House Minority Whip
Jackie Sharp, Maherasha Ali as new
Chief of Staff Remy Danton, Eliza-
beth Marvel as Solicitor General
Heather Dunbar, Derek Cecil as
Press Secretary Seth Grayson and
Jayne Atkinson as Secretary of State
Catherine Durant.
Each of these characters in
some way led to Francis’ ascen-
sion and have all been rewarded
with prominent positions in his
inner circle. The president faces
pushback, however, when he at-
tains his ultimate goal but cannot
keep all his promises to his many
loyalists.
New to the House of Cards uni-
verse this season are Kim Dickens,
Lars Mikkelsen and Paul Sparks, as
White House correspondent Kate
Baldwin, award-winning author
Thomas Yates and Russian Presi-
dent Viktor Petrov, respectively.
Baldwin is a tough-as-nails jour-
nalist who is aware of how corrupt
Francis is. Yates is an author whom
the president seeks personally af-
ter his initial attempt at a jobs plan
falls flat in Congress.
Petrov is the main antagonist
to Francis’ plans in the third sea-
son, trying to undermine U.S. for-
eign policy in order to advance
his own country. Although the
presidents try to reach a peace
agreement early in the season,
talks quickly fall through escalat-
ing into a political war. Petrov is
obviously a fictionalized version of
Vladimir Putin.
Besides Francis’ actual gover-
nance of the country and the con-
tinued Rachel storyline, a notable
side plot of the season is the effect
the White House has on the Under-
wood marriage. Though they have
worked as a team to reach their mu-
tual goal, the Underwoods begin to
develop cracks in their relationship
throughout the season. Their new
goals to govern the country do not
always align, which leads them
to be continuously at odds with
each other.
House of Cards, now an Emmy-
winning drama, has quickly risen
to the top of the television ranks,
much like its characters. It is a de-
licious story of a ruthless couple
stopping at nothing to get what they
want, even committing murder.
Although these actions are usu-
ally deplorable, characters also
have human moments and become
anti-heroes in their own right.
While some root for their eventual
comeuppance, other viewers, in
the end, hope that the Underwoods
continue to deliver more seasons of
great drama.
Netflix hit House of Cards returns for its riveting third season
The third season was uploaded to Netflix two weeks prior to its release, but it was taken down shortly thereafter.
WWW.HOUSEOFCARDS.WIKIA.COM
BY LUIS LUCERO
STAFFWRITER
Larry David, the creator of the
critically acclaimed and Emmy
Award-winning sitcoms Seinfeld
and Curb Your Enthusiasm, has
teamed up with Tony Award-win-
ning stage director Anna Shapiro,
who has most recently directed the
surprise Broadway hits Of Mice and
Men and This Is Our Youth, to bring
his quirky and irreverent style of
comedy to Broadway.
While Fish in the Dark, David’s
playwright debut, will run for 18
weeks beginning March 5 at the
Cort Theatre, it has already been
performed for several weeks to
sold-out crowds during its preview
run. It has gotten to the point where
several of his Seinfeld and Curb col-
leagues have had a hard time get-
ting seats for previews. Consider-
ing the successful previews, it is
evident that David has a big hit on
his hands.
The play stars David and Ben
Shenkman as Norman and Arthur
Drexel, respectively, two brothers
who are dealing with the death of
their father and figuring out who
he intended to have carry out his
dying wish.
What starts out as feud be-
tween two brothers soon escalates
to include their cantankerous
mother (Jayne Houdyshell), Nor-
man’s frustrated wife (Rita Wilson)
and even his cunning housemaid
(Rosie Perez). The rest of the play
sees David trying to wind his way
around the endless problems that
this family feud spawned. While
the play uses the typical death-in-
the-family storyline, what David
and Shapiro do with it that makes
the play as great as it is.
David has incorporated many
tropes and gags that audiences
have enjoyed from both of his
shows. From the black comedy
to the hilariously awkward situ-
ations the characters find them-
selves in, if it has been previously
used with successful results by
David, it has been incorporated
into the play.
The surprising part is that many
of the jokes that are recycled for the
play are just as funny now as they
were in their respective shows, a
testament to David’s comedic ge-
nius both on and off camera.
Even with the occasional sense
of familiarity, David shows that
he still has a few new tricks up his
sleeve. One such example of this is
the segues between the three main
sets: the hospital waiting room,
Norman’s house and the man-
sion of the Drexel patriarch. These
segues are primarily done with an
animated death certificate that is
projected on the curtain.
While it slowly fills itself in
normally, by the halfway point,
it then takes on a life of its own
by cleverly illustrating events in
the story that have already hap-
pened as well as future incidents in
the storyline.
The music used in the play is
brief and incidental. But com-
pared to the simple bass guitar
beats of Seinfeld and the stock
cartoon music of Curb, Fish in the
Dark’s score is more fleshed-out
and engaging.
Bringing it all together is the
tremendous cast that David as-
sembled for the play. Despite the
character having a different name,
David’s portrayal of Norman is
more or less exactly the same as
his performance of himself in
Curb. He is just as neurotic and
obnoxious, and his ability to start
fights over meaningless things is as
prominent as ever.
Even his wardrobe on the stage
is no less casual and laid-back
than on the screen. With all that
said, Norman was written in a way
that could only truly be played by
David, since no other actor could
come close to giving off the same
crazy vibe he delivered. Also, he
has a surprising amount of stage
presence for an actor who has
only had two lead roles prior to his
theatrical debut.
Shenkman’s performance as Ar-
thur rings some bells of Jeff Garlin’s
performance of David’s manager
and best friend on Curb. His orga-
nized and considerate personality
is the polar opposite of Norman’s
selfish and delusional persona. As
a comedic foil, Shenkman brings
a layer of sibling annoyance and
passive aggressiveness to counter-
balance David’s character.
As the mother of the Drexel
brothers, Houdyshell brings some
flashbacks from both Seinfeld and
Curb. Her performance shares sim-
ilarities with both Estelle Harris’
sarcastic and overbearing perfor-
mance of Estelle Costanza on Sein-
feld and Susie Essman’s bombastic
performance from Curb. There are
times during the play when she
steals the entire scene from David
and Shenkman.
Rounding out the cast is Perez.
Aside from David, she is the only
other recognizable face in the cast.
Perez brings the exaggerated for-
eign character that David seems
to love to include in both of his TV
shows. Her performance in this
play is a fun combination of her
usual sassy persona and David’s
trademark dry humor.
While its run will be short, Fish
in the Dark will no doubt continue
to create quite the buzz on Broad-
way with its comedy. For fans of
David’s work, it will definitely
make up for the long delayed ninth
season of Curb.
Seinfeld creator brings laughter to Broadway in Fish in the Dark
Davidhasincorporated
manytropesandgagsthat
audienceshaveenjoyed
frombothofhisshows.
Fromtheblackcomedy
tothehilariouslyawkward
situationsthecharactersfind
themselvesin,ifithasbeen
previouslyusedwithsuccessful
resultsbyDavid,ithasbeen
incorporatedintotheplay.
David, Sheepshead Bay native, shares the stage with his co-starWilson, executive producer of Mamma Mia!, the film.
WWW.BROADWAY.COM

ITHETICKER ARTS & STYLE MARCH 2, 2015
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
STAFFWRITER
Back for an unprecedented
30th season, the hit CBS reality
television show Survivor contin-
ues its historic run with the pre-
miere of Survivor: Worlds Apart on
Wednesday, Feb. 25. Considered
the grandfather of modern reality
television competition shows, Sur-
vivor regularly throws in themes
for each season, and this season is
no exception.
Worlds Apart gathers contes-
tants from different walks of life
and splits them into three tribes.
Tribes are divided among a white-
collar tribe, which has contestants
with affluent backgrounds, a blue-
collar tribe, which features people
who work lower-class, more labor-
oriented jobs, and a no-collar tribe,
which consists of contestants who
are free spirits. This season’s theme
is just the latest in a long list of
social experiments Survivor has
pitched to audiences, and this sea-
son promises to showcase to view-
ers how different backgrounds deal
with similar situations.
Survivor premiered on May 30,
2000, and had resounding success.
Over 50 million viewers watched
the finale of season one, Survivor:
Borneo, with double that number
having watched at least part of
the finale, according to its Nielsen
ratings. Survivor was developed
for American television by Mark
Burnett and is based on Swedish
program Expedition Robinson.
The idea for the show was based
upon a social experiment that
placed ordinary Americans into a
remote environment, isolated from
the rest of the world. The element
of competition for a million dol-
lars creates drama, which always
makes for compelling reality tele-
vision. Survivor is played with an
even mix of two to four tribes in
every season.
Tribes are given only a bag of
rice, which they are expected to
ration. Competitions are played
among tribes for rewards, which
include food and comfort items.
Tribes also compete in immunity
challenges in every episode, which
result in the losing tribe head-
ing to tribal council. There, one
of the losing tribe’s members is
voted off by a secret majority vote.
Once the number of contestants
is whittled down to anywhere be-
tween nine and 12 contestants,
depending on the seasons, the
tribes merge and all immunity
challenges become challenges for
individual immunity.
The game is played until there
are two to three contestants, which
again, varies by season. The seven
to nine eliminated contestants
comprise the jury, which decides
by a majority vote who should win
the million-dollar grand prize.
While the format might have got-
ten stale and boring after a while,
Survivor producers and host Jeff
Probst have come up with new
ideas for every season to keep
both contestants and viewers
on their toes.
The first season was not filled
with much of the drama that is
considered the norm in modern
seasons. Contestants, for the most
part, were content in letting the
chips fall where they may, even if
that meant their elimination. This,
however, was not the case for inau-
gural winner Richard Hatch, who
still remains one of reality televi-
sion’s most infamous villains.
Hatch was honest about his in-
tentions to do whatever necessary
to win, which the jury rewarded
him for over the sneakier Kelly
Wigglesworth. Hatch is also re-
membered for not paying taxes on
his million-dollar payday, which
landed him in prison, serving a
60-month jail sentence.
Survivor has only recently ad-
opted the casting formula of bring-
ing together different groups of
people, such as dividing tribes by
gender, age and by far the most
controversial, race, in Survivor’s
13th season. Contestants in Survi-
vor: Cook Islands were divided into
four tribes of five people each.
The tribes consisted of Cauca-
sians, Asian-Americans, Latinos,
and African-Americans. The sea-
son sparked debates about wheth-
er this would renew racial tensions
among contestants and fans alike.
Although there was much contro-
versy surrounding its premiere,
the season concluded with no ma-
jor scandals, which helped keep
Survivor on the air.
The most refreshing part of Sur-
vivor, especially for lifelong fans
who have been watching since the
first season, is that every season
contains different people with dif-
ferent results and serves as a micro-
cosm of the real world. The interac-
tions among contestants may serve
as entertainment for the viewer but
also spark interesting conversa-
tions as to the lengths some will go
to win a small fortune.
On some seasons, honesty and
integrity have allowed contestants
to claim victory, while in oth-
ers, ruthless gameplay is cheered
on and rewarded. This holds true
in life, as it does in the game of
Survivor. Whatever strategy con-
testants move forward with, they
should be prepared to live with
the consequences.
SPORTS EDITOR
If all it took were a couple of
singles to go big-time, Big Sean
would be a legend by now. Big
Sean’s commercial appeal is well
documented; his catchy ad-libs
and simple punch lines are easy for
anyone to follow. But mainstream
success only earned him respect
as a pop artist. He had to prove to
his peers and to the underground
that rap was more to him than just
a meal ticket.
This is not to say that Big Sean
is not talented. His earlier projects
like Finally Famous Vol. 3: Big and
Detroit were promising when they
were first released, enough so to
warrant features from the likes of
J. Cole, Common and Kendrick La-
mar. His first official album was a
different story though.
Finally Famous was mediocre
and shallow. Released at the height
of “hashtag-rap,” Big Sean’s first al-
bum was obviously geared toward
being a radio-wave pleaser. Need-
less to say, no one took him seri-
ously. Most people thought he was
a joke rapper. This reputation car-
ried over in G.O.O.D. Music’s Cruel
Summer album, and because of
that, he was more of a footnote than
an actual contributor to the project.
However, his second album, Hall
of Fame, was Big Sean’s first step
toward maturing as an artist.
Taking cues from his sensei,
Kanye West, this project is a bom-
bastic effort for Big Sean. The only
problem is that at this point in his
career, the lyrics resemble brag-
gadocio more than anything else.
Despite that, listeners took notice
of his honesty more than before.
Tracks like “Nothing Is Stopping
With You” are more emotionally
charged than others. This is due to
a willingness on Big Sean’s part to
describe the inner machinations of
his daily life and past, as well as an
improvement on his beat selection.
Big Sean’s newest album, Dark
Sky Paradise, picks up right where
he left off. At a compact 12-track
listing (15 on the deluxe edition),
he finds a healthy balance be-
tween modesty and arrogance.
The first two tracks, “Dark Sky
(Skyscrapers)” and “Blessings”
demonstrate this perfectly.
The first shows Big Sean to be
as self-aware as he has ever been,
from the number of breasts he sees
on tour to the number of zeroes on
his latest check, he boasts about all
the usual luxuries rappers enjoy. At
the same time though, he refers to
his beginnings as a child, teen, and
burgeoning rapper and superstar. It
is clear that Big Sean has mastered
the art of the humble brag.
“Blessings,”whichhasacutfrom
Drake, is an understated banger.
The beat itself is moody and low-
key with droning basses and synths
that fit perfectly with the lyrics. Big
Sean and Drake take turns talking
about the roads their careers have
taken up to this point. The song
feels longer than its four minutes
and 12 seconds, and though it is a
single, it feels more like a long sip of
whiskey than a shot of tequila.
The third song, “All Your Fault”
continues the opening song’s
strong start. With a feature from
West included, Big Sean takes shots
at his ex-girlfriend while hyping
up his current situation. West sup-
plies him with the dose of insanity
every G.O.O.D. Music song needs
while also providing a soulful and
operatic sampling.
The album slows down a bit
around the seventh track, “Win
Some, Lose Some.” Jhene Aiko pro-
vides the hook and Big Sean goes
to work, this time diving into the
more vulnerable side of his per-
sona. Big Sean is not invincible,
and he knows that. Like Drake, he
is not afraid to show that he too is
capable of being hurt, especially
by women.
In the tenth track, “Deep,” Big
Sean gets lost in his own mind. It
seems like he tried to get existen-
tial, but it falls flat. Though he has
matured a great deal, there are mo-
ments where he tries too hard. This
is one of them. Talking about how
deep his own lyrics are is not going
to help his cause, especially when
he has a washed-up Lil Wayne
helping him. It sounds like some-
thing he made when he was stoned
and forgot to delete.
Luckily, he ends the album on a
high note. The second-to-last song,
“One Man Can Change The World,”
is Big Sean’s crack at a power
ballad. It is beautiful.
With John Legend and West’s
best 808s and Heartbreak voice on
the hook, Big Sean takes listeners
on a journey through his child-
hood. He spills his heart talking
about his loved ones, specifically
his parents. It is an emotionally
stimulating experience that will
penetrate anyone’s heart.
Big Sean has a come a long way
from his days as an over-confident
Kidz Bop rapper. Though he has
blips here and there, he is more
confident in his own identity and
not the one created for him by com-
mercial singles. This time around,
Big Sean is forging his legacy on his
own terms.
Big Sean establishes himself on serious terms with latest release
Though Big Sean began the recording process back in 2013, he did not ﬁnish DarkSkyParadiseuntil January this year.
WorldsApartwas ﬁlmed in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, the same location used for three previous seasons of Survivor.
WWW.TVGUIDE.COM
Onsomeseasons,honestyandintegrityhaveallowedcontestantstoclaimvictory,whileinothers,
ruthlessgameplayischeeredandrewarded.Thisholdstrueinlifeasitdoesinthegame.Whatever
strategycontestantsmoveforwardwith,theyshouldbepreparedtolivewiththeconsequences.
WWW.HOTNEWHIPHOP.COM
CBS’ Survivor celebrates its 30th season with Worlds Apart

FEBRUARY 23, 2015 THETICKER ARTS & STYLE I PAGE 11
BY LUIS LUCERO
STAFFWRITER
Shortly before television view-
ers across the country witnessed
the end of Walter White’s gripping
story arc of personal destruction on
Breaking Bad, series creator Vince
Gilligan announced that he was de-
veloping a spinoff series featuring
the show’s corrupt, hysterical law-
yer, Saul Goodman. After two years
of format changes, filming and
multiple delayed premiere dates,
Better Call Saul finally premiered
on Feb. 8 with two episodes across
two nights.
While the announcement of
the show was cause for excitement
and speculation among Breaking
Bad fans, there were also those
who were skeptical as to whether
or not the show could work. Typi-
cally, spinoffs to popular TV shows
have a very hard time escaping the
shadow of the original.
It may disappoint audiences by
not coming close to the quality of
the original show, or it may gain
positive reactions as a serviceable
series that manages to act as an en-
tertaining distraction to the source
show, or, in very rare cases, actually
stand on its own two feet as a show
that eclipses the original at times.
Better Call Saul has shown that
it undoubtedly fits into that rare
third category.
The pilot episode, aptly titled
“Uno,” opens up with the tra-
ditional long cold opening that
viewers have long come to associ-
ate with Breaking Bad. This time
around, it serves as a way of pro-
viding an expanded epilogue for
the original show, or in this case,
Goodman’s story. While the be-
ginning setup is satisfying way of
hooking viewers, the creative deci-
sion to film it in black and white is
absolute genius.
Not only does it bring back a
few flashbacks from similar scenes
in Breaking Bad, it also gives view-
ers an idea of how difficult it is for
Goodman to adjust to his post-
criminal lawyer life. As expected,
Goodman’s pre-Breaking Bad life
is told with regular color cinema-
tography. Without giving much
away, all that can be said is that
the transition from the black and
white opening to the color show
is a testament to Gilligan’s genius
storytelling methods.
After the opening, the audience
is finally introduced to the young
Goodman, or James McGill, as he
was known then. McGill is a strug-
gling lawyer that is trying to stay
afloat. Even as a young lawyer, he
shows many of the same quick wit-
ted and sneaky traits that he carries
over into the future.
Halfway through the pilot, Mc-
Gill gets involved into an extortion
scheme that will serve as the main
story arc for the season. The overall
story and dialogue are just as sharp
as in the Breaking Bad days. Gilli-
gan provides the perfect balance of
both intense drama and hysterical
black comedy that results in some
of the best television in ages.
Several characters from Break-
ing Bad make appearances over the
course of the series, either as recur-
ring characters or just for the sake
of a fan service cameo.
Reprising his role of Saul
Goodman/James McGill is Bob
Odenkirk. As a supporting actor
on Breaking Bad, Odenkirk pro-
vided the comic relief for a show
that already had its fair amount of
black humor. One of the biggest
questions leading to the premiere
was whether he could be a good
leading actor.
In first two episodes of Better
Call Saul, Odenkirk has shown
himself to be more than capable of
carrying an entire series. It could
even be argued that his perfor-
mance in this show even rivals
Bryan Cranston’s performance of
White. Aside from still being as
quick-witted and passive aggres-
sive as ever, he adds a layer of un-
certainty and nervousness.
So far, the only other Breaking
Bad character to appear on the
show is Mike, played by Jonathan
Banks. While his role on the show
will be greatly expanded as the se-
ries continues, his role in the first
two episodes was mainly to serve
as a comic foil for McGill.
One of the new characters of
the show is James’ brother, Chuck
McGill, played by Michael McK-
ean. He is basically the complete
opposite of James. Chuck is also a
lawyer but he is far more success-
ful and financially stable than his
brother. But at the start of the se-
ries, he is shown to suffer a mas-
sive mental breakdown, and now
James has to take care of his broth-
er’s issues while juggling his own
problems. McKean’s performance
makes viewers both feel annoyed
by Chuck yet also feel sympathetic
for his plight.
As far as new shows of 2015 go,
Better Call Saul is among the best
so far, and it is one of the very few
spinoffs to both live up to all the
massive hype building up to the
premiere and completely escape
the shadow of the original show in
the process. Hopefully, this show
continues to gets better with each
consecutive episode and season.
Gilligan invokes Breaking Bad’s dark humor in Better Call Saul
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
STAFFWRITER
Valentine’s Day weekend usu-
ally offers a slew of romantic mov-
ies, but one movie shattered all
records for movies debuting dur-
ing the holiday. 50 Shades of Grey
managed to defy the box office
odds that are typically not kind to
movie premieres, and made a stag-
gering $90 million over the week-
end, including President’s Day.
50 Shades of Grey was released
on Feb. 13. It is based on E.L.
James’ bestselling novel of the
same name. The film stars Dakota
Johnson as Anastasia Steele, a vir-
gin college graduate, and Jamie
Dornan as Christian Grey, a young
billionaire businessman.
The film tells the story of the re-
lationship between the two main
characters, evolving from a chance
meeting. When her roommate falls
ill, Ana replaces her as Christian’s
interviewer. This encounter soon
evolves into a romantic relation-
ship, which takes a surprising turn
once Christian reveals his true in-
tentions for pursuing Ana.
Christian reveals to her that he
enjoys being the dominant partner
in a sadomasochistic relationship
and seeks her approval to accept
his terms and be his submissive
partner. This surprises Ana as
she never had a sexual encounter
prior to meeting Christian. She
has to decide if she wants to al-
low Christian to inflict pain on
her in order to continue spending
time with him.
The movie did not stray far from
the book, besides minor changes
necessary to contain the film to a
reasonable time limit. One big dif-
ference readers of the novel will
likely have noticed is the film’s
abrupt ending, ending one scene
earlier if it had followed the novel’s
ending. Besides its success in the
United States, 50 Shades of Grey
has also managed to succeed glob-
ally, banking over $160 million at
the box office through Sunday.
Although 50 Shades of Grey
achieved monetary success in its
opening weekend, the movie did
not premiere without its share of
controversy. Before its U.S. release,
the National Center for Sexual Ex-
ploitation sought to halt the film’s
premiere, citing concerns of its
depiction of Christian and Ana’s
sexual relationship. The center
stated that the movie “is really
about sexual abuse and violence
against women.” The center’s mis-
sion was obviously in vain as the
film premiered in the United States
without delay.
However, the sadomasochistic
nature of the relationship in the
film has affected its release global-
ly. Although scheduled for a Feb.12
release in Malaysia, the film was
denied a certificate by the Malay-
sian Film Censorship Board for its
content. Other countries, includ-
ing Kenya and Indonesia, followed
suit. The Philippines took a more
lenient approach, opting to cen-
sor the film’s sex scenes while still
allowing the film a limited release.
Moviegoers who enjoyed the
film and did not read the novel will
be happy to know that 50 Shades of
Grey is actually the first in a trilogy,
which continues to tell the story of
the main character’s relationship.
After the film’s success, a sequel
has been given the green light, slat-
ed for an early 2016 premiere. Un-
doubtedly, a third or even fourth
film will also be in the works, wrap-
ping up the novels.
Despite the controversy sur-
rounding the novels, the film was
entertaining in delving into an as-
pect of relationships, which is usu-
ally taboo to display, let alone talk
about. The novel’s success had al-
ready attracted controversy, so the
same was expected when the film
was due to be produced. The main
actors did a great job playing their
roles of dominant and submis-
sive partners in the relationship,
and their chemistry is undeniable
throughout the movie.
50 Shades of Grey is never go-
ing to please all moviegoers. The
dialogue is at times cheesy and
the content is racy, but it has elic-
ited strong reactions from fans
and detractors alike, thus helping
it to achieve its strong box office
numbers. Certainly, when sequels
50 Shades Darker and 50 Shades
Freed are released, the debates
over the film’s content will renew.
BY DAMLA BEK
ARTS & STYLE EDITOR
The main problem with If
You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late is
that it fails to strike a balance be-
tween soft Drake and hard Drake.
Drake is chided all across the In-
ternet for being too soft, but in
this latest release, he is simply not
soft enough. He has either devel-
oped a protective outer shell in re-
sponse to all the criticism or he is
over-compensating.
To exemplify this point, both
Take Care and Nothing Was the
Same maintained some sem-
blance of equilibrium; “HYFR”
balances out “Make Me Proud,”
and “Started From The Bottom”
counters “From Time.”
Drake’s whole brand is found-
ed upon the notion that he is in
touch with his emotions. If You’re
Reading This strays so far from his
otherwise fixed formula it is dis-
arming. This mixtape is pure rap-
ping, so fans who appreciate the
vulnerability of Drake’s singing
will be sorely disappointed.
Even if the ratio is off, Drake
attempted to pull a Beyonce; If
You’re Reading This was released
on Feb. 15 to ecstatic fans with no
prior announcements or adver-
tising. To his credit, this mixtape
debuted at the No. 1 spot on the
Billboard 100.
Drake starts out strong with
“Legend,” in which he establish-
es himself as something of a big
deal. In the chorus he comes to
a breakthrough realization that,
“If I die, I’m a legend.” Drake is
the 6 God, the founder of OVO
Sound, so at the very least, he
has the evidence to back up his
weighty claims.
Drake moves on to “Energy,”
which is less aurally pleasing
than its predecessor. However,
it fits the bill perfectly in that he
uses the opportunity to address
his enemies.
In “10 Bands,” Drake shows off
the wealth he has accumulated
over the course of his career. The
backing beats provide an airy con-
trast to the density of his rapping,
but lyrically speaking, this song is
lacking. “Know Yourself” is an un-
deniable banger. Again, the beats
here are light to the point of be-
ing whimsical. Though Drake is
“running the 6 with his woes,” his
producers Boi-1da, Vinylz and Sik
Sense deserve more credit.
Likewise, “6 God” is on the
same level. Drake is, of course,
alluding to the area code for To-
ronto. Though his dedication
to his hometown is admirable,
the constant references are a
little tiresome.
Of the 17 total tracks, there
are four distinctly soft-ish songs
on this mixtape. Each of these
songs is unapologetically vulner-
able, and for this reason, they are
some of the better songs on the
album. The first is “Preach,” fea-
turing PARTYNEXTDOOR, which
sounds vaguely like Drake is hav-
ing a religious experience in the
recording booth.
“Wednesday Night Interlude”
is even more out there. It is a dec-
laration of loneliness, of aching
desire for the company of an ex-
girlfriend. Conversely, “Now and
Forever” embodies a sentiment of
dissatisfaction. Lastly, “Jungle” is
the best song on If You’re Reading
This. It is somewhat low-key but
still catchy enough to echo in a lis-
tener’s mind. It is the ideal song for
a bedroom.
If You’re Reading This is ul-
timately a hit or miss mixtape.
Drake is probably satisfied with his
efforts to assert himself, and some
fans may appreciate where he is
coming from, but there was never
a need to alienate soft Drake.
50 Shades achieves box office success
Prior to BetterCallSaul, which scored the highest debut ratings in the history of cableTV, Gilligan worked on anX-Filesspinoﬀ.
WWW.IMDB.COM
Drake does himself in
Although50ShadesofGreyachievedmonetarysuccessin
itsopeningweekend,themoviedidnotpremierewithout
itsshareofcontroversy.BeforetheU.S.release,theNational
CenterforSexualExploitationsoughttohalttheﬁlm’spremiere,
citingconcernsofitsdepictionofChristianandAna’ssexual
relationship.Thecenterstatedthatthemovie“isreallyabout
sexualabuseandviolenceagainstwomen.”

FEBRUARY 9, 2015 THETICKER SPECIAL I PAGE 13
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11
Many studies have been con-
ducted to try to determine exactly
how influential Saturday Night
Live’s political sketches are to the
voting public. According to Joe
Saltzman, a professor in the Uni-
versity of Southern California’s An-
nenberg School for Communica-
tion, “The perception is that there’s
an audience that cites its primary
news source as predominantly en-
tertainment shows and, if valid,
this certainly would have an impact
on the presidential election.”
There is a portion of the popu-
lation that receives their political
information strictly from comedy
shows such as Saturday Night Live,
illustrating that viewers are im-
pacted by political humor that may
translate into how viewers perceive
certain candidates.
Even though Saturday Night
Live creates content that serves as
social commentary, simply put,
its primary purpose is to make
the audience laugh. This has
proven to be an increasingly im-
portant job in a world that can be
chaotic and unpredictable. At a
time when the country was over-
whelmed with confusion and pain,
Saturday Night Live’s brand of
comedy helped to relieve tension
after 9/11.
The moment when Michaels
turned to then-Mayor Rudy Gi-
uliani and asked, “Can we be fun-
ny?” to which the mayor respond-
ed, “Why start now?” illustrated
to the nation that it was OK to
laugh again.
Though many regard Saturday
Night Live as one of the country’s
biggest institutions, it has been
known to lack hiring diverse em-
ployees. The majority of the cast
has consistently been Caucasian
and male. It has been revealed that
in the early days of the show, get-
ting material on the program as a
female writer was more difficult.
Casting has evolved through the
years, allowing for the top women
in comedy to anchor the show, but
more work needs to be done in or-
der to properly capture the voice of
the country.
Comedian W. Kamau Bell
brings up the program’s diver-
sity issue, saying Saturday Night
Live is “rooted in the tradition of
schools like UCB and Second City,
and does not necessarily appeal
to or include people with other
perspectives.”
Since most of the cast members
are found through improv schools,
which also have diversity issues,
many writers and performers are
overlooked in the hiring process.
Multiple perspectives are impera-
tive in comedy in order to relate
to a broad audience. Recently, ac-
tive steps have been taken by Mi-
chaels to seek out a more diverse
cast and writing staff. Sasheer
Zamata was hired as a cast mem-
ber, and writers Michael Che and
Leslie Jones were promoted to
cast positions.
The nature of Saturday Night
Live’s casting system will always
lead to backlash from audiences.
Since the show’s inception, cast
changes have received great skep-
ticism. Comedy icons such as Will
Ferrell, Adam Sandler and Jimmy
Fallon were all initially criticized
by the media and fans as being the
downfall of the show. Repertory
players and new players alike have
to prove that they are worthy of be-
ing a part of the institution that is
Saturday Night Live.
Recent years have proven to be
remodeling years as beloved veter-
an cast members Fred Armisen, Bill
Hader, Kristen Wigg and Jason Su-
deikis have all parted ways. But the
show has found stars in the likes of
Kate McKinnon, Taran Killam, Jay
Pharoah, Aidy Bryant and Cecily
Strong who all bring their unique
comedic sensibilities as well as un-
canny celebrity impressions. Van-
essa Bayer, Bobby Moynihan and
Kenan Thompson continue their
reign as dependable senior mem-
bers of the show. Michaels has
found unique stars in Beck Bennett
and Kyle Mooney, whose style of
comedy was discovered through a
Web series.
This season, Saturday Night
Live has also expanded the cast
to include stand-up comedian
Pete Davidson, who was hired at
20 years old, making him one of
the youngest cast members in the
show’s history. After 12-and-a-half-
years at the show and eight years as
“Weekend Update” anchor, head
writer Seth Meyers left the program
to host his own late night talk show
in early 2014.
This shift has caused several
changes to the “Weekend Update”
desk, ultimately leading to the cur-
rent lineup of Che and Colin Jost.
This is the first time in Saturday
Night Live history that two men
have co-anchored the segment.
Saturday Night Live has stood
the test of time regardless of the
criticisms it has faced. It will con-
tinue its reign as one of the longest-
running telecasted series. Remod-
eling years will bring skepticism,
and campaign seasons will bring
new viewers. With technology ad-
vancing, emphasis will continue to
be placed on digital content, and
the material will be shortened to
hold our fleeting attention.
The mammoth presence that is
Saturday Night Live will continue to
lure and inspire comedians, actors,
improvisers and writers, hopefully
leading to a voice that represents a
broad range of viewers.
Saturday Night Live remains relevant
Haderispicturedincharacteron“WeekendUpdate”asStefon,anover-the-topguide
to NewYork’s hottest clubs and a counter to Meyers’relative solemnity.
BY JONATHAN ALBUJAR
STAFFWRITER
The 2015 TV season has just be-
gun, but there is already a host of
upcoming shows that have viewers
highly anticipating their premieres.
These programs include a variety
of different genres, from comedies
to science fiction, dramas to horror
and even a few spinoffs. Although
these shows differ in their con-
tent, they all share the same goal:
to capture the viewer’s attention
and stay on our screens for as long
as possible.
Perhaps the most highly antici-
pated premiere of 2015 is the spi-
noff of the critically acclaimed tele-
vision classic Breaking Bad, titled
Better Call Saul, on AMC. Breaking
Bad tells the story of Walter White,
a chemistry professor who resorts
to manufacturing and selling crys-
tal methamphetamine after being
diagnosed with terminal cancer.
He comes to this radical decision in
order to leave behind money for his
family after his death.
Better Call Saul will focus on
the life of Saul Goodman, a lawyer
who was a regular character on
Breaking Bad, always offering legal
advice to the main characters.
Another highly anticipated spi-
noff, tentatively titled Cobalt, also
comes from AMC. Set in the same
universe as The Walking Dead, Co-
balt will tell the story of a group of
survivors of the same zombie apoc-
alypse set in Los Angeles, a differ-
ent location from the original.
Cliff Curtis and Kim Dickens
will play the male and female lead
roles of Sean Cabrera and Nancy
Tomkins, with Nancy’s two chil-
dren filling out the other two an-
nounced main character roles.
More casting announcements are
forthcoming, and Cobalt looks to
emulate The Walking Dead’s rat-
ings and juggernaut status for the
cable network.
Heroes: Reborn also has a pop-
ular predecessor, although it will
be a 13-episode miniseries instead
of a full-fledged spinoff. The sci-
fi drama will share a similar plot
to Heroes, in that regular people
come to discover they possess spe-
cial abilities. The show will also be
preceded by a digital series, which
fans can follow on NBC’s website.
Although flailing ratings doomed
Heroes in its last few years on the
air, Heroes: Reborn hopes to recap-
ture the loyal audience of its first
few seasons, when viewership was
at its highest.
The streaming service Netflix
also has a pair of new offerings for
the 2015 television season. Mar-
vel’s Daredevil, which is part of
the growing number of superhero
television series, will tell the story
of Matt Mourdock and his trans-
formation from a normal blind
man to the crime-fighting super-
hero on the streets of Hell’s Kitchen
in New York.
This marks Netflix’s first foray
into the superhero genre, but with
Marvel dominating with yearly
movies, including the upcom-
ing Avengers sequel, the move to
streaming television seems like a
smart move. All episodes of Dare-
devil will be available on Netflix on
April 10.
Also on the horizon for Netflix is
the comedy Unbreakable Kimmy
Schmidt. Created by Tina Fey and
Robert Carlock, this show will tell
the story of Kimmy Schmidt, who
recently escaped from a doomsday
cult and is starting life over in New
York. Although the show is not set
to stream until March 6, it has al-
ready been given the green light
for two seasons of 13 episodes, dis-
playing Netflix’s confidence in the
success of the program.
Another comedy set for a 2015
premiere is Fresh Off The Boat,
which debuted its first episode on
Feb. 4. The comedy is loosely based
on the life of chef Eddie Huang
and his memoir of the same name.
The comedy will follow an Asian-
American family who moves from
Chinatown in Washington D.C. to
the suburbs of Orlando, Florida,
where the patriarch of the fam-
ily decides to open a Wild West-
themed restaurant.
The family at first has trouble
assimilating to the move, as they
were comfortable with their sur-
roundings in their previous neigh-
borhood, but make the best of their
new place. Fresh Off The Boat aims
to make television history as the
first successful American television
program with an all Asian-Ameri-
can lead cast.
Mixing comedy and drama, Fox
hopes to capture the same suc-
cess fellow horror-anthology series
American Horror Story has en-
joyed over the past four years with
Scream Queens. Expected to pre-
miere in the fall, Scream Queens’s
first season will revolve around
a college campus that has been
rocked by a series of murders.
Leading the cast is legendary
scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis,
who is no stranger to leading hor-
ror films with her appearances in
the Halloween franchise.
Also rounding out the cast
are Lea Michele, Joe Mangani-
ello, Emma Roberts, Abigail Bre-
slin, and Keke Palmer as well as
singer Ariana Grande, who will
appear in a recurring role. Cre-
ated by Ryan Murphy, Scream
Queens is guaranteed to make au-
diences give the premiere a scream
in the fall.
New, highly anticipated television shows to debut on the small screen
WWW.WOWTHATSCOOL.COM
WWW.QUOTEIMG.COM
WWW.NBCNEWS.COM
BetterCallSaulwas planned by creatorVince Gilligan to be developed as a comedic short.
WWW.BLOG.KOLLABORATION.ORG
Huang was wary of selling the rights to his memoir, though he was consulted throughout the production.
DavidSpade,SandlerandChrisFarleyarepicturedincharacterastheGapGirls,three
teenage girls who perfectly embody the drollness of suburban mall culture.

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